The Winds of Change

Well, sorry for such a long pause since my last blog. November has had its share of interesting events. Since my last post, the weather has taken a turn for the COLD!! This Thanksgiving weekend we had mid 30's for the high temp. Yesterday we saw a mostly cloudy day but today brought a day of rain, and now the cold winds have started blowing again. I think we are expecting mid 40's for most of the week.

The Greatest Place on Earth!

Bass Pro Shops of Clarksville, IN has offically opened its doors for business, and you better believe it has gotten my business! Courtney and I took a sunday stroll through the GIANORMOUS 2-story outdoor heaven that includes a Tracker Dealership, Theater, archery range, indoor driving range, 18-hole putt-putt, Resturant, Starbucks, and a stream that runs from one end of the store to the other! I have no more words to describe this magnificent landmark.


The next most recent event has been a farewell to the car washing and retrieval position I held at Lexus of Louisville. To make a long story short: Managment does not communicate well and therefore my benefits were screwed up, meaning I would have to wait until Feb to have benefits. This was not going to work for me, so I decided to pursue something that could offer me better pay, and a better benefits package for my family. I know that I will now have to work full-time to achieve these goals, but I have decided that family comes first, and school will get done at a little slower pace than expected. God has already provided some opportunities and interviews, so this process should go quickly.

Courtney is officially ready to pop. She can't get much bigger. Little Acevedo has dropped, in my opinion, and we should have an arrival in the next 10 days. But i'm no doctor, so who knows. Thank you all for your prayers this far in her pregnancy, and continue to pray please for a short, safe delivery.

Along with the winds of change will be a retirement of "The Great Move" as the current blog. With such a big change in our family, I will be starting a new title on the Acevedo blogspot, so be on the lookout for that in the coming weeks.

I miss 72 degree weather and all the friends and family that have gone with Thanksgiving the past 18 years. Kyle, I hope you still had band thanksgiving. Momma, I really can't wait for some rice and beans when you get here! JP, (read with a Strongbad voice) I tink you need to come visit me, and uhhh, u should bring da wife and da kid too! Dat would be suhweeet!

Keep on keeping on

Well, we are drawing close to the time warp I will refer to as the rest of November and December. There are only 2 weeks of classes left in this first semester here at Seminary. Thanksgiving is approaching, which means vegging out in Georgetown next to the furnace in the Mud Room. Can't wait for that!!! And not to soon around the corner is going to be the birth of my son. God has granted me some peace about the whole labor and delivery process. I have finally met Courtney's doctor, and she is very nice. That and a pleasant hospital tour have probably contributed to feeling more comfortable about the whole thing.

I have been able to do some work on the Ole K5. Got the rear springs in, and added the remote starter solenoid. That will allow me to start the truck after its warmed up, which it didnt want to do previously. Next I plan on rewelding the rear spring perches (with the help of a tech at my job who can weld) and replacing the driver front outer axleshaft. Once that stuff is completed, Project K5 should be ready for an inagural run to the trail. I am hoping to get that in before little Acevedo gets here. Oh, and hoping to have that all ready for when Chad decides to come visit!

More blogging to come soon!

Project K5

Well, I was hesitant to post about this, but since I hinted about it in a past post, I suppose I will elaboate some. Project K5 is the recent old car project I have started, with a Blue 1973 Chevrolet K5 Blazer. This is a full-size pickup with a fully removable top, 350 V-8, All-Time 4 Wheel Drive, 6" suspension lift and 33" Super Swamper tires. It is what you could call a rednecks dream. It has some rust, and needs a little TLC, but overall the truck is worth the investment, in my opinion. It won't be a daily driver, but if it ever had to be, I would just need to prepare myself for 8mpg!

I have set myself a reasonable budget with some of the money I made selling my Honda motorcycle. After calculating everything the vehicle needs to be dependable on the road, or off the road, I have come up with the following mods.

- New rear springs and spring perches.
- Engine TLC (oil change, valve cover gaskets, new air filter, general clean up.
- Passenger floorpan, and general interior cleanup.
- Remote starter soleniod modification.
- Rear window handle.

