For dinner tonight...

I made Cinnamon Banana Almond Pancakes from scratch. Two out of four people voting gave these pancakes "two thumbs up" or I guess you could say "four thumbs up". One person said, "they're pancakes." One person complained about the pancakes constantly as he shoveled more and more pancakes into his mouth.

Saving Poverty-Fighting Funding

I'm taking action with ONE to let you know that Congress is on track to cut poverty-fighting funding in the 2009 budget, putting the lives of millions of people who depend on our help at risk.

ONE members around the country are sending a petition to the Senate asking that they restore that funding and uphold our promise to the world's poorest people.

You can sign the petition here: http://www.one.org/2009budget

Thanks for taking action with me.

Tattoos and why I don't have one

Mr. Ivey and Mr. Bush have been discussing tattoos on their blogs of late. Showing off new design ideas and telling the histories of ones that are already inked. I find good tattoos fascinating. I like the great stories behind a great tattoo.

My cousin has an amazing collection going down his left arm. He was in the process of having them colored in when he decided he needed to take some trips to Israel to study and minister. He felt it was wrong to ask for sponsorships to help pay for his trips if he was still spending money on his tattoos. So his arm is getting a break from needles being repeatedly shot into it.

Here are my reasons for not getting a tattoo:
5. My parents went ballistic when I got my ears pierced at the age of 21. I was not living at home at the time and was getting married within the year. I can't even imagine the hullabaloo that would happen over a tattoo. Even though I have been married for 22 years, the hullabaloo would still happen.

4. I'm a chicken.

3. I can't afford one.

2. I don't like pain. (Look at Bush's face.)

1. I would never be able to make up my mind on what one to get. I mean it people, they are permanent. And I'm not Angelina Jolie who can afford to get Billy Bob blasted off her arm. I can assure you that Billy Bob would have never been on any body part of mine in the first place, but that is just probably because I wouldn't be able to make up my mind about what font to use! A tattoo artist would be half way complete when I would look up and see a design a like better. That would not be good. Because they are permanent and that means I wouldn't be able to throw it in the floor and reach for another one.

I simply can't take on the stress that looking for the perfect tattoo would mean for me. The search would be ugly for everyone around me. I drive my family batty enough as it is.

SNOW...

in North Texas...weird!

The kids are happy.

Corinn says the flakes are "jienormos".
She and Clay are headed back outside at 8:40 p.m.
We don't get to see snow here very often, so the kids celebrate whenever they get the chance. One year we had snowmen with lasagna and spaghetti noodles for hair and hard corn on the cob for a mouth. I don't know if that is a very traditional way to deck out a snowman, but it worked for them.

It was in the high 70's yesterday. Tonight it is sleeting and snowing. That is Texas weather for you. If you don't like the weather in Texas, wait a few hours.

These two together in one place...WOW

It was a GREAT night!

blood:water mission

Mr. Brody Harper is on to something good. He wants to do something about the lack of good, clean water in Africa. Most of us take clean water for granted. We love it, we use it almost constantly, we waste it.

Blood:water mission works hard at providing life giving wells in areas that need them.
P.D. Ross has created cool shirts to help raise money for these wells.

Brody wrote this in his blog:

P.D. explained to me that he wants to get behind this little project here and we are working out the details on how to link the two. Right now P.D. has offered that if someone buys a “Jesus>Thirst” shirt and mentions Blood Water Mission he will donate all of the proceeds to the goal of Two Wells Every Three Months. Pretty generous, eh?

So, get on board and order a shirt OR just donate to the fund Brody has set up. Make a difference. I know people that are so wrapped up in their neat little America that they refuse to see the pain in other countries. Christ has called us to reach out to the poor and hurting. People that don't have clean water are hurting.

Wisdom For The Ages...

When ironing DO NOT grab the white Lysol Mildew Remover bottle instead of the white Downey Wrinkle Remover bottle...unless you like funky designs on your clothes.