Snow Day

 We had a great snow day today, and it started a little later than expected, but it did in fact happen with snow coming down early, and just transforming our yard and neighborhood into a winter wonderland.  I was up first doing some chores, like feeding those birds, who were quite excited to have food they didn't have to dig through the snow to get to.  I got plenty of pictures of the birds this morning.

And the house too.  We were outside, Maddie and I, just walking around and exploring.  And throwing snowballs at each other too.  Maddie and our neighbor across the street got into a bit of a snowball fight, but soon enough Maddie and I were making a snowman on the back deck.

This one was a little difficult to make, as the snow wasn't great for packing until a bit later on.  Initially, it was so powdery that it took a long time to assemble a simple ball.  But we were patient and got it all together.  Maddie says our snowman's name is Jeff.  He's similar to one we did a few years ago, in that we have him holding a small bowl that is filled with bird seed.

Maddie was out taking a few photographs with her 35mm camera, and she also used her polaroid camera today too.

The birds started to visit our snowman earlier this time around, and that was delightful.  

Afterwards, we did some of other other things on the snow checklist.  We made snow angels, of course, and there was time for sledding too!

I dragged Maddie all the way up the hill, down the hill, and up Forest Path just a tiny bit before turning around.  Maddie enjoyed that sleigh ride quite a bit.  And she also had fun doing something else outside today:

And there was a bit of taekwon-snow!  The bo staff was taken outside, and Maddie was using it for some practice.  She was out there with nunchucks and the staff, although her fingers were getting a little cold for that sort of thing.  

Anyway, it was a really nice Snow Day, and I put it in capital letters because this is now a somewhat rare event.  It's been a few years since our last significant snowfall.  The last time we personally got to "play in the snow" was at the top of Newfound Gap last winter.  Although that was more scenic, and maybe more scary, this was more fun - we got to check off the snow list:

____  MAKE SNOW MAN

____  HAVE SNOWBALL FIGHT

____ GO SLEDDING

____ MAKE SNOW ANGELS

____ PRACTICE MARTIAL ARTS SKILLS IN SNOW

The only thing we didn't do was make snow cream.  But we're fasting sweets, so that's okay.  It was magical out there, the snow covering the landscape and just adding this wonderful beauty.  You couldn't help but get out there in it and play some!  Before we move on, here are a few more pictures from our Snow Day:

The weather above was hovering just above freezing later on, so it was frozen rain for the last part of the day.  It's below freezing here on the surface, and that really kept things icy all over the trees and everywhere.  Big icicles were forming, and a glaze is covering the forest and houses here.  Power is going out in various places, but not here.  We had a brief flicker, and got our flashlights and candles ready just in case.  But the power stayed on.  So did the heat.

We warmed up and got a few things done this afternoon - there was still work to be done with KidPak.  In fact, I'll be working on that tomorrow a little more.  Snow Day was a big welcome interruption with that.  Early evening, we watched the final entry in our High School Musical marathon, "Sharpay's Fabulous Adventure."  One question is why they cut out the cameo that was included everywhere else - I mean, it was such a great moment.  We found it online somewhere still and watched that little post credits cameo later.  On the whole, the movie was fun.  We hadn't see it in a while, so none of us remembered exactly what it was about.  But yeah, that ends the High School Musical marathon, and just in time too.  Again, we were wanting to watch these while Maddie was in high school, so we got it done just in time!

We did our devotional time tonight after this, spending time with episode 2 of "The Chosen," and reading some devotional material, using guided questions and discussions.  And that was nice, of course.  

And after that, our movie of the night was "The Goonies," inspired by the recent viewings of "Skeleton Crew."  I loved watching this movie so much tonight, completely forgetting how good it really is.  It is so much fun, and the kids were so good in it too.  We watched that as we listened to everything freeze outside around us.  The power stayed true, and we're grateful for that.  We got upstairs did our reading, and after that, it was time for prayers and a good night's rest.  

It was a really nice snow day!

