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We had the opportunity to spend Thursday and Friday in Pittsburgh to celebrate Gotcha Day. We got together with my best friend and roomie from college, Trish. We hadn’t seen each other in a number of years, so we stayed up late catching up and reminiscing and, of course, laughing hysterically at times (even after … Read more
There are special days in our lives, given to us to remember forever. This is one of those days. One year ago today, Ethan was placed in our arms. Already birthed in our hearts the first time we saw his picture in September (It’s a Boy!), on February 12, 2008 we were united physically. Randy … Read more
One year ago today, we met Ethan for the first time in his foster family’s home where we spent an hour together, getting acquainted — well, technically it was February 11, 2008 (10:00 am) in Seoul, Korea, but it was February 10, 2008 (8:00 pm) in the Eastern Time Zone, which is the time zone … Read more
One of the books I read for two of my D.Min. classes was Leadership and Self-Deception by the Arbinger Institute. It’s a must-read for leaders. In the preface, the authors assert that while “leadership is about making matters better,” “self-deception” is “central to leadership” because it tends to “make matters worse” (viii). The authors use … Read more
One year ago today, we embarked on a memorable 30-hour adventure (from State College, PA to Seoul, Korea) to welcome Ethan into our lives (a few days later). When we finally arrived in our room at the guest house we blogged the experience in a post called 30 Hours. We invite you to relive the … Read more
The Watoto Children’s Choir was in town last night for the Concert of Hope at West Side UMC (see Joleen’s preview post). It was a tremendous and inspiring experience! The group from Uganda (Africa), who is in the fifth month of their 6-month tour, arrived yesterday around 2:00 pm where Joleen and others from West … Read more
[singlepic id=574 w=200 h=200 float=right]West Side UMC hosted Dennis Buffington from Penn State Cooperative Extension on January 26. His presentation was entitled “Coping with High Energy Costs.” Following are some highlights from his presentation. Don’t overlook the simple things. Remember to open your blinds during the day and close at sunset. You can save up … Read more
As you can see, Ethan is ready for some football (well, after his nap, which is now underway!). Tonight, on Ethan’s first Super Bowl Sunday in the States, the Pittsburgh Steelers take on the Arizona Cardinals.
During one of the meals at the Bishop’s Retreat last week, each place setting included a 1-2-3-4 card which is intended to describe United Methodists. The folded card is designed “to provide talking points about our church and its mission,” states … We are the people of The United Methodist Church. We believe in— making … Read more
The snow continues to pile up here in central PA. Ethan hasn’t played in the snow too much other than a day a earlier this month and yesterday. It just keeps on piling up, giving Ethan more to play in … How are you enjoying — or coping with — the weather? 🙂