Yes, you would think from this picture that he was not all that excited, but for DAYS it is all he has talked about.  We are now in Missouri for our annual visit to Lindenwood Homecoming.  Of course there is no official lacrosse going on, just the Alumni game, BUT it is always a gratuitous visit to eat drink and be merry with Steph and her comrades.  And that we have begun to do.

The second picture is Ben and Steph and Kara at a restaurant in the greater St. Louis area.  The ate a ton and then got perhaps the largest turtle sundae in the history of the world.  And as I am writing this from the hotel, they are all back at Steph’s house where Ben is no doubt holding court with all his college girlfriends……of which there are MANY!

And yes, he is clearly AWAKE.  He was going to stay with Steph tonight, but since she has to be up so early tomorrow, she is bringing him back to the hotel tonight.  Ben’s desire was for her to just stay here and sleep with him on the sleeper sofa.  Her’s was to have him stay the night at her house.  But since she has to be up so very early, he will be dropped back by here tonight to sleep with…..hopefully his Nanny in her room, but most probably us in ours!!

But the great part is that we are all out here together.  We will be together again at Thanksgiving and then again for Christmas break when we will head to California to see our Marine graduate.  For now however, we are just enjoying this part.  Ben and Steph are just so very tight and LOVE being together.   It is so cool to see.

I am just happy to be here as I could not make it last year.  It will be a fun weekend, and already is.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

Yes, it is a staged picture.  Viper needs a cage like I need an ice cream cake.  He has no interest whatsoever in running away, and he sleeps so much in the yard that even the squirrels make fun of him.  But he did hustle into his old kennel where he and our four other former Goldens used to hang out.  He was doing it out of habit and nostalgia.  I was doing it because I needed a picture of the kennel to put on Craigslist.

Yes the picture is of the end result, his leg (on the left) and my arm (on the right) with matching Snoopy band aids.  Yet the picture does not tell the whole story.  It was much more than you can see.

In fact, it really was more like the WWF, in that Ben decided he was not going to get his shot after all.  He had to be held down by a nurse, and his mom and me.  And for a little guy, he kicked like a stinking MULE!!  And he screamed louder than his sister at a Justin Bieber concert. (Yes, I will pay for that joke the next time I see her.)  But the bottom line was he got the shot, and he limped out into the lobby (his grandma was waiting out there) and he made the most of he could out of it until he forgot…..about 5 seconds later.

As for me, I got my shot, and felt the nurse put on the band aid more than I did the shot, but neither really hurt.  I went out and showed Ben my matching band aid, but he seemed quite disinterested.  He did manage to tell his mom and grandma a little later that “Daddy cried like a little baby,” but since I already had Amanda as a witness, I am hoping that she believed I did better than that.  Time will tell, but we will see.

So we are all set now until next year.  Sadly enough tonight Ben already has a fever, but I know that sometimes that happens with people who get a flu shot………..as it probably also happens to little boys who lie about their dads crying like little babies!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

I was supposed to pick up Ben from school today in order to go and get flu shots, but I forgot I had to meet a contractor at home.  We have a lot of leaves, ok that is not quite accurate, we have more leaves than anyone on the face of the earth, and they all love to congregate together…….in our gutters.

Of course our gutters are pretty high up, close to 500 ft in my estimation (as I do not climb the high ladder) and my gutter cleaner, as I have mentioned before, is hanging out with some of his closest friends in San Diego.  So I have been looking into gutter guards of some kind, and today I had a guy coming out to give an estimate.

Had I not already used Ben with his tongue sticking out, today would have been a great day to use it.  He was pretty stinking happy that we were not heading to get a shot. (he does fine and hardly even flinches) I think he is hoping and praying I forget.

But sadly for him, my mind is like a steel trap (hahahahaha….no it isn’t at all) but I do remember his shot!  We will do it tomorrow.

Doing it will give us the protection we need…..and, it will keep my mind out of the gutters.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

Yes, today for a lot of different reasons, Amanda and I decided to share in a “fast,” but in true homonym fashion, when you make it a point to fast you find that there is really nothing fast about it at all.  Yet we both felt that today it was an important discipline, and we have both kept it well.

On a personal note, fasting is something that helps keep me focused, and although today has been a brutal one, work-wise, I have made tons of progress in terms of getting things done.

