The Staton Family

Now That I Am Forever With Child

Now That I am Forever With Child

- Audre Lorde

How the days went

while you were blooming within me

I remember each upon each--

the swelling changed planes of my body

and how you first fluttered, then jumped

and I thought it was my heart.

How the days wound down

and the turning of winter

I recall, with you growing heavy

against the wind. I thought

now her hands

are formed, and her hair

has started to curl

now her teeth are done

now she sneezes.

Then the seed opened

I bore you one morning just before spring

My head rang like a fiery piston

my legs were towers between which

A new world was passing

Since then

I can only distinguish

one thread within running hours

You, flowing through selves

toward You.

Happy fourth birthday, our precious Julian. The world will never be the same.

Chicky Chick and the great big eagle

I'm not gonna lie. I'm posting these on our site because Julian can watch them here and not on YouTube. *Because* on YouTube the Angry Birds videos also pull up a video with a guy missing the back of his head. It's gross.

Julian's latest obsession- good thing he can't read yet

A couple of days ago Jonathan and Julian used the alphabet blocks, a 3 little pigs happy meal toy, and this bird toy to construct a live action game. No catapults yet. Yet.

the re-membering ones

Once upon a time, in another life, I was the TA for Dale Coulter's Introduction to Theology class. While cruising along on the topic of baptism, Dale-- as always-- was giving fair treatment to the many views on the topic in the Christian tradition. I can't remember the exact content of the comment, but some student made a wise crack about how infant baptism isn't really baptism, yada yada yada. And Dale did something which influenced my entire view of the teaching craft. Specifically, he didn't deal with Smarty Pants McSmarterson directly. Instead he sighed and walked around to the front of his desk and sat down and looked at the class. He then proceeded to give the most beautiful description of what happens with infant baptism. He talked about how baptism is a recognition of faith. In adult/believer's baptism, the faith is "obviously" the faith of the person being baptized. But with infant baptism, something very different is happening. Infant baptism is still a recognition of faith, but it is the faith of the community surrounding the child. The community, the family, gather around the child and say, "Our faith will sustain her. When she falters, we will remind her." The community commits to function as a living reminder to this child of who she is, of the fact that she is loved, of the fact that many, many persons are invested in the ongoing act of creation that is her life.

It occurs to me that in the best of cases, this is the way friendships and families work. When we falter and lose that deep connection, that sense of who we are, it doesn't mean that we have to fall apart. Sometimes we get lost or lonely or we just seriously. fuck. up. But those of us who are most fortunate in this life have folks around us who remind us of who we are. It is their faith in us and their vision of who we are that sustains us-- not forever, but until we can get on our feet again. When the world seems to go all topsy turvy, we don't have to rely on our internal guidance instruments. Sometimes and maybe, just maybe, it is enough... or maybe it is just a beginning... to be with those who have known us for so long, who can remind us. They are the living reminders. When we fall apart and have dismembered ourselves, they are the re-membering ones. They put us back together by looking through the mess and seeing what was once and is always true in us.

Jonathan and I are immensely fortunate to live our lives in the midst of a strong web of connection. Every place we have lived we've worked hard to cultivate relationships. I feel like I looked through 1000 pictures tonight. There are so many faces, so many connections, reminding me if I feel lost, a glimpse of who I am is only a phone call away.

Tonight I'm thankful for the re-membering ones and I feel the beautiful heavy weight of the solemn responsibility to re-member when the time comes.

New Digs

Well, it's official. The Statons are no longer Bogart folk. Today we bid farewell to the little place that has been our home since we came back from Scotland. We handed over the keys and drove away.

We are excited about our new home, but leaving our old one was more emotional than I expected. Julian learned to walk in that house. He lived there longer than anywhere else. Chelsea's last days were spent there. We learned that Dumplin' was on the way in that house. Jonathan and I spent lots of time and energy reforming our relationship in that space. Lots of memories in 1400 square feet. ;)

We're excited about our new place. The location is awesome. We're really close to the YMCA. It only takes us five minutes (!) to get to Julian's school and Jonathan's new office space downtown. The house and yard are great. We actually have plenty of room and we're already making great use of the big yard, deck, and patio. Julian will tell you that he loves his new house. ;) Dumplin' is due to be here in about 3 months and in our new place he'll actually have a room of his own! Don't get me wrong... I'm not delusional enough to think he'll spend too much time there. For now it'll just be a holding place for all that baby stuff! We commented today that we've seen Samson wag his tail more in the last two days than we have in the last two months. Mama and Daddy are pretty happy as well. Happy family.

