It's Been A While- Presidential Update

Wow! It's been a while since I actually had time to sit down and write on here. Of course, for those of you that know my past attempts at blogs, that probably comes as no surprise.

Huckabee is still in this race! However, I do believe Super Tuesday will determine a lot. If Governor Huckabee does not win enough key states in the south to stay strong, then I do believe he must look at dropping out.

I hate to say that. I really believe that of all the candidates, he is the best socially, fiscally, and on all the other issues as well. If that makes me more of a moderate than a conservative, then so be it. But who decides who gets to apply the labels. And I'm sorry, but when did we vote Rush Limbaugh as the all high king of the Republican party?

It's kind of the same as saying to me that a church can't be Southern Baptist if they don't have it in their name. Most of the growing/evangelizing SBC churches don't have it in their name.Or because a church's worship style is too contemporary, they're not having a true worship service.

If Huckabee drops out of the race before the Mississippi primary, will I vote for Mitt Romney? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!! First, look at his issues. He is a flip-flopper. Romney is the ultimate politician and will do anything, say anything to win. He might truly have had a change of heart, only God can judge that. But its funny how that change comes just before he runs for President. Also, Romney was the first to go negative. I've always believed that if you go negative, you must have run out of good things to say about yourself. In addition, Romney's healthcare plan in Mass- whether you have the government pay for it or make people pay for it themselves, forcing someone to have health insurance is a liberal policy.

And yes, there is also the question of his religion. We can try to tip toe around this all day and say it doesn't matter. But do we really want to elect someone who thinks he can become god? If he truly believes that, and yes, it is a basic tennet of Mormon belief, what's to say that ole Mitt won't believe he is a god in this life and start having people worship him? He is NOT a Christian. No Mormon is. You can't deny the basic tenets of Christianity and still be one. If you believe that they are, you need to do some research. I suggest starting here- 4truth.net Also, this is a great blog about Romney and his faith- Mitt and Mormonism

Will I vote for Mitt in the general election if he wins the nomination? Mmmm, at this point I just don't know. Most likely, yes. Even someone wanting to be god would be better than Obama or Hillary.

If Huckabee drops out who will my support go to? Well obviously it won't be Mitt. It would be John McCain. One thing that I admire about McCain (other than his military service) is the fact that you know where he stands and his not afraid to be unpopular even when it makes everyone else upset. We need that in a President.

And by the way, my second choice after Huckabee until yesterday- Rudy Guilliani. As a Christian, I don't like Rudy's views on social policies, but I don't believe he would have done anything to tick off the evangelical base of the republican party. And yes, I do believe he would've made a great president.

What about a McCain/Guilliani ticket? I would much rather see McCain/Huckabee. That would do the best to bring moderates and conservatives together on the same vote.

And no, Rush Limbaugh, it would not be the death of the republican party!

Twins Update, FSU, & Huckabee

We had a great visit with Dr. Purdy yesterday (Monday). Everything is looking great and we will go for another sonogram next Monday. For those of you unfamiliar, there are a lot more sonograms with twins. We should find out the sexes next month (20 weeks).

Melissa is doing good, but is very tired very often. Please continue to keep her (and all of us) in your prayers.

We had a great Christmas. Of course, one of the highlights for me was getting to see my Seminoles take the field. Although we lost, I do believe we played a great game and proved a lot of the critics wrong. Also, that was one of the worst officiating crews I have ever seen!

And, when I'm wrong, I say I'm wrong. I do now believe the four game suspension of the cheating players is enough punishment. It turns out that the class they cheated in was Music Theory and the professor had used the same test for 7 semesters! Now, granted, there is no excuse for cheating, but the players should not shoulder all the blame for this one.

And yes, as I predicted- Huckabee won Iowa!! Congratulations Governor. There are a lot of pundits and critics out there trying to criticize Huckabee as not being conservative enough. As I shared with my Aunt this past week (and she's even considering voting for him during the election- although she's a die hard democrat!), "Stop drinking the kool-aid!" No, we won't win New Hampshire- too liberal of a state. What I would love to see though is McCain emerge the victor and that we don't finish last.

