Soccer Practice, Yard Work, and Kissing Babies

Spring has sprung in Tennessee! The pear trees and buttercups are in bloom, the weather is warming up, and I fired up the lawn mower for the first time this year. So begins a chore that won't stop until October.

IF PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT we have a long way to go. Ben is playing soccer for the first time and his first practice was Tuesday evening. He was so eager to get the ball during practice that every time he got close to it he would try to pick it up or tackle it.

Jenna is starting her third season this year and also had practice Tuesday evening. During one drill the coach told her to dribble the ball down the field. This was the wrong command to give to our former basketball player. Jenna quickly discovered that soccer balls bounce about as well as a rock.

WALKING AND KISSING. That is what Nate is doing. While his preferred mode of transportation is still crawling sometimes he forgets what he is doing and takes 6-8 steps across the room. He is also a smoocher so if you run into him at church or somewhere pucker up.

FACE PAINT. As I mentioned in the intro I have gotten the mower out. I spent all day yesterday working in the yard and was a little sunburned when I got done. This morning as we were getting ready for church Jenna asked me what I had painted on my face.

THE AUNT MAR GENE. Jenna was over at a friend's house yesterday. As Jenna entered Maegan's room she exclaimed, "MAEGAN, you need to clean your room. It's your responsibility!" Maegan retorted, "I can't help it. It just keeps getting that way!"

CRAZY EIGHTS. We went to our second Crazy Eights dinner last night. It was a lot of fun. Our first one was in early February and we will be doing it for three more months. The goal is to have a pot luck dinner with three other couples from church each month. There is some overlap but ideally we eat with different people each time. This has been a lot of fun so far and we highly recommend it if your church is looking for something to get people together.

A PRAYER REQUEST. You may recall my reporting on a visit from college friends Jonathan and Sheila Leach during Christmas. Sheila is back in town. Her father, Herman Floyd of Estell Springs, was diagnosed with lung cancer and had part of a lung removed this week. He is recovering well and is due to be released from the hospital tomorrow. This surgery is hard to recover from and he really needs prayer.

Vicki went to the hospital to visit Mr. Floyd and Sheila on Friday night. She and Sheila also went out to eat. They really enjoyed their visit. It was the first time they had been alone together since college.

Joe

Beginnings, Endings, and Things In Between

I feel like I don't have that much to report this time since it has only been five days since y'all last heard from me. But this will get me back in my routine.

SET IN STONE. We have been waiting for two months for a break in the winter rains and it finally happened last weekend. We have a neighbor who has a concrete construction business and the weather finally lined up with his schedule so he could pour sidewalks in the front and back of Pauline's house. She has a curving sidewalk leading to her front door and a small patio and sidewalk in the back that will fit in with a deck that will be built some time soon.

A WONDERFUL LIFE. I was asked to be a pall bearer in a funeral for a cousin of mine on Thursday. Mr. Jennings Luton was a few weeks younger than my father and they were good friends growing up. During Would War II he and his wife moved to Akron, Ohio, to follow a new job. They have lived there for the past 62 years. Because of this I was acquainted with Mr. Jennings but did not know him well.

I was really blessed in hearing the eulogy given by their pastor who traveled from Ohio for the funeral. I left there knowing that the family was celebrating the life of a godly man. But I also came home with a renewed sense how important it is to be devoted to Jesus so that all my family and friends will be blessed through me.

WHILE I AM ON THE SPIRITUAL HIGH.... We attended a wedding tonight for Jodi Rippy (a girl from our church) and Matthew Hancock (a cousin of mine on Mom's side of the family). The ceremony was very pretty but what was so special was to see a young couple who both put Christ first in their lives start their married life off the right way.

Actually, I had worked the sound and lighting for the wedding so I was invited to the rehearsal dinner last night. At the dinner the groom's father and a few friends got up and spoke. The love for the couple getting married, other family there, and for Jesus was very evident in everything that was said. That is a blessing I take for granted a lot of the time.

VISITORS FROM FLORIDA. Aunt Linda and Uncle Bob are in this week to visit with Aunt Mar on her birthday. They arrived on Wednesday and we went to the Catfish House in Springfield for supper on Thursday. And as always, the spades games are lasting until the wee hours of the morning.

WITHIN OUR WALLS. Since I have written about everything except my own family I will report that we are all doing very well. Jenna and Ben are signed up for soccer. We have heard from Ben's coach and their first practice is Tuesday.

AN EXCITING DEVELOPMENT. I have met the producer of a TV show called Spiritual Outdoor Adventures and am getting the opportunity to edit one of the episodes for his show. I will let you know more as this progresses but I ask that you pray for me to have a clear vision of what to do as I read the script so that I can be creative while doing a good job. I have enjoyed doing this kind of work in the past and hope that this leads to more work along these lines.

Joe

Missing Teeth, Reading Books, and Getting Away

I apologize for this newsletter being late. We went to Gatlinburg this weekend! Today was a holiday for Robertson County Schools (Staff Development Day) so we made a long weekend of it.

OUT OF HOUSE AND HOME. He's not even a teenager and Nate is simply packing it away. He almost eats more than Jenna and Ben combined. I don't know where he puts it all but it goes somewhere.

JUST A FUN DAY. Vicki had a really enjoyable day on Tuesday. She had been scheduled to go to Jenna's school to read some books to Jenna's class. Ben goes to Mom's Day Out at Cross Plains Methodist Church on Tuesdays so after reading to Jenna's class and eating lunch there Vicki stopped off at Ben's school and read for his class as well. Her selected readings included Ben's favorite book titled Mud Puddle (or "Mud Piddle" as Ben calls it). Vicki came home talking about how much fun the whole day was. I am so glad she can go do that every now and then.

