Sunday, September 19, 2004
George W. Bush
I am very proud of my president, George W. Bush. I appreciate his sincere heart. Not that I know him personally. But I know enough about him to trust his honor, determination, and strength of character to lead this country during this trying time in America's history.
I was struck last night by a commentator who said that liberal Americans respond to George W. Bush with the same negative vigor as conservative Americans responded to Bill Clinton. The difference is that liberals are upset about the issues that George W. Bush stands for: the war in Iraq, marriage being defined as only being one woman and one man, limited stem-cell research, and life beginning at conception. Whereas the conservatives were upset about the personal character failures of Bill Clinton: "I did not have sexual relations with that woman.", impeachment, Paula Jones, Whitewater, White House favors for fund raising.
Of course conservatives were upset with the issues too: "don't ask, don't tell", reproductive rights, appointments like Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders, and many others. But Clinton's presidential legacy is full of scandal and abuse of power.
George W. Bush's presidency to this point is full of tragedy and loss. Sept 11th, world economic downturn, job loss, Afghanistan, WMD, Saddam Hussein's capture, and the war in Iraq. But through it all, George W has been strong and determined to do the "right" thing for America. He hasn't wavered in his commitment to lead and protect America. That's why I'm so proud of President George W. Bush.
That's why I will vote for him again in November.
I was struck last night by a commentator who said that liberal Americans respond to George W. Bush with the same negative vigor as conservative Americans responded to Bill Clinton. The difference is that liberals are upset about the issues that George W. Bush stands for: the war in Iraq, marriage being defined as only being one woman and one man, limited stem-cell research, and life beginning at conception. Whereas the conservatives were upset about the personal character failures of Bill Clinton: "I did not have sexual relations with that woman.", impeachment, Paula Jones, Whitewater, White House favors for fund raising.
Of course conservatives were upset with the issues too: "don't ask, don't tell", reproductive rights, appointments like Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders, and many others. But Clinton's presidential legacy is full of scandal and abuse of power.
George W. Bush's presidency to this point is full of tragedy and loss. Sept 11th, world economic downturn, job loss, Afghanistan, WMD, Saddam Hussein's capture, and the war in Iraq. But through it all, George W has been strong and determined to do the "right" thing for America. He hasn't wavered in his commitment to lead and protect America. That's why I'm so proud of President George W. Bush.
That's why I will vote for him again in November.
Tuesday, September 14, 2004
Wedded Bliss
This past weekend Timothy and I celebrated the 13th anniversary of our union as husband and wife.
Our life together has been and continues to be blessed by God. I am so happy to report that Timothy still completes me. God definitely made us to be together and herein lies such joy.
Mom was very gracious and cared for Peanut and Boo for 2 nights. Timothy and I ate dinner on Friday night in downtown Minneapolis sitting at an outside table. We then rode the new light rail for an hour. It was a very wonderful evening.
On Saturday, we played 36 holes of golf. Our first tee time was at 7:50 at Troy Burne in Hudson. What a gorgeous course! We rode a cart and finished in 3.5 hours. I was amazed to be comfortable on Sep 11 in shorts and a golf shirt. It was warm and sunny out.
We ate lunch at a Chipotle in Woodbury and then drove down near Northfield for our 2nd round of the day at Willinger's (it was about an hour drive). Our tee time was 2:15. The round was very delightful. The company was especially good. Timothy really hit some good shots - especially considering that he played his 2nd and 3rd round of 18 that day for the year. I've played a lot of golf this summer - but Timothy has been managing all of the construction going on at home and hasn't played much at all.
I'm so thankful that Timothy loves to golf. It is so wonderful to have something that you both enjoy that we can do together. Golfing is definitely our best "date" activity.
Sunday brought us back to "normal" life as we got the kids back and going in the new year of Sunday school and choir. I love having the kids of course. But it is also good to remember that I enjoy being Timothy's wife and I still need to work at being married. And the kids benefit from our happy marriage too!
Our life together has been and continues to be blessed by God. I am so happy to report that Timothy still completes me. God definitely made us to be together and herein lies such joy.
Mom was very gracious and cared for Peanut and Boo for 2 nights. Timothy and I ate dinner on Friday night in downtown Minneapolis sitting at an outside table. We then rode the new light rail for an hour. It was a very wonderful evening.
On Saturday, we played 36 holes of golf. Our first tee time was at 7:50 at Troy Burne in Hudson. What a gorgeous course! We rode a cart and finished in 3.5 hours. I was amazed to be comfortable on Sep 11 in shorts and a golf shirt. It was warm and sunny out.
We ate lunch at a Chipotle in Woodbury and then drove down near Northfield for our 2nd round of the day at Willinger's (it was about an hour drive). Our tee time was 2:15. The round was very delightful. The company was especially good. Timothy really hit some good shots - especially considering that he played his 2nd and 3rd round of 18 that day for the year. I've played a lot of golf this summer - but Timothy has been managing all of the construction going on at home and hasn't played much at all.
I'm so thankful that Timothy loves to golf. It is so wonderful to have something that you both enjoy that we can do together. Golfing is definitely our best "date" activity.
