fabulous quote from a t-shirt

"Recession is when your neighbor loses his job.

Depression is when you lose yours.

And recovery is when Obama loses his."

back home

Our middle child is back home - safe and sound. He had a fabulous time hanging out and camping with Grandma and Grandpa. We are so grateful they took him. He enjoyed being the special one that got to go. He loved the beach and the sand dunes. It has been quite awhile since we were at the sand dunes and while our oldest remembers going - he did not. He was thrilled to get to see the dunes. He called us at lunch time today to let us know that he was having a blast running up and down the dunes. How cool is that!!

Thank you Grandma and Grandpa for making wonderful memories that he will treasure for a life time.

bible study

My oldest and I are both participating in a Bible study called 'Blueprint for Life'. We are very much enjoying it and it is a great study for high schoolers. It talks about finding your calling. The study is to help us all determine what our calling is and often times our calling will change through out our life as we grow and change.

To back up the study, we read 'The Dream Giver' by Bruce Wilkinson. Fabulous book. It is a parable about Ordinary and how he is a Nobody who leaves the Land of Familiar to pursue his Big Dream. There are border bullies that get in his way (boy do I know about border bullies --- I have had several of those in my life time). He has to overcome the border bullies to pursue the big dream. Ultimately he realizes that it is not the big dream that is important but following the one who gave him the dream - the Dream Giver. Excellent book and I highly recommend it. We had lots to discuss as reading it. It seemed to go along with 'Blueprint for Life' very well. They are saying the same type of thing but in a different way.

economy

A sign of things going on in our economy - 

I work at the local ball park and this helps pay our ice fee for hockey. This year there are many new workers that are there due to being laid off from their real job. They are now level leaders - helping to manage the food stands. These are individuals with college degrees and many years experience in their choose field. One gentleman has been looking for work since November with no luck at all. No interviews even. He is so highly qualified in his field he used to have head hunters calling him constantly - now he can't get anyone to even look at his resume. There are just no jobs available. He is looking across the U.S. not just in our local city. Nothing. He even sent in his resume to a job in the Cayman Islands. 

I found this to be a very scary sign of the times. 

Still fighting for releases

It seems that the President of our local hockey organization has decided not to fulfill her duties. A new President was voted in back in April but the new President doesn't take office until July 1st. The old President has put it in writing that we have to wait until July 1st to get releases. She simply is not doing anything and there is nothing we can do. She has been voted out and is leaving. Seems we have to wait it out. Unfortunately, for a friend of mine, the organization her daughter is going to requires release to be turned in to them in June in order to be accepted to skate for them. She is going to ask if they will accept it late but this is very frustrating. 

It should be about the kids and not about all these games that adults play. This is the old President's way of getting back at all of us that have left under her watch. A final hurrah on her part. Nice, huh!

The purpose of Jeans

Apparently the latest in political correctness is that Levi's has placed a pro-homosexual "marriage" ribbon on the jeans they are selling. The symbol is a white ribbon tied in a knot and is being used to initiate conversation when selling the jeans. Levi's is going so far as to have "weekly calls with our store managers and sending out detailed information about the White Knot organization and also ways in which {they} are supporting marriage equality as a company."

Here is a link to the whole article:

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/may/09052802.html

Honestly, I don't want conversation when I buy my jeans. I don't even want my jeans to 'stand' for something. I just want them to 'cover' something. Fully cover. I don't want jeans to leave half my back side exposed. As kids we used to laugh at those with "plumbers' butt" (as we had so eloquently named it). This used to be something to be made fun of and now it is a fashion statement. Still, just because it is in fashion doesn't mean it actually looks good. Here is a hint for those that think it is in --- no one looks good with their rear hanging out!!! Jeans shouldn't be worn around one's knees or up to your arm pits. Jeans that are baggy enough to hide another person are great for pregnant moms not teenage boys. 

Jeans should be just something one wears to cover that which shouldn't be 'exposed'. Jeans shouldn't talk to me, say something about me, say something to me, be political correct or politically incorrect. They should just cover what needs covering. And it is sad that in today's world they can't even do that adequately. 

I know that there are those on the far right that feel women should only wear skirts or dresses and men should wear the pants / jeans. Therefore, they would say I am not following Jesus when I wear jeans.  My opinion is that jeans are just jeans. Jeans shouldn't say we are for Jesus or against Him. I think they should say - wow, I covered up today. For awhile there, when my kids were young, my jeans said - you have young kids - since I usually never was able to get out of the house without being slimed by one of them. What? Doesn't a little milk spit up go with the blue jeans??? I thought it was a fashion statement!! 

I am way past the point where my jeans make a statement other than to say I am a busy mom that doesn't want to wear nice pants as she is on the go, or on the floor playing with the kids or at the park swinging with the kids. I think jeans say I am comfortable. Sometimes my jeans say I have gained weight and they aren't fitting so nicely. Sometimes they say wow you look great!! You must have lost a few pounds. 

When I was young, the right jeans said you were cool or in the right crowd. Now that I am in my (ahem) adulthood - jeans make no other statement but to cover my backside! They are something comfortable to put on in the morning when dressing. 

Yet again

Here we go again. The fight to get our release from our local hockey organization so that we can go play at the organization we want. There are many reasons why we don't want to play at our local organization from it being poorly run, bad coaching, problems in the locker rooms, not competitive, etc. 

Sadly, every year it is a fight to get our releases. Last year a good friend of ours had to actually get a lawyer to fight them. This year that family is going to Triple A and therefore will not be leading the fight. And the current, President is stalling - saying we will get our releases by May 15th and now that has come and gone. Now there is a new date by which we will receive them. 

I sent our 3rd or is it 4th request in for a release. I am going to have to start the written documentation so that we can escalate the issue up to the state board. It is sad that is the only thing that gets this current President moving. 

What is really sad is that anyone even has to go through this. All other sports --- at the point you are willing to pay for club level --- you can then pick your club - soccer, baseball, etc. There are no boundaries or rules on districts for those sports at club level. We are paying to play club level and still have to deal with districting rules. Honestly, that needs to go. The good clubs will survive and those that aren't good will fall --- and that is okay. Why should we have to move just to be able to get out of a badly run club. To move and uproot a family for club hockey is most ridiculous and yet I know of families that have done it just to get around the districting rules. The rules are archaic and need to go. 

So here we go again - fighting the fight!! I will let you all know how it goes.