Spring Cleaning in High Gear

Our church had a work day today. Volunteers weeded and mulched the flower beds, trimmed bushes and trees, mowed the lawn, and completed all sorts of other tasks to spruce up the exterior of the church. The Pastor wielded a chain saw and felled a large tree that was in dire need of removal. Many of the youth helped load it into a truck as it was chopped up. I was on weeding and mulching detail. When we were finished the whole church yard looked spectacular! I admit I grumbled when the alarm went off at 7 A.M. on a Saturday morning, but once I got up and moving it felt good to help out. It was indeed a pleasure to serve The Lord.

Closer to home, the spring clean up has begun too. I am on spring break next week and I have already begun the process of removing debris that has accumulated over the winter and have done most of the weeding. This process will go on for the next few days and hopefully I will mulch my own flower beds on Wednesday. Then I will do various other things to get the exterior of the house and the pool area ready for the warm weather. The difference between this and the church is I am doing all of this alone. There's no army of volunteers to help. It's okay though, I really enjoy working in my yard and getting it fixed up for spring and summer.

Tough to describe...

I don't think it would be appropriate to describe last night's banquet as a "nice time". I mean, we were with some dear members of our church family and enjoyed a delicious meal with them. We enjoyed each other's company and I am glad we went. But if the focus of the evening was abortion, describing the evening as nice, just doesn't seem right. We heard some very difficult things and I was shocked at some of the statistics. I was also surprised to hear that Cincinnati is a hub, or ground zero for anti-abortion activity. We also heard success stories and some indications that the pro-life movement is making good progress. Obviously this was a fund raiser. Pregnancy Care Center of Cincinnati only has one of these per year and it was good to see over 500 people in the banquet hall. I was struck by the hush that fell over the room when it was time to get the checkbooks out. I have no idea how much money was raised. I only pray it is enough for the PCC to continue work in this noble cause. I was also encouraged to hear 100% of the donations go toward the work of the organization. I felt comfortable making a donation to the cause.

One little guy stole our hearts. I guess you could call him the poster child. His face was on the invitation and he had a starring role in the video shown at the banquet. Little Nathaniel was almost a victim to his Mother's choice to abort her pregnancy. Thanks to the work of PCC, Nathaniel's mother decided to carry him to term, deliver him and keep him. He is a happy, healthy, precious little angel... who almost wasn't. Life is definitely a beautiful choice.

Pregnancy Care of Cincinnati

Tami and I will be joining 4 other couples from church to attend the Pregnancy Care of Cincinnati banquet this evening. It's a fundraiser for a cause that is near and dear to our hearts. In a previous post I cited some statistics for abortions in Cincinnati and across the nation. We've experienced first-hand in the last few months what a beautiful alternative adoption is. Already I cannot imagine life without our little Sveta.

Even though I don't choose to affix bumper stickers to my car, I still like to read them when I'm driving around. I saw one a few weeks ago that said, "Ever notice every person in favor of abortion has already been born?" Makes you think.

Slow and Steady---Fills the Pool

The pool liner was installed on Sunday. The pool guy said we needed to get a water truck to deliver a load of water to set the liner in place. If we didn't get this "flash" of water, the liner could possibly shift and wrinkle. The pool holds 14,000 gallons and the truck delivered 1,600 gallons to get us started. That means we needed an additional 12,400 gallons to fill the pool to capacity. When using the garden hose (which I am), it takes a loooooooooong time to put 12,400 gallons of water into the pool. I have let the hose run all night the last two nights and it will run all night again tonight. By my best estimation the pool will be completely full sometime Wednesday night. This is of course taking into account the hose has not been running during the day.

I am eager to get the pool completely full. I can then add the chemicals, turn on the pump/filter and get the water moving. Then all we need is a bunch of warm days in a row and we'll be lounging in the pool!

I Must Be Crazy!

