Road Warriors

We have been on the road the last 2 weekends. (We're doing our part to boost the slumping economy by buying lots of gasoline) The 1st weekend we were in Dallas at her parent's house for a baby shower on Sunday & a weekend w/ some of her extended family we haven't seen in over a year. It was a good time relaxing w/ family & enjoying a chance to get away from home for a few days. Here are a couple of pics from the weekend.
This was a picture of us before going out for our 3rd wedding anniversary in Dallas (see earlier post).Here's a picture of the shower cake. It was very well done & since they didn't serve the duck on top (which was made of solid cake) we removed & boxed it up & froze it so Cade can tear into it on his 1st birthday. Where are we going to put all this stuff? We are blessed beyond words w/ family & friends who have given so generously.

This last weekend we were in Northwest Arkansas for a wedding celebration. This picture is of me, Tim, & Allison. It was a beautiful wedding at Cooper Chapel in Bella Vista. The place was overflowing w/people 10 minutes before the service started. We had a blast spending time w/ close friends, some of whom we haven't seen in a couple of years, & were thankful to be a part of their special day.
The groom's cake. He is a Green Bay Packers Fan & a Razorback Fan, so they put the 2 together & this was the result. Another neat part of the reception was the photo booth. They encouraged everyone to get in the booth, take a set of 6 pictures & then we picked 3 for a scrapbook & the lady immediately cut them & put them on a page & we were able to write notes to the couple. There were some funny pics (kissing pics, choking pics, & goofy pics) & a great idea in place of a signature mat.

April

www.aprilsmusic.com

Check out my friend April's website. She & her husband are close friends w/ us & she has been pursuing a music career for several years. She has songs on itunes to download & has a myspace page. Jesus Christ is the center of her life & ambition. They live in Ft. Worth & we had lunch w/ them yesterday before coming back to Arkansas.

Mamma Mia

I'm not much of a movie critic, but I would put this movie in the "average" category. If I were to give it a letter grade I would say a B- or C+ I guess. I enjoyed it w/ Erin but most guys would probably rather encourage their lady to go out on girls night together to see it. The girls would have a blast being girls w/ this movie. It's so hard to take a classic broadway musical & bring it to the big screen. The musical I imagine would be much better, but it was still entertaining w/ a heartwarming finish.

On the Road

We left yesterday for the weekend in Grand Prairie w/ Erin's parents. We arrived late afternoon & will be coming home on Monday. There is a big baby shower on Sunday w/ her family & friends. Many of her extended family members will be here & we're excited about spending time w/ them.

Last night we went out to eat for our 3rd Anniversary since our anniversary fell on Wednesday night, which allowed us to celebrate by going to Bible Study at church. We had a great evening out together. We dined at The Cheesecake Factory & then went shopping & bought Erin a new diamond ring for the anniversary. The meal was wonderful & the cheesecake was fabulous. We had enough food left over we will enjoy it again today for lunch. I finished my snickers cheesecake for breakfast this morning (not a good idea, it was way too rich for breakfast), but good anyway.

Sorry I don't have a picture of Erin's new ring to show, but let me tell you it's fabulous. We got a good deal on it: $10.50. That's right I'm a true romantic & spent a whole ten dollars on my wife for a new ring! Her wedding rings no longer fit (almost 8 months pregnant) & she wanted a ring to wear so everyone would know she was married. So I hooked her up w/ some serious BLING!

We will finish our anniversary celebration by going to the movies this afternoon to see "Mama Mia!" I'll let you know how it is later. My vote was for "Dark Night" the new Batman movie, but I'm sacrificing my opinion since it's our anniversary. I thank God everyday for my wonderful wife & blessed marriage.

3 Years Ago Today

About this time 3 years ago I was eating a late breakfast/early lunch w/ my parents & sister & her family. It was my last meal as a single man. In fact, it was a Grand Slam from Denny's & I'm not sure I've had one since then. The rest of the day was a whirlwind but one of the greatest days of my life: our wedding day.

