Facing Our Giants

Not much time for blogging....

2008-08-05T22:52:00.004-04:00

since I joined facebook. I'm going to try to be faithful to this blog at least once a week. But, you might want to check out my facebook page because it's alot easier to upload and edit pictures. But here are a few of Puddin' and mom from this past week. Mom built a fort for Puddin' but Lucy thought it was a great place to take a nap. Puddin' had her keys and purse and checking her weight and when asked where she was going she said "church."

Coming Back to Glenpool

2008-07-24T19:32:00.002-04:00

Wow!! That's all I can say about the last three weeks. As many of you know we moved to Stillwater, Ok and was living with our friend Ta-Ta (as Puddin' calls him). After much struggling and praying we are moving back to our home (we didn't move that much, so it's not as bad as it sounds). It's one of those strange times because we felt God telling us to move (first up there, and then back home), so we're not sure what lessons were to be learned, but we are trusting God. We learned alot about our family during that three weeks and dad and mom grew in their communication, and have developed a plan to re-enter ministry (more on that during another post). So, please pray for us. In the process we decided to switch dad's office and Puddin's room. I can't believe how much can be accumulated in five short years or in Puddin's case twenty months. Dad is working hard at home to complete the switch and we will be moving what we took to Stillwater back on Saturday.

Sidewalk Art

2008-07-11T11:42:00.004-04:00

Every Thursday night downtown Stillwater they have "Artists on Main Street" for family. Last night that consisted of two artists (I guess the other artist haven't heard they are suppose to be on Main Street yet), a gospel group (who sung "Amazing Grace," to the tune of "House of the Rising Sun"-I'm sure they changed "sun" to "son" in the program), and an area where kids could get chalk and create their own art (which looked better than one of the artists work). So, here are some pictures of Puddin' participating in the art show.

Dad had to show Puddin' what to do, but she quickly figured it out.

Puddin' is busy creating her first sidewalk art

Puddin' is admiring her work that we called "chicken scratch"

Out of the Mouth of Babes

2008-07-11T11:37:00.002-04:00

The other night we were eating and when it was time to wash off Puddin's hands and mouth she started crying and waving her arms in the air. Dad came from the other room and asked mom what was going on, Mom replied, "We just finished eating, call me crazy, but I thought it would be a good idea to wash her hands and mouth." Then mom and dad heard Puddin' say "crazzzy." Dad looked at mom and said, "at least she's learning to obey, you said call me crazy."

Fun in the Sun

2008-07-11T11:31:00.004-04:00

We went over Su-Su's house for July 4th and Puddin' got to go for her first swim. Or as she called it a bath in the pool-pool. At first she wasn't to sure when everyone was gathered around her, but she got used to the water. And then when she got floaties on she wanted to swim on her own, but not to far from dad. One day I will have to tell Jorja what my dad use to tell me when we had a pool, "Son, don't go to the bathroom in the pool or the chemicals will cause a big red ring to surround you."

God's Will & Making Adjustments...How we got to Stillwater

2008-06-29T21:37:00.004-04:00

Experiencing God is one of the most influential studies I have been through. In fact, after going through three of four workbooks I went out and bought a book I can just mark up and reuse it. Two of the principles in the study is that God reveals his way to us and we have to make adjustments (sometimes major adjustments) to join him in his work. I've been praying for a God size task for our family about six months ago.

About two months ago, we received a call from the man who officitated our wedding (we will call him Ta-Ta, his given name by Puddin'). Ta-ta has been a widow for almost a year, has had been through a heart transplant two years ago, and was trying to sell his house. When he called he asked us to pray about moving in with him with a lease to own option on his house that would allow us to purchase the house at a later date.

Now..a side trip from the story. Dad has been praying off and on for about five years that the family could move to Stillwater. Oklahoma State is located there and there is a huge international community, including one of the largest Muslim populations in the state. And he had a desire to minister to the international students on campus. But, God has been silent and the few times dad looked into it the doors were never open.

Now back to the story...When Ta-ta asked us to move in with him, we had to pray about it. Was this the way God was getting us to Stillwater? We would be combining four adults and three dogs into one household. We prayed, we discussed it, we prayed some more.

The orginal agreement Ta-ta gave us was that we should try it out for thirty days and continue to seek God. So, as we prayed some more we figured the best thing was to take a step of faith and move in with Ta-ta and see what God is doing.

So, last week we moved in with Ta-ta, of course, Puddin' instantly adjusted and loves exploring the new house, the dogs just ignore each other, and the three adults are prayerfully walking day by day and seeing what God does next. So, we will keep you posted, but it seems that God has put us on a great adventure and we look forward to seeing what he does trhough us as we make the adjustments (and it is an adjustment, but we have already seen God provide in many ways).

Also, dad is taken up the Hindi language since he has a growing number of Indian clients and hoping God will make this his mission field.

More to come...

Copy Cat

2008-06-29T21:32:00.002-04:00

This picture proves that children learn from us even when we don't know it. Puddin' has begin to lean on the wall and fold her arms when she's outside. Dad asked mom one day, "why does she do that?" Mom replied, "Because you do." When we go outside in the front yard, dad will lean against the wall or the tree. Puddin' has even started walking like dad at times (with her arms behind her back). Our prayer is that she won't just pick up our "physical" habits, but she would see Christ in our lives and have a love for him.

Two Signs I'm Getting Old....

