A New Cord for iPhone, Plus More!

The battery life on my iPhone is nice, but for me, it drains quickly due to the fact I listen to music while at work. So to help from having a dead phone by the end of the workday, I bring my power cord with me. Unfortunately, after 5 months of carrying it around in my pocket and pulling it out several times a day... I wore it out!

The cord had gotten so bad, wires were exposed. And some of those wires were frayed. Yikes! I had gotten so bad, it was time to buy me a new cord. I wasn't too happy with the price though! $20!! Ouch!

When we went to Walmart to purchase a new cord, Lydia noticed something else... A charger/battery-pack for only $30! Wow, not bad! Designed by Case-Mate, it also gives you the USB cord to sync your player to the computer. That's exactly what I need! Plus the benefit and being able to charge the phone is awesome, and well worn the extra ten dollars.

The device also comes with a mini & micro USB cord so that you can also use it for charging other phones and devices besides the iPhone/iPod. One of my favorite features is that it keeps the cord nicely wrapped, preventing the problem I had with apple's cord. However, the cord is much shorter then I like.

So far, after having it for almost a week, I'm really satisfied with the device. Oh, it's also much better in price than the others! I'm n you can buy! I'm not too keen on spending $50+ on the same type of product!

BTW, if you're looking to find this item on the internet, good luck. I couldn't!

~Matt

Facebook Users' Info Published Online?

In more news... an online security consultant (Ron Bowes) took the public information available from Facebook, put it into one file, and posted it on Pirate Bay. This has caused some 'terifying' responses from facebook users.

Do I think that facebook users' info has been compromised? No, I don't. Nothing criminal happened. Furthermore, if you think about it, he just "republished" the info. It's already available online on facebook!!!! All he did was put it into one massive file.

Bowes claims it's "a scary privacy issue". However, I disagree. All that information is voluntary put up there by users. The users themselves are to determine what's private or not. All the info that Bowes grabbed was "public", therefore, not a privacy issue.

And guess what..? I agree with Facebook's response:

"People who use Facebook own their information and have the right to share only what they want, with whom they want, and when they want. Our responsibility is to respect their wishes. In this case, information that people have agreed to make public was collected by a single researcher. This information already exists in Google, Bing, other search engines, as well as on Facebook. No private data is available or has been compromised. Similar to a phone book, this is the information available to enable people to find each other, which is the reason people join Facebook. If someone does not want to be found, we also offer a number of controls to enable people not to appear in search on Facebook, in search engines, or share any information with applications."

~Matt

Warning: Facebook May Expose Cheating... or A Second Wife???

Love it or hate it... Facebook is part of our life! In fact, there are now only a very few of my extended family that are not on facebook!

Facebook can be good, or bad. It all depends on what you post. As a user, you have the option of what you want to share or not. As I have posted before, if you don't want info available, don't post it! You'd think that would be simple.

Well, in some of the most hilarious news articles I've read all week, it seems that a woman has found out, via facebook, that her husband has a second wife! Wow...! The woman came across the wedding pictures! I guess some could consider it sad. And yes, it's sad that he was cheating on her, and even got married again... but at least she was able to find out. If it wasn't for facebook, she wouldn't have known!

I guess the guy should have told his second wife not to post pictures... but then again... did wife #2 know about wife #1? I'd sure like to hear what she thinks about the whole thing as well!

~Matt

SG and Photoshop!

As many of you know, I follow Southern Gospel news and blogs. I had once thought about blogging about it, but have found that there are several out there that do such a great job at it, I just leave it up to them. Plus, I like to ramble here, and could never stay on topic! Since my posts are so random, today is about Southern Gospel!

Well, to get to the point.... Yesterday, I read about the possibility of the the Hoppers getting photo-shopped in one of their photos. To be specific, Connie.

Now, I will agree that it does look that perhaps some of the winkles have been wiped away, but that could have been done with a good make-up artist as well. The photo looks good, and I don't think that it misleads anyone on how they look. She still looks like herself, and doesn't give a false impression.

I guess some consider it wrong to "touch-up" an image. However, I don't think so. I also use photoshop occasionally on the photos I post. I have kids, and when you take pictures... things show up. For example, I had taken a great shot of Malachi smiling. I was getting ready to post it and share it, even get it printed at Walmart. But there was a problem. Unbeknownst to me, at the time of the shot, there was a huge, nasty, green booger in one of his nostrils! YUCK! I quickly touched up the photo, and no one knew something was missing.

