Think about It....

Been thinking about some things lately. It started with purchasing one of the very large packs of pens at the Costco...pretty colorful gel clicky pens. Most of the colors Ron would never use so that means mine all mine! They are the pilot G2-07 pens....and they are glorious. Ok so all this waxing poetic about pens because I was thinking, I wish I had a reason to use the damn things other than work related and list making. Heck I don't even write in a journal anymore because well I blog. So I was remembering....letter writing. Man I loved to write letters back in the day, before I could type 60+ WPM, and text message, and IM. I'd write a letter. One of my BFF's Abby and I would send at least one letter a week talking about all sorts of nonsense. And when PC's came about we'd fill our letters with crazy fonts and fun clipart....this was before they perfected e-mail. I had two close friends move away when I was in elementary school, we kept in touch via letter writing well over 20 years. Now it's just an occasional christmas card...this past year may have been the first year I didn't get a card.

We have so many ways of being connected these days. Yet it seems so impersonal, and less creative. I can be in touch with a friend in a matter of seconds and a few keystrokes, yet I feel like I know my friends less intimately. An e-mail seems so impersonal I guess....probably because we are all so afraid it's another stupid forward we're going to have to check snopes for. Not sure where I am going with this, maybe I'll write a letter this week, on a piece of notebook paper with a funky pen.....Abby (I doubt she reads this....see what I mean about not connected) be watching your mailbox. YOU BETTER WRITE BACK!
Just told the kid to "count sheep", he'd never heard that expression and has scampered off excited of the idea of counting sheep as they jump over a fence......

Catching my Breathe

This song was the theme song for Cincykids this year. Matt Redman could sing the phonebook and God would show up. I'm convinced of this. He wasn't there but they played his song with words much like this, and the kids worshipped....it was good stuff. This could very well be my very first post with 2 videos....
I know that's more excitement than you non-comment leaving lurkers can handle. That excludes Heather she always leaves me some love. The rest of you are just as wierd....errr...I mean as busy as I am and read blogs but don't comment. Every once in a while it's fun to see who gives a crap about my busy life. Anyways that's the other song they sang at Cincykids, and it's beautiful. Salvador isn't bad to look at either.
OK heres my PSA for the month: If you'd like to go camping near your home at a place you don't think anyone will be camping at, well because it's raining and it's close to your home...call ahead. Apparently this place is happening, and booked for the next 3 weekends.....WHO KNEW? So because I ain't camping this weekend I'll use that time to catch my breathe, maybe clean my house cause it's rather funky. Or just throw some water in the camelback and go hiking at the park I'm suppose to be camping at....they can't keep me out! Crazy campers!

Sometimes.....

God just shows up. Even if it's from a far away country. 3 weeks ago, I met up with a friend very briefly while walking into church. She was my apprentice leader for a small group years ago. One of those friends you can go without seeing or talking to for months and when we see each other it's like we talk to each other everyday. We completely understand each other....I love that kind of connection. This particular morning she was a bit frazzled. She has 3 boys under the age of 5, the youngest being just a year old, so she was at the end of her rope, and responded with my typical Sunday morning greeting "Hey, how's it going?" As she's holding her youngest she responds with......"I'm not sure I'm fit to be a parent....I should have moved to New York and became a ballerina!" You have to understand she makes being a mom look amazingly easy. She's always so organized and keeps her boys on a strict schedule. She has her moments like we all do, this being one of those moment I believe. Not only is she a great mom, she's is an amazing servant of God, it comes so natural to her, it's just who she is and it's part of how she lives her life. So I said something positive, and we parted ways off to our perspective seats in the Sunday worship service. Fast forward just one week later, I get an e-mail that they are the host family for Asubuhi, so not only was that saying to her she's a fit mother, but she's so fit he's giving her another kid for a short period of time, one with a health problem and one who doesn't speak English. It was such a blessing to hear this story, caused a whole lot of cube crying. Shout out to Cyndi for hooking up Asubuhi with a blanket with his name on it to treasure all the way back to Tanzania in October. And thanks for the article link too.

