July 31 - “Poor Old Faithful”

I was up early again. Around five. This time I went ahead and tackled the sermon for Sunday. I needed to get the details to our worship leader Greg so he could do all the technical computer-ish stuff. I still have to hit it a few more times over the rest of the week, but it seems to be coming together. 

When Chris got up I let it be known that I was tackling the yard work, in spite of the rain shower we had around six that morning. The problem was, we have already had two or three weeks of rain. That grass is loving it. Growing like crazy. We had to get it at least knocked down some. 

And it didn’t disappoint. It was very high. Still wet. Very difficult strain on our poor old lawn mower. Have I mentioned lately that it is also on its last leg (Like the fridge, not like me. Poor old thing. It has a big rust hole on top. The power drive doesn’t work anymore. I had to tie the starter rope back together. You know. All the obvious maintenance type things).  In spite of its flaws, Old Faithful made it through one more cutting. And the yard looks pretty good. 

Joshua‬ ‭1‬:‭8‬ says, This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth; you are to recite it day and night so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do.

Father, thanks for the sunshine yesterday. We needed it to get that grass mowed. Amen. 

July 30 - “What’s Next …”

Not a great thing to wake up to. I went into the kitchen to get something for breakfast out of the fridge’s freezer compartment. The frozen waffles were there, all right. But they weren’t, well, frozen. And the bag of ice was about half melted. I was afraid to go any further. I let Chris know the “great” news, and she got up right away to check it out. Yep. Fridge is out, too. What’s next …

 So.  A new fridge suddenly rose to the top of our shopping list. That would be the list that includes fences and shingles and trees, among other things. We might be nixing a potential future trip after all. 

So, after our walk and a shower, it was on to Home Depot. We actually found a fridge that is almost exactly like the one we have. We have been very pleased with the old one, so we have some high expectations. Fortunately, we have six months to pay with no interest. Unfortunately, it won’t be delivered until August 15th. Happy birthday to us. 

On the very exciting side, we left Home Depot and headed East. That’s where the UTMB eye clinic is. I received a call in Waco that my new glasses that weren’t supposed to be ready for two weeks were already on site. Sure enough, they were there and ready. They even fit perfectly the first time I put them on. No adjustment needed. Woohoo! They look a little different from my other ones. It’ll be fun to see if anybody notices. 

After a stop at Randall’s to get two prescriptions, we headed to Walmart to get some groceries. We had to choose carefully, though. With the fridge completely out now, we are really taxing our much smaller spare one. Hopefully it will hang in there until the 15th when it can get some relief. 

Last night Chris and Sam left me to my own devices. They went to the ladies Bible study out West. Not a problem here. The Olympics were on and the Astros were playing. 

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ says, Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame and has sat down at the right hand of God’s throne.

Father, I guess those verses are pretty appropriate during Olympic time. Take care of all the competitors.  Draw them close to you in the midst of their competitions. Amen. 

July 29 - “A bit of a battle”

I was excited to have a chance to preach yesterday at Seaside. It’s been a minute or two. I brought my stool from home, so that helped me feel a little more comfortable. I also brought a Visual Verse. Lots of the new folks there had never seen one. That’s always fun. They still didn’t get most of it, but they seemed to have fun with it. 

Back at home, we turned on the TV for the Astros game. Sadly, they missed out on a sweep of the Dodgers, but at least they won the series. Even more sadly, though … I had a stomach issue and missed most of the game. Not fun. 

After I rejoined the human race, we watched some of the Olympics ladies’ gymnastics qualifying routines. And not long after, Chris served up some potato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. Pretty good first meal after a stomach battle. 

Last night was a search for Simone Biles to watch her routine. Sneaky previews by the announcers indicated that it was touch and go for a while, but worth the watch. She didn’t disappoint. Amazing how high that girl can jump. 

Acts‬ ‭20‬:‭24‬ says, But I count my life of no value to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of God’s grace.

Father, thank you for that chance to speak at Seaside. It did bring back some good memories. Looking forward to next week now. Amen. 

July 28 - “Flippin’ and choppin’ and stuff”

We made our way off early yesterday morning. Like 7 a.m. early. We said our goodbyes the night before. We actually doubled up when we said our good nights. When the kids found out what time we were leaving, they hastened to add the extra hug for goodbye. So no cruise terminal sendoff for us. Just a quiet, push the button on the garage door and step over the laser beam. See y’all next week. 

We stopped for a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit at McDonald’s. It wasn’t horrible, but Buc-ee’s biscuit is oh-so much better. We did discover a new Buc-ees treat, though. Beaver nuggets cinnamon sweet. Tastes just like caramel popcorn only crunchy and without the corn particles getting stuck in your teeth. Thanks for the tip, Josh. 

