Tebow Takes a Stand

Have you heard about the Tebow controversy?  Tim Tebow, of college football fame, is going to be featured in a pro-life ad during the Superbowl, along with his mother, who decided not to abort him all those years ago.  The progressives are trying to fight the showing of this commercial.  Will the showing of this ad, in fact, open up a can of worms for issues ads to be shown for both the left and the right?  I think it's a stand worth taking.  I know the old saying, you can lose the battle but still win the war, but it's heartening to win some battles, too.  Here's Brent Bozell's take on the subject: http://townhall.com/columnists/BrentBozell/2010/01/29/tebow_takes_a_stand

Spring

I know that a couple of days of mild weather doesn't mean that it's spring, but I can't help but be optomistic.  Here are a couple of pictures from our front yard.

Hyacinth plant sprouts:

and rhody buds:

Beautiful Day!

This morning Dave and I went to Concordia University to visit Kiersten and see the new library.  I love libraries!  I'll have to go back sometime and spend some time in the stacks.  We ran into our friend Sarah at the library and it was great to see her.  The spectacular new Concordia library building:

Here's Kiersten in her remodeled Registrar's office:

We ate lunch at McMenamin's Kennedy School which is always a fun place to visit. Then we came home and took a walk around our neighborhood.  It's a beautiful, warm day.  Note the lovely blue sky in this photo that I took of Mount St. Helen's from our driveway:

Prager University

Dennis Prager has a great 5 minute video series available free of charge.  His motto is "Give us 5 minutes and we'll give you a semester".  Check these videos out and let me know what you think: http://prageruniversity.com/

The Complete Works of Shakespeare--abridged

Last night we went to the Slocum House production of "The Complete Works of Shakespeare--Abridged". If you haven't seen this, it's hilarious. We saw it performed in Cannon Beach a few years ago and that production was slightly different but still very funny and zany.

http://www.slocumhouse.com/

 The weather has been surprisingly good during January.  Yes, we've had some very rainy days, but we have also had some non-rainy days, like today.  The sun even came out today!  The temperatures have been warm for January, with highs in the mid to high 50s.  I went for a walk outside today in the sunshine and it felt so good to be out.  I forgot to wear my sunglasses because I'm not used to it being so sunny!

Recovering Scripture

The White Horse Inn is a radio broadcast that I enjoy listening to.  I podcast it every week.  Each year they have a theme.  Two years ago the theme was "Christless Christianity".  Last year the theme was "Christianity in a Post-Modern Culture".  This year's theme is "Recovering Scripture".  I heard the first show in the new series and it was excellent.  Listen to it at the following link: http://www.whitehorseinn.org/white-horse-inn.html

Massachusetts Victory

Scott Brown wins in Massachusetts!  This is excellent news and bodes well for the rest of the country.  Now that this country has seen what President Obama means by "change", it's time to make our voices heard in the next set of elections.  Happy 1 year anniversary, Mr. President.  The people have spoken!

Friends

We had our house heat pump fixed today because it kept blowing fuses.  Turns out a couple of wires were bad.  The repairman cut them shorter and said that the heat pump ought to be good for another five years.  That was excellent news!

I had lunch with my friend, Cindi, at Sweet Tomatoes.  It seems like a healthy place to eat until you realize how much food there is to choose from.  It's easy to over-eat there.  Cindi is a hard-working, dedicated special ed teacher of autistic children.  She doesn't have much free time to sit over a long lunch, so it's really fun to occasionally get caught up with her.  I am able to meet with Jackie and Diane weekly, and sometimes we take for granted how good it is to be able to regularly spend that much time with each other.  I also meet with my good friend, Sandy, every week, and that time together is such a blessing in my life.  I don't have a lot of friends, but these friends are good, faithful friends, and I am thankful for each of them. 

REI

It's official.  We are now REI co-op members.  I decided to buy some new cross-country ski boots because my old ones (over twenty years old) don't fit.  The old three-prong ski bindings didn't fit the new boots, so we bought new bindings, too.  We went to the REI store at Clackamas Town Center, where, on a Saturday, it's always a nightmare to park.  But they were able to change the bindings while we waited which means we don't have to go back to get the skis.  I hope the new boots will work out for me.  I have a very wide foot and it's hard to get shoes and ski boots to fit me.  We looked at snowshoes but didn't buy any yet. 

Helping Haiti

Click on this link if you are interested in helping people in Haiti:  http://www.holtinternational.org/  Holt International Children's Services is a very reputable agency.  As well as being an adoption agency, they also take care of children all over the world.  We became involved with Holt when we adopted Jonathan from Korea in 1989 and we have supported them ever since then.  Contact me or leave a comment if you have any questions about Holt. 

Lassen National Park, 1997

Our family visited Lassen National Park on August 11, 1997.  This is one of my favorite pictures of Jonathan (age 8) and Tim (just turned 15).  It's also one of the first digital pictures that I have stored on my computer.  Like all the national parks that we have been to, Lassen is worth another visit!

Exercise

When we are able to get exercise by going for a walk or by going snowshoeing/cross-country skiing like we did yesterday, it makes for a nice break from doing the treadmill/exercise bicycle every day.  And when we get  back to the exercise bike/treadmill, it's a good feeling to know that our hard work at home has helped us to get more enjoyment out of being able to keep up with our outside activities.  Using the treadmill at an elevation at 5% is still a challenge for me, especially at 3 miles per hour, but when we go for a walk outside, then the walk seems easy in comparison.  If we never saw any progress it would be hard to keep motivated to exercise. 

