Renaissance Festival

We had a surprise event yesterday. We went to the Texas Renaissance Festival. A friend of ours had two free tickets, so we only had to buy two more for the whole family to go. As it turned out, our neighbors were going too, so we met up there and had a fun time.
The first three images you see below are of Megan on the bungee cord-trampoline device that gives you the ability to jump very, very high in the air. I didn't catch the name of the thing. You see from the sequence of shots that she starts with apprehension and ends with uncontrolled laugther.






The second three shots are of my son on the same device. You can see he had no fear. He immediately started doing flips. I think he spun three times in one of the jumps. I believe he had fun.





The following are a couple random shots, including our neighbor's daughter getting her head chopped off. It was a different kind of event, with different kind of people, and all very fun.

Thanks

We are in the fast-paced holiday season now. Once Halloween arrives it seems (to me) that time accelerates until we get to New Year's day. It is a great time of year, I wish it lasted longer. We just had our Thanksgiving celebration. We had my parents, my wife's parents, my nephew and his friend over to our house. We ate more than necessary. It was a nice time to spend together. I can't make a complete list of everything that I thank God for, but here are a few things that come to mind:
1. A wife to spend my life with
2. Two kids to experience life with
3. No major accidents or illnessess
4. Time to spend with my parents and in-laws
5. Plenty of good-paying work (even during tough economic times)
6. A growing relationship with God through Jesus Christ
7. Experiences and friends all around the world

I pray that I never forget to be thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving, enjoy the Holiday season!

Honor

We had a great evening. Our daughter was inducted into the National Junior Honor Society. We are proud parents. Not proud in the sense that her accomplishment reflects on us, or is proof that we are good parents. We are proud that she has worked hard and put her best into her schoolwork. She used her time wisely to do the job at hand (schoolwork) to the best of her ability. We are so pleased that she is honored for her dedication and accomplishment.
In an era where people become "celebrities" because their father is rich and they are spoiled, it is great to see a bunch of young boys and girls get recognized for doing their best at something that will have a positive impact on their lives and the lives of the community.

I Liked Waiting

For the first time, I actually was happy about having to wait in line. I went to the voting location at my normal time, 7:00 a.m. I have been voting there since we moved here in 1996. I have never, ever had to wait in any line. Today the line ran out from the voting room out nearly to the street. There were around 80 people in line when I got there, and almost that many when I left 40 minutes later. I did not grumble about having to wait, I was happy to see that people were exercising the privilege to vote.
I am definitely not a political activist, but I have to say that I encourage everyone who has not already done so, to go stand in a long line, then vote of course. I also encourage people to look beyond the marketing tactics and look at voting records, to see what these candidates are really all about.