The Hilton Life Web Log

Winner of the Blog Hop....

2012-01-24T09:29:00.000-05:00

Congratulations Liz, you are the winner of my 'blog candy' from Samantha's 1st Anniversary Blog Hop. I used Random.org to pick the winner and #3 it was. I will email you today to get your mailing information. Other wise feel free to contact me, too.
Congratulation's again!
Talk to you soon.

Tess

Samantha's Cricut Creations 1st anniversary blog hop!

2012-01-22T08:00:00.000-05:00

Welcome to Samantha's Cricut Creations 1st anniversary blog hop!

If you have just hopped on the tour, please go to Samantha's blog at http://www.samanthascricutcreations.blogspot.com to start at the beginning. If you have arrived from Mallika's, www.missnotsogoodwithwords.blogspot.com you are in the right place.

The hop theme today is crafty anniversary. I took me awhile to decide on what to prepare to celebrate Samantha's first anniversary with her blog. And what a fantastic blog it is, I might add! She has so many great ideas and has come a long way in the past year with her blog. So, I finally decided on a HUGE shout out to her for her special day. Hope you enjoy and Congratulations Samantha!!

Base of Card

Owl from Cricut Cartridge Paisely .

inside of card

Recipe for card my "Woot Woot" card:

Base-7 1/2 x 10 1/2 (folded and scored in half)

-printed paper from page 38 of the Cricut Imagine cartridge Enjoy the Seasons

Owl- cut out at 3 3/4" from the Cricut cartridge Paisley page 42 (I pop dotted each layer)

-Flower - cut at 1" (pop dotted)

-goggly eyes

-bling

-faux stiching

-inked the edges

Branch- cut out at 3 3/4" from Cricut cartridge Create a Critter page 25

- embossed with Distressing stripes Cuttlebug folder

-Leaves were crinkled and ink distressed with Tim Holtz Wild Honey ink

"Woot Woot" - cut out at 1" from the Paisley Cricut cartridge page 43

- ink distressed with Tim Holtz Vintage Photo

Inside the card I used the Owl shadow and layered "Happy Blogiversary" over the top.

"Happy Blogiversary" was cut using the Lyrical Letters Cricut cartridge and my Gypsy. They were cut out at 1.82" I also ink distressed them to help them stand out.

Well that is it for me today. I hope you enjoy your time here with me, but you still have one more stop to make before Samantha's Hop is done. The next stop on the hop is Amy's. You can find her at www.scrapthissavethat.blogspot.com.

Here is the entire list of the Blog Hop in case you just hopped on...

Samantha www.samanthascricutcreations.blogspot.com
Chris www.snowboundchris.blogspot.com
Erica www.mycricutcraftroom.blogspot.com
Jenn www.scraphappensembellishit.blogspot.com
Paula www.morethanfavors.blogspot.com
Laura www.laurascraftsandmore.com
Jenny www.crazyaboutcricut.blogspot.com
Elizabeth www.217creations.com
Cori www.createdbycori.blogspot.com
Mallika www.missnotsogoodwithwords.blogspot.com
Tess www.hiltonlife.blogspot.com
Amy E www.scrapthissavethat.blogspot.com

Thanks for stopping. And if you are interested in some 'SURPRISE blog candy', become a follower of my page and help me think of a name for my personal crafting blog I will be switching over too. Don't forget your contact information in case you win.

Hope to see you soon!

Tess

Decision Time

2012-01-07T21:29:00.000-05:00

I can't stand it anymore.... I decided I am going to enter this card for a Design Team Call. I hope they like!

I made the card for the groom at a bridal shower who was getting a gift.

As I look at it now, I would like to have used a more"Fred Flintstone" saying, such as "Wife good", but I did not know the groom that well, so I went more simple.

Hope I made the right decision. I used my Cricut and Cricut Imagine, Tim Holtz distressing ink, Peachy Keen Stamps with a white gel pen for the eyes, and red glittery stickles.

My 1st Blog Hop!

2012-01-07T18:00:00.000-05:00

I am so excited!! I get to be in my first blog hop coming up in few weeks. So watch for it....
I am also trying my hand at applying for some Design Teams. I am excited and nervous at the same time. It is so hard to choose from my all my lay outs and cards.
Here are a couple to choose from....Do you have any thoughts?

Wedding Card

Bridal Shower card

Bridal shower card for a man-"man shower card"

Anniversary card

Princess Birthday card for a 5 yr. old

My brother's birthday card. He plays a ton of baseball.

Another Anniversary card.

TheREALHiltons.com!

2011-12-05T00:25:00.001-05:00

Follow my Geek-E-ness at " TheRealHiltons.com ".

For real.. My geekyness comes out in droves, but there, Im not ashamed to lay it on the line. ; )

-C

TheREALHiltons.com

2011-11-28T13:48:00.000-05:00

We judge ourselves by what we think we can achieve, others judge us by what we have achieved so far

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We are EXPANDING!!

2011-11-18T22:39:00.000-05:00

.. Kindive,
Ms. HiltonLife and I, have always had a competitive nature about what we've wanted to express.

Me? Im just a venting kind of person. Blogging has been my outlet for the Marines, for Working stressful nights in the E.R., for unique family experiences that force me to grow and look deeply into my spirit to best address a child rearing issue.. (Ie; my child did, this, NOW what do I do??"

My Dear Ms. HiltonLife, should be a professional scrapbooker. She's amazing at everything she touches, and yet, she rarely speaks of these gifts. Gifts with family, relationships, relating with God, Growing as a Christian woman, and of course; SCRAPBOOKING...

So, Im going to attempt to turn over the reins to Ms. HiltonLife for alot of the 'HiltonLife.blogspot.com' posting.. She'll crush it. -Im going to go on a tangent over on 'TheRealHilton.blogspot.com'. Or, simply, TheREALHiltons.com..
Tess will pick it up as soon as I can persuede her to show her talents off.!!! She is really amazing!

With that being said, me, "Mr. HiltonLife", I'm not bidding 'adieu' quite yet, but soon.

With this little change, It'll allow me to REALLY decompress some cool and unique E.R. Stories, USMC tales, and Lifehacker/McGuyver tips to really motivate.

Thanks again folks! Till Tomorrow friends,
-Carl

Semper Fidelis

2011-11-12T23:27:00.001-05:00

Happy 236th Birthday U.S. Marine Corps

The oldest and youngest living Medal of Honor recipients. 11/11/2011.
Priceless.

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How are your home heating bills?

2011-11-09T16:18:00.000-05:00

Should US allow LNG exports?

Bill White Nov 08, 2011

Moves to export some of the Lower 48's rising supply of natural gas have sparked debate about the wisdom of allowing that gas to leave the country, according to a new Congressional Research Service report.

"With today's natural gas prices relatively low compared to global prices and historically low for the United States, producers are looking for new markets for their natural gas," says the report titled "U.S. Natural Gas Exports: New Opportunities, Uncertain Outcomes."

"Producers contend that increased exports will not raise prices significantly as there is ample supply to meet domestic demand, and there will be the added benefits of increased revenues, trade, and jobs, and less flaring. Consumers of natural gas, who are being helped by the low prices, fear prices will rise if natural gas is exported."
The report centers on a half dozen pending proposals to export Lower 48 gas as liquefied natural gas, or LNG, noting that if they all go forward at full capacity they would export the equivalent of 12 percent of today's U.S. gas production.

"What effect exporting natural gas will have on U.S. prices is the central question in the debate of whether to export or not to export," the report says. "A significant rise in U.S. natural gas exports would likely put upwards pressure on domestic prices, but the magnitude of any rise is currently unclear. There are numerous factors that will affect prices: export volumes, economic growth, differences in local markets, and government regulations, among others."

Never really liked Halloween, but always lovin' the fam!

2011-10-30T23:49:00.000-04:00

Little 'Orphan Annie'! Carl the Pumpkin illusionist!

Noah, waiting so patiently...

Pumpkin Guts!

Grace, thankful that this is NOT "whats for dinner!"
-C

2011 Commandant of the Marine Corps Birthday Message

2011-10-26T21:56:00.000-04:00

This is the only USMC birthday message that has ever given me chills. Semper Fidelis Marines

The saddest part of Steve Job's Obituary

2011-10-10T23:35:00.000-04:00

Despite his wealth and corporate success, Steve Jobs always managed to retain the air of a Silicon Valley

buccaneer.

His abrasive style meant he was often difficult to work with but his eye for a desirable product made Apple one of the planet's most recognised brands.

Steven Paul Jobs was born in San Francisco on 24 Feb 1955, the son of two unmarried university students, Joanne Schieble and Syrian born Abdulfattah

His parents gave him up for adoption and he was taken in by a working class Californian couple Paul & Clara Jobs.

Months after his adoption, his biological parents married and had a daughter, Mona, who did not learn of her brother's existence until she was an adult.
He was brought up in his adoptive parent's home in Silicon Valley, the hub of the US electronics industry.

Buddhism
While attending a local high school the young Jobs was offered a summer job at the Hewlett Packard plant in Palo Alto where he found himself working alongside a fellow student named Steve Wozniak.
He dropped out of college after one term and went to work for the video game manufacturer Atari with the idea of raising enough money to travel to India.
Jobs returned from his trek around the sub continent with a shaven head, wearing Indian robes and having experienced the effects of LSD; he was to remain a Buddhist and vegetarian throughout his life.

Interesting Article. Unemployed?

2011-10-10T21:08:00.000-04:00

Unemployment can 'really do a number' on emotional health and self confidence

Jennie L Phipps | MLive.com Contributor
Published: Oct 10, 2011 5:31 PM

One of the side effects of long-term unemployment is often depression -- occasionally deadly depression.

Kim Cameron, professor of management and organization at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business, researched this issue for about 10 years. One of his research projects involved interviewing people in executive positions who had lost their jobs. He tells this story about it:

"In one instance there were nine people from one company, all of them over age 55 and all of them making more than $500,000 a year. All of them lost their jobs and assumed they would get others immediately. But they quickly learned that nobody wanted to hire someone with 30 years experience and that kind of salary.

"Six of those men committed suicide in one year. It was contagious and so shocking," Cameron said.

Cameron also talks about another person in one of his studies, a successful salesman who told researchers that when he first began job hunting that he thought, "I'm a pretty good salesperson and I feel like I'm reasonably marketable. I began going out and applying for jobs. People would say, 'You're way overqualified. I would go to be interviewed, and I wouldn't get the job. Cognitively, I understood that I wasn't exactly what they're looking for, but emotionally, it felt like a personal rejection.

"I got to the point where I didn't think I could apply for one more job because I didn't think I could hear one more rejection. I had to fight to get out of bed, let alone put on clean clothes and behave like human being. I was emotionally exhausted. I didn't have the energy to do anything."

Cameron says this subject of the study was a talented, well-credentialed person, but "unemployment really did a number on his emotional health and self-confidence."

What happened in the end? Ultimately, Cameron said, the man began working with an employment agency in hopes they could help him. The agency was so impressed, they hired him.

Some people have a more difficult time than others dealing with unemployment, Cameron's research tells him. "Some individuals have a very difficult time moving on from past experiences. They define themselves based on what their title was. It's the classic example of the guys sitting around talking about the glory days of high school -- living back then vs. people who can say, 'I'll redefine myself and I'll create something new," he says.

