BEing Designed by Christ

Top 10 2010 Movies - His Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 02:38:00 +0000

Top 10 2010 Movies—His Edition

For a movie lover, this our March Madness, it's Summer Blockbuster Season! Every year, I have a list, published or not, of the movies I would like to see over the summer. Some years are bigger than others, but there is still "The List" nevertheless. This may be a slower year (in my opinion) but I'm pumped regardless. Below is my Top Ten movies. Hopefully in the next few days, my wife will put out her Top Ten list. Enjoy and criticize. ;)

THE KARATE KID
(June 11th)

It's only because of my love of the the original (yes, I said "love") that this one made the list. I used to cry when Daniel-san pulled off the Crane Technique against Jonny. Classic. While there is no-way this 2010 version will ever be able to conjure up such emotion, I would still like to see Jackie Chan and Will and Jada Smith's son Jaden portray the mentor/student story.

PREDATORS
(July 9th)

I believe my reasoning for Predators making the list is my current stint as Mr. Mom. Don't get me wrong, I've always enjoyed the Predators series but they've never been a near must-see for me. I think this is my way of countering poopie-diapers and Sesame Street with some good old fashioned gore.

THE A-TEAM
(June 11th)

The A-Team at number eight stem's from my growing up in the 80s. I remember watching the A-Team and their sweet van. Mr. T. was always my favorite. I'll always recall stumbling upon a B.A. Baracus action figure my mom had tried to hide before Christmas. So while this movie will probably do okay at the box office considering it's another 80s remake, it's still one I'd like to see.

ROBIN HOOD
(May 14th)

Ridley Scott and Russel Crowe have always gone together like Bert and Ernie...Argh... I told I have Sesame Street on the brain. Anyway, I like the story of Robin Hood and whether it's Disney retelling the classic with an animated fox and a bear or Kevin Costner brandishing a mullet and a bad British accent, I've enjoyed every version. I'm counting on the same with this latest installment.

DESPICABLE ME
(July 9th)

Hmmm...what do I say about this one? It's Dreamworks, Steve Carell, and has a Spy vs. Spy feel to it. A movie where you're routing for one villain to overtake the other is creative and I'd like to be apart of it.

THE EXPENDABLES
(August 13th)

If you had to come up with an All-Star team of action heroes from the past three decades, this would be it:

Sylvester Stallone
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Bruce Willis
Dolph Lundgren
Jet Li
Jason Statham
Randy Couture
Steve Austin
Danny Trejo
Mickey Rourke

Throw in Old Spice’s latest spokesperson Terry Crews for good measure, and I've got my fix of testosterone.

THE OTHER GUYS
(August 6th)

Will Ferrell as a cop. Need I say more?

SHREK - THE FINAL CHAPTER
(May 21st)

Despite the professional critics disliking the way the Shrek saga has gone, I have loved it. And despite the story have been told before (the alternate universe of "I have never met you even though you say you know me"), I'm looking forward to the Shrek-take on it. The animation, the cast of voices, the humor, and most recently the soundtrack (Led Zeppelin, The Ramones, and Harry Chapin to name a few) has got me hooked.

IRON MAN 2
(May 7th)

Iron Man is a surprising number two for me. Not because it didn't make number one, but because it reached number two. Believe it or not, I'm not an Iron Man fan. Reason? The comics. Tony Stark is a womanizing arrogant jerk who I still resent and blame for the death of Captain America. (See the Civil War saga and the fallout.) All that said, I really enjoyed the first Iron Man movie. So until movie persona of Iron Man catches up with his comic ego, I'll be an Iron Man fan.

TOY STORY 3
(June 18th)

And the number one movie of 2010 that I want to see is...ta-da...Toy Story 3. (Kind of anti-climactic, I know.) My reasoning for this easily being number one, is not because of me, but my son. He has never been to a movie that he can remember and for him to see his friends Buzz and Woody up on the big screen with several other people, in stadium seating enjoying a rare treat of candy and pop is one I can't help but get excited for.

This is movie going in it's purest form. A form I can only imagine happened when people only saw one movie each summer. It's an event. It's a first date with your eventual spouse. It's something to be remembered and cherished. Being able to experience this with my son is in a league of it's own. This is why movies should be made.

So whether it's crying at the end of a campy movie (Karate Kid) or wanting to experience a movie's in's and out's (Star Wars), movies should leave a memorable impression. It doesn't matter whether the public doesn't think the movie is worth the film it's put on, if you love it, you love it and that's all that matters. I'm going to experience that love of a movie with my son and I can't wait.

