Today we Did Christmas Again

Well we had another Christmas today. I didn't know there were so many Christmases in one year. We actialy have one more to go. After today Kate is very tiered and we are haveing a hard time putting her to bed. Marla is trying know.

Now for 2008 in review new baby on the way, promotion at work, new baby arrives, Marla stays home from work. That's the stuff arrounx here now for nation wide. War, war, OJ in trouble again, Hillary for presidant, I Obama for presidant, Mcain for presidant, Obama wins presidantcy. Bush leads us into a resetion and the economy continues to sink to the bottom faster than a lead weight. Gas prces sore, gas prices fall, which insadentialy furthers the economic down fall and causes millions to be laid off.

Well with all of this hard stuff behind us hopefully 2009 will be a better year. Obama atleast give me hope for change but it is yet to be tested and tried. I k ow he will inherit a lot of mess from the current president, but it seems like he is surounding him self with smart folks. But well see can't judge a book by it's cover.

On another note my prayers and sympathy go out to the Wims family at church. May God be with y'all in this time of pain and trial.

JDM

Every body stopped...

Well if any one is still reading my blog I beleage that most every body else has stopped. It for the rest of you I will cointinue to blog I have a renewed joy in it. Today I started working out again I hope ( if Kate has been good enough for me to stop on my way home from work that is). It felt good to work out again. I am a bit depressed thought I put back on some of the weight I had lost prior to Kate. I hope to loss it again and then some before our family cruise in June. I am looking forward to this vacation. Work hasn't been all that crazy or anything but that could be part of the problem. I really like work when we are busy. It at least makes it go by fast. Kate and I are just chillin on the glider. She is passed out on my chest. Well I gusse that is it for now. I hope that every one is haveing a great holiday.

JDM

Christmas ...

We've started celabraiting Christmas. Last night we had Christmas with Marla's family. We had a great time eating playing games and of course opening presents. Kate made out like a bandit. She got a jogging stroler and of course clothes and toys. We had to try out the stroler last night when Kate got fussy. She really seemed to like it. It is very smooth. This mourning we had Christmas at our house. Then we went out and did alittle running around to sears and ages other shopes. Tomarrow we are going to Alvin to have Christmas with my dads parents. Then on Sunday we are haveing Christmas with my moms family. And last but not least Christmas with my folks. We are doing it so late so that Jessi & the boy can make it. I hope that every body is haveing as great a holiday as we are.

JDM

Monday

Today was monday and was hard to stay at work so when my mom got out of surgery I took of for the rest of the day to spend with her and my dad. Her surgery went well and is recovering well she was very happy to see Kate. As far as work goes it is very hard to be in the office around the holidays. I would have been off if it had not been for Ike. Work is ok king up a bite for me. Even with the added work it is still hard to focuse around there. I'm off Wednesday atleast. Today I discovered that I can sync my iphone with both my personal email acount and my work email. This allows me to send and revive emails from work even when I'm out and about. To bad work won't pay for part of the bill. No mater I would not trade this phonefor any other it is entirely to easy to use and to easy to use. Marla has hers and we are on the coach watching Holiday Inn while surfing the web and posting bloggs. Most of my family is coming into town on sunday for the holidays. Jessi and Jeff are are coming in and staying for the following week it will be nice to see them again. I hope that all of you traveling will have a safe and Merry Christmas.

JDM

Sunday

We have spent all day at Marla's parents house visiting with Sam's girl friend Jordan. We have played games like Domino's and tick. It has been a very fun and relaxing day. Tomarow I have to go back to work for 2 day's. Please pray for my mom who is having surgery tomarow she is having her galbladder out. I will be takeing a long lunch tomarrow to go vist her after she is out. If I have not seen you in a while and will not see you before Christmas please have a safe and happy holidays.

