Well, I was putting it off forever, but I will post :o)

Merry Christmas, y'all. I hope that your holiday is wonderful and perfect, just like our Savior.



For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this. -Isaiah 9:6-7

A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD - and he will delight in the fear of the LORD. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist. The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious. -Isaiah 11:1-10

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. -Luke 2:8-11

in response to my last post...

So yes, I get to meet a Spur this Friday. I am so pumped!!!

See, I agreed to help drive the FFA to San Antonio for their annual Spurs game trip. In exchange for driving, I get a seat at the game, a drink, a hot dog, chips, a tshirt and a post game meet with a San Antonio Spur. Yes, a professional basketball player!!!!!

Earlier, I was surfing the Spurs' website and decided to rank which Spur I would want to meet the most. Here's a rough draft...

1. Tim Duncan
2. Manu Ginobili
3. Brent Barry
4. Tony Parker
5. Robert Horry
6. Beno Udrih
7. Bruce Bowen
8. Michael Finley
9. Fabricio Oberto
10. and five other guys I've never heard of... Williams, Vaughn, Elson, Butler, Bonner.

So there's my list. Who would be your top five?

GO SPURS GO!!!!

HOLY COW!!!

Next Friday, Dec 8th, I will get to meet him:

Well, now that's not entirely true. I'll get to meet A Spurs player. :-D

STILL!!!!

EXCITING!!!!!

AHHHH!!!!! If there were words to describe my excitement, they'd be here. Posted. For the world to see. :o)

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am thankful for:

• you!
• my family
• somewhere to sleep
• food to eat
• my health; physical, emotional, and mental
• my friends
• my faith
• my church
• my job
• opportunities
• freedom to vote and worship how I choose
• technological advances that allow communication around the globe
• grace and mercy from a loving and compassionate God
• floods
• my students
• Bodacious Half-Reville Satterwhite (our dog who passed away this week)
• trials and tribulations that force me to make think and make decisions

It's quite a bit, I guess. And there's so much more that I take for granted every second of every day. We are blessed!! And I am blessed by you!!

Happy Thanksgiving, wherever you are!!

(i know it says 40th, but it's got your name on it... it's a give-and-take deal)

Happy Birthday best friend!! :o)

I love you!!!

friday morning thoughts

First, an immediate prayer concern:

Request from Central Baptist

We have a young couple in our church, David and Christina Kristynik.
David is in Iraq and due to be sent back to the states in three weeks.
He called Christina this morning at 9:30 am (our time) to say goodbye to
her and their children (they have a 2 yr old and a ten month old). He
and his group will be leaving at 4 pm today (our time) on foot to go
into Baghdad no vehicles or tanks will be taken. Their mission will
last 2 or 3 days and the purpose is to go door to door and capture all
snipers in the city.
The commanders have told the men what a dangerous mission this is and it
is very likely that most will not come back to their base. Christina is
terrified and called on everyone in our church to pray. She said the
men are also fearful. They were all told to call their families before
they leave.

I'm asking each of you to pray for these men and women for the next 3
days. If your church has a prayer chain, PLEASE call and ask them to
pray.

Secondly:

This morning at FCA, our speaker spoke on these two passages:

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. - 1 John 4:9-10

As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead. - James 2:26

What an amazing thought -- We are called to do good deeds to all around us because of our love for and faith in God. God did something for us -- He loved us, and he proved it even more by sacrificing his son. So we, too, are called to sacrifice for God to prove our faith to Him and to our neighbors.

It's really long . . .

Have you ever thought, actually thought, about the Second Continental Congress of 1776? I know it sounds silly, but it's an important question. Let me jog your memory:

The Second Continental Congress was a body of representatives appointed by the legislatures of several British North American colonies which met from May 10, 1775, to March 1, 1781. The First Continental Congress had sent entreaties to the British King to stop the Intolerable Acts and had created the Articles of Association to establish a coordinated protest of the Intolerable Acts; in particular, a boycott had been placed on British goods. That Congress had provided that the Second Continental Congress would meet on May 10, 1775, to plan further responses if the British government had not repealed or modified the Intolerable Acts.
-From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Tonight I watched the film adaptation of 1776, a musical based on the days and months leading up to the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Other than being 3 hours long, it was really, really good. A co-worker of mine, Jimmy, is a history teacher, and so of course when he told me that it was a really good flick, I brushed it off as one of those "history" movies that are either all Hollywood-ed up, or all boring. But I was very wrong. It was neither. It was a musical, which we all know I love, and it was extremely interesting. So interesting that I skipped dinner. I couldn't move away from the couch, I didn't want to miss any part of the plot.

It's been a long while since I had any kind of American, world or Texas history class. And of course, I don't necessarily miss them because they were pretty boring, but this show intrigued me.

I'll hit back on my first question: Have you ever really thought about the Second Continental Congress of 1776? I hadn't until tonight. John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson: all names that we civilians recognize from middle school history courses and science class. Common names that we remember, but brush aside. But these men, along with many others, stood up in that congressional session and stood their ground. They were unwavering in their beliefs that, as a new nation, a new breed, a new nationality, that the people of America had the right to be free men(and women). That King George could not rule them and could not take away rights of human beings that he didn't have the right to take away in the first place.

For months on end, the men who represented those 13 colonies fought and bickered and argued over and over again about the idea of independence. And the fact that independence was a new idea seemed to keep some delegates hung up on their vote.

I am so blessed, we are so blessed to have the independence over our lives that we have. In so many countries, cities, places all over this world, so many are without these rights. America is free to live however we want and yet we still lobby and argue and picket for more. Our freedom is staring us right in the face and we look right past it because we are so greedy.

Appropriately, as election day is tomorrow, let us remember the freedoms we have, the independence we have been blessed with, the rights that are upheld every day, and the life that God has given us to live.

a GOOD day

Today has been a good day!!

Church was good - Michael gave the sermon and I have always enjoyed his sermons, so that was really nice.

Then lunch with good friends and good times at the Potato SLOW Shack!!

Then changing old to new with window decals.

Then catching up with Wendy via cell phone. :o) MISS YOU!!!!

Softball game -- I hit really really really well !! Tonight I hit twice out in the outfield, like, the farthest I have EVER hit!! It was wonderful. Then we ended up winning the game in the last inning!!

I stuck around and filled in for the team we had just beat; they needed another female. I did alright; we won that game too.

Then, dinner and more phone time with friends. Now, I'm getting ready to hit the hay, and ready for another day full of blessings!!! :o)

Blessings and love to you, wherever you are!!

decorating for all hallow's eve . . .

my window sill

(and that's pronouned with a long "i", not an "ee" sound for those of you from east texas... or just texas)

hahaha

RIP Alero . . .

