Week Rundown! (01/23/11 - 01/29/11)

Sunday:

Malachi woke up with a pretty high temperature. Lydia stayed home for the morning services, and I ended up coming back by the house with the church van to pick up Mysia. The services were great, but it's odd not being able to sit with my wife!

Lydia went to church for the evening services while I stayed home. Malachi was feeling better, but we thought it would be best not to take him out. Lydia and Mysia stayed after services for the Birthday & Anniversary dinner.


Monday:

Today started off normal. However, at lunch-time, I got a call from school nurse. Mysia's glands are her neck was swollen and they reported that she had a fever. So I picked her up and took her to Granny's. I went back to work.

After work, I met Lydia and Malachi at home. We ate supper, and then I headed off for quartet practice. We ran over the new songs we've worked on last week.

I brought some clothes of Mysia's with me, she ended up spending the night at Granny's.


Tuesday:

Again, Lydia and I hit the gyms at our different times, and then off to school and work! I ended up taking off work early to pick Mysia up from my parent's house. We then came home for a bit to eat some lunch before picking up Malachi. The plan was to meet Lydia at the Doctor's office so I could go back to work.

I get to the doctor's office and park the car. While waiting for Lydia to show up, Mysia has to go to the restroom. We go inside so that she can go, and I go ahead and check her in. We're soon taken to the patient room, where we waited longer! At least in the waiting room they have toys for the kids... however, in the patient room, they don't! Malachi's curiosity was driving me nuts!

The nurse came in, did all the check ups on Mysia, and then left. After some waiting, the doctor came in and id a better examination. That's when Lydia showed up, and I left... hurrying back to work. The doctor did a strep test, and prescribed medication. Lydia went to Walmart to pick it up, and then headed home.


Wednesday:

Lydia went to BioLife, and I did my workout on the Wii. When the kids woke up, I told them if they got ready real quick, I'd let them play Mario Kart. It worked!

I was then off to work, and Lydia took the kids to school before heading to work herself. This evening was the kick off for our children's services at church for the year. Labeled as "Fun Night", we had games, devotional/lesson, and snacks.


Thursday:

Lydia went to the gym, came back, and I went in before heading into work. Lydia then dropped Mysia off at school and Malachi at my parents' house before heading into school. Malachi had a blast with Granny. It was a special field-trip day for him!

My mom picked up Mysia from school, and my parents took the kids to "Jump Mania" here in town. Its a place that has inflatables for the kids to jump on. Since Mysia's birthday is tomorrow, it was part of the gift to her from my parents.

Since my parents had the kids for the early part of the evening, Lydia and I took that to our advantage and went out to eat for a dinner date. We had a gift card for Rib Crib, so we ate there! The food was great, and we enjoyed the time together.


Friday:

Today Mysia turned 6! Hooray! Lydia went to the gym and then returned to make cupcakes for Mysia to take to school. I did my workout on the Wii Fit.

I then went to work, the kids went to school, and then Lydia headed to work. Mysia was supposed to be awarded as a "PRIDE Panther", but they postponed the ceremony next week so that more classmates could join.

We had family over this evening for Mysia's party. Even her Uncle Silas was able to join in from Iraq via Skype. We had pizza, cupcakes, and ice cream. Mysia got clothes, dolls, and money. She was one happy girl.

After everyone left, we got the kids ready for bed and did a "slumber party". That meant that Malachi, Mysia, Lydia and I slept in the living room. The kids got the couch, while Lydia and I slept on the air mattress.


Saturday:

Lydia and I woke up to the kids trying to jump on our air mattress while we were still trying to sleep! So I turned on cartoons. However, it didn't prevent them from trying to wake us up.

Lydia got up and started getting ready to leave, and I made breakfast. She left for BioLife and I left with the kids for church. I was singing with the quartet for a few songs for an activity being held at the church. The kids tagged along and Granny kept an eye on them while the quartet sang. During that time, Lydia arrived back home, and took a little nap.

