Number 1...A New Birth--Meeting Callie Renee

It is only fitting after yesterday’s post in which we mentioned the end of life, to discuss in today’s post the beginning of life. On March 2 of this year, we had a wonderful new addition to our home. Callie Renee Robinson was born! Few events in the annals of one’s life can compare to the birth of their children. Words cannot express how miraculous a birth is, and how wonderful it is to see that new person. For nine months we waited with anticipation. We wondered what she would be like. We read to her, sang to her, and prayed for her. And when the moment finally came, we rejoiced. Without a doubt, the number one event that happened in our lives this year, was a new birth--Meeting Callie Renee Robinson!

And so there you have it. The top ten events that happened in our life this past year. If you missed any of them, be sure to scroll down the sidebar at the right and click on the December blog archive.

Deciding on the top ten was a little difficult. There were many events that happened this past year that had an impact on our lives. A few that that did not make the cut would have been the square foot garden, getting a new gas grill, getting free guitars, solving the Rubik’s cube, selling a car, celebrating Halloween, getting a new driveway, playing on the Praise Team, quitting the Praise Team, stressing over a dog problem, and even the death of Steve Irwin all made some sort of impact on our lives this past year. Of course, there were many other events that I chose not to write about that also made impacts on our lives.

As a final treat, we leave you with a link in which you can see a few random pictures from this past year. I hope the link works for you. Click HERE, then select “view pictures” then select “all” then hit “slideshow” at the top. Happy New Year!

No. 2...Understanding the Brevity of Life

The number two big event in our lives this past year is rather difficult to articulate. We both know what it is, but it is very hard to explain. It is perhaps best illustrated to most as an understanding of the brevity of life. The Bible mentions the following:

13 Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. (James chapter 4)

It hit us really hard earlier this year when a good friend of ours died. She was so young, and so full of life. Take a moment to read her story HERE, and also to read our thoughts from a post HERE, after saying goodbye. That event helped us to realize even more that life is not forever, and how important it is to seize every moment. Our children are growing up so fast, and life is flying by at light speed! Whatever we are going to do, we better do it now, because tomorrow will be here way too fast. Life is so very short, and so very precious. The past few days Amy and I have had some time to sit back, relax, and think about these very issues. While going through some boxes from the move, we once again came across the notes and cards we had given each other during high school. In those notes we spoke about how “someday” we would be together forever. You will all think we are crazy, but when we were 14 we were talking to each other in detail about getting married and having children! We thought that day would never come. Well, it is here, and my Dad keeps telling us to enjoy it while it lasts because it all goes by in just a moment. We both understand that, and we are doing the best we can to seize the moment. So “Carpe Diem” folks, it is our Number 2!

No. 3...Cassidy: Baby to a Little Girl

An amazing transformation took place this past year. We watched as our first child turned from a baby into a little girl. Not only did her physical form change, she began to develop her own thoughts and ideas, and began to establishing her own identity. It has been wonderful to watch a little personality in the making. She now picks out her own clothes and dresses herself. She plays games on the computer. She knows her phone number, what street she lives on, and can spell her name. She has learned what stop lights mean, and is beginning to think about abstract ideas. She now has a sense of humor, and tries to make jokes. But with growing up, she also gets her feelings hurt, and knows what sadness is. Her imaginary friend, Puppy Dog, gets talked about less and less. And this year, she made the ultimate, and unconditional graduation from the baby stage to the little girl stage…she gave up the pacifier. Yes, I know, we should have made her give it up a long time ago, but in her defense she used it only at night most of this past year. She felt like she needed it, and it was a really grown up decision that she made herself. Sometimes, with tears in our eyes, Amy and I ask ourselves, “Where did the baby go?” so, Number 3...Cassidy: Baby to A Little Girl.

What Will They Be??????

Well, we are down to the last three. The suspense is mounting!! I bet some of you are wondering what could be more life-changing than what we have mentioned so far! Stay tuned to find out!
Nena wanted to know why I seemed to be taking a break at such a critical time in the posting. Well, besides mourning the death of former President Ford, I was asked to do some work for a friend. Our friend Sarah took a quick trip to Mexico, and needed a little help with some digital editing to record her trip. I ran into some big problems and had to redo it like ten times. It reminded me of why I did not go into that field. I spent today working on my Jeep. It seems like I just worked on the car not too long ago, and now the Jeep has a radiator problem. I’m becoming quite the amateur mechanic these days. So, those things taken together have been keeping me busy. My vacation is going by way too fast!!

No. 4...Moving

Honestly, there is not a lot to say here, other than to say it was a major event in our lives this past year. Moving is a rather stressful event. We extend a great “Thank-You” to all those who helped us, especially to my Dad and Jeannie, and to my sister Angie.
I can say that we really dodged a bullet. We had planned on moving in the Texico area. We had already picked out a house and put earnest money down on it. Texico has a good school district, and it would have been a lot closer to church. However, after a housing inspection, we decided it just wasn’t right for us. We found the place we are at now, and (apart from the dog problem), we could not be happier with this neighborhood. I am not exaggerating when I say this has got to be the best place in Mt. Vernon to live. It really is. We have GREAT neighbors, and the house just really fits us well. The plan is still to remodel the house with the intent of selling and making a profit. But with that said, we are quite content with living here for a while.

