OHH we're halfway there

I was raised in a Baptist church, as was Jimmy. We both were there whenever the doors were open. When we first met we were amazed at how similar our upbringings were, and how much we had in common. So how in the world did we turn out so different!? And what does this mean for our children? Are they destined for a life of confusion? Or will they take sides? Will their brains explode from the crazy stimulation of it all? Only time will tell.

Jimmy loves rock music. Pop rock, heavy metal, punk, rock and roll...it is all on his iPod and all up in my space in the car. I, on a regular basis, must deal with Jackson screaming questions from the back seat of the van, Cash yelling about something he sees out the window, Penelope crying, Jimmy asking me which way to turn, AND Stryper screaming very NON Christian sounds into my ears. It is sometimes more than I can take which is why I often plug my ears, rock back and forth and hum a drone to try and block out the noise which is my life. (This usually gets Jimmy to turn it down because I look extremely Special Ed and it freaks him out.)

On the positive side, Jimmy exposed me to all kinds of wonderful music I had never heard before. When I met him I was a 90's CCM girl. Michael W., Steven Curtis, Jars, DC Talk... I'm pretty sure I had only listened to the Beatles when I saw the famous Ed Sullivan clip on TV every once in a while. When God gave me Jimmy, he gave me music in more ways than one. I always wondered what this meant for our children. Would I let them listen to secular music? Was sacred music really all that sacred anyway? I could write forever about this, but the conclusion I came to is that I wanted them to hear good songs and good songwriting. So no bad content of course, but a song about all of us living in a yellow submarine is actually pretty fun with your kids.

Well, today I got a piece of what they like. Jackson made a table (he had just had to read a table and a graph on a math worksheet) to record everyone's favorite band. I come across a lot of worksheets that require the student to "ask the class" and since Jackson can't do this I was wondering how he would work it out. He ended up asking stuffed animals and such but he started out asking Libby. I listened closely. The conversation went like this:

Jax: Which is your favorite band? Newsboys, Relient K, Bon Jovi, Boston, Green Day, or Jars of Clay?
Libby: Bon Jovi! Bon Jovi! Bon Jovi!
Jax: No, you have to pick Newsboys! You only know like one Bon Jovi song!
Libby: No, I know two! Shot through the Heart and Living on a Prayer!

I just stood there for a minute wondering if my 4 1/2 year old did just in fact name two Bon Jovi songs. I didn't even know who Bon Jovi was until like 2003. Yeah, I had heard their songs but I didn't know who sang them. Anyway, it just goes to show you that your kids can learn and remember anything. But do they learn anything I actually teach them? Or do they just absorb iTunes and loud music in the van? Score one for Jimmy. Hey, at least I'm the one who taught Jackson how to make a table and use tally marks. Whew. Next week, kids: Have a Nice Day and Wanted: Dead or Alive. (the only other two Bon Jovi songs I can think of...)