Tales of Holiday Cheer

We hope that you and your family had a wonderful Christmas.

AUNT HELEN. Back at Thanksgiving I reported that Aunt Helen had fallen again and broke her wrist. She is at NHC Healthcare in Springfield now and I stopped by to see her the other day. I really admire her for the attitude she keeps. I know it is hard to keep a smile on her face and be cheerful but she does that every time I see her. It is most humbling when I think about the things I complain about.

A FUN OUTING. Wednesday we all went to Opry Mills mall (well, Nate stayed with Pauline). As a Christmas treat we splurged and saw The Polar Express at the IMAX theater in 3D. Ben tried to catch a few snowflakes and the train coming to a stop with the cow catcher just inches from our noses was very impressive.

After the film was over we walked over to Opryland Hotel to look at all the Christmas decorations. Vicki said she read they began decorating for the season in August and I can see why. Of course the kids wanted to look at a much faster pace than we did. We'd call them back to see something and they would say, "Yeah, that's neat. Let's go see what's up here."

WHITE CHRISTMAS. Here in Tennessee we dream about a white Christmas more than we enjoy them. Occasionally we get a skiff of snow but not even enough to cover the grass. This year is different. It rained all day Wednesday. Shortly after we got home from Opry Mills the rain started freezing on contact. Our back porch was iced over and SLICK. I helped Nate slide into the house and I've never heard him giggle so hard. Vicki had such a hard time getting in she took her slick soled shoes off to improve her traction. An hour or so later the rain/sleet mixture changed to snow. With 2 inches of snow/ice on the ground and the ice coating the trees we woke up to a winter wonderland the next morning.

Actually we had a mild ice storm. People west of here (like in Clarksville) had it worse. We were lucky not to lose power except for a couple of hours on Christmas Day (Saturday), and that was due to a car accident. Our next door neighbors, Jimmie and Suzanne Pitt, lost power Wednesday night and didn't get it back until lunch time on Christmas Day (and then their lights went back off when ours did). Mom and Aunt Mar lost power due to ice laden power lines Wednesday night but their power was restored the next morning.

ANNUAL CHRISTMAS PARTY. Kenny and Lori always host a Christmas party on the 23rd. They postponed it due to the weather, rescheduling it for Sunday night. Then they had a water pipe to freeze and burst causing them the reschedule it for New Year's Eve. Unfortunately we won't get to go this year.

CHRISTMAS EVE. In spite of the weather we had our Christmas Eve service at church. Around 200 people slid in to worship together. We sang Joy To The World at the end of the service. As the last note dies away Nate started clapping and yelled out "YEEAA!" Everyone laughed and turned to see the joyful boy. After church we all went over to Pauline's house for supper.

CHRISTMAS DAY FUN. Of course we had an exciting morning at our house on Christmas Day. The kids had a really big time. Jenna got a kit of magic tricks and a wand, a guitar, a movie and books among other things. Ben's presents included a bicycle, a Buzz Lightyear spaceship tent and a Viewmaster. Nate got a tricycle, a Sit-N-Spin and a Wiggles guitar (from a show on the Disney channel).

After opening all the presents we got ready to go to Mrs. Connie Swann's for brunch. What was so nice about this year is that the kids could go sledding down the hill behind her house. Poor Ben was standing at the bottom of the hill when someone came down on an unsteerable plastic disk and knocked his feet out from under him. He hit the packed ice face first. This slowed him down for a short time. Jenna enjoyed the sledding also but she sure isn't the daredevil in the family.

Nate went sledding in a plastic, 20 gallon storage container. We sat Nate inside and Mac Swann pushed him down the hill and I caught him at the bottom before he went into the creek. I think he had fun as all I could see above the rim of the container was a red hat and two rows of teeth. If I didn't get him back up the hill fast enough he would kick the sides to hurry me up.

That afternoon we came home for naps so as to recharge for supper at Aunt Mar's house. All in all it was a very big day.

MORE HOLIDAY HIGHLIGHTS. We went to church on Sunday. The kids spent the rest of the day playing with their new toys. Jonathan, Sheila, Kelsey and Taylor Leach drove up to visit during the evening. They are in from Connecticut to visit their family. We had a great time catching up with friends from college.

TRAFFIC CIRCLE. Because of the ice we are letting the kids ride their bikes through the house. They are really good drivers having learned to steer carefully so they won't mash their fingers between the handlebars and the door frames. They make the circle around the hallway, back hall, Nate's room and our room. They even pretend to be throwing newspapers on a paper route. Strange thing, they must think they are in Great Britain as you have to keep left so you will go with the flow of traffic.

Joe

P.S. Ben, who is sitting beside me here says, "I'll agree with that." When I asked him what this says he said, "I don't know, I can't read."

Coasting Into Christmas

Now that the choir musical is over I feel like we are coasting along. This just goes to show how our community is changing but we decided to have to musical a week earlier than normal because so many of our choir members aren't from around here and travel home to be with family for Christmas. I like it because I can catch my breath before Christmas day.

We hope that all of you have a wonderful Christmas!

OFFICE PARTY. My office had its Christmas party at lunch on Friday. We went to a local Mexican restaurant and played Dirty Santa after the meal. It just reminded me how blessed I am to work with those people. My work environment is more like a family than anything else and that is very rare.

SCHOOL'S OUT. Tomorrow is our last day of school for the fall semester. We get a two week break and since I am ahead on my contract I am going to take the whole time off. It's going to be a lot of fun!

Jenna's Christmas party is tomorrow and Vicki is one of the moms organizing it. Ben's party at Mom's Day Out was on Friday. Unfortunately I missed it due to my office party.

QUALITY TIME. I can't remember if I have mentioned Jenna's school bus situation before but she has been catching the bus at Aunt Mar's this year. We haven't felt good about having the bus stop here since the view for drivers coming from Springfield is blocked by trees. Vicki is usually at Aunt Mar's in the afternoon to pick Jenna up, but about one day a week we let Jenna visit with Aunt Mar until I come home from work. I think they both enjoy the visit and I usually find them watching TV when I get there. I'm glad they get to have that time together.

CHRISTMAS EXCITEMENT. When I was little I used to get really excited over Christmas. Of course, the days seemed to be a lot longer to me then, but I remember the anticipation building for weeks. Jenna and Ben don't seem to be excited like that. I'm not saying that they aren't excited or any less so than I was as a boy. I think it is because they have so many more activities. We had a pretty full schedule when I was little but not quite as busy as they have. I'm sure having siblings contributes to that as well. I just noticed that because I remember constantly asking how many days until Christmas. Our kids don't ask that question.

LAST PRETTY DAY. I guess that headline sounds ominous but Saturday was really pretty with the high around 50° F. I worked out in the yard most of the day. I got all of the leaves cleaned up. I call it the last pretty day because yesterday's high was 20° F and given our schedule for the next few weeks I probably won't have a chance to work out in the yard even if we have a mild day for a while. That's the bad thing about going off of Daylight Saving Time.

Anyway, on Saturday I had come into the house for something and when I was going back outside Nate wanted to come too. Since I was into a chore where I couldn't watch him he had to stay inside. After I closed the door Vicki thought she heard him say, "Daddy ow-sigh, I wanna go wi Daddy" She couldn't get him to repeat it.