Cameron isn't a psychologist, but his years of experience researching unemployment have led him to believe that there are three factors that are important for people trying to avoid unemployment-related depression and create a new life for themselves.

Find purposeful and meaningful activities -- even if they aren't isn't job related. If you don't feel like you have meaning in either your work life or your personal life, you are at risk for serious depression. If you can't find a paying, career-enhancing position, then take a volunteer job doing something you find satisfying.
Lean on your social support system. In the best of all possible worlds, you'd have a loving partner who would be supportive. Lacking that, develop other kinds of positive relationships -- even if you have to join a support group to find them.
Get encouraging guidance. Find somebody who is positive and upbeat to encourage you and give you feedback about your search. This could be a minister or a life coach -- someone who is expert at mitigating self-pity and depression.

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Michigan Debt Calculator

2011-10-07T01:05:00.000-04:00

I wish this was a "Widget". I would totally keep it running 24/7, !!

http://usdebtclock.org/state-debt-clocks/state-of-michigan-debt-clock.html

Our Packer Fans...

2011-10-03T08:15:00.000-04:00

Just had to share our little Packer-backers. I actually did not plan on them wearing their Packer shirts at the same time, but figured it was a great photo opp. Well, not everything goes as planned...as you can see.
Will try again.

My Promise As Your Father

2011-09-29T23:49:00.000-04:00

Grace, Noah, and Luke. My Children…You will never know how much it is my privilege and honor to be your Daddy. You should know now, and in your adolescence, that I will be the one who calls out the man in my sons, the woman in my daughter, and I will be the one that has the hard talks with you.
I will be the one to lovingly discipline you. And I will be the one to accept and take all the responsibilities of getting, and keeping you on track. I am not delegating it to the youth minister, to my church, to your school, or to anybody else. That is my responsibility. This is my God given honor, and directive.

You should know, I am very much imperfect. But, I will do my best to steer you in the direction of purity, honor, and Holiness. If and when you read this, you should know; how very much I love you.
This. Is my contract with you.

-Dad.

2011-09-28T23:36:00.000-04:00

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Final & fatal

2011-09-27T00:28:00.000-04:00

Success is never final, failure is never fatal. It's courage that counts. -John Wooden

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Wisdom of Humility

2011-09-26T10:46:00.000-04:00

If a man is proud of his wealth, he should not be praised until it is known how he employs it.
-Socrates

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Something about Jerusalem

2011-09-23T23:58:00.001-04:00

Watch the news. Its fascinating to me that this tiny piece of land, smaller than the State of Rhode Island; Israel, is most always in the news, ...every single day.

I think there is a reason for that.

Israel is God's timepiece.
1967. For the first time, in over 2000 years, the Israeli flag flew over Jerusalem. -That was momentous in terms of the unfolding of God's purposes.

On the garbage heap of world history, you have the nations that have turned Against Israel. The Hitites are gone, the phoenecins are gone, the Assyrians are gone, the Babylonians are gone.. but the Jews survive. They, are an ancient people that can trace their linage all the way back to Abraham, ...Approximately 2000 B.C.
Nobody else can do that.

So thats the danger: is that, God is saying, "They are the apple of my eye".

I have put my blessing upon then them, and those that have blessed them will be blessed, and those who have cursed them, I will judge.

God has enmity against those who divide "my land.". God considers this to be His land. You read the bible, and He says, "This is My land".

"The Land shall not be sold for ever: for the land is mine."
-Leviticus 25:23

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Just some cards I have been working on...

2011-09-17T08:36:00.000-04:00

I wanted to share some cards I have been making lately. I am making some more when time permits. But am happy with the ones I have finished. Hopefully the people that received them are too. :)

Anniversay Card.

Bridal Shower card for my cousin.

My husband thought I had to much time on my hands when he saw this Yard Sale sign. It was actually super easy using my Cricut and Gypsy.

'Groom to be' card for a shower gift.

Anniversary card.

Wedding card for my nephew and new neice. Love you Nick and Liz!

Momentum

2011-09-14T07:40:00.000-04:00

Keep moving ahead because action creates momentum, which in turn creates unanticipated opportunities.

(photo courtesy/credit to Troy Livesay)

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This will be my Fb profile pic each game

2011-09-03T00:37:00.000-04:00

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Herman Cain

2011-09-02T16:34:00.000-04:00

Dear Fellow Patriot,

I am personally asking each of you to reach out to at least one other person today. I would like you to share three very important points with them.
According to the most recent Rasmussen Poll, I am within 7% points of beating President Obama. So, if we were in a one-on-one race, I would only be 7 points behind. View the Rasmussen Reports Poll.
Considering I only have 50% name ID, these polling numbers are incredible! The President has at least a 100% name ID!
I continue to lead in the Gallup Poll's positive intensity ranking. Week after week, the numbers remain high, which proves that once people become acquainted with me and my candidacy, they become committed supporters.

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Painfully Interesting Month

2011-08-29T23:44:00.001-04:00

... We started August. We were broadsided by a 50 mph car. Thankfully, T' and the kids were NOT injured. Besides hitting my head, I got away with only a few bruised and broken ribs. By mechanism, it should have been alot worse.

I didn't realize what hit us, but knew we had to get out of the path of any oncoming traffic, so I hit the gas to cross & get out of the way. (I think?)

The crossover suv impacted my drivers door and pushed us a little to the right. When I realized what was going to happen, I attempted to steer our van between a natural gas line and a telephone pole. -You can see, we almost squeezed through. I took the telephone pole in the drivers side front.
It stopped us.

We're thanking God for protecting us!

When sets of challenging circumstances seem to keep adding up, and you think one more might threshold.. It wont. God's got you. It's for a testimony. Be encouraged.
Psalm 37:7 is for you, Christian.

Psalms 37:7

NIV
Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.

New Living Translation (©2007)
Be still in the presence of the LORD, and wait patiently for him to act. Don't worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes.

English Standard Version (©2001)
Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!

New American Standard Bible (©1995)
Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.

GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)
Surrender yourself to the LORD, and wait patiently for him. Do not be preoccupied with [an evildoer]who succeeds in his way when he carries out his schemes.

King James Bible
Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.

American King James Version
Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not yourself because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked devices to pass.

American Standard Version
Rest in Jehovah, and wait patiently for him: Fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, Because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.

Bible in Basic English
Take your rest in the Lord, waiting quietly for him; do not be angry because of the man who does well in his evil ways, and gives effect to his bad designs.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Be subject to the Lord and pray to him Envy not the man who prospereth in his way; the man who doth unjust things.

Darby Bible Translation
Rest in Jehovah, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him that prospereth in his way, because of the man that bringeth mischievous devices to pass.

English Revised Version
Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.

Webster's Bible Translation
Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.

World English Bible
Rest in Yahweh, and wait patiently for him. Don't fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who makes wicked plots happen.

Young's Literal Translation
Be silent for Jehovah, and stay thyself for Him, Do not fret because of him Who is making prosperous his way, Because of a man doing wicked devices.

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Hey God?

2011-08-16T00:47:00.000-04:00

God,

your directions seem to take longer and further than the way I would go..either I choose my own way-or trust your navigational system..

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Tax the Rich. Pony up, and join the rest of American in a shared sacrifice

2011-08-15T11:31:00.000-04:00

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Legendary investor Warren Buffett, chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway(BRK.A_)(BRK.B_), wrote in an opinion editorial on Monday that it's time to stop coddling the super-rich and to increase the taxes they pay.

More on BRK.A

Transatlantic Holdings, Inc. Enters Into Confidentiality Agreement And Discussions With National Indemnity6 Stocks to Win the RaceBuffett Not Swayed by Turbulent MarketMarket Activity

Berkshire Hathaway Inc
BRK.B UPBerkshire Hathaway Inc
BRK.A UPBuffett wrote his opinions in an article for The New York Times in which he called on Congress to structure a proper budget that would force the top 0.3% of income earners to accept "shared sacrifice."

Warren Buffett.

"While the poor and middle class fight for us in Afghanistan, and while most Americans struggle to make ends meet, we mega-rich continue to get our extraordinary tax breaks," Buffett said.

Buffett said that he paid only 17.4% of his taxable income, which was lower than what the average middle-class American must pony up. An income earner who makes $8,500 to $34,500 is in the 15% tax bracket; $34,500 to $83,600 reaches the 25% bracket; and $83,600 to $174,400 falls in the 28% bracket. (2010 IRS Tax Tables)

Congress launched a bipartisan deficit-reduction panel last week to cut spending, decrease the deficit and increase the amount the U.S. Treasury can borrow. The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction is a 12-member panel created by the budget legislation politicians passed on Aug. 2 to raise the debt ceiling.

The agreement outlined some $2.4 trillion in cuts and a debt limit increase of $2.1 trillion. The panel was appointed by party leaders in the House and Senate

Crap

2011-08-11T11:31:00.002-04:00

A horse, a cow, and a deer all eat the same grass. Yet a deer excretes little pellets, while a cow turns out a flat patty, but a horse produces clumps. Why do you suppose that is?" The atheist, visibly surprised by the little girl's intelligence thinks about it and says, "Hmmm, I have no idea." To which the little girl replies, "Do you really feel qualified to discuss why there is no God, or no Heaven or Hell, or no life after death, when you don't know crap?"

Herman Cain in 2012

2011-08-04T22:54:00.001-04:00

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2011-08-04T22:53:00.000-04:00

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Free at last, free at last, free at last!

2011-07-31T16:20:00.000-04:00

#3. our last child has out grown his crib.
: (

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Just sayin'

2011-07-28T11:04:00.000-04:00

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Sad, but true.

2011-07-27T12:41:00.000-04:00

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2011-07-24T23:29:00.001-04:00

"When I understand that everything happening to me is to make me more Christlike, it solves a great deal of anxiety." AW Tozer

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Spiritual Warfare.. What the Scripture says.. Do you buy it?

2011-07-17T23:42:00.000-04:00

A target is a mark to shoot at, an object of ridicule or criticism and a goal to be achieved. Did you know that you were a target of God’s arch enemy, Satan? We are all on his hit list. No one is exempt. He has you set as a mark to shoot at as often as he possibly can and he will use any kind of weapon he can to get to you. 1 Peter 5:8 says: Be sober, be vigilant (alert); because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.

Paul tells us in 1 Timothy 6:12 to fight the good fight of faith. This is a fight. It is a spiritual fight. It is a fight of faith. We are not fighting things we can see but things we can not see. Ephesians 6:12 says: For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

A principality is the position, territory or jurisdiction of a prince. Power has quite a few meanings. Several of which are (1) a position of authority over others (2) one that has control (3) a physical might (4) force or energy used to do work. A ruler is someone who rules or governs over something, someone or someplace. Darkness is the absence of light. Things are done secretly in darkness because no one can see it being done until it is too late. There are evil spirits that do wicked things in heavenly places. Wicked is morally bad, evil, sinful. These evil spirits are fierce, vicious, repugnant, vile, harmful and dangerous. They operate in high places or heavenly places, in the spiritual realm.