JDM

Another one bites the dust

So this past Thursday my cell phone bit the dust. This has been a great phone and is the first to last to the end of a contract period. Well almost we are about 3 weeks shy. Since I use my phone for work so often I needed to look into a new phone, so Marla and I visited the at&t store by our house to see what we could do. Now in our minds we both wanted an iphone but sincewe have a family talk plan we thought it would be impossible to get them. Well I'll have you know that I am laying in bed typeing this blogg on my new iPhone while marla surfs YouTube on hers. Now I know what most of you are thinking "you haven't blogged In like a century so why now" well to answer your question. Well I just needed to have it at my finger tips. If any one reads this blogg any more please note that the first application I down loaded was a surf report app. Yes I bold true to my basic needs to stay informed. To those that do not have a iphone you should definintly look into getting one it is totaly worth it. This was a early christmas present for the both of use. Now as for Kate she is doing well and is transitioning into sleeping in her own room. She is one of the most beautiful kid I have ever seen. I think she takes after her mom. Who by chance is the most beautiful woman In the world. Well it is about time to sign off so untill next time "Be Good, be green, be safe, and have a happy holidays.

JDM

The weekend is almost up

Well it is Sunday July 20, 2008 and it is national Ice Cream day. Out of all I know about Ronald Reagan (which is just this fact really) is that he enacted this day. It falls on the 3RD Sunday of every July. Today is Sunday like I said before, and at church this morning a fellow surfer preached. He and I have both joined the Christian Surfers Association. I would like to set something up with them so that we can have a get together at our church. David thinks that this is a great idea and it could be a good out reach for he and I. David’s lesson this morning was about mission and how each person in the church contributes to the mission. He is going to Haiti in a week on a mission trip with the Hope For Haiti group. I would personally like to do that some day. He also just got back from Antigua. I think that that is where I would like to go even more.

On the other side of the coin is the end of a fun weekend. Now I have to head back to work, which is fine, but I wish it would pick up just a little. Not that I don’t like Fridays of but a little more action in the rest of the week would be good. Not this Monday but next I get two new trainees. I really don’t have the work for them yet so it will be interesting if nothing changes between now and then. Marla is feeling good to round out the weekend and is counting down the day till she can expel Kate from her body, as am I. I really want my bed back. Well that’s all I’ve got for now I think I will go play the WII for a bit before Marla gets home.

So it’s Been a While "It's Where You Find It"

Well I haven’t bloged in a long time and I’m sorry for that. So what’s been going on around here? Well since my last post and I’m sure most of you read my wife’s blog on a regular basis but I have completed the babies nursery and just in time. Her Shower is tomorrow and she needs room to put every thing. Other than working on the nursery I have been surfing and fishing in the past few weeks. I am still not working on Fridays. So I typically go then so that I can spend the rest of the weekend with Marla. Two Fridays ago I went surfing with my cousin. He hadn’t been since we were in high school so it had been a while. When we were done he said he remembered why we loved it so much back then. Surfing is one of those things that even if you are not a spiritual person you get it.

I had not gone out in several months and I was feeling dry. Now I know that may sound funny to most but it’s true when I haven’t been in the water in a while I start to feel a strong urge or pull a need to get wet. Some say well isn’t fishing or swimming the same. Fishing fills the need to be in nature and swimming is wet but its exercise. So they both fill different roles in my need to surf. There is just something about being caught in the natural power of the ocean you just get wrapped up in it. If God could give you a hug I believe it would feel like a warm wave. You feel the strength, passion warmth love and commitment. All he and the wave ask back from you is to commit. Once you commit you get the surge of emotion that will bring you back tome and time again. I have had rough days on the beach where I couldn’t catch a wave all day but right before I leave I get the one that makes it all worth it and I‘ll go back and suffer it all over again just to get that again. Most think that Surfers as a whole are slackers and degenerates, and in some cases it’s true. But even if the bad apples don’t realize what is happening they come back for the same reason. They just don’t know who to attribute it to. “Surfing is more than a sport. It’s a life style. Beneath the common stereotype lies a world family bonded by a mutual respect and passion for the water and the waves.”

I want to share a code that a fellow surfer came up with. It explains the bond and respect between surfers.

Shaun Tomson's Surfer's Code:
I will never turn my back on the ocean.
I will always paddle back out.
I will take the drop with commitment.
I will know that there will always be another wave.
I will realize that all surfers are joined by one ocean.
I will paddle around the impact zone.
I will never fight a rip tide.
I will watch out for other surfers after a big set.
I will pass on my stoke to a non-surfer.
I will ride, and not paddle in to shore.
I will catch a wave every day, even in my mind.
I will honor the sport of kings.

