Hard Relationships

This is the type of person I want in my corner when things get hard and I need someone to carry me:

1. They need to love Jesus

2. They need to love you

3.  They have to be brave enough to call you out

4. They have to be willing to get in trouble with you

5. They have to be committed

What'd I miss?

Musings on the Week

Since I am at home a lot now I don't get a chance to talk with adults as much as I used to, because of that I have a lot of thoughts run through my head that I don't get to talk about to people over three feet tall.  That being said, here are my thoughts throughout the week:

1.  I drank more coffee than I should have this week, I believe it is related to getting less sleep than I should have but I am not confident in that assessment, I will let you know when my children wake me up at 5:30 tomorrow.

2.  Complaining about Facebook on Facebook is like complaining about animal rights while cooking a     t-bone.  Don't like it? Switch to Tofu.  Don't like tofu?  Good, Ron Swanson would be proud of you.  Don't know who Ron Swanson is?  That means you spend too much time watching Meredith Grey sulk and not enough time laughing your head off.  Don't know who Meredith Grey is? Congrats on being the .5% of our population who is living their own adventure rather than watching someone else's.
(Note: I am not part of that .5%)

3.  Mark Zuckerberg is every bit as awkward as me my Sophomore year. (I was a late bloomer, you want to fight?)

4.  Don't fret if your kid isn't reaching benchmarks before all of their punk friends, with their dry underwear and their ability to remember the number 15 when counting to 20, God made them perfect and they will hit their benchmarks when they are ready and God has planned.

5.  When potty training sometimes you just have to throw underwear away.

6.  When your kid is potty training sometimes you just have to throw underwear away.

7.  A well timed poop joke is the best fodder for comedy.

8.  Audiobooks are great as long as you want to listen to the same person talk for five hours straight without remembering a word of what they said.

What are some of your random thoughts throughout the week?  What about Facebook's announcements or the Dodger fans that finally have something to cheer about (the inevitable collapse of my favorite team, the Giants)?  Have a good Friday, I hope as you read this I am asleep or drinking my third cup of coffee.

Boxes

When I was about 12 or 13 I remember watching TV with my Dad and he turned on a show that featured some dude pulling a string out of his stomach and twenty minutes later he was gravitating in the middle of the street and all the boys on the stoop were blown away.  It was David Blaine before he started doing things like trying to set world records for publicity.  At one point I remember one of my Junior High Friends asking me is I thought Blaine was the Anti-Christ, I was concerned at the time, then I realized the Anti-Christ would probably have better things to do than impress girl scouts with his ability to find their card.

One of the dumbest things Blaine every did was try to live in a box suspended over England's River Thames for 44 days surviving on merely 4.5 liters of water per day.  Incredible? Yes.  Stupid? Yes.

Since Sarah and I switched to a single income we sold my truck since we weren't going to be able to afford to have two cars.  It was an easy decision for us, and truthfully it hasn't been too difficult, we just have to plan our day better.

But because we have one car, Sarah takes the car to work during the week which leaves me and the boys at home.  At times it makes me feel like I am suspended in a box over England.  The furthest I can go is immediately related to the maximum distance the boys can travel without melting down or about 300 feet.

Obviously I love our house and where we live but not having the ability to do something as simple as run errands wears on the psychy.  So here we sit on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays playing in the back yard, cooking food all day, coloring at the table, and trying to get my oldest son to stay in bed during nap time.

Is it the same as living in a box?  No, it is smarter.  But there are times it absolutely feels isolating, especially when our roles feel like they have been flip flopped. Sarah was made to be a mom, to love and nurture and care for those that used to live inside of her.  I feel like I was meant to make money for our family and support us in that capacity.

Needless to say we are still trying to figure out how this year is going to work.  We will do it to the best of our capacity and eventually I am sure we will get back to where we are most comfortable but until then it is walks to the corner and back for the boys and me.

Is there anything about your daily life that makes you feel like you are an illusionist trying to stay in the spotlight a bit longer by being locked in a box?

Focus IV and My Waistline

I turned 25 and my metabolism broke, at least that is what I have told myself as an excuse as well as a reassurance of the possibility that it may indeed fix itself. In this whole idea of focus I haven't talked much about my focus, but I did tell you briefly that my declining health had reached critical mass as had my waistline. 

