jimmie ingram appreciation day

good morning ladies and gentlemen. the following is for IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE concerning the first ever, “JIMMIE INGRAM APPRECIATION DAY.”

A fine fellow. A fellow of many words, some crude and some some pleasant. A fellow with much skill, and a love for the arts and all things Hendrix. Today, we are pleased to announce the inaugural JIMMIE INGRAM APPRECIATION DAY to honor and admire the man, the legend, Mr. Jimmie Ingram. Playing guitar for over 29 years, he has become a master of all things related to stringed insruments. Ingram is highly skilled in playing songs in the key of G, a master of the Ernie Ball volume pedal, and fluent in Yukaghir. For nearly five years, Ingram has been a guitar player in the thrilling, platinum-selling, Grammy-winning, rock/pop super-star band, SPUR58. Although humble and quiet, Ingram steals the spotlight when the rock and roll begins. Fans collect Ingram memorabilia, and crave monumental moments in rock history, such as the 2002 Honolulu Incident. (This “Honolulu Incident,” one of the greatest moments in modern music, was the instance in which Ingram played a 47 minute guitar solo in the middle of an epic SPUR58 song, while standing atop a 57 foot lighting truss, shirtless, with his wind-blown white hair flowing in the wind from the giant turbines underneath his feet.)

To commemorate this special day, we invite you to visit Ingram’s new blog and leave a comment. Please stop by, and say hello, while wishing him a happy JIMMIE INGRAM APPRECIATION DAY.

Also, we are proud to present this video as a token of our respect and admiration of his Gandolf-like persona. This is one of the long-lost archives of Mr. Ingram performing his 2005 hit, WHITE GOLD.

pics of Haiti (2)

web address changes

just letting you know, i’m doing a little work on the blog/site over the next few days.

right now, you can still get to my blog by going to:  aaronivey.wordpress.com

sorry for the inconvenience with all of this!  in a few days, i’ll have the new thang going.

American kids helping Haitian kids

i just read something REALLY cool on Cynthia’s blog.   you should check it out.  a little creativity and determination can do GREAT things!  1,000,000 pennies will go a long way…

a few photos from haiti

simple eating

i’m on a quest to be more simple with our eating. if you read my blog or know us well, you know that i do 99% of the cooking and all of the grocery shopping. the grocery shopping frees jamie up from having to worry about it, and quite honestly i enjoy cooking, and jamie does not.

i want us to eat more simple. we’ve cut our grocery bill in half over the past 6 months, and we’re still committed to eating healthy. i buy a lot less meat and fish lately. in a month, we may only eat chicken a few times now, and ground turkey at a minimum. it’s actually a lot cheaper to eat less meat, maybe we’ll become vegetarians?

lentils and black beans have become quite popular in my house. and as of today, we are enjoying the wonderful world of couscous. i’ve only eaten this stuff one time, and tonight everyone ate it up. it was awesome. it’s really cheap too. our entire meal cost less than $4.50. (i know i’m a dork because i actually figured that out). it was couscous with black beans, zucchini, tomato paste, onions, potato, and spices. really really good. an entire box of couscous only cost $2.19. and that will feed us twice. and the kids thought it was amazing.

the less i spend on expensive groceries (while still eating healthy), the more we have to give.

recovery

everytime i come home from a trip out of the country, the same feelings return. i’m grateful for the feelings, and the more that i experience this, the better off i am. it’s why i need to get out of the country once a year. it brings perspective…it keeps the lines between wants and needs extremely clear.

it’s the same feelings.
my house seems suddenly bigger. and cleaner. and nicer.
my cars drive smoother. and they are quiet and clean. and i have two.
our kids look healthy. full. but, they have too many toys. and they complain too much.
our pantry is full. excessive. a few pounds of rice have been in the corner for months. untouched.
running water pours out of not one faucet, but nine locations conveniently placed inside and outside my house.
my street is quiet. and still. no sounds or sights of desperate people searching for food. or shampoo.

my clothes are clean. always. i have too many. some i haven’t worn in years. there’s probably 5 pair of shoes in the corner of my closet that go untouched. at the press of a button there is fire, a simple switch brings light. it’s cool in here.
i have enough money to afford cable television.
and internet.
and a computer. two, actually.
and cell phones.
and netflix.
and a refrigerator.
and gasoline.
and milk, in liquid form.
and purified drinking water.
and food for my dog.
and batteries for my kids’ toys.
and soap.
and health insurance.
and a washing machine.
and a couch.
and curtains.
and a bed. three, actually.
and clothing. for me and three others.
and fresh vegetables. and fish. and chicken.
and diapers. disposable.
and clocks.
and cooking utensils. and a stove. and an oven. inside my house.
and a roof to protect us from the sun. and rain.

most of the world doesn’t live like i do. and the feelings of needing to recover are always the same.

in all actuality, it’s not trips i need to recover from. i’m in a constant state of recovering from an consumerism dream. an illusion that says my success and worth is based on how much i can aquire and gain for my own use. an illusion that safety and hope can be purchased. sure, some things i have are essential (food, water, shelter, etc)…but no doubt the lines between needs and wants are blurred. and the call of Christ to love and serve those in need, and stop hoarding excess for ourselves becomes clear.

i strongly believe that every single follower of Christ needs to make every effort to get out of the country at least every other year, if not more. for the sake of recovery.

escalating out of control

i knew things were getting out of hand…i saw the ending coming, but i couldn’t stop it…

