Speaking Freely

"Today we went to the hospice center to visit pastor Thor. Since Saturday he's kinda taken a couple of turns downward in his health and we went to visit him and pray for him. During the time of our meeting we ended up singing one of his favorite hymns, all hail the power of Jesus name. It was pretty moving to see him even though his eyes are closed and he doesn't seem to be interacting, when we began to sing the song his mouth start to move to form the words. Any day now he could be with the Lord, and we want to pray that God is with his family and friends here. It reminds me that in the end, the things that are most important are not the things you can buy. Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust cannot destroy and thieves cannot break in and steal."

spoken through SpinVox

We Might Have a Problem

A picture is worth....well, see if you can spot what's wrong with this picture. This is in the bathroom at Lincoln Rock State Park where we are camping this week. Other than the mistaken signage, this place is awesome. Camping here is becoming our family tradition. We have been busy swimming, riding bikes, roasting marshmallows, and tonight we are planning on counting shooting stars.

What the Future Holds

Apparently this is what I will look like in 50 years....that's right, when I turn 80 I can expect to look in the mirror and see this.

This was actually from a computer at Disneyland that takes your photo, then manipulates it to guess what you will look like in 50 years.  Scary!

I honestly found a patch of white hairs on the side of my head the other day!  Look out world.

Clean Caffeine

We are down in LA working at the Dream Center and I saw a first...a Starbucks in a laundrymat, or is it the other way around?

anywho...checl out all of our updates at http://www.cedarpark.org/youth

Treehouse Update

Ok, this is one of those projects that I have been working on as I have time. The girls and I have been having a lot of fun putting it up. next step is roofing and siding.

When it's all done we plan on having a treehouse campout! We'll see how that goes.

Pregnant Man Runs for President

Ok the title was just to get your attention. Here's the real thought:

I was watching the news the other day and the story about the pregnant man came on again. Pregnant Man! Give me a break. It takes more than a beard and boots to make a man. Just because some lesbian gets pumped up with testosterone doesn't mean she is a man. Here's a little science for you: if you have a uterus and need to take pills to grow a beard, then you are a woman.

I mean honestly if John McCain started taking pills to darken his skin and his hair black and curly, we wouldn't be saying he was the first African American GOP candidate for President. Pills and surgery can't change what you are, just what you look like.

It seems as if the media is bent on making this story "ground breaking" news. I just think it is ridiculous. Here is a decent take on it that isn't what Oprah would tell you.

Rainy Day Garage Sale!

So we thought, "it's June, great month for garage sales!" Little did we know it would rain like crazy and barely break 50 degrees. But we are hard core--break out the tent shelters.

The kids (and cat) however are more about movies on a rainy day.

Blogging Across the Country

I was just looking at my google analytics reports and I have to say I love the map overlay feature, which shows you a map layout of where your hits have been coming from, right down to the town. Well I was a little surprised to see that my blog has been read in a straight line across the country, from Washington State all the way to Virginia! In all I think I have hit 21 states, but enough to connect a line from west coast to east coast.

Probably not cool to anyone but me, but if you haven't set up google analytics on your blog yet....get crackin'!

Scriptural Voyeurism

So I have realized something about myself lately that makes me cringe: in my interaction with the Word of God, I have developed a tendency to be content as a spectator. In the world of sports there are two kinds of people--those who enjoy watching the game, and the athletes. The same is true in the worlds of music, art, relationships, you name it. As a culture we have become too content being spoon fed the Scriptures, and not ever participating ourselves. In sports, the athlete can still be successful without the spectators, but absent the athlete and there is nothing to watch. What we need is to commit to become Scriptural Athletes who compete, train, and practice on a regular basis.

You know you are in danger of becoming a Scripture Spectator when:

• you read something and almost right away the only thing you can recall are the "main details" not individual words or phrases
  
• you have not memorized any new pieces of Scripture since you were in college, or sunday school.
• when you hear someone else read or quote Scripture you subconsciously try to finish it as if to say to yourself, "I already know this one."
• when you read the stories in Scripture you only see words on a page and not faces and people and real life stories.

Now I realize that when we live our entire lives as Christians and have been reading the same stories and verses for many years, we can develop callouses to them, and the subtle nuances of Truth can wash right over us without ever being absorbed. I firmly believe that if that is the case, we need a new set of behaviors to achieve new results.