When the kids and I showed up at home, Lydia was leaving for her tour of the MSU campus. I put the kids down for their nap and decided to take one too. I didn't figure it would last too long, but we ended up sleeping for two hours! Yippee!

Lydia came back, and I took the kids outside to play for a bit and enjoy the nice weather. Well, after about 30-45 minutes, we decided it'd be more fun go to the park! So we did. The kids had a blast while we sat and watched. Lydia brought one of her text books to read. Mysia met several of her friends from school who were at the park as well. Boy, was she ever excited. We also got to visit with our neighbors who had decided to go to. The weather was that nice!

We came back home and let the kids play Mario Kart until supper time. I treated them to Mysia's favorite... Grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. Then it was time for showers and bed.


~Matt

Happy Birthday MYSIA (01/28/11)

Today is Mysia's birthday! She turned 6! Wow!

It's almost unbelievable that I am a parent to a six year-old! That just seems so weird, but yet here I am.

Mysia is our princess... She's the sweetest girl I know! She's very smart and creative. In fact, she came home with a report card the other day, and is doing excellent! Lately, she's been writing stories and letters. She's using her knowledge of sounding words out, and is writing 'books'. The spelling is often wrong, but once you sound out what she has wrote, you'll be surprised!

Besides today being her birthday, she is also being recognized at school for her attitude, kindness, etc. At her school, they have a system to recognize certain students, naming them PRIDE Panthers. To get recognized, students are voted by their peers. Well, after working so hard... Mysia got it! She'll be awarded this afternoon!

We're so proud!!!!!

~Matt

Online Communication... a Blessing or a Curse? (01/26/11)

Over the past week, Lydia and I were surprised by the realization on how blessed it can be to have technology.

We often hear how technology is bad, and the internet is bad, facebook is bad..... and we should be scared of it. Well, in my opinion (the reason I have this blog is to share my opinion by the way!), we should be aware of the bad, but that should hinder us from using technology as a tool. Just like this gun debate that has once again come to the spot-light due to the shootings in Utah. Guns are a tool, it's up to the person using them that makes it into something harmful or useful. Take planes for example. They are awesome, they get us where we want to go in less time. However, the terrorists have used them as tools!

Facebook, Twitter, and other social sites are a great tool that can be used for good and bad. Lydia and I, of course, try our best to do right and use them as tools for good. I personally use facebook and twitter to spread humor and cheer. Some people tend to use it as a drama center... telling their woes and complaints with every status update.

Of course, the whole idea of status updates is for attention. Otherwise, no one would post anything. It's designed to share your thoughts. If people were truly humble, they wouldn't post a thing... ha! Now there is a thought!

Anyway, back to my topic.. Technology is a blessing. Thanks to it, Lydia and I are able to keep up with family. Facebook, Skype, email, and texting! If it wasn't for them, I'm afraid we'd be left in the dark when it comes to keeping up with family.

I honestly think that our family wouldn't really care to sit down and write long letters every couple of weeks. Thanks to technology, we keep up with things easier! It's just a fact!

I will agree that it can be a curse. Friends (and family) can use it all to cause drama and problems, just like with anything else. It's sad, but true. That doesn't mean that we should shy away from it. My motto... "Do right". If I offend, let me know, I'll try to correct it. However, if it something that bends my rights, and there is no basis of it being truly offensive, I stick to what I've said or done. I'm not here to play games. I use these sites to keep connected to friends and relatives, that's what they were designed for! :)

As for the blessing... it was awesome to be able to share the wedding with Silas who is serving overseas! We also got to talk and visit with him! I think that will go down in my memory as one of the most greatest events. A huge winning score for technology, and a geek like me!

~Matt

News/iPhone App: Developed by an US Soldier

I like reading technology news... especially about iPhones since I own one. I also like news about our military and things that help them out while on the battlefront.

This news takes the cake! An US Soldier put forth his own money to develop an iPhone app to help his fellow soldier combat the enemy! How cool is that? I think it's awesome!

For now, it seems it will only be available on iPhones... But with how app developers have been trying to make more money, it's getting easier to make apps that work across all mobile OS platforms. So I guess we'll see.

