The Great Pajama Run

Posted on 05.09.08 in Family Parenthood and there are 9 comments.

Tonight I put my girls to bed per usual.

Stories, prayer, hugs, cuddles.

Warnings to stay in bed...and not talk.

Great stalling…

After I finally closed the door. I waited a couple minutes.

Ok. Really, it was a few seconds because I’m really impatient when it comes to fun surprises.

Then I ran in yelling, “It’s a Pajama Run!! Hurry!!! Get in the car!!! We’re going to get ice cream!!!!”

They look frightened. They looked bewildered. They began to cry. But then they heard “ice cream.” They ran for the car minivan.

It was so much fun. They kept asking if I was REALLY taking them to get ice cream. When we got to Sonic we sat in the car making up a Pajama Run theme song (it’s still in the works).

Here are some fake before and after Pajama Run pictures. Because you can’t really take a before picture or they’ll know somethings up…

Phil Wickham Live from Portland

Posted on 05.09.08 in Music and there are 0 comments.

If you’re reading this right now, you probably are at home enjoying an peaceful evening.

Why not enjoy a peaceful evening WITH great music?

Phil Wickham is broadcasting his concert in Portland tonight - LIVE - 9:30pm Pacific time.

Check it out.

You’re welcome.

To Be a Dork or Not Be a Dork and Cindy Morgan’s Blog Tour and FREE Music From Cindy Morgan

Posted on 05.08.08 in Music Blogging and there are 13 comments.

(I couldn’t decide on a title for this post, so I used all of them at the same time.)

The other day I got an email asking if I’d like to do an interview with Cindy Morgan.

Um...let me think about that.

Do I want to interview one of my all time favorite artists who also took home two Dove awards this year, including Songwriter of the Year (She wrote Point of Grace’s hit - How You Live)?

Hmmm....

Huh.....

Mmmm....

Well....

How do I put this gently?

A-B-S-O-L-U-T-E-L-Y!!!

So now I have to decide if I want to do an email interview or a phone interview.

Here is my quandry. I am a dork. That is a fact that doesn’t always come across immediately over email. But over the phone? It’s unavoidable.

But how cool would it be to chat with Cind (that’s what I call now, since we’re BFF’s… you know)?

So, I’m going to take a vote. What do you all think? Phone or email?

In Other News - Get 3 Free Cindy Morgan Songs

In other news, you can get 3 FREE Cindy Morgan songs by participating in her upcoming Blog Tour.

Here’s the info from Michelle, her publicist:

What we are going to do is set up a listening station for bloggers to hear the new album Beautiful Bird and review it. Each blogger that posts a review will receive a 3 song digital download from Beautiful Bird.

You can listen to the title song and read her bio here.

If you’d like to participate in the Blog Tour - just email michelle AT fallawake.com.

Back To My Quandry - WWYD

Email (be cool) or Phone (reveal dorkdom) interview…

What Would You Do?

Shoes, Diamonds and Software Applications.

Posted on 05.08.08 in Tech Stuff and there are 14 comments.

Some women have a weakness for shoes. Others love sparkly jewelry.

Me? I get all giddy and weak in the knees about software applications.

Like any incredible husband, Jimmy recently informed me that Apple’s latest operating system - Leopard - is my Mother’s Day gift.

I nearly fainted. Fortunately, I was already sitting down.

It’s been ordered from Amazon, picked up by USPS and now I’m patiently stalking TrackMyPack.com to see the exact location of my precious bundle.

I’ve been trying to pass the time by preparing for it’s arrival. I’ve made room on my harddrive, partitioned an external drive for Time Machine and created a sparse image backup in case anything goes awry during delivery installation.

I think I’m ready. I’ll let you know the minute I have it in my arms.

And You?

So, what sort of stuff makes you giddy and weak in the knees?

You know, besides software applications…

You Know The Panicky Feeling You Get When…

Posted on 05.07.08 in Family and there are 4 comments.