No. 5...A Full Year at Orchardville

Number 5 was a big step for us. In fact, this blog was originally created to detail our journey from our previous church to this one (most of you are viewing through a URL address that says, “lookingforagoodchurch”). Part of me would like to take a moment to explain why we left our previous establishment, but in the end I suppose it doesn’t matter. Just know that for some reason God allowed us to go through a major valley. The temptation to quit church was very real. But, we are pleased to announce that at least that particular valley is done! For whatever reason, making it an entire year at Orchardville has been a big step for us. We have made a good attempt to become involved. We attended several events, I taught Sunday School and played on the worship team, and Amy has served in the nursery. I don’t know if Orchardville is where we are supposed to be forever, but it is an AWESOME church and has been a pillar of strength for us when we needed it the most. It is a place where solid biblical teaching is found. It is a growing church, and a place that we feel proud to attend. Although we still have a lot of faults, God is working on us. It is a long drive, but as the cliché says, “A Church That’s Alive is Worth the Drive!” So, Number 5...A Full Year at Orchardville!

Soon....

The New Posts will be here soon... I have been rather side-tracked the last couple of days. Keep watching.. they will be worth it!!

No. 6...Meeting New Friends

Friendship has always been a huge part of our lives. For some reason, Amy and I both feel like we have always had a hard time making and keeping friends. I suppose it is natural for friends to come and go, but this is especially an area in which we struggle. That is why we are proud to say that a big event that has happened in our lives this past year has been the addition of several friends. First, Amy became more involved with a play-group. The group is made mostly of moms that get their children together once a week. It became something that really fulfilled a need not just in the children’s life, but also in Amy’s life. Second, Amy and I both have become good friends with the nursery worker at church, Sarah. She is simply an awesome person! Finally, with our move to the new neighborhood, we are slowly becoming good friends with our neighbors. Tom brought a pie over to us for Christmas, Mr. S lets me borrow his tools, and and Holly and Sam have invited us over. They are all just great people! Number 6--Meeting New Friends!

No. 7...Graduation From EIU (again)

One important event happened over the Summer. I finally completed the Specialist in Education Degree from Eastern Illinois University. This degree will eventually allow me to be a school superintendent if I choose. It is a degree that is half-way from a Master’s to a Doctorate. At this point in my life, I’m not sure if I ever want to be a school superintendent or not. I do know that if I ever wish to make triple digits, this would be the quickest way to that point. Of course, with school administration you give up a big part of your life. There are so many meetings and events to attend. Plus, as a superintendent of a school, you have a tremendous responsibility hanging on your shoulders. So, the number 7 event this year… Graduation from EIU (again)!

8...The Trips We Took

In the Number 10 event, I briefly mentioned the trips. These two trips would be the number 8 big event in our life this past year. The first trip came about when Amy and I were trying to decide just what we should really be doing with our life. We thought that perhaps living here, and teaching here, was not really what we should be doing. I got on to the internet, and to make a really long story short, we found ourselves traveling out to West Virginia to interview for house parents at a home for troubled teens. The people were great, and we were offered the job. The job paid really well, and we would not have had any expenses. But in the end it just didn’t feel right. The trip was really good, however, and we grew closer together as a family.


The second trip was just for me (Ryan). I interviewed for a job in Deltona, Florida. The position was for a Principal at a Christian Academy. The Headmaster was a great guy, and agreed to fly me down there for the interview. Once again, the job just didn’t seem right for me, and both he and I knew it. I was not offered the job, but the experience was well worth the trouble. Sometimes you have to go away to find out how much you appreciate what you have right here. So, Number 8--The Trips We Took!

9...Student Teacher

The countdown continues with the number 9 big event for this year… Having a Student Teacher. This was a totally new experience for me. Many of my coworkers told me about their horrible experiences with student teachers. Because of this, I really didn’t know what to expect. It turned out to be one of the best experiences of my teaching career. Paige was awesome! She did great, and the students really liked her. So what did I do during this time? Well, I would like to say that I did absolutely nothing…but you all know me better than that, right? Anyways, Student Teacher for Number 9!

Merry Christmas MVTHS

We wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. You are a GREAT group! This semester we have both worked with some of the more difficult to reach students. By getting to know them, we have started to realize how blessed we truly are. Some of them have only one or two outfits to wear to school. Some of them live in deplorable situations, and deal with problems on a daily basis that we will never face. Over the holiday, I hope we remember to take thought of the small things…to be happy that we have presents, food on the table, friends, family, and a place to call home. In this season of giving, let us be thankful for all that we have been given.

Merry Christmas
Ryan and Amy Robinson

10...Staying Here

We begin the countdown tonight with number 10. The number 10 big event in our life this year was a decision…the decision to stay in
Mt. Vernon. Over the summer I had several job interviews, two of which took me out of the state. I interviewed for a teaching position at Flora, an administrative position at Lewisville, an administrative position in Deltona, Florida, and Amy and I both interviewed for house-parent positions in West Virginia at a home for troubled teens. Although I (we) were offered some of the positions, in the end we decided to stick it out a while longer in hopes that things will get better here. Mt. Vernon is where we both grew up. It is our home town, and we need to know we have given it our best shot at making things better before we call it quits.

Update on Dog Problem

As promised, here is the update. First off, let me thank all of you who voted on what I should do. It looks like most of you suggested I simply go talk to the owner of the dog. So, on Saturday morning (at about 5:30am) I found myself walking through the darkness in the cold, frosty air to pay my neighbor a visit. The dog continued to bark the entire time. As soon as I rang the doorbell, it became apparent that there were multiple dogs inside the house. They went crazy. I figured this would surely send the owner of the dogs to the door to see who in their right mind was disturbing them at such an early hour. But, to my surprise, no one came to the door. I rang the bell a second time. The dogs continued to bark madly, and still no one came to the door. Not wanting to have the police called on me, I decided to go back home, and try again later. However, when I got back home, I noticed the dog was not barking. In fact, it has not barked since. So apparently, the owner was home, realized why I was there, and decided to do something about the dog. At least, that is my hope. We will see.

