Mississippi CornDogs

It is so hot...

2010-08-15T13:46:00.000-07:00

School started this past week. It is really going well. I only have one class to teach. I am so much more prepared this year. The heat is ridiculous right now. I wish the weather would turn cooler. Kids are getting so hot during athletics and PE. I am worried. I am just trying to keep a watchful eye on it. I am thinking about a Mountain trip over Thanksgiving. Kristy's brother is wanted to go to Hawaii over Christmas. I would go, but I don't want to be gone on Christmas day. We might go some where then. We will see. Church is going well. Everyone is back in town from the summer. Harder to find a seat today. Got the House cleaned yesterday. We will see how long that lasts.

FITS 2010

2010-07-30T12:45:00.000-07:00

I was fortunate enough to go with the Youth from First Pres. to Jeykll Island, GA for Fun in the Son. It was so awesome to see all the Youth respond to the message that God had for them. We worshipped in the mornings and evenings, and during the day we played on the beach. We also got to play different sports. Our group was so awesome. They were completely drama free. The speakers were really good for the youth, but also for me. I was able to really extract information that related to me. I hated being away from the family, but it was such a great experience. JI, Ga is no Gulf Coast, but it is a hidden jewel. I enjoyed the time away.

In Christ,
Brian T.

Tremendous Tuesdays

2010-07-26T11:30:00.000-07:00

Part of my working with the Youth at Church for my internship has been going on the Weekly Tuesday outings. It has been a lot of fun. We went to Incredible Pizza and I thought Landon was going to have a meltdown when we had to leave. The most fun was when we went to Dismals Canyon in Alabama. It was so cool. We got to hike through caves and creeks of spring water. They also had a spring water pool at the beginning, so we were able to swim. The water so cold. It was definitely a hidden gem.

The next post will be about Fun in the Son. You don't want to miss it.

In Christ,
Brian

July 4th 2010

2010-07-24T18:57:00.000-07:00

Were able to see Thomas, Lynne, Steven, and Perry up here at Pickwick Lake. It was so much fun to see them. Landon loves his cousins. He is just in aw of Steven. We went swimming and grilled out that day. They were here too short of a time. They went to Branson, MO, and we went to Hotlanta.

Atlanta was awesome. The first day all we did was eat. We ate a Taco place downtown suggested by Todd Cerda. We ate with Todd and Skip. They are fraternity brothers of mine. Have lived in Atlanta ever since they got out of school at State. For Dinner we called up Kurt and Amanda, and we were staying with Courtney all weekend. We all headed off to Magliano's. We were there for 3 hours. Peyton and Landon were such troopers. This is also the weekend that I really pushed hard on the potty training. Sat. we hung out by the pool. Christian, one of Kristy's co-workers came over. It was a definitely a young crowd at the pool. We did see three other children there. Landon loves the pool. Peyton loves to eat, and sleep. We really had fun. That night I went to Whole Foods for dinner. I love grocery stores like this. It was so good to have fresh food like that on the grill. The Garmin really makes it easy to find things. Sunday we went to the Coke Museum and the aquarium. Those places rock. That night we watched the largest fireworks display in the Southeast in Olympic park. It was awesome. Peyton even enjoyed it. We also were able to get out of downtown and home in like 20 minutes. Courtney was such a great host, we really hated leaving.

I will finish up July tomorrow. What a year it has been.

It's been way too long...but this is my story

2010-07-24T16:25:00.000-07:00

I have had an amazing last 6 months. Corinth won the State Championship in Boys soccer. It was the start of my whirlwind tour of events. It was Landon's birth day, so I took him with me. It was so cool to spend one on one time with him. Everyone loved having him around. He asked me after we won the game. Do you love your job? It was so awesome.

Next up was the birth of Peyton. He came into the world with a bang. We only saw him for like 30 minutes before he was transferred to the Nicu. He was born without a sternum. After being transferred to Lebonheur, everything worked out according to God's Plan. Check out the website by caring bridge. I am trying to post the link.

Kristy did an amazing job with the birth and the emotional toil after Peyton was born. She is an awesome amazing wife. She is so great with the kids. I am so lucky to have her as my wife.

School ended in May and we waited to go to the Beach after school was out. We normally go as soon as it ends. Before we went no oil had hit Orange Beach or Gulf Shores. We were lucky, fortunate to have both Grandparents to go. We arrived the morning that the oil did. It was a disaster. The beach was covered. I literally cried on the beach. Landon was also sad. We are glad we stayed though, because it cleared up quickly. We were really able to enjoy the beach. We had no waiting at all at restaurants. I played golf with my father in law, we all went to the waterpark together, we rode go-carts, and shopping. It was awesome.

I also accepted a Youth Minister Internship at a local church. I have had the most fun with that this summer. The students are amazing. The time that is involved with that has been a ton. I have enjoyed this summer so much. I am thankful for the opportunity to serve God at our church. It has required a lot of people to help with my kids, so I could be with other people's kids. I will update the next month or so later today.

God is so Great!

Not going to post much, but...

2010-01-24T14:32:00.000-08:00

I have not been running that much, but plan on picking it up when the baby comes. Baby should be here the next two weeks. I predict Feb. 7th during the second half of another Colts Super Bowl. This time I don't want them to win though. I would like to see the Saints or Favre win the Super Bowl.

Everyone esle thinks it will be earlier. We have a Girl name, I think. The boy's name is still up in the air. If u got any suggestions, let us know.

Great day off!

2010-01-18T17:38:00.000-08:00

I did not have practice officially today, because we need to heal among other things. We got three practice days left this week and then we play Friday. Schedule is really working out well for us to end the year. That is the good news. Bad news is I lost another player for the rest of the year. That makes four on the year. I lost three this past weekend. We have not been healthy since the first weekend of the season. We are 12-8 and undefeated in Division with a 5-0 record. We could finish the year with a 13-8 regular season. I would be happy with that. I would have loved to play the two makeup games we had scheduled, but oh well. Time to regroup before playoffs. If we win the first game, we can go a long way.

I was able to go and eat at Harold's hamburgers. Good Hole in the wall. They basically have a grill and fryer. You don't order anything esle. It was good. Kristy and I went together. I took Landon to daycare. I was able to get some errands done today. I should have played golf, but it was wet. I ended up running and kicking a soccer ball instead.

I did book the Beach vacation today for June 12 through the 19th. I don't know how this will all workout with the new baby and the World Cup starting that day. I will just have to adjust. I got a penthouse condo from the same rental place and a 10% discount for booking in January. I can't wait to go. Landon asked if it had a pool and then you can swim thru to the other pool. I told him yes. We will be in a different location from last year, but that is fine. It will be like we have never been there. I guess from now on I need to only find condos with swim thru pools. Ha Ha!

Rough day after day of jubilation...

2010-01-17T10:43:00.000-08:00

we played Amory. I was down 3 players from the night before because of injuries. We won the District Championship the night before at South Pontotoc. It was a very physical game and we came out a little banged up. It also went to OT. We won in a PK Shootout. We were very disorganized today. Funny how that happens when you lose people. I got the Ref to call the game early. He was not calling anything Else, so I was ready to go. We would get fouled and he would not call it. We would foul them and he would call it. They won 6 or 8 to zero. Very frustrating.

Watching football today and playing with Landon. Kristy is working hard on organizing the upstairs with bills and all. She likes it when I am home, so she can get things done. I am cooking all day. I have laid some things out. Right now, Hamburger Helper with Deer meat, Pot Roast with Potatoes, carrots, onions, and bell peppers in it.

Landon's new thing is when you ask him something he says I did that Yesterday or I already did that at school. I don't have to at home. He is too smart for his own good.

Haiti....

2010-01-14T19:28:00.000-08:00

I really don't have the words for what has happened in Haiti. I can't believe how desperate the conditions are there. They have to have the entire country rebuilt. They need water more than anything at all. I am amazed at how much people are suffering. It really makes you think about your own life.

Tomorrow we play South Pontotoc at their place. If we win, we will be district champs. I hope that we are ready to play. I still have not had my starting lineup on the field since the first week of the season. Today I pulled one of my old practices out and it went great. I gave them a free for all. They loved it. I am going to play some games with them next week.

Landon is a riot. He payed for our donuts this week with his money. He is so into his money. We have really been trying to put all of his birthday money or Christmas money in the bank so he will have it one day when he needs it. He has a pretty good amount right now.