Yeah, the Alero has been deemed "totalled" by my insurance company. It's a sad day... It's really frustrating too, because I have had that car for over 4 years now. That's the longest I've ever driven a car. That's kind of sad, too. Haha...

So, I've been driving a rental car for this past weekend (and if I had the money, I'd buy it!). It's a Dodge Caliber. I've never driven a Dodge consistently. I really like it a lot. It's sporty and new!! And it accelerates a lot quicker than the Alero did. But, since I don't have a lot of money, I'll have to wait until my job becomes full time and I can afford to have a car payment along with all my other bills.

For now, Mom has decided that she wanted to buy a car anyways, so she has found herself a nice Buick Rainier, which is a midsize SUV, but it's really nice. So we'll go pick that up tomorrow and I'll be driving her Honda Accord as my car now.

I was talking to my mom earlier last week and I was telling her that I was trying to understand why God had allowed this to happen, what kind of lesson was I supposed to learn? She smartly replied that God's telling me to get a full time job so I can afford car payments. I scoffed and thought otherwise. One good thing from all this is that I have hung out with my mom a lot, so maybe it's been for that reason. And of course, I should learn when to move a car with rising waters and also know that possessions on earth are only temporary. That's a pretty big one.

Thank you for all your prayers and concern over my last week. Hopefully things will be back to "normal" soon. :o)

it's a double whammy!

Ah.. You might be wondering how I have been able to do TWO posts in one day. Well it's not like I really wanted to, but here are some pictures to how my day has gone so far. Basically, it's been raining since last night, almost non stop. Yeah. So here's my pictoral article this fine Monday.


Yeah, that's my car on the left.


See that champagne colored car? Yeah, that guy is stupid. He tried to move his car.


This is about 20 minutes later. The water definitely went IN the car.



You can't see it, but my floor mats are floating. And that is water pooling UP into my seats. Disgusting ...

So my day has stunk so far. I've made an insurance claim and hopefully the adjuster will call me soon so we can get this all worked out. I'm trying to be positive because I'm essentially getting today off, but really, I can't see anything positive about tomorrow yet. When you have a job that requires you to drive around the district, being without a car kind of makes the job difficult. So prayers are appreciated that things go smoothly, however they go.

Well, finally here's an update to NYWC weekend.


First off, I had a wonderful time. It was great to get away for a weekend and hang out with friends and just be around people, constantly in the presence of God and worshipping with a whole bunch of wonderful artists. Thank you B Smith for letting me go!!!


We left Friday morning real early for Austin so we could hit a few morning seminars. I was glad that we left early because it just felt like the weekend was more complete and we were really able to get the full effect of the convention. We started our afternoon with a worship service led by David Crowder and we heard from Buster .. somebody. He was a good speaker, I just don't remember his last name :o) Friday afternoon went well also. The seminars were really good this year and I just picked the right ones, it seems. They were what I needed to hear for my heart and for my many ministry areas. That night, we attended a dinner for Methodist youth workers. We didn't exactly get there in time for the great food, but the food we had was pretty good. That night after the worship session with DCB and speaker Mike Pilavachi (so funny!), we all headed to Katz' Deli/Diner on 6th Street and had an extremely late dinner/snack. I really love their grilled cheeses!! All the girls stayed up real late, of course, with girl talk and laughing and serious stories intermixed.



Saturday was excellent as well. I had really wanted to get up early for a seminar, but since we had stayed up so late the night before, I could barely open my eyelids so I skipped it and slept in until it was time for the first worship session of the day. David Crowder led yet another amazing set and our speaker was . . . hmm hahaha.. this old guy and I didn't really listen. We headed out for lunch to find a good little bar to watch the Aggies play and eat some lunch. I then headed back to the convention center and attended another seminar. This one was simply for your soul; not to try and give you 8 steps to whatever. It was just soothing and perfectly what I needed. That evening, we worshipped with Shane & Shane, listened to Donald Miller speak. He is a great speaker. I've never read any of his books, but I am definitely interested in what he has to say. That night, we headed back to the hotel for more girl time in the room. We ordered in room service, Traci Smith style! She ordered cheesecake and some other stuff.. I don't really remember because I didn't have any it was so late. We all hung out for a while and chatted and then fell asleep late again.




(picture of everyone being apathetic)

Sunday I woke up early, determined to go to an early seminar, which I did. It was good, about kids who "cut" or self injure. It was very interesting and extremely sad. But I'm glad I went. The next general session was led again by S&S (no good pics of S&S! :( ) and the speaker was Sharon Cohn. She spoke on social justice. It probably was interesting. But I wouldn't know. I fell asleep!! Ha... We went to lunch at Schlotsky's downtown.



After lunch we headed back for another seminar, this one was on developing youth leaders by Marcus Goodloe of Mosaic Church in LA. It was pretty good! That afternoon, our general session was led by Jeremy Camp and speaker Greg Stier. Greg did a great job. He is very energetic!!!





We had to leave soon after. I had to get back for work the next day, even though I would have loved to stay for the Kutless and Thousand Foot Krutch concert. We went to a Wendy's on our way out. Food was okay, service was poor. We met a Carrie, a homeless woman, and bought her some food and stayed and talked with her for a while. It kind of counterfeited our reason for not going to the concert, but I think it took us so long to get out of town just so we could meet her.




It was a wonderful weekend and am so glad that I went!!! :o)

a taste...

Since the demand was so high, I thought I'd give my audience a taste of what's to come . . .

These pics were taken near the end of the summer and they just make me laugh . . .

If you'll notice in this first one, the drink on the right hand page.

Now, that looks like quite the... flirty drink, no?

Take a look at this next picture and see why it's so funny...

Haha.. The Don..

driving home from the church, i started thinking about things i love

driving with the windows down, my fingers stinging from the cold
david crowder*band's "stars"
my friends, near and far
compliments from a four year old (cuz they're real!)
big bear hugs that say so much more than words
technology (but not as much as you, you see)
my job, my coworkers
wearing a long sleeve shirt and shorts
television
road trips (it's not funny when a road trips, you shouldn't laugh...)
mexican food
soccer
la familia

just a few... i'm so blessed!!! :o)

Ugh.. okay...

Well, after getting a taste of my own medicine, here I am.

