e-notes

Molly Elizabeth Perkins

2007-08-12T22:32:00.000-05:00

August 8, 2007

2:45 p.m.
6lbs. 9 oz.
19" long

BIG NEWS

2007-04-19T09:53:00.000-05:00

I have a new job! I accepted a position at Dell Computer in Austin, TX! We are packing right now and will move next weekend! I have decided not to finish my Ph.D. at the University of Tennessee because I realized that career path was not a good fit for me. I'll be on an inside relationship sales team at the Round Rock campus, and my client set will include state and local government agencies, municipalities, etc. We are very excited about this move and my new job!

Kristen is feeling good and the new baby is another girl!

Due August 13

2007-01-24T07:33:00.000-06:00

Our next little one is on the way! Kristen is due on August 13 with baby #2. We went to the doctor yesterday and saw a 3-D picture of him or her. It's amazing what you can see so early. The baby, which is only 4.5 cm long right now, was curled up resting, and it looked like she was resting her head on her hand. Kristen is doing well, and so is little Meredith. Although this morning I accidentally woke everyone up before I left for work. I was quietly opening the fridge when the magnetic singing barnyard on the front of the fridge came crashing to the floor echoing about the house. I held my breath, and then I heard the little whimper from Meredith's room...yup...she's up...no turning back. I tried to rock her back to sleep, but she's too smart for that, the day has begun.

2007-01-12T09:25:00.000-06:00

Here is a picture of Meredith when we visited Abilene during the break.

1st day of class

2007-01-10T07:44:00.000-06:00

Well, it starts again. Today is the first day of class. The campus is buzzing again, but with less electricity than the fall semester. I teach a 9 a.m. class this semester...I can't imagine any of my students being excited about that. I also teach a 3:35 p.m. class...I can't imagine anyone being excited about that, either.

It snowed here yesterday morning, big, thick flakes. But by the afternoon, the white coating was gone, and things just looked a little wet. It was in the 20's this morning. I tried to unrolled my window in the car this morning, and it was frozen; it wouldn't go down. How 'bout that.

I'm off to class now to meet these bright eyed freshmen & sophomores.

End of the First Semester

2006-12-07T11:19:00.000-06:00

Finally, the end is near. My first semester as a Ph.D. student is drawing to a close. I have turned in my final project and only have a few more things to finish before the Christmas break. My students must give one more speech next Tuesday and then it's officially over. It's been a whirlwind, but I'm happy to be hear.

I enjoyed the UT vs. Memphis basketball game last night. UT jumped out to a twenty point lead in the middle of the first half and the Tigers could not bounce back. I'm from Memphis, so I had a small conflict of interest, but since I'm enrolled at UT, I'm a Vol for now.

We went to our first Christmas party Tuesday night. We had a great time eating good food, singing Christmas carols, and of course having a cheap gift exchange. I've always heard this game called a "White elephant gift exchange" or something like that. However, our invitation to this party labeled this game the "Dirty Santa" gift exchange. Ummm...I don't know what to think about that...it sounds like something you don't want to do in front a lot of people from church. But, we participated, and Kristen came home with a medium sized Christmas wreath that is actually pretty nice. She is surprised that no one stole it from her.

I've decorated my office desk with chili pepper Christmas lights. It reminds me of San Antonio. What a great city.

2006-11-06T08:16:00.000-06:00

It's difficult to believe it's already November. There's only about 5 weeks left of my first semester at UT, and I'm looking forward to the long Christmas break. Here in Knoxville, the buzz is twofold: UT lost to LSU in the last minute of Saturday's game following a great performance by the back-up QB, and secondly: who can run the cruelist political ad, Corker or Ford? I'd rather not listen to the analysis of either topic, but unfortunately, the media didn't ask me.

Meredith had a great time being a pumpkin for Halloween; she got lots of candy, which we hope she has forgotten about by now. Kristen's parents, Floyd & Kay, are in town for the week. They drove all the way from Abilene, TX in one day, last Saturday. I was tired all day just thinking about their trip.

My students start presenting their persuasive speeches today; it should be exciting. In fact, I think someone today is going to convince me that daschund's are the best dog in the world...I don't think so.

Trick or Treat

2006-10-31T01:15:00.000-06:00

2006-10-29T18:02:00.000-06:00

It's Sunday night, and I've been in the library for several hours...more like four. It's dark outside now thanks to the clocks falling back; I'm sitting by a window on the top floor of John Hodges library and I can see Neyland Stadium and the flashing lights on top of the downtown buildings. I decided to take a slight mental break.

My mom came to visit this weekend and had a great time...she really came to see Meredith. Meredith took to her well, especially after mom gave her a Cabbage Patch fluffy dog, whom Meredith named Abby. Saturday afternoon, we went to a pumpkin patch and corn maze. We did not do the corn maze, but we took a hayride to the pumpkin patch and took lots of pictures. Meredith is ready for Halloween...she will be a pumpkin. I'll be sure to post a picture this week.

Congrats to the Vols, Cardinals, and the other UT...I think they pulled it out over the Red Raiders.

