joy and sorrow

Several weeks ago we found out that Dee Dee was pregnant with our fourth child. We told the kids, called all the family and friends, and began preparations for the addition to our family. On Monday of this week, Dee Dee and the kids went out to the campground where her parents were staying in their motorhome. When she called me to tell me they were on their way home that evening she said that she had been bleeding slightly during the day and had experienced a little bit of abdominal pain. We called the doctor on Tuesday morning and went to have her checked out. After blood tests and an ultrasound it was determined that the baby was measuring at about 6 weeks development instead of 8 1/2 weeks where it should be. The doctor prescribed some hormones and sent Dee Dee home to rest. At about 4:15 this morning (31 Oct 2007) our baby went home to heaven. We are sad that this has happened but we "know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28 ESV)

We may never know, this side of heaven, why God chose to end this pregnancy the way He did. But we know that He is in control and that His plan is perfect, no matter how hard it may seem to us at the time we are going through things such as this. God loves us and we are leaning on that love right now.

The BCS must go

This article from Dan Wetzel pretty much sums up my feelings on the BCS and what it is doing to college football. This thing just needs to die so we can move on to a playoff system like every other normal sport. For the people who are crying and moaning that it will destroy the old traditional bowl system I have a solution. The winner of each conference makes it to the playoffs. That's 11 teams. If you have a 16 team field then you would have 5 wild card teams that would have a shot (there's the chance for the stupid AP, USA Today, and Harris polls to still mean something). Then the remaining teams that are not in the playoffs can still play in the traditional bowl games. There you go, everybody's happy. The fans, players, coaches (and especially the SEC which tends to get messed over most years by the current setup) get an actual national champion crowned with fewer arguments (I would say no arguments, but come on, it is college football after all). The big corporations and the smaller conferences are happy because they get to keep the bowl system which brings in so much money. Of course, maintaining the bowl system and adding a playoff just generates even more money, so everybody is even happier. There, problem solved. Whose desk do I need to jump up and down on top of to get this thing done?