How to save the nation some $$$

How To Save the Government $5 Million

A president's pension currently is $191,300 per year, until he is 80 years old.

Assuming the next president lives to age 80, Senator McCain would receive ZERO pension, as he would reach 80 at the end of two terms as president.

Senator Obama would be retired for 26 years after two terms and would receive $4,973,800 in pension.

Therefore it would certainly make economic sense to elect McCain in November. How's that for non-partisan thinking???

I thought this was funny, but also true! Just one more reason why I'm for McCain! HA! :)

Seriously, though, I thought his speech was great and I'm so excited about his running mate!

McCain/Palin 2008!!!

GONE

It's gone...the house, I mean. I'm quite sad about it, but I'm trying to be positive. It's hard...

And Then...

After writing the post below, I went over to Shalee's Diner, where I read her current post. I'm pretty sure God led me there for some wisdom...Check it out...

Tough to be Faithful

I am trying...really hard...

I am trying extremely hard to trust in God's providence. I'm trying really hard to trust in HIS plan. I am trying really hard to let HIM be in control.

We have had no bites...not even any nibbles...on our house. We knew that would be the case through August, as it is the slowest month of the entire year...even slower than Dec. What makes it all hard is that the house we desperately want in Wichita (ok...I'm desperately wanting it/Mark just wants it), just lowered their price again. We just feel so defeated like it is going to be gone before we get to it. I KNOW in my head that God has the perfect house in mind for us. I KNOW in my head that if we are meant to have this house, we will. I KNOW in my head that if we don't get this one, there is one better suited for us available. BUT, I WANT this house. I have imagined where I would put things. I have mentally arranged our furniture, our storage, our closets, the playroom. *SIGH* THIS is why you don't look at houses before you're ready to buy. However, we only looked so that we would know if the houses in Wichita were ones we would be happy in. Now, I've fallen in love with this house, the neighborhood (2 pools and a playground 1/4 block from the house), the yard (a HUGE weeping willow and 4-5 other different types of trees...GORGEOUS!), and the area. It is in the school district I want (Maize--the one I graduated from). I can picture us raising our children there and all of that.

I am trying...really hard to trust. I just wish there was some way to secure the house. Unfortunately, they won't take contingencies. That is the ONLY reason it is still on the market. It is court-ordered and the judge said only solid offers. Otherwise, they've had about 10 people that have wanted it, but couldn't do it without contingencies. That should tell you how great it is if they've had that many people mention that they wanted it, but couldn't. There have had to be other people who have wanted it, but understood that there couldn't be contingencies and didn't even bother to inquire.

I am trying...really hard...

Accountable

So, I'm writing this in hopes that you will be my multitude of accountability partners. I have felt a deep, urging, insistent challenge deep in my being since reading my brothers' posts. It wasn't until my brother, Dustin, AKA TacoDave posted the analogy about being in love and how you want to spend so much time building a relationship with that person, etc. etc. that it really hit me. I say that I want a relationship with God, but I don't crave time with Him...I don't spend all my time thinking about Him. Instead, I spend my time doing stupid, mindless things such as watching reality TV and that sort of thing. If you know me, you know how much I LOVE all things reality. I LOVE America's Next Top Model, Hell's Kitchen, Big Brother, Survivor...you name it (as long as it's not something like Queer Eye For The Straight Guy or whatever that show is called) and you can bet I've watched some of it...had SEVERAL of them recorded on my DVR and spent countless hours living in the world of reality TV.

NO MORE!

I DEMAND A REVOLUTION WITHIN MYSELF! Last night, I went through my DVR and cancelled the recordings that were scheduled. I left WipeOut and Ace of Cakes. I felt like those were decent shows to be watching. If you disagree, please tell me why. I am really trying to clean up my act.

Here's where I get soooo stuck on my selfishness and it makes me sick to my stomach. I feel soooo busy. I feel like I don't EVER have time to myself and so that is the time that I spend alone watching "my" shows. What is the problem with this, you ask? Everyone needs time to unwind. WRONG! God should be getting my first fruits. He should get my FIRST cut of time. Right now...He's not really getting even the leftovers...they are going to mindless garbage...much LESS my first fruits. So, I am starting over. I am doing a redo. I am leaving the TV off and I am going to try to put my best foot forward.

I do not tell any of this to toot my own horn. I am not announcing my separation from the trash I've been watching to say "Look at what I'M doing!" I'm telling you so that you all can be my Jimminy Cricket. PLEASE check up on me. I'm telling you...with the new season of shows starting, this is going to be a KILLER on me, but God deserves it and I want to stay strong. So, please pray for me and please check up on me and encourage me. I want to be in on the mission with my brothers in spirit. I'm not wanting to be part of it in an evangelical way, but I can support them by renovating my lifestyle and being supportive of them and their changes.

That's all I have to say. If you haven't read the past month's posts on my brother's blog, I encourage you to hop over there from the link below. I only did Dustin's link, because Derin's been putting his things on there too.

Bye Bye Reality...Hello.....well, REALITY!

A Challenge for us all

I am feeling really, really challenged at the moment. If you aren't a reader of my brothers' blogs, I urge you...URGE you to go over to Dustin's at http://tacodave.blogspot.com to read what they've been up to since the end of July. It is really powerful and a HUGE challenge for anyone that wants to become more like Christ. I think that it is KEY in this society. Please take the time to read...

Tired

I'm tired. I have nothing intelligent to say. Is that a sign of exhaustion? Quite possibly. I really could use a break...even 2 hours to myself. *sigh*

My baby sister...my BABY sister moved to college this weekend. She is following in the footsteps of me, our brothers, our sisters-in-law, and many of you that read my blog by going to Oklahoma Christian University. I hope and pray that she has a fabulous year, as this is quite possibly her last year as a single woman. That, too, is overwhelming for me to think about. If you don't know, my sister is adopted. We picked her up from the hospital when she was 2 days old. I was just shy of 10, my oldest brother was just shy of 16, and my other brother was 13-1/2. Apparently, I blinked, because she's a grown woman now who is career-oriented, head-over-heels in love, and...well...amazing. She is one amazing girl and I'm not only proud that she's my sister, I'm proud that she's one of my best friends. *tear* My baby sister moved to college...

Today is Mark's birthday. If he was a computer person, I would give him a happy birthday shout out, but he barely knows how to check email, much less blogs. He's been sick, so it's been a crummy birthday for him. Birthdays aren't what they used to be, huh? :) Our birthdays are 2 weeks apart, so he's 2 years older than me for 2 weeks out of the year. I like to rub it in his face. This year, is a bigger deal, as he's 29...pushing the big 3-0! :)

Oh, here's something I didn't tell you all: I won my first ever bloggy give away from Jill at The Diaper Diaries! I'm pretty stoked...especially now that I've got the 2-year-old AND almost-3-month-old. I won this neat list thingie that clips on the shopping cart! It's called a list caddy. I think I requested green. I mean, what OTHER color is there?!? :) Green is my favorite. The funny thing is, it is also the favorite color of my mother, her only sister, and her sister's 2 daughters. We're kind of a green fam! :)

If any of you know Keith Lancaster of the good 'ol days of Accapella, we had an amazing worship service at church this morning with him leading singing. It was great! I thoroughly enjoyed it even though I was at church with the kiddos by myself. Random thought, I know, but it was great!

Well, I sure have written a lot for not having anything to say. On that note, I'm outta here.