life here at the zoo is wonderful, I've had the last couple of days off from work. it is nice, though we didn't have too much down time. Yesterday I went to the dentist for my cleaning- i was suppose to be there in June but I've put it off till now, don't do that please go get your teeth cleaned every 6 months, your teeth will thank you- luckily for me I have such great dental hygiene I was in good shape. ok my dental hygiene isn't the best in the world but I do work at taking care of my teeth.
from my cleaning Kelly had a Dr. appointment, one of those girl appointments, after that we got to drive all across north Texas trying to get paperwork turned in for my mother in-law's disability stuff. oh how I love working my butt off for some one who is as ungrateful as Kelly's mom. I like Kelly's step mom much more and rather than rant about Kelly's mom I'll just stop there.
after getting the paperwork in we headed for the mall, we had promised Ros a ride on the horsies. Driving to the mall i was amazed at how much the area we were driving through has built-up. We were in McKinney driving to Frisco, both use to be small, small towns- Frisco I think was the fastest growing places in Texas the last few years. what was once open farms and ranches is now stip-malls and cookie cutter neighborhoods.
we got to the mall, apparently other people decided to go to because it was packed- amazingly by looking at the way some people were dressed you would never know that it was cold outside, me thinks that with this new improvement in the economy designers can start putting material back into clothes, especially clothes they design for 13 year old girls.
Ros rode the carrousel and loved every moment, Kelly and I joked that the carousel is there to get little girls in the habit of making their parents take them to the mall, now that I think about it more- I'm not sure that it is much of a joke.
December 29, 2003
December 28, 2003
amazing
She is still asleep, I can't believe it. Normally Ros gets up by 8:30 but either she was up and played in her room in the night and is sleeping in or she just likes her new bed. wow.
December 27, 2003
toilet talk and bed time stories
my little girl is growing up. Ros is potty training currently- i never thought I'd get so excited about anyone's bodily functions. she insists that Kelly or I sit in the bathroom and talk with her as she does her business. the conversations that have come up as a result of our bathroom time are very interesting- I'm getting a glimpse into the way my daughter learns and processes info. in addition to the potty training, Ros is now sleeping in her toddler bed. We tried in the past to get her in the big girl bed but she always wanted the crib, we fixed that today by disassembling the crib. I was scared that when bedtime came we would have a fight on our hands, but thank God- she crawled into her new bed and fell asleep.
Noah also has new sleeping arrangements- he's been sleeping either on our bed or in the bassinette next to our bed, tonight he is in his crib, in his room. I have to find a place to store my beer stuff now that he is in his room though- not a bad trade for a good night sleep.
Noah also has new sleeping arrangements- he's been sleeping either on our bed or in the bassinette next to our bed, tonight he is in his crib, in his room. I have to find a place to store my beer stuff now that he is in his room though- not a bad trade for a good night sleep.
December 26, 2003
pagan traditions and christianity
I hope you had a good santa day, that you helped our economy and bought into some of the commercialism of what is suppose to be some type of holy day (the holy $$), and I hope that even though Christ wasn't born in December, your celebration of his birth was good and lifted Christ up. enough sarcasm...
we had Christmas- twice:
# one on Christmas eve with a couple friends and Kelly's mom. it was nice we ate fajitas and exchanged so presents. Ros got a talking Barney, as i videoed the gift exchange and Ros unwrapping her gifts I whispered into the camera that Barney is gay. Kelly caught me though. it will be funny in about 15 years when she watches the video and Noah cracks up and agrees with me that barney is gay. though I'm not sure what the purple dinosaur's sexual preference is for sure, but it gets laughs from my friends and that is all that counts right?
our second Christmas was with Kelly's step-mom, dad and family. it was fun, our meal was much more traditional- turkey, casseroles, cornbread dressing and all. gift exchange was nice, this time without my inflammatory comments about Barney. interesting note though- one gift that was given was a 6-pack of beer (from me to my brother in-law, he's so cool) and an Onion daily desktop calendar (from him to me, again he is so cool).
Kelly and I are now trying to decide on what we are going to teach our kids about Santa- personally I think that it is a lie and once the kids figure it out they will doubt other things you have told them, i.e. the resurrection of Christ. Kelly agrees but is concerned about what the parents of other kids would think when in Kindergarten Ros spouts off telling the other kids that Santa is a fake and their parents lied to them. I understand but am not too concerned, parents of other kids aren't going to like me for teaching my kids the truth about God and Christ. But I also realize that part of being a kid is stories and imagination, I don't want to squash that. So currently the idea is to teach the kids about Saint Nick, who he was, the things he did for God and why we would have traditions that celebrate that. also when she understands explain to her that the idea of santa isn't bad as long as you realize that it is for fun and make believe. it is a work in progress and is subject to change but i like it more than telling my kids- "you better behave, santa isn't going to bring you any good presents this year if you keep acting that way" that's the wussy way out in my mind, when I hear parents spout that crap off I want to tell them to stop trying to be their kids friend and discipline the kids rather than use things as a means of negotiation.
ok enough ranting, it is late I'm headed to bed
we had Christmas- twice:
# one on Christmas eve with a couple friends and Kelly's mom. it was nice we ate fajitas and exchanged so presents. Ros got a talking Barney, as i videoed the gift exchange and Ros unwrapping her gifts I whispered into the camera that Barney is gay. Kelly caught me though. it will be funny in about 15 years when she watches the video and Noah cracks up and agrees with me that barney is gay. though I'm not sure what the purple dinosaur's sexual preference is for sure, but it gets laughs from my friends and that is all that counts right?
our second Christmas was with Kelly's step-mom, dad and family. it was fun, our meal was much more traditional- turkey, casseroles, cornbread dressing and all. gift exchange was nice, this time without my inflammatory comments about Barney. interesting note though- one gift that was given was a 6-pack of beer (from me to my brother in-law, he's so cool) and an Onion daily desktop calendar (from him to me, again he is so cool).
Kelly and I are now trying to decide on what we are going to teach our kids about Santa- personally I think that it is a lie and once the kids figure it out they will doubt other things you have told them, i.e. the resurrection of Christ. Kelly agrees but is concerned about what the parents of other kids would think when in Kindergarten Ros spouts off telling the other kids that Santa is a fake and their parents lied to them. I understand but am not too concerned, parents of other kids aren't going to like me for teaching my kids the truth about God and Christ. But I also realize that part of being a kid is stories and imagination, I don't want to squash that. So currently the idea is to teach the kids about Saint Nick, who he was, the things he did for God and why we would have traditions that celebrate that. also when she understands explain to her that the idea of santa isn't bad as long as you realize that it is for fun and make believe. it is a work in progress and is subject to change but i like it more than telling my kids- "you better behave, santa isn't going to bring you any good presents this year if you keep acting that way" that's the wussy way out in my mind, when I hear parents spout that crap off I want to tell them to stop trying to be their kids friend and discipline the kids rather than use things as a means of negotiation.
ok enough ranting, it is late I'm headed to bed
December 23, 2003
coloring outside the lines
this morning, as Kelly grabbed a quick shower before her day of craziness started (she's a fulltime zoo keeper you know, a monkey named Rosalyn and a little frog named Noah keep her really busy) I sat with the kids and Rosalyn served us breakfast. I think we had ice water and chocolate. you see the meal was imaginary. Rosalyn got a play kitchen for her birthday, with it came 129 accessories- some plates, silverware, pots, pans, plastic food, cups, etc. This morning Ros grabbed a cup, went to the little fridge on her play kitchen and put the cup up to the water, ice dispenser and got some imaginary ice. then she filled the cup with imaginary water at the water faucet. she refilled the cup a couple of times for me, I was thirsty. She then got a plate, a spoon and what i think is supposed to be a hamburger patty (though it was chocolate this morning according to Ros) and she and I took turns taking imaginary bites of the wonderful chocolate. Noah got a couple of bites too. I think we loose touch with our imaginations as we grow older and it has been my experience that for most Christians the imagination is something that is not used except for when we dream about what we are going to do when we win the lottery, after we tithe that is. I'm glad that the lord of the rings is as popular as it is, even if the movies isn't as good as the books. You see Tolkien felt that imagination was very important in out spiritual walk, without it how could we know God and his magnificent ways. So as I sat there, sharing made up meal with my two year old I thought about how great our imaginations are and how sad it is that we don’t use them.
Imagine
Imagine
December 22, 2003
worldview part 1
not sure what all I'm going to do with this but here goes-
a couple of you have emailed me your answers to my questions on worldviews. and I can say that you two aren't in danger of being corrupted by others or blind to what your worldview is. that is a good thing. I know people that state they believe in one thing but when answering the same type of questions I asked reviled that they believe something completely different. that can be a scary place and unfortunately in the church today we have many lost souls who don't know the beginning of what they believe or what is true.
while I believe that there is only one true and valid worldview I do not believe that people who have differing worldviews from mine are in any way inferior to me or should be looked down on or disrespected in any way. If I did think that, I couldn't love my parents like I do, their world views are so different than mine it isn't funny.
know this though- I will do everything I can to present my worldview as valid and true, and expect that you would do the same- if I am wrong I want to know before it is too late. If I'm correct I want to help those who aren't so we can travel down life's road together.
so my first question was ->do you know what your worldview is?
why is that important some would ask. to me it is the beginning of the process. to talk about the subject we must first examine ourselves honestly to find the answer.
For me my answer is yes I know what it is. more than that though I know that my worldview is more God's than mine, I had my worldview before I walked with God and he changed it all. I know that I could not hold the worldview I do now except that God make me- otherwise it wouldn't make sense.
so my question again to you is do you know what your worldview is? pay attention there is going to be a test in the end. and if my sources are correct, the test is pretty important.
a couple of you have emailed me your answers to my questions on worldviews. and I can say that you two aren't in danger of being corrupted by others or blind to what your worldview is. that is a good thing. I know people that state they believe in one thing but when answering the same type of questions I asked reviled that they believe something completely different. that can be a scary place and unfortunately in the church today we have many lost souls who don't know the beginning of what they believe or what is true.
while I believe that there is only one true and valid worldview I do not believe that people who have differing worldviews from mine are in any way inferior to me or should be looked down on or disrespected in any way. If I did think that, I couldn't love my parents like I do, their world views are so different than mine it isn't funny.
know this though- I will do everything I can to present my worldview as valid and true, and expect that you would do the same- if I am wrong I want to know before it is too late. If I'm correct I want to help those who aren't so we can travel down life's road together.
so my first question was ->do you know what your worldview is?
why is that important some would ask. to me it is the beginning of the process. to talk about the subject we must first examine ourselves honestly to find the answer.
For me my answer is yes I know what it is. more than that though I know that my worldview is more God's than mine, I had my worldview before I walked with God and he changed it all. I know that I could not hold the worldview I do now except that God make me- otherwise it wouldn't make sense.
so my question again to you is do you know what your worldview is? pay attention there is going to be a test in the end. and if my sources are correct, the test is pretty important.
twas the monday before Christmas......and no one os working
It amazes me that the country doesn't just shut down the month of December. There are very few people here today, most are probably at one of the 50 million malls in the Dallas area spending bunches of money. that is nice, I'll just sit here at work and play around. We are having a department Christmas party here, I think there are going to be less than 10 of us, I made some potstsickers for the potluck.
Yesterday I accomplished something that I though might be impossible- I started my car. ok here is the story: Last year while driving to a wedding shower for friends (I married them!!) our car started acting strange, turned out that the head gasket went out. The car sat for months and Kelly and I have been sharing the mini-van. Well a couple of months ago we towed the saturn over to my father in-law's house to begin the process of replacing the head gasket. a spare saturday here, and hour there and yesterday we got everything back together and we started the car up. no leaks, it looks like we did it correctly. We just have to get it registered and inspected and we will be a two vehicle family again.
Kelly and I went on a little date last night, it was nice we went to see Master & Commander- a pretty good movie. it was nice to spend some time alone with the person I like to be around the most in this world. I'm so glad to have Kelly's step-mom to watch the kids, she loves it and we trust her more than we do Kelly's mom. Jeani (or Eani as Ros calls her) is so wonderful. after the movie I made Kelly jump on my back and I gave her a piggyback ride through the parking lot. it was like we were silly young kids on a date, all the silly kids on dates looked at us thinking 'woah, they're kinda crazy'. life is fun, taking your spouse out on a date is fun.
only 3 days left before my son's first Christmas!
Yesterday I accomplished something that I though might be impossible- I started my car. ok here is the story: Last year while driving to a wedding shower for friends (I married them!!) our car started acting strange, turned out that the head gasket went out. The car sat for months and Kelly and I have been sharing the mini-van. Well a couple of months ago we towed the saturn over to my father in-law's house to begin the process of replacing the head gasket. a spare saturday here, and hour there and yesterday we got everything back together and we started the car up. no leaks, it looks like we did it correctly. We just have to get it registered and inspected and we will be a two vehicle family again.
