Callie's First Steps

Using Technology Part 2

As I mentioned in my last post, we have been going through a series at church about controlling our TVs/the Internet. This past Sunday the sermon was focused on the dark side of the Internet. It is pretty scary to think of how evil and corrupt the Internet really can be. I dread to think of what it will be like when my girls are older.

One thing I did point out is the fact that we can use the Internet for our good. From paying bills online to save time and money, to connecting with old and new friends the Internet can be good. My pastor compared the Internet to fire and I really like this analogy. When fire is controlled it is extremely useful. When fire is allowed to run free without restraint, then watch out! If we will put measures in our life to control the Internet, then we can use it to enhance our lives. Take a blog like this for instance. I love reading friends' blogs to keep up with their lives. For family and friends that we cannot see on a regular basis, we can keep them updated on our family and even share recent photos. I also enjoy getting on Facebook to view photos, videos, and short posts from friends, family, and church members. On the flip side of this, of course, is the temptation to become wrapped up in blogging and social networking. I have to watch myself so that I don't waste time online when I could be doing something more productive. Again, technology is great when we use it for good and don't abuse it or let it take control of our lives.

Using Technology

With everything going on in our world today, I love when I am able to find something that makes life a little easier and more simple.  A college friend of mine recently enlightened me about Google Reader.  I had heard about the service before but never really checked into it.  I have been using it for a few weeks and just love it.  Instead of having to check the blogs I read for new content, Google Reader does the work for me.  I am all about using technology to make my life better.  Especially since this is a free service.  

Our church is in the middle of a sermon series about controlling technology, like our TVs, and making sure that we don't let them "think for us."  It has been astounding to hear some of the facts just related to TV watching in the average American home.  One of the best inventions for controlling our TV is utilizing our DVR.  As Emily gets older, I am more sensitive to what she sees and hears on TV.  More and more, commercials seem to have lost any kind of family-friendly filter and they are what hurt us the most when we watch live TV.  Our DVR allows us to fast-forward through commercials of shows we have taped and it allows us to watch TV on our time.  Plus, by the time you fast-forward through the commercials of an hour long program, you actually cut out about twenty minutes.  

I realize the for many of you, these two things are not ground breaking concepts.  However, anything that helps me filter out the bad and anything that gives me more time with my family is big for us.  So, what have you done in your life to free up some time for the family?  We all have the same amount of time each day and now is the time to spend it wisely.  With all of the talk right now about "going green," how about going "simple?"  

This week our Sunday sermon is going to be about Internet usage and the evils the WWW brings into our homes.  I am sure the number of hours the average teen and young adult spends online is staggering.  I will try and post after the sermon to see what else we can do with current technology.  

Having Faith

Alright! If you know me well, you knew this blog was coming. I have been wanting to post about the presidential election for a while, but have been trying to restrain myself. Well, no longer! I am a supporter of John McCain. (I'm sure that comes as a shock.) However, lately, I have been on edge about everything. I watch the stock market and wonder if we are going to have another depression. I watch the news and think about how much the media seeks to divide, not unite. Things that should not be focused on in the campaign are focused on and things that should be talked about are being ignored. I have taught myself that we have to have faith. There are several things we need to have faith in, however. Number one, we need to have faith in the American people. We have a history of not letting others tell us what to do and hopefully, we will make our own decision when we go to the voting booth. Second, we need to have faith in our democratic system. Whoever wins, we need to trust that this is who was voted into office. Third, we need to have faith in our country. Looking back at the times of the Great Depression, the role of government was expanded thanks to a democratic president. It probably prolonged the Depression rather than helped, but we eventually got back on track. Last, but most importantly, we need to have faith in God. Remember, He is in control and He knows exactly what will happen. We can trust Him with our country and we can trust Him with our family.

Before I go, I encourage you to know what each candidate believes on the issues. Look at their plans for our future. If you are not sure, ask me and I can help you (but I am a little biased.)

MCCAIN/PALIN ALL THE WAY!!!!

Truly Blessed

The other day I was I was talking with some people from church about young families who are having a hard time.  I know of several couples who are plagued with debt, parenting issues, job stress, and just the busyness of life these days.  The longer we talked, the more I realized just how much God has blessed my family and me.  Don't get me wrong, we have our problems and struggles, but overall life is great.  We have a great church, our girls are healthy, and financially we are slowly eliminating our debt.  Several in our church have major health issues that I cannot even imagine having to endure.  God truly has blessed me!  