I do know that our military released news earlier that by the end of this year, troops might all be receiving government issued smart phones, since they help keep all informed with updates, maneuvers, etc. Now that I think is pretty cool as well. Using smart technology to keep our heroes safe!

~Matt


Links:
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/us-soldier-develops-iphone-app-to-target-the-taliban/story-e6frf7jx-1225994555453
http://www.myfoxla.com/dpps/news/soldier-develops-iphone-app-to-target-the-taliban-dpgonc-20110125-fc_11575580
http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/01/25/targeting-taliban-iphone-app/

Week Rundown! (01/16/11 - 01/22/11)

Sunday:

Well, it was the last day of our trip. We slowly woke up and got dressed. The kids watched Micky Mouse Clubhouse for a bit, then we went to the lobby and ate breakfast. We decided to hit the pool one more time, and went swimming. While at the pool, we visited with some of Lydia's cousins that were there too. We then headed back to our hotel room, took showers, packed the van, checked out, and headed home.

This time, I made sure we took the quickest routes, and reconfigured my GPS on the iPhone accordingly! We made a few bathroom breaks along the way, and had Burger King and Taco Bell for lunch. The first part of the trip home was quiet, since it was nap-time, and the kids were wore out from swimming (that was the plan, and it worked).

The kids got to enjoy several movies, and I drove the entire way. We, almost ran out of gas in Mansfield, MO.... but I found a gas station in time. We made it home in almost exactly 6 hours! We unpacked and got a lot of stuff put away before we all went to bed. What a long day!


Monday:

Today was the last day of my vacation. I had taken the day off since Mysia didn't have school.  Lydia had to work, so it was me and the kids!

I decided to get the wedding video off of the camera and onto my laptop. I started recording, and all was going well. The video showed that it captured us as were getting ready to leave on the trip, us at the hotel, and even the wedding rehearsal. However, when it came to the part of the wedding itself... half the screen was showing what was recorded on the tape previously. All of the sudden, the camera started making chunking noises and then gave me an error on screen. I opened it up, too the tape out, and noticed it had chewed the tape and tore it!

I felt like crying!

There was no chance I could even try to put it back together! I was distraught!

Besides that disappointment in technology, the day went by pretty quick. The kids and I ate a good lunch, and then I put them down for naps. I then did some Wii Fit until they got up. I then made sure that their toys were picked up before letting them play Mario Kart until Lydia came home from work.

After supper, I went over to my parents' house to practice with the quartet. We grabbed some familiar hymns, and worked on some arrangements for them. It turned out very well, and the practice was good. I can't wait to sing these songs!!! I then visited with my family for a bit before heading home. Lydia was doing Wii Fit when I arrived. It was long after that we headed to bed.. still tired from the weekend.


Tuesday:

Well, it appears we have a new schedule that we're going to try when it comes to the gym, and today was the start of it. Lydia woke up early and went to work out. She then came home and I left to work out and then head into work. For Lydia, she got the kids ready, dropped them off, and then headed to the college for her first day of classes for this spring semester.

After her class she went to work before picking Mysia up from school. From there, it was to BioLife before meeting Malachi and I at home for supper. Poor Lydia then headed off to a meeting she had scheduled while I stayed home with the kids. I did a few things on the computer and around the house, gave the kids showers, let them play Mario Kart, and then put them to bed before Lydia came home. She then worked on some homework... already!!!


Wednesday:

Today was like yesterday in schedule, the only difference was that Lydia had work before going to college for her new classes. The day seemed to drag a bit for me, but it was pretty good over-all. We had a pretty quick supper at home before heading into church. It was good to be in services, because it sure felt weird missing Sunday. Boy, we love our church!

After church we headed home and met Titus and Jordin there. We gave them our old queen-sized bed with frame. It barely fit into the moving truck. Titus and I had some rearranging to do to get it to fit... but we did it!

We then headed over to Paulette's to visit with them for a while. We realize it's going to be a while before we see them again. We're so thankful for things like facebook to keep us all connected!