In Daniel 10:12-20, Daniel had been fasting and praying for twenty one days, waiting on a word from God. Then, twenty one days later, an angel appeared to Daniel with the answer. The angel told Daniel that God heard him when he first prayed twenty one days ago and God had sent him right then with the answer. The prince of the kingdom of Persia stood against the angel, fighting with him, trying to keep him from bringing the answer to Daniel’s prayer. When Michael, one of the leading princes came to help the other angel, he was able to get through. Many times we never realize the actual source of the enemy’s attacks. We blame circumstances and people. We waste our energy fighting natural conditions instead of supernatural causes and it doesn’t do us any good. We just become more frustrated.

In Deuteronomy 10:14 and 1 Kings 8:27, it mentions the heavens and the heaven of heavens. Many people get confused about God’s angels and evil angels fighting in heaven. What they don’t understand is that God’s Word teaches there are three different areas of heaven. (1) The heaven where God lives (2) The steller heavens which is what we call outer space and (3) The heavens around this earth which is the atmosphere surrounding this planet. The last heaven is where spiritual war takes place. Ephesians 2:2 says: Wherein in times past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. The air is where wicked spirits operate. These wicked spirits can hinder our prayers. They can’t stop them, but, they can impede there progress, hold them back, obstruct them and block them temporarily.

Satan would have you to think that God doesn’t hear your prayers, He doesn’t answer prayer anymore or maybe that your prayers can’t get any higher than the ceiling. The truth is that He lives inside of you and your prayers do not have to get any higher than the ceiling. He hears you when you pray. He knows every move you make. He even knows how many hairs you have on your head.

Satan starts out targeting us when we are young, sometimes even before we are born. He targeted Jesus when He was a baby. He knew what God had planned for Jesus to do on this earth and he set out to stop it. All through the Old Testament, it was predicted or foretold that a Savior was coming. In Matthew, Chapter 2, it tells of how the wise men knew Jesus had been born because they saw His star in the East. They wanted to worship Him. King Herod heard about that and was troubled (verse 3). I believe that Satan took this opportunity to send a wicked spirit of maybe jealousy to King Herod. King Herod probably thought about the Wise Men wanting to worship the King of the Jews instead of him and it opened a door for a spirit of jealousy to come in and possibly anger, fear, resentment and other things. Satan had targeted Jesus and was using King Herod to try and stop what God was sending Him to do. The King ordered all of the boy babies two years old and under to be killed. God protected Jesus. He sent an angel to warn Joseph in a dream and they moved to Egypt until after King Herod died.

Angels are ministering spirits sent forth to minister to the heirs of salvation. God gave them charge over us to watch us and keep us in all of our ways. They hearken to the voice of God’s Word. Evil angels, wicked spirits, devils and demons are all the same. They are evil spirits sent forth to do evil to the heirs of salvation. Their job is to steal, to kill and to destroy and to do whatever damage they can. They hearken to Satan’s voice. Hebrews 13:8 says: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. He does not change. I have a feeling that Satan does not change either. If he came against people in the times of Christ with his demonic spirits, he still does today.

Satan is not just sitting around doing nothing. He is exerting spiritual force to try and injure us, abuse us, steal from us, kill us or destroy us. He will even use false prophets and deceitful workers who try to act like they are apostles of Christ. This is done to try and lead us astray. We have to beware of this because Satan will transform himself into an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).

The Apostle Paul was definitely a target of Satan’s. 2 Corinthians 12:7 says: And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. The Word plainly tells us that the thorn given to Paul was a messenger from Satan. This messenger of Satan was sent to stop Paul from preaching the Word of God because Paul had received an abundance of revelations from God. Paul was doing many mighty works for the Lord. People were being born again every day. He laid hands on the sick and they were healed (Acts 28:8-9). He caused a young man that fell out of a window and died to come back to life again. He laid hands on people and they received the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in tongues. God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul (Acts 9:11). He established churches (Acts 16:5). He casts out spirits (Acts 16:18). He did many mighty works for the Lord.

To wreak means to inflict. Havoc means devastation; wide and general destruction; and slaughter. Paul was wreaking great havoc in Satan’s kingdom. Satan didn’t like it so he sent this messenger of his to try and stop Paul. You can see this same messenger of Satan’s causing problems for Paul all through the book of Acts. He worked to incite the people against Paul. To incite means to move to action by impulse or influence. He caused Paul to be imprisoned, to be beaten three times, stoned one time, shipwrecked three times and snake bit (2 Corinthians 11:24-27).

No matter how hard the messenger of Satan tried to stop Paul, he could not. 2 Timothy 3:11 says: the Lord delivered him out of them all. Thorn in the flesh is a figure of speech. If someone was causing us alot of problems and we were aggravated at them, we might call them a pain in the neck. In Numbers 33:55, the Lord told Moses that if the Israelites did not drive out the inhabitants of the land of Canaan, those inhabitants would vex them (annoy, distress, irritate and torment) and be pricks in their eyes and thorns in their sides. In the same way, Paul describes this evil angel as a thorn in his side.

Matthew 11:12 says: And from the days of John the Baptist until now the Kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and the violent take it by force. Violence is exertion of physical force so as to injure or abuse. It is also an intense or furious, often destructive action or force. What is in the Kingdom of God? Righteousness, peace, joy, love, forgiveness, understanding, prosperity, generosity, salvation, etc. In Satan’s kingdom, it is just the opposite. There is evil, strife, confusion, fear, poverty, doubt, unbelief, sickness, disease, pain, greed, unforgiveness, rebellion, jealousy, temper, anger, profanity, depression, I could go on and on. Luke 22:31-32 says: And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But, I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. We serve the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of heaven. It is up to us to get violent with the kingdom of Satan. We have to take back by the force of faith what Satan has taken from us, whether it be our children, our finances, our employment, our health, the hopes and dreams that God has put into our hearts or anything else. When our faith is strong enough to stand against Satan’s kingdom and all of his evil forces that are coming against us, we are able to help others that are going through the same things we have been through.

(Citation to: "Spiritual warfare series. 'You, are a target'. http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:KKiroJpnkNEJ:www.burstingforthministries.com/index.php%3Fp%3D1_30_Spiritual-Warfare-Series-You-Are-A-Target+not+against+physical+forces,+but+against+spiritual&cd=4&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&source=www.google.com)

McDonnell Douglas SPOOF email

2011-07-17T02:28:00.001-04:00

This was posted very briefly on the McDonnell Douglas Website by an employee
there who obviously has a sense of humour. The company, of course, does not
have a sense of humour, and made the web department take it down immediately
(for once).

The 'IMPORTANT' note at the end is worth a read too.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Thank you for purchasing a McDonnell Douglas military aircraft. In order to
protect your new investment, please take a few moments to fill out the
warranty registration card below.

Answering the survey questions is not required, but the information will
help us to develop new products that best meet your needs and desires.

1. Title/Name/Location
[_] Mr.
[_] Mrs.
[_] Ms.
[_] Miss
[_] Lt.
[_] Gen.
[_] Comrade
[_] Classified
[_] Other

First Name: .......................................

Initial: .......

Last Name:.........................................

Password: .......................... (max. 8 char)

Code Name:........................................

Latitude-Longitude-Altitude: .....................

2. Which model of aircraft did you purchase?
[_] F-14 Tomcat
[_] F-15 Eagle
[_] F-16 Falcon
[_] F-117A Stealth
[_] Classified

3. Date of purchase (Year/Month/Day): 20......./......./......

4. Serial Number:.................................

5. Please indicate where this product was purchased:
[_] Received as gift / aid package
[_] Catalogue / showroom
[_] Independent arms broker
[_] Mail order
[_] Discount store
[_] Government surplus
[_] Classified

6. Please indicate how you became aware of the McDonnell Douglas product you
have just purchased:
[_] Heard loud noise, looked up
[_] Store display
[_] Espionage
[_] Recommended by friend / relative / ally
[_] Political lobbying by manufacturer
[_] Was attacked by one

7. Please indicate the three (3) factors that most influenced your decision
to purchase this McDonnell Douglas product:
[_] Style / appearance
[_] Speed / manoeuvrability
[_] Price / value
[_] Comfort / convenience
[_] Kickback / bribe
[_] Recommended by salesperson
[_] McDonnell Douglas reputation
[_] Advanced Weapons Systems
[_] Backroom politics
[_] Negative experience opposing one in combat

8. Please indicate the location(s) where this product will be used:
[_] North America
[_] Iraq
[_] Iraq
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[_] Iraq
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[_] Iraq
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[_] Iraq
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[_] Iraq
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[_] Iraq

9. Please indicate the products that you currently own or intend to purchase
in the near future:
[_] Colour TV
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10. How would you describe yourself or your organization? (Indicate all that
apply)
[_] Communist / Socialist
[_] Terrorist
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[_] Corrupt
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11. How did you pay for your McDonnell Douglas product?
[_] Deficit spending
[_] Cash
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[_] Personal check
[_] Credit card
[_] Ransom money
[_] Traveler's check

12. Your occupation:
[_] Homemaker
[_] Sales / marketing
[_] Revolutionary
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13. To help us better understand our customers, please indicate the
interests and activities in which you and your spouse enjoy
participating on a regular basis:
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[_] Fashion clothing
[_] Border disputes
[_] Mutually Assured Destruction

Thank you for taking the time to fill out this questionnaire. Your answers
will be used in market studies that will help McDonnell Douglas serve you
better in the future - as well as allowing you to receive mailings and
special offers from other companies, governments, extremist groups, and
mysterious consortia.

As a bonus for responding to this survey, you will be registered to win a
brand new F-117A in our Desert Thunder Sweepstakes!

Comments or suggestions about our fighter planes?

Please write to: McDONNELL DOUGLAS CORPORATION Marketing Department,
Military Aerospace Division
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
*IMPORTANT: This email is intended for the use of the individual
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Unless the word absquatulation has been used in its correct context
somewhere other than in this warning, it does not have any legal or
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Those of you with an overwhelming fear of the unknown will be gratified to
learn that there is no hidden message revealed by reading this warning
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NOTICE AND DISCLAIMER:
This email (including attachments) is confidential. If you have received
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2011-07-11T12:16:00.000-04:00

Stop trying to get people back...You'll never get ahead while trying to get even #truth

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2011-07-07T13:49:00.000-04:00

What would you change if God gave You 1more yr to bear fruit? "If it bears fruit next year,fine.If not,then cut it down!"Lk13:9

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Fourth of July

2011-07-06T00:22:00.011-04:00

Although Tess and I want to expand upon our own traditions as a young family to enjoy with our kids, we briefly stopped at the Allendale celebration for Tess' "Book-hunt", and then meanderd out to Cascade's 4th of July Carnaval celebration.

Grace's absolute favorite, the ponies.

What FUN!

T's camera battery was totally drained (of course, Murphy's law would dictate); So we shot video on Flipshare.

-Awesome little clips! I hope the kids enjoy them as much as I do when they grow up.

The rides, sun, water, and eats with Nana and Papa, proved to be good sleep incentive once on the road. It took roughly 6 miles for 2 out of the three little people to fall asleep.

-C

Winter to Summer Haircuts!

