Today Kristin turns 27.  

Kristin is the most giving, loving, genuine person I have ever met and I can’t imagine life without her.  We have been friends for around twelve years now, and married for eight of those.  Kristin continues to be an amazing friend and partner.

She is my best friend, knows me better than anyone else on Earth and still manages to put up with me.  She’s an amazing mother to our boys and always knows exactly what they need.

Today we are celebrating by having a family party at home and possibly taking Kristin to the doctor for her stung foot.  Then if she is feeling better we might grab some dinner while her dad watches the boys.

Kristin is obviously my subject for Positive Post Tuesday today. I am blessed to have her in my life and couldn’t imagine anything else.  Happy Birthday Kristin.

PS:  I put a card on Kristin’s blog that you all can sign. 

Now it’s your turn. This thing keeps growing every week and that’s awesome. Let’s make this week even bigger. Tell your friends. For those of you just showing up here’s how it works. It’s pretty simple. (1) Write something nice about someone, building them up, encouraging them, you know.. being nice. (2) Fill out the box below. Have fun.

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This Positive Post Tuesday is a little different for me today because it’s not a specific person that I am talking about, but rather a movement.  This morning I was flipping through some different sites and somehow ended up on the Chicago Tribune’s site reading an article called “Jesus In China”.  Here’s a few excerpts of what it had to say:

“The rise of Christianity is reshaping the officially atheist nation, its politics and the way many Chinese view the world…

Christianity — repressed, marginalized and, in many cases, illegal in China for more than half a century — is sweeping the country, overflowing churches and posing a sensitive challenge to the officially atheist Communist Party. By some estimates Christian churches, most of them underground, now have roughly 70 million members, as many as the party itself. A growing number of those Christians are in fact party members.

Christianity is thriving in part because it offers a moral framework to citizens adrift in an age of Wild West capitalism that has not only exacted a heavy toll in corruption and pollution but also harmed the global image of products “Made in China.”

At a time when Christianity in Western Europe is dwindling, China’s believers are redrawing the world’s religious map with a growing community already exceeding all the Christians in Italy. And increasing Christian clout in China has the potential to alter relations with the United States and other nations.

“Originally, we used to have a huge government that controlled everything, but now the government is gradually shrinking and civil society is growing stronger and larger,” he said. “I felt that churches should make good use of that opportunity to expand and spread the word of God.” 

The Zion Church opened its doors in May 2007 with just 20 people. Within a year its membership had surged to 350 worshipers. He preaches a non-denominational but relatively conservative brand of evangelical Christianity. Jin’s urbane services, full of contemporary references to the economy and education and pop culture, tapped a well of fervor among young, successful Chinese.

Since becoming a Christian five years ago, Zheng has launched a campaign to raise ethical awareness and revive a “system of trust” among his colleagues. “For example, we do not evade taxes,” said Zheng, who serves on the provincial government’s advisory body known as the People’s Political Consultative Congress. “We do not make fake or substandard products. We will not change the contracts and promises made to customers.”

“We are not only doing business for man,” he added. “We are doing business for heaven.”

Down a narrow market street lined with dumpling vendors and vegetable stands, a rutted road in Henan province leads to a home that echoes with what sounds like a party. Men and women in their teens and 20s are packed into a room, dancing to a live guitar, piano and drums. The boys, jumping as though in a mosh pit, shout: “It’s the power of the holy spirit! Nothing can stop it!” A banner on the wall reads “Beijing belongs to God”—a provocative sentiment in a one-party state.

After their performance, they lower their heads and clench their eyes shut. Some have tears streaming down their cheeks, and a woman prays: “China will be a Christian nation.”

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Pretty impressive huh?  What’s interesting to me is just a couple months ago I posted some statistics that I read in National Geographic concerning China and it seems like some of that might be changing.  I’d say news like this is pretty positive.  You?

Now it’s your turn.  This thing keeps growing every week and that’s awesome.  Let’s make this week even bigger.  Tell your friends.  For those of you just showing up here’s how it works. It’s pretty simple. (1) Write something nice about someone, building them up, encouraging them, you know.. being nice. (2) Fill out the box below. Have fun.

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Last year Kristin and I were able to participate with a group of other bloggers in an event that, what I can only imagine, has made a difference in the lives of everyone involved as well as hundreds of people around the world.  The brain-child of Kat, the ”40 Day Fast” has gotten a lot of attention around the internet and even became the origin of a great site call “Inspired To Action“, of which Kristin is a writer and editor for.

Here’s how it works.  For 40 days, a different blogger fasts and writes about a specific organization or part of the world that is dear to them and they feel needs to be recognized.  Each day a new organization that is making a difference in the world is featured and supported.  As readers we are encouraged to link to each blogger fasting and help get the word out.  It’s a pretty amazing thing to watch happen over the span of the 40 days.

