Ramblings

Home, Doctors, and Good News

Yes I am finally home and it feels a bit strange. Sunday morning at about 1:30 am I walked into my home after a very long and very fun trip.  Of course my luggage went to New Hampshire and caught up with me Sunday afternoon.  Being home without Sam and the kids is certainly lonely and quiet, but it will certainly give me time to catch up at work, school, and around the house.  I am slowly succeeding at home and with school, but church is another story.  Thankfully my intern did a super job while I was away and the task really is fairly light.  The problem is that I haven't been in my office all that much yet.  Monday I went to Gainesville to see my third Cardiologist.  Today we took the High School group to Juniper Springs.  Good times swimming and relaxing.  Hopefully tomorrow I can begin getting back on track at church.

As for the doctors and good news, yesterday I visited my third Cardiologist and my second at the University of Florida.  As you may know my Dr. in Orlando made the humble decision to send my complex heart situation to the mega experts at Shands Hospital at the University of Florida.  While I can't stand the Gators, they sure have amazing doctors.  My first visit a few months back was with the rhythm expert and this visit was with one of the leading experts in Heart issues that stem from birth.  She is the plumbing specialist.  She gave me a great preliminary report.  She will still be looking more in depth at the tests I took yesterday and I am schedule for a MRI on my heart, but all in all she was pleased and I was pleased with her.  Please still pray for my heat and it's total healing.  This is my desire and I pray for it constantly.  Thanks for your prayers up to this point.  

Vacation

O.K. so I definitely needed to do an update on our great adventure. First off if you want to see cool pics and better blogging go to Sam's blog.  Well remember how I was tired of waiting to leave? Well that culminated in us leaving Wednesday night instead of Thursday. Things were ready and we were ready so why night. In the end it was nice to get a jump on things. We went from Groveland to Valdosta, Georgia the first night. This gave us lots of time on Thursday to meander through Georgia. First stop - Macon, Georgia. We paid homage to the great Allman Brothers. First we went to Rose hill Cemetery to see the graves of Duane Allman and Bary Oakley. I must say it was a bit emotional. I called my friend Steve, not to gloat, but to share the moment with the man who introduced me to ABB. Afterwards we had lunch at the H &H Restaurant. It was a favorite of the band back in the day. It turned out to be a very authentic Soul food place loaded with ABB pics. From there we journeyed to the Atlanta/Athens area. We enjoyed dinner and the evening with the Mock's and the Harwell's in Athens. It was a lot of funning seeing the office of Rebuilt records and the Old Campus of the University of Georgia. The next morning, I went with Brad to see his new church while Polly and the kids swam at the hotel with Sam and our kids. Brad finally is at a church that understands ministry and where his gifts will be used. God answered many prays by calling Brad and family to this new church. Still with me? O.K. Next we headed to Nashville to spend the fourth with family. Along the way we visited Chicamauga Battle Field, the home of the second bloodiest battle of the war. It is so much more powerful to experience history like this, then to just read about it. After a great fourth in Nashville, it was on to Branson, MO. While Branson was so-so, the rest of the Ozarks where absolutely beautiful. We spent Sunday at Rocky Ridge farm, the home of Laura Ingalls Wilder. The actual person who wrote the books, and not the dopey show. Samantha has been reading these books since she was a little girl and Hanna has been reading them It was neat to watch Sam enjoy this experience. Finally today we finished our longest day of driving and I am sitting in a hotel room in Sioux Falls, SD. Tomorrow it is on to Rapid City and the Black Hills. I can't wait!!!! Again if you want to see cool pics go to Sam's Blog.

Let's Leave Already

Tomorrow is the big day.  We begin our big journey across America and to be honest I could leave today.  I am so ready.  The trip is pretty much planned out and with the exception of some laundry we are ready.  This has been a crazy few days with digging out from our Bahamas trip and prepping to be gone.  Thanks to my amazing intern, all should be well around the church and I will be able to focus on the good times ahead.  As for good times we are hoping to see everyone while in CA.  Mr. Velez I do believed offered up his home for a gathering so hopefully that will come together.  I can't wait!

