HAIR!

There has been much talk around our house this month about hair. First of all, we are always fighting an uphill battle against dog hair, since our 1 1/2 year old lab lives inside most of the time. One would think that he sheds his entire coat of fur every other day! Secondly, Jason had been participating in "No Shave November" (it is as simple as it sounds...men do not shave in the month of November). That means until yesterday, he had a full beard. I was impressed with how quickly he could grow a beard (apparently in man world that is something to be proud of). I was told that women are NOT allowed to participate in "No Shave November". Here is a picture of Jason and I at his grandparent's house in south Alabama the day before he shaved off his beard. Finally, I have been talking about getting MY hair cut for weeks. It is just long and scraggly and I am ready for something different. Bangs? Should I keep it long? Cut it short? Add layers? Highlights? Do you in blog world have any thoughts? I am tempted to go in to the salon and say "be creative" because I am tired of the no style style that I have right now. Don't worry, I am not brave enough to do that! So, all of that to say, there has certainly been a lot of talk about hair around here lately. What is our society's fascination with hair? Men are excited when they can grow a beard quickly, and disappointed when they begin noticing a receding hair line. There are millions of hair products available, from the "Hair club for men" to hair dye to cover that gray. Women are constantly inundated with commercials about shampoo, conditioner, mousse, dye, etc. Throughout history we have been vain about our hair, from wigs for men to fad hairstyles. Someone once said clothes make the man, but I wonder, is it really hair?

Blog Neglect

Yes dear blog. We have neglected you. We have not updated you on a regular basis. We promise to try harder in the coming weeks to keep you freshened up.

Stay tuned folks. I've got a million things running through my head. I just need the time to gather them together and type them out. The end of the year craziness has started!

2 Tuesday Prayers

So I have a lot going through my head today being that it is the day we vote on a myriad of issues both locally and nationally. My emotions the past few days have swung from indifference to indignation to fear to worry to carelessness...so basically all over the board.

It is hard for me to swallow some of the things people are saying this election cycle. The vile and hatred we have clothed in some of our arguments is appalling - on both sides of the aisle. We don't all agree and I think it is unreasonable to think that we will ever all agree on everything. The founding fathers didn't agree on everything but they did agree on one thing - God ordained them to do what they were doing. I won't expand my thoughts on that much today because my brain is so scattered it would be like reading a James Joyce novel. I do encourage everyone to read Under God by TobyMac & Michael Tait. It will provide you with an easy read and a great resource to explain just who our founding fathers were and why they established this country.

I voted this morning before work but after going to Man2Man. We vote in Loachapoka...it's ok if you have to read it a couple times to get the pronunciation right. It's a small little town but it's pretty cool. We usually have to wait 5 minutes max to vote there but this morning it was over an hour from the time I got in line to the time I left. I think that's pretty cool. It's about time people stood up and made their voice heard.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous about this election. I feel like the soul of our nation hangs in the balance. I was filled with apprehension when I first got in line, but then it happened. I stopped, took a breath, listened to God, and prayed. I prayed for about an hour, nearly the whole time I was in line. I prayed for the election, for the candidates, for the voters, for people in line around me, for the soldier and his family that walked by headed to the back of the line, for our church, for prayer requests mentioned this morning, for my family, for anything and everything that was weighing on my heart. When I left after turning in my ballot and getting the "I Voted" sticker from the older gentlemen at the door I felt as though a weight was lifted off my shoulders. I left it all up to God. I'm still a little apprehensive about the election, but I'm not losing my mind. I know there's nothing else I can do but pray, and pray I will continue to do. My hope is in God. My faith is in God. My life is in His hands. He knows what we need and he will provide it for us, even if it isn't immediately apparent.

Oh yeah, I also picked up a nice lady, Tina, on my way to work today and gave her a ride a couple miles up the road in rural Macon County. It was totally a God thing. I had no choice but to stop when she waved at me; it was as if I literally couldn't help but stop. She thanked me profusely and we talked for the 3-4 minutes or so she was in the car. We didn't get in depth but it was apparent she's had a difficult life. She moved to Alabama in 1995 from Cleveland. Please pray for her that she would find what she needs, though I don't know what that form that might take. I didn't ask her if she was a Christian. She just said she had to go to the store this morning and was on her way back home and didn't have a ride. Hopefully I saved her a little energy and helped her smile a little bigger today. Those God things can totally take you out of your comfort zone but they are so awesome and so much bigger than we know.

Halloween

(A picture of our trunk from Cornerstone's Trunk or Treat and a picture of Jason and Toby with our little pumpkin)
I don't have a ton of time to post, mostly because I am watching the Auburn v. Ole Miss game. WAR EAGLE! But I wanted to first of all say "Happy Birthday!" to my dad (and a belated Happy Birthday to my little sister!). My dad was almost born on Halloween, but missed it by a day. Which is probably just as well. My point of this supposedly short blog is to say, what has happened to Halloween? When I was little it didn't matter what day Halloween fell on, you trick or treated and almost everyone on your street had a pumpkin out and had candy or some other treats for you. This year here in Auburn they changed Halloween (which was perfectly situated on a Friday) to a Thursday night so it didn't interfere with high school football. What? Are you kidding? Maybe I underestimated the power of football here in Auburn (ironic that I have to cut this short to watch football). My mom told me earlier this week that she wouldn't let us go trick or treating if we were little now. How sad that the evil in our world is ruining this little bit of innocent childhood fun. I love that churches now have "Trunk or Treats" which are a great way to have some Halloween fun in a safe, friendly, and non-scary environment but they are never on the actual Halloween day. I am not sure what my point is other than that I am sad how much our world has changed since I was little AND that I think trick or treating should not be moved from Halloween day (trunk or treats are the exception). I am interested in what the 2 or so people who read this may think. Do you agree in the moving of Halloween?