Samantha Pierce

The weather system that has been causing trouble in the south and midwest this week is finally making its way to my neck of the woods. We've had unseasonably warm weather since Thanksgiving. The last two days have been really windy which is always a precursor to bad weather around here. As of this posting we've got flash flood watches and high wind watches posted through out the state for tomorrow. There was already severe flooding in the state in June (photos of the damage here ) and again just before Thanksgiving . The storm that caused that flooding was part of the storm that generated the deadly North Carolina tornado . I've seen a lot of wild weather in my time so I'm not really worried. It is fascinating to watch thanks to the wonders of modern technology. (Scary weather radar pics from Weather.com in case you didn't notice.)

Today I am thankful for/that: I passed the 1000 post mark about 14 posts back. Sleep, I don't get nearly enough of the stuff. Funky yarn and fun stuff to do with it. The joy of making pretty things. Eating homemade dessert at the dinner table with the family (cherry cobbler with whipped topping). Watching grandma, grandpa, and the aunties go on a shopping spree for the kids. There was no stopping them. Christmas time is coming! I've got to try to get the outside lights up before the weather goes back to normal (meaning cold and nasty). I've had to put Big Green (my winter coat) back into the closet. It's looking like I'll have to get it back out again tomorrow night though. Ethan humming the song the children's choir will be singing for Christmas on the way home from the doctor's office. What are you thankful for?

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Today I'm thankful for/that: I've got all of the family in the house. All of the noise and extra body heat really makes the place feel like home. Sophia to hubby, "Why?" Actually, I'm pretty sure I won't always be thankful for this but it was the first time that Sophia asked us why. My baby's growing up! No matter how hot and heavy political debate and conflict may get in this country we have yet to stoop to poisoning or otherwise trying to kill political opponents. The crunch of frost covered grass under my feet. Ice covered ponds. What are you thankful for?

My new friend James left this comment an old post, Is there a biblical precedent for prohibiting interracial marriage? : Let us look at some of the verses from the Old Testament that allow polygamy: In Exodus 21:10, a man can marry an infinite amount of women without any limits to how many he can marry. In 2 Samuel 5:13; 1 Chronicles 3:1-9, 14:3, King David had six wives and numerous concubines. In 1 Kings 11:3, King Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines. In 2 Chronicles 11:21, King Solomon's son Rehoboam had 18 wives and 60 concubines. In Deuteronomy 21:15 "If a man has two wives, and he loves one but not the other, and both bear him sons...." There are a lot more verses from the Old Testament that allow polygamy, but I think that the above are sufficient enough to prove my point. I don't know what point James is trying to make but he did remind me of something that I've been thinking about for several months now. While the Bible does report that many of the p...

It's been slow blogging lately so I'll blog about this . I've been fortunate in the years that I've been blogging not to receive any of the hate mail or much of the venom filled comments that other bloggers do. I've gotten a few of what I call drive by comments from individuals who just HAD to let me know how much they didn't like me or my blog. Those I have either ignored, deleted, or taunted (once or twice). Mostly I've just ignored and deleted the few really foul comments I've gotten. Honestly there is nothing more frustrating than being ignored when you're trying to throw a tantrum. This morning I found the particularly incoherent and unoriginal screed linked above on this post from 2004 . I considered responding either by commenting or deleting the comment but I decided to just leave it be. Later in the day I checked the blog to find several other steaming gifts from my new fan. Alright dude, you got my attention. But perhaps not for the reasons...

What American accent do you have? Your Result: Philadelphia Your accent is as Philadelphian as a cheesesteak! If you're not from Philadelphia, then you're from someplace near there like south Jersey, Baltimore, or Wilmington. if you've ever journeyed to some far off place where people don't know that Philly has an accent, someone may have thought you talked a little weird even though they didn't have a clue what accent it was they heard. The Northeast The Midland The South The Inland North Boston The West North Central What American accent do you have? Take More Quizzes Via Orac though lots of other bloggers seem to have it as well. Nope, not from Philly but I have visited. I heard an interview with a linguist on NPR some time back who pointed out that accents in the North and especially the North East were heavily influenced by immigrants speaking accented English. I couldn't find the link to that story but I did find this, American Accent Undergoi...