Thursday:

Well, the plan was for us to go to the gym like we had for the past two days. However, Lydia's alarm failed to go off, so she missed her time. And come to find out, moving that bed into the truck had stressed my chest/rib cartilage and I began getting some pains. Not good! (I suffer from costochondritis) I swallowed some ibuprofen, and made sure I took it easy for the rest of the morning.

The day was hectic though. We got a call at 6am from the Springfield Public Schools saying they were closed due to the snow storm. I looked outside... there was not much snow covering the ground. You could still see the grass! At first I couldn't believe it.. that is, until an hour later. Yup, we got over and inch and a half within two hours, and it was still coming down. So I guess they had cause.

Lydia's college cancelled classes too, but she still had work. So we called my mom, and was able to drop the kids off there. They sure enjoyed being with Granny for the day. And they talked about it that evening when at home. Oh, before I get a head of myself.. after work, I met Lydia and the kids at Walmart to get a few things we needed. Then we headed home.

After supper, we got the kids showered and into bed. Lydia worked on homework, something that will be a nightly ritual again, and I worked on a project for KWFC.


Friday:

Friday was back to normal with our gym schedule. Then it was school for the kids, work for me, and college and work for Lydia. What a day! Abigail picked Mysia up from school, and Lydia met her at home after picking up Malachi. I came home after work.

For supper, we went to McDonald's to meet with Tim & Debbie for our Bible Discipleship. The kids ate and played, while we went over the material.

When we got home, we let the kids play for a bit, then put them to bed.


Saturday:

We enjoyed a lazy morning. The kids woke up at a decent hour and played before I put some cartoons on. Lydia had an appointment with BioLife that morning around 10. I took the kids outside to play in the snow, since we still had some. We built snowmen, and they took shots at me with snowballs when they could get a chance! They have excellent timing.. and aim!

Back inside, in the warm house, I decided to do re-fresh of Lydia's computer since it had been acting up. The kids played, while I did a factory reset of Vista. Unfortunately, afterwards, it seems that when bringing the backed-up files back over, I wrote over a registry file!

Lydia and I got to enjoy several episodes of "Monk" on NetFlix during the afternoon, and the kids played some Wii a bit later on. However, most of the evening was spent trying to keep the laptop from freezing while Lydia worked on homework! You'd think that a computer geek would have less problems... ha!


~Matt

Friday Fun: Named After Biblical Characters (Friday, 01/20/10)

An earlier comment on one of my facebook status posts led to this idea for my blog post today.

My parents decided to give Bible names to my siblings and I. It was the same with Lydia's folks. My name is probably the most common besides my brother Samuel. Of course, growing up here in the Ozarks, attending a conservative church, and hanging out with conservative Christian homeschoolers and others.... I know of a lot of other people with Biblical names.

Lydia and I both decided to continue the idea our parents had, and named our kids from the Bible. However, so far, we haven't known or came across anyone with our daughter's name, Mysia. It's interesting to note, Malachi is not as uncommon as one might think.

So for fun, here is a list off the top of my head of names of people (kids and adults) with Bible names that I have known (this includes family):

Aaron, Adam, Adria, Abigail, Abraham, Amos, Andrew, Asa, Benjamin, Bethany, Caleb, Christian, Daniel, David, Deborah, Diana, Elijah, Elisabeth, Esther, Ezekiel, Gabriel, Gideon, Hannah, Hosea, Isaac, Isaiah, Jacob, James, Jared, Jason, Jeremiah, Jesse, Joel, John, Jonah, Jonathan, Joseph, Joshua, Josiah, Julia, Leah, Levi, Luke, Lycia, Lydia, Malachi, Matthew, Martha, Mark, Mary, Micha, Michael, Moses, Mysia, Naomi, Nathan, Noah, Peter, Philip, Rachel, Rebecca, Ruth, Samson, Samuel, Sarah, Seth, Sharon, Silas, Simon, Solomon, Stephen, Susanna, Tabitha, Thaddeus, Thomas, Timothy, Titus, Ulla, Zachariah, Zebadiah.

