Some geese right by my house!

  These are just a few of them less than 150 yards from my house. :)

  This is about a third of them in this photo. There was a ton of 'em!

  I think there is one goose in this one. Can you find it? ;) I think the tree is cool too.

 Now here are some mallard ducks flying away. Kailey liked this picture. :D Wild ducks are really cool in my opinion but I don't really care for tame ones. Go figure Kailey's gonna hatch a ton of eggs this spring. :/

 This is an amazing book. I highly encourage you to read it.

Orange Ipod. Purple headphones?

  Ok. These are pictures of my orange ipod. Something happened to my headphones so I got these new purple ones. Kailey says orange and purple don't go together so I figured I might as well see what you guys think. Please vote in my poll or leave a comment. :)

Facts about geese

1. Fact: As each goose flaps its wings it creates an "uplift" for the birds that follow. By flying in a V-formation, the whole flock adds 72% greater flying range than if each bird flew alone.
   
   Lesson: People who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going quicker and easier because they are traveling on the thrust of another.
   
2. Fact: When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of flying alone. It quickly moves back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front of it.
   
   Lesson: If we have as much sense as a goose we stay in formation with those headed where we want to go. We are willing to accept their help and give out help to others.
   
3. Fact:When the lead goose tires, it rotates back into the formation and another goose flies to the point position.
   
   Lesson: It pays to take turns going the hard tasks and sharing leadership. As with geese, people are interdependent on each other's skills, capabilities, and unique arrangements of gifts, talents, and resources.
   
4. Fact: The geese flying formation honk to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.
   
   Lesson: We need to make sure our honking is encouraging. In groups where there is encouragement, the production is greater. The power of encouragement (to stand by one's heart or core values and encourage the heart and core of others) is the quality of honking we seek.
   
5. Fact: When a goose gets sick, wounded, or shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with it until it dies or is able to fly again. Then, they launch out with another formation or catch up with the flock.
   
   Lesson: If we had as much sense as geese, we will stand by each other in difficult times as well as when we are strong.

 Does this not apply to the church?

Our trip to Denver and the Furniture store

  I like the angle on this one. I don't like all pictures angled but a few look good in my opinion.

 Here's Ryder crawling on the floor.

  And hiding in a nightstand.

 And now he's kissing the mirror. :)

  Hugging a footstool.

Baby on the rampage!!! Run!! :D

National Penguin Awareness Day

Penguin Facts

• Penguins are flightless birds.
• Most penguin babies have fluffy feathers.
• Penguins are able to stay underwater with the help of their bones which are solid and heavy.
• Penguins have a breastbone and huge paddle muscles which help them move at speeds of 25 miles per hour.
• While traveling at fast speeds, penguins leap out of the water every few feet. This action is called "Porpoising." Porpoising helps penguins breathe. The chances of being spotted by another animal is also greatly reduced because of porpoising.
• About 75% of a penguins life is spent in water, where they do all their hunting.
• Most of the time penguins breed in large colonies called rookeries.
• Penguins closer to the Equator feed on fish while those closer to the Antarctica eat more squid and krill.
• Penguins stay warm with the help of a thick layer of blubber and a waterproof body covering.
• Smaller penguins inhabit warmer climates whereas larger penguin species are found in colder climates.
• Penguins are found on every continent in the southern hemisphere, from the tropical Galapagos Islands off South America to the Antarctica.
• There exist about 18 different species of penguins in the world.
• The natural enemies of penguins are seals and killer whales.
• Adult penguins incubate and feed their chicks in turns, once they have hatched.
• The King and Emperor penguins lay one egg each while other species lay two.
• The fairy penguin is the smallest and is 16 inches tall and weighs 2.2 pounds. The largest is the emperor penguin which is 3.7 feet tall and weighs 60 to 90 pounds.

I thought these were cool. Check out http://www.buzzle.com/articles/penguin-facts.html for more info. :)

Isaiah 43:2-3

 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour.

Rich Mullins - My Deliverer

Moving Cows Again

   Yes, I know this one is lopsided. I just thought it looked cool. :)

  Here's the sunset now that the cows are safe and sound on corn stalks.

  Ok. So I stayed with Dad to help him set up the chargers on the electric fence, and Reid and Kailey went with our friend, Rio, and the horses back home. Well, as you can see, he got the pickup stuck. I have no clue how he did it but he did. I guess the trailer didn't have any lights so he was taking the backroads and got stuck.

  So we got the horses out of the trailer and called a friend. Hehe, it's a good thing he's got a big tractor.

 This thing is huge, believe me. It all turned out ok in the end and we got home before midnight so that was good. :)

Slavery Facts

How many slaves are there?
"Adults and children in forced labor, bonded labor, and forced prostitution around the world: 12.3 million." (US TIP Report 2010)

How many children are slaves?
According to UNICEF, 1 out of 5 slaves is a child. According to the US TIP Report 2010, there are approximately 12.3 million people enslaved worldwide. This means that there are approximately 2.5 million child slaves.

How many child slaves are prostitutes?
"According to UNICEF, as many as two million children are subjected to prostitution in the global commercial sex trade." (US TIP Report 2010)

What percentage are victims of forced labor?
According to UNICEF, "Variation in the numbers prevail depending on methodology used. ILO in 2005, for example, estimated that 980,000 to 1,250,000 children - both boys and girls - are placed in a forced labour situation as a result of trafficking."
Wow. Think about that. 12,300,000 slaves all over the earth. 2,500,000 children. 2.5 million.

Do you want to make a difference? You can at http://www.bandstobreakbonds.org/. I strongly encourage you to check it out!

New Year Resolutions for 2011

 Ok, so they're a little late but I figured I ought to put them up here. :)

   1. Read the whole Bible in a year- I tried to do this last year but I got stuck somewhere in Leviticus. It was all about how to sacrifice bulls and stuff and I just couldn't do it. But this time I'm going to read two Old Testament chapters and one New Testament chapter every day. So this year I'm gonna man up and do it. :)

   2. Memorize 1 John- I haven't memorized a whole book of the bible yet so I'm going to give it a try. 1 John is powerful and short so it's a good pick.

   3. Make more friends- I have friends but I can always you more!! :)

The Words I Would Say - Sidewalk Prophets

 Another one of my favorite songs. =P I really like the lyrics to this one.