The Levels

As I am freezing, I think of the levels of Hell:

Gluttony
Greed
Lust
Anger
Violence
Fraud
Treachery
Heresy
and finally...
WINTER!

Think Spring!

These freezing temperatures and all this ice and snow has me dreaming of spring. Spring brings warmth and warmth brings baseball. Pitchers and catchers report to spring training in two and a half weeks. Here's a depressing photo of Great American Ballpark taken yesterday.

Brrrrrr

The temperature is below zero. The windchill is about -20. We got an inch of snow overnight. Cincinnati is lovely this time of year!

All this winter wonderfulness reminds me of the four seasons in Cincinnati...

Almost Winter
Winter
OMG! Still Winter
Road Construction, Humidity, and Mosquitos

Oh how I love my hometown!

Getting Closer

At last report the Mortons entered their new home state.

Note the green trees, blue sky, and sunshine. ***SIGH***

Polar Vortex!

Extremely cold air is coming to the Midwest in the next few days. It is being described as: Brutal Cold, Life Threatening, Frostbite in Minutes, Frigid Air Mass, Arctic Blast, and Polar Vortex. We are being warned that vehicles may not start and pipes may freeze. Schools in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, and the Dakotas are already closed. I wouldn’t be surprised if schools in the lower Midwest followed suit. There is talk of records being set and if not, it is at least being called the coldest air we’ve seen in decades.

Remind me again what is so great about winter? For those of you who say you like the “change of seasons”… well, you got it. I hope you’re happy! It looks like the Mortons moved south just in time!

Welcome to Cincy!

Welcome to Cincinnati! Where the windchill is 30 degrees below zero on Wednesday and nearly 60 degrees on Monday. At this rate I could be shoveling my driveway midweek and mowing the lawn by early next week. Crazy! Just plain crazy!

Swimming in Arkansas

What do you do after spending all day driving halfway to Texas? You go swimming in the hotel pool of course! Here are my sweet Grandbabies swimming in Forrest City, Arkansas. Next stop... Katy, Texas or bust!

Break Time!

When traveling with young kids, frequent breaks are a must. A meal at Chick-fil-A and a romp in the play area is just what everybody needed.

A tough goodbye

Today is the day Tami and I have been dreading. The day we knew was coming, but somehow didn’t want to really acknowledge. Today Jessi, Barry, and our three grandbabies left Greensburg, Indiana in a U-Haul and headed for Katy, Texas. We’ve known for a few months they were moving. We knew it was going to be hard not having them a mere hour away. But until now it all just seemed like a bad dream. It wasn’t quite real. Today things got real. They really and truly have headed southwest to the Lone Star State. There is no doubt going to be a period of mourning and adjustment for Grandma and Goppa. We’ve never had any member of our family more than a short drive away. This all changes today. No more impromptu visits. No more last minute calls for babysitting. This is going to be difficult to be sure. But we also know this is in God’s sovereign plan. This is a good move for the Morton family. The benefits are more numerous than I have time to list. It’s a good move for them, but painful for us. But we’ve been saying in the weeks leading up to this move, “Who are we to argue with God?” He obviously has a reason for sending them to Texas. A reason we may never fully understand. But God is always good (even when it doesn’t feel good to us). God is in charge, and I am not. We should all take comfort in that knowledge. Today we say goodbye to the Mortons, and it’s sad knowing we likely won’t see them until summer. But we trust in the Lord and we know he will never leave us nor forsake us. I miss them already.

As I type this, they are on the road to Katy. Michael’s wife, Lauren is on the trip as well. With the Morton kids, an extra set of eyes, ears, and hands is always a good idea.

Watching the news

Watching the news nowadays is tough... it seems nothing good ever happens.