I don't think people should misrepresent themselves in photos. But a little touch-up in the right way doesn't hurt!

 Anyway... as you can see in the attached picture, I decided to have some fun and give Claude Hopper a new look! :) I guess this would be misleading! LOL!

~Matt

Dropbox

I carry around a USB thumbdrive. I holds files to current projects I'm working on, so that I may be able to access them at almost any time. It also contains files that may be needed, like a few soundtracks and documents. It has been useful, like at church, when I needed to give our youth pastor some logos or artwork he's needed.

Well, now that the internet is everywhere, I stumbled across a website that provides the same type of service! Dropbox allows me to have (for free) 2GB worth of storage, accessible through the internet. Not only that, but they aslo have moble apps availble to access and organize those files!

This service works great for me, I can use it to keep the files of my projects at hand! If you'd like to join, click here and you'll get extra space just by using me as a referral!!!!

~Matt

Week Rundown! (07/18/10 - 07/24/10)

Sunday:

It was a pretty normal church day... except Mary got pied! Hahahaha! I got to pie her in the face since the boys won the penny offering for Vacation Bible School last week! Oh, the highlight of the day!



Monday:

Besides daycare, work, and Lydia's classes. Nothing important really happened today.

I mowed the lawn before supper. After we put the kids to bed, Lydia worked on homework and I worked on a project for KWFC.


Tuesday:

What a morning! We dropped kids off at daycare, went to gym, and then I dropped Lydia off at college. Instead of going to work, I took the car back into Midas... I had told them the engine was still kicking, and I believed the radiator fan (that kicks on when the AC is on to keep the engine cool) was messed up. Sure enough, the one they had put on two weeks ago, was defective and the fan blades were warped! They installed a "new" one, and it took them two hours. After they were finished, I headed out, and sure enough, the engine kicked! I turned around and brought it back. They said to come back on Saturday and they'll fix it! Boy, I hope so! This is too much of a pain!

Lydia was in-between classes, so she dropped me off at work and returned to college. The day went by pretty normal after that.

That evening, I stayed at home while Lydia went to a "spa" party held at her sister's. The kids and I watched tv while we ate a hearty supper. In fact, they ate so well, they had seconds! I must have been a great cook! I made lemon-pepper fish fillets, broccoli with cheese, and cooled potato bites!

I got them to bed at a decent hour, and that evening  recorded two Weatherford Quartet records to my laptop, plus the video of Ike and Holly's wedding. As the records were recording, I laid in bed. I woke up when Lydia came in! Ahhh... sleep!


Wednesday:

Mysia didn't have Daisy Scouts, so we actually had supper at home before heading to church!

On the way to church, it rained.... hard! We could barely see the road. It was good to get a rain though!


Thursday:

Lydia's cousin's daughter is working for a local company that sells vacuums from door to door. She needed practice, so Lydia scheduled a demonstration. Well, at 7, we get a ring of the doorbell. A guy is at the door.. he was the company's field agent that had came since she couldn't make it. So he did this whole sells pitch... vacuuming, questioning us, everything... for TWO hours! I felt sorry for the guy after the first 30 minutes! I knew we weren't going to buy, we have no money. If we were gonna spend money, it'd be on a new car! Anyway, he told us the cos at the end. We both laughed. We had to. We couldn't help it.

$2,500+!!!!! Ouch! Don't get me wrong, the product is nice. If I had the money I'd get it. After a new car, some furniture, a Wii, and an iPad..... But besides that, it was neat vacuum. However, we're not rich, we have bills to pay. He kinda got under Lydia's skin by suggesting that if we don't purchase it, we're harming our kids health. Boy... you don't do that!

He called his office to see "what he could do". He got it lowered down to $52 bucks a month. I then asked how long. A blank look appeared on his face. He went back to the phone. "Around 36 months..." was the answer. That's 3 years! "Uh, no..." was my reply. I felt sorry for the guy. He had expected a sell. We was just doing this as a favor for practice!

Anyway.... after he left, the kids got showers, and I then headed out to help my dad. He needed someone to assist him in installing a new tub. It's not a one-man job, as I had found out over the past two years with my tub problems! It took several hours, but we got it in. Not the easiest thing for just to guys either! Ha! I also visited with my mom a bit as well.

