Happy Thanksgiving!

Psalm 100
Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the LORD is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

Ode to Mashed Potatoes

*sung to the tune of Edelweiss from "Sound of Music"*

We love 'taters
Lovely 'taters
Mashed up all in a bowl
With some gravy and some butter
'Taters are good for your soul
And their fun to put your fork in and carve
Irritating your dad forever
'Taters, 'taters
We love 'taters
Hope mom makes a big bowl - of them!

To Do When I Get to Heaven #2

Sit down with my great-grandmother, have a good long talk and enjoy a good cup of tea.

Esther Louise Dempsey
February 14, 1916 - November 15, 2008

We'll miss you, but we know where you are. You are at peace, you are finally in your right mind and no longer sick, and you are much happier than we are. Pop and Poppa were probably wondering what took you so long to get there.

Love you, Rammy.

May the Force Be With You

I don't know which is more hilarious - the fact that I know all the soundtracks that this song is composed of, or the fact that I was laughing hysterically through the entire thing. Enjoy!

Videos

A couple of videos/songs that have meant a lot to me these last few days.


Brandon Heath - Give Me Your Eyes from Brandon Heath on Vimeo.

To Do When I Get to Heaven #1

Play the violin solo at the beginning of Fiddler on the Roof.

It's like Heaven.

Choose or Lose

A video that MTV.com came into Delaware take that features my very good friend Steve. About Senator Biden's bid in the upcoming election.

Steve and I went to Morocco this past summer.

And go Steve for not being afraid to voice your own opinion!

Polka will never die!

Gotta love Dresden--

*****

"Calm down?" He waved a shaking hand at the door. "They're going to kill us. Just like Phil. They're going to kill us and we're going to die. You, me, Thomas. We're all going to die."

I forgot my bad leg for a second, crossed the room to Butters, and seized him by the front of the shirt. I hauled up until his heels lifted off of the floor. "Listen to me," I snarled. "We are not going to die."

Butters stared at me, pale, his eyes terrified. "We're not?"

"No. And do you know why?"

He shook his head.

"Because Thomas is too pretty to die. And because I'm too stubborn to die." I hauled on his shirt even harder. "And most of all because tomorrow is Oktoberfest, Butters, and polka will never die."

He blinked.

"Polka will never die!" I shouted at him. "Say it!"

He swallowed. "Polka will never die?"

"Again!"

"P-p-polka will never die," he stammered.

I shook him a little. "Louder!"

"Polka will never die!" he shrieked.

"We're going to make it!" I shouted.

"Polka will never die!" Butters screamed.

"I can't believe I'm hearing this," Thomas muttered.

Vacation!

I took a vacation to Virginia Beach September 10-13. Here are pictures!

Spent all day Thursday at the beach. It was windy and warm, once the sun finally decided to show itself!


The statue of Neptune at the beach.


Becky and I at the Naval Base in Norfolk.


Me and my awesome cousins, Danny and Karissa, who let us stay at their house for the weekend!


The nuclear submarine U.S.S. North Carolina. Danny used to be in the Navy (is now in the Reserves) and we were allowed in and on board and given a tour. Now I can say I've been on a nuclear sub. Danny's current job? Building these things (and also the carriers too).


Bet you didn't know that swearing is illegal in Virginia Beach!


Becky and I at the Music Builds Concert.



Jars of Clay.


Switchfoot. I think this is when they were playing "This is Home." Which was one of my favorite performances of theirs. Especially because of the Narnia (and Heaven) references.


Third Day.

And the encore had to be the best ever. All three of the groups came up on stage together (along with a guy from the fourth group who had been playing) and they all did a cover of U2's "When Love Comes to Town." Absolutely amazing.

Without a doubt, it goes down as one of the best vacations I've ever had. (The concert goes down for best ever. Hands down.)

Lay Down Softly in Our Sorrow

But the God that sometimes can't be found
Will wrap Himself around you
So lay down, sister, lay down

Slower passing are the hours
To tell this tale that takes its time
The finest moment, no man can measure
Is to look your Savior in the eyes

-'Rita' by Bebo Norman