Phantom Rings (Thursday, 09/30/10)

Before we got our iPhones, I used to keep my Motorola SLVR on my belt. When it would go off, the thing would really vibrate. I often got what has been referred to as "phantom rings", a term used to describe when someone thinks they hear their cell ringing or feel it vibrating when it's actually not.

It would happen occasionally, and I'd reach over and grab my cell out of it's case... just to find out it wasn't going off. I'd even get this phantom rings when not wearing my cell! I'm guessing it was more in anticipation of getting a call? I don't know.

Well, we've have our iPhones now for about 7 months now. I have a case for mine, but it's not one that clips on my belt. In fact, when I carry it on me, it's actually in my pocket. I have a fear that if I had it on my belt, I'd have a greater chance of smashing it against something, therefore shattering the screen. It's too expensive of a phone to risk it.

I thought that this would cure those "phantom rings" from happening. But no... my right hip still gets that feeling! Go figure! It's more annoying than anything. Is it just an incurable twitch? Does anyone else have this problem and have an answer? It's almost like a curse for being so reliant on or addicted to a cell phone.........

~Matt

Stationary Phones... (Wednesday, 09/29/10)

Today, my mom posted on facebook:

My Granddaughter, pointing to the stationary telephone in my living room, just said to me, "When I grow up, I'm going to have a phone like yours."

Wow, that got me thinking...

You see, we don't have a land-line at home. We dropped it in favor of our cell phones. There was no use to have a regular phone when we had the cell phones right with us.

So our kids are growing up, not really knowing what a "real phone" is. What a thought! I guess we'll have to address using the cell phones as they get older, etc.

Growing up, I never would have imagined that the stationary phone would be something of the "past"...

~Matt

Mysia: The Bruise! (Wednesday, 09/29/10)

As I posted earlier, we went to Silver Dollar City on Saturday.

We were finished and heading to the entrance of the park, and Mysia wanted me to carry her on my shoulders.

I obliged, and propped her up there. No sooner did I do so, she puts her hands over my eyes with giggles and laughter. This causes me to not see where I was walking. I veered over to my right, unintentionally, not being able to see. I heard a cry. The edge of some awning adorning one of the shops along the path had hit her cheek below her right eye.

"Daddy!" she exclaimed, "You hurt my face!"

Me? I did? I don't think so.... It was her who covered my eyes! But try explaining that to a five year-old!

Anyway, yesterday, she came home with a simple drawing of what happened on Saturday. As you can see in the picture: her hands are over my eyes, the awning is above the trail we're walking on, and there is a bruise under her eye (wrong side though). Yup, that's her way of telling the story!
 

~Matt

Week Rundown! (09/19/10 - 09/25/10)

Sunday:

I got up and headed to church to do drive the vans, like normal. Services were good, but I was a bit tired. To be honest, I felt like dozing, and probably did a bit! Ooops!

The afternoon was a bit more relaxing. But it was soon off to church for me to practice with Sam and then choir. After evening services, we participated in the Birthday & Anniversary Fellowship... and ate!


Monday:

Well, we're once again tweaking our schedule! This morning, I woke up, packed my bag, and headed to the gym. Lydia stayed home and worked on homework. We're going to try for me to go to the gym in the mornings, and Lydia in the afternoons. Anyway, after my workout, I came home, Lydia headed off to college, and I dropped off the kids before work.

Lydia picked Mysia up from school and headed to the gym. They have an activity room for the kids, so Mysia got to enjoy that. After I got off work, I picked up Malachi, and we met Lydia and Mysia at Mysia's school. It was open house, and we got to find out how Mysia is doing in school, plus all the activities they do while in class. Malachi had a blast, and Mysia enjoyed showing us everything.

Lydia had a quick meeting at college, so she left real quick while I finished talking to the teacher and listening to Mysia explain some of the things around her classroom. Afterwards, we headed home and ate corndogs for supper. Lydia showed back up, and I got Malachi ready for bed before heading out to quartet practice.


Tuesday:

Again, the new schedule has taken place. I went to gym, Lydia worked on homework. After I got back home, Lydia dropped Malachi off at daycare, and I took Mysia to school.

