IT Part 3

Friday January, 16, 2009.
We made it to Northern Virginia yesterday afternoon. The flight up was pretty uneventful. the kids did great and we had a great time catching up with our friends Ronald and Erin and their kids (whom we are staying with). Last night was a bit long as Cade decided to stay up most of the night. We think he is just getting over a cold. Parker is doing great.

It is cool being back up in an area we enjoyed the past few years. Most of the locals here think we are crazy for going to the Inauguration. The security is going to be crazy. They are closing all the bridges in and out of DC. The Metro (subway system) is running or 24 hours starting at 5 am on Tuesday. They are expecting millions to be downtown. And there are approximately 10,000 charter buses coming to DC for the festivities. On top of that, Martin Luther King, Jr. day is Monday and there are several events planned for that day as well. We go down on Monday to pick up our tickets and get the low down on where we will be standing and how to go through security and what we can bring in etc. Our understanding so far is we can NOT bring in any bags, backpacks, purses, etc at all. We are going to bring our small digital camera for pictures. Hopefully that will make it through. Oh and the temperature this morning was 8 degrees. It is now a balmy 12!! How I have missed NOVA winters.

More later...

Inauguration Trip Part 2

Hey there gang. We are taking a break from packing and beginning to realize we are heading to the Inauguration. Tonight I talked with Erin (one of friends in Northern VA, we are staying with her and her family). We are excited to be able to visit with some friends while on this trip. There are so many people we want to visit with. We had a great time while living there.

We actually went to President Bush's first Inauguration. The weather was typical January weather. It was about 30 degrees, raining, sleeting, snowing, and yucky. Later that day we got about 5 inches of fresh snow. It was an amazing event to see so many people involved in. It hit us how cool it is to live in a country that peacefully transitions power from one person to another. Of course there were some demonstrators and those that opposed the proceedings but that is another great thing about this country. We were not very close to the actual podium but could zoom in with our camera. Not sure they are allowing those this year.

Its going to be a great time. We are looking forward to it. More to come.

Inauguration Trip Part 1

Well, it is officially official. My family and I are going to the DC area to visit some friends. But we are also going to the Inauguration. We are very excited about it. Mindy was able to get online the day after the election and put our names on several lists requesting tickets. 2 weeks ago we got a call saying we had 2. We will be in the lawn of the Capital watching one of the most historic events of our nations history. We are still a bit shocked we get the chance to be there.

I am going to spend the next few days leading up to the big event blogging about our trip and hopefully have some pics to share as well. I ask for prayers for my family as we travel as well as the other folks (estimated to be around 2 million) that make their way downtown. Please pray also for our newly elected President. Whether you like him or not, voted for him or not, he deserves our prayers as would any of our leaders.

Our first leg of the trip starts Wednesday. I can't wait!

New Website

Hey there everyone. We have a new website. Mindy will still be writing on this blog but we wanted to have a way to share more pictures, videos, etc. We just started the site so it is still a work in progress. The site now has a video of Cade (from yesterday 12/17) and our family newsletter. Just go to this site and have fun!
http://web.me.com/twobedards2

Buckets of Thanks

Well, I have been up to my ears in reading and writing papers. I am on the home stretch of myr first semester of grad. school and find myself staring another Thanksgiving/Xmas Holiday right in the face. We have been in Virginia the past 8 Holiday seasons so this year will be a bit different for us. I love holidays. I love food. Now combine the 2 and you got something. I would start listening to Xmas music in August if Mindy would let me. Anyway, I wanted to write about some of the things I am very thankful for this season. So here goes...

I love Mindy. She is a rock star to me. There is no way I could have done or do anything without her love, support and constant encouragement. She is my best friend and my number one fan. I am thankful for her more than words can say.

I love my kids. They are different everyday. Cade is becoming a little boy more and more. Parker's smile lights up the room. We have been so blessed to have such sweet, smart, beautiful children. I am thankful for them.