2008-06-27T14:14:00.002-04:00

The first sign is that in watching the NBA draft I recognized more names of GMs, coaches, and front office people than people getting drafted.

The second sign is by what I did on my birthday, here was the exciting day--worked nine hours, got home ate left over pizza, walked the dogs, gave my daughter a bath, and reput together our bed frame to stop the squeeking.

39th Year of Life

2008-06-26T15:46:00.004-04:00

Today, I start my 39th year on this life journey. I've been telling people I'm one year away from a mid-life crisis and somebody informed me that I shouldn't go through a mid-life crisis until I'm 50. I told them I'm impatient and want to get it over with. I always make goals I want to accomplish for the upcoming year on my birthday, and have started praying that no matter what that this year God would give me the grace to know him more deeply, serve him better, and be a better husband and father, but outside those things here are the top five things I want to accomplish before I turn 40.

1. I want to memorize Psalm 119
2. I want to earn my Certified Financial Planner designation.
3. I want to go on a mission trip this year
4. I want to finally write that book I've always said I'll write
5. I want to learn the Hindi language this year.

Stay tuned throughout the year to see how these turn out.

Moving

2008-06-20T22:06:00.002-04:00

For the past four years we have been praying about moving to Stillwater, Ok. There are several reasons, but one of the state universities are there and dad has desired to work with the international student population. It has never been feasible, but about two months ago God provided us an opportunity, so this weekend we are moving to Stillwater. Dad will still work for the same company, and we are going to just see where God reveals what He is doing him and join Him in Stillwater. This is definitely an "experiening God" moment, he revealed himself and his purpose and we are making the necessary adjustments to join him and see what happens next. More to come later....

Jesus Love.....

2008-06-14T11:38:00.002-04:00

Puddin' has acquired her mom's love for music, and as for as we can tell, also her mom's talents for music. We have been teaching her to sing "Jesus Loves Me" and she has picked up on "so" the two times that it appears in the song and she even extends the last "so" to "soooooo." The other morning mom was working with Jorja during breakfast on maybe learning "me" where it fits in the song. So, as they sang, mom would sing, "Jesus loves ____" and try to get Puddin' to fill in the blank. After a few repeats, Puddin' caught on and when mom sang, "Jesus loves ___, Puddin' sang "pancakes." Which I'm glad because if Jesus loves pancakes surely they will be served in heaven, maybe we will even have pancakes for supper like Hardy Hall used to do once or twice a semester in college.

I felt guilty...

2008-06-08T20:06:00.004-04:00

because I haven't posted in about two weeks, but then I discovered this post will tie how many posts we put up in 2007, so we are slowly getting better. Things have been crazy around our house...there will be a longer post in the near future, but we are moving to Stillwater, Ok at the end of this month. God has provided us a house and a new adventure. Dad will stay with his same company, his clients are all over Oklahoma, Illinois, Texas, and one up in New York, and as long as he has his computer he can do his work. He even has some clients in the Stillwater area, but will hope to acquire a few more in the move.

I have a puddin' demanding some daddy time....so this will be updated (with some pictures) when she goes to sleep tonight.

Saturdays Are Great

2008-05-18T22:26:00.008-04:00

The best thing daddy has done is quit working on Saturdays and devotes the whole day to the family. There are a few Saturdays he has to work, but not many. 99% of the time he gets to spend the day with his two favorite girls. In the morning mom takes her books and study materials and goes to a local Starbucks and just has some "alone" time. She is blessed to get to stay home with Puddin' but really enjoyes her Saturday mornings to refuel her spirit. Dad gets Puddin' up and fed and they usually watch "Bedbugs" and "Dooley and Friends" together, we're not sure who enjoys them most. Then when mom gets home we usually have an outing for the day. This past Saturday we went to a local park near dad's office and then to the new Wal-mart by our house.

Puddin' enjoyed the park. She got to explore and play on a huge play area just for toddlers. It was her first time to go down a slide. She enjoyed the baby slide she started out on, but had the most fun going down the big twisty slide with daddy. She kept, saying "again, again" as soon as they got to the bottom and we must have went down it about twenty times until dad started getting dizzy. Then it was off to Wal-mart, Puddin' and dad like to play daredevil in the cart and "swerve" around the corners. Puddin' and dad laugh and mom is afraid one day we are going to "swerve" right into some unexpecting lady with a full cart. Then, we came home enjoyed our lunch and dad and Puddin' take naps while mom gets some work done around the house. You can't beat those Saturdays, it sure beats the office any day.

On other notes, Puddin' turned 18 months this past week. It has been so amazing to see her grow in the past few months. She is picking up more signs from her "signing time" videos, saying more words, and even hitting when she gets mad (and then crying when daddy or mommy corrects her), we love her so much and are awed and thankful at this precious little life God added to our family.