If you're wondering what I'm studying right now, I'm presenting a theory on Tuesday. Not one that I made up, but one called the Social Cognitive Theory. If you like psychology, you've heard of it and its author Bandura. It's one of those theories that has endless componants. So, to say the least, this is not my favorite part of my studies. But if I make it through this week, I'll enjoy the LSU game on Saturday; I already have our tickets.

Back to the books...or articles, really.

Meredith is in to eye-wear

2006-10-11T22:54:00.000-05:00

2006-09-21T20:13:00.000-05:00

And finally, tomorrow is Friday. Even in a Ph.d. program, everything is due during the same week. I had 3 papers and a stats test due this week. But now it's all finished and I can relax until the next wave rolls in. Tomorrow I teach again about the importance of crafting a powerful introduction and conclusion to a speach. I know my students can't wait. Kristen is going on women's retreat this weekend, so I'll be chasing Meredith around by myself...should be exciting.

Tonight, we'll be watching the season premieres of The Office and Grey's Anatomy.

ep

2006-09-19T10:18:00.000-05:00

It's Tuesday and I'm continuing to study; at least I was until I started typing this entry. I'm starting to get into a groove trying to balence everything that's going on at school, church, and home. I'm enjoying my Ph.d. work, and I'm slowly figuring out what has to be done, and what can wait, and what may never get done. I'm teaching 24 students the skills of public speaking. They are mostly Freshmen, and mostly well behaved...actually, they are incredibly good students. The average incoming Freshmen GPA was something like 3.5 and an ACT score of 25 or above...something like that. I'm very impressed with their abilities, even the ones who hate public speaking.

Ok...back to reviewing this article called "Value and Digital Rights Managment: A Social Economics Appproach".

Go Vols

2006-08-31T17:45:00.000-05:00

Ah, to be a student does have perks...free Division 1 football tickets. Cal comes to town this weekend, and the city of Knoxville has been gearing up for oh, about 2 months. Game time is at 5:30, and the forecast is for partly cloudy skies and 80 degrees. My dad and I will be on the first row of the second tier at the 50 yardline. I'll be wearing orange and singing Rocky Top; hopefully the Vols are ready to play this year.

Even Meredith is getting into the action. She is enjoying our new house, her new room, and her new UT pajamas. She keeps growing and talking and running all over the place. She is a ball of energy. As you can tell, right before bedtime, she is still fired up and ready to play.

We are all doing well and settling into our new home. School is going fine, but it is quite overwhelming. We are also enjoying Farragut Church of Christ; they are very supportive.

Go Vols.

Getting Settled

2006-08-06T21:49:00.000-05:00

Well, we have arrived in Knoxville, and last week is a blur. On Sunday, July 30, we celebrated with Sunset Ridge and enjoyed a final going away party with the youth group. We feel so honored and blessed to have worked with Sunset Ridge for four years. It took three days, one new car battery, and many late night driving hours to make it to Knoxville, but we made the trip safely. Then, last Thursday night, a few families from the Farragut Church of Christ welcomed us with a pool party. It's been quite a week going from a farewell party to a welcome party, and traveling over a thousand miles in between.

Thanks to everyone in San Antonio for loving us so much; we hope to see you soon. Thanks to everyone who has welcomed us to Knoxville, by comment on my blog, or through the Farragut Church of Christ.

My classes start Aug. 23. Here I come Ph.d.

to knoxville

2006-07-06T00:56:00.000-05:00

well, we've moved out of our house in tx and into our new house in knoxville. i'm happy to report that i had no incidents while driving my 26' penske truck while towing our volvo behind. i figured, hey, this big yellow truck just screams "look out", so i just drove and expected people to be dodging me the entire time. our new house will be great as soon as we finish our work. i'll try to post before and after photos. last week, we did no unpack, but rather ripped up carpet and padding and tack strips, and ripped out dry wall and 2x4's. i'm now back in san antonio to finish out the month of july. kristen and meredith are still in knoxville and her parents are driving up this weekend. they'll be helping with the house including laying a hard wood floor, which i loaded in a uhaul trailer today. i'm meeting floyd in the morning in temple to pass the trailer to him. kristen, meredith, floyd and kay will all come back to san antonio some time around the 14th or 15th when i return from camp next week. it's all been very crazy, but at least the big move is over. now we have time for several weeks of last goodbyes and memories. while i was in knoxville i got my u.t. id card...now i just have to figure out how to cash it in for football tickets come fall. my building is right across the street from the stadium. anyway.

2006-06-14T15:37:00.000-05:00

Summer has hit and it's hot and busy. I've already completed San Antonio Work Camp and closed on our current house in SA. We'll be moving our stuff to Knoxville on June 26th and I'll return on July 4th to finish the summer. I'm taking the youth group to camp at OCU this Sunday for the week. I think I've closed almost every utility for our house and changed all of the bank account info for other bills. Now, I need to set up water and electricity for the new house soon. I suppose it could get busier, but for now, I'm still breathing. Meredith turned 2 yesterday and we celebrated with a night out. She had a corn dog and tator tots. She loved it. Then we went to a park. She did not want to stop swinging.

Happy Summer.

2006-06-01T22:10:00.000-05:00

Well, it's official, we are no longer proud owners of the house we are living in. We are still proud of it, but we closed on 419 Greenwich this afternoon. We leased the house back for the month of June, and we'll be out by June 30th. If the house we found in Knoxville goes through, we'll move all of our stuff at the end of the month to Knoxville and then come back for our final month in San Antonio.