It may need some other areas of attention along the way like brake lines, brake pads, differential fluid changes, and other maintenance stuff that has been neglected over the years. The truck runs pretty good, and it has been on the road recently to get a vehicle inspection (stupid kentucky laws) without a problem. Like I said, it seems to just have been neglected over the years, and taken off road a bit. The picture is the most recent I have, and isnt that good cause it was taken with my phone.

In other news, Courtney is doing just fine in the last few weeks of her pregnancy. We can't believe it has gone this fast. I am hoping to get most of the big work done to the Blazer in the next week or 2 before finals and the arrival of my son. Shouldnt be a problem since I can use the shop where I work to do whatever I need to, within the timeframe of a saturday. The weather here has taken a turn for the COLD!!! Tonight the low is 40. It didnt get any warmer than 52 today. Add rain to that mix and you have a recipe for COLD!!!! Enough said. Still miss everyone! Dont miss the threat of hurricanes though. My prayers are with you.

Alex

Peace

Well, thank you all for the words of encouragement in your comments to the last post. God has granted me peace as of now, and revealed to me that I am a Christian first, a Husband second, and soon to be a father third. Everything else will come after that. I have been wrestling with some other decisions regarding how to line those priorities up correctly in my life. So when you pray, if you could ask God to be glorified in how He leads me, that would be awesome! My seminary journey so far has done leaps and bounds for my bible intake and prayer disciplines. I think this has been a big contribution to the peace I have been granted. Thanks for prayin!

In other news... The holidays are quickly approaching, and that means I will get to see family soon! Dad comes in November, and Mom, Tony, Elijah, and Melanie are coming Mid-December. I am very excited. This has technically been the furthest I have been away from my family for an extended period of time. So it will be good to see them! We will also get to spend time in the country with Courtney's mom during thanksgiving and christmas. MMMM..... Warm Fires and Hot Chocolate.... mmmmm......

Courtney is doing very good. We only have 3 more Bradley classes left, and those have been great! We have learned so much about the birthing process, that I think we will be prepared for whatever decisions that come our way during labor and delivery. Little Acevedo likes to sit on mommy's right side, and he is in perfect position. Courtney has just passed the 8 month mark, so that is exciting as well. Check out her belly!

That about wraps it up for now... Our little puppy Toby had a recent vet visit, and weighed in at 84.3 lbs. Its costing me more to feed him than myself, but he's SOOOO cute! Oh, I sold my motorcycle for personal safety concerns once I become a father, and have taken on a new hobby (like I will have time after december... HAHA!) I am looking to buy a 1973 Chevy K5 Blazer, to play in the mud with! Fun Fun Fun! More to come soon.

Calling

So what is it? No, not in general.... WHAT IS MINE????

This question is starting to plague me. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am supposed to be here in Seminary, now. But what happens when I'm done? What will $13,000 of education be used for? Perhaps I need to evaluate this question seriously. Was God calling Courtney and I to move from Orlando to clear our debts, and our schedules, for a divine purpose? I believe he did. However, as much as I am learning and growing and enjoying seminary, will this be what I do for the next 4 years? Or, what will I do when I am finished?

Sometimes I need to get my thoughts out onto a peice of virtual-paper. One of the hardest things to leave behind in Orlando besides friends and family was worship. I haven't been apart of leading worship since we left. After tonight's David Crowder Concert, the longing to minister to people through music has become enough to make me explode. No, I don't want to be David Crowder. Yes, I want to have the impact on my generation that he is having. I don't know what all that entails, but I know where I have come from, and it is a bit frustrating to not see where the road is leading.

God's plans are perfect. Mine are not. Perhaps it is time to die to my plans so that I might live out His. What is tough about that is knowing when He has laid out the plans before you or when you have concated a playbook by yourself and called it 'inspired'.

Ahh... Friends

Well, first of all, thank you to all those who have contributed thier links to thier blogs! I will make sure and get them all updated soon. I only wish there was more time in the day to read what all is happening with everyone who I have links for! Seminary reading can be a bear, not to mention 10 hours of washing and parking cars 3 times a week, child-birthing classes with Courtney, and ping-pong at the Rec Center!

