It’s time.
Seeing as it’s been since April since we last updated our blog, I thought it was time. So much has happened and changed since then. We’ve moved back to Louisville. We’re expecting our first baby. And we’ve just celebrated our 1st wedding anniversary! Those all being HUGE things!
We’re loving being back in Louisville; being able to spend time with family and friends on a regular basis. Not as much as I did Louisville, but there’s been a couple of times where I’ve missed Memphis- Our friends there and our first place just different things. But, I wouldn’t trade it for being home (in Louisville)!
As of today I am 31 weeks pregnant! It’s crazy to realize that in a matter of about 2 months we will be parents. The pregnancy was giant surprise and it’s taken some time to get used to and to get excited about it, but as it gets closer and closer I can’t wait to meet the little one! We bought paint the other night for the baby’s room and I can’t wait to start putting everything together! I have chosen to have the baby at home and I couldn’t be happier to have that as an option! Home birth is such a wonderful thing and I’m looking forward to the intimate and peaceful atmosphere that comes with it.
Our first year of marriage has truly been a great one! I love that man with my whole heart and couldn’t be happier to be his bride! Marriage, I’ve found, is so much fuller of learning than I could have ever expected. It’s like, no matter how much you may know a person before you marry them there’s always going to be more to learn about them… and I don’t really see an end to that learning process! I am looking forward to our next 50+ years together and I pray that I am become everything God would have me be and Mark needs to be as a wife.
Here are some photos from our recent vacation to Florida. Enjoy.
an update and a photo shoot with krista beihl
Hello all.
I was talking to my good friend Jim Baker today online and we were dialoguing about blogging, etc. and so I thought it’s about time I post a new blog myself.
Things have been going pretty good here in old Memphis, TN. Spring has finally sprung and it’s nice to finally get some warmer weather and a little bit of color back in the grass and trees. There have been some pretty wicked storms coming through too. I really enjoy a good storm – Jeanette not as much. I’m not sure why I really enjoy them, but I think it has something to do with the pure power and awesomeness displayed in the wind and the rain and the thunder. I don’t discriminate either, I like the little rains just as much as I like the big wicked storms. There is something so peaceful and relaxing about finding the rhythm of a rain. Makes me want to put on some Simon and Garfunkel and drink a cup of tea and be all nostalgic. Doesn’t that just sound crazy good?! I think I could probably live in a town like Portland or Seattle.
Seattle – that reminds me of a story. A couple of weeks ago after the NCAA basketball tournament there was talk of Butler’s coach possibly taking the head coaching job are Oregon. It was rumored that the job would pay somewhere around 3 million a year for about 8 years, guaranteed. That got me think, that’s a lot of money and there’s not really any place I wouldn’t move for that kind of money. Call me stupid and selfish, but if someone offered me that kind of money, we’ll we’d be on the next flight out-of-town! Jeanette on the other hand thought I was crazy…not too uncommon. She asked me if I would move to Antarctica for $25M guaranteed and I told here, there wouldn’t even be a discussion, we’re going! That’s a lot of money, and while money’s not everything, that kind of money can change more than a few peoples lives. I’d be willing to sacrifice 8 years for the ability to change the life of anyone I wanted too…She thinks I’m nuts…What do you think? Leave a comment and let me know!
So this weekend, Jeanette and I were at Target. Well, it just so happens that right next to target is this big open field that we’ve been talking about doing some photos at and I decided that we were going to do it. We were going to take some pics. We had time to run home and grab our camera and call our friend Krista Beihl and tell her to come meet us up there before we lost all the good light. We made it up there in time and managed to get a few shots in. So here they are. Most of them were takin by Krista unless she’s in the pic, which would have been taken by me. I think Krista did an AWESOME job! Leave some comments and let me know what YOU think!