But I generally do not tell people when I fast, as it is a highly personal spiritual discipline in my mind, plus I am always reminded of the words of Our Blessed Lord in Matthew 6 about those who pray and fast that they may be seen…….in all honesty, it is not that pretty.

But I thought I might mention it tonight, seeing as Amanda is doing it also, and as an opportunity to ask for God’s blessings upon our ministry, our family, and our marriage.  I am not worried about any of the three currently, but I will say that it would really be nice to hear that others are praying for us.  AND, in addition to that, it would be nice to hear about we can pray for in terms of YOU!

Life just happens all around us and often we do not do enough to make it better.  Praying helps, fasting helps, walking in community helps, and being the people God calls us to be helps as well.

Consider joining us.  This life is going fast enough.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!


Tommy+

Today has been an exceptionally busy day!  We opened informally St. George’s in Muncie, and my intended celebratory nap went right by the wayside as I spent the rest of the day dealing with work issues that really shouldn’t be.  But I do not want to complain, what I instead want to do is to is share how important it is for me from time to time to set certain things like that aside and “choose the good portion,” as Jesus says.

Sure, I know that Jesus also talked about if your cow fell into a ditch on the Sabbath you would not leave it there, so sometimes work just cannot wait.  But it is also said that all work and no play can make Jack a dull boy.  Fortunately, my name is not Jack, so I am probably safe, but the point is that one can get so consumed with work that they can miss out on the life God has provided around them.

And the life around me is pretty wonderful.  I missed my nap with my wife, but she fortunately took it for me…..and she said it was great.  Tomorrow is by no means a light day, but it is one that I can work mostly from my home office which means shorts and a t-shirt and coffee all day!  Sure it is not “clerical wear,” but the t-shirt will be black!

So instead of rambling, I will call it a night.  Amanda seems more than willing to resume her nap, and this time for all night.  Busy day be gone…..I am heading to bed.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

Well I generally do not have “suggestions” for this blog, but today my wife ran across a guy at a craft show that carved stuff out of driftwood.  This particular creation was made of driftwood and was of St. Michael the Archangel, and this artist was selling this particular piece for $3000 in order to raise money for him to go do missionary work in Africa.

Of course I am a guy without $3000, but in all honesty I support his efforts.  Plus that, I am not too sure where I would put a wood sculpture of St. Michael, even in one of our Churches…..Amanda said it was huge!!

But I do admire how different people work hard to fulfill God’s call.  AND, I do admire people with artistic talent…..particularly as I have none.  This piece was truly not what I would be drawn to, as I am really more classically influenced, but I do believe that there really is a niche for everyone.  And somebody will look at this and see it as exactly what they are looking for.

As for me, I am quite comfortable in telling you about it, but even more comforted in the fact that it is not coming home.   I do pray this missionary gets to Africa, and I pray that it is funded primarily by this piece.  But it is not my thing……..in fact, I am just the messenger.  And I am just helping him, and doing a favor for my wife.  You see, I do love her, and I do know her…..and if the message was to buy this, I am sure it would already be in our living room.  So in the absence of that, I just needed to share!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

No, this post is not going to be about Lady GaGa, and I will confess that I have not even heard her sing.  She would be pretty easy to pick out in a crowd I suppose, but then so are a lot of us…particularly our son Ben.

Tonight he was able to hold court, and by holding court I mean Skpe with his sister and all her friends at college.  It is really always more of a show or a performance that it ever is than a conversation with him, and he never disappoints.  He did not sing the famous “Bulldogs get your paws up,” which is apparently the Lapel Elementary Fight Song, but he did manage a song about the months of the year.  And he did it without any wild costumes or even a microphone.   (Although there WAS a costume for some of the “non-singing” parts of his show.

I always get joy watching them chat, but I also took great comfort in the evidence that he will probably never get caught up in the desire many young people have to be famous in the world of reality TV.  He has what I affectionately call “CD” or “camera dysfunction,” of which there is no cure.  You see, when he wants to make a point, whether it is showing her something or talking, he gets right up to her face.  The camera is filming (poorly) usually his forehead, and he is generally all put off at why Steph is getting is wrong.  So, if he ever does make it anywhere, he will most probably be the first voted off the island, and we have no problem with that…..none whatsoever.