Can you come up with any names I haven't listed?

~Matt

iPhone App: K9 Web Protection Browser (01/21/11)

K9 Web Protection is one of the best filtering systems for the PC. My brother had informed Lydia and I about it several years ago. It is customize-able and very good at doing it's job of filtering, allowing safe browsing for family.

As of January 4th, they have released a browser app for the iPhone, Touch, and iPad.

Besides being yet another browser to replace the native Safari Browser on the iDevice, it provides you a safe way of surfing the web! Unfortunately, there is no way to customize the restrictions, so there may be sites you like to go to that you find blocked. Youtube is one of the sites blocked, for example.

I personally think that this app would be certainly great for kids... you wouldn't have to worry about them accessing anything questionable when browsing the internet. You can hand them your iDevice, and allow them to only use this app for there surfing the web. However, one downside about this idea is that the app has an advertisement bar at the top of the screen. This can be annoying, cutting in on your viewing pleasure of whatever site you're on, but the ad can also be easily clicked on as well, especially by children.

K9 strongly suggests to set the app as the only browser for your iDevice. They even give simple instructions on how to disable the Safari app so you can make this happen. That makes it nice, but I had found some things don't work as smoothly as I'd like. For example, there was an issue about not being able to open iTunes app store links. However, they have fixed that in their latest update released today.

When it comes down to it, it all depends on how much control you want on your iDevice. If you want to have a great tool for safe browsing, then this is the app for you!

~Matt

NEWS: [Update!] Texting Fountain Girl In Hot Water!

Okay... now this is interesting! Yesterday, I posted on my blog about Cathy Cruz Marrero, the lady who fell into a mall fountain while texting on her phone.

Come to find out, Good Morning America had also interviewed her yesterday. She gave her heart-felt story of how she was wronged by security in them posting the video of the incident on the internet, how she wants an apology (with her lawyer sitting next to her), and how she wants to warn everyone of the serious dangers of texting while walking. After the interview, she had a court appearance scheduled. It seems like Cathy has some criminal history! She's under investigation for identity theft!

GMA tried to get her to come back for another interview after finding this info out.... needless to say, Cathy declined!!!

~Matt

NEWS: Texting Fountain Girl Plans to Sue Mall

Ha! I love reading news. And I absolutely love finding odd things when searching news outlets online. But this one pretty much takes the cake!

On Jan 12th, security camera video caught mall employee Cathy Cruz Marrero texting on her phone and falling into the Berkshire Mall fountain (Wyomissing, PA) . It was then posted on YouTube and FaceBook, leading to 'fame' on many worldwide media outlets! (gawker)

Well, Cathy has now gotten an attorney and is intending to sue the mall. The reason? The mall security didn't come aid her in a timely manner, and released the video to the public, invading her privacy.

She claims to have had enough of the ordeal, and is upset. She alleges that mall officials told her that since no one can make out her face, it's not a big deal. But yet a fellow church member recognized her by the way she walks, and now she's embarrased.

She is saying that wants to raise awareness of privacy issues, security problems and that texting is very dangerous. She's happy that she's alive, and want's people to be more careful. She promises never to walk and text again.

What gets me is that she's so afraid and distressed of people finding out it's her, that she goes public about it!!! WHAT!?!?!?! Just to tell others that its very dangerous! She's mad that so many has found out, that she wants to stop it by telling others it's her?!?!

Another note... she works at the mall, so she knew the fountain was there!!!!!

~Matt

Social Media To Be Used By MO’s New Senator (01/19/11)

I thought this was interesting... come to find out, our new senator for the state of Missouri is embracing social media sites to keep in communication with the public!

Roy Blunt promises to keep those who follow him updated from Washington. He is available through Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.

I think it's pretty neat. Instead of relying on just the local media to provide us with what's happening with the Senator, we can actually view what is on his mind on current issues. Not only that, he's using the technology available to provide this service.