...you take your three kids to go see the neighborhood Zebra and as you’re turning around on the little dirt road you hear your tires spinning helplessly in the mud because it’s rained for 3 days straight and you start getting all clammy wondering how your husband is going to rescue you because you only have one car and then two of your kids start to cry and you begin to freak out at the thought of being stuck with three cranky, hungry kids in a minivan that’s stuck in the mud while it’s raining outside....all because of a zebra?

You know that feeling?

I had that feeling today.

Deeply Stirring Quote

Posted on 05.07.08 in The 40 Day Fast and there are 4 comments.

“Sympathy is no substitute for action.”
-- David Livingstone, missionary to Africa

Click here to read my original post about this photo.

Stay tuned for some action…

The Goodness of My God

Posted on 05.05.08 in Family Parenthood and there are 8 comments.

When my mother died when I was 9 months old, God was good.

As I watched other girls celebrate Mother’s Day with their moms, God was good.

When my girls were born, God was good.

And today as they wrapped their arms around me and whispered, “Happy Mother’s Day, Mommy”

God. Was. Good.

(Yes I realize that Mother’s day isn’t until Sunday, but my girls don’t seem to know that. And I don’t mind at all… )

Check out Brody’s blog for more positive posts.

Robbie Seay Interview, Continued

Posted on 05.05.08 in Music Monday Music and there are 1 comments.

This is part two of my interview with Robbie Seay. Be sure to read part one and enter to win the latest album from the Robbie Seay Band.

What’s the story behind the song for New Day?

The song was supposed to be my token pop song.

I went to an Nsync concert a few years back..there, you have it. my musical influence confession of the day. That’s been weighing on me and now its finally in the open. (the ticket was free from a friend, if that makes it anymore digestable for your readers)

I saw girls waving their cell phones in the air like they just don’t care—I thought to myself, “I gotta do that”.

So a few months later I began writing New Day but it really turned into a song for Liz and our life together thus far. We used to dance in the kitchen, not very well i might add, in her parents home growing up.

I think her Dad thought that keeping us in the kitchen was better than us making out on the couch. True enough.

Its really a song about hope and though the world seems to be such a mess these last few years, love is strong and i’m thankful to have people in my life to share it with.

I’ve been thrilled about the response to the song thus far.

Oh, and its about coffee..we love coffee!

How do you manage your roles as a touring artist, a worship leader at your church, Ecclesia, as well as a husband and a father of 3?

It’s hard. That balance is always out of balance it seems.

Somebody usually suffers from most of the decisions I have to make in how i spend my time and energy.

The gift to me is that our church community is so giving and supportive of what we do.
My kids have come to know this life as normal, though i drive through the nights to get back to them - and time away from them is my greatest wrestle within.

Liz puts up with so much crap from me and my schedule, i owe her a thousand vacations to tropical places, with umbrellas drinks.

I truly never thought I’d ever be this busy in my lifetime, but I love every minute of it and I’ve been extended mountains of grace from everyone in my life to do this.

What artists are you listening to? Any indie artists you recommend?

Gatlin Elms will be a household name one day. I just produced his album with him and he’s fantastic. Look for his album “Oceans & Stars” on iTunes.

One of my favorite singers just did an album with me, Jill Paquette. It was such a thrill to produce music alongside such a talented musician. I haven’t heard a release date yet but hoping its soon. She’s amazing!

I really enjoy Chris Taylor’s new album as well. He’s a new artist on BEC and is a great young songwriter.

Of course when I"m driving, I listen to a lot of music—usually Jon Foreman, Amos Lee, Patty Griffin, John Mayer & Elliot Morris.

If you weren’t a musician what kind of career would you have?

Easy.
CIA.
quit laughing.
When the CIA comes looking for a college dropout musician with no espionage experience or skill—I’m their man and I’ll get my spy on 24/7.

What are your hobbies outside of music?

My days are full so I usually spend free time hanging with my 3 crazy punk kids and my much smarter, wiser, and all around better human of a wife - Liz. We watch The Office and eat Tex-Mex.

I love Astros baseball games, the beach & George Clooney movies (does that make me a wuss? my wife says its a man crush..)

If you were a Major League Baseball Player, what would your at-bat song be and who would you play for?

uh, the Astros..hello!

