May 25th Review

Howdy Howdy e'ry one...

Today, as we like to focus on reviews, and it being a special day in the life of my love (her day of birth), I would like to take this moment to look over the past 10 years of our life together. Yes. We've only been married for 4 years this September. Yes, we have only dated for a little over 7 years. But we have known each other for 10 years (and not really on good terms either). 

We actually 1st met at Second Baptist Church, at a ministry fair. Me and my fellow co-chair of our Singles Ministry were publicizing our next event for our age group, which my future bride did not fit in at the time.  Upon meeting her and her friend though, I was unaware of this. I eventually found out and spent "less than 100%" trying to get her to attend. As a matter-of-fact, I did everything that you would want to do to get someone to hate you. I talked about her name, her mama, even spent more effort and attention on her friend. Now I did this all very sarcastically and very humorously so we all laughed, but needless to say, we did not keep in touch for a few years. 

Fast forward to 2005: music pumping, people dancing, future wifey relatively fresh out of a long term relationship, me; just out of a "relationship" with someone very nice and sweet, just not really for me. Neither one of us looking for anything serious. Just trying to have a little fun when we discovered that maybe, just maybe we could try this fun thing with each other. She had forgiven me for talking about her, I stopped trying to holla at her friend, this might work for the time being. 

Fall 2007: A situation that could have rocked the foundation of any relationship occurred between us (to be shared at another time) happened. Instead of causing a drift or leading us apart, we were brought closer together. It was then that I realized that I wanted to spend my life with this woman. 

Current day: We are have some of the funniest times together. We have an amazing 2 year old (who forgets he's only 2 sometimes).  And we are happy. Happy in love, happy in life and happy to see what tomorrow will bring. 

But for today, I want to say Happy Birthday to my love!

Toddler Intermission - Church Options

When we go to church, we are usually in the booth. Sometimes, the parentals steer me clear of it, but that doesn’t seem to be normal. Yesterday, though … I got them both. I wanted to go downstairs to the nursery. I’ve done this in the past, but today - I stayed down there. The entire time. I did NOT want to come back upstairs to church! They promised me a park afternoon though, but I still let them know how I did NOT want to come back upstairs to church.

Oh … and we did go to the park! That’s for another day though because I have to tell you about those kids. Whew! Their parentals are setting them up to be followers for SURE! Or maybe I’m just a born leader ;)

The Security of "Securing"...

Greetings,

Once again, we have been blessed to see another day.  Whenever I wake up and thank God for allowing me to open my eyes, I always know, that I have “work” to do.  That “work” could fall in the place of anything, but I know that I always have “work” to do.  

Today I keep running into Security issues - more-so “insecurity”.  If you remember we discussed how we, at Second Baptist Church of Ann Arbor, have been taught that love - real love is broken down as “Understanding”, “Reaching” & “Securing” {based off the scripture John 3:16}

I’ve discussed “understanding” before & I’ll go into “reaching” at some time - trust me, there’s a lot that can be said for each of these “words”.  

One of the biggest issues, I find, when it comes to relationships, is trust.  Most people have a hard time giving of themselves if they don’t trust others.  It’s hard to trust someone when they haven’t “proved” themselves to you.  Most people begin to open up once they’ve established a baseline of how much they trust someone.  To trust someone, you must feel secure that they won’t let you down.  And if they don’t keep your trust, well, insecurity starts to work its way into the fold...

I, personally, look at security from both sides of the coin, if you will.  How secure I am in a relationship AND how can I make others feel secure about their relationship with me.  I can honestly and truthfully say, I am a Happily Married Man.  I feel good knowing that my wife will take care of me in good times and bad, sickness and health, and all that stuff we “vowed” to each other on September 6, 2009, at 6:23 pm (approximately).  I know that she values our relationship and I am not worried about her “not coming home at night”.  I do not have to worry about her “stepping out” on me and my confidence in our relationship is sky high.