The drive home wasn’t too bad. We hit some rain. That’s how we knew we were close to home. And there was a substantial backup on I45 near the Texas City Buc-ees. Construction, of course. That set us back about fifteen minutes or so. 

We got home in plenty of time for a quick peanut butter and jelly sandwich before heading out again. This time we went clear into Alvin to see the black belt ceremony for Micah and Josiah. Pretty impressive showtime, as usual. Flipping and chopping and twirling big sticks and spinning nunchucks and breaking stuff. Never a dull moment.  Congrats to our two second degree black belts, Josiah and Micah. Oh, and also to Jesse from church and Kailey, Micah’s girlfriend, on their third degree black belt. 

Last night after the event we went over to the LaMarque Vaughan household. Christina had a tamale supper planned out. The ladies all helped in the kitchen. The rest of us (And who was that other one who occasionally peeked in on us guys as we listened to the Astros  game?). It may or may not have been … none other than Aunt Sam herself. She obviously did them some good. They came back from 5-0 to win the fame 7-6 on a walk-off home run by Alex Bregman. Good end to a good day. 

‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭6‬:‭12‬ says, Fight the good fight for the faith; take hold of eternal life that you were called to and have made a good confession about in the presence of many witnesses.

Father, thank you for safety today. Driving in the rain. Those kiddos doing their difficult stunts. We all needed you. Amen. 

July 27 - “The Performances”

We were back on the Waco road again yesterday. Not in the car, though. We did our walk again. But this time we met up with a critter as we were about to turn toward home. Was it a coyote? Nope. Not in Galveston right now. Was it a mountain lion? Do they even have those here? Wait! Was it a chocolate lab? Yep. A lab named MaddieBelle, to be exact. And she was dragging her owner along with her. We joined them for the rest of their walk (for Josh) and run (for MaddieBelle).  

The afternoon was quite a full and exciting one. AnnaGrace had her final performance of the dances they worked on in Broadway Camp. One song was from Frozen and the other was from Willy Wonka, Jr. That was a room full of cuteness, to be sure. And of course a certain young Vaughan girl, who happened to be among the youngest of the performers, was also the best on the floor. Was there any doubt?

Also on tap in the afternoon and early evening was about two hours of praise and worship. Caleb’s Worship Camp ended with ten different praise bands leading in worship. And the bands were all comprised of high school students who had attended the camp. Gotta say, it was pretty amazing. Caleb played the keyboard and sang in his team. Awesome. Proud grandparents times two, for sure. 

We grabbed some pizza on the way home and enjoyed our last night together (for a week or so, anyway).  Now we’re headed back to Galveston and the South Texas Flood Zone. 

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭16‬:‭13‬-‭14‬ says, Be alert, stand firm in the faith, act like a man, be strong. Your every action must be done with love.

Father, thank you for the kids who worked so hard this past week in worship, Broadway, and basketball camp. Give them rest now. Amen. 

July 26 - “Heroes”

Lazy day up here in Waco. I woke up sore all over, so we postponed our walk (read here, “canceled for the day”). Instead we watched some episodes of Dude Perfect with Luke and AnnaGrace. Funny human beings, they are. The Dude Perfect guys, I mean. Luke and AnnaGrace can be funny, too, though. Especially when AnnaGrace tells one of her Dad jokes with Luke doing his best to coach her in her delivery. Love it. Oh, and I may or may not have dozed off a mere moment or two during the TV time. 

We stumbled upon kind of a perfect/imperfect storm in our grandparents suite. First, the shower started backing up. Josh got out his snake and did his best homeowner attempt, but sadly to no avail. Plumber on the list. Secondly, the air conditioner that feeds the suite (a separate unit from the rest of the house) froze up. Fortunately it happened at night, so with the ceiling fan it wasn’t unbearably hot. AC guy on the list. Now let me hasten to add … the magic bed still has all its wondrous qualities that lead to an incredible night’s sleep. I didn’t wake up until almost seven. Nice. 

The repair guys must have coordinated their arrival times. Plumbers arrived first. One of them looked to be about twelve years old. As it turned out, he was the more experienced of the pair, and hence, the boss. Between the two of them (the boss finally took over), using the same tool that Josh did, somehow they were able to send their snake much farther up the line that Josh ever got. They didn’t seem to pull much out, but the clog, whatever it was, cleared. Success number one. Check. 

As they were packing up, it started raining. Really raining. Hard. And part of what they packed? Their umbrella. Needless to say … they got wet. 

