Weekend Update

Well, I didn't post over the long Thanksgiving weekend. As you know, that is a busy time eating and spending time with family.

Here are a few thoughts from the weekend:

1. Notre Dame finished with two wins in a row.....3-9 still isn't impressive at all. Charlie Weiss better go get some real help (I'm not talking about going to the jerk Patriots either)

2. The Colts looked horrible in the first quarter against the Falcons, then the offense woke up and looked like the old Colts. Big game Sunday against the Jags.

3. IU lost their first game of the year against an unranked Xavier team. Too many 3's and not enough "D"

4. Didn't really over eat at all over the break...I had one helping at all meals.

5. Worked out everyday except for Thanksgiving.

6. Helped the family put up our Christmas decorations, always a great family time.

Opening Night at the "Anthill"

You are probably wondering what the "Anthill" is. Well, this past Friday over Thanksgiving weekend my brother, aunt and I headed to the Ft. Wayne Coliseum to see the first ever Ft. Wayne Mad Ants NBA Developmental League game against the Tulsa 66ers.

I really didn't know what to expect but I was really impressed as I walked in the door. We were greeted by a live band, the Madames, the dance team of the Mad Ants, let me just say they were pretty impressive, a lot of enthusiasm, and much more.

Ft. Wayne hasn't had a professional basketball team since 1992 and the then CBA Ft. Wayne Fury. I was excited to see the Mad Ants because they have two former IU stars on the roster, Earl Calloway and Rod Wilmont. The Coliseum was jacked up.. much like an NBA game. It started with some sweet NBA like music, fireworks during the introductions, and plenty of time out performances by the Madames. Oh yeah, by the way, the Mad Ants lost the opener.

For $5.00, you couldn't have really gone anywhere else on a Friday night for that price. I will definitely be going to some more games soon.

Thanksgiving

Well, I survived the short three day school week and it is now time for a nice little break.

As Thanksgiving comes tomorrow, I hope we all take the time and really stop and give thanks for all that we have in our lives. I know that I take things for granted sometimes and I don't thank God enough for the things in my life.

I want this Thanksgiving to be different. I want to start my day off tomorrow in prayer for just all the things I am thankful for. I highlighted a few things in the past week I am really thankful for but there are so many more.

My hope and prayer is that Thanksgiving will be much more than just eating a ton of turkey and watching football all day long. Let me know what you are most thankful for.'

Finally....a win

As I sat in Notre Dame Stadium today, on a chilly-rainy fall day...all I could think about is how bad this season has been and how in the world our program could be 1-9.

Well, I figured we should beat Duke, who isn't a football school and was 1-9 also.
This year, we aren't a football program either. As a matter of fact, I am more excited about watching a very good ND basketball team.

What I got out of our 28-7 win today was this:

• Jimmy Claussen is going to be a great QB.
• Give the ball to Robert Hughes and Armando Allen
• We need to get some good receivers
• Duke was horrible!

Next week we finish at Stanford. A win and we finish 3-7. Actually, IU will have a better record than ND this year...OUCH~

A Busy Week

As basketball season begins, I feel like my weeks just go by so quickly. Actually, I can't believe next week is Thanksgiving. Where has 2007 gone anyway?

Here is a brief run-down of my week:

Monday: Started off the week with an early basketball practice. Talk about coming off of a weekend by getting up early....rough!

Tuesday: This was pretty much my only "regular" day. School and then worked out.

Wednesday: Another early practice, followed by school and then a great night of church.

Thursday: This was the craziest day of all

• 7 AM Practice
• School
• Off to some friends for a quick supper
• Back to the school at 5:30 to get ready for our Faculty Basketball game against Leesburg
• 6-8:30 Basketball Game (Food A Thon)

The Food A Thon game was a super turn out. Our gym was packed, our stage was packed, there were people standing..I have never seen anything like it. It was a fun night all around as the game went well, many prizes were given out, and the best thing of the night is that our Community got behind this night and brought over 4,000 pounds of food for our community. It was a great night.

Friday: Today was a normal day. School, and then off to the gym for a workout.

I am looking forward to the weekend. I am headed to see the dreadful Irish play thier final home game against Duke tomorrow. If we don't beat the Blue Devils....it could get UGLY!

Always look forward to Sunday and all the fun I have with church activities.

What I'm Thankful For

These are some special people in my life. I am very thankful for my parents and some of my best friends!

What I'm Thankful For: Part 3

Part 3: My Church

As I am doing this series on What I'm Thankful For, my church, Nappanee Missionary Church is right at the top of my list.

I have been attending NMC for the past 3 years and it has been 3 of the best years of my life spiritually. Pastor Dave is a great pastor who constantly challenges me with his messages and is also a great leader. I have also met so many great people through youth group and small groups that are some of my best friends.

I look forward to every Wednesday and Sunday because I am hungry to hear the word of God. NMC has been so good for me spiritually, as well as emotionally.

I don't know where I would be in my life if it wasn't for my church. I am very blessed to have NMC in my life and look forward to what this church has for HIS Kingdom!

What I'm Thankful For: Part 2

Part 2: Friends

Another thing I am really thankful for in my life are my Christian friends. I can't say enough about these special friends who mean a ton to me! My friends are with me on my good days, as well as when they are my encourager's during times of heartache and troubles.

There is not a day go by that I don't thank God for all the friends he has brought in my life. I am very lucky to quality friends who are friends that love and care for me.

I really appreciate the phone calls, text messages, times we hangout, and just spending time with my friends. If I haven't told you in a while, Thank You for being such awesome friends! God is so good and he has blessed me with the friends I have in my life.

What I'm Thankful For: Part 1

As you know, Thanksgiving will be celebrated on November 22, which is only 11 days away. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to blog about things I am thankful for. I will be posting one thing I'm thankful for leading up to Thanksgiving.

Part 1: My Parents

The first thing I am thankful for is two wonderful Christian parents. I have been fortunate to grow up in a Christian home with two very loving parents. Now that I am getting older, their love for me hasn't changed at all. I am so thankful for both of them and for all the sacrifices and love that they continue to show me to this day.

As you know, life is not easy. There have been many times in my life when I have messed up, made wrong decisions, not treated my parents nicely, but you know what, they never changed how much they loved and care for me. This reminds me exactly how my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is. No matter how many times I have failed or have let Jesus down, he is always there to wrap his arms around me and still love me.

As Thanksgiving is upon us again, I can't say enough how thankful I am for my parents. I really love them a lot and they mean the world to me.

DA CHEATERS

Well, as you all know the Patriots beat my Colts 24-20 Sunday in a match-up between the only 2 good teams in the NFL. Now, I haven't really commented on the Patriots all year, but I am ready to start now.

First of all, as a kid I was a huge Steelers fan and I hated the Cowboys. Now, I can honestly say, I hate the Patriots way more than I ever disliked the Cowboys.

Here is just a brief statement on those New Englanders:

1. They are cheaters. You think Barry Bonds deserves an asterik by his home run record. Did you hear what Don Shula said today? The Patriots also deserve one for their cheating ways. Who knows how long they have been doing this.

2. They have a jerk as a head coach. Did you see how he approached Tony Dungy after the game. Yeah, pretty much blew him off!

3. I can't stand Tom Brady or Randy Moss.

4. Their organization doesn't have much class, unlike the Colts who have a ton of it!

5. Out of all teams, my good friend decides to like the Patriots the week before they play the Colts.

6. Indy didn't even have four of their regular players and still should have won.

7. They aren't going undefeated.

8. The Colts WILL pay them back in the AFC Championship game.

The bottom line is that the Patriots are the most hated team in the NFL.