"Firsts"

Here are some 'firsts' that have already happened this year that I will remember for a long time:

Gabriel (Gabe) is the first, and of course the only, biological grandchild that my wife, Janis, has. She has two step-children, my own biological children, but Gabe is her first. She raised her step-children and loved them as though they were her own and she did not fall short in that task by any means, as far as I can see.

Barack Obama is the first black president that the United States has ever had. I knew it could happen and figured that it would happen some day. I really thought a woman would be elected before a black man was, but, I guess you see I was wrong about that. I may be wrong about a woman being president some day. Time will tell.

Election day, January 20th., was the first time for me ever to report for Jury Duty. I reported to the federal court house in Chattanooga as instructed but was not selected to serve. Sure, in the past, I have been notified of jury duty, but I was always excused and didn't even have to report because I was the pastor of a church. However, being an associate pastor did not make any difference to the judge in this case.

There probably were some other 'firsts' that could have been mentioned but those are some that I won't forget. Most likely, there will be some others that will happen in my life. As a matter of fact, every day is a 'first'. I have never experienced this day before and tomorrow will be a day that I have never experienced before. I plan to do some things that will be to me, a 'first'. How I respond to these 'firsts' is very important because it will make a difference in my life. It will happen and I will respond. Then I will have to live with myself.

Since "Today is the first day of the rest of my life", I pray Lord, help me to respond properly to everything that happens in my life, and may my response be one that will bring honor to your name.

Pictures of Gabe

I thought about posting these pictures on Facebook, and I still may, but momma wants to see them and she can see them on this blogspot. I know she could see them on Facebook, but she says that she doesn't have a facebook account. I thought she did. As a matter of fact, I believe she does but, apparently, no one has shown her how to navigate in facebook. Do you think we should? I don't know. It really seems like a lot of 'stuff' to contend with, even for me. Anyway, here are some pictures of my new grandson, Joshua Gabriel Baldridge.

Getting ready for the New Year

Everyone is settling down now after the holidays. School is starting back, all the goodies have been eaten, the exchanges have been made, and we are beginning to settle into the old routine. That is always so nice, isn't it? Yes! Yes it is, but I won't be settled until we do our belated Christmas in Louisiana, until we welcome Gabriel (my second grandson) into the world, and until we return to Meca.......ah....I mean Cleveland. lol


We are leaving tomorrow (if Janis doesn't change her mind, and you know a woman has that prerogative) and we will visit her relatives and one of my daughters (Tammy) in North Louisiana and then travel on to South Louisiana to visit my other daughter (Jennifer - the one who is having my grandson). As we travel, I will have a new toy to play with. My Christmas present. A TomTom. I imagine the excitement of it will be over by the time I return to Tennessee, so I will then be able to settle in and settle down.

I did make a new years resolution. If I keep it, I can forget about settling down. I've decided that I will start on those house remodeling projects that Janis is so anxious for me to do. Notice that I said, "I will start". I didn't say, "I will finish". Why, if I did all of those 'honey-do' jobs, I'd first run out of money and then I'd just get tired and quit. So, I am going to start on them and we'll see how far along I'll get with them. Hopefully, I can post some 'before' and 'after' pictures, but if I were you, I wouldn't hold my breath all the way from 'before' to 'after'. That's right. I'm going to take my time, so it will take me a little while - maybe a lot-a-while, but that's my new years resolution. Just in case you wanted to know!