But as they pulled out, the AC guy arrived. He opened the cabinet in the garage and discovered a thick layer of ice covering one of the lines. Froze up, for sure, even with the AC turned off. He turned the fan on, but the condenser off to hasten the melting, and he went off to grab some lunch so, in his words, “I won’t have to charge you for watching the ice melt.”  

True to his word, he returned in about 30 minutes. He taped up some places on the air handler in the garage.  He also put in two and a half pounds of Freon. His assessment was this:

1. The tape will force air to through the filter instead of leaking around it. 
2. The condenser is now fully charged, so a baseline has been established. He couldn’t check for leaks because of the heavy rain, but he did say, “If you see what looks like a dog peed on the unit, that’s probably leakage.”

Hmm. I guess it is. Unless, of course, a dog actually pees on the unit. Then … confusion. But for now, the room is back to being nice and cool. Check. Thank you to those home maintenance heroes. 

The final day of basketball camp went really well. Lots of game-type drills. Of course, as far as the kids were concerned, they were just games. The very last one Josh called “Last Second Hero.”   The kids were split into two teams. Three seconds on the clock. One from each team received a pass from a coach and attempted a shot before the buzzer. Quite intense action. Not many made buckets, though. It came down to the last shot. The two head coaches were chosen to go head to head against each other. Coach Josh just needed to make a layup to assure at least a tie. The much-younger Coach Mason needed a three-pointer to gain the tie. Josh’s shot went in. Mason’s just rimmed out. Exciting stuff. 

Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭16‬ says, In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

Father, thanks for the chance to work with those basketball youngsters. Draw them to yourself as they grow. Amen. 

July 25 - “Grilled and blackened”

We found a walking route yesterday. Got in our two miles plus a little bit. Yea Us!

Lunch was a real special treat. Josh grilled and blackened some of the red snapper they caught on their deep sea trip. It’s been a while since I’ve had good deep sea fish. Thanks, Guys!

Lindsey (Zak’s girlfriend) joined us for the fish lunch. Sweet girl. Sweet food. Different categories of sweet, though. 

Basketball Camp had to adjust start and end times. The church that has the gym we use had serviced last night, so we had to be honest by six. Start time moved to four. The camp activities shifted more and more to game situations. Josh even ended up a wild game of two teams that didn’t know from second to second how many of them were allowed on the court playing at a time. I think they really enjoyed that one. 

Back home Chris and I had a big date night planned. No, not for just the two of us. Josh and Christi did that. We had a double date going. Me and AnnaGrace doubled with Chris and Luke. We went out to eat. Whataburger. Yum. Then we came back to the house and played Exploding Kittens. I lost. Bad. How bad? AnnaGrace played a  card that required me to draw two. And what did I draw? Not one, but two Exploding cards. Blown up twice. Kinda lost my head on that one. 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭42‬:‭1‬ ‭says, As a deer longs for streams of water, so I long for You, God.

Father, thanks for the date night tonight. It was pretty special. Especially when AnnaGrace wanted to sit next to me. Amen. 

July 24 - “Boom! (Again)”

We got all loaded up and on the road by about 9. It had already rained some, but there was a long break in the weather just as I had to start putting stuff in the car. We weren’t out of the weather danger yet, however. All was fine up until we left Buc-ees. Not long after we turned onto highway 6, the bottom dropped. Rain didn’t just fall. It exploded from the sky. That was in addition to the lightning and subsequent thunder very near to us. And that didn’t stop until we got past Navasota. And even then the clouds remained quite ominous. Like the kind in the movies that breed tornadoes. 

We even chatted about what to do if you’re in a car and a tornado is coming and there are no concrete overpasses to park under. Drive faster somewhere? Get out and run? Stop the car and jump in a ditch? We opted to just turn on the emergency flashers like everybody else and keep on plodding on. We eventually made our way through to the other side. Of course it was raining in Waco, too, but not nearly as hard. Yay!

Basketball camp was a lot of fun. Well, it was for me, anyway. We had almost 25 boys and even a few girls out to learn about the game, hone some skills, or just in general learn to love the game. I worked with another dad on some specifics of making V-cuts and driving to the basket. I think the kids are learning. 

After camp we went over to watch Zak play softball. Sadly, they had one of those games like Seaside used to have (except we actually made a spectacle of it!). The ump called the game when the score reached 23-3. Only 7 of the guys on Zak’s team got to bat. I hope those guys are at least having fun. I know most of the Seasiders did. 

AnnaGrace was very excited about her Broadway Dance Camp. They will be performing on Friday. And Caleb has been at Worship Camp, learning the ins and outs of leading worship. 

‭‭1 John‬ ‭4‬:‭19‬ says, We love because He first loved us.

Father, in the midst of all their busy, help the boys and AnnaGrace get the rest they need this week. Amen. 