2011-06-28T20:34:00.000-04:00

Luke, wanting to finish his haircut by himself

Noah, a little bit long in the ears for a warm month of June.

Done, FINALLY.. He was happy to get out of the barber chair!

2011-06-27T02:24:00.002-04:00

Transitions

2011-06-26T12:32:00.000-04:00

Although I have not taken the time to regularly post as I used to, (the black-hole 'simplicity' of facebook, twitter, foursquare, linkedin, ect. has been too darn convenient) But with that convenience comes a lack of personal involvement..I'd like to get back to regularly posting and allowing our web-log to resume being our primary communication outlet vs. the rest of the commercialized (and more recently, infectious) social networking sites.

Back to "Transitions".

God is a good and faithful teacher. After years of working as a Paramedic; pre- and in-hospital, and Emergency Department technician, I'm learning and believing the God has something else in mind for me.

For the biblical and material seasons that we have experienced over the years, my OB, pediatric, trauma, and even cardiology insight has been incredibly deepened and utilized for those timely seasons. Even in the trips to Haiti, and especially after our first daughters Neo-Natal death and our high-risk OB experiences, we have been blessed with three beautiful healthy children.

Our 'Bucket-List' includes serving Jesus in any capacity that he calls us to do. We are waiting patiently for HIS confirmation and HIS timing. That being said, my CV/resume package has been completed and sent out. There are a few cool opportunities that have shown themselves and I am pursuing, we'll see if the axe head floats.

In the meantime, its time to edit our web-log header and track the path as God leads!

-C

Beach Boys, "Wouldn't it be nice to.."

2011-06-19T00:55:00.001-04:00

I think I found my plane!

2011-06-19T00:20:00.000-04:00

Frequency Auction Steals from Amatures

2011-06-13T10:40:00.000-04:00

Auction of radio spectrum for broadband wireless could affect amateur radio, emergency management volunteers
Matt Vande Bunte | The Grand Rapids Press

Posted:06/13/2011 10:22 AM
A federal bill aimed at improving public-safety communication 10 years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks instead could hamper emergency-management response, local officials said.

A proposed auction of radio spectrum to fund a broadband wireless network for public-safety agencies would reduce the available frequencies for amateur radio users and emergency-management volunteers, said Dave Dahl, emergency management director for the city of Hudsonville.

“Radio communication is critical to all our operations,” he said. “The frequencies that would be taken away by this bill are the frequencies we use. It would significantly reduce our coverage in Ottawa County.”

The Broadband for First Responders Act would auction the frequencies used by emergency-response teams for search-and-rescue operations, storm spotting and management of events such as Tulip Time, the Coast Guard Festival and the Hudsonville Holiday Parade, Dahl said. It also would restrict frequencies available to radio hobbyists and render useless certain radio equipment often used in outdoor activities like camping or hiking, he said.

Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office also uses ham radio volunteers in many ways, said Beth Thomas, the county’s emergency management director.

“They assist the Red Cross with First Aid at large events. They help line up parades. They are communication in the event that any other type of communication would not be available,” she said. “They also do our Skywarn spotter system.”

A U.S. Senate version of the bill would pay for the proposed wireless network without affecting those frequencies. Lobbying by the American Radio Relay League may result in similar tweaks to the U.S. House bill that local radio ham Ron Fredricks called “ill-conceived.”

“We’re like second responders or third responders,” said Fredricks, a former Grand Rapids Amateur Radio Association officer who has a “ham shack” in his Georgetown Township home. “They would take this band, use it for first responders, and then they would sell to commercial people space in the 420 (mega-hertz) to 440 (mega-hertz) part of the band that the hams use right now.

“There are thousands of hams operating on (those frequencies). They must have thought that nobody ever used it.”

The American Radio Relay League opposes the House version of the bill, but has stated support for either of two Senate versions that would not impact amateur radio. Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Zeeland, will evaluate the bill when it comes out of committee, spokeswoman Lauren Phillips said.

E-mail the author of this story: localnews@grpress.com

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Super Cub Extreme Back country Flying

2011-06-05T16:12:00.000-04:00

Alaska STOL Contest

2011-06-05T02:22:00.000-04:00

5 Most common deathbed regrets

2011-06-02T21:44:00.000-04:00

When questioned about any regrets they had or anything they would do differently, common themes surfaced again and again. Here are the most common five:

1. I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

This was the most common regret of all. When people realise that their life is almost over and look back clearly on it, it is easy to see how many dreams have gone unfulfilled. Most people had not honoured even a half of their dreams and had to die knowing that it was due to choices they had made, or not made.

It is very important to try and honour at least some of your dreams along the way. From the moment that you lose your health, it is too late. Health brings a freedom very few realise, until they no longer have it.

2. I wish I didn't work so hard.

This came from every male patient that I nursed. They missed their children's youth and their partner's companionship. Women also spoke of this regret. But as most were from an older generation, many of the female patients had not been breadwinners. All of the men I nursed deeply regretted spending so much of their lives on the treadmill of a work existence.

By simplifying your lifestyle and making conscious choices along the way, it is possible to not need the income that you think you do. And by creating more space in your life, you become happier and more open to new opportunities, ones more suited to your new lifestyle.

3. I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings.

Many people suppressed their feelings in order to keep peace with others. As a result, they settled for a mediocre existence and never became who they were truly capable of becoming. Many developed illnesses relating to the bitterness and resentment they carried as a result.

We cannot control the reactions of others. However, although people may initially react when you change the way you are by speaking honestly, in the end it raises the relationship to a whole new and healthier level. Either that or it releases the unhealthy relationship from your life. Either way, you win.

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.

Often they would not truly realise the full benefits of old friends until their dying weeks and it was not always possible to track them down. Many had become so caught up in their own lives that they had let golden friendships slip by over the years. There were many deep regrets about not giving friendships the time and effort that they deserved. Everyone misses their friends when they are dying.

It is common for anyone in a busy lifestyle to let friendships slip. But when you are faced with your approaching death, the physical details of life fall away. People do want to get their financial affairs in order if possible. But it is not money or status that holds the true importance for them. They want to get things in order more for the benefit of those they love. Usually though, they are too ill and weary to ever manage this task. It is all comes down to love and relationships in the end. That is all that remains in the final weeks, love and relationships.

5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.

This is a surprisingly common one. Many did not realise until the end that happiness is a choice. They had stayed stuck in old patterns and habits. The so-called 'comfort' of familiarity overflowed into their emotions, as well as their physical lives. Fear of change had them pretending to others, and to their selves, that they were content. When deep within, they longed to laugh properly and have silliness in their life again.

When you are on your deathbed, what others think of you is a long way from your mind. How wonderful to be able to let go and smile again, long before you are dying.

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Finally, a qualified candidate!

2011-05-22T18:10:00.000-04:00

Twitter for CiC

2011-05-17T11:45:00.000-04:00

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Pure Awesomness

2011-05-14T20:08:00.002-04:00

Cowshare Openhouse

2011-05-12T15:46:00.000-04:00

Hi Cow Share Friends!

We are having our Open House this Saturday, May 14th. We will start at 10am
in the chapel, next to the yellow house at 14380 60th (3 driveways north of
the farm entrance). After a time of mingling, farm history and Q and A, we
will go out to the pasture where the cows are grazing. We may take the
wagon for this depending on how close the cows are grazing. We will end
around noon. If you haven't had a chance to meet the cows, this is it! We
also have 35 pigs on pasture that we will visit, along with the chicks and
goats.

You are welcome to bring a friend if they are considering joining the
cowshare program. If you like to bake, this would be a great time to bring
a goodie (hint, hint:)). Let me know if you're planning on coming and see
you Saturday!

The pigs are in the pasture directly behind the cheese shop. You are
welcome to bring your table scraps and feed them to the piggies. They are
really fun to watch (unless they are all sleeping under the wagon). Pigs do
get sunburned! Just remember the wire fence has electricity going through
it.

--
Thanks!
Betsy Meerman

www.migreenpastures.com
www.grassfieldscheese.com

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2011-05-10T22:48:00.000-04:00

We are in danger of forgetting that we cannot do what God does, and that God will not do what we can do. bit.ly/mu0510

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Tough as Rawhide

2011-05-08T17:37:00.000-04:00

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These are the times

2011-04-28T02:04:00.001-04:00

Kudos and prayers of thanksgiving to God almighty; Yahweh, that Franklin Graham stood strong in his testimoney.
-Even in a sucky media enviroment that we are all living in, he sucked it up, and spoke the truth from his heart.

“For him, going to church means he’s a Christian. For me, the definition of a Christian is whether we have given our life to Christ and are following him in faith, and we have trusted him as our Lord and Savior. That’s the definition of a Christian, it’s not as to what church you’re a member of. A membership doesn’t make you a Christian.”

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Not nice. Let a person speak..

2011-04-28T00:54:00.000-04:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

May I be excused?

2011-04-03T09:03:00.000-04:00

He is real, you know. So if you must interrupt praying to answer the door, say, "Lord, may I be excused for a moment?"

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Slipped a disc

2011-03-31T01:30:00.000-04:00

Short-story. Although not my own; my weak, American back is causing the same misery..

The jolt in Port-au-Prince herniated a disk in my lower back two weeks ago. The pain is making it hard to sleep tonight. I've walked with a sideways bent and haven't been able to pick up my two young children since.

But here's the thing: the jolt happened while riding a motorcycle taxi to a meeting in a tent camp where 50,000 people live under tarps. So I can't much indulge in feeling sorry for myself.

I travel to Haiti regularly for work with a nonprofit, but right now I'm back in Florida where I have a safe, dry home to sleep in; I have a bed; I've already been to the physical therapist four times; I can afford ibuprofen, Tylenol, and Aleve; I eat more than enough each day. You get the idea.

So when I start complaining, then remember this context, it seems my basic choices are either to be grateful or be an ass.

On one hand, this is the proper perspective. On the other, this is a potentially exploitative "benefit" of what are typically called some variation of a "service trip" but are also sometimes critically called "poverty tourism."

We see people suffering so much more than us, and then come back and say, "It just makes you so grateful for what you have." Or, "It puts life in perspective."

The motorcycle taxi driver I was riding with lost a staggering amount in the earthquake. The church he attends collapsed on more than 200 people inside, his friends, his relatives. After getting off his motorcycle, I was soon talking with people in the camp who lost everything and have little reasonable hope for improvement any time soon.

A sore back? Sheesh.

But if the longest lasting result of my working in or visiting a place with much suffering, is that I feel a little better about my own life...well, then I've probably exploited people struggling with poverty even more than they're being exploited already.

So for me, three differences come to mind to keep these trips from being "poverty tourism":

First, who and how do I visit people? Is it marked by dignity, without patronizing, with humility, as a learner. Are we visiting with people or an organization who have respectful, engaged relationships with the community? What kind of photos do we take or stories do we tell? What side comments do we make to our fellow travelers? Do we ask ourselves the hard questions? How do we, or shouldn't we, talk about "them"?

Second, and related, does it make a difference to how I live "back home"? In how I give, what politics I engage in, or in whatever the area is that we each can make a difference to the systems that perpetuate pain. How do I think and talk and act?