Top Ten

Greetings. I hope that everyone enjoyed the Happy Hanukkah post. I learned quite a bit while researching that one. Also, if you have not voted about the dog problem, scroll down a bit to vote. Be looking for an update VERY soon with an upcoming post.

Speaking of upcoming posts, we have decided to do a “Top Ten” countdown of the biggest events in our lives for 2006. We will start with number 10, and work our way towards number 1, hopefully ending sometime close to the new year. Most of the posts will be short and to the point. As always, comments are greatly encouraged.

One of our goals for next year will be to make this blog a little better. Adding little things like Today’s Scripture and the AccuWeather forecast at the bottom have been some recent attempts. One goal has been to change the address. For example, Amy and I ran into an old friend from high school tonight. It would have been nice to say, “Hey, check out our website.” But who in the world would recall the URL? Well, if it works, you may now access this site at the following address:

www.ryanandamyrobinson.com

Most of you have this page bookmarked, so it probably won’t affect you. But for us, this is a big step in improving this site. We will, of course, endeavor to offer something more from time to time to keep you coming back. "Holiday Histories" have been an emerging theme this year, and if anyone has other ideas, please let us know! Have a GREAT DAY!!

Happy Hanukkah!

Continuing with my theme of holiday histories, I thought I might write a little bit about the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. Hanukkah begins tonight at sundown, and runs through sundown December 23.

Also known as the Festival of Lights, this holiday is in remembrance of the rededication of the Jewish temple (the word Hanukkah actually means “rededication“). The Jewish temple had been defiled by a Syrian king, who declared it to be a temple for the Greek god Zeus. Thanks to a bit of guerilla warfare led mainly by Judah Maccabee, the Syrians were eventually thrown out, and the temple was restored and rededicated in 165 BC. A small amount of oil expected to last one day, miraculously burned for the eight days of the feast, hence the eight candles of the menorah (nine if you count the servant candle called the Shamash).

As the centuries progressed, the Jewish people would come to identify more and more with this part of their history as their culture was continually under attack. Tonight, Jews who celebrate the holiday will likely light the first candle of the menorah. Some of them will sing, play the dreidel game, eat latkes, and hand out presents. Happy Hanukkah!

Dog Problem... YOU VOTE -------------->

I have always been a dog lover. However, since moving into town, I have discovered that many people have little respect for their neighbors with regard to man's best friend. For example, several times I have found dog doodo in my front yard. How disrespectful is that? I'm just waiting for the day that I'm watching when someone who is walking their dog allows it to go in my yard without cleaning it up. I'm fairly certain there will be a scene that day.

That said, I have discovered another major problem in this area. Last night I got little sleep due to the excessive barking of my neighbor's dog. At about 5:00am I went outside to yell at the dog, hoping that my neighbor would hear me and take the hint. Unfortunately, I think it only made the problem worse. Many thoughts came to my mind as I lay there awake thinking about how to solve the problem. I came up with three ideas. In hopes of adding a little bit of interest in this, I thought I would give YOU, the reader, a chance to vote on the issue. Please cast your vote to the side, and then see what others are saying about the problem.

The Geminids

Tomorrow night you will have the chance to see the Geminids meteor shower. Don't miss it!

"Mountain of God"

Today Amy and the children went shopping again to Fairview Heights. I spent the day working, mostly on computer stuff. This year is winding down rather quickly. When thinking about this past year, several things come to mind. Our family has went through quite a few changes. We had a baby, moved into a different house, mourned the passing of a friend, and did our best to establish ourselves into a new church. On a more personal note, we have done our best to keep from being discouraged over family issues, and I have fought the good fight against depression and job dissatisfaction. Its been a tough year. Raising children is hard, and sometimes marriage is harder. But we keep pressing on, knowing that (as a popular song says) we must go through the valley to stand upon the mountain. Life is getting better, and the lessons that we learn in the valley will no doubt strengthen us.

"Mountain Of God"
by Third Day

Thought that I was all alone
Broken and afraid
But You were there with me
Yes, You were there with me

And I didn't even know
That I had lost my way
But You were there with me
Yes, You were there with me

'Til You opened up my eyes
I never knew
That I couldn't ever make it
Without You

Even though the journey's long
And I know the road is hard
Well, the One who's gone before me
He will help me carry on
After all that I've been through
Now I realize the truth
That I must go through the valley
To stand upon the mountain of God

As I travel on the road
That You have lead me down
You are here with me
Yes, You are here with me
I have need for nothing more
Oh, now that I have found
That You are here with me
Yes, You are here with me

I confess from time to time
I lose my way
But You are always there
To bring me back again

Sometimes I think of where it is I've come from
And the things I've left behind
But of all I've had, what I possessed
Nothing can quite compare
With what's in front of me
With what's in front of me

Celtic Woman

Yesterday was a much better day. In fact it was a really good day. But of course, the full moon had to come, and with it, the disturbances. Today I sent two kids out in the hall, and fought to keep everyone’s attention the entire day. I was ready to come home, and at one point ready to quit. Oh well, waning gibbous tomorrow, so it will be much better.

