A New Blog Home!

Hi friends!
We're making the switch to Wordpress - will you join us there? We'd love to keep in touch with you - I know I've said it before, but I'm going to do my best to update this thing on a more regular basis.
Come visit us at wheretheredfearnsgrow.wordpress.com

Love you! Talk to you soon!

It's Been A Busy Summer...

Hi friends!
This summer has been flying by! John and I have been on a billion adventures (it feels that way at least) and are excited to have a couple of weeks of down time before we start gearing back up for the start of the school year.
Here are the highlights:
* I got to go on a trip to Granbury (it's not just for old folks, people!) with my sister and our girlfriends from college. We had a blast laying by the water, shopping, and eating a LOT.
* John, Em, and I went to Killeen for a long weekend with my parents. It's been a very long time since John got to come home, so it was fun to have him there the whole weekend. We ended our trip with a Rangers game. *Bonus* We got Nelson Cruz bobble heads. Be jealous.
* Mom came up to Tyler to play for a few days. We ate really good food, picked blueberries, and did some shopping. And it rained while she was here. Mom is good for our weather in Tyler.
* John and I went to Gainesville to get some quality time with Bootsie and Granddaddy. It was so fun! We spent our time playing cards and looking at really old pictures. Fun!
* John had to go to Crier Creek for work, so I went to Austin and played with Em and Lauren. We went to Barton Springs, went shopping, and ate a lot...are we sensing a theme?
* I met up with John and the IT gang and went to Addison over the 4th of July and watched some awesome fireworks! We went to a super fun bbq then had friends over for more grilling greatness.
* This weekend John, Em, and I went to New Braunfels this weekend. We slept in, floated the river, ate at the Grist Mill, and even visited Schlitterbahn (I faced my fear on that one).

Whew! It's been super busy but a huge blessing. We are thankful for the freedom to get away and play and spend time with friends and family. I'll try to put some pictures up soon (fingers crossed!). We hope you're having a blast this summer and can't wait to hear about your adventures!

New Hobby!

I have a love/hate relationship with blogs. I love keeping up with friends and family, I love seeing pictures of fun happenings in the lives of people I love, and I love being inspired by the craftiness (as in arts and crafts, not cunning) and wittiness (is that a word?) of people around the country. I hate, however, reading the blogs of the ultra-talented, creative, trendy people who can turn trash into treasure and still look cute in the process. Don't get me wrong - I wholeheartedly wish I was one of them. And I don't intend to stop reading their blogs just because I am insanely jealous. More than anything those blogs remind me that the Lord gifts us all differently - I just sometimes wish He had given me the gift of creative expression as well. :)
With that in mind, I fell upon a new blog that falls under the above mentioned list-of-things-I-wish-I-was. I love it. It is fun and creative and attainable! Not only have I found the first project on a blog that I feel like I might actually be able to tackle (once a friend shows me how to use a sewing machine, that is), but it also offered the simplest tutorial I have ever seen for my new fancy-pants Canon Rebel (thank you, Ginger!). So what did I do this afternoon? I played with my camera!
I do not profess to be awesome at this; in fact, I keep reciting the things that I'm reading on this blog to myself as I try out new settings ("low light, high ISO...high light, high aperture...is that right?"). But I am excited about the prospect of getting better at something I've always loved.
Here's some of what I did today. Please do not judge them. Remember I am neither ultra-talented, creative, or trendy. But I like to pretend that I could be if I tried REALLY hard. :)


Deen didn't even try to lick the camera this time! She's really growing up...


Little Deenie was the blissfully unaware test subject for trying out my camera settings. I ventured off of auto - a big step for me!


Our hammock. Beautiful, isn't it?


This one is a bonus - John and I went on a dessert picnic yesterday afternoon. It was delightful!

Just a few pictures from our trip to The Happiest Place on Earth!



1.5 lb bag of assorted gummy treats. We were the envy of all of the kids in line with us. Snack WIN.


Best.Fireworks.Ever.


Do you know how hard it is to get a picture with the huge Epcot spaceship-ball-thing in the background? It's not as easy as it looks, people.


Classic! John didn't appreciate this as much as I did, but he sure was a good sport. :)

Wish you all could have been there! Group vacay next time?

Disneyworld is for Grownups!

