Brownie Heaven
Making brownies was always a great pastime in our home, but not of late…well, at least not today.
Without a cooler, high temperatures outside and a stove constantly on will eventually melt the coldest of hearts! Even nibbling on each of the 5 trillion brownies and cookies being made does not ease the discomfort.
I have to say I’m grateful to see the love these children have for their older sister. That’s what all the treats are being made for: the reception.
A truck load of Root Beer and Strawberry Lemonade, a Gazzilion sweets made by hand to feed thousands of family and friends and the Lava-Lava’s that Grandpa bought…and no one has told the groom he’s expected to wear (this is gonna be fun).
All in all, this family has always been close, but this experience–having my oldest daughter get married, has brought together the children and inspired a level of service I was grateful to see.
If I could have had one wish though, it would have been to buy all the brownies (though they would have tasted like garbage)…OR, that this whole shindig had taken place during winter months!!!
Note to reader: The original title of this post was Brownie Hell, but Kathi was looking over my shoulder as I was writing it. Luckily she does not have the technical skills to change this note (**smirk**)
Read MoreStand Back and Be Amazed.
Never underestimate the brilliance of your own family. I have been desiring some help with Wanted Hero for some time, but never could get a fire going under the hindquarters of my children. Turns out I just wasn’t lighting the right match.
Just asking for help and then being clear in what I hoped to achieve, a slew of questions were immediately thrown at me. All I had to do was be open to some (quite insightful) suggestions and BAM, I had a better solution placed in my lap and all the help I could have asked for without lifting a finger! Wow.
Seems that bright children enjoy being a vehicle for solving difficult problems.
You just have to get the flip out of their way.
Read MoreMothers Day
What did you do for your mother on Mothers Day?
I know I should try and say something profound, maybe something pithy, but I’m at a loss.
My mom died in 2006 in a car accident. My mother in law gets bombarded with cards made from my children. Kathi doesn’t give a fat jockey about the holiday (she can’t stand most holidays except birthdays)…so I’m not sure there’s much for me to say.
I miss my mom.
You never know when loved ones will be gone for good. Don’t waste a moment if you have the opportunity. Make sure you tell them you love them, especially and most specifically your mother. She gave you life, she cared for you and most likely cleaned up things that would make the Roto-Rooter man puke.
Don’t assume they know you love them. Tell them.
Don’t end up like me, plagued with sorrow because the last time you spoke to your mom, you had a heated disagreement instead of a hug and kind word.
Trust me on this one.
-Jaime Buckley
Read MoreEvil Has No Limits
I have always tried to be a person who respects the views of others. I may not agree with them, but I believe in and support the right to have views, even if they are contrary to my own. None of us will agree on everything. However, in the same stride, I also reserve the right to stand up and speak against things that I believe are incorrect or inherently evil.
This, unfortunately, is one of them.
Of all the things in this life, the two most special to me is my religion and my family. I love them both more than life itself. That specifically holds true to my beliefs in Jesus the Christ and his dying sacrifice for my sins and the sins of the world.
There are a fair measure of people who don’t believe in Jesus. That’s fine. There are people who hate Jesus. That’s their right as well. There are even those who simply see the Savior of Mankind as a meal ticket. That’s their choice.
However, it seems this world is aggressively bent on degrading and demoralizing anything and everything which is good to satisfy an inner burning to justify their own lusts, sins and abominations. I am speaking of an email I got from a young friend of mine who was very concerned about a play which has been around since 1997: Corpus Christi — a modern day retelling of the story of Jesus’ birth, ministry, and death in which both he and his disciples are portrayed as homosexual. Now he tells me there are people working to have this made into a film, to be shown here in America this year.
Just the thought of the Son of God, being mocked in such a vile way turns my stomach and my anger swells to defend that which is divine and most holy: My Savior.
Is this something we want our families to hear about? Is this something we want to have in our neighborhoods and talked about among our youth as our local theaters show extreme sacrilege, corrupting the minds and souls of whats left of a decent community?!
Here are my personal feelings on the matter: I am wholly and entirely against Homosexuality. In it’s every form and implication. It is a sin and abomination against God and any good, decent society where wholesome thoughts and feelings dwell. I do however believe in someone’s right to live as they choose, so long as they do not force themselves upon others.
‘Oh,’ says one, ‘you can always choose not to see the film.’
You’re right, I can choose to stay home and not watch your film.
I can wait as you bring your filthy thoughts, filthy beliefs and abominable lifestyles and plant yourselves around me and my community and my very home. I can wait until you have infested and corrupted the school systems and force your anti-family sexual sins as a ‘required’ alternative lifestyle choice, against my wishes, against my teachings, against all I believe in and teach my own children. I can wait for you to infiltrate the churches and the workplace with your innuendos, claiming your ‘rights’ to speak as you will and with no shame as to your public conduct, again, in front of the innocent eyes and hearts of my children. I can choose not to see your film and stay at home, but we both know you have no intention of ever staying at home yourself or allowing me the peace to walk and talk in quiet freedom of my own beliefs. Yes, I can choose to stay at home.
But for the first time, I choose not to.
No. This is my home, my community and my life. I choose to stand and speak against your your corruption, holding my Bible as a guide and as a standard. I’m not interested in your ‘rights’ once they have forced my own beliefs to take a seat in the shadows. I am not interested in your way of life or how it promotes death and decay, without ability to procreate or sustain a family organization as God intended. I am not interested in sitting idly by as you twist and tempt good, innocent children into believing their loving Father in Heaven actually created them to be at odds with his plan of happiness in living within the framework of His morality.