Kelly and I went on a little date last night, it was nice we went to see Master & Commander- a pretty good movie. it was nice to spend some time alone with the person I like to be around the most in this world. I'm so glad to have Kelly's step-mom to watch the kids, she loves it and we trust her more than we do Kelly's mom. Jeani (or Eani as Ros calls her) is so wonderful. after the movie I made Kelly jump on my back and I gave her a piggyback ride through the parking lot. it was like we were silly young kids on a date, all the silly kids on dates looked at us thinking 'woah, they're kinda crazy'. life is fun, taking your spouse out on a date is fun.
only 3 days left before my son's first Christmas!
December 19, 2003
the weekend cometh
it is late friday evening- I'm headed home. I've been trying to settle into my new website while maintaining a job- next week will be slow so I should be able to wrap up most of what I want to do. Feel free to go check out the board I’ve setup, I did it because I wanted to learn more about phpbb but some friends have found that it can be entertaining.
Tomorrow and possibly Sunday I go to my father in-law's house to work on my car. It's been over there a while and we've been working on it for a couple of months when we can on the weekend- the head gasket went out so we've had to take the engine apart and now we are reassembling everything. the joy. once done Kelly and I won't have to share one car though and that will be nice to be a two vehicle family.
The kids constantly amaze me- Noah is scooting around, not toatlly crawling, more of a lunge with his arms and a little help from the legs but the kid is quick. Rosalyn continues to grow in beauty and wisdom, she is potty training currently. I can see how God gets excited about the little things we do. She is also singing her ABC and many songs that she’s learned in nursery. Having kids truly is a blessing from God.
Our neighbors moved yesterday, they moved to Seattle- I'll miss them. when we moved into our house last year their house was the only one on the street, the street has been built up since but Larry and I became good friends, plus he gets to move to Seattle.
Tomorrow and possibly Sunday I go to my father in-law's house to work on my car. It's been over there a while and we've been working on it for a couple of months when we can on the weekend- the head gasket went out so we've had to take the engine apart and now we are reassembling everything. the joy. once done Kelly and I won't have to share one car though and that will be nice to be a two vehicle family.
The kids constantly amaze me- Noah is scooting around, not toatlly crawling, more of a lunge with his arms and a little help from the legs but the kid is quick. Rosalyn continues to grow in beauty and wisdom, she is potty training currently. I can see how God gets excited about the little things we do. She is also singing her ABC and many songs that she’s learned in nursery. Having kids truly is a blessing from God.
Our neighbors moved yesterday, they moved to Seattle- I'll miss them. when we moved into our house last year their house was the only one on the street, the street has been built up since but Larry and I became good friends, plus he gets to move to Seattle.
December 17, 2003
I'm the worst father in the world!
maybe not but I feel like it. My job is to protect my children, this morning I get a big fat F. here's the deal. Kelly fed Noah then went to take a shower, leaving him in bed with me. All I had to do was watch him. I fell asleep. Then I awoke to a very strange noise at the end of the bed, Noah fell head first off the bed and the thud of him hitting the floor was amplified 10,000 times. Kelly rushed to his aid and I sat up in a stupor. He is fine and nothing appears to hurt but that's not the point- I was suppose to be watching over him, protecting him and loving him through my actions, instead I decided to sleep.
I'm so thankful for God's grace, and the grace of my wife and kids. I realized that I need to take things more seriously as we checked Noah out making sure his limbs were working, that there was no trauma to the neck and that he didn't have a concussion. The stakes are too high to not take this game of life seriously; I have skated by too often on my charm and good luck.
pray for me and my family if you get a chance, we need it. thank you.
maybe not but I feel like it. My job is to protect my children, this morning I get a big fat F. here's the deal. Kelly fed Noah then went to take a shower, leaving him in bed with me. All I had to do was watch him. I fell asleep. Then I awoke to a very strange noise at the end of the bed, Noah fell head first off the bed and the thud of him hitting the floor was amplified 10,000 times. Kelly rushed to his aid and I sat up in a stupor. He is fine and nothing appears to hurt but that's not the point- I was suppose to be watching over him, protecting him and loving him through my actions, instead I decided to sleep.
I'm so thankful for God's grace, and the grace of my wife and kids. I realized that I need to take things more seriously as we checked Noah out making sure his limbs were working, that there was no trauma to the neck and that he didn't have a concussion. The stakes are too high to not take this game of life seriously; I have skated by too often on my charm and good luck.
pray for me and my family if you get a chance, we need it. thank you.
December 16, 2003
welcome to the new home
if you are reading this then you've found the new location for my blog, new location, new look but the same old rambling. enjoy!
December 13, 2003
A vacation at home
Well, we started a little late today, we spent the first half of the day resting, allowing everyone to catch up on naps. While getting ready Kelly decided that Rosalyn needed a little hair cut. Just a little trim at the bangs was all that was needed. but this being the first time scissors have ever been used on her hair, Ros was very interested in what mommy was doing and she kept looking up to see, in turn Kelly was not able to cut straight, in the end though it turned out fine and my little girl got her first hair cut. We were eventually able to get out of the house and we headed for that Aquarium. I had to stop for gas, normally I wouldn’t mention it but I got it for $1.27 a gallon, it’s been a while since I’ve seen prices like that for gas. We got the to Dallas World Aquarium and the rain was pouring down so we found a semi close spot to park, loaded up the kids into the backpacks and ran in. the Dallas world Aquarium isn’t really your normal aquarium, it s more of a re-creation of a section of a South American Rainforest Jungle with animals from around the world in various exhibits. Rosalyn got to see many types of monkeys so she was very happy. We finally got out of there about 5, just in time for rush-hour traffic. We drove around a bit and passed by a little Mexican restaurant that looked good (we were hungry) we stopped and ate. The food was really good, I had the best torta I have ever eaten tonight, I have a feeling that we will be going back to that place.
It is amazing how wonderful it is to take a little bit of time off work and just hang out with the family. The kids are so awesome; Noah is proving to be quite the character- to get attention he will cough. It is really cute, when Rosalyn was about the same age she would fake a sneeze to get attention. Kids are so cute and when you least expect it the steal your heart.
On the way home Rosalyn sang most every song she knows, I still start getting misty eyed when she sings “Jesus Loves me”. one of my prayers with my children is that there would never be a day in their memory that the weren’t serving God and getting to know Jesus on a deeper level. So far so good.
Noah is sleeping in my arms right now, he is so beautiful- I'm in love. he's got this daddy wrapped around his finger, Rosalyn probably showed him how!
It is amazing how wonderful it is to take a little bit of time off work and just hang out with the family. The kids are so awesome; Noah is proving to be quite the character- to get attention he will cough. It is really cute, when Rosalyn was about the same age she would fake a sneeze to get attention. Kids are so cute and when you least expect it the steal your heart.
On the way home Rosalyn sang most every song she knows, I still start getting misty eyed when she sings “Jesus Loves me”. one of my prayers with my children is that there would never be a day in their memory that the weren’t serving God and getting to know Jesus on a deeper level. So far so good.
Noah is sleeping in my arms right now, he is so beautiful- I'm in love. he's got this daddy wrapped around his finger, Rosalyn probably showed him how!
December 12, 2003
times, they are a changin'
so after close to 8 years of having my webpages on geocities, I have decided to cough up the cash to get my own webpage- you can see the first page at www.centermountain.com
I'll probably be moving my blog over that way, but it'll be a few days before I can get everything setup the way I want it.
I've taken a few days off of work to be with the Fam. Ros turned 2 on the 10th so it was the perfect excuse to start my mini vacation. it has been nice, today we mostly ran around town while Kelly went to a Dr. and Dentist appt. thank God for double strollers, I took the kids to the mall to walk around for the first appointment and I just don't know what I would have done with out the 2 seater. tomorrow (tech. today) we are going to spend the day playing, first at the aquarium then we are just going to wander about aimlessly, just enjoying the fact that it is a Friday and we are all together. Saturday I have to go to the in-laws to finish working on the saturn, I've replaced the head gasket that went out, I just have to finish reassembling the engine, then we will be a two car family again.
good night, it is late and I have an early date with the 3 most wonderful people in the world; my wife and two kids.
I'll probably be moving my blog over that way, but it'll be a few days before I can get everything setup the way I want it.
I've taken a few days off of work to be with the Fam. Ros turned 2 on the 10th so it was the perfect excuse to start my mini vacation. it has been nice, today we mostly ran around town while Kelly went to a Dr. and Dentist appt. thank God for double strollers, I took the kids to the mall to walk around for the first appointment and I just don't know what I would have done with out the 2 seater. tomorrow (tech. today) we are going to spend the day playing, first at the aquarium then we are just going to wander about aimlessly, just enjoying the fact that it is a Friday and we are all together. Saturday I have to go to the in-laws to finish working on the saturn, I've replaced the head gasket that went out, I just have to finish reassembling the engine, then we will be a two car family again.
good night, it is late and I have an early date with the 3 most wonderful people in the world; my wife and two kids.
December 8, 2003
worldviews
Weird things are happening, not sure how to explain it, not totally sure what all is going on- I feel kinda like God is stirring some things up in and around me. It is strange, it isn’t bad, just different and I’m not sure what exactly is going to come out of it all or where God is leading me. I feel like something is happening related to ministry and my role in it but I’m not feeling called into a fulltime pulpit type of ministry, I guess that in some ways I’m feeling called out of the shadows and into more of the spotlight. Though I could be wrong. Again, I’m not sure totally just trying to put all the pieces together.
Now where did I put those polka dots got to finish my God house……..Just when I’m putting the finishing touches on the box I made for God, He decides to show me yet again that it is my heart, not my man-made façade, that He wants to dwell in…..
Tonight I sat in class again watching as everyone else in the class stared at our instructor as if they were a deer in headlights. Am I the only person who knows about worldviews, not just my own but others? I realize that I live in Dallas Texas where a majority of people’s foundations are a basic Christian philosophy add to that my School is a Christian University but come on folks there are other people out there and other views on life. I was not raised in a Christian home or Christian environment, I held worldviews that weren’t Christian before I came to Christ, and I have always strived to understand where other people are coming from so that I could have a better idea of where people that were different than I were coming from. I guess those things give me unique advantage over my classmates with respect to knowledge of a variety of worldviews. So I ask you, whoever you are reading my random babbling, the following questions
1. do you know what your worldview is?
2. do you know why you hold that worldview?
3. Can you identify other people’s worldviews and have some understanding why they believe in them?
4. Is your worldview constant with what you proclaim your spiritual beliefs to be? (amazingly many people can not say yes to this after some honest introspection)
5. Do you see opposing worldviews trying to influence your faith, church or community?
Specifically with regard to your worldview:
1. is there a God, if so what is the nature of God, who is God?
2. if there is a God, is God personal?
3. How did the universe come to be and is there anything (God, random evolution?) that influences the world today?
4. what are humans?
5. have we evolved from some other creature or were we directly created?
6. What is our significance in this world?
7. How can we humans know anything, how do we know what is true?
8. is there life after death?
9. how do we determine what morality is?
10. are there absolute truths?
11. Why are we here?
I actually want to know your answers, email me. I want to know your thoughts on this worldview stuff.
Now where did I put those polka dots got to finish my God house……..Just when I’m putting the finishing touches on the box I made for God, He decides to show me yet again that it is my heart, not my man-made façade, that He wants to dwell in…..
Tonight I sat in class again watching as everyone else in the class stared at our instructor as if they were a deer in headlights. Am I the only person who knows about worldviews, not just my own but others? I realize that I live in Dallas Texas where a majority of people’s foundations are a basic Christian philosophy add to that my School is a Christian University but come on folks there are other people out there and other views on life. I was not raised in a Christian home or Christian environment, I held worldviews that weren’t Christian before I came to Christ, and I have always strived to understand where other people are coming from so that I could have a better idea of where people that were different than I were coming from. I guess those things give me unique advantage over my classmates with respect to knowledge of a variety of worldviews. So I ask you, whoever you are reading my random babbling, the following questions
1. do you know what your worldview is?
2. do you know why you hold that worldview?
3. Can you identify other people’s worldviews and have some understanding why they believe in them?
4. Is your worldview constant with what you proclaim your spiritual beliefs to be? (amazingly many people can not say yes to this after some honest introspection)
5. Do you see opposing worldviews trying to influence your faith, church or community?
Specifically with regard to your worldview:
1. is there a God, if so what is the nature of God, who is God?
2. if there is a God, is God personal?
3. How did the universe come to be and is there anything (God, random evolution?) that influences the world today?
4. what are humans?
5. have we evolved from some other creature or were we directly created?