Life has been good the past week. I'm staying with Paul M. this week while his parents are out of town, but tonight is my last night. Friday I'm leaving for San Antonio, and hopefully I'll have somewhere to stay for Friday night, because my dad kind of flaked on me and I'm out of shelter until Saturday night. I want to go Friday to San Marcos possibly so I can see some friends and shop and then go to Austin that night to see Andy play at some club that I have no idea where it is. Haha.. And possibly see Wendy and the Cali folk that night too! Then, Saturday morning, I'm heading for San An to eat breakfast with friends and wait for Dad and the brothers to get to town so I can hang with them. (this is alllll still in the planning stages.. one day before I leave.. of course) Saturday night is the aTm vs Army game at the Alamodome. Sunday morning, I'm going to Round Rock to go to church and then heading home! It's gonna be a really really fun weekend. But, I have to finish my work week first and then the fun starts.

I'm pretty sure I'm playing football tomorrow night? That's all I can divulge there ... maybe some pictures at a later date.

Well, it's 10:30 and I really want to get into bed and watch TV til I fall asleep .. so that's what I'm gonna do :o)

I hope you enjoyed this update! Y'all come back now, ya hear?

Happy Birthday Ginger :o)

Remeber I told you about a little boy I was helping this summer? He was learning how to walk?

Well, as it does for every student who starts back to school, it takes some time to remember how to do things. He came back to school and remembered quite well all the stuff he had learned over the summer at summer school. We had gotten him to take 2 or 3 steps on his own, without any assistance from a teacher and that was pretty big because he was unsure of himself, just needed some confidence and reassurance that we were there.

Fast forward to today. Our PT came into my office and affirmed that he is walking on his own! She told me that he (on more than one occasion) took 6-8 steps on his own without falling backwards for reassurance or falling period. How exciting!! This is huge for this little guy.

This is why I love this job. It's the little things that I take for granted all the time that my students struggle with and when they succeed, it's amazing and totally gratifying.

I AM making a difference in my job. I AM successful. I AM blessed!!

Today was the service for my friend's babies. It was so sad, but the pastor made some very awesome statements. He said that there is no verse in the Bible that says that the twins are in heaven, but he knows in his heart that they are because God has nothing to hold against them. They were not born into this sinful world. How cool is that. The twins will never know sin or pain or guilt. They will just know the glory of the Lord! And when we see them in heaven, we will see them just as God wants us to. I just think this is amazing.

Tonight was amaaaazing (foreshadowing?). I attended the A&M vs UNC women's soccer game here in CS.

The game started off well, and all togerhter, both teams played hard and were very aggressive. There were lots of fouls. There were only maybe 5 shots for each team in the first half; no goals scored. As the second half was played out, both teams were getting frustrated. It was frustrating to watch them as they made poor touches and passes were often to the wrong team. In the latter part of the second half, the Aggies almost scored a diving header from inside the 8 yard line. It was so sweet, but the UNC keeper was right there to stop it. Both teams got tired and worn out of course, after playing for 90 minutes. The Aggies never let up on the attack. There were many beautiful crosses and shots, they just didn't make it in.

As they started the first overtime period, the Ags continued the barrage on UNC. Our attacks were often and strong, but still no score at the end of the first overtime period. I was very worried that we would have to go to penalty kicks, one of my most hated parts of soccer, even though it's a thrilling time.

Then comes the exciting part. In a moment that rivals the 2002 A&M vs OU football game winning Aggie touchdown, with about 2 minutes remaining in the overtime period, Amy Berend passed the ball to Ashley Pistorious who ended up with the ball, one-on-one with the UNC goalkeeper and a shot to the lower left corner of the goal, just out of reach of the goalie. The 8,204 member crowd (a new NCAA record!) erupted into whoops, yells, and a rush of adrenaline in support of the Lady Aggies. The Lady Ags put forth amazing effort, with the defense staying solid throughout and the freshman keeper recorded her first official shutout of her college career.. against UNC (that simply doesn't happen often, people). Kat also pointed out to me that the only game UNC lost last year was the game that kicked them out of the playoffs. And this year, they started with a loss to Texas A&M University :-D whoop.

Wonderful.. it was wonderful :o)

Please be in prayer for my friend Stacy. She got pregnant back in March with twins and it's been a rough road. She and her husband have been trying to have children for a few years now and it didn't happen until this year. Unfortunately, they lost the babies last night after a week stint in the hospital. Please please be in prayer for them.

that bad kid . . .

Lauren: "ooooohhh that bad girl lauren from texas....she skipped the presidents convocation.....if only we could be as bad as that bad kid lauren..."
Lauren: thats what they say around here about me


LOL ...

Wow, it's been awhile. . . Apologies again but I still don't have internet at my apartment (grr) and I just dislike spending a lot of time here in the computer lab. So! Let me attempt to let you in on what's been going on with me for the past week. :o)

A couple of weeks ago, I went to NTI (New Teacher Induction) with alll the other new teachers to the district. One of the only upsides was that I met a lot of other teachers - all of whom are really cool (of course. i mean, all teachers are cool, duh)! Anywho - it was good I guess. That weekend, I attempted to get a little more settled in my new apartment. (and I don't remember what else ... that was two weeks ago)

The next week, I had teacher inservice allllll week. Something everyday! I did get to attend a couple of really good seminars on autism and also a team grouping meeting for the office that I work in. **side note** Yeah, so I work in an office now. It's totally bizarre. I always thought my "office" would be my classroom or attached to a gymnasium. But, I'm sure it's gonna be really good and a great experience.** Okay so back to last week ... I also went by the highschool a few times to see the ladies from last year. I miss them SO much. They're just so fun and there is more to them than just work - they're ... real. haha.. Anywho, I am gonna go see them a lot I think. And then this last weekend, I kinda bummed around on Saturday - got some stuff done around the apartment and stuff. Yeah.. stuff. Sunday was fun - after church we went to eat at Wings N More for a "good bye Lauren" party thing. It was good. :o) Sunday night I went helped Ashley paint her room. I am just awesome . . . I painted two whole walls. Yeah.. I rock. Basically. hehe...

This week has started off good! Yesterday, Laurie (my coworker) and I went around to a lot of the schools and met teachers, talked about schedules, etc. I also had some coaching stuff.

TODAY is/was the first day of school !!! I'm part-time, so I went to work at 8 and I got off at 12!! Yeah, this pretty much rocks. I'll go up to the highschool in about 45 minutes and visit and get ready for athletics. I might really really like my schedule :o) Haha..

In other life things, I have just kinda been cruising. Trying to make it from day to day. The end of July/beginning of August has been hectic with friends visiting (I miss you girls [and Ben]!!) and friends moving away (Love you Patrice and Lauren!!), but it's change, and I'm makin it. I think I have decided that I want to teach 9th grade Sunday School at the church. I might just be insane, but I think it'll be cool.

