A Public Service Announcement:

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day..... So eat it!

Ok, so maybe holidays aren't worthless........

This father's day weekend was a really good weekend. It was so great because Grant is talking so good and communicating so much now that he could say "Happy Father's Day Daddy". And what was cute was the fact that he told me that several times over the weekend on various occasions. I'm sure he was prompted a few times by his momma but this one particular time that was cute was when Trina had brought home a yummy Turkey, Bacon, an Ranch sandwich from Arby's for us to split and she gave the bag to Grant to bring to me. He came in the living room where I was watching TV and he said, "Here ya go daddy... Happy Father's Day". Hahahah.... I mean, that's the stuff that just makes getting up to go to work every morning at 5 am worth it. To make sure that that little guy (and his mom) is taken care of makes everything I do (that I sometimes don't like) worth doing.

He doesn't care if Daddy likes getting up and going to work every day or not. He doesn't care if Daddy likes stressing over school work to better himself to hopefully provide a better life for his family or not. Grant doesn't concern himself with any of that stuff and it's great that he doesn't have to. All I want him to know is that he's loved, that he's safe and secure, and that his mommy and daddy love each other very much. Those are the things that I want him to know.

I try to make a point to tell him several times a day that Daddy loves him and that Daddy is very proud of him. I don't know if he knows what Daddy being proud of him means right now, but he will and that will be so important to him very soon. Knowing that his Dad is proud of him will give him such a boost to his confidence and in knowing who he is. My goal is to produce a secure and confident young man that knows that his dad always has his back and that he can come and talk to me at any time about anything without fear of my coming down on him. To do that I may have to correct him and stear him in the right direction from time to time but I want to do it in love so that he knows that I only have his best interests in mind.

Although I typically think that most of the holidays that we observe in this country are commerically driven and bogus.... I think I like Mother's Day and Father's day. Not only because I get to hear my son say, "Happy Father's Day daddy", but because it causes me to reflect on what it is to be a Dad and how blessed I am to hold that position in my son's life.

I am blessed.

Mom's Are Worth Every Penny They're Not Paid....

So I saw this article on the FoxNews website this morning. I think I've seen something like this before but it really made me take a minute to think about and really appreciate the efforts that my mom and my wife put forth with raising me and my son respectively.

Moms really do pull alot of different jobs and they should be appreciated for them all.

I LOVE YOU MOM AND TRINA!!!!!!!!!!!

Article on FoxNews.com (5-9-2008)

BOSTON —

If a stay-at-home mom could be compensated in dollars rather than personal satisfaction and unconditional love, she'd rake in a nifty sum of nearly $117,000 a year.

That's according to a pre-Mother's Day study released Thursday by Salary.com, a Waltham, Mass.-based firm that studies workplace compensation.

The eighth annual survey calculated a mom's market value by studying pay levels for 10 job titles with duties that a typical mom performs, ranging from housekeeper and day care center teacher to van driver, psychologist and chief executive officer.

This year, the annual salary for a stay-at-home mom would be $116,805, while a working mom who also juggles an outside job would get $68,405 for her motherly duties.

One stay-at-home mom said the six-figure salary sounds a little low.

"I think a lot of people think we sit and home and have a lot of fun and don't do a lot of work," said Samantha Russell, a Fremont, N.H., mother who left her job as pastry chef to raise two boys, ages 2 and 4. "But they should try cleaning their house with little kids running around and messing it up right after them."

The biggest driver of a mom's theoretical salary is the amount of overtime pay she'd receive for working more than 40 hours a week. The 18,000 moms surveyed about their typical week reported working 94.4 hours — meaning they'd be spending more than half their working hours on overtime.

Working moms reported an average 54.6 hour "mom work week" besides the hours they spent at paying jobs.

Russell agreed her job as a stay-at-home mom is more than full-time. But she said her "job" brings intangible benefits she wouldn't enjoy in the workplace.

"The rewards aren't monetary, but it's a reward knowing that they're safe and happy," Russell said of her sons. "It's worth it all."

Rock the Vote!!!!!!!

So I put a little poll up on my blog. Go vote.... or lose me forever!

Cool Flashlight

The only thing that makes me uncomfortable is that he keeps pointing it at himself.

I'm still around..... I think.

I haven't posted in awhile and I thought I should post something or what good is this blog? I'm not really sure than anyone even reads it but I'll post in the event that someone might care.

What have I been up to lately? Well, pretty much the same ole stuff. Work, school, family, church, and now that the weather is getting nice I'll be working in the yard. Another major thing that I'll be doing in the coming months will be assisting a friend of mine and a brother in Christ with his run for a seat in the Arkansas House of Representatives. I'll be on the tech team (web manager) and working to help maintain his website, MySpace, Facebook,and YouTube presence. The guys name is Bill Fechtlekotter and he's an awesome man of God and a guy that really thinks differently than your average politician. That's the thing... he's not really a politician. He's a man that has a passion and feels that God is calling him to be used to initiate change.

