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A Little Bit of Everything = A Whole Lot of Nothing

Surely we've heard this truth somewhere, from someone. But recently, we've seen it played out in the development of our son. Children will grow in stages, often focusing on mastering one skill at a time. It may even seem like they digress from already learned skills, while mastering the one in focus. Why then, in our education system, do we give students a little bit of everything all the time? Is there an age at which humans learn better by getting bits and pieces of topics over years of instruction? Surely, this has been thought of and discussed before. So where's the information? Starting search now.

We Miss You!

We love Granmere and Papa Ted! Lots of love from Louisiana to Texas!

Still Learning

We haven't posted our latest information on the history of the church yet because, unfortunately, we couldn't meet with the Donhams (WE MISSED YOU) this weekend. Hopefully we'll pick back up this week. Although, we have continued discussing random thoughts and ideas about the organization of the church (the body of Christ). "There is nothing new under the sun," so that is why we look back into the books (and The Book) to find what others have done before us. Now that spurs more thought...new technologies, a new means to the same (old) end (i.e. communication, monetary profit, increase efficiency, etc.). The thoughts and discussions continue..... more to come.

Through the Eyes of a Child

You might be asking, "Now what in the world could be causing this child of only 6 months to be so happy?" Could it be the Daddy making silly noises and faces in the background? No. Could it be the Mommy providing a nourishing meal? No. Could it be a bag of toys hanging within reach? No. So what is it? Why, none other than the bathtub faucet, of course. Aren't you excited too? Oh, to see the world through the eyes of a child!

Howdy Gramee!!!

We had such a good time visiting Gramee at the Cadillac Ranch! Eli was given a new hat and loves it! He really enjoyed playing with the toys Gramee has on hand, for all her little loves! We also got to see Uncle "Stubbs," Nay Nay, Uncle Johnathan, Aunt Tamara, and cousin Wyatt. It was so good to see all of you and enjoy an afternoon together. Gramee, more pics are in the works. Giddy-up!

Our Prayer One Day

This reflects our hearts in the future of our family.

History of the Church, part 1

Thanks Denton Bible Church and pastor Tom Nelson for the series on church history. We met with the Donhams and had our first discussion on why many raised in one church would disperse out into other churches. It will take much more learning before we can come to a conclusion, if we ever do. Learning about the history of the Christian Church has been interesting. Fun facts we've learned:
1. 313 AD, edict passed by Constantine that Christians will no longer be persecuted or killed for their faith (because there were so many Christians willing to die for their faith) and this was the first time in history church and state became one.
2. Christians weren't persecuted because they worshipped Christ, but because they worshipped ONLY Christ.
3. Origin (a person's name that we have yet to confirm spelling) was tortured EVERYDAY for 3 years by the Roman empire, because it was thought that if he would deny his faith, Christianity would fail. He died shortly after his release from his captors.
4. Gerome, a Syrian Hermit, was the first to translate the Hebrew and Greek to Latin (the Latin Vulgate).

This only brings us to the year 590. There's lots more info, which we will spare here. Lots more to learn... This book includes many of the early figures mentioned in this series, but it has been helpful to have the audio lessons to connect the bits of information.

Eli James is 6 months old!

Eli is 6 months old today. He is growing and learning many new things. Every now and then he will pull out his bag of tricks and wow you with his magic. He can travel from one place to another in a matter of seconds without ever making a sound. He will have in his hands something you knew you put away, and when you do put it away, he's perfectly content with the awe and wonder of fingers moving and bending. His favorite times of day are mornings and bath-time. He's noticing the world around him and wants to take field trips to touch and explore new things. He likes silly faces and silly sounds. He smiles with his mouth wide open, even when he is eating! He is a blessing from God and we love helping him grow.

The picture of him sleeping is how he sleeps EVERY night. Assume the position! Turn on left side. Left thumb in mouth. Right hand holding left hand. Right leg over left leg. Okay, now I can sleep! And the picture of him dressed as "LL Cool Baby" is one from when his sitter and her family were having one of their many funny moments playing with Eli. We love the Doughtery's!

Sucked In

Do you ever find yourself being sucked into the world of (you fill in the blank). With so many things to do and learn about what interests us, we need to stay focused.

Shout out to Gretchen

Here are the links we talked about. Food for thought.
Seth Godin
Large Church? vs. "doctrinal excellence and moral purity" (can they be one in the same; if so, how?)
The heavens declare the glory of the Lord by Louie Giglio (cheapest I've found)
Check out his site, http://www.268generation.com/
Note the audience

This one's for the momma in you.
And this one's for the boys. Encore...

and one more that we didn't talk about, but may be helpful in our quest to learn more...

Overlooked

Have you ever felt overlooked? Check out this powerful sermon. CAUTION: It's 53 minutes long, not a short youtube clip, but worth every minute! http://www.elevationchurch.org/ click on "overlooked"

Church

So, our next discussion topic with the Donhams is the topic of church. What spurred this idea is the realization that of a certain group of friends, raised in the same church years ago, mostly everyone now attends a different church in the same city. What a thought! All remain good friends. Where to go with this...

History of Education

We have been thinking, lately, about the American education system, and how it is so tied into the success of or progression of our nation. We discussed with the Donhams problems, solutions, possibilities, and impossibilities which of course led to the history of the system we are a part of today. Surprisingly enough, there isn't much information out there on why we have chosen the system we have. Does anyone really know THE best way to educate the children of our nation, in our modern society? Something that others have mentioned when we bring up this topic is that educational authorities do not leave in place any policy/plan long enough to see if it actually works. They are constantly trying something new, instead of waiting out for the end result. Well, maybe that has to do with the high turn-over of teachers/professionals. Maybe someone has a plan, and before they can see it through, they are ready to move on to something bigger and better. Who's in it for the long-haul (and not just for retirement)?

Introductions

Well, as a first post, it seems there should be some introductions. Elliott is studying for a Master's in Psychology while working as a computer technician, Suzi is teaching 4th grade, both are raising Eli. We love God and we love people. We believe balance is the key to happy and healthy living (not to say we achieve it at all times). We are raising our first child, Eli, and loving it! It's so neat to learn through him.