That evening, Lydia went to give plasma and then went to a Ladies' prayer meeting at church. I, of course, stayed home with the kids. After supper, I plugged them into several episodes of the Flintstones while I mowed the lawn before it got too dark. All of it is mowed except for half the backyard, so at least our front yard isn't the worst looking one on the block! The lawn had gotten so bad that the weeds were to my kneecaps!

After getting Malachi to bed, I helped Mysia with her homework. She got to bed right before Lydia came home.


Wednesday:

Another busy day of course! Mysia had Daisy Scouts this afternoon, and Malachi and I beat Lydia and Mysia home when I got off work!

We ate real quick, and headed out to church. After church we came home and put Malachi to bed. I was tired, but I helped Mysia with her homework before putting her to bed. After that, I crashed on the couch. Lydia... well, she worked on homework!


Thursday:

Today was cleaning day! When we got home, we got dinner going and started getting the house in order. We let the kids use the little vacuum in their rooms, it works as an incentive to pick up!

After supper, I finished mowing the back lawn. Unfortunately, it got dark pretty quick, but I got it done. It was a little difficult toward the end, but to quote Mater off of Pixar's Cars, "Ain't no need to watch where I'm goin'; just need to know where I've been. "


Friday:

After work and school, we all rushed home. We ate real quick and I put in the Flintstones for the kids. Tonight was our fist discipleship meeting!

Our church does a discipleship course. Lydia and I have been wanting to take it for over a year. So we were excited to get started. Our Associate Pastor, Tim, and his wife, Debbie, agreed to be our teachers for the course. They came over and went over what we were to do for the week. It includes verse memorization, a daily Bible study, and homework! (Poor Lydia)

After they left, we got the kids ready for bed. My parents, Granny and Grand-dad, stopped by for a bit. M&M were glad to see them! It was like they had found an extra boost of energy! We all went to bed shortly after they left.


Saturday:

I got up and went to work for several hours, making some overtime. When I came home, Lydia and the kids were about ready to leave, so we finished getting ready, and headed to Silver Dollar City! Lydia drove, I napped, and the kids watched two episodes of the Flintstones

After hitting the restrooms first at SDC, we headed to see one of the musicals called "Headin' West". On the way we picked up some kettle corn (Lydia's favorite). During the show, the kids accidentally dumped the entire tub of popcorn on the floor!

The show was fun to watch, and afterwards we rode "Fire In The Hole". Malachi loved it, Mysia... not so much! We then rode to the "Shoot Out", which is fun for us all. Just riding a boat, shooting at targets, and racking up points!

In the kid's section, M&M got to ride the Frogs and the Ladybugs. They were getting tired and grumpy- a clear sign that it was time to go. They fell asleep before we arrived!

Lydia dropped us off, and then headed to do grocery shopping. I fed the kids some supper and got them ready for bed. After groceries, Lydia worked on some homework and we went to bed.

~Matt

Facebook: A Game? (Friday, 09/24/10)

In my continuation of facebook related posts... it seems to me that Facebook has become more than just a way to connect with friends and family. It has become a game.

The game is to attract the most attention... the most comments... And I agree, it can be fun! I like it when my status gets several comments and a ton of "likes"!

The sad part is the fact that instead of finding finding constructive ways to garnish attention, there are many who resort to hateful 'opinions'. Just like I addressed in my last post. In that, I find it disheartening. So I have found that it is best to avoid commenting on those status posts that "feeds the fire".

To beat this 'game', I post on the positive. It keeps me out of trouble, and believe me... I like playing it safe. Unfortunately, this still does not guarantee that I not be drawn into some feud... it happens and there seems to be no easy way out of it. I have found that it's not the end of the world if I get 'de-friended'. I just remember that since I was able to live life without them on Facebook prior to them being friends with me on the social networking site, I can still do it. Hey... life goes on! My social status doesn't rely on what friends I have on there.

In fact, what really matters to me is what my testimony is, and how what I post may affect my life (or even my wife and kids). If I post or comment in a way that is disrespectful, sinful, or wrong... what kind of husband, father, or Christian am I? So I'm careful. Sadly, I'm sure that no matter what, I'll offend someone here or there. I'll just try to do my best, and do what I believe is right.