Good old 419 has been such a great house...the beautiful cabinets in the remodeled kitchen, contact Floyd Meredith for estimates, the creaky wood floors, the front porch swing, the large back yard leading me to work, the cozy couch in the living room, and a million other memories that we'll always have with us...like the first day we brought little Meredith home from Baptist East. Our first real home; we'll always remember it fondly.

More reminiscing to come, I'm sure.

2006-05-28T22:19:00.000-05:00

I was thinking about our impending move to Tennessee tonight as I spoke to the youth group. We kicked off the summer with a pool party welcoming our interns. I'm going to miss so many things about San Antonio: driving down Broadway to Starbucks or Broadway Daily Bread for a morning muffin or cinnamon roll, walking to work, running in our neighborhood, our house, the Spurs, the Riverwalk, the Quarry, Mexican food, but most of all, the people. We have so many good friends and will always miss everyone at Sunset Ridge. I hope to soak up every day this summer with my youth group and everyone at church.

Things I won't miss: construction on I-10, 410, 281, and all the potholes in-between.

Happy Birthday

2006-05-25T22:30:00.000-05:00

Well, today was my birthday & turned 29. One more year in my twenties. We went to eat tonight at Red Robbin, a hamburger joint that's great for kids because it's loud with lots of music and balloons...Meredith could yell and carry on all she wanted. I even got a free ice cream sunday; what a deal. Kristen's birthday is saturday, so it's a party for a few days in May. Meredith will be two years old on June 13; we're all pretty close together.

Overall it's been a great day. I'm ready for the weekend and ready for the summer. Kristen found a house in Knoxville on their visit last week, so we now have a place to land when we move at the end of the summer.

I think the city has gotten over the Spurs loss the other night. Sports radio has become less interesting and people feel like they can close the basketball notebook for another year (unless you want to root for any of the final four). As such, the summer can begin a few weeks early instead of waiting until June for the heart pounding games to come to a close.

Looking Out

2006-05-20T09:07:00.000-05:00

Kristen and I had a wonderful time in New York, though it seems like months ago now. Here we are at the top of the Empire State Building. It was fun to gaze over New York City, but it wasn't fun getting to the top-it took forever. Well, not really forever, but we stood in about 10 different lines, and it wasn't even a busy time of year-I saw tons of empty aisles of those ropes like at theme parks.

What else did we do? We took the double decker city tour through downtown and uptown, saw Ground Zero, which is completely fenced off and looks more like a construction zone than the devestation that occured there. We walked around Times Sqare and along Battery Park to see the Statue of Liberty. We saw the musical The Pajama Game featuring Harry Connick Jr., which was fabulous! We went to Cafe Lalo on the upper west side and had dessert-this is the same cafe where Meg Ryan met Tom Hanks in You've Got Mail. We rode the subway a lot. In fact, one night, we were coming back from Brooklyn, visiting the Hays, and we were traveling under the East River, when the driver for some reason kept accelerating. Seriously, we were going so fast, we were getting a little nervous, rocking back and forth on this speeding bullet of a subway train underneath a river-it felt like we were going 100 mph! Then, we come to a stop, not at a station, but still underneath either the river or the ground, I'm sure because we were waiting on the current train at the station to depart since we arrived so early at break neck speed! Luckily, we didn't derail. We also went to the Regis and Kelly morning show; that was fun, but Kelly was off that day and Kristen really wanted to see her, but the show was still funny. One of the best things we did was eat pizza most every day. If you ever go to NYC, be sure to visit Joe's Pizza down by NYU at 6th Ave & Bleeker-apparently it's the best in the city, we loved it.

P.S. It was fun, but I don't see how people enjoy living with a million & a half other people in such tight quarters.

Summer's Coming

2006-05-18T10:17:00.000-05:00

This summer will be special and sad for me since it will be my last summer with my youth group and our last few months in San Antonio. It's so hard to believe that we will be packing everything up and heading to Tennessee at the end of July or the first week in August. In fact, Kristen and Meredith are in Knoxville right now looking for a place for us to live. Hopefully they will have success.

Meredith is growing up so fast; she will be two in just a few short weeks. She is in constant motion. She jabbers all the time, going through her list of words: mama, dada, dogggggg; no, papa, kk, baaaaaabyyyyy. She knows many more words, but they don't always sound like the object she is pointing to like banana: baaaaaanaaaa. Or "please" comes out like: pblup. And thank you is: ayyy. ? I don't know. But one that she has down pat is amen: aaaaaaamin.

W

2006-05-15T16:32:00.000-05:00

Click here to watch a brief video from Fox News that shows President Bush speaking at a banquet while his "stunt double" says aloud what Bush is really thinking. Pretty funny. Maybe his alter ego will make an appearance tonight as he speaks to the nation about immigration.

I'll be cheering on the Spurs tonight to see if they can even the series with the Mavs in the NBA playoffs. It's a must win...for the Spurs...not for me, really...anyway...Go Spurs Go!