The Mouse Chronicle- Part II: Holi the Mouse Slayer

OK, you must read the The Mouse Chronicle (detailed below or in archives) to fully understand Part II. Luckily, no showers were involved this time!

As we were preparing to leave for the Christmas holidays and I was coming back in from loading the van, I recognized a very familiar carcass laying on the kitchen floor in front of the dishwasher. However, instead of his normal scurrying faster than Flo-Jo self, he was not moving one bit at all and curled into a little ball.

Yes, our mouse, or most likely a relative, had come back, but had found the little treat we had left out for him and was now dead. Not wanting Chloe (or Melissa for that matter) to see him, I hurried to the back of the house to find a shoebox to pick him up to dispose of him. However, by the Chloe and I (she had come back inside from playing) and I made it to the front of the house to take him back outside for the last time, our dog, Holi, has him in her mouth and is heading outside with him!

Now I'm sure Holi thought she was protecting her household by disposing of this ferocious, albeit dead, pest, but where was she when I was screaming my head off in the shower!?

Oh yeah, she was on her daily morning time biscuit run at the neighbors! Man's best friend? Yea, she is. And a mouse slayer on top of it!

Huckabee Resonds to Criticism

This morning, you and yours, like my family and I, were most likely in church worshiping our Lord and Savior. If so, you most likely missed Meet the Press with Tim Russert on NBC. Of course, to be honest, there's not any Sunday morning I make sure to watch Meet the Press, but today's episode was not to be missed.

I am sure you have heard much criticism lately regarding GOP Candidate Mike Huckabee and his alleged handling of certain issues (namely taxes, immigration, and crime). It appears that Mitt Romney has ran out of nice things to say about himself and is therefore attacking his opponents.

Huckabee has claimed that Romney's attacks have been dishonest. However, as one commentator on Fox News pointed out recently, they haven't heard Huckabee say why they were dishonest. Well, for that commentator and everyone else that has been wondering- listen up!

Huckabee did a great job on Meet the Press this morning answering his critics and defending his faith. You can watch the interview by clicking here.

Unfortunately MSNBC.com does not yet have enbeddable video links, or I would simply post the video on here. Of course, it is MS(Microsoft) NBC, so what do you expect?! Also, for all my other Mac Addicts out there, do you notice someting eerily familiar about the color changing peacock symbol while you wait for the video to load? Yes, once again Microsoft copies (oops, I meant borrows) from Mac!

The Twins at 11 Weeks

Merry Christmas!

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Sonogram Looks Good

TWIN UPDATE- We had another sonogram done yesterday (the third of many more to come) and the babies are looking great. You could really tell a lot of profile yesterday. They were both about 45 cm and heart rates were around 170. Melissa is 11 weeks along and other than morning sickness, is doing fine. They are definitely in two sacs (yea! This is a very good thing!) and it looks like one placenta. That's not as good as separate placentas, but they could not tell definitely that there weren't two placentas. So keep praying for that.

I will post sonogram pics on Friday.

4 Game Suspension Not Enough

If you haven't heard yet, my beloved Seminoles are now front and center of what appears to be a very bad cheating scandal.

More than 25 student-athletes (football players included) are believed to have cheated on tests through an internet based course with the help of some tutors. Those football players (other sports were also involved) have been suspended from the Music City Bowl against Kentucky as well as the first three games of the 2008 season.

However, if the allegations are true a four game suspension is not enough. I believe these players should be removed from the football team- no matter how much of a star they are.

Our university system today has lost its focus on its mission of education. Sports- the money maker they are in our country- have far replaced academics as what most universities stand for or try to achieve.

However, the suspensions should not stop there. The Athletic Director will resign on December 31- good move. Also, one full-time tutor has already been fired and any more found to be involved should be as well.