~Matt

HateBook...???? (Thursday, 09/23/10)

Of course, I'm hoping the title of this post caught your attention. "HateBook" And no, I did not make it up. I've heard this title before. In all the good that Facebook has, it has drawn people who like to use it for spreading hate. Sometimes they realize it and don't care, and sometimes they just don't think before posting, etc.

Facebook, being on the internet, brings out the good and bad of everyone. Besides making friends and getting along nicely, it can attract those who like to complain and cause trouble. Some on purpose, and some seeing it as a "safe" outlet for their anger. There are even those who say they don't care, posting things just to get responses, then get mad when others do the same thing! Therefore the name "hatebook". It all falls under "ATTITUDE".

This can easily get out of hand with status posts and comments. It often appears that people don't think things through before typing. Or, perhaps, that make a rash decision to post/comment on something, thinking that "it just needs to be said, and that's that!" Unfortunately, that does more harm then good.

I realize I can't change people. Sure, I may slip too. I try to have a positive attitude when posting, thus the attempted humor! Oh, I also understand that there are those that will do what they want, no matter what. All I can do is encourage those around me to think first, then post. Post with a good attitude!

~Matt

Mysia Wins Another Contest (Wednesday, 09/22/10)

Well, it happened again! Mysia entered a coloring contest at BioLife (where Lydia gives plasma) and won!

She's won coloring contests before! So it's neat that she won again.

This time, she won a nice bear from the Build-A-Bear workshop. She was very overjoyed to find that she has yet another teddy!

I guess we need to enter her into more of these contests. Maybe she'll win something cool like a Wii! Lol!


~Matt

MyThoughts on MySpace (Tuesday, 09/21/10)

"You don't post much on MySpace, in fact, it looks like you're hardly ever on there!"

Yes, that's right. I have pretty much abandoned MySpace. I'm still a user, and forever will be until it shuts down. But I hardly ever go there.

Why? It's pretty simple actually. I don't like it.

I don't like the intrusive advertisements, the layout, and the fact that I can hardly make out many of my friend's pages! It gives people too much customization, and people have really bad layouts. Like the saying goes, "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should." And that goes with the 'design' of some of these layouts! Yuck!

Nothing is more annoying than going to a page and being blasted with music and videos that you can't stop from playing because they're hard to find on the page. And my goodness... those pictures in the ads are horrible. I'm not single, and I'm not looking! Please go away!

I guess this would fall under the "bad" of social networking!

But I'll remain on MySpace for one reason... there are some friends on there that aren't anywhere else. Plain and simple. However, I encourage them to come on over to Facebook! lol!

~Matt

Week Rundown! (09/12/10 - 09/18/10)

Sunday:

Today was pretty normal. I woke up, did the vans, enjoyed Sunday School and morning services, came home, and rested a bit! The kids took naps, and Lydia did homework. I wanted to lay down and take a nap, but ended up working on some projects on my laptop. Keeping busy is a good thing I guess.

Evening services went well, and afterwards there was a dinner held in appreciation for those how helped in VBS! The food and fellowship was great.

When we got home, we put the kids to bed, and got some things done before heading to bed as well.


Monday:

Lydia had a meeting so Abigail picked Mysia up from school. After work, I picked Malachi up from daycare and headed home. It was just him and I for the first part the evening until Lydia got home around 7:20. Malachi and I had sloppy joes for supper, and he ate pretty well. It was pretty neat, it just being him and I.

I had quartet practice. We practiced more Christmas songs. We're trying to see which ones fit, and work out a few arrangements.


Tuesday:

When I arrived home from work, Lydia and Mysia were napping on the couch and Malachi was jumping all around! He had the energy, they didn't. I went ahead and started supper, potato stir-fry and pork chops! Fortunately, it was an easy thing to cook, and it turned out very good!

Everyone was tired. We did get the kids to bed at a decent time, and I ran to the store to pick up a few things for the following day. Lydia made some cupcakes from Malachi to take to daycare tomorrow, and I iced them!

Wednesday:

Today was Malachi's birthday. He turned 3!

When we got up, we had the kids get dressed and then sang "Happy Birthday" to him. He got to open up a small gift we got him. (we're planning a party on Saturday). He played with the cars until we headed out.