Don't Forget Mother's Day

2006-05-11T10:26:00.000-05:00

Have you gotten your mother a Mother's Day card yet? What about a gift? I keep hearing all kinds of reminders on the radio. Of course, there is the original gift of flowers, just call 1-800-flowers, right? A different, rather unusual idea is called pajamagram.com whereby you can send your mother pajamas for her special day...huh? That's a little weird. If you're old enough to listen to sports talk radio where they are advertising this product, I don't think you should be buying your mother pajamas...I mean, I don't want to know what my mom wears to bed? And then there is the ever popular (really?) Vermont Teddy Bear--what in the world? For the product that suggests: "Send the creative altervative to flowers" Yeah Right! What mother would rather have a $75 stuffed bear than something that she could really use...or at least, something she would really like? I know for Kristen, who is also a wonderful mom, she would be thinking, "I could buy a really nice pair of shoes with that money!"

Well, whatever you do, don't forget to do something. At least, make that phone call this Sunday.

Good Luck.

p.s. Just heard the Vermont Bear commercial for the 5th time this morning. I caught the number this time, so you can call 1-800-829-BEAR. And of course, one of the most popular items is the "Mamma's Bear." Order Now!

Home at Last

2006-05-06T23:52:00.000-05:00

Well, it's great to be home. We've been on the road for the past 2 weeks. We were at the Pepperdine Lectures this past week in Malibu, and we had a great time. The weather was nice and cool and the campus was as beautiful as ever. The program was very good, and overall the week was very refreshing. I feel like I can tackle the summer schedule with a revived energy. See here for more opinions on the week.

I have recently announced to my congregation that I will be departing after the summer. I have been accepted to a Ph.d. program in communications at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville to begin in August. I was offered a Teaching Assistantship that covers my full tuition for the entire program, and provides a stipend for teaching in the School of Communication Studies. I couldn't turn in down. I'll be joining Jim Miller (of Harding) who is also at UTK in the College of Communication Ph.d. program. We'll be moving at the end of the summer. We are very excited but also very sad to leave Sunset Ridge, our home for 4 years. My course work will take about 2 1/2 years, and then of course, I'll have several hours of dissertation research and writing.

Most importantly, I hope to get to see at least one football game at one of the largest college stadiums in the country!

New York

2006-04-30T12:10:00.000-05:00

Kristen and I went to New York last week for the first time ever! We had a great time, and I'll have more stories and pictures later. I wanted to post this picture quickly before we leave town again this week! It's been a crazy month!

This is me and Rupert G whom you have seen if you watch the Late Show with David Letterman. Letterman was on vacation last week, but Rupert was in the shop. (and our sandwich was very good!)

2006-04-04T11:39:00.000-05:00

I had a good weekend with Meredith while Kristen was on a ladies retreat. Meredith and I played all weekend long. Friday night, we had a special date to Chick-Fil-A; she loves their nuggets. She stuffed herself full of chicken and fruit and then we played on their indoor play area, lots of fun. She went to bed well, (which is always a plus), then on Saturday, we went to get a cinnamin roll at Broadway Daily Bread (the best place in town) and went to play at a park. At the park, we met a family with a dog, and a little girl Meredith's age, who crazy enough, was named Meredith. After that, Meredith indulged me and we went the Shops at La Cantera and I browsed the Apple Store and the Sony Store. She enjoyed the Sony Store more because they had laptop bags that she kept taking off the racks and carrying around. At one time, she had 3 huge bags all draped around her shoulder and walked out the front door setting off the alarm. Luckily, no one attacked her, gates didn't close, or did the bags explode like die packs. However, a security guard did wander in a few minutes later to make sure everything was okay. At least the store associates thought she was cute. Kristen came home Saturday afternoon, and I was glad to see her, maybe more than Meredith was.

Dinner Time

2006-03-27T22:46:00.000-06:00

As with any child, Meredith loves to run and play and explore her surroundings. She is constantly undoing things that Kristen just did. She's also into climbing...on the sofa, on chairs, on boxes, but tonight, she found something that couldn't support her weight, even at 25 lbs or so. It was dinner time and I had been asking her if she was hungry and wanted to eat. I think she understood because when I walked into the kitchen after hearing her quietly moaning, I saw her trapped on her back completely underneath her high chair! She was fine, so it was a little bit humerous. She apparently had tried to climb into her high chair by grabbing onto the attached tray and it tumbled forward as she fell backward. I think she was more stunned than really upset. I'm really glad she was okay, but I also wish I had that scene on video...I'm sure it could have won a prize on one of those best home movie shows. I thought about taking a picture, but in a split second, I also could hear anybody who saw the picture asking me, "So you took time to snap this photo...before rescuing your daughter from the attacking high chair?" I didn't take a picture.

Elite Eight

2006-03-24T10:40:00.000-06:00

The Tigers win may not have been as exciting or dramatic as wins by UCLA & Texas, but they are still one game away from the Final Four! Go Tigers.

My step-brother, Billy, is getting married tomorrow. I wish I could be in Memphis. He's been dating Kim for a long time now; I wish them the best!

The Church of Christ is in the news today, but the story is a tragedy. If you have not heard about the death of Matthew Winkler, click here, and pray for their friends, family, and congregation.