Tonight we all spent part of the evening watching the annual pledge drive on PBS. Now, before you think we have totally gone off the deep end, if you have never seen Celtic Woman you are really missing out! They are a tremendously talented group. Of course, I didn’t like them enough to make a pledge to PBS, but now that doesn’t matter, does it?

Speaking of PBS, I really do like some of their programming. I grew up watching Sesame Street, The Electric Company, 3-2-1 Contact, and Doctor Who (which by the way is back on). Later in life I rediscovered it, and began watching Wishbone, Reading Rainbow, and The Antiques Road Show. Unfortunately, I can’t stand it that my tax money is going to support it! Why can’t public television and radio stations compete in the market place like everyone else? Generally they have a few programs that everyone likes. National Public Radio has Car Talk on Sundays. That’s pretty good. And of course there is (soft whisper) “All Things Considered on NPR News” (YUCK!). Oh well, enough of my soapbox there.

The following is a picture of my mom with the girls. I believe this is the first time she has made an appearance on the blog... "HI MOM!" .... haha...I always wanted to say that.

Down in the Mulligrubs

Today Cassidy was sick for most of the day. That has to be one of the most difficult things to deal with as a parent. At least Cassidy is old enough to tell us what is wrong, but she still looks at us with eyes that say, “Why can’t you fix me?” Fortunately she was feeling much better this evening, and we suspect it was just a flu virus.

Yesterday we took a quick trip over to Fairview Heights. Strangely enough, Amy and I were sitting at home wondering what we could do. Amy was really wanting to go to Old Navy, but I did not want to fight the traffic. Just as we were discussing it, the phone rang. It was our old friends from Christian Student Fellowship at SIUE, Tony and Tammy Jackson. They wondered if we wanted to meet them so they could pass on some home-school items to us. So off we went. The traffic was terrible, but the chance to catch up with some old friends was well worth the drive. Maybe next time we can spend a little more time with them. By the way, we have not yet decided to home school our children. The idea is of interest to us, but we still have a lot of time to make that decision.

The title of our blog here is, “Finding Our Place in Life.” Maybe it was meeting up with our old friends, or becoming more distant with recent ones, but it seems like lately that the goal has kept coming back to our minds. For reasons that elude us it is a most difficult goal to achieve. We often ask ourselves, “What should we be doing,” and “Are we where we are supposed to be?” Finding peace is progressively more difficult these days, and life just doesn’t seem to have the kind of meaning that we want. Maybe it is just the mulligrubs and seasonal depression, but we’ve felt this way for too long now. I’m sure everyone desires to do something great, and at some point in your life you realize that you are not going to be the one to make the sort of difference you had hoped to make in this world. Speaking for myself here, maybe that is what is happening. Maybe we are beginning to understand the “Fall,” and how God had created humans with such great potential. He had created them for so much more, but they (we) blew it. Is that what we feel? Maybe God called us to something and we said, “No.” Maybe He’s trying now, but we are so far away that his voice gets muddled in the noise. Is it that we doubt? Lack of Faith? Uncertainty? Fear? Whatever it is, we both hope it goes away. We need to see a little more clearly, have a little more purpose, and start doing whatever it is that God put us on this planet to do.

Simple Picture of Cassidy

Finally a Night Out

Amy and I finally had the chance to enjoy an evening to ourselves. Our friend Rachel watched the children for us while we went to eat at Applebees and shopping. Nothing major, but it was really nice to have a couple of hours to oursleves.

What else has been going on? Not a lot really. I said goodbye to Paige (my student teacher) and am trying to prepare for the next two final weeks of the regular semester. It always gets really busy about this time. Even now as I write this I'm considering going up to work at the high school. I really don't want to, but I need to at some point this weekend. Those of you who don't teach probably wonder, "Why does he have so much to do?" Its complicated. Something like this: lessons to prepare, papers to grade, papers to copy, tests to make up, grade reports to print of and make comments on, labs to set up, labs to take down, tardy reports to file, parents to call about students being tardy, and special education documentation. Much, much more, but I just got stressed thinking about it. Oh well, in two weeks and three days I will have a couple of weeks off! Yeah!

Funny Stuff

Tonight Cassidy asked if she could look through a telescope. Unfortunately I sold my telescope quite a while back. I never really thought I would need it much anymore, especially with arrival of the internet and the ability to see any picture from space taken with billion dollar telescopes. But I did feel a little sad that I didn't still have it for her. Ironically, it was about this same time of year that a major discovery was made with the telescope.

The year was 1609. While in Venice, Galileo had heard of an instrument that would magnify objects. He quickly used his crafstman skills to grind glass into lenses to create his own, more powerful telescope. He turned it towards the heavens to be the first to observe the moons of Jupiter!

As a child, my parents bought a telescope for me one Christmas. Like Galileo, I turned my great wonder towards the sky. I picked out the brightest object I could find that winter, which was of course the planet Jupiter. The moment I saw those tiny dots surrounding the celestial giant, I felt a tiny bit of the excitment that Galileo, or for that matter any amateur astronomer has ever felt.

So, without the aid of the telescope, I showed Cassidy some pictures on the internet of a few of the wonders. We looked at the moon and Mars. We were working our way out towards Jupiter when she asked, "how do we get to space." I quickly brought up a picture of the space shuttle, and then I had the idea to search for a video on youtube for a launch. Sure enough, there was a video clip of a space shuttle launch. She had never seen anything like that before. I told her, "Maybe one day you will go to space." At first she said, "I don't think I want to do that." Then, as the shuttle lifted off the ground, roaring with all its firey might, she paused and said, "I don't think I EVER want to do that!"

