Beginning Again

Tomorrow morning begins the Fall semester for me. I am taking 11 credits this term: Greek 3, Christian Worship, Covenant Theology 1, and Preparation and Delivery of Sermons. It's been a very long time since I've taken more than one class at a time - 13 years to be exact. And back then, I had no real financial commitments to worry about and no wife and children to tend to. Life was simpler then, but it is much more rewarding now.

Earlier this week, my son came home with a note taped to his chest. As he got off the bus, all I could think of was that he had got himself into some serious trouble at school and we'd have to spend a lot of time talking about his behavior and how to manage certain situations, etc. etc. But much to my surprise, as he got closer I saw that the note card read "Music MVP." Now I know what you're probably thinking, "He's a chip off the old block - just like his dad!" While I'd like that to be true, let's hold off on that for a little bit. His award was more related to his excellent behavior and doing what he was supposed to be doing in class. And because of this recognition, he was entered to be the "Wildcat Of the Week" (WOW) ... we'll have to wait and see if he gets it! In any case, in a situation where it would understandable for him to have behavioral problems this year (in light of our move and all of the changes these past several months), I think it is simply outstanding that he is adjusting to his new school very well. The Lord has blessed us with wonderful children who are healthy and well-behaved ... there's a lot to be said for not under-valuing that blessing.

We are about 5 weeks away from the arrival of baby #3. Yes we have names picked out. No we won't share them until the baby is born. My bride is starting to feel the weight - pun intended. I have a feeling that she will be more than glad to have this baby born as soon as possible.

Next week my daughter will begin weekly ballet lessons. She is very excited as she has been requesting dance lessons for some time now. She already has the outfit and shoes, so she's ready to go. There will be a recital in December which should be interesting and entertaining to say the least.

Finally, I started a morning exercise regimen this week. Nothing too strenuous just yet, but I've been doing 30 minutes of cardio each morning with the hopes of slowing increasing the time and intensity. As long as the weather is good, I shouldn't have a problem walking down to the workout room, but once it gets cold out, that might be a different story. Hopefully this will help me shed a few more pounds. So far I have avoided putting on the "sympathy weight" like I have the other times my wife has been pregnant. I'd like to keep it that way.

13 Years Ago Today ...

Thirteen years ago today, I married my best friend. It was an interesting day to say the least:

• I went out and recruited a professional music group (they had performed at Carnegie Hall) to play at the wedding, and they got lost on the way showing up only minutes before the wedding was supposed to start.
• No one actually told the ladies in the bridal party that the wedding was starting, so while the men and I are standing at the front of the church with the music playing the ladies were nowhere to be seen. Finally after several painful minutes, they finally wandered to the sanctuary and made their entrance. (This is where it really paid to have professional musicians.)
• Some friends of mine came to the wedding to find themselves surprised to see friends of theirs who also happened to be friends of my wife's. (If that's confusing to you, imagine how it was for them.)
• The minister was a good friend of mine who on any given day could have subbed for Yanni. He showed up with his long black hair in a pony-tail. One of my aunts came up to me and asked, "Who the **** is that?" The look on her face was priceless when I told her it was the minister!
• We ordered twice as much food as could possibly be eaten by the number of people we invited. I believe the rest ended up being donated to a local mission, but I don't recall finding out for sure.
• The drive to our honeymoon suite was eventful because my car was somehow completely filled with balloons. Since the AC in the car didn't work well, we just rolled down the windows and let the balloons fly out on their own. We received several friendly honks and waves on the trip.

These are just some of the interesting things that happened that day. But the greatest thing that happened was that I got to pledge my love to my best friend. (I invite you to go back and read my blog from June 26 of this year to hear how the wedding itself actually came to be.) We knew at that time that this was the right decision for us, because we had spent the previous four years becoming best friends. In the past 13 years we have had some wonderful times and some trying times. We've laughed together and fought together. But the foundation for our marriage was supremely built on our friendship and our faith that God had brought us together in the right time. It's because of that foundation that we both know that (barring death) we will face the years to come together. We know that our current Venture will undoubtedly lead us on some rougher roads, but we have confidence in each other that regardless of what may be down life's road, that we will handle it together, because that is what best friends do.