*I purposely didn't share my friends name since it's not in the article and I don't want the paparazzi showing up at her house. It's hard knowing celebrities, you have to be careful.

Big, Big God!

Haven't been feeling great past few days. Blech......2 words, ORGANIC CORN, try it at your own risk. I'm just saying.
Cincykids is this week. And wow what a difference in Perry from last year to this year as far as comprehension of what's going on. He LOVES it. Again the interactive prayer rooms are so special and touching to him, as he places his little feet on Madagascar and promises to pray for that country each day. As he places his little hand on Jos, Nigeria and prays for the people who live there, who don't have clean water, and for the team from our very church who will go there to help them get clean water. As he traces his foot on a banner that will hang in an orphanage in Nigeria, and writes I will pray for Jos, and Mommy writes "I will pray for you each time I brush my teeth."
As he sings "Lord let me shine, shine like the moonA reflection of you in all that I doLord let me be a light for your truthLight of the world, I wanna be used to shine for you." I truly believe he means every word.
For the next week I am going to be praying through this scripture because Kande asked us to...and also because it's a really good thing to do, maybe the 4 people who read my blog can do the same. Cut and paste and print it off and put it somewhere, to remind you of what a big God we get to serve!
"For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way. "Ephesians 1:15-23 (NIV)
I am praying this scripture for the folks in Nigeria we will be serving and for the folks in my life who don't yet know how big this God is or who just need to draw closer to him. Or desire to grow stronger in their faith, whatever that looks like.

Pardon my Absense....

I've been eaten alive by by all things cubscouts. You think I'm kidding? From what I've been told, it's how boys become men. We'll see what happens.



In other news I had a fabulous weekend. Had one last to-do with Alpha peeps at a leader retreat at Camp Kern. We had a ton of fun, and we did the Amazing Race Which was way more fun than grown ups should be allowed to have. It was a nice way to end my involvement with Alpha as I transition into Cub Scouts....which was not by any means a gradual process. Needless to say I will miss Alpha, but I am sure I'll be back in a few years after P bridges to Boy Scouts....but I'm sure they will need my help too. We shall see what the future holds, God's always got something crazy up his sleeve. By the way if you have been part of an Alpha table in the past 7 years, you should go to this.

Cub.....What?

By the time cub scouts starts for the year, it's a good possibility I am going to be sick of anything blue and yellow.....or tan and navy blue for that matter. Agenda done, uniform bought, standby for family portrait. I'm outa here for the weekend, last event with my Alpha peeps, an overnight it'll be bittersweet.

I'm in Over my Head!

Well kind of. Heck when I start out on a new adventure it just wouldn't be any fun unless I complained about. For years my BFF (I feel so young when I do that...) and I planned scrapbooking retreats. We planned really fun scrapbooking retreats, that many people looked forward to twice a year. We did the bulk of our planning at the very last minute. I'm talking the weekend before. Complete with packed goodie bags, schedule of events, games, prizes....good Lord a bajillion prizes donated by various local scrapbook stores. Anyways my point is, I've given up one of my church volunteer things for Cub Scouts. I gave up Alpha for Committee Chair......WHAT THE? I've been doing Alpha for 4 years, I know what I am doing, it takes very little preparation. It's 10 straight weeks out of my life twice a year. Oh but now, I am committee chair, I have really no knowledge what that means exactly. I know I gotta coordinate a WHOLE LOT OF CRAZY STUFF, not to mention encourage, finagle, beg, force people to do stuff, um they are suppose to volunteer. I am sure it's not going to be hard......right....they told me I'd be good at it, they being people who have only known me for a brief period of time. My husband....the Assistant Cub Master (which means dude does nothing but look official in his Cub Scout Leader uniform) of the same Pack is quite excited at the prospect of the whole damn family in a uniform. I see a family portrait in my future. GOD HELP ME!

Ok Ok rant over. It's the right thing to do, my kids only a kid for so long and then those years are gone. I still got my things I do, theres just less time to myself. Note to self: Schedule some me time.

Keen Sense of Direction.....