I got home, and Lydia was still working on her homework. So I fell asleep on the very comfortable couch. Eventually, Lydia did too! We woke up at 2:50 in the morning and went to bed! That couch is comfortable though!!!



Friday:

Hooray... the last workday of the week! I was so glad for it to be here!

The day went by like normal. It was slow going as it approached 5. Lydia was able to get off work at 4:30, so she picked up the kids and supper before getting me. Then it was rush to drop off Mysia and Malachi with their Aunt Lycia for the night! They were excited, and so were we. DATE NIGHT!

Yup... Lydia and I got the entire evening to ourselves. And wouldn't you know it? There was a country concert in town! What a way to treat my wife, then with the music she enjoys! I've taken her to plenty of Southern Gospel concerts over the past 7 years, so it was her turn.

As far as I know, it's the first country concert I've ever paid entrance to. I've worked several as a teen in concessions at the fair. So this was a bit different to me. A Southern Gospel concert it wasn't... that's for sure. But I had a good time. Lydia really enjoyed it.

We stayed for the entire concert, which ended at 11:30. I then took her (well, she drove) to Andy's Frozen Custard for a treat before heading home.


Saturday:

I was meaning to wake up early and get the car to the shop, but since we got home so late last night, I was tired! I ended up waking up around 8:30ish. I quickly got dressed, ate a quick bite, and headed to the auto shop, leaving Lydia asleep in bed! When I arrived, they were waiting for me. Thankfully, they didn't have much business, and took my car right in. Within an hour, I was on my way. The car purred nicely and the engine didn't kick at all! Finally!!!!!

Lydia was still asleep when got back home. We slowly got around, and tried to focus on organizing our bedroom. The kids were still with Lycia, so we thought we'd get a bunch done. Yeah, right! We were lazy. We focused on getting the kids' artwork sorted. We had saved a years worth of papers they have brought home from daycare and church. There was a lot to go through. Both are very talented, and it was hard sorting through it all, and throwing away most of it! I took several pictures of some of their best work and posted them on facebook.

Lycia dropped the kids off at home before 5, and we ate supper.... corn-dogs! We also put in a movie, The Princess Diaries. It's been a while since we watched it, and Mysia didn't remember it. Because of that fact, she wasn't interested in watching it at first. So I teased her half-way through, saying we ought to turn it off. That idea didn't go over very well with her at all! I'm such a mean daddy I guess! lol

Later that evening, we went to Lowes and then Walmart for our grocery run. By the time we got back home, the kids were wore out. Wait.... so was Lydia and I!


~Matt

Killing Time... er... the Watch!

I think the wrist watch has met it's demise.

How many of you wear a watch on your wrist? I've noticed that many,
including myself, don't wear one. Why not? Mostly because we carry
something better, the new pocket watch!

Yes, I'm talking about that mobile phone that we all carry. It has
become a watch replacement. We not only trust it for calls, messages,
etc.... but for giving us the correct time.

Here's a test. Find a friend, or even some stranger at Walmart, who is
wearing a watch and carrying a cell phone. Ask that friend what time
it is. Most likely, the friend will pull out the cell phone and tell
you the time!

~Matt

Week Rundown! (07/11/10 - 07/17/10)

Okay... again, this post is late. But it's been a hectic few days!


Sunday:

Ahh... Sunday!

Well, I drove the church van, attended morning services, and went home for the afternoon!

Tonight was special. Mysia was presented with her church membership certificate and a new Bible. She's so proud of it! The service was also the closing of our week-long VBS! It had been a long week, but it was awesome! I was certain that the boys were going to loose the penny offering. That meant that I'd be taking a pie to my face. However, I was wrong! We won by $30!!! The total amount raised was over $2000! A record!

We had snacks after the services, and Mary was supposed to get the pie in the face, but it was raining! So it's to be next Sunday! (I'm happy that it's not me!)

Oh.. Mysia went home with Granny. She's spending the entire week there since her Daisy Scouts are having a "camp" every afternoon, and Granny is taking her. We'll see how well she does!


Monday:

We woke up, got ready, dropped Malachi off at daycare and hit the gym. Ugh... I didn't want to! For the past few weeks, we haven't missed a day, so I guess we're doing good!