We're looking forward to making lots of great memories in the new place, with lots of friends and family coming our way. So if you're going to be in our neck of the woods just let us know and come see us!

Merry Christmas, y'all!

- by Beth

Here we are, on the brink of a new year. I can proudly say

that I sent not one single Christmas card, so our tradition of the last thirteen years remains intact. We went with Davey and Meredith to chop down our own tree, only to choose one of the pre-cut Fraser firs on hand. ;) We watered the tree when we got it home, and maybe once since then. We never did get all the ornaments on the tree, but there sure was a cute conglomeration of non-breakable ornaments at the 2 1/2 foot level. Seriously cute. Julian spent a lot of time transferring ornaments from the mini-tree in the dining room (lime green metallic, my favorite for years) onto the big tree in the living room.

Since Thanksgiving we've been through some serious health issues in our extended family, l had a not-so-nice stomach virus, and I had to go to the ER. Jonathan started a great new job with a company called Scoutware of Illinois. We survived Jonathan's week-long business trip to Chicago. (I think that was probably harder on Daddy than on Mama & Julian!) Yet we celebrated four Christmases-- traditional grazing dinner & white elephant gifts with my mom, Lake Lanier Night of Lights with my dad & step-mom, our Christmas morning at home, and Christmas lunch at Jonathan's parents' house. You can see the photo here of Julian with Santa at the Lake Lanier Night of Lights. It was a really magical night. Julian hopped right up on Santa's lap and -- with some prompting-- asked for a scooter. Then Santa hit us with a surprise question: "Have you been a good boy?" Both Mama and Julian kind of froze. We hadn't prepped for this question. Hilarious! Indicative of our family, right?!

Julian brought home an advent calendar from school. It was Santa and every day he could glue a cotton ball onto Santa's beard. When Santa's beard got all white and fluffy, it was time for the big day! We did this in conjunction with another advent calendar, in which we hid a little ornament for each day. We had lots of fun with this until the stomach virus hit... then we were much less focused. ;)

But the big guy came through and on Christmas morning Julian woke up to a scooter and a dinosaur. I think the surprise hit of the day was a parrot puppet I picked up at the MMO toy swap. This kid is nuts about puppets and costumes. He just loves to pretend. He's just now getting into (no pun intended) the puppets we got him for his first birthday, a rabbit and a hedgehog. Our collection now includes a peacock and a big bad wolf, Snoopy, and a raccoon. It's pretty great, if I do say so myself. We also added to the costume collection. Julian's been running around as Buzz Lightyear since Halloween so Grandmama added a pair of Buzz wings. Uncle Kevin and Aunt Bonnie gave Julian the makings for a robot costume. Julian is very serious about his costumes. Frequently we have to ask him, "What's your name?" because when he's in character, he doesn't respond to "Julian." Jonathan and I lucked into a new-in-the-package Woody costume at Goodwill, and that is now a staple in the costume box. Our other pieces include an old sheer curtain, which can be folded and tied to transform him into a monster, a sheep, or other animals. There's also a small white baby blanket which is either a scary ghost, a friendly ghost, a dancing ghost, baby Julian, or magic Julian. The variations are obvious only to him, hence our need to ask him his name. ;)

We saved our biggest present for last, mostly because it was

the biggest present. Like, massive.

It's a teepee. My trial run was way to small, so I doubled the pattern. It turned out a lot bigger than I had anticipated, but I love it. I am really proud of this project. Dave/Papa harvested the bamboo for the six posts and Jonathan and I found the fabric at Goodwill. Including the grommets, it set us back $15. Not too shabby! You can't really tell how big it is in the photo, but it was too cute not to include. Julian fell asleep in there yesterday. (He had a tough morning of marble track racing and Let's Go Fishing. Everybody needs a break.) The teepee is about eight feet tall and is almost as big around at the base. It's a good thing the ceiling is vaulted in the living room! We wanted it to be big enough so that Jonathan and I could get in there with Julian and not die of claustrophobia. So there you go. Julian was absolutely delighted. They have one in his classroom at Live Oak, so it wasn't a foreign concept. He kept saying, "Wook at dat BIG, HUGE teepee!."He's a funny one, that kid.

