I don't know where you were on 1/1/2007.
I was cove discovering at Discovery Cove in Orlando.
Discovery Cove is affiliated with Sea World.

It's $159 to get in.
They only let in a thousand people a day.
Includes: $20 Lunch, $10 Continental Breakfast, a 7 day pass to Sea World (1 day at Sea World costs $50), an extremely long Lazy River heated to about 83 degrees, an unbelievably huge and awesome Lagoon FILLED with Manta Rays, exotic fish, a Shark Tank and a Barracuda Tank that press up right up to the Lagoon, so one second you're petting a Manta Ray and you look over your shoulder and there's a shark! But trust me, the glass is there.

Almost got into Magic Kingdom for free, ended up costing $142 for me and Annalisa, kids free under 3 I think.

$210 First class flight per person for me, Annalisa, and Isaiah. Would have cost $360 if Annalisa did not find an insane deal. First class anywhere for $210? Craziness. Can't depend on that every time.

Free lodging thanks to the wonderful and generous Ryan and Lorie Ambrosio and they're savvy Condo management skillz.

$36 for an all day pass to Disney Quest. Spent 7 hours there. Awesome.

Vacationing is not cheap. You really have to budget for it. I think based on this experience, we're going to set aside $100 a month just so we can vacation once a year.

I'm totally going to own my dream vehicle one day.
The GMC Savanna. I think I can cram like 12 people in there.

Hey G! Let's pile our families in the van and go see Reno! ROAD TRIP!!!
Hey Upper Room! Let's pile in the van and go do Habitat!
What's that? You wanna go to Cedar Point? I'll drive! One car! One party! We'll split the gas!

One day I'll be driving back from Cedar Point and everyone will be asleep in the back of my 12 person van and I'll be in heaven.

Isn't that what we all want anyways? Loved ones to travel the long roads and dark nights with? It's not a metaphor anymore on the way back home from an amusement park. Bring on the flat tire and broken down engine. Makes for a better story. They shouldn't be called amusement parks, they should be called Memories Parks because you're not just being amused, you're making memories with people you love.

I finished, "The Sparrow" by Mary Doria Russell. It's a good book in that it made me think.
The theological ramifications of finding intelligent life on another planet are intriguing to me. There was sexual tension which is always breath holding fun. Not just sexual tension, but the author went into the mind of a few Jesuit Priests and did a fairly good job of capturing discipline, method, pain, and fulfillment of him connecting with a beautiful woman. It was tastefully and respectfully done.

Did Jesus die for aliens? Do aliens have souls?
I'm not a science fiction freak, but this book was interesting.

For me and my house, if we are painting a room, we have to set aside at least 3 weeks.
The place is a wreck but it's gonna be worth it. Our room looks sweet!
I may or may not have a cost breakdown later.
Another big lesson I learned again. If you're gonna paint, decide right up front if you're gonna have to re-do the baseboards because you really want to paint all the way to floor and then add new baseboards to get the best line.

I now own a scroll saw. Come and delight. You and I will scroll and saw.

This is the year. 2007. My mantra is: "Use It."

Finally I have a peace in my core that I've never really felt before.
It's kind of snuck up on me. But it's there and it can't be anything but spiritual steadiness because there's so much that's not steady.

That peace in the center of me can't be anything but God. He's given me this gift of peace.

I'm going to Use It.
Use it to minister.
Use it to serve.
Use it to give.
Use it to love.

I'm going to use this peace inside of me and be a solid building block for God to build more of His Kingdom on earth and in Heaven.

I want more babies, but Annalisa wants to snowboard.
Go buy Clue DVD Game.