A few months ago, a friend at church asked if I'd be interested in teaching Sunday School to 5th and 6th graders. My initial reaction (although I did not verbalize it) was completely negative. I teach 5th and 6th graders Monday through Friday. Why in the world would I want to do it on Sundays as well? My friend asked me to think about it, pray about it and observe a few classes before deciding. I agreed to do that, but I'd be lying if I said I was remotely considering saying yes. However, in good faith I gave the offer a lot of thought and a lot of prayer. I also discussed my intense hesitation with Tami. She listened, gave her opinion, but did not encourage me one way or the other. That was a good thing because I needed to make this decision on my own. I sat in on two classes and was immediately struck by something, but it was't immediately apparent what it was. After a few minutes it hit me. These kids were listening... INTENTLY. They weren't talking. They weren't being disrespectful or rude. They were REALLY listening. Then there was THIS biggie. These kids could actually read... VERY WELL. Everything I just mentioned is completely opposite of what I deal with as a public school teacher. Seeing these kids in Sunday School was beginning to change my heart, but I wasn't there yet. Another major hurdle was my lack of confidence in my own knowledge of the Bible. The two classes I observed were heavy-duty Bible lessons. This was not your run-of-the-mill read a bible verse, sing a song and do an art project Sunday School class. This was 50 minutes of lecture on Old Testament Scripture. Could I actually do this? Could I teach a long lesson on the Old Testament. I have my doubts. However, I decided I shouldn't let fear rule my life and told my friend I'd give teaching Sunday School a try. He said, "Great! You start on April 1st. You'll be teaching the books of Leviticus and Numbers." My heart jumped into my throat. Leviticus and Numbers???? I know absolutely nothing about these books. But I put on my best smile and said, "Okay. I'll be ready". To be honest, my decision to take on this challenge was a bit more complex than I let on. I decided this would be an excellent way to serve The Lord and the people of my church. After all, serving isn't always easy, is it? I also decided it would be a good way to increase my own knowledge of the Bible. I'm ashamed to admit my knowledge of the Bible is sorely lacking and preparing these lessons will help me learn about God's Word. Finally, I decided it would be a good example to set for my own children. I am not always the best spiritual leader in my house. I am hopeful this will bring about some improvement in that area.

Soooo.... April 1st is coming up in 6 days and I have already begun the preparation for my first lesson. I was surprised at how smoothly the lesson planning went. I got a sense of peace and confidence about the whole thing. I truly believe I can do this. I know I can do this.

I do ask for your prayers though. Please pray that I will be a competent teacher for these kids. Pray that God will teach me through reading His Word and instructing young people in His Word. Pray that I will be engaging and that the kids will listen to me like they listened to the teacher before me. Pray that I don't "mess this up" :-)

Before and After

The pool liner installation was completed today. No rain and all went well.

Here is a before photo:

And after:

Happy Return

The kids returned from Florida safely... Praise the Lord! It was so good to see them after a week and a half. Abby was a bit homesick toward the end of her trip. Michael wasn't ready to come home. It's back to school for both of them tomorrow. It's nice to have them under our roof again :-)

Maybe he's made of sugar

The pool guy came yesterday and began the installation of the new liner. Notice I DID NOT say finished the installation. As predicted by the weatherman , and as I knew it would, the rains came long and hard. The aforementioned pool guy retreated to his truck to presumably wait out the rain. Maybe he's made of sugar and was afraid he'd melt. He did say he could do the job in the rain. However, the rain did not stop and he decided to come back and finish the job tomorrow (Sunday). In my opinion he should have never started with the forecast for rain all day. Now all I have is the shell of the pool. The old liner has been removed and the bed of sand is exposed. The sand is very wet and has puddles in it. The pool guy says this is not a problem. Again, he's the expert.

The weather for tomorrow looks a lot better. Hopefully he gets the thing done and I can quit worrying about it. I'm ready to start sprucing up the yard and to do my spring cleaning outside. I take pride in my yard and right now it looks horrible.

New Pool Liner

The pool liner is scheduled to be installed today. It's also supposed to rain all day. The pool guy says he can install it in the rain. Ummmm....okay! He's the expert. I hope he really can get it done today. Glad it won't be me out there in the elements.

It's starting to hurt...

The time has been nice. The trip to Chicago. The quiet evenings after work. The dining out. But now things are too quiet now. I miss my kids terribly and I'm ready for them to come home. I'm sure they're not as ready to come home. Nobody ever really wants vacation to end, do they? They'll be home at the end of the weekend and I can't wait to see them. Please pray for safe travels.