Third, is my visit only the beginning of a long-term commitment to finding effective ways to help? Even if I worked hard to build a community center or learning language or to add on to a church building, it wasn't much in the big picture. People are often gracious hosts and share the best part of their smiles and lives with us when we visit. But sometimes that seems to give us an excuse to quarantine the unsettling part of our experience, the part that might demand a lot of us.

These are some of the factors for me. I'm in Haiti many times a year, but I still need to check myself.

If we come back with a kind of souvenir that makes us feel more comfortable about our lives, then it's likely been exploitation. If we come back and we're more uncomfortable, and also committed to smart, respectful ways to help, then maybe we properly honor the hospitality we've received.

Can we find good ways to contribute to each other's well being?

Some people think there shouldn't be these exchanges at all. I don't agree. I think they're important for working for justice. But I do think there are differences between traveling as a poverty tourist and a citizen of the world.

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Angels at Arby's

2011-03-23T18:11:00.000-04:00

TODAY books
When pastor Todd Burpo and his wife, Sonja, asked their 4-year-old son Colton a simple question, they never expected his extraordinary response: Colton recounted an experience that reinforced their faith forever. Read an excerpt.

PROLOGUE

Angels at Arby’s

Click here!
The Fourth of July holiday calls up memories of patriotic parades, the savory scents of smoky barbecue, sweet corn, and night skies bursting with showers of light. But for my family, the July Fourth weekend of 2003 was a big deal for other reasons.

My wife, Sonja, and I had planned to take the kids to visit Sonja’s brother, Steve, and his family in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. It would be our first chance to meet our nephew, Bennett, born two months earlier. Plus, our kids, Cassie and Colton, had never been to the falls before. (Yes, there really is a Sioux Falls in Sioux Falls.) But the biggest deal of all was this: this trip would be the first time we’d left our hometown of Imperial, Nebraska, since a family trip to Greeley, Colorado, in March had turned into the worst nightmare of our lives.

To put it bluntly, the last time we had taken a family trip, one of our children almost died. Call us crazy, but we were a little apprehensive this time, almost to the point of not wanting to go. Now, as a pastor, I’m not a believer in superstition. Still, some weird, unsettled part of me felt that if we just hunkered down close to home, we’d be safe. Finally, though, reason —and the lure of meeting little Bennett, whom Steve had told us was the world’s cutest baby — won out. So we packed up a weekend’s worth of paraphernalia in our blue Ford Expedition and got our family ready to head north.

Sonja and I decided the best plan would be to get most of the driving done at night. That way, even though Colton would be strapped into his car seat against his four-year-old, I’m-a-big-kid will, at least he’d sleep for most of the trip. So it was a little after 8 p.m. when I backed the Expedition out of our driveway, steered past Crossroads Wesleyan Church, my pastorate, and hit Highway 61.

The night spread clear and bright across the plains, a half moon white against a velvet sky. Imperial is a small farming town tucked just inside the western border of Nebraska. With only two thousand souls and zero traffic lights, it’s the kind of town with more churches than banks, where farmers stream straight off the fields into the family-owned café at lunchtime, wearing Wolverine work boots, John Deere ball caps, and a pair of pliers for fence-mending hanging off their hips. So Cassie, age six, and Colton were excited to be on the road to the “big city” of Sioux Falls to meet their newborn cousin.

The kids chattered for ninety miles to the city of North Platte, with Colton fighting action-figure superhero battles and saving the world several times on the way. It wasn’t quite 10 p.m. when we pulled into the town of about twenty-four thousand, whose greatest claim to fame is that it was the hometown of the famous Wild West showman, Buffalo Bill Cody. North Platte would be about the last civilized stop — or at least the last open stop — we’d pass that night as we headed northeast across vast stretches of cornfields empty of everything but deer, pheasant, and an occasional farmhouse. We had planned in advance to stop there to top off both the gas tank and our bellies.

After a fill-up at a Sinclair gas station, we pulled out onto Jeffers Street, and I noticed we were passing through the traffic light where, if we turned left, we’d wind up at the Great Plains Regional Medical Center. That was where we’d spent fifteen nightmarish days in March, much of it on our knees, praying for God to spare Colton’s life. God did, but Sonja and I joke that the experience shaved years off our own lives.

Sometimes laughter is the only way to process tough times, so as we passed the turnoff, I decided to rib Colton a little.

“Hey, Colton, if we turn here, we can go back to the hospital,” I said. “Do you wanna go back to the hospital?”

Our preschooler giggled in the dark. “No, Daddy, don’t send me! Send Cassie ... Cassie can go to the hospital!”

Sitting next to him, his sister laughed. “Nuh-uh! I don’t wanna go either!”

In the passenger seat, Sonja turned so that she could see our son, whose car seat was parked behind mine. I pictured his blond crew cut and his sky-blue eyes shining in the dark.

“Do you remember the hospital, Colton?” Sonja said.

“Yes, Mommy, I remember,” he said. “That’s where the angels sang to me.”

Inside the Expedition, time froze. Sonja and I looked at each other, passing a silent message: Did he just say what I think he said?

Sonja leaned over and whispered, “Has he talked to you about angels before?”

I shook my head. “You?”

She shook her head.

I spotted an Arby’s, pulled into the parking lot, and switched off the engine. White light from a street lamp filtered into the Expedition. Twisting in my seat, I peered back at Colton. In that moment, I was struck by his smallness, his little boyness. He was really just a little guy who still spoke with an endearing (and sometimes embarrassing) call-it-like-you-see-it innocence. If you’re a parent, you know what I mean: the age where a kid might point to a pregnant woman and ask (very loudly), “Daddy, why is that lady so fat?” Colton was in that narrow window of life where he hadn’t yet learned either tact or guile.

All these thoughts flashed through my mind as I tried to figure how to respond to my four-year-old’s simple proclamation that angels had sung to him. Finally, I plunged in: “Colton, you said that angels sang to you while you were at the hospital?”

He nodded his head vigorously.

“What did they sing to you?”

Colton turned his eyes up and to the right, the attitude of remembering. “Well, they sang ‘Jesus Loves Me’ and ‘Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho,’” he said earnestly. “I asked them to sing ‘We Will, We Will Rock You,’ but they wouldn’t sing that.”

As Cassie giggled softly, I noticed that Colton’s answer had been quick and matter-of-fact, without a hint of hesitation.

Sonja and I exchanged glances again. What’s going on? Did he have a dream in the hospital?

And one more unspoken question: What do we say now?

A natural question popped into my head: “Colton, what did the angels look like?”

He chuckled at what seemed to be a memory. “Well, one of them looked like Grandpa Dennis, but it wasn’t him, ’cause Grandpa Dennis has glasses.”

Then he grew serious. “Dad, Jesus had the angels sing to me because I was so scared. They made me feel better.”

Jesus?

I glanced at Sonja again and saw that her mouth had dropped open. I turned back to Colton. “You mean Jesus was there?”

My little boy nodded as though reporting nothing more remarkable than seeing a ladybug in the front yard. “Yeah, Jesus was there.”

“Well, where was Jesus?”

Colton looked me right in the eye. “I was sitting in Jesus’ lap.”

If there are Stop buttons on conversations, that was one of them right there. Astonished into speechlessness, Sonja and I looked at each other and passed another silent telegram: Okay, we really need to talk about this.

We all piled out of the Expedition and trooped into Arby’s, emerging a few minutes later with a bag of grub. In between, Sonja and I exchanged whispers.

“Do you think he really saw angels?”

“And Jesus?!”

“I don’t know.”

“Was it a dream?”

“I don’t know — he seems so sure.”

Back in the SUV, Sonja passed out roast beef sandwiches and potato cakes, and I ventured another question.

“Colton, where were you when you saw Jesus?”

He looked at me as if to say, Didn’t we just talk about this?

“At the hospital. You know, when Dr. O’Holleran was working on me.”

“Well, Dr. O’Holleran worked on you a couple of times, remember?” I said. Colton had both an emergency appendectomy and then an abdominal clean-out in the hospital, and later we had taken Colton to have some keloid scarring removed, but that was at Dr. O’Holleran’s office. “Are you sure it was at the hospital?”

Colton nodded. “Yeah, at the hospital. When I was with Jesus, you were praying, and Mommy was talking on the phone.”

What?

That definitely meant he was talking about the hospital. But how in the world did he know where we had been?

“But you were in the operating room, Colton,” I said. “How could you know what we were doing?”

“’Cause I could see you,” Colton said matter-of-factly. “I went up out of my body and I was looking down and I could see the doctor working on my body. And I saw you and Mommy. You were in a little room by yourself, praying; and Mommy was in a different room, and she was praying and talking on the phone.”

Colton’s words rocked me to my core. Sonja’s eyes were wider than ever, but she said nothing, just stared at me and absently bit into her sandwich.

That was all the information I could handle at that point. I started the engine, steered the Expedition back onto the street, and pointed us toward South Dakota. As I hit I-80, pasturelands unrolled on either side, dotted here and there with duck ponds that glinted in the moonlight. By then, it was very late, and soon everyone else was snoozing as planned.

As the road hummed underneath me, I marveled at the things I had just heard. Our little boy had said some pretty incredible stuff — and he had backed it up with credible information, things there was no way he could have known. We had not told him what we were doing while he was in surgery, under anesthesia, apparently unconscious.

Over and over, I kept asking myself, How could he have known? But by the time we rolled across the South Dakota state line, I had another question: Could this be real?

From "Heaven Is for Real" by Todd Burpo with Lynn Vincent. Copyright © 2010. Reprinted by permission of Thomas Nelson.

© 2011 MSNBC Interactive

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2011-03-17T15:48:00.000-04:00

Japanese nuclear worker on the news: "I am prepared to die to avoid meltdown." Say it with me--I will not complain about my job today.”

Let it Go!

2011-03-11T00:47:00.002-05:00

Josh Buck

2011-03-09T21:14:00.000-05:00

This fella has no idea that I am re-composing his words on our blog (until I tell him). His family has endured many hardships as ours, including losing a child.

Being able to relate to others struggles, questioning God's percieved absence, His decisions, and then, moving us on; knowing that there is a teachable message if we listen, is the reason I am putting Josh's words onto our page.

I remember praying. No. I remember BEGGING in tears and sweat. Pleading with God, and asking for a miracle to save Abby's life.. I had never, ever, asked for such a deliverance with such intensity, truth, and passion for rightousness, and total expectance of God's sovereignty in my entire life. -God's answer was different than my utmost desire at that time.

This is Josh Buck's:

"Praying

Sunday, August 23, 2009
I've been doing a lot of praying lately. For one specific thing. During my quiet time this morning, I was reading about answered prayer. It got me thinking.
What happens if God chooses not to answer the way I want Him to? I know He will answer. I just may not like his answer. It causes me to ask some questions that I am not sure I want the answer to.
There have been numerous times in my life where I prayed and the answer was no. I remember while doing CPR on Ava, crying out to God to save her, knowing HE could, but he chose not to. I remember after Josh got hurt, praying for God to heal him, yet again, he chose not to.
Why would I choose to follow a Lord who allows me so much pain? Why is there so much pain we have to suffer? Why does God choose to heal some and not others? So many questions that will probably not be answered on this side of heaven.
Then I remember. How would I have ever made it through the trials in life without him? HE was the one who sustained me through my grief. He was the one who stood by me when no one else knew what to say. He was the one who carried me through when I thought I could not take another breath.
So, what happens if God's answer is "no" to my ever pleading request?
I know God will still be God. I will not question his sovereignty. He has proved that to me time and again. I will continue to question pain. Why he chooses to heal some and not others. If praying for healing will change God's mind or if it is more for me.
All I know is that if I continue to seek God, and not rely on the things of this world, I will continue to be sustained by my Father, the one who created the Earth, the one who created me, the one who cares about me, the one who cares about my heart."