Hello Winter

Maddie colored this sheet in, and it's been sitting on the table reminding us of what's to come tomorrow.  Things are looking more and more certain for a winter wonderland tomorrow, and evidence of that was when I did some grocery shopping tonight.  It was like a herd of wild animals had trampled through the place, stuff on the floor, shelves empty and just all this craziness.  Fortunately, I wasn't picking up any of the necessities that were already gone.  I was there for some extras, and found all that I needed - except bananas.  Yes, they had no bananas.  They had no bananas today.

Maddie was at taekwondo while I was picking up last-minute items.  They cancelled taekwondo tomorrow, and late this afternoon school was officially cancelled.  They're having virtual school, or something like that.  As if anyone is going to be focused on school work tomorrow.  Seriously?  If there's an inch of snow out there, you can just forget about any focus on school!

Our offices actually have a "come in at 10:30" thing going on at the moment.  Again, as if that's going to happen.  The forecast is solid.  And in fact, the accumulations are going to be solid too.  More and more solid as the morning goes on.  That will be cancelled too.  We're sort of in the air about services Sunday, but I wrote to everyone to be safe and I would have something simple planned on Sunday.  We'll see as that goes on.

We were doing a lot with the booklets for KidPak today, and Maddie was wrapping up what schoolwork she could.  You can imagine the excitement at the schools about a snow day.  

Tonight we hunkered down.  We're ready for the weather.  We watched a few things, including the wrap-up of "Dream Productions," a four-part series we've been watching about Riley's dreams, an "Inside Out" animated series.  It was pretty good - we enjoyed it!  

Before bed, we read some more, and then we said our prayers.  Tomorrow we're supposed to wake up and see snow - we'll see how that goes, but I'm feeling pretty positive about this forecast.  I think we'll have a Snow Day tomorrow.  Hello Winter!

First FCY of 2025

Maddie went to the first FCY of 2025 tonight, and she had a great time!  One great moment was hearing Pastor Tucker for the first time as a youth pastor.  Maddie got to hang out with friends, and had fun afterwards hanging together, just talking and catching up after the break.

It was a fun night, and a cold one too.  Maddie was dashing out to the car afterwards, the temperature so cold!  Yeah, that forecast for the weekend is solidifying, with some pretty confident calls for snow.  We'll get to groceries soon, although we've got the bread and milk already.  You should see the grocery store though - the bread section is completely wiped out!  It's like whenever a threat of bad weather comes, suddenly there's a need for bread.  Not water, or any sort of meat or vegetables.  No, bread is the source of salvation when the winter storms come!  

Maddie's classes were good today, and of course there was all kinds of talk and/or hope that people would miss school Friday.  Meanwhile, we were working on those new booklets today for KidPak.  Lots to do there.  

It was a good day.  We're ready for the weather, and tonight we were ready for bed after starting a Discworld book that I actually read for the first time last year, "Witches Abroad."  It's going to be fun - Maddie is already enjoying it.  This may be because DEATH has an early visit.  Anyway, we read and then we said our prayers.  It's super cold out there!  Time to get under that big pile of blankets and get some sleep!

Frozen Iguanas

Snow is coming!  Yes, that's the talk today as we get closer to the weekend, and the big question is how much.  This time seems certain, with winter watches going all the way down to Putnam County.  I just wanted to say Putnam again.  We may have to take a picture of Putnam out there in the snow - we'll see!  

It's Tuesday.  We've been frantically working on these new booklets for February, writing new messages and doing all kinds of things in between.  It's a lot of work with a tight deadline, but we're making headway.  We take a few breaks here and there, and that's about where one of the interns here brought up the news story about how it's so cold in Florida that iguanas are freezing and falling out of trees.  They're not dead, but rather in this hibernating state, or at least I think that's how it works.  Regardless, they're completely out of it, and plummeting from trees.  This resulted in an amusing conversation, of course, and eventually a song on AI.  I wrote the lyrics this evening, and couldn't wait to share this hip-hop song about frozen iguanas...

Anyway, it was a decent day today.  We saw Skeleton Crew tonight, another episode.  That's been a good show, a series that has brought more fun back to Star Wars.  We're sort of left with a cliffhanger here though, so we'll have to wait until next Tuesday to find out what develops.  We also had our devotional time tonight, watching an episode of "The Chosen," and reading the supplemental material for it in the official "follow-along" book.  It's been good devotional time.