Here are a few that I am committed to:

• read a new translation
• memorize significant portions of Scripture
• read the Scriptures out loud
• visualize the stories, put yourself in them.

Make this whole process alive, not some dead old ritual. This is our field, our instrument, our canvas. Make it meaningful.

In a Few Words

Just read an interesting blog on Music Thing regarding pop music. Apparently since 1890, of the 37,000 songs that have made it into the top 100, collectively fewer than 9,000 words were used in those songs. That's not a whole lot of words.

Maybe it's that what we consider to be new and fresh, really is just a regurgitation of what was "new and fresh" yesterday, or we really don't care what's new and fresh. Or maybe it's just that there aren't very many good words out there?

Or just maybe it's that there are some super nerds out there with too much time on their hands to analyze pop music for the last 109 years. Seriously guys get a life....but until then, keep posting your findings, cause it's pretty cool.

Smith Family Robinson

Last weekend I started building a treehouse for my kids. We are all excited about it, but I think up to this point I have been having more fun with it than the kids. Sometimes I think I am just a big kid who is allowed to play with power tools!

Daddy Day Off

Took the day off to help Sandy get ready for Olivia's and Jazlyn's birthday party tonight. Lots of excitement around here today. Olivia turned 6 today, and Jazlyn will turn 9 tomorrow! I can't believe it.

Well, a few minutes ago Ava (3 1/2) opened the front door and said, "daddy, there's a box at the door." Lo and behold, there was Olivia's present (thanks FedEx). She has been asking for an American Girl Doll for her birthday, so we finally ponied up and bought her one. She was so excited to see the cardboard box at the door, that she knew was her present (I think she probably could guess, by the size of the box what it is, but I told her is was a box of cheese and sausage).

Back in the Saddle and Burned!

So I feel like I have fallen out of the gravitational pull of the blog-o-verse, but alas I am now approaching re-orbit. Just got back from a trip to San Diego (North County actually), which was a part of my Seminary training--I know, suffering for the Lord! I spent a good deal of my time (between sessions of course) at the beach, thus the burn. When in Rome......

Part of the trip was visiting a great and creative church, North Coast Church, in Vista, CA. NCC is a church of about 7,000 which sounds a bit pretentious, until you visit them. You can read more about them here. They have pioneered a model of ministry that is quite creative and apparently in their context quite effective. They are one church with many locations, many styles, many mindsets, that are linked together each weekend by a shared teaching experience via video. Their senior pastor Larry Osborne is a great leader, and a very creative thinker. We had the chance to spend the day at his house on Friday.

Anyhow, here are some pictures of the trip for those who are interested.

New Friends and Old Friends

Last night I headed down to Puyallup (South Hill actually) to preach at Destiny Christian Center's Youth Service. The youth pastor there, Matt Benson is a great guy, and a new friend of mine. It was really refreshing to visit a church in a different city, and talk with another youth pastor, and encourage each other, and share some of the tough spots. Matt is a great youth pastor who is doing great things in the south Sound region.

One thing I appreciated about him is the fact that he has been in youth ministry for 8 years.....at the same church! In the big picture that would be considered a youth pastor dinosaur. I think the average youth pastor is at one church somewhere in the ballpark of 18 months. This year I will have been at my church for 9 years. It is great to see youth pastors really sticking through some of the tough times and making a significant difference.

It was also great to see Suzy Reed (and Kyle too) who was an intern here at CP last year, and has been a good friend of Sandy and I.

Normal Days Ahead.....hopefully!

Ok, so I have been neglecting the blog for a while....but in my defense I have been quite occupied. We just finished a production last night at our church called "Generations." I was actually quite surprised when Daniel Perrin asked if I would consider taking a role in this, since I knew it was a musical. I was reluctant at first, because, while I have done some acting in the past, performance singing is a bit out of my comfort zone. The thing that got me to say yes was the idea that we are taking this show on the road, in October we will be performing Generations in Tel Aviv and in Jerusalem.

It has been a really great experience, very stretching, but fun. It was great to work with some real pros, such as Ross Hauck, Jadd Davis, Kasey Nusbickel, and director Marianne Savell, and of course my beautiful wife Sandy Smith (the most talented and beautiful of all).

So that's what I have been doing for the last two weeks. Now I am back in the "normal" swing of things.