From Puddin' To Mommy

2008-05-11T22:24:00.002-04:00

"Thanks for being such a good mommy to me!" I know you could be out doing whatever you want to do, but you've chosen to stay home and take care of me; to play w/me; to read to me; to sing to me; to cook for me; to protect me; to feed me; to watch over me; to nurture me; to talk to me; to watch Barney w/me; to clean up after me; to fix my hair and dress me pretty; to teach me about Jesus; to show me Jesus in your own life; to love daddy; to make a happy home for me; to sacrifice for me; to put me before yourself; to pray for me and with me; to teach me all kinds of neat stuff; to show me how to cook; to laugh with me; to cry for me and hurt when I hurt; to stay up at night with me; to hug me and hold me; to discipline me; and to love me all the time. Mommy, your the best Mommy in the whole wide world and I know you're a gift from God just for me!!!!! Happy Mother's Day Mommy"

Another First...This Time A Fat Lip

2008-04-23T12:39:00.003-04:00

Last night after dinner Puddin' and dad were playing in the driveway while Granny was watching. Puddin' got a little too fast on her feet and fell and found out the universal principle that if your lip and concrete meet your lip is going to lose. Dad rushed to pick up Puddin' and comforted her and then she touched the lip and the blood came gushing. By the time we got to the kitchen to wash it off. She had blood covering her face. Dad had to reassure mom (who was about to faint) that it was not as bad as it looked. Puddin' is a trooper, within five minutes she was cleaned up, finished crying, and outside playing again. Later that night she wore her band-aid proudly, for about five minutes.

Granny's Visit & Hats

2008-04-23T12:24:00.005-04:00

Puddin's granny came from Texas to visit her for a few days. And to cook mom and dad one of her special meals. She enjoyed her trip, Puddin' smiled and laughed when she saw her and if you tell Puddin' to say, "Granny." She will say, "Grunny" and look and laugh at her granny.

This is Puddin' and her dadd having fun before dinner. Puddin' has been learning to sign and can sign "hat." So every evening when daddy comes home Puddin' will find him a hat to wear and if he takes it off she will point and sign "hat" (hand on top of the head) and then laugh when he puts the hat on again. Mom says her favorite noise is hearing puddin' and dad laughing in the evening as they play together.

Welcome to Redneckville

2008-04-13T17:35:00.004-04:00

We had a wind storm this week and lost a section of our fence and some shingles off the roof. And a ladder his holding up most of our fence to prevent it from falling down. When dad talked to our neighbor about fixing it, our neighbor suggested that we just get rid of the fence and have one big community yard. Which dad replied, does that mean your son would mow my section of the yard?" But we knew we were in Redneckville last night when mom asked dad, "when are you going to fix the shingles?" And dad replied, "I can't. If I get the ladder the fence will fall down."

A Dog & His Master's Shoe

2008-04-12T17:57:00.003-04:00

This is longer than others, but I think it's funny. You have to waith about five seconds for the blue screen to go away and it doesn't really get funny until about 55 seconds into it.

Look At What I Can Do

2008-04-12T17:03:00.003-04:00

Look at what Puddin' can do on her own now.

Better Than Management

2008-04-05T21:56:00.005-04:00

Puddin' always seems to be on the go...I didn't know there was so much to explore in our front yard.

Here's Puddin' exlporing the rock garden.

I've been thinking about moving up into management at our firm and have been in the management training program for the last nine months. As I told the agency manager yesterday that I want to get out of the program he said something that made me think. He said, "It's a good decision for you, since your a family man..." Today, as Puddin' and I got to explore the front yard and the rock garden I thought about the last few months and some struggles and thought beind a daddy is definitely better than being a manager.

Cooking With Puddin'

2008-04-05T21:52:00.004-04:00

A friend gave us a kitchen for Puddin' and now she cooks daddy a meal everyday when he gets home from work.

Dad's New Blog...

2008-04-03T13:22:00.001-04:00

is up and running. Visit it at www.discoveringhisgrace.blogspot.com His goal is to updated it two or three times a week. I know you'll believe it when you see it.

Puddin' and Fonzie

2008-04-03T12:52:00.004-04:00

Puddin' is developing a taste for music and 50's music seems to be her favorite. The other day, she was going to town with mom and she was sitting in the car enjoying some 50' tunes that mom has put on a cd for her and she was kicking and smiling to the music, until one certain song came on and she began to go "Aggggghhh" and point her finger (much like a caveman's grunt) until mom skipped to the next song. (The funny thing is she always makes the grunting sound on this particular song, so we know it's not a favorite of hers.) So, mom decided that maybe Puddin' was tired of 50' tunes and put in some 80' music-that was the wrong choice-Puddin' began to uncontrollably grunt and point until the 50' tunes were put back on and then she relaxed and smiled and started kicking her feet again. So far, the Happy Days theme song seems to be her favorite.

Puddin's New Favorite Activity & Things To Come

2008-03-31T20:48:00.004-04:00

Puddin' has a new favorite pastime...she likes to go out in the front yard and picking weeds that look life purple flowers.

Things to come on our blog:
Dad knows he has done a sorry job of posting this year, but he's determined not to give up. He has a lot of pictures and videos taken for the blog, but I guess it doesn't do our audience any good if it's in the hard drive but not posted...so here are some things you can look foward to within the next week or so...

More pictures of puddin' (that's the most popular request)
Video of Puddin' signing (she has two signing time DVDs and is getting pretty good)
Some dad/puddin' play ideas (what we like to do for fun)
Pictures of Granny's visit (April 21st) - Puddin' had a reaction to one of her shots Granny's last visit, so pictures weren't posted (she didn't have the measles, but it sure looked like it)
And dad's new blog on his spiritual journey (I know what your thinking...He's starting a new blog and he can't even keep up with this one. Well he's been preparing and has some neat stuff to share out of God's Word...look for it within the next week or so)

Eb's No Dummy

2008-03-16T21:38:00.003-04:00

Lucy hasn't quite figured it out, but Eb knows that Puddin' and a bowl of cheerios means treats. Sometimes she will give them to him, but even if she's not feeling generous it's okay, because she drops enough to make a fulfilling snack.