Of course as I type this, I understand that all of this can change on a dime.  We are not immune to problems and I know that they will come.  If you are going through a hard time, know that there is light at the end of the tunnel.  Many of you have shown great perseverance and I pray that when the storms of life come we rely upon God to carry us through.

On a side note, I just added some more recent pictures of our family. Click here to view them.

God's Blessings

Yesterday was a really neat day for me. I say some our prayers get answered that I didn't even know we had been praying for. It just showed me again how God not only desires to take care of our needs but He wants to give us a few of our wants also. Let me just give a quick rundown of what I mean. Every time we have gone to Wal-Mart lately, they have had those wooden playhouses and playground equipment sitting out. I guess they are trying to get rid of them before putting them back in storage. Anyway, Emily always talks about wanting one. The problem is that they cost anywhere between 300-500 dollars. Needless to say, we really can not afford that. Okay, keep that in mind. Jason and I were talking the other day about when do we give Emily a bike. I think I came to the conclusion that maybe for her birthday we could get her one. Again, a good one is a little expensive so we would have to save up for it. Emily is also outgrowing all of her clothes. We can get her things a little at a time, but a lot of her stuff comes from her MiMi and PaPa. They have been a real blessing.

Anyway, yesterday we go to church and a lady starts talking to Jason about a Playscape that she has that her son has outgrown. It is a real sturdy playset for the backyard. She wants to give it to us. Emily will get it the end of this month. I know that she will be so excited. I also had another lady come up to me during our welcome time and tell me that her daughter is outgrowing all of her clothes very quickly and she doesn't have anyone to give her clothes to. The little girl is a year older than Emily and she wanted to know if I wanted the clothes. I was like, definitely. Then, she added, in the spring we will have a bike to give you also. The bike is almost brand new and was only ridden a few times. I was floored! God is so good. I didn't even know these were things that were on His priority list, but again, He desires to give us good things, so I shouldn't be all that surprised.

The best of days

Well, for the past few days I have been wanting to post an update of some sort but every time I sat down, nothing would come to mind. I guess I had writer's block. The truth is we have had some very calm days. I am so blessed. I did forget to mention the fact that Emily has written her name all by herself. We were at Chile's the other day and Jason wrote her name on her to-go box. Without any help from anyone else, she looked at what Jason had written and wrote her name all by herself. I had her write it again on a piece of paper because I couldn't keep the to-go box. She is also really funny because we can get in the car at Jason's parents and head home (which is 25 minutes away.) The whole way home, Emily talks. It is hilarious because Jason and I can not have a conversation at all. I don't know where she gets the whole talking so much (surely not from me, ha ha.)

Anyway, I can't go without talking about the election. I just want to remind everyone to vote. If you have not registered, do so!! Remember, everyones vote is on equal footing. Just because some people have a bigger platform to speak on then others, doesn't mean their vote counts more.

God is in control!! Thank goodness!

Recent Pictures

Well, since I have decided to try and update this blog as much as possible, I decided to put some more up-to-date pictures of the girls. Emily is now 3 1/2 and Callie is almost 9 months. Time sure does go quickly. Emily is doing pretty good on potty training. We have had some setbacks in the last couple of days. Callie is into everything. It is so funny because everything goes in Callie's mouth and she seems to be attracted to outlets. With Emily we didn't have to worry about either one of those things. Oh well, each child is different. Yesterday, I had a moment of panic after watching some of the 24-hour news channels. I had to remind myself that no matter what happens, God is in control. We only see the here and now, He sees forever. I take comfort in that! Anyway, here are pictures of the girls.

Emily being a princess.

Callie going where she doesn't belong.

Emily being a princess again (she does that often.)

The girls playing together.

The joy of masking tape

So I decided to start updating our blog site again. Today, I want to tell about one of the cheapest forms of entertainment I have found for my 3 year old. If you know her, you know that she is always moving. She cannot sit still. She is also a very loud child. I have heard that she is alot like I was when I was little. Oh, did I mention she is pretty strong-willed. I keep reminding myself that she will make a great adult. She will not be able to be pushed around and she will not take no for an answer. Anyway, back to my original thought, she is fascinated with masking tape. I love it because it last a long time, is relatively inexpensive, and won't break or tear anything (unless she tapes a book.) She will put it on our walls and I can just take it right off. She will put it on her toys. Again, I can take it right off. The only thing I have to watch for is making sure that my almost nine month old doesn't follow behind and take it off to put in her mouth. Well, that is my thought for the day.