Moose lands in front seat of car

2006-03-20T09:11:00.000-06:00

I'm glad the driver of this vehicle is unharmed because this AP story is priceless. It reminds me of the crazy "come to life" deer on Tommy Boy. However, I am sorry that the Moose didn't make it.

LEOMINSTER, Mass. (AP) - A 500-pound moose crashed through the windshield of a car in Leominster and ended up sitting in the passenger seat with its head sticking through the glass.
Emergency personnel late Thursday had to cut the roof off the car to extricate the moose, which was later euthanized by state environmental police because of severe injuries, police Lt. Raymond Booth said.

The driver, Juleigh McDowell, 30, of Sterling, was able to get out of the car under her own power and escaped serious injury, police said.

Police in Leominster, a city of about 38,000 residents about 40 miles west of Boston, had received reports of a moose in the area earlier Thursday evening, Booth said.

McDowell was simply driving along Route 12 at about 11 p.m. Thursday when the moose crossed her path, he said.

Party Time

2006-03-16T16:09:00.000-06:00

We hosted a youth group cookout last night in our backyard. I was very encouraged by all the teens that attended and even brought friends! We had a great time together just relaxing and enjoying each other's fellowship. Oh, and also I had a Moon Bounce delivered to our backyard for the group's enjoyment. It was a big hit; it even had a small basketball goal on the inside. I grilled hamburgers and hotdogs and the teens ate on the back porch. I'm so thankful for my church and the youth group I'm blessed to minister to. They are all such great kids; I am honored to be in their lives. I just hope that the activities we do and the classes I teach and the conversations I have with them plant the seeds of faith so that God can always be near them.

Sunday Match-Up?

2006-03-13T16:17:00.000-06:00

Memphis, as a #1 seed, may have a tough road to the final four, including a possible Sunday opponent from neighboring Arkansas. Of course, the Hogs must prove themselves against a strong team, Bucknell...whoever they are? They're good, just not their name. Hopefully, Memphis can cruise past Oral Roberts (which sounds like a toothbrush) and battle again on Sunday for a spot in the Sweet Sixteen.

By the way, if anyone has tickets for the Dallas games, I'm only a few hours away! I'd love to go!

Memphis Tigers: Conference Champs!

2006-03-11T12:51:00.000-06:00

And you may be thinking...big deal? C-USA is definitely not the power house like the ACC or SEC, but hey, it may be enough to get the Tigers a number one seed in the NCAA tournament. Looks like the Eye of the Tiger was enough for today.

Heart Pajamas

2006-03-09T14:05:00.000-06:00

Meredith was very proud of wearing her silky heart pajamas last night. She woke up this morning and I suppose needed to make a call to tell her friends what she wore to bed last night.

Today, Kristen and Meredith went to the zoo, and Meredith fell asleep on the scenic train ride. I guess she was dreaming about being back in her fancy PJ's.

I wish I had some heart pajamas. I wish I could go to the zoo. In fact, maybe I should ride the train at the zoo in silk pajamas! Ahhhh...to be 21 months old, what a life.

What's in a Name?

2006-03-08T14:05:00.000-06:00

The following is a previously published article I wrote for my youth newsletter.

On a crisp morning in November, I strolled into the warmth of a popular Starbucks Coffee House. The aroma of espresso and the whirring of steamed milk fueled my senses. An array of customers swarmed every square inch of the small shop. Some were in business suits; others were squeezed into spandex, obviously concluding their morning exercise with caffeine. A few were even in crumpled pajamas, barely awake enough to say latte. Over the hum of voices, rustling papers, and noisy machines, a recurring chime sounded every few seconds when a new customer’s name was announced. Your wait is over; you may go now.

After I placed my order, the wide-eyed girl in the green apron asked for my name, and I thought, “That’s a little personal, don’t ya think...I don’t know you, you don’t know me.” I thought about giving an alias, but there’s that split-second you have to answer and my brain froze. If I had said Roger or Fernando, she would have known. So I said Eli, to which most people say “what” or “how do you spell that?” And I sat down and waited for my name.

Army man was first to be called and quickly marched out. To my relief, the blond lady wearing too much perfume was summoned next. And then it happened...tall vanilla latte for Eli. A rush filled my body like when you are called on by your teacher in school to give an answer in front of the entire class. I rose to get my drink, feeling their eyes staring at me and people thinking, “So, his name is Eli, huh?” I hurried to the tall counter to get my drink, and without making eye contact, I returned to my seat.

I felt somewhat exposed even though most people were likely oblivious to my name since they only listen for the first syllable of their own. Still, I felt that Starbucks Inc. now possessed a portion of my identity, and that a small piece of me was revealed to all those strangers. Though my name is only the beginning of who I am, it also seems to be the symbol by which others understand me. Is my name so insignificant that it can be easily shouted and labeled on a coffee cup without regard to who I really am? Juliet may long for the day when names do not represent the history nor insides of human-kind, but names often reveal more details than you wish...and though I may smell similar, would I really be the same Eli if my name were not Eli?