Registration is open today, so if you are even the slightest bit interested go to InspiredToAction.com and register to be one of the 40.  Seriously check it out.  It’s a pretty amazing thing to get involved in and it makes all this blogging stuff worth it.

Go here for all the info.

I know this is a little different “Positive Post Tuesday” but, I think what Kat, Kristin, Euphrony and Amy are doing is a pretty amazing thing and they can use all the support that we can give them.  Who’s with me?

Welcome to Tuesday again. For those of you just showing up here’s how it works. It’s pretty simple. (1) Write something nice about someone, building them up, encouraging them, you know.. being nice. (2) Fill out the box below. Have fun.

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I’ve talked a little about how impressed I have been with Blue’s baseball coaches this year, but since we are so thick into baseball right now I wanted to point them out again.  First of all, if any of you have kids, boys especially, you know how tough it can be to get them to do anything.  They don’t understand organization, and would rather pour water on each other’s heads than pay attention to what’s going on around them.  Now take twelve of those types of people and give them metal bats.

When the season started Blue had no idea the “rules” of baseball.  He knew that to get a guy out you tag him and he knew how to hit, but as far as working as a team he had no clue.  The coaches just started right in on helping them learn, working one-on-one and also promoting how to work as a team.  It hasn’t been that long and the boys are a completely different team as when they started.  

I don’t know if many of you played sports growing up but I did and there are specific coaches that I remember, who took the time to teach me things and showed a genuine interest in helping me learn.  Those coaches seem to stick out in my memory as guys that really cared.  Blue’s coaches are that same way.  I don’t know how they do it, but the find the time and energy to make every kid feel like they are the star, and they find a way to connect with each little guy and help them learn.  For Blue’s first year of sports I couldn’t have asked for a better group of men coaching.  

Did you play sports growing up?  How were your coaches?

Welcome to Tuesday again. For those of you just showing up here’s how it works. It’s pretty simple. (1) Write something nice about someone, building them up, encouraging them, you know.. being nice. (2) Fill out the box below.

*Make sure that you put the URL of the “Positive Post” not just your blog. That way people can find that specific post if they come back to read them later in the week. It should look like this - “yourdomain.com/the-name-of-your-post”*

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So, you want to hear a funny story? The other day I was getting my camera ready for our trip to Michigan so I could take pictures at my friend Matt’s wedding. Now, that doesn’t seem like a big deal, but to me that’s a big deal. Taking pictures at a friends wedding, or more specifically “being the photographer” at a friends wedding is a little intimidating. Especially when you don’t even remotely consider yourself a photographer. So anyway, I’m getting everything ready and I borrowed a flash from my neighbor so I would look a little more professional even if I didn’t use it. I don’t really even know how to use a flash properly and so I decided that I needed to play around with it a little before I went and took pictures of the most important day of my friends life.

I started messing with the different settings on the flash and the test pictures of the kids were looking pretty good, but still a little dark and grainy.  I adjusted and adjusted past the point of knowing what I adjusted and all of the sudden every picture that I took was either completely white with the flash, or completely black without.  Nothing I did changed the fact that my camera was now on a setting that jacked up every single picture.  I started to panic after about an hour and a half of pushing buttons and turning knobs with no result.  Remember when I said I didn’t consider myself a photographer?  Well, this is why.  I knew what I needed to do.  Call Daley. 

Obviously Daley knows what he is doing when it comes to photography and obviously I didn’t so he was kind enough to walk me through some of the basics of lighting.  He also fixed my camera.  Which saved my butt.  

Most of you remember a few weeks back when Daley was in town and took our family pictures.  Well, that was the first time I met Daley in person and we had a great time hanging out.  He was great with the kids, hip on the music scene and just a cool hang.  I think he’s in Indiana or something right now, but if you haven’t checked out his photography, you probably should.  It’s pretty amazing.  

You know what to do.

Welcome to Tuesday again. For those of you just showing up here’s how it works. It’s pretty simple. (1) Write something nice about someone, building them up, encouraging them, you know.. being nice. (2) Fill out the box above.

*Make sure that you put the URL of the “Positive Post” not just your blog. That way people can find that specific post if they come back to read them later in the week. It should look like this - “yourdomain.com/the-name-of-your-post”*

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He’s the baby and he knows it.  This is Cooper Trey.  He gets what he wants when he wants it from his big brothers, and can handle his own when it’s time to wrestle.  But he’ll also sit and play with your eyelashes as still as he can be.