I think other politicians should follow this idea. As a registered voter, I'd like to be able to know whats going on with all of those we've elected into office. That way, we're a little bit more informed, instead of relying on the media.

Of course, the idea of politicians embracing technology is a bit scary in itself! Ha! :)

~Matt

Week Rundown! (01/09/11 - 01/15/11)

Sunday:

It was a cold morning, and I was happy when I got to church and get some coffee to help warm myself up before running the church van.  After morning services, we had a good afternoon. We all took naps... which felt so good!

It was my mom's birthday, so we headed to my parents' house after evening services. We visited, the kids played, and we had some cake and ice cream.


Monday:

Well, the snow started to come into the area. There wasn't much outside when we left for school/work. However, during the day it started to accumulate. It looked like we were living in a snow globe!

Lydia had picked up the kids after work, so they were home when I arrived. The roads were slick, so we cancelled quartet practice just to be on the safe side. I got to use the new George Foreman grill my parents gave us for Christmas and grilled pork chops for supper. They were great!!! We did some house work, played Mario Kart with the kids before putting them down for bed, and did our individual workouts on the Wii Fit.


Tuesday:

Lydia got up super early and headed out to the gym, despite the severe road conditions from the snow and ice! She then headed into BioLife before coming home to pick up the kids and drop them off before heading into work. I ended up trying to 'break into' my car. All the doors were frozen shut. I eventually got one of the back doors open, so I crawled in and got the passenger door to give. The driver door was no use, so crawling from the passenger side was my only option!

When Lydia got off work, she picked up the kids and headed home. She helped Mysia with her homework. Before I showed up at home after work, our guests arrived. Lydia's friend Tabitha, husband Don and kids, were in town. They're planning on being missionaries to Scotland. It was my first time to meet them. We visited, let the kids play, ate supper, and visited more.

After they left, I took some home video off of the video camera onto the laptop while we watched an episode of Monk. We then took turns on the Wii Fit before going to bed.


Wednesday:

I got up early, went to to the gym, and then headed into work. The temp outside was 1°F! Lydia took Malachi to daycare and Mysia to school before hitting the gym. Today was her day off from work. She also got a haircut, had lunch with her friend Courtney, picked up my suit (that we bought Saturday), and got a few things from Walmart.

I came home, and Lydia had supper in the oven. Unfortunately, we lost power 5 minutes later. Not sure on when the power would come on, we got ready and left for McDonalds to eat supper before heading to church. Thankfully, the electricity was on when we came home!


Thursday:

Today was interesting.... I had taken the day off work. While getting ready for the day, we had been talking about how we're going to give car-sickness pills to the kids before we head out on our trip. Mysia must have been listening pretty good. I took Malachi to daycare, Lydia to work, and then Mysia to school. While dropping Mysia off, she started claiming she was car sick.

Well, sure enough, she told her teacher she was feeling like she was going to vomit... so she went to the school nurse, who then called me to pick her up. We then stopped by my mom's to grab the air-mattress pump from Sam. We visited for a bit. Lydia ended up getting off at 12:30, so I picked up Malachi before her, and we headed home to finish loading the van.

We left the house by 2, and were on the way. I love technology, but this is were it failed me! We depended on the GPS on the iPhone. Unfortunately, it took us through some back-roads, thinking it was shorter I guess. Ended up putting us in late! Made our trip over eight hours long! What a drive!

I am happy we made it in safely... and on only one tank of gas!


Friday:

I had a restless night. I had left my pillow at home, and those hotel pillows were too soft. It felt like imitation pillows.

Anyway, we got up, let the kids watch some Mickey Mouse Club House on the tv, and then headed over for the continental breakfast. We were happily surprised to see Lydia's cousins and kids there! Come to find out, they were staying only a few doors down! So after breakfast, we met at the pool. This gave the kids some time to play with the others, and we ended up spending over 3 hours in the Olympic-sized pool!

We came back to the hotel and let the kids nap before heading to the rehearsal dinner at the church. The neat thing was that the church was only a two minute drive from our hotel! Yay!