Speaking of which, MAN IT WAS GOOD TO SEE YOU AARON! Tonight Matt, Aaron and I hung out at the Rec Center on campus at the seminary playing ping-pong and pool, just kinda wasting the time away. It was a good reminder of how much I miss my peeps back in O-town. But since Aaron will be up here for school next August, I guess I won't have to miss him that much longer! (Wink, wink) But it was neat to have a friend 'visit' me (but he was really visting his sister) in our new location. So, ARON, glad you got to come up here, hope you enjoyed Dr. P's class, and tell all my peeps who dont read this back in O-Town that I said WHAZZZUP!!

Con Mucho Amor!
Alex

Blogger Friends

Well, I have learned in the past 12 hours that many of my friends have joined the world of internet journaling, more commonly know as blogging! Very cool indeed. This will make the evening trip through cyberspace more interesting, indeed. So check out the links to friends (yes, Al Mohler is my friend!) blogs. More to come soon.... The Great Move may be laid to rest as a new chapter in the life of the Acevedo's is about to begin in December. More on that soon too!!!

Peace, love, and Soul Grease!

A

And the beat goes on....

Life... Never does it seem normal... but at least we are getting into a routine. But that will all change when little baby Acevedo gets here. Today, for some reason, I have become frightenly aware of how much our lives are about to change in December. Take this for example... on Saturday afternoon, Courtney and I were able to get in a little siesta. That will SOOO not happen with a baby in the apartment. I mean... even getting the chance to sit here and blog might become a rare event... (not that I am all that great with keeping it up). Anyway, just some things I have been considering as parenthood peers around the corner.

Not much else happening up here. I might be headed to the Gulf Coast late this month to help with hurricae relief as we have a week off of school. I can't stand not helping. Plus, God blessed me with a chainsaw and a generator and a trailer to load up with supplies. Can't let that stuff just sit around, ya know!

A

Recent Events

Hello to all. Courtney has made it home safe from her trip to Florida to help her brother and sister move into thier new college apartments. Momma is getting big, so that might have been her last trip before our little boy gets here.

Louisville life is not too bad. We had the windy rain associated with Katrina on Tuesday, and today was nice. I am actually upset cause I made a post last night about my thoughts as to what all is happening in our country, and it didn't load for some reason. I will give you the jist of it...

Basically I was upset tuesday morning because my feet were soaked from parking cars at Lexus in the rain. Later that day, a man on the labor crew that is installing tile into our shop had a seizure, and that made me realize how selfish I was to be upset at a wet pair of shoes. This was topped off by coming home and reading about the utter devistation of the Louisana and Mississippi shore from Katrina.

I encourage you all to pray not "if" you should help the victims of this event, but instead pray "how" can I help! I recently read that the city of New Orleans will be shut down for 2-3 months. We thought we had it bad when Hurrican Charley came around and we lost power for 3 days. Some have lost everything, including loved ones. I also beg you before you complain about how much it hurts to put $3/gallon gas in your car, to know that there are people who would pay dearly to have 5 gallons of gas at that price simply to get out of the devistated area.

"You are not making a sacrifice if it does not cost you something to give" - Unknown


Alex

La Escuela Theologica

And they're off!!! Class has finally begun at THE Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. I have enrolled in 'Into to Church History, Intro to Christian Philosophy, and 'Personal Spiritual Disciplines.' And somehow, as amazing as these classes have been this first week of school, I find myself in another class as well. My wife has enrolled us in a 'Bradley Method' class that meets for the next 12 weeks on Sunday afternoons. We are very interested in a drug-free birth, God willing. Also, the class will teach us (mostly me) more about the birthing process, and what will be expected of me. I am somewhat uneducated about this whole thing, and I think this class will be great for us (mostly me). Courtney is going to learn relaxation techniques, and some of them we learned this past week helped her sleep better this week. So praise for that!

What is amazing about seminary classes is that each class starts with prayer and scripture reading. Now, to the graduate of a regular ole' university like me, this is wierd the first time, but extremely refreshing as each class begins. I am also faced with the fact that I sit under men who are spiritual monsters, and I am going to be reading books by men who are spiritual giants! That is somewhat intimidating, but still really exciting. I have a long way to go the next 4 (or 5) years, but the journey our family will have will be exciting, for sure.