That is not me.....nor is it my BFF Layni. My husband however with a GPS in hand, we should listen to him. It was a proud day for the letterboxing adventures. We sent team Perry (their last name not my kid) into the woods to find the series of letterboxes we found on the 4Th of July. Pumped them up with all sorts of confidence since we knew they existed, and with specific instructions to bushwhack and not to give up. We also sent Perry (my actual kid) with them for help....(right as if he paid attention to where he was 10 days ago) While they searched for those we had big plans to replace a damaged letterbox in a different part of the same park. Except I left my fancy letterbox I made AT HOME....what the? My only responsibility....good heavens. So after scarfing down a 6" Turkey Sub, Ron and I headed home to retrieve the letterbox. By the time we returned, Team Perry was on letterbox 3 of 5......woohoo the race was on. We dashed into the woods retrieved the damaged goods, placing our newer fancier letterbox in the same spot. Then hightailed it back out of the woods just in time for Team Perry's arrival....ready and willing to search for our newly planted letterbox. It took them all of 10 min. to find it....our mission was complete, but not entirely. There was one more Letterbox to be found, why leave a perfectly good park full of treasures.

(my face is red because it's sun burnt, and from scaling a mountain, I am much more attractive and thinner in person.)

So off we went. We didn't really notice the directions said "steep" hill....holy hell, they should have mentioned you'd be scaling the side of a mountain for God sake! I am way to old and fat to be mountain climbing....but this didn't stop us....lots of heavy breathing. We made it the top, only to find we'd be scaling back down halfway to retrieve the actual treasure. We opted to send someone younger and more in shape after the actual goods, So Ashton retrieved the goods and brought it to the old folks at the top of the mountain. The directions instructed we were welcome to "take a card" if we liked....it was Mormon cards.....with the teenager Jesus on the cover, we opted to leave them for folks who weren't yet acquainted with the teenager Jesus. So now we were left with a dilemma....we were at the top of a mountain after all, which meant we'd have to get down from that mountain to get home. We decided to take a new different route back, one that looked less mountain like, more of a gradual down slope......which was more than twice as long....LOL.....not to mention no idea really how to get out of the woods from that direction. Layni mentioning her keen sense of direction so we "trusted" her....sort of...Ron in the back of the pack with the GPS saying without much authority I might add...."um guys the coordinates say go this way...." Yeah we've attempted to follow those GPS things before only to find ourselves miles from where we needed to be (except we aren't good with numbers either of us, this includes longitude and latitude.) After hiking what seemed miles......it was a much better plan because we came upon some yummy blackberry's. Not to mention a tree with giant thorns, and a killer dog (behind a fence thank God) We finally decided to listen to Ron, and headed left, which took us to the trail that Perry and I got lost on just a year ago....SCORE! I never doubted.....after all I'd been lost in those same woods before. Besides the new route brought us right to our cars!!!

Civic Duty

Thanks to everyone who offered me a Latte or Milkshake....you people suck! I was serving on the Grand Jury. Lots of criminals in these parts see, and they need my opinion! Mega sized migrain going on right now so.....that is all. I'd probably have less of a migrain had someone...anyone offered to buy me a latte.....

Top Secret Mission

I can't tell you what I am doing this week. But it's way more exciting than what I normally do on any given day, and I get to enjoy my top secret mission for a whole week. That is all you are allowed to know. If you'd like details you'll have to arrange a meeting at an undisclosed location, say Sonic, and you'll have to buy me a Banana Pudding Milk Shake. Or a Grande Cinamon Dulce Latte, either of those two things and you might get something out of me. You offer me nothing and you'll get nothing. I'm just saying.

Few folks seem to be concerned about my depression....however brief it was....it is gone now, sort of. Felt a little disconnected I suppose. It's a given, we all have busy lives and I don't get to connect with folks near as often as I used to....whatever I'm over it, it's life deal with it however you need to. I spent money, got a few lattes, and then got my debt card taken away.....so there you go.....it's no wonder I'm depressed. I need shoes, then I'll feel all better.....donations gladly takens seeing as I got no debt card.....I do however have a checkbook! Shhhhh....don't tell!