I will have a big announcement coming soon, but I am still in the early stages of it right now. Life is good.

Great Weekend!

2010-01-10T17:50:00.000-08:00

I basically had the weekend off, because of the cold weather and snow and ice. Right now we only have 3 games left, which kind of stinks, because I think we could have won all of them. We would have finished 15-7. I am confident we will finish 12-7 then we have playoffs. Everyone is having to cancel games, and that is forcing us to cancel as well. Another great reason to move the season in Mississippi to Spring and Fall, but I don't get to make smart decisions like that. I think someone should complain.

We got somethings done around the house this weekend. We spent a lot of quality time with Landon. I showed him how to play games on the playstation 2. We are to poor to upgrade. He is not that interested. I end up playing and it is not that fun anymore.

Sat. night Curt and Amanda came over. They are moving to Roswell, Ga. We were able to talk about that. We also talked about all the limited places to eat here as compared to Atlanta or any bigger city. We don't even have an Applebee's not that I like Applebee's I am just saying. Landon gets so excited when someone comes to our house. He talks non-stop. If you ever want to come over, please do so he will get adjusted to more people.

Favorite new place to eat for 2010...

2010-01-03T18:01:00.001-08:00

Five Guys in Madison, MS. I can't believe we got one. I only live 4 hours from there. Yeah me!

Blog production Down in 2009

2010-01-03T17:49:00.000-08:00

Ok. So I wrote a long post and now it is erased. I promise to increase my production this year. This really makes me mad. Oh Well!

Landon and Christmas...

2009-12-27T19:16:00.000-08:00

Landon had a great Christmas. It was basically 4 gifts for Landon and one for everyone esle. He had a great time opening all his gifts. It was nice having him pass all the gifts out to us as we sat in our nice plush chairs. I got excited every time I would open a gift and he would get excited too. Kristy's Brother Jason and his girlfriend came to see us on Tuesday. They had planned to stay until New Year's Eve, but Jason had to go back and work. Landon had a new friend for about 5 days and he loved it. My Mom and Sister came on Sat. and Left late Sunday. Landon was glad to have Aunt Leigh here. He like playing her Wii. She was a real trooper to let him play.

Christmas Day started at 3 am. for me. I got up and put the Turkey in the Smoker. I was glad that I had it ready before everyone ate. I still thought it was a little dry. I should have pulled it off quicker. It was still really good. Kristy's Mom made most of the sides and we all enjoyed a great Christmas dinner. They stayed over at our house a long time and we really enjoyed their company. It is great to be close to both families. I am able to enjoy their good cooking more.

Sat. I made my not so famous Smoked Turkey Chili. It was really good. Also if you put Rotel with Chili and Fritos, it is really good. I am sure I have gained 10 pounds again. One day I will figure out how to not gain so much weight during the Holidays. I did fine with running until about five days ago. I have not ran since. I got to get back to it.

Taco Night....

2009-12-23T17:55:00.000-08:00

Mom would be proud. We had Taco night and it was awesome. I think I had everything. Tostados, hard and soft tacos, and burritos were all on the menu. We had all of the sides as well even guacomole. I am running out of fridge room and we have not even had Christmas Dinner. Almost done with Christmas shopping, we have been out twice today and we are planning a midnight run to Wal-mart. I got to get Kristy her main gift and check on one more thing for Landon. Everyone else is done.

I love the Holidays....

2009-12-22T21:52:00.000-08:00

Today we went shopping. I love to shop. I love to get people gifts. I don't like to spend money, but I love to give gifts. We went to Memphis all day for the third day out of the last four. It was cool. They have this new shopping center out of town. We love going there. We could have stayed later, but we did not. We could have shopped more, but we did not. I don't ever understand how people can shop and be unhappy. I am always happy when I shop for christmas. Why can't people be more happy.

Landon is smarter and smarter everyday. He tells me now that he does not want to, or I can't come over right now. He is killing me.

I went for a run today when Kristy was in the Doctor's office today. It was really cool. I enjoyed the change of scenary. I did not like the fact that My ipod was dead and did not record my run. I had a great run regardless. I got to get back to my old running ways.

Where you going Landon? Part two

2009-11-30T17:44:00.000-08:00

I have not asked today, but I am pretty sure he would say the Mountains. We had a great time in the Mountains. It was great to be with family. I know that Landon had fun playing with cousins. Sat. night we were riding back late from being out all night playing and eating pizza, and Landon is talking with Anna Reese. They were talking non-stop and Landon tells Anna Reese to hush he is talking to his Daddy. It was so random, but cute. Thank goodness they had a Nemo at the Aquarium. Are Clown fish hard to come by? I was starting to get worried.

Back to work today and I think Kristy and I were both hit with a ton of bricks. Nothing like the daily grid.

Where you going Landon?

2009-11-15T18:59:00.000-08:00

Landon has started packing a suitcase and his rescue pack. He then will proceed to the front door. We ask where he is going and he responds with "the Beach". I think I have brain washed my 2 and half year old already. He loves the beach. Tonight he said Beach first, and then work. He knows so much about what is going on. It is really scary. He knows where our house is located and tells me where to turn. I thought he only knew that because of us driving the same route. Today he told me to turn coming back from Pickwick. He is too funny.

Soccer has started and we are 4-1 already this year. We won all three games in the tournament against bigger schools. We are doing well so far this year. This week we play 3 more bigger schools. I would like to win them all, but I doubt it will happen.

Landon is amazing...

2009-10-30T20:26:00.000-07:00

I am now able to have conversations with him that I never would have thought possible. HE Corrects me when I say something wrong. He also has to do everything. We changed the sheets tonight and he had to do it. He has to dress himself everyday. I never thought that he would be doing this much stuff at such a young age. He is so smart and eager to learn. We have to give him new challenges to keep him entertained.

Drama...

2009-10-21T18:58:00.000-07:00

The day that I figure out how to handle girl drama, I will have a lot of money. It seems that we will have a hard time learning the team concept.

Still enjoying the Garden...

2009-10-18T08:24:00.000-07:00

The other day as soon as it got cold I wanted Chili. It was raining pretty hard and getting cold, so I did not want to drive all the way to Kroger. It is sad that I now think driving 5 miles is a long way. It might not be that far. It is probably 3 miles. I will run it one day. This store does not have everything, but they do have good meat. I got the meat, beans for chili, tomatoes for chili, and looked for my chili magic. No Chili magic at this store. I have a lot of spices here, so I know I can make the magic. I start the chili. I brown the meat and cut fresh bell peppers, banana peppers, and Chayenne peppers from the garden to simmer. It is really smelling good. I throw in the beans and tomatoes from the can. I also add fresh tomatoes from the garden. It is really starting to come together. I am going to have a huge pot of chili. I start to add chayenne pepper and chili powder. I do it once and let it simmer and it just seems to be lacking something. I add more. I accidentally add too much trying to find the chili magic. I let it simmer for 25 minutes. It cools a little and I decide to try it. It was so hot. I mean the hottest chili I have ever made. I was worried Kristy would not eat it. I told her it was hot. I had a bowl and put the rest in the fridge. Kristy decided to have fajitas. I had also made those with my fresh peppers. The following night she had the chili. She finished the whole bowl and told me it was the best chili I have ever made. When you refigerate anything that is spicy It seems to blend better. This chili is so good and I am still getting use out of my garden. I can't wait for my garden next year.

Confluence Gone?

2009-10-15T17:03:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that this economy has claimed another victim. Whenever economists or financial advisers talk about saving money, they talk about cutting out the coffee first. I hope that if it is God's will that Confluence will be back.

Soccer starts Next Monday. I can't wait. I am ready to start training for the season. Cross Country ends in three weeks. I am pretty busy until February and then the baby comes. So I might be busy until my beach trip. I can't wait to go to the Beach again. We are going to Gatlinburg sometime over the Thanksgiving Holidays. I look forward to that.

Take care,
Brian

Update...

2009-09-22T16:25:00.000-07:00

Kristy is pregnant if you have not heard. She is about 19 weeks along. Landon is potty trained. We still live in Corinth for now. First Six weeks is over and I am now at the Junior High. I actually love what I am doing and where I am going. I spent half of my day with Alternative School students and half with Junior High students. I feel like this is where I need to be in school. I would love to have my class setup my way, but oh well. I also have a planning period and athletic period so I am able to prepare. I will try to update more often.

Summer is gone...Enjoying the last few days...