So it's been a quiet Tuesday in a way.  Maddie had another good day at school, although things are really just getting started there.  She was telling me about her experience in Driver's Ed, where all the students are using driving simulators.  She hasn't quite got the hang of it yet, but it's a learning process with this virtual driving.  I imagine people who actually drive would have difficulty too.  Anyway, she found herself stopping a little late, and in fact in the middle of an intersection.  Fortunately, she didn't get into any wreck like one of her classmates!

We closed things out with "Hogfather" tonight, and in fact, we're done with that book now.  That sort of officially wraps up the Christmas season in a way, although we'll be putting out the "Merry Christmas" edible birdhouse soon enough for the birds on the back porch.  But it's a great book, and we were glad to revisit it.  Immediately, we're heading back to the Discworld for another book, but after that we may go back to the Kingdom Keepers one more time, as we've heard that the author is coming out with the last book of the series in February.  

Closing out the evening, the Plush Entourage went back down the hall, and everyone got tucked in.  We'll have another busy day tomorrow, and the first FCY of the year.  It should be a great day!

Starting on a Cold Note

Maddie is back to school today, her first day back in 2025, and of course the homestretch.  Things were pretty quiet today, as you might expect coming back from a winter break.  It was somewhat of an introduction day to a new and final semester, one that even includes Driver's Education.  Can't wait to hear about that, of course.  I think it will be a tremendously helpful thing for her, and hopefully she's excited to take those first steps.

It being Monday, I wasn't at the office today.  Although there is way too much to do for me right now, so it sort of weighs on me.  Nevertheless, we stayed home and got busy with the DeSantafication process in the living room.  Mom and I were getting ornaments off the living room tree, and lights too.  While that was going on, we were watching the certification process in Washington, something we hadn't really done before.  That's where they officially tally up the states votes for either candidate.  Given that all the votes are pretty much a certainty, I wish there was a bit more bipartisanship on both sides here.  Meaning, the people in the chamber only applaud for their candidate when those votes are announced.  Given that we already know the outcome, it's a shame that everyone could at least show a tiny bit of bipartisanship by clapping for both candidates and every state as the votes are announced.  Alas, I don't think even that is something people can agree on.  Still, it was interesting, and just something on the television.  I think we heard that the prime minister of Canada was stepping down, so we had that on, and the next thing you know we were watching news all day as we were taking down the tree.  The other news we were watching had to do with an approaching snow and/or ice storm for this weekend.  That's got the region buzzing, as we could actually see snow here again, something that hasn't happened in quite some time. 

The temperature is certainly cold enough out there.  Another cold blast came down from Canada, and even more is expected throughout the month, so it will certainly feel like winter out there.  It does right now.  We went to taekwondo tonight, and everyone was racing from car to studio with no lingering outside in these sorts of temperatures.  The wind chill is what really drives you away.  Baby it's cold outside!

Tonight we watched "High School Musical 3," as part of our continuing festival of "High School Musical" movies, and though it's the one we've seen the least, I think it has grown on all of us some more - it's a good movie.  All three were good movies, and we've certainly enjoyed them.  Next we'll be off to spend a movie with Sharpay Evans, but that might be a few days from now. 

We spent time with our "Chosen" devotional tonight, quality time in the living room with readings and guided questions. Tomorrow we'll start watching the episodes of "The Chosen" again, continuing with the devotional as we read.  It has been good!

Not so good is the news we heard last month, something I haven't really brought up here yet - an Atlanta radio station has been sold, or whatever, and the end result is that the Fish is coming to an end on January 31st.  This radio station has been with us for a few decades now - I remember when it first started.  At the time, we just had a local station in Cumming, one we supported called "Victory 91.5."  Listeners flocked to the Fish, and we listened too of course.  The song selection was a bit repetitive at times, but the station was more than just the music - it was the personalities and fun.  And that Christmas Fish Wish program was a huge deal - look at me already talking about something in the past tense that has been going on for years, even up until last month.  That program blessed Aunt Shain and her family when they needed it most, taking care of a lot of her financial situation and her Christmas when she lost her husband.  That was the Fish.  There are a lot of devastated listeners out there, and count us in on those who are pretty bummed about it all.  The new station will be centralized from somewhere else, including some programmed music and so forth.  But it will take a while for people to go there, as this seems like somewhat of a betrayal.  Anyway, the flavor of the month is this station, all of us collectively listening to the Fish for one last time, one last month.

