Update

Posted on August 7, 2006 by Jason

We wanted to share with you all the results of Abby Kate’s appointment today. We visited with Dr. Kilroy at Vanderbilt and he gave us a very good report. The short of it is that he feels Abby Kate is just fine and she will continue to iron out the kinks in her walking as she continues to grow. He saw many encouraging signs and he had no reservation about giving us such a positive report. It was a tremendous blessing to know that so many of you were lifting her up today. Tonight we praise God for the good report we received. Thanks again.

Posted in Prayer | 3 Comments

A Prayer Request

Posted on August 4, 2006 by Jason

I’d like to ask those of you who check out this blog regularly to pray for my daughter. Abby Kate turned two last month and she is truly a joy. Her mother and I feel so blessed to have her as a part of our family. For the past several months, we’ve been concerned about her walking. She’s been walking for a couple months now, but her steps have always been a bit choppy. Additionally, she has poor balance and walks very slowly without holding hands with one of us. We consulted with our pediatrician a few months back and he recommended we see a pediatric orthopedic doctor. Everything looks OK from an orthopedic standpoint, but Abby Kate’s walking has not improved like we hoped it would. Our doctors here have referred us to a neurologist at Vanderbilt. There may not be anything wrong with our little girl; it could be that her walking is continuing to be refined. In fact, that’s what we hope. But I guess it’s always a bit scary to hear that your child has to visit a neurologist. Our prayer is that IF something is wrong that the neurologist would be able to find it and treat it. Again, this may be nothing. But then again, it could be SOMETHING, and that scares us to death. We solicit the prayers of our friends and family members over the next few days, especially on Monday when we visit the neurologist. We’ll keep you posted. Thanks for your prayers.

Posted in Prayer | 4 Comments

Camp’s Mere Discipleship

Posted on July 27, 2006 by Jason

I began reading Lee Camp’s Mere Discipleship in May and I was thoroughly challenged by the first few chapters. Alas, by the first of June, I knew I wouldn’t have the time to devote to such a weighty read. I reluctantly put the book on the shelf for a few months, opting to wait until I had the time this text deserved. Last week, I started refreshing myself on the first few chapters again. Camp’s chapters on Gospel and Savior articulate some thoughts I’ve been working out in my mind for the past few months. I’ll probably be using this blog as an outpost to further develop those thoughts in the coming weeks. Please be patient with me as I sort out some of these things. I’ll probably take a bit of a departure from my “fluff” blogging for a while. Somehow, I think the world will be just fine without further exposition regarding my favorite comedies of all-time.

To close this post, I leave you with the story of the Anabaptist martyr Dirk Willems as told by Camp in his chapter on Savior. I believe this story says much about the cost of following Jesus:

Captured and imprisoned for various Anabaptist “heresies”, Willems had opportunity to escape his captors, and he fled for his life. A deputy (of sorts) pursued Willems; it being winter, some ice had formed across the water over which Willems took flight. The deputy, however, fell through the ice – and when Willems perceived that his pursuer might lose his life, he returned to the scene, pulling the deputy from peril. When the deputy’s superior arrived on the scene, the deputy argued that Willems should be released. But when reminded of his oath of fidelity to law and order, the deputy seized Willems and returned him to captivity. In time, after severe imprisonment and great trials, Willems was slowly burned to death outside the village.

Indeed, there is a life unto death just as surely as there is a death unto life.
Grace & peace,
JB

Posted in Books, Discipleship, Jesus | 11 Comments

Top 10 Funniest Movies

Posted on July 24, 2006 by Jason

Bravo posted their 100 Funniest Movies list a month or so ago and people lit up the blogsphere with their reactions, most of which were negative. I have to admit: after looking at their list, I think they botched it (Monty Python & the Holy Grail at #40?!? Behind Legally Blonde (#29)? And Shrek (#3)?). Thus, here’s my own list, my Top 10 funniest flicks of all time. Let me know what you think.