We really are having a fantastic holiday season. We've stayed close to home on every level. I'm taking time to focus and re-group. The last eight or nine months have been hectic and sometimes diluted for me, so I'm working on refocusing my energy and time. Jonathan and I have had some really good time together, long talks and working on plans for our home and family. Julian is funnier every single day, and he never ceases to amaze us. Life is good.

I hope this note finds you and yours relaxed and looking forward to the coming year. Happy Festivus to the rest-of-us!

Sweet Chelsea

Fourteen and a half years ago, Chelsea was my sister Suzanne's sixteenth birthday present. Chelsea came from a puppy mill in Michigan and ended up in the pet store at an Atlanta mall. (Back then we weren't aware of the issues surrounding such places.) I remember vividly the day we brought her home. She made this sound, like purring, but sort of a breathy whine. She made that sound the whole way home. She was small and cute and never stopped moving. At home she played with my uncle Scotty's dog Thor, a white German shepherd - arctic timber wolf mix. Thor seemed sort of confused by this weird, yappy creature, but Chelsea was confident that she matched him in size. That was her m.o. for the rest of her life. She never had confidence problems. Twice she took on big dogs (a chow and another German Shepherd) and required trips to the emergency vet. Samson came to her defense both times.

Fourteen years ago this month Chelsea came to live with me. I had just got Samson as a gift for Jonathan. Since Jonathan was in an apartment, we decided Samson would live with me. One weekend my sister brought Chelsea to stay with me, and the rest is history. Chelsea lived in seven different houses with Jonathan and me. For ten years (before Julian came along), she and Samson and Jonathan and I were the creatures that made those houses into homes. Together, Samson and Chelsea made me a mama before I was a mama. They have taught me patience and how to discipline and they taught me an astounding kind of love. When I began considering doctoral programs, leaving Samson and Chelsea was a major factor. Bonnie and Kevin generously offered to open their home. They and Scotty even built a ramp on the back of the house for Samson. Don't tell our family this, but when we came home from Scotland I didn't cry when I saw our family, but I cried like a baby when I saw my dogs.

When Julian was on the way, I bought new beds for Samson and Chelsea. Mostly, I wanted to start training Chelsea to *not* sleep in the bed with us. As an old dog, she did learn that new trick and took to her bed just fine-- most of the time. I was nervous about Chelsea and a newborn. She's always been a lap dog and she lived with the assumption that your resting hand would much rather be scratching her. But from the moment I walked in the door with Julian, all of her good instincts took over and she made me so proud. She was at my feet every time I nursed (which was most of the time in those early weeks). She was curious but careful with Julian and never, ever snappy. Julian has grown to love those dogs as a normal part of his family. I love that he would kiss chelsea and samson good night even when he wouldn't kiss us. I love that he called her "Chels" and told her she was a good girl, a good dog, on a regular basis. I love that it's not

unusual for Julian to ask Samson or Chelsea if they want to play a game with him or read a book. A few weeks ago Julian took the bag of dog treats into his book tent and fed Chelsea the whole bag. I watched from the doorway, loving every minute. She bites when she takes treats from me

and Jonathan, but she was so gentle with my boy. In recent days we would find her sleeping on the little Thomas sofa in Julian's book tent, or curled up in his mini-recliner in the sun. Maybe she was just happy to have another wee creature around.

Earlier this summer Chelsea had surgery for breast cancer that had ulcerated (open, oozing, nasty). The prognosis wasn't great-- five, six months at best. So we knew what to look for. And Saturday morning the time came and it was time to go. Mom came to get Julian, and she, Suzanne, and Suzanne's kids all had a chance to say goodbye to the sweet girl.

Chelsea lived a fantastic life and we honored her by releasing her yesterday. In this whole process, the greatest moment of peace was when she gave her last exhale, and it was easy. Only at that moment did Jonathan and I realize just how hard she had been working to breathe in recent weeks. Scotty made a grave and Vera had flowers. I placed her in the grave on her bed, and Jonathan and I covered her with the red Georgia clay. We were surrounded with the sound of the wind in the trees, the most sacred sound in the world.