One funny story (I will probably send this to Reader's Digest.) The other night we went out to eat. We were waiting for our food and Emily was getting a little impatient. She asked me what we were waiting for. I told her we were waiting for them to deliver our good food. She crossed her arms looked at me and said, "I don't want good food, I want our food at home." I thought that was so funny!

The Pikkula Family & Hurricane Ike

I just talked to Amanda and they are doing fine. They do not have electricity, part of their fence was blown down, and some siding blew off their house. It was a rough night, but the boys slept through it. Coleman has been asking about watching something on TV, so it might be rough for the next day or so. Amanda's parents are doing well. They actually still have electricity. If I hear anything else, I will be sure to post that later.

Olympics 2008

With my students back in school, it means that summer is over and the Olympics are here.  So far, it has been a fun week watching all of the different events and cheering on the USA.  Every time I watch of think about the athletes, I can't help but think about the dedication and hard work involved.  My wife always says it would be cool to know you were one of the best in the world at your event.  I think I would personally choose the beach volleyball if I could have actually had a chance at an Olympic appearance.  I really like the team mentality and I am usually pretty decent at volleyball.  

Michael Phelps continues to blow me away!  To race 17 in a week is plain crazy.  Over and over they have mentioned his daily schedule and it is so hard.  For these few days, his complete focus is on swimming.  He doesn't have any time for anything else.  It is pretty much eat, swim, rest, swim, and sleep for a few hours.  He swims more than one race a day and really doesn't have much down time.  

What if we as Christians applied this kind of focus to our walk with Christ?  Instead of spending four years preparing for the next Olympics (and yes, I realize many prepare from a very young age), what if we were this intense everyday focused on following Christ for our entire lives.  The truth is every Christian should be able to qualify as a disciple the same way these athletes are expected to qualify for the Olympics.  While it would also be very cool to hold an Olympic or World Record, they are being broken left and right.  Sure your name is placed in the history books, but when all is said and done do these records really matter?  Don't get me wrong, I think going for records are great but our focus has to be on Christ and what will matter for eternity.  

I hope you enjoy these two weeks and GO USA!  

Emily is Three!

On Friday, Emily turned three! It still doesn't seem possible that we now have a three year old along with a soon-to-be four month old. All that Emily really wanted to do was play on the playground at McDonalds. We did this last year and it is quickly becoming a tradition for her birthday. It was an overall fun day celebrating life. Here are some pictures of Emily's day. It beings with a trip to the beauty shop for her second haircut.

We will soon be posting more pictures of the girls in our online Web gallery. There is a link on the right side of this page. 

Sisters

Here are some recently pictures of the girls.  They sure are growing up fast!  This Friday Emily will be three.  It doesn't seem possible that she will be starting school in a little over a year.

Emily sharing her "iPod" with Callie.  

Callie sitting up with a little bit of help.

Two Are Better Than One

When Theresa and I first launched into the world of blogging, we both knew it would be a challenge. Now that we have two children it has become an even greater challenge for the both of us to add content to our blogs. In an effort to keep everyone updated on our family, we have decided to combine our blogs into one family blog. We all know that two heads are better than one and hopefully for us two bloggers are better than one blogger. We shall see. Here's to our family blog!

I'm Still Here

I realize that I haven’t blogged in way too long. Sorry for the delay, but with moving to a new church life has just been busy. I will post more soon.

Seven Weeks

Tomorrow Callie will already be seven weeks old. I can’t believe how much she has grown in this short amount of time. It is comforting to know that we did make it past the six week mark without any major health issues. With both Emily and Callie, we were told to keep them away from large crowds like church and Wal-Mart for the first six weeks. That was actually very easy to do with Callie since we have been having such cold weather since she was born and since the flu has really been bad this year. Almost everyone we talk to at church is sick or has been sick. Having passed the six week mark and with nicer weather today, Callie made her debut at church. Everyone has been so anxious to see her but also very understanding considering her health. It was a good morning and Callie mostly slept through Sunday School and church.