Click on a photo to enlarge.
my beautiful baby
bearded wonder
the ladies
the photographer
happy bearded wonder
make out session
beauty and the beard
giv'em the 'finger' - a la Jim Baker
scare crow
Don’t even try and leave without leaving a comment!!! You know you want to!!!
It’s been a while
Well, it’s been over a month since out last post, again. But, I, Jeanette, am here to say we’re still alive!
Not too much new happening as of late. I know I’m wishing that all this cold weather would go away and stay. I’m so very ready or summer! Last Saturday, Mark and I went out to the park wearing shorts, it was beautiful, and then once again it turned cold and we’re needing to wear jackets/coats!
How ’bout these Olympic games!? I’ve watched quite a bit of the skiing events, let’s face it there’s just a lot of them, but my favorites have to be the snowboarding and figure skating
(my fave since I was a wee one!) They’re just amazing and I wish I
could do half of everything they do on the ice and snow! One day I would like to attend an olympic games- how cool would that be!?
Well- there it is, an update. Now I’m off to do ‘wifely things’ like cleaning and such!
Love and peace!
Below are the beautiful flowers my dear husband got me for Valentine’s Day! 🙂
shane claiborne, taco bell, and shop-lifting.
The draught is finally over – a new blog post is here! It only took just over a month!
My wife and I visited a church yesterday with a friend of ours, Krista Beihl. We Went to Fellowship Memphis, www.fellowshipmemphis.org, for the second Sunday in a row. Last Sunday author Shane Claiborne was there and shared some of his testimony and the time he spent with Mother Teresa in Calcutta, and then a little about social injustice, etc. It was an awesome message. Check out his web page to learn more about him and what God’s doing through his ministry, www.thesimpleway.org
This Sunday the lead pastor, Bryan Loritts spoke. They’ve been in a series on the Sermon on the Mount and so he continued it and focused on Matt 5:21-26. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus talks about how if you are angry, it’s the same as murder. The pastor then went on to explain the difference between righteous anger – which Jesus exhibited when we kicked the merchants out of the temple court and unrighteous anger – which Jesus was referring to in Matt 5:21-26. He broke it down and got very real with it and how it looks in our everyday lives.
It was a good message and a good reminder, but that’s not really why I’m blogging today. After church yesterday, Krista, my wife and I went to Taco Bell to grab some lunch. We ordered and got our food and sat down and were eating. There were maybe a dozen other people in the restaurant. Of which were a group of about 4-5 boys maybe 14-15 years old sitting on the other side of the room. They were hanging out and talking, eating their lunch then they left. They came back in maybe 15 minutes later and sat down right next to us. No big deal, except this time they had new clothes and shoes with them. I could immediately tell they were stolen as none of them had store bags and a couple of them still had the theft prevention devices on some of the clothes. I watched as two of the boys went outside and popped the theft prevention device off then came back in and were laughing and joking about how the devices were ‘fake’ – apparently the ‘real’ devices are supposed to beep when you leave the store or splatter ink or something if you try to take it off without the proper equipment they use in the store. They left a few minutes later and we finished our lunch and conversation and left as well.
Once we walked outside, I asked Jeanette and Krista if they noticed the stolen clothes and what their thoughts were on the situation. Should we have said or done something? None of us really knew what to do or say in that situation. I know that what they did was obviously wrong, but what do you say to them? ‘Hey, you guys shouldn’t steal!’ Would that have really done anything or made a difference? Thought about calling the cops, but they would have been long gone by the time the cops got there. I felt like there was nothing I could have done that would have made a difference.
So here’s my question’s – What would you have done? What would Jesus have done? Would you have said something to them, called the cops, etc? Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts.