Yes.
-C

2011-02-28T22:14:00.001-05:00

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Flashback

2011-02-16T23:42:00.000-05:00

Noah's ABCs for Grandparents

2011-02-16T23:03:00.000-05:00

Grace Sings for Grandparents. "Skidamarink-a-"..

2011-02-16T22:41:00.004-05:00

HiltonTribe KIDS N ALMOST CRIES.MP4

2011-02-16T22:32:00.000-05:00

The importance of sharing

2011-02-07T01:37:00.001-05:00

The saint and the sinner are simply exchanging notes,, every saint has a past and every sinner has a future..
-C

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2011-01-31T14:22:00.001-05:00

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him?

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Egypt nixes the Internet

2011-01-28T09:10:00.001-05:00

Watching Egypt nix the Internet, texting, SMS, and cellular services might be cause to examine how much we all DEPEND on these modern services.. What would YOU do if such a thing occurred where you live?
__________________________
(Rewrites in part, adds detail.)

The Eygptian government's crackdown on protestors intensified Friday with access to most forms of mass communication, including the Internet, mobile and SMS down, even as United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that "freedom of expression should be fully respected."

As the country braced for huge anti-government protests on the traditional day of prayer, the government appeared to have unplugged most means of communication--including social network Facebook and Twitter--that activists had been using to coordinate action across the country.

Landline calls placed from outside the country, however, were connecting.

In a blog, U.S.-based Internet intelligence firm Renesys recorded how late Thursday it saw "the virtually simultaneous withdrawal of all routes to Egyptian networks in the Internet's global routing table," in what it called "an action unprecedented in Internet history."

It contrasted the scale of the crackdown with the "modest Internet manipulation that took place in Tunisia, where specific routes were blocked, or Iran, where the Internet stayed up," but download times were slowed.

Facebook and Twitter weren't immediately available to comment on what is happening in Egypt.

Meanwhile, U.K.-headquartered Vodafone Group PLC (VOD) said in a statement that all mobile operators in Egypt had been "instructed to suspend services in parts of Egypt. Under Egyptian legislation, the authorities have the right to issue such an order and we are obliged to comply with it."

It said the Egyptian authorities will be clarifying the situation in due course.

Vodafone Egypt, the country's largest operator by customers, competes with Egyptian Co. for Mobile Services (EMOB.CI), also known as Mobinil, and Etisalat Egypt, a subsidiary of United Arab Emirates-based Emirates Telecommunications Corp. (ETISALAT.AD)

France Telecom (FTE) and Orascom Telecom (ORTE.CI) last year reached a settlement over the ownership of Mobinil.

All attempts to reach other mobile and Internet operators in the country were unsuccessful either because offices were closed due to the weekend or because mobile numbers weren't working.

According to Egypt's National Telecom Regulatory Authority, or NTRA, mobile subscribers in the country reached 53.43 million by the end of the third quarter of 2010, the latest figures available.

Earlier this week, blogs and social networks were full of calls to take to the streets to bring down the regime of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

Egypt's Interior Ministry had warned it would take decisive measures against the protestors in the Arab world's most populous nation, after organizers said demonstrations set to take place after noon prayers Friday would be the biggest in decades.

The protests in Egypt come after the 25-year regime of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was toppled in Tunisia, sparking shockwaves across the Arab world.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that "freedom of expression should be fully respected" in Egypt.

-By Shereen El Gazzar in Dubai, Lilly Vitorovich in London and Ruth Bender in Paris; Dow Jones Newswires; 44 207 842 9290; lilly.vitorovich@dowjones.com

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2007 January 17th Web-log Flashback. McGuyver

2011-01-17T12:15:00.000-05:00

Does anyone recall the old TV series titled 'McGuyver'? McGuyver was a simple man, who could do most anything with nothing. -With a shoelace, Swiss army knife, piece of gum, and pocket lint, he could hot wire a tractor, escape from the bad guys imprisonment, create a diversionary explosion, and pretty much get out of any pinch he might have found himself in.. He did the most with the least!

I guess that's why I liked the show, (and one of those cool 'things' I wanted to learn by joining the Marine Corps as an 18-year-old). -I wanted to have the ability to know that I could survive, or at least get by, in any situation, no matter what.

MacGyver was a different kind of hero - he doesn´t use weapons, he´s afraid of heights, and he´s an expert at making complicated machines out of ordinary things. A fan, a dough-scraper and some duct tape forms an excellent helicopter attack. A cut credit card can help cause a traffic jam. A light bulb makes an outstanding set of lock picks

As odd as it sounds, I believe that's one more reason why I like the Lifeline Mission compound in La Digue. It's very "McGuyver". They are able to do the most, with the least amount of resources. Take for example the following:

A diesel generator charges a set of 24 car batteries (that are wired together) during the day.

The batteries power high efficiency lightbulbs, refrigerator, a satellite dish (for Internet and communication purposes), and a pump to fill the water cistern and a hillside tank (when switched on).. The hillside water tank? Gravity provides the 'running' water inside the mission house.

There is a 'solar oven' on camp that cooks 14 loaves of bread an hour, all day long, five days a week, to feed the hundreds of children at 2 feeding centers. It simply catches the sun, magnifies it rays, and cooks away. No electricity or gas needed. Just someone to re-aim it directly at the sun every 1/2 hour or so.

The huge pots for cooking food and boiling water are heated on burners made of automobile rims and modified propane burners.

Everything is nearly self sufficient; just like McGuyver would have done it. All of this is in place for one purpose. To teach, empower, minister, and care for surrounding villagers. NOT to enable or give, but to serve, and care. I dare say that the missionaries that live there are pretty well grounded and understand (or at least have a much better understanding than a 'blan' like myself) the culture.

The entire lower level of the mission building is filled with classrooms and the feeding center. Someone donated the American swingset (visible in lower right hand corner) and had it shipped down on a cargo ship. The Haitian children have never seen such a colorful, strange apperatus, but have warmed up to it enough to where before school there isn't a square inch available for another child on it. Pretty cool to see so many smiles.

Last November, when we left Haiti, after our time was up, it was weird, because it felt like there was so much we didn't get to finish... Now that I've had the opportunity to do a recon of what the needs are, and which order to prioritize them, I'm really looking foward to 'MacGuyvering'.

-Ch

Who Let 'Baby Doc' Duvalier Back into Haiti?

2011-01-17T09:08:00.003-05:00

Who Let 'Baby Doc' Duvalier Back into Haiti?

(Link to TIME article published this morning)

The Manslater

2011-01-14T17:58:00.000-05:00

Lead from the front

2011-01-13T22:49:00.017-05:00

Alright. So here's the deal. For those of you who don't know me, I'm a former U.S. Marine Staff Non-Commissioned Officer. I mean business. I know how to handle troops. I know how to quietly make "defy-the-odds" decisions to take lives, save lives, preserve the peace, and sleep quietly at night... Until parenthood.

Children,

Our lovely children; require what I describe as; 'immediate action drills' on a daily basis:

Every flippen morning, we are awoken by two boys that insist to incur bowl habits first thing.. Even if I wake and change them in the early A.M. It must happen around 5:45am, but at 6am, it becomes a boiling stench that they seem to not be bothered by.. Seriously? When are we going to grow out of this? ...Oh yeah. 1-2 yrs from now..
Our oldest, bless her heart, 5y/o and potty trained of course (yeah!) is the drama princess of the galaxy. Getting out of bed for the 13th time tonight, she expressed her excuse was the following: "My toes hurt." "Its too dark." "I heard Noah crying." "We forgot to brush my hair." "Shane and Loyola saw my underwear." -WHAT!? I expressed.. "Yes Daddy. I need a belt. My blue pants sagged and showed the back of my underwear". Okay Grace. We'll talk about it tomorrow.. I immediately walked in to tell my wife, her reply was; "Yes, she told me yesterday."
Any window screen within reach of 2.5 feet must have holes that can accommodate 'Thomas the train' boxcars.
Any window within reach of 2.8 feet must have nose prints and/or hand prints magnified in: Peanut butter, jelly, cracker grease, or play dough.
Garage Upkeep. Doesn't happen. If they can get in, they will get it. Case in point: Last fall while mowing the lawn, my riding lawnmower tractor sent a 13/16 socket wrench through the side of our outbuilding.. Mmmm? How did that happen? Noah told me after I asked him. "I tossed it by the firepit Daddy!" Awesome dude. Thanks for letting me know in advance. Thank God I didn't aim the tractor at anybody..

Life is good, be humorous! -I wouldn't trade this for ANYTHING. The more parents I speak/collaborate with, confirm that it is wise to keep in mind all the mischievousness and $$$$ that we cost' our own parents 'back in the day'.. is reality today. Parenting is challenging, but rewarding. Right when you might think 'you just might be the worst parent ever,' or, 'my children are NOT the average', guess what? -They generally are.. And God loves YOU, just like YOU love your crazy kids. ..Bowl habits, learning the limits of sassiness, and overall running around craziness.

I'm glad God is much less impulsive with responses and far more patient than I am. -That's for sure..

My folks? They had five rambunctious children, and two dogs!. -I have NO idea how they ever made it, to parital retirement.

Make it Great, and irreplaceable.

-C

11 Step consideration process to having kids

2011-01-10T21:22:00.001-05:00

Lesson 1

1. Go to the grocery store.

2. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their head office.

3. Go home.

4. Pick up the paper.

5. Read it for the last time.

Lesson 2

Before you finally go ahead and have children, find a couple who already are parents and berate them about their...

1. Methods of discipline.

2. Lack of patience.

3. Appallingly low tolerance levels.

4. Allowing their children to run wild.

5. Suggest ways in which they might improve their child's breastfeeding, sleep habits, toilet training, table manners, and overall behavior.

Enjoy it because it will be the last time in your life you will have all the answers.

Lesson 3

A really good way to discover how the nights might feel...

1. Get home from work and immediately begin walking around the living room from 5PM to 10PM carrying a wet bag weighing approximately 8-12 pounds, with a radio turned to static (or some other obnoxious sound) playing loudly. (Eat cold food with one hand for dinner)

2. At 10PM, put the bag gently down, set the alarm for midnight, and go to sleep.

3. Get up at 12 and walk around the living room again, with the bag, until 1AM.

4. Set the alarm for 3AM.

5. As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2AM and make a drink and watch an infomercial.

6. Go to bed at 2:45AM.

7. Get up at 3AM when the alarm goes off.

8. Sing songs quietly in the dark until 4AM.

9. Get up. Make breakfast. Get ready for work and go to work (work hard and be productive)

Repeat steps 1-9 each night. Keep this up for 3-5 years. Look cheerful and together.