LATE NIGHT READER. I went into Jenna and Ben's room just a few moments ago. He had gotten out of bed to look for his bear and I was pretty sure it was in bed with him. When I walk in I catch him looking at a book...without any lights on. Oh what little boys will do to stay awake.

Joe

Advent Is Upon Us

Has it been eight days already? This week has flown by, and no wonder with the schedule. But I'd rather be busy with friends than sitting at home bored.

CHRISTMAS MUSIC. I've been to two practices this week. Last Tuesday night the A/V crew and those with speaking parts were asked to attend. Wednesday night was the last dress rehearsal. Their musical was performed Sunday night and they did a wonderful job. Now there are only ten choir practices until the Easter musical.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO VICKI. Vicki celebrated her 35th birthday Friday. We didn't get to do anything special because I was in Nashville all day for some training and got home just in time to leave for the church choir's Christmas party.

I did ask Vicki what she wanted for her birthday and she said she wanted me to cook her supper. When I asked which restaurant she wanted me to cook at she said, "Our kitchen." I don't like to cook. I don't even like to pour cereal. But I did it, with some help. You see, the secretary at my office, Sherri, is a really good cook. Now before you think I cheated read on.

Last Tuesday I made lunch for everyone at my office. Sherri and I decided on an easy menu for Vicki's birthday supper and she supervised my attempt at cooking the meal. I did all the cutting, pouring, stirring, etc. I was very glad I did this as I had a lot more confidence when we finally had Vicki's birthday meal last night. Unfortunately I cut my finger while cutting up the ham. It didn't hurt but it bleed profusely making the preparations a real challenge. Oh yeah, the menu: Potato soup (the thick kind with ham and cheese in it) and grilled cheese sandwiches (I have a history of burning these). It wasn't fancy but at least it was supper.

CHRISTMAS IN THE PARK. That's what the Church at Grace Park in White House calls their community Christmas event. They decorated their campus for a Dickens style Christmas and opened their doors to all. We went Saturday evening. The kids enjoyed a train ride, story time, and a walk through toy land. That was all we had time to do before Nate was ready for bed. It was a lot of fun.

KEEPING A STRAIGHT FACE. Sometimes it's just hard to do that. Ben had a hard time keeping still in church Sunday and wouldn't listen to Vicki when she corrected him (I was running sound). I understand how hard it is for a boy his age to keep still so I had a talk with him later because I feel it is important for him to learn this now. I almost lost it when he looked up at me with really big eyes and said, "Dad, I really try to be good but sometimes I just can't hold on to it." Since he didn't appear to try too hard this time I said," Well, I suggest you find the handles on that thing and hang on for dear life next week."

COMPUTER TRAINING. I mentioned the training I attended above. It was a two day thing on the Linux operating system. I really enjoyed it and was very impressed with what I saw. Those of you who enjoy working with computers might want to keep your eye on Linux.

ANOTHER TEN YEAR MILESTONE. I forgot to mention this last week but it was ten years ago on the 2nd that we bought my truck. It has 141,000 miles and is going strong!

Joe

A Pretty Fall Week

We have had the prettiest fall week this past week. It has been cool but not real cold. The days have been really pleasant. I just wish it didn't get dark so early so I could get some outdoor work done on the week days.

YOU JUST NEVER KNOW WHAT THEY ARE THINKING. All out of the blue the other day Ben said to Pauline, "I need a wife." She asked him, "Why is that? Do you need somebody to cook for you?" He replied, "Yeah, Mom and Dad say I can't marry you or Jenna."

CHRISTMAS PARADE. Cross Plains had its second annual Christmas parade Saturday. We were in the van when I told Ben where we were going. He said, "Oh! They'll throw out lots of candy. Dad, we need to go back and get our Trick or Treat bags!" The parade was one of several Christmas in Cross Plains activities scheduled for this weekend.

A FUN RIDE. Mr. Larry Pinson was shelling soybeans in the field behind our house Saturday. Ben wanted to ride on the combine so I took him out there and he rode for about 30 minutes. When I got him off he was one happy boy. I asked Mr. Larry if Ben said anything but he said Ben kept pretty quiet. As we were walking back to the house Ben told me he didn't say a word, "because I still pretty shy Dad."

A FUN AFTERNOON. After church yesterday Jenna went out to lunch with Pauline, Mom and Aunt Mar. Afterwards they attended a tea party with Lottie Moon and then went on a home tour sponsored by the Cross Plains Heritage Commission. (For those of you who aren't Baptist, Lottie Moon was a Baptist missionary in China back in the 1800s. Our Christmas season offering to support international missions is named in her honor. This tea party was a fun way to raise missions awareness for little girls.)

MORE CHRISTMAS IN CROSS PLAINS. The rain has moved in as of yesterday. Our church choir was scheduled to sing on the sidewalk in Cross Plains as part of the weekend festivities. The weather caused us to move inside the Methodist church. They sang some selections from the musical they will be performing next Sunday evening and did a great job!

WAY TO GO MORGAN. Speaking of Christmas music, yesterday morning at church my cousin, Morgan Swann, had a part in the service. She came on stage dressed as an expecting Mary. When she got in position the music started and she sang "Breath of Heaven" in sign language while a lady from the choir sang it vocally. Morgan, I was really proud of you!

TIS THE SEASON TO DECORATE AND DECORATE AND DECORATE. Okay, so all of our indoor decorations are up and we spent Saturday afternoon putting our nativity set up out in the yard. We also changed our decorations on the outside of the house. The greenery and bows we used to hang on our front columns have been replaced with branch garland with bows draped around our front porch and upstairs dormer just under the gutters. We have also put wreaths on all our forward facing windows.

Tonight we went over to Aunt Mar's and put up their Christmas tree. Vicki also packed the chili she was making for our supper so they wouldn't have to bother with fixing their supper. Tomorrow night we tackle Pauline's tree. Maybe this will wind the decorating phase up.

CAUGHT RED HANDED. Nate likes ornaments. He also knows he is not supposed to take them off the tree. Do you think this knowledge stops him? Vicki and I have both caught him holding an ornament. When he is discovered he tosses the ornament and runs. Vicki had better luck than I did as the ornament she caught Nate with was made of cloth. I had to go get the broom and dust pan.

Joe

Happy Thanksgiving!

We hope this edition of our newsletter finds you having had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

ABOUT OUR THANKSGIVING. As we have done before we combined efforts with Pauline, Mom and Aunt Mar to put together our Thanksgiving meal. We ate around noon at Pauline's house. Aunt Mar's first cousin, Mildred Pryor, and her grandson, Wesson, drove here from Lebanon to eat with us. We had ham (no turkey after last week), squash dressing, green bean casserole, corn and rice casserole, sweet potato casserole, and other side dishes. Dessert included brownies and peanut butter pie and I think there was a pineapple pudding no one touched. After eating and visiting for a bit we went home but were too full to do anything but nap. We went back to Pauline's for a supper of leftovers. It was a really nice day.