6. What is our significance in this world?
7. How can we humans know anything, how do we know what is true?
8. is there life after death?
9. how do we determine what morality is?
10. are there absolute truths?
11. Why are we here?
I actually want to know your answers, email me. I want to know your thoughts on this worldview stuff.
Rosalyn's Birthday Party
Rosalyn’s birthday party was a wonderful time; it turned out to be mostly family and some close friends. It was nice, though an additional 19 people in the house definitely makes the home a little crazier. Rosalyn enjoyed her presents, a great improvement over last year where she was more interested in the wrapping paper and clothes hangers. Her birthday is actually Wednesday; she is going to be 2- wow. I’ve taken Wednesday through Friday off this week so Kelly and I can focus on spending some quality time together with the kids, do something special for Ros on her birthday and just have some downtime in the middle of these crazy times we so affectionately call the holidays.
In other randomness- I need to get on a scale sometime soon, I’m getting pretty skinny. Last week I had to punch the second hole in my belt because the hole that I had punched not too long ago was not tight enough and my pants kept falling down. Funny thing is that I’ve been eating more now then I was when I was, how do you say, larger (fatter!). it is nice to see the extra pounds shedding away.
In other randomness- I need to get on a scale sometime soon, I’m getting pretty skinny. Last week I had to punch the second hole in my belt because the hole that I had punched not too long ago was not tight enough and my pants kept falling down. Funny thing is that I’ve been eating more now then I was when I was, how do you say, larger (fatter!). it is nice to see the extra pounds shedding away.
I hate mondays!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ok I don't really hate mondays but today has been pretty bad. I had to get up early after staying up late while working on school stuff so that I could get to the office a little early. So I hop in the trust minivan and insert the key, low and behold the engine won't start, no juice. splendid. I had to get to the office early for a nice little conference call. a call to update a contract with a vendor that brings much stress my way. I call into the conference call from home, the call lasts about an hour and a half- when a question was directed my way my do walked into my study allowing the sounds of my screaming children to be heard by all on the line. fun stuff. the call ends and I begin my adventure of trying to get to Sam's club to get a new battery. I eventually get to Sam's wait for what seems like an eternity and get my van back with a new battery. did I mention that the battery that died was only 3 months old?!? The guys at Sam's were great (everyone at Sam's is great, I love that place) and though I waited forever they made up for it in their service. They even checked my alternator, it checked out fine- the battery was just bad, not a normal thing but apparently it occurs and for me I lived it. I finally got to work close to 1:30, have been playing catch up though I see the horizon not too far away. I think I'll be done just in time to leave for class at 5. man I love these 16 hour work/school days they are the best ;o)
Ros' party was fun, I'll have to write about it a little later, off to work I go.
eating too many meatballs is not advisable, though they are good, they aren't that good.
Ros' party was fun, I'll have to write about it a little later, off to work I go.
eating too many meatballs is not advisable, though they are good, they aren't that good.
December 5, 2003
so I've been trying to figure out my place in this world recently- did a little inventory and asked God what I needed to be doing. good news is that the inventory check didn't find any big problems, mostly God just showed me that that many of the things that I'm already doing are what he wants me doing; working with the youth group, being accountable to other men so that we can succeed in our everyday battles, being a dad, being a husband, and being a friend just to name a few are all in the right direction. There are some areas that I can improve and God was pretty clear about what those areas are- I'm going to work on those.
it is nice to know that I'm not way off, but if I were I'd want to know so I could get back on track. I try occasionally to just stop and ask God to let me know if I'm doing the right thing. it pays off.
it is nice to know that I'm not way off, but if I were I'd want to know so I could get back on track. I try occasionally to just stop and ask God to let me know if I'm doing the right thing. it pays off.
December 4, 2003
yes, I am the Phat Eskimo!
my blog is now listed at blogs4god go check 'em out (and vote for my site too, not sure what prize I get but I want it!)
in other news Kelly and I are in the final preparatory stages for Rosalyn's birthday party this weekend, for me it will be more of a celebration of me surviving the first two years of being a parent. The theme for the party will be...you guessed it a Zoo. I'll be dressed up sorta like a zoo keeper and we have animal masks (along with a bunch of other things in their goodie bags, still trying to absorb it all) for the kids. After work tonight we are headed to pickup the inflatable jump house thingy that's going in the back yard. I never realized how much time went into planning a birthday party for a 2 year old. I hope it gets easier in years to come.
in other news Kelly and I are in the final preparatory stages for Rosalyn's birthday party this weekend, for me it will be more of a celebration of me surviving the first two years of being a parent. The theme for the party will be...you guessed it a Zoo. I'll be dressed up sorta like a zoo keeper and we have animal masks (along with a bunch of other things in their goodie bags, still trying to absorb it all) for the kids. After work tonight we are headed to pickup the inflatable jump house thingy that's going in the back yard. I never realized how much time went into planning a birthday party for a 2 year old. I hope it gets easier in years to come.
testing....testing..1...2...3...testing
so i've been trying to organize the blog a little, move some things here add an amber alert thing there. also added titles- not sure if I like them yet
December 3, 2003
well- um life is interesting, I've been kinda frustrated lately. mostly with complacency. I posted my thoughts here on the relevant boards.
on to brighter more fluffy stuff, I've got some recent pictures of the fam here and here, they are both the same thing, it is just the first is geocities and they limit the amount of views and the second is an imagestation album. enjoy. oh yeah there are a couple shots of Ros with her pink cowboy boots.
off to Church I go to help some teenagers know Christ a little more.
on to brighter more fluffy stuff, I've got some recent pictures of the fam here and here, they are both the same thing, it is just the first is geocities and they limit the amount of views and the second is an imagestation album. enjoy. oh yeah there are a couple shots of Ros with her pink cowboy boots.
off to Church I go to help some teenagers know Christ a little more.
December 1, 2003
I consumed enough turkey this weekend to...well....ahh.....well I ate a bunch of turkey. In Houston Kelly's uncle was nice enough to fry a turkey for us. oh yeah! I like me some fried turkey. it was great. then a bunch of us played some x-box, nothing like the family getting together to play a friendly game of Halo.
The trip went well, Noah slept much of the way down and back up. Rosalyn was surprisingly calm for most of both drives. Kelly and I got to catch up on a bunch of stuff, see from the beginning of our relationship we have found that driving has always been a good way for us to talk, trips like our little spree this weekend are wonderful because we can talk about so much.
We stayed with our friends Mark and Lisa, we love them so much- being this far from them is difficult. Lisa is pregnant with their second child- she is due next week, I think we will be taking another trip down very soon to see their new baby.
While we were down there Kelly and I did something that we have been a little scared to do in our last few trips. You see we bought a piece of property when we were first married, it was a lot (3/4 acre) in a neighborhood and had planned on building a house there. We moved to Dallas about 3 years ago and we realized that the land wasn't much of an option for us to build on at that point, so about a year and a half ago we sold it. the lot was full of trees, and we were kind of scared that who ever built there would tear down all of our beautiful trees. So we drove by, and the new house is very pretty. it was even built in the same spot we wanted our house to go, and they left the trees up.
The trip went well, Noah slept much of the way down and back up. Rosalyn was surprisingly calm for most of both drives. Kelly and I got to catch up on a bunch of stuff, see from the beginning of our relationship we have found that driving has always been a good way for us to talk, trips like our little spree this weekend are wonderful because we can talk about so much.
We stayed with our friends Mark and Lisa, we love them so much- being this far from them is difficult. Lisa is pregnant with their second child- she is due next week, I think we will be taking another trip down very soon to see their new baby.
While we were down there Kelly and I did something that we have been a little scared to do in our last few trips. You see we bought a piece of property when we were first married, it was a lot (3/4 acre) in a neighborhood and had planned on building a house there. We moved to Dallas about 3 years ago and we realized that the land wasn't much of an option for us to build on at that point, so about a year and a half ago we sold it. the lot was full of trees, and we were kind of scared that who ever built there would tear down all of our beautiful trees. So we drove by, and the new house is very pretty. it was even built in the same spot we wanted our house to go, and they left the trees up.
November 28, 2003
Tonight I leave you with this- according to my corporate credit card statement (try saying that fast twenty times) over the last 2 years my company has spent $184,078 on just me traveling. wow. they spend more on my travel than they do on my paycheck. Mental note: must figure out a way to travel less but have them pay me more.
I'm packing up the minivan tomorrow, the family is taking a little road trip to Houston, only a couple hours away- this will be Noah's first long trip. Should be fun, going to have a kind of second thanksgiving with Kelly's family. Have a good weekend folks.
Remember Jesus loves you, and eating too much turkey makes you sleepy. Not sure how those two relate but they are both so true.
I'm packing up the minivan tomorrow, the family is taking a little road trip to Houston, only a couple hours away- this will be Noah's first long trip. Should be fun, going to have a kind of second thanksgiving with Kelly's family. Have a good weekend folks.
Remember Jesus loves you, and eating too much turkey makes you sleepy. Not sure how those two relate but they are both so true.
apparently I'm a Graviton?!?
:Graviton -- You are incredibly popular. People from all around are always gravitating towards you. Nobody knows quite how you do it. You tend to be able to pull everybody to your side with time, but photons are the most resistant. You seem to be the strongest of all, but you really are not.:
go see what they think you are
love those holidays that are on Thursday- especially when you have to head back to work on Friday. on my floor there are about 5 people, usually there are a couple hundred. it is nice to have the office pretty empty, it allows me to catch up on the things i didn't want to do before...thinking about it why is that good, I don't want to do those things now.
Turkeyday was good, I surprised Kelly's family with my skills and the bird- this was my first year to cook the turkey, but based on their reaction I'll be the new turkey cooker. it is funny that her family is surprised by my cooking, I guess they don't believe me when I say that I know how to cook, but you know it's not like I've been cooking since I was 5 and I went to chef school or anything, Oh wait- I did. whatever.
I've gotten some really positive feedback about the love story. I'm still amazed that anyone would want to read through it all, thank you guys for your kind words. it's a little ironic that I posted it in the wee hours of Thanksgiving morning- all day yesterday I was thinking about the whole story, little things I could have added, how Kelly and I have grown closer over the years and how our lives have changed, I'm so truly thankful for my wife. without her I'm scared to think what my life would be like. Thank you God for her, thank you God for my life.
Political comment:: Yesterday I witnessed one of the greatest acts a President could ever do; defy his critics, dupe the world and surprise everyone by secretly showing up in the heart of a country that is still a battle zone to wish his troops a happy thanks giving. wow. I don't agree with everything he says or does but yesterday will go down in the history books as one of the greatest moments in the presidency of George W. Bush. -side note, I would have loved to be around to hear him talk to his staff about how to pull it off
Bush-"Boys, I want to go to Baghdad for thanksgiving."
Random yes man-"but sir, we can't let you do that?!?"
Bush-"I said I want to go damn it, you guys figure a way to sneak me out of this country"
::end of political comment
off to try to find some work to justify me wasting another day in the office
Turkeyday was good, I surprised Kelly's family with my skills and the bird- this was my first year to cook the turkey, but based on their reaction I'll be the new turkey cooker. it is funny that her family is surprised by my cooking, I guess they don't believe me when I say that I know how to cook, but you know it's not like I've been cooking since I was 5 and I went to chef school or anything, Oh wait- I did. whatever.
I've gotten some really positive feedback about the love story. I'm still amazed that anyone would want to read through it all, thank you guys for your kind words. it's a little ironic that I posted it in the wee hours of Thanksgiving morning- all day yesterday I was thinking about the whole story, little things I could have added, how Kelly and I have grown closer over the years and how our lives have changed, I'm so truly thankful for my wife. without her I'm scared to think what my life would be like. Thank you God for her, thank you God for my life.
Political comment:: Yesterday I witnessed one of the greatest acts a President could ever do; defy his critics, dupe the world and surprise everyone by secretly showing up in the heart of a country that is still a battle zone to wish his troops a happy thanks giving. wow. I don't agree with everything he says or does but yesterday will go down in the history books as one of the greatest moments in the presidency of George W. Bush. -side note, I would have loved to be around to hear him talk to his staff about how to pull it off
Bush-"Boys, I want to go to Baghdad for thanksgiving."
Random yes man-"but sir, we can't let you do that?!?"
Bush-"I said I want to go damn it, you guys figure a way to sneak me out of this country"
::end of political comment
off to try to find some work to justify me wasting another day in the office
November 27, 2003
As requested, the love story of my wife and I- though not as romantic as others, for me it is the greatest because I get to live it every day, plus we have two beautiful kids that wouldn't be here without this story. Before I start, I'd like to say that I so don't deserve the lady God has so graciously given me. This is a very long little story, if you read it great, if not oh well; it is here for your choosing. Because my parents divorced when I was a baby, I never knew my parents as being married to each other, thus I lacked a great example in how marriage should work, I thank God for his grace and for having a spouse who is as dedicated as I am to not allow anything to separate us, her parents divorced when she was 7. Together we march ahead in the battles of life, standing as one, united by our love and the love of our redeemer. I hope you enjoy my longwinded story- it is a little piece of me.