2009-07-31T07:30:00.000-07:00

I can't believe this is my last day off for the year. I need another month and about 5000 more dollars, so I can go on vacation.

Landon is sick today. I was able to hold him last night and get him to go back to sleep. When he is sick, he is so nice. I hope he does not have anything serious. He is so sweet when he is sick. All of his manners come out.

I am now at the Junior High which is more in line with my degree. I will also get a free period. The high school could not give that to me. I had morning detention which was like another class. It will give me the oppurtunity to work on the soccer team more. They need me to be fresh.

This semester should be so much better. Less home football games, so I will probably go to more away games. This will give me a chance to actually watch the game. We also have Volleyball games which I have volunteered to be the game admin. for this season. I won't be disappointed if they don't call me. I did get my star soccer player back for this season. We should be pretty good. I wish I had some of those teams on our schedule that beat us from last year. Some did not want to play us again. I guess they knew a storm was brewing.

How can you divorce?

2009-06-22T17:38:00.000-07:00

I am eagerly waiting for the big announcement tonight on Jon and Kate Plus 8. I just can't believe that you can even think about divorce with such a large family. What is wrong with our world? A lot of people think it is ok to get a divorce. I don't. You have to work through the good times and the bad. God did not say that everything would be great all the time in your marriage. People forget their wedding vows too easily. Good times and bad, sickness and in health. Divorce is not an option especially when you have a wonderful family with 8 kids. Wow!!!

I am enjoying my time with Landon. We have fun every day. I tend to do the same things together. Right now we spend a lot of time watching movies, playing trains, and taking naps. We also go to Pickwick, because I want him to be swimming before the end of the summer. I only have one thing to do before school starts in 6 weeks. I got to move classrooms, so I need to work at school tomorrow. I want to get this done, so I will take Landon to school tomorrow. If it does not workout, then I will take him to daycare. We will see.

Practice...

2009-06-01T21:00:00.000-07:00

Tonight we had XC practice. It was fun. I was able to run with the first timers. I don't think many of them will stick it out. The best one was a future 8th grader that is one of my soccer players. She did great. We are both excited about her for next year.

I am looking forward to soccer tomorrow night. I worked on the gear tonight to get it ready. I also have to get the goals moved over and that might take a while. I have about 45 potential girls with 8 to 9 7th graders.

Landon is enjoying his time with Daddy. We had a good day. I got up and ran before Kristy left for work. I got him up and he wanted to play with Trains. We ran around the house with his riding train. We also played with his train table. It was fun. He watched movies after that. We did not do much work today, but take out the trash. We also rolled the trash to and from the street. We cut roses. I limited his time outside today, because we have been outside the whole time he has been out of school.

Tomorrow we have to go on a fact finding mission. I also have a soccer meeting around his naptime here at the house.

We purchased the freezer and washer and dryer all new. It was delivered Saturday. The washer and dryer are so quite. The freezer is great. We just want to be careful to not fill it up. Kristy is taking inventory on everything that goes in it. That way we don't have to hunt for things. Thursday we are planning on going to Memphis to visit family and Costco. No one knows this, but me. I have not called to see if anyone is available. I have to be back by 8 for practice. So I can't stay long.

School is out for the summer

2009-05-27T12:20:00.000-07:00

I am so refreshed already. We spent a few days at the beach. No, it was not long enough. It never is long enough. We are thinking about going back. I hope we can work it in before school starts. I might go when school starts back. Who knows?

We all had a great time at the beach. Landon really loved it. Highlights included beautiful weather, Kristy running 3.4 miles with me, I ran another 4.5 after I dropped her off. Other hightlights: Landon loves go carts and Putt Putt. He did not drive, but rode with us. He loved it. I bought shrimp and did a shrimp boil. It was amazing. We rode the Ferry from Fort Morgan to Daulphin Island. Tons of Beach Houses in Fort Morgan. We might go back there. I felt like no one was there this past weekend. It was very easy to get around. I am so ready to go back.

I have spent the day working inside the house. I need to do some yard work outside, but I am trying to get a lot done inside first. I want Kristy to come home and relax from work. Laundry (I know I don't do Laundry), pick up, unpack, clean fridge out have already been done. I am still working on Laundry. We got a robot vacuum cleaner before we left. It is great. Right now it is working three rooms. I will put it on the rest of the house later. It is amazing. Our other one broke, so we decided to try this.

We are about to buy a new washer, dryer, freezer, and patio furniture. We are going to go to this place in Booneville for the patio furniture. They have a lot of great deals. We have a certian amount of money to spend on this. If we have any left over, I don't know what we will do with it. I would love to have a patio tv, but I am probably dreaming.

Crazy day...

2009-05-11T19:58:00.000-07:00

I had a very up and down day. I am ready for school to be out. I am also ready to get to practicing. Big news tonight about a girl that will be playing soccer for me. I can't wait to see her play for me.

Students have checked out for the year. All the testing is done and now we only have a final. I need to work hard to their attention about their final. It is going to be a challenge. I think I can do it. I guess all schools have problems, but it seems we have a lot.

8 more days and Landon and I are out for the summer. Yeah!!!

Is it wrong when...

2009-05-09T10:20:00.000-07:00

your child goes in his room and shuts his door and then proceeds to take a nap. Landon has done this a couple of times, but today it was funny. I heard him tell the blankey no! and then I went to check on him, he was out. It was great, especially since I am trying to catch up on sleep.

I went to Jackson, MS Thursday night for the State Track meet. We left Corinth at 9 something and got there around 2 a. m. Friday I got an ran for 36 minutes at 8 a. m. It was my fastest 5K, and mile. I was flying. It was good to get out on the road again with just me and the ipod. Last night we got home at 2:30. It was a very long day.

Today, I am babysitting Landon while Kristy works on the bathroom. I will be glad to see it finished. Have a great Weekend.

Ok. It has been a while...

2009-05-03T11:14:00.000-07:00

but I promise to do better. School is ending, and the summer is about to start. I have really enjoyed some parts of this year. I am starting to think this town is growing on me. Yesterday I ran the Coke 10K race and it was awesome. I was able to find someone to run with the whole time. Craig is an awesome parent of one of my players. I really enjoyed talking with him as we ran. We might have to start training together. 740 people ran in the race, and I finished in the middle. I was some what proud of myself. The rain stopped yesterd for 3 hours. The Race started on time which was a miracle. I plan on running more now. I want to get to where I am running every other day or every day. I might enter a 5K up a pickwick in a few weeks, but it will just depend. I might try the run to Wrigley next year or something.

I am rabbling, so I will go. Everyone is doing great here. Landon is a complete joy. I don't know if we should have another child or not. Kristy is shopping at Lowe's today. Big purchase day for the Bathroom Renovation. We are about to buy a Washer, Dryer, Freezer, and maybe a TV, but all of this is separate from the bathroom renovation.

What my momma told me?

2009-04-14T16:39:00.000-07:00

My momma told me long ago that if you can't say anything nice, then don't say anything at all. I am applying that to my daily life. It is getting hard. I wish I could say more, but I will listen to my momma.

Jon and Kate....

2009-03-30T19:16:00.000-07:00

So Jon and Kate were in Memphis. How did I not know this? Someone should have told me. Speaking of Memphis I was there this weekend. I made a big discovery. We are like an hour from the outside of Memphis. They have new shopping there with nice restaurants. I could be eating at Carraba's, BoneFish, Red Robin, and they have a burrito place. It is not Moe's or Qdoba's but it is good. I reminded me of Qdoba. They have a lot of nice shops. One is a Massage Place, so I might have to hook someone up with that. It was a Great Discovery.

Life is good...

2009-03-21T19:06:00.000-07:00

Did you know those Life is good t-shirts are really soft? I think about that phrase often and I wonder if people really think that. Well, Life is good here today. I was able to start planning my garden today. I was going to use my tiller to work on the soil, but it was not working. It is in the shop now. I have to get it fixed. I spent the entire day at home except for the morning excursion with Landon to Lowe's. He does not like going anywhere, but loves riding in the car. I alos went to the grocery store. I grilled out and watched the tigers play basketball. I was hoping LSU and Memphis would win, but only Memphis was able to pull it out. Life is good.

It was a great day.

No School....

2009-03-02T18:22:00.000-08:00

Finally we get no school tomorrow. It is for our basketball team. They are 2 wins away from a State Championship. We have a good chance, but I think the winner of tomorrows game will definitely win it. It snowed this weekend, so I took pictures. It will probably be a long time before we have 4 inches of snow on the ground.