I gotta jet, but I'm praying for you! Please keep prayin for me!!!

Well, my apologies for not posting recently, I've been pretty busy, and have not even had internet connection for 3 or 4 days now. So let's see.. what have I been up to?

After UMARMY, I stayed with the Smith boys for 4 days - that was a lot of fun and I hadn't gotten to see them for a long while. At the same time, I was working in the mornings for summer school doing some adaptive p.e. stuff. It was really cool - I got to work with a little boy named Jaime. He's so cute. He is learning to walk without using a walker or support from a teacher. He's getting really close. It's all in his head now. So that is going to be some stuff that I'll get to deal with in the upcoming year too.

Speaking of the upcoming year, I started back to work on Tuesday of this week. (yesterday) It's called NTI, or New Teacher Induction. It's a really good tool for classroom teachers, but it's hard to transfer the information to a totally different environment like PE. But it's all good. I'll make it I'm sure.

Another reason I haven't been around is because I've had so many friends here!! Wendy and Ginger were here (Wendy had to go back early for classes... boo), Julie visited, and Kat too!! It's been crazy fun.

I don't have internet connection at my *NEW * apartment still, but it will come soon enough. :o)

Gotta go. Love ya.

Well I'm back. Another UMARMY for the record books. What a wonderful week!! My group, Red B, along with many others, scarped and painted the Taj Mahal of UMARMY projects!! It was totally insane... BUT .. The house looks stinking amazing. I don't think I've ever seen a better looking white house with black trim and grey porch (ah that good ol umarmy standard..) !! And I have to add in here that our color group leader and assistant were totally amazing -- So much thanks goes out to Alan Rudd and Andrew Schulz for being amazing encouraging and awesome !!! You guys totally rocked the kasbah this week even if the sharif don't like it!! :o)

We had many good times (too late in the evening to really even think right now) and we laughed with each other and at each other quite a bit. Michael and Patrice taught even us white kids how to flow and make nonsense sound amazing. The Don set up and humiliated Lauren B-Dev and Brian's number was released to the common people. So funny.... !! :o)

I can't post pics right now because I'm not on my computer. Yeah, for whatever insane reason, I agreed to stay with the three Smith boys for 4 nights this week. Not so smart considering it started tonight, the night DIRECTLY after umarmy. Oh well.. I'm sure I'll live.

Well .. I think that's all I have for now. In approximately 6 days, Ryan and Kristin get married and in 7 days, Ginger and Wendy come back to CS. I can't believe it's the end of July almost!! AHHHH .... So much is going on soon - brothers' birthday, moving in, moving out . . . starting work.. Oh my!

Good night all -

Ya know, I don't fully understand what it is about this apartment, but for some reason, Mormon missionaries are attracted to it. Now, I have respect for these men and women for going out and getting their beliefs into homes, because that carries some serious faith right there. Anyways, if you'll recall, I had some male Mormon visitors in January and we had quite the conversation. And about 10 minutes ago, I had 2 female missionaries come knockin!! I didn't want to turn them away, because they were really nice and not all that creepy, but I was just not in the mood for another long talk. I felt kinda bad, but I just didn't want to fight that fight today. I wished them luck and closed the door.

Stuck behind Chet . . .


Welcome to Arkansas!


The curves in Arkansas


Me and Michelle


Lizzie, my camper!!


Lizzie on the zip line!!


The White River in Arkansas

Happy Independence Day! :o)

Sorry I haven't been posting lately . . . I don't have a lot to say!! I haven't done a whole lot or thought much recently. It's been somewhat nice! Haha

UMARMY is next week, so I'll probably have some good stuff to say then! Maybe I'll post some Barnabas pics tonight . . .

No Barnabas post yet . . . just know that it was amazing and I'm sure I'll write on here about it soon.

As for now . . .

I've been reading Mere Christianity recently, and today I read a chapter about the different between creating and begetting. It was very interesting. Lewis compares and contrasts how creating is to make and begetting is to become the father of. He spends a whole chapter writing about how God created us (we're like Him, but we're not Him) and how God begat (?) Jesus (He's got God's genes!). Very interesting chapter - very cool chapter.

Then today, I read an article on relevant called Let Us Decompose. It echos what Lewis talked about in how we don't create things. Humans basically rearrange things to make them "new." Let me give you a snippet from the article to better explain myself. . ..

"we reassemble existing parts, cut and paste objects and ideas from the known world, reshuffle the deck."

"when was the last time a new primary color was invented or a missing musical note discovered?"

"Musicians are judged by who they sound like (part Bob, Beck and Bruce), actors by who they look like (she’s got Jessica’s hair, Nicole’s eyes and Angelina’s lips) and books by how they read (think Harry Potter with a dash of Steele). "

"All our creations are re-creations, omelettes whipped up from yesterday’s leftovers."

I'm lovin this! Now here's my favorite part of the article:

" "In the beginning, God created ..." He composed. He assembled parts ex nihilo, "out of nothing." He spread out the canvas and drew His thumb across the celestial swath. We live in that Composition, on that Canvas; we are the parts He assembled. Herein lies our glory and our deficiency.

We create because we are like Him, but we cannot create like Him.

Unlike God, we cannot make something from nothing. Everything we shape, form, order and arrange requires something else. Like a celluloid hero, the laws of the medium bind us. Poets need language and its laws, for without it their craft is made moot. Some musical forms may push the boundaries, but sour notes are not tolerable—even by the most sophisticated. Architecture can be innovative, as long as the foundation is solid. Characters can be fresh, as long as they are believable. Art must correspond to Reality—in fact, it cannot do anything but that.

If art is the signature of man, as Chesterton suggested, then man is the signature of God. And every film, song, poem or novel, no matter how tired or twisted, is an echo of His original act. So let us borrow, bleed and recast the old, tell the Tale a thousand times over. Let us crush the berries, raise the chisel and strike up the band, for tonight we decompose. "

My favorite line in there is that "we create because we are like Him, but we cannot create like Him." It's just a reminder that our God is great and powerful and mighty, and as creative and imaginative as our human minds might be, God's imagination is. . . wow. . It's unimaginable.

Just like His love, we can't wrap our puny minds around Him because He's so big!! He's bigger than the stinkin universe! Whoa! I don't even know how big the universe is, but God's bigger?! We truly are just a grain of sand in His hands, but His vision is so intense that He can see into our hearts.

