Battle of Richmond

On Saturday afternoon I took my 2 nieces Katie & Crystal to the Battle of Richmond Civil War Reenactment. It really turned out to be a really great experience - it was fun to watch them look at the merchandise and period clothing that various vendors had. They must have tried on a dozen bonnets and hats. The loved seeing the various outfits that the ladies wore and some of the different soldier’s outfits. Watching their expression when the cannons first fired was priceless. I took a few photos and somehow the girls ended up getting their picture on the front page of the Sunday edition of the Richmond, KY newspaper. I also managed to snap a few pictures. You can check them out by clicking here

Birthday

We’ll it looks like my wife has been scheming the last several weeks… working to provide me a nice big birthday weekend. It started on Friday night when she arranged for a baby-sitter to watch little Benjamin so the two of us could go to a local moderately upscale

resturant . Its about 15 miles from Berea and sits on top of a hill with a nice overlook. A portion of the drive to the restaurant goes through a narrow two lane road with some great scenery: ie. A small waterfall, a canopy of trees overhanging the road, Kentucky farmland… We started with Grilled Quail – great flavor but not a very large portion… I had the 14 oz T-bone with potato-bacon-cheddar soup – green beans, baked potato, and mixed vegetables. Sarah had the KY Trout. We finished up with a dessert titled “Acres of Chocolate Cake.” We were very please and would definitely recommend the food.

On Saturday she managed to have a surprise party for me with some of our family and some friends from our time at college. We had a huge feast with enough food for a small army. Sarah had taken several black & white photos I had taken several years ago, arranged them, and framed them. She had also presented a booklet of emails from several friends and family who could not make it to the party. The framed photos look really good and I’m looking forward to finding a place to hang them. Later that night I got a call about a birthday video clip that our friends from SC had sent – it was absolutely hilarous. It was really great to be able to visit with everyone and just sit around swapping old stories.

Friends

Over the last couple of weeks I've been working at catching up with friends from college who I haven't talked with in several years. For some it has been 5+ years and for others only a couple. It's been great to be able to take a little time each day and swap a few emails and photos. One of the nice things about being closer to where we went to college is that it's more central to where alot of Asbury alumni live. Hopefully over the next couple of months my family and their families will have a chance to see each other in person.

Peaches, Potatoes, & Tomatoes

Part of our weekly excitement in Berea is going to the Walmart Supercenter down the road and checking out their various produce. Each week I try to pick out a fruit or vegetable that we don't routinely purchase and that is not available locally at the farmers market. Tonite we picked up some Saturn Peaches. I really was tired of the nice looking peaches that I'd been purchasing that really tasted like chaulk. I tried one when after we got home and was very pleased. I went online and read some great write-ups here and here.

We're also trying to support some of the local farmers by shopping at the farmer's market. This week we picked up a huge cantalupe for a 1.50 and 2 lbs of various types of small potatoes. One variety was a darker color on the outside and almost a blue-purple inside. How cool would those mashed potatos look? I also picked up a pint of various cherry tomatoes. Sarah's favorite was the yellow variety. I'll have to go back this week and ask the actually variety or name so we'll know if we get around to planing a garden next year.

I've also added a Blog link to my friend Bryan's blog. He hasn't updated in a while but what can you expect when you're whole family has been in China for the last several weeks. I'm also working on at least one link to my photos. To be continued...

A Midsummer Night's Run

6 down 6 to go – I ran a 5K in Lexington, KY last night. The race started at 8:30 pm and it was great to run through part of historic Downtown Lexington at night. I haven’t run or trained for running in at least 8 weeks – but I’m trying to stay on track to my goal of 12 runs this year. It was a great turnout with approximatly 3000 runners – and the race did a great job of including people of all ages. You can see results here and read more about the race here. Overall I was pleased with my time but realized how much not running & training these last several weeks has set me back. I fnished in 25:42 - 69th in my division which had 186 runners. If I am still running this time next year I'm planning on running this one again - maybe even getting little Benjamin to run a little 1 miler that they have.

Irreproachable, Reason, Order & Law vs Grace, Forgiveness, Kindness & Humility

I finally completed reading Les Miserables by Victor Hugo. I read and read the last two days because I wanted to get finished as I’ve been working on this novel from before Benjamin was born – about 7 months before. It is by far one of my favorite novels, movies, and productions. I’ve seen the movie multiple times and a Broadway production of it… but the novel – despite its intricate details into French and Paris history – far outweighs the other two.

My favorite character is Jean Valjean but my favorite transformation is in Javert. Javert has some thoughts in the 4th book – “Javert off the Track” that I thought I’d share:

“Javert’s ideal was not to be humane, not to be great, not to be sublime; it was to be irreproachable…. He was startled; his balances were disturbed; one of the scales fell into the abyss, the other flew into the sky…order was his dogma and was enough for him; since he had been the age of man, and an official, he had put almost all his religion in the police… He had a superior, M. Gisquest; he had scarcely thought, until today, of that other superior, God… He had lost his bearings in this unexpected presence; he did not know what to do with this superior…He could not understand himself. He was not sure of being himself. The very reasons of his action escaped him; he caught only the whirl of them. He had lived up to this moment by that blind faith which a dark probity engenders. This faith was leaving him, this probity was failing him. All that he had believed was dissipated. Truths which he had not wished for inexorably besieged him. He henceforth be another man. He suffered the strange pangs of conscience …He saw what he revolted at seeing. He felt that he was emptied, useless, broken off from his past life, destitute, dissolved. Authority was dead in him. He had no further reason for existence. … What was passing in Javert was … the throwing of a soul out of its path… hurled in a straight line and breaking itself against God.”