Other than that, it was a pretty normal day... Mysia had Daisy Scouts, and we had a quick supper before heading off to church that evening.


Thursday:

Well, it was that time once again. Our visit to the dentist! This was Malachi's first official visit. After arriving, I was the first to go to the chair. While my teeth were being cleaned, the kids got theirs looked at. They were full of questions and observations. After we were finished, I left with the kids while Lydia took her turn.

I dropped Mysia off at school, and then took Malachi over to Granny's house. Since his birthday was yesterday, Granny wanted him to spend the day with her. From the reports I got, he had a great time. They went to the mall and bought some cowboy boots. When I got home, he was running around in the boots, and showed them off to me.

Since I got to work late due to the dentist visit, I worked late. Lydia left for a another spa party after I got home. I made supper and got the kids ready for bed.


Friday:

It was Grandparent's day at Mysia's school, so when I dropped Mysia off, we met up with Granny. Granny got to have a picture taken and see what the school was like. Mysia was disappointed that Granny didn't get to stay the entire day at school, but really enjoyed having her there.

That night we attended the youth rally at our church. It was fun, and very good. Bro Decker did a wonderful job with the message. Malachi and Mysia sat with us the entire time and did very well, despite it being way past their bedtime. We didn't get home until 11ish.


Saturday:

I can't really think of any weekend that is not busy. Today was no exception!

Even though we didn't get home until late last night, the kids were up and ready for cartoons at an early hour. Lydia and I didn't sleep in much either, We got up up around 8 and started picking up the house and getting ready to leave.

We left the house at 10:15 and headed to Walmart. I ran in and grabbed food and a few things for Malachi's birthday party later in the afternoon. We then picked up Mary, and headed to the park to hang out with several families from our Sunday school class. We ended up going to a different park that had more room for our little group, and it actually turned out better. We let the kids play, ate lunch, and visited. The kids kept us alert, but were well behaved nonetheless. We had a great time.

We left the park around 2, picked up pre-made (not cooked) pizza, and headed home. We had the kids nap while we hung up decorations and got the house in order for company. Around 4, family started showing up. And by 5, everyone was there. We talked, visited, ate, and then let Malachi have his time! He got several neat toys. He also got some cool clothes as well. He definitely made out pretty well for his birthday once again!

After everyone left, we put in a video for the kids and made the grocery list. I left to do the shopping after getting Malachi ready for bed. Lydia started into her homework. I arrived back at home, put up the groceries, and then worked on a couple of projects. We got to bed late!




~Matt

Social Networking: Good or Bad? (09/18/10)

I think I've pretty much addressed the good of social networking, especially proving that its not inherently "evil". However, is it good or bad?

I mostly think it's good. There are a lot of benefits. Sadly, there is some bad things about these sites. People can use them to sow hate and desertion among friends and relatives. Why? I really don't know. I've tried my best to come up with a good reason. But just like in any gathering of people (like a group), there's always a few who don't seem to want to play nicely. They like to add drama.

In a humorous aspect, when these people add drama, these sites get very interesting. But then again, it can also be hurtful. It's like tv soaps meet reality tv, but in a social networking theme!

So... Good or Bad? I say both.

~Matt

Social Networking: Pictures and Updates (09/17/10)

I found Facebook to be the best for the photo albums, and have since stopped emailing photos to everyone. I now encourage all to just view my albums on facebook to see how the kids are growing up. It makes it a lot easier, and I'm not flooding everyone's inbox!! The coolest part is that I can tag the kids and add captions to pictures if needed. I also like the fact that others can comment on the pictures. It makes it neat, and I can also show the kids what others have said.

I also have made it were all the updates I post on this blog get imported into my Facebook notes. This makes it easier for friends and family to keep updated on what we're up to without having to check the blog. They get notified in their newsfeed that I have blogged, and can read it from there. How great is that?

~Matt

Mowing.. Reasons Not To! (Wednesday, 9/16/10)

Okay... many of you know that when it rains, my yard floods. It can take days before I can get to mowing my lawn after a good rain. It's a pond!

Right now, my yard is in need of a mowing. It's been several weeks. However, there is a lot of water in my yard due to the rain we've had over the past few days. Of course, last night, we got drenched again!