Dining Out

With the kids in Florida, Tami and I have been dining out quite a bit. We've taken advantage of the opportunity to eat out at virtually half the cost (kids are expensive!). We got an e-mail from one of our favorite restaurants saying they were giving away a free appetizer on Tuesday only. In conjunction with that offer, we also had a $10 off coupon. We had a really, really nice meal (Appetizer, entrees, drinks, but no dessert) for about $20. Without the coupon and freebie, the meal would have been $60-$80 (if the kids had been there). Obviously we are not going to drop that kind of cash on one meal. We also enjoyed the opportunity to try a new place that we wouldn't have tried with the kids. I must admit it has been nice not having the kids ask, "What's for dinner?", "When's dinner going to be ready?", "Is it time to eat yet?" Or hearing them say, "Awww! Chili for dinner again? We had that LAST week!". However, from what we've heard from Florida, the kids are eating better than we are :-) Grandma Edra and Grandpa Cliff have been treating Michael to some nice meals. And as mentioned before Abby has been allowed to order anything she wants at the restaurants where they're eating. But that's okay... they're on vacation :-) I think we're all in for a rude awakening next week when we get back to real life. We won't be eating appetizers, steak and ribs again anytime soon. Chili, sandwiches, hot dogs, hamburgers and spaghetti will be the menu for quite a while.

Even More Strange

The kids have been in Florida for 4 days now. The more time that passes, the stranger it feels to not have them around. The feelings I have are generally mixed. While it's nice to have some time to relax, most of my feelings are for missing my kids and wishing they were home. Tami and I are comforted knowing they are having a good time. They've both been to the beach multiple times. Abby is allowed to order anything she wants at restaurants (she surely doesn't have THAT luxury at home), she even tried alligator and liked it. Abby is fishing today on a pontoon boat. Michael will be traveling to Siesta Key with his grandma tomorrow. So it helps knowing they are having a blast. However, I'm not sure if I've spent more time wishing they were home with me or wishing I was in Florida with them. Either one would be fine with me.

Home Again

We have returned from Chicago. The show was excellent! We spent the majority of our time talking about the kids and texting them in Florida. It's funny... you get a kid-free weekend and all you do is talk about them :-) We had a good time in Chicago, but we miss the kids so much already.

On a side note--- Tami got some John McArthur messages on CD. Each one is between 60 and 90 minutes. We listened to them in the car. Incredible stuff!

It was a great weekend all the way around.

Chicago

Tami and I are on a weekend getaway to Chicago. We are going to see a stage production of The Screwtape Letters and then have a nice dinner out. We'll be back tomorrow night.

The Adventure Begins

Last night before dropping Abby off, we prayed as a family. I know these prayers are already being answered...

Michael left for Florida this morning at 3:00 A.M. I barely slept from then until the time I got up to get ready for work.

At 6:30 A.M. I received a series of text messages. Here's the gist: The messages said they were running a little behind because "both windshield wipers broke". I'm not exactly sure what they meant by "broke". They stopped at a Wal-Mart to get replacement wiper blades. I questioned if the blades were fixed yet because I knew Michael had never performed this task before. Apparently a cart guy helped install them. Thank you, Lord for having that cart guy there to help. Michael's biggest concern was not the lost travel time or needing help. No... his biggest concern was that I wouldn't be happy that he used my money to pay for the wiper blades. I assured him I was not upset and was quite proud that he solved the little problem on his own (or at least knew enough to request assistance from someone). This little hiccup was probably a good thing... Michael got a chance to practice his problem solving skills. Hopefully that's the last of the travel difficulties.

I called around 7 and they said they were getting close to Tennessee. At 9 they called me and said all is well and they are working their way toward Georgia. I have been praying all morning and will continue until they arrive safely.

Abby texted shortly before 7 and said they just left. I'm praying for them too.

Once everybody is safely in the Sunshine State, I will breathe a sigh of relief and then the relaxation can begin.

One Down...

I dropped off Abby tonight. She leaves for Florida at 6:00 Friday morning. One spring breaker down, one to go.

Michael asked today if he could forego (translation- Play Hooky) his last day of school in order to leave for Florida a day early. I had no hesitation in saying yes. It's his senior year. It's his last high school spring break. He's doing very well with his grades. And in his words, "We're not doing anything on the last day anyway". Therefore he will be heading south at about 3:00 A.M. He'll be in Tampa by Friday evening. Please pray for the safety of both kids on their vacation.

As I said in my last post, it's going to be very strange without the kids around the house. It's already eerily quiet and Michael isn't even gone yet.

