Encouragement...

Last night at church, our topic at Impact was, "What Every Man Needs - Encouragement." We really had a good discussion at our table. The scripture for this session was from I Thessalonians 5:11.

We shared the following with each other with the men at the table:

1. What is the one thing that discourages you the most?
2. What are some examples of encouraging others?
3. Commit to encourage and build up someone this week.

We also shared other ideas that came up at our table. We realized you do not have to say anything to be an encourager. Sometimes just your presence is enough to encourage someone.

Also, we can be the ones that can encourage from time to time...imagine that! Remember that old saying..."It is better to give than to receive?" You do not have to be the one that gets the encouragement all the time. There is someone out there that you can encourage.

Be an encourager. Build up one another!

P.S. This is not just for men. We just happened to study this topic in our men's group on Wednesday night.

Please forgive me. It has been three days since my last submission...

Maybe that is why I have three things to talk about today. Now, on with the show.

Do you ever wonder how things seem to disappear? Do your supplies seem to disappear sooner at times? Well, I am not saying our dog food disappeared quicker, but I watched as Lizzie Kate dumped a couple of cups of dog food in the dish for Zack, and was feeding him one piece at a time. What a caring child.





Yesterday, Kelley, Morgan and I were driving to church. Lizzie Kate was staying with Memaw. We were all talking when Morgan said, "Dad, one of these days I really want you to run for President. I really, really, do dad!" I asked her if she wanted a lot of people to not like her dad? She said they would. "I would make t-shirts saying, I (heart) Philip!" We all got a laugh on that one. Needless to say, the t-shirts are now in production!

The third thing I will mention is something that was getting a few laughs on Facebook. Friday night, we all went to eat at Steffey's Pizza. Morgan was needing a little of my "attention." As I was reaching for her, I realized I had caught my belt buckle on the table. I did not realize the extent of the damages until I got up from the booth...My buckle was broke, and my belt was loose! Thank goodness I did not pull a circus clown act, where my pants hit the floor. Now that would have been embarrassing to say the least. I mean, at least the clown gets to wear makeup and hide their true identity!

Morgan performs during halftime during Bulldog Game...

Tonight Morgan and the Elite Stars got to perform their routine in the high school arena. I cannot speak for everyone, but every time I see her perform, I get proud. It isn't just cheer where this happens. I am proud when I hear her class say the "Pledge of Allegiance" at school. I am proud when I hear her sing. Lizzie Kate knows I am proud of her as well. What a unique girl she is.

Something crazy happened to me tonight. We ate at Steffey's Pizza. I was trying to keep the girls in line when I accidentally caught my belt on the table. I did not recognize it immediately, but once I got up from the table, my belt was wide open. I was hoping my pants would stay up! They did!

Say a prayer for a friend of mine, Darin Drennan. I believe he broke his wrist and his elbow. Get well soon!

Mentally tired...

Today I attended what is called Continuing Education classes. Every year I have to have 8 hours of continuing education hours to keep my license. So, today was the big event. There is no test involved, but you have to endure 8 hours inside a crowded room listening to insurance information. You do not even get a t-shirt stating..."I survived continuing education", for attending. You do gain some knowledge, but for the most part it is just a way to obtain the hours you need.

The best part about going to the classes today was being able to see some people I used to work with in Fayetteville. It really was good seeing them again. I have been blessed to work with some great people over the years.

I hope to be refreshed and ready to break out with some new blog material soon. So much seems to be happening lately. Thank goodness is Friday tomorrow!

More on the Big Tree...

You might remember one of my past posts regarding the Big Tree in Ashley County. This weekend my niece Kristin Morris was quick to tell me the tree is the widest pine tree in America. I do not know that for sure, but I cannot very well call my niece a liar now can I? I thought I would share something interesting that we found on the back side of the tree...

Morgan walked to the back side of the tree. Once she reappeared she asked, "What is this?" In her hand was what looked to be a 35 mm film canister. We carefully opened the lid and found some interesting articles. Inside the canister was a fake lizard, a coin of some sort, a note, and a small baby...no, not a real one. At first we did not know quite what to think of the find.




My father-in-law then said he thought the canister might be something associated with what is called Geo caching. Geo caching has something to do with hunting for hidden treasure. We believe the note inside serves as a log for those who find the treasure.

I find this sort of thing very interesting. It might be fun to do this sort of thing, or something similar where you hide things and have others find it. I mean we already have something similar to this going on in our house now. The person geo caching in our house is the "Caker".

Case Solved! I found my cell phone case!

Mystery #2 has been solved. I finally found my cell phone case. The "Caker" as I suspected, was behind the caper.

This morning Lizzie Kate wanted her pink purse that was high on a shelf in her closet. She wanted to put her little black and white puppy in it. Once I retrieved it off of the shelf I noticed something inside...my cell phone case. I said, "Caker",you put that in there didn't you?"