Are You Smarter Than A 2nd Grader?

This was a pretty big week for the Vagabond clan. Wednesday was meet the teacher night at my son's new school. We live close enough to walk, so we took a stroll over with his school supplies and met his second grade teacher. His teacher is very nice and there are only 17 students in his particular class - which I think is a nice size. I also got to meet the parents of one of his classmates - a fellow musician - I look forward to talking with him again.

Thursday was the first day of school here, and my son handled it well. He got on the bus and had a good time at his new school. His only complaint was some kids on the bus were "bugging" him on the way home, but we talked about how to handle situations like that and on Friday there were no reported problems.

Thursday was also closing day on our house in PA. All the papers are signed and the house is no officially no longer ours. Another big ticket item checked off the list. So we celebrated Thursday evening by going to a local ice cream shop that is within walking distance of our apartment. The blueberry cream cheese ice cream is delicious - although the kids highly recommend the cotton candy flavor.

On a sore note, Wednesday afternoon I aggravated a muscle or two in my back and have been dealing with severe spasms ever since. I've been to the chiropractor twice and things are starting to loosen up albeit very slowly. My hope is that the Advil will be enough to get me through our Sunday worship service tomorrow. It's tough to play the piano and sing when your back is screaming in pain. I'll go back to the chiropractor again on Monday and hopefully the muscles in my back will be calm enough where they can do a proper adjustment and get things feeling back to normal again.

My Fall semester classes begin in a couple of weeks, so I've been re-reading some books in preparation. I need to brush up on my Greek, but with my back being out of whack, it is not something I have had the wherewithal to work at. Hopefully next week, I'll feel a little better and get back at it.

Not A Bathroom Accessory!

Several years ago my lovely wife bought me a bathroom rug for my birthday. Now while it is true that I did at one point state that we needed to get such a rug for the bathroom, I was not (or so I thought) insinuating that I would like one as a birthday present. So, the running joke in years since on my birthday has been to compare whatever I received to a bathroom accessory. (I know that several of you are going to want to send me hate mail over making fun of my wife for this, but please hold that thought and read on.) This year for my birthday my wife really redeemed herself, she bought me a Dallas Cowboy's Super Bowl hat - highlighting their 5 Super Bowl Victories. This is astonishing on several levels - first I don't have much in team paraphernalia to begin with, but more importantly my wife comes from a family that solidly roots for another NFC East team that has an indian for a logo (sorry - such teams don't get mentioned by name on this blog!). So naturally, when I received the gift, the first question I asked was whether or not my wife's sister and father knew that she purchased this for me ... and the answer was "No." So I figure I'm making progress. My wife is not a football fan by any stretch of the imagination, but in 13 years I have not been able to get her to let go of her family football attachment and come over and root for the 'Boys when she does watch the game with me. It may take another 13 years, but change does take time.

On a different front. I finished summer Greek this past Friday. I didn't get much time to study because we had a splendid visit with one of our dear PA friends this past week as well. She arrived on Wednesday and left Sunday morning. On Thursday we took her to the Arch and the zoo and just had a marvelous time catching up and enjoying the sights and animals. So now I have a couple of weeks without the stress of classes, but I am still keeping my mind to my studies and preparing for things that I know are coming up soon.

My son will start the second grade this Thursday. School starts much earlier here than in PA, but I think he will enjoy it once he gets there. He has been saying that he doesn't want to go to school - he wants to be home-schooled instead. Not sure what the primary cause of this is, but I think once he meets his teacher on Wednesday night that most of that nervousness will dissipate.

We have also registered my daughter for some ballet lessons. My wife bought her some leotards and other accessories last night. She is excited for this opportunity, and it will give her an additional outlet to make some friends.

And finally, our house in PA is set to close on Thursday. That will be a huge relief once all the papers are signed and finalized! The Lord is truly faithful!