The picture above is of Callie with her first Christmas tree. Talk about excited. Wow! How will we keep her away from it?

New Driveway

I thought I would put up some pictues of the first of several major projects on the house. We considered waiting until spring to pour concrete, but with the nice weather we thought we would go ahead and get the driveway done.

Thanksgiving Post 2006...Origin and Memories

My fondest memory of Thanksgiving comes from the time when I was a child. I enjoyed going over to my Grandma and Grandpa’s house several times. One particular Thanksgiving, I recall it snowing the biggest flakes I have ever seen. That day I remember Grandpa telling stories about how when he was a child, and how the snow fall would be so great that it would cover the fence posts. I played out in the snow a little, and then stayed inside the warm house. Family meant something, everyone seemed to love each other, and the food tasted really good.

Too bad I just can’t leave the story there. You should know me well enough now to know that I just can’t let things go. So, to rob a quote from Paul Harvey, here is the rest of the story. Unfortunately, later in life I would realize that it was all a façade…no one really got along, and many of the people simply tolerated each other for the holiday season. Grandpa cussed like a sailor (come to think of it, he actually was a sailor in the war), and he smoked like… well, someone who smokes a lot. On more than one occasion I noticed he would light a cigarette before he put the first one out. Having taught meterology now, I know he probably lied about the great snow falls. And Grandma, there is a story in itself. She was crazy (seriously, she would burn pictures and clothes in a fireplace) Grandpa died an early death from a heart attach, they considered institutionalizing Grandma, and Mom and Dad got divorced. So much for happy endings (did I just quote Avril Lavigne?).

Okay, enough about all that. Here really IS something worth reading.

The year was 1621. The pilgrims had begun their new life in a very different world. This was a hard world--a difficult life. Many of them had suffered, and many of them had died. Making it through their first year, the Pilgrims really did have much for which to be thankful. Although they didn’t start the Thanksgiving tradition, from the best I can tell (and from reading this article), they really did have a “Thanksgiving” of sorts. They got together with the Indians, and had a really nice feast. Unfortunately, they probably didn’t eat what we have today. According to The 1621 Thanksgiving, The pilgrims and Indians ate five deer, many turkeys and water foul, fish, and the “harvest” which consisted of wheat, corn, barley, and a few peas (the pea crop did not do well that year.) Potatoes didn’t grow in the area, so they were probably not part of the dishes. Cranberries did, however, but as another article aptly puts it, it was likely nothing like “the sauce that comes in a can.” But of course, they probably had a few other, shall we say, not so common items on the Thanksgiving menu. Items such as mussels, clams, eel, as well has house garden foods such as sorrel and liverwart. Mmmmm, yum! Maybe this year I will have eel and liverwart for Thanksgiving dinner!

But it wasn’t until 1789 that American celebrated its first official Thanksgiving. At that time, President George Washington made a proclamation that American celebrate a “Day of Thanksgiving to God.” Many presidents followed with these proclamations, but, according to this website,

"Much of the credit for the adoption of a later ANNUAL national Thanksgiving Day may be attributed to Mrs. Sarah Joseph Hale, the editor of Godey's Lady's Book. For thirty years, she promoted the idea of a national Thanksgiving Day, contacting President after President until President Abraham Lincoln responded in 1863 by setting aside the last Thursday of November as a national Day of Thanksgiving. Over the next seventy-five years, Presidents followed Lincoln's precedent, annually declaring a national Thanksgiving Day. Then, in 1941, Congress permanently established the fourth Thursday of each November as a national holiday."

So that is the story. Thanksgiving truly is an American holiday. Thanks for reading!

Progress on the Driveway

Thought I would share some pictures of the driveway. This is our first major project on the house.

Update on Callie

Callie is still fighting the sickness. There have been a couple of really bad days. Amy called the nurse at the doctor’s office today, and the nurse said that it seems like she is getting over the flu. If she is not totally better by Wednesday, she will go in to see the doctor. If she has another bad night, I think Amy will take her tomorrow regardless of what the nurse says. Dealing with a sick child is beyond stressful. When she was having the fever, it was evident she was trying to tell us what was wrong, but she just didn’t have the words. She just kept jabbering in her baby talk and saying Dahdahdahdah and Momamamama. It was so sad. The fever is all gone now, but she is still restless. Amy didn’t sleep much last night. I cooked supper tonight, and after my first day of really getting back to work (I have all the classes now) I am beat!

On a more positive note, we are supposed to have two good things happen tomorrow. The concrete guy is suppose to begin the work to pour out concrete for the driveway, and we are supposed to get high-speed internet hooked up. I will keep you posted on both of those fronts.

The picture above is a photo I took of Amy on Saturday night. We had just a few minutes while the kids were asleep, so that was our entertainment for the weekend. I transformed a room of our house into a make-shift studio. Years ago a friend of ours told us that if you take enough pictures, generally one or two will come out good. It is hit and miss, but I suppose he is right. Again, the resolution you are looking at does not give this picture justice, but I’m pleased with it.

Couple of Pictures of Dad and Callie

Here a couple of pictures of Dad and Callie taken from this past week. Callie is trying to walk, but she still needs a lot of help. Last night Dad and Jeannie were supposed to watch the children for us, but Callie had a fever and was very fussy. This would have given Amy and I some much needed time by ourselves. Unfortunately, Callie came down with a fever, so we were unable to go out. When she is sick, she requires constant time with her mother. We will be asking for a rain check on that one.