I have sworn not to mow a wet lawn. One, it's not much fun. Two, it's such a good excuse!

Well, I came across an article that gives me yet another good reason not to mow my yard after a good rain!

Lol!

~Matt

Social Networking: Evil? (Thursday, 09/16/10)

Note: For the past several weeks (or month), I have compiled this series of posts concerning social networking. Since there is always something happening on these sites, my opinions may be a little outdated already! lol! But I'm still going to post them.... so enjoy!
 


Ahhh... the ability to connect with friends and family on a daily bases, and in real time! One of the greatest ideas, or is it?

As you may know, the Internet draws every out into one big community. Some people are smart, and others... well, you get the idea...

I'd like the discuss the woes of social networking, but more specifically, Facebook. I knew I would not get all my thoughts collected within one post, and I'm not sure how many posts I will end up writing concerning this idea. The are several things I want to address (or rant about). Lol!

A couple years ago, Lydia and I took the plunge and joined two social networking sites: MySpace & Facebook.

At first we were hesitant. We had heard so much bad stories about them, how they need to be avoided, how they can ruin your lives, lead you into temptation... etc. The main thought from many: they're evil!

Well, we talked about it, looked into it, and decided to go ahead. There were several friends on both sites, and they seemed to be fine with it. We posted a little bit of info about ourselves at first, and were very careful on who we added as friends. However, to our surprise, there were friends on there that we hadn't heard from in years! It was exciting! 

There wasn't very many relatives on there, but as time went on, more joined. And wouldn't you know it... more friends have joined too!

So do I think it's evil? Well, not if you do it right! I'm sure if someone really wanted to, they could stalk me. But it would be pretty boring. I post more puns and one-liners than anything else, so they really don't have much to go on! lol.

Perhaps there might be a possibility I might offend someone. Sure, it happens. It's not that I do things on purpose. But these are social networking sites, they involve people, and people can easily make a mountain out of a molehill. I just try and do whats right, and if someone has a problem with it, they can address me with the issue. If they hold a grudge about something and don't tell me, its not my fault!

All in all, as long as everyone plays nicely, these sites are a great tool for keeping in touch and updated with friends and relatives! Now that's cool!

~Matt

Posting about Social Networking (Wednesday, 09/15/10)

I've been meaning to write a series of blog post on Social Networking... my thoughts, opinions, and observations. So, for the past month, I have written (and put into thought) several posts on the matter, but haven't posted them yet. So much has been going on, that I wanted to make sure each post was clear and to the point before posting them. I don't want to come across as harsh or negative, and I definitely don't want to offend anyone.

I think I've gathered enough thoughts on the subject to go ahead and start posting them. So if interested, keep an eye on this blog!

~Matt

Malachi: Happy Birthday (Wednesday, 09/15/10)

Wow...! It's amazing! Three years ago Malachi was born!

It's surprising see how much that the little baby boy God gave us has grown. He is definitely all boy, and a handful at times... but we are so thankful to have him as a part of our lives!

He's very smart for his age, and has proven himself to be a help when needed. Competition from his older sister gives him a drive at times, which is good. He can stand up for his own, and is usually easily excited to try new things. He's my little buddy, and truly a fun little guy!

Happy Birthday Malachi!!! 

~Matt

Explaining The Stone Age...or rather, those folks from Bedrock!!!

Being the good parents that we are, we give our kids vitamins every day. We want them to grow strong and be healthy. We usually get the generic brand from Walmart that consists of animal characters like elephants, monkeys, and bears.

Over a month ago we purchased Flintstones vitamins. Unfortunately, Mysia and Malachi don't know who the characters are! lol

We had some explaning to do... Bam-Bam, Pebbles, Betty, Wilma, Fred, Bearney, Dino and "the Great Gazoo"! It's not easy to do, seeing they've hardly ever seen the cartoon!

However, that's going to change! I just picked up season 1 from the library, so we'll be watching those before dinnertime each evening! (I was getting tired of the same PBS shows anyway!

~Matt

Week Rundown! (09/05/10 - 09/11/10)

Sunday:

With the mini-van out due to a leaking water pump, our associate Pastor, Tim, picked me up early so that I could get to church to drive the church van. Lydia and the kids took the car to church.