New Guitar Hero

2008-03-16T21:29:00.002-04:00

Dad has always secretly wanted to be in a rock band and play guitar just so he could smash one against the amplifier. Every time he sees it done on television it looks like just a good stress reliever.

Puddin' Help

2008-03-16T21:23:00.002-04:00

Puddin' helps her daddy, actually she's eating Cheerios and watching dad do some preperation for an upcoming meeting.

Puddin' Speaks

2008-02-20T21:53:00.002-05:00

Last one, this is dad's favorite, see if you can figure out why.

2008-02-20T21:45:00.002-05:00

Can you tell it's been a long time since we've posted...we have had the material just not the time to post. This is Puddin' first time using a spoon. She prefers to scoop it with the spoon and then use her hand to get it out of the spoon and put it in her mouth.

The Puddin' Dance

2008-02-20T21:36:00.003-05:00

Puddin' started dancing one night, and then when the music stopped she pressed her toy bunny to provide music and kept dancing. This is a little dark, but still worth the look.

Boxes

2008-02-20T21:28:00.004-05:00

Puddin' and dad had fun playing with a box Uncle Markie brought us last night. Can you guess who is having more fun?

I Love Pizza

2008-01-19T21:08:00.000-05:00

I love pizza and my wife started making it from "scratch" and she has nearly perfected it. Look at this slice and tell me this is not a good pizza.

Puddin's Response To Daddy

2008-01-19T21:04:00.001-05:00

Watch how Puddin' responds after dad tells her "no," Ahhhh the fun has started.

Why I Haven't Been Blogging

2008-01-19T20:58:00.000-05:00

We have had some struggles in the business over the last few months and dad has had to be working more than usual as of late, but when he's home he doesn't have time to blog because he's chasing after a puddin' These are tough, but blessed times.

The squeaking in the video doesn't mean we have something that needs WD-40, Puddin' has some new shoes that squeaks when she walks around.

Next Great Composer?

2008-01-07T21:19:00.000-05:00

The Mad Maestro at work. She has already picked up her mom's love for music. And will stop whatever she is doing when music comes on the television. Right now Switchfoot is her favorite.

Money, Possessions, & Eternity

2008-01-01T15:30:00.000-05:00

I have always heard of Randy Alcorn and know a friend who thinks it's evil to read fiction, but about a year ago fell in love reading Randy Alcorn novels. We have three books by Alcorn on our shelves at home and like many of the books we bought with the best intentio we just never get around to reading. (I told Amber I can't buy any books in 2008 because I have about twenty in my office I need to read first). Two books have intigued me about Randy Alcorn, and one is changing my life (and priorities). Over Christmas with some free time I picked up my copy of "Money, Possessions, & Eternity," it has been life changing. It's much more than a money management book (what I was expecting), but it's a challenge for us to think about how we invest in eternity. In all that we do (spending time, money, etc) we are either investing for earthly pleasures or investing for eternity (Matthew 6:19-21). I am ashamed to say that for many years about 90% of my investments have been for earthly treasures where moth and rust do destroy (and it has been destroyed). This year I'm committed to evaluating my time, money, family, relationships, ministry, and business and seek God and make sure I'm living for eternity. I encourage you to visit Rand Alcorns website and blog at www.epm.org. But more than that this new year stop and evaluate if you are living for now or living for eternity. My prayer is that we will all live for eternity.

Look Who's Walking

2007-12-25T22:15:00.000-05:00

It's amazing that in a span of three days a child can go from four steps to a marathon runner. She's having fun exploring all the new areas her feet take her around the house and mom and dad are winded.

Almost...

2007-12-19T22:50:00.000-05:00

Puddin' is starting to walk. We found out she likes to knock down block towers that mom and dad built. So, if we build them she will "walk" over (four to six steps) and knock them over. She will do it until we grap the video camera and then she starts crawling again...so for now we have lots of video of one step and falling down and then Puddin' looking into camera as if to say, "You only thought you would get me on tape." So, for now enjoy these pictures of her climbing up daddy while drinking her bottle.

WE HAD A DATE!!!!

2007-12-16T21:03:00.000-05:00

Mom and dad were finally able to go on their anniversary date last night. We went to a small town near us that decorates downtown during Christmas. We enjoyed it and vowed to make time for more of them in 2008.

Tulsa is back to normal this week. I have to give it to PSO and OG&E the two electric companies in Oklahoma. Tuesday there were over 800,000 people without power and by today there are only about a thousand left without power and they should get it on within the next 24 hours. Those men (from about nine states) worked around the clock to get the job done. It was amazing.

Please pray for dad's business, it got disrupted because of the weather and he didn't get to meet with some clients last week because of the storm and they were ready to do some new business. It's been tight, but we are thankful for how God has blessed us this year and the fact we accomplished our major goal--keeping mom home with Puddin' The Honda Pilot and Disney will have to wait, but we would rather have the blessing of mom being with Puddin' than those things anyways.