First

On Sunday we visited a church here and met a young lady just out of college who was getting ready to go to Russia to spend a year there with Campus Crusade for Christ. We wanted to hear more about what she would be doing, what brought her to that decision, and how she was doing on support. So we invited her over for coffee and dessert last night. We sat around the table on our back porch for about 2 hours talking with her and sharing about some of our experiences. We are very excited for her. She leaves next week and really only has a small amount of support left to raise. I would ask that you keep Laura and her team of 4 others in your prayers as she completes her fund-raising and prepares to go to Russia. She has been on a 6 week trip before but this will be her first year long trip.

Benjamin has had a several first the last couple of days. The two I think I am most proud of are that he caught his first bug (a small moth) - I let him play with it for a while then we turned it loose (before he ate it) ... and that he ate and enjoyed his first Grits this morning. He's really coming along well :-) We are also working with him on learning a little sign language. He had "More" down for a while - and now he has picked up "Thank You" and "Please". I checked out a book for the library to give us a few more ideas on words he could learn. He also is really into things with wheels - not just touching and spinning the wheels but actually pusing the car or tractor down the hall or across the floor. Finally he's rode his first Trike - or tricycle - stationary for now but he likes it. It was one of his birthday presents that we finally finished putting together.

Saturday

Sarah and little Benjamin went to visit with her parents for the day. That left me with all kinds of time on my hands today. Everyone I talked with on the phone said I could relax and enjoy my day. I did enjoy my day - although until now there was not much relaxing. I worked steady all day - about half outside and the other half inside. I managed to use our little Accord to help pull a huge 16-20 long - 8-10 in diameter limb that fell - from the middle of our yard to the road. I did it early in the morning so none of our neighbors would think too bad of me. A couple of yellow tie straps and a little pressure on the gas pedal and you would have thought I had a 4 wheel drive truck instead of an Accord. I caught up on mowing and spent a little while working on two electric weed-eaters that the previous owners left. I managed to get both of them working but neither is really adequate for the yard we have. I'd really like to purchase one - something pretty durable and something that should hold up - but haven't decided yet. One of our neighbors insisted that I use his riding-lawn mower for the large flat section of our yard. I realized that it has been at least 6 years if not more since. It really made for quick work but I reverted back to the push-mower for the more detailed work. The other larger project I tackled was installing a baby gate at the top of the stairs. Benjamin finally figured out how to push our "temporary"boxes out of the way when he wanted to go by. This new gate is attached to the wall and should do fine until he jumps up & down on it a few times.

A while back we recieved some really neat cards from designed by Susan Loy at Literary Calligraphy. She and her husband now have blogs and a link to their website. You can click
here to read more.

A couple of notes on little Benjamin. Lately he has discovered magnets. He'll take one off of the refridgerator and then try to put it on a cabniet door, then he'll discover it sticks to the oven and later his one of his toy buckets (that's the good story) - the other item we're struggling with some right now is that just about every time he gets into the car for more than about 10 minutes he starts to have a little melt-down. He likes to be so active that I think he feels a little restrained. Changing toys and changning music and talking to him really doesn't seem to help. I'm really hoping this is a stage that he will soon pass through - could make for some very long road trips.

Family, China, & Friends

Today was Sarah’s first day at her new job. It was nice to have her come home relatively relaxed – at least compared to the last several months. I was starting to work on cooking dinner and she said “I’ll help” – and then she proceeded to cook up a really great taco meal: ground beef, black beans, sautéed mushrooms & onions, diced fresh tomatoes, grated cheese – throw in a little lettuce and a batch of soft-corn tortillas and it was a good meal. Afterwards we turned on the stereo – watch our son play all over the living and dining room – and then we finished off with a little ice-cream and chocolate syrup. At one point little Benjamin was lying on a pillow on the middle of the floor, polishing off the rest of his milk out of his bigger sippy cup, staring at the ceiling, wearing his little John Deer (24m) t-shirt, and listening to John Mellencamp. It was a priceless picture. It was an unusually calm, non-stressful evening – great time with the family.

On Sunday night we drove over to Louisville, KY to here our friends Roger & Camille share one last time before they headed back to China. They have been there about 5 years and have been back in the states about 6 months. They have had some really amazing experiences and it has been an absolute blessing to be able to participate with them in their ministry. The “sending off” service was absolutely amazing. I know the experience was very meaningful to both me and Sarah.

We also met another friend from college at the church service. Both of us drove about 2 hours – and basically met in the middle. Our friend Anna and her husband joined us at the church service and then we went out to eat at Bucca-di-beppos in Louisville. Other than their wedding the last time we saw Anna was at that same restaurant when Sarah graduated from med school 3 years ago. It was great to catch up with them and we look forward to seeing them a little more often.

If you get a chance you may want to click here to catch up on what is going on with little Issac Clardy. He is really struggling right now.