This code is why I hope my daughter and other possible offspring will enjoy surfing I hope they can get it and we can share it. If they don’t get it this way I hope something will provide them with the joy and aww-inspiring feeling that surfing provides me. I also hope I can start up dating more often please comment so that this blog can be more of a discussion blog. I hope I can gain a few readers back?

So Yesterday!

So yesterday was absolutely beautiful. I hope that everybody got a chance to get out and enjoy the day to some extent. Personally I did and did it up right. I got the privilege of going fishing with my uncle, which is always very nice. We spent all day out on the bay. Grant it we only caught 2 fish but it was still nice just to get out and enjoy God’s magnificent creation. At church in class we are interviewing each other to see what we can learn about God through one another. Some of the questions are pretty intense. I’m not quit sure what I can contribute to the knowledge about God. But one of the questions is what big stones are in your life (big stones being memorials of change.). This one question came to mind yesterday as I was fishing. I am a pretty big outdoorsman I enjoy hunting, fishing, camping, surfing, and kayaking. Honestly theirs not much out doors I don’t like (except for yard work). To me this is my big stone. I mean think about it what better a stone than one that makes you feel like a flea. The outdoors is so expansive. There are so many places I have never seen or have ever been seen by human eyes. If nothing else that is ah inspiring. As some may know the ocean is my favorite place on Earth. As far back as I can remember I have gone to the ocean. Waking up early on Saturdays to go get in my grandpa’s truck and head down to Chocolate Bay to fish all day, or getting in the car with my folks and heading to the beach for a day of fun and sun. It doesn’t have to be the ocean its all water I just feel relaxed and at peace in or near the water. It’s very cleansing even at our beaches. The waves come in full of power and strength and just wash away all reminisces of previous activities. I love to go to the beach and just listen to the waves pound against the shore and feel renewed. My very own wife will tell you that it is medicine to my soul she can’t understand it but it is a necessity I have. It can make a bad go turn good, or a bad week or month. To all who ponder life’s calling and meaning look to some thing simple perhaps the answer is in a very familiar and close place to you. Not that the ocean has provided me with the answers but it has been a place where I could go and receive an answer or two.

Sorry I have been absent for so long. Lets start from where I left off. Hope fully this will satisfy some of you, and you know who you are. I was talking about Change in the church. I don’t think that my preacher was necessarily saying we need to change but not to condemn those who practice differently then us. It is up to each individual member or person at a church to decide how he or she believes or feels is best to worship. If you don’t agree with the majority of the church and they can not accommodate you, perhaps that church is no longer the best place for you to worship. Don’t get me wrong I’m not trying to sound stuck up or anything its just simple logic. Now on to some less controversial stuff. As some of you know I recently went on a kayaking/camping trip. It was amazing. First we loaded up early on a Saturday morning and headed to our launch site in Smithville TX. to float the Colorado River. I will load up photos of our trip in order of events so that you can follow visualy as soon as possable. The people who dared to brave this madden voyage down the river are as follows. Lead Navigator and Cook: Josh Morris, The Rookie: Tim Miller, Head Fisher and Sickling: Josh Fair, and last but not least The Ring Leader of this trip: Ben Fair. Ben gets this honor because he came up with the idea. This was the most fun trip I have ever been on cant wait to do it again.

A Lighter Note

I wanted to go surfing last weekend but couldn’t find a wet suite anywhere. I would like to try and go again this weekend. If any one knows where I can find a good deal on a wet suite please let me know.

