Still cooking......

Jonas and Melissa were down and we had a good visit at the lake house on July 4th. We really enjoyed spending time with them and Melissa has her "baby bump" going. We tried to get her in the water but no dice. No problem with Jonas, though. He is the first skier of the summer. Ask Melissa sometime about her fantastic boat ride across the lake. I don't think boat rides and pregnant women necessarily go together. Leanne, Heath, McKenzie & Alexis came by as well. Jonas, Heath and I worked on a fireworks display for the 4th. We had a great time blowing stuff up and it was nice to have Heath to keep us from burning the place down (he's a firefighter).

Jennifer spent last weekend with us at the lake while Robert studied for his finals. She is still very active but is getting pretty uncomfortable these days. The final month is the toughest but she is a trooper. She still has a few weeks to go and we are getting pretty excited. Robert passed his orals and has a couple of days of testing to complete his Masters. We are really proud of him. They takeoff this weekend for a trip to Waycross for Robert's high school reunion.

Sue is looking GREAT! She started working with a personal trainer recently and is is in the best shape ever. She is starting to really get into the workouts but does get those aches and pains from doing new exercises. I, however, avoid doing any excessive running, walking, lifting or training.

Ho Hummm..........

Nothing much has been happening since my last post. I'm visiting the doctor quite a bit and they are fishing for the reason I'm having chest and back pain. It has been going on for about 6 weeks now and I've had X-Rays, ultrasounds, cameras down my esophagus, gallbladder exams and other rather humiliating tests. And there are more tests to come! I'll keep you informed.

Sue is working with a personal trainer and she is doing really well. She's very motivated to getting in shape. The promise of grandchildren makes you want to be a better person, you know.

Be sure and check out Jonas and Melissa's site for the newest pictures of Luke.

Jennifer has been dealing with the pains of pregnancy in the third trimester. She's been doing well but having a tough time sleeping. She's been sleeping on the couch with her feet propped for comfort. You gotta do what you gotta do.

See ya.

It's a Boy!

Jonas called me around 9:30 this morning to announce "it's a boy". Jonas and Melissa found out this morning during a visit to the doctor and seeing the ultrasound pictures. He seemed pretty excited and this is good news for Williams clan. Hopefully, I'll have some to post later or you can visit their blog (use the link below). I'm sure Melissa will update the blog soon. Sue and Gay (Melissa's mom) drove up yesterday and were both there during the doctor visit. It meant the world for them to be included. However, I had to be without my wife for the night (which I hate, by the way). Back to work!

Learning from Amadeus.....

I've been reading the book "Waking the Dead" by John Etheredge (Jonas gave this as a gift & I highly recommend it!). He talks about guarding your heart and the spiritual warfare that goes on every day for your heart. I don't know about you but usually when I read about "spiritual warfare" I poo poo the idea and skip that chapter. I don't want to get too deep in this and you may not be interested at the moment but stop and think about it. You can get up, clean up, go to work or school, come home, watch a little TV, feed the dog or cat and go to bed - without even wondering how the Enemy might be attacking. My question is, what is the attack? Who is attacking? Why is there anyone attacking my heart? (by the way, the heart is the "real" you - not the outside part that everyone else sees).
I love to watch movies and pick out little gems of Truth. Remember the movie Amadeus? In the movie, Mozart's wife goes to a rival composer with political power. His name is Salieri and he is the villain of the story. She is asking Salieri (a musician but not that good) to look at her husband's work in hopes of getting him a job (they need the money for food). He looks through the pages she gives him and is captivated by the work of his rival. He realizes that Mozart is extremely gifted and feels that his music is the "very voice of God". He is looking at a draft and notices no corrections of any kind. The music was "finished" in his head before he simply wrote it on paper. It was perfect (just like our heart). Salieri is upset by this and leaves the room and goes to his private chamber. There, he takes down a crucifix from the wall and throws it in the fire. Listen to what he says: "From now on we are enemies, You and I. Because You choose for your instrument a boastful, lustful, smutty, infantile boy...and give me only the ability to recognize the Incarnation. Because You are unjust...unfair..unkind. I will hinder and harm Your creature here on earth as far as I am able. (He shakes his fist in the air). I will ruin Your incarnation."
Uh....I get it....this is the just like the heart of OUR enemy! He is out to ruin us and to hinder us from living the abundant life. So it makes sense to me that there is a spiritual war going on for my heart.
Look, I know that even if you've read this far you are poo pooing the idea too. I know you aren't reading the book and probably didn't even want to think about this.. But hey, just think about it every once in a while when watching a movie. In every story there is a villain, right? Dorothy has her Wicked Witch. Obi-Wan has his Darth Maul. Frodo has his Black Riders. The children enter Narnia and have their White Witch. So it makes sense there is a villain in our story who is out to "steal and kill and destroy" (John 10:10). Remember to be on guard each day and protect your heart. It may be gossip you don't need to hear. It may be a "dirty" joke you shouldn't listen to. It may be a web site you shouldn't visit. It may be a TV program you shouldn't watch. The Enemy will use whatever He can to get to you.