On the converse, I also want more opportunities to secure her.  I love being able to “take care” of my family.  A roof over their head, clothes on their backs, an occasional gift to show how much I love and appreciate them.  But I also want them to see that they should not be concerned with me doing things that may cause them to lose their trust in me.  This mentality has helped to keep me out of hot water many times.  

The main principle that I have began to live by is full disclosure.  With that, I do not have to worry about anyone doubting what I am telling them and they have every right to check up on “my story” (Plus lying can get way too complicated way too quickly, and frankly, I don’t have good luck, I would get confused and caught up with my lies, not worth it).  I believe that most people will see me and my wife and they will be able to understand why we love each other like we do.  We are working to teach my son this same way of life and hope and pray that he learns this particular lesson early on.

There is more to come at a later time, and probably in a different angle - we shall see.  But for now, please know, that I am trying to grow as a son, a father, a husband, a friend, a brother, and, most importantly, as a man.  My question is, are you?  

Until next we chit chat...

Happy Mother's Day

Today is Mother’s Day. Happy Mother’s Day to all of the women out there. Yes, I mean all. In all of my years, I’ve always felt Mother’s Day was a day to celebrate all of the Mothers in my life. I’m special so God ensured that I had a lot of them surrounding me. I needed it (and still need it) in so many ways. My mothers consisted of a myriad of ladies who touch me in so many ways without even knowing it. They’re the one that just call to say “hi” and my day is that much better just from hearing their voices. They are the ones that know me better than I know myself. They knew before I knew and have already prepared me for what is now happening. They speak life into me, they inspire me, they challenge me … and most of all they love me, they love us. Now that I am a mother, I appreciate them even more, I understand them more than ever, and I love them more than I ever have before. So on today, we just simply want to let all of our mothers know we love you all dearly!

Alex Cross, Run

What’s going oooonnnnn?!

Today, the Table TalkN Review Board is going to look at Alex Cross, Run, by James Patterson.  I just finished this book today and let me say it was exhilarating.  I literally found myself sneaking in moments to read chapters.  The thing, I personally, like about James Patterson’s books are his chapters aren’t “super” long.  Usually 2 pages.  Now, there are a lot of chapters, but I can deal with that if they only last a page or 2.  {It makes it easy to read a chapter while sitting at your desk without someone questioning why you’re not doing anything}.

This book finds our hero, Alex Cross, investigating murders, as expected, but the interesting twist is someone is also investigating him.  Like all Cross’s adventures, the line between professional and personal get blurred real easily, but unlike his books - this is not his fault.  At all.  When the possibility of 3 serial killers running loose on the streets of D.C. make front line news AND someone is messing with Cross’s family - there is bound to be a thrill ride for those tagging along.

The conclusion of the book wasn’t necessarily as expected either, at least for me.  I was looking for the usual “Bad guy goes to jail or dies and the good guy (Cross) rides into the sunset with very little scars or damage”.  NOPE!  They ended this book on a relatively different note.

I have read (or listened) to all of Alex Cross’ books (There are 20), and this one was my 2nd favorite - Roses Are Red being my all time favorite.  Now this may be so high on my list because the last one out, Merry Christmas, Alex Cross, was my least favorite - It really did leave something to be desired - but never-the-less, this book helps to remind me of why I enjoy reading these books so much.
 

So as I rate this book - I give it a solid “A”.  I have grown accustomed to a certain level of writing and suspense from James Patterson when it comes to Alex Cross, and this one delivered as expected.  So until next time readers, remember your pages number - little kids like bookmarks!