We ate, visited, and went through the rehearsal. I was in charge of setting up the video camera and laptop so that Silas could view the wedding over skype since he's in Iraq. That's when I discovered that I was missing a important piece... the cord that plugged my video camera to the RCA outputs!

So I did a run to Walmart, then Radio Shack, then Staples, and finally to Kmart. None had the cord! Thankfully, the church's sound-man thought he had one, and told me he'd bring it tomorrow. It looked like everything was gonna be fine!

We ate Subway for supper before going back to hotel. Lydia got the kids ready for bed, and I headed out to catch up with Titus and the guys. They had went bowling, so I met them there and visited during the last game. We then headed next door to Sonic for a snack. It was cold, but we were a bunch of goofy guys, so we didn't care!


Saturday:

Lydia woke up early and headed to the church to help the girls with their hair. I was in charge of getting the kids up and ready.... we ate breakfast, and I got dressed. It was a bit rushed, making sure I had everything, plus the kids! Paulette picked us up, and it was to the church for the kids to get ready. Malachi was a ring-bearer, and Mysia was a flower-girl. Lydia was in charge of the guestbook, and as I had written earlier, I was the webcam guy!

Speaking of webcam... it actually turned out great. I was able to contact Silas, and everyone got to talk to him before and after the wedding. We were afraid he'd miss out on the wedding, but he actually got to view the entire thing!!! It was so exciting!

After the wedding, we participated in pictures and, of course, the dinner afterwards. Toward the end, the kids were getting tired. So I packed them up and we went back to the hotel for naps. Lydia stayed to help clean up. When finished, she showed up at the hotel room with supper from Arby's. We ate, watched some Disney Channel, and then went for a swim before coming back to our room for bed. We were tired!

~Matt

Snow, Cold Weather, and Remembering... (01/12/11)

Well, we finally got the snow I've been wanting. About 2 inches. Unfortunately, its been too cold to really enjoy it! In fact, on my way to work this morning, it was 1°F with a -15° windchill!!! Brrrr...

Oh, and because of the bitter cold, the news is telling people not to stay out longer than 30 minutes, otherwise you could get frostbite. Yikes!

The sad part is, it's so cold outside that the snow isn't packable... meaning no snowmen. :(   However, its frozen enough that it'll be perfect for sledding. And that's something I plan on doing with the kids after services tonight. That's the best part of our church being on the side of a hill! (thus the name "Hillside") Of course, we will only sled down a few times. Mostly because of the cold, and the fact that dragging two kids up the hill wears a guy out pretty fast!

Today is also the four year anniversary of the Ice Storm that hit our town. I can remember it vividly, and I definitely don't want to go through that ordeal again. It's the topic/subject of the day it seems, and many don't want to even remember it. For some, it was a bit expensive. I'm just thankful that we were kept safe and we made it through. I'm also thankful that my parents allowed us to stay with them since they had a gas fireplace!

Note: the above picture is one I took during the ice storm of 2007 of our backyard through the icicles hanging on our shed... and it is not a manipulated picture either.


~Matt

Week Rundown! (01/02/11 - 01/02/11)

Sunday:

It was back to running vans for church this week after being off last week. I had a pretty good number on my van, and if everyone had come, it would have been full.

Services were nice, and I took a short nap in the afternoon. I made sure my alarm was set so that we sleep to long!

Since Mysia doesn't have school tomorrow, she went home with Granny after the evening services. .


Monday:

Lydia went to the gym early in the morning, and then headed to work. Since it was just Malachi and I, we got up, got ready, and I dropped him off at daycare before heading into work myself.

Today was a bit awkward for me. It was nice being off for 10 days straight! Anyway, I had quite a bit of work to do! Lydia got off work and went to my parents' house to pick up Mysia. She ended up staying there until 5 visiting. When I got off work, I picked up Malachi and headed home. We got there before Lydia, so I started taking down the Christmas lights off the house. It only took me 15-20 minutes! I was happy about it, but also a little mad... it took me hours to get those strands working and put on the house last month!!!