Aftermath of Ice Storm 2007

2007-12-13T22:12:00.001-05:00

Today was a nice winter day, but it looks like Tulsa has been in a war zone. I've never seen so many trees on the ground. We have an additional 1,500 workers from various states helping people get their power back on. We had over 600,000 without power, but today I heard it was down to 350,000. We have been blessed we have had power both at our house and at my office, although work has been slow due to the weather. We've been so blessed I felt a little "guilty" yesterday as two co-workers were discussing being without power for the third straight day and not looking foward to the freezing weather and possible snow we have forecasted for this coming weekend. And then getting on the elevator to go home and out of seven people going down to the first floor I was the only one going home to "electricity," one lady even had a blow dryer she had brought to work to finish getting ready. On other news...Puddin' is close to walking. Last night she took two small steps.

Ice Storm 2007

2007-12-10T20:45:00.000-05:00

This is the tree in our backyard, between dad's butchering (pruning) earlier this fall and the ice storm we're not sure this tree is going to make it.

This is a frozed bradford pear in our front yard.

A frozen leaf.

Our neighbor's tree that we are praying that makes it and doesn't fall and break the fence.

More fallen trees. As I'm sitting here blogging I can hear tree branches snapping from the weight of the ice.

This was a beautiful bradford tree our next door neighbor used to have. Thankfully it didn't fall on his car or house.

Our neighbor across the street had a nice surprise this afternoon when he came home. The tree split due to the weight of the ice.

We've had an ice storm last night. Over 200,000 people in Tulsa are out of power, thankfully, we are not one of them. While driving home from work this afternoon and seeing all the trees with ice and many broken branches it feels like the snow queen from Narnia visited our area.

2007-12-08T12:37:00.000-05:00

Who would have thought that a snowman and a snow pup would provide hours of enjoyment. Puddin' first discovered this at may may's house, but we had one also, and it has become her favorite toy over the last few days. She's even learned how to push the button that starts the song (Jingle Bells) and as you can see she has developed some dance moves to go along with it. We are really enjoying this Christmas season, because last year at this time she basically just ate, slept, and filled her diapers and we were going through some other tough issues as a family. But this year, God has healed and we are all enjoying seeing Christmas for the first time through the eyes of our Puddin'.

I do, I do, I do

2007-12-07T22:06:00.000-05:00

Today, we are celebrating our 5th anniversary. It's hard to believe it's been five years. We grow more and more in love with each other every day. It's hard to believe I would find my wife in Dr. Crawford's prayer class. We started in a 900 square foot apartment....moved to a house six months later (right when I was starting my own business), but through God's grace and our love for each other we have been able to add three to our family (we count the dogs) and although being in business for myself is the toughest thing I have done, God has been faithful and allowed Amber to be at home with our children. We are blessed...of course, being new parents meant spending the evening at home, but next week we will be able to get a night out and celebrate.

Across to H-town and Back To T-town

2007-12-04T22:15:00.000-05:00

This is Puddin's other cousin. She's attempting to ride a bull ride, but it look like she's waving. She really enjoyed playing with her sister cousin Puddin'

Here were my other two kids welcoming me home and wondering why they couldn't make the trip and said they wouldn't stop licking until I promise no more kennels or being shipped off to other houses for a long time.

Here is grammy and Puddin' playing with lamb chop.

Here he is riding the bull.

Here is the future bullrider champion getting to ride the biggest baddest bull in Texas.

Here is grampy with all three grandchildren in his lap.

Puddin' did real well on the trip. She only slept for about 45 minutes on each of the nine hour trips, but she didn't cry. She entertained herself with a new toy she received before the trip (that made it sound like there were elephants in the van) and checking out her toes. She only made noises when she was hungry. She enjoyed the trip, but slept most of the day to day to catch up on her sleep.

Then...We Went To S.A.

2007-12-04T21:55:00.000-05:00

Here is dad, puddin, and dad's aunt and uncle. Puddin' is more and interested in the toys on the floor than taking another picture.

Here's grandpa Steve and puddin'.

Here's puddin' getting kisses from granny.

Here is a four generation picture of dad, puddin' granny and great grandpa and great granny.

Here is Puddin' and her great granny.

This is Puddin' meeting her great granny.

Puddin' did so good on a 4 1/2 trip...we decided to test her patience on a 9 hour trip to S.A. to see some of dad's side of the family. Here she is with a late birthday present and balloons. Dad and his mom both used this chair as kids, so now it's puddin' turn. Right now, she just likes to walk around it. One day she will learn to sit in it.

Thanksgiving in Branson

2007-12-04T21:34:00.001-05:00

Pop Pop and Puddin' waiting for the lightings of the tree at Branson.

Puddin' has had a busy few weeks. It all started out with a trip to Branson with May May and Pop Pop. We enjoyed our Thanksgiving in Branson, although it was our first trip with a Puddin' she did great and mom and dad adjusted and had fun, but realized vacations would forever be different.

A Character From Dr. Sues??

2007-11-19T20:58:00.001-05:00

We found a charcter from one of our Dr. Seus books, playing on our bed.

A Girl & Her Balloons

2007-11-18T22:49:00.000-05:00

Puddin' loves playing with balloons (with adult supervision of course), in fact, this weekend, she sat on her dad's lap for close to 1 1/2 hours and just played with the "Happy Birthday" helium balloon and laughed the whole time.

We are excited, we are getting an early Christmas gift and getting to go to Branson for Thanksgiving. We are also a little apprehensive, this is Puddin's first trip over one hour long, she will probably do fine, but we will have to wait to see how mom and dad do.

First Birthday!!!