Hi Friends! We've finally entered into spring after a weird and snow-filled winter (climate change is real, people). Today we celebrated the spring by planting flowers and other plants at our house. But last month we celebrated by GOING TO DISNEYWORLD!!!
That's right. John and I decided to spend our Spring Break at the happiest place on earth. My family has been to Disneyworld several times growing up, but John had never been. What better time in our lives to go to Disneyworld than now - post-childhood and pre-kids. :)

We had so much fun. John and I haven't gone on a vacation together since our honeymoon, and we relished the opportunity to play and laugh and act like little kids together. We ate lots of junk (1.5 lb bag of candy, anyone?), rode lots of rides (except Tower of Terror - John let me out of that one when I started to panic as we were loading the ride), laughed LOTS (it's a reaction to roller coasters for me), and just enjoyed being together.

Highlights of the trip:
1. The 1.5 lb. bag of candy (have I mentioned that already?) we bought on Day 2 and ate until Day 4. We were the envy of every little kid in line with us. Bored? Pull out the bag of candy...
2. The fireworks at Magic Kingdom. Magical.
3. Riding Space Mountain two times in a row. Thank you, Fast Pass. Thank you.
4. Riding Thunder Mountain Railroad in the middle of the fireworks at Magic Kingdom. Magical.
5. John says, "Beating Lori over and over again on the Toy Story ride." Thanks, babe.

There are too many fun memories to write here. It was a fun trip. We learned a lot about each other and had a blast while we did that. And believe it or not, we were so encouraged as we reflected on the truth that even the best things in this life are but a shadow of what is to come. Thank you, Jesus!

*Pictures are coming. Our computer is not cooperating with us right now.

Fun Happenings In Tyler!

Hey Friends!
Like the rest of Tyler we've been enjoying the snow this weekend. Our day began on Friday morning at about 5:30 a.m. My phone starting ringing and in my confusion I tossed John out of the bed to answer it. It was an automated message from TISD saying that school was canceled. I jumped to the window and threw back the curtains (this is sounding remarkably like "The Night Before Christmas," isn't it?). It was a winter wonderland! Who knew?!

John and I went back to sleep for a few hours and got another call from our dear friends Amy and Neil as we were getting up for the day. Their heat wasn't working in the their house, so they were coming over to crash with us. Bonus! We love houseguests!
I made some breakfast casserole that we enjoyed while we waited for Amy and Neil as well as Emily and Lauren, who were walking up from their house down the street (check out John waiting eagerly for Em and Lauren to arrive)! What a blessing to live near friends and family on a day like this.


We played in the snow for a little bit (Deen loved it!) and spent the rest of the day watching Season One of How I Met Your Mother.
It has been a long time since we had such a lazy day. It was even more fun getting to spend it with friends.
We hope your snow day was just as fun as ours! We'll write more later. Love you!

Lessons From Eve

I've never ventured to write anything profound or of spiritual significance on this blog. The reasons are many, but I suppose the main one being that I do not in any way profess to be an authority on Scripture or posses great wisdom in theological issues. But John asked me to teach his Sunday School class this morning, and I was caught off guard at how the lesson seemed to hit a little too close to home.

John is taking his Sunday School class through The Gauntlet, a Bible study written by our friend Chris. In this study his class examines various men and women of the Bible, discusses their character vices or virtues, and looks for ways to apply the truths found to their lives. John is more comfortable teaching about the men of the Bible - he has been through this study himself. I've been through the girls' version of The Gauntlet, and from time to time John asks me to step in when teaching on some of the women (namely the ones with traits that can be harder for us as women to swallow - you know, submission, pride, etc.).

Today John asked me to teach on Eve. Eve is a tough study, mainly because there isn't a whole lot to read about her. On the way to church this morning I was thinking about how I would present Eve as prideful. But somehow I couldn't reconcile this in my heart. Was she proud? Maybe. Entitled? Maybe. But the more I thought about her, the more I realized that what I believe to be Eve's defining trait wasn't pride, but rather discontentment.

I've heard contentment defined as, "choosing to be satisfied regardless of circumstances." So it stands to reason that discontentment would be, "choosing to not be satisfied regardless of circumstances." Ouch.

I didn't expect to be challenged by Eve today. But my heart is still stinging a little bit from it. Eve was in the Garden of Eden, where the Lord walked in the cool of the day. If there was ever a person who had everything, it was her (and Adam too, for that matter). But alas, the serpent sowed the seed of discontent, and Eve took the bait. How ironic that the very thing that Eve thought would fulfill her actually (and immediately) led to death. One moment Adam and Eve were in paradise, the next, banished. Can you imagine the regret? It makes me shudder.

