Pay it Forward

Holly and I refinanced the house on Friday afternoon. Why it takes a mountain of paperwork to say yes we will pay, we agree to how much we will pay, and you can kick us out if we don’t pay, I will never understand. It is truly legal and government craziness gone amuck. Now we have two stacks of useless papers in the filing cabinet, one from the original contract and now the refinance.

As is now customary in the Justin and Holly marriage world, any major item is celebrated with a good meal. While driving around in a relatively unknown section of the Dallas suburbs to us we ran across a place called La Hacienda Ranch. It was some delicious Tex-Mex fare. They had a very diverse menu and you could spend as much or as little as you like.

We had Eli with us. He just slept the meal away. Holly and I did what too many fat Americans do; ordered much too large of a plate plus an appetizer. I was still stick to my stomach the next morning. It was just too good to put down.

We were at the restaurant at 4:30, long before any crowd had started. We were actually the only people in our section for a long time. After our appetizer came a couple that were in their late 50’s early 60’s came in. We made eye contact and the gentleman made a whimsical comment to the hostess that I chucked and smiled at. I might have even said “good evening” as he passed by, but I can’t remember.

As our meal was winding down the waiter came by and dropped the check. I wasn’t quite finished with my meal so I didn’t look at it, and I just sat it on the edge of the table. Two minutes later he came back by picked it up and said he was sorry but he needed to do something. I figured that he forgot my refill on my adult beverage.

Two or three minutes passed and he came by a few times. It was clear we were waiting on our check and the waiter told us that the check had been paid. We were very confused. I asked on the house? He said something like that. It took me about ten seconds to realize that the couple in the corner had paid for our dinner.

I ran the waiter down and he confirmed that they had but he insisted that they didn’t want us to know that and to not acknowledge it. I made sure to inform him to express our deep deep gratitude after we left.

I was curious why someone would do that. We didn’t look struggling. We were eating a nice meal. Holly was dressed to get out of the house. Eli was in a name brand car seat. I wasn’t wearing my holey jeans. Maybe they wanted to celebrate Eli with us. Maybe they just are nice people who have means and like to spread the love. May they are Christians and heard a sermon on helping your fellow man. Maybe they just like to try to impress people.

I think they are amazing. I don’t even know their names, but I have prayed for them to get back everything they have given so humbly. I am on the look out for a situation I can do the same. To “pay it forward” and “pay it back” the same kindness that happened to me. How the world would be different if we all did what this kind couple demonstrated.

One Month Down

by Justin

Well we have made it this far. We are transitioning well. Learning the difference between wet diaper cries and hungry cries. More importantly we haven't inflicted any known harm on Eli for a whole month!

I have uploaded some one month photos on the web album link. Here is a sample.

Otherwise things are just going. Holly returns to work on Feb. 15th or there abouts. I have started my new ten hour day schedule. It is taking some getting adapting too. We have made a few decisions as of late. We are refinancing our mortgage into a low fixed rate. We have had an adjustable rate mortgage that has paid off well for us, but now is the time to lock in for awhile. We have also decided that we are going to celebrate our five year anniversary in March in D.C. I have started scoping out the best place to stay and how long we should stay. If you have any beta on the location feel free to pass it along. Lastly for my dad's birthday (Jan 11) I decided I would schedule a trip for the two of us instead of gift. Is there a better gift than the gift of time. I am scoping out a few places but I am thinking Big Bend in April or May is a good idea. If you have any good camping ideas pass those along too. All right....good day all!

EPA = SUV

While driving down the highway on my way home yesterday I noticed a Dodge Durango with government plates driving in the HOV lane. I ran up beside it to look at the logo on the door and guess who it was? The Environmental Protection Agency Region Six. I started laughing.

How ironic is it that the Federal agency in charge of cleaning up our air and keeping the environment protected drives a Dodge SUV. I decided to do some research. The Dodge Durango gets about 15 miles per gallon. On the EPA’s website [www.epa.gov/greenvehicles] it is well below the top twenty five “greenest” SUVs. In fact on a ten point scale, with ten being good, the SUV gets a 6 by EPAs own standards.

I couldn’t help but laugh. I get grief all the time for driving a Ford pickup and how economically unfriendly it is. I guess I will consider getting rid of my ride…oh who am I kidding, I love my pickup!

Eli's First Bath

Eli had his first bath today (1/2/08). A milestone for sure. He enjoyed some of it, but mostly he was unsure what in the world was going on. Holly was glad he didn't pee on her! The video is seven minutes long and 71mb, so give it some time if you are on dial up or slow connections. Happy viewing.