Landon is doing great, but he is still sick all the time. He is saying Yes sir now. It is awesome. I can't get No sir out of him, but I will take what I have. He counts to ten now, and kind of knows his ABC's. He also writes on a chalkboard and says his name, my name, and Pop. He loves his Pop!

Some how I am working for free as a soccer coach at the Sportsplex. I need to get another soccer coaching job. I mean one that pays. I found out this weekend that one of my kid's parents is going to make more money than me coaching a middle school team in Memphis. Now, I would not coach there, but it does bother me. I guess in a way, I work free for the high school too. Tomorrow I am driving down with the guy's soccer coach. We always have fun together. I sure we will again.

I'm Busy...

2009-02-04T18:49:00.000-08:00

Tonight Kristy and Landon were going to watch a movie together. He ran out of the room into the den to get another movie. Kristy calls for him and he says, "I'm Busy!" I about fell out of my chair. I have been waiting on this one. I know where he got it.

Today was his birthday, he is now 2 years old. I can not believe he has grown up this fast. It is amazing. Time is really flying by with the little dude.

I am on a running program now. It is going really well. I don't like the fact that Dogs are trying to attack me when I run. I ran 4 miles today, non-stop except for when the dog was trying to attack me. I need to learn how to run away from them, but that interrupts my run. I did very well today. I actually increased my pace as I went along. I was able to have a good 400 meter kick today.

State Playoffs

2009-01-27T08:06:00.000-08:00

I am in Jackson, MS today. I am travelling with the boys team now. I helping them see things during the game. It has been a complete honor to be included with this group of boys and their coaches. We are truly creating a soccer culture in our town. I am so excited about what next year will bring. I really feel like the boys have a chance to win state. If they win today, it will really pave the way to make a run. We play at 5 at St. Andrews.

My girls fell short of the playoffs, but we did have a great season. We just did not know how to play as well as we can. I have a lot of work to do for next year.

Should be a busy spring and summer as I try to increase my soccer knowledge and also improve my team. I am working with a lot of different teams and organizations over the next 9 months.

Landon is growing up so fast. He is starting to really put together sentences now. We can almost understand everything. I am able to talk to him on the phone very well when I am away.

Great Day!!!

2009-01-17T18:37:00.000-08:00

Soccer is winding down. We had a game today. We won against someone who beat us earlier this year! We have won three in a row. Then it was 35 degrees here, so we went and got Ice Cream. I know it is crazy. When it is cold, I want Ice cream. I got a day off. I ready for it. I really can't wait for spring break. I want to go some where. I got to convince Kristy of that.

We are sitting here watching MSU play basketball. It is a great game. I am so happy they are doing well. We are planning a trip to MSU really soon. I just like to go there, so we can eat. Speaking of eating I want some East Coast Wings. I miss that place so bad. I also miss that Mexican Restaurant. I think one day we will go back to that area.

New Year, New Church

2009-01-04T13:37:00.000-08:00

I kind of thought we would go this route when we moved over here. We started last year the same way, so today we went to church. It was a Presbyterian church. We know a lot of people that go there. I enjoyed the service not so sure about the sunday school class. It will be nice to go a couple of times to see if more people come. This church has a lot of children, and a great after school program. What we will do next week about church, but we are going to look for a church.

3 more weeks of soccer left, and I will be glad that it is over. It might be 4 weeks, but I am pretty sure we will be hard pressed to win in the first round of the playoffs. I hope we get to play the first game at home. I don't want to drive all the way to Jackson to get stomped.

Landon has the bedrail now so no more crib. We don't restrict him to much on naps anymore. He pretty much falls asleep when he wants to like today at the table eating. I go in there to check on him and he has been asleep. Kristy had to lay with him last night to get him to sleep.

Best Buy

2008-12-26T15:36:00.000-08:00

I wanted an IPod for Christmas. I did not get one, so I went online to get one. I find one at Best Buy and ordered it. I thought I was getting a good deal. Brother-in-law said that I could get one cheaper. We got back online and yes it is cheaper. I call Best Buy to cancel my order. They tell me I can not it is already in progess. I will not get it until after Jan. 2nd, but it is in progess. I called like an hour after I ordered it. I am going to return it to a store when it comes in, but I did have to pay shipping. I ordered the other one and saved 40 bucks. I will never go to Best Buy again online or a store. I really never like the place anyway. I like Circuit City.

I am starting to run again. I want to be in the best shape I can be in for a 10k race in May. I would like to start running all the time and entering races. Landon likes to run as well. He is slow, but he does not stop running once he starts. He is falling asleep on the floor right now. We did not let him nap today. Monday I ran 2 miles, I took Tues. and Wed. off. I biked about 12 miles and ran 2 yesterday then biked home 2.5 miles. I was beat. I only ran a mile today, but I rode the bike again. It is like 70 degrees here, so we have been able to get out more.

Merry Christmas to All!

2008-12-25T08:24:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Jesus!!! I hope you and your family have the greatest Christmas and Holiday season ever.

Friends and Fun

2008-12-13T22:17:00.001-08:00

We had a soccer game today and we won. It was really not a contest. The team we played was really bad. We then had a bonfire for both soccer teams. It was a lot of fun. I enjoyed being away from school and soccer. I always feel that you have to break bread with people to really connect with people.

Next, one of Kristy's old friends (Kim) came into town. She is on her way back to Michigan. Her and Her mother came in tonight. They arrived late enough for us to enjoy the party at the Bullard's. BTW, the Bullard's are good people. I like good people. Kristy is in Chicago picking up Jason, so I was the host with Landon as the entertainment.

Landon stole the show the entire night. He had all of the soccer players going tonight. He also was the entertainment for Kim tonight.

When is Christmas Break again....

2008-12-06T18:24:00.000-08:00

I can't wait. I am so ready for another break. I have so much to do. It will be nice to get some time off. I am hoping to go to the Liberty Bowl since ECU will be in it. They were our adopted team. We are also going to Huntsville for New Year's. We have been planning this for years. We always spent New Year's with Jason Holmes in Atlanta. This is the first year they are close enough that we can all get together. One time we played Risk until the sun came up. It was so much fun.

Soccer is going well. We are the better team a lot of the time, but we just don't know how to play that well yet. We are 4-4, but more importantly we are 2-0 in District. Tuesday we play Alcorn Central so that should be interesting. They are the Wofford of our division. Really bad team. On a sad note, we lost one of our players and I might lose another one. Last night we had a really bad injury. She was my starting center back. The other one might move to Texas or Mexico. I hope that does not happen.

Thanksgiving 2008

2008-11-26T19:36:00.000-08:00

The things that happen when family are around. How is your Job Jason (my brother-in-law)? I got laid off two weeks ago. I am thinking about moving in with you. Come one, come all we are having a ball. I really love my Jason. He is a great guy, and we all get along great. He has lived with us before, and we had no issues at all. He is contemplating his future, and we will support him all the way. He might go back to school, join the air force, or get a job with KC here in Corinth. He is a phenomenal engineer and KC would love to have him.

On another note, we are expecting. Oh not us. Jason's dog Daphne is expecting puppies around Christmas. It is funny because my Father-in-law does not want a dog at all. He is about to be raising puppies. Ha.

Smoked Turkey went well, but it was a little dry. We finished it about 5 hours before we ate, so to keep it warm we put it in the oven on about 180. It was still good, but not as good as I wanted it to be. Let me say the smoked sausage and hot dogs were outstanding. I love my new smoker. I am about to go buy a deep fryer next. My back door grilling system will be complete. I love to cook. Everything esle was really good, but we could have feed 50 homeless people. We had a lot of food.

Tomorrow 32nd Annual Thomas Breakfast. My family is actually going this year. We have not gone in the last couple of years because of family issues. I am glad we are all going again.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving this year and remember to be thankful for your Lord Jesus Christ who makes all of this possible.

Smoking Turkey

2008-11-26T00:15:00.000-08:00

Ok. I feel like a real idiot. I have been busy, but I really just could not figure out how to log back in to my account to post on my blog. I kept entering the wrong email, and then it asked me to start a new blog. I was like I don't want to do that I can't even update the one I got.

The reason I am up right now is that I am smoking a turkey all night. I might try to sleep later, but right now I am having so much fun.

