...yeah, I'm back after a nearly 3 month hiatus. I honestly don't know how some of you find the time. Especially those of you with 5 kids, who have busy jobs and who celebrate holidays. But here I am on a Saturday morning in January with these thoughts:

- It's not supposed to be as cold as it has been down here lately -- we moved from Ohio to get away from sub-20 degrees. Fortunately, the snow has been absent...at least to this point.

- It's been a good few weeks for my favorite sports teams. Buckeyes won the Rose Bowl in convincing fashion. Cowboys playing very well in the NFL. Hoping that keeps up.

- Still looking for an evangelist here in LaGrange. It's been 14 months and the men here have really stepped up to fill the need but we are praying God's providence will send someone soon.

- Our new little guy is growing like crazy and has finally filled in all the wrinkles he had when he was born. Levi is a blessing indeed.

- Got to see my brother and his family from Austin, TX over the holidays. It was quite a treat and we sure wish we could see them more often.

- It's almost baseball/softball season down here in the South, meaning the most hectic season of all for our family. Our oldest 2, Cadence and Micah, both have played since they were old enough to participate and love the game. This year, our little princess who can hardly stand to sweat, Hannah (our 3rd), wants to get in on the action. So 3 kids playing every week night (other than Wednesday because down here in the Bible belt, leagues do not schedule games on Wednesdays) and 2 parents with 2 other kids running around like crazy trying to attend them all. Should be fun.

- I just started teaching the book of Romans in our adult class after taking over 2 years to teach through the book of Acts. Probably sounds crazy to take that long to go through such a well known book, but I pray it was profitable. Romans is looking to be much more challenging, so I pray our study will be productive and encouraging to all.

- Kristin, Levi and I are headed to the Tampa area for a little mini-vacation next weekend (my parents are watching the other 4 for us). We have not been down there since 1996 and have so many friends in the area that we cannot wait to see.

And that's about it. I'm sure the 2 or 3 of you who read my posts feel like you've missed out on a lot since October.

...and the BOYS RULE!!! Levi Samuel Pittman born at 3:09 am this morning. 7 lb 4 oz; 20.5" long. Quite the handsome fella if I do say so myself. All is well and the family is very excited! Thanks for all the prayers.

It’s almost time
And oh how it flies
One is on the way
Breaking the tie

2 girls 2 boys
For a total of four
Which will win out
And add one more?

A sweet Georgia peach
As beautiful as her mother?
Or a tough little boy
To tag along with the others?

They’ve followed a pattern
Thus far as it were
Girl-boy-girl-boy
Will it go on for sure?

It makes no difference
I’ll love them the same
I just pray that they will not
Be too tough to tame

For in each child
A blessing is found
And huge responsibility
To make sure they are crowned

So thanks in advance
To our wonderful God
Who has blessed me so richly
On this journey I’ve trod

One more to come
No doubt I will cry
And congratulate them
For breaking the tie

5k at 10:00 pm in LaGrange 2 weeks from Saturday -- cool, huh? a night race.

had not been running or working out for 4 months until....i re-joined the gym last week.

now the question is....can i work my way into shape in such a short time in order to complete (yes, compLete, not compete) the 5k?

$20 to register if i do so before saturday; add'l $5 after that, so to save a little, need to commit this week. thinking that if i lay down the cash now, i'll be more motivated.
problem is, after about 4 efforts, i have petered out around 2-2.25 miles on the treadmill. lots of work to do before 9/26.

but hey, at least i would get a free bbq sandwich and a sweet tea after the race (compliments of one of the sponsors) in addition to the free t-shirt. i'm sure a bbq sandwich and sweet tea are exactly what i'll need after running that distance in the shape i'm in!


p.s. GO BUCKEYES!!!! not very confident in a victory over USC saturday night, but hoping they'll surprise me.

It's that time again...Fantasy Football 2009. Something I've done for at least the past 13 years, so I guess that makes me some kind of geek. I remember back in the day when I used to sit on the floor with Monday's USA Today laid out before me, filling the stats into a custom Excel file which I personally developed, which automatically counted everyone's points -- ok, guess that confirms my "geekness." Unfortunately, the league that started it all for me has now fizzled, but this year I was invited to play with a bunch of Chirstian guys from neighboring congregations and last night was draft night (again, if I knew how to insert other Pleo members, here is where I'd include at least two). It was great -- great food, great guys, and great fun. Now I just have to look for the likes of Matt Ryan, Maurice Jones-Drew, Stephen Jackson, Anquan Boldin, Jason Witten along with "wild cards" Vincent Jackson, Reggie Bush, and former Buckeye trio Beanie Wells, Brian Robiskie and Anthony Gonzalez to make my season fruitful. Wish me luck!