Update: Callie is doing better today so far. We both think the fever is from her teething, but teething fevers are not supposed to get that high. Anyway, with her medicine, she is doing much better this morning.

Good Week So Far

This week has been a good week. Last night we had a wonderful time with our friends Aaron, Rachel, and Grace. They came over for supper and to visit. Friendship has always meant a lot to both of us, so we try our best to keep friendships alive and healthy.

Not much else has been going on. We considered a trip to Arkansas for Thanksgiving, but I think we have both decided we would rather stay put this year. We are tossing around the idea of renting a room with some of our friends a local hotel that has a pool open 24 hours. It might be fun to swim and sit in the hot tub all night…maybe even bypass the cooking and go out for dinner the next day. Of course, that wouldn’t be very traditional, but then again who says we have to always hold to tradition?

Speaking of the tradition of Thanksgiving, Gary had a great idea concerning the holidays. Look in the near future for a post on Thanksgiving. I often wonder what teachers say when their students ask the question, “Why is it called ‘Thanksgiving?’”

Taking a Break From the Praise Team...and stuff

Yesterday was a little bittersweet. It was my last day to play bass for the praise team at Orchardville. For quite a while I have just not been enjoying it. Now before you say, “ministry isn’t always enjoyable,” consider for a moment: I have been involved in ministry my whole life. I have played music for several different churches, been in a band, worked as a youth minister, led small groups, etc. I know when it is just not right, and for now this is just not right. There are probably a lot of reasons why, and honestly I don’t want to get into them. I have great respect for the team and I hope the door will open again in the future for me to serve in that capacity. But for now, it is goodbye.

So, with that said, let me move onto happier topics. My last post was a little down. I hope I didn’t depress anyone. This time of year I often begin to struggle a little bit, and perhaps that has come out in my writing. This weekend had some great points. We had a wonderful time at our neighbors’ house on Friday night, and I FINALLY fixed the car on Saturday. Below you will find some pictures of the mess. Notice the “Mexico” sticker on the new alternator. In the process of taking off the old belt, I broke the pulley on the water pump. I had to wait for that part to come in before I could do much more. Once it was in, it was just a matter of getting the belt on. Nothing with this project was easy, and I hope I never have to do it again. However, I did save a lot of money by doing this project myself.

Thanks for reading, and this week I will REALLY try to post more often. This post is rushed, but I hope to have something a little better this week. Keep watching.

Hard Days

I had high hopes for posting more this week. Unfortunately I was not able to. So what went on? Well, the car broke down. Thankfully Amy and the kids were able to make it into the Wall-Greens parking lot and call someone. The alternator went out. I am not at all a mechanic, but I just can’t see spending the 200+ dollars in labor to change the part. The alternator itself cost over $100. Long story short, I have changed it, but in the process I broke the pulley from the water pump. Now I am waiting for that part to come in before I can go any further. For someone with no background at all in mechanics, I’m pleased that I was able to figure out how to do some of if. I even made a tool that I needed. Probably some of you know what a “strap wrench” is. I had never heard of one, but found out that I needed one. There was a site on the net that explained how to make one out of an old belt and a pair of vice grips. I almost felt like MacGyver! Oh well, enough about that.

I wrote a poem this morning, and I thought I would share it. I really can’t write poetry, but I felt better after I wrote it. Amy and I are living at one of the most difficult times in our lives. Having two children at the ages they are at is really tough sometimes. We seldom have a moment alone, and we don’t get much sleep.


Hard Days

It will all get better,
Let’s just hang in there,
These days are hard days,
Please don’t despair.

Why is it hard sometimes?
To simply get along
The road that we walk,
Is not really that long.

Good times and bad times,
Thick and thin,
You're sorry, I'm sorry,
Does it really matter in the end?

I leave for work,
Without saying, "Good bye."
And it all starts again,
I keep asking, "Why?"

We started off
With just so much potential
Now it seems,
Life is so inconsequential

It’s no one’s fault,
We had a rough start,
I don’t care anymore,
Just help me do my part

I don't know why,
That it has to be this way,
I’ll keep trying and trying,
But I don’t know what to say

It will all get better,
If we simply endure,
But these days are hard days,
Yeah, that’s for sure.

Photography and Random Thoughts

Last week ended on both a sour note and a really good note. First the sour note. Long, long story short, I have been trying for quite some time to convince the powers that be to offer an Astronomy class. I fully believe our students would benefit from this class, and there are several schools that offer it. Unfortunately, it looks like it is not going to happen. So anyway, I was about to leave school frustrated, when my student teacher called. She had interviewed for a position for next semester. She got the job!! Congratulations Paige!! You are going to be an awesome teacher!

We didn’t really do that much this weekend. Saturday night we went to church and afterwards was the fellowship. A very nice lady mentioned to me that she reads the blog, and misses it when I don’t update frequently. It really made my day to know that there was someone out there reading.

I will try to put more into another post this week. Tonight I will just leave you with some pictures. I have been experimenting with photography here of late. Of course, these pictures don’t look too good when displayed on a monitor at the resolution I have to upload them at on my computer. After reading a short book on photography, I could point out all the mistakes I made, but I will spare you that part. One of our friends really encouraged me tonight to pursue this hobby. I’ll keep you updated.