Jamie’s parents bought a slip-n-slide and kiddie pool for their front yard. the boys have been loving it. i showed them how to slide on their bellies, backs, and do a flip from one to the other. they think i’m cool. today, we had the water hose out and i thought it would be fun to spray Cayden as he ran across the yard. he started crying and begged me to stop, but Deacon and i just thought it was hysterical to keep spraying him. he ran farther and farther away to seek refuge, but i found a setting on the nozzle that allowed for a steady stream that easily reached 20 yards. it was like a fire hydrant in my hand…endless power…endless streams of cries from soaked children begging for their loving father to stop drenching them. perfect.

deacon laughed as i continued to spray cayden. finally, i sat the hose down and grabbed Carson to give him a bath. as i did, deacon grabbed the nozzle and started spraying Cayden, so once again the yard erupted into a girl-ish cry-fest. hearing all the mayhem, jamie came out and grabbed the hose from Deacon. she pointed it at me, threatening me that if i didn’t stop she would soak me. she meant business…she had that crazy look in her eyes. of course, i lied and said i was done spraying anyone, calm down, etc etc. as she walked off, i then grabbed it and gently sprayed her.

this is where i noticed things getting out of control.

cayden was still in the grass sulking at the fact that his loving father continued to drench him. deacon was crying because he wanted to spray someone. and jamie threatened to take away fatherly privileges if i continued to torture our children in the front yard. she turned and walked back to the house, angered that i had even started the whole silly thing.

i’m not sure what i was thinking. surely it wasn’t my brain that told me hand to pick up the nozzle, set it to MAXIMUM SPRAY and aim it my wife’s back as she entered the house?! something in me told me it was going to end badly, but the middle school boy in me couldn’t keep my finger off the button of the nozzle. by the time she reached the door, the giant stream of water flooded her entire shirt, shorts and shoes. i definitely heard her screaming for me to stop, but for some reason i didn’t stop. she begged and begged, but i kept the button pushed smiling at the fact i was soaking my wife from head to toe. this lasted for 20 LONG seconds.

in a word, she was… ANGRY.

at the sight of their mother crying for me to stop, Cayden and Deacon LOST IT. i’m talking all out sobbing, crying, screaming…LOST IT. i’ve never seen such a look of terror in their eyes. their loving mother was being tortured by their loving father… and they couldn’t bear the thought. they looked at me as if to say, “you horribly ugly person…stop torturing our mother!!!”

they ran to her and cried on her wet clothes, as she looked at me with rage. hearing the rediculous spectacle, jamie’s parents ran out of the house expecting to see blood, or someone’s limbs missing, maybe a black eye or two…

there i was holding a little green nozzle, set to maximum spray, while the rest of my family consoled each other and looked at me like i was the cause of a domestic dispute. out of the corner of my eye i saw Carson choosing which person he would go to… me or the rest of the family? he chose the victims. as he walked over to them, he glanced over his shoulder and shot me a look of disgust as if to say, “you pathetic jerk. how could you?”

jamie, cayden, deacon, randy, and karen looked at me as if to say, “you pathetic jerk. how could you?” neighboring birds and squirrels looked at me as if to say, “you animal!!”

we’ve since made up, but i think next time i pick up on the fact that things are escalating out of control, i might just go ahead and put down the hose.

heading back to TN

the car is packed, the kids are asleep, and carson is bathed. we’ve enjoyed a little bit of time at my parents house and Jamie’s parents house, but we’re eager to get to our own house and bed. it’s about a 14 hour drive tomorrow, so it looks like our sunday will be filled with truckstops, fast food, and kids movies in the car. we’re hoping to leave before 6am. thank you for all your kind emails and comments about our Haitian children. we know there are so many people in love with Amos & Story even before they meet them….for that we are so grateful.

looking forward to seeing our TN friends this week. might have to fire up the grill and put up the umbrella this week. sounds like a fun thing to do.

i’ll be posting a few more stories and photos from Haiti… soon, my friends.

home isn’t the same

we’re back in the USA. it’s 1:13am, and we just got to my parents house in Houston, Texas. tomorrow we will drive to Trinity, Texas to see Cayden and Deacon.

in all honesty, home doesn’t feel quite as complete as it once did. i’m really excited about seeing C&D, but i can’t help but feel like our family is incomplete… there’s 2 people missing, and i dont know when they’ll be here. before i touched and held Amos and Story, it was easier to cope with not having them here. but i honestly feel like i’ve lost 2 children. i know they are safe, and i know they are in a loving environment. i am grateful beyond words for the situation we are in…we are in a unique situation, as there are many adoptive parents around the world that dont have contact with their children they are waiting to adopt. but, i cant help but think about laying next to Amos a few nights ago, holding his hand as he fell asleep next to me.

maybe its the emotions that come with a long day of traveling + all the crazy feelings i have from my time in Haiti. or maybe it’s simply the fact that God has so united my heart to theirs, and as their father, 2 pieces of my heart and soul have vanished. i don’t know if Amos bonded with his father, but i do know that my heart has been shackled to his. i can still smell his breath… i can still feel his feet in my hands as he sits on my shoulders while we walk through the village of La Digue, Haiti… i can still feel Story’s giant eyes look into mine as her tiny hands squeeze my fingers…

mission trips come and go… some profoundly alter the course of our futures, others simply nudge us along the path God has for us. this one has uniquely changed me… it’s as if my heart has been torn in two… there’s a piece here for Jamie and Cayden and Deacon, but there’s also a piece still in Cazale with Amos and Story.

i cannot fully describe what i feel when i think of them tonight. in a word, loss.