After her school, work, and giving plasma.... Lydia picked up Malachi before picking me up from work. They both went and vacuumed out the car and went through the car-wash. We all went to Walmart to pick up a few things... bust most importantly, a booster seat for Malachi! He's so excited!

We had a peaceful evening at home. Of course, we made a call to Mysia. She's doing fine without us!


Tuesday:

Today was pretty normal. We came home, ate leftovers, and got Malachi ready for bed before I headed out for quartet practice. Malachi actually stayed up and sat with Lydia while I was gone, and watched TV.


Wednesday:

A hot and humid day. Made it to church early... too early. Malachi played on the children's equipment while we watched. During services, Mysia didn't want to sit with us. She wanted Granny! Oh well...

We came home, put Malachi to bed, watched MONK, worked on homework/projects at the same time, and then went to bed.


Thursday:

Well, besides work, school, and daycare, nothing was really different until evening!

Lydia dropped Malachi off at Granny's before picking me up from work. He gets to spend the night too, and go with Mysia and her group to the park tomorrow!

I dropped Lydia off at home since some of her family were coming over for a visit. I then visited KWFC to run over some design projects I'm working on for them. The concert at the Fair is coming up soon, and their gearing up for it! What fun!

I then headed over to Ben's house (friend from church). He helped me look at the car. It had been acting up again. Come to find out, the fan that keeps the engine cool when the air comes on is not working correctly! It's the one that they just installed less than two weeks ago! I'm going to have to take it in! Ugh!

I went home and got to visit with Titus, Lycia, and Paulette... And eat pizza! Lycia brought over the cd that had our recent photo-shoot on it! The pictures look great! Lydia uploaded them onto her facebook page!

After they left, since the kids were gone, Lydia and I watched the "Bounty Hunter" before heading to bed. It was a good movie.. Enough action for me, and a pretty good romantic plot for Lydia. And plenty of humor for both of us!



Friday:

Lydia took the car into the shop during her lunch break, and walked back to work. They weren't able to do anything, and I argued with them over the phone. They said to bring it back in on Tuesday and they'll replace the fan.

It rained, so Lydia and I didn't get to go swimming at my parents' house when we went over there for the evening to pick up the kids. We had a nice visit, none-the-less! And when we got home, the kids were out!


Saturday:

We had originally wanted to go to Silver Dollar City... but since the car was acting up, I didn't want to chance it. I guess we could have went, but we stayed home and did a major cleaning of the kids' rooms. Since we had recently acquired a new bed for Malachi (thanks to my grandma!), we needed to get rid of some stuff and re-organize his room. Plus, there were clothes that were getting too small that we needed to get rid of.

Since we did his room, Lydia got it in her mind to re-organize Mysia's as well... I complained and disagreed like any other normal husband would do. And just like an normal husband, I lost that argument too, of course! Anyway, I'm happy to report that even though we're all tired, both rooms are nice and in order! 

We also did a grocery run, picked up the church van, and also picked up a stereo system from my grandma! My grandma had a record/8-track player, stereo system that my uncle used to own when he was younger. Growing up, my brothers and I would often use it to play records, or plug our portable cd players into it when we were over there! The system has awesome speakers! So when my grandma said that she wanted to get rid of it, and asked if I wanted it... it was a definite yes! Oh... she also gave me all of her records too!!!!!!! Oh yeah!!!


~Matt

Just Call Me "Mr. Duct Tape" (Tuesday, 07/20/10)

Ahh, yes... Duct Tape. A great invention for fixing practically anything and everything!

I always like to keep a roll handy. It's truly a handyman's greatest tool!

When in college, I had a classmate who really put it to use in an odd way. He had these sandals he claimed to have owned for 3 years, that he wore daily. Unfortunately, they had broke 3 months after he purchased them. He fixed it with duct tape. He then noticed it was more comfortable, so he wrapped both sandals with the tape. If the tape wore out on the bottom, he just added more. He claimed that it gave it more cushion, traction, and durability. Plus, it did look pretty cool...

I've used the tape quite a bit growing up. But now that I have my own house, I use it more often!