Another thing about this past seven weeks is how different each day with a newborn seems. What worked yesterday does not work today but may work tomorrow. Forget about trying the same old tricks we used on Emily because they probably will not work either. I think it is just God’s way of keeping us on our toes! For someone who enjoys change here and there, but also likes some consistency, this is frustrating at times but also fun. I do look forward to our future as a family of four and have already begun to dream of vacations and trips the four of us can do when both girls are a little older. Every time I start to get ahead of myself, I remember to take it one day at a time and enjoy each moment with my newborn. Thank you God for a good first seven weeks.

Since Then

Well, it has been a while since I last posted. Our lives seem to be one big roller coaster. I am still getting used to have two children and trying to keep our home life a little sane. Anyway, many of you know that my grandmother passed away on Valentine's Day. It was hard for me but it was not a shock. she was 87 years old and ready to go. Callie is going to be seven weeks old tomorrow and it is hard for me to believe. I guess the good thing is that we are getting closer to me getting a full nights sleep. The sad thing is that she is growing up way too fast. My oldest will be three in May and that makes me very sad also. Speaking of Emily, she is so cute and loves Callie so much. she likes to help me wash dishes and cook and clean. Our latest thing her and I have discovered is YouTube. We go on there and look up one of her children's songs (such as "Wheels on the Bus) and pick out one of the many videos and watch it. The other day we watched "If you're happy and you know it" about twenty times in a row. She likes the one where there are other children singing. Today was mine and Callie's first day at church. everyone was excited to see us but nobody got to hold her because everyone here has been sick. Emily did so well with it and I was so proud of her.

Callie's First Movie

Here is the video that Norman Regional Hospital took of Callie right after she was born.

Theresa's Grandma

If you have not already heard, Theresa’s grandma passed away about 2:00am this morning. She died in her sleep and we are thankful that she didn’t suffer. We are not sure if the funeral will be this Saturday or next Monday. Theresa, Callie, and I will be heading to Baton Rouge in the next few days so we can attend the funeral. This is very bitter-sweet for Theresa because we wanted to go visit her grandma in April so she could meet Callie. On the other hand, we were afraid that if she passed away toward the end of the pregnancy, then Theresa wouldn’t have been able to make the trip.

Her grandma has been the “rock” in her life and means the world to Theresa. We had our wedding in New Orleans so that she could be present. It didn’t matter to Theresa if anyone else came as long as her grandma got to be there. She has not been doing well health wise for the past few years so we knew our time with her would be short. Please be in prayer for us as we make the trip and for Theresa as she grieves.

Happy Valentine's Day

Since tomorrow is Valentine’s Day, I wanted to write a quick post for Theresa. Usually I focus on Emily and Callie when I write, but for this post I want to focus on Theresa. Don’t get me wrong. Having both of my girls this year makes this such a special Valentine’s Day and I look forward to spending many more with both of them. However, it all goes back to Theresa. She is simply amazing. I can’t even imagine my life without her. In January, we celebrated our five year anniversary and that doesn’t even seem possible. We have been through a lot in five years and we are both definitely not the same two students who met through a seminary class.

Every step of the way, Theresa has been so supportive of me and my youth ministry. I could not do what I do without her. On top of her support, she does such a wonderful job raising Emily and Callie. We both know that God called her to be a stay-at-home mom and that is no small task. She knows how important a child’s spiritual formation is when they are young and that is one of her top priorities as we raise our girls. There is nothing wrong with moms who have to work, but it is such a blessing that she is able to stay home during the first part of their lives.

Happy Valentine’s Day Theresa! I love you and thank God for allowing us to have such a wonderful family.

A Trip To Arkansas

My family and I are currently in Bentonville, AR to visit some very close friends of ours. They are pretty much like family to us and it has been good to get away for a couple of days. I know that Theresa has really enjoyed getting out of the house since she and the girls spend most of their time inside these days. It has just been so cold outside and everyone at church seems to be sick or getting sick. This is also Callie’s first time outside of Oklahoma and she is only one month old! The weather here has been really nice. We drove through a little bit of snow on the way up here, but it didn’t last very long.

