Weekend Happenings

Good Friday morning!

One word... PROM! That is our main weekend happening. Our prom is being held on Friday night, so it will not be the entire weekend of course, but it definitely is on everyone's mind at the moment.

Other less important (but nonetheless "Happening Worthy") stuff going on will be the completion of destruction of our deck. Once destruction is complete, I am hoping by this time next week the new deck will be finished. I can't wait. It is time to be eating dinner on the deck right this very minute, so I'm sure we'll be breaking it in with a candlelight dinner NEXT weekend. (I hope, I hope.)

I'm beginning a Cooking Class for Senior Boys this Sunday night. Wish me luck. Actually, I'm very excited, and I'm hoping it will be fun AND helpful. This week is "Beef Night." We'll be learning to make hamburger hobos, taco soup, meat and potatoes casserole and buttermilk pies (along with sweet tea). It's all very hands-on. The guys will be cooking everything, setting the table, and then we'll sit down together to eat and have a "bullet devotion." I even have cooking challenges, games and prizes. (If all else fails, I've bought them all giant candy bars. I have to give them one thing I know will be a hit!) I'll let you know how it went on Monday.

Josh and Austin will probably be going to at least part of the Stadiumfest at Samford. Roxie will probably have a friend over to practice volleyball. (Tryouts are right around the corner.) And hopefully, there will be NO homework for anyone. We are tired of homework. I don't know who has the worse case of Spring Fever... me or the kids.

Mikie and I are going to squeeze in a breakfast date Saturday morning, and hopefully have our Sunset Date in the next couple of weeks. I'll let you know what the twist was after the fact.

Lots to do, and only two days to get it done!

I know I only have three TV shows in the review section today. We didn't get to watch Amazing Race OR Celebrity Apprentice in Alabama Sunday night because the weathermen were on all the channels tracking the storms all night. We'll watch them on Mikie's computer this weekend, so once again I'll have a review on Monday... I hate that!

TV Review

24 - You have to really admire Jack, don't you? Here he is in the midst of dealing with bio-chemical exposure, saying his "final" farewell to his estranged daughter, giving himself shot after shot after shot to stop the shaking, and trying to remember events the bio-chemical exposure is erasing from his memory... and he figures out Tony is the bad guy. (I can't even remember Tuesday night is take-the-garbage-out-to-the-road-night, much less deal with all the stuff Jack has to deal with in a 24 hour period.) Oh, yeah. And there's no nap time in that 24 hours. You don't even see those guys drink a Red Bull or a cup of coffee. It's just sheer adrenaline. I wonder if there are people who don't have a drop of adrenaline in their body. I wonder if I'm one of those people. I'm sorry. What was I saying? Oh, yes. TONY WAS THE BAD GUY.

It's driving me crazy "they" keep saying, "This goes much, much higher." Who is it? Who is the mastermind? (Personally, I think since Jonas Hodges is being played by Jon Voight, Angelina Jolie's dad, she and/or Brad Pitt will eventually make a cameo appearance on the show. That would be something, wouldn't it? Angelina Jolie is the mastermind. Just a thought.)

Final review... Good, good show. Austin concurs.

LOST - This week's episode was a tutorial. Josh watched half of it with me, and then he begged off stating the obvious... "I already understand what's going on." But not me. I sat glued to the TV listening to the narrator's voice explain scene after scene after scene. The problem finally came down to one word. "Why?" When the narrator said, "And then Desmond beat up Ben," I already KNEW that. My brain comprehended that Desmond beat Ben up. What my brain DIDN'T comprehend is why Desmond didn't KILL Ben because Ben had just shot him and had vowed to shoot and kill Penny, his wife. "WHY" is Ben still walking around?

And the narrator said, "Jack's dead father told John Locke to turn the wheel that would send him back home." Once again... I KNEW THAT! "Why" is Jack's dead father walking around the island? "Why" are any of the dead people walking around the island? "Why" isn't the narrator answering any of the PERTINENT questions?

"Why" am I still watching the show if it disturbs me so much? (That's probably a question you're asking.) I'm enjoying the one-on-one time with Josh. There! See what normal people do when someone asks them a question? They ANSWER it with an answer that actually makes sense!

All that said... I can't wait until next week's 100th episode!

Survivor - SPOILER: Another week, another blindside. Tyson, a strong competitor, was voted out because he didn't win immunity this week. He had immunity the last two times, and everyone was getting nervous this would be the only time to get rid of him. They were probably right. J. T. (a/k/a Alabama boy) is still the most popular guy in camp, but as everyone who has ever watched Survivor knows, no one wants to take the popular guy to the final three. You want to take the guy every one hates so you have a chance of winning. J. T.'s southern charm may actually work against him the closer we get to the end. (I'm still going to have my picture made with him though. Even if he gets voted off next week, he's had more TV time than most of the "famous people" in my scrapbook. Is there a good restaurant in Sampson? Does anyone know? I might as well make a day of it while I'm down there.)

Book

The book review for this week is a children's devotional book called God Thought of Everything Weird and Wacky by Bonnie Bruno. The inside cover of the book describes the contents as follows: "This book features amazing animal tales, devotional thoughts, Bible verses and links to cool Internet websites." That sums it up very well, but it is really an interesting way for the second grader to fourth or fifth grader in your family to have devotion. Here's a little sample.

Vacuum Cleaner of the Sea

I might look like a vegetable that belongs in a tossed green salad, but look closer. I'm actually a soft-bodied relative to the starfish and sand dollar. I make my home in the Galapagos Islands. Marine biologists think I'm pretty special. In fact, they say I help turn over as much as 90 percent of the sea floor. My sifting work helps keep the seabed healthy, but I can live for five to ten years at any water depth.

My body is decorated with tiny tube feet. They work like mini suction cups, called tentacles, attaching me firmly in place. As I move from place to place along the ocean's bottom, my tentacles keep me rooted in place. Without them, I would drift aimlessly through the water.

God designed another group of tube feet near my mouth. These tubes act as my arms, although they are called feet. They are constantly in motion, sweeping the water around me like tiny vacuum cleaners. They bend and sway, capturing tiny bits of food, keeping me plump and pampered.

If a bully of the sea approaches, I play dead. It's the only way I know how to protect myself. I disconnect my organs quickly, including my two breathing tubes. Nobody messes with me if they think I'm already dead. Little do they know that I can grow a whole new set of necessary organs in just a few weeks!

God thought of everything when he created me -- the Sea Cucumber.

More on the Web - Read about a sea cucumber "gold rush." http://www.worldwildlife.org/galapagos/cucumber.cfm

Tell a Friend - The sea cucumber's tentacles help "root" it, so it does not float aimlessly through the water. The Bible does the same for us by giving us good advice to follow. Aren't you glad we can trust in God's care?

Read About It - "Let us hold firmly to the hope we claim to have. The One who promised is faithful." Hebrews 10:23

Pray About It - Heavenly Father, I want you. Help me to hide your Word in my heart.

See... It has everything an animal loving kid would want. And it has 60 different devotions... everything from the Giant Antpitta to the Wolffia.

As I said before, all of my kids enjoyed it, but especially the guys. And if you like this one, Ms. Bruno also wrote another book called God Thought of Everything Strange and Slimy. I like anything and everything that helps kids stay interested in the scripture... whether it is animal devotions or sports devotions or princess devotions. It's a good thing!

What will this weekend hold? Who knows! I hope everyone has a great weekend, full of "moments that take your breath away," and so much more.

I'll be back Monday with a week of Mother's Day parties, traditions and dates... not to mention a recipe to try and book to read. I hope you'll be back, too.

Talk to you soon.