One of the biggest reasons I became a fan of Florida State was because of Bobby Bowden. However, no sports star or coach in America is worth 2.5 million dollars. I love you Bobby, but you don't need that big of a paycheck. I wonder if any professors of Florida State make 2.5 million dollars (with added incentives if there students score well on a test!)?

Should Bobby retire? In one more year, yes. There needs to be a "retirement year" for Bowden. A farewell tour if you will. If Bobby were to walk away now I believe that it is too dark of a note to end on for himself and for Florida State.

However, before you begin bashing Florida State too much, remember, this happens at every university. None of them are immune. I think that this quote that was posted by a fan on espn.com sums it up:

Let's just be honest, not only with FSU but many other universities as well. We've lost the "student" in student-athlete. These kids don't go to college to study they go to play football or basketball. As a former athlete I can honestly say that I spent more time practicing and studying film than studying for exams and doing homework. In the athletes mind that's not why they are there, they believe it's stepping stone to the NBA or NFL, which right now I would agree with them. qdubz4235

What really matters

Amen President Huckabee! (I'm speaking on faith here). No matter what candidate you support, this is a refreshing ad. And no doubt, it will drive the liberals nuts! I truly believe this election is going to be one of the biggest decisions we as a nation, and Christians, have ever made.

The Mouse Chronicle

For the record, I am not afraid to admit that I can shriek like a woman! Here's what happened.

This morning as I was waking up and getting ready to come to church, I go to my bathroom down the hall. I flip on the light, still not fully awake, and see something scurry across the floor. My first thought is, "That was a really big roach." After realizing that if a roach was truly that big, I'm grabbing my family and getting out of the house- I woke up some more and realized that was no roach- it was a mouse!

My second action was to go into full girly mode and hop on top of the vanity and shriek. Now, yes, I'm as much of a man as the next guy, but at 7:00 in the morning in my pajamas, I wanted to know what this mouse's intentions were before we had a face to face.

I hollered at Melissa to bring me a shoe box and for the next five minutes I tried to corner and scoop Mickey into said shoe box. Have you ever tried to corner a mouse before? They are some of the quickest creatures I have ever dealt with.

The mouse disappeared on me into one of the cabinets. I slowly opened the cabinet door and saw him nice and comfy in the back of the closet. Knowing I had to get ready, I assumed he would stay there and him and I would have a heart to heart a little later. Notice I did say "assumed," we all know what that means.

A few minutes later I jump into the shower. I always wash my hair last, not sure why, just what I've always done. As I am getting ready to begin washing my hair I felt something fall down my back. My first thought is, "No, there is no way that could be him." However, as I look down I quickly realize that Ratatouielle and myself are now showering together!!

Once again, I shrieked. Not only did I shriek but I jumped up on the back corners of the tub, holding the detachable shower faucet in one hand and trying to drown the mouse, while I keep my balance and try to keep from falling and killing myself with the other.

He kept coming towards me, I kept dowsing him. At one point he raises up on his two legs and tilts his head as he gives me this cute, "I'm an innocent mouse" look. Now, I don't know if he could give me any good gourmet recipes or not, but I wasn't taking a chance. I sprayed him towards the front of the tub, got out, grabbed the shoe box, and was able to scoop him up.

I finished getting ready for work and decided I would release the furry little creature into the woods down the road. As I pick up the shoebox, I expect to feel the little booger scurry around or at least make some noise. Nothing. I shake the shoebox. Still Nothing. I shake a little harder. Thud. Oh no, I've killed him. Now, I wasn't going to loose any sleep over this, but nonetheless, I didn't want to kill him- he was probably just looking for a warm place to sleep. I was just going to deport him. :)

Had the water been too hot and scalded him? Did I drown him? Had the fright of seeing me taking a shower gave him a little mousy heart attack?

I grabbed the shoebox and went down the road to the woods. I decided I would peek in on the little fella to judge his condition. His condition was just fine!! I'm beginning to believe he had done this before since he played possum so well. He jumps out of the box and scurries off into the woods.

Hopefully, this story does not turn into "The Mouse Chronicle(S)!"