So it begins way back in the 1900's, 1995 to be exact. I was a single bible college student with no money, a crapy job and was faced with spending the holidays in ugly Dallas. Kelly, who had a boyfriend at the time, was up from the Houston area visiting her dad for the holidays. She had called looking for her friend Mark, my room mate. He wasn't there and a conversation between she and I ensued- something to the effect of:
Kelly- 'you sorry little man, your life sounds so depressing, I haven't done enough good deeds for the week, you want to come hang out with me one night?'
Me- 'you're a chick with a heartbeat that actually wants to do something??? Oh yeah, I'm there'
Ok it wasn't that bad but she asked me over because she felt sorry for me. So on December 26th I picked Kelly up from her dad's and we went to dinner, actually I went to dinner, she watched me eat (she had already eaten)- then we went to a nice little coffee house and from there went to a movie. I had a habit of opening doors for ladies; Kelly commented more than once that she really appreciated my chivalry. I brought her back to her dad's and she invited me in for a bit.
Mind you this is NOT a date. We were just 2 people with a mutual friend hanging out. So we talked about life, God, what we feel God had called us to. We also talked about her boyfriend and the troubles they had been having at the time, I chimed in and gave some advice (apparently it was bad advice ;o) ) and we continued to talk. At one point she told me, very randomly, that because my name is Chris, she could never marry me. "OK, whatever" I thought. We continued to talk and the clock amazingly said that it was 6:00am, we talked all night, she pushes me out the door not wanting her dad to find a strange guy in her room at 6am. Since we were in Texas where everyone has guns I agreed.
I drove back to the dorm, realizing that I totally missed curfew, I went to the grocery store and picked up some chocolate milk and doughnuts, breakfast, incase I get stopped coming back in. I talk to my friend Ken (Ken was too stuck at the dorms over the holidays) about the non-date I tell him that I found the kind of woman I wanted to marry, Ken tells me I'm crazy. I also tell him that I think we are going to have plans with Kelly for new years. Again I'm crazy
December 30th Kelly calls and asks what I'm doing for new years, I ask if I can bring a friend- the next day Ken and I are headed for Galveston. At this point I know I like Kelly, a couple of problems though; boyfriend being one, the fact that I hated dating and told God I just wanted to find someone to marry and skip the whole dating game thing being another. So we hang out in Galveston, end up talking all night again, this time she tells me that she broke up with Sparky (seriously that was her boyfriends name). She told him that she wanted to be treated better, have doors opened, be appreciated, he agreed but the next day blew her off- he agreed that she needed better. I'm a chicken when it comes to women, so I don't ask her out at this point. We leave Galveston without me making any type of move. Ken had to be in Dallas by 9 am, he worked the luxury boxes at Stars games and puck time was 10, we left Galveston at 5 and got to Dallas a little before 9, I drove really fast and only fell asleep twice!
Kelly calls me on Jan 2 and asks me "so are we going to go out or what?" Since it appears that she likes me I say yes.
Many miles are driven the following weeks by my self to see Kelly, then one morning while sitting in a park watching prisoners pick up trash I say "you know that we're meant for each other, lets get married" her response was "NO!". the absence of a ring, me not being on my knee and the fact that my request was weak at best probably influenced her response. That day we went and looked for rings, the next day we bought one. That night I drove back to dallas with ring in hand, thinking 'what the hell am I doing?' at the same time God gave me a he peace about what had occurred, at every turn God was showing his hand in every part of our relationship. Ken though I was crazy, all the girls that I showed the ring to were jealous.
The plan was for Kelly to come up to dallas, stay at her dad's and revisit the whole proposal thing, this time she wanted my to put some thought into it. I called family and told them what was going on, asked my dad for advice on how to approach her dad whom I had never met, did I mention that Kelly is an only child?- dad said "wear a bullet proof vest" to which I replied "dad, he designs missiles, I don't think that will work" after a chuckle from his end and me explaining that Kelly's dad really does design missiles my dad told me "wear a very big bullet proof vest!".
Kelly comes up, I head to her dad's- we are all going out for lunch. Somehow I get stuck alone with her dad while Kelly and her stepmom disappear in another room. Then I find myself standing in a room with the man that I met less than 2 minutes ago, am about to ask for his daughters hand in marriage and in the room we just walked into there is a really big safe from which he start pulling multiple types of firearms from.
No joke.
I forgot my bullet proof vest, I though my dad was kidding.
The guns get put up with no shots fired, thank God! While I was cleaning out the car (and checking to make sure my underwear was still clean) the stepmom tells dad that Kelly and I are going to get engaged. That takes the pressure off of me having to ask his permission, since his response was "congratulations, Chris is it". We all packed up in the Saturn and go to eat some lunch at a nice little place called Celebration (if you are ever in Dallas, go eat there!) Lunch went well. Dinner was even better, just me and Kelly and Ken and Kelly's best friend Mindy. Dinner, movie and then a little trip to the park.
This was not your ordinary park; this one has big stone teddy bears. At 2 in the morning, on January 21st 1996, while sitting on a teddy bear's leg with me on my knee in front of her, Kelly said yes when I asked her to marry me. At this point I'm floored at how God could convince such a wonderful lady like Kelly to want to commit her life to a looser like me, I didn't complain though.
The next step was setting the date. We had discussed getting married in the summer of '97. no need to rush, and it would allow our families some time to realize that we weren't crazy (too late). Kelly tells me that I have to choose the date, and that I should seek God on it, there was significance in the date but I couldn't know the details just yet.
I prayed. The next morning while waking up a number was in my head, it wouldn't go away- I grabbed a calendar, not knowing why, started counting weeks, again not knowing why, then I arrived at a date- August 10th 1996. For some reason I felt like that was the date God gave me. It was either an answer to prayer or my mind playing tricks on me. So I head over to Mindy's where Kelly was. I tell them I have a date, August 10th, not for next year as we had discussed, rather the August 10th that was less than 8 months away. Their jaws dropped, I though I messed up.
After they regained their composure, Kelly let me in on her little secret and told me the significance of the date; August 11th 1994, while writing a paper for her history class, God spoke to Kelly and told her that she would be married within 2 years. That meant that on August 11 1996, if she really heard from God, she would be married.
Only a couple of people knew about that experience, Kelly had me choose the date to test me and God. The date was set, God's little revelation to Kelly was coming to fruition. We didn't have much time to plan, more importantly than that we needed to get to know each other.
I had a really stupid idea, I was going to move back to Seattle for a few months and tie up some loose ends there, since I had only intended on moving to Texas for only a short time. I'd move back to Texas in June or July. Oh how I'm so very glad that God is bigger than I am, the Seattle idea got struck down, and I headed for Conroe, Texas. I moved in with Kelly's Aunt and Uncle. The first time Kelly and I went to her Church, she introduced me to people as her fiancé, many stunned looks followed. But her pastor smiled and said "isn't it great when God moves in his many mysterious ways?" He became my pastor that day.
The next few months seemed to fly by, Kelly had worked with people with Mental Retardation since she graduated from high school, being that we were in a small town you took any job offered you, especially since I was a bible college and chef school dropout who had no idea what I wanted to do- Kelly got me a job in a group home working whit 6 guys with MR. those guys opened my young eyes to what is truly important in life.
Kelly and I took a trip in early June to Seattle so she could meet my friends and family, to this point she didn't know anyone who had known me more than 3 months longer than she had, can I say faith. The trip went well, everyone she met matched my stories and everyone confirmed that I was who I said I was. We even got some presents. I had only been a Christian for about a year and a half a this point, Kelly asked Jesus into her life at the age of 3. We came from such different backgrounds. I lived most of my life hating God, she never lived a day away from him. The trip to Seattle helped her to understand who I was, and how much I had grown. It was good.
We are nearing the big date, ironing out the last few details. God continued to show off through the planning process. When we first talked to Kelly's dad, he offered to pay for the wedding. He asked how much we needed and Kelly's response was $1500. I'm not sure you know how much weddings cost now, or back in 96, but $1500 is just a drop in the bucket. Kelly's dad wouldn't budge so that is what we had to work with. God came through, we would pray so specifically about something, one example was flowers to make the bride's maid's bouquets, Kelly wanted a certain # of a certain shade of red of silk roses, and she wanted them to be about a third the price we had seen them everywhere else. So we drive by a Michaels and she asks me to stop the car the flowers she wants are there. OK. She goes in, they have the exact #, right color and they are even cheaper than we wanted. Yeah God!
Because most of Kelly's family is located in the Dallas area and because Dallas is easier for people like m family to get to than Conroe is, we decided to have the wedding in Dallas. We made many trips up. On our last trip before the wedding Kelly had a Doctors appointment, she was loosing insurance through her dad since she was getting married and we felt it was important for her to get one last checkup. The Dr. found a very small lump in her neck. Nothing to be alarmed about though, many people have cysts and that was most likely what the lump was. To be sure a scan was planned for the next week.
Thunderstorms in Texas are so very awesome, the day that Kelly had her scan I had to work, after work I went home to take a nap and through my nap the thunder was pounding right outside my window. I waited for the call, though I knew that they would want to run more tests. I got the call; I drove to dallas to be with my fiancé. In the week from when the first doctor felt the pea sized bump to the test, the bump grew to the size of a quarter. They wanted a biopsy. Kelly was going into surgery the next morning.
Waiting in that hospital seemed like eternity. What happened next killed time and sucked all the happiness and cheer from my universe. A nurse walked out, approached the family and said "Kelly McDonald's family? The doctor found cancer; he is removing her thyroid". Part of me died that day, I walked outside and sat in a daze.
Cancer. 3 weeks before our wedding and the love of my life has Cancer! It is still difficult to remember that day. Funny thing was Kelly didn't know, she would find out in the hallway on the way to her room, her response was "I knew that".
Our families encouraged us to postpone the wedding, allow Kelly to regain her strength, heal, get over this. I said no way. She needed me more now than she did before. I needed her too. She couldn't sit up without help, much less anything else. The week after she was released from the hospital, we stayed at her father's house, I was by her side 24/7, at night I slept on the ground next to her should she need any help in the middle of the night. That week we shared many things God had put on each of our hearts, visions, dreams, and life lessons. I wanted to be married to her so that I could be next to her forever, serving her, taking care of her, protecting her. The next two weeks were so long.
With her thyroid removed her metabolism started to slowdown. Because of the cancer, radiation had to be administered but that couldn't come till about 8 weeks after the surgery. By the time the wedding day arrived, Kelly was sleeping close to twenty hours a day.
The wedding was beautiful, the bride so much more and for anyone who didn't know, there was no indication that this little daughter of God had just been diagnosed with cancer and had her thyroid removed just three weeks prior. This was her day and she shined. We exchanged vows, prayed, had communion, prayed some more and then we got to kiss. The reception was nice. She got tired and we headed for the hotel.
That night after we got everything in the room and settled down a little bit, Kelly started crying. My thought was that she realized that she made the biggest mistake in the world. I asked what was wrong her response was "I don't know if I'm tired or hungry" I was relieved, after a quick call to room service the hunger was taken care of and shortly thereafter Kelly fell asleep thus fulfilling the need of her exhaustion. I called my dad to say hi and to thank him for being civil to my mom at the wedding, his response to my calling was "what the hell you calling me for son, this is your wedding night?!?" I explained that Kelly was asleep and that while I would rather be involved in other activities on my wedding night, I was just glad to be lying next to my new wife plus we'd have plenty of time for that other stuff later.
The honeymoon was OK, she slept and I fidgeted around her dad's lake house, the water was low on the lake but the lake house was free and our original plans for the honeymoon were too much for Kelly to handle in the state she was in. She continued to get more lethargic.
A couple weeks after we got home Kelly had to go back in for radiation, after she was released from that I slept on the couch for the first and last time in our marriage. The first year and a half was tough, many complications arose from Kelly's thyroid cancer and removal but in the long run it all worked out. She is now cancer free, healthier than when we first met and the proud mother of the two most beautiful children in the world. I love my wife, I love our story. Most of all I love the fact that she would choose to have me in her life everyday. I am still amazed that this woman who remained a virgin wanted to marry a rough and ragged wandering kid from Seattle who was so new in his relationship with God that my hair was still wet from baptism. Still I look back over the years and realize that God is great, he has a plan and that bums like me if you play your hand right will get a babe like my wife.
I love her and she loves me.