So that's exciting. I'm also working to wrap up my Masters degree program. The goals is to be finished by about October of this year. I can't tell you guys how much I'm looking forward to getting this school stuff wrapped up once and for all. I just can't wait to get that off of my plate.

Umm... for those of you that were interested in my Velocity Diet experiment, I completed it a couple of weeks ago. I made it the entire 4 weeks with the majority of my nutrition coming from protein shakes spiked with other goodies like flax seed and fish oil capsules. I dropped about 13 pounds and about 2 inches over different parts of my body. I am pretty pleased with the results. I went from 191 lbs. to 178 lbs. I'm going to continue to build on the progress that I made and drop a little bit more weight and add some more muscle to my frame. This physique stuff can be tricky. It definitely requires a thought out approach.

Anyway.... That's what I'm up to in a nuttshell.

Hairy @ O'Hare....

So I'm stuck in the Chicago O'Hare International airport this evening. They canceled all the flights (except for that one to Louisville that I saw boarding as I was walking to the area where there are cots provided by the airport). This must be kinda what it is like to be in a catastrophe center or a barracks after a hurricane hits or something. This is what I imagine it must have been like after Katrina hit and all those people were sleeping on cots in gymnasiums and places like that. Obviously this isn't a situation like that at all.... but still there's a bunch of cots in here and strange people sleeping all around me.

Ok, checklist:

1. Wallet .... check
2. Cell phone alarm set..... check
3. My feet not in some other dudes face..... check (but who cares really).
4. Bag full of electronics and other valuables inconspicuously hidden under my shirt....check


Ok, I guess I can call it a night and hope for things to be better in the morning.

Night.

OH wait.... random thought. I think it'd be fun to strip down to my boxers and just walk around the airport like I was at home or something. Hahahahah.... I wonder what kind of reactions I'd get. Hmmm......

Still Sexy Ladies?

Job Market - 2010 (Sad but possibly true)

This makes me sad:

Too Much .... or Nothing Much

I wanted to post something because I haven't posted in several days. It seems like so much has been going on lately that I can't think of anything to report. It's almost like too much has become muddied into nothing much. I've just been balancing work, school, family, diet/excercise, and the worship team had a very busy Easter weekend with traveling back and forth between 6 services over the span of 2 days.

So, lots going on lately. I guess the biggest challenge I've faced lately is doing all of it and not letting my wife or son feel like they've been put on the back burner. There are only so many hours in a day. Wow....

Lord, Save Me From Myself

Jon Foreman has become one of my favorite singer/songwriters. He's recently released 2 out of a 4 EP set named after the 4 different seasons, Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer. I purchased the Fall and Winter EPs and have been listening to them, literally non-stop since I got them. His songs paint such vivid and touching pictures. The lyrics really speak to my soul. There's is a lot of feeling and emotion in his writing. I wanted to post some song lyrics from his song, "Lord, Save Me From Myself". Maybe it'll speak to you. I also posted a video of Jon performing the song.

www.jonforeman.com

Just.....Wow....Get your kleenex

Any wonder why I love this band?

It's been awhile.....

Well, it's awhile since I posted on this blog but I've been sort of in a haze. I am a very focused and single minded person at times, so when I'm working on something or focused on a particular goal it's hard to get my mind off of it and onto other "wonderings" which I might blog on.

I've been working as of late on getting myself into good shape (when am I not working on that one). So my mind has kinda been consumed with eating at the right time, the right stuff, working out, sleeping, etc.... Sometimes I think I'm good at multi-tasking and then other times.....not so much.

Anyway, I sold my guitar about a week ago because I really needed to upgrade. The guitar I had was great when I got it like 10 years ago (and didn't know anything about a good sounding guitar) but I realized I needed/wanted something that sounded better. God has really re-birthed the desire in me to play some music. Ever since I shipped my guitar off I've just had this ache to strum around on a guitar and learn some new songs. So I'm visiting a guitar store every day at lunch and "test driving" guitars in hopes that one will just jump out at me.

