IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!!!

I AM MOVING!!!

Yes, my time with blogger is now over. I am moving over to wordpress.com. Many of my friends have blogs over there and I think I will be able to do more to make the site a little more dynamic.

The nice thing is that ALL of my blog posts, comments, etc. transferred over very nicely.

So, Stef's Random Ramblings is now at www.tarapchak.wordpress.com.

See you over there!

Step up, men!

As most of you know, I have a joint venture project, ac180.com, with some friends and guys around the country. One of these strong Christian men is Russell (visit his site here). Russell posted something that I found really invigorating.

His post talked about men stepping up and being the men that God intended them to be. He is dead on correct!! There is a feminization of men happening. Look at every TV show. Either the father is presented as an idiot and not in control of anything, or there is no father present. Men are made out to be pathetic losers and are no longer respected.

There are problems in the world. We all know that. There are issues that we will not be able to resolve in this world, but we can resolve the issues in our homes and communities, at a minimum. I always hear the comment, "Where are the parents at?". I would like to know the answer to that question.

Men, now more than ever, we need to step up. We need to be the Christ like example to our families, employers, community, and in church. It starts with us and it starts in the home.

My Best Friend...

My wife. I am not sure where to even begin. I am not Stef without Sandi. I am not an "I", I am a "we".

She is, hands down, the best mother that I know. She maneuvers through every day with skills that only a mother can possess. Breakfast on the table every morning, shuttling kids to and from school, running errands, running the operations of the house - the list goes on and on and on and on...

I see the friends that she has. A group of Christian women who lean on each other and make each other sharper. I see how the help and challenge each other. I am so thankful for her circle of friends.

Then I see her as my wife. I see her challenge me. I see her try to make me better (even when I don't think I need to be improved in certain areas). I see her lighten my day. I see he strive to make us better. I see her as my best friend. Happy Mother's Day, Babe. I love you.

Gotcha!

Yep, we have them at work. People who browse through the break room refrigerator and snatch a snack out of someone's lunch. Not too wise of a thing to do. Check out this article on how to put the bite on a snack thief.

"Undo"

My wife turned me on to the group, Rush of Fools. The have a self titled debut album coming out tomorrow. I will be purchasing this CD for sure. Their first single, "Undo", is POWERFUL! It is at the top of my playlist right now and probably will be for awhile. Yesterday I announced the opening of a new site that I will be contributing to, ac180.com. This song clearly sums up what ac180.com is all about. Here is the link to the video to this song on the Rush of Fools site. Listen to the words and you will be humbled. I hope that you enjoy this song as much as I have already.

For all the Mothers out there...

I know that it is not mother's day yet, but hey, who says that we cannot start celebrating. In honor of our mothers, here is an early mother's day video...

Grand Opening - ac180.com

I would be remiss not to publish this post. God works in people. God works in groups of people. There is no better place to be or thing to do than to be in the middle of God's works and plans.

To that end, I wold like to introduce a new site that is up and running on the web. "A Complete 180" is now open for your viewing pleasure. I have not been excited and energized about something like this in a very long time! This site is written by Christian men, men who have done a 180. Men who share a common burden for this site and sharing thoughts on anything from movies, sports, Christianity, faith, family, current events, whatever! The posts will be fresh and will show that Christian men do have a pulse and that we struggle with the same things that all men do. You can learn more about what this site is by reading our mission statement. We don't know where this will lead, or what God has in store. We just want to share what is on our hearts and from our perspectives.

Men, this site is for you. Ladies, tell your husband, father, son and others about this site. Please pass this site address along ( www.ac180.com ). We have some phenomenal contributors that have much to say. As my good friend, Aaron, said, "...miss a day, and you might miss alot!"

We hope you enjoy this site and our prayer is that God will work through us and that this site may even cause a few men to do a 180!

Can you put a price on Mom?

Well, it's out. The new price tag on stay-at-home moms. You can read the story here. The said salary of the stay at home mother is now at $138,095. Let's file this under ARE YOU KIDDING ME!! Someone slaps a couple job titles down and looks at some median salaries, and POOF, you have a salary for a stay at home mom.

No, this is wrong. I will say that they did capture most of the things that a mom does, but how do you put a price tag on companion? How do you put a price tag on the mother/child bond?

Moms, you rock!! It's a nice idea to try to put a price tag on what you do, but they will never get it. Your work has no price tag, it truly is PRICELESS!!

I love my wife. I do let her know that. I appreciate what my wife does, day in and day out, without complaining. I do not let her know that as much as I need to. My wife is my rock and I do not want to chip away at that rock. Every opportunity I miss to let her know how much I appreciate her, a little chip of that rock falls away. As I posted on another blog, I want to be the best husband and father I can be. Making sure that my wife feels loved and appreciated is a big part of being a great husband.

So, moms, we do love you and appreciate you! You are priceless to all of us.

Do I have to...

Depending on your point of view, you read this title and thought that a good kid story was to follow. Well, you are wrong, kind of. Depends on the size of the kid. Yes, my kids do say this, but so do I.

I don't consider myself healthy, but I am no slouch either. I used to work out, randomly and sporadically. I coach soccer and baseball. I golf and mow the lawn. All of this is exercise, right!?!? Evidently not. A good friend of mine, who I used to workout with, decides that we need to get back into the exercise routine. So, he calls me and says, "Let's start running, you in?" Well, I say yes. In my mind I am saying, DO I HAVE TO!!!! Yes, I have to. Let's face it, I am not reversing the affects of age, so I need to. So, we get up at dawn and go for a short three mile run. For those of you laughing right now and are thinking that three miles is no big deal and that you can do that in your sleep, you can kindly move to the next blog! For those of us who are not in shape, three miles is an event!

Anyway, thanks, Clay, for lighting the fire again and yes, I have to!!

Yes, I am still alive...

Well, it has been a few weeks since the last post. Hey, it happens. Life gets fun, busy, etc. and you turn around and ask yourself where the last few weeks went.

I am happy to report that all is well. Soccer and baseball are in full swing (no baseball pun intended). The weather has finally decided to get nice and stay nice. This is huge for us as all three of our children would rather be outside ALL OF THE TIME! This is good in the summer, bad in the winter. I thank God everyday for the healthy kids that we have. I also pray that they will be good and that no major wars break out. Knowing that God has a sense of humor, he has answered the first prayer and is teaching Sandi and I something by not answering the second prayer!!

Ah, yes, we did have a major event! Yes, the mower started this spring!
Happy mowing, and remember, when you kids bring you that bouquet of dandelions, cherish it. They love you!