School and Soccer are going well. My soccer team is learning how to play, and we are getting better. I am excited about how we will do the rest of the year. I am also looking forward to a couple of teams that beat us earlier this year. I think we will shock them later this year. It is going to be a fun couple of weeks. We finally got some time off from school. Our first day off since Labor Day. I miss NC. On a similiar note, UNCG's mens team won the Southern conference tournament. They were the 7th seed. They beat Duke last Friday and beat Loyola, MD on tonight to advance to the round of 16 in the NCAA Tournament. It is very exciting for the guys. They have had a tough year, but it has all come together for them now. Keep it up Spartans.

After That...

2008-11-08T20:20:00.000-08:00

I had a inter squad scrimmage today. It was great. One team scored 3 goals and the other team had a bunch of chances. We are really playing well. We need to do well against Oxford Tuesday. That will really tell us where we stand.

After that we drove to Memphis for my only living grandparents 79 birthday. She had a great day. It was neat to see her so happy today. She gets lonely in her nursing home. Unfortunately, that is the best that can be done for her.

After that we went to my sister's house and had a surprise birthday for another one of my sisters. We had Lasagna. It was so good. My family is great and it was good to see everyone. The Birthday girl always gets a call from me a month before her birthday. Years ago, I called her exactly one month before her actual birthday. So now I always try to do that. It is funny.

After that we drove home.

How to build a champion....

2008-11-06T17:33:00.000-08:00

I know how, but I have to make kids want to be champions. I am not so sure we want to be champions. We just want to go through the motions. We won our first game 6-0. I thought this is great, now they will truly believe in me when I tell them something. Wrong Mister!!! I had 11 players out yesterday and 14 today. I mean come on. What gives? I guess I will get their attention another way. Sounds like bench time for some of these girls.

I guess we will see in 4 years....

2008-11-05T03:27:00.000-08:00

I never thought I would see it, but we have an African-American for president. I hope he does well, and I hope that nothing bad happens. If something bad does happen, this country could be turned upside down. 98% of African-Americans voted for Obama. I wish that it would have been more about experience than race. I guess we will see how this country is in 4 years. It probably means more taxes for me and more money for people who do not work at all.

We won our soccer game last night 6-0. We played a team that was not that good, but we definitely looked good.

Champions!!!!

2008-11-02T18:08:00.000-08:00

We won State for Cross Country yesterday. We won both the girls and boys. It was probably the best trip I have ever been on with a team. The time with them was awesome. I am so glad be home now. I will try to blog more later. I got to run.

That's my kid...OK...That's my kid...

2008-10-11T19:20:00.000-07:00

Busy Busy Week. Soccer everyday to six. I think we r getting better. Rain on Tuesday was crazy. Everything got soaked. The girls are real troopers. They don't complain much at all. Lots of Drama, but that is to be expected. I am really enjoying the ability to teach the game. We are entering week two. I am still going to have tryouts for some girls that are still on Cross Country.

Speaking of CC, we had a meet in Clinton, MS. It was a great weekend. I drove for like 4 hours on Friday and then back on Sat. It gave me time to think or over think about soccer. I really enjoyed it. I will be done with CC next Sat. night. The state meet is the same weekend we start Soccer. This week is ridiculously crazy. I have something going on Tuesday, and Thursday for Soccer. Football Friday and Sat. is our home meet. I will then have practice on Sunday. Craziness.

Funniest Soccer story ever. My brother is coaching his five year old in Southaven. He was a former player and high school soccer coach. He also has a great passion for the game. He is very knowledgeable. Ok to the point. His son gets pushed down by this opposing team's player. The ref calls a hand ball on Owen. My brother is like he would not have hand balled if he was not pushed to the ground. The other coach who is a real jerk, says, he that is my kid, my brother goes well that is my kid. It had to be the greatest come back ever in a game. I was laughing so hard driving up I-55 today. Classic come back.

BBQ, Bikes, and cowBoy Mouth...

2008-10-04T12:06:00.000-07:00

We have eaten our fair share of BBQ in the last few days with Hog Wild happening Downtown. It has really been an awesome time. Homecoming wrapped up last night with an impressive win over Rosa Fort. Our Football team is 6-0. Thursday night we had the parade, so Landon and I rode our bikes over to watch it. It was cool I had 4 soccer players in the parade as sweethearts. Landon really liked the band part. After that we had BBQ at the KC Booth at the Cooking contest. It was really good. Landon had Baked Cheetos. It is one of his favorites. He really does not eat anything, so when he does we let him have what he wants.

This morning we rode bikes back to Downtown. It was awesome. I love doing this. I went by to register to vote and Kristy and Landon went to Burrow's Drug store. It is the oldest Drug store in the state. They have great food and milkshakes. After that we went by the BBQ fest again. We talked to all the folks there. Someone tried to buy Landon for a rack of ribs. I told him, he would not want him today. Boy has been in a mood. We then went to the Children's consignment store. They were happy to see us. We bought a train table and a outdoor car for Landon, chalk board, and some shoes. We also put him on a bike and he really tried to push the pedals. He is ready to ride. We might have to go by there more often. I am going to get Landon a big play set for the backyard, and I think Christmas could be done.

Tonight we are going to see Cowboy Mouth. They are a band from our college days. It was funny all the 30 to 40 somethings are really excited about seeing them tonight. I know we are.

Tomorrow Church at Grandma's and soccer and then Golf maybe.

Homecoming week 2008

2008-09-30T18:15:00.000-07:00

So our yard almost got rolled Sunday night, because everyone loves Coach Thomas. Last night about 20 kids walked by the house at Midnight. We have placed Beefcake in the front yard at night. He is barking at everything. Our neighbors dog is also a good barker. It is weird how much they put into Homecoming here. Every night this week they are working on floats and getting ready for the parade.

Only three more days before the weekend. Hope my yard does not get rolled.

When to call the cops...

2008-09-28T09:43:00.000-07:00

It is interesting that so much can happen in a small town, but there is never anything to do. I am a so what light sleeper ever since Landon was born. I was not always this way. We were awakened last night to loud music and yelling kids. Our neighbor decided to have a big part last night. I don't think it was him, it was just his kids. At 1 am. I finally called the cops. I could not sleep and knew that this would ruin me today. It has. I am dead tired. The cops came and the party ended shortly after that. It was funny to watch their reaction when the cops arrived. Hey the Cops are here. I think our neighbor came out after that, we did not think he was home.

This morning we went on a bike ride downtown. We pasted several churches and even got into to some rough areas of town. We heard church bells as we rode. It was nice to have cool air running through our hair. Landon had a blast. We get to see so much more of the town this way. People always say they see us riding. We only went for 30 minutes. I got to play soccer at 2, so I did not want to wear my legs out too much.

Homecoming is this week and it is packed. Hog Wild is also this weekend. We are so busy. Shout out to my sister Lacy. I know I do this all time. She is in the blog slump right now. You think mine are funny check out her blog. She has three kids and is the ultimate mom.
http://haveyouseenmykeys.blogspot.com/

Friday Football Fever...

2008-09-26T20:21:00.000-07:00

Landon sure does have it. Kristy and I both walked about five miles during the game. Landon picked up trash, kicked his soccer ball, talked to girls, met teachers and friends, listened to the band, and tried to play with the big kids. He loved the band and the student section. He was like look people who yell and jump up and down. He was in heaven.

Great game. I was really feeling the Warrior Pride tonight. We were down by a lot in the first half, but came back to have the score 28-24 at halftime. Ripley took the opening kickoff back for a touchdown, and then Corinth steamrolled them. Don't know the final, but it was 59-31 when we left. Go Warriors! Kristy had fun as well. I was able to talk to some of my kids. It is really good to see the kids in this environment.

That is all for now! Have a great Weekend.

Landon is going to the sticks....

2008-09-26T16:15:00.000-07:00

Updates on Lando. He is well finally. He has been sick with everything since we have moved. He only went to Daycare twice this week. (Thanks Nana and Pops!). He was the bitter yesterday and today he got bit. He is done there now, we withdrew him today. He starts out in the sticks on Monday. I am hoping this will be better for him. They watch less tv and go outside more. They also have a great way for kids to learn stuff. I hope this is better.

Tonight Football vs. Ripley and then Cross Country tomorrow at Tupelo. I hope we do well. I am sure we will.

That is all for now. It was a great week. God Bless!!!

Things that are different here...