JENNA'S ESSAY. Our schools were closed for Thanksgiving on Wednesday so when Jenna came home from school on Tuesday she began working on a self assigned essay. Here is what she has written so far:

By a 1 st gredr [grader] Jenna Swann

I am thankful for my fuemle [family] and my bruths [brothers] and my frems [friends] and God and Jesus and my Skchool and my home my Mom and my dad I am thankful for flawrs [flowers] and I am thankful for clothes I am thankful for pichs [pictures]

MORE ON MOM'S KNEE. Mom is getting life back to normal. She has parked the crutches and walker and returned to work. I really can't tell that she limps but she says her knee hurts her a whole lot. I guess she has decided to grin and bear it until the pain gets too bad for that plan of action.

AUNT HELEN. The last time I reported on Aunt Helen was back in the spring. You'll remember that she is the one with all the knee problems. She has been been living at her home by herself (her son and his family who live next door check on her a lot) and she has been doing pretty well for her until this week. She got up some time early Sunday morning to use the bathroom and fell. The doctors think she blacked out. Her right wrist is broken in two places, there is a gash in her forehead that required stitches, and possibly an injury to her backbone (they aren't sure if that was from a previous injury). And with all the bruises she looks like someone beat her up. Since she couldn't get up or reach the phone she lay in the floor for several hours until someone came in and found her. She has spent her Thanksgiving in the hospital.

I think Bro. Bill was right when he said the Biblical character Job has nothing on Aunt Helen. She has had a tough row to hoe the last three years. In spite of all that she tries her best to keep a positive attitude. I really admire her for that.

We went to see her on Friday. When we got there Vicki stopped and read a sign to the kids about being quiet. At first the kids were not allowed to go to her room so while I was visiting Vicki kept them in a waiting room. They were being good until Jenna decided to tickle Ben. That was when Vicki pointed out another sign to them and said, "Do you know what that sign says?" (It had the word "NOISE" inside a circle with a slash through it.) Ben looked up at the sign and then turned to Vicki. With fear and concern in his voice he said, "No tickling?"

CHRISTMAS IS COMING. Since it is Thanksgiving weekend we have begun dragging out the Christmas decorations. The tree is up and festive knick knacks are beginning to appear around the house. We'll work on the outdoor nativity scene this week.

CHOIR PERFORMANCES. Last night the preschool, children's and youth choirs performed at church. Ben's group didn't really sing but they waved flags of different colors to a song that explained the meanings of the Christmas colors. Jenna's choir sang two songs. All the kids did a really good job.

One of the funniest parts of the evening was a skit the some of the youth put on that was a spoof of the old Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer claymation movie. What made it so much more humorous was that they wrote the script themselves.

FUNNY MATH. We had hamburgers for supper tonight. Ben ate his potato chips and said he was done. That's when we said he would have to eat four bites of his hamburger before he could get up. After eating his first bite he held his hand up to me (with all fingers up) and said, "Look Dad. I ate one bite (here he used his other hand to fold his thumb down) and now I have three...." The look on his face was hysterical as he realized that his words weren't agreeing with his fingers. He just couldn't figure out why.

Joe

Pre-Holiday Stuffing

Things are gearing up for the holidays around here!

MOM'S KNEE. Mom had a flare up with her knee on Thursday. The arthritis in her right knee caused blood to build up in that joint which was very painful as you can imagine. She went to the emergency room at NorthCrest and they drew off about 100 cc of blood. She went to the doctor on Friday. He told her to make sure she took her medicine and try those shots to help the arthritic inflammation. If all this doesn't help the next thing is a knee replacement which is an option she doesn't plan to consider.

Mom is feeling a lot better now though she is still hobbling about. They sent her home with a set of crutches but even after I demonstrated how to use them she never got the hang of it. She basically took them for a walk for about 24 hours before laying them aside. She goes to see a specialist on Tuesday.

Ben, like the rest of us, was very concerned for Mom. (The kids call her G'Anne--short for Gran Anne.) In his prayer he said, "I hope those medicines work so she won't died."

Where I feel really bad is that I had a meeting scheduled for Thursday afternoon. It really wasn't that important of a meeting but I decided to turn my pager off. As a result no one could reach me about Mom. By the time I got home and learned the news she had been discharged from the ER and was on the way home herself.

STUFFED TO THE GILLS. Thanksgiving is next week and I am already full. On Wednesday the cafeteria manager at Cheatham Park Elementary called and invited our office over for their Thanksgiving lunch. That night we had Thanksgiving dinner at church. On Thursday Vicki and I went to East Robertson Elementary to eat Thanksgiving lunch with Jenna. That night I went to the pot luck Thanksgiving dinner meeting of the Cross Plains Heritage Commission (Mom was so full of pain medication all she could do was sleep so there wasn't much I could do for her). On Friday they had a pot luck Thanksgiving lunch for all the families of the Mom's Day Out students. Vicki, Pauline, Nate and Aunt Mar went as I was with Mom for her appointment with the doctor but they saved me a plate which I ate for supper. Tonight we will attend a community Thanksgiving service at Pleasant Hill Baptist, where they will serve finger food afterwards.

You know, what they say about that enzyme in turkey making you sleepy is true!

THE BOY KNOWS WHAT HE WANTS. When Nate tells you he wants something he is not kidding around. And he is starting to pick up the words he needs to express his wishes. He kind of surprised us when he came up and said, "Seep," yesterday afternoon though. Then we figured out he meant "Sleep" and put him to bed. When lifted into his bed he grabbed his stuffed animals, laid down, and looked up as if to say, "You can put my blanket on me now."

THE INCREDIBLES. Yes, I know we have seen it but Jenna and Ben wanted to go. Jenna had also been invited to spend the night with Maegan Garst (a friend from church and school) on Friday night and since the Garsts planned to go see the movie Vicki, Ben and I met them there. Ben was really proud of himself because "Jenna got scared but I did not."

BRAVE GIRL. Jenna had a not so fun experience at church today. She got trapped in the elevator by herself. It probably wasn't more than five or ten minutes before we located the key and got her out. I was proud of her as she kept her head through the whole thing. When I talked to her through the door she didn't sound distressed at all. Once she was released she did hug me and Vicki real tight though.

TRADING SPOUSES FOOTNOTE. For those of you who were interested in the news about my high school classmate on Trading Spouses that I reported a couple of weeks ago you may find this article from the Robertson County Times interesting.

Evidently a lot of people in the county felt the same way I did after seeing the Nortons on the air because Crystal wrote the editor thanking the community for their support.

Joe

Finally, A Frosty Morning

I think I have seen more deer in the past few weeks than usual. Either they are getting bolder or they are simply being forced to forage out in the open for some reason. The same goes for a small rafter of turkeys I see about every day on my way to and from work (actually there are about 20 in the group). I find them getting closer to the highway than before. Not smart with the upcoming holiday as eating roadkill is legal in Tennessee.

By the way, we finally got our first real frost of the season this morning.

A CONUNDRUM. So Jenna asked Vicki if she could have some candy out of the Halloween candy bag. Vicki gave her permission to have one piece. Jenna returned asking if she could have two pieces but Vicki stuck to her guns. A few moments later she was back and asked, "Mom, can I have the Hershey's Kiss?" When Vicki said she could Jenna regretfully replied, "But eeny meeny [miny moe] picked the bubble gum."