One of the greatest examples of my use for it was two years ago. Lydia had leaned up against the tile in the shower, and the tile fell through the wall! It left a nice big hole in the wall. So what did I do to cover it temporarily? Well, I grabbed several large plastic trash-bags, placed them over the hole, and duct taped them to the wall. The duct tape sealed the edges from allowing water to seep through, and also provided some bracing to the bags. It may have looked a little odd, but it did the trick!

Two weeks ago, I discovered that the sun had made the fabric on our porch swing very brittle. In fact, if I had sat down on it, it would have ripped and I would have found myself on the ground. What to do? Bring on the duct tape! I covered the fabric, weaving the tape a bit to provide bracing and structure. It took two and a half rolls... but it worked!

Go Duct Tape! lol!



~Matt

In case you may be wondering, here are a few more things a true man needs around the house:
• Super Glue
• Electrical Tape
• WD-40

The Man Your Man.... Old Spice! (Friday, 07/16/10)

My coworkers showed me an interesting series of youtube videos yesterday.... some of the best out there! All thanks to the advertising team for Old Spice!

Old Spice put out a great commercial, and then made it viral on the internet. But they didn't stop there... they actually replied to others with more hilarious clips! It's definitely worth watching!

It looks like that advertising team would be fun to work with!!!!

Check the videos out here: http://www.youtube.com/oldspice

~Matt

Week Rundown! (07/04/10 - 07/10/10)

Sunday:

Happy 4th!!! And once again, today was another busy Sunday!

My van route was a little low, and we figure that many were away for the holiday. But that didn't hinder attendance for the services!

For lunch, we spent the afternoon at Paulette's. We all got a little bit of a nap... which was real good!!!

The evening services were special! We had Vacation Bible School kickoff! Everything was done in preparation for VBS this week. During the services, Mysia was baptized. The water was cold, since they forgot to fill up the baptismal until right before services, but Mysia did well. Even though she shivered a bit, there was a grin from ear to ear! Most of the family members where there (Aunts & Uncles...). I took pictures and got a video.

After the services, there was food, singing, fellowship, and of course.... fireworks!!!!

Note: Each night was busy for us! Lydia would get off work or school, pick up the kids, pick up me, and then we'd head straight to the church. Sometimes we got there a bit early, and sometimes with little time to spare! It was rush.. rush.. rush! Vacation Bible School is awesome... and Soul Survivor On Danger Island is the theme for the week. Each day we get to visit a different part of the "island" and see how it applies to us through Scripture.


Monday: Soul Survivor at Shipwreck Point

Today was the official start of VBS.... and the start of some fun on facebook! I'll be sharing some of my puns that I plan on posting throughout the week!

The word for today is ABIDE. We learned how, when in fear, we need to abide in God. Just like Joshua had to overcome fear when leading the complaining tribe of Israel into the promised land, he also had to trust and abide in the Lord.

I got picked to represent the boys for the penny offering, and that meant that at the end of the week, if we loose... I get a pie in the face!!!

The facebook post:
- MattPaasch wonders why, when asked, "What would you bring with you to a deserted island", how come no one ever relies, "A boat."?


Tuesday: Soul Survivor at Big Shadow Cave

TRUST was the life application for the lesson today. Just like David, we need to trust God when threatened.

I brought a flashlight to class, and taught how, when in a cave, we trust the light to point out the way. It lights up the path, showing us the pitfalls and dangers, as well as the safe path. Just like the Bible!

The facebook post:
- MattPaasch tried to come up with a "cave" pun.. but gave up on the hole idea....


Wednesday: Soul Survivor at Quicksand Cove

Today's lesson was great!!! The story was on Hezekiah, who was not afraid to PRAYed when frightened. Plus, we talked about quicksand. I did some research on quicksand and found that it's not really life-threatening as portrayed in media. However, one can drown in it if in panic! To get out, you must be calm, lean forward in a form of prayer, and you'll eventually 'float' back to the top... Just like what we need to do when in the situations that come our way!!!

The facebook posts:
- MattPaasch - what do you call four bullfighters in quicksand? "Quatro Cinco"
- MattPaasch - what do you have when there is a lawyer up to his neck in quicksand? "Not enough quicksand!"
- MattPaasch heard that a cow got stuck in quicksand and crews couldn't pull it out... so they had to put him down. I guess the steaks were too high...
- MattPaasch has a 'sinking' feeling that he's going to get into 'deep' trouble if he posts more quicksand puns...!