Emily has been having a great time with Hannah and Sarah Jordan. Hannah is thirteen and Sarah Jordan is ten. They have both done a great job playing with Emily and loving on Callie. I know that when we have to leave tomorrow that she will want to stay longer with her two new play-mates. Theresa and I are going to a movie in about an hour so that will be nice. Life has just been so crazy this past month and we really haven’t spent a lot of time by ourselves. Callie will be with us, but it will still be nice to get away for a few hours. I will post some pictures of our trip when we are back in Oklahoma. I hope you all have a great weekend.

Old School Commercial

After watching most of the ads during the Super Bowl yesterday, I came across an old McDonald’s ad from 1993. While I enjoy some of the new commercials, it is fun to see how much they have changed over the years. Enjoy.

Crazy Youth Group Game Idea

This goes to show you that American’s aren’t the only ones who can have fun.

More on Lost

Okay, I know that you are probably getting tired of my posts about Lost. I will make this one short and sweet. As I said in my previous post, tonight was the two-hour season premiere of season 4 of Lost. I guess that ABC is really wanting viewers that started watching Lost and have stopped or those who never really got into the show to give it a try again. I think this because they have been really trying to sum up the first three seasons so that you can jump in with tonight’s episode.

First, while I was excited about the two-hour premiere, I also knew there would be a lot of time spent on re-capping what has already happened. They did this by using the first hour to bring everyone “up-to-speed” on the highlights so far. Secondly, I also figured they would give us just enough to grab our attention to get us hooked again. The second hour of the show did just that. I can’t wait to see what happens next on Lost.

Life As We Know It

Well, we still have not had a totally sleepless night which is very good, however, we are getting closer and closer to having one. Callie has her days and nights mixed up and I am trying very hard to get her to straighten them out. The problem is that my child can sleep through anything. This is thanks to her sister who runs through the room screaming at the top of her lungs as Callie is taking an afternoon nap. We have decided it is pointless to try to keep things quiet. Speaking of my two year old, she is going through a stage right now (at least I hope it is a stage). She had all of her toys taken away yesterday (well, alot of her toys) and still wouldn't listen. Not only is she not potty training but she refuses to have her pull up changed. We are trying bribery right now just to get her not to throw a fit. Jason has been at the state evangelism conference this week so I have given Emily a bath and put her to bed by myself with Callie in tow. It was not as difficult as I thought it would be. Callie, of course, did not cooperate and sleep like she was supposed to, she woke up about the time I was to give Emily a bath. However, that meant I rocked both girls at the same time and that was very sweet. My oldest tries so hard to help and be really sweet to her little sister, sometimes she gets a little overzealous, but she is so sweet. I thank God for both of them everyday.

Lost Is Back!

Tonight Lost finally returns after such a long wait. It seems like it has almost been a year now since the last new episode aired. I’m sure the wait has been well worth it. Here’s a quick preview of what we will see tonight.

Life With Two

Well, I have officially started taking care of the girls by myself on a regular basis. Last week I had Amanda here and she was such a wonderful help. It is great to have a friend like that who is willing to do some of the things I had either not thought about or couldn't physically do by myself. So far things are going pretty good. No injuries (that is always a good thing.) No major fits (even though we have had a few minor ones.) No sleepless nights (I have had some sleep every night since Callie came home.) However, our house is constantly a mess, my two year old wears night-night clothes almost the whole day, we have watched more tv than normal, and mommy has adjusted shower time to nights instead of mornings. Emily is adjusting very well and I think some of what she is going through now relates more to being two than it does to having a little sister. She loves her little sister and always wants to give her hugs and kisses. Overall,
i couldn't ask for things to go better.

The "M" Word

Since Theresa and Callie are still trying to stay inside as much as possible and are avoiding crowds, I got to take Emily to church by myself tonight. When we were leaving she started talking about me being a big boy and her being a little girl. That meant that I could do some things that she couldn't do yet. Later on down the rode she says that someday she will grow up and get married. I told her that I want her to grow up but it makes me sad to think of her getting married. Then she said that I could marry her. At this point several thoughts and emotions raced through my mind. First of all, I can't believe how "grown up" she sounds when she talks. For the most part I can have a fairly lengthy conversation with her. Second, I love how innocent she still is in thinking that she will marry her daddy. Also, it hit me that since I'm an ordained minister I will probably have a part in both my daughters weddings beyond the normal "giving them away."