It's All About a Good Fight

I grew up loving the Sonics. I can remember in Jr Hi and High School going to games in the Key Arena. I remember the Sir Mixalot "no not in our house" days when everyone in Seattle loved the boys in green.

Somewhere along the line my interest in the team began to fade. It seemed like there was more complaining coming from the Sonics organization than anything else..."this stadium is too small...too old...too, whatever!"

I guess I just got sick of it. So, naturally when talk came of this new owner, NBA "good 'ol boy" Clay Bennett moving the team to Okie-land, I was a bit apathetic. Don't get me wrong, I hate to see the team leave, but after all, it is a private organization, run by owners, not a public team. Clay has every right to run his organization how, and where he wants to.

Then, news came this past week of former owner, Howard Schultz now looking to sue Mr. Bennett for breaching the contract, which was that there would be a good faith effort to keep the team in Seattle. Well as the news came out seemingly pointing to the idea that Bennett wanted to move the team all along, Schultz wants to sue (most likely just to be Seattle's favorite guy again).

Some how this new twist got me interested again in the destiny of the team that I grew up loving. I think it is the fight that got me stirred up again. There is just something about a good fight for something that gets me interested. I'm not talking about a brawl, with broken bottles and bar stools flying, but just the essence of fighting for something.

Go Schultzy, stick it to the Good 'Ol Boy!

Half Marathon Photos

Now I'm Officially Half Crazy--My First Half Marathon

Just got done this morning running my first half-marathon out on Whidbey Island. Woah....so I realized that I should have trained a little more before tackling the 13.1 mile death match with the pavement.

Actually, I was a few minutes off my goal...I wanted to finish in less than 2 hours, but alas, I pooped out around mile 11, and lost my steam. But I accomplished to overall goal or torturing myself for 2 hours......uh scratch that--I accomplished my overall goal of finishing (albeit in 2:04:09). That puts me above the average finishing time, and overall placement of 560 out of 1479 runners. Ok, so now know what I need to work on for the next one.

I will post a few photos as soon as Ian (the guy who talked me into this whole thing) emails them.

Leadership Derby--Whirlwind of a Weekend

So we had a whirlwind weekend, but a great one. It started out with the Evoke conference on Friday night at Northwest University. I taught a packed out breakout session, and it was a lot of fun. There were a lot of young leaders there. I was reminded that future of the Kingdom of God is in good hands. There are so many great young leaders in this area that have a passion for building the Church.

So after a late night on Friday, and getting all of our students to the conference again on Saturday, I headed off to what I was looking forward to all weekend--my girls PineWood Derby race. We had been working hard on their cars for about a week now, and wanted to see how they would do. It was good. Two 1st place in show trophies, one 2nd place in show, and 4th, 5th, and 6th in race. We weren't the fastest, but we were the best looking!

Space Shuttle Commuter Plan

Just watching the news the other night, and the gov of the great state of Washington, the honorable Christine Gregoire unveiled her new plan for replacing the 520 floating bridge across Lake Washington. The plan calls for a new bridge to be built which would run parallel to the existing bridge, effectively doubling the traffic capacity of the bridge.

Good idea.

The way that it would be paid for would be by installing a toll. So the people who use the road (in theory) would pay for the road.

Good idea.

The cost? Get ready.....FOUR BILLION DOLLARS.....

So, I engaged my curiosity and creativity, did a little research and according to NASA we can buy 3 Space Shuttle's for the price of one bridge. Wonder how many commuters you could pile in a Space shuttle?

Just a little something to chew on.

Monday Morning Amusement

I used this video yesterday when teaching our youth Sunday morning class. I thought I would share it with you, my blog-friends. If you read the note from facebook you won't be able to see the video so click on the link to the original post.

Enjoy!

Priorities and Presence

There are three great loves in my life:

• My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
• My Wife and Children.
• The Church and its Mission.