Love you.
-Randy

Nesting......

Robert & Jen

Jennifer sent me some pictures today of her nursery. I put up a little slideshow of her pictures. It seems that Robert and Jen are setting up the nest preparing for the arrival of LT (Little Turner). They are keeping the name a secret until she gives birth and Jen is really worried she might let it slip out. We think it's great and I'm trying hard not to bug her about giving up the info or even guessing. They are both very excited about this new chapter in their lives. I can't wait to see Robert changing diapers.

Jonas & Melissa

Jonas and Melissa find out on the 18th if they are having a boy or a girl. I think Melissa is convinced it will be a girl. I'm hoping for a boy to keep the Williams name going from the Barton branch of the family tree. Sue and Gay (Melissa's mom) are driving up to go with her and they are very excited to be included. I can tell they will be fighting over time with this kid.

Heath & Leanne

Heath and Leanne continue their vigil at the bedside of baby Alexis. She has begun to gain some weight albeit very slowly. Keep them in your prayers. The daily trips are beginning to take their toll on them and makes it somewhat difficult on McKenzie. Sue kept her today (practicing the Grandma thing) and they went to the YMCA pool for a couple of hours. Later in the day she found Jennifer's Barbie toys and really didn't want to go home.

The last few weeks have been very busy. Last week was the final week of piano lessons for Sue and the year culminated with a great recital held at First Baptist. All her students had the opportunity to perform in front of a crowd of family and friends. It was especially good to see many of the brothers & sisters performing duets as well as one dad.

I am reminded daily of how blessed I am. I am so proud of how my kids have become mature young adults, found their soul mates and now begin their own families. Sue and I constantly talk about how it really hasn't been that long ago we were in their shoes. I watched the last hour of the movie American Beauty the other night. In the movie the dad had been frustrated for quite some time with almost everything in his life; his marriage, his daughter, his job and society in general. Through a strange set of occurrences he finally realizes how wonderful his life really is (just before he dies). I think this movie can mean different things to you depending on your point of view. As a dad, it really tells that I am resoundingly blessed in all the areas that the movie dad felt didn't meet his expectations. Hey, I don't cry at movies but this one really got to me.

Heath came by with a better photo of Alexis. Now that is one cutie!

Everything is still progressing nicely. She is doing well and will probably be home before we know it.

-Randy

New addition to the Family..

There are/were 4 women in my immediate circle expecting babies (Jennifer, Melissa, Mindy, & Leanne). Now we are down to three! Leanne had an early arrival of Mary Alexis around 3:44am on Memorial Day. Leanne had been assigned bed rest for the balance of her pregnancy (she was due in July) but she'd have none of that. Alexis weighed in at 3lbs 13oz and is 17in long with jet black hair. She is tiny but doing really well. She will have to be in the hospital for a while to gain a little weight so they can put her is the car seat (they don't make them that small). She has lots of wires and leads attached to her tiny body to be sure everything goes well. Heath calls her his "matchbox" baby. She will almost fit in your shirt pocket.

The nurses I met were knowledgable and obviously called to their jobs. There were a lot of sick babies in the intensive care unit when I visited. Heath shared with me that he and Leanne had a lot to be thankful for. McKenzie is ready to bring her baby sister home and have a tea party. Granny would be so proud.

-Randy