Dear Wife, Just in case you thought I forgot…

With Mother’s Day just passing the thought came over me, I wonder if OTB really knows how much she means to me as a wife. I am sure if just based off my actions…she doesn’t. So I have decided to recommit myself to showing her. The smartphone is a wonderful tool and it has the ability to schedule recurring reminders that tell me to send my wife a creative note that will make her smile or just feel appreciated.

Maybe one day I will send one at JUST THE RIGHT TIME…

To save one of my daughters from get THAT LOOK! Or turn her day around…Just When She Needs It!

Great…That is what I will do. I will make the effort to find creative ways to express to my wife 3-5 times a day how much she means to me and our family. That there is no way possible this ship would float without her steering it away from the rocks when I am not paying attention.

As a husband I really need my wife and I believe that she needs to hear how sometimes her greatness is taken for granted…

It only happens because you have been great for so long. We only met the summer before high school…I’m Sayin!

So this is a small note to say that just in case you thought I forgot….

I didn’t.

I didn’t forget all those times when you held me up via a long distance phone call…(without touching me)

I didn’t forget how all those times I was having a rough day all I needed to do was hear your voice.

I didn’t forget how you supported me when no one else did…not even my family.

Because you knew and you trusted Him to keep His word.

And He did and you did and your obedience will be forever rewarded.

So thanks and I love you! And I will continue to tell you all day, every day.

Just in case you thought I forgot.

ODC

My Lead Daughter Makes Homeschooling History! #42

My 12 year old has kept me up all night but believe it or not there is good and bad to the story. The bad part is I am loosing sleep and have to do this commute in the morning. The good part is I can not stop thinking about how proud I am that she is celebrating her 12th Birthday by MAKING HISTORY and I can’t stop crying!!!
My daughter has achieved something that only I could dream of doing. She has received a Mega-Memory Master Medal with Classical Conversations Homeschooling Group. In order to earn this prestigous honor a student has to be able to recite the answer to every question from every subject for 3 cycles of the educational curriculum. Translation: 3 years worth of work at one time…OFF THE TOP OF YOUR HEAD!

And the hard part for me is just remembering the subjects. Let’s see if I can do it. OK. Geography, History Timeline, Math, Science, English Grammar and oh noooo…Latin (whew) I think I remembered them all, but I am sure if I did not my wife will be posting to let me know.

So this is why my leading daughter (I like that better than oldest) deserves to receive a super special SHOUT OUT on this May 7th as we celebrate her turning 12 but also doing something that only 1 person in History had done before this year and with her Medal she becomes the 1st Brown Mega-Memory Master Medalist! She also has been an example to her sister, Logan, who successfully completed her 2nd year as a Memory Master and I am sure will be chasing her record next year.

Go Christian or as I now call her: “Jackie Robinson”

Your wonderful mother (who is steering this history making homeschooling ship) are Sooo proud of you for placing a goal in front of you and smashing it!

Happy 12th and Happy 1st!!

ODC

The Huge Family At The Next Table!

Just sitting in a restaurant and a family walks in with a rack of kids. One screams, “I gotta go to the potty!” and I mean…IT WAS LOUD and another one yells, “Where’s mommy?” I’m looking around and was wondering the same thing. The dad is by himself now because mommy quietly slipped by and pulled just one child off to the restroom. I’m thinking to myself that maybe she forgot a few, but anyway…I need to mind my own business. The dad is now by himself and navigating the 3 kids pretty well.

I’m thinking…WAIT! Only I am capable of such craftiness with a HUGE family!

Well, 4 kids has gotta be a huge family because I have 4 and I hear that all the time when I go places. The only difference is this family has a boy and judging by the layout of the sizes he seems to have made his way into 2nd position. And that would have been a perfect place to stop. You know the routine. You get one boy and one girl and you start screaming, “We are DONE!” “What else is there to do!”

Little did this family know. If they had stopped I may have never noticed them. I mean a family with only 2 kids is so small they would have slipped under my radar.