Sunday brought us back to "normal" life as we got the kids back and going in the new year of Sunday school and choir. I love having the kids of course. But it is also good to remember that I enjoy being Timothy's wife and I still need to work at being married. And the kids benefit from our happy marriage too!
Friday, September 10, 2004
The Wireless Adventure
I bought my first laptop from a friend of my friend, Kristy. For only $200 I got a "new to me" dell laptop. But it came with no O/S or anything. Just the machine and the power cord.
I brought it home on Tuesday evening (3 days ago) and promptly went to BestBuy to buy an O/S and wireless stuff.
Many hours and about $400 more, I now have a laptop with XP loaded that connects to the Internet wirelessly through the router connected to my cable modem (I crashed the desktop 3 times trying to get the router configured - and still be able to use AOL, etc. I was up until 3:30AM 2 nights ago and 1AM last night waiting for software to install, etc. O.K. so I've been a little maniac about it.) And I bought a cool wireless mouse... I just have the stupid power cord to deal with! Let the good times roll.
I brought it home on Tuesday evening (3 days ago) and promptly went to BestBuy to buy an O/S and wireless stuff.
Many hours and about $400 more, I now have a laptop with XP loaded that connects to the Internet wirelessly through the router connected to my cable modem (I crashed the desktop 3 times trying to get the router configured - and still be able to use AOL, etc. I was up until 3:30AM 2 nights ago and 1AM last night waiting for software to install, etc. O.K. so I've been a little maniac about it.) And I bought a cool wireless mouse... I just have the stupid power cord to deal with! Let the good times roll.
Let's Roll
I read "Let's Roll" over the weekend by Lisa Beamer. This was very timely given the 3rd year anniversary of 9/11 tomorrow.
I was struck by 3 things while reading the book about Todd Beamer and the heroic acts of the passengers on United Flight 93:
1. Todd and Lisa Beamer are just like us. Before 9/11, had we lived close to them, we probably would have been friends. We have a lot in common: age, life stage, deep faith adventures with Jesus.
2. My earthly life is very short and it could end at anytime. As Pastor Henderson said during last week's sermon, we live in a small dot on the line of Eternity. "While we live in the dot, we must learn to live FOR the line."
3. Some people in this world hate me. The enemy of my soul has many people in this world convinced that I am an evil infidel and should be destroyed. I can't imagine living life motivated by hatred. But then Jesus said, "The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy" and Peter said, "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." I'm not afraid. It's just reality and a wake up call to Christians that no matter what there's a war being fought and Praise Jesus, He's already won!
I was struck by 3 things while reading the book about Todd Beamer and the heroic acts of the passengers on United Flight 93:
1. Todd and Lisa Beamer are just like us. Before 9/11, had we lived close to them, we probably would have been friends. We have a lot in common: age, life stage, deep faith adventures with Jesus.
2. My earthly life is very short and it could end at anytime. As Pastor Henderson said during last week's sermon, we live in a small dot on the line of Eternity. "While we live in the dot, we must learn to live FOR the line."
3. Some people in this world hate me. The enemy of my soul has many people in this world convinced that I am an evil infidel and should be destroyed. I can't imagine living life motivated by hatred. But then Jesus said, "The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy" and Peter said, "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." I'm not afraid. It's just reality and a wake up call to Christians that no matter what there's a war being fought and Praise Jesus, He's already won!
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
First Day of School
Peanut and Boo started school on Monday morning. Hopkins was the first district in the state to start school. The kids will go to school through Thursday. Then they'll have 4 days off for Labor Day weekend. Then they return for another 4 day week on Tuesday.
While the kids are at school, Timothy has been making a lot of progress on staining and sealing the windows. He is getting closer and closer to starting to paint the "cabin" room. The contractors are done. The last city inspection has been passed. Only the windows, painting, and trim work remains. We are so close to having a complete new room. We still don't know what furniture will be in there. Nor do we really have the $$ for new furniture right now. But it is very exciting to see the end in sight. I REALLY APPRECIATE ALL OF THE WORK THAT TIMOTHY HAS DONE IMPROVING OUR HOME THIS SUMMER. I don't know how we could have done all of this without him being home overseeing it all.
While the kids are at school, Timothy has been making a lot of progress on staining and sealing the windows. He is getting closer and closer to starting to paint the "cabin" room. The contractors are done. The last city inspection has been passed. Only the windows, painting, and trim work remains. We are so close to having a complete new room. We still don't know what furniture will be in there. Nor do we really have the $$ for new furniture right now. But it is very exciting to see the end in sight. I REALLY APPRECIATE ALL OF THE WORK THAT TIMOTHY HAS DONE IMPROVING OUR HOME THIS SUMMER. I don't know how we could have done all of this without him being home overseeing it all.
Accidental Marathon Runner
This could only happen to Renee. She and Mike signed up for a 5K run on Sunday Aug 29th. Her goal was to complete the race in under 27 minutes.
Renee is in great shape right now thanks to 6 weeks of Basic Training class at LifeTime. And the 27 minute goal was reasonable.