As cool and fun and exciting as being here is, we still have a void in our hearts from leaving friends and family behind. This weblog may become more weekly than daily, due to the expectations of wife, school, work, and so on. But I would like everyone to keep in touch! We miss you dearly.

The Aces

Street Rod Nationals

I have to say, even though we just became apart of the Louisville population, this town has sure proved that there is plenty going on. This weekend is the Street Rod Nationals, which is held at the Kentucky Fair and Expo Center. This joker is like a HUGE event, estimated to bring in some $15 million in revenue to the city. So Courtney and I paid our dues, and went to see some pretty neat street rods. The coolest by far was the working fire engine, which was for sale... For only $6500... No... I cant... But....

Posted above are some other pictures of oldies. It was a neat thing to see, and even if we had spent the whole day there we would have not seen it all. I mean, come on... how can someone see 12000 street rods in one day?

A

The Latest

Well, who would of thought that washing luxury vehicles all day would make you sore? Not too sore, but sore enough to know that I am sore. Hahaha! I started my job as a valet at Lexus of Louisville monday. It's a pretty cool job. I basically drive cars around the lot once a customer brings it in for service, and help the guys at the wash when its busy. Wonder what it will be like in the winter?

I also registered for school. I will be taking 3 classes, and the guys at Lexus are going to work me around my school schedule, which is great.

Courtney and I went to a drive-in movie last saturday. Yes, I said drive-in movie. We saw Stealth, with Jamie Foxx. It was pretty good, but I am a sucker for military jets anyway. I also tried a 'fried oreo.' What an experience that was. It was pretty good, and I had no idea you could serve an oreo like that. Courtney had to pee like 4 times, so she was in and out for the whole movie. We are gonna go back this weekend for the opening of 'The Dukes of Hazzard.' We were a bit unprepared, because most people bring lawn chairs, coolers, even mattresses to make thier experience more comfortable. It was still a lot of fun though.

Thats all for now. Gotta go wash some more cars today. Thursdays are my day off, so I look forward to that. PEACE

A

baby acevedo

Its gonna be a BOY!!! How exciting is that. And the little bugga wasn't afraid to show his manhood off for the camera today. The ultrasound today keeps the due date for Dec 5th. And little baby Acevedo is just about 1 lb. He's got a long way to catch his daddy! Everything looked good, according to the RN. A big sigh of relief came as well, cause we had a chance that there would be twins in there.

Momma is doing great. She is not sick anymore. We are getting settled in the apartment here, and I will start work next week at Sam Swope Lexus/BMW. I get to park da cars! Its not much, but it will pay the bills and give me insurance. School will start Aug 15, and I will get to register for classes on the 1st. Thats all for now. More to come soon

Alex

Almost there

Well, I sit here at my desk.. PC all setup in the new apt... Mac on my desk as well... and no internet still.. I am still using my phone as of today to connect to the internet, and hopefully tomorrow I will be up and running in the high speed world again. Post more then...

Alex

The Great Move Revisited

Sorry for the long pause since the last post, but time to sit and write has become scarce. Tonights blog will be the last from this great country town of Sadieville. Tomorrow we will embark on the 1 hour journey to Louisville, to move into our apartment. Today was the day from hell, mostly because we had to load the moving truck (I just did this three weeks ago!) in the middle of the day and it was approximately 98.342 degrees. But much love to Mike, who drove over from Louisville just to help me pack, and drive back when we were done. Took about 4 hours, but I'm really glad that part is over. Tomorrow we will take our time unloading as to not pass out from heat stroke. I will be home a week after that and will start my new job on the 1st of August.

I still miss you all. Look forward to hearing from you once life starts to get normal again. PEACE

Alex

finally some pictures

Well, I sit here in my Tahoe outside the Lock and Key, one of 3 coffee shops here in Georgetown. I had lunch here earlier today and realized once I got home that I could have loaded some pictures, so I came back to do so and here they are. I will do my best to explain them...

Here are some pictures of the house where we have been staying for the past 2 weeks. There is also a pic in there of my tahoe which I really like! And there is also a shot a Caleb and Toby in the kitchen of thier temporary home. There will be more to come soon.