What says more about Jenna than she'll ever know is the fact that she abided by the choice made by the eeny meeny rhyme even though Vicki told her it was okay to eat the other candy.

GOOD HELP IS EASY TO FIND. We ask Jenna and Ben to clean up their toys each night before going to bed. This includes the messes Nate had made. Last night Nate and I came in from church before everyone else and as a surprise we cleaned everything up for Jenna and Ben. What was so nice was that I could hand something to Nate, tell him where it went and he'd actually put the stuff in the right place. I had him going all over the house and when I walked around later I didn't spot anything out of order. He was so proud (and so was I)!

DIZZY. Nate has gotten to where he loves to spin around until he gets dizzy. This really worries Aunt Mar as she thinks it will mess up his brain development. I just hope it will give him more of a toleration for roller coasters than I have.

A BAD WIND. The other day I came home from work to a big mess. Evidently someone had been hired to remove insulation from an old building. As they were driving by our house some of the bags of the stuff blew out of their truck right in front of our house. The bags burst open spreading bits of insulation all over the front yard. When Ben saw it he asked Vicki what had happened and she explained about the wind blowing the stuff out of the truck. He thought about that a moment and said, "God must not have been in the wind's heart."

SOCIAL BUTTERFLY. Vicki has had a full calendar. Last Monday evening she attended her Women On Mission meeting. Wednesday evening was church and choir practice. On Thursday she met Angi Arnold and Becky Seaton (friends from high school) for lunch at Opry Mills. And on Friday she went to the Christmas Village at the State Fairgrounds with Tracy and Michelle (friends from church).

I think she has really enjoyed getting out with friends and away from kids. Right now she is sitting on the couch sorting through the bag of single socks hoping to find mates for them (I think every load of laundry eats one sock). I guess that's the reality check.

A NEAT CONTRAPTION. My appreciation for this machine comes from having to pick up hay when I was in high school. The Hendleys, neighbors of ours, own one of these and I stopped by on my way home from work the other day to see it in action. It is a hay bale wagon. Mike Hendley was kind enough to let me hang off the side and watch it work. It took him about 20 minutes to drive around the field scooping up hay bales which the mechanism behind the cab stacked into the bed of the wagon. When he went to the barn to unload he left behind a large cube of 160 hay bales. He said the concept for the machine was invented by a 16 year old boy who was tired of picking up hay. I found a picture online if you are curious about what this thing looks like.

SAD NEWS. Pauline still takes her hometown newspaper, The Camden Chronicle. When she opened up the edition that was delivered today a house fire was one of the front page stories. As she looked at the picture she recognized the house to be her parent's homeplace. The house is the property of her sister-in-law and had been renovated to be a rental house. A tenant was due to move into the house in a few days. It was totally destroyed but no one was inside when it happened.

Joe

The Calm Before the Holidays

Since fuel prices are so high I am not complaining but it just seems so unnatural to be running around in shorts, a t-shirt and sandals here in the first part of November. I mowed the yard yesterday morning and wore a thin sweat shirt then but the days are still very warm. We sure aren't getting the temperatures we normally get right now but that is changing.

NEAR 20/20. Aunt Mar had cataract surgery on her left eye Thursday morning. That afternoon she was looking around and commented to Mom, "Anne, I think I can see better already." Then she added, "Is that some dirt I see over there?"

A NEW DRIVER. I think I have mentioned Scoop, Ben's riding toy before. Well, for the last several weeks Nate has been able to climb onto Scoop but has not been able to push himself around very well. I noticed it when he first started but hadn't really paid attention lately--until today. Today I did a double take as he effortlessly cruised by me in the hallway. He still has a way to go to match Ben's careening through the house at running speeds but he can get around quite well none the less.

NEW YARD FURNITURE. Our neighbors, Jimmie and Suzanne Pitt, had a metal swing set they were going to get rid of so they asked Pauline if she wanted it for the kids. We moved the thing Saturday morning. We had a men's prayer breakfast at church that morning so I snagged several guys and we walked it over to Pauline's back yard.

GIRLS DAY OUT. This past weekend the Christmas Sampler was in Springfield. Vicki, Jenna, Pauline and Mom all loaded up and went on Saturday. After shopping they went to Burdette's Tea Room for lunch. They all had a great time. The boys and I hung out around the house.

A MOVIE REVIEW. Friday night Vicki and I went out with some friends to see The Incredibles. We had a lot of fun. I won't say that it was the best movie I have seen Pixar produce but it was still very cute. It was probably given its PG rating for the violence but they did nothing worse than I ever saw on Saturday morning cartoons when I was growing up. If you want to go see a fun super hero movie we recommend this one.

PROUD OF A HIGH SCHOOL CLASSMATE. I watch very little TV. The only show I regularly watch is Enterprise as a hold over from my old love of Star Trek. (If I am up late I'll watch Andy Griffith or M*A*S*H.) We found out that last night's episode of Trading Spouses (the Fox network) was featuring a family from Springfield, the Nortons. It turns out that I know the wife, Crystal, as she went to high school with me for one year. I was really proud of the way she handled herself when she was the traded mom to a family in California. I remember her being that way in high school and was glad to see her character show through to everyone who watched the show.

Crystal and her family are neighbors of one of my co-workers. She said the Nortons are a really nice family and are the same in real life as they were on TV. They funny thing is that the producers of TV show found the Nortons through a business web site they run and approached them about doing the show.

Joe

Happy Belated Halloween

The only bad thing about having pretty fall leaves is that they come down. Saturday we moved at least a dozen truck loads of leaves out of the yard. If I just had a market for used leaves....

SHE'S SO VAIN. I forgot to report this but last Sunday morning Vicki came into the kitchen where the rest of us were eating breakfast. She was completely ready for church except for her makeup. Upon seeing Vicki Jenna said, "I don't like your hair. No, wait, it's your face!"

NONE OF THE ABOVE. Since Vicki had cooked for the last several nights Tuesday night was leftovers night. That means we can pick which leftover meal we want to eat. After hearing his choices Ben said, "Is that all there is? I don't like any of those things."

TRICK OR TREAT. We did our Trick or Treating Saturday night--three hours of it. And only six Reeses Cups! We started up in Cross Plains at 6:00 and walked up and down most of Main Street. After that we hit all the neighbors around us. Thankfully two of the three can buckle themselves into their seats. And most of all, it was a very pleasant night to be out and the kids behaved very well.

The kids really did look cute. Jenna was a parrot, Ben was a cowboy and Nate was a puppy dog. I need to say a word about Ben's outfit. It included the horse. His legs slipped into the horse's back legs and the reins looped around his neck to hold up the horse's head and front legs. He kept telling everyone it wasn't a real horse.

A CONVERSATION WITH MY BOY. The other afternoon Ben came in where I was and said, "Hello, Daddy."

I replied, "Hello, Ben. Did you have a good day today?"

"Yeah."

"What did you do today."

[Short pause] "I don't know."

"You mean to tell me that you were wide awake and with yourself the whole day and can't remember a thing you did today!"

"Uh-huh." A few moments later he adds, "I sure don't know why that is Dad but I don't remember a thing I did."