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Cassidy the Fire Fighter

Cassidy had a wonderful time at her party. Her costume was well received, with everyone making positive comments. After her party at school, all the kids went around to different rooms trick-or-treating. I happened to be having my planning period when the kids were downstairs in G-Building, so I was able to watch her for a while. It was neat to see the high school kids working so well with the little ones. I played the proud father part mentioning to everyone that walked by, “There’s my daughter.”

After school, we geared up for the evening to receive the neighborhood children. We had really debated as to weather or not we would hand out candy. I’m glad we did. Although I was rather hesitant to expose Cassidy to the scary costumes, she did really well. There was only one that bothered her, but we made sure to explain as best we could what was going on. The good outweighed the bad I suppose. As an added bonus, we got to visit with some of our friends who stopped by, and got to know our neighbors a little better. Amy and I took turns wearing a crazy hat, and I dressed in all black with an orange collar. Perhaps next year we will do something a little more crazy. If we pace it just right, we will really be acting like fools about the time our children begin to develop a natural embarrassment of their parents. Now that will be a great Halloween!

Special thanks to Dad for bringing by the extra candy. We used it all!

Halloween.....Part 2

Go back and read Halloween Part 1 before you continue.

For the past couple of years we have held our ground pretty good. It seems like it was last year that I began to think a little more about what impact celebrating this holiday might have. Someone made a post on a friend’s blog site of mine basically saying how surprised they were that a Christian would celebrate Halloween. I remember that the comment seemed very untimely and a little judgemental. The responses to the comment caused me to think quite a bit more about this subject. I learned of several people who I consider to be good Christians who find nothing at all wrong with the Holiday. Since that time, I have pondered the issue once again in my mind.

This year, I had a discussion with one of the best Christians I know. She thinks it sends a bad message to our children to celebrate the holiday. She told me of the suffering she has endured by family members for trying to hold to her values. And for that, I respect her greatly. I have also run into a good Christian family who refuses to participate in the events. So Amy and I had a long discussion on the issue. I could tell that she was beginning to lean towards letting our children celebrate the holiday. At one time we argued about it a little mostly when I suggested to her that many parents dress their kids up more for the parents interest in the holiday than for the kids. I was holding strong on the issue, and truly believed that giving in would amount to selling part of my soul to the secular progressive culture. But something came about last week that caused me to compromise by belief. Here is the situation:

Cassidy came home from pre-school very excited about the Halloween party they were going to have. She had a letter with her explaining that the kids were going to dress up and go around from class to class trick-or-treating (she attends pre-school at Mt. Vernon High School). She had already decided she was going to dress up as a Fire Fighter. Towards the end of the letter it stated that if we didn’t want our kids to participate, then they would find “something else” for her to do.

In a rather frank tone, Amy said something close to this: “I don’t care if you don’t want her to participate, but you are going to be the one to tell her.” Although my anger kindled a little at this point, it didn’t take me a moment to realize how cruel it would be to try to explain to a little girl who just turned 4 that we were not going to let her do this. She knows nothing of Celtic tradition, nothing about the preacher who made my family think twice about our convictions, and my best explanations to her would never make her understand. Oh, I could tell her that we are Christians, and God probably doesn’t want her to partake in the celebration of a holiday having its roots in Pagan worship, but in the end she would say, “Okay Daddy,” look down at the floor with tear filled eyes, and would never understand why all the other kids get to have fun while she sits on the sidelines with “something else.”

I’m simply not going to do that. I’m mad, but I’m not going to take this away from her. There will come a day when Cassidy will have to decide for herself if celebrating the holiday bothers her convictions. But until that day, I guess I don’t see anything wrong with pumpkins, hay bales, hayrides, bonfires, or even dressing up. I don’t think it is a sin to go trick-or-treating. But I still feel uneasy about the abundance of witches, demons, etc. The church has since named the day following Samhain as All Saints Day, and the evening before came to be known as “All Hallows Eve” and eventually Halloween. To some, the day still represents evil, and is celebrated as such. But to many, the day is simply a festive day for children to have fun. In the end, I still don’t like Halloween. But I suppose I would like robbing my child of the festivity even less. Making decisions like this are difficult. But this is what is means to be a parent, and something tells me that this is the first of many difficult decisions that Amy and I will have to make.

Oh, for what it is worth, I didn't tell Cassidy anything about the pumpkin lanterns that the Celts used, or even Sleepy Hallow. Instead, I compared cleaning out the stinky junk from inside the pumpkin to the way that God cleans us out on the inside. And of course, he replaces it with his light. Check the blog soon to see how Cassidy was transformed for Halloween.

Halloween.....Part 1

What I am going to discuss today is a subject that brings a fair amount of controversy within the church. The topic, is of course, Halloween. Now, before I even begin, I would like to go on the record as stating that I have been rather reluctant in the past to get involved in this discussion. As a child, I remember going “trick-or-treating” once or twice. My family once took a ride on the haunted hayride in Radom, and at least once I carved a “Jack-o-Lantern.” Generally speaking, I celebrated the holiday much the same way as most Americans children.

That changed a little when someone gave our family a sermon tape on the subject. On the tape, the preacher exposed the history of the Halloween. I was very surprised to find that this holiday was once known as Samhain, and marked the Celtic New Year’s eve (The Celts were a nature worshiping group of people who lived in Ireland and present day United Kingdom about 2000 years ago). These pagan people believed this to be a time when evil spirits ruled the night, and lit “bonfires” (originally called “bone fires” from sacrifices), and went from house to house wearing masks (likely made from animal heads) carrying hollowed out gourds with candles inside and demanding food. A “trick” was played out if the requests were not met. According to the preacher, they would likely burn your house down, or something worse.