Renee and Mike lined up and started the race... After a couple of miles, Renee realized that something was wrong... where was the finish line?? She finally asked a fellow runner - realizing that he had a red letter pinned to him and Renee's letter was black - and she was told that they were running a half-marathon. At that point she was on a trail somewhere in Woodbury - so she just kept running.... and running.... and running....
She finished in 2:02:58
Renee Gebauer: 25 of 40 women in 35-39 - 86 of 162 women: 2:02:58
An accidental marathoner. There's no way I would have kept running.
P.S. Mike was pretty frustrated as he realized that they were running a half-marathon and thinking that Renee had peeled off somewhere he decided to stop running around the 10 mile mark and go find Renee. He was proud when he saw Renee finish. And he wished that he had finished too.
Renee is in great shape right now thanks to 6 weeks of Basic Training class at LifeTime. And the 27 minute goal was reasonable.
Renee and Mike lined up and started the race... After a couple of miles, Renee realized that something was wrong... where was the finish line?? She finally asked a fellow runner - realizing that he had a red letter pinned to him and Renee's letter was black - and she was told that they were running a half-marathon. At that point she was on a trail somewhere in Woodbury - so she just kept running.... and running.... and running....
She finished in 2:02:58
Renee Gebauer: 25 of 40 women in 35-39 - 86 of 162 women: 2:02:58
An accidental marathoner. There's no way I would have kept running.
P.S. Mike was pretty frustrated as he realized that they were running a half-marathon and thinking that Renee had peeled off somewhere he decided to stop running around the 10 mile mark and go find Renee. He was proud when he saw Renee finish. And he wished that he had finished too.
Edinburgh Club Championship
Well, my last golf event of the summer went mediocre at best. Thanks to the lunar cycle I was pretty much out of whack on Sat Aug 28. I shot an 88 in the first round of the EWGA Club Championship. This performance put me in 3rd place going into the final round on Sun Aug 29. I played a little better during the second round shooting an 82 for a 170 total. This was enough to win by 1 shot. I limped in... But it was a win none the less.
I'm still working out at Northwest most mornings - and I'm excited about my physical progress. I'm definitely losing some body fat and getting stronger. I have a ways to go though. I want to be in good shape to compete with the 18 year olds next summer in the state tourneys. And I'm feeling and looking better.
I'm still working out at Northwest most mornings - and I'm excited about my physical progress. I'm definitely losing some body fat and getting stronger. I have a ways to go though. I want to be in good shape to compete with the 18 year olds next summer in the state tourneys. And I'm feeling and looking better.
Laura's Visit
My dear friend, Laura, came to visit on Friday afternoon, Aug 20th from Santa Barbara.
We had a wonderful visit. We had lots of time to chat. We had coffee with Renee on Saturday morning. We had the Fries family over for a bar-b-que on Saturday evening.
On Sunday, Laura went with my family to Grace Church. Laura and Ruth and I went to Duluth for Sunday evening. We ate dinner at Fitger's - a place I'd seen for ~15 years... I don't need to go back there again. We spent the night at Superior Shores in Two Harbors. The swimming pool and hot tub was very relaxing.
We slept in on Monday morning until 9:45AM. That was the latest Ruth had slept in about 7 years - since before Ryan's birth. We had brunch at the resort and then ventured to Duluth for a tour of the Glensheen mansion.
Timothy was very understanding about this visit. Especially since Monday was our 13th wedding anniversary. Thankfully we have an anniversary weekend scheduled for Sept 11 - 12 for golf and fun.
I so enjoyed Laura's visit. I appreciate our friendship.... it's very edifying to have a friend that knows so much about you and that God uses to shine His Light into your life. Sometimes the Light brightens areas that really need brightening and healing. God is very good.
The verse for the weekend was Ex 14:14 "The Lord will fight for you. You need only to be still."
On Tuesday morning, I had to return Laura to the airport.
We had a wonderful visit. We had lots of time to chat. We had coffee with Renee on Saturday morning. We had the Fries family over for a bar-b-que on Saturday evening.
On Sunday, Laura went with my family to Grace Church. Laura and Ruth and I went to Duluth for Sunday evening. We ate dinner at Fitger's - a place I'd seen for ~15 years... I don't need to go back there again. We spent the night at Superior Shores in Two Harbors. The swimming pool and hot tub was very relaxing.
We slept in on Monday morning until 9:45AM. That was the latest Ruth had slept in about 7 years - since before Ryan's birth. We had brunch at the resort and then ventured to Duluth for a tour of the Glensheen mansion.
Timothy was very understanding about this visit. Especially since Monday was our 13th wedding anniversary. Thankfully we have an anniversary weekend scheduled for Sept 11 - 12 for golf and fun.
I so enjoyed Laura's visit. I appreciate our friendship.... it's very edifying to have a friend that knows so much about you and that God uses to shine His Light into your life. Sometimes the Light brightens areas that really need brightening and healing. God is very good.
The verse for the weekend was Ex 14:14 "The Lord will fight for you. You need only to be still."
On Tuesday morning, I had to return Laura to the airport.
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