July 23 - “A poem?”

What? 

What’s that I hear? 

Rain pattering against the roof and grounds? 

But. 

But wait a sec. 

I think it’s time for us to have a break. 

See what I did there? My high school poetry instructor would be proud. 

But we did wake up to yet another thunderstorm. We were all geared up to walk, too. But Chris is not one to let a little moisture rain on her parade. Nope. As soon as there was a window in the wet stuff, we took off. 

It was a bit noisy, but we managed to get the whole two miles in with only our sweat to keep us soggy. Well, that and the inevitable mosquito population. They are intensely attracted to human perspiration, you know. But, hey. All that swatting and shooing counts toward arm exercise, doesn’t it?

Sam had an appointment in the afternoon, but so did Chris, so a friend gave Sam a ride. Chris and I headed to the East End to see her “plumber” cardiologist. Just a regular checkup appointment. He adjusted her medications, but she is also scheduled for another treadmill stress test. Generally speaking, though, she’s doing pretty well. Woohoo!

So we are off to Waco to help run Josh’s basketball camp. I’m looking forward to this …

Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭5‬ ‭ says, Make your own attitude that of Christ Jesus

‭‭

Father, thanks for you for the doctor’s attention to detail. And be with my heart’s heart. Amen. 

July 22 - “Cats and dogs”

Sam stayed home from church yesterday to recuperate a little more. She’s been a little under the weather the last few days. 

We had almost 50 people at church, braving the threatening weather. And the weather came through on those threats. It started pouring. Raining the proverbial cats and dogs!  It was raining so hard that people who didn’t intend to stay for dinner on the grounds were pretty much forced to stay anyway. And as He is wont to do, God extended the food we had so it was just enough. 

We had a tough phone call after we got home. Not sure how many Seasiders are left who will remember her, but Katie Hightower (wife of John) died Thursday morning in Maryland. That’s where her daughter lives, so she has been up there for a long time. Katie must have been close to 100 years old. She was one of the absolute sweetest ladies I have ever met. A real blessing to all who knew her. We love you, Katie. Enjoy heaven!

Matthew‬ ‭18‬:‭20‬ says, For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there among them.

Father, please be with Katie’s family as they walk through their grief. Amen. 

July 21 - “Bad Vibrations”

Well, we had quite the experience the other night. And never had to leave our house. We actually were transported back in time almost 50 years. Yep. We were “blessed” to experience none other than … a vibrating bed for the first time since our wedding night. And this time we didn’t even have to insert two quarters. 

Now you have to understand … we didn’t particularly like it back then. We were both relieved when the silly thing finally stopped. Oh, we laughed - a lot - back then. Young and in love, you know?  Well, this time things were a tad … um … different. 

First off, there was nothing mechanical involved that we could turn on and off. And it wasn’t about to run out of time and shut off on its own. Nope. The source of vibration this time was strictly … umm … mammalian. Yep. One tiny, eight pounds of specifically canine-type mammalian energy, otherwise known as … Freddy. 

See, a line of thunderstorms- a loooong line of thunderstorms - was blowing through sometime after we went to bed (and before the end of the Astros late, West Coast game). And Freddy doesn’t like thunderstorms. And the way Freddy responds to thunderstorms? She paces and shakes and shivers. And in this case, the shivers were so severe that the whole bed was shaking. 

But then it got worse! Her pacing caused her to move from her regular spot at the foot of the bed to our pillows. Have you ever tried to sleep with your pillow literally shaking? And add to that a little dog panting and intermittently pacing. I finally got up and moved to the couch. Chris finally stuffed her completely under the covers. 

That worked until right before the next loud clap of thunder. Of course Freddy could sense when it was coming. Oh. And we don’t have drapes in the windows in our den, so I was treated to a light show in the sky. And that lasted well into the wee hours of the morning. Not much sleep around our house.

Yesterday morning we got up (not that it was early. We saw early much earlier) and drove up to Dickinson to watch three of our LaMarque kiddos compete. Micah and Josiah both got on the medal stand. Ezra, however, smoked his competition in the light saber battles. They called it stick fighting, but they used pool noodles and wailed on each other with them. Ezra ended up undefeated in his division. First place trophy there! Proud of you guys. 

On the way home we stopped off at Nathan’s house. He was at work, and we ended up waking up April and Cailyn. It was great to see them, though. It’s been too long. Oh. We also got to see Cailyn’s friend Aubrey. She spent the night. Good to see you, too, Aubrey. 

Proverbs‬ ‭27‬:‭17‬ says, Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.

Father, thank you for the rain. I could do with it being a little quieter while it’s falling, though. So could Freddy. Amen.