A Strange Time

Tami and I are getting ready to enter a strange time in our lives (albeit temporary). Abby leaves for Florida tomorrow morning. She is taking a spring break trip with a friend and that friend's grandparents. They'll be gone nine days. Michael leaves early Saturday morning for Florida. He is driving down with a friend and will be staying with my sister in Tampa. He will also have the opportunity to visit his Grandma Edra and Grandpa Cliff in Bradenton. To be honest, I am scared silly to think of Michael driving to Florida. I don't worry about his driving. He's a very good and safe driver. I worry about the thousands of other nuts on the road between Cincinnati and Tampa. However, I drove to Florida when I was younger than him and I survived. I now know how worried my parents must have been about me.

That means Tami and I will be without children for over a week. To all the parents out there, this probably sounds like a sweet deal... and on the surface, it is. Peace and quiet for a change. Less laundry, less time chasing kids off the computer and from in front of the TV. But that stuff is going to get really old, really fast. The fact is, I'm going to miss them terribly while they're gone and I'll worry about them until they back home safely. It's what Dads do. All I can say is, it's going to be strange without the kids around. I guess we're Empty Nesters in Training.

Wacky Wednesday!

Today is Wednesday and I am in a really good mood. I don't just mean I'm feeling good. I mean I feel kind of punchy, and even bordering on giddy. Why? I have no idea. I mean it's Wednesday for goodness sake! It's not as if this is the Friday before spring break or the last day of school before summer vacation. It's just plain old Wednesday.

The human mind is a strange thing. Why do I feel soooooo good today? No, I haven't been drinking :-) It could be the weather today is sunny and nearly 80 degrees. Did I magically teleport to Florida overnight? Nope. No palm trees visible outside my classroom window. But spring is definitely on its way to springing and that's always a good thing. Could it be I have been under tremendous stress and today has seen a reduced level of stress (at least temporarily)? Maybe. Could it be the kids only have a few more days until their big spring break trip to Florida to visit relatives? Possibly. I'm always happy for the kids when they get a vacation from their daily grind at school. Is it that Abby's show is over and I get to go home after work instead waiting at her school for an hour? Might be. The truth is, it's probably a combination of all of these. But on a more serious note, I honestly believe it's because of prayer and reading God's Word. I've been praying for my situation at school and Tami has too. I've been reading my Bible daily and getting a lot of encouragement through Scripture. God has brought His people through much worse things than what I'm going through. Relatively speaking, a stressful job or waiting an hour for your daughter to finish rehearsing for her play pales in comparison to losing a family member, having a whole town destroyed by a tornado, or seeing the many tragic things in the news daily. The bottom line is I am blessed beyond belief. I have a wonderful wife, three awesome kids, a granddaughter who lights up my life, an amazing church family, a very nice home and healthy friends and family as far as my eye can see. I have absolutely no reason to complain. I was counting my blessings today and had to stop because I can't count that high. Am I in a good mood today? You bet! If Wednesday is this good, I can't wait until Thursday!

Sveta Visit

We got to visit with our sweet little Sveta yesterday. Oh, and by the way, Jessi and Barry were there too :-)

She is doing sooooooooo well! She has been in the United States exactly 5 weeks and has adjusted marvelously. She is eating fine. She is sleeping well and learning the English language at blinding speed.

When she was told we were coming to visit, she asked Jessi, "With suckers?". She loves candy (what 4 year old doesn't?). When we arrived she went straight to Michael and said, "Telephone". She loves everything electronic and really enjoys playing with Michael and Abby's i-pod touch. We sat down to dinner and after praying, Sveta tapped her cup against ours and said, "CHEERS!". She loved the pork roast and biscuit, but was not a fan of the asparagus. Jessi told her it was like a green bean... Sveta wasn't buying it. She did grudgingly eat the asparagus because she wasn't allowed to have a brownie until she did. Bribery works every time!

The rest of our time was spent just visiting and listening to Sveta exhibit her vast English vocabulary. We particularly enjoyed Barry pointing to Jessi and asking who she was... Sveta replied, "Mama HOT!" We howled at that one. I wonder what other things Papa is going to teach Sveta to say :-) She knows the names of most of her body parts and the names of many animals and the sounds they make. We had a blast as you might imagine.

As I mentioned before, Sveta loves all kinds of electronic gadgets. She got her hands on our camera and took a picture of her Goppa. You can see the photo below.