MK
[name that car][baked oatmeal][folky mood]
ok, so here they are. a couple of pics of the new car! It’s a ’98 honda civic and it needs a name! So, what’s it gonna be?!? leave your suggestion as a comment! if we pick the name you submitted, you will win a prize yet to be determined by my lovely wife!!!
the new wheels
the inside
on another automotive note, after purchasing this car on tuesday night, but not planning on picking it up until wednesday night, I got in my car on wednesday morning only to find that it couldn’t start. after several prayers and some phone calls, we had the car towed to the dealership to have it checked out. three days, many headaches, a starter and several hundred dollars later, I have my car back. really leaning towards getting rid of it now…I think in the past year alone I’ve put a couple of grand into it and I really don’t want to keep putting that kind of money into a car every year…it’s kinda been one of those up and down weeks if you can’t tell.
enough of that rant…the wife made baked oatmeal for breakfast this morning. it was delicious and it most definitely hit the spot!! big things planned for today. after we finish up here at panera, we’re off to burlington coat factory, maybe pier 1, and to get a christmas tree! gonna be a good day. probably even gonna drink some hot chocolate with marshmallows later tonight=)
I’ve been in a real folky mood lately. listening to some real chill music. brooks ritter, ray lamontagne, jack johnson, etc. not quite ready to immerse myself in christmas music just yet – though I’m mixing in a little bing crosby now and again.
well, it’s time to go. I’ve got more in my head but it doesn’t wanna seem to make it’s way to my fingertips and onto the screen. perhaps another time.
cheers.
MK
[home.goals.nephews]
Back home in Memphis from a good long weekend in Louisville. If feels kinda weird calling Memphis home. I really haven’t let myself do that until after Jeanette moved down here. It’s still taking some getting used to…
I’ve been feeling kinda crappy the past two days or so. I left work yesterday, picked up some Chick-fil-a and a couple of movies at the redbox and spent about 8 straight hours on the couch yesterday. I’m feeling a bit better today, but this sinus congestion has gotta go!!!
It’s been a good day. It’s a new month. The Christmas season is finally here and I am celebrating the completion of a few goals that I set for myself this year! I’ll get to that in a minute, but first I must tell you that we got a car today!!!
It’s nothing super fantastic, but it’s God’s provision for us and we’re pretty content with that! It’s a ’98 Honda Civic. It’s got considerably low miles for being so old and it’s in great shape! We got a pretty good deal on it too and can’t wait to pick it up tomorrow! God is so good! Check back in a day or so for pictures and enter the contest to help us name it! Rumor has it there may even be a prize if your name is chosen;-)
I mentioned earlier about the completion of some goals that I had set for myself this year. Today I paid off one of my student loans!!! HOOOOOORRRRAAAAAYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!! To some of you this may not be a big deal, but to me, it’s HUGE!!! Over the past year or two I got real convicted about my debt and getting debt free. I want to owe no man, except that of a debt of love! Today, I (we) made a big step in that direction!!! Year to date, I have paid off one of my student loans (the payment was half of my total monthly student loan payment) and my car!!! This year alone I have cut my personal debt by 42% so far! We’re still looking and crunching some numbers but it’s possible that by the end of the year I could cut my debt by almost 60% this year alone and could be 100% DEBT FREE by the end of 2010!!! If you can’t tell, I’m pretty excited about that! The Bible calls debt a curse, and I want no part of it!!!
Here are a couple of pics of my nephews – Jackson and Judah (they’re not related, but they are pretty darn cute!) I realized I didn’t really get a pic of my niece, Glory. I’ll have to remedy that at Christmas!
A cute mess!!!
I'm not sure who enjoyed playing that toy drum more, me or Jackson!!!
Oh yeah ladies...watch out!!!
Well, that’s all for today. Check back soon for the car naming contest!!!
Cheers.
MK
[louisville|cracks|guns|thankful]
Drove up to Louisville yesterday after work. The drive wasn’t as bad as it could have been. There were plenty of cops out and a little traffic in Nashville, but other then that it went pretty good other then the rock that flew up and cracked my windshield while driving through Bowling Green. The crack is about the size of a quarter – I was gonna post a pick, but didn’t feel like going back downstairs and outside this early. I’m gonna call tomorrow and see if I can get my windshield replaced. Kentucky has a law where they replace your windshield for free if it’s cracked because of rocks, etc while driving on the roads. Hope I’m still eligible since I don’t technically live here anymore.