Accountability

I love sports.  I have played many of them myself and I can sit back and watch just about any of them on T.V. for a good amount of time.  I can watch the pre-game show, the game, the highlights AND the news coverage of just about any game.  I really don’t have too much of a preference between college and professional.  I just love to watch sports on T.V..  Sometimes though, things will get a little too far behind if that’s all I do.  After dinner, I may sit down and watch the Knicks play for a minute, only to realize that I have dishes to clean and put up, (me and my wife have this deal - whoever does not cook, cleans up.  Since she usually cooks, I usually clean).  I might be in the middle of washing clothes on Saturday afternoon, while sitting down and watch the Wolverines try not to give me high blood pressure, only to get just one load washed, dried and folded, when I have 3 additional loads that need my attention as well.

My wife, rightfully so, will and has called me out about my lack of focus on our household duties and responsibilities.  I take my lumps like a man, but I am very much appreciative of her keeping me on my “P’s & Q’s” on a regular basis.  She doesn’t nag or create a “honey-do” list.  Sometimes she doesn’t even say anything (that’s when I know I better get on my isht and get to it).  But my wife keeping me accountable is something that has helped our marriage in totality.  

This is not just a one sided deal.  I feel, and at times have acted accordingly, that I need to remind her of things as well.  It’s never done maliciously, from either party, but it is done and we both are capable of being adults about it and not get mad because the other had something to say.  The overall goal in our household is to get better, and not stay stagnant.  In our relationship with each other and those outside our household.

The fact remains that many times you get so caught up in your own personal “zone” that you neglect others.  Sometimes, you even neglect your responsibilities.  I have tried to become more diligent about making sure all of my duties/chores are taken care of before I go into my own thing, or at least I plan for accomplishing my duties throughout my own personal enjoyment.  So now, I watch the game, but I know at the commercial breaks, I need to make sure the clothes are not ready for the next stage.  I clean the table before I sit down and relax for the evening.  I may not be perfect, but I do work to make sure I’m getting better.

Table TalkN Interview: My Sister Circle

Good Day All:

Today, we want to introduce you to an organization founded by our dear friend, Kyra Watts. If you don’t know Kyra, we’ll tell you that she is feisty, funny, and full of wit. She is a go-getter and always on the move to make things happen. She has been a great friend to us over the years and just as she supports us, we definitely want to support her in every way we can. In saying that, we want to highlight her organization, My Sister Circle, on today as they embark upon their formal introduction to their local community with their Spring Fundraising Luncheon. As we support her and My Sister Circle, we want to ask that you all (our virtual community) do the same. It’s an awesome, much needed vision that is actually being established. With that, we introduce you to My Sister Circle.

My Sister Circle is a non-profit organization serving women in the Metro Detroit community. Our mission is to provide the resources to encourage healthy relationships between women of all ages; by focusing on the key areas of faith, financial responsibility, education/professionalism, health, community service and self-worth.

This organization was created to serve an undeniable need for better relationships between women. I took the personal experiences I had with various women in my life (including the wife of this blog!!), and I wanted to create the opportunity for young women to be influenced in the same way I was by these relationships. In addition to community based programs created to engage and educate the women in our community, My Sister Circle will also be sponsoring a mentoring program that will host over 15 participants in its first year. The My Sister Circle Mentoring Program (MSC-MP) uses a group approach to mentoring and matches a young women from each of three age groups to an older mentor. The MSC-MP program uses a “reach forward, give back” method to mentoring in order to encourage a higher level of accountability with all participants and to reinforce the concept of each age group being responsible for impacting the lives of the others.

On Saturday May 11, 2013 My Sister Circle will be formally introduced to the Metro Detroit community. We will be hosting our Spring Fundraising Luncheon, at Kara’s House (Banquet Facilities) in Redford, MI. All proceeds raised at this event will go towards fall program planning the sponsorship of participants in the first group of the MSC-MP. If you are interested in purchasing a ticket, feel free to contact me at kwatts@mysistercircle.org.

If you can’t be the change you want to see in the world, support My Sister Circle and help us do it!

We want to stay in touch with you!! Visit our website (www.mysistercircle.org), follow us on Twitter (@mysistercircle), like our page on facebook (My Sister Circle)