Lesson 4

Can you stand the mess children make? T o find out...

1. Smear peanut butter onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains.

2. Hide a piece of raw chicken behind the stereo and leave it there all summer.

3. Stick your fingers in the flower bed.

4. Then rub them on the clean walls.

5. Take your favorite book, photo album, etc. Wreck it.

6. Spill milk on your new pillows. Cover the stains with crayons. How does that look?

Lesson 5

Dressing small children is not as easy as it seems.

1. Buy an octopus and a small bag made out of loose mesh.

2. Attempt to put the octopus into the bag so that none of the arms hang out.

Time allowed for this - all morning.

Lesson 6

Forget the BMW and buy a mini-van. And don't think that you can leave it out in the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't look like that.

1. Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment.

Leave it there.

2. Get a dime. Stick it in the CD player.

3. Take a family size package of chocolate cookies. Mash them into the back seat. Sprinkle cheerios all over the floor, then smash them with your foot.

4. Run a garden rake along both sides of the car.

Lesson 7

Go to the local grocery store. Take with you the closest thing you can find to a pre-school child. (A full-grown goat is an excellent choice). If you intend to have more than one child, then definitely take more than one goat. Buy your week's groceries without letting the goats out of your sight. Pay for everything the goat eats or destroys. Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even contemplate having children.

Lesson 8

1. Hollow out a melon.

2. Make a small hole in the side.

3. Suspend it from the ceiling and swing it from side to side.

4. Now get a bowl of soggy Cheerios and attempt to spoon them into the swaying melon by pretending to be an airplane.

5. Continue until half the Cheerios are gone.

6. Tip half into your lap. The other half, just throw up in the air.

You are now ready to feed a nine- month-old baby.

Lesson 9

Learn the names of every character from Sesame Street , Barney, Disney, the Teletubbies, and Pokemon. Watch nothing else on TV but PBS, the Disney channel or Noggin for at least five years. (I know, you're thinking What's 'Noggin'?) Exactly the point.

Lesson 10

Make a recording of Fran Drescher saying 'mommy' repeatedly. (Important: no more than a four second delay between each 'mommy'; occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet is required). Play this tape in your car everywhere you go for the next four years. You are now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.

Lesson 11

Start talking to an adult of your choice. Have someone else continually tug on your skirt hem, shirt- sleeve, or elbow while playing the 'mommy' tape made from Lesson 10 above. You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a child in the room.

This is all very tongue in cheek; anyone who is parent will say 'it's all worth it!' Share it with your friends, both those who do and don't have kids. I guarantee they'll get a chuckle out of it. Remember, a sense of humor is one of the most important things you'll need when you become a parent!

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Ready to lose her 1st tooth..

2010-12-26T22:06:00.000-05:00

..but not ready to let me take it out! -Gotta love that look!!

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2010-12-26T22:03:00.000-05:00

The evidence that I have been delivered from sin is that I know the real nature of sin in me.

Kennedy? No, Carter..

2010-12-20T01:45:00.002-05:00

Wikileaks Completes Obama's Transformation Into Jimmy Carter
Sunday, November 28, 2010

The U.S. Embassy takeover in Tehran on November 4, 1979, was the start of 444 days which came to define Jimmy Carter. The U.S. government was revealed to be powerless and the President weak. Those among us who were alive and conscious during those days have embedded the feelings of helplessness.

There have been many comparisons of Barack Obama to Jimmy Carter, focused on the economy. But the continuing leak of documents by Wikileaks has become for Obama what the Iranian hostage crisis was to Carter.

The Wikileaks folks trot the globe with impunity and funnel documents to the press at will, for the purpose of damaging U.S. relations with other countries, our war efforts, and our intelligence capability. And we do almost nothing about it.

Whether or not someone gets killed as a direct result of a Wikileaks disclosure, the damage to our country is deep, as allies and sources among enemies will stop cooperating with us for fear of exposure, our diplomats will be hesitant to speak frankly with headquarters, and our intelligence on al-Qaeda and others will be compromised.

We are the laughingstock of the world, an impotent superpower whose response to those who aid our enemies is to write a letter asking them not to do it. Yes, Harold Koh the State Department's chief lawyer, send a demand freakin' letter to Wikileaks. It went something like this (my paraphrase):

Dear Wikileaks,

Please give us our stuff back because it was really mean of you to take it and give it to all your friends.

Sincerely,

Harold Koh
Here is the letter which should have been delivered months ago:

Dear Wikileaks,

If you publish any more material we will hunt you down no matter the cost, and you either will be killed while resisting arrest or you will spend the rest of your lives in solitary confinement in a Supermax prison, where the highlight of your day will be 1 hour spent in a cage instead of your cell. Don't look up, that sound of propellers in the air is not a Predator drone.

Sincerely,

Harold Koh
Want to get a clue how clueless is the White House? Get this paragraph from the White House statement on the leak (emphasis mine):

President Obama supports responsible, accountable, and open government at home and around the world, but this reckless and dangerous action runs counter to that goal. By releasing stolen and classified documents, Wikileaks has put at risk not only the cause of human rights but also the lives and work of these individuals. We condemn in the strongest terms the unauthorized disclosure of classified documents and sensitive national security information.
Oh yes, let's be sure to get in a pitch for "responsible, accountable, and open government."

Have we lost our minds? Wikileaks is about hurting us, bringing us down, damaging our relations with others, rendering us impotent. This is not about open government policy, as if Wikileaks went a bit too far on its class project.

Julian Assange should have been indicted by now, and if the law did not allow more punitive measures in this circumstance, then the law should have been changed after the first document dump. Assange is an enemy of our country and should be treated as such.

Instead, we're writing letters and lecturing on accountable and open government.

Stick a fork in Obama, he's Jimmy Carter.

Borrowed from:

Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion
\ˈlē-gəl\ \ˌin(t)-sə-ˈrek-shən\: "a rising up against established authority; rebellion; revolt" "in conformity with or permitted by law"
Posted by Just your under average blogger

2010-10-29T01:38:00.000-04:00

Lukes First Real Walkabout

2010-10-19T19:32:00.003-04:00

It's the Dad Life, It's how I roll..

2010-10-18T13:23:00.000-04:00

First Fishing Expedition

2010-10-18T09:12:00.005-04:00

The only thing we (I) caught was the trio you see heading for our bait! Even though Grace named the worm "Sparkle", Sparkle didnt bring us the fishing luck that we were looking for. -Perhaps it might have had something to do with the kids throwing stones in the water?... Either way, our time together was super-fun.

Very important assignment, old dog, new tricks

2010-09-30T19:15:00.006-04:00

I am stressed. Excel, you are my nemesis until I master you... Right yet, I have not. Nor, do I like you.. like you, I do not...

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel. I do not like excel..

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Aftergame Report

2010-09-26T16:13:00.001-04:00

Detroit Lions after game report: "Meow".
That means; "We lost again"

I present to you... The Left.

2010-09-18T15:54:00.004-04:00

Top 50

1. Sheryl Crow on Environmentalism: "I propose a limitation be put on how many sqares [sic] of toilet paper can be used in any one sitting. Now, I don't want to rob any law-abiding American of his or her God-given rights, but I think we are an industrious enough people that we can make it work with only one square per restroom visit, except, of course, on those pesky occasions where 2 to 3 could be required.'"

2. Joe Biden on culturalism: "In Delaware, the largest growth of population is Indian Americans, moving from India. You cannot go to a 7/11 or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I'm not joking."

3. Whoopi Goldberg on 43-year-old Roman Polanski raping and sodomizing a 13-year-old girl: "I know it wasn't rape-rape. It was something else but I don't believe it was rape-rape. He went to jail and and [sic] when they let him out he was like "You know what this guy's going to give me a hundred years in jail I'm not staying, so that's why he left."

4. Joy Behar on Economics: "Isn't it a little racist to call it Black Friday?"

5. John Conyers on the Health Care Bill, which he voted for: "I love these members, they get up and say, ‘Read the bill ... What good is reading the bill if it's a thousand pages and you don't have two days and two lawyers to find out what it means after you read the bill?'"

6. Former DNC Chairman Donald Fowler on possible delay of RNC convention due to Hurricane Gustav: "Plus they think the hurricane's going to hit (starts laughing) New Orleans about the time they start. The timing, at least it appears now, that it'll be there Monday. That just demonstrates God's on our side"

7. Barack Obama: "I've now been in 57 states? I think one left to go?"

8. John Kerry on the troops: "You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq."

9. Howard Dean: "We know that no one person can succeed unless everybody else succeeds."

10. Rosie O'Donnell: "Don't fear the terrorists. They're mothers and fathers."

11. Al Gore: "During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet."

12. Congressman Hank Johnson on Guam: "My fear is that the whole island will become so overly populated that it will tip over and capsize,"

13. Alan Grayson on Health Care: "The Republican health care plan: don't get sick ... The Republicans have a back up plan in case you do get sick ... This is what the Republicans want you to do. If you get sick America, the Republican health care plan is this: Die quickly!"

14. Nancy Pelosi on the economy: "every month that we do not have an economic recovery package 500 million Americans lose their jobs."

15. Helen Thomas: Jews should "get the hell out of Palestine" and "go home" to Germany and Poland.

16. Wanda Sykes: "I think Rush Limbaugh was the 20th hijacker but he was just so strung out on Oxycontin he missed his flight ... Rush Limbaugh -- I hope the country fails. I hope his kidneys fail, how about that? He needs a waterboarding, that's what he needs."

17. Bill Clinton on ordinary Americans: "African Americans watch the same news at night that ordinary Americans do."

18. Barack Obama on a tornado that killed twelve people: "In case you missed it, this week, there was a tragedy in Kansas. Ten thousand people died - an entire town destroyed"

19. Harry Reid on Iraq: "This war is lost and the surge is not accomplishing anything."

20. Kanye West: "George Bush doesn't care about black people."

21. Joe Biden on the economy: "The number one job facing the middle class, and it happens to be, as Barack says, a three-letter word: jobs. J-O-B-S."

22. Bill Maher on Christianity: "I think religion is a neurological disorder.

23. Joe Biden on History: "When the stock market crashed, Franklin D. Roosevelt got on the television and didn't just talk about the, you know, the princes of greed. He said, 'Look, here's what happened."

24. Ted Rall: "Over time, however, the endless war in Iraq began to play a role in natural selection. Only idiots signed up; only idiots died. Back home, the average I.Q. soared."

25. Michael Moore on terrorism: "There is no terrorist threat. Yes, there have been horrific acts of terrorism and, yes, there will be acts of terrorism again. But that doesn't mean that there's some kind of massive terrorist threat."

26. Henry Waxman on Environmentalism: "We're seeing the reality of a lot of the North Pole starting to evaporate, and we could get to a tipping point. Because if it evaporates to a certain point - they have lanes now where ships can go that couldn't ever sail through before. And if it gets to a point where it evaporates too much, there's a lot of tundra that's being held down by that ice cap."

27. Marion Barry, former mayor of Washington, DC: "If you take out the killings, Washington actually has a very very low crime rate."