Today I am thankful for/that: I haven't seen the sun in days but the weather is nowhere near as cold as it could be. I might even leave my coat at home today. Ethan's teachers and therapists who have taken the time and effort to get to know Ethan so well. Sophia: "Mommy, you okay?"; "Hold hands?"; "Oh, that's amazing!"; "Beautiful!" Modern medicine. We'd all be up a creek without a paddle without it. Thanksgiving Day and the family will be here soon. Isaiah pointing to the rooster in his new favourite library book and saying, "Cock-a-doodle-doo!" without and prompting from me. Sophia is apparently tall enough to pilfer things off of the kitchen counter. She just walked in the room with a container of peanuts that I thought was out of her reach. Isaiah is a morning person. It makes getting him ready for school so early in the morning a little bit easier. What are you thankful for?

Ethan had a half day at school on yesterday so I took him and Sophia to the mall to kill some time. All of the stores in the mall have decked their halls for Christmas already. It seems like retailers aren't even bothering to "celebrate" Thanksgiving this year. They're focusing on Christmas right from the get go. So this is Christmas huh? One never ending attempt to part people from their money for trinkets that they don't really need. All we need now are for the stories of little kids being forbidden to mention the religious meaning of Christmas and towns battling over nativity scenes and Christmas trees and it will officially be Christmas time in America. I am thankful that I have children to teach to help me remember what holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving are really about. Tonight I got the chance to tell Ethan that Thanksgiving is a day on which we gather with family to give thanks for God's blessings. In the process I reminded myself that it is not...

Today I'm feeling rather miserable with a cold and it sounds like Isaiah is coming down with one too. Still I am thankful for/that: Sophia seems to be fully recovered from her battle with the stomach bug. She got over it in about 12 hours. Hubby wasn't so lucky. Hubby seems to be finally recovering from his battle with the stomach bug. The stomach bug doesn't seem to have spread to the rest of us yet. I got to spend most of the day in bed resting. The little boy who walks by the house on his way to school every morning said of Ethan, "He's very kind." He was a nice contrast to the two kids who kept complaining, at the top of their lungs, that Ethan was following them around the play ground. Ethan enjoyed himself at the play ground despite the two noisy kids complaining about him following them to the swings. Isaiah has had a great first week at his new school. He's much more of a morning person than I am and has been awake and waiting for me every morning ...

Democrats Take Control of House, GOP Battles to Avoid Capitol Hill Sweep Sigh, I'm really going to miss that "tax cut for the rich" that Democrats will no doubt now set their sights on. As I voted yesterday I was relieved that my state is still using the same old antiquated lever voting machines. From the moment the polls opened across the country there were reports of many of the new fangled (and supposedly better) voting machines going hay wire. I'm more than happy to let other states bare the burden of working the bugs out of the new voting systems before we jump on the bandwagon.

Today I am thankful for/that: The simple enjoyment to be had while watching my children dive into piles of fallen leaves. Isaiah willingly sitting down to read a book with me at bedtime. People with a sense of humor. What are you thankful for?

This seems particularly relevant now that John Kerry has made his " joke " that if you don't study and work hard you may end up fighting in Iraq at a college campaign stop. Moving from the War to Law School at Yale Commentator Ken Harbaugh spent nine years in the Navy before he started Yale Law School last year. Among his new peers at Yale, he's found very few people who have resumes like his, combining both military service and an Ivy League education. Because few have military experience or plan to join the military, notes the reporter introducing the piece. Harbaugh notes that: The elites who shape our national policy are growing dangerously out of touch with the men and women sent to fight in their place. It is an unfortunate truth that some socio-economic groups bear far heavier burdens than others in defending this country. But for all the nuanced explanations out there the real reason we always send the poor is because the privileged refuse to go. I thought th...

Happy All Saints Day. Let us remember those saints who came before us, those saints who now suffer for the faith, and those saints who will come after us. Hebrews 12 Jesus, Founder and Perfecter of Our Faith 1Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Do Not Grow Weary 3Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. 4In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? "My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reprove...