There are three small loves in my life:

• Music (writing, performing, listening)
• The great outdoors (hunting, fishing, hiking, camping)
• Technology (I really am a geek, cleverly disguised)

Often such ideals are expressed in terms of priority, in the form of a bulleted list with the most important residing precariously at the top. I have found that while there are things that are more important than others, they are not expressed in real life scenarios in bullet form. Often the less important and the more important are next-door neighbors, and often roommates. They all occupy the same space and time. In fact space and time are what make them important. While it is true that I love my family more than I love music, I can easily spend more time on an average day listening to music in the car, in my office, on my ipod, than I do with my family. Does that automatically require that it move up the bulleted list of values in my life? I believe this to not be the case. While one cannot dismiss the quantity of time spent on something as an indicator of importance, it is not the only indicator. One indicator that I believe is crucial to declaring value, and priority is presence. We all can make a list of events that we attended that we were not present at. Whether it was a Sunday morning church service that we spent most of checking the scores of the game on our phone, a meeting where the most of our mental energy went into something taking place elsewhere, or a family dinner that we were disengaged from because of some distraction. I believe that the more we multi-task during a given event, meeting, or relationship, the message that we proclaim is that it may be important, but there are many other things that are just as important right now, so I will share this time with them. Back to the music and family analogy—I may listen to music while I am responding to emails or making phone calls, but in our house we do not typically listen to music during dinner. For me it is not a mood setter, but an attention getter. I do not have the capacity to allow music to be white noise. I will feel the need to analyze lyrics, musical features, and it will be splitting my attention from my family. I try and practice the discipline of presence to show my family and my self that this is a priority moment.

Recently I had a moment of epiphany regarding this idea of presence. As a lover of technology, my phone is one of the interfaces with technology that is important to me. I can check sports scores, send and receive text messages, emails, phone calls, browse the news, watch videos. It is simply amazing what can be accomplished on a phone today! However, all of these tasks and conveniences come at a price. That price is often seen in presence. How many times have we allowed an important conversation to be interrupted by an incoming call, or text? How many times have we allowed our attention to stray from the moment, to somewhere else because we were reading an email. The prophet Isaiah describes people who “have eyes but are blind,” and “have ears but are deaf.” I believe that by denying our presence to a given moment we are denying the ability of our eyes to see and our ears to hear. God gave me this thought,

“what if the things that I am listening to are keeping me from hearing the things that I really need to? What if the things that are occupying my time are not the most important things?”

I was convicted by this thought, and I resolved that I would make efforts to be present, especially when it came to the big 3 in my life. I made the decision that for a given period of time I would only carry my cell phone during business hours. When I arrived at home I put my phone away. If someone called during that time, they could leave me a voicemail. If they texted me, I would text them back tomorrow. If they emailed me, I would delete it tomorrow (after I replied of course)! I found this to be a freeing exercise. I was no longer being pulled in several directions at one time, but free to be present in the moment that I chose. Since that time, I have resumed carrying my phone with me, but I no longer feel the need to look at who is calling every time it rings, or to answer every email or text immediately. In my opinion, the more instant a communication is does not render it more efficient, simply more convenient. We should never confuse convenience with efficacy.

I think there is an important distinction to make here. I am not saying that in order to communicate priority and presence your environment must be completely clear of any form of distraction. What is required even more is a focus, or mental clarity in any given scenario. The environments that you are able actually control are likely to be non-existent, which would require more of a mental and relational discipline rather than a physical one. However the physical manifestation of such discipline can be the gateway and even catalyst to the mental and relational practice of it. This is what was demonstrated in my phone fast. The initial physical act of placing my phone away, lead me to an adoption of that discipline in a mental and relational form. Now I can carry my phone in my pocket and still maintain mental focus and presence in spite of it. My ability to be in the present is not dictated by the distractions.

So the theory is, the things with a higher level of importance are treated with a greater degree of presence. More presence, more importance.

What are they ways that I elevate the important things in my day?

What are the things that are the primary usurpers of my presence?

Do the things that I give more presence to result in a greater outcome than those that receive less presence?

Does it irritate me when others are not present in a moment that is important to me?

In addition to these thoughts:

Should the church be added into the list of great loves of my life? I mean, as a believer have I ever been commended in the Scriptures to love the church? I know that the Scriptures give the command to love the Lord, love the people around me, and to love my wife (in the same way that CHRIST loved the church). Should I demote the church to one of the lesser loves in my life?

For the Love of Electricity

Steve was right...just a few moments after my last post, the power came back on. The coffee must have helped. Actually after my wife said it, I began to think about how much we depend on electricity. Without it, we really can't get much done in our day and age. It's funny how something you can see most of the time, can become so integral to life.