On the picture you can see that the "Caker" came clean and admitted taking said case. No charges will be filed at this time. I have looked all over for that case. Lizzie Kate must have put it in her purse a long time ago. Then, Kelley probably cleaned up her room and put the purse on the shelf, not realizing the case was inside - case closed!

How many days are there in a week now???

Has there been a change in our calendar? It just seems like our schedule now calls us to work 6 days, 23 hours, 30 minutes a week with a 30 minute lunch! Well, at least that is how this week has felt. I have said this many times, but it feels like this week has been the longest week in the history of man - AND IT IS ONLY THURSDAY!!!! OK, the CAP lock is now turned off. I guess I have vented enough. I guess it is just payback for those days we were off during the ice storm.

I guess I really should not complain about the work week being too long. In Exodus 20:9 it says, "Six days you shall labor and do all your work." I guess the day the world starts reading the Bible we will go to the six-day work week! Plus, in today's world we need to thank God for giving us the jobs we have.

So, now I am wondering why in the world I wrote this post! It just made a complete turnaround. Oh well...now I feel better!

A Burst of Energy...

Do you lack energy? Do you sometimes wonder what keeps you going? I do not worry about the energy level One of my girls has a high energy level at night - Lizzie Kate. The "Caker" can run circles around you and just keep going and going. She is my late night buddy and does not want to go to bed. She wants to watch her show, of course on your television.




Well, last night was no exception. She started doing a few "tricks" and said, "Put this on your blog. Put this on your blog." Then she would do another "trick", and say, "Put this on your blog. Put this on your blog. How do three year-olds know what a blog is? My goodness how times have changed. Morgan wants on my Facebook. Now, what she is going to do once she gets on there is anyone's business.

The pictures you see are the "tricks" that Lizzie Kate performed.




How can I say "no" to the "Caker", when she wants to be in my blog.

What a Great Day!

Today Morgan, Lizzie Kate, their Poppy and I had a day out all to ourselves. We had the best weather today, so we decided to do some fun things outside. We started out at McDonald's. After we ate, the girls got to play in the playground. Lizzie Kate joined Morgan at the top and slid down the slide.



After McDonald's, we went to the Crossett zoo where the girls got to feed deer and a camel. They really loved the animals. Lizzie Kate claimed one of the deer tried to eat her ponytail. That could have been bad.





The girls then got to play on the playground. I was proud of Lizzie Kate the way she has started to climb. She told me she was going to be brave and she was just that...Brave!



I got to have a little fun myself by making shapes of rabbits, etc. with my shadow. I know...grow up!



The topper of the day was us visiting the biggest tree in Ashley County...The Morris Tree. You can see how wide the tree is based on how much it dwarfs Lizzie Kate and Morgan.



I may share more on that tree in one of my next post if I can be brave like Lizzie Kate. More to come later!

On the Road with the Family...

We left early this morning to go see Kelley's family. On the way we stopped at Larry's Pizza West in Little Rock to eat. The girl's played some games and cashed in their tickets at the prize counter. We are now proud owners of a purple caterpillar, and a rubber eyeball.

As you can see in the picture, the girl's are happy to be going to see their Gran and Poppy, which is good. The other thing good about this trip is that Zack, the dog did not make the cut. He is staying at a local dog hotel. That's right - one full weekend without the dog that is not a blessing most of the time. Pray for who is keeping him. I hope we are not responsible for any damages that may occur.




Since we have been here, the girl's have went on a 3-wheeler ride with their Poppy. Kelley's sister, Lexie, showed some of her wedding pictures as well.

Lizzie Kate also wanted me to add a picture of her. She said put this in your blog. Not sure why she wanted it in the blog, but here it is.

Outdoor Sports Banquet...

Last Saturday night the Outdoor Sports Banquet was held at the Greenwood High School Arena. This was the second year in a row the event was held. I am just going on what I heard, but I believe there were over 1,800 tickets sold. The most important numbers were those that accepted Christ. There may be a more up-to-date total, but I had heard that 32 adults and 10 children came to know Christ! That is the most important numbers!



I thank God for the good weather we had, and the great turnout! The food was good, many prizes were given away, and someone went home with a new 4-wheeler again. I have posted some pictures to show what kind of crowd we had there. Thanks goes out to the many that worked and helped with this event.

Morgan wins Medal!!!

This weekend Morgan and her cheer team attended a competition in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She came back very happy and with a medal she wanted to show off. She wanted me to talk about it on my blog. So, here she is pictured with her medal. Congratulations Morgan!!!



Lizzie Kate stayed home with dad this weekend during the cheer event. Morgan was nice enough to bring her a little puppy. Lizzie Kate wanted to show him off as well. She is just as happy with her puppy as Morgan was with her medal.