Finally I need to say a few words about our Bahamas trip.  It was one of the best mission trips I've been on.  That is saying a lot coming from a guy who has taken groups on trips like this more times then he can count.  As for the house we worked on, we were able to put in 7 windows, 1 door, a back deck, a new floor, a kitchen counter w/ sink (prior to this she had no running water), a new counter and cabinets for her cook top, we painted the outside and some of the inside, new post to hold up the porch, we did alll her laundry, cleaned the house, and weeded the entire jungle like area around the house.  Oh yeah and we painted another house down the street.  ALong with the physical repairs, our team spent a lot of time just ministering to the neighborhood.  It truly was a successful week and I think God used us to bring a bit of hope to the life of a hurting family.  Go Team!  Here are a few pics.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

 

 

Same Side of the house as in the first Pic:

That Feelin

Do you ever have that feeling of uneasiness, when you come down to the wire on a project or event, that maybe your missing something.  Sunday myself and 29 others head for our week long trip to the Bahamas and while on the one hand I feel ready, on the other it just seems too easy.  What am I missing????  I guess I'll find out when I get there and I have that oh Crap moment.  We will be working on this house.

Anyway, today Gramma and Taylor arrive from their long trek across America and we are super excited.  They will be hear for a few weeks then all of us will head to California in another great adventure across America.  So one week in the Bahamas and then two on the road.  It should be a blast.  Please pray for our trip to the Bahamas as well as our family vacation. 

A Quick Update

O.K. so it's been a few weeks since my last post.  Things have just been rolling along with summer planning for our vacation and for church events and such. Along with that I am taking an on-line course this summer.  Let's give a cheer for Methodist Polity and Discipline!  It doesn't get much more exciting then this. 

We are really challenging our youth group this summer with being about a radical new way of living.  On Sunday nights we are doing my version of Brian Mclaren's "Everything Must Change".  I am still worried that it might be a bit deep for the kids, but they seem to be really engaged and dialed in.  The conversation during our teaching time is really cool.  Combine this with our Thursday night study on Steve Harpers, "The Way to Heaven, the Gospel According to John Wesley" and we should have a wacky summer.  I am way excited to see our kids go deeper.  I think we do them a disservice when we dumb down the Gospel for them.

As for our summer trips, we took our first of two skate park trips.  Yesterday me and 14 students went to the Skate Park of Tampa for the day.  It was way fun.  I spent the day trying to be an action sports photographer.  It was a lot of fun and I think I actually got some good pics.  Below is a few from the day, including a group shot.  These are some great kids who I am praying for.  If you get a moment please pray for them.

  

Summer Trip

Since Mr. Castro commented in regards to whether the Widlund's are coming west this summer I thought I would fill you all in on our plans.  We are actually taking a summer adventure.  In a few weeks my mom is driving here.  She will be with us for about 2 weeks and then we all jump in her van on July 3 for a cross country old school family trip. 

Day 1 - Athens and Atlanta Georgia to visit the Harwell's and the Mock's.  On the way to Athens we will be stopping for lunch at H & H Restaurant in Macon Georgia to pay homage to the Allman Brother Band.  We will also stop by the Rose Hill Cemetery to see the graves of Duane and Berry. 

Day 2 - Nashville, Tense for the 4th.  We will see family and on the way we will visit a Civil War battle field.

Day 3 and 4 - Springfield/Branson, MO.  Just outside of Branson is the Laura Ingles Wilder home, the original place of little house on the prairie.  Not the show, but the actual girl.  Branson will be for mom.

Day 5 - Sioux City South Dakota- Just a place to stay the night

Day 6 and 7 - Rapid City, South Dakota - Mount Rushmore, Dead Wood, The Badlands.  Way cool.

Day 8 - Somewhere in Wyoming?

Day 9 - Somewhere in Utah

Day 10 and Maybe 11 - Las Vegas

Day 12 - Fresno.

I will stay in Fresno for about 4-5 days and then fly home.  Sam and the Kids will be staying in DP for a couple more weeks.  So we would love to plan a get together sometime between the 15th of July and the18th.

Crazy trip!