10. Father of the Bride – I know, this probably isn’t Steve Martin’s funniest movie, but I don’t care. I’ve loved this movie ever since our daughter was born. I sure don’t want to think about her getting married someday but this movie is both warm and funny. Good stuff.

9. Meet the Parents – I think this is Ben Stiller’s best work. And who knew DeNiro could play comedic? The prayer scene makes me laugh just thinking about it. Solid.

8. Ghostbusters – This movie makes my list on the performance of Bill Murray alone. His slacker Dr. Venkman was a childhood influence for me. “Back off, man. I’m a scientist.“

7. Dumb and Dumber – Jim Carrey will be remembered for this film, not Ace Ventura. I probably watched this movie 100 times in high school & college. “Pretty bird. Pretty bird.”

6. Christmas Vacation – This one’s a staple come Christmas time. Chevy Chase is hilarious.

5. Fletch – Another Chase classic. When he comes rolling up on skates wearing that goofy wig…I lose it every time.

4. The Princess Bride – A classic. Good clean fun. How can you not love a movie starring Andre the Giant? (“Anybody wanna peanut?“) To this day, I can’t go to a wedding without saying, “Mawwage. Mawwage is wha’ bwings us togevah today.” Billy Crystal is hilarious, too. “Inconthee-vable.” “My name is Inigo Montoya…” All right, this is the Greatest One Liner movie of all time.

4-10 could be moved around on the list, but here are the Big 3 of Comedies for me.

3. Airplane – Surely this movie is one of the funniest of all time. (Yes it is and don’t call me Shirley.) I love good parodies and this one’s the best. “Looks like I picked the wrong week to stop sniffing glue.”

2. O Brother Where Art Thou – The language is downright awful, but this movie is hilarious. At least once a week, Sunny or I will say, “That don’t make no sense!” in honor of John Turturo. Tim Blake Nelson’s Delmar is the celluloid likeness of my grandfather. When he says, “Well, I’ll only be eighty-two!“, I laugh out loud.

1. Monty Python & the Holy Grail – Absolutely the funniest movie of all time. Best when viewed at 2 AM in a room full of people who can quote the whole thing. Favorite scene: when Arthur meets Dennis (who’s in a narcocyndiclist commune.) John from Kingsport, remember…”A duck!” That one’s for you, man.

Honorable Mention: Sunny and I love Big Momma’s House, but it probably has no business being on this list. I’ve never seen This is Spinal Tap; I have a feeling it would rank high for me, too. I liked Best in Show, but I can’t remember much about it; if I rewatched it, it’d probably rank here, too.

Notable omissions: Napoleon Dynamite, which is hands down the stupidest movie I’ve ever seen. Seriously people, this movie is not that funny. Also, anything by Will Ferrell is garbage. I can’t stand him. (Although I did see a preview for Talladega Nights the other day. I actually didn’t want to gouge out my eyeballs.)

Comments? Think I’m way off base here? Let me hear from ya.

Posted in Movies | 28 Comments

More bloggin’ buddies

Posted on July 23, 2006 by Jason

We were bummed last month when our good friends Kenny and Jamey moved from Huntsville to Montgomery. The Simpsons were some of our best friends here in Huntsville. (Joshua was especially fond of their sweet daughter, Avery…his first crush.) But a great opportunity drew them to Montgomery and they seem to be doing well. But in the weeks that have passed since they’ve moved, they’ve each joined the blogging world. Check them out at Triple Play and Footbasktrack Coach. I’m looking forward to keeping up with them via the blogsphere.

Also, my boy Jake at The World According the Jake has begun unveiling his Top 50 Funniest Movies list. That’s pretty ambitious. I may make a similar post this week, but I’ll probably limit it to a Top 10 List. I have my own thoughts, but any suggestions for what should make the list?

Posted in Blogging | 5 Comments

Growing Up

Posted on July 22, 2006 by Jason

A couple days ago, Sunny and I went to check out a preschool program for our kids. It’s really a Mother’s Morning Out program offered by a local church here in town. We’re checking into enrolling them for one day a week for a couple hours to give Mommy a chance to catch up on things, take a little break, etc. It was a great program with capable teachers, quality curriculum, nice facilities…everything you’d want.