So it begins way back in the 1900's, 1995 to be exact. I was a single bible college student with no money, a crapy job and was faced with spending the holidays in ugly Dallas. Kelly, who had a boyfriend at the time, was up from the Houston area visiting her dad for the holidays. She had called looking for her friend Mark, my room mate. He wasn't there and a conversation between she and I ensued- something to the effect of:
Kelly- 'you sorry little man, your life sounds so depressing, I haven't done enough good deeds for the week, you want to come hang out with me one night?'
Me- 'you're a chick with a heartbeat that actually wants to do something??? Oh yeah, I'm there'
Ok it wasn't that bad but she asked me over because she felt sorry for me. So on December 26th I picked Kelly up from her dad's and we went to dinner, actually I went to dinner, she watched me eat (she had already eaten)- then we went to a nice little coffee house and from there went to a movie. I had a habit of opening doors for ladies; Kelly commented more than once that she really appreciated my chivalry. I brought her back to her dad's and she invited me in for a bit.
Mind you this is NOT a date. We were just 2 people with a mutual friend hanging out. So we talked about life, God, what we feel God had called us to. We also talked about her boyfriend and the troubles they had been having at the time, I chimed in and gave some advice (apparently it was bad advice ;o) ) and we continued to talk. At one point she told me, very randomly, that because my name is Chris, she could never marry me. "OK, whatever" I thought. We continued to talk and the clock amazingly said that it was 6:00am, we talked all night, she pushes me out the door not wanting her dad to find a strange guy in her room at 6am. Since we were in Texas where everyone has guns I agreed.
I drove back to the dorm, realizing that I totally missed curfew, I went to the grocery store and picked up some chocolate milk and doughnuts, breakfast, incase I get stopped coming back in. I talk to my friend Ken (Ken was too stuck at the dorms over the holidays) about the non-date I tell him that I found the kind of woman I wanted to marry, Ken tells me I'm crazy. I also tell him that I think we are going to have plans with Kelly for new years. Again I'm crazy
December 30th Kelly calls and asks what I'm doing for new years, I ask if I can bring a friend- the next day Ken and I are headed for Galveston. At this point I know I like Kelly, a couple of problems though; boyfriend being one, the fact that I hated dating and told God I just wanted to find someone to marry and skip the whole dating game thing being another. So we hang out in Galveston, end up talking all night again, this time she tells me that she broke up with Sparky (seriously that was her boyfriends name). She told him that she wanted to be treated better, have doors opened, be appreciated, he agreed but the next day blew her off- he agreed that she needed better. I'm a chicken when it comes to women, so I don't ask her out at this point. We leave Galveston without me making any type of move. Ken had to be in Dallas by 9 am, he worked the luxury boxes at Stars games and puck time was 10, we left Galveston at 5 and got to Dallas a little before 9, I drove really fast and only fell asleep twice!
Kelly calls me on Jan 2 and asks me "so are we going to go out or what?" Since it appears that she likes me I say yes.
Many miles are driven the following weeks by my self to see Kelly, then one morning while sitting in a park watching prisoners pick up trash I say "you know that we're meant for each other, lets get married" her response was "NO!". the absence of a ring, me not being on my knee and the fact that my request was weak at best probably influenced her response. That day we went and looked for rings, the next day we bought one. That night I drove back to dallas with ring in hand, thinking 'what the hell am I doing?' at the same time God gave me a he peace about what had occurred, at every turn God was showing his hand in every part of our relationship. Ken though I was crazy, all the girls that I showed the ring to were jealous.
The plan was for Kelly to come up to dallas, stay at her dad's and revisit the whole proposal thing, this time she wanted my to put some thought into it. I called family and told them what was going on, asked my dad for advice on how to approach her dad whom I had never met, did I mention that Kelly is an only child?- dad said "wear a bullet proof vest" to which I replied "dad, he designs missiles, I don't think that will work" after a chuckle from his end and me explaining that Kelly's dad really does design missiles my dad told me "wear a very big bullet proof vest!".
Kelly comes up, I head to her dad's- we are all going out for lunch. Somehow I get stuck alone with her dad while Kelly and her stepmom disappear in another room. Then I find myself standing in a room with the man that I met less than 2 minutes ago, am about to ask for his daughters hand in marriage and in the room we just walked into there is a really big safe from which he start pulling multiple types of firearms from.
No joke.
I forgot my bullet proof vest, I though my dad was kidding.
The guns get put up with no shots fired, thank God! While I was cleaning out the car (and checking to make sure my underwear was still clean) the stepmom tells dad that Kelly and I are going to get engaged. That takes the pressure off of me having to ask his permission, since his response was "congratulations, Chris is it". We all packed up in the Saturn and go to eat some lunch at a nice little place called Celebration (if you are ever in Dallas, go eat there!) Lunch went well. Dinner was even better, just me and Kelly and Ken and Kelly's best friend Mindy. Dinner, movie and then a little trip to the park.
This was not your ordinary park; this one has big stone teddy bears. At 2 in the morning, on January 21st 1996, while sitting on a teddy bear's leg with me on my knee in front of her, Kelly said yes when I asked her to marry me. At this point I'm floored at how God could convince such a wonderful lady like Kelly to want to commit her life to a looser like me, I didn't complain though.
The next step was setting the date. We had discussed getting married in the summer of '97. no need to rush, and it would allow our families some time to realize that we weren't crazy (too late). Kelly tells me that I have to choose the date, and that I should seek God on it, there was significance in the date but I couldn't know the details just yet.
I prayed. The next morning while waking up a number was in my head, it wouldn't go away- I grabbed a calendar, not knowing why, started counting weeks, again not knowing why, then I arrived at a date- August 10th 1996. For some reason I felt like that was the date God gave me. It was either an answer to prayer or my mind playing tricks on me. So I head over to Mindy's where Kelly was. I tell them I have a date, August 10th, not for next year as we had discussed, rather the August 10th that was less than 8 months away. Their jaws dropped, I though I messed up.
After they regained their composure, Kelly let me in on her little secret and told me the significance of the date; August 11th 1994, while writing a paper for her history class, God spoke to Kelly and told her that she would be married within 2 years. That meant that on August 11 1996, if she really heard from God, she would be married.
Only a couple of people knew about that experience, Kelly had me choose the date to test me and God. The date was set, God's little revelation to Kelly was coming to fruition. We didn't have much time to plan, more importantly than that we needed to get to know each other.
I had a really stupid idea, I was going to move back to Seattle for a few months and tie up some loose ends there, since I had only intended on moving to Texas for only a short time. I'd move back to Texas in June or July. Oh how I'm so very glad that God is bigger than I am, the Seattle idea got struck down, and I headed for Conroe, Texas. I moved in with Kelly's Aunt and Uncle. The first time Kelly and I went to her Church, she introduced me to people as her fiancé, many stunned looks followed. But her pastor smiled and said "isn't it great when God moves in his many mysterious ways?" He became my pastor that day.
The next few months seemed to fly by, Kelly had worked with people with Mental Retardation since she graduated from high school, being that we were in a small town you took any job offered you, especially since I was a bible college and chef school dropout who had no idea what I wanted to do- Kelly got me a job in a group home working whit 6 guys with MR. those guys opened my young eyes to what is truly important in life.
Kelly and I took a trip in early June to Seattle so she could meet my friends and family, to this point she didn't know anyone who had known me more than 3 months longer than she had, can I say faith. The trip went well, everyone she met matched my stories and everyone confirmed that I was who I said I was. We even got some presents. I had only been a Christian for about a year and a half a this point, Kelly asked Jesus into her life at the age of 3. We came from such different backgrounds. I lived most of my life hating God, she never lived a day away from him. The trip to Seattle helped her to understand who I was, and how much I had grown. It was good.
We are nearing the big date, ironing out the last few details. God continued to show off through the planning process. When we first talked to Kelly's dad, he offered to pay for the wedding. He asked how much we needed and Kelly's response was $1500. I'm not sure you know how much weddings cost now, or back in 96, but $1500 is just a drop in the bucket. Kelly's dad wouldn't budge so that is what we had to work with. God came through, we would pray so specifically about something, one example was flowers to make the bride's maid's bouquets, Kelly wanted a certain # of a certain shade of red of silk roses, and she wanted them to be about a third the price we had seen them everywhere else. So we drive by a Michaels and she asks me to stop the car the flowers she wants are there. OK. She goes in, they have the exact #, right color and they are even cheaper than we wanted. Yeah God!
Because most of Kelly's family is located in the Dallas area and because Dallas is easier for people like m family to get to than Conroe is, we decided to have the wedding in Dallas. We made many trips up. On our last trip before the wedding Kelly had a Doctors appointment, she was loosing insurance through her dad since she was getting married and we felt it was important for her to get one last checkup. The Dr. found a very small lump in her neck. Nothing to be alarmed about though, many people have cysts and that was most likely what the lump was. To be sure a scan was planned for the next week.
Thunderstorms in Texas are so very awesome, the day that Kelly had her scan I had to work, after work I went home to take a nap and through my nap the thunder was pounding right outside my window. I waited for the call, though I knew that they would want to run more tests. I got the call; I drove to dallas to be with my fiancé. In the week from when the first doctor felt the pea sized bump to the test, the bump grew to the size of a quarter. They wanted a biopsy. Kelly was going into surgery the next morning.
Waiting in that hospital seemed like eternity. What happened next killed time and sucked all the happiness and cheer from my universe. A nurse walked out, approached the family and said "Kelly McDonald's family? The doctor found cancer; he is removing her thyroid". Part of me died that day, I walked outside and sat in a daze.
Cancer. 3 weeks before our wedding and the love of my life has Cancer! It is still difficult to remember that day. Funny thing was Kelly didn't know, she would find out in the hallway on the way to her room, her response was "I knew that".
Our families encouraged us to postpone the wedding, allow Kelly to regain her strength, heal, get over this. I said no way. She needed me more now than she did before. I needed her too. She couldn't sit up without help, much less anything else. The week after she was released from the hospital, we stayed at her father's house, I was by her side 24/7, at night I slept on the ground next to her should she need any help in the middle of the night. That week we shared many things God had put on each of our hearts, visions, dreams, and life lessons. I wanted to be married to her so that I could be next to her forever, serving her, taking care of her, protecting her. The next two weeks were so long.
With her thyroid removed her metabolism started to slowdown. Because of the cancer, radiation had to be administered but that couldn't come till about 8 weeks after the surgery. By the time the wedding day arrived, Kelly was sleeping close to twenty hours a day.
The wedding was beautiful, the bride so much more and for anyone who didn't know, there was no indication that this little daughter of God had just been diagnosed with cancer and had her thyroid removed just three weeks prior. This was her day and she shined. We exchanged vows, prayed, had communion, prayed some more and then we got to kiss. The reception was nice. She got tired and we headed for the hotel.
That night after we got everything in the room and settled down a little bit, Kelly started crying. My thought was that she realized that she made the biggest mistake in the world. I asked what was wrong her response was "I don't know if I'm tired or hungry" I was relieved, after a quick call to room service the hunger was taken care of and shortly thereafter Kelly fell asleep thus fulfilling the need of her exhaustion. I called my dad to say hi and to thank him for being civil to my mom at the wedding, his response to my calling was "what the hell you calling me for son, this is your wedding night?!?" I explained that Kelly was asleep and that while I would rather be involved in other activities on my wedding night, I was just glad to be lying next to my new wife plus we'd have plenty of time for that other stuff later.
The honeymoon was OK, she slept and I fidgeted around her dad's lake house, the water was low on the lake but the lake house was free and our original plans for the honeymoon were too much for Kelly to handle in the state she was in. She continued to get more lethargic.
A couple weeks after we got home Kelly had to go back in for radiation, after she was released from that I slept on the couch for the first and last time in our marriage. The first year and a half was tough, many complications arose from Kelly's thyroid cancer and removal but in the long run it all worked out. She is now cancer free, healthier than when we first met and the proud mother of the two most beautiful children in the world. I love my wife, I love our story. Most of all I love the fact that she would choose to have me in her life everyday. I am still amazed that this woman who remained a virgin wanted to marry a rough and ragged wandering kid from Seattle who was so new in his relationship with God that my hair was still wet from baptism. Still I look back over the years and realize that God is great, he has a plan and that bums like me if you play your hand right will get a babe like my wife.
I love her and she loves me.
November 20, 2003
life keeps charging on- I went camping with about 50 kids from the youth group last weekend, but it wasn’t your normal camping. it was expozure, I led a team of 8 students, together we competed against 4 other teams, assisting me was a mom who is a RN. in the end we were hungry, tired and just plain worn out. I connected with some of the kids in ways I couldn't before, God moved and I'm glad that we went.