As I have sat through two funerals in the last six days, I have thought several times about having family members die and the possibility of having to perform their funerals. While I am always honored to perform weddings and funerals, doing that for your family is just something you don't really think about when you start in youth ministry. Being a youth pastor is about seeing students' lives changed because of Jesus Christ. It is about living life with them on an everyday basis and also during special events. Don't get me wrong, it's far from always being a lot of fun. There are many hard times, many ups and downs in the youth ministry world. Still, I guess until recently I hadn't really thought my role in the weddings/funerals of my family and friends.

Ok, I can't end this post which such a negative tone. Youth group tonight was really good. We had over 40 students come, several parents help out, and God did His thing as usual. I am still amazed when he takes my limited gifts and talents and turns them into something that brings about change in the lives of my students. I really can't think of anything negative about tonight and that is pretty rare. From our opening game, to our worship time, to our Bible study, God just took over. Thank you Father for calling me into the fun, crazy, and exciting world of youth ministry!

Let's Go To The Movies!

This past Saturday I got to take Emily to see her first movie. Technically this was her second try at watching a movie in a movie theater. When The Chronicles of Narnia came out, our church in New Mexico rented out the theater and we took her to see how she would do. We figured it would be a good time since the theater was filled with people from our own church. Let's just say that she lasted about 10 minutes before we had to take her home. Emily has just always been a loud baby. Either by crying or now by talking, she is constantly making some kind of noise.

Now that she is older and is more used to watching movies at home, we wanted to see how she would do. It worked out perfectly because the movie, The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything came out right after Callie was born. Theresa thought this would be a good father-daughter date since Emily is no longer the only star of the show. It was such a fun experience. She couldn't wait to get popcorn and a cherry coke to drink. As we were walking to our seats, a preview for another movie was already playing and is completely amazed her. She kept turning her head to stare at the big screen. Then she looked around to see all of the other people in the theater and asked who they were.

They only negative/difficult part was me having to put my leg over her seat so she it wouldn't fold her like a pancake! Every time I barely moved my leg I could feel her seat want to return to it's up-right position. (Next time I'll have to bring a brick to weigh her down.) As soon as we had finished sharing the popcorn, I put her in my lap because my leg was starting to fall asleep.

The movie was just the right length because I could tell the other little kids were getting restless toward the end. As we were leaving, she couldn't wait to go again. This will definitely be a movie we have to buy. Not only was it our first movie to watch together, but it was a good family movie. I expected nothing less from the VeggieTales creators. I have a feeling that last Saturday was only the beginning of my movie experiences with Emily.

Gotta Love My Girls!

Sometimes I still feel like I'm dreaming when I think about being the father of two beautiful girls. Callie went in yesterday for her two week check-up and she is doing great. She was 7 pounds 9 ounces and already over 20 inches long. Fortunately she didn't have to get any shots this time.

Overall Emily is doing so well as the big sister (even though she insists that she is the little sister). There are still times when she will try and hug her too tightly or forget that Callie is so fragile. For the most part she really likes having a sister and is constantly talking about us all being a family. I think she still doesn't understand why Callie can't do everything she can, but she is getting better. I am beginning to realize how a parent can love more than one child. I find myself loving so many qualities about Emily while cherishing Callie being so little and innocent. They are both already so different from each other and I love that too. As my love for Callie will increase as she gets older, I see my love for Emily being on such a different level because she has been a part of my life longer. It is great being the dad to two girls!

Don't you like my pretty pink hat?

Emily just had to bring her own camera to take pictures of her sister.

Callie's first bath at home.

Welcome To Callie!

Well, as of January 7th, we are the proud parents of another baby girl. Her name is Callie Ann Peck. She weighed 7lbs. 2oz. and was 19 3/4 inches long. This is amazing because she was only an ounce lighter than Emily and 1/2 longer than Emily. Emily already loves her little sister, sometimes maybe a little too much! I was in the hospital from late Sunday night to Thursday, so I haven't had a chance until now to say anything about her. She is beautiful, a blessing from God! Most of the comments I am hearing are that she looks like me, but I can't tell yet. Of course, the first day Emily was born, everyone said she looked like Jason and that still holds true today. We are also getting ready to move into a different house this weekend. While this can be stressful, I guess the positive thing is that I am not expected to do anything. This will actually be very hard for me because I am a very independent person and like to do things for myself. But, in this instance, I will have to let Jason do all of the work.