Earl Koon, missionary to Australia for 40 years, preached in the morning service. I remember hearing him in Sunday School when I was in 2nd grade! He brought a great sermon, and he was a joy to listen to. After services, Ralph offered for me to come to his house tomorrow to put in a new water pump. Boy, that was a relief! We had been worried on how the week was going to work out, with our tight schedule, trying to find a place that would do it and work with our warranty.

There was no choir practice, so we had an extended afternoon, in which we all took naps. For the evening service, Lydia and I had the toddlers. Mysia sang a special with Sam.


Monday:

I had originally planned for today to be a lazy day. Just hang around the house and do nothing. Well, that wasn't the case.

The kids got up and an early hour, something they wouldn't do normally. I turned cartoons on, and then headed out the door. I picked up a water pump for the van, and then headed over to Ralph's house. We worked on the van for about 4 hours. The water pump was difficult to get to, but Ralph knew what he was doing.. and he got it on. I tried to help as much as I could without getting in the way. It's sad to note that I'm not much of a car guy. (but I'm learning!)

Lydia took the kids over to my parents' house, and they where just sitting down to eat when I finally showed up. We hung out there for a good part of the day, and didn't leave until that evening. We played with the marshmallow guns, visited outside. M&M got to play with their cousin Elijah as well!


Tuesday:

With the holiday being yesterday, it made today feel worse. We weren't really ready to get back into the weekly schedule!

Lydia picked up Malachi after picking Mysia up from school. When I got home from work, they were already home. The evening was pretty normal. We got the kids in bed at a decent time. Lydia did homework of course. And we got to bed later then we wanted to.


Wednesday:

Mysia had Daisy Scouts today, and in spite of the rain, met at one of the parks on the other side of town. Since it was closer to church, Lydia decided that they'd meet Malachi and I there instead of coming back to the house. So after work, I picked up Malachi from daycare and we headed home to grab a bite real quick. At first, he didn't really want to eat his sandwich I made, but when I pulled out a can of olives, and said I'd share, he ate it up quickly! He had more fun eating olives off of his fingers!

We met the girls at church. Services were great, and the kids we taught were in a good mood despite the gloomy weather.


Thursday:

In the afternoon, Abigail met Lydia at the house, and they picked up Mysia from school. We wanted Abigail to know where the school was, and where to get her on the occasions we're not able to do so.

When I got home from work, Lydia had already picked up Malachi as well and was working on dinner. Abigail had decided to hang out for a it before going home, so she had dinner with us. Soon after supper, Moses came to hang out Lydia left for her mom's house. Her mom was holding a 'Spa' party, and Lydia was excited to go.

We watched tv for a while, and then I got Malachi ready for bed. I then helped Mysia with her homework before getting her ready for bed as well. Once the kids were down, we popped in a movie. Abigail left in the middle since it had gotten dark, and she didn't want to stay out too long. Moses stayed until the movie ended. By the time he left, Lydia was on her way home.

Lydia worked on homework for the rest of the night.


Friday:

Around 5:45 a big thunderclap shook the house and woke us all up. I heard Malachi get up and run to Mysia's room. He started crying and Mysia hollered out that he was vomiting. Then I heard him run down the hallway. He vomited all the way!

Great....! :(

We got up and started cleaning up the mess, the poor guy started having diarrhea. Well, I started not feeling to great either. (Come to find out, Abigail had went home last night and was feeling ill as well) Malachi and I ended up on the couch, and had several vomiting moments before Lydia with Mysia for school.

We napped and when he woke up, I turned on the cartoons. We both were in a 'dumb' state of mind. The poor guy was weak. After a while I convinced him with some toast, and it worked. He was able to keep it down. (the red Gatorade was not much fun earlier)

He and I had a long afternoon nap, giving our bodies the rest they needed to re-cooperate. It worked! Well, it worked too good for Malachi! He was going at 200% afterwards! He started bring out his toys, and bounced around the house! I guess it was a good sign!

Lydia and Mysia came home around 4ish, after picking up supper from the store. We watched a bit of tv, and played with the kids for a while. We all got to bed at a decent time too!


Saturday:

If it wasn't for my sickness yesterday, I had originally planned on mowing at least the front lawn. But the rain had flooded our yards once again, and there was no way I was going to be able to even get the mower out of my shed! Go figure!