Kat said something today that I hadn't thought about in a really long time. "God doesn't care about the posture of your body. He cares about the posture of your heart."

i'm still working on the barnabas post, so please be patient. But i think i figured out what all this itch is about!

I have poison ivy. I'm positive of that. The only question was how I got it on my forehead, eyelid, neck and ear.. and forearms!!

The culprit: my pillowcase. . . .the traitor...

We went camping one night and we took our pillows with us. At one point during the trip, our pillows were on the ground, and I guess my pillow got onto a plant.

So I think that pretty much cracks that case. I shall continue to itch . . . and I will keep my antihistamines close and my caladryl closer. :o)

I can't stop itching !!!!!!!!


I have been attacked by chiggers (what a gross word) and I might have poison ivy on my eyelid. I have no idea how it could have gotten there . . . some odd transfer I'm sure.

More to come soon about Barnabas .. :o) Until then, I might have to duct tape some oven mitts to my hands, and I'll keep relying on my anti itch cream.

Oh the AGONY!!!!

Hey I forgot to add to that -- I will be leaving town tomorrow morning to go to Camp Barnabas!! Please pray for safe travel (I am driving!) and that God will just allow me to bless the kids in whatever way.

I'll be back June 17th . . . So yeah! Thanks!

WELL!

I had my interview today. I think it went okay. They asked some really really hard questions, but it was good because it made me really stretch my brain in ways I haven't had to do in a while. I'm still thinking about them too. It's kind of funny how your college education has an impact on your philosophy. Through academia, field experience, writing papers and over thinking everything

And I stopped mid sentence because I got a phone call.

It was the head of special services, one of the women I interviewed with. She had one more question to ask me, something about health benefits.

And then she proceeded to tell me that the interview went really well. And that she would be sending in the papers to the director of personnel, recommending me for the job.

YEAH! Read that again!!

That means I got the job!!!!!!!

WHOOP!

Praise to Jehovah Jireh!!!

YAY!!!

This is quite possibly one of the most difficult questions to answer of all time:

If you were stranded on an island with one of these men, who would you choose?

McDreamy? or McConaghey?






Yeah ... it's rough huh???? I still don't know my answer ...

Comment with your choice!

Hey everybody! Look at me! I have the holiest donkey in the world!

HAHAHAHA.... You guys ... check this stuff out.. it is HILARIOUS. There are four of them, so just sit back and enjoy! :o)

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=vintage21

"In the Spring of 2003, Vintage21 had a four week series on Jesus Christ, taking a deep look at what He said and did. It was difficult at times to get past our preconceived notions that had been developed by staunch, starched Sunday School classes of old. This is a satirical look at what some people think Jesus is like. Thank goodness He's not."

Okay, Lauren . . .

I don't have a whole lot to blog about tonight. I'm sure I could talk all about my weekend in Arlington with my special olympics kids ... buuuuttttt I'm not. haha... Yeah. hahaha..

I've been enjoying my summer break for the past two days. It's been incredible. Monday was spent being lazy and spending time with friends on Memorial Day. Today was great - I got a few things done at the house and was lazy and watched The Producers. (it's funny!! especially if you like satires and musicals) Tomorrow, the 3rd day of summer, will be spent fixing my brakes with Ross and hopefully some other stuff.

I leave next Tuesday (hopefully) or Wednesday for Missouri to go to Camp Barnabas. I've got lots of stuff to do between now and then .. like PACK ... :o) Oh yeah, and I'm supposedly going to have a job interview next week but I'll let you know all about that later. Sorry for the long time in between posts ... I've been in mourning of the Spurs losing for a long time now ... :o\

Love you!

blame it on ... mexico?

Well .. Spurs ran out of time tonight. I'm pretty sad and depressed about it. But it was a pretty stinkin good game. Like the majority of the series between the Mavs and Spurs this year, it came down to the last possession of the game, and ultimately an overtime yet again. I, along with many other Spurs fans, were in the victory position, hands over my head in a V, for most of the second half as we came back from a 20+ point deficit at half. A great game, but the Mavs beat us out .. this year. There were some pretty sweet shots on both sides and a nail biter all the way. Heehee.. a great highlight was watching Mark Cuban in the last quarter as he looked like he was trying to poop a brick. Anyway ... I can't in good conscience root for the Mavs for the remainder of the playoffs, so I'll just stick with a great player and pull for the Suns. Go Suns Go!!

not quite blasphemous . . . :o)

This is awesome.
"And they will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." - Matthew 13:42


I've added a link to this website over in my links column. They're fun to look at!!

Today was a great day!!

Work was good - only 5 days left!! Came home, spent some time in the sun (doing that a lot lately) and ate some dinner. Then I went with the ever cool Ashley to see an totally sweet movie. Stick It. Let's just call it ... amazing.. for now. :o) So funny! Then I came home and got a phone call from an old friend who hooked me up with somethin' totally sweet. (see below) I am ready for the weekend!!! BRING IT ON!!!!

Me with my totally awesome shirt.

See? Even Mike supports the Spurs!! :o)

Oh.. it is ON ....

Today was a good day! :o)

Slept in, which is a rarity lately. Then headed to Conroe to celebrate Patrice's graduation! We hung out at her aunt's house which is absolutely amazing and gorgeous and huge. Did some swimmin, some eatin, some water gun fightin. Then headed back to CS. Got cleaned up in a record 15 minutes (yes that includes drying hair) and got back on the road to David & Kathrin's country house. There were some other couples out there (Mike, Amy, Brandi & Matt) and we fixed supper and ate and played some very competitive Taboo. Then I headed back to CS (again). Came home, slept for about 1 1/2 hours and went to the Rec. No, I haven't turned into a workout freak, I went to help chaperone After Prom Bash. :o) It was fun! Saw lots of kids. There was this bungee jump thing that you got hooked up to and just jump and flip and stuff. I talked Donna Hanson into doing it with me. It was fun, but the harness was really really tight and I did lots of back flips so I didn't last long. After I got off, I didn't feel so good. I tried to walk it off, but ended up taking a short walk outside for some private time. (aka I ralphed = not so fun) I still don't feel good at all, but I am glad I went. I think I'm gonna go to bed and try to get up for church tomorrow. We'll see if it happens.

If you're a mom, Happy Mother's Day!!

Oh, to live as Mr Garner did . . .

"He was as selfless in dying as he was living"

What a wonderful thing to say about a wonderful man !!

"Just a few more weary days and then, I'll fly away;
To a land where joy shall never end, I'll fly away
I'll fly away, Oh Glory, I'll fly away
When I die, Hallelujah, by and by, I'll fly away!"