When you think about it, most of the absolutely vital elements of life are similar: you cannot see them most of the time, and they become more obvious in their absence. Think about the simple "invisible" necessities of life that you may take for granted. Cherish and appreciate them.

Love. Faith. Happiness. Significance. Purpose.

Whether it is in your family, your workplace, your friendships, or in your personal thoughts, take time to recognize the important invisibles.

Blogging Unplugged

I never imagined that I would be writing a blog with no power! Last night a drunk driver (a little too happy St. Patty's day), hit a power pole next to our house, and knocked out power to the whole neighborhood. Good thing my trusty Macbook has a charged battery, and I can connect to the internet through my trusty TMobile Dash. Desperate times call for more technology.

So as we got up this morning we realized that we couldn't make coffee at home (no, my macbook and Dash can't do that yet, but I am still holding out for the iLatte--come on Steve Jobs), so we piled into the car and headed down to Cafe Ladro in Bothell. We picked up a few hot coffees for the power crew who have been working since like 2:00am....they looked surprised.

It is amazing to me how even as I sit typing, and the temperature inside the house is dropping into the upper 50's, I can still connect and post a blog. What a day!

So hopefully the power crews can get things patched up, and things will get back to normal, but hey, abnormal is the new normal!

The Big Idea

Just started reading The Big Idea last night while watching The Biggest Loser. The first chapter got me kind of irritated, but as I started reading the second chapter I cooled down a bit. I will post a review when I finish the book, but I think it will be a good read.

Review: Chuck Norris on WorldnetDaily

Just read an interesting article by none other than Walker Texas Ranger himself.

I was quite impressed with the depth of insight that the Ranger brought to the subject. Apparently he is not only skilled with a roundhouse kick to the face, but also pretty good with words.

Here is what the article dealt with:

Apparently a California Appellate Court just ruled that homeschooling is unconstitutional and even unlawful. Wow! Apparently some judges fail to realize that some of the greatest leaders America has ever produced were educated by farmers, parents, and other "non-trained" individuals.

Chuck gives a great set of responses to the decision that concerned citizens should consider.

My favorite quote from Chuck: "And don't forget to appeal to my old buddy the Governator. Tell him to flex his muscle on this appellate motion, or Texas might have to export a Ranger to get 'er done!"

Leave me a voice Comment on this:

Why I Love the Biggest Loser

Part 3 of my perspective on what makes ministry fulfilling and worthwhile:

I love NBC's The Biggest Loser. I'm not really a regular watcher of the show, but I enjoy watching the premier, and the finale. I know that's not really the kind of fan that the executives over at NBC are excited about, but it's not the show that I love so much as the idea that it represents: It shows that America still believes that people can change. I will admit, for the most part the change that is seen on the show is pretty shallow, but there are some significant life changes that are made as a result of the show. People whose weight was a risk to their health and future literally, in front of millions of Americans, transform into new people with new habits, and a new lease on life.

Isn't that really what faith does for us? We have struggles, fears, habits, and vices in our lives that we feel are impassable (at least on our own) and the Spirit of Christ in us makes us believe that we can change, that we can as the Apostle Paul said "be transformed" (Rom 12:2).

Well, why is it that we can see change in front of us on TV every Tuesday night, but when it comes to our own lives, our families, co-workers, friends, and communities we so quickly throw in the towel of hope and say that there is no way?

It is time for a change in our thinking.

It is time that we begin to believe in the life transforming power of the Good News of Jesus Christ. It is time that we begin to believe the truth, that:
Anyone can change.
Anyone can be saved.
Anyone can be healed.
Any family can be changed by Christ.
Any situation can turn for the good.

In Mark 6 there is a story about Jesus' disciples rowing across the Sea of Galilee when a storm came up and prevented them from crossing easily. Actually by verse 48, I’d be willing to bet these guys didn’t even think they would make it across at all. It was at that darkest moment when Jesus appeared to them (actually he came to them walking on the water). It is interesting to me that Jesus chose to come to them walking on the thing that they were most afraid of at the time: the WATER. They thought they were going to drown, or be overcome by the waves, but Jesus showed that he was greater than their biggest fear.

I think he does the same thing for us today. Sometimes it gets dark and downright frightening. All we can see is the impossibility around us, and we lose hope. But here comes Jesus speaking confidently to us:

"There are no lost causes."