A

progress

Whew! What a day!

So, after 2 weeks of extended vacation here at the Smith Ranch, the wheels have finally started turning in the forward direction with this move to Louisville. Today Courtney and I drove into Louisville to meet Raleigh (the artist formally know as RJ) and his lady friend for lunch. We had a half hour to kill so we stopped in to see our realtor, Jerry. Turns out that while Jerry was in Florida securing his property for the approaching tropical disturbances, he recieved a few phone calls from guys looking for seminary students to hire. One of these job openings happen to be at the Lexus dealership in town... Long story short; I went to Old Navy to buy an outfit for my unexpected interview today where I was offered a Valet/Porter position, which will be flexible with my school schedule, and give me benefits, and let me drive really expensive cars. WOOHOO!!!

So I guess the past few days have been a lesson in active faith. I knew God was going to provide the things we needed, but I wasn't being very active in searchig after Him, or the things I needed. (Yes, in that order) So to back up the story a bit, yesterday I had an interview with UPS in Lexingtonand could have had a job there, but could not have transfered to Louisville for 1 year... That would not have worked. But it was a step in seeking a job, instead of being lazy (which is easy to do in the country). Then, today, a job offer falls into my lap, along with a decent apartment that we can afford and that will take Toby.

God always promises to be faithful. But he never said just sit around and let me pour everything into your lap and make it easy for you. Faith without works is dead. Faith not being lived is not faith at all. It is merely belief. Pretty cool lesson, and one that I needed to learn.

As soon as I get to a high speed connection, I will post pictures and such. I still miss you guys. My poor Les Paul has only been out of the case once in 2 weeks. Guess thats the breaks when all your stuff is in storage!

Papi

TOBY!

Well this post wont totally be about toby, but that TERD decided to take caleb and chase deer into the woods last night... I was inside when this happened, and Court was supposed to be watching them, but she was involved in her cell phone conversation... I was in the middle of racking up 175,000 points on Pro Skater 4 (ahh, the country life) when the distress call came inside that the dogs were missing. I got up and checked the first place i'd thought they'd go: down the driveway. Now mind you, I have spent the past 2 weeks on a 36 acre wooded piece of property. So there is PLENTY of room for Toby to run and not be seen.

Well, long story short, Toby and Caleb were completely down the hill, way in the woods. Luckily, you can hear a pin drop out here so once I called them on the opposite side of the house that the driveway is on, I could hear em truckin through the woods... Then Toby, what a fruit, comes out of the woods, see's me, and bark's at me like Im a stranger! OH MY!

So my attack German Shepherd is scared of everything (including toads now) except deer, including my shadow coming from the top of the hill. Gotta love em!

The house/job hunt continues to be a fun experience. No certain direction yet. I have plans I can go with, but my plans will fail if they are not in line with God's plans so I just wait patiently. That's the best I can do at this point. Thanks again for praying! The reality of moving away from everyone becomes more and more real every day. So know that I miss you all. Don't be afraid to call whenever, cause not much happens here at this point.

PEACE

A

Independence Day

The 4th of July. Didn't see any fireworks today except for the pic Aaron sent me from his phone. Thanks ARON! DONT BUY THE SUNBURST TELE!!! Sorry, back on track. It's all good though, cause I got to see some the other night. There is a lady that lives around here that Challee calls the 'Leather Lady' cause her tan is so dark her skin looks like leather. She has some shindig at her place which is like a mile down the road, and had firework there, so we could see em from our place. For the middle of nowhere, they were pretty nice fireworks. I have some pics to post here of the zoo and the house and such, but it's kinda hard to do on a slow internet connection. So I will figure out something here soon. I think there is a coffeeshop in Georgetown, so i will hit it up this week.

Got some decisions that need to be made here soon. Your prayers are appreciated. Did I mention that it is FRIGGEN HOT up here???????

What a Zoo!

I must say, while no monkey's threw any poo today, the Cincinnati Zoo was pretty cool. I will post some pics here soon. The coolest thing I saw today were the vampire bats. More than that, the food for the vampire bats was the best... 2 bowls of blood. Now I know that might sound creepy or whatever, but I thought I was neat. You just dont see that every day.