O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name, or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, and I'll no longer be a Capulet...'Tis but thy name that is my enemy...What's Montague? It is not hand, nor foot, nor arm, nor face, nor any other part belonging to a man. What's in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet. --Romeo and Juliet, II:2

Advanced Dog Training

2006-03-06T16:03:00.000-06:00

I wonder what this dog is praying for? Maybe for breed harmony among the neighborhood dog association. Maybe for strength and wisdom for the next door mother who recently had eight puppies. Maybe she's asking forgiveness for once again digging a hole in the flowers? Or maybe for one giant Milk-Bone under her pillow! But no matter what requests are being mentioned on the edge of this bed, I think we can rest assured that God is smiling down at these two on their knees.

2006-03-04T17:10:00.000-06:00

Eli and Meredith enjoying some TV in the back room, sharing a chair. What a lucky guy!

Meredith and her Pooh house shoes. Isn't she cute!

Meredith was enjoying the backyard today, sliding on her slide and looking at the dogs in the other yard.

Kristen and Meredith treated themselves to a pedicure. What pretty toes you have!

Miles Ahead

2006-03-01T09:09:00.000-06:00

I feel extremely manly; I recently fixed the odometer in my '97 Volvo 850! A few weeks ago, I noticed that the miles were not rolling off any more...hmmm, just a small problem. I'm not planning on selling the car any time soon, but I would hate to go for months or even a year and not know how many miles I've put on the car...how would I know when to change the oil? So I called the dealership (just for a good laugh at their estimate): "Oh, that will probably run about $400 to $500 dollars." Yeah, right, I'm going to pay that. I got on the internet and found an odometer fix that I could do myself. Go to Matthew's Volvo Site and see the process. I ordered the new odometer gears from Jeff Caplan at Odometer Gears. He started making these tiny gears when no one else would sell the needed parts to him. I've read on other sites that a new odometer box is anywhere from $125 to $225 or more, but Jeff sells the gears for $25 each. The box needs 2 gears to be fully restored. The tough part is taking apart the Volvo's dash and removing the instrument panel behind the steering wheel (the one with the speedometer and gas gauges). I decided that while I had the panel in my living room I would also change the bulbs in the panel. Most were pretty easily found at Auto Zone, but a couple needed a special pre-constructed bulb. I tried to make a different bulb work, but when I got everything back in the car, my odometer worked, but my turn signal flashers on the panel didn't flash...hmmm, that could be important. So, yesterday, I made the trek down to the dealership again to investigate the bulbs, and in fact, they were only $2.50 for each...I'll take them. So, today, if everything goes well, I'll have a working odometer and a clearly lit instrument panel. What a feeling!

RAMP: Repair and Modification Program

2006-02-27T15:56:00.000-06:00

Today, I helped build a wheel chair ramp at a house on the south side of San Antonio. Richard from MacArthur Park, Adam from Northside, Deryk from Northwest, 3 sponsors from Mac, and me were training for our Ramp service projects this Saturday, March 4, and Saturday, March 25. I brought my work gloves, hammer, and drill, but I forgot a hat and sunscreen so my neck (and top of my head I'm sure) is quite red. We built the entire ramp in about 5 hours of work. We sawed, we measured, we hammered, and drilled and voila! A wheel chair ramp. It was great to be out of the office and doing something extremely tangible that you know will change someone's life...Although, I know that my right arm, wrist, and hand will be sore tonight and tomorrow because I swung a hammer more today than I normally do in an entire year! I pray that the ramp will bless the home owner's life.

Go Spurs Go: they play the Knicks tonight in San Antonio.

Reader's Digest

2006-02-26T00:14:00.000-06:00

From the "All in a Day's Work" section of Reader's Digest, March 2006:

I heard the dog barking before he and his owner actually barreled into our vet practice. Spotting a training video we sell, the owner wisely decided to buy one.
"How does this work?" She asked, handing me a check, "Do I just have him watch this?"

I've been laughing about that little vignette all day! We receive Reader's Digest thanks to my in-laws, the Meredith's in Abilene, TX. Thanks!

Tomorrow (today, really) will be a full day of ministry life.

7:30 a.m. "gotta get the donuts"

8:30 a.m. praise team practice

9:30 a.m. teaching high school students how Jesus got angry but didn't sin (any ideas?)

10:30 a.m. lead worship

11:45 a.m. special small group leaders’ lunch at church

1:00-4:00 p.m. L.T.C. practices

5:00-6:30 p.m. Small Group Bible Study

....whew! I'm already tired. I'd better get some sleep.

God be with Christians around the world worshipping this Sunday.

Airport Parking

2006-02-22T12:43:00.000-06:00

My trip to Oklahoma was quick but fairly productive. OKC was pretty cold and covered with snow, but the streets were not icy anymore. We met with the Oklahoma Christian group Unbound who will provide the drama presentations at Zenith camp next year. I'm excited about both Zenith and Cornerstone camps this summer and especially the classes which are always a big hit. This summer, I'm most interested in a class entitled: God's Blog. It could be a bust; depends on who teaches it.

I returned to SA with Adam and Richard; we left OKC at 6:30 and flew to Dallas Love. We got to spend another 2 hours in that airport until our 9:05 flight took us home to SA. Luckily, they have a Chili's.