I cherish my chance to learn more about helping marriages and families. I could never have imagined how challenging it is to be in graduate school again. I forgot about the reading, writing, reflecting, discussing, and sleeplessness. But I love every minute of it (ok, I don't always love the writing part!! I am thankful for this opportunity to grow and learn.

I am so thankful for many other things. My friends. My family. I am not sure I could ever thank them enough for all the support and love they have given me in my life. Without support from friends and family, its hard to accomplish much (in my opinion). I hope I can become better at being a friend and family member.

Overall, I am thankful for so much. What are you thankful for?

Interesting, church and state still seperate I guess

Mindy and I were talking on Saturday. She was telling me about something that happened on my favorite show, Oprah. She had a guest on there on Wednesday. It was a lady who writes for the Wall Street Journal (I believe). The discussion about the Presidential election and the challenges that face our new President. There was also a brief mention by the lady, about how the place to be this Weekend would be at churches all across the country. I was like, "why did she say that". Mindy explained that this lady thought most churches would at least mention something about how our country has come such a long way in electing an African-American president. I thought that was very interesting and didn't pay much attention to it. Then we went to church Sunday.

There was no mention of the election or the new President. I went to class and no mention of it. Now, I know it is not necessarily PC to bring up such things in a church setting. Well, except when we are praying for our current Republican President and such. I also realize most people in the town I live in did not vote for President-Elect Obama (nor did the state). However, the fact it was not mentioned is interesting. Why is it interesting you may ask? Or you may be wondering why it is such a big deal. Well here are few reasons.

One, 80% of our country is white. He received over 52 million votes. I am assuming some of the white voters voted for him. Two, he is African-American, he is part of our country's minority of folks. African-Americans (and other minorities including women, Hispanics, Asians, etc) have been looked down on and had rights taken away/withheld because of the fact they are not white or male for generations. Three, he is African-American and is now going to be President of the USA. Four, again 'the world' we as Christians so long to be UN-apart of has recognized how instrumental and historic and Grace-Filled this election has become to so many while WE in 'church' have simply gone on business as usual.

I am upset but also know we still have a long way to go as a 'church'. Probably some of you will take offense to what I say. I am sorry. But think about it. How many of us would have been talking about this in church if McCain had won?

Community Conversations

I love a good conversation. I even love having that conversation with someone or someones I don't see eye to eye with. As long as it is civil and rational and not so filled with heightened emotion. I have been able to have a few of those conversations in the past couple of weeks. With my classmates and with people via blog sites and on my Facebook account. I am so grateful to have all the conversations. I was having a great conversation with a classmate last night. We were talking about different aspects of Barack Obama's past and the presidency and such. It was great because it was 2 people with differing views honestly trying to learn from each other. We really ended where we started, shook hands and said, "See you tomorrow". I have had several great comments on my Facebook account from a little note I wrote. I love it.

I have not always been that way though. I used to get pretty riled up with those that didn't see things the way I do. I still get very bothered by that but I guess I have learned to control those emotions and start seeing people as just that, people. I am pretty sure there was a time when I would have jumped up in arms with some of the folks I have talked with over the past week or so about the Presidential race. I know there was a time in my life when I wondered how anyone could possibly be so wrong while I was so right. I hope those days are gone...they probably pop up from time to time (right Mindy??!!).

I am reminded of several instances in my life where I have had conversations with someone and thought that person was crazy. Looking back those are the ones I have learned from and grown from the most. It is easy to agree with people and get on a bandwagon of good ideas and similar thoughts and aspirations. It is very hard to be challenged and have to think for yourself. Heck, it isn't even real fun to have spend the energy to think for yourself sometimes. But that is how we are made. We are made to take in, process, and act on information and experiences. The taking in and processing can be done fairly easily but the acting on the information is where I have had trouble (though it does take me a while to process info too). I am working hard at being better and having community-minded conversations with people...especially those that believe differently than me.