HOMEWORK BY RADIO. After school today Jenna had some reading homework. Usually Vicki helps her but today she was upstairs doing some work on the computer while Jenna was downstairs completing her assignment.

We have a set of walkie-talkies that Ben got for his birthday. Jenna agreed to do her homework by herself so long as Vicki took one of the radios upstairs with her. When she came to a word she couldn't read she simply spelled it into the radio and Vicki transmitted the correct pronunciation back. Then Ben would take the radio and make a comment or two to Jenna. It made homework great fun!

NO, NO, NO, NO.... For the last few months Nate has always closed his doors and turned off his light before going to bed. He has decided he doesn't want to do that anymore so when we mention it to him he just grins, shakes his head and says, "No, no, no, no, no...." I think he feels a sense of obligation to at least say no about bedtime. Once you put him in bed he lays down and goes right on the sleep though.

A PRAYER REQUEST. I heard some news yesterday that is really sad. Randy Chatman is a friend who is just a few months older than I am. He grew up less than a mile from my house and we went to school from the 1st grade through the 12th grade together. While we haven't seen each other much since graduation he has always been one of the nicest people I've known. He has just been diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease). I am at such a loss to understand and simply devastated for him.

Joe

Back In The Routine

Naturally we are back in the normal routine of things this week. It seems like whenever we go anywhere it takes a lot of effort to get back to normal. I was scheduled to teach two in-services on Tuesday and Thursday evening and I had a meeting at church Thursday evening as well. After being with everyone on the trip I feel as if I am unplugged from my family now.

THE AUNT MAR GENE. Our tree leaves are reaching their peak but the weather has been so overcast and rainy it has been hard to enjoy the colors. All the wind and rain is causing the leaves to fall very fast. The other day Jenna, Nate and I got home from running some errands. When she got out of the van she looked around at the yard and said, "This place is a mess! We've got to clean it up."

A PERFECT FIT. Our kids have always climbed up onto the bathroom counter so they could use the faucet to wash their hands and brush their teeth. (We used a kitchen cabinet in there to make the counter 36" high since we are both tall.) Jenna is big enough not to do that now but still does on occasion out of habit. The other night she decided to stand up on the counter and discovered that she is a perfect fit between the counter and the low ceiling in there. She won't be able to pull that trick much longer.

MAGNETISM OF A STAIRWAY. Nate loves to climb stairs. He is real good at going up but hasn't figured out the going down part. At church this morning someone spoke to me as we were about to walk outside. In a split second he was off and I didn't see which direction he went. It would have been a longer search but in the joy of getting to climb the stairs he just couldn't contain himself and let our a shriek. I'll say one thing, that little booger can flat move.

FEAR FACTOR. While our kids don't have to do anything nearly as gross as what is on TV they sure think so at supper. I guess we ask for it but we have always felt that supper time is no time for Vicki to be a short order cook. So when asparagus and Aunt Linda's corn and rice dish (yes, we managed to weasel a recipe out of Aunt Linda) were on the menu we should have had the video camera close at hand. I had no idea Jenna and Ben could put that many wrinkles in their faces. Hopefully they'll develop a toleration to various foods sometime in the next 20 years.

SORRY. You remember that board game where you try to get your four pieces around the board? We played Sorry this evening and poor Ben had rotten luck. He went for a long time without being able to get a man out of start (and the poor boy was on the verge of tears). Then his luck would change a for a few minutes before reverting back. This happened several times which changed his mood from sad to happy and back. He rode his emotional roller-coaster pretty well for a four-year-old who missed his nap today (Mom and Aunt Mar took him out to eat lunch and he had a long afternoon).

We enjoy playing board games and Trouble was a big hit, but when the dice popper broke we switched to Sorry. Jenna is also a pretty decent Checker player considering the experience she has. When I make her slow down and analyze her own moves she can be pretty tough to beat.

Joe

News From Our Trip

The last you heard from us we were packing for our trip. We're back home now and we had a great time! Everyone traveled really well. The only thing I think I would change about the trip was to make it a bit longer. We were gone for six days and drove three of them. At least the trip was bookended by two weekends at home.

SUNDAY. We left Sunday morning to drive through Alabama to Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. It was a nine hour drive. Ben and I were to stay with our cousin, Sara Letsinger (I call her Aunt Sara as an affectionate title). When we got there Aunt Sara's son, Joe, and his wife, Karen, had driven in from Niceville and fixed us a wonderful supper. Their two kids, Kayla and Mike, are about the ages of Jenna and Ben so the kids had some playmates for the evening. After supper was over Vicki, Pauline, Jenna, and Nate drove to their hotel in Destin. Unfortunately, Karen and their kids did not get the Columbus Day holiday the next day due to Hurricane Ivan so that was the last we saw of them.

MONDAY. We did the beach this day. Usually the Gulf of Mexico is really calm but we had met Tropical Depression Matthew on the way down and the strong wind had the water really churned up. We got into the shallow water but had to be very careful as there was a serious rip tide. Nate especially loved the beach and showed no fear of the water. The kids really enjoyed sitting in the shallow water and letting the waves wash over them. That night we took Aunt Sara out to eat at a local restaurant.

TUESDAY. We said our goodbyes to Aunt Sara and headed out for Kissimmee (south of Orlando). This was another nine hours on the road.

At one point Ben said he had to go to the bathroom. We were still about 20 miles away from a town we were planning on stopping at so we said he'd have to wait. In sympathy we all let him know that we were ready to stop as well. It was then that Pauline, Vicki and I saw Nate with this smug little grin on his face. It was as if he completely understood the conversation and was gloating while relieving himself in his diaper. We got a good laugh whether or not this was true.

WEDNESDAY. We were tired from the road but got up early to be at the gates of Disney World's Magic Kingdom when they opened. We had a wonderful day but were ready to go home after the awesome fireworks show was over. I wore a pedometer which recorded over 22,000 steps. Normally this would be about 10.6 miles but I figure my distance was a couple of miles so less due to shuffling in lines and riding a few bumpy rides.

Jenna and Ben both said their favorite part was the Buzz Lightyear ride. Pauline enjoyed the Carousel of Progress and Vicki liked Mickey's PhilharMagic show. While Pirates of the Caribbean remains my favorite the part that was the most fun for me was seeing the kids enjoy themselves.

THURSDAY. We slept late this morning. When we did get moving we went shopping at Downtown Disney and then went over to Aunt Linda and Uncle Bob's. While visiting them we went swimming. They fed us a delicious steak dinner.

FRIDAY. As with anything our vacation was over. Thankfully we had an uneventful trip home. We pulled in about midnight. With all the stops we made we spent about 15 hours on the road.

DID WE GET CLOSE? The one bad thing about the timing of our trip was that Jim and Dianna had already planned to be on vacation for the last two weeks. They were traveling in Pennsylvania and Ohio visiting some of Dianna's family so we didn't get to see them while we were in their neighborhood. They were due to get home Friday as well. I kept wondering if they took I-75 home and where we unknowingly met them at if they did.

Anyway, as nice as it is to get away, it's good to be home.