Tonight we read, and we said our prayers too.  We're getting back to the ol' grind, starting up the new year on a cold note.  But it's going to be a good year!

The Masked Lime and Lemon Boy

Here we are at the first KidPak service of 2025!  This morning's KidPak service brought back the Masked Lime and Lemon Boy, a really old skit that we did some time ago for our series "Juicy Fruit."  Things went well this morning, with lots of laughs and a great introduction to the Fruit of the Spirit, which we'll be talking about the next few weeks.  It's only appropriate to talk about fruit, as we're starting our church fast today and we're staying away from sweets and meat for twenty-one days.  Of course, beyond that, we're doing some quality devotional time - Mom, Maddie and I were doing this new "Chosen" themed devotional... well, at least new to us.  Basically, it follows the show episode by episode, and it covers topics and highlights scriptures and gives guided questions.  Mom, Maddie and I sat at the kitchen table talking about the Old Testament and New Testament, and talking about Mary, Simon Peter, Nicodemus and Matthew too.  We'll be watching episode one soon enough, but this was a good introduction day.  We'll continue reading tomorrow, and continue the devotional time.

This morning's service was good, and right after that we went home to where Mom was with a good lunch for us.  She had some cream of asparagus soup, and that was really good and filling.  Mom and I had a good afternoon nap after that.  She's still under the weather somewhat, which is why she wasn't at service this morning.  But it's getting better.  

Tonight we continued our "High School Musical" marathon with the second movie, which is another good one.  We actually own the concert video too, so we might add that to the marathon.  Tomorrow we'll revisit the third movie, and then after that we'll even watch the Sharpay solo movie.  We've got hard copies of all of these, and it's been a while since we've seen them.  But they're still great movies with great choreography and music.  The second one is really fun, and the three of us enjoyed it again.  We'll see part three tomorrow.

The night was closed out with a few more pages from "Hogfather," which we're really winding down on now.  I think only thirty pages left or so, but it's a great book, a real page-turner.  Maddie and I used self-control and agreed to continue reading tomorrow, just because we knew we had to get to bed tonight.  After all, school is coming back tomorrow, the first day of 2025!

After prayers... good night!

First Saturday of 2025

The DeSantafication Process continued in earnest today as we took the ornaments off of the piano room tree, and even the lights too.  Bittersweet sort of times when you take down these trees, leaving just this darkened pine tree in your living room, a shadow of things that used to be.  We've still got a three more trees to do, although I suspect that will wait until Monday.  Maddie was helping me get the ornaments off the tree as we listened to some music on the laptop here.  Oh yeah, the music was part of my "Psalms" collection that I've just started to pick up again - I'm setting all of the Psalms to music from artificial intelligence.  In some cases it is pretty challenging because of the length or way the words in the psalms are organized.  Nevertheless, I have about a hundred of them done so far, and it's been a fun project.  It helps you remember scriptures, setting them to music.  This is why we were also working on a "Fruit of the Spirit" song too.  I just write out the lyrics and see what AI can come up with.  I used the terms "acoustic guitar, finger style, folk, upbeat, bass guitar, male singer lead" for prompts, and plugged in these lyrics:

[instrumental intro]

[verse 1]

You know Jesus set us free, 

so we can run the race.

So don’t look like sour grapes, 

or make that lemon face!

You know what I'm talkin' about -

just listen to His Spirit.

Galatians chapter five says it all, 

so now sit back and hear it!

[CHORUS]

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, 

patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 

gentleness and self-control.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, 

patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 

gentleness and self-control.

[verse 2]

Keep workin’ at your garden.

Show Him and others love.