Okay, Just A Few More

I couldn't resist putting up just a few more pictures of Callie.

Day Two w/ Callie

Here are a few more pictures from the last 24 hours. I hope that you enjoy meeting our little girl. I do believe that she has already "stolen my heart!"

Callie Ann Peck!

Callie Ann Peck was born today at 1:06pm. She weighed 7 lbs. 2 ozs, was 19 3/4" long and is doing great. Theresa did a wonderful job and is now very tired. Even though she has been through so much since we checked in at 11:50pm on Sunday night, it was all worth it. Her big sister Emily is ready to take her home so that she can hold her and play with her. So far she really doesn't fully understand how much her life has changed today. We do have video of her kissing Callie and even singing "Jesus Loves Me" to her before she left for MiMi and Papa's house. I will be posting more pictures as soon as I can and am hoping to get a short video up as well. Thank you all for your prayers and thoughts as we prepared for this wonderful miracle. God has truly blessed my family and me once again. Talk about a great way to start 2008!

BOOMER SOONER!!!

No, I'm not crazy and yes I did watch OU get beat last night in the Fiesta Bowl. It was a tough game to watch considering last year's overtime loss in the Fiesta Bowl to Boise St. I'm know sure which was worse, losing on one play or getting beat by 20 points. Through it all, I will always remain a Sooner fan even though it is sure nice when we win. There are times when I wonder why I put myself through the emotional roller coaster of rooting for a college football team to win every game so they have a spot in the national title game only to have them come short of several occasions. Honestly, it would be easier if I just give up on watching college football or if I didn't have a favorite team. Then I ask myself where would the fun be in either of those options? I absolutely love watching college football and I love watching OU play. For one, college football is a passion that I share with Theresa and that is nice. As for OU, I was pretty much born a Sooner fan and I'll die a Sooner fan.

If I am going to keep watching and hoping that OU will again win a National Championship, what do I do when we lose? I remind myself that it is only a game and there will always be another chance later. Another thing I really try hard to do is not let it consume my life and my emotions. If I never got to watch another OU or college game again I'd be just fine. I do not find my purpose in anything here on this earth including sports. Sports are fun to watch but they are not more important than time spent with my family or with my Creator. I do believe that it is better to root for a team and have fun cheering them on than to just give up altogether. At least I have had fun even if my team doesn't win.

Even though I will hear about this lose for a long time, it's in the past and there is always next season. We have a great young quarterback in Sam Bradford and many returning starters. Maybe next year will be our year to win a National Championship. (This year I'm hoping LSU wins because that is my wife's favorite team.) If we still don't win at the very least it will be fun to watch!

Happy New Year (one day late)!

I don't know about you and your family, but 2008 looks like it is going to be a wild and crazy ride for the Peck household. We are only two days into the New Year and I'm already dizzy. First of all and most importantly we are still waiting for our baby to be born. We will go for our final checkup tomorrow to see if we might be able to deliver a few days early. I know that Theresa would love to hear her doctor say "it's time" and put and end to our anticipation. If not, we will just have to wait until Monday to meet our newest family member. (By the way, I'm currently working on a family website that I will launch as soon as I have pictures of Callie.)

If having a baby was not enough, we are in the middle of packing up all of our things so that we can move to our rent house by the 12th. We have pushed up our closing date to the 11th, which happens to be our 5 year anniversary. Talk about a way to celebrate! Thankfully we have my family close by to come and help and a very generous church family who will be helping us move. I just don't think we can fit it all in our 2004 Honda Civic. I'm afraid if I did we might look like this . . .

(What you can't really see is all of the concrete in the back seat!)

Moving is always an adventure but I know that this is all part of God's plan for us. Even though I don't always understand, I know He is in control and knows what is best. I wouldn't want it any other way. So, when I start to get overwhelmed with all of this plus everything that must happen in the student ministry at Union Hill, I have to laugh and let God have control. As I always say, life is never boring around my house and I wouldn't have it any other way. I hope you are already enjoying 2008 and I pray that this year will be a Christ-centered year for us all. I have set several goals for myself and feel that at least I am trying to improve my relationship with God, my family, and others. Hang on because 2008 just might get crazy!