Last night I went in to check on this little thing in his crib.  He had torn apart another book, and was sitting there in all the shredded paper piles.  He looked up at me with the sweetest face, which is how he gets away with things, and whispered, “down”, which means “up” to him.  I picked him up and told him that he needed to go to sleep, so he grabbed my face and smashed our noses together and started a low, fake laugh in an attempt to be cute.  It worked.

We didn’t plan on having three kids.  In fact, we never actually “planned” any of our kids, but Cooper was the biggest surprise.  The older he gets and the more his personality shapes, the more I realize that out family wouldn’t be the same without him.  He’s the entertainment.  He’s the “shake your head and smile” moments during rough days.  He’s the sweet hugs late at night, and the laugh that infects the house.  He’s a sweet guy and I’m glad we get to keep him.  We love this little thing. He’s a perfect addition to our crazy family.  Here’s a video Kristin put on her blog last Tuesday introducing you to our MiniCoop.

Welcome to Tuesday again. For those of you just showing up here’s how it works. It’s pretty simple. (1) Write something nice about someone, building them up, encouraging them, you know.. being nice. (2) Fill out the box below.

*Make sure that you put the URL of the “Positive Post” not just your blog. That way people can find that specific post if they come back to read them later in the week. It should look like this - “yourdomain.com/the-name-of-your-post”* 

Have Fun.

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I’m not going to lie, I have been pretty negative the last few weeks, and I think a lot of it is with good reason.  Things have been going great in life and moving forward with work, but you know those times where things seem to be going great except for a few key elements that cast a negative light on the rest of the good things?  That’s been the last few months for me.  It’s not that everything has sucked, it’s just that there are a few major things that suck that overshadow everything good.  

That being said, I was over at Cool Mom and Dad’s place last night because every week they host a chat where we can all get on there and talk about bathing in burritos and drunken scooter riding.  Well, last night I “met” a guy named Adam who said that he has been reading my blog for a while, but never commented.  He used the creepy word “lurker” and mentioned that he is close to having a blog of his own, but hasn’t started yet.  We talked about the Christian music industry a bit, recommended some music, and that was about it.  I ended up asking Adam to email me so we could continue our conversation, and talk a little more in depth about music and whatever else came up.

The reason I mention “meeting” Adam is because through talking to him on the chat, he mentioned that he is currently in the Navy and on some military boat off of some African Island.  I don’t remember the name, but I remember him saying it was “seven degrees south of The Equator”.  I have no idea what that means, but sitting in my bed, late at night, with my wife asleep less than a foot away from me, I know that ”seven degrees south of The Equator” is a lot further that I would ever want to be from my family.  I thought about the isolated feelings that I would have, I thought about how weird that would be, and not to mention the whole “being at war” thing.

This is by no means an “anti-war” post, or a political post, or anything like that.  I just wanted to take the time to recognize the sacrifice and dedication it takes to willfully put yourself on a boat seven degrees south of The Equator, away from your family, to live for something you believe.  That’s pretty cool to me.  It’s a lot cooler that sitting around moping about how a few things in my life aren’t going so great.  

So anyway, thanks Adam for what you are doing to protect us, and thanks for taking the time to “lurk” here at this blog…. even if that’s a creepy way of saying it.  I know there are a few military wives on this blog, but are there any other military folks out there?  This post is for you guys too.  It’s not something I could ever do, and I appreciate that you are.

So, welcome to Tuesday.  This “Positive Post Tuesday” thing had gotten so cool with literally no plan to do so.  Thanks to all that are continuing to be involved in it. Let’s make this week the biggest yet.  Here’s how it works for those just showing up.  It’s pretty simple.  (1) Write something nice about someone, building them up, encouraging them, you know… junk like that. (2) Fill out the box below.  

*The only part that has been causing a little confusion is the “URL part”.  Make sure that you put the URL of the “Positive Post” not just your blog.  That way people can find that specific post if they come back to read them later in the week.  It should look like this - “yourdomain.com/the-name-of-your-post”*

Make sense? Have fun. Ready? Go.

 
 
(**Recent developments show that Adam has now started a blog called Lost At Sea, so make sure you go there and welcome him. ** Also, referencing the word “lurker” as creepy is a direct response to the actual word “lurker” being creepy and in no way suggests that Adam or anyone else “lurking” is in fact creepy**)

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It’s Tuesday again.  Time to write something positive.  I have noticed more and more people getting involved in this thing and I think it’s awesome.  I think that it has and can continue to grow into something really cool.  With more folks coming every week I wanted to re-post the idea behind this though most people already know.  The “guidelines” are pretty loose and it’s a pretty simple thing.  Write something nice, then share it.  This is from the original post:

I want to try something. (and it’s pretty early in the morning so I don’t know how good of an idea this is) I want today to be “Positive Post Tuesday”. Let’s today, all write something on our blogs that builds another person up. Someone who is doing an amazing job at something, or someone that is changing the world around them by living the way they are supposed to, or someone that you feel needs building up and deserves it. Write about them and comment here and post the address of your blog below.* Then at the end of the day we can all go through the links and check them out. Sound good?