I have been truly blessed by God to be married to such a wonderful woman who encourages me, supports me, cooks for me, makes me fold my own shirts b/c she doesn't do it right, laughs w/ me, cries w/ me, & lets me beat her at almost any game we play (ha!). These 3 years have flown by & even though I'm working today we will enjoy our last anniversary w/o children.

To all who have prayed, encouraged, & supported us in our marriage, THANK YOU! Erin, I love you & pray God gives us many more years of marriage bliss.

This is the best I can do for a picture. This was a "wedding cake" made for us by Doug Petty at a shower we had w/ family & friends in Texarkana. All of our wedding pictures are on CD, DVD, & in an Album, but all are secured like Fort Knox so we can't get them on our computer & print or use them ourselves (gotta love fancy photographers).

No TV for 48 Hours

Erin & I experienced this refreshing time all day Sunday & Monday. Was the TV working? Yes. Was the satellite out? No. We chose to "fast" from TV for 2 days to help us realize how much time we spend w/ the TV on. Are we watching TV the whole time it's on, No. I missed it a little b/c I'm so used to it always being there & available, but I learned the TV is more a habit than a desire.
I can't tell you how many times I went to pick up the TV remote just so I could have it on while doing something or whatever. There aren't any good shows on this time of the summer (other than Sportscenter, which is almost always on) but for some reason I feel like I need to turn it on. The last 2 days were quiet & peaceful. Erin was able to write some notes & do more scrapbooking. I was able to read some & do things around the house. Not sitting down to watch TV forces you to get some little & often neglected things done around the house. It took us out of our comfort zone of sitting on the couch in front of the TV, but the change was nice.

We need to be more aware of the simple habits & patterns we live in & how they can be minimized or avoided at times. I encourage others to find areas of your life to "fast" from in order to better control your environment so that it doesn't control you. "Fasting" from food is something I need to do to better focus on God, but it's so hard for me b/c I love food a WHOLE LOT MORE than I do TV. Give up something for a day or 2 & see if it changes your perspective.

Young Adults

Last night we had a great time getting together w/ a group of young adults in our church. Erin & I have become good friends w/ so many of them & are excited they are taking a more active role in our church. We ate some great hamburgers & hotdogs, spent good time visiting w/ one another, & playing a few games. This was the 1st time we've played games girls vs. guys & we now realize why we haven't done it before.
Congrats the girls for whooping us in MadGab (us guys realized "Hooked on Phonics" didn't work for us). We then played everyone's favorite game: Cranium. The guys had a commanding lead but got stuck at the end & w/ a little bad luck let the girls barely sneak out a win there too. I told Erin on the way home I like playing w/ her on my team b/c I'm smarter when she's on my team! We had so much fun it was the latest we've stayed out since we can remember (our 3rd anniversary is coming this next week, we've become a boring married couple). We got home sometime around 1:00 A.M.
Needless to say, we slept in & relaxed around the house most of the day. We love spending time w/ our friends, but for me the best part is seeing the vision God gave us when he called us here being fulfilled. We set out to establish a base of core young adults & get them plugged in the ministries of the church. Within the last year we have seen many of them step up & get involved. In fact, last night one of the young ladies told me she wanted to teach the preschool Sunday School class that has been w/o a teacher for awhile. Others are involved in our children's minstry, youth ministry, the adult choir, ushers, & more. There were times we felt hopeless getting our young adult ministry going, but God has once again proven himself faithful in His time.

4th of July Weekend

Erin & I had a great weekend celebrating the 4th of July. We attended a party on Friday night at on Lake Greeson with great food & a wonderful fireworks show. My sister's family went with us & we had a fun time together. On Saturday we went back to the lake & spent the day w/ some friends & had a chance to get out on the water. Here are some pics from the weekend.

It was great to see Mike this weekend & get some time to visit w/ him. Mike Huckabee has been a friend for a long time. He coached our soccer team one season many years ago. His kids & I grew up together in Texarkana & I'm lucky to be able to call him a true friend.

Me & one of my best friends Michael Chesshir.

Me & my beautiful wife on the 4th.