Here's where it hurts for me - how often do I convince myself that the one thing I lack is the one thing I need? God has blessed me beyond measure, the greatest blessing being Himself! How, then, do I convince myself that if I can have God + 1 more thing I will be happier? Since when did God become part of an equation of stuff in my life?
Paul speaks on contentment when he says,
"Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me." Phil. 4:10-13
I would argue that Paul did not lead nearly the cushy life that I do, yet he was content because he knew Christ. Shame on me for choosing to not be satisfied, regardless of my circumstances. I am blessed with far more than I could ask or imagine simply in knowing Christ; the rest is just icing on the cake.

Help me, Lord, to live content in knowing you. Forgive me when I think I need more.

2 Years!

Two years ago I married my best friend. These last 2 years have been full of joys, trials, laughter, tears, and all of the in-betweens. We've gotten new jobs, bought a house, bought a dog, killed a car and bought a car. We've enjoyed making new family traditions (i.e. chopping down the tree for Christmas - that's new for both of us) and holding on to old ones.
We can't wait to see what the next years will bring and what adventures the Lord has for us!
Thanks for encouraging us on our journey. We love you.

Here Comes the Fall!

I can't believe that the summer has come and gone and we find ourselves at fall's doorstep once again. The summer was a whirlwind and was jammed with experiences, both great and challenging. The start of the summer was rough with Uncle Lloyd finishing his race well and going home to be with Jesus. If you're reading this, please continue to keep Aunt Janet, Jeffery, and the girls in your prayers. We also dealt with the washing away of the Malibu, my old faithful car since college, in the Great Tyler Flood of 2010. The Lord was so good to keep John safe during that scary ordeal and we were amazed at His goodness to us to provide us with an awesome car with better payments, better gas mileage, and was better for the environment (my guilt at teaching Environmental Science while driving a Tahoe is somewhat appeased). The Lord is good to us!


John stayed busy at Pine Cove, keeping things running smoothly for thousands of campers. I stayed busy working on curriculum for a new class at school, running with Em, and going out to Pine Cove to visit John. We also managed to get in a little play time. One of the highlights was the cookout at Wesley's family farm with some church friends. Thank you, Pine Cove, for teaching us our mad canoe skills.


The end of the summer held a fun adventure for me as Emily and I took on Barcelona and Paris in a once-in-a-lifetime sister vacay. There are way too many pictures to post here, but I'll attempt to put up a couple for you to check out. Pictures can't even do the experience justice! Hopefully I'll get to post about it soon, but if you want to hear a little more about it in the meantime check out Em's blog, Taste and See.
And alas! The fall is now upon us! We are grateful for so many things at the start of the fall. John's season is slowing down (enough for him to take a breath at least), we are settled in our house and not in the middle of house hunting like we were at this time last year, and it turns out that everyone was right - teaching is SO much easier year two! Praise the Lord for that one!

We love you and will write more soon!

The Mind of a Husband

i love my wife. i know that should go without saying, but the problem is that most of the time it does. i tell Lori that i love her all the time, but it doesn't come out very often in conversations with other people. Once again, i hope that it is evident in the way that i live, but why risk it? Let's just come out and say it out loud for everyone to hear! i love Lori Nicole Redfearn.
For those of you that are looking for some news on our lives, you should probably just move along, cause this post is gonna stay as mushy as it has started.
Things that i love about my wife:
i love that she is compulsive about cleaning. She doesn't really enjoy cleaning, but she likes everything to be clean... this is a problem, as my sisters will attest to the fact that i have never been a clean boy... ever. The reason i love this about Lori is the fact that, though she doesn't like cleaning, she disiplines herself to clean. Discipline is something i see lacking in my own life, and watching her do it so well is inspiring... and humbling.
i love that she is an encourager. i'm not so good with the sitting down and writing notes to people thing... probably has to do with the discipline issue again... but my wife is incredible at this. She has a unique ability to encourage with sincerity. She doesn't flatter. She doesn't tickle ears (well she does, but not like that - also a favorite). She can find the Holy Spirit inside of you and speak identity into your life. Most of us feel like we're trying to find our "place in this world" (thank you Michael W. Smith), and i wish i could introduce everyone to my amazing wife, so she could tell you just how the Lord has been using you.
i love that i can be silly and joke with my wife. For a lot of us "He-man-woman-haters" out there, being a goofball is a bad thing. It's not manly. It's not cool. The problem is, it can be pretty fun... and like to laugh. Lori is easy to laugh with. That was actually an observation that my father made about her before he had even met her. Pretty observant guy.
i love that my wife can be a mama bear. For those of you that don't know what this means, i pity you. Probably because you will most likely find yourself in her jaws at some point. It's not just when she's hungry, and it's not when you have wronged her most of the time, but it comes out when you injure or disrespect those that she loves. Man, she will rip your arms off and beat you with them. She is FIERCE! and i love it!
Lastly (for this post), i love my wife because more than cleanliness, she desires purity; more than knowing and encouraging others, she knows and is, herself, encouraged by Jesus Christ from whom she receives her own identity; more than silliness she has joy overflowing, that comes from knowledge and fear of a gracious God who loves her, and loves to give good gifts; and more than being fierce for those who have been placed in her care, she is fiercely and passionately in love with her savior. i LOVE the Jesus that i see in my wife!