At 10, we met at the church for discipleship meeting. Our church does a discipleship course, and we had been wanting to participate. We realize our schedule is already a bit hectic, but we really want to participate in this course, and see what it may challenge us! It sounds very exciting!

On our way home, we stopped by the library. We all picked out several books. The kids got to enjoy the children's area as well. By the time we got home, they were tired. So we made lunch and put them down. Lydia and I were tired too, so we took naps as well. Boy did that feel good!

After supper, I did a grocery run. I accidentally left my bank card at home, so I had to leave the cart in customer service, run home, and come back and pay for the items. That made me feel idiotic. But, I know that it happens to other people at least once. As long as I don't do it again, I'll be fine!


~Matt

A Drone for the iPhone!!! (09/09/10)

Okay, now this has to be one of the coolest things to come for the iPhone!

The ability to control a drone aircraft with your iDevice! Now that is cool! The drone has a camera that allows you to see what it sees! You don't have to watch it from the ground, you can view what's happening as if you're in it!

Technology sure is awesome! Unfortunately, it comes with a pretty hefty price tag.... $300! Ouch.

Looks like I'll have to keep on dreamin'!



~Matt

Check out the official site!

Week Rundown! (08/29/10 - 09/4/10)

(Photo is of Malachi holding a picture of us on our wedding day)




Sunday:

I got up and headed into church for Men's Prayer Breakfast. I was the one bringing the devotion, so after I ate, I talked about Responsibility. I then did the my van route.

I was also scheduled to sing in a special in the morning services, so I chose "How Big Is God". It's one of my favorite songs, and it works well with my bass voice. The message in the song is simple, yet thought provoking. Which is one of the reasons I like it so well.

In the afternoon, the kids napped, Lydia did some homework, and I messed around on my laptop. "Rocky" was on one of the local channels, so we watched it. I hadn't seen it since I was a teenager, and could remember most of it. I'm sorry to say, I was disappointed. Not much of a movie to me! The theme song is the only memorable part!

It was the 5th Sunday Sing for the evening service at church, and our quartet sang a special featuring Sam and Katie (Greg's daughter). It was a joy to hear the other talent as well.


Monday:

Well, back to the new schedule. I took Malachi to daycare before meeting up with Lydia and Mysia at the gym. Lydia left for college, and I took Mysia to school before heading into work.

When Lydia got home with Mysia, she did worked on homework while Mysia watched tv. Malachi and I arrived home after I got home from work, and we ate supper. Lydia and the kids worked on laundry, and I headed out to quartet practice. When I got back home, the kids were in bed, and Lydia was working on homework. She ended up staying up late working on it.


Tuesday:

We followed the schedule of course...

That evening, back at home, we worked on the house chores, and got the house looking pretty good! Laundry put away, floors swept and vacuumed, etc. After supper, the kids went to bed, and Lydia worked on homework while I worked on a few products on my laptop.


Wednesday:

We got tons of rain! I remember waking up early, and hearing the rain. I was thankful, we really needed it. However, when we woke up, got around, and headed toward the vehicles, it was pouring down! My umbrella wasn't doing such a good job at keeping me dry!

I tool Malachi to daycare, while Lydia left for the gym. Lydia was already working out when I finally showed up. The rain had stopped for me, but Lydia and Mysia got soaked!

Thankfully, after our workout, the rain had given us a reprieve, and wasn't coming down. I was happy about that, since I still had to drop Mysia off at school, then head into work. However, the rain picked back up when I arrived at work.

Due to the heavy amount of rain, Mysia's Daisy Scouts were canceled, so Lydia and Mysia headed home after school. I picked up Malachi after work, and headed home. The roads in our area were flooded (you can see pictures I posted on facebook). We ate supper and then headed off to church.

We participated in Master Clubs at church. The kids were a bit anxious, it being a rainy day, but they were well behaved. After church, we headed over to my parents' house for ice cream and browning to celebrate my dad getting a new job.

We got home later than originally planned, and immediately put the kids to bed. I stayed up with Lydia as she worked on her homework. I watched tv ! lol

Thursday:

Today Lydia and I celebrate 7 years of marriage!