That night we all went to the PTO meeting at school. The Kindergarten classes put on a program together. Jenna played an owl and did a very good job of looking serious. There wasn't a moment that she was out of character. You think she got that from me?

Mom and Aunt Mar rode to the PTO meeting with the boys and me. On our way home Ben said, "I'm sleepy," and I told him to take a nap until we got home. Not one mile down the road Mom let's out a big yawn and says, "Whew, I'm tired." My ever practical boy was quick to say, "Well G'Anne, take a nap!"

O TOOTH FAIRY! Jenna has had two loose teeth (front and center on the bottom) for quite some time now. Thursday night, when Jenna was brushing her teeth one of the loose ones broke free and went down the drain when she spit out her toothpaste. It was a big moment for a little girl! She was not upset at all...we simply wrote the Tooth Fairy a note explaining the situation.

Later, as I was giving Ben a ride on my back to his bed, he said, "I so 'cited for Jenna. She lost her toof." Ben thinks his teeth are loose now as well.

On Saturday after lunch Jenna was showing how loose her other lower tooth was. With Jenna's permission Vicki reached in with her tweezer like finger nails and plucked it right out. The Tooth Fairy caught up with us in Pigeon Forge that night.

OH WHERE IS MY HAIRBRUSH? Nate has taken up with a little purple hairbrush. He crawls around with it and has even slept with it. I seem to remember Jenna was the same way about those little plastic film cans that 35mm film comes in.

GETTING AWAY. As I said, we just got back from Gatlinburg. We actually stayed in Pigeon Forge. It was simply a nice, slow weekend. Had we done everything on Jenna's agenda we would still be there. One of the highlights of the trip was visiting with Keith, Angi, and Jackson Arnold. Angi is one of Vicki's high school/college friends. They live very close to the condo we stayed in. We had a lot of fun visiting and eating with them.

Another highlight of the trip was the Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg. It features the longest underwater tunnel of any aquarium in the world (340 feet long with a moving sidewalk). We went through the tunnel looking at all the fish three times. The stingrays, sharks, and sea turtle were the favorites!

FATHER KNEW BEST. While eating at a restaurant this weekend I took Ben to the bathroom because I knew he needed to go. He argued with me about it right up to the time I sat him on the toilet. In a moment he heard the results of his voiding in the water and he looked up and cheerfully said, "Well Dad, I guess I was wong!"

Joe

A Good Week with One Tragic Day

It feels like things are starting to awaken from their winter hibernation. The weather is warmer now. I'm hearing a few tree frogs after the sun goes down. There are patches of buttercups and a few Bradford pear trees in bloom. And I even saw a candle fly fluttering around the porch light the other evening.

ONE SWEET BOY. The other night, after the kids had all gone to bed, I came across a toy that hadn't been put away so I picked it up and took it to Jenna and Ben's room. When I went in the room I could tell Jenna was asleep; however, Ben whispered out, "What are you doin' in here?" I told him as I set the toy down and then went over to tell him I loved him and kiss him another time before leaving the room. As I was turning to leave I heard his whisper in a more commanding tone say, "Kiss Jenna!"

PACKED BAGS. As you know, Jenna and Ben usually take turns spending Friday nights with Mom and Aunt Mar and Pauline. Last night was Ben's turn to stay with Mom and Aunt Mar. He was so excited about it that he had his bag packed by 10:00 am. I called home around 11:00 and Ben answered. He told me he was all ready to go and added, "...but Mom said it be a long time."

Later, when we inspected his backpack, we found he had packed a few toys, his bear, his pajamas, one pair of underwear, and four t-shirts. It took some doing to convince him to add some pants to the collection. Jenna, on the other hand, moved to Pauline's house last night. I think her luggage weighed more than she does. When I asked about it all she simply said, "I don't want to get bored."

ONE YEAR. It is hard to believe that Vicki's mom has been living here for one full year. She moved into her new house last year on March 7. We hope we have been as much of a blessing to her as she has been to us.

Pauline had us over for fried chicken tonight. When we came out the full moon was just rising and was really large and yellow. Jenna sets all of her bags down, digs out her kick ball, holds the ball up to the moon and says, "The moon's as big as my ball!"

“THE WORST DAY IN THE HISTORY OF SPRINGFIELD.” That is what the Chief of Police said about yesterday after a shooting spree that left three people dead and one critically wounded. We don't know a lot of details right now. If you are interested in keeping up with this story you need to visit the Robertson County Times web site later in the week.

Where I come into all of this was around 11:30. I was swinging by the house for lunch on the way back to the office after working all morning in White House. I had taken several back roads to get home and arrived at my house by way of Pinson Road. This comes out just a few hundred feet from our driveway. As I turned onto the highway I met a state trooper who immediately turned on his blue lights, shifted into reverse, and followed me into the driveway. Not having any idea I had done anything wrong I was shocked to find him telling me I had not come to a complete stop at the stop sign. And from the way he was talking I was braced for a ticket (which would have been $153) so I was shocked again to only receive a verbal warning. I later found out that due to the homicides in Springfield the police were looking for a green, Chevy pickup with an extended cab. My truck matches that description.

Please keep the families that are affected by these tragic shootings in your prayers.

Joe