Summer and Such

Hi friends! John has been asking me to update our blog for a while now, so I figured I would finally get around to it while I wait for him to come home from work. :) Why not?
A LOT has happened since our last post. Deen has gotten huge (and I think likely to get even bigger!) and can now hold her own when playing with the other dogs in her life. She is doing a better job at sleeping (yay for no more middle of the night bathroom trips!) and loves playing with her toys. We have only purchased her a ball and a chewing rope. All of her other toys came from the skill crane at Dave and Busters - thanks John and Jonathan! One by one the toys have been destroyed, but she has LOVED every one of them. I have one left hiding out in the closet...hopefully it will last us a while!
The summer means the end of the school year for me and the start of summer camp for John. It has definitely been an adventure these past couple of months. My kids did well on the TAKS test (yay!) and I am eagerly awaiting the results of my kids' AP exams. Life post-testing was fun at school. We built and launches water rockets - some successfully and others not so much - with my Research and Design kids, and watched some Captain Planet episodes with my AP kids (and did some labs and other very educational things of course...). It was a blast. In the meantime John was burning the midnight oil at camp, trying to get things ready for trailblazing and orientation. I got the chance to see my man at work on a Friday that we didn't have to go to school. He is so good at his job! It was fun to watch him in action. I also got the chance to celebrate Dad's birthday with him for the first time in 7 years (it falls right at the start of camp) and meet up with a group of girlfriends from college on our annual get-together. This time we took on Austin...or I should say took on Austin's restaurants. Eating is what we do best!
This week we've been busy with family in town, rescuing our car that floated away in the rain (awesome), taking care of the lawn, and making sure that camp runs smoothly (John takes care of that part). Even in the summer, we are sure looking forward to the weekend!
For a lot that's happened, this sure was a short post! More to come later, I'm sure. We love you and look forward to hearing about what is going on in your lives as well!

It's been so long since our last post, we can't even remember when it was. Let's start with what's happened recently. Jon and Becca came and stayed with us for the last two nights. That was awesome. We got some good hang-out time, but Lori and i were still working during the day. Why can't we all just live next door to each other, and have the same days off? Or better yet, we all just don't have to work. Yeah, that would be nice. For those of you that don't know, Jon is a really talented photographer. He took some good pictures while he was here, which leads me to my next update.
Last Monday we got a dog. She is a beautiful little mutt who we call Deen, in honor of Paula Deen. She's supposed to be a Boxer and Australian Cattle-dog mix, but we got her from a pet store, and you never know how much they actually know about their background. She is pretty, though.



We also traded in the ol' Mazda 6 for a '99 Chevy Tahoe (4x4!). It is also beautiful!
Lori is driving it, and she looks GOOD!
Spring Break was two weeks ago for Lori, so we took a trip to Georgia to visit the Greers. Man, that was a blast! We got to hang out, rest, and make an appearance on the Nancy Grace Show... you know... no biggie. It really was a lot of fun. Every time we go to North GA i have to remind myself that we're not moving there. Also Beautiful!
Lori is excited about there only being ten weeks of school left... that thought makes me want to wet myself because it means that camp is upon us. Yikes! Welcome to the busy season. So what do we do?... we get a dog... what was i thinking? It is fun, though. She's learning quick, and sleeping pretty well, lately. Speaking of sleep... we'll probably get to that pretty soon here. That's enough for now. Hopefully we will get back to writing a little sooner this time. Ya'll have a good day.