I am completely at peace with our decision and the timing of our decision, but that does not change the fact that I am heartbroken. I miss her terribly. I almost feel like people who meet me from now on won't even really know me, because they won't know her. She was obnoxious and naughty and misbehaved and very, very stinky and I loved her. To really "get" me, you would have to see how I loved that dog, with all her faults.

It wasn't until today that I realized just how aware I am of her presence in the house. Out of half a lifetime of ingrained habit, I glance at all her usual spots to see if she is there. I cooked today and I told Jonathan that I don't really know how to cook without tripping over Chelsea and yelling at her to get out of the kitchen. Just this morning we had a startling realization of just how messy Julian is with his oatmeal. That chels kept him and the floor around him really clean.

Samson is restless, and with every whine or pace up and down the hall, my heart breaks for him. He has never known anything other than being with chelsea. she was definitely the alpha dog and I think he's a little bit lost. we had a "quality of life" consult at the vet with him just a few weeks ago. I hope this transition isn't too hard on him. He's got enough going on in his old body.

Goodbye, sweet puppy. Our lives won't be the same without you.

Ways to keep your 2 year old occupied in the summer heat!

Enjoy!

Hey, what's my baby doing in a big kid bed?

I'm not quite sure how it happened, but it turns out my little baby has outgrown his toddler bed. In recent weeks Julian has taken to spinning around in his sleep. He usually ends up with his lower half off the bed and some nights his whole body! We knew the time was coming to move him up into a big bed.

Erin found a pretty awesome twin sized bed at Goodwill and was determined to buy it for my birthday. But we held off because I just wasn't feeling the vibe. But hours on Craigslist paid off when I found this great bed with storage underneath. It is in new condition and came with a "bunkie board" (an alternative to box springs) so we didn't have to worry about any allergens or cooties. Jonathan's parents offered us the mattress off their daybed, so we were all set! While on vacation in Charleston last year I picked up the Thomas sheets at a Goodwill, and I bought the comforter from a friend-of-a friend for a steal. Today Julian spent the day with Jennie and her brood while I washed everything in hot water, zipped up the squishy stuff in allergy bags, and assembled the bed with Jonathan's help. ;)

All of this has made me think about the history of Julian's beds, and helped me to reflect on how this story tells so much about our life and our values. Julian's first bassinet was loaned to us by BJ and Tim. Ben and Sam both slept in it for their first few months. Julian's first crib was his cousin Sullivan's. When we went to Edinburgh, Julian slept in Katie and Josh's pack & play for months before we found a nice Mothercare cot on Freecycle. We bought a new cot mattress and he was good to go. When we left Edinburgh that cot and mattress went to a young single mother in Mike & Mo's church. Coming back to the US Julian went back to Sullivan's old crib until we learned he could climb out of it! Thankfully I had bought a toddler bed from our neighbor-now-friend. Our neighbors were having a yard sale the day we signed our lease and I picked up the bed and some toys for the wee devil. As a matter of fact, that toddler bed was the very first piece of furniture we moved into our house! I love that their little girl recognizes her old bed when she comes over to play: "Why my bed here?" ;)

I love looking around our home and life and thinking about all the sories. We intentionally go for used stuff and find great meaning in hand me downs. I really believe we'd make these same choices even if money were no object. Tonight I find great comfort in the stories around me. I am reminded that we are very connected... and that we are doing a good job of honoring that connectedness... and that we are doing a good job of raising Julian in such a way that he understands he is part of a deep rich tapestry of life.

Here's the latest picture of Sir Handsome, taken by Jennie today:

Julians first haircut....at Disney

So, Beth had read about the barber shop in Disney where you can take your child for their first haircut and get a certificate and some Mickey Mouse ears. We decided to give it a shot since Julians hair has begun to look rather mullet-ish. I didn't think he would sit still long enough and we would have to pay 15 bucks for 2 hairs to get snipped, but thanks to some Mickey Mouse toys and other moms in the shop, we we able to get a good trim.

and here he is looking rather proud of himself in his new do and ears. The ears say "first haircut" on the back. As we left the barber shop and headed down the main street we caught some fireworks. So far, our trip is off to a great start. We are now back at the hotel napping before heading to Animal Kindom for the safari.

frogs and bears and chickens and things...