The Change

It would seem that the time has come for the church to make a change or have a reformation of some sort. We’ve seen this through time many things have gone through changes. The church has even gone through several, most note able the one in the 16th century lead by Martin Luther. Most other changes are society driven. Not that this is good or bad necessarily, but it is thought provoking. Is it possible that a change to make society feel more welcome isn’t the change that needs to be made? Could it be that we have progressed so far from our origins that we confuse and upset people. What if we took a step back and got closer to the origins of our predecessors. If I did not have the rules and guide lines set down to me from my parents who got there rules and guide lines from there parents who got them from there parents then would I not be who I am to day. I know that my parents didn’t do every thing that there’s did, but think of this. Remember when society was safer and the kids could play out side when ever they wanted to. As long as you didn’t get in to trouble, but if you did your friends parents wouldn’t wait for your parents to get on to you they’d get you or they’d take you immediately to your parents. Remember when you got spanked for doing some thing wrong no you get a time out or a stern talking to. I feel like our society has progressed to a do what ever makes you feel good or makes you happy. (I’m not bashing on my parents or any generations parents.) It’s just an example. If the church continues down this path of making every one happy and feel good, then we will end up in the same boat as every one else. Perhaps when John the Baptist came to prepare the way for Jesus and he preached “Change” he meant from the way of society from the path every one was going down. Jesus even seems to teach change from society. Change is good but it needs to be carefully examined there is a limit to how much progression you can have. Perhaps you have to cross the boundary to know where it is but if you don’t watch for it you want see it. I’m a boundary pusher and I’ve crossed many boundaries and didn’t know it till it was too late.

The Inner Ponderings

Since I haven’t been surfing, I’ve been reading a new book called “Walking On Water”. This book addresses the spirituality of some of the world’s top surfers past and present. One of the surfers interviewed in the book is Timmy Curran son to one of the pioneers of surf, Tom Curran. These two men share a love for surfing and Christ even though there is a large generational gap as far as style goes for surfing.

I seem to feel that there is the same kind of gap in the church and those we try to reach out to. What worked for my grandfather and my father for that matter doesn’t always work for me. Now try to carry that to some one who never had a relationship with Christ or God. Or for that matter never had a strong relationship. I by no means have a great relationship with them but I am trying to have a better one. But this past Sunday Michael, the preacher at my church brought up a good point. Where do we draw the line of Tradition and Law? I want to know where we draw the line from recommendations and Laws for the first century church and today’s church. It would seem to me that if you start to pick and choose between what you want to take as law and what you want to take as pertaining to them specifically then you have a greater chance of loosing something. Would it be so bad to stick with what is set for them they had there reasons and couldn’t those same reasons present them selves again. Think about it we don’t have the Apostles writing to us telling us where off base. They did that once and we now have it as a guide line. I might be all wet but it seems that we shouldn’t pick and choose what pertains to us. I’m putting this in my blogg because I just don’t do good compiling my thought in person so I’m hoping some one with greater knowledge will comment on this subject. Here is the thought for the day….. When the time comes for you to sit down and examine the course in witch your life is moving that you take the time to enjoy the break and take a chance on the other street. Life is meant to be enjoyed and shared with others. If you are not excited about tomorrow then you need to make a change today.

Timmy Curran has a free CD you can down load at

http://www.timmycurran.com/freeDownload.php

I hope you will enjoy it.

Time to Sell

Time to sell as part of my agreement with my wife, I will be selling one of my surf boards. I am selling a 7’-6” BIC surf board. I hate to see it go but Marla is right what am I going to do with 3 boards and one I never even ride. I finally got my arm out of the sling I hope to be able to get back into the water soon. I fell like a dried up fish. I need some beach time. Some physical therapy I think is due to my arm. The salt will hill my joints and the cold will numb the pain away.

Wow it's been a while

Wow, it’s been a while! Sorry I haven’t been blogging lately. Let me bring y'all up to speed. There wasn’t much excitement up till Christmas. For Christmas we went to California to visit Marla’s aunt and cousins. While we where there we went to the so-called “Happiest Place on Earth” (Disney Land). I think this could have been true but it was entirely too crowded. We where only able to ride 9 rides in 18 hrs but other than the crowds it was very cool. The very next day we did go to the Happiest Place on Earth (the Ron Jon surf shop) and Santa Monica. At Ron Jon, Marla and I had the run of the place, we where the first few people in the store. This place was huge, and had every surf thing you could imagine. Man I love California. The next big and exciting thing we did was go snowboarding on New Years Eve. Snowboarding was a blast for the first couple of hours, until I fell and sprained my elbow. We flew home on the first. I went back to work on the second. The following Tuesday I received a promotion at work from Intermediate Designer to Senior Designer. This makes me the youngest Senior Designer at Chemic Engineers. I have been working towards this since I started 3 years ago. I did not surf in California, and I have not had a chance to go since I got home either. I’m sorry I don’t have a cool thought to bestow upon you but I will try to have one for you soon. I’ll try to keep you updated from know on.