Clayton is 29!
Happy Birthday to you Clayton. We certainly have been through many adventures and changes over the years. I realize that you have now lived longer without your dad than you did with him. That makes me sad! And yet the short window he and I had to steward our kids as parents still informs the…
Passing the Baton
I’ve been doing youth ministry (in some various form) since I was about 19. Since I’m almost 65 this means I’ve been ministering to teens for 45 years. Although my days of active student ministry are over, I have been blessed to have been able to support those who are in the driver’s seat here…
Happy One year Anniversary C & A!
June 4, 2023. One year! Dear Clayton and Amanda – The farther I get from being married the less I feel I can give advice. It feels irrelevant and yet I remember so much that I learned by being married to your dad. You have one year down and many more to go! Perhaps you…
Happy #28 Clayton
Clayton, I remember the day you were born so well. A lot of time has passed since that day and there have been many adventures and hardships inbetween, but today I celebrate the man that is you. I remember many of your birthday celebrations. Many of them included snow and even blizzard conditions (Funny how…
6.4.23 Wedding Day Toast of Gratitude
Clayton and Amanda, here we are on your wedding day celebrating! Let me start with a few words of gratitude: Jennifer, thank you for such a godly young woman. You’ve raised her well as a woman of honor and one of many passions and one love. Yes, I prayed for her and for you for…
A Marriage Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father, We are grateful for the way your Spirit moves in our lives and directs our every step. Thank you for the ways you have created Clayton and Amanda and brought them together. Thank you for the homes they came from, the love they experienced there, the principles they were taught there, their…
June 3rd , 2023 Thoughts for my Son on the eve of His Wedding
Clayton, soon after your dad died, I started a blog to keep saying all the unspoken things, not leaving my thoughts and feelings stranded in my heart. Our lives are stories, letters and words to others and sometimes by sharing them we grow our love. What would I want to say on such a day…
It’s Wedding Week! What to say about marriage?
There are so many examples and similes of marriage, but today I choose to compare marriage to soccer – the beautiful game! 1. When marriage is new it is like a little kids’ soccer game – it takes a while to realize who your teammates are and which direction you need to go. Little kids…
Amanda’s Shower Advice
Dear (Clayton &) Amanda – “What marriage advice would you share?” I always think this is a weird question because it reduces the most important relationship down to a quick response… I don’t like to give such a thin answer to such a weighty subject. Marriage is our most layered and complex of relationships and…
Clayton Happy Birthday #27
I know that every parent feels this way, but what happened to time?! I remember the day you were born and it was about now that I finally held you. It seems not so long ago that you were my little boy and I was taking care of you every day. Now those days are…