Since the trip had gone smoothly so far, I suppose it's only fair that I encountered a snag when I got home. I first tried to prepay my parking fee in those new automated kiosks, but I somehow had an unreadable ticket. Ok, so I'll stop at the little gate a little longer, no problem. I actually found my car without having to walk down each aisle, and it also started! Too good to be true. All of my windows were covered in condensation inhibiting my view out the back. So I'm backing up very slowly trying to gauge my turning radius, and a car is coming the other way, so I'm trying to hurry and then I hear this "screeeeetch....cruuuuuntch..." I backed into this enormous truck but thankfully only knocked off its front license plate. Fantastic. It's 10:15 p.m. and I'm standing in a cold, wet, and now exhaust filled parking garage writing a note to someone I don't know. "Sorry I accidently back into your monster truck...." I can only imagine the driver of this beast reading my wimpy little note on the back of my "Minister" business card thinking, "What a moron." Hopefully, the owner can just re-attach the license plate without having to replace the entire front bumper. I laid the license plate and frame on the massive side steps of the truck and drove away even more ready to get home. I'll wait with anticipation to see if the truck owner calls.

Oklahoma is the place to be?

2006-02-20T08:55:00.000-06:00

I'm not so sure about that musical declaration, but I am traveling to that fair land today. Youth ministers from around TX, OK, CO, and KS are meeting on the campus of Oklahoma Christian to continue planning the OC Summer Camps. Zenith and Cornerstone are excellent camps for High School and Middle School students, respectively. I pray that the Lord will guide all the plans and great ideas we have so that teens will draw close to God this summer.

I leave this afternoon with Adam Copeland from Northside Church of Christ; the fam is staying home 'cause I'll be back Tuesday evening.

Little Meredith is now 20 months old and a fireball of activity, and we love her so much, but...does anyone know of a good babysitter?

Back Home

2006-02-16T16:28:00.000-06:00

Well, I made it back home from Colorado, sleeping on the floor of a charter bus, no less, but I'm home. There's nothing like curling up in a sleeping bag in between the seats of a 57 passenger bus for a nice cozy nap...the roar of the engine, the bumps on the road, the footrest in your back, and the other adult sponsors snoring one row up make it an unforgettable experience. I came back to a whirlwind of activity at the office and also Valentine's day which I didn't forget but was still terribly unprepared for. We're going out tonight instead.

We enjoyed having guests at our home last night, a friend from Memphis Harding Academy, as well as Harding University, Marcus Neely, his wife Stacey, and their son Sam. They are in town for a TMA conference and stayed with us last night. Meredith loved their little baby, much smaller than she is now. We shared a fabulous meal from EZ's.

If you're looking for a memoir about a young preacher and his family experiencing his first full time church work (I'm sure most people are!), check out Open Secrets. I read most of it last weekend on the bus. Richard Lischer poignantly describes his experiences in a small farming community in southern Illinois with humor and humility. His stories both confirm the call of ministry and question the expectations of ministers. A great read for current ministers; maybe not so enjoyable for Freshmen Bible majors.

The Spurs lost last night, but they were 6 & 2 on their 8 game road trip. Not too bad. Maybe they'll come ready to play after the all star break.

The rodeo was fabulous on Monday night. We saw Xtreme Bull Riding, and in the middle, our favorite part: Muttin' Bustin'. This event is where young kids, like ages 4, 5, & 6, get strapped on to the back of a sheep and try to stay on while the sheep runs across the arena. It's awesome! I wish I could do it! The kids wear helmets and grab onto big chunks of fur, just hoping they can hang on long enough to win. This is by far our favorite event. We're waiting for the year they come out with Xtream Muttin' Bustin'! Two straight hours of the wildest, craziest sheep in the country, trying not to be mastered by a 5 year old. I think it would sell out.

Wipe Out

2006-02-11T18:17:00.000-06:00

Today was a great day of skiing. I took my 3 kids from the youth group and we mastered the bunny slopes, at least some of us did. The snow is compact here because it hasn't snowed in a while; that makes it quite slick and crunchy, but it's still better than being in the office. I left the bunny slopers for one last run up the mountain. I'm still only traveling the green trails though, but they're fast enough for me right now. I was doing great all the way up to the very finish. I think I somehow merged with a blue trail to take me down to the base, and things were going fine, but I started to pick just a little too much steam. I made a quick swish of a turn and bam, my left ski is gone. So I'm skiing on one ski, still going way too fast, and I try to slow, or turn, or do something to slow down, and I bite it--on the ground, tumbling toward one of the signs in the ground that say "Slow Zone." No problem. At least it broke my fall. I was all tangled in the sign when this nice woman brought me my other ski that I dropped fifty feet above. I stood up, dusted the snow off, and after I finally got back into my skiis, I coasted down to the base. I felt excited and also thankful that my body was intact. As I laughed the rest of the way down, I thought to myself...Now, I know that I've been skiing today. Everyone needs a good fall sometimes.

Colorado Here I Come!

2006-02-08T16:15:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow I leave for Colorado taking my youth group on a winter ski trip. It will hopefully be lots of fun, injury free, and maybe even relaxing. The two negative sides are that my family is staying at home and that I'll be on a charter bus for 17 hours each way, ugh. But at least I'm not driving; I'm incredibly thankful for professional bus drivers. I'll try to sleep on the floor, and I'll count how many people step on me through the night. I've only skied (doesn't that word look funny?) once in my life, so I hope to remember at least how to put my skis on and snow plow. Now I just need to find a few good books for that dense travel time. Any suggestions?