At the end of one of my favorite movies of all time, The Muppets Take Manhattan, Kermit realizes that what the show really needs is more frogs and bears and chickens and things. The current question at the Staton home is whether or not we might need less. :(

Week before last, Julian had a wee cold/virus which left him with a gunky nose and a little cough. But by Sunday the cough had increased and his breaths-per-minute were up. There was no wheezing, but he was panting, much like a dog in the summer (but without his tongue hanging out;) We had albuterol left from the last go-round so we gave him a treatment that night and again Monday morning. He was already scheduled for a "well child" visit on Monday morning, so we kept a close eye on him and kept our 10:00 appointment. Of course we didn't do the well child visit (which would have included shots/jabs) but Dr. Martin took a close listen to Julian's chest and back and looked at his ears. He definitely had an ear infection, but his breathing issues were perplexing because he wasn't wheezing at all. She ordered a chest x-ray to check for pneaumonia so the boy and I headed over to the imaging center.

Julian did great for the x-ray-- much better than the 3-adults-holding-him-down situation at the hospital in February!! The really really good news is that the chest x-ray came back clear. In fact his lungs were beautifully, perfectly clear and open. After talking with Dr. Martin we decided to keep up the albuterol plus the oral antibiotic for the ear infection.

Tuesday was a little more distressing, as Julian continued to pant, but still with no wheezing. Julian and I stayed home from school and tried to take it easy. By Wednesday morning we still hadn't seen as much improvement as we had expected to see. Jonathan was ready to go to the ER. We called in to Dr. Martin's office and she ordered up the inhaled steroid, plus the oral steroid to have on hand just in case. We started the inhaled steroid right away. Julian does not do well on the oral steroid. It causes us to have a Satan Staton on our hands. He stays in tantrum mode with a hair trigger and his aggression is amazing. It's an incredible personality shift. Because of this we decided to start with just the inhaled steroid and keep a close eye on him. Wednesday night was better.

On Thursday we thought he was improving, but he had worsened by lunch time. We bit the bullet and gave him the first dose of oral steroids just after lunch. Because his worst behavior seems to peak about an hour after administration, we gave him the dose at the beginning of his nap. By mid-afternoon Julian's respirations were up and he had a fever. Aargh. So we went back to Dr. Martin's office for a thorough check-over.

The good news-- still-- is that there's no pneaumonia. And he is moving air into his lungs. He did exhibit for her the cough that has been keeping all of us up at night. And the thing is-- sigh-- it's an asthma cough, dry and tight. One thing Dr. Martin mentioned is that asthmatic folks usually have really beautiful, clear chest x-rays because their lungs are hyper-expanded, looking for air! Turns out there is a type of asthma that has only a cough as the symptom, cough-variant asthma. However, she has seen him wheeze before and has also seen him retract, so either way, my baby now has a diagnosis of asthma.

Now we are in the middle of a five day course of oral steroids, in addition to the two inhaled drugs plus the antibiotic for his ears. Julian's mood and behavior are incredible on this medicine, so if you hear wailing and gnashing of teeth coming from our house, think twice before you step inside. ;) Or at least bring some holy water to arm yourself.

Both of his severe episodes have taken place after being exposed to new types of animals. The first time he was around baby chickens and the second time we visited Yellow River Game Ranch, where he was around lots of chickens and deer and rabbits and goats and sheep. The funny thing is that he's been around those chickens lots of times since the first time, with no reaction. Perhaps it's just the introduction of new allergens that boosts his little system into overdrive. That's what we'll try to sort out in the near future. For now we'll continue this course of treatment then go back for a follow up to discuss ongoing treatment and management. It is very likely he'll grow out of this but for now it looks like we'll be taking a nebulizer with us everywhere we go.

Beth

Peanut, Bubbit, and Kermit

Two of my favorite people in the whole world... taking a break from some rainy day play to watch one of the greatest films of all time. Note Julian's use of his new parking garage (courtesy of Erin and Goodwill :).

tough love at bedtime

These have been ornery days at the Staton household. Bedtime has become much more of a chore, with Julian pushing all of our buttons for at least an hour each night. Jonathan was at risk of a stroke, or at least in need of blood pressure medications. He's been ready to take a harder line, but I have been the one to cave in night after night.

So tonight, after weeks of caving and calloused elbows, Mama drew a line. And I am so effing proud of myself.