Another Doctor

So today, Samantha and I went up to Gainesville to get another opinion on my heart.  My current cardiologist is very good and humble enough to admit that he is not an expert in my rather wacky heart situation.  So it was off to the University of Florida for a second opinion.  For the most part the visit was positive.  The doctor, who is a cardiac electro physiology expert said that things looked good at the moment, but he wanted to take a team approach to my treatment.  He has referred me to another dr who is an expert in congenital heart defects.  So the two of them will work together to make sure that things are being done properly.

This all sounds well and good, but for some reason I am sitting here typing this and feeling rather down.  I think I'm just sick of doctors and EKG's and xrays and tests.  Currently I am wearing a 48 halter monitor and I will soon be back at UF for an MRI and a visit with a second dr.  Compared to kids with cancer and the like who have to have multiple surgeries and chemo and radiation I might be sounding a bit lame, but damn it I'm just sick of it.  I just want to go to the dr. and have them say things look good and I can come back in a year.  No this is not to be.  Every day I pray that God would completely heal my jacked up heart, but as of todays EKG He has not.  So I will keep asking and I will keep moving forward doing my best to not let this get me too down.  Maybe this is just something I have to accept, but as of today I am not ready to do that. 

The Finish Line

Is definetly in sight.  Last night I took my final for my John Wesley course and now all that I have left is 2 papers for and a take home final for Old Testament.  Hoepfully these should be easy and quick.  All in all it has been a good semester.  I wish that I could have focused a bit more on school, but this was not to be the case.  I have, for some nutty reason, signed up for two summer school classes.  Methodist polity and discipline is the first course and it begins soon.  It goes all summer, but it is an onnline class so I can work on it while on vacation, etc.  AT the end of August I will be doing a week long intensive course.  Despite it being 3 units in one week it shoul go smooth.  It is intro to counseling.  I am hoping my undergrad will give me a good head start and foundation for this course.

Feeling a Bit Cranky

I'm not sure why I'm feeling like I am today, but I am. I woke up feeling snarky and mean, and to be honest I'm not sure why. I think it might be because I have been going and doing way to much. I need to just stop and do nothing for two days. This morning I was in two meetings and I just kept my mouth shut, because the stuff that I wanted to say would have been unkind and a bit rude. So to the pleasure of all the others in the room I just stayed a bit to myself. Right now I should be writing a book report for class, but it's just not happening. I am thinking that I may just put it off until tomorrow night or maybe even Friday. Yes, I think I will put it off. Isn't the ability to justify procrastination in a blog a good ability. Maybe even a super power. A while ago I managed to convince myself that I could break my no caffeine fast that has been fairly successful for the last three weeks. Of course it was just one can of Diet Pepsi. Oh well, now if I can just keep the snowball from rolling down the hill and crashing into 7-11 and a 64 ounce soda of Diet Pepsi goodness.

The Great Harvest

O.K. maybe that's an overstatement, but yesterday I had the wonderful privilege of picking the first of what I hope to be many vegetables from my garden.  We harvested 3 whole cucumbers that turned out to be suprisingly tasty in a salad that Samantha made. 

 

I have grown very fond of the art and science of gardening.  It has become something of a hobby for me, the guy with no real hobby.  For me gardening is that thing that teaches me patience.  When you put a seed in the ground and you have to wait for months for results patience is required.  In a world that wants things "now" and in a world of people who just can't seem to wait for anything, this kind of patience is healthy.  It doesn't teach you to have patience for people who have no patience.  Like the the annoying people we encountered during our day today at Disney.  I mean is it really necessary to drag your child at sprinter speed to the front of the line?  Do you really need to get there before me.  The strange thing is the wait is the same whether they push their annoying two kid stroller to the front of the line or not.  And can I just say that the Disney imagineers must have been out sick the day they decided to use large bulky plastic side by side double strollers for people in the park.  This is all you can think of Disney.  No awards on that one.  I just think that people need to learn some patience thats all.  If Dante were to write today there would be a place in Purgatory for this idiots.  It would be the room with the seven mile line that never moves and these people would always find themselves at the end of it.  So yes gardening teaches me the "waiting" kind of patience, but not the "putting up with idiots" patience.

I also think gardening is one of those positive things we can do for the environment.  Instead of buying something in the store that has been picked by people who aren't paid what they should and put on trucks and driven across country, isn't it better to grow your own?  It also gives a true sense of being able to provide.  All in all it is a good thing. 

So here's to the first harvest.