I’m looking forward to this weekend a lot. It’s really the first time Jeanette and I have been in Louisville for more then a couple of hours since we’ve been married. It was good last night to hang out with some friends and family. Even if all we did was sit in the hotel room and make funny noises with our mouths while others tried to guess what noise we were trying to make. Today should provide more of that same fun…maybe not the noise making, though I’m sure there will be plenty of that.
Today’s agenda. Shower. Kroger. Guns (Aka – Jeanette’s family). My family. Jackson’s (my nephew) 1st B-day party. And maybe some camping out/black friday shopping to finish it all off! – Man, this is going to be a busy day. Luckily I get to shoot guns, which somehow makes it all ok 😉
It seems like the thing to do around this time of year is to get all deep and reflective and go on about what you’re thankful for. All good things, I just wish people (especially myself) would have that same attitude all year round. Think of how much better this word would be if people EXPECTING things and started being THANKFUL for them instead.
Ok, ok…in the spirit of the season, here’s what I am thankful for:
- My wonderful and amazing wife
- God’s grace
- Family & Friends
- Free hotel stays
- Technology
- Freedom
- The letter Z
- Hot showers
- Clean water
- Good music
- Good Beer
- My mom’s pumpkin pie – love you mom 🙂
- Flannel shirts
- Beards
- Ice cream
There’s more, but that’s all I can think of at the moment.You get the idea…
I’ll post some more later tonight or tomorrow. Maybe I’ll throw in some photos this time.
Cheers.
MK
plato’s closet | homemade ice cream | self-righteousness
It’s been a good weekend. Jeanette and I went out on Friday night and just decided to drive around and do some exploring. We hit up a big mall and explored that for a little while and then decided it was time to move along. Neither one of us are big ‘mall people’…we kept driving a little more and wound up at a Plato’s Closet. That place is great! You can find a lot of pretty decent cloths there for next to nothing!!!
Last night we decided to break out our ice cream maker and give that a try – thanks to my wonderful aunts for a wonderful gift!! Well, being the man, I didn’t read the directions and just put it together and threw the mix in…we let it run for about 30 minutes or so and nothing was happening. We figured it had something to do with the milk. We used 2% instead of the recommended whole milk. I decided to walk next door to Walgreens (there’s one on everyone corner down here!). They had whole milk, but we needed more cream so I walked back home and got in the car and went to Kroger. When I finally got back Jeanette informs me that the problem wasn’t with the milk, but the fact that we didn’t freeze the inner bowl! DANG IT!!! I was so looking forward to some homemade ice cream, but there was no way that was gonna happen that night=( Oh well, we put the inner bowl in the freezer last night and I pulled it out this morning and finished making it! I finally got to eat it when we got home from church. It was well worth the wait – it was our own homemade version of spumoni. (vanilla ice cream w/ pistachios, some almonds, cherries and some magic shell to top it all off!! It was delicious! Sorry no pics. I took a few but didn’t like any of them. I’ll do better next time.
Good message at church this morning. Went back to the same church we’ve visited the past two weeks. They’ve been in a series on the book of Acts and just breaking down what REAL community looked like and what we are called to. They’ve been focusing the past two weeks or so on witnessing and what it really is and what it is NOT. The concept of witnessing is really just giving a testimony of what you have seen or heard. The pastor often referred to the legal concept of being a witness. A lot of times we give an account of our perspective, but that’s not what we’re called to do. We’re called to give an account of who Jesus was and what He did and IS doing. The pastor said something that hit me today. The thing that keeps us from witnessing the most is our own self-righteousness. DANG…the more he unpacked that statement and gave illustrations I began to realize that I am MUCH more self-righteous than I thought. It’s humbling and it’s still sinking in. I know that I have been much more self-righteous than I a realizing right now. The challenge now is for me to move out of that self-righteousness into God-centered righteousness. I’m gonna stop here. I could go on, but there’s really no need. I need a perfect Saviour to change me.
