Photos from my Camera Phone of the Tornado Damage

I took these pictures during the days immediately after the Feb. 5 tornado.
Damage to the Watters Housing Complex

Damage to the Hurt Complex

Inside Jennings 325

Watters Commons

Life with the Boys: Myth Busters

As the father of two girls with a third on the way I will never be able to fully appreciate what Abe and Emily experience with Connor, Isaac and Eli. Thankfully Emily captures a glimpse of it here for the world to see. Right from the first image you know it's going to be good! Thanks Em!

Happy Birthday Nancy!!!

Tonight I'm sending out a VERY happy birthday wish to my wife! (Thanks for the reminder, Em) I actually pulled a surprise party off with the help of friends. (Thanks Wes, Katie and everyone who came!) Today we had a great lunch date, and the flowers I ordered were waiting when she came home. Tooting my own horn? Yeah, maybe a little. :)

Happy Birthday Carrie!!!

From your big brother. I need to find some old pictures to post or something...maybe tonight. LOL

Four-Year Old Fitness

To get back in shape before beginning Officer Candidate School in April my mornings begin with exercise. On days when I don't run I use a "Fit For Duty" podcast from the Pentagon Channel as a guide for push-ups, sit-ups and general cardio. I load it onto my PSP and connect the PSP to my television. Yeah, I'm kind of a geek in that way. Using a structured program helps keep me from getting off track and wasting the time.

A few days ago Tori, our 4-year old daughter joined me for my morning workout in the living room. She was following along pretty well at first, but as the intensity picked up she went to the couch and got her blanket. She put it beside her on the floor, and when I asked what she was doing she told me;

"When it gets hard I'll just lay down." And she did.

When I told Nancy she laughed and said Tori must take after her when it comes to exercise.

I said nothing. :)

Pray for the Spitzer family

"Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops."
The Holy Bible : English Standard Version. Wheaton : Standard Bible Society, 2001, S. Lk 12:1-3

As I follow the news coverage of New York governor Eliott Spitzer my first reaction was to join the crowd and gawk in guilty pleasure at the tabloid-rich story coming from Albany. Then I saw the photo of Governor Spitzer and his wife, Silda, and the story I saw in their eyes made me ashamed of my own self-righteousness.

Only days ago this man and his wife were at the top. The governor of one of the most high-profile states in the union and his wife, an accomplished attorney who stepped away from law to focus on their family and philanthropy. Governor Spitzer gained prominence as attorney general fighting corruption in the very state he now led.

Now they both stood there in front of a press corps that smelled blood in the water. The now-disgraced public official, standing like so many before him in humiliation and confessing his sins to the world. No security detail, bulletproof towncar or spin doctor could offer him any protection from the questions that would come. A man who once controlled a state government now controlled nothing. His wife, who perhaps heard the news for the first time only hours before standing with him, unwillingly pulled into the whirlwind and having to hear him repeat the details of his indiscretions. I can't begin to imagine what is going through her mind, but it must surely begin with "How did it come to this?"

Looking deeper into the picture I came to realize the humanity involved. This was not a plot line from a drama series where the director yells "Cut" and the scene ends. No! A real family is under attack, perhaps on the verge of being destroyed as we watch from the comfort of our homes and discuss it as though the problem is a million miles away. After all it's not our family, right?

It made me think about the "pet" sins in my own life that I must overcome on a daily basis. Even though I confessed them to God I spent several years allowing them to control me, not through giving in to them (although it happened occasionally) as much as trying to keep them hidden. The enemy kept telling me how embarrassing it would be having to explain myself to friends and my wife, and was it really such a big deal anyway? So one day I just bit the bullet and did it. You know what? The enemy was wrong. There was no embarrassment in telling my wife. There was freedom. And yes, it is a big deal. When I told her she became my ally in fighting those temptations instead of being a means for letting them have the upper hand. "Why take the chance of rejection?" you may ask. Because I never want to make her stand beside me in a moment when my sins are exposed for the world to see and wonder "How did it come to this?"


A group of men in our church is doing a study through Steve Farrar's book "Point Man". He has much to say on this subject, and I would recommend it to any man who is or will be leading their family.





TO GOD BE THE GLORY!!

West Tennessee Snow Day!

I did NOT sign up for this when we moved to Tennessee! Thankfully it was here on Saturday and pretty well gone by Sunday. The girls got to have fun playing, and knowing it would soon be gone I enjoyed it too. The snow packed well so we were able to have a snowball fight, make snow angels and build a snowman.

Madison Getting the View from Above


Our angel Tori. Yeah, I had to laugh when I said it too. :)


My lovely daughters scheming to whack their dad with snowballs

Allow Me to Introduce You to...

Gracyn Noelle Lyerla!!! Okay, at least her mouth and nose. For those of you who are unable to see her, I won't hold it against you. I have never thought the printouts were as easy to see. It is much easier when you see her moving.
I will add more pictures as we get them. There were more in this batch, but none of them had as much discernible Gracyn.

4-D images? Well, here's the thing...

I mentioned a couple of posts ago that we were going to get to see Gracyn in brilliant 4-D. We went to the doctor's office yesterday with high expectations but left a little disappointed. It turns out there is a regular ultrasound screening before the 4-D ultrasound. The doctor found nothing to concern him when he looked at the screening so he did not do the 4-D. Completely understandable, and we were thrilled there were no worries but it would have been pretty cool to get to see something like this.

To satisfy the masses, or Emily at least I will be posting the latest round of ultrasound photos soon.

White People Like Stealing Stuff from Other White People's Blogs...

I was introduced to this blog during my regular morning jog on the internet (capitalized or not? Discuss.) Emily listed it as one of her favorites, and after a little looking around I would agree. She highlighted a few of her favorite posts, and since I can't come up with anything at the moment I'll add mine to the list. Incidentally if you haven't been reading Emily's blog, why not?

#63 Expensive Sandwiches

#40 Apple Products

#28 Not Having a TV

#16 “Gifted” Children

Where to Begin?

I know it's been a while since I posted and my "resurgent" post was far from earth-shattering, so I apologize. To be honest the holidays derailed my blogging efforts. Once I get out of a routine it is difficult for me to get back to it, even when I know it needs to be done.

As a tribute to missed opportunities I offer a brief teaser of blog content that escaped me at the time, but will be covered in later entries. Thanks to everyone who e-mailed me and said they missed reading my posts!

First of all, we are welcoming a new addition to our family at the end of June. Gracyn Noelle Lyerla is beginning to make her presence known. Tomorrow afternoon Nancy and I will get to see her in a 4D ultrasound.

Sometime in the next month I will be re-entering the military and pursuing a commission in the Tennessee National Guard. To that end I have been working to get back into shape, and finding it to be a much longer trip than I expected! So far I have dropped nearly 15 pounds through exercise and watching what I eat. My target loss is 25-30 pounds, so I will keep you updated.

The most-well documented event that I should have had something to comment about is the tornado that tore through western Tennessee and Union University on February 5th. I felt the coverage by Tim Ellsworth at Union and others would be far more accurate and clearly conveyed than I could hope to match, so instead of writing I focused on helping with the rebuilding efforts around campus.

Then of course there is the national election, the Superbowl and now Brett Favre's retirement. All of these things and more should be covered, (well maybe not the Superbowl, it's kinda old news) in future entries.

Finally, I am playing around with using Microsoft Word 2007 to publish my entries, let me know what you think. Hopefully I can be a little more reliable from here on out. Thanks for sticking with me!

 

Leland

 

And It's Done.

Brett Favre Announces His Retirement

Thanks for the memories Brett! Long live the Green Bay Packers!