You have strong roots, and lots of fruits:

A harvest from above!

See we are all the branches, 

and Jesus is the vine

So don’t you sin, just follow Him, 

and all will be just fine!

[CHORUS]

Yes that fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, 

patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 

gentleness and self-control.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, 

patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 

gentleness and self-control.

[verse 3]

Sin is like a rotten fruit

and it's bad for you and me.

Check out Galatians, chapter five

Twenty-two and twenty-three.

You judge a tree by it’s fruit,

so make your fruit the best.

Remember Paul's fruity list

You’ll see your life so blessed.

[CHORUS]

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, 

patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 

gentleness and self-control.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, 

patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 

gentleness and self-control.

It's interesting the different results that came out, but one was good enough for us to use in the service as kids come pouring in to the auditorium.  

So it's cold outside, and that's about right because it is winter.  It'll be miserable a few states north of us soon, as there's a tremendous ice and snow storm crashing through.  It's going to be a big deal.  Down here in Georgia, not so much, although we could see some ice and maybe a little snow by the end of next week.  We'll see.  But right now:  cold.  We need to go out and get wood and get the ol' fireplace going for some ambience.

In the meantime, we're keeping the bird feeders stocked, and that brings great joy to all the birds out there.  "His eye is on the sparrow" has become a favorite scripture of mine, just because it brings to mind the Lord looking out as we do, and of course we see the wonderful variety of birds that come in and are well fed, all sharing the seeds - except for that robin, who acts like a total jerk.  But we even let him eat as well.  The blue birds are looking healthy, as are the others:  sparrows, phoebes, finches, blue jays, cardinals, tufted titmouse, chickadees, nuthatches, mourning doves, mockingbirds, and about four different kinds of woodpecker for the suet feeder.  We have a few grackles from time to time too.

Some time ago, we determined that Maddie needed to see "High School Musical" before the end of her high school experience.  And of course there are only four months to go, so tonight we watched the first "High School Musical" movie together, and yeah, now we're singing all the songs all over again.  I nearly forgot how well done these movies were, with great choreography, a talented cast, and some memorable songs.  Yes, we enjoyed it - again - it's hard to believe this, but this movie is as old as Maddie is.  Yeah.  Anyway, she's seen these before too.  The first time I saw this movie I had the bar really low, thinking this would be just a fun little made-for-tv thing, but in fact it was pretty awesome!  So anyway, fast forward to tonight, and it was amazing having our high schooler here watching the movie with us.  It goes without saying that we'll be watching the other movies next.

We had our last meal today, or at least the last meal with meat in it.  That's for me, at least.  Tomorrow is the start of the fast, which meant up until midnight we were doing a sort of "Fat Tuesday" thing, eating up all the sweets in the pantry and dining on a rotisserie chicken we picked up at the grocery store.  Maddie picked up a Mardi Gras flavor one, but the bag actually ripped open right there in the grocery store, and ... SPLAT!  The chicken hit the floor.  The five-second rule was long past by the time we got an employee over there to clean it up.  We're ready for soups and so forth during the fast, but more importantly, we're also ready for the additional Bible time.  

We'll be watching "The Chosen" again, and simultaneously reading some study guides for season one and season two.  It'll be a good time, and of course we'll be also reading other devotional material too.

Speaking of reading, tonight we read some more from "Hogfather," as we discovered the true identity of the Tooth Fairy and also dealt with Mr. Teatime, at least for the time being.  The story is winding down, certainly.  Every trip to the Discworld is special.  Mom got me this book of artwork from the Discworld, and it's just wonderful.  

This is a must-have for any Discworld fanatic like me.  No doubt Maddie and I will continue on with our Discworld reading for a good bit.  Maddie is enjoying it, and so am I.

We closed out the day with prayer, and getting under those blankets.  The Plush Entourage is keeping her company still, and I'm marching along on that treadmill still, trying to stay healthy.  Mom is feeling under the weather still, but it's gradually getting better.  It's a predictable sort of illness, only because I just had it, and I know she just needs about a week to go through the roughest patches of it.  Still, we take good care of Mom.