—b

And The Winner Is...

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 03:08:00 +0000

JORDAN!

My guilty pleasure for the summer, Big Brother, had is finale tonight! I'm happy to report that one of my two favorite players won - Jordan! And Jeff, my other favorite player, won the America's Vote and $25,000! Not bad for 70+ days work :)

I love this time of year, and for those of you who know me well, know that I love my TV shows. I'm very emotional about the ones that I'm dedicated to - Bernt can definitely atest to this! I've decided to tell you about the shows I'm most excited about this Fall season because who really doesn't want to hear all about my obsessions...

Monday Night - Castle on ABC
This is a drama about a writer and detective who must team up to solve the 'mystery' each week. I've loved Nathan Fillion, one of the stars of the show, ever since he was on Two Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Place. I'm so excited that this show got picked up for a second season!

Tuesday Night - The Biggest Loser on NBC
This and Big Brother are my favorite reality shows! Bob and Jillian, heart-wrenching stories, and an amazing amount of weight loss - need I say more? I was so excited to watch the season premire tonight! With only 1 episode down, I'm going to predict that either Daniel or Abby is going to win. We'll have to wait a few more months to see if I'm right!

Wednesday Night - Glee on FOX
This is probably the show I've been the most excited about! Singing, singing, some more singing, throw in a bit of drama, and you have the making of a great show! Bernt is pretty sick of the song Don't Stop Believing that they debuted on the first episode - sorry honey!

Thursday Night
This gets tricky. I love Grey's Anatomy on ABC, but Bernt and I are both pretty obsessed with The Office on NBC as well. The both start at 8:00, so Bernt graciously lets me watch Grey's 'live' and then we usually watch The Office online later that night or the next day.

Friday Night - Monk and Psych on USA Network
These are both summer/winter shows, and actually, Monk will be done after this summer :( They are both fun family shows, and surprisingly, Bernt and I both love them. It's a nice way to start the weekend.

Saturday
Usually movie night at the Eidsmoe's. We love our Redbox!

Sunday
Is anyone as excited as I am that Football Season is back!?! From January till August, Bernt and I are totally at a loss for what to watch on Sundays. We both love our teams - Go Pack Go - (sorry Bernt) and can't wait until October 5th! I think it is the Packers year - Go Rodgers - and I really think that Favre is done. Just my personal opinion :)

That's about it! I hope you all enjoyed an insight into my life after the kids are in bed :) Happy TV watching everyone!

Little Miss Ellie

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:03:00 +0000

Ellie's been eating cereal for awhile now, and we are slowing starting to introduce her to fruits and vegetables. I know what you're thinking - she's almost 8 months old are you're just starting this now! In my defense, we've had a busy summer. I know it's a flimsy excuse, but it's all I got :)

Anyway, we've tried carrots a couple of times with no success, so I decided to give it another go yesterday. She was not very happy with me, in fact, she physically removed the spoon from her mouth with her hand! Then the fun really started. She gagged herself and then proceed to throw-up her entire dinner all over herself and the highchair! When I told you she didn't like carrots, I was not exaggerating! Needless to say, I don't think we will be trying carrots again for awhile ;)

Ellie's also at that stage where she'll grab anything she can get her little hands on, especially my glasses. I don't necessarily want my glasses totally bent out of shape, so I've started telling her no when she grabs them. Enter another thing that she strongly dislikes! Anytime I tell her no, she bursts out in tears and a pout bigger than I've ever seen before. I have a feeling we are going to have a very opinionated little girl on our hands - we are in trouble!

I'll leave you with a cute little video taken at the Twins game 2 weeks ago. Ellie is all full of smiles and is really enjoying grandpa hat!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Almost Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 21:42:00 +0000

Minnesota's Cash for Clunkers Program

Weekend in Pictures

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 22:38:00 +0000

We had a fun filled weekend - Grandma and Grandpa Eidsmoe, Emily, Leif, Cyri and Kayle all came to the Cities to visit this weekend! We went to a Twins game, swimming in the hotel pool, and shopping at the Mall of America. It's so much fun to watch Brevin and Kayle play with each other! Brevin was so sad when we had to leave the hotel on Saturday night - it broke our hearts to watch him cry because he had to leave his cousin. The first thing he talked about Sunday morning was seeing Kayle. It's too bad we live 3 hours away from each other - I see lots of trips to Sioux Falls in our future!