But I had one of those moments while we were there. We stopped by the gym to watch some of the kids playing during recess. Sunny continued to discuss things with the preschool director while our kids ran around the gym, playing with the balls and cars and toys.

That’s when it hit me: my kids aren’t babies anymore. I know that sounds kinda silly…I mean, I know they’re not babies. I’m well aware of the fact that they’re toddlers. But it just hit me in that moment that my children are growing up so quickly. “They’re too young for this,” I thought. It seems like just the other day they were learning to crawl & getting their first teeth. But they’ll never be babies again. They’re only going to get older and bigger and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. I just had one of those moments where I felt overwhelmed all of this. I felt like time was slipping away from me too quickly. I want to slow things down, soak up every moment, hang on to every memory. But, as they say, time marches on. And in reality, I am looking forward to them getting older. I look forward to the conversations we’ll have, the games we’ll play, the laughs we’ll share. I know each stage of their growth will be special. I just wasn’t prepared for all of that to hit me so squarely in that moment.

The bottom line: I think we’re going to enroll the kids in the preschool program. Not only will it be good for the kids, but I think it’ll be good for the parents, too. It should be a good step in the growing up process for all four of us.

Posted in Kids | 7 Comments

Things I’m Sick Of / Excited About

Posted on July 21, 2006 by Jason

Today’s post: 5 things I’m sick of and 5 things I’m super-pumped about. As I write, David Crowder’s God of Wrath is spinning on the ol’ iTunes. First, what I’m sick of.

5 Things I’m Sick Of:

1. 100 degree weather
For the past week, the temperatures here have been unbearable. The fact that our AC unit is about half the size it needs to be — leaving our house a toasty 80 degrees in the afternoon — has made these days especially Hades-esque. I’m ready for fall. Now.

2. Taylor Hicks
I’ll admit: after Chris Daughtry got the boot, I rooted for this dude on American Idol. Little did I realize his victory would make losers of us all. Now you can’t watch TV for 5 minutes without hearing his incessant warbling “Soul Patrol” caterwauling on that blasted Ford commercial. When I hear those horns fire up, I scramble for the remote. I think ubiquitous is the right word. Every commercial break. Every network. All the time. Someone, please make it stop.

3. Grad school
6 hours last fall (including Hebrew), 9 hours in the spring, 6 hours this summer, 9 more next semester…man, I need a reprieve. But I’m the only one to blame, so I’ll not rant and rave about this too long.

4. My beloved fantasy baseball team, the Lobes
After bringing home the Cool Papa Bell League title (for the 2nd time, I might add) in 2004, my Lobes have found a new permanent dwelling: 9th place. A bottom tier finish could have been expected last year: I protected most of my high salary players, drafted poorly and started dealing off parts mid-season to make a run at the title this season. But a 2nd straight 9th place finish seems inevitable for my Lobes. But fear not: just like the Marlins, the Lobes strategy is pretty straightforward. The firesale has been going strong for a couple weeks and we’re sitting pretty with quality young keepers for next season. 2007 is our year! (Man I sound like a Cubs fan.)

5. Hands-free phone earbuds.
If you wear one of these in public, I have 5 words for you:
You.
Look.
Like.
A.
Dork.

Now, on to more positive things. Here are some things I’m excited about:

1. MLB Trade Rumors
Lots of rumors are floating out there, but Viva el Birdos confirms that my Redbirds are seriously entertaining the possibility of acquiring Dontrelle Willis from the Marlins. The price would be hefty (Anthony Reyes!), but acquiring D-Train would give the Cards what they’ve lacked every year come playoff time: a true 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation. Don’t know if they’ll pull it off (and I hope this isn’t Mark Mulder redux), but the possibility is enticing.

2. 48 days until the NFL Season
Again, I’m ready for cool weather & gridiron action. The NFL means fantasy football, a nice distraction since my fantasy baseball team stinks. Freeman, I’ma own you in our league.