I would be baseball’s first reincarnated player, returning as a modern day Craig Biggio.

At bat song?

It would have to alternate between —‘Fly Me to the Moon’ by Frank Sinatra (this is my favorite song of all time, btw - it would be so out of place, the pitcher would be distracted, throw me a 90mph fastball down the middle and the rest would be Astros history)

Also, ‘Get Up’ by James Brown—i love this song.

More Info on RSB

Robbie Seay Band website
Robbie Seay Band blog
Robbie Seay Band on iTunes

And don’t forget to comment here to enter to win their latest cd.

If you haven’t heard their music yet, here’s a clip for your listening pleasure.

Music Monday: Robbie Seay Interview and a FREE Album

Posted on 05.04.08 in Music Monday Music and there are 21 comments.

I’ve written about the Robbie Seay Band before. Their album Give Yourself Away is incredible. I play it so much even my kids know the words.

They’ve been featured on American Idol commercials, Oprah’s show The Big Give and now they’ve reached the pinnacle of their career - an interview here on TSLOK.

Robbie, himself, acknowledges what a momentous occasion this is. Read on:

The Interview

What inspired the theme of Give Yourself Away?

(First off, thanks for the invite to your blog kingdom. Your reputation precedes this written exchange as one who is loved by thousands if not dozens of readers everywhere - and my wife likes you which carries value far beyond monetary measure.)

Give Yourself Away was supposed to be my album, with my songs and my vision. God told me to screw off, in a Godly way of course, and He began to cross my path repeatedly with those in great need in situations where i couldn’t turn my back and pretend all was well in happy land.

My life, my church and the music we were writing couldn’t escape the grasp of mission and the idea that Jesus calls us all to something bigger than just prosperity and peace.
The storms of poverty and illness is waiting for Jesus followers to drive in and take up residence under dark clouds of sacrifice and little reward - and those basic premises of faith became the foundation for the new album.

Based on the theme of the album (and many of your wife’s blog posts - one of which really resonated with me - How Can We Not Move?), there’s seems to be a lot of passion in your family for those in need. How has that affected the way you live and your daily perspective?

Well, I’m still a selfish pig, if that’s what you’re asking.

I wish it weren’t true.

I’m still fuming this morning as my skim milk latte was not to my liking and i considered sharing my deep frustration with the barista. Luckily I was rescued from myself in such a weak moment by Kanye West.

“i’ve never heard Kanye playing in a coffee shop,” i blurted aloud to no one in particular, though the unqualified young barista stared back with eternal blankness.

Kanye rarely leads to moral victories or even anger restraint in any scenario, however the unique combination of coffee and “Stronger” gave me reason to laugh aloud and recognize what a idiot I was becoming over a latte.

Truthfully, what has surfaced is a new tension in our lives - the collision of what is comfortable & self serving and what is giving & selfless.

Jesus has a call on each of our lives not to fill our pockets or fill our cups with lattes. Rather the call pulls us to the poor, the broken and requires us to extend the grace that has been life changing in our own lives.

If i wake up on days without that tension, i’m useless. I love reading about Peter. He embodied this tension in scripture and it seemed to follow him until his last days. He was a mess, much like myself, but on that struggle and ensuing honesty inside of an imperfect man, God built the church. So, maybe there’s hope for strugglers like me.

To Be Continued...

Get The RSB Album

I’m giving away a copy of Give Yourself Away. Just post a comment here to qualify. I’ll announce the winner next Monday.

We Just Saw THIS By Our House

Posted on 05.04.08 in Blogging and there are 9 comments.

Yes, that.

We were driving down a road just outside our neighborhood when Jimmy said, “Look an Elk!”

I responded with, “Look a ZEBRA!?”

The girls both screamed, “Where, where? Can we drive by again?”

My boy was more interested in the cracker he was eating.

We drove by two or three times until everyone saw it.

Isn’t it interesting that it’s not terribly exciting to see a zebra at the zoo, but when we see it in an unexpected place it is the highlight of our entire day?

I’m sure there’s a marketing message in there somewhere…

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