i will sing... sing a new song

I waited patiently for the LORD;
And He inclined to me,
And heard my cry.


He also brought me up
out of a horrible pit,
Out of the miry clay,
And set my feet upon a rock,
And established my steps.


He has put a new song in my mouth—
Praise to our God;
Many will see it and fear,
And will trust in the LORD.

- Psalm 40:1-3, to the Chief Musician

reflecting on a reflection of my birthday

So... my birthday was this week. And normally I spend a moment or two reflecting on it.  At times I even log my day, which I could easily do here - from the special breakfast and singing I woke up to, the lunch I enjoyed at B.D.'s Mongolian BBQ with my ladies, or the big lasagna dinner I was treated to.  Then there are the presents - my favorite candy from my youngest son; new clothes from my wife and daughter; or the gift my oldest song bought with his own allowance to replace something of mine he had a responsibility in accidentally breaking a couple weeks ago.

Rather than itemize all of that and write a paragraph about each one, I'd rather focus on this picture. As you can tell, everyone is looking at the camera that my lovely wife is holding. We're all smiles, too, as if that moment is truly one of the best moments of our lives.  I couldn't agree more... and each candle on the cake reminds me of the gift that my kids are to me.  In hindsight I should have asked to throw one more on there to represent Katie, but again - the smiles on all our faces and absolutely content spirits capture the honesty of our relationship with each other.

I know that many household don't get to enjoy this - sometimes people pass by each other in the house like co-workers versus family. So other than building our marriage and home on God, I'm not sure what Katie and I have done "right" to somehow end up here - with this picture.  A piece of that has involved getting beaten down by life and realizing what's important... but another piece, I think, has been savoring each other and what Jesus Christ has blessed our life with.

So I'm going to praise God for another year of life... and pray that the joy contained in this rectangle only amplifies with age.

a day in the life of me: birthday reflections

It was yet another amazing birthday just hanging with my family and then some good friends who surprised me at the end. I woke up to breakfast in bed, presents from my boys, and then got to go back to sleep. Then we headed out to Mongolian BBQ, window-shopped at a retro toy store, came back and played some Gamecube, and ate a turkey dinner. I got some gifts from my wife and mom in there, too, capped off with a trip to Smoothie King.

Something that I learned on my birthday this year?

It's fun to eat a lunch of a variety of bowl assortments at Mongolian BBQ.

But... when combined with a turkey dinner...

and a trip to Smoothie King...

your stomach may not be your best friend.

birthday blog

What to say about another birthday?

Saturday rocked! It was another day to spend with my amazing family...

waking up to smiling kids and a loving wife singing to me...

a big breakfast with all my favorite special foods...

back to bed for a second-wind sleepie...

heading out and watching my oldest play a great soccer game...

chasing my youngest through a grassy field...

hearing my wife tell me we're going to Smoothie King...

drinking a big smoothie...

hearing the happy birthday song again...

opening up presents...

realizing that some of my presents were from money my son spent on his own...

learning that my "big present" was bigger than I thought...

going out for a steak dinner...

having the manager give it to us for free because it got messed up...

eating ice cream cake after having the family sing to me again...

learning there were more presents...

hearing the happy birthday song as both boys headed off to bed...

hearing the happy birthday song again in the morning when the boys woke up...

hearing the happy birthday song again today, just because....

Yeah.

weekend fun: 35

"Cake's a powerful food. Cake can actually bring people together.

'You know it's Bill's birthday'
'Yeah, I hate that guy.'
'There's cake in the conference room.'
(pause) 'Well I should say hello.'

Let's be honest, when that birthday song kicks in all you're thinking about is 'I'm getting some free cake.' " - comedian Jim Gaffigan

My wife and boys rocked my day today with all kinds of special touches, not to mention homemade lasagna and Dairy Queen ice cream cake.

So in light of today being my birthday...

Things A 35-Year Old Guy Should Never Do.

1. Use shoes or a wallet that are fastened with Velcro.
2. Wear a sweaty tank top as you head out to see your pals Sal and Manny.
3. Attempt to understand the relationship you share with your dog.
4. Hang art with scotch tape.
5. Watch live episodes of The View or The Oprah (but watching repeat episodes late at night in order to make fun of them is okay).
6. Ask a policeman, "Got any donuts you can bring back after you write that ticket?"
7. Tap on the glass of aquairums in stores.
8. Shout out an affirmative response to "Are you ready to rock?"
9. Jokingly flash gang signs while posing for wedding photos.
10. Air drum with chopsticks while waiting for food at Mongolian BBQ (because the other day I saw this guy doing it and he drove me crazy).
11. Wear CHIPs sunglasses indoors while you flash the "cool guy guns" across the room at with your buddy who is air drumming with chopsticks at the Mongolian BBQ (because the other day I saw this guy doing it and he drove me crazy).
12. Aloofly try to bring back outdated clothing because you don't know what's cool anymore.
13. Listen to Howard Stern.
14. Dispute someone else's call of "shotgun."
15. "Tip" the delivery boy with a note that says, "Don't take any wooden nickles."
16. Display a novelty bumper sticker involving a bootleg version of Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes doing something naughty.
17. Read Mad Magazine in the magazine aisle of Walgreens.
18. Make prank calls to bowling alleys or chicken establishments involving strategically dirty questions regarding their products.
19. But tickets for anything that starts with "Ice" and ends in "Capade."
20. Watch Leno over Letterman.
21. Begin chanting "WOOF! WOOF! WOOF!" after you belch.
22. Appear in an infomercial by giving a "word on the street" endorsement of any product held in the hands of the former 70's TV star or athlete hosting the "show."
23. Wear superhero t-shirts out in public unless you're absolutely secure in your identity first.
24. Repeat every line of "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," "The Princess Bride," or "Monty Python's The Holy Grail" if they are every played at a house party you happen to be at.
25. In fact, let's just say repeating movie lines of any movie you've seen is bad in general.
26. And that also includes repeating movie lines of something you're currently watching and are laughing at but feel the compulsive need to repeat the line you just heard while you're laughing (as though everyone around you can't put together which line you're laughing at as you distract them from watching the movie).
27. Pretend that you actually care about anything the weatherman says before he finally gets to the five-day forecast with the cute little pictures of suns, clouds, and lightning bolts.
28. Wear a baseball hat to the side (but backward-action is still cool).
29. Make a woman watch any episode of the Three Stooges with you.
30. Attempt to begin a new friendship with the phrase/question, "Hubba Bubba?"
31. Expect that one day your goal of owning either KITT or the General Lee will actually happen.
32. Do the Robot.
33. Go grocery shopping in your pajamas.
34. Be undecided on who "your teams" are.
35. Forget how your life is blessed no matter how quirky it is or you are because of it.

Thanks to Katie, Joshua, and Daniel for making today more than special.

Thanks to my mom and dad for biological birth and loving parenting as best as you knew how.

Thanks to all of my friends and readers like you who add color and textures to how I see things.

Thanks to my Savior Jesus Christ for putting Life into my life.

A Happy Birthday, indeed.