After hearing this sermon, my family thought it appropriate to do our best to at least lighten up on the celebration. It just didn’t seem like a good Christian family should have anything to do with this type of tradition. Besides that, we had always felt a little weird about the abundance of witches, demons, gosts, etc. that seemed to inundate the television, candy isles, and stores during this time. Nothing about the holiday seemed good, and for us it was just something that we chose not to celebrate for several years. I didn’t think much about it from that point on, and simply did my best to ignore the holiday and try not to pass judgment on those who simply didn’t know.

Flash forward about 18 years to Circa 2003.

After having our first child, my wife and I began to find it progressively more difficult to simply ignore the holiday known as Halloween. Once Cassidy was born, we knew we were going to have to make a decision as to whether or not we were going to let her dress up and partake in the childhood events that enshrine this holiday. Even before she was walking very well we had people encouraging us to dress her up to celebrate the event. We tried our best to get by with simple phrases like, “Well, we are not big into Halloween.” These comments often incited a dirty look from friends and even some family members. Postponing the event seemed like the best idea for us. But for how long???

Cards Win... Cards Win... Go Crazy Folks!!

There was a time in my life when I lived and died Cardinal baseball. In fact one of my fondest memories as a child was watching the Cardinals win the 1982 World Series. I remember that evening like it was yesterday. Bruce Sutter was pitching to Darrel Porter in the final inning. The last pitch came and I went wild! It sealed inside me a love for the game that would never go away.

But a lot would happen after that. Baseball would go through enough to make anyone question whether or not it was worth watching. The Pete Rose scandal, the steroids, the strikes, the outrageous ticket prices, and the even more outrageous salaries the ball players were making caused me to loose interest in major league baseball. I always loved the game, but it was as if the all American past time was being dragged down by the progress secular culture.

Tonight, however, in at least a small way, I relived a part of my childhood. Although I didn’t follow the Cardinals this year like I once did, I still felt the thrill of the Fall Classic. I remembered back to the greats like Tommy Herr, Willie McGee, and of course, Ozzie Smith. I remembered songs like Celebration, The Heat is On, and the announcing icons Jack Buck and Mike Shannon. Maybe those great days of Cardinal baseball are gone, but then again, those who can remember the 1960's Cardinals might have thought the same thing. Perhaps tonight will give birth to a new generation of Cardinal fans, and maybe, just maybe, renew some of the old ones.

Just Before Taking a Walk

I thought I would post a couple of pictures real quick. These were taken yesterday just before we went on our walk.

Time Going By and Sites for Dad

Time is quickly going by. Last night we had open house at the High School. I got to meet several of my student's parents, as was able to catch up a little with some old friends (Hi Craig and Monte Jo). This semester is flying by! I can't believe it is already time for the Mt. Vernon Conference again.

I thought I would put a few links on here for my dad. He had surgery and is dealing with a slow recovery. Please say a prayer for him.

http://www.steadyhealth.com/Post_cervical_spine_surgery_pain_t84198.html

http://www.neckreference.com/treatment-surgical-fusion.html

http://www.spinalneurosurgery.com/anterior%20cervical%20fusion.htm

I will try to post again sooner next time. I am working on a good one.

Thinking About Life On a Rainy Day

Today is a rainy day! Sometimes the rain makes me think about life. Most recently I have had more time than usual to ponder my thoughts. The reason? This semester I have enjoyed having a student teacher for my classes. Paige is an awesome teacher, and I will hate to see her leave. She has about two weeks left teaching all of my classes, and then it is back to work for Mr. Robinson.

So in this time, I have been thinking a great deal about life and the future. I’ve been asking myself what’s most important in life. I keep coming back to family. At the end of life for so many people, they rarely say they wish they had worked more. If they have any regrets, it is generally the wish that they had spent more time with their family. I am so incredibly blessed to have such a wonderful wife and children. Amy and I make sacrifices to spend time with our children. They are only little once, and even at that the time just seems to go by so quickly. Cassidy has turned from a toddler into a little girl overnight. It is amazing how quickly she has changed, even in just the last few weeks. And Callie is right behind her. Callie is starting to say a few words now, wave bye to people, and is crawling all over the place. Wow! Where is the baby going? Amy made the comment at the rummage sale that it is a little sad to get rid of the toys. The desire to hang on to that time is so strong. It’s been said before, but it really is like trying to hold onto sand as it slips through your fingers. One day they will grow up and leave the nest. I don’t want to have any regrets. I want to honestly be able to say, “I was there.” Every moment is so precious and priceless. These truly are the best days of my life.

Getting Settled In

We are starting to get settled in at our new house. The original plan was to “flip” the house in 6 months. However, we are already realizing how difficult this will be. Even at this early stage, I think I can safely say that in order for a “flip” to occur, it will have to be at least a year.

We’ve only lived in the neighborhood for about a week now, but we have to say that this seems to be an incredible place to live. It far outweighs our expectations. The street we live on has almost zero traffic. There are kids playing outside, and the neighbors are awesome. We have met so many people, and have even been invited over. There are even friendly dogs like Loui and Sassy that seem to welcome us home. Several times this week people have stopped to welcome us to the neighborhood. Everyone we talk to loves living here. One lady said she is moving from Las Vegas to be part of this neighborhood, and another lady said it is almost like the “Bever Clever” neighborhood. She said she didn’t think they would ever want to move!

The picture I posted was of Cassidy’s birthday party. We are now the proud parents of a four year old! Wow, time goes by fast!