Now I know some of you are thinking, "Peter, don't be ridiculous you are the very definition of man," and for that I thank you, but I have also begun to realize that I am not 17 anymore and I don't burn 1,000 calories a day swimming in a speedo (you're welcome for that mental image). I have also realized that there is this crazy thing called metabolism that God created to keep us honest about the foods we ingest and about the same time we are forced to pay taxes he slows this thing down, way down. I don't listen to country music much anymore, but it reminds me of the line in Trace Adkins song "Hot Mama" that says, "you want that body back you had at 17." So in case you were wondering, yes, I want to be a hot mama.

In my study about focus this little diddy came up in 1 Corinthians 9:27, "but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified."

Dangit.

This idea of remaining healthy and staying fit has always been something that was in the back of my mind even when I could wear a size 30 speedo and my man thighs didn't rip the bottom seam of my suit. I knew my whole life I was going to have to be aware of my weight when I got older because my Dad struggled with his weight as he aged.

About 5 weeks ago I hit a weight that I never wanted to be and beyond that a waist size I can barely count to. I decided something needed to change, I needed to focus. I needed to make my body a slave to the discipline that not only are we called to as Christians but also to my commitment to be on this earth as long as I can for the furthering of the message of Christ and for the well-being of my family (yes, they are better off with me here, at least at this point in our lives).

This focus hasn't been easy and as I write this we are having some friends and family come over to eat pizza and hang out with babies. A perfect night as long as I don't give in to the temptation of blurring my focus. The fact is that it is easier to blur your eyes when they are in focus than to try and focus them when you need glasses.

Focus needs to remain at the forefront of my thoughts, the verse that has torn my to shreds is 1 Corinthians 3:13-14 (which I talk about in my first post) and in that passage the term "strain forward" shows up. In order to focus I have to strain forward, and that word strain conjures up feelings of pain and constancy, which is what we have to endure in order to focus. At times we need to endure pain and we always must remain constant lest we fall back into our old habits.

So my weight is not yet under control but I have remained focused in my pursuit to get it there. In other words I have 5 weeks down and about my whole life to go. Focus, it isn't always easy, but my straining forward will allow me to reach my desired goal.

What goals do you have that you need to strain for? What areas of your life do you need to discipline? How big is your waist line? (Just kidding).

Have a good weekend all.

Micah Turned One

We had Micah boy's first birthday party here about a month ago and Sarah was a champ and did just about everything herself.  With some great last minute help from my Mom, her husband Loyd and Sarah's parents the party was great.  I thought I would share a few pictures from the festivities which was an All-American Baseball theme.

Papa Loyd

Juniper, Cooper, and my cousin Becky 

Sarah's best friend Lissa Sander

My friends Denver and Corey (Lissa's husband)

Sarah's Mom Susan 

My favorite moment when Sarah's grandpa Dick tried to give Micah some of his Dr. Pepper

Ryan (Sarah's Brother) Brad (Sarah's Dad) and Bergie (Sarah's Grandpa)

 It was a great party overall and Sarah was a champ completing this party after her first week back to school in a new grade.  We love our Micah boy and feel so blessed by those who are a part of his life both near and far away.

Traditioooooon. Tradition.

I love Christmas. I have always loved Christmas and so far this year I love Christmas just as much as I have loved Christmas in the years past (you can tell by the amount of times I have used the word Christmas. Christmas!).

Like most families mine has a lot of traditions that are associated with this time of year, Christmas eve in particular. We go to church, we go to a Chinese restaurant (kind of like A Christmas Story except without the mispronunciation of la la la la la), and we all get matching pajamas. It is a good thing. Sarah and I have started talking about what traditions we should have every year and so far this is what we have.

1. Get a tree
2. Decorate the tree
3. Be with family
4. Unwrap gifts

We want Christmas to be a special time full of wonder and excitement but we also want the meaning of Christmas to resonate louder than the commercial side of the holiday. We want spiritual depth much like the makers of "Tickle Me Elmo" did in 1996 or Matchbox and "Stinky the Garbage Truck" do this year.

I have kicked the idea around of writing from the different viewpoints of those who were at the manger but when thinking from the point of view of a donkey, Eeyore's voice wouldn't get out of my head.

What are some fun and deepening traditions you have with your family every year? What things are you excited to try this year?