Last Year at This Time...

Hi friends! It's been about a million years since we've updates this thing, and lots has happened.
First of all, at this time last year John and I were dancing and taking pictures (definitely not eating) at our reception at the Bluffs. Today is the big day - our one year anniversary! It has been a fun weekend of remembering what last year looked like at this time and looking back over the high points of the year. This year has been full of change - marriage, new jobs, a house...and we are thankful for it all. It is nice to feel as though we are entering a season (however brief it may be) of rest.
I mentioned new jobs; I am winding down my first semester as a high school teacher. What an experience this has been! I teach science at a public school here in Tyler. I have one AP class; the rest are a remedial science for students who need to pass the TAKS. It has come with many challenges, but as I face the end of the semester I am excited to see that I am actually having more good days than bad, and that on most days I really enjoy what I do. I am starting to get better at managing my time, which means less bringing work home with me, which is great for both of us.

(I'd like to pause from this update and let everyone know that John keeps interrupting my typing by messing up the cursor from his iPhone. He has a new app that acts as a remote/mouse. I'm about to wash his phone like I did the last one...)

We also recently moved out of our apartment (no more squeeky ceilings!) into our first home! We are loving it. We are pretty much settled, and it finally feels like our place. We have one bedroom left to paint (my Christmas break project) and some trim in the living room to do as well (although the white primer is growing on us...), but other than that we are enjoying life there. Check out pictures on my Facebook.

That's what's happening in life for us right now. We'll try to be better about keeping you updated (I know you all so look forward to it :)), which will be easier now that we have internet at our house. We love you and wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Life

Hi friends! It's been a LONG time since our last update, and a lot has happened since then. Or at least it feels that way.
John is still at the church and Pine Cove, which keeps him busy. We did move him into a new office at the church which suits him way better than his old one. It feels more homey (and has LOTS more natural light, which I always prefer)and has plenty of workspace, fun pictures, and instruments to make it fun and functional. I am sure that is exactly how John would describe it...:)
I've started teaching and am still alive! I really do enjoy my job most of the time. There have been a couple of trying days, but I enjoy the teaching for the most part. I have some really good kids and am praying for the ones that prove more difficult. The Lord is faithful and is teaching me more and more about how to let Him love through me, which is harder than you might think. Please pray with me on how to love and encourage and guide these students who don't even realize that they need any of those things.
John and I are still on the house hunt. We have taken to sleeping in the guest room of our apartment on account of our noisy upstairs neighbors. It is a great temporary solution, but it is getting a little old. One of these days we won't have to share a ceiling/floor with anyone - it will be glorious! In the meantime, we are still searching and praying and trying to wait patiently.
I guess that about sums up where we are right now. We love you and are thankful for your friendship in our lives. Come visit us when you get the chance!

Busy busy busy...

Hi friends! It has been a loooong time since we last updated you on our lives (I know, I know...you have been eagerly anticipating this moment, I'm sure). This summer has kept us busy and on our toes, as usual. Rather than boring you with the details of every activity I have composed a list of the highlights. Here it goes:

1. We took a trip to St. Francisville, Louisiana, for our friends' wedding. John played and sang - it was beautiful!
2. A childhood friend of mine (this is Lori) got married in K-town, so we used the excuse to head home, where John and Dad managed to squeeze in a game of golf while Emily, Mom, and I shopped to get me some classroom-appropriate clothes for the fall (apparently schools frown on teachers wearing shorts, keens, and camp t-shirts to work. Go figure).
3. A group of Baby Ruths graduated the program as new ones entered.
4. Jacey came to visit us on the 4th of July. We ate good food, shot fireworks, and did a little shopping on the side.
5. We have been enjoying our small group at our new church. We are watching the Truth Project together, which has been fun and challenging.
6. John is continuing to lead worship at Calvary. He is doing a fabulous job!
7. I have finished all of my classwork leading up to taking the PPR for my teacher certification. I take the test on August 5th. Yay!
8. I will be heading to San Antonio in a week for a week-long conference on teaching AP Environmental Science. I am excited about the opportunity, but not looking forward to a week away from my husband.
9. We have started the process of looking for a house when our contract is up on our apartment in September. We are excited (and a little nervous, too) about the potential of finding our first house!
10. We visited our family in Decatur to celebrate John's parents' birthdays. It was a quick but fun trip. The boys got to watch a Rangers game while the ladies enjoyed a super-girly movie, pizza, and cookie dough. Awesome.

