Monday Morning Misc. 11/28/11

--I realized this weekend how much I miss the old-fashioned TVLand station. Was home alone a good bit, and sometimes like to just have something on in the background - it used to be that if nothing else was on, you could always catch an old episode of Andy Griffith or Leave it to Beaver or Gunsmoke. Now, it's just become a station like any other. Kinda sad.

--While at my folks last night, Mom gave me a package of cheese slices she said she wouldn't use, and I stuck them in my purse to take home. Mike came by to watch part of the ballgame after he got back from work. I went out to the kitchen and fixed him a couple of hotdogs, and retrieved a couple of slices of cheese to put on them. He sure gave me a funny look. "Do you always keep cheese in your purse?"

--The best time of Thanksgiving vacation (with a half-day of work on Wednesday) is the Tuesday night beforehand, because of what's coming, and the half-day of freedom on Wednesday. After that it just flies by. Ditto for Christmas vacation.

Washin' the "Cars"

Mike found this photo in one of the files of scanned pictures on his computer, and has been using it as his desktop picture. It really encapsulates that period of life for us. Andrew still has training wheels on his bike and ML isn't even to the bike stage yet. ML is barefoot. I'm surprised Andrew doesn't have high top tennis shoes on! I love this picture.

Found!

Mike found my wedding band this morning!!!

He ventured into my closet to see if a book I thought I left at home might have been in there. Ordinarily that would not have made me too happy, especially since right now all my winter clothes are spread out all over the floor in the semi-annual exchange process. (I've told him in the past that my closet is the one place in the house where if things are a mess, so be it. . .) But today is a different story!

Anyway, he didn't find the book (it was at school with me after all) but. . .he did see a little glint of glittering gold on the floor. It is found!!

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Monday Morning Misc. 11/21/11

--Last Saturday I had a terrible day with food and grocery store items! I left a gallon of milk at the grocery store. During the return trip to get it, I bought some apples, and when getting in the car the bag slipped and two of the three rolled out on the ground. Then while unwrapping some new TP rolls, I dropped one in the toilet. The klutz gene was definitely operating.

--All last week I had trouble sleeping and was awake every night. It was bad enough that by Saturday morning I had a terrific headache. A two-hour nap Saturday, and another one today, have helped. Who knows why sleep is so erratic at times.

--Have asked this question before, but will ask it again: If this recession is so bad (and I know it truly is for some people), why are the lines at restaurants so long?

--My boy and the quartet he is in sang in town Sunday morning. I always love to go hear him sing.

--My daughter comes home for Thanksgiving on Tuesday!

Thinking Courageously

Saw COURAGEOUS last night. Great movie. The folks at Sherwood take a little different emphasis each time, but the foundations of Christian faith, and men taking responsibility, are always at the forefront.

This one was a little more complex, involving several interweaving plots and some very real sadness, as well as violence (four of the five main characters were policemen). At first glance, the ensemble of men might have looked like an attempt to be politically correct - two middle aged white men, a young white man, a Latino, and a black man. But the themes explored were excellent. The black man had to forgive the father he never met--a perfect example of the widespread sociological problem of black poverty due to absent fathers. The Latino father struggled to find work to support his family even though he tried very hard. Both of the men were Christians who were strong leaders of their families. I thought the movie gave a good perspective of Christians in different circumstances who desire to serve God with their hearts, lives, and families.

COURAGEOUS is well worth a viewer's time. It should absolutely be shown to young people. The people at Sherwood Baptist have developed a ministry that has a huge impact, overcoming many of the difficulties of reaching people in today's complex society. It would be a huge, humbling blessing to be used by God in such a mighty way.

ML's First Deer

This actually happened a few weeks ago but we didn't get these pics until this week. She got a four-pointer when she went out with Mike on a Friday night; however, they didn't find it until Saturday morning. Therefore the meat was unusable. But it was still a great experience. Don't they look like they've had fun!!

23 Today. . .

ML's Journal

When ML was home yesterday, we had a good time looking in her "journal" from when she was in K-4 through about 1st grade. She started it because Andrew was doing one as a project with his first grade teacher, and of course she wanted to do one also. At some point I will post some of her earliest "entries"--all with interpretations written by me on the left, because she wrote 100% phonetically (notice the "my frand Alicia" in the picture below") and I knew the meaning would be lost if we didn't get it down right away. Of course, there were pictures on every page as well.

Note the family portrait below - particularly how her dad is portrayed!!
That child was something else. She brought a smile to my face more times than she will ever know.

Repeat and Repeat and Repeat

Tonight at church we sang "He Included Me," and here is the chorus:

"Jesus included me,

Yes, He included me,

When the Lord said 'whosoever,'

He included me.

Jesus included me,

Yes, He included me,

When the Lord said 'whosoever,'

He included me."

Now, I do understand why some people get unhappy with some modern choruses that just repeat one line over and over, but just because the copyright date on this is 1913, I can't see why it's any different than that.

Sometimes, looking through the hymnal, I see a great many that could be jettisoned without any great loss to the church. Not the great hymns, but some of the ones like this one above - there is nothing wrong with it, just nothing profound.

Worthy of more thought and more posts later.

Where Is My Wedding Band?

I have lost my wedding band. And I am very unhappy about it.

How a wedding band just walks away between Sunday night and Monday morning, I have no idea.

Every time I come in the house, I put my rings in a small crystal bowl, with a lid, that stays in a specified place. They stay there until I leave again. All I know is that, after following the same routine on Sunday night as the past 26 years, the next morning there were only two rings in the bowl.

I have scoured the house and thought through my steps that evening. No success. No wedding band.

Mike says we can get another one. If this had to happen, it's good that it was just the band - it really wasn't anything particularly valuable. But that band went with me through everything the past 26 years. For better or for worse. And, though a replacement may be be an acceptable substitute - I don't want a new band. I want the old one back.