Brevin and Ellie's first Twin's game - they actually won! We got to see a great fight between the Indians coach and an umpire. The coach got kicked out and the crowd was going wild!

Grandma held Ellie pretty much the whole game - Thanks for the break Grandma!

Ellie was obsessed with Grandpa's hat - she laughed and smiled whenever he put it on her!

She didn't last the whole game - all she needed was a quick cat nap though and then she was ready to take in all he surroundings again!

It's a good thing we came prepared - books, books, and more books!

Pool Fun!

Ellie's first time in a pool!

Mama Cyri relaxing poolside. They found out they are having a boy in December - baby Henrick. We are so excited - it was fun going through all of Brevin's old clothes this weekend. They took a full garbage bag home with them!

Checking out Nickelodeon Universe at Mall of America.

Kayle is a pro at making Ellie smile - she's going to be a great big sister!

We always have so much fun when we get together. Thanks for coming everyone, we can't wait to see you all again!

Shakopee Derby Days

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 18:28:00 +0000

I hope everyone had a great weekend - the Eidsmoe's sure did! Saturday afternoon we headed out to Shakopee Derby Days. Here are some pictures that we took - sorry that they aren't the greatest quality.

Brevin did have a great time at the petting zoo. There were cows, horses, geese, rabbits, goats and chickens. The goats loved Brevin and followed him around - it was cute to watch - and he had fun brushing one of the horses! Bernt had a hard time getting any pictures because Brevin's "petting" was a one second touch :)

Ellie loves to swing!

Shakopee has a rally cool playground. This was our first time experiencing it, but I know it won't be the last! Brevin loves climbing and he went up and down the steps to the slide at least 20 times before he finally went down.

He got Elmo painted on his arm - the boy loves him some Sesame Street! Unce JJ also made an appearance to hang out with us. Brevin sure does love his uncle :)

Daddy and his little girl.

Getting ready to head home. Spidey was compliments of Uncle JJ, and Brev absolutely loves it! He was really excited that he got a sucker, too!

We headed to church Sunday morning - it was sure nice to be back. We've been out of town the majority of Sundays so far this summer. We went to Eden Prairie Center after church to check out the sales at Kohl's and Children's Place. I was able to find some great deals on summer clothes for the kids next summer - I love great deals! I also got my haircut, something I've been looking forward to for awhile now. I'll have to take a picture and post it tomorrow because I'm sure you're all just dying to see it!

House cleaning calls, and since Ellie is sleeping and Brevin is watch Elmo's Christmas Countdown (for whatever reason, he's obsessed with this movie right now - we've watched it the past 3 days now!) I should take advantage of the free time.

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 15:43:00 +0000

So far we've had a really lazy Saturday morning. It's been a nice change from our normally super busy weekends we've had lately. This weekend, Shakopee is having Derby Day. It's basically a city wide celebration with lots of activities for the community, parades and fireworks tonight. There is a petting zoo this afternoon that we're hoping Brevin will enjoy. It's either going to be a big hit or a disaster - it's hard to know what he's going to be afraid of these days! Hopefully we'll get some good pictures to share with you!

Here are a few pictures because lets face it, that's the real reason you're reading this!

Ellie's been eating cereal for about a month now, but we've recently introduced her to bananas and carrots. She's not really a fan of either, but especially not the carrots - as is apparent by this picture.

Brevin is really into stickers, or bandaid as he likes to refer to them!

It's hard to belive that Ellie is a few days shy of 7 months old! When did she get old enough to sit all by herself?

Brevin got his first t-ball set from the Johnson grandparents for his birthday. Do we have a future Brewer or Twins on our hands?

Brevin and Ellie have started taking baths together - super cute!

We went to the MN Zoo with Leif, Cyri and Kayle over Father's Day weekend. Isn't this a precious moment between cousins!

Leaving you will a couple shots of Ellie chilling in her stroller and playing with her feet - a very common occurance!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Giving a go at the blogging world!

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 15:00:00 +0000

After months of no entries by Bernt, I've decided to give this blogging thing a try! I probably won't be as funny or clever as him, but I will do my best to keep you all updated on our 2 kiddos, who are pretty amazing if I do say so myself!

Life has been super busy for the Eidsmoe's the past few months. It at culminated last weekend with my sisters wedding. It's still hard to believe that my baby sister is married! Brevin and Ellie were the ring bearer and flower girl - they pretty much stole the show as Bernt walked them down the ailse. Here are a few pictures...