I think that's about it! I realize that the list was more detailed than I actually meant for it to be, but it sure is hard to consolidate a busy summer into a few lines! We hope that your summer is treating you well and we look forward to hearing about what is going on in your lives. We love you!

A Day Off!

Today is Saturday, and it is my first day off (this is Lori speaking) in 20 days. Woo-hoo! So far we've slept in, eaten Chick-fil-A for lunch, and painted my toenails (again, this is Lori speaking, so no worries) while watching episodes of How I Met Your Mother. It's been great so far, and the day is still young!
Here are a few things that have been happening in our lives lately:
1. Summer camp has started. It has been really fun interspersed with come craziness. But we're excited about another summer at Pine Cove. I am directing the Baby Ruth program again, which I love.
2. We took my car in for its 100,000 mile tune-up. Lots of money later we will have a practically new car (right?...). Here's hoping to eek a couple more years out of the ol' Malibu.
3. John made some popcorn in our Stir Crazy the other night. We discovered what happens when you don't get the popcorn kernel ratio exactly right...as the top rose off of the Stir Crazy and fluffy popcorn started to fill our kitchen. It was awesome.
4. I had a flat tire the other day. John had to come rescue me at our apartment. 20 minutes later my tire was like new. My hero!
5. I accepted a new job starting this fall. I will be teaching science at Robert E. Lee High School in Tyler. I am excited about it, but also nervous and sad to leave Pine Cove. I would love your prayers as we enter into a new season this fall.
I think that's about it for now. Any last thoughts, John?

This one time ... yeah, i got nothin.

Except... The day, i came home to fix Lori's flat, we went into the apartment to get my computer, and found out that our guest bathroom had flooded. We threw down some towels and started trying to sop it up, and Lori went to tell the people in the office that we had a maintenance issue. (That's right... we live in an apartment, and now I get to be the one filling out work orders! What's up?!... or at least that's what i thought) So anyway, when we got home from work, there was a note on the counter of our guest bathroom, saying that the had come and ... couldn't find anything wrong ... Don't get me wrong ... i know they work hard ... i've responded to work orders, and couldn't get the issue to repeat itself ... but later that night, i spent a good thirty minutes actually fixing the toilet. Yeah. (overflow tube was too high)

That's it. Lori?...

I think that just about sums up our life since our last post. We love you guys! Talk to you later.

Lori and John

The Whirlwind!

Hi friends! I realized tonight as I was waiting for John to get home from playing the drums at a worship event that it's been a long time since we updated this thing. And a lot has gone on! One could even call these past few weeks a whirlwind of activities (John:"Is this a good activity?" in his Brian Regan voice...) and goings on. So here we go.

Big news number 1:
John has a new job! Or I should say an additional job. He recently accepted ("We! We recently accepted!" is what he is telling me as he reads over my shoulder.) a position as a worship pastor at a church here in Tyler. We are really excited about this opportunity. The church community has been very welcoming and encouraging, and we are looking forward to opportunities to get to know the people and get plugged in. (John:"why do people always say plugged in? We're not toasters!")

Big news number 2:
We are not pregnant. I just feel like I should say that because I got this sinking feeling as I was typing that maybe this is what people were going to start thinking with the "Big news" thing. And clearly I found that explaining that was easier than pressing the delete button. Don't ask me how my mind works... (John:"Well, you see, there are all these little sparks firing all over your brain, and they're making connections with other parts of your brain...")

Large Bulletin number 3 (is that better?): (John:"that was my idea")
I recently passed a couple of science certification exams. I am enrolled in an alternative certification program to pursue teaching at some point in life. We are not necessarily job hunting for me, but I'm excited to eventually have my teaching certificate. It's kinda fun working towards a goal after a long time in one place. My brain is being stretched, that's for sure! (John:"There it goes; sparking again.")

Giant Announcement number 4: (John:"also my idea")
We are the proud owners of a Wii! Thank you Uncle Sam and your tax refunds! We are ready to party hard with anyone who thinks they can school us on the Figure Skating portion of the Wii Deca Sports. Geez it's hard... (John:"i will neither confirm nor deny my participation in said portion of the Deca Sports. i will, however, set forth another challenge on the snowboarding portion... seeing as how beating my wife has become too monotonous... OWWW! ... i got hit ...")
And of course we purchased the Wii Fit (it just seemed right). Right now my Wii Fit age is 41. My sister's is 35. (John:"Get it... it's ironic 'cause they're twins...")If that isn't motivation to get on that little balance board and mimic a computer-generated personal trainer doing lunges I don't know what is.

