Yikes!

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words... these two may be worth more than that. For anyone who is curious for a more verbal explanation however, This is Levi, our dear son, during the twenty minutes that followed finishing up a piece of "Emergency Chocolate Pie". (This is no culinary masterpiece: it was instant chocolate pudding poured into a store-bought graham cracker crust with a handful of crushed macadamia nuts thrown hastily onto the top. Sorry Granny B - I know this ruins my reputation as a chef, but I only had ten minutes. :) At least Levi didn't object.

House Pictures!

Sorry for the LONG wait...here are a few pictures of the house...I haven't figured out yet how to insert words between the pictures, so I'll have to do all my explaining down here.

The first picture is of the living room. (Note the front door).

The second pic. is what you see if you turn around 180 degrees from where you were standing for the first picture. (The kitchen and living room is a common area - separated only by a long island.) The dining room is also connected by a wide doorway. Though it's harder to find a piece of wall to put a bookshelf on, we like the one-room living space concept a lot. It keeps people from hiding in their own little corner and forces them to act like family. :)

Next is another picture of the kitchen (I left out the view of the sink, which looks through an opening into the dining room. The sink is quite pretty - it was the mountain of dirty dishes sitting inside it that wasn't so picture-worthy. This is a similar concept to why there is no picture of the master bedroom/laundry folding factory. :)

The next two pics. are the kids' room and the bathroom respectively. (I know you could have probably figured that out. )

Finally, the laundry room which opens onto the kitchen...Please oogle over the wonderful heavy-duty pantry shelves Taylor built for me! ........And Last but not least, the ever-present heap of boxes that I still have to find something to do with! :) Thanks for taking my "tour"!

the Serpent

When most people think of a serpent in a Biblical context, the appropriate analogy of the devil or Satan comes to mind; many may even think of the serpent in the Garden of Eden. Every time that I kill (or have to dispose of) a (rattle)snake the same imagery comes to mind and I will share it with you.

The best and most effective way to kill a snake is to separate its head from its body. This will render the snake swoon or dead...almost. For a considerably long time after the head is cut off, that deadly snake will be far from harmless. In my short career of snake killing, I have had the snake head vigorously attack the pointed end of my hoe as I am dealing a final fatal blow; if left alone the snake body (and likely the head) will wiggle for several hours after it has been decapitated; also, I had seen a rather large snake (perhaps 5' or more) blown into three pieces (via shotgun) with its full-grown head with less than 2 inches of body attached to it continue to run away and be completely undeterred in its mission. This last snake (see previous post) was no different. Though I must be getting more accustomed to wounding the snake enough to separate and quickly crush its head, I still shutter at its lethality and its devotion to thrive under fatal circumstances; additionally, the wiggling body is a constant reminder. Once the head is properly disposed of the body is harmless, but it has far from ended its actions.

This picture is more than one of the death of a single snake, more so it reminds me of the evil and sin in our/my own heart as characterized by the devil. The book of Genesis tells me that the offspring of Eve, that is Jesus Christ, will crush the head of the serpent. In other words, Jesus Christ, will/has completely and utterly destroyed Satan. Satan knows that his time is limited and that he has lost the war in eternity by shedding the blood of Jesus. However, Satan still continues to wiggle and fight for anything that he can get and though he will lose in the end, he will make our life full of fear and misery by wiggling his harmless, dead, (spiritual) body.

-Taylor