Jesus, change me. Turn me right side up. Take my selfishness and bring freedom. Take my insecurities and bring truth. Transform my thoughts into Your thoughts. Forgive me. Liberate me from my own self-righteousness and give me boldness to be a witness for You and to tell about who You were and are. Amen.
MK
the wife gave me a black eye.
yep...the wife gave me this!
Panera Cup
I really appreciate the free wi-fi at Panera – and they’re smokehouse turkey panini’s aren’t bad either! This week seems to have gone by pretty quickly. It’s already Wednesday evening and that means hump-day is almost over! Tomorrow night we are having some friends of Jeanette’s family stay the night as they’re passing through on their way to Georgia. Should be a good time. I think Jeanette’s gonna make something yummy for dinner which I am SOOO looking forward to!
I’ve been thinking lately about buying a gun. I had thought about it a while back and the thought got lost in the shuffle, but have started thinking about it again lately. I’ve been thinking about why I want to buy a gun and it really comes down to two reasons. 1. Protection. No, not from my wife!!! Let’s be honest, Memphis isn’t the safest city in America and I have a wife to think about now. 2. Fun. I enjoy shooting guns. I enjoy the power and velocity at which a bullet exits a gun. It’s pretty amazing if you think about it. I’m thinking just a small hand gun, maybe glock or something. I don’t think I’m really a rifle man. They’re fun to shoot, but when it comes to protection, I’ll take the handgun over a rifle. I started looking around online for a gunshop in the Memphis area and while I found a few, I hate that none of them show any of their inventory online. I’m guess you can’t sell guns online, but I would think you could still post your inventory for window shoppers such as myself. Is there a law against that??? Any good recommendations? Let me know! Just leave a comment!
Alright, well it’s time for me to sign off.
Cheers.
MK
tulips and car hunting.
So, Jeanette and I have spent this beautiful afternoon car shopping. The weather has been picture perfect! We went to 3 or 4 car lots today and looked at a lot of cars. At one lot in particular we found a couple cars we liked (I’m looking at trading in my car too). We didn’t into to negotiations because we wanted to do some more research and looking around, but it looked promising. We’ll see how it goes.
The other night I stopped by Kroger to pick up a few things for dinner and decided to pick up Jeanette some flowers. The had a pretty good selection, but in the end I decided on some nice tulips. This morning we were getting ready to leave the apartment and i noticed that they were starting to open up so I decided to snap a few photos with the SD870 (great camera – I highly recommend it. Too bad it’s discontinued). Anyway, here are a couple of the pics I snapped.
Tomorrow is Sunday again! That means we get to check out another church. Actually, I think we’re gonna go back and check out the church we visited last week. Maybe get some info on their young adult group and learn a little more about them as a community. Last’s week service was pretty good. I’m realizing that it’s hard when you’re church hunting not to be judgmental or compare one church to another. When you’ve spent 15+ years in the same church as I have, it’s easy to say, ‘well, why don’t they do things the way we did them?’, but I’m learning that just because they do someone does something different then the way I would choose, doesn’t mean that the Holy Spirit’s not at work. In fact, it could very well be the opposite. So, that’s what God’s teaching me about church hunting.
Pray that God would continue to lead us and speak to us about where we are to call our home church here. Also, pray for friendships and relationships to develop. I realized this past week while in a conversation with a friend of the Miller’s that live about 4 minutes away in MS, that I miss the community I had in Louisville with the brothers. I need that same kind of community here just as much as I did in Louisville.
Well, that’s all for now. We’re off to see a movie shortly…
Goodnight and Godspeed.
MK
the Krebs 