Well, that might be it for now. I'm posting a new picture that we took at the Rangers game we went to with Pine Cove earlier in the week. (John:"Lori is becoming quite the Baseball fan, now that she knows what's going on. i'm so lucky.") We love you and hope you have a great week!

How Sweet It Is...

John and I just got back to the apartment from a trip to the mall. Bootsie sent us a little money for Easter (thanks, Bootsie!), so we went to take advantage of the sale at Old Navy. We found ourselves in The Gap (aka The Land of Many Temptations) and as I was trying on clothes from the sale rack a dress flew over the top of the door. And about 2 minutes after that miraculous event I found my eyes welling up as my sweet husband unveiled his secret plan for our trip. He had a little extra money and wanted to treat me to a new outfit. What a simple but oh, so sweet (and fun) blessing.
As the lady at Old Navy said (yes, we did make it down to Old Navy), "You've got a good one!" I happen to agree.
Thank you, God, for this blessing of my husband.

Long Time No Share

I'm sitting in front of my tv watching Dancing with the Stars (this is Lori, by the way, so don't be alarmed) on one of our two channels (thank you, rabbit ears!) and wondering if the ceiling is going to cave in from our thunderfeet upstairs neighbors. John is hanging out with a friend and then off to play some soccer. Since I'm by myself, I figured I'd take some time to update you on what's been going on in our lives.
The past couple of weeks have been a whirlwind for us. Three weeks ago we made a quick but fun-filled trip out to Camp War Eagle to spend some time with Jen, Kolby, and the nieces and nephew. We had a blast! It was my first trip out there, and we sure made the most of it. Picture lots of hiking, jumping on the trampoline, eating awesome food, blowing darts on the blowgun, building fires with the kids, and lots and lots of laughter and fun with the family. I love it! It was wonderful but way too short.
This last weekend my parents came up to visit (we love houseguests!) for my mom's early birthday celebration. It consisted of a delicious lemon poppyseed pound cake, a day touring the azalea gardens in Tyler, playing games, and lots of delicious food. It was Mom and Dad's first chance to see our apartment, so that was fun too. Good times had by all!
This week we have a tiny bit of a breather before we hit the ground running again. I don't have any groups this week, but John will be leading worship this weekend at the Bluffs while I spend some time with girlfriends in Dallas. Maybe next weekend we'll be agenda-free!
So there you have it - a quick rundown of our last couple of weeks. Now it's back to the thunderfeet (our ceiling fan is moving...if it crashes to the ground we'll be sure and let you know!) and Dancing with the Stars. We love you guys and hope that you are doing well. Talk to you soon!

Routine

Right now we are sitting on the awesome couch with full bellies watching Shooter. John just gave me the basic overview of the movie (we are fast-forwarding to John's favorite parts) as we cleaned up our tiny kitchen, and now I sit enthralled as I watch Marky Mark blow the heads off of bad guys.
John and I have a great system for picking out movies...we take turns. Yes, we revisit our kindergarden ethics and are happy to report that it works like a charm! Since we've been married I have subjected John to such movies as When Harry Met Sally, 13 Going on 30, You've Got Mail (numerous times in one weekend even!), and Two Weeks Notice. I have had the pleasure of watching Tombstone, The Rock, The Godfather, and let's not forget Shooter.
There is a catch, however, to making our brillant plan work well. When it comes time to pick, John sticks to man-movies and a good chick flick must be my choice. I made the confusing mistake a few weeks ago of picking a man-movie on my turn. On the next movie night John and I were thrown for a loop. It was John's turn. Did he have to pick a chick flick? We weren't prepared for the pickle we found ourselves in. And a valuble lesson was learned that day. When in doubt, stick to the routine...
John: basically that means i was selfish and chose the movie i wanted to see... yeah... i suck.
Lori: that is NOT what that means! everyone should know that any time i am in a bad mood john picks a chick flick for us to watch, even if it is his turn! what a man!!!
John: Yeah! "What a man!" i passify my wife by putting in a girly movie. i am awesome.
Lori: a keeper in my book, babe. :)