Thursday: Soul Survivor at Hot Rock Volcano

The volcano theme was a great one. The lesson was learning to STAND for God when tempted... just like the three Hebrew boys in the furnace!

The facebook posts:
- MattPaasch will be going with the FLOW... Warning - These volcano puns I'll be posting may be EXPLOSIVE!

- MattPaasch hopes that his volcano puns don't cause people to VENT anger and SPEW frustration in the comments!

- MattPaasch is afraid his mind has gone DORMANT on posting volcano puns.... naw, things are starting to HEAT up!

- MattPaasch admits that he has some FAULTS, but can't resist posting these TUBEular volcano puns!

- MattPaasch is now wondering if these volcano posts would be considered puns of great MAGMA-TUBE...!

- MattPaasch is thrilled.... VBS will be a HOT SPOT tonight! See you all CRATER!

- MattPaasch is LAVAing his head off...

Friday: Soul Survivor at Boggy Swamp

Oh... the last day of the week! We're tired, but making it through! Today we learned to OBEY, just like Gideon. He didn't falter when God had him dwindle his army down.. he just simply obeyed. And God brought the victory.

The penny offering all week has been back and forth!!! The girls won overall for tonight, but there is still a chance for us boys to win Sunday night! It's been one exciting week!

Lydia's brother, Moses, ended up in the ER with a viral infection. He had passed out at church, and then again when at home. Lydia went and stayed with her family at the hospital until he was released. She didn't get home until 5am!!!!

The facebook posts:
- MattPaasch is too bogged down to post a pun...
- MattPaasch has a funny feeling that he'll be swamped today!
- MattPaasch searched for good swamp puns today with no luck. It has left him stumped...
- MattPaasch heard that if you drive through swamp country you will see swamps going bayou.


Saturday:

We got some rest today... not much.. but some!


Lydia was super-tired from being at the hospital all night, but we got up and headed to the park downtown for family pictures with Lydia's siblings. As you can imagine, they were all tired too!!!

The weather was nice, and the sun was out! Perfect for pictures. However, Malachi was a brat! It took Lydia and I for surprise. Usually he's not like this, but he just didn't want to be a part of it at all! Despite this, the entire thing went well, and when we played in the water toward the end, Malachi was happier! So perhaps the pictures that include him won't be as bad!

On the way home, we stopped by the auto store and I picked up a coil pack. The car has been kicking again whenever we turn on the air. Our friend Ben from church explained that replacing this should fix the problem. So after our naps (yes... we took naps!!!), I installed it! It didn't take too long, and so far, so good! It didn't kick at all when we went to get the church van!

The evening was pretty good... I worked on my portfolio online, Lydia helped me with updating my resume as well! The kids played, we watched tv... and later on, I did a grocery run!

~Matt

Week Rundown! (06/27/10 - 07/03/10)

Sunday:

Well, today was pretty busy! I woke up and went to Mens' Prayer Breakfast then did vans.

During the morning services, I sang in church quartet for a special. Things were going pretty good, and we were singing the song "Satisfied" (made popular by the Gaither Vocal Band). Unfortunately, we forgot to bring the lyrics with us, and several of the guys (Daryn and John) forgot their lines on the verses. So, Daryn pulled out his cell phone, which had the lyrics on it, and they used it. It got several people smiling and laughing when they caught on to what was happening.... 

After singing, I ended up taking Lydia home. She had gotten sick... yuck! I made it back in time to finish the van route before taking the kids to Chuck E. Cheese's for a birthday party. We had fun there, but I found out that you actually need to adults per kid... not two kids per adult! Things get pretty crazy there!

We got home, Mysia and Malachi napped for an hour and then we headed back to church. Lydia felt better, and was able to come too. At the end of the evening service, Mysia went forward (along with us) to announce her recent salvation, and is to be baptized next Sunday!!


Monday:

No car problems! Yay! Seems that all might be going well... we're praying! I was afraid we'd have to take it in!

This evening we all sorted and folded laundry while Lydia made bean dip for supper. Uncle Titus (Lydia's brother), who has been serving overseas, came over and we got to visit with him! Mysia and Malachi got to play and wrestle with him, and I think they about wore him out! lol! 


Tuesday:

 Today was a rushed day! Pretty much like usual, except for that evening.. a birthday party!