2007-11-15T17:57:00.000-05:00

At first Jorja wasn't too sure what to think of the hat, but once we started singing and she got a tast of the cupcake, she was all smiles.

Dad writes: "It really stinks having a tempature of almost a 100, so you can't really participate in the festiviities. But, it was a fun day. And puddin' has been such a blessing and joy to our lives for the past year. It seems like yesterday we were in the hospital awaiting her arrival.

Mom writes: "Praise be to God! He blessed us through our first year with our precious Jorja. She is a delight and we love her so much. The day was full of rollicking birthday fun. She enjoyed my lousy cupcakes and please note that the huge candle continually played happy birthday in a super annoying tone."

Puddin' Hugs & More Puddin' Firsts

2007-11-12T01:22:00.001-05:00

Puddin' is getting tired of "baby" food, so she's starting to eat little pieces of cheese.

Puddin' has started standing on her own. Tonight dad counted to nine before she had to use his leg for balance. No, she doesn't stand sideways, dad just couldn't figure out how to flip the picture for the post.

Puddin' has learned to give dad a hug when he asks for one and sometimes she will give one without being asked. Dad thinks Puddin' hugs are the best!

Update on Dad's Goal and Prayer Requests

2007-11-03T21:58:00.001-05:00

Dad's been trying hard, he still needs the 42 points, but this week could be a good week (prayerfully). Dad has been working with some clients that through their business they could provide 5-8 points. And then God blessed dad with a case this weekend that could provide 9-10 points that dad wasn't counting on...and there's some other things in the works. So, hopefully in the next ten days dad could get 15-20 points. His goal was to have 30 of the 40 points by the end of November and then see if God chooses to bless the rest of the way in December.

Also, pray for dad in the following areas. He needs to hire two people before January to get promoted to manager, and he has five potential good candidates, but they need to accept the offer to work for dad and past some security exams. And also, dad has helped develop a seminar on the basics of estate planning from the Christian perspective (with an emphasis on custodial issues with children), a local minister is interested in allowing dad to do the seminar with about fifteen couples with children. Pray that more opportunities to speak on this subject will open up, it's been dad's passion, especially since he now has a little puddin' to care for.

Jorja's First Halloween

2007-11-03T21:49:00.000-05:00

We did not let Jorja participate in the haunted garage across the street, but we did have a nice time watching one of mom's favorites.

The Wait Begins

2007-10-28T21:28:00.000-05:00

If you haven't seen "Flywheel" or "Facing the Giants" I would highly recommend viewing them. Both of them have been our family favorites and a source of encouragement over the past year. They were both produced by the Kendrick brothers, ministers at Sherwood Baptist Church, in Albany, Ga. Well...it's finally happening...they are working on their third film. You can find a synopsis of it at the following link
http://www.fireproofthemovie.com/synopsis.php

Also, check out this link. It is an upcoming film written and produced by a member of our church
http://www.treasureblind.com/movie.php?id=synopsis&cat=1

Sunday Outing

2007-10-28T21:25:00.001-05:00

After church we took Puddin' to the park and played on the swing and watched the other children. Then we went to the riverwalk and mom and dad got their favorite treat...gelato.

One Last Goal For 2007

2007-10-18T22:01:00.002-04:00

We have a system at work that if we get a high enough score, we win a trip. This year it is to Orlando. If I reach this goal it would also qualify me for membership into the Million Dollar Round Table (No, that doesn't mean I made a million, back in the day you had to write a million dollars of insurance to qualify and hence the name). Also, if I reached this goal mom could get a Honda Pilot for her an puddin'. So, today during a "boring" meeting I figured out what it would take to get there. I need 42 points, I can see 20-30 points, but I've decided to go for it. So, each week I will update the blog and let you know how close I am. It will help me stay focused. So, can Howard do it? Stay tuned to find out.

Belly Buttons

2007-10-18T21:48:00.000-04:00

Puddin' has discovered her belly button, it facinates her. Then, last night she discovered that mommy and daddy had buttons of their own and if she looked hard enough she could find lent in her daddy's button.

Night of the Terriers

2007-10-18T09:45:00.000-04:00

We like to take family walks as often as we can, which are the nights dad gets home before dark.

Pictured above is how we usually travel on these walks. Dad with the two dogs and mom backpacking a puddin'.

The other night we had an adventure. As we were walking down one of the neighborhood streets, out of nowhere came a lady on a bike and Eb and Lucy started going crazy. That’s when I realized that the lady on the bike had two Jack Terriers running beside her on leashes. I had to stop and let her coast by (her dogs had seen our dogs and now they were pulling her). We kept walking and she disappeared and disaster was avoided, or so I thought. When we were about one block from our house, we started hearing some familiar barking and sure enough the Terriers were back and they were running fast and furious, coming toward us. We moved over to the sidewalk and I had to choke up on the collar to make sure Eb and Lucy didn’t go after them. It was a sight. The poor lady was trying to stop the bike with her feet, but her dogs looked like a couple of sled dogs pulling her along. This time she had a hold of their leashes to her left side (we were on the right of the street), hoping her dogs would continue to pass us by, but one of them was not so smart and he cut in front of the bicycle and the poor lady ran over her dog and then went flying through the air over the handlebars. It was so shocking…Eb and Lucy stopped barking and just looked at the splatter in the middle of the road. We made sure she was okay (truthfully, dad was trying not to laugh while mom was making sure the lady was okay and Puddin’ was just enjoying the walk). The lady was more concerned about her dog than being hurt. But we reckoned that they both needed a good dose of aspirin that night.