I had the honor of being Danae's Matron of Honor. I was so excited that I got to stand next to her on this special day. Thanks Danae - I love you so much!

Here's Bernt walking Brevin and Ellie down the ailse. Don't they look just adorable! I couldn't get enough of them and their outfits :)

Here's a picture of the happy couple - Scott and Danae Greely!

Here's a family photo! We're all looking pretty good :)

This is what happens when a 2-year old doesn't get his normal nap. I think he took about 2 bites of a roll and he was out for the next 1.5 hours! Made for some cutes pictures though :)

Here's the kiddos dancing away at the reception!

Here's a link to all of our photos from the weekend: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=95407&id=616017829&l=87572d144

I'm going to keep this post short because I'm not even sure it's going to work! If it does, I'll do my best to keep this updated with pictures of the kids, if nothing else!

Believing God on Election Day

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 09:53:00 +0000

I don't know what I'd do without music at work. Whether it's listening to certain albums, playlists, or just hitting the shuffle button, I crave the melody. It's not only music which I enjoy listening to.

Podcasts are also essential. For those of you who are unaware of what a podcast is, Wikipedia defines them as:

A podcast is a series of audio or video digital-media files which is distributed over the Internet by syndicated download, through Web feeds, to portable media players and personal computers.

Basically, it's a radio show subscription. When a new show is available my iTunes will download it.

Some of the regular podcasts I'm currently enjoying are: ESPN fantasy football, 93X morning sports update, Pastor Mark Driscoll (Mars Hill church) sermons, and Pastor John Piper's (Bethlehem Baptist church) sermons.

With the election upon us, one of Mr. Piper's sermon's from a previous election (Bush vs. Dukakis) titled "Believing God on Election Day" was posted. The message is just as relevant today as it was then. After all, when you're preaching from God's Word, it's always current.

Preaching from Daniel 4:28–37, the following is taken from that sermon:

God Will Choose the President on Tuesday

2 Things That Does Not Mean
It doesn't mean, don't bother voting. God will choose the president by choosing who votes. If you want to be an instrument in His hand, vote. If you don't, then don't. Don't ever draw the conclusion from the sovereignty of God that inactivity is rational, it is irrational.
The second thing it does not mean is that God will approve of the policies of the man that gets elected. This is extrodinarily crucial to understand. The sovereign rule of God over sinful man is no endorsement of their deeds. Stor that away as it applies to a dozen areas of life. His (God's) purposes are very strange (to us).
2 Things That Does Mean
It means that the winner should not boast. He should not be like Nebuchadnezzar at state one who said 'by my power, by my ingenuity', I've gotten myself this Presidency. If he does, let us weep and pray.
You and I, whether our candidate gets elected or not, should be mightily confident and encouraged that God reigns and His purposes will be accomplished in this world. Every knee will bow and every tounge confess someday that Jesus, and nobody else, is Lord.

Also, here is John with a four minute "talk" summarizing his "Let Christians Vote as Though They Were Not Voting" blog post.

I found Mr. Piper's words extremely encouraging. As, if I let myself, can make too big of deal of the election. After all, no matter who is President, God reigns!

—b

Revenge of the Ref!

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 20:00:00 +0000

The following clip is from the LSU vs South Carolina game this past Saturday. Now typically it's the referee who is the one who gets hit. Behold the referee's revenge!

Could it be the ref has had enough badgering and decided to take matters in his own hands? Or did LSU dress one of their own players in a referee's outfit? For all we know, there could be a poor college referee tied up and gagged in a locker somewhere. Has anyone heard a "Zebra Alert" being issued recently? (If you got that last reference, I'm impressed.)

Enjoy the rest of your Tuesday!

—b

Congrats Danae & Scott!

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 21:33:00 +0000

Last night Erin got a call from her sister Danae. Nothing out of the ordinary, but when I heard a "What! Bernt, you talk to your sister-in-law!", I was pretty sure what was coming up next. Naener told me the news, her long time boyfriend Scott had just proposed to her. (She said "yes" by the way.) ;)

I think we knew it was coming but it still hit us like a punch from Derrek Boogaard. They have been friends if not dating for a couple of years now so it really shouldn't have hit that hard. I think, for Erin, is her sister has grown up. It doesn't seem real that her sister could be engaged. It makes Erin feel old. Although I should feel ancient by that standard since Danae was born the same