2008-09-22T19:12:00.000-07:00

Please keep in mind we have lived here before, in fact I have always wanted to live here for the longest time. Actually I wanted to live in Walnut, but Kristy did not want us too. I just thought it would be cool to live in Walnut. It is about 20 minutes from here. One thing different is there is prayer in school just not over the loud speakers. Everytime I go to a meeting they are praying, before every game we pray and every team prays together all the time. I have not been exposed to this much prayer in a long time outside of church. This is a really good thing.

It is so slow around here. They make schedules and set times aside to meet and then change it or just show up later than the time, but I am always on time here.

Soccer is really different. U14 is more like U8 in NC. Tonight we got our first win, because I did not put the guy in goal that said he knew how to play goalie, but really did not. He had never used his handsbefore this week. I found this out about half way thru the first game. Next spring I hope that I will be revamping the whole sports plex league. We have had 3 practices and now we have like 14 games and then a tourney. This is not right. The kids need more practice at least one after a first game. The schedule is so bad that they can not practice at all during the week. Enough of that.

Dogs run loose all the time. City ordinance is suppose to enforce it, but good luck with that. I am waiting to get more neighbors in herefrom out of town before I tackle this one.

Runners, Runners everywhere. We live in a neighborhood that has about 20 runners a night go by our house. We are leading the charge biking, but we are way out numbered. I will start running again when my leg feels better (I hurt it running after the Cross Country kids at the meet Sat.). I did ride my bike tonight, and hopefully this will loosen it up a bit. It was awesome. I love biking.

Classes are going well. Kids are really good. I only have about 4 bad kids out of 120. The rest I can control. My classes are definitely unique. I only have 2 more 6 weeks left with them.

Big Suprises...

2008-09-21T19:13:00.000-07:00

Nana and pops came by tonight to get Daphne (for those that don't know, my bro-in-law's dog), but they also took Landon until Wed. We won't know what to do with ourselves.

We worked around the house all day. In a few more weeks it will be almost complete. I setup the wireless fence today. Beefcake did not like getting shocked repeatedly. They say that you should train your dog for two weeks. I put it on both dogs and I could leave the gates open. They learned really quick. I thought Beefcake was going to die. I am glad he is contained again. He tore up our beautiful Vinly fence in two spots. Yes I am bitter. We also worked on two rooms in the house today. It was good to get some things done. I grilled out tonight. Let's just say I get better everytime I grill. Kristy and I made her birthday cake. I thought I could do it by myself, but I chickened out. I would have screwed it up.

We did not go to Church today. After I talk to people everyday for 6 days in a row, I don't want to have to talk with a bunch of new people. I know that this is probably an excuse, but it is overwhelming to meet so many new people.

On a side note, I am glad we moved back so I could experience all the pain of being a State fan again. I am pretty sure Landon is going to LSU now. It is almost a done deal. Cross Country was great this weekend. We have a great group. Girls got First and Boys were second. We did not have our top two runners in each group and still did well.

Still Busy...

2008-09-18T18:40:00.000-07:00

We are actually going to be home for most of the weekend. CHS football is away, so I don't have to go, but I really want to go. I do have Cross Country at Saltillo, but it is only an hour away. Hope we eat some where quick to get back home. Sunday we will visit another church. I am not sure which one, but we will go some where. We have had about 3 church in-home visits since we have moved here. We have not connected with any of those people. Something is missing, oh yeah it's the river. I should start a how many times I mention the river contest in the blog world.

I had two soccer games this week at night with my U14 team. We are not that good, but we are getting better. We are having to beat kick ball. I thought that this would be absent at this age, but it is not. We are playing great, but not getting the wins. My high school team is practicing hard. The season will be here before we know it. I am anxious about how good we will play.

That is all for now. It seems like my life is getting pretty boring. I might need to add something to it. Not! See ya next time.

I am so busy...

2008-09-11T14:19:00.000-07:00

I am losing my voice because of all this teaching and coaching. My throat really hurts. It was great to see the kids respond positively today to my situation. I have great kids. I would not trade them for the world. Even my really bads ones lead the class today. It was amazing. I was warned about losing my voice and it happened.

On a sad note, we have decided to remove Landon from Daycare. He has been bitten 5 times in 5 weeks. I can't stand it anymore. We don't have a plan right now, but I hope God does. He is such a sweet boy, I am afraid this will change him.

Busy weekend coming up. We are going to a reunion at MSU. Then a Christian Concert at Pickwick with Nana. Landon will be with Nana all weekend. Grandparents are great. We will be home after that for 3 weeks, so we will start looking for a new church again.

Have a great weekend. God Bless!!!

And that ladies and Gentlemen is why you blog...

2008-09-09T18:49:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the update Leimone. If you know Sarah and Brian Leimone, then you know how awesome they are and how they are doing such great things for the Lord. http://www.theriveraccess.com/brianleimone/ Visit his blog if you get a chance. I know that I will be praying for them. It helps me to know people like that so that I can really think about what I am doing and how I could probably be doing more.

Great news over the last 24 hours. I have gotten one of my players from last year back that I had lost, and I also might have a 7th grader committed to playing this year. She would be an unbelievable addition to our team maybe not this year, but in the future look out. If I get my girl back from IMG, I will be golden in Jan. Bad news! I had a meeting with all the Jr. High parents tonight, but I did not have great turn out for this meeting. I was hoping for more, and I was disappointed. I did get a chance to network with some people tonight, and it was really awesome. I enjoy talking to people that know what they are doing and are not afraid to buck the system for a child's gain. It has been a challenge for Kristy and I to go with the norm here at our jobs. It seems people do just enough to get by on occasion.

Continue to pray that we will get adjusted here. It is really hard on both of us right now.
Until next time, God Bless.

Your working too hard if you can't blog....

2008-09-07T18:43:00.000-07:00

Alright Leimone you got to make time for the blog thingy. I know your busy and all, but a lot people follow your blog as much as they follow mine to stay in the know about the River and Confluence. Make time to post on your blog. Enough of that. It reminds me of a funny story about when I told Brian I was thinking about starting a blog. The next time I saw people at church they were all asking where my blog was. I was like what are you talking about, and they said they heard I was starting one. I was like great now I get to add that to my hectic life. It has been a good thing though.

Big weekend here, Saw MSU in Starkville. Met my brother at my favorite store TJ Maxx, and his favorite Books a Million. We all rode down together to save some gas. It was great. We then drove to Hernando to see my new niece. She has got to be the best baby. Sleeps all the time. It is crazy. Stayed the night at her house. Helped her as much as we could. I hope we did not bother her too much. It was great to just be able to do that after years of not being able to do it. We have to go again in a few weeks for my other sister's baby who will be born at that time. We then drove to Pickwick to have dinner with Kristy's parents at the Red Hut. It was ok. Kristy turned 30 today. We let her lay around all day. She was not feeling that great. I got her a bike, so now she can go riding with me and Landon. We are now home, and it is time to start our week again. Another busy week this week and weekend. 6 weeks until the first game.

Journal Topics and such....

2008-09-02T19:31:00.000-07:00

I have been trying to remember life experiences that happen to me to help with my blog posting. One of those stories has to be the Fleetwood Mac Videotape. My dad loves Fleetwood Mac so much that he recorded a concert off of PBS one day. Once he gets it in his head about something he listens to it or watches like a hundred times or almost everyday. This drives my mom insane. She told me about it, so I asked him if I could borrow it. He did not know how long I would have it, but I kept it for more than 6 months. It got to the put where he was going to literally shoot me. I finally gave it back to him, but I made him think I still left it in NC for almost a whole day. It was one of the greatest pranks I have ever played on anyone.

On another note, My sister had her second Girl today. I don't have a name yet, but the baby weighs about 7 lbs. and 33 ounces (not sure that is right, one happy daddy here told me this) also she was 20 inches long. Congrats goes out to Lisa and Jason and her sister Blayne. What a joy?

I cut my finger so that is all tonight. See ya and God Bless.

Bringing Food to a party? and Journal topics????

2008-08-31T19:32:00.000-07:00

When will I ever learn how to bring food to get togethers like a family reunion. I should have known that one Watermelon and one veggie tray would be enough. We had so much food. I also got to go to one of my childhood memory places called Enid Lake. It was great to interact with all my extended family. We have about 45 people there, but we were missing about 15. Hopefully next year we can get everyone there. Also it was crazy to see all the hurricane evacuations in North MS. The lake we were at had to open up reserve camping areas that had not been open in years, because of this.