Quartet practice was cancelled, so I spent the evening at home with Lydia and the kids. We watched some tv, played the Wii, and then went to bed.


Tuesday:

Lydia went to the gym again, and then came home right in time for me to leave for work. She dropped the kids off at daycare and school before going to work.

The rest of the day was pretty normal. Lydia picked up Mysia from school, then Malachi, and headed home. I met them there after work. We ate, and then Lydia went to BioLive.


Wednesday:

This morning, I went to the gym early. The plan was for me to go straight to work afterwards, but I forgot an important item when packing my gym bag... deodorant. So I made a quick stop at home before going in to work. Lydia didn't have to work today, so she dropped the kids off at daycare and school and then headed to the gym.

Lydia spent most of the day with house work and re-arranging the kitchen cabinets. I came home for lunch so we could visit for a bit. She picked Mysia up from school and helped her with her homework.

Church services was good. I sang a special before the sermon, and messed up a bit on the words. The bad part was that it was a song I wrote! Whoops!

When we got home, we did a complete turn-over of the house. Two of our Wii games that we haven't played since Saturday were missing. We don't know where they might be! I even brought in two of the trash bags and searched through them! Ugh!


Thursday:

Lydia went to the gym and took her friend Mary. I got up and got the kids ready for the day. Lydia came home in time for me to head into work, and then she dropped the kids off and headed to the auto shop. We had received a coupon in the mail for a free oil change, and since they were located a block from her work, she dropped off and walked into work.

Surprise, surprise... they found minor problems with our van that needed taken care of soon. Like wiper blades! And they wanted to charge us quite a bit for labor. Uh, I don't think so! They couldn't even find out what was wrong with my car! And it still needs figured out by the way! Needless to say, we stuck with the just the oil change!

After work, Lydia picked up Mysia from school and headed into to BioLife. I got off of work, picked up Malachi, and headed home. He and I played army-men while waiting for Lydia and Mysia to arrive. They brought home pizza! We ate, watched some Loony Tunes, did homework, gave the kids showers, and put them to bed. Lydia then gave me a haircut, and she did Wii Fit before we headed to bed.


Friday:

Lydia went into the gym again this morning, and then we pretty much followed the same schedule as yesterday.

After work, Lydia picked up Mysia and headed to an Honours meeting. When I got off work, I picked up Malachi and headed home. I then made an easy supper for the kids while waiting for Lydia and Mysia to come home. Meanwhile, Paulette/MeeMaw showed up to watch the kids. As soon as Lydia showed up, we left leaving Paulette with Mysia and Malachi.

It was our date night, so Lydia and I headed out to Olive Garden! Lydia had gotten a gift card, and it was our chance to use it. After waiting 40 minutes in the 'lobby', we finally got seated. We ate salad and bread-sticks while waiting for our meal to arrive. When it did, it was hot! Oh... and sooooo good! :)


Saturday:

We didn't sleep in too much. The kids were up and wanting to watch cartoons. I tried putting on Netflix, but our internet wasn't working. So I put on PBS and called our internet provider. They did a round of tests and had me restart my modem and router. It finally started working.

We ate breakfast (pancakes), and then headed out to get me a new suit for the wedding. I've been in need of a new one for some time now. I found one at a reasonable price! Afterwards, we headed off to CPO. Mysia had received a free gift card in the mail since her birthday in a few weeks. While there, they spend a few dollars they had saved up.

Back at home, we ate a quick lunch and put them down for naps. Lydia's cousin Daniel came over and I helped retrieve files off of a laptop of his. The screen was broken, so he wasn't able to retrieve anything. So I plugged the laptop up to desktop monitor, and we were able to see everything. It worked!

Lydia went to Pampered Chef party while I stayed home with the kids. We played, watched Loony Tunes movie on Netflix, and ate supper. Before Lydia came home, she went to the store for our weekly grocery run. When Lydia arrived back home, we got the kids to bed, and we watched an episode of Monk before going to bed ourselves.



~Matt