This is so us in a couple of years. Ahhhh who am i trying to kid?  This is totally us now (minus the minivan).  Now the only thing left to do is embrace it!!!! Enjoy.

We did some hard work taking pictures so that we could make a collage of all of the letters wen we got home.  We went to carol creek, the library, and had lunch at five guys (though letters were not the focus there).

Such a great time with the girls.  What a great idea (from Katie or course).

you can read Katie’s telling of the tail right here at her blog

Here are some of the pics of the adventure

Take a look.  Sorry the stills are so poor looking but you get the point and can see some on Flickr in a little bit.  Most important is that you comment on how you would like to put wonder back in the ministries you are a part of.

The Disney Difference from Chris Bishop on Vimeo.

A quick thought and reflection on what the church could learn from Disney World.

Following that the morning continued as Katie and I waited till 9:30 when we could call in for the big news of weather or not we had been approved to become fully ordained members of the United Methodist Church.  During the excruciatingly slow time we got Eden ready to go with my mom for the day, got ourselves ready for the day, cleaned the house, checked e-mail, Played some Mario on Wii (after Eden’s Mickey Mouse Clubhouse fix of course), and finalized some plans for our trip to Disney.

Eventually we were able to call and find out we were both approved and then the day really started.

I spent a chunk of the day at the hospital visiting various members of the congregation.  We had one surgery patient, 2 members in ICU another in a regular room.  While there i connected up with a couple of members who were working or volunteering at the hospital.

After my visitation was over I decided to grab a chi latte and talk to the anesthesiologist who was part of the surgical team for the member I visited.  I got the good news update on how he was doing.  While waiting for the latte to reach the right temperature, I had a great talk with the barista about his tattoos.  And it turned into a great time where we talked about our faith and how his tattoos are a way to talk about his story with others and help them out of hard times in life.  It was really neat.

I went home for lunch with Katie.  Made some phone calls to update others as to the status of the folks in the hospital.  I did some contact work on Facebook.  Then went back to the office.

Back at my desk I had conversation with our family ministries director, checked in about final bulletin points for the weekend.  Gave the OK for a special love offering in light of the earthquake in Haiti.

I had a great talk with a man who wants to be baptized.

And after this post I am going to write a youth message, start on a sermon and then get ready for young adult small group.

I suspect the night will end with family time and snuggling on the couch.

As I think about where God has taken me in the past 7 years that have lead up to the green light on ordination I am amazed.  I would have never thought I would have a day like today.  And if I would have thought of it I would have cringed at that thought.  But, now all I can think is what a privilege it is to be on this adventure knowing tomorrow will bring another round of excitement.

boo at the zoo

Originally uploaded by pastorchrisbishop

Last night we went to Boo At the Zoo at the national zoo in DC. Katie, her mom, Eden and I went and had a great time trick or treating at the zoo.

There were tons of places where we got candy, toys and learned about what animals do at night. there were so many cool costumes. this is something that I know is going to be fun for years to come.

Hey come to the corn maze with MUMC and get lost with us.  We are going to Lawer’s farm corn maze.

Cost is $5 and kids under 5 are free.  A flashlight, warm clothes and old shoes are a good idea.  Extra money for snack, and if you would like to do the pumpkin cannon would be a consideration.

We are asking families meet us there at 4:30. The youth group will be leaving church at 4 to take youth kids.  The address for the farm is: 13001 Creagerstown Rd., Thurmont, MD 21788.  The web address for the farm is http://www.lawyersmoonlightmaze.com/Welcome/Home.html

it will be great fun hope to see you there

Get Lost!!! : lifeforceyouth.com

I have felt really good about it.  Last night after a meeting i was telling one of our leaders about it and he said he was going to stay late at work, but after second thought he said “it’ll be there for me tomorrow.”  So I in my efforts to be more fully present during my at home time i am taking up the spiritual discipline of “It’ll still be there tomorrow.”

As my Eden turns 2 years old, I have taken a moment to reflect on the things I have learned in two years of motherhood. Here they are:

Babies go through more diapers than you think humanly possible, so always pack more than you think he or she could ever use.

Never give your child something to eat in the car that you don’t want to find weeks later under your seat.

Play dates are a wonderful idea in theory, but in practice, bring ice and tissues — bumps and tears are mandatory.

Leaving the diaper bag in the car actually causes your child to have a blowout.

Apple juice ferments quickly in a Sippy cup left hidden in the cushions of the couch. And it will make your toddler tipsy.

Read more at  The Frederick News-Post Online – Frederick County Maryland Daily Newspaper

 MyKey lets parents configure one key as the teen’s. When the car is started with MyKey, top speed can be limited to 80 mph, and chimes can be set to sound at 45 mph, 55 mph and 65 mph.

Seat belt use is encouraged in two ways: If the driver and passenger don’t put on their belts, a chime sounds until they do. Possibly more important to teens: The audio system won’t turn on until the front two passengers are buckled up.

It can also max out the audio at half volume (which is still plenty loud), keep track of the young driver’s mileage and provide earlier low-fuel warnings than standard. full article

When I read this article my first thought was that a ton of young people are going to be very disappointed.  There is a certain thrill about breaking the rules, or even just having the potential to break the rules (remember Adam and Eve).  And while I would be happy to know the roads are a little safer with this, I think that it misses the point. 

It almost seems like they are taking the responsibility out of driving.  Think about this how may young people are going to get the keys only on the basis that these stipulations are levied against them?  Sure it makes it easier for parents, but it is just treating symptoms rather than the problem of poor judgment. 

What to you think?  Is this a good thing, bad thing, a way out for parents, a way into the driver seat for kids?  Let me know.