And here comes the mom…1 child in tow. She has a seat on the end corner of the table. She is a bit distant. Not mean just seems to kinda be in rest mode. Dad is taking all the hits right now. I mean he is getting shouts from the front both sides and the back. It’s kinda beginning to look familiar.

Hmmm. Large Family (check) Engaged Dad (check) Mom looking like she has past the daily torch over to the Dad and then I saw it!

The give away. The pink ribbon. The same pink princess ribbon that my daughters wear on their birthday. But I continued to just stalk them out from the next table. And this dad was really trying to become my competition. Super engaging now…STILL! He was even welcoming to more questions and they were still coming from all around. I thought to myself.

Could it be?

So I thought to myself. SELF. What would Paula & Sarah want me to do?

So I did it!

I walked over and said, “You guys are doing such a great job with your HUGE family.” “You have such great kids.” “I also have 4 children, but they are all girls.” (insert small talk) (Just put that in b/c I really don’t remember this part) Then I POPPED THE QUESTION, but not down on one knee.

“Are your children in school?”

Their Response: “We are actually homeschoolers.” I said, “YES!”

What curriculum do you guys use?

Their Response: “Classical Conversations”

I said, “I KNEW IT” (almost as loud as the kids)

I am so proud of you guys and I got a card from the wife with the entire family listed on it that was really cute. I actually wrote the daughter Lucy’s name on the back to remember and that the wife’s father was a realtor…but then I left the card on the table.

UGH! I can find them though because they are in the Lake Ridge, Virginia Classical Conversations Homeshool community.

I love my CC family and I’m telling you we really do look different. I’m telling you what this community is doing with our families is working.

THANK GOD!

ODC

Temptation The Movie: “Let’s Get the Party Started!”

So FINALLY, there is a chance to get to a Tyler Perry movie in the the most important first week and I could not wait. Making sure to get out of the office on time. Leaving at 5:01 for a 6:30pm showing and sure enough, needing every minute to get through that Washington, DC traffic…UGH…2013 opening day baseball. Surely, selecting the theatre that is directly past the Nationals traffic would be the thing to do. But since they were picked by Sports Illustrated and ESPN to win the World Series this year, I guess getting used to them blocking up traffic. I think I saw Brett Brocki yelling from the top of a limo at the Channel 8 New Crew too! (Some things are never surprising) Maybe they will get to block it in an organized way….You know…with a PARADE!!! I went from day one to the parade.

Sorry, that is how my mind works sometimes.

Well, anywho. Arriving just in time to pay for my ticket electronically and walk past everyone waiting in line and have my ticket taken by the guy who was workng the cash booth was a sweet deal. I know I am not the avid movie goer but why do people not use the machine to purchase their tickets? Someone please comment and let me know what is better about waiting in line.

So being able to shoot around one line was definetly a highlight for Mr. Impatient…only to wish there was a way to make my own popcorn and drink. Especially since my popcorn rivals any movie theatre when home with the G-Unit. Normally doing a huge bucket of popcorn and a soft drink doesn’t appeal to my but not being a frequent visitor leads me to believe I have to enjoy the entire blockbuster experience. The only challenge is that the line at the concession stand is super long and though there are 19 screens only two lanes are open. I guess they thought everyone would not be coming until later. Maybe they were aware of the traffic and scheduled everyone to come in for the 7:30 viewing of Temptation, by the marketing genius, Tyler Perry.

Well, eventually my popcorn and drink were aquired and was even able to actually have the manager hold it for me while I visited the restroom. Didn’t want any need to leave this show and miss a very important scene and be lost the rest of the film.

So I am in and the film starts and there she is KIM KARDASHIAN!!! And if you want to know how she did in her debut with Tyler Perry, she was a great actress. The only challenge is she was not really acting. She was playing herself. A fashion hungry, nametag pushing girlfriend who like dresses so TIGHT you are not able to breathe and cringes at the sight of a woman in flats. Seems normal enough for her to pull off.

Then there is the eye candy for the women. Yes, going directly to the gym trying to compete with Lance, who in the first hour shows his chest and abs 4 times and I am not sure of the other guys name(some reviewer I am huh) but he has a nice chest as well and was showing it on his runs through the park.

Then there was Vanessa Williams, with a bad French accent, who owns a millionare matchmaking service. Brandy, who works in a pharmacy(took everything for me not to type drug store) and the star young lady who I don’t know her name either(there I go again) who is married to Lance and is as dry as they come.

Now for the layout of the land for this magnificent plot. A one bedroom studio apartment and the matchmaking office.

There you have the first hour of the film Temptation! The slowest, dryest first hour of a blockbuster movie ever.

Someone needs to tell Tyler Perry to put the energy that he puts into marketing a movie into actually making it worth pushing. You do not have an hour to get my attention. I walked out and got my money back. And that was my excitement for the night, because the manager said I was 4 minutes past her cutoff. (another post on that, but you all know I got my money)

Don’t worry. I will go see it with my wife so I can give you a full review, but I just had to show you by starting slow in my post that you have to GET THE PARTY STARTED MR PERRY!! People don’t like things dragging out and that is what Temptation does.

DRAG. I rate the first hour a 0 on a scale of 1-10. Oh, my bad, it did motivate me to put down my popcorn and drink and hit the gym and for that it gets a 2.

More where this came from…

ODC

In my opinion, he needs to stick to stage plays. That way when there are errors in production we can’t rewind the videos and catch it.

How do we save our boys??

Earlier today I attended a church service that involved the baptism of about 17 individuals. The 17 included adults, teenagers and pre-teens. Surprisingly enough there were several men in the group and that alone was unusual, but quite refreshing to see. There were a few young men that caught my eye today and I believe their stories can give us a few tools to possibly help save our young boys.
I was lucky enough to sit directly behind a young man named Clifton who was one of those baptised on this day and noticed he had such a pleasant demeanor and attitude. He was accompanied to the service by what I believed to be his mother and grandmother. I did not verify this personal information but was sure there were no men in his party. Clifton looked to be between 8 & 10 years old.
There was another gentleman who caught my attention and his name was Trebreyon and he was accompanied by his father, mother, 2 aunts and 2 male cousins ages 19 & 16. Though I did not verify the spelling of his name I did verify the members of his family and the ages of the young male family members.
These two young men, Clifton and Trebreyon, are 5-7 years apart but both carry such an innocence about them. I watched Clifton as he was starting to become cold during the service after being dunked in the baptismal pool. He leaned over and whispered to his mother and she allowed him to lay comfortably under her arm. But it is not uncommon for a young boy near 8-10 to still have his innocence and even with his support system not including any men on this day…..I WILL BE PRAYING FOR LITTLE CLIFTON. THAT HE DOESN’T GET CAUGHT HAVING TO BE “THE MAN’ BEFORE TIME BECAUSE OF A LACK OF A MALE PRESENCE.
Mr. Trebreyon, on the other hand, was outside in the lobby after service and had no idea that I was watching him. He was a little bored with the adult conversation that takes place after church services and made his way over to a window. A window that had a lip just above what his outstretched arms could reach. He stood there…looked up…and decided he would not allow the window to conquer him. So he reached up and was able to just get his fingers over the lip and pull himself up. Now this is a teenager around 14 and this church service takes place in a school and it is not going to fall down or anything. So those of you wondering that…take a deep breath. But what I noticed was a teenager who was still holding on to his innocence. When I was that age, I would have been more concerned with girls and what they were doing. In church or not! If we really keep it all the way REAL! So being the father of 4 beautiful young ladies, it was an awesome experience to see that Mr. Trebreyon’s support system is spending the time to cultivate a young man who is concerned more with the business of God and not the streets. His innocence parallel that of Clifton, who was 5 years his junior. I was able to speak to his parents after service and tell them.

JOB WELL DONE! KEEP BEING AN ACTIVE PRESENCE, BECAUSE THEIR INNOCENCE IS BASED ON OUR INVESTMENT OF TIME AND ALL THEY WANT IS OUR TIME!

ODC

7 Things I want to leave my kids…

My daughters mean the world to me. If you ask them who my favorite person is they will tell you very quickly, “He likes Mommy the best!” And that is true, but at least they all know they are tied for 2nd. At least that is what I say they disagree and two of them actually believe they are in 2nd place and one is to young to really think it is possible that anyone comes before her and then one just knows she is THE BOMB and her dad just needs to understand that and get over his opinion. But there are 7 treasures I would like to leave my kids when I am gone.

The first of the 7 things I would like to leave my kids is a SERVANTS HEART. We have lived in Georgia for almost 7 years and have had less than a year when we have not opened our home up to someone who needed us. Not many people would be open to this sort of thing and none of the people have actually been “family” but we realize more and more each day that some are not born “family” but become that via their actions. And I believe we are demonstrating how to get the most out of life by being servants of God’s people.

The second of 7 things I would like to leave my kids is a HAPPY MOTHER. I have been praying more lately about my spirit so I can not stress my wife out and allow her to be happy with her life and husband so if something happens to me she already knows I only want jokes and everyone to make their Top 7 things I will remember about ODC list and post them on the site.

Number 3 on the 7 things I want to leave my kids is this blog, my facebook page and my Twitter account. I love my girls and you all know that but I love the idea of them being able to go on my social media accounts to do the remember when stuff. I think it will be emotional but they will be like my dad really loved us.

Number 4 of the 7 things I want to leave my kids is a love for swimming. We all know most kids that look like mine [short ] CAN’T SWIM! I have kept these girls in the pool so much they have NO FEAR of the water. I actually get upset when we are doing our 90 day straight pool run and they don’t clean the house and we can’t swim when I get home. I’m so disappointed.

Number 5 on the list of 7 things I want to leave my kids is Real Estate. My goal is to provide them with a home when they turn 21. I want them to be able to do whatever they want. Move into it or sell it and join the NYC Ballet and travel. Or rent it out and move to Iowa and turn flips. I better get busy.

Number 6 on the list of 7 things I want to leave my kids is the best example of what a loving husband looks like and how that can transform the entire scope of your family. I feel when I am able to accomplish this when something doesn’t sound right, THEY WILL KNOW AND WILL NOT GIVE IT A SECOND THOUGHT!

Number 7 on the list of 7 things I want to leave my kids is a Spiritual Foundation that will carry them into their own relationship with Our Father. I love my kids but they already know they can’t get there via their parents. The results of their lives will be determined by THEIR OBEDIENCE.

Thanks for hanging out with me,

ODC

7 Things girls do…

So I have 4 daughters and everyone who meets me thinks I am trying for a boy. I won’t go there because I did that blog post already.

I really enjoy my daughters and I would just like to share 7 of the reasons why:

Number 7 on the list of THings girls do: Girls love to walk to the side of the bed with a question for the parent that is most likely to say, “Yes.”

Number 6 on the list of things girls do: Girls love to sit in the space that someone else in the family only left on the couch for 2 seconds and get upset when you think they should move.

Number 5 on the list of things girls do: Girls always ask for a kiss but then wipe it off.

Number 4 on the list of things girls do: Girls love to watch their parents kiss only to say, “EWWWWWWWWW”

Number 3 on the list of things girls do: Girls only want to learn how to bake sweets so when you tell them they can’t have any sweets they blame everything on working on a homeschool cooking assignment.

Number 2 on the list of things girls do: Girls run to the door and knock you down then climb all over you, which makes you feel like leaving them all day in an effort to provide is ALL WORTH IT!

Number 1 on the list of things girls do: Girls watch their mother and want to be just like them. So be careful to select a loving, caring servant who understands her commitment was to God first and they have a wonderful example right in the home with them to follow.

Thanks for stopping,

ODC