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. "

-Philippians 4:4-8

a great story for anyone in ministry

I got this from a weekly e-newsletter I receive. It's a really awesome story that speaks volumes and testifies to why many of us are really in ministry.

Just Rock

Some people really live through hell—I mean real hell, hell on earth, hell now. Zack is one of them. His life for years was like a volcano waiting to erupt, and during that dormant time, like most kids I know, he had done such a concealment job that no one knew of the violent, unstable environment at home and inside his heart.

I had met him once or twice while at East High School, where I was working with Young Life at the time. Zack was a name among many names. I didn't know much more … until one Monday when I swung by the school around lunchtime to visit with some students and remind them about Young Life that evening.

As I entered the office to sign in, the principal, whom I had befriended, pulled me aside. He asked me if I knew Zack. It seemed to me I knew 12 Zacks, but eventually through associations I was able to zero in. The principal looked at the tile floor as he shared how Zack had found his father dead the day before in the garage. It was a clear suicide. He was an alcoholic. Turns out, the family had been suffering from his physical and emotional abuse for years.

I was dumbfounded. Zack on the outside seemed normal, even happy. I promised the principal that I'd seek him out and do what I could to care for him. He told me when and where the funeral and memorial services were happening, and thanked me.

Zack wasn't at school. I didn't expect to see him until Wednesday at the services, so it came as quite a surprise when, halfway through the first song that night at our large-group meeting, Zack walked through the door. Immediately, he was encircled by friends, engulfed in hugs. I was glad he was there but a little nervous, too. I had nothing to offer. What do you say to a kid in hell?

Afterward in the parking lot, I told Zack as much, told him I would be at the funeral, told him if he ever wanted to talk that I'd listen.

He looked at me and smiled as if just being there was enough. "Sure," he said. Then, he hugged me.

It was the first of many hugs, the beginning of a great friendship.

But he never talked. Periodically, we'd hit Wendy's for a Frosty. We would wander about safe topics like sports, movies and cars until our Frosties turned to chocolate milk. We'd scrunch our napkins making ready to leave, and I'd finally muster enough courage to ask him if he wanted to talk about it. He'd say, "Nah." That would be all.

Zack came to Young Life camp with us that summer; he was the first to sign up. We had a blast—his face told the story of a kid in a dream. One afternoon, he walked with me lakeside over to some rocking chairs. We just rocked, watching as people were catapulted awkwardly and painfully into the lake by the Blob, an inflatable, water trampoline. I asked him about his week. He said, "Great." I said, "You want to talk about it?" He said, "Nah." And so we just rocked.

We continued to be close. The following school year he was a junior, and he never missed a thing. He was a leader among his peers. He had the full appearance of being a new creation, but at times when I caught his eye I could see the hidden pain. We kept slurping Frosties. It became routine-we would get to the end, I would ask him if he wanted to talk about it, he would say "Nah" and give me a hug.

I felt like a failure.

He came to camp again the next summer and was personally responsible for getting a half dozen more folks to sign up. Again, he had the time of his life; again, we sat on the rocking chairs and just rocked. And by the end of the week, I knew I was a failure.

I had known Zack for two years, was closer to him than any other adult, and yet I never managed to get a word out of him. We just rocked.

That fall I received this letter:

I don't really know what to say because there aren't enough words to explain how much you mean to me. Young Life has been so important to me, and I only wish I had started coming earlier. I never had a friendship quite like ours before. Though I've only known you for a little while, you're pretty much like family to me ... I can't tell you how much I appreciate knowing that I have someone I can talk to about anything even if I can't always actually get it out and say it ... Thank you for everything you've ever done because whether you know it or not, it has really touched my life.
Blessings, Zack

I learned from Zack sometimes all you need to do is sit there and rock. Just rock. The ministry of presence may be the most meaningful ministry of all.

Ned Erickson serves as the recruitment director for Metro Denver Young Life. He is the author of Falling into Love (RELEVANT Books).




On another note, many of you may have known Robert Garner. He was the principal at College Hills Elem and also Rock Prairie Elem in College Station for many years. He was a strong member of our church and a wonderful man with a big heart. Mr. Garner passed away this morning and I can promise that along with his family, his students and co-workers are mourning the loss of a great educator.

Howdy!
Not a lot to report right now . . . A little under the weather with something I picked up from the weekend. It was a fun weekend - Went on retreat with the youth to Frontier Camp. It was beautiful & such a blast. We played night games, had great worship, & hung out in the sun. I walked around on Saturday and took some pictures. Some were good, some not so great.

I really enjoyed hanging out with the kids and being with all the counselor girls.

This weekend, I'm staying with the Wolfe boys. I am looking forward to it !! :o)

That's all for now . . .

!!! I completely forgot !!!

Tuesday night was pretty crazy. Around 12:30am, a random hailstorm hit us !! It was so random, in fact, that there was hail only in a few parts of CS. It was kinda scary just because it was so unexpected. I was really worried about my windshield because it already has a large crack in it. Kat went out and checked my car for me. . . She had this goofy get up . . . but for her protection of course.


So she went and checked out the cars -- thank goodness that I didn't have any damage to the windows. This morning I went out and checked it -- just some tiny dings, nothing that this summer's heat won't fix.

Not a lot happening in the world of Randi right now. Wish I had more to report. This weekend will be fun though. Brian was in need of more chaperones for the spring retreat, so I signed up to go. Next week will be good too - Spring sports banquet on Monday, fun on Tuesday, and then I'll be staying with the Wolfes next weekend along with participating in a bowl-a-thon with my coworkers.

I do have to admit though, the past 5 days have been great. Saturday, I went up to the church and played basketball with Ryan, B-Rog and Bradley and then we played The Counselor game when Thomas showed up and later played Thomas' newest game. It was a good time! Then on Sunday, Will and I traveled to Round Rock to attend Crossroads with Preston & Andy. Afterwards, Pres, Andy and I played indoor soccer. Actually, we played 2 games. It was so much fun. I wish Will could have played, but he got to watch some great amatuer soccer games. Monday, I just recooped from the weekend after work was over. Tuesday night I went and played basketball up at the church again. It was fun! I have really enjoyed spending time with people my age again. Hopefully I'll keep it up because I think that although I'm more tired, I'm much more happy.

As for now, I'll look forward to the weekend and getting away from College Station for a few days. And for tonight, :o) .... I'll go to sleep watching the South Pacific from Carnegie Hall on PBS. I can't pass up good music put to a good story.

I always knew that being lazy on Saturdays was a good thing.

