Hope and I are hoping to attend Valley Forge’s Homecoming next year for my ten year reunion.  Tim, Gimpy and I have been going back and forth about meeting out there and we are all hoping to do it next fall.  We probably will not bring any of the children except Cana so that we can move more freely (like a small military tactical unit instead of a stampede of six).  We pass through Ohio on the 12 hour drive to exit #23 on the PA Turnpike so we’ll probably leave the kids with grandmas and grandpas for the few days. 

We hope to attend Homecoming activities, see the Phili Art Museum and Valley Forge National Park, eat several cheesesteaks at Bob’s Haven and fried egg sandwiches at the G-Lodge Diner, drink some coffee at the Gryphon Cafe near Eastern Univ., see friends at Eastern.  We may even take the train from Paoli to the 30th Street Station for ol’ times sake.  Hopefully the Tavanis will have room for us in their new house off of Charlestown Street.  The whole time, Rainchildren, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Gin Blossoms and The Somethings will be played in the background.

 

October 1, 2006

The University of Mississippi marked the 44th anniversary of a milestone in its history today with the dedication of a civil-rights monument that features a life-size statue of James H. Meredith, the first black student admitted to the university. Mr. Meredith, whose arrival on the Oxford, Miss., campus sparked riots in 1962, was an honored guest at the ceremony.

“This monument is an appropriate way to memorialize the role of the University of Mississippi and James Meredith in opening the doors of higher education to all people across the South,” the university’s chancellor, Robert C. Khayat, said in a written statement released last week. “We hope it will serve as a reminder of the courage of Mr. Meredith and others who led the way in important cultural changes.”

We were able to visit Ole Miss 3 years ago on our Civil Rights trip.  It is great to see the University honor the courage of James Meredith.  On our trip, we were able to meet Dr. L. G. Hopkins who was called to the riot scene from his home.  He turned their Administration building restrooms into make-shift hospitals in order to treat the many wounded in the 48 hour riot.

Here’s everyone.

Huntington University professors Steve Leeper and Bryan Ballinger have created a segment for the NBC animated series “VeggieTales.” “VeggieTales” conveys Christian ideals to children through funny, humanlike vegetable-shaped characters. “Mr. Lunt’s Popsicle Stick Puppet Theater” will debut on Oct. 7. Ballinger, assistant professor of digital media arts, created the designs, art and building of the puppets while Leeper, instructor in digital media arts, animated the characters. Mr. Lunt, a decorative gourd who grew up in New Jersey and speaks with a Spanish accent, was first featured in “VeggieTales” videos and movies.

http://www.huntington.edu/news/0607/VeggieTales.htm

Does anyone out there memorize scripture as a weekly / daily habit?  I’m going to try it and begin with Matthew 6:25-28; the passage about worry.  We need to replace our furnace and this has become a source of worry for me.  Does anyone have a furnace that they don’t need?

It has been a good first week in the 6-person Brown compound.  Cana has her days and nights a bit confused.  She tended to wake up around 10:00 pm even while she was in the womb and the fresh air hasn’t changed her routine.  We are simply going to move to Hawaii where the timezone is more conducive to her sleeping habits.  Her first trip yesterday was to Wendy’s for lunch then to the new Super Wal-Mart in town.  It is the small town, modern day equivalent of the Old Testament sacrificial system.

Isaac and Grace (who turn 5 years old today) enjoy Cana.  For Grace, it doesn’t get any better than holding Cana while some kidshows are on the television.  Eden also likes having Cana around.  She is mostly concerned when Cana’s binky falls out and does her level best to return it forcefully back into Cana’s mouth.  We’re still working on the, “Easy, Eden, easy“.  Unfortunately, love hurts sometimes.

Hope is feeling well but could use a nap at any moment.  If Cana’s timezone confusion wasn’t enough, we’re also battling nighttime bad dreams for the other kids. 

I returned to work today and only had 5 voicemails but 200 e-mails.  I really, really like my work but it was nice to be home with the fam for a few days.  Tonight I am hoping to plant some tulip, daffodil and crocus bulbs in the front flower beds with Grace’s help.

After putting up a fight, Cana JoyAnn entered into the world this morning at 7:58 am.  She was not happy about her new environment.  It wasn’t until late afternoon that she settled down to rest.

 

She has great hair.  Her older sister, Eden, had similar hair when she was born; it is now white blonde.

 

It is cool to think that we are a complete family now.  How can we be used by God now that we couldn’t do before Cana’s arrival?  It is amazing to consider the impact that one more person can have in a family and in the world.

 

We chose the name Cana for a few reasons: 1.) We think that it is a pretty sounding name and other people seem to agree; 2.) We’ve never met anyone named Cana; 3.) We like the story of the “Wedding of Cana” in John 2 when he fills ordinary vessels with something extraordinary.  We hope the same will be true for our Cana.

 

The middle name is created from two obvious words: “Joy,” which is also a pretty name and “Ann,” which is my mother’s middle name.

 

Seth reminded me of this quote the other day.  It is from Fred Buechner’s book A Sacred Journey.

She was a girl going on thirteen as I was, with a mouth that turned up at the corners.  If we ever spoke to each other about anything of consequence, I have long since forgotten it.  I have forgotten the color of her eyes.  I have forgotten the sound of her voice.  But one day at dusk we were sitting side by side on a crumbling stone wall watching the Salt Kettle ferries come and go when… our bare knees happened to touch for a moment, and in that moment I was filled with such a sweet panic and anguish of longing for I had no idea what that I knew my life could never be complete until I found it.

The other night it was raining (sound familiar).  When it rains, the reception on our tv goes in and out because we have the Dish.  On this night, only the local channels were reliable so we snuggled in to see what was on.  Below are a few lessons that Hope and I learned from watching local television.

1. Don’t try to adopt a baby from someone you’ve met over the internet; especially if you aren’t going to use a certified adoption agency.  We watched about 15 minutes of a news program that exposed one woman’s crimes against many hopeful couples that all sought to adopt the baby that she presumably carried.  While it is certainly a crime to skip-out-of-town before giving up your baby to an expectant couple, it was equally a crime the way the news host berated the wayward mother.


2. Don’t trade your spouse for another spouse, even if it is only a week and you can win a large amount of cash.  That has bad news written all over it.


3. Some Christian networds are very interested in your financial donations to the ministry.  While I credit them for their evangelistic efforts, I witnessed more overt and covert pleas for financial contributions in 20 minutes than if I were watching the Jerry Lewis Telethon.  I had a strange feeling of anger / embarrassment / hope / confusion all mixed together.


4. We would have been better off clipping our toenails or covering the exterior of our own house with cheap toilet paper.