3. Leisure reading
With summertime winding down, I’ll actually have a little time to catch up on some leisure reading. First up for me: Shades of Glory, a comprehensive history of the Negro Leagues and African-American Baseball. This will be my summer baseball read. (I read Fantasyland in the spring, but it was a fantasy baseball book, so that doesn’t count.) I’m really looking forward to this one. I’ll probably follow it up with Rob Neyer’s new book on Baseball’s Blunders.

4. NCAA Football 07
Since we’ve had our kids, I’ve had to cut down significantly on my video gaming (darn kids…just kidding). And I doubt I’d have the time to play this enough to justify dropping $40 on it. But I want it. Along with Madden, this has to be the greatest video game of all time. And I do have an anniversary coming up. Hmmm….

5. More time with friends and family
Now that summer’s over (at least from a YM programming perspective), I’ll have a little more time to devote to family and friends. A trip to St. Louis with my wife, a trip to Cedar Point with my brother-in-law and family vacations to Gatlinburg (August ) and the beach (September) are all on tap for us. The next few weeks should mark the births of Baby T and Lawson’s new sister. Exciting times to be sure.

So how about you? What are you sick of? What are you excited about?

Posted in Books, Grad School, Music, Sports, What I'm Loving | 13 Comments

Procrastination

Posted on July 20, 2006 by Jason

Why do I do this to myself? In addition to my duties as a husband, father and youth minister, I’m up against the clock to get all my grad school work turned in. I’ve been busting my hump this week to turn in 6 different term papers for my NT World course (due tomorrow) before I can get started on a 20-page practicum paper (due Monday). As if summer isn’t busy enough for a youth minister. Next time I sign up for summer classes, will one of you please slap me?

Currently playing on my iTunes: Little Victories by Matt Nathanson. One of my faves from Beneath These Fireworks. His voice reminds me of the Gin Blossoms guy a little.

Posted in Grad School | 6 Comments

A Bit Overdue

Posted on July 19, 2006 by Jason

It’s been well over a week since my last post, so I’m a bit overdue. Actually, my wife has been putting me to shame recently with her blogging output. Her days with our twin toddlers are much more exciting than mine usually are. Nonetheless, here are a few things that’ve been going on in my world recently.
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Our Mexico mission trip was awesome. A great experience. Our teens built a house for a needy family, taught Bible classes for approximately 100 children and constructed a playground at the City of Children. I’ve never been more proud of a group of teenagers. You guys were incredible.
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Our precious children have learned how to open up the refrigerator. So we had to go out and buy one of those fridge locks. Getting into our fridge is now slightly less difficult than getting into Fort Knox. I’ve already yanked my shoulder out of socket going for some milk. Maybe this is what I need to shed a few extra pounds, though.
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And speaking of shedding pounds, Andy is rounding into form. Actually, round describes his previous form. If you’ll recall, our dog tipped the scales at a rotund 50 lbs. at his last visit to the vet, prompting us to purchase the expensvie “diet” dog food for him. It’s still early, but if there were a Biggest Loser: Cocker Spaniel edition, Andy could contend. Not sure if he’ll make it all the way down to 28 lbs., but he’s getting there.
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I wonder if people realize how ridiculous they look when they give you the bird. This guy flipped me the middle finger salute yesterday for (gasp!) passing him on the highway. Nevermind the fact that he was going well under the speed limit and I had a clear lane to pass. Since when is that bird-worthy? Dude, if you’d spend more time driving and less time perfecting your bird-shooting form, the world would be a better place.
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Currently playing on the iPod: Love Hurts by Gram Parsons. I’m feeling a bit alt-country today. Great stuff.

Posted in Random | 2 Comments

City of Children blog

Posted on July 11, 2006 by Jason

One of our youthworkers has created a blog for us to post pictures of our mission trip to the City of Children. Check out our mission trip blog to see the latest pics from the City of Children!

Posted in Blogging, Random | 2 Comments