The Cross Country meet went well. We placed third overall for the girl's division out of 31 teams. We also got 5th with the boys. We had the overall girls winner by aoubt a full minute for the Varsity division. In junior varsity we had a 7th grade place 9th. She is going to be awesome. We are a small school and we beat some really good teams that are 6A and 5A. We are considered 3A. We had a great day. Sat. night we went to Nana's but did not get to swim, because the pool broke. The lake was packed. I got to grill out and watch football.

Another Journal topic: When we got to my in-laws house on the first night when we were moving their house had been struck by lightning. This is the second time they have had this happen. It knocked out satellite, washer and dryer, their septic tank, A/C unit, and many more things. I was really upset about losing satellite, but not being able to go #2 was pretty bad too. We went to Lowe's Home Improvement one day, and Kristy and I were like we better use the restroom here. So we did. It was really strange. They did not get it fixed for like 3 weeks. The irony here is that they did not want us to buy a 50 year old house, because of all the problems we would have. I guess they should not have said that.

My in-laws are great, but very strange. One day last Christmas break, right after Landon had started really noticing things like golfers and golf carts, something strange dawned on me. My mom-in-law had curtains up that covered her view to the golf course all throughout the house. We were putting up some seals to her windows to keep out the cool air when we noticed the beautiful view. Now when I go over there, the curtains are always open or I say something.

I still have a lot of journal topics left for all you fans out there. I want to give a shout out to my super sister Lacy. She is a true inspiration in my life and I am so happy I get to see her more now. Love you Lacy. Until next time, God Bless everyone!

Packed Weekend here....

2008-08-28T20:21:00.000-07:00

We are going to first Football game tomorrow night. Corinth plays Senatobia. It will be exciting. Landon might not make it since he is sick. Thank goodness for Grandparents! Landon will be home with Nana tomorrow. Sat. I have a Cross Country meet. We will be gone from 6 a. m. until 3 p. m. Kristy and Landon will go swimming at Nana's house. Sunday we have a big family reunion on my side of the family. It will be the first get together for us in over 2 years. Monday I hope to have practice, and then off to swim at Nana's again.

Hope you all have a great week! God Bless.

Btw, I get to wear tennie (sometimes I talk like an elementary teacher) shoes tomorrow. New policy at school.

Who said this state is slow?

2008-08-27T19:46:00.000-07:00

Could be right, but they could also be dead wrong. I am so busy. I feel just like Ratatouille (sp.). I got 6 straight classes of Health, and I have no break. I don't even have time to go meet the benefit people when they visit our school. I go straight to soccer practice, and then cross country. On top of all that I have morning detention and Lunch duty, because I am a coach. I have time for nothing. It is a challenge.

We are so blessed to be here closer to family, but this is a big time adjustment. We are both dealing with new jobs, new friends, new bosses, and a new work environment (I miss KMS, I so could have worked there). Also, we are both people of change that we don't necessarily conform to the norm. We both want to make things better, because we know they can be better. At the same time we don't want to rattle any feathers. This has got to be the capital of this is how we have always done it.

Today, I got in trouble for wearing tennis shoes with my khakis and polo (which I have to tuck in). Keep in mind I have gotten no faculty hand book about what I can and can not wear. It is ridiculous. It is like I am back in high school. Mom do you really know how many times I had to go see Mr. Bush. Well I have been in high school again for two weeks and I have been to see the principal 3 times. I might be going for a record. The second day I had to tuck my shirt in, because this was how it was going to be. Now I know that these things are professional, but I am the health teacher. Tomorrow we are going on the track to walk during my class. We are discussing exercise right now. I will be wearing dress shoes, but all my kids will have tennis shoes on while they walk.

My soccer team is starting to come around, but it is probably going to be a long season. I lost my star player to IMG academy at the beginning of the year. It is disappointing, but she might come back. I hope. We are not in shape and they are not as talented as I am accustom to, but I will get over it.

Thanks goes out to Brian Leimone for salvaging my Football season tickets. I need to send him a big check or something. Brian just ask and you shall receive it, or I might just send it.

My Journal Topics

2008-08-23T20:14:00.000-07:00

I kept a journal while I was away from the blog world. This will be some of the entries that I would have had if I had internet.

Things like Popeyes. It has to be one of my favorite restaurants ever. I love their spicy chicken and their cajun food. I am so glad that I don't have to drive an hour to Burlington, NC to get it now. If you ever get a chance, stop in and have some of their chicken. It is the best.

Lunch Lady at Camp-Every once in a while, I have a grown man episode in my life. When I was at camp this year, the first week the food was great, but as the camp went on the food was worse. It was a Thursday when they finally had something that I wanted. I am in the entree line, and I ask for two entrees. The lunch lady says you can't get two. It is all you can eat. Not you only get what we want to serve you. She then tells me that I can get an entree and a vegetable. I like what is the point of this. Is it to save time. No, because she is still giving me two of something. It about ruined my day, but I did not let. The funny thing was I guess I talked about it so much that Coach Parker was asking me who told off the lunch lady today. I was like I did not say anything to that lady. I just walked away. He got me good on that one, because I really thought I was in trouble.

The List-A few years ago, I started a list of things that I want to do in my life. Things like go to this game or this sporting event or even this country. Well my older brother is really the only one that has known about the list, until recently. My dad found out about it. He gets so mad when he hears I have been to something and it was on my list. I never forget the phone call I got a couple of months ago, and all he wanted to do was ask me if something was on my list.

I have about 15 other topics to cover, but that is all for now.

I'm only one man...

2008-08-20T18:49:00.000-07:00

I am now the assistant Cross Country Coach, the head Varsity Girls Soccer coach, and the assistant FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) sponsor. The last part came as a real blessing. The schools around here do not care if you are an athlete or not, they let everyone come. We had this huge rally tonight and I was so happy to finally get to sing all those River Church songs. The only problem was they did not have any projectors, so I was the only one singing really. "Jesus he can move the mountains" I really love that song. Do you ever stop and wonder what other people are thinking about you? I do. I felt like weird, but then I remembered that I was there to honor God and his glory. It felt great after that.

The rest of the night went well, but I do have a slight problem. I don't like it when the speaker begs people to accept Jesus. I am all for people accepting Christ. I know our time on this Earth is limited, but in a room full of believers how many people are we talking about that do not know our lord and savior. Might be all of them, but it seems like we are just talking people into Christ. When he is ready, he will change your life.

On a side note, I miss Joey's preaching. Enough about that. Oh yeah I can't believe I got a brick for Father's day. Women get flowers and guys get bricks. I know we were in the construction business at the time, but I probably would have worn a piece of flair instead of the brick. Just messing with you Joey.

I live in a small town and teach. It took about 8 practices for my soccer team to figure out where I live. I have one girl that lives 4 houses down from me.

Until next time, God Bless!

Ok. No Really WE'RE BACK....

2008-08-19T18:30:00.000-07:00

Unless Bellsouth decides we are not. After about a month, I will finally start blogging again. I know that for some of us this has been very painful, but don't worry we are not alone in this world. So much to write about, where do I start.

How about the story about 6 red bulls and 12 hours later we are in Mississippi? No that one is not good enough.

How about the one where we are moving in and my in-laws show up with a bunch of boxes? I have decided I am not going to talk about things that depress me. At least let us move in before you start bringing us more stuff. And no we have not unpacked completely.

Or how about has anyone seen my charger to the weedeater? I hope the new neighbors don't mine the tall grass on Willow Road in Corinth.

Or maybe this blog should be about Landon's second ear infection? We move here the humidity is higher and Landon has a whole bunch of mosquito bites and an ear infection. He is fine now, but it was rough when he was acting like a newborn. Kristy and I did fine we really got back into the grove of things. One sleeps the other gets up the first time, and then the sleeper has to get up. I was really tired, but I did not take it out on my kids.

Or should it be how things really might be slower over here? I go to my first meeting and I get there like 10 minutes early. You would have thought I was an hour early. It was weird. We started like 30 minutes late. If it was not for a daily bell schedule, class would never start everyday. And it takes for ever to get internet.

Or should it be about something important like finding a new church? If you ever thought you were at a really good church like the River with a really awesome God loving staff, then you were right. We miss it so much. We have visited a church or two here and we are suffering. The first church we went to was referred to us by like 5 different people. It is also the biggest with the biggest most awesome worship center. I want to tell you. I was really disappointed. I am very happy for all the people that go to that church. I really am glad they love it, but it was not for us. The church was packed. They had someone up talking when we arrived about joining a class that was reaching people who were lost. They were begging to fill a 18 person class. At least a 1000 people were there that day. I could talk more, but I really don't want to talk about another church. I really did not want to talk this much about someone's church home. We are going to find a new church to visit this weekend. Pray for us.