Snot, Full Diapers, & A Slight Walk on The Wild Side

2007-10-05T12:21:00.000-04:00

My wife is awesome, and if you don't think so, you need a lesson in awesomeness. Here's her version of this past week, it has been a tough one, but as always, God has given us the strength to endure.

Well, it started with another virus. Tuesday morning things started to go south. Puddin' was not herself. By that evening she had a runny nose and diarrhea. This is a great toddler combination and the diaper rash that accompanies it all is so fun. Howard had to work late Tuesday and Wednesday night. Tuesday night I got up out of bed about 86 times to check if Puddin' had messed her pants. Sleep deprivation is a common side effect of one's toddler's virus. Toddlers love baby saline drops and snot sucking bulbs. This is quite fun and should become a national competition. I have now read Garden Buddies, Pooh, Roo and Tigger Too, and Raggedy Ann and Andy Sharing & Caring 542 times. Thursday, I thought to myself, "Self you can get some things done in between snot wipes and all the rest. I had done a load of laundry and was giving Lucy a bath (I had already scrubbed Ebenezer) when I heard Puddin' awaken from her nap. Upon entering her room I knew that she had had a significant BM. Upon taking my child out of her crib and placing her on the changing table, I knew this would be no ordinary diaper change. To leave out all the horrifying details, let's just say that Huggies should invent a body suit. Anyway, I thought out loud, "I've got to carefully plan this one. I grabbed a plastic bag and placed the said diaper in it. I put on another one just to buy time. I took the changing pad cover and all with me as I picked up Puddin', swaddled by the changing pad cover. I had to keep the dogs away while I squatted beside the bathtub with Jorja on my knee. I began filling her bathtub with water while she was squirming to get down. I grab another plastic sack, place the toddler on a huge postpartum diaper I still had, took her onesy off over her hips so that I would not smear anything any worse than I already had. I then collected onesy, old diaper and changing pad cover into the postpartum diaper and placed all in plastic sack. I was not going to save any of it. Not this time. I put Jorja in the bath and hosed her down. I then used a hairdryer to dry her poor little diaper rash area. I put thick lanolin ointment on the rash, diapered her and redressed her. At this point I knew she would want her formula. I put her on one hip and with my left hand made the bottle. Just as I was about to sit down to let her take it, Howard came through the door!!! My hero!! My knight in shining armor!! He fed her and I held back tears. He said, "you can cry if you need to." I said, "No, I'm not going to cry. I'm getting what Puddin' has and crying will only add to my congestion." I then got her dinner ready and then I went to Wal-Mart to get some much needed grocery items and time ALONE. I felt like a rebel in my '98 Caddie. I was free of poop and snot for a couple of hours and was making my way down the highway. I needed some rebel music to be my soundtrack for this moment of reverie. As I shuffled through my CD selections in my 6 CD changer, I stopped on Billy Squier's Christmas Is the Time to Say I Love You. I listened to it 3 times. It was the best I could do. And because I was alone in my car, I actually drove up to the speed limit--my cruise was set on a firm 65. I now have more overnight diapers, formula and chocolate. I have a sore throat too, but I'm still reliving my wild evening with a twinkle in my eye. Here's to you Billy!!!

A New Commitment...

2007-10-05T12:13:00.000-04:00

This blog is like my commitment to Christ in my junior college years. Starting anew every few months or so...but I was convicted this week when visiting a friends site (who updates more regular on me) and in the "blogs I read" menu, there was facing the giants. I thought poor friend, they've probably memorized the last blog. But, Puddin' is a about 45 days shy of her first birthday and there's more to blog about. She's developing her own personality and makes us laugh everyday. This picture was taken when my mom came to visit us. As I tell people, Puddin' is my third child.

A long overdue update....

2007-07-17T17:42:00.000-04:00

Our family is still here. Mom sends out her own e-mail pictures to her list and dad doesn't blog as often as he likes, but keeps being inspired by other blogs to persevere until it becomes habit (He does have about a million blog ideas, just not the time to sit down and type as often as he would like).

God is blessing our family. Puddin' is growing like crazy and this morning when mom walked in and checked on her after her morning nap, she was sitting up in her crib. So, now we must drop the mattress down a level. She is such a blessing and manages to get her dad to stop working on the computer in the evenings to play her. Right now, her favorite is the being rolled over and over across the bed. We are definitely blessed.

Things are going well at work, although moving up to management has been a tough transition. It's hard to find people who want to work on commission now days. I still lack finding one more person to hire before I can officially be a manager (right now I'm acting as a manager, but not reaping the benefits of the manager). I've struggled over the last few years about being in a "secular" job, after all I trained for the ministry...and often asked is this where I'm suppose to be Lord? Shouldn't I be preaching. But through some close friends and very intimate worship times God has made it evident this is where I'm suppose to be at this time in my life. And he has given me a passion for my job and a vision how to run my district in a way that hopefully will best glorify him. I'll probably share that in the next blog, it's too detail to go in here. But, this blog will be my outlet to share what God is showing me in Scripture. Last night, as Amber and I talked and I shared how I think God is showing me to run my district, it excited me and I have a desire to allow him to shine through me whether it be in the church or the boardroom.