I'd love to get a Taylor guitar of some sort but I just can't justify dropping that kind of money on a guitar at this time. Maybe later. I was recently added to the singing ensemble at church(also known as a choir but I think that sound real old fashioned and weird since I'm an instrumentalist) and sang at my first scheduled event this past Friday. It was a women's event at the church and it was really fun to be using the talents that God has given me again. I originally auditioned for our church's worship team on guitar and vocals but I don't think my showing was that strong (I hadn't picked up my guitar in 2 years). Anyway, I was asked to sing in the "choir" instead. I originally wasn't too sure what to think about that. I almost took it as a failure because it wasn't what I'd set out to accomplish but after thinking about it more I realized that that is where God wants me to start out. I'm taking as a lesson in humility really. You see, I've always been used to being the best at my instrument (trumpet). All through school I was the top at what I did so when I missed the mark on this audition it kind of bruised my ego at first but I think it was really a lesson that God had for me in humility. I must say that I'm actually enjoying the process and feel like there is a lot to be learned from this experience.

I'm just glad to be in a musical environment and setting again. Hanging out with other musicians and being given the opportunity to use those talents that God has given me and express myself in that way.

Ok.... now I'm rambling.....

New Velocity Diet blog....

If you'll look at my links, I've created a new blog to chronicle my experience on the Velocity Diet. Check that out for the latest updates.

Velocity Diet - A new adventure and challenge!

I'm about to embark on an interesting journey to see what kind of shape I can get my body into. I've always been interested in fitness and nutrition. If you ask my wife she'll tell you that I'm a little over the top with it all and to be honest I probably am. However, I don't think I've ever actually achieved the best condition that I'm capable of. The reason is probably due to lack of discipline and "want to".

I lost about 20 to 30 lbs. a year or so ago and I've kept it off for the most part for a while, but I'm ready to take things to the next level. My road map to getting there involves a plan called the Velocity Diet. This plan is designed to do exactly what the name indicates. It's designed to rapidly strip the fat off of the body. Some people will think that I'm kinda ridiculous for considering a plan like this but I think it's got a lot of merit. I'll be receiving all of the nutrients that I need, just in a different and calculated way.

The quick description of the plan is this: I'll drink 5 high quality protein shakes a day along with fish oil capsules, a couple servings of milled flax seed, and some fiber tabs. The shakes will be consumed every 2 to 3 hours. I'll eat 1 healthy solid meal a week. That's right, I said "1" solid meal a week. I'll do this for 28 days straight and then I'll transition off of this plan back to consuming solid food on a regular basis again over a 2 week period.

I'll also be lifting weights 3 days per week and doing some kind of low intensity cardio every day without fail.

The goal is to strip off about 20 or so pounds during this time and uncover the muscle that is hiding below the fat.

My motivation is the desire to experience being in the best shape of my life and to successfully complete a challenging program that requires extreme focus and discipline.

Note: I'll be starting a separate blog where I'll be chronicling each day of this journey to my best physique ever. I'll record the good, the bad, and the ugly. There will probably be progress photos involved.... otherwise how would you know I made any progress?

Stay Tuned...........

Check Out my Velocity Diet blog @: Velocity Diet Blog

Foo Fighters Update.....

I just wanted to post this picture of myself with Subway's Jared on the way to the Foo Fighters show. Is this really me or is it a cardboard cut out of me? You decide.

Mentoring

I've been really contemplating asking someone to mentor me lately? I really feel like having a mentor is crucial to real personal growth whether it be spiritually, professionally, or in my family. I think the real desire I have is for a spiritual mentor though because that's the one area of my life that I really need the most growth. I believe my spirit has been praying about it for awhile because it's often on my mind.

I just have this feeling in the pit of my stomach that God has something bigger for me than the stage of life that I'm currently in. I'm not sure what that might be or in what form it will manifest itself but I just sense it. I believe God has been birthing in me thoughts that I've never had before about things that he may be preparing me for. It's scary but a tad exciting also. I wish I could elaborate more on what those things are..... but I don't know myself.

Why can't I sit still?

So I'm approaching the downhill slope of my Master's degree program. I've got 9 hours left to complete before I have a Master's in IT Management. Why IT management you may ask. Why not I say? I figured that I understand IT even though I wouldn't classify myself as really being interested in it outside of the paycheck it brings, but I really wanted my Master's degree to seperate myself from everyone that has a bachelors degree now days. I would've went after the "ALL IMPRESSIVE" MBA but I just couldn't stomach the idea of taking more finance and accounting type classes. I have to take a couple of those in this program and it's just painful to me.

But, I digress. Now that I'm on the downhill slope of this program I've found myself contemplating what I'm going to go after once I've finished. I know I don't want to get a Phd just because I don't see myself teaching in a University setting really and it wouldn't really benefit me in my current position that much. So there is a Leadership Institute in the town that I live in that the Chamber or Commerce and local government sponsor. So I've been contemplating applying for it. I don't remember how many people they take each year but I'd have to be sponsored by my company I think.

So I'm wondering why I feel like I have to be achieving something? Is that weird?

Anyone Out There.....

Just curious..... does anyone read this blog?