Call me and tell me what you think of this blog:

Here's what others said:

Have Fun and Laugh A LOT

Continuing on with thoughts of what makes ministry fulfilling and enjoyable:

I have always been one to crack jokes...often at the wrong time (but that will be for a later post). Maybe it's because I am the baby in my family, or simply because I have an aversion for things overly serious, but one of my favorite things in life is to make people laugh, and to laugh myself. There is something healing and powerful about laughter. As proverbs 17:22 puts it, " joyful heart is good medicine."

So overlay this onto the grid of ministry--if we are not having fun and laughing (not all the time, but at least some of the time) then we are building a joyless ministry. WE should be able to laugh at ourselves, and not always expect everyone to be so serious and stuffy all the time. This is what actually keeps many unbelievers from coming to church...they think it is boring and dull, no laughter, no life, no fun (and much of the time they are right).

Now I know that life isn't always fun, but it can be a lot more fun! If we don't have any joy in our lives (visible joy, not just joy inside and a stuffy frown outside) then what in the world are we preaching?

So have fun and laugh a lot, laugh at yourself, hey, even laugh at other people.

Where is God NOT?

Over the next few days I think I am going to post some thoughts about ministry, and the identifiers that make it personally fulfilling and enjoyable to me. They won't be in any order of importance, but just stream of consciousness type publishing. These have been rolling around in my head and on a few documents that I have been playing with for about a year, but I wanted to put them out there somewhere for input from others, and hopefully to make all of us think about what makes life and ministry worth giving ourselves to.

The church should be in the marketplace, simply because there is no place where God is not. I cannot imagine being satisfied with ministry that only had an impact inside a sanctuary, or was limited only to Sundays. I have a strong feeling that as a Christian and as a leader, I am to be a Christ-like influence where ever, and whenever. I also believe that the Church is not a building, it is a people, therefore wherever the people of Christ are, the church is. Hence, if the church is present, it should be doing something.

So what does a marketplace church look like? The beauty is, that it doesn't have to look the same as someone else's expression. The thing it needs to be is a change-bringer into lives and society. Many churches run coffee houses that become little community hubs, some churches run schools, daycares, really the options are endless. Honestly it can be something as simple as gathering a group of co-workers during lunch and studying the Scriptures. The point is that Chrisitians have the right and responsibility to be the church, not only in the privacy of their own homes or places of worship, but in the marketplace, where they work, live, shop, relax, etc.

Also, it should not seem strange that churches as organizations reach into "secular" realms to have influence. Churches should be involved in the entertainment industry, in the restaurant business, and every significant area of life. There is no place where God is not. He is native to every area of life, and so are his people.

The Social Internet

I thought I would put up a video that I worked on for a class I took this Winter. Interesting facts about how new technologies and tools of communication can impact the way we do ministry.

You may recognize Steve Bolen up there, and music from Adam Isaac.

I am a Lifesaver!

Just finished AED and first aid training...and I have the card to prove it! IT'S OK IM A LIMO DRIVER! Anyway, it was actually pretty interesting...hopefully I will never have to use my new-found depths of knowledge, but at leastI have them.

Rockin Primate

Oh my word! This is the most memorable commercial I have seen in quite a while. I can't figure out what it has to do with Cadbury Chocolate though.

Ministry at 50,000 volts

I was going through some old stuff and found the video of me last summer, getting tazered to raise money for missions at Cedar Park's Men's Breakfast. I am not sure what I was thinking, but I hope those missionaries used that money well.
Here is the video:

The worst part of it was when the pulled the hooks out of my back and butt. Here is that footage:

Encounter 2008

Last weekend was our youth winter camp "Encounter." It was a great weekend tearing the little Bavarian Village of Leavenworth apart. We had such a great time and the Spirit of God definitely showed up. Jeremy Johnson was our speaker, who has to be one of the funniest men on the planet.

It's always great when an event that you and your team put so much into goes off great--better than you could have planned. that's what happens when a team comes together around God's work..I love the Church.

Here is the highlight reel that my friend Jerry Butler put together.

Gotta Love January

Yesterday at church we were commenting on how Pastor Joe was praying that it wouldn’t snow, so people would be able to make it to Presentation Sunday, and how his wife Linda along with all of the kids who had school the next day were praying for snow.  It’s funny how everybody got what they wanted.  I love it when it snows.