That’s it.  It’s that simple.  Like I said, it’s been a pretty amazing thing to see people getting involved and coming up with nice things to say about people.  We live in a pretty cynical world and it’s cool to see things that will bring smiles to peoples faces every week.

We have some relatively new friends that we had over this week for the first time.  We have been trying to hang out with them for weeks now, but haven’t been able to align schedules.  Michael leads worship at our church and him and his wife Andrea have become good friends of ours.  We switch off driving the kids to school but now with Kristin working, and us with only one car, it seems like they have really taken the brunt of driving the kids to school.  It’s a pretty temporary situation, but it’s still amazing of them to do.

Michael and Andrea are also from California so we have that in common and even weirder, Michael grew up about twenty minutes from where I grew up.  Small world huh?  Anyway we have had a great time getting to know them more and hanging out with people that seem so similar to us.  It’s fun to be able to talk about the same places and even some of the same people, as if we have known each other for years.  They are awesome genuine people that are easy to be around and unbelievably caring.  It will be awesome to get to know them better and become better friends. 

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So, here it is Tuesday again. Time for another “Positive Post Tuesday”. Time to say something nice or not say anything at all.  This week is a little different because I wanted to build up you guys.  The readers of this here blog.  The people that, for what ever reason, keep coming back here to hear what I have to say everyday.  The folks that show an genuine interest in our family.  Who pray for us even though they may not know us, the friends that I have gotten to know better because of this blog, and also the new friends I have made.

Almost two years ago now, I started this blog with no real intention of actually keeping it going.  I had no idea what to talk about and even if I came up with something to talk about, I wasn’t sure anyone was listening.  Now almost two years later, I have met some really cool people, created a “profession” and been more encouraged than I could have expected from a blog.  There is a pretty solid group of people here that come back and comment, and are involved in this little community online.   I call it a community because I know that there are people involved in this blog that, if I were in trouble, would jump at the chance to help out, as I would with them.  For that to happen with people that I may never know just blows me away.

It’s been amazing to see the support and interest that you guys have shown in what is going on here. There is no way that I would be getting to do what I am doing for a living without this little community here, and I appreciate that.  One of these days we need to have a big fat “…in case you were wondering” party, and you are all invited.

You guys know what to do.  I know there are more people out there that have nice things to say.  Let’s make today a very Positive Tuesday.  Who can you build up today?  Who needs it most?  We do plenty of tearing down throughout the week.  Let’s see how many we can get on this list today.

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I know I have already done a “Positive Post Tuesday” about Kristin, but you know what?  There’s a lot to brag on her about and I felt like it.  Plus it’s my blog and I get to do that if I want.  

Kristin is the most loving, genuine person I know.  She has dealt with my weird ideas for almost eight years now, and from what I can tell, still likes me enough to hang around me.  I remember a handful of people telling us, when we got married so young that it wasn’t going to last and there was no way we were mature enough to start our lives together.  Maybe we weren’t mature enough, but we were determined enough to prove them wrong.  Now it’s been eight years, we have lived in six different houses, had three kids, and are still figuring things out, but it’s been an exciting adventure so far.

This year has been rough for us.  Literally starting at the first of the year, things seemed to have been attacking us from all sides.  It hasn’t stopped, and at times has only felt like it has only gotten worse.  Kristin and I have had so many long talks that result with only one thing for certain.  That we are in this together and that is the only thing that makes us feel like we can make it through.  I know for a fact, that there is no way that I could be doing anything without her right next to me, and I hope she feels the same.

Kristin is the hardest worker, most loving mother, caring friend, and creative artist that I know.  I know that most men will say that they don’t deserve their wives and they are mostly all right.  I too, join in that list of men that truly, honestly don’t deserve to have such an amazing woman in my life.  However, I am ambitious today.  I am ambitious to treat my wife in a way that she deserves.  I don’t know how, but I want to show her how much she means to me and just how much I couldn’t live without her.  I could never completely show her how much I need her and love her, but today I want to show her more than I have.

This “Positive Post Tuesday” thing has gone so well and I have been blown away by all the people participating in it.  I hope that through this the people writing the posts are being as encouraged as the people that are being written about.  I know sometimes it’s hard to come up with something nice to say every week, and it has been for me too, but I think it’s an amazing exercise for us to practice.  Let’s see how many posts we can get today.  If you are new you can go here and read how this whole thing started.  Then the rest is easy.  Just write something nice about someone, come back here and add your name and address to the list below.  Tell your friends. Let’s make this massive. Sound good?
 

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