DISAPPOINTMENT. Yesterday Jenna and Ben asked if they could go out to play. While they were putting on their shoes Nate slipped on a pair on Ben's shoes as well. Since neither Vicki or I were going out we told the kids not to let Nate go out so they stopped him at the door. When they shut the door in his face he came back in the room where we were with a pained expression on his face and said, "Outside, no!" It just crushed the poor boy.

Joe

FALL BREAK!

Our trees are starting to show their colors now. They haven't changed completely but there will be a big difference by next week. I always enjoy watching the trees turn colors. A small part of me is sad that I won't be around to see it this week. Our schools are closed for fall break and we are packing for a vacation to Florida!

I'VE GOT TO BRAG. I meant to put this in the last edition. It was that thing that kept eluding my memory until I clicked send. Last Saturday Vicki had a couple of meetings and was gone all morning. While I was cleaning up after breakfast Jenna made up all the beds and folded the laundry without me even asking her to do it. Sunday Jenna and I rode to church together. Since we were running late Ben offered to make up her bed for her and then made up mine and Vicki's bed. I guess I should enjoy this now.

AN EMBARRASSING CONFESSION. Okay, it has been two or three months since we ran a dust mop under our bed. Ben and Nate chased a toy that had rolled under the bed the other day and discovered other toys that had sought refuge from rough playing boys under there. When Ben came to the kitchen to show us some of the toys they had found we burst out laughing. Unknown to him he had several dust bunnies stuck to his hair and shirt.

SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS. Jenna had a fun day at school on Friday. Her class started the day with a field trip to the Purity Dairy processing plant. Vicki got to go as a chaperone. Jenna really enjoyed it but Vicki was disappointed. Since 9-11 they no longer allow tours of the facility. They show visitors a film of how milk and ice cream are made that was produced in the 1970s. At least they all got an ice cream sandwich. The trip to McDonald's made up for it.

That afternoon they returned to school to participate in the PTO sponsored walk-a-thon to raise money for the school. We don't know how much was raised but they exceeded their goal of $18,000 so the principal will have to do the hula dance in front of all the students now.

HE'S NOT LIKE THE OTHER TWO. Jenna and Ben were not climbers. Nate is. Like I said last week, he is not to be trusted. The other day Pauline walked into the room to find him sitting on the table. Thursday Nate was tired of playing with Ben and went into his room and closed the doors to play alone. Several minutes later Vicki went in the room to put away some clean clothes and found him sitting on his dresser. Today he spied Jenna's bubble gum on the kitchen table. Fortunately I found him before he had put it all in his mouth.

PACKING. The kids are all excited about the trip, especially the plan to go to Disney World. Ben has been praying that God would take care of Mickey Mouse for a couple of weeks. Tonight Mom and Aunt Mar treated us with takeout from KFC. When we got home we put Nate to bed and told Jenna and Ben they could pack whatever they wanted for entertainment in their backpacks. Ben was so excited about packing for the trip that he kept getting louder and louder. After the umteenth time of asking him to lower his voice (and he really was trying to stay quiet) he finally said, "My voice just can't help it Dad."

Later, after he was in bed, I checked his backpack to make sure he hadn't packed anything that didn't need to go. I found several books, a [spinning] top, a helicopter, and two pair of underwear.

Joe

Babies and Birthdays

We have that crisp feeling in the air now. It's the kind of weather that makes me wish I had a motorcycle and a day off. I don't know how to drive a motorcycle but I think it would be fun anyway. The Pinsons came and cut Mom's corn this week. We will probably see several deer foraging in front of the house now.

WHAT A BIRTHDAY PRESENT! In the last edition we wished Vicki's brother, Will, a happy 40th birthday. His birthday was Tuesday. Well, he got a birthday present no one was expecting. At 3:41 that morning Emily Katherine made her debut into the world to the tune of 6 lbs., 1 oz and 16.25 inches long. You may be wondering how a baby can be unexpected–she came 4 weeks early! Emily, Darice, Will and the boys are all doing fine. Congratulations!!!

Speaking of birthdays, Pauline's birthday was Thursday. We celebrated by grilling out Friday night. Aunt Mar was happy to get to eat this time.

THANKFUL FOR ANY SITUATION. School mornings usually run on a calm and predictable schedule, but every once in a while it just doesn't happen. Tuesday was one of those days. Ben was grumpy and even had to be carried screaming to the van. This wasn't too easy as she was packing Nate on the other hip. Yes, Nate can walk to the van but he is not to be trusted. Kids his age have no sense of time and leaving him on his own feet means that he will stop and inspect every bug, worm, leaf, twig, pecan, rock, etc. that is on his path.

Ben finally chilled out and Jenna began her morning prayer with, "Lord Jesus, Thank you for this good morning we almost had."

In Ben's defense, he went to the doctor later that morning and was found to have a major ear infection. I'd have been grumpy too!

ADOPTIONS. Brian and Debbie Freeland have been able to keep their web site updated with news while they are in China and it has been fun to read of their experiences. They are due to come back home in a few days. Brian and Debbie, we are looking forward to seeing Jessica when you come up to Cross Plains.

While the Freelands are finishing up their adoption process some college friends of mine, Brian and Melissa Whaley, are beginning theirs. They are in the process of adopting a girl from India. They emailed the other day to say they have accepted a referral for a girl who will be their future daughter and have decided to name her Morgan Suvali Whaley. Suvali means "full of grace" in Hindi. When you encounter something that makes you think of adoptions please pause and say a quick prayer for the Whaleys. They have a long road of government red tape ahead.

Joe

Fall is Here!

This is a most unusual year for Florida. Hurricane Jeanne has blasted across central Florida. Aunt Linda and Uncle Bob do not have electricity or phone service. Jim and Dianna have lights and phone but had to fight a water leak in Chris' bedroom due to a crack in the foundation of their house. I know all of Florida is keeping a weary eye on Lisa and will be glad when hurricane season is over. Jeanne is the fourth hurricane that has struck the state. It seems they have been pounded about once every ten days this year.

ALL GUSSIED UP. The steam engine is parked in its usual spot over at Uncle Paul's shop. This year Jackie decided to decorate it for the fall. He has made a nice display using corn stalks, bales of straw, pumpkins and mums. Its really pretty and we are planning to take to kids over there for pictures. One of the neighbors had asked if the steam engine had died. Very funny!

A LONG WAY FROM HOME. One day Vicki and the kids had been out running errands and stopped at Pauline's before coming home. As they were driving across the yard back to our house Vicki spotted a deer in the soybean field about 20-30 feet away. She stopped the van and they looked at the deer for several moments before it decided to run away. As the deer was leaving Ben said, "I'll bet he's looking for Santa!" Jenna and Ben then proceeded to have an in-depth conversation about that very topic.

IS THAT ENGLISH I HEAR? Nate can be a pretty vocal kid but it is all gibberish. Yesterday I was eating a chocolate oatmeal cookie (we call them CPCs–cow patty cookies) when he came in the kitchen. Of course he wanted a bite but I asked, "Do you want a cookie?" "COOKIE" That was quite clear to me. After giving him the cookie he kept saying the word as it was the best way he could think of to express his delight. Made me and a certain Sesame Street character proud.

Last night we put Jenna and Ben in the shower before they went to bed. Nate was very distressed that he was missing out. He kept pointing to the bathroom and saying, "Show'r."