The visit concluded with hugs and kisses. She also waved and blew kisses as we drove away. It was truly wonderful. Can I go see her again today? :-)

Rainy Days

"Rainy days and Mondays always get me down"- The Carpenters

Call me goofy, but am I the only one who thinks of this song when it rains on Monday? Actually I'm not really feeling down. I have so much to be thankful for. The Lord has awakened me to another day of His mercy and grace. I am totally unworthy of both. The kids are all doing well. Tami is incredible as always. Everybody's healthy. We may get to see our sweet little Sveta this week. We're already approaching mid-March and the temps will be in the mid 70's all week. Life is good. No, check that... Life is very, very good! Rainy days and Mondays will never get me down!

Grease WAS the word

Today marks the final performance of "Grease" put on by Abby's high school. We attended the performance last night and had a lot of fun. As high school productions go, it was pretty good. If you go in expecting Broadway quality, you're going to be disappointed. However, knowing these are high schoolers, and knowing some can't sing very well or have two left feet... the show was quite enjoyable. For me, the show dragged at first, but gained steam as it went on. "Hand Jive" was good, and then the showstoppers were "You're the one I want" and "We go together". I think it took a while for the kids to get into a groove, but once they did, it really went well.

Abby enjoys the stage. For those who know her well, you wouldn't be surprised to hear that Abby loves the limelight and draws her energy from being with people and performing in front of people. She tires out this introvert :-) But that's okay... Abby needs the outlet.

Abby wasn't thrilled about being relegated to the chorus in this show. She has a difficult time (as a Freshman) understanding that upperclassmen receive the larger roles even if they don't have as much talent. We're trying to help her understand about paying one's dues and working your way up the ladder. I am however looking forward to the next few years when she EARNS larger roles and plays a more prominent part in these productions.

On a side note... Yes, they are doing a performance on a Sunday afternoon. This really bothers me. Sunday is the Sabbath and we view it as a sacred family day. There's something terribly wrong about rushing out of church to get your daughter to a school activity on time. Saturdays are bad enough, but the school needs to leave Sundays alone. I'll climb down off my soapbox. This is probably a topic for a future blog post.

It's Not Easy

When I first started this blog, I vowed it would not be a place for me to vent and whine about my job. I wanted it to be a place where I could write down my thoughts about life and keep things generally light-hearted. However, I also want this blog to be "real". Not some sunshine, butterflies and rainbows fantasy land. If this blog is about real life, then sometimes there will trials and tribulations to write about. We do live in a fallen world after all.

With that being said, my job as a teacher has gotten more and more stressful. The crushing tension I feel on a daily basis has grown exponentially over the last few years. I won't go into detail. It would only raise my blood pressure and probably surprise you at the state of public education in the 21st century. Suffice it to say this year alone I have broken up innumerable fist fights, heard language that would only be found in X rated movies, and had a student kick desks and chairs over and literally throw two chairs across my classroom. I have witnessed unadulterated cruelty from some children toward other children. I deal with blatant disrespect and a general disdain for education on an hourly basis. There really is no break from it.

As a teacher I've heard from others how easy I must have it. Teachers get all weekends and holidays off. We get snow days off. We get three months off in the summer. We are merely glorified babysitters. We give children assignments and then get to drink coffee and read the newspaper as they dutifully and quietly complete those assignments (Um, yeah. Right!). And of course that famous quote that makes me cringe every time... "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach". That one really hurts. Teaching is hard. Really hard. Every day I walk through the schoolhouse door I can count on being an instructor, counselor, mediator, nurse, father figure, nurturer, comforter, disciplinarian, friend, referee, judge, repair man, encourager, and lots of other roles that aren't coming to mind at the moment. I guess my point is teachers are much more than task masters who hand out assignments and homework. So many of my students come from non traditional or even broken homes that teaching the curriculum isn't always a reality. The aforementioned roles sometimes take priority over reading, writing and arithmetic. I come home every evening exhausted. I probably won't ever see 99% of the impact I'm having on these kids, but maybe, just maybe I'm making a difference with some of them.

Grease!

When I was a kid, one of my favorite musicals was "Grease". We had the soundtrack and practically wore it out listening to it over and over. Now 35 years later, I get the true pleasure of seeing a live stage performance of "Grease". My wonderfully talented daughter Abby is in her high school production this weekend. I'll be rocking to Summer Nights and Greased Lightning all weekend long. Can't wait!

