Catch-Up

I've spent most "free" time the last several months working on details regarding our upcoming Honduras mission trip. Our team leaves on 7/10 and will return on 7/20. This will be the first mission trip out church has taken in many years. I've looking forward to actually sitting on the plane come early Friday morning. I think out team is as prepared as they could be.

I continue to struggle with how my life can continually be redefined and reshaped in order to free up additional resources for various projects around the globe. In some of my research for a talk on Honduras I continue to reflect on the fact that the average per capita income in Honduras is $1,030 vs $41,400 in the USA. That equates to about $20 per week. Roughly the same amount our family currently spends eating out as a family once a week. The other fact I have reflected on is that only 3.6% of the Honduras population is over the age of 65. In Kentucky alone those over age 65 make up 13% of our population. There is a significant amount of news media focused on the Baby Booomer population and the various impact this group will have on on the USA resources (economic, government, medical, retail, etc). What a stark contrast to that same age group on Honduras.

Benjamin celebrated his 3rd birthday this week. It took him most of the day to accept that it was actually his birthday. We're having a party tomorrow and hope the weather holds so we can have it outside. It amazing to see how he is grown up over the last several months. Sometimes I hardly believe that he is only 3.

I've also updated pictures of our family under the link for "Skip's Photos". This is current through June.

Thanks for continue to check this blog. Hopefully updates will come more frequent in the future and I plan to have several photos from the Honduras trip.

Newer Photos

I've finally up-loaded a few photos from the last couple of months. Check them out under the link to Skip's photos to the right.

More to come soon...

The Poor

The last few weeks I've been reading a biography of Mother Teresa by Navin Chawla. Between reading this and concurently doing some significant renovations on our house the last few weeks ... I've really struggled with coming to grips with my views on the poor, poverty, and what I currently find acceptable in my life. I still have half the book to read so I'm sure I'll reflect even more. In the midst of us replacing a few windows and considering upgrading some of the flooring in our house ... I read a blog post from our friends working in Nepal who are experiencing food, water, and fuel shortages ... which they may deal with more over the coming months. I also recieved an email from another organization with stats about children around the world. (see below). I continue to examine my attitidues about assets, about income, and about my level of contentness (and simplicity).

Over half a billion children are struggling to survive on under $1 per day
(Poverty Reduction Begins with Children, UNICEF, 2000)

It is estimated that 25 million children will have lost one or both parents to AIDS by 2010
(Children on the Brink 2002; USAID, UNICEF, UNAIDS)

130 million children lack access to education
(State of the World's Children, UNICEF, 1999)

246 million children are child laborers
(Facts on Child Labour, International Labour Organization, 2003)

8.4 million children are trapped in slavery, trafficking, debt bondage, prostitution, pornography and other illicit activities
(Facts on Child Labour, International Labour Organization, 2003)

300,000 young people under 18 are exploited as child soldiers
(UN Office of the Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, 2003)

30,000 children die each day from preventable diseases
(www.worldhungeryear.org)

Photo Update

Photos from the last several months are now up on the flickr site under the link Skip's Photos to the right. We should be adding a few more recent ones over the next week or so.

Our trip to Hendersonville, NC and Anderson, SC will be around March 3rd. We'll be in NC the first couple of days and Anderson the last couple of days. Hopefully we can work out a visit with everyone. Sarah's taking a couple of days off and we are planning on bringing both boys.

More later....

Long Time

It's been months since I've posted anything.... several weeks since I feel like I'd had time to actually catch up on any of our friends blogs. I can't remember the last time I posted any pictures to my flickr pages. Seemed like September through December zipped by. The boys have definitely kept us busy but we've also been very involved with our church here in Berea. My business really took off in late August and hasn't really slowed down since. It's been great to put some of my financial knowledge to use - rather than reading ABC books, feeding babies and changing diapers. I've had a great time meeting with clients and hopefully providing service that meets their needs and will assist them in financial plans.

The boys are doing great. Benjamin is doing very well with potty training. He's now just over 2 1/2. He's been going to a "preschool" two mornings a week and really has enjoyed it. His favorite gift from Christmas has been the Lincoln Log set - bigger size pieces for under 3 yrs old. We've been building towers, bulldozers, trains, and tractors every night for 2 weeks now. Jonathan is 8 months old. He struggled with ear infections in each ear over New Years but seems to be back to his normal self. He's already pulled up and loves his new perspective on things. He loves to chase his brother around and loves to rough-house.

The other big news is that Sarah and I are going in a mission trip to Honduras this summer. I'm co leading with 2 others. Our team of 15 filled almost immediately and it's a mix of high-school youth and adults. We've had 2 team meetings so far and are kicking of a few fund-raisers starting this month. We're both excited about the trip and continue to pray that our child care plans for that week will work out. If you are interested in reading more check out the BUMC Honduras link to the right.

I'm planning a short trip to South Carolina sometime in the next couple of months. I have a meeting with a few clients and also hope to have a speaking engagement as well.

Thanks again for being patient and understanding over the last several months.