We read a story, sang a song, I kissed him goodnight and said, "I love you. Time to sleep." and walked out of the room leaving the door open. I went into the office. There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth. I now have a whole new appreciation for the saying: " That's my name, don't wear it out." Every time he would come out of the room I would put him back in the bed and say, "Sleep." (Can you tell we watched "Supernanny" while we were in the UK?) I put him back in there at least 15 times. At least. And I think the whole episode lasted about an hour. But finally he relented, or at least ran out of energy.

And here is where he fell asleep:

Don't worry. He's tucked away in his bed... for now. Our concern has always been that he go to sleep in his own bed. Or the hall floor. Whatever. But if he ends up in our bed, so be it. I know the day will come when he won't want to crawl into bed with us, and that is fine. Some nights he sleeps all night in his bed. Other nights he's in with us after a few hours. But hey... at least we don't leave him on the floor.

Mama triumphed tonight (over herself mostly).

Update on Julian

Just a quick update to let you all know that Julian is doing MUCH better. We have been giving him breathing treatments at least 2 times a day and he has just finished up his round of antibiotics. Thankfully, we are done with the liquid steriods - that stuff turned our sweet little boy into a quick tempered mean little person that you did not want to be around. Evil medicine, just plain evil.

We were able to have his birthday party last weekend at my parents house and we had a really great time. The weather cooperated quite nicely and we played some frisbee golf and volleyball as planned. It's hard to believe that we now have a 2 year old. Beth won't admit that he isn't a baby anymore, but that's ok. I don't really want to either.

In other news, I just recently launched two new web stes here in town. One for a church - St James UMC - and another one for a construction company - ETL Construction Services. I had been developing the St. James site for quite a while and was happy to finally get it up and running. I think it's my favorite design so far. Check them out if you have a minute or two.

- Jonathan

Not what we'd planned..., by Beth

Well, we had hoped to spend today celebrating Julian's second birthday with family, playing frisbee golf and horseshoes. Instead, it is SNOWING outside and we are just home from an overnight at the hospital. Needless to say, the party is postponed!

The story... Julian tested positive for strep throat about ten days ago. He finished his antibiotics on Tuesday, but Wednesday saw the development of some nasty head and chest congestion, and a lot of snot. A lot of snot. On Saturday morning he slept until about 7:30 but as soon as he woke up we knew something was wrong. He was working harder and harder to breathe, and his little ribs were poking out as he worked. We ran out the door to the ER, barely changing clothes much less brushing hair or thinking about breakfast. Thanks to Suzanne Julian at least had a cup of cheerios. :)

The ER staff rushed us through, which in and of itself should have been an indicator that things were serious. I vaguely remember hearing the number 73, which to me now means his oxygen saturation was that low, when the target is 94-100%. Despite feeling awful, Julian really showed his strength, particularly when it came time for the chest xray and (rectal) temperature taking. Let's just say three adults couldn't keep him still. He was m-a-d. He was admitted to the hospital yesterday afternoon for restricted bronchials and low oxygen levels. Even when he was sleeping and we had the oxygen right on his nose, he was wavering around 89%. We had a better night and were sent home this afternoon with breathing treatments, short term steroids, and an antibiotic for an ear infection. We never did sort out a cause, and we may never know. But one of the nurses said to us, "once a wheezer, always a wheezer." We're not taking this as a sentence, but just a way to take seriously the way Julian's little airways might be predisposed. Four of his cousins went through the same thing, and they are all now asthma-free.

We're good but exhausted. Julian just fell asleep during his breathing treatment, which is nice considering it usually hypes him up like toddler crack.

All three of us will settle in for a nap now. The puppies are with Uncle Davey and Aunt Dink, so the house is quiet under the snow.

Two years today we went to the hospital to usher our little one into the world. We're very happy today to be coming home. We know we've been very fortunate. This was our first hospital visit in two years. We didn't discover anything catastrophic and we're coming home in good shape. I don't know how to express the fullness of my gratitude, so I will just simply say I am thankful. Life is good.

Marcella's passing

I am sad to pass along the news of the passing of Dr. Marcella Althaus-Reid. Some of you may know that she is the reason I wanted to go to the University of Edinburgh. I wanted to work with her.

