Housebound: Nightmare or Dream Come True?

Because of a sniffling baby, I wasn't able to attend church last week and put my recent musings into practice.

The best form of entertainment!

There was a seminar that weekend too that we didn't go to. I'm not sure if we've been to anything like that (besides the church retreat) since becoming parents. We could manage it if the grandparents babysat. But I guess we just like to nest. The "reward" of being present at an event doesn't quite match up to the effort used to get there. Sad, I know.

I'm speaking for us as a family unit, though. Andrei does go to events, often where he is the speaker, and he works hard to prepare for those. Of course all that effort is not in vain! And we do soak as much as we can out of the fellowship we do have.

There are times when I wish we had a car. David and I could go somewhere without Andrei. I'd pop David in his carseat and off we'd go. We could give other people rides, too. It's pretty hard to picture Andrei or myself behind the wheel of a car, though. We'll see-the first step is getting a license.

On the other hand, staying in has plenty of merits. Aside from the calm, cozy, and safe atmosphere, there are economic benefits: less money spent on going out and making purchases; less transportation energy consumed. Fewer germs to catch. It also breeds a sort of discipline when it comes to planning trips out of the house. If shopping is to be done once a week, then it must be planned for and the groceries planned to last for that time period. If we're to be in a certain neighborhood on a certain day, we must see if there's anything to be done in that general vicinity. If I want Andrei's help to go up or down the stairs with David, then I must determine in advance when he will be available. And big city life usually involves grocery shopping on the way home from somewhere; no separate trips. It used to annoy me to always have that "chore" after a long day out, but I'm used to it now, and Andrei at least is very gracious about stopping at the store for an item or two.

Anyway. I can look back on those seasons: the student days of running around like crazy, and the single missionary days of spending 3-4 hours in public transportation, traveling all over St. Petersburg each day. And I sure am glad to have a "break."

I was going to end the post there, but I didn't want to conclude without mentioning something about friendship. It's good to have friends of all ages and walks of life. Sure, parents of littles have a lot in common, but unfortunately being housebound is one of those shared traits! Hospitality works in hearts in more ways than one; a "mobile" friend who is willing to travel is just as much of a blessing as those who do the hosting.