I aslo never knew that a 1 year old screams for fun. Nor did I know that a 1 year old enjoys making herself vomit. I am referring to Aleyace, the 1 year old niece of Jim, who lives up here with Challee. She is very cute, and very loud, and like to choke herself a LOT. Today was her first trip to the zoo, and she fell asleep 3/4 of the way thru it. I think she enjoyed it though. Nothing like Sea World or Busch Gardens, but it was still fun.

More pictures to follow here soon. Happy 4th to all.

With or Without You

I can't live with or without you. Thank you Bono and The Edge... As Kyle has put it, a life without Christ is no life at all; but a life lived in Christ does not belong to us. Of the 1026 songs currently on my powerbook, that song just nailed it for me. I need to quit believing that I moved to KY for my own benefit or gain. The life I live is not my own, but was purchased with a price. AMEN!

Saw lots of property today. There are some SWEET homes in Louisville. Anything from sophisticated neighborhoods, to country plantations. Very nice. If I was moving up here to work full-time, I would buy a really nice house on like 5-10 acres of property. But since I am not here for my own benefit, I will wait for what God has in store... I am almost sure that will be better than anything I could pick out.

Funny side note... Wal-Mart's here in KY are not the ghetto-redneck safe havens they are in Florida (and Georgia for that matter). Here the Walmart's have clean floors, neat isles, happy cashiers, fresh produce... It's like someone took a Target, painted over all the red with blue, and put the little rollback smiley-face guy everywhere instead of the bullseye... pretty neato I must say.

Anyways, we are off to the Cincinatti Zoo tomorrow. Should be fun. I plan on hanging out with the monkeys for a while. See if I can get one to fling poo or something... :P

Well

Funny how you think you know the way things will go if you do these other things, and it ends up begin totally different than you expected. Obedience is a somewhat tough pill to swallow sometimes. We have convinced ourselves that we are being obedient only when things are going smooth. Perhaps obedience is quite the opposite. The surrender of one's self to a will that is not your own, for a glory that you cannot take part in. That would be considered obedience. Must once suffer to be obedient? After all, obedience is laying down that which you want to do, and taking up what you have been told to do. But is suffering considered not being happy? Discontentment with one's current circumstances does not necessarily mean that he or she is suffering. At least I dont think so.

That is a bit off the subject, but somewhat right on with how I feel today. Nothing bad has happened, and nothing tragic is going on... I just don't feel like I have established my place in Kentucky yet. No home, no job, living with mom-in-law; this is not how I imagined it. But I know that with time these things will put themselves into place. Patience is hard to come by when you live in such a 'have-it-now' culture.

Today we will go look at houses. There are lots of nice home builders in Lousiville, and very affordable too. We'll see what happens. Been in the house too long too, that might be why my mind is running overtime. A day out will do Courtney and I some good. Courtney is doing good. She had a bit of the stomach bug (non-preggo kind) that lasted a day. But I really haven't heard her say anything about her stomach bothering her since then. Perhaps it was the last hoorah for the preggo sickness! YIPEE!!!

Sure do home someone is checkin these blogs out. If not, at least I am keeping a journal now. :P

The night that blogging began...

Well, here I am. I am finally giving into the world of blogging so that all of you back in O-town (Oviedo or Orlando... whatever) can see whats going on in the life of... Today I did some work around the massive 36 acre property my mother-in-law (Challee) owns. For those of you who like googlemaps... i am in Sadieville, KY right now... transitioning to Lousiville sometime in late July.

So mad props to Jimmy and Ruth and especially Dad for helping Courtney and I get up here. That drive would have been a nightmare without you guys. I think we set a record for slowest time to Atlanta in a whopping 12 hours.. long story.... maybe next blog...

Does anyone know why male shih-tzu's like to hump dogs almost 15x's thier size??? Poor Caleb has been the trophy to be won since we got here...

Thats probably all for now... I am tired, and I'm sure tomorrow wil be busy with errands. Thanks in advance for your prayers. I will do me best to keep this thing updated. Miss you all.