In 2005 Jonathan and I took a trip to the UK to figure out whether or not a PhD program there would be a good fit for me. In preparation for that trip I told Emerson that I wasn't sure if I really wanted to meet Marcella or if I was scared to meet Marcella. Emerson smiled and raised his eyebrow and said, "Well then you must meet her." Marcella's approach to theology, pedagogy, and gender issues had opened up a whole new world for me, but I wasn't sure if I was ready to discuss The Queer God in the flesh. When Jonathan and I arrived in Edinburgh Marcella took the better part of an afternoon to meet with us. She was gracious and open and was the most approachable, realistic person we met with on that trip. She was the one who gave me the advice that no matter where I chose to write, or what I chose to write on, that I must always make sure my theology relates in concrete ways to my community, to my specific group of people. Frankly, when I stepped away in January of '08, it was largely because her advice helped me to realize I was off track.

Although Marcella was one of my PhD supervisors, I didn't have a chance to work with her while I was in Edinburgh. She was on sabbatical my first semester and was too ill to return to campus in the spring. Below is the e-mail that went out to all Divinity school students and staff.

With sadness,
Beth
------------------------------------------------------------------

Subject: Professor Marcella Althaus-Reid

Dear colleagues and students,
With great sadness at our loss of an internationally respected scholar
and a lively and enjoyable colleague, I give notice of the death of
Professor Marcella Althaus-Reid on Friday 20th February, at the Marie
Curie Hospice (Edinburgh).
The memorial service will be held at St. George's West Church
(Shandwick Place), on Saturday 07 March, at noon.
There will be much more to say about Marcella's accomplishments, her
contributions to Divinity, and her relationships with so many of us.
But for now, I acknowledge in this preliminary manner all these things.
Larry Hurtado

L. W. Hurtado, FRSE, Head of the School of Divinity
Professor of New Testament Language, Literature & Theology
New College
University of Edinburgh
Mound Place
Edinburgh, UK. EH1 2LX
Office Phone: (0)131 650 8920. FAX: (0)131 650 7952

--
The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in
Scotland, with registration number SC005336.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Staton, by Beth

Well folks, as of today Jonathan is half of seventy years old. Many thanks to Mary for describing his age in such a poignant manner. What are big sisters for. ;)

I've always said that being with Jonathan is like knowing a secret. He's a lot different than folks assume, and it is my great joy and honor to journey through life with such a creature. We've been together since 1990 and my life is richer and stronger and more meaningful because of what we are together. Happy birthday, Mr. Staton.

The most recent photo I have of the three of us is here, from Christmas. Thanks to Linda for actually snapping a photo of us!

Last year we went to London on his birthday and spent the week touring the sites. Julian

slept through a lot of it, as you can see here. We've got something a little less elaborate planned this

year. We're going over to Davey and Meredith's to watch Lost. ;) Friday night we'll gather with even more Statons for a game night. And of course we'll sneak in an anniversary celebration this weekend-- twelve years!

Here in Georgia it's raining like cats and dogs, and it's thundering! Either the apocalypse or global warming. Take your pick.

I hope you're liking the new site design. I think it's muy bien. We'll have photos soon of Julian's upcoming birthday.

Peace out,

Beth

a work in progress

Hey, if you're seeing this, then I was successful with the transfer. I had to scrap the old template I had designed in the process and since I don't have time to design a new one, I decided to find a free one that I liked. I found this one at btemplates.com

It's pretty cool, but I'm having some difficulties with the archive list and the way it's displaying. Hopefully I can correct the problem because I really like this design and would hate to trash it. Also, some of the links aren't working yet and a good bit of the pictures from our older posts have gone MIA. I'll do some recon and have everything up soon.

Jonathan

ch ch ch changes.........

So, I know it's been forever since I have posted anything but I am going to try and be better about it for all the Staton Family fans across the globe. It was so much easier to post things on a regular basis when we were in Scotland. I guess that was due to the lack of a social life and the fact that Julian took two naps a day.

Anyway, I just wanted to let everyone know that our site may be down for a while in the next week or so. Long story short, my old employer gave me free web hosting while I was employed there and since I'm no longer employed there I will be moving the site to another server. The template will probably change during the transition as well so don't think you're at the wrong site if you don't see our picture in the header.

And in other news.....if you haven't got your copy of The Warm Fuzzies Bubblegum EP - you can get it here - http://cdbaby.com/cd/warmfuzzies or on iTunes!

;)

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