Lydia and the kids picked me up from work and we rushed home to eat. Then it was rush to the party for Lydia's sister Adria. It was held outside, at their church, and the kids loved the fact that there were swings and things to play on. Lydia and I got to visit with everyone.


Wednesday:

Pretty much the usual.... Work, daycare, church..... then bed! Yay!


Thursday:

After supper we headed over to my parents' house to once again enjoy their swimming pool. The weather had been cooler all week, compared to the week before, and today was even so! So, the water was pretty cool too! 

We swam for a good amount of time. Mysia and Malachi stayed in longer to play with Abigail, who had finished mowing the lawn. After swimming, we sat on Grandma's back porch and visited for a while before heading home for bed.


Friday:

Well, today was my day off. I had put in for a day off several weeks ago, before Lydia had acquired her new job. Unfortunately, she now works full days on Fridays since she doesn't have classes. So this gave me the entire day to myself.

So after dropping the kids off at daycare, going to the gym, and then dropping Lydia off at work... I came home and mowed the lawn! Great thing to do on the day off, eh?

Well, after getting that done, I got ready, packed up my fishing gear, picked up my friend Doug, and headed toward one of the local lakes! We had a blast! We didn't do much but talk, cast, and rest! We didn't even catch anything! But that was alright...! If I did catch something, I would have just thrown it back. I was there just to relax, and that's what we did!

I got back home after 2:30, grabbed a quick snack, and started getting things ready around the house in anticipation for our company we planned to have over that evening. I picked up the kids and Lydia around 5, stopped by the store for a few extra things we needed, then headed back home. I then had more help with getting the house prepared.

As our friends arrived, I started the grill and Lydia started work on the sides. The menu for the evening was grilled chicken sandwiches and noodle salad. Yum! Counting us, there was 13 people total. We talked, ate, and talked some more! The kids had a blast as well. It's nice to invite other couples that have kids too! lol!


Saturday:

 We slept in for a little bit. The kids were wore out from Friday night, and so were we! After eating a quick breakfast, we headed off to church for VBS visitation. We were part of a van-load that canvased a good portion of a few neighborhoods! Lydia and I made a great team... Lydia and Mysia took one side of a street, and Malachi and I took the other. We got quite a bit covered in little time! Thankfully, the weather was nice.

When we got back home, we put the kids down for naps and I grabbed a short one too! It wasn't long and we were back in the car, heading to the bowling alley to meet up with Lydia's family. We played two games, and had a good time.

We went back home, kinda rested a bit and watched some TV. Malachi was wore out and we both fell asleep on the couch. Mysia enjoyed watching America's Funniest Videos... 

After we got the kids to bed, I did a quick grocery run and Lydia prepared food for Sunday!


 ~Matt

Surviving....

This week is Vacation Bible School at Hillside! The theme is "Danger
Island"... And I'm trying to survive! Lol!

Last week's rundown will be posted soon! There are some finishing
touches I have to make!

Hopefully I can find time to make other posts, but we'll see!

~Matt

Your Private Info Being Published? (Friday, 07/02/10)

"Oh no! My info that I submitted is now published! Why?" -Facebook User

There is a scare going around on the internet that frustrates me. People are afraid of their information being made public, especially online. It causes fear and panic. But in reality, it can be easily fixed. The true remedy...?

Don't publish it!

Yes, it's that simple. What you submit will be posted. You have the choice on what you want made available to the public.

Do you own a phone book? Is your name in there? If so, your information is considered public, and it is also available online. 411.com is an excellent example. If you want your name, address, or number removed, just call your phone company and request to become unlisted. However, that will then deny friends and family the ability to look you up if needed.

As for social websites like FaceBook and Myspace, the same rule applies. If you don't want that info made available, don't submit it! You are not required to give your address and phone number. But if you do, you have the choice to make it available for public view or just your friends. 

Now to put some logical thinking to the test.....

Let's say you submit a photo, it's funny, but probably not the best idea to be posting. But you do it anyway. Some friends see it, they take it, email it, and it gets around the world... even attracting media attention. Trouble comes your way.

Who's fault is it? Yours or Facebook? You're the one who submitted the photo!

If you think I'm going over the top with this, check out the article that started the whole thought process for me! Like I said... if you don't want it published, don't submit it!

Comment your thoughts!

~Matt