But tonight’s picture is of our little monster showing off his fangs.  Yes, they are fake.  Tirman, in the native German tongue means “animal man,” which puts us really more in the Canis Genus rather than the Desodus Genus….but I scientifically regress.  He just doesn’t howl (much) and there is really no good way to catch that in a picture anyhow. So this will need to do.

And with that, I am off to bed!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

Today I took the day to spend with my wife and many of her coworkers at their “Day of Service.”  People from all across her company are encouraged to go and take part in a community service project somewhere for the day, or at least for a half a day.

So today we went and painted at an animal shelter…..one for both dogs and cats.  And it was truly great to see all of the animals and to talk to them and to be doing something that really made coming to adopt one of them a more pleasant experience.  The fences around their enclosures were in need of a lot of paint, as was the roof on the porch of the office.  It took a long time, but it looked good, and certainly made a difference.  The people my wife works with were wonderful and overall it was a lot of fun.

But the picture causes me to pause (or pause if you pardon me) because it was of a dog who was there with his owner to make a pick up.  He was clearly angry, although pretty cute despite all that, but the deeper meaning came to me as I realized just what his master was picking up.  You see, he was taking cremated remains of euthanized animals out of the cooler and putting them in his truck.  And although the dog probably didn’t know what his master was doing, it brought to mind to me that if he did, he should have been angry…..in fact we all should.

You see, I met a lot of great dogs and cats today, and I watched helplessly as many people came in to surrender pets as well.  And I am not naive enough to believe that many of those cremated pets were probably great animals as well.  It was both heart-breaking as well as offensive.  I just wish it could be different, because it should be.

As a former breeder of Golden Retrievers, let me say that if you have a pet and you are not a professional breeder or show your dogs, you should have them spayed or neutered.  AND, if you feel the need to surrender your pet, please do not place him in a shelter, but try and find him a home…..in fact make sure you do.  These animals are scared, and rightly so.  Many do not find homes and end up on that truck.  It just should not happen.  We placed a LOT of pups, but we also made sure that people knew we would ALWAYS take them back with no questions asked.  We never had to, and we thank God for that.

But consider adopting a dog or a cat.  Or consider volunteering or donating to your local shelter.  It is a decision you will not regret.

And as for my growling friend, I have a great deal of admiration for him (or her…I wasn’t going to get any closer).  I am just thankful on this night that he or she is probably home after that terrible job, and now sleeping at the foot of a bed in a loving home.  (Viper is asleep with Ben and Puddy has helped me write this)

God created ALL living things….let’s take care of them.  If you send me a note I can tell you a couple of places that you can find that companion you have always wanted!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

Yep, that’s right.  I bought yet ANOTHER exercise bike, and this one had absolutely no purpose other than I liked it better than my old one which was also quite new.  As regular readers may remember, I bought it less than a year ago to rehab a knee injury.  So both this almost brand new bike and a really nice Nordic Track Pro, in great condition, are posted on Craigslist.  And this new recumbent Gold’s Gym bike is in my office.

But what I want to be clear about is the picture.  Ben is ONLY seated like this because he was being a smarty pants because he could not reach the pedals.  It is very important for me to express that he is NOT doing ANY SORT OF IMITATION of my exercise style.  I in fact will use this, and quite surprisingly to many, my feet do indeed touch the pedals!  The other bike was great when I needed it, but this will be a regular friend.  Even Amanda likes it.  It is a win-win.

But I will confess that I am not nearly as efficient in losing weight as I was when I was in bootcamp.  And I miss it too. I am not sure I can justify the cost, as money is tight here and I went the first time on a special rate.  In addition to that, it was about 2 gallons of gas each day and 3 days a week.  Now that adds quite a bit more to the cost.

Of course, the old “emergency open heart surgery” argument is a good one.  It is probably more expensive than bootcamp and gas, but I am still losing weight without it.  It just is not nearly as fast.

So this is to say that I am still at it, and still working hard.  No, Ben is not….but I am.   I still intend to greet my Marine in December close to 180.  Pray for me that I succeed.  But I will do so by not imitating Ben.  What a weenie he is!  AND, he can’t even reach the pedals either!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+