We miss the River People so much! We think about all of you guys all the time.
My next post will have to be about my soccer team and school life. BTW, only 172 days of school left this year. I know I am already counting.

Ok. I am back, well kinda.

2008-08-05T10:29:00.000-07:00

We are moved in and some what settled. We do not have internet, but I do have it at school. We were going to try to do without for a little while at home, but Kristy can not manage the money without it. So, my posting will be a little slow for the next couple of weeks.

We got here on Sat. morning around 4 a. m. I drove all night (thank you lord for Red Bull). Landon enjoys it more that way, so we try to do it for him. Oh before I forget, we almost had to visit the ER with Landon before we left. Kristy and I were loading the truck. Landon was playing in the driveway. I was watching Landon as he played in front of the truck. Our neighbor behind us came out to talk with us, and then proceeded to do something. We did not really know what he was doing, but we heard a oh shoot! and then we saw a tire coming down the hill towards Landon. I had one of those moments where instead of doing anything about it, I just froze. I was praying the tire did not hit him. It did not, and I was able to go grab him. This tire was flying down the hill. It continued down our drive way and into the street and almost him someone's house. The neighbor was like man I was trying to throw it and hit a tree, but I missed. I was like so mad. I did not say anything to him.

I will have to give you guys more later.

We are Moving!!!

2008-07-24T19:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, so we are moving right. What am I going to do without internet for like 6 days? Also, No Roadrunner in Corinth, Ms. We have to find someone esle to provide us with Al Gore's Crackpipe. How did that guy get credit for the internet? I mean really. Was it one of those situations where he said I created that. No one esle had any idea what he was talking about. Or was like calling the front seat when you are a kid growing up with a sibling.

Other things I will miss about ND (norte Davidson for those that don't know). Bojangles. Gottaneedahavawanna sweet tea, and cajun chicken biscuits. When I was a travelling regional sales manager, I called the our HR lady to clear this little situation I had. I wanted to eat one for breakfast and charge them for it with my lunch. Then for lunch I would buy my dinner or take a lunch for the day. I would still have two meals a day, but I lowered my food cost by like 6 bucks a day. They approved it. I would have a chicken biscuit and sweet tea like 3 times a week. I also got like employee of the month for coming up with the best money saving idea in the company.

Today I went out and ran some last minute errands. I had to go by Moe's and Qdoba to pick up some burritos in a bowl. I love those 700 to 900 calorie meals. So far, all I got to do is stop going there and ECW and I will lose like 20 lbs. Corinth does not have either burrito place. I already looked I need 2.5 million to own a franchise of Qdoba. Not going to happen.

Ok. Enough for now. I will keep a journal while I am gone just to make sure I don't have writer's block again. Thanks to all the River Church people for making us feel welcome. Confluence is going to do many great things in this community. We had fun tonight got a drink and some ice cream.

Middle of No where, Florida

2008-07-22T10:59:00.001-07:00

I made Kristy take a long vacation this year. We started off by going to Atlanta and spending sometime with our Friend Courtney. Landon loved the Children's museum in Atlanta. We grilled out on Sat. night and just hung out in her condo. Sunday morning we got up to leave and head to South Florida. We were going to be catching up with my best friend from College Dr. Drew Dooley. He had been in NYC all weekend celebrating his anniversary. His plane was not landing until 9 or so. We had plenty of time to travel the entire state of Florida and most of Georgia or so we thought. We had been driving for about 6 or so hours and Landon was tired of being in the car. He does well until you get to 6 hour mark then he turns into another child. At this point in the trip we were on the Florida Turnpike, and were very reluctant to stop. Kristy was driving and she decided we could not keep going at this rate with Landon now hysterically crying. She informs me that she is getting off on the next exit. I tried to convince her to wait for the rest stop on the Turnpike, but she had other plans. We pull off at No where, Florida.

We pull Landon out of the car seat and change him. We decide to let him play in the front seat. He loves to pretend drive. Kristy was on the driver side sitting outside the car. I was in the passenger seat and both of us had the doors open. We had been stopped for about 10 minutes when I decided to go into the gas station and get a drink. I get money out of my wallet and shut my door. At this exact moment, Landon had the keys to the car and pushed his favorite button. Yep you guessed it the lock button. Oh did I mention that Kristy had shut the driver door a few minutes before this all happened. Landon was having a blast now, we were locked out, and he was driving in Florida. We tried to get him to unlock the door for about ten minutes. I swear he hit every button except the unlock. Finally we agreed we had to get a locksmith. I go into the gas station and get change from the clerk. This gas station was a real winner. I told her what had happened and she said what are you going to do. I said call a locksmith I guess. She said with what phone. The pay phone out front. She said it did not work. The phone book attached to it was a residential one for No where, Florida. I asked to borrow hers. She said they were not a very good gas station. They did not have one. I asked do you know a locksmith. She said yeah, but they don't work on Sundays. Finally I called 911. I figured that eventually it could be an emergency if he got to hot in the middle of the summer, locked in a car. The police came first and he did not have anything to get into a car. Next the fire department came. Landon was very excited to see the fire truck. He was also very helpful pulling on the unlocking device they used to get into the car. He also made faces at the firemen by sticking his tongue out at him. After about 30 minutes the big break came when Landon moved the car keys into the passenger seat. The fireman pressed the button on the remote. Finally Landon was free.

I go back into the gas station to get my drink and the people at the counter are talking about the incident. I hear them say what kind of parents lock their kid in the car. I said I do. It is not that hard to do. I was too happy to be mean to them at this point. Needless to say we were about an hour and half late getting to see my friend Drew.

Writer's block already

2008-07-21T20:22:00.002-07:00

Is it possible to have writer's block? I have thought all day about what would be worthy of the blog or funny or whatever. I have got nothing. If you are looking for something, I got nothing for ya. Nothing.

Alright here is a little something. Things I will miss about North Davidson. It is just redneck enough that I don't stand out. In fact I think I blend in too much. Is that possible?

I am really going to miss East Coast Wings. I mean really miss the wings. For those that know me or don't know me, I love chicken wings. I bet I would weigh 20 lbs. less if they did not exist in this world. I also love the ranch dressing they serve at ECW. I could drink it. No really I could drink it. One day I will get my ideal birthday party. 500 chicken wings, 500 friends, and Ranch. It would be cool if less than 500 showed up, so I could have more wings.

On the move, we shipped off the Hybrid today. It is in route. Can you believe we are only staying here 4 more nights. Kristy might have less time.

One personal note, our friend and my sister-in-law's dad passed away today. He was a huge Bulldog supporter. I really enjoyed talking to him. He had a great passion for Bulldog sports, and was always eager to talk to me about it. He really liked to hang out with me, and I really liked hanging out with him. The Lord took him today, but he made sure that the Dogs had a good sport year for Dr. Wharton. I will miss you Dr. Wharton. There will definitely be a void in my life during the holidays. Visitation could be Thursday night and funeral on Friday. That might take away from the Confluence party. We will just have to see what happens there.

Writer

2008-07-21T20:22:00.001-07:00

Does your wife like ice cream?

2008-07-20T17:34:00.000-07:00

If she does, then give ice cream to your child and it will never be the same for her. Landon is sitting in Kristy's lap right now eating her ice cream. I think she has had 4 bites and Landon has had about fifteen. I also taught Landon the ice cream cheer. I raise my fist and yell Ice Cream. He does the same. I love it. Happy ice cream eating Kristy!

Millions and Millions

2008-07-20T17:06:00.000-07:00

Millions of people have requested that I create this blog, so here it is.

A little about me. I am a middle school science and social studies teacher for some school district in Mississippi. I will coach soccer this fall for the Varsity Girls at Corinth High School. I will also coach cross country. I am married to the most wonderful woman in the world. Her name is Kristy Lee. I have one awesome and crazy son Landon. He is 17 months old going on 18 years old. We are moving from Clemmons, NC to Corinth, MS. We love God, Family, and friends.

Today we went to church at the River. It is a great place to go and the people are great. We have never met anyone more crazy than the staff at this church. They truly love people and God. We have had a great worship. I was laughing so hard today at church, I was crying.