Twas a good night for TV

2005-12-21T10:39:00.000-06:00

Last night, I wish I had two Tivo sets and a picture in picture TV. For some reason, two news magazine shows caught my attention (which they never do) along with the Spurs OT loss to the Bucks. On CBS, 48 Hours correspondent Maureen Maher explored the Mystery of Christmas and on ABC, Barbara Walters was investigating, as much as you can, Heaven. At one point, I was flipping back and forth between the final moments of a heart breaking, last second (.7 seconds actually) tap-in by the Bucks, Maher's Bible Land journey with scholar Ben Witherington, and Walter's interview with an atheist who accepts that there is no life after death, even though she's not happy about that. (Some of the evidence and archeological data that Witherington mentioned last night can also be found in the interesting book The Case for Christmas by Lee Strobel). I thought it odd, but probably not coincidental, that both news shows were dealing with religious topics on the same night...figures. The Spurs play again tonight; we'll see who competes with them besides the Knicks.
I have now bought a few Christmas gifts, but there's plenty left to do. The traffic's getting heavier--hopefully I'll make it.

Merry Christmas

2005-12-16T13:22:00.000-06:00

Christmas is now in high gear at house. The tree is decorated, the lights are up, and we bought our first gifts yesterday. Below, you'll see Meredith by our tree, sitting on her red scooter, which was a gift from Grandma last year. She just now can really enjoy it...isn't she pretty?

On a different note, I read an interesting quote in TIME where Harold Pinter, noble prize winner, slammed America claiming that the US is only playing the part of good guy in the global spectrum. World Politics may always be about power, but I don't know that the US foreign policy is really manipulating anybody but the American public.

are we there yet?

2005-12-12T10:58:00.000-06:00

Christmas is coming...Christmas is coming! That's always the cry soon after Halloween and all through Thanksgiving and December. Most of the time, I try not to be sucked in to the hype and all the early decorations and that crazy dancing Santa at Wal-Mart. But I think it's safe to say that Christmas is now just around the corner and I still have not bought a single present. This makes me nervous and happy. I know I will buy a gift soon and will have to face the traffic in the stores, but I also am trying to live this season withouth the burden of materialism. Racking up gifts and debt obviously is not what Christmas is about, but many times, we (collectively) and I, just cannot help ourselves. So hopefully, this Christmas, Kristen and I can resist the idea that somehow, our self worth and identity have anything to do with how many gifts we give and receive, but rather, may we dwell in the adoration of Christ, the gift of God.

2005-12-02T15:33:00.000-06:00

Buurrrrr...the high today in San Antonio is only in the mid-40's. The sky is cloudy, the wind is blowing, people are breaking out their parkas and burning all the mesquite wood they can find. Our weather people are in a frenzy at the possibility of "wintery" weather tomorrow. How can this be? It just doesn't feel like Christmas in SA with the weather so...well, wintery. I suppose our week of winter has arrived early this year. I'm sure by Christmas, we'll be back to wearing shorts and t-shirts. I still have bought zero Christmas presents.

finally friday

2005-09-02T16:22:00.000-05:00

it felt like a nice quiet friday. the office is slow and there's normally a sense of peace from a hard work week. but for the gulf coast, there was no slowing down, and even more destruction spread as the chemical fire erupted. constantly on my mind are the victims streaming to Kelly AFB and all over Texas and the mid-south. most newscasts are only covering the katrina clean up, and i'm thankful they are--the money that has already been raised is staggering. hopefully it will help in some way to rebuild all these families whose lives have been displaced. one of my teens told me that 30 families were moving into their school...yes, they are living on a school campus, and their children are attending classes as well. i can't imagine...but i can't really get my mind around the scope of this tragedy either. keep praying for all the families we know and don't know, and for president bush, whether you like him or not, and whether you normally pray or not, and for all the relief organizations.

felt like monday...and tuesday...and wednesday

2005-09-01T22:15:00.000-05:00

it was a good day, but it felt like three. somehow, worship is planned, i taught class last night, and i've had about 4 meetings this week, but there is so much left to do--i suppose that's a good thing though. we start our new fall series on the book of acts this sunday. all classes, adults and teens, will be charting through acts until december. hopefully we'll experience in some way the excitement of pentecost and remember that we still have the holy spirit with us. meredith is in bed early, so it's quiet...but she's so cute and fun, you kind of miss her when she's asleep. i think we'll be content and just see her in the morning, though. God bless the victims on the gulf coast and all the distaster relief that's on its way.

2005-08-31T09:49:00.000-05:00

Easter 2005

Meredith still has that yellow egg; for some reason she likes it. This picture is older now, at least in baby time because Meredith is now running around basically, jabbering about all kinds of things. We can't understand what she's saying, but I think she's telling us about her egg.

1st time

2005-08-30T23:44:00.000-05:00

i suppose everyone experiences the rush of firsts for many different events in their lives...and yes, this is my first blog post--what a deal. i feel exuberant and tired, so i think i'll go to bed, since i've now wandered through the web and downloaded enough bites tonight. if you're reading this, God bless, and also, how in the world did you know it existed? maybe you didn't until now, and so good night.