This week I've been on vacation, Tuesday Kelly and I packed up the minivan and took the kids to the Ft. Worth Zoo, it was great, at first Ros had a hard time understanding where we were, but once she realized that we were face to face with the animals she has fallen in love with from her baby Einstein DVDs she got very excited. The tigers and gorillas were the highlights of the day. the mountain lion and I almost got into a fight though, it was eying Noah like he was lunch.
Vacation is nice, I haven't had the chance to rest much, my honey-do list is long and the more I'm around the more Kelly adds to the list- today I'm organizing the study, working on the yard and helping Kelly in our quest to eliminate all the white walls in the house, we have 5 gallons of paint, 2 for Noah’s room, 2 for our room and one for our bathroom- once we're done with those rooms we will only have the study, a hall and the guest bath to paint.
off to work for the wife I go
This week I've been on vacation, Tuesday Kelly and I packed up the minivan and took the kids to the Ft. Worth Zoo, it was great, at first Ros had a hard time understanding where we were, but once she realized that we were face to face with the animals she has fallen in love with from her baby Einstein DVDs she got very excited. The tigers and gorillas were the highlights of the day. the mountain lion and I almost got into a fight though, it was eying Noah like he was lunch.
Vacation is nice, I haven't had the chance to rest much, my honey-do list is long and the more I'm around the more Kelly adds to the list- today I'm organizing the study, working on the yard and helping Kelly in our quest to eliminate all the white walls in the house, we have 5 gallons of paint, 2 for Noah’s room, 2 for our room and one for our bathroom- once we're done with those rooms we will only have the study, a hall and the guest bath to paint.
off to work for the wife I go
November 13, 2003
I have a travel tip for you- when looking over your itinerary, make sure that you acknowledge each and every digit, especially with regards to departure times.
I never thought that a one (1) could have such an impact on how my day turns out. Yesterday I was in Pleasanton California (just outside of the bay area), the morning started off nice, I headed to the office to finish a couple of things, check email, etc. about 11:50 I decided to check my itinerary so I could check my flight status on American Airline's website, my flight was at about 2:30 and I was only 30 miles away from the airport. Then something really terrible happened, a one appeared just to the left of the two in the set of numbers that indicated my departure time, in a nano-second my departure time changed from 2:30 ish to 12:22. there was no physical way I could make the flight. I packed up, gave goodbye hugs and kisses (I was in the bay area) and headed for the airport. I arrive and am greeted with great warmth and acceptance, I got a seat on the next flight out, which ironically was at 2:30. I found a place right by the gate to grab some pizza and beer.
Life was good again.
We board the plane, we sat there. and sat there .and we sat some more. The captain come across the speaker and informs us that there is some sort of hydraulic problem and a mechanic is on his way to check it out. We continue to sit. Then one of the flight attendants asks everyone on the plane who is headed just to Dallas to stand up, we, the Dallas bound travelers, are going to catch another plane, those who are trying to connect to another flight in Dallas are doing something else, don't know though because I was walking off the plane about the time they were getting their instructions.
There were 35 of us headed to dallas, and we were about to find out what our fate held- we were being sent to the San Jose airport via little vans. We broke into groups of 7-9 and headed out. Our arrival was met with a little bit of bewilderment from the ladies at the ticket counter in San Jose, apparently there was a little communication problem between them and Oakland. The situation was resolved quickly and we all got seats, only time would tell if we would actually make it to Dallas. I shared with our little group that we were a train ride and snow storm short of a remake of a Steve Martin/John Candy movie. We eventually got in the air, and we landed in dallas about 11pm. Got home a little after midnight. I was just glad to be with my family, to give my kids kisses and be able to snuggle with my wife.
Life is good, not noticing a # on you itinerary is bad.
I never thought that a one (1) could have such an impact on how my day turns out. Yesterday I was in Pleasanton California (just outside of the bay area), the morning started off nice, I headed to the office to finish a couple of things, check email, etc. about 11:50 I decided to check my itinerary so I could check my flight status on American Airline's website, my flight was at about 2:30 and I was only 30 miles away from the airport. Then something really terrible happened, a one appeared just to the left of the two in the set of numbers that indicated my departure time, in a nano-second my departure time changed from 2:30 ish to 12:22. there was no physical way I could make the flight. I packed up, gave goodbye hugs and kisses (I was in the bay area) and headed for the airport. I arrive and am greeted with great warmth and acceptance, I got a seat on the next flight out, which ironically was at 2:30. I found a place right by the gate to grab some pizza and beer.
Life was good again.
We board the plane, we sat there. and sat there .and we sat some more. The captain come across the speaker and informs us that there is some sort of hydraulic problem and a mechanic is on his way to check it out. We continue to sit. Then one of the flight attendants asks everyone on the plane who is headed just to Dallas to stand up, we, the Dallas bound travelers, are going to catch another plane, those who are trying to connect to another flight in Dallas are doing something else, don't know though because I was walking off the plane about the time they were getting their instructions.
There were 35 of us headed to dallas, and we were about to find out what our fate held- we were being sent to the San Jose airport via little vans. We broke into groups of 7-9 and headed out. Our arrival was met with a little bit of bewilderment from the ladies at the ticket counter in San Jose, apparently there was a little communication problem between them and Oakland. The situation was resolved quickly and we all got seats, only time would tell if we would actually make it to Dallas. I shared with our little group that we were a train ride and snow storm short of a remake of a Steve Martin/John Candy movie. We eventually got in the air, and we landed in dallas about 11pm. Got home a little after midnight. I was just glad to be with my family, to give my kids kisses and be able to snuggle with my wife.
Life is good, not noticing a # on you itinerary is bad.
November 12, 2003
I’m about to head to the airport- my trip back to the hometown is complete. The business part is pretty much complete and what’s left can be easily competed from my office.
My time outside of the office has been a little disappointing but overall it has been a good trip, Sunday I drove out to spend the day with my dad’s parents- they live just outside of Yosemite. The drive out was great, the music I brought helped the miles just flyby (my lead foot helped too) spending time with the two of them was great, next year they will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. 10 years ago to celebrate they climbed Mt. Whitney, the tallest peak in California, they plan to do it again next summer, I’d like to be there with them, though if we did it today, my grandpa would kick my butt at it, they are in such great shape.
I tried to visit a couple of places that stand out in my memory of growing up in the Bay Area, unfortunately 20 years bring a lot of change and many places don’t exist anymore.
I did have the enjoyable experience of going out to eat with Kelly’s uncle who’s been here for the last year on business and his new girlfriend, I’m the first in the family to meet her, and based on what he and I have discussed she might be his bride soon. We had some great sushi, and a lot of laughs.
I also ate dinner with my co-worker’s family, her husband is a fellow homebrewer and we drank some of his master pieces.
The trip has been nice, but I miss my family. I miss holding my wife, I think that I’m going to just stay up all night tonight and hold her tonight. To the airport I go.
My time outside of the office has been a little disappointing but overall it has been a good trip, Sunday I drove out to spend the day with my dad’s parents- they live just outside of Yosemite. The drive out was great, the music I brought helped the miles just flyby (my lead foot helped too) spending time with the two of them was great, next year they will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. 10 years ago to celebrate they climbed Mt. Whitney, the tallest peak in California, they plan to do it again next summer, I’d like to be there with them, though if we did it today, my grandpa would kick my butt at it, they are in such great shape.
I tried to visit a couple of places that stand out in my memory of growing up in the Bay Area, unfortunately 20 years bring a lot of change and many places don’t exist anymore.
I did have the enjoyable experience of going out to eat with Kelly’s uncle who’s been here for the last year on business and his new girlfriend, I’m the first in the family to meet her, and based on what he and I have discussed she might be his bride soon. We had some great sushi, and a lot of laughs.
I also ate dinner with my co-worker’s family, her husband is a fellow homebrewer and we drank some of his master pieces.
The trip has been nice, but I miss my family. I miss holding my wife, I think that I’m going to just stay up all night tonight and hold her tonight. To the airport I go.
November 9, 2003
I'm home, sort of:
I'm in California currently on a business trip, this is the first time I've been back to the Bay Area for a reason other than visiting family. it is strange, many places that I grew up going to are gone, towns that were small and quaint are bigger and have 20 starbucks, on the same corner.
there are still some familiar places though, some I didn't realize or remember until I saw them. one in particular really hit an emotional button- When you drive east on 580 from Oakland to San Leandro you pass by a church on the highway, there are 3 white crosses there. growing up those crosses always brought joy to me because they meant that we were about to see two people that brought joy to me, my great-grand parents, the tow of them lived the life of Christ better than anyone I have ever known though I didn’t know that at the time, all I knew was that they loved me, they loved me like no one else did. Their house was a few miles from that church, those crosses were a landmark. driving by them Sunday brought many memories back, they brought back the sorrow I felt when my great grandfather passed away back in 1985, the anger I had towards God because of it, and the joy that I had of being able to tell my great-grandmother that I was a Christian and that I appreciated the love she and my great-grandfather had given me. The last time I saw her was he 95th birthday, she took Kelly aside and told her that I was looking better than I had ever looked, that she was glad that I had married such a beautiful woman and she thanked her for being a Christian woman. Viola, my great-grandmother passed away 2 years ago at the young age of 97, she is with her Lord, Jesus, and her husband Frank also.
Seeing those crosses made me a little sad that I wasn’t going to see Frank and Viola, but I know that because I’ve seen The Cross, I’ll see them soon enough.
I'm in California currently on a business trip, this is the first time I've been back to the Bay Area for a reason other than visiting family. it is strange, many places that I grew up going to are gone, towns that were small and quaint are bigger and have 20 starbucks, on the same corner.
there are still some familiar places though, some I didn't realize or remember until I saw them. one in particular really hit an emotional button- When you drive east on 580 from Oakland to San Leandro you pass by a church on the highway, there are 3 white crosses there. growing up those crosses always brought joy to me because they meant that we were about to see two people that brought joy to me, my great-grand parents, the tow of them lived the life of Christ better than anyone I have ever known though I didn’t know that at the time, all I knew was that they loved me, they loved me like no one else did. Their house was a few miles from that church, those crosses were a landmark. driving by them Sunday brought many memories back, they brought back the sorrow I felt when my great grandfather passed away back in 1985, the anger I had towards God because of it, and the joy that I had of being able to tell my great-grandmother that I was a Christian and that I appreciated the love she and my great-grandfather had given me. The last time I saw her was he 95th birthday, she took Kelly aside and told her that I was looking better than I had ever looked, that she was glad that I had married such a beautiful woman and she thanked her for being a Christian woman. Viola, my great-grandmother passed away 2 years ago at the young age of 97, she is with her Lord, Jesus, and her husband Frank also.
Seeing those crosses made me a little sad that I wasn’t going to see Frank and Viola, but I know that because I’ve seen The Cross, I’ll see them soon enough.
November 6, 2003
last night I met Timmy and Michael. they were first time visitors to our youth group last night. A couple of weeks ago Timmy and Michael were in a really bad car accident. Timmy was driving down a dirt road that all the kids like to race on, he was going over 85 miles an hour and didn't see the wall that he crashed into. Everyone lived and the only sign of the accident now is a cut in Michael's forehead. Timmy came to church because he knows that God protected them that night and he wants to get to know Jesus more. I hope to see Timmy again because this 15 year old is someone who God has some awesome plans for, please pray for Timmy.
We had our small group last night, I had 15 guys between the ages of 15 and 21 in my group, we talked about being more Christ like. It was good. I'm encouraged and have a hope for the future of our world. Timmy walked into our Church having only one Christian friend, Michael. He left knowing that he's got 13 brothers in Christ that are there to help him in his walk. We're going camping in a couple of weekends, Timmy is going with us. church is good, God is awesome.
We had our small group last night, I had 15 guys between the ages of 15 and 21 in my group, we talked about being more Christ like. It was good. I'm encouraged and have a hope for the future of our world. Timmy walked into our Church having only one Christian friend, Michael. He left knowing that he's got 13 brothers in Christ that are there to help him in his walk. We're going camping in a couple of weekends, Timmy is going with us. church is good, God is awesome.
November 4, 2003
I was talking with my boss today, this year has zipped by- Thanksgiving is only a couple of weeks away, Christmas isn't too far off either. wow. last weekend sped by, we took the kids to the fall festival at church friday night, Noah was a little red chili pepper, and Ros was an angel- with her pink cowboy boots so I guess she was a texas angel. Saturday was my mother in-law's birthday, can't say much about that. But Sunday night I was able to accomplish what I have been wanting to do for a couple of weeks now, Brew some Beer! it is a beautiful process, the end result is even greater. I made a red ale that is a revisit to the first beer recipe I came up with a couple of years ago. the first time I brewed this recipe I think it was a success, this time I'm hoping to hit is out of the park. I'll let you know how it goes.