You may ‘know your brother’, but I do not want to know you.
This has gone on long enough. I ask all good, decent people to make your stand. To choose what is right, because it is right and not because it is politically correct. If something is wrong, speak out. If your community is broken, fix it. Find others of like minds and band yourselves together and make a difference. As for me, I will talk with and boycott any film of this ilk that even hopes to come to my community.
What did others do when the play Corpus Christi opened?
When the play opened, the theatre was besieged by almost 2000 protesters, furious at what they considered blasphemy. When Corpus Christi opened in London, a British Muslim group called the Defenders of the Messenger Jesus even went so far as to issue a fatwa sentencing McNally to death. On January 19, 2008, Robert Forsyth, Anglican bishop of South Sydney condemned “Corpus Christi” (which opened for February’s Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, a play depicting Judas seducing Jesus): “It is deliberately, not innocently, offensive and they’re obviously having a laugh about it.”
You have an opportunity to side with God in these issues that surround you. You can no longer turn an idle eye, hoping not to be ‘involved’. For evil to win, a good man only needs do nothing. Stand up for what’s right and good and true.
…or you deserve your fate.
I have finally learned that evil has no limit.
Holy Hannah My 3 Yr Old Can WHINE!
Anyone who knows my three year old Simon adores him. There’s no reason not to. He’s funny, wired and dangerously smart. His recall and comprehension levels are off the charts. Good thing is, he has a great heart: loves his family, loves people, obeys his father.
Any parent knows God has a marvelous sense of humor. We get many things we pray for. However, there’s always a trade off. He supplies your wants in exchange for some unique challenges.
I prayed for Simon to be bright, to be hyper for his brothers and father to play with him (we had suffered without more testosterone in the house for tooooooo long), and I wanted him to have a good heart. What I didn’t cover was his sick face. You know what I mean–the face all kids get when they have a fever or upset stomach. Some loud childen become peaceful when they’re sick and just want to cuddle of be held. Some children, who are soft and peaceful show that they have one foot in the burning underground. Their heads start spinning around and fire leaps from their mouths.
Yeah, Simons one of those.
The hard part is, he’s child #9 and I have yet to figure out HOW to help him calm down and chill out when he’s ill. I’m willing to help him in any way possible, but he simply won’t stop freaking out. Three days of that as long as he’s awake can wear the nerves of any adult!
So this is a call of mercy, out to any of you parents who have a child who may be a challenge when they’re sick. How do you help sooth the heart of a screaming banshee??
Read MorePlease Don’t Let My Baby Die.
I was talking with a good friend I have never met. Lafe Langford. Good man, great father and an inspiring example of faith and life in general. We were talking about Mexico, where he lives, the wildlife there and the fun it would be to come down there for some R&R.
We got to talking and he sent me a link to his site, where I read a heart warming story about his experience with his infant daughter Amanda and her life threatening challenge with a bad heart. I recommend this article if you have had struggles with hospitals or health providers. It reminded me of when Cesilea, my oldest, was just an infant herself.
We had moved to West Valley City, Utah and Ditto was just three months old. She had health struggles from the moment she was born until just over a year old, especially with fevers. It was always a challenge to get her temperature down, even with the medicine the doctors gave us. One day I came home from work and Kathi was in a state of panic. Cesilea’s temperature simply would not drop. We did everything we had been taught by the physicians and even our own parents. Nothing worked and as new parents we did what all inexperienced new parents would do: We put the baby in the car and sped off to the closest Hospital.
It was zoo day. The lines were so long, the waiting lines just to get your admission paperwork done zig-zagged through the lobby and out the front doors of the Hospital itself! They had a guard in the lobby making everyone wait their turn, the old women behind the desks shouting out numbers. I didn’t see a single child in line, it was wierd. Within three minutes Cesilea’s breathing had become so shallow, I couldn’t tell if she was breathing at all. Her skin had become so hot it was uncomfortable to hold her. Her body went completely limp.
I remember looking at Kathi and saying “Follow me.” I was determined to make someone listen to me.
I held Cesilea tight against my chest and turned my shoulder into the crowd, pushing my way through. I remember coming up to the guard who blocked my way, people snapping and cussing at me as I cut in front of them. I looked at the guard and opened my arms to reveal my lifeless looking baby and growling, “Move“. He just nodded and held his arms out to clear the way for Kathi and I to get into the main lobby.
Striding up to the counter, I stepped in front of the man sitting in the administration chair and leaned over the counter, placing Cesilea directly into the arms of the grumpy old woman who shouted at me to get back in line.
Her reaction was shock as Ditto’s hot flesh touched hers. The change in her expression was instant as she looked back at me, tears now flowing into uncontrolled sobs.
“Please,” I pleaded, “Please don’t let my baby die.”
Her wrinkled little hand whipped out and hit a button on the wall, yelled something I can’t for the life of me remember, but within moments there were 2 doctors, 3 nurses, and a cart there to take Kathi and Cesilea into the back. In under 10 minutes they had the baby’s fever down as I sat with the woman and did the paperwork–the older gentleman giving me his chair.
When I apologized for my actions, the woman reached over and grabbed my hand.
“My dear, there are days when I forget why I’m here. You did the right thing, in the right way.”
Between you and me, something happened in that experience. I had pushed past the guard at the prompting of the spirit in my heart. “Open your mouth, I will fill it.” was what I heard in my mind, yet when I reached that grouchy woman and opened my mouth, I had never felt so helpless in my life. My whole heart reached out to her in that instant…and regardless of what she was experiencing that day, love met need and my daughter was saved.
That’s my belief, anyway.
Read MoreMy Latest Book