We woke up drowsy and sluggish. We had stayed up too late, and were now paying for it! We got the kids ready and followed our schedule.

I had expected more rain, but it didn't come until 4ish. And it wasn't too bad, just sporadic! Lydia had picked up both Mysia and Malachi, so I drove straight home after work. I was happy to find that most of the water had drained out of the yards.

I played with the kids for a bit, and then we made supper. Since it was a special day, I had asked Lydia what her favorite dish wan, and we made it. Cooked Salmon…. Yum! During the preparation the rain hit! It started coming down nice and hard. We paid little attention to it while we ate. After supper, I got Malachi into the shower and ready for bed while Lydia worked with Mysia on her homework.

I sat down at the table, pulled out my laptop, and heard the sound…. Tornado sirens! Great! Great downpour of rain ensued, a spectacular lightning storm, electricity out for a few minutes, and two kids scared! And it's my fault. When those sirens go off, I get anxious. The kids pick up on it, and go into panic mode. For me, my adrenaline is pumping during the event.. I've always wanted to be a storm chaser.We were finally able to settle them down, give Mysia her shower, and put them both into bed. I had to lay down with Malachi for a bit, the lightning was still putting on a good show. The yard was flooded again, and we got to bed at a good time!

Friday:

Today was our anniversary date night! Lydia came home with the kids after school/work, and got dinner ready. Kristi came over and watched the kids for a few hours while Lydia and I went away for pizza and a movie.

It great to get to spend time together. Especially since our schedules are sooooooo busy!


Saturday:

Lydia and I didn't sleep in too much. But did get a couple hours more while the kids watched cartoons.

The bulk of the day consisted of cleaning the house, and getting it looking presentable. Dusting, vacuuming, sweeping, mopping. Ugh!!! And I wasn't in the best mood either.

After lunch and naps we headed out to the gym to go swimming. However, the pool was only going to be open for 20+ minutes, so we decided to head to Jordan Valley Park instead. There we played in the water, and in the fountains. We had a blast, and I think we wore the kids out!

In the afternoon, Lydia had noticed that the van was leaking fluid. I didn't know what exactly it was, so I called Ben Winter from church. We concluded that it was antifreeze, so I took it over to his house this evening to find out what was happening. It was the water pump leaking! Not good! He instructed me to take it home and park it. No going anywhere in the van this weekend until I could get it replaced.

Oh boy.......! :(   :(



~Matt

Paasch The Pirate and Kiwi (09/07/10)

I hope the title gets your attention! Well, that's Lydia's nickname for a while, since she got bit by that parrot at work earlier! Of course, Kiwi is the parrot's name!

Lydia's coworkers put a sign on his cage notifying that he bites... and as you can see in the picture, he didn't care for the sign! lol!
 

~Matt

Seven Years! (9/2/10)

Amazingly, it's been seven years today since Lydia became my wife!

What's so amazing is that she was willing to put up with me and stay by me these past 7 years! I know of no other woman that would (or could) have! My puns and jokes, my quirky personality, my computer geeky-ness, etc....  see, it's amazing!

Not only that, but she has survived! Wow... what a woman!

I couldn't have asked for anyone better... there is none! She is the one God gave me! It's very evident! I depend on her, and she completes me. I can't image these last 7 years without her, and there's no way I can image my future without her too.

Lydia is the best! She is wonderful!

I LOVE YOU LYDIA!!!!! Happy Anniversary!!!

~Matt

Kai's nicknames... (9/1/10)

We were watching the kids play outside over the weekend, and we were commenting on nicknames. Besides 'Kai' and 'Bubby', there are several nicknames we've given Malachi.

Since Malachi is so active and into things, I occasionally call him George, in reference to Curious George the monkey. However, he also likes to jump around a lot while exclaiming "boing, boing!" So Lydia often calls him Tigger (from Winnie-the-Pooh).

Well, for fun, I hollered out to him... "Hey George!"

"I'm not George!" he replied, his eyebrows down, as if the nickname was offensive.

Lydia then called out, "Oh, he's Tigger!"

"No I'm not!" he again replied, with another look of disgust.

"Who are you then?" I asked, expecting him to then reply with his own name.

"Lightning McQueen!"



~Matt