Now, I'm not usually one to be suspect of conspiracies nor do I think a lot about governmental secrets. However . . . Today as I was sitting in front of a computer after I finished giving a reading test for TAKS, I was just surfin MSNBC.com and came across an editorial.

The title was "Junk-Food Jihad: Should we regulate French fries like cigarettes?" Now, don't get me wrong, I'm all about health and people choosing healthy lifestyles and taking pretty good care of my own health. But this article really kind of ... made me wonder, how much control is too much? Let me give you some statements from this article and then I'll share my thoughts. (Keep in mind that this is and editorial, speaks a lot from opinion and that these statements are not necessarily fact.)

Health advocates want to restrict junk-food sales, regulate advertising, require more explicit labels, and ban trans fats (also known as partially hydrogenated oils), which are often put into crackers, cookies, and other products to prolong shelf life.

For that matter, the rationale for recent bans on smoking is the injustice of secondhand smoke, and there's no such thing as secondhand obesity.

But they do clarify how it will unfold. It will rely on three arguments: First, we should protect kids. Second, fat people are burdening the rest of us. Third, junk food isn't really food.

Targeting kids is a familiar way to impose morals without threatening liberties.

It's not our dependence on foreign oil that's killing us. It's our dependence on vegetable oil.

To lower junk food to the level of cigarettes, its opponents must persuade you that it isn't really food. They're certainly trying. Soda isn't sustenance, they argue; it's "liquid candy." Crackers aren't baked; they're "engineered," like illegal drugs, to addict people.

Last year, New York City's health commissioner asked restaurants to stop using trans fats, which he likened to asbestos. But he ignored saturated fats, which are equally bad and more pervasive. Why are trans fats an easier whipping-cream boy? Because they're mostly artificial.

A fact sheet from Harkin implies that schools should treat milk, French fries, and pizza like soda, jelly beans, and gum. Come on. How many people died in the Irish jelly bean famine? How many babies have nursed on 7-Up? How many food groups does gum share with pizza? If you can't tell the difference, don't tell us what to eat.

Okay .. So. I pretty much agree with this author. I know that smoking is harmful, I know that eating poorly is harmful. And I make the choice to smoke or not smoke, to eat healthily or to eat crap. And I deeply appreciate that Bryan/College Station has statutes on smoking in public places and restrictions on smoking in restaurants. And I appreciate that the FDA, CDC, USDA, etc etc etc, have required food manufacturers and other food producers to make the contents of their products public. It does make food choices a lot easier.

However, how far is too far? How much control is too much? I feel like it could get to the point to where our government will be telling us what to eat, how much to eat, what not to eat, when to eat. Just thoughts, but I just don't want to seem like Mel Gibson on Conspiracy Theory.

I suggest you take a read at this article if you're at all interested. :o) Besides, it's kind of funny.

Well, I don't really have a lot to say right now.. that's why I haven't posted anything.

So maybe I'll just put a picture here ... let me look ...








And then I realized that I have no new pictures of me... because I'm always the one behind the camera. :o) haha.. I'll bust out an OLD SCHOOL pic ... it's safe, don't worry...



See? It's safe! :o)

Love all y'all !!! (oh yeah, 2 mo til my bday, heehee..)

As if you guys didn't have enough things to make fun of me for . . .

I have discovered a new way to eat frosting. (to add to the ways I already do)

Let's review:
1. on a cake
2. on a cupcake
3. on a cookie
4. off my finger
5. with twizzlers

And the newest:
with Nilla Wafers.










And that's all I have to say about that

Today was a VERY interesting day !!!

This morning, around 9:05, the fire alarm went off. We were all very surprised because there wasn't a scheduled fire drill that we were aware of. So we QUICKLY loaded all the kids into their chairs, gathered the other students and headed outside. We had no idea what was going on. I was especially confused when some teachers started running back inside!! Apparently, a water sprinkler pipe in our wing of the school popped! It was between floors, so in one class, it was coming up from the floor and down from the other. The upstairs class is an art class, and the downstairs class is the media tech room!! Needless to say, the teachers running back inside were going to try to save ALL the electrical equipment and computers in that classroom. They probably saved the district hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Since the pipe burst was in the same wing we are in, there was water everywhere in the hallways. We had to bust out some blankets from our cabinets to put under the doors so no water could get in. Other teachers did the same. There was an approximated 2 inches of water on the floors and at one point, it was flowing down the hall ! Needless to say, we couldn't enter our classroom, possibly for the rest of the day. So, Dawn, the head teacher, made the call and decided to send the students home. My co-workers and I were so pumped !! We were so excited that we were going to get to go home early.

Yeah, right. You seriously think that would happen? No.. We got the kids on buses and sent them home. But we were asked to help get students' things from the flooded classrooms and to help that process. So we stuck around til about 2ish and then I went to soccer to help put away equipment.

Tonight, the Lady Ags are playing vs China at the Soccer Complex at 7pm. Come out! (it's FREE!) I'll be there... so you already know it's gonna be awesome. ;o)

Love you all -

relevant

This is an article from a Relevant email I received.. I like it :o)

Laugh Monkey by Mark Steele

Have you ever had that dream where you are alone on stage and everyone in the audience is expecting you to answer a question you didn't actually hear? And also, it's church. And also, you're naked.

That's what performing comedy is like.

I have spent the last 15 years doing, among other things, improv and stand-up comedy. This has perpetuated two consistent identifiers of my life: an unending sense of anxiety and a flaring rash when others ask me to "do something funny."

Do something funny.

Jesse Carey, the RELEVANT staffer whom I have known since he was a fetus last spring, asked me to write an 850 piece on this very statement: "Do something funny." Evidently, there was a message board thread of some sort on the subject. So, I am obliging to Jesse's strong-arming kind command request to compose an essay. For this purpose and this purpose only, I am agreeing to attempt to be funny on demand, even though today, I feel quite relevant serious.

I'm not complaining. I appreciate the God-given gift to bring others joy. But I don't always feel like turning it on. As a matter of fact, there are moments I know that I cannot turn it on - that I will fall flat on my face during the attempt and that the already-awkward moment will end with the cursed comment, "well—he was funny last time."

I am not alone in this anxiety. We all have that one talent that some find amazing and others find annoying. The refined or sometimes-unhoned detail of our existence that God seems to find a way to use even when we resist its label. The difference is: Most of us are not called upon to perform our skill at parties on a moment's notice.

· "Jason, do that quantum physics thing for Mandy."
· "Teresa, act like you're doing a price check on my ham sandwich."
· "Now you get over here and show your grandmother how you won that wrestling title."