Proud of my students

The response to our Tornado Relief Drive has been overwhelming. I am so proud of the willingness of my students and their families to help others in need. The generosity that has been shown is incredible. We still have nearly a week remaining to collect donations and I'm thinking we're going to need a mighty big truck to haul it all. Way to go, St. Bernard Elementary!

Tornado Relief Drive

The last few days I've spent quite a bit of time posting about the tornadoes that tore through here on Friday evening. This morning I received a call from a member of the Board of Education asking if the St. Bernard Elementary Student Council (I am the supervisor of this student group at my school) would conduct a Tornado Relief Drive. I jumped at the chance. Anything to help out our fellow man.

I am not posting this to say, "Hey, look what a good thing I'm doing!". I'm posting this to let you know it is happening and to give you the chance to make a donation if you wish. If you'd like to give, get the stuff to me before next Tuesday or let me know and I can pick it up.

On a personal note--- My brother-in-law, Dale Randall, works with a gal who lost family members in Chelsea, Indiana. Their story was in the Cincinnati Enquirer today. Here's the link: http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20120305/NEWS/303050160

Here is the flyer I sent home with all 300 students in my school:

The Student Councils of St. Bernard Elementary and Elmwood Place Elementary are co-sponsoring a food/clothing/item drive to benefit the families affected by the tornadoes this past Friday. Items collected will be delivered directly to areas hardest hit by the storms. We will be collecting donations until the morning of Tuesday, March 13th. Suggested items for donation include:

Leather work gloves
Shovels
Rakes
Thermos Bottles
Flashlights/Batteries
Coffee Pots
Antibiotic Cream
Band-Aids
First aid kits
Soap
Body Wash
Bottled Hand Soap/Sanitizer
Deodorant
Feminine Products
Shampoo/Conditioner
Shaving Cream/Razors
Toothbrushes/Toothpaste
Bath Towels/Washcloths
Baby Formula/Baby Food
Diapers (all sizes)
Baby Blankets
Baby Bottles/Nipples
Toilet Paper
Disposable Cups
Cleaning Supplies (bleach, spray cleaners, wipes)
Mops/Brooms/Buckets
Laundry Detergent
Plastic Cutlery
Paper Goods (plates, napkins, towels, bowls)
Disposable Gloves (rubber or latex)
Trash Bags (all sizes)
Pet Food
Plastic Containers
Blankets
Gift Cards
Bottled Water
Non-Perishable Food Items

Heart Breaking!

This weekend has been filled with tragedy. However, there was the story of Angel Babcock, the toddler from southern Indiana who survived when both her parents and two siblings died. She was discovered in a field ten miles from her home. It was one of those miraculous stories that comes out of so many tales of devastation.

When I got home from church tonight, I logged on to check the news headlines. I was heart broken to see that little Angel had died. I don't even know this child or her family and I nearly broke down just reading about it. I was really praying this 15 month old would make it. God had a different plan.

I am still praying for the victims of these tornadoes. I do not know anyone who was directly affected, but I will pray nonetheless.

Tornado Update

The light of day Saturday revealed what we already knew to be true. There would be widespread devastation as a result of Friday's tornadoes. The towns of Marysville and Henryville, Indiana were completely flattened. Holton, Indiana received a lot of damage too. The small town of Moscow, Ohio was 75-80% destroyed. The photos and video were awful. It's difficult to comprehend such complete destruction can happen in the blink of an eye.

We dodged a bullet

Friday beginning about 3:30, violent storms rolled through the tri-state area. Tornado filled thunder storms slammed Ripley County, Indiana, Northern Kentucky and many counties east of Cincinnati. As of 6:00 the storms are rolling east and still causing a lot of problems. I'm sure as the evening goes on, the reports and video footage of storm damage will come pouring in. The towns of Holton and Marysville, Indiana were flattened and there are currently two confirmed deaths and I would not be surprised to hear about more. I am thankful our area was spared. We barely received any rain or even a whisper of wind. If it weren't for TV reports, we never would have known there was such destruction around us. Please join me in praying for people in these tornado ravaged areas. I thank the Lord for our safety.

Empty!

Still no word from the pool guys. Here's an even sadder photo. The pool is now completely empty except a few puddles :-(