Snowshoes!

Today Dave and I drove to Government Camp, Oregon, which is located near Mt. Hood.   I rented snowshoes.  This was my first time using snowshoes and I had a lot of fun.  Dave used his cross-country skis.  We went to a trail (Summit?) near SkiBowl West, which is right off of Highway 26.  The snowshoes rent for $10 for 24 hours, what a deal. 

The chairlifts weren't open today...not enough snow!

One last look at our trail...a very peaceful setting!

From http://firstimportance.org/:

“[Christ] is always accessible, under every condition reliable and therefore the one proper object of faith, the only safe source of confidence because in him alone is that eternal certainty which faith needs to rest upon if it is to be faith at all.”

- Geerhardus Vos, Grace & Glory (Carlisle, Pa.; Banner of Truth, 1994), 202

Family News

This afternoon I met with the young CASA who I am mentoring with her report writing.  She is a joy to work with and it feels good to be able to pass on some of the tips and techniques that I have learned during my 3+ years as a CASA.  Everyone's cases are so different and yet similar in many ways.  I learn from her as well as she learns from me.  Since we aren't supposed to talk about the details of our cases except with another CASA, it's always nice to have someone to talk to. 

Then Dave and I met Tim and Kiersten for dinner at Elmer's on Sandy Blvd. in Portland.  It's always a joy to see them and catch up on what's happening in their lives.

Tim is teaching an e-business class at Concordia University in Portland.  He got called to teach the class after the instructor bailed out at the last minute.  He has 18 students and the class lasts for five weeks and then another set of students take the class.  The class is part of the evening adult degree completion for a B.S. in Business Administration.  Tim is more than qualified because e-business is what he does every day, and besides that, he got his Master's in Business Administration from Concordia. 

Kiersten is busy working as Registrar at Concordia.  Her job is always especially busy at the beginning and ending of each semester.  Her family visited over Christmas while they were on their way from Tennessee to their new home in Alaska. 

Jonathan called yesterday with the news that he is scheduled to take the physical fitness test for the Washington State Patrol.  That application has been a long process which he started last summer.  He has made it through all the levels of testing, including the background check, and is now "on the list" to be hired.  The physical test is the last item he needs to complete.  Then, hopefully, he will get hired and sent to the academy in Shelton, WA for training.  The physical exam will take place at the academy.

Atheists' Two Principles

From http://www.geneveith.com/:

In Bidding Goodbye to the Decade of the New Atheists?, Touchstone’s James Kushiner quotes Doug Wilson from the DVD of his debate with Christopher Hitchens:
“Atheists have two basic principles: First, there is no god. Second, I hate him.”

Timothy Keller--The Reason for God

Long, but powerful! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kxup3OS5ZhQ

Timothy Keller speaking about "The Reason for God" at Google in Silicon Valley.  His book by the same title is powerful, also!

Comfort

“…whenever our sins press hard against us, whenever Satan would drive us to despair, we must hold up this shield, that God does not want us to be overwhelmed in everlasting destruction, for He has ordained His Son to be the salvation of the world.”

- John Calvin, NT Commentary on John p. 75
(HT: Dan Morse)

"For there is no calm haven where our minds can rest until we come to God’s free love.”
- John Calvin, NT Commentary on John p75
(HT: Dan Morse)

Brit Hume Evangelizes Tiger Woods

From Gene Veith's blog http://www.geneveith.com/:

On Fox News Sunday, Brit Hume had a message for Tiger Woods:

Whether he can recover as a person depends on "his faith. He's said to be a Buddhist. I don't think that faith offers the kind of forgiveness and redemption that is offered by the Christian faith. So my message to Tiger would be, "Tiger, turn to the Christian faith and you can make a total recovery and be a great example to the world.

Hume, of course, is getting criticized, not only for evangelizing on air but for dissing Buddhism. Still, I salute him. A private TV network airing private opinions should have room for this, shouldn’t it?

Christmas Snowstorm, December, 2008

We missed the December 28, 2009 snowstorm because we were at the beach.  So here's a picture of the snowstorm during Christmas, 2008.  This is a view out our back door, looking at the shop and backyard.

Home Again

We arrived back home this afternoon after an uneventful trip.  We had some rain but no wind.  We noticed that the Oregon Highway Department is working on a bypass road for Highway 20.  Looks like it will not be done for quite some time but it when it's done it will be a nice road and drivers will be able to avoid most of the dangerous curves between Philomath and Newport, OR. 

Today would have been my dad's 94th birthday.  He died of colon cancer January 26, 1983.  He was a farmer and lived in Osage, Iowa his entire life. 

Happy 2010!

This morning we were able to put our living room slide back out.  And we put our satellite dish back up just in time to watch the Parade of Roses.  We don't get our Direct TV local channels here, so Dave is watching the Rose Bowl on cable TV.  During the football game, I watched a Netflix DVD of Julie and Julia on the bedroom TV. 

Tomorrow morning we head for home.  It's been a wonderful eight days here at Sea Perch RV Park!

Dave took the following pictures on his cell phone.  This is Jonathan on Thanksgiving Day at Bellingham RV Park:

And the Christmas lights at Point Defiance Zoo: