Well it looks like I'm averaging a post every two weeks or so. I suppose that isn't too bad although for as much time as I spend thinking about everything under the sun you would think I'd have more to say.

Anyhow, the start of 2012 has been rather stressful. I will never take for granted those times in life when life seems to move past you without a hitch. Renee and I have so very much to be thankful for and I think I need to remember that in the stressful moments. So far this year we will have or have had: 1 baby being born, 1 graduation, 1 changing job situation (Renee being done with school), problems with pet health (aspen is ok), and decisions in living arrangements and future child care arrangement.

There are at least two or three of the most stressfull events people go through in there and we are two months in.

I sure am glad we can trust in the Lord with all these things. We have always had difficulty trying to discern where and what God would have us do and sometimes it seems like He is saying, Don't worry about all that, right now you just have to trust me in the small things.

In other news, here are a few things we've been doing to keep ourselves sane: reading books, trying to exercise, hanging out with friends, talking with family, dabbling in writing, trying to do quality work in our big-kid jobs and eating ice cream (Renee's OB told her to eat more milkshakes haha)

Thoughts on Life

Most everyone is on Facebook these days. I don't spend a lot of time on Facebook outside of the quick check of the news feed. I don't put many status updates or photos and the like. But I was on it the other day and it was one of those rainy, dreary days when you just want to sit inside and watch a movie. Suddenly I found myself checking up on all kinds of people from the past. People I went to college with, people I went to high school with or people I just knew for a month or two while working at a camp.

What I found myself thinking is how different my life would be with even the slightest change in my decisions. What would have happend if I didn't go to that school, or work at that camp, or stayed in touch with this group of people. I suppose my mind goes places like that on rainy days. I have a feeling that God will have quite a story to share with me when I see him face to face. How many nudges he had to give me to end up where I am today. I am blessed in a hundred ways and yet sometimes I don't quite know how all the chips fell into place.

An old friend of mine said she loved introducing her friends to other circles of friends. I think heaven will be a lot like that. I am looking forward to hearing God share the story of how all the chips fall into place.

Something Interesting to Say

Another couple weeks has gone by and we are getting closer and closer to our baby boy making his debut. He has been kicking Renee nonstop but I think he knows when someone wants to feel him kick because he seems to stop as soon as I put my hand on her stomache. I'm gonna take that as a sign that I have a soothing effect on him.

We are pretty sure on what we are going to name him, but I think we are keeping it under wraps till the big day. That is if Renee can keep a secret for a few more months (I'm guessing she can't haha).

So with this blog thing I think I should make sure it is not just a bunch of updates on our life but also has some substance. I think there should be stuff on here that I would enjoy reading. I guess that has to do with that fact that I'm a nerd and actually enjoy learning (I hope thats one thing my son gets from me).

This year I'm trying to stay invested in books. I like reading for fun, for growth, or for learning. I'm reading Brave New World right now. It's a cool book and makes you think about a lot of cool stuff. Probably the most interesting idea is that we all need the freedom to experience pain or we are really just numb to everything. It is only through experiencing the storms that we can appreciate the sunshine. The book basically boils down to the idea that it is quite sad to live a life only of happiness. I suppose a lot of lottery winners could attest to that idea. Hopefully I can appreciate this concept in the tougher times.

Thats all for now.