CHRISTMAS MUSIC. Fall may be here but the choir has kicked off their rehearsals for the Christmas musical with an afternoon retreat like last year. Vicki has rejoined for the season. Family members came at 6:00 for a supper. As a favor to Jenna I will not bring up the chili incident. We took CPCs this time.

MONSTERS, INC. Tonight Vicki read a book to Jenna and Ben while I was cleaning the kitchen. Later I heard Ben calling me in to pray. After I finished Ben asked, "Dad, will you put this ring away?" It was one of Jenna's little plastic rings. To explain himself he added, "I was going to scare monsters with it but changed my mind."

A WONDERFUL LEGACY. Those of you who know Aunt Mar know she is a woman of prayer. She epitomizes the verse about praying without ceasing. She has been known to accidentally end a phone conversation with "For Christ's sake, amen." which ends the call on a most humorous note for both parties.

Jenna must be a kindred spirit with Aunt Mar. We are so blessed to hear some of the most beautiful and sincere prayers from her at bedtime. The other day she answered the phone saying, "Lord Jesus--I mean--Hello...." I think her hair blushed as she handed the phone to Vicki who was laughing at her little girl's expense.

THE BIG 4-0. A BIG birthday wish goes out to Will, Vicki's brother. He will be sitting on top of the hill on Tuesday. Enjoy the view while you can!

A REPORT ON THE FREELANDS. I heard from Debbie before they left for China. She told me about their web site. If you go to it you can see a picture of Jessica. They hope to be able to update their site with news while they are away.

IN SYMPATHY. I think I have mentioned that Jenna's teacher is Vicki Rippy. Her father, Mr. Bill Young, passed away unexpectedly on Thursday from a heart attack. He was in good health for the age of 72. While visiting with the family at the funeral home Friday evening Todd, his son, said, "I don't remember ever seeing dad get mad about anything." What a wonderful memory to have!

We took the kids to the visitation which allowed us to answer several important questions on matters of life and death.

Joe

A Quiet Week

I record this simply to document what happened. We here in Robertson County have NOTHING to complain about compared to Floridians who have endured Charles and Francis and Alabamans who weathered Ivan. However, we did experience a bit of Ivan as it went by this week. By the time it got to Tennessee it was a tropical depression, and we were only grazed by the western edge of it on Thursday. What was really sad to me was that it came a bit sooner than predicted. Several high schools had moved their football games to Thursday evening to be ahead of the rain, one of these games was even the homecoming. Friday evening turned out to be perfect weather. I am touching on the less serious effects of the storm. Several school systems along the Alabama border closed due to flash flooding.

IT'S MAGIC! One of the allergy medications Jenna takes is in pill form (and not the chewable kind). The other night Jenna got Ben to watch her take the pill. When she swallowed it she opened her mouth for him which had him totally amazed.

TOO MUCH WYLE E. COYOTE. One of my yard chores last week was to prune the tree branches that have been slapping us in the face as we mow. Ben came out on the porch while I was at work and asked if he could come out and talk to me. When I said he could he replied that he had to go back in the house to get something. Next thing I know his Bob the Builder umbrella is right underneath me. He had that up to protect himself from all the falling leaves.

I'll have to sing Ben's praises here. When it came time to haul the limbs to the brush pile he was right in there helping me. It didn't matter to him how big the branch was, he tugged on it until he got it where it needed to go.

A GOOD SUPPER. We had a fund raiser for the Cross Plains Heritage Commission Saturday evening in the form of a barbecue supper complete with gospel music. Our goal was to feed at least 300 people. Fortunately we had enough food for the 500 people who showed up! We don't have all the figures in but we estimate we cleared $3000.

A PRAYER REQUEST. For those of you who don't know the Freelands they have been neighbors and good friends all my life. Brian, Steve, Brent and I did a whole lot together as we grew up. Brian and his wife Debbie are due to leave for China in a few days to adopt a little girl (maybe two). Please keep them in your prayers as they travel and navigate a foreign language and bureaucracy.

While you are praying for Brian and Debbie you might want mention Brent and his wife Sabrina. She is pregnant with twins. They already have a girl and a boy. Last I heard things were going okay but Sabrina's activity has been restricted to the couch and the bed. The babies aren't due until February.

Joe

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FOOTNOTE ON IVAN: As all storms of this type do, Ivan lost energy over land. By the time it to got to Virginia it was simply a huge low pressure system but it continued to dump very heavy rain on everyone in its path until it went back out to sea at the New Jersey coast. In the Atlantic it turned south and traveled down the US coast until it got to Florida where it turned west again and crossed Florida. In the Gulf of Mexico it regained strength to become a tropical depression again and hammered the Texas coast.

Snippets of Everyday Life

I enjoy waking up in the mornings this time of year. For some strange reason I like looking out the window at the fog. Sometimes it's so thick I can't see the barn at the other end of the garden. I don't know why that is special to me but it is.

AN UPDATE ON AUNT MAR. She came through her test just fine and even rescued the little souvenir after it passed. The doctor has not called to give her the results of the pictures taken.

GRANDPARENTS DAY. East Robertson celebrates this in style. It is such a success that parking is a problem. The cafeteria really puts on a good meal. Pauline, Mom and Aunt Mar all went to eat lunch with Jenna on Thursday. They also got to see her room, classmates and teacher.

SAID WITH 100% ENTHUSIASM. Part of our going to bed routine includes having the kids pick up the toys. I usually have Ben clean up Nate's room because the toys are larger and the job is quicker for him. If I put him and Jenna in the same room to work together he'll goof off and it makes Jenna mad (and I don't blame her). Part of the clean up job includes going and getting toys that belong to Nate's room wherever they may be. Ben likes this a lot because he can ride Scoop to pick up and deliver the toys where they go. (Scoop is the back hoe from the Bob the Builder show. Our Scoop is a plastic riding toy. The back hoe shovel was not designed into the toy but it does have the front end loader bucket. Ben uses this to haul many things.)

The other night Ben wheeled by where I was. Seeing me he stopped to say, "Dad, Nate's room not clean yet...but I on the job!"

I CAN SEE BEHIND ME NOW. I've been down to one rearview mirror on the truck for a long time now. A rock from the weedeater got the mirror on the driver's door and the mirror on the passenger's door just got tired and fell off. I replaced those this week.

I got the driver's side mirror on Thursday (the other was out of stock but came in Friday). When I purchased the thing I asked if there were instructions inside the box to tell me how to take the door apart. In spite of what I was told at the store auto parts do not come with instructions. When I got home I commenced to taking the door apart. An hour later Vicki called me in for supper. I had made no measurable progress. She asked how I liked my new mirror. I looked at her and said, "I think I need to call the authorities and have them take all my tools away."

I finally got my mirrors on but let me tell you it is no fun trying to fish a 10 mm socket out of the bottom of your door with a straightened coat hanger.

ANOTHER LEAK, ANOTHER VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE. It was back in July that I had to fix our leaky bathroom faucet. Well, it started leaking again and from the nature of the leak I knew the little ball that is inside those single lever faucets was worn out. So I buy another repair kit, tear the thing down, and replace the worn out parts. In doing so I discover the replacement parts are a smidgeon thicker than the worn out parts, making reassembly a challenge. It was about this time that Jenna walked in. After taking a second to survey the scene she asked, "Daddy, are you really able to do that?"