I'll leave you with this- a coworker received an email from a friend who is in west africa with the peace corps. they were reflecting on the interesting combination of religion and business names. She read us a list of business names that had strong religious influences and one stuck out in my mind
"Jesus is the answer Bar and Grill"
I'll leave you with this- a coworker received an email from a friend who is in west africa with the peace corps. they were reflecting on the interesting combination of religion and business names. She read us a list of business names that had strong religious influences and one stuck out in my mind
"Jesus is the answer Bar and Grill"
November 3, 2003
October 29, 2003
this was given to me by someone very special to me, they were praying and felt led to write this down. I needed this...
Loved One,
If you could see yourself through my eyes then you would know that I don’t expect perfection or even delight in that. I love you for who you are and as you are! I died so that we could be together for eternity, all I ask of is your devotion and praise. My desire is for you to live in the fullness of life that I have planned for you, My plans are perfect and there is nothing you can do to obtain them but to accept them. I love you and I want the best for you. You are My creation and I am pleased with You.
God
Loved One,
If you could see yourself through my eyes then you would know that I don’t expect perfection or even delight in that. I love you for who you are and as you are! I died so that we could be together for eternity, all I ask of is your devotion and praise. My desire is for you to live in the fullness of life that I have planned for you, My plans are perfect and there is nothing you can do to obtain them but to accept them. I love you and I want the best for you. You are My creation and I am pleased with You.
God
friday night I got a little taste of how God sees us.
Kelly and I packed up the minivan and headed to the mall. after some shopping and a little side trip to cinnabon for a couple of mocha-latta chills we took Rosalyn to the playground area. It was a mad house but Ros still wanted to play, Kelly and I sat on the side and watched her. The interesting thing with Ros is that she is an observer, she isn't shy, or anti-social- sometimes she just likes to wander and watch what the other kids are doing without necessarily playing with them (she gets it from me). Being that it was so crazy, she would get startled or bumped and she would look up, see me watching her and she would run to me with her arms stretched out saying 'daddy, love you!' and I would catch her, hug her tell her that I love her too and say- 'go play honey' this happened a few times and it made me think about my walk with God; that he sits back and watches me interact with the other kids on his playground, sometimes I get bumped or startled, and I run to him saying 'I love you daddy'. and after he comforts me he tells me to go back out and play, and I always know that anytime I need him he'll be there waiting for me, ready to catch me.
God has a funny way of reveling himself through kids and the process of parenthood. The more I get to know my kids, the more I fall in love with them; the more I realize that God loves us in ways we will never know.
Kelly and I packed up the minivan and headed to the mall. after some shopping and a little side trip to cinnabon for a couple of mocha-latta chills we took Rosalyn to the playground area. It was a mad house but Ros still wanted to play, Kelly and I sat on the side and watched her. The interesting thing with Ros is that she is an observer, she isn't shy, or anti-social- sometimes she just likes to wander and watch what the other kids are doing without necessarily playing with them (she gets it from me). Being that it was so crazy, she would get startled or bumped and she would look up, see me watching her and she would run to me with her arms stretched out saying 'daddy, love you!' and I would catch her, hug her tell her that I love her too and say- 'go play honey' this happened a few times and it made me think about my walk with God; that he sits back and watches me interact with the other kids on his playground, sometimes I get bumped or startled, and I run to him saying 'I love you daddy'. and after he comforts me he tells me to go back out and play, and I always know that anytime I need him he'll be there waiting for me, ready to catch me.
God has a funny way of reveling himself through kids and the process of parenthood. The more I get to know my kids, the more I fall in love with them; the more I realize that God loves us in ways we will never know.
October 24, 2003
Rosalyn is becoming a ‘spider hunter’.
We had our house built last year and we are close to the country (there is a bunch of rolling farmland behind our house), as a result we have many little critters both inside and out. Recently with the weather change we have been seeing an increase in the # of spiders in the house, with two little ones that can be a little alarming. Well this week Ros has been pointing out spiders (and a bunch of crickets, to her they are the same) to Kelly. The process is: she finds the ‘spider’, she then runs to mommy and yells in her best under two language “sthpiver”, Kelly than asks where it is and Ros leads the way and mommy gets the cricket or spider and flushes it.
It is really becoming an amusing little game to watch.
We had our house built last year and we are close to the country (there is a bunch of rolling farmland behind our house), as a result we have many little critters both inside and out. Recently with the weather change we have been seeing an increase in the # of spiders in the house, with two little ones that can be a little alarming. Well this week Ros has been pointing out spiders (and a bunch of crickets, to her they are the same) to Kelly. The process is: she finds the ‘spider’, she then runs to mommy and yells in her best under two language “sthpiver”, Kelly than asks where it is and Ros leads the way and mommy gets the cricket or spider and flushes it.
It is really becoming an amusing little game to watch.
October 23, 2003
last night at church a few lines really hit me while we were worshiping-
I'll never know
how much it cost
to see my sin
upon that cross
from "here I am to worship"
God loves us so much, I'm glad for his grace and mercy- I hope that I can let others know how much he loves them, he paid too great a price for me not to.
I'll never know
how much it cost
to see my sin
upon that cross
from "here I am to worship"
God loves us so much, I'm glad for his grace and mercy- I hope that I can let others know how much he loves them, he paid too great a price for me not to.
October 21, 2003
I'm amazed that there are people reading, and a couple of you have actually sent me email, wow. By ego is getting all puffed up, thank you for your kind words.
One email asked that I explain who people I write about are, so rather than post it here I'm going to put it on the right. thank you guys again, it is kinda scary getting email from someone you don't know telling you they read about your life, but it is very cool too.
One email asked that I explain who people I write about are, so rather than post it here I'm going to put it on the right. thank you guys again, it is kinda scary getting email from someone you don't know telling you they read about your life, but it is very cool too.
Last week was hectic, Rosalyn stepped in a fire-ant bed and as a result she had the fun opportunity of riding to the ER in an ambulance. It was very stressful, I'm not going to go into the whole story here, bottom line is fire ants are evil and thank God for benadryl. After we got home from the hospital I did what all good, loving fathers should do in this case, I found that anthill and poured enough flammable liquid on it to fill an Olympic pool, then used a lighter and smiled as I saw those little bastard ants die, the crackling noise they made as they burned was very pleasing too.
Now to mercy, Sunday I preached- the message was on mercy. I think that my message was more for me than anyone else; the kids were just an audience watching God talk to me about mercy. I'm still having some problems with being merciful (as seen above with the ants, but they don't count really do they?) but God is great and he has opened my eyes to his mercy for me, and how as a Christian I need to extend the same mercy to others. I’m a work in progress. There are a couple of things that I've learned and I would like to share about mercy:
first is what Paul wrote in Romans 5:9- he was talking about Justice and God and stated "So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs but on God who has mercy" basically to me that means that whatever good God does for us it is not driven by our most generous desire or the most faithful work of man but God does it because of his mercy. We can't earn it, we can't persuade God to do it, and He does it simply because of His mercy. We don’t deserve it but His love causes him to give it. That was powerful to me.
Secondly were Paul’s words in 1 Timothy, the beginning of the first chapter talks about God’s mercy and its propose in Paul’s life specifically in verse 16. Seeing Paul state that despite what he did God gave him mercy, and to show how God used that I saw that God isn’t stupid (as I dodge a lightning bolt) in his dealing of mercy and there could just be a plan that I don’t know about in God’s mercy, after all he is God.
I continue down the road of life wanting to know more about God and his purpose for me, it is amazing sometimes what you find along the way. My prayer is that those I have hurt in the past with my lack of mercy would find mercy in God and that I would have an opportunity to right my wrongs, I have started this with my wife- she is happy and relieved that God has gotten a hold of this area of my life. I’m glad that I’m less of a jerk.
Now to mercy, Sunday I preached- the message was on mercy. I think that my message was more for me than anyone else; the kids were just an audience watching God talk to me about mercy. I'm still having some problems with being merciful (as seen above with the ants, but they don't count really do they?) but God is great and he has opened my eyes to his mercy for me, and how as a Christian I need to extend the same mercy to others. I’m a work in progress. There are a couple of things that I've learned and I would like to share about mercy:
first is what Paul wrote in Romans 5:9- he was talking about Justice and God and stated "So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs but on God who has mercy" basically to me that means that whatever good God does for us it is not driven by our most generous desire or the most faithful work of man but God does it because of his mercy. We can't earn it, we can't persuade God to do it, and He does it simply because of His mercy. We don’t deserve it but His love causes him to give it. That was powerful to me.
Secondly were Paul’s words in 1 Timothy, the beginning of the first chapter talks about God’s mercy and its propose in Paul’s life specifically in verse 16. Seeing Paul state that despite what he did God gave him mercy, and to show how God used that I saw that God isn’t stupid (as I dodge a lightning bolt) in his dealing of mercy and there could just be a plan that I don’t know about in God’s mercy, after all he is God.
I continue down the road of life wanting to know more about God and his purpose for me, it is amazing sometimes what you find along the way. My prayer is that those I have hurt in the past with my lack of mercy would find mercy in God and that I would have an opportunity to right my wrongs, I have started this with my wife- she is happy and relieved that God has gotten a hold of this area of my life. I’m glad that I’m less of a jerk.
October 14, 2003
today I learned a very important lesson in humility, grace, love and mercy. Mercy is something that I struggle with. I struggle with it quite a bit. As a result I have hurt people that really needed love and mercy. Yesterday I ran off at the mouth because of my lack of mercy, my error was that I did it in writing, on a forum that I recently found, for all to see. Then it happened. others actually read what I wrote. One person actually had the gall to respond with this-
"these two posts combined are easily the most arrogant, callous, unloving, conceited, judgemental and hypocritical thing i have ever read."
It really hurt when I read it now it still hurts. The part that hurts the most is that he was correct. he was 100% correct, I am all of those things plus some. Now I have two choices with this knowledge, fight it and pretend it didn't really happen, or accept it, accept responsibility for my actions and do my best to allow God to change this area of my life. I choose the latter, I know that only God can make the change, my heart is that bad. But I also realize that I have to let him, I have to work with him on this. I am glad that there are others out there that are loving enough, have the mercy enough, and have the grace enough to show me my fault and still accept me for who I am. I am grateful for people who aren't like me, I hope to be more like them.
"these two posts combined are easily the most arrogant, callous, unloving, conceited, judgemental and hypocritical thing i have ever read."
It really hurt when I read it now it still hurts. The part that hurts the most is that he was correct. he was 100% correct, I am all of those things plus some. Now I have two choices with this knowledge, fight it and pretend it didn't really happen, or accept it, accept responsibility for my actions and do my best to allow God to change this area of my life. I choose the latter, I know that only God can make the change, my heart is that bad. But I also realize that I have to let him, I have to work with him on this. I am glad that there are others out there that are loving enough, have the mercy enough, and have the grace enough to show me my fault and still accept me for who I am. I am grateful for people who aren't like me, I hope to be more like them.
October 13, 2003
ahh another weekend, another Monday.
Down here in Texas we had a really big football weekend. In Dallas it was the battle of the Red River, University of Texas vs. Oklahoma University. Dallas gets flooded by folks from Austin and Oklahoma, we are their middle ground for this 100 something year old rivalry. In case you didn't see it OU put the hurt on Texas pretty quick, they pretty much took them behind the woodshed and whooped their asses final score was something like 65-13. it was a nice game to watch Saturday afternoon. Though I didn't see it Texas A&M beat the snot out of Baylor, something like 73 to 10. The football fanatics were happy here in Texas, the football gods gave them good shows.
For School I have to turn in an autobiography. the assignment stated that it should be at least 6 pages double spaced. I started writing it, currently it is 18 pages, I still have to write about the process of having kids, that is another 30 pages, I'm shooting for about 3 however. As a reward for my hard work at school, and just because I really need to do it; I'm going to be making some beer this weekend. It has been a while since I've done some homebrewing, it has been a little too long. My last batch didn't turnout as I expected, mostly because I was rushed and didn't so all I needed to do. Plus Chocolate is difficult to get right the first time you use it in beer I hear. This time I am going back to my first recipe that I formulated, it is a red ale that comes across a little strong, sweet, has good mouth feel and finishes nice and crisp. I miss that beer, many of my friends miss it, soon it will be back in my life again and all will be well. I miss making beer, when I make beer I am happy. Funny thing is that people hang around my house more often when I make beer too, I wonder what the connection is?
Back to work, for me, I have to catch up on all the things I put off last week.
Down here in Texas we had a really big football weekend. In Dallas it was the battle of the Red River, University of Texas vs. Oklahoma University. Dallas gets flooded by folks from Austin and Oklahoma, we are their middle ground for this 100 something year old rivalry. In case you didn't see it OU put the hurt on Texas pretty quick, they pretty much took them behind the woodshed and whooped their asses final score was something like 65-13. it was a nice game to watch Saturday afternoon. Though I didn't see it Texas A&M beat the snot out of Baylor, something like 73 to 10. The football fanatics were happy here in Texas, the football gods gave them good shows.