28. California Senator Barbara Boxer: "Those who survived the San Francisco earthquake said, ‘Thank God, I'm still alive.' But, of course, those who died, their lives will never be the same again."

29. Wesley Bolin, former governor of Arizona: "We'd like to avoid problems, because when we have problems, we can have troubles."

30. Senator Chris Dodd, while on the campaign trail: "Eight more days and I can start telling the truth again" Sen. Chris Dodd, on the campaign trail.

31. Melissa Lafsky, Huffington Post blogger: "[Mary Jo] would have thought about arguably being a catalyst for the most successful Senate career in history ... Who knows -- maybe she'd feel it was worth it."

32. Joe Biden on the passage of the Health Care Bill: "This is a big f...ing deal!"

33. Bill Clinton: "It all depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is' is."

34. Jerry Brown, former governor of California, and current candidate for the same position: "The conventional viewpoint says we need a jobs program and we need to cut welfare. Just the opposite! We need more welfare and fewer jobs."

35. Democratic Convention producer Don Mischer, overheard on CNN having an apoplectic seizure when the balloons failed to drop from the ceiling of the Fleet Center in Boston: "Go, balloons. I don't see anything happening. Go, balloons. Go, balloons. Go, balloons. Stand by, confetti. Keep coming, balloons. More balloons. Bring them. Balloons, balloons, balloons! More balloons. Tons of them. Bring them down. Let them all come. No confetti. No confetti yet. No confetti. All right. Go, balloons. Go, balloons. We're getting more balloons. All balloons. All balloons should be going. Come on, guys! Let's move it. Jesus! We need more balloons. I want all balloons to go. Go, confetti. Go, confetti. Go, confetti. I want more balloons. What's happening to the balloons? We need more balloons. We need all of them coming down. Go, balloons. Balloons. What's happening balloons? There's not enough coming down. All balloons! Why the hell is nothing falling? What the f--- are you guys doing up there? We want more balloons coming down. More balloons. More balloons."

36. Marion Barry, former mayor of Washington, DC: "I am clearly more popular than Reagan. I am in my third term. Where's Reagan? Gone after two! Defeated by George Bush and Michael Dukakis no less."

37. Bill Clinton: "I have never had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky. I've never had an affair with her."

38. Joe Biden, on the mother of Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen, who is, in fact, still alive: "His mom lived in Long Island for ten years or so. God rest her soul. And- although, she's- wait- your mom's still- your mom's still alive. Your dad passed. God bless her soul."

39. Al Gore on zoology: "A zebra does not change its spots."

40. Rod Blagojevich, former governor of IL: "I'm blacker than Barack Obama. I shined shoes. I grew up in a five-room apartment. My father had a little laundromat in a black community not far from where we lived. I saw it all growing up."

41. Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz on the newly passed health care law: "We actually have not required in this law that you carry health insurance."

42. Congressman John Dingell on freedom: "The harsh fact of the matter is when you're passing legislation that will cover 300 million American people in different ways, it takes a long time to do the necessary administrative steps that have to be taken to put the legislation together to control the people."

43. Former Congressman Eric Massa: "Now, they're saying I groped a male staffer. Yes, I did. Not only did I grope him, I tickled him until he couldn't breathe and four guys jumped on top of me. It was my 50th birthday."

44. Congressman Charlie Rangel on our troops: "If a young fella has an option of having a decent career or joining the army to fight in Iraq, you can bet your life that he would not be in Iraq."

45. Radio personality Ed Schultz on elections: "If I lived in Massachusetts, I'd try to vote ten times ... Yeah that's right, I'd cheat to keep these bastards out. I would. Because that's exactly what they are."

46. John Kerry on health care: "I'm going to be honest with you -- I don't know a lot about Cuba's healthcare system. Is it a government-run system?"

47. Congresswoman Maxine Waters on socialism: "Guess what this liberal would be all about? This liberal will be about socializing...uh, um...Would be about, basically, taking over, and the government running all of your companies."

48. Senator Harry Reid on Barack Obama: "...light-skinned," and with "no negro dialect."

48. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano on national security, after a man attempted to blow up a commercial airplane with a bomb in his panties: "The system worked."

49. Nancy Pelosi on legislation: "But we have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it."

50. Joe Biden to Missouri State Senator Chuck Graham, who is wheelchair bound: "stand up ... Chuck, stand up, Chuck, let 'em see you!"

Pranked

2010-08-22T12:44:00.004-04:00

I got punked by my nephew, Nicholas. Listen to this:

http://www.prankdial.com/listen/wheresmypaper_34r2r2v2f4b464x2

Hey Nick? Vengence is mine sayeth the Lord. Payback I say!! : )

Good one by the way. We'll unload the handguns now... Bonehead.

Laugh at what is coming at you!

2010-08-08T20:25:00.003-04:00

Get us outta here!

2010-07-19T01:39:00.009-04:00

We took a road trip 140 miles north this weekend to see some family and celebrate my little sisters recent wedding. -The trip up, was entertaining.. (To say the least!) Noah, was our entertainment. (see video)

= )

(heading up!)

(Take me home! Please.... Zzzzz).

-C

Happy Independance Day

2010-07-05T00:44:00.013-04:00

Jiggle it

2010-07-01T12:55:00.009-04:00

Grace and Noah reading us they're favorite bible stories from the scroll that we made during craft time.
Grace's is the story of Baby Moses in the basket; Noah's is, Noah, being thankful to God when finding land after the flood.

Grace's first camping 'sleep-over' with Josie!

Noah liked his PUDDING!! (*See, they do put steroids in dairy products!)

________________________________

Totally unrelated story to pics.

This morning Grace asked me "Dad, whats a 'jiggle"?

Well, Grace.. A Jiggle is like when someone shakes their cheeks and make a noise like this, or a Jiggle is like Santa Clauses belly when he laughs.. It 'jiggles'. -Does that make sense?

"Um, kinda." She replied.

"But, how to I jiggle the handle of the toilet? Mom asked me to 'Jiggle' it to make it stop running".

-CE

2010-06-19T23:51:00.000-04:00

"One of the glaring -- yet too often overlooked -- failings of contemporary America is that we have become a nation obsessed with justice and retribution. We claim to be The Land of the Free, yet we have lost sight of what it means to be imprisoned: denied liberty and access to one's family, subjected to isolation and violence and unspeakable boredom. We have come to believe, in the most pernicious way, that people should get what they deserve. What a sea change it might be in our public discourse and our civic life if we focused instead upon mercy and forgiveness. A merciful and forgiving culture might find itself with less anger, less social disruption, and even less crime."

-American Ethicist on the detrimental decline of Mercy in the United States

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Google it !

2010-06-13T01:04:00.000-04:00

Take a moment today and google the lyrics of the 'Star Spangled Banner'.. Perhaps should we return to our historical roots (as in verse four), America might make some positive turns.
Semper Fi,
-C

"O, thus be it ever when freemen shall stand,
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause. it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!"

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Gettin' a bit 'Springy' around here

2010-06-09T10:45:00.010-04:00

Spring has sprung around the HiltonLife Ranch!

Final dance class, Springy! Bathtime, Springy!

Pre-pool time with a monster wad of gum... Springy!

Hot day, cool water.. Springy!

Just days away from learning to crawl, ..SPRINGY!

BP Oil "spill"

2010-06-03T21:55:00.024-04:00

So its not brain surgery..

Its more like the Ford Pinto theory.... ROI. Return on investment vs. potential liability. -If they can make 'more a' buck selling their nasty product than they might potentially lose in future lawsuit consequences, then its a good production year..

BP never planned for a oil well leak of this magnitude, because it simply was not feasible to invest the amount of money necessary for potential corrective action items that would not give them the immediate return on investment they seek. Simply put; BP is just another investor focused, free market, petroleum producer that thrives on the back of the compliant, and/or lessor fortunate.

How could I say this You might ask?

-Well, Everything BP does (just like the rest) is subcontracted. The drilling rigs. Subcontracted. The drillers. Subcontracted. The well anchor points.. Subcontracted. (By our favorite 'Haliburton' I might add..) The final crude draw and sold product to refineries profit margin goes to.. British Petroleum (BP) and investors.

Anyone with a business degree knows that the final, fiscal responsibility is to the company, and to its investors..

But at what cost? (Ask FORD that question.) It's all about ROI. Business ethics classes do nothing but teach jugular seeking business persons what to avoid, to avoid a horrible and long drawn out litigation.

Now, it's a Pubic Relations battle..

After looking at the current, not future impact, (as this is not a static event), would you even want to VISIT the shorelines of Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida panhandle shorelines to swim, fish, or eat? Not even mentioning the horrible ecological, and economic devastation that is about to balloon.. -How about some Louisiana crawfish for dinner? Uh, no. No thank-you.

And what does the British Petroleum (BP) CEO have to say?:

"Our task is to contain the oil, ultimately to eliminate the leaking well, and
most importantly, to clean up all of the oil, defend the shoreline and restore
the shoreline where oil does come ashore such that we return it to its original
state,".

Seriously? "Most importantly, clean up the oil, defend the shoreline, and restore it to it's original state"?

As a Citizen of the United States of America, I'm not feeling the love..

Actually, what I'm feeling/reading is this:

"At BP our task at hand is: To contain, and
salvage the oil from the well that we've already spent
hundreds-of-millions-of-dollars to harvest; To NOT abandon this
well as a 'Loss', ...-the very same oil well that we've already paid
for, and is a proven effective oil producer; To minimize the PR
loss we already expect to occur from our denial of error; To launch a multi-million dollar campaign to counter all
the negative PR that is growing and impacting the price of our stock market
shares and declining bond rating; and To get out of this
mess with the least amount of lost public and shareholder confidence loss that
we can..."

Boycott BP.

-CE

Pictures of Grace

2010-05-12T00:25:00.000-04:00

What happens when Dad is in charge..

2010-05-01T14:58:00.001-04:00

Resurrection Sunday 2K10

2010-04-04T23:47:00.003-04:00

Although our blog has been semi-dormant for a number of months, I wanted to post Resurrection Sunday 2K10 photos of the kids. Man, how they've grown into larger blessings, day-by-day.

We hope you've had the chance to re-connect with God this Easter in regard to the selflessness he's poured out over us by giving His all; His Son; for us.

When people say, "God help us all.." -He has.
Jesus Won !!

-C

2010-02-24T11:40:00.001-05:00

So I'm on the living room floor watching 'Bee Movie' for the thirtieth time. Luke is sleeping on his tummy in front of me, and Noah is laying on my back. He's a bit heavy, but he's warm and comfy. -I'm in a good place. = )

C

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Odd sense of humor?

2010-02-07T15:39:00.001-05:00

Have you ever been to John Ball Zoo? -The animals are a bit less-than-prime.. Such as the tigers, handicapped penguins, and monkeys missing their eyesight, or tail, or whatever. Kindive like 'Animals from Aldi's'. They fill the curiousity void, but a certain percentage of them are damaged goods.

-Thats what I thought of, and why I have a picture of refrigerator magnets. JBZ.. Spend the extra few bucks and get out of the city.
-C

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Virtual Fishing w/ the boy

2010-02-05T11:40:00.001-05:00

Good Catch!

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