Adam Barnett

Signs of a Good Weekend

Andrea and I hung out at Lake Texhoma with my family all weekend.  As I look back, here are a few signs of a good weekend:

• Unlimited food and stocked refrigerator
• Round of golf at a really beautiful course that looks over the lake 
• Swimming in the lake and floating on rafts 
• Fishing at 5:00am with dad, brother and nephew 
• Long nap on the couch 
• Home-made ice cream with brownies 
• Steaks that my dad creatively branded with a "B" (below) 
• Two deep bowls of skittles on the kitchen counter    
• Fireworks... non-stop... everywhere 

  

Skype is Sick!

(Sick: younger generation's term to describe something "awesome")  I downloaded Skype today on my laptop.  If you talk to people often that live far away, I totally recommend it.  It is incredible.  I've been meeting with my brother-in-law and his fiance, Kelsey, over the phone to prepare for their September wedding.  Now, we can see each other, which makes the calls much more fun (however, you are tempted to play around more and make faces at each other!).  Below are Kyle and Kelsey from our call earlier today.  Click here to download Skype. 

Chicago and Kidney Stones

It's been a crazy week.  A good week, but a crazy and exhausting one:

• Went to Chicago for 5 days to spend time with Andrea's family.
• Chicago Cubs vs. Minnesota Twins = Milton Bradley's big mistake.
• Played the Harborside Golf Course in Chicago... incredibly difficult course.
• Played at the Hinsdale Golf Club - my first time to ever have a caddy.
• Andrea's first baby shower, followed by my brother-in-law's wedding shower.

We got home last night and I went to the hospital.  Waiting to pass some kidney stones.  I'm terrified right now, but at the same time, relieved that it wasn't something worse!

Top 10 Lessons from Mom(s)

It's Mother's Day, and many of you will tell your mom she's the greatest in the world.  So, I'll let you believe that you're right while I know that I'm right.  I actually have the two greatest mothers I could ever dream of having - Debbie (mine) and Donna (Andrea's).  Here's the Top 10 Lessons I've learned from them, in no particular order:

1. The key component to seeing change is prayer. 
2. Love conquers all - no disappointment can make them love you less.
3. Laughter is a must... it adds years to your life and burns calories.
4. Spouse is always more important than children, even if the kids don't like it!
5. Few things are more peaceful and fun than a day on the golf course.
6. They promise not to, but they still worry (it's inevitable, but a sign of love).
7. Never turn down a mom-cooked meal.  They are simply the greatest.
8. The absolute greatest gift you can ever give a mom is a grandchild. 
9. No matter what you do around them, it's probably caught on camera.
10. They don't know how to dress you or do your hair when you're young.

All that to say, I'm the luckiest man alive with the two moms God has given me!

Nephew #3

Today, the Lord gave me one of the greatest gifts ever - Grayson Joseph Barnett... Nephew #3.  Alex and Luke were fun to watch as they met their little brother.  It is weird to look at it through a 4-year-old's eyes... one minute, mom's tummy is huge, the next minute, her tummy is gone and there's a baby in her arms!  I can't imagine having my own kids after knowing how much I love my brother's.  Here's a picture of Grayson and a picture of me playing doctor...

 

What's in a Name?

A few months ago, my oldest nephew, Alex, said something that I'll never forget!  After he found out that his mommy was pregnant with their 3rd son, they asked Alex what they wanted to name his little brother.  He responded, "I want to give him two names - the first one is Josteph, because he's Jesus' dad." (the "t" is there on purpose)  Then, they asked him what the other name was and he responded, "I want to name him Cornbread." 

Roasted Tea and Bed Robes

Hello from Tokyo!!  Mark and I arrived yesterday afternoon, and after a long wait in Customs, we met my cousin, Matt, outside the airport.  What a joy to have a 24-hour layover and be able to see my cousin who lives here... who I rarely get to see. 

We went on a long walk last night through a suburb of Tokyo - Narita.  We walked through a Buddhist Temple and I can honestly say that is was one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen.  I took a lot of pictures that I will post later or when I get home.  Last night, we went out and feasted on Japanese food... the food here comes in smaller portions so we had to order many plates.  It was a blast catching up with Matt and the food was delicious!!

We just had an enormous breakfast and sipped our Roasted Tea while looking out at the sun coming up.  Mark and I have been wearing long, traditional Japanese bed robes as if we are royalty.  It is a strong ego-boost to wear these robes... makes you feel like you are somebody! 

We fly out in a little while for Cebu, Philippines.  I cannot wait to get there - the overnight here in Japan has only built suspense for where we are going!  I believe tomorrow morning, bright and early, Mark and I will be teaching workers in factories throughout Cebu.  I think I am teaching Sunday at church, and then we will be on an overnight ferry to the island of Oxamis. 

Please continue to pray for our safety, health (as we eat such a variety of foods) and ministry.  Please also pray for my sweet wife and daughter-to-come.  She has plenty of company and people checking up on her while I am away, but would appreciate your prayer over her.

More to come from the Philippines... God bless you!

It's a GIRL!!

My mom took these two pictures of little ones to come.  This is Andrea at 4 months with our little girl, Ellie Marie and Stephanie (my sister-in-law) at 7 months with their third son, Grayson!  Unbelievable, huh?!

 

Gonna Be a Daddy!

My sweet wife, Andrea, is pregnant!!!  We are expecting a little one this August and have been able to see the heartbeat already at our first ultrasound.  We are so excited and we both are extremely impatient (we want our baby to be here now!)  We can't wait for this little one and we ask that you join us in praying that every heartbeat of our little one will be for God's glory!

My wife has a new blog that you should check out.  She is writing about the pregnancy, posting pictures and of course, telling funny stories.  CLICK HERE to see it. (We had to break the news to Molly and Lily, our weiner dogs, and the story is a pretty funny one!)

If you're a parent, post a comment and tell me the best bit of advice you have for us.  We'll take all we can get! 

My idea of Fun!

Usually when I come home from work, there is some sort of activity going on between my house and my brother's house.  It can include anything from Frisbee, swinging golf clubs way too close to each other's heads, chasing frogs, eating icy-pops, riding 4-wheelers or swimming in a kiddi-pool.  Tonight, it was inside throwing beach balls at each other's faces.  I'm so grateful for them - they fill my life with joy!  Just look at these pictures and you'll understand!