The Mayer...on TV today...

jmcincy036, originally uploaded by ms. andrea.

It's a good day to be sick. Fancy to-do going on all over the world, called Live Earth or is it Earth Live...no it's Live Earth....I'm sickly so I've been watching it all day....somehow I missed Jack Johnson....who was in Sydney...but I did not miss The Mayer! To create mass awareness for a greener planet, thank God they found some folks other than Al Gore, that dude creeps me out! GO GREEN!

Letterboxing, Webkinz, Outdoor Movie, and 4th of July....Oh my!

How do I fit it all in? Probably why I feel sick now, all stuffy....yuck. So I had been feeling depressed sort of for a few days, tired and just no energy at all. I hate even saying depressed cause it can mean a lot of things for a lot of people, but it is what it is, nuff said. Figured out why, I needed to move. I was much, much happier after a long hike yesterday, when we scored a total of 5 letterboxes! It's great fun to get excersize and have a sense of accomplishment finding all the letterboxes you went into the woods for.

So the P-man got a Webkinz, much like Toontown only cheaper, however just as addicted for me mostly. He takes too long to get money to buy stuff. The problem is I'll go in play a bunch of games build up his money, and he'll get on and spend it on food.....when I want to get a backyard to build a garden.....we're having a problem working together here. LOL.....yeah we got problems.

I am so out of order .....but it's my blog and I can if I want to, no rules here. Last weekend we had a to-do, "Splashfest 2007" if you will. Invited over cub scout fams, with instructions to BYOWG.....Bring your own watergun.....LOL, so they did and had a blast chasing each other with their waterguns. We then watched a movie outside, thanks to my brothers projector DVD player....good times. We watched Nacho Libre.....which the fam and I watched at least 3 more times in the past week....cause it's just that funny!

You've Got Mail....um Everyday!

You've Got Mail....um Everyday!, originally uploaded by Yoda0419.

Holy crazy packages Batman, friends, family, teachers, co-workers and random scrapbooking peeps, went above and beyond the call of duty. The P-man was the hit of Cub World, much to his fathers embarrassment. He got so much loot, I'll be eating candy for the next several weeks at work, and theres still enough for Perry to have at home. He shared quite a bit and still came home with a tote full of candy and small trinkets.

Other than the crazy fan mail. P and Ron had a great time at Summer Camp. I'd choose this adventure over the usual send your kid away without you for a week kind of summer camp over anything. The previous 2 years I got the joy of climbing a hill that nearly killed me on a daily basis, only to be greeted by a sewage plant before getting to the pool. Eating kid size portions of prison food.....this year it was even worse since there was no salad bar....(whats up with that?), sing crazy songs, sweat large buckets, drink large buckets, only to sweat it all off, learn to shoot a BB gun, while laying on a mattress, shoot a bow and arrow, hike to a dried up creek and learn about trees.

Oh but this year it got better....which is why I let Ron go! They got to stay in canvas tents, that smell like an old mans armpit. Sleep on beds made for a 4 year old child upon a paper thin mattress. This would be a spider infested canvas, no zipper kind of tent....no electricity either. Which means no window to close to keep out critters, no electricity to run a fan. Which I had the first 2 years. They did get to go up to Bear Hollow Ridge (I think that's what it's called) apparently it's just for Webelo 1's, it was their special place they hiked to when Webelo 2's were at outpost. Outpost is what will happen next year so you'll have to learn about that then. This year they did less crafty stuff and more scout stuff, like hiking and nature type stuff. Seems once they become Webelo's they've figured this scouting gig out, as in when you put "signs up" (2 figures thrusted in the air is suppose to make all scout shut up) they just stop talking cause that's what you do. Previous years you got crazed grown ups yelling "signs up" so kids will be quiet.....which defeats the purpose, and kind of gets on my nerves. Just sayin.... If you click on the photo it'll take you to the rest of the pictures in a set labeled Cub World Adventure Camp 2007....enjoy and leave comments it'll make Ron happy you care! It's always fun when you leave notes on the actual picture too.