EYES IN THE DARK. Ben spent the night with Mom and Aunt Mar Friday. After breakfast the next morning they all walked down to the lower part of the yard. Aunt Mar sat on one of the logs that are there from the storms back in July while Mom and Ben went exploring. They picked up lots of acorns.

Several of the trees are hollow at the bottom and there are small holes in the trunks near the ground. Ben was so interested in looking in these holes that Mom went back to the house and got a flashlight for him. A little bit later they heard him squeal and he came running back to where Aunt Mar was sitting (with big tears rolling down his cheeks). When they asked what was wrong he said, "I saw BIG eyes in there." Mom and Aunt Mar think is was an owl. Whatever it was either left or climbed higher in the tree as no one saw eyes again.

A LITERARY DISCOVERY. I have been introduced to Hank the Cowdog. While working in the library at East Robertson the librarian asked me if I had ever heard of Hank. I had not so she loaned me a copy of The Original Adventures of Hank the Cowdog (first in what is now a series of 44 books written by John R. Erickson).

That night, after the kids were in bed, we turned off the TV and I read. You have to try to read these with a Texan drawl (the voice I hear in my head is that of Baxter Black: cowboy, poet and large animal veterinarian). We laughed so hard we were in tears. I think Vicki even gave herself a headache for laughing so hard.

Joe

One Year and Counting

It was a year ago today that I began sending you my unsolicited email. I hope these newsletters haven't fallen into the "spam" category with you but if they have, or ever do, please let me know.

AT THE FAIR. The Robertson County Fair was this week. We went on Friday night and enjoyed the exhibits, the greasy food, the cotton candy, and the rides. Actually, Vicki and the kids enjoyed the rides. You could not pay me enough to ride some of those things, even if they were at a more permanent location. Thanks to me we have blurry pictures of two little faces with ear to ear grins as they whizzed by.

A NEW SCHOOL. As you know Ben participated at the Mom's Day Out program at Cross Plains Methodist last year. Mt. Carmel has begun its own Mom's Day Out program this year and Ben is now attending that program. His school (which is open each Wednesday and Friday) began last week and he really enjoyed it. There are a total of ten kids in his class, five boys and five girls, and we understand that the teacher says, "Now boys...," a whole lot.

There are twin boys in his class. When Vicki commented on this to Ben he mistakenly tried to correct her saying, "No Mom, they're not trains. They're people!"

SITTING IN CHURCH. At our church, when you turn four it is time to leave the nursery and sit in big church which Ben has been doing for several weeks. Most Sundays there is Children's Church where the kids through the second grade leave before the sermon for their own activities. We do not have Children's Church on the first Sunday of each month so yesterday was Ben's first time to sit through the whole service. He did pretty well but I could tell his whole body was poised to run and jump like an overwound watch spring. The end of the service was a relief for me, Vicki and him.

It was Jenna who gave the laugh in church yesterday. Just before the offering was collected Bro. Bill prayed. It wasn't really that long of a prayer but he did spend a moment praying for the folks in Florida who are enduring their second hurricane within three weeks. After the prayer was over Jenna leaned over and whispered, "I'm glad that long prayer is finally over."

WISHING FOR BETTER. I don't care how good of a product something is you can always find a feature on it that you wish had been designed better. As much as we like our new van neither Vicki or I want to blow the horn. It sounds as impressive as the horn for a 1975 VW Beetle. The other day Vicki and the boys were going somewhere and Ben thought of the horn and asked Vicki to honk it for him. After she did he cried, "No Mom, the deeper one!"

EMPTY DAYS. Jenna sure did enjoy her extra day off today. She said, "Oh good, an empty day!" It sure is nice to have the day to hang out at home.

A PRAYER REQUEST. Aunt Mar goes in for a test early tomorrow morning. Because of this she couldn't eat after noon today and we had planned a cookout at Pauline's complete with steak, salad, baked potatoes, bread, fried mushrooms and chocolate pie. She visited but could not partake. She was one sad lady. We have promised a repeat soon.

Her test will consist of swallowing a pill that is basically a miniature digital camera. This camera will travel down her digestive tract taking pictures and transmitting the images to a small computer she will wear on a belt. Twenty years ago this would have all been science fiction. We hope this will nail down the source of her bleeding. It will be a long day for her as she waits for the little pill to make the 40 foot trip through her system.

Joe

More Kid Stories

Okay, we've had average temperatures for August but we need rain (though we did have a shower this week). Farmers are still cutting tobacco and I can't believe we are already knocking on September's door. (Sorry Vicki...it got the best of me.)

STUBBORN LITTLE BOY. The other day Vicki and Ben ran errands. On their way home they picked Jenna up from school and Nate up from Pauline's. When Vicki parked the van Jenna got out. She gave Ben a moment to unbuckle she asked if he was going to get out. When he didn't respond she closed the door, walked around to get Nate and headed for the house. That's when Ben lost it and demanded that Vicki make Jenna come back to open the door for him and walk with him to the house. After discussing this with an unreasonable boy for a moment she laid down the law when she said, "I am not making Jenna come back here for you and you can sit out here until you are hot enough to want to come in."

Vicki had several trips to make to the van for all the things she bought that day. On the last trip she arrived at the tailgate only to hear Ben's cheerful voice exclaim, "Okay Mom, I'm hot enough now!" And in he went.

HOMEWORK. Jenna has homework now. It's all reading and spelling right now. She came home with a story she is to read for us and her vocabulary words are all used in the stories. She's picking up on it really well but there are a few words that trip her up. She is always anxious to come in and do her homework. I hope it is always this way!

SPEAKING OF WORDS. Nate really doesn't talk in English much yet. While he understands well enough to follow simple directions 99.44% of what comes out of his mouth is still jabber. What brought a smile to my face though was the other night when I was putting him to bed. I had told him to close the doors to his room and he closed one but walked out the other. Figuring he was stalling on his bedtime I took off after him saying, "Nate, get back here and close your door." He gave me this simple reply over his shoulder, "Bear." And after getting his bear he came back and closed his door.

DADDY'S LITTLE HELPER. We had new carpet put down in the children's Sunday School classrooms at church this week. Wednesday night several of us moved all the furniture out of those rooms so the carpet layers wouldn't have to do it. I had Nate with me as Vicki was teaching a missions class for kids (Ben is in her class). That Nate was a good worker. He did not waste a trip. Every time I hauled something he had a toy or chair in his hands and was right behind me. If it was too big to carry he pushed it.

A MOVIE REVIEW. Vicki and I went to see The Village Friday night. There are several twists in the plot which we were figuring out as the story was unfolding but I would never have guessed the ending from early on in the movie (one review said it was too predictable). What was nice was that it is a clean film. There was no language that really stands out in my mind. What violence there is was simply dealt with quickly and in a realistic way and the story moved on. Unfortunately we missed seeing this in Springfield (where admission is $1/$3 on weekends) so it was an expensive treat. If you don't make it to the theater put this movie on your list of things to rent.

Joe