But NO, comedy comes with obligation. I am required to do it—and do it justice, even when I feel like doing the opposite. I don't want to joke on my bad days and I don't want to bandy about witty repartee while I'm having my gums scraped by the dental hygienist. LOOK AT ME! I'M THE LAUGH MONKEY! My life-calling has been reduced to the equivalent of throwing my feces at my pile of banana peels in the corner for applause. I don't want to be the "do something funny" guy! I just want to be a human being who gets to be THE OPPOSITE OF FUNNY except for the moments where IT WORKS BEST FOR ME!

And I quickly see that I follow Christ in the same way.

Where He would quicken me to walk in His path especially in the moments I most want to stray or stop and rest, I would prefer to obey Him when it is most rewarding or impressive. Unfortunately, those moments are the exception. God's rule sounds more like this:

Hey, Mark: right now, in your bad mood when you don't particularly know or like or appreciate the smell of the other person asking you to be like Jesus—yeah, right now. Be like Jesus. Use what I've given you to work with and do something impressive. Impress an image of how Jesus can work through you when you're not really in that great of a mood.

It's why it's called a calling. Because even when we're wandering far away from home, the Voice beckons us back.

Every day, I have opportunities to destroy someone else's perception of Christ by giving in to my own comforts while calling my path His. The true miracle is that if I take the complicated choice and actually deny myself, revealing Jesus when all around expect a more human response, there is no chance that they will see me. They will see Jesus instead and one will not be confused with the Other.

The truth is, "doing something funny" isn't done for the benefit of the doer. It's done for the benefit of the one who needs the laugh. To that end, it doesn't really matter how the doer feels about the matter. It only matters that he does the "something funny" anyway. Who knows? In the process, the doer may just burst into laughter himself.

Mark Steele is author of Flashbang (RELEVANT Books) and the president and executive creative of Steelehouse Productions. He is also a really funny guy (seriously).

Hey! Come out and see the last home game of the season! JV at 5pm, Varsity at 7pm. Tigerland Stadium. Come on!! :o)

Oh my goodness, if you missed the varsity girls' soccer game tonight (which I assume ... all ... of you did) you missed a freaking great game. Basically the outright district championship was on the line. If Consol beat Belton, we would have been co-champs. If Belton had won, they would have been outright champs.

Well, we tied. Even with 20 minutes of overtime. It was one of the best games that I have seen this group of girls play. It was just ... dang. A good game. We were down 2-0 at halftime, Pryor gave a good talk in the field house, the girls went back out and Ky scored from outside the 18 yd box (because their goalie wasn't too great). Belton put up a hard fight with two goals called back because they were offsides. Then we were granted a direct kick about 22 yds outside the goal, off to the left. Baker took the kick and just put it in to the right back corner. The whole team was so excited.

Oy. Next/Last home game of th 06 season is next Friday, against Copperas Cove. Come watch me coach! :o) 5pm for JV and 7pm for varsity. Whut whut!

Today has been a relatively good day! I got up ... pretty late and decided to actually go out and get some sun. So I loaded up some food, some stuff to read, got dressed for the occasion and headed out to a secluded spot. I spread out my blanket, put on some sun screen, got my magazine out and settled down for a while. I read for what seemed like a really long time, but somehow I didn't get very far into the 'zine. After a little while, a family showed up to play on the playground on the other side of the pavillion. Didn't bother me too much because I really couldn't see them, and they couldn't see me. However, after a little while longer, some other people showed up and came within 20 feet of me. I decided it was time to go, as I just wasn't very comfortable with them cooking out and me being so close to their party. So I left and went to wash my car. I didn't get it very clean, but I did get most of the dirt off and most of the glass chalk off the back window which was left by the soccer girls.

I came home and later decided to go to the grocery store since I was very very low on food. Of course I totally forgot my list, so I resorted to walking every aisle. This has its ups and downs because you get to see all the food and remember what was on the list, but also you just start picking food off the shelf ... So now I have a lot of food. :o)

After putting away the groceries, I watched NCIS and then put in LOTR: Return of the King. Being my luck, Katharine owns the extended version. And I think by extended, they mean, an extra hour of footage. Wow that thing was 250 minutes long!! And if you do good math, then that's a little over 4 hours long!! What a great story. I probably finished a little early because I fast forwarded through the spider parts. (shudder)

The last 15 minutes of the movie was wonderful. Gandalf returns to the Shire to take the four Hobbitses and Bilbo to Rivendale. They are taking Bilbo to board the last ship to leave Middle Earth. It's a great part of the movie, very moving. There is a twist, however; Frodo is going too. His friends do not know this, and they are visibly torn by his departure. Frodo says some words about how the intention of their adventure was to save the Shire, which they had accomplished. He adds that the Shire is not his anymore, but Sam's. As Frodo says goodbye to his friends, there are hugs and tears shared by all. He turns toward the ship and boards. End movie.

As this played out, I must admit, that I shared tears with the Hobbitses as well. I couldn't help but think about how, one day, I too will leave the Shire. The Shire belongs to someone else other than me, and there is a whole new adventure waiting outside of Middle Earth. Tears and hugs will be shared by friends and I will turn away and board my ship.

Gosh I pray for that day . . . but tomorrow I will wake up in the Shire and I will have my own adventures here at home.

I was really looking forward to Spring Break. And now it's here!

Here's the plan - I plan on cleaning house. I've done okay so far. Almost all of my clothes are clean and put away... almost. I really want to get out of the house tomorrow though. I fully plan on spending most of the day outside. I don't know what tomorrow will include. I need to wash my car, but the forecast has rain for the second half of the week. I want to get a little tan, I guess I could find somewhere to go and read. I have two books that I want to read this week, Captivating and catch up on Come Thirsty for church. So I guess I'll pack myself a lunch, some drinks, snackies, a magazine, my books, and oh yes, sunscreen. We'll see what happens. Haha.. I really want to do something active, like play tennis or soccer orrrrrr I don't know. Got any suggestions? Or offers? :o)

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Ephesians 3:20-21

We won against Bryan tonight! Yay! So much better than last week's JV game . . . oy.

I don't have anything awesome or inspiring or funny to tell you guys. .. Oh wait.. hah yes I do...

Kat has decided that she wants to perfect "specialty" dunks on her door basketball goal. Yes, I am talking about the kind that are about 5 inches tall, hang on the back of the door and come with little orange basketball. She claims to have already perfected one shot; essentially she hits it off the wall above the basket, then catches it and dunks it. Now, I haven't seen this yet, but I'm sure there will be more updates to come. :o) Makes for a loud evening that lasts about 30 minutes. Seems like a good workout . . .

Love you all! :o)