Heres what a 10 year old little boy looks like after 4 days of Cub World Adventure Camp Madness!

I still Got it!

And this photo didn't make it go away. Both Layni and I were intrigued by Johns fancy footwork that he does when he sings. He'd roll out on the side of his foot, or he'd roll it inward, it was totally due to the shear passion he has in his music, thus the reason why he makes crazy faces.


I have this thing for musician who have a lot of passion the dude who played drums for many years at my church Josh, makes crazy faces when he's playing....and he's the most amazing precussionist I've ever seen. So I guess if you are that talented you don't care how you look when you are doing what you love. Man I wish I had those kind of skills!

Until it goes Away

jmcincy049, originally uploaded by ms. andrea.

Maybe I'll post John pictures until the excitement of seeing him live goes away, I still got that "man that was just really cool" feeling so lets continue the John love fest shall we. Calm down I still got mad love for Switchfoot. This is just a new kind of sweet sweet grown up love.....did I just say "grown up"? Wierd.....

The boys are back from camp....complete run down this weekend. In the meantime continue to drool!

Have Mercy!

jmcincy038, originally uploaded by ms. andrea.

Still am unable to verbalize how HOT this man is. Mad skills, and dude can play. I mean clearly this photo...thanks Andrea...displays some amazing passion. Tickets said no cameras. Layni attempted to smuggle in one for J-Tim and had to take it back to the car. So we didn't even try this time. Well clearly the security isn't quite as tight for JM, considering they didn't check. Heck we could have smuggled in a firearm and no one would have known. So folks took awesome pics, and videos....sweetness!

I'd see him again, and again...he was that good...and oh so sexy....

Performance Art

So cool. Play this video. Don't just look at it and be like....another video....play it, you won't be sorry. This dude performed this same thing at SOS this year....AMAZING gift!

Recap of the Recap

So I was so exhausted yesterday after the chaos I call my life. I had told myself I'll skip out on SOS on the friday.....right......until I had a HORRIBLE.....I mean full on crappy day at work. It was like 2 crappy days in a row. The one before was worse, but to have a crappy day on a friday just doesn't seem right. It was so bad that the enemy I had pray'd for the night before, satan used them to get at me and I basically non-verbally cussed them out. Like not to their face or anything but had they been in my head.....oh man....not at all righteous or loving. So I decided since I was getting off early I had time to go home scarf down some pizza say "hi" to my family tell them I love them, and go to SOS. I needed to be blessed by the the chaos and worship. SOS worship is like no other. They baptized 50 kids tonight....that's a whole lot of worship. I got to pray for a group that had been (all the groups were) together all week, and had bonded, and had changed lives, so much so it was their team leader that got baptized tonight....so cool. Because of the 800 teenagers that took over our church this week I swear to you when I walked in on Wednesday night the place smelled like an oldmans armpit.....blech!
Ron's like you love that madness don't you. I mearly stepped into the forrier of the south Lobby on Thursday and was instantly afraid of the madness. I told him you wait another 2 years, you and I both will be taking a week off and "embracing the Chaos" all day everyday for the whole week. I can't wait. God is Awesome like that. I seriously have a Holy Spirit Hangover and I'm leaving for C-bus (columbus) in the morning. Not to mention I need to pack Perry for camp....God help me my life is crazy!


Teenagers will fall into hysterics just at the mention of the word Poop...it's crazy and I saw it happen a few times....wierd.

SOS Recap....

I'll need a day to process....I've lost the ability to form a coherant sentence at this point and I am getting up early for work. Couple points I'll need to remember when I do a recap.

• Mosh pit?
• crowd surfing
• Holy Spirit Hangover
• Prayer Team
• Jeremy Riddle
• Poop
• Old mans armpit
• 800 Teenagers
• I'm 3rd
• Screwed up evil world
• Healing
• crying
• more crying

Ok more on that tomorrow. In the meantime go HERE!

SOS 2007

I'll be here all week if you need me. Promptly passing out Friday night only long enough to run off to C-bus for the weekend. Fueled by Caffeine and the HG! PRAY FOR ME!