But just as awesome as God is, he has given us a ministry. We will be stateside prayer coordinators for a missionary from our church (I'm sure you will be hearing more about Dr. T in upcoming blogs). Briefly, he is a national from a southeast asian country that is closed and has come and received training and is going back to his home country knowing persecution may follow but willing to share the gospel. We had a chance to hear him share his testimony a few weeks ago and it was the most passionate I had heard in a long time, in fact it drove me to my knees asking for that passion in my life. It will be exciting to be a small part of this man's ministry.

Baby Aerobics

2007-07-17T17:38:00.000-04:00

Now take your left foot and cross it to your body.

Then lift your feet and do some crunches.

First reach out and touch your toes.

A Late Father's Day Blog...

2007-06-27T11:19:00.000-04:00

I meant to post this blog on Father's Day, but the weekend was busy and I disappeared for the week to study for a test I had to pass for a promotion. After many hours of study, and a passing grade I can get back to life. Anyways...here's a picture of puddin' and I on Father's Day. All I can say is I love being a dad. I have often felt overwhelmed, but at the same time extremely thankful for the blessings God has put in my life through my wife and daughter.

For all of our regular readers (all five of you), I'm fully taken over the blog and will start blogging more on what God has been teaching me and not just family updates. Don't worry, there will still be more and enough pictures of our puddin' because I know that's why four of the five of you visit the blog.

Our Family Picture

2007-05-18T12:09:00.001-04:00

We have had an exciting week. First, Granny and Grandpa Steve (iamnots mom and step-dad) came up to visit for Mother's Day weekend. This was there second time to see puddin' and she was more active and responsive (the last time they saw her she was barely three weeks old). So, Granny and puddin' had some good bonding time. Although, dad has tried to train puddin' to cry anytime she sees any of her grandparents she hasn't done it yet...they are always met with a big smile. Then, it was baby dedication and sheeps "first official" mother's day being a mother. Puddin' bought her some books they could read together, and iamnot bought her a Starbuck's gift card, so she could get some alone time on the weekends and he will stay home and play with puddin'. Then, puddin' turned six months on Monday which was greeted by some more shots from the doctor, but she did much better this time than she did at the three month appointment (she didn't throw anything back up) and then on Wednesday her first two bottom teeth started showing. So, we are blessed and enjoying God's grace that's working in our lives at this moment. He is so good and gives us so much than we deserve.

Win or lose....

2007-04-20T07:35:00.000-04:00

One of my favorite lines in the moving facing the giants (which if you haven't seen I highly recommend) is when the coach tells the players from now on we are going to have fun, play our hardest, and win or lose still praise God.

This weekend I got to practice that piece of advice. One of my goals is to win the International Toastmasters speech competition and I made it to the third round and didn't even place. At first I thought I had went over the time limit, but after checking with the timekeeper I found out I had stayed within the time limits. Then, my mind went directly towards thinking how stupid the judges were, okay maybe not stupid just had it out against me and didn't like all the humor I slipped into a serious inspirational speech. On the way home God reminded me of th quote from the movie and I prayed about it and began praising him. When I got home I was able to tell my wife I was beat because on that day there were three people who did a better job speaking. And then I thought about how lucky I am to have the wife I have (she told me if I really needed a trophy her and puddin' could make one) and how we have been so blessed this past year. And I started thinking how so many times if I'm not careful I can pursue goals that don't matter and not be content at where God has me. And I started thinking about the times when I just sit back and enjoy all that God has done (and is doing) and invest in those relationships around me...that is true success. So, win or lose I will praise God and start working on my speech for next year.

Learning How to Use Those Feet

2007-04-05T19:34:00.000-04:00

This past week has seen many milestones in the life of a young "Puddin'." Last week, dad went into her room in the early morning to check on her and she was on her stomach. But, she's starting to use her brains (which she inherited from her mom). If you look closely at this picture her foot is pushing against her mobile. She has figured out how she can move it back and forth using her foot.

We're trying...

2007-03-29T21:40:00.000-04:00

to do this blogging thing. The conversation around our house is, "Did you update the blog?" "Oh, yeah. I'm going to do that tomorrow." Well...tomorrow has finally came. I'm enjoying life at this moment. My job is the hardest job I've ever had, but I love it. And even on days like yesterday when I was ready to give up, I could think of anything else I would rather do. And God is starting to give me a vision for my ministry...but more on that later.

Puddin' is the joy (and center of) our lives at this moment. It's amazing how much love one can have for a child that can't even speak yet (she just gargles and spits up at this time). And Sheep is such a great mom. It's been amazing at where God has taken her in the last three months, she challenges me to keep growing. I have more to say...but I've just got a request to spend some time with my wife and daughter...so I'll have to finish "tomorrow."

Welcome to Facing Our Giants Blog

2007-03-14T22:22:00.000-04:00

We are getting into the blogging world and want to share how God is working in our lives. I'll introduce you to our family.

Iamnot is our dad. He chose this name because he's been reading a book by Louie Giglio who challenges us to remember how small we are, but how BIG our God is-it's entitled, "I am not, but know I AM," dad highly recommends it.

Sheep is the mom of the family. Make no mistake, she is one of Christ The GOOD Shepherd's sheep. She wants to treasure Christ above all and trust Him to lead her through this crazy pasture until they're home.

Puddin' is our bundle of joy God sent to us on November 14, 2006.

Eb & Lucy are our original children. Okay, they're only dogs, but God used them for two years to prepare us and help us realize we could face the giant of parenthood.