For School I have to turn in an autobiography. the assignment stated that it should be at least 6 pages double spaced. I started writing it, currently it is 18 pages, I still have to write about the process of having kids, that is another 30 pages, I'm shooting for about 3 however. As a reward for my hard work at school, and just because I really need to do it; I'm going to be making some beer this weekend. It has been a while since I've done some homebrewing, it has been a little too long. My last batch didn't turnout as I expected, mostly because I was rushed and didn't so all I needed to do. Plus Chocolate is difficult to get right the first time you use it in beer I hear. This time I am going back to my first recipe that I formulated, it is a red ale that comes across a little strong, sweet, has good mouth feel and finishes nice and crisp. I miss that beer, many of my friends miss it, soon it will be back in my life again and all will be well. I miss making beer, when I make beer I am happy. Funny thing is that people hang around my house more often when I make beer too, I wonder what the connection is?
Back to work, for me, I have to catch up on all the things I put off last week.
October 9, 2003
I'm tired- I spent this weekend plus part of Monday morning moving my mother in-law into her new apartment. I love being told at the last minute that I have to do something for someone who doesn't realize that I have a life. oh well, it is over. I did get a chance to watch the two towers for the first time late (i mean really late) Saturday night, I also drank a couple of New Belgium's Trippel. Very nice beer accompanied by a great movie to finish a bad day.
the other day, Rosalyn started singing a new song. it is her version of Old McDonald and goes pretty much like this:
I farted, I farted, I farted; eeiieeii-oooh
that's pretty good for someone under 2. the first time she sang it I couldn't understand what she was singing, then she sang it again and I almost crashed the car, I laughed so hard, my wife hit me for laughing and I think we are going to be hearing it on a regular basis now. Kids are great, they are so entertaining. plus when it is time to go night-night, I usually get hugs and kisses, it is what I live for, it is what keeps me going.
the other day, Rosalyn started singing a new song. it is her version of Old McDonald and goes pretty much like this:
I farted, I farted, I farted; eeiieeii-oooh
that's pretty good for someone under 2. the first time she sang it I couldn't understand what she was singing, then she sang it again and I almost crashed the car, I laughed so hard, my wife hit me for laughing and I think we are going to be hearing it on a regular basis now. Kids are great, they are so entertaining. plus when it is time to go night-night, I usually get hugs and kisses, it is what I live for, it is what keeps me going.
October 2, 2003
life is a sack of crap. it really is, at least some of the time.
We were doing small groups last night and talking about being a friend to God, through the discussion we got on the subject of why being his friend is beneficial to us. Other than all the blessings and the retirement plan, I realized that having God as your friend is a huge help when life is flinging the dung. So I randomly stated that life is not a box of chocolates as Forrest Gump told us in his infinite wisdom, but rather it is more like a sack of crap. At first they all though it was pretty funny, then we started talking about it. Each of my guys agreed that life wasn't just balloons and candy and that as young men living in a real world with real issues, they are guaranteed to go through their fair share of 'stuff' in their lives. In the end we all agreed that the best way to survive the crap sack was to be honest, sincere and a friend with God, it was a great small group.
Right now the sack of crap that has been thrown my way is my mother in-law having her 5th stroke. She is alive, that is good, but 5 strokes over a few years time do not bode well for anyone. I hope there isn't a 6th, right now only God knows.
We were doing small groups last night and talking about being a friend to God, through the discussion we got on the subject of why being his friend is beneficial to us. Other than all the blessings and the retirement plan, I realized that having God as your friend is a huge help when life is flinging the dung. So I randomly stated that life is not a box of chocolates as Forrest Gump told us in his infinite wisdom, but rather it is more like a sack of crap. At first they all though it was pretty funny, then we started talking about it. Each of my guys agreed that life wasn't just balloons and candy and that as young men living in a real world with real issues, they are guaranteed to go through their fair share of 'stuff' in their lives. In the end we all agreed that the best way to survive the crap sack was to be honest, sincere and a friend with God, it was a great small group.
Right now the sack of crap that has been thrown my way is my mother in-law having her 5th stroke. She is alive, that is good, but 5 strokes over a few years time do not bode well for anyone. I hope there isn't a 6th, right now only God knows.
October 1, 2003
our society has become a very voyeuristic one recently, and we have become voyeurs of the boring and normal. blogs prove that. why would anyone care to read some idiots rambling thoughts? still, there is comfort to be found in knowing that there are others who see life in the same way that we do, or that their lives are just as boring or more than ours.
September 30, 2003
According to the 3 Musketeers I just ate, the only mammal with four knees is also the only mammal that can not jump....the elephant. God has an interesting sense of humor.
I've just been informed that I have to move my mother in-law to a new apartment this weekend. I'm a little frustrated about this, she is not person I consider to be a friend, she is not considerate and I'll never hear a thank you from her. I guess that I just don't like dropping everything at a moments notice for someone who is ungrateful and rude, again God has an interesting sense of humor, I just hope that if there is a lesson to be learned that I will learn it.
I've just been informed that I have to move my mother in-law to a new apartment this weekend. I'm a little frustrated about this, she is not person I consider to be a friend, she is not considerate and I'll never hear a thank you from her. I guess that I just don't like dropping everything at a moments notice for someone who is ungrateful and rude, again God has an interesting sense of humor, I just hope that if there is a lesson to be learned that I will learn it.
September 21, 2003
Business trips are always interesting. I just returned from my first trip away from the family in a year. parts were fun, some parts were funny but in many ways the trip was hell. I should have taken notice when we arrived in St. Louis that the trip had reached it's high point and it was all down hill from there.
The first two days were in Kansas City. Kansas City is a great place, I have a good friend that lives in the area and we were able to hang out a little while I was in town. The second day we drove from Kansas to St. Louis, that is a long drive. We got to the hotel, the lady at the desk had a huge smile until she started to hand me the key, I looked at the card she had written the room # on and guess what...yep I was staying in room 666. Maybe I should have asked for a different room but I didn't and in the future if I'm handed a key for room 666 I'll stay there too, unless of course they require I brand the room # on my forehead or something strange like that, I believe they only do that for the Hotel California. Back to the trip- although I was able to eat at my favorite place in St. Louie (umm beer!) the rest of the trip was pretty much a waste. I guess I just have a real difficult time being away from my family on a trip when I'm not able to be productive on the trip, it is a waste of my and my family's time and a waste of my company's money. Oh well, I'm home safely.
note- While at the Tap Room there was a picture of Johnny Cash behind the bar, I didn't realize until that moment how much I'm going to miss that man's music, RIP Mr. Cash, you are missed.
The first two days were in Kansas City. Kansas City is a great place, I have a good friend that lives in the area and we were able to hang out a little while I was in town. The second day we drove from Kansas to St. Louis, that is a long drive. We got to the hotel, the lady at the desk had a huge smile until she started to hand me the key, I looked at the card she had written the room # on and guess what...yep I was staying in room 666. Maybe I should have asked for a different room but I didn't and in the future if I'm handed a key for room 666 I'll stay there too, unless of course they require I brand the room # on my forehead or something strange like that, I believe they only do that for the Hotel California. Back to the trip- although I was able to eat at my favorite place in St. Louie (umm beer!) the rest of the trip was pretty much a waste. I guess I just have a real difficult time being away from my family on a trip when I'm not able to be productive on the trip, it is a waste of my and my family's time and a waste of my company's money. Oh well, I'm home safely.
note- While at the Tap Room there was a picture of Johnny Cash behind the bar, I didn't realize until that moment how much I'm going to miss that man's music, RIP Mr. Cash, you are missed.
September 1, 2003
I'm going back to school, probably the worst timing in the world buy Kelly and I have decided that it is best that I do it now, plus my company pays for it, if I waited till next year then I'm loosing out on that cash. It hopefully won't be too bad- two classes on Monday nights. I won't get to see Monday night football, then again I'm not a big NFL watcher anyway.
August 29, 2003
we are still alive, though I feel more like a zombie. we aren't getting much sleep at night, Noah really likes to eat in the middle of the night and really doesn't like it if he doesn't get fed at the moment he gets hungry. He is getting close to the 8 week mark- it is suppose to get better at that time and hopefully he will start sleeping through the night.
August 14, 2003
Sunday marked the 7th wedding anniversary of my wife and I. much has happened in our lives in that time. we were kids when we got married, I am still amazed that everyone let us do it. we had a date Sunday night, I took Kelly on a Date, it was so wonderful to be alone with my wife. We went for fondue, it was nice. For me, spending some time with my wife without kids screaming in the background was the most important part. We could have been at burger king. I've seen too many people get so caught up in raising kids, advancing their career, dealing with life's whatever's...that they loose touch with the love of their life, their spouse. it is as simple as going on a drive alone or staying up after the kids go to sleep and talking over a cup of tea (The best tea in the world!!), the rewards are endless, the consequences of not tending to the marriage however are painful and paralyzing.
back to the anniversary and date, we had a wonderful time, and thanks to Kelly's step-mom, the kids were safe and had fun and we had no worries. Getting married to Kelly was the best thing on earth that I ever did, expanding our children to carry on the legacy is the icing on the cake.
to my wife, the woman who is kind enough to love me in return, thank you for the best time of my life, here is to 7 times 77 more years
back to the anniversary and date, we had a wonderful time, and thanks to Kelly's step-mom, the kids were safe and had fun and we had no worries. Getting married to Kelly was the best thing on earth that I ever did, expanding our children to carry on the legacy is the icing on the cake.
to my wife, the woman who is kind enough to love me in return, thank you for the best time of my life, here is to 7 times 77 more years
August 6, 2003
we are still alive, the children are still alive- it is a good day.
I forgot how much work goes into taking care of a newborn. I had also forgotten that you really don't know this new person at first, it takes time, you have to work on the relationship. I've found that I have been more comfortable spending time with my daughter than with Noah, i think it is because of the relationship I have built with Rosalyn and I know her, I know her needs, I know how to soother her when she is upset and she knows me. With Noah it takes some effort, he is different in many ways from his older sister and it takes alot of effort to take care of his needs. after realizing this, and acting on it by making an effort to get to know him. I have found that I'm really enjoying this new person in my life, I like his personality and it isn't really that difficult- it just required me to take that step and make the effort. I look forward to getting to know Noah more, seeing him develop as a person and make his mark in this world. today is a good day, I spent time with my wife, I played with my daughter and got to know my son a little more.
I forgot how much work goes into taking care of a newborn. I had also forgotten that you really don't know this new person at first, it takes time, you have to work on the relationship. I've found that I have been more comfortable spending time with my daughter than with Noah, i think it is because of the relationship I have built with Rosalyn and I know her, I know her needs, I know how to soother her when she is upset and she knows me. With Noah it takes some effort, he is different in many ways from his older sister and it takes alot of effort to take care of his needs. after realizing this, and acting on it by making an effort to get to know him. I have found that I'm really enjoying this new person in my life, I like his personality and it isn't really that difficult- it just required me to take that step and make the effort. I look forward to getting to know Noah more, seeing him develop as a person and make his mark in this world. today is a good day, I spent time with my wife, I played with my daughter and got to know my son a little more.
July 24, 2003
I am so amazed at how great of a big sister Rosalyn is turning out to be. she is so loving with Noah. the first word(s) out of her mouth when she wakes up are either 'Noah' or 'baby Noah', when she goes 'night, night' the last thing she has to do is give him a kiss. life is great, and for my wife and I who are both only children this experience is priceless
July 10, 2003
Noah Alva Larson entered this world on July 8th, 2003. he is our second child, Rosalyn our first is so excited about having a little baby brother. our lives have has changed forever. With Rosalyn we became parents, with Noah we proved that we are crazy.
He is so beautiful, it is amazing how God brings these little people into our lives, causes them to melt our hearts and makes us fall so deeply in love with them and in return they scream at us, oh well, he is still beautify and I as his father have a duty to love, protect and train him- first order of business is teaching him that asking politely is more effective than screaming.
He is so beautiful, it is amazing how God brings these little people into our lives, causes them to melt our hearts and makes us fall so deeply in love with them and in return they scream at us, oh well, he is still beautify and I as his father have a duty to love, protect and train him- first order of business is teaching him that asking politely is more effective than screaming.
June 26, 2003
10 days and counting- We are hoping for an early delivery, I'd love a July fourth baby- we'll see what we get. things are about to get real interesting, we already have a 18 month old daughter and we are having another child, I think my wife and I are gluttons for punishment. I'm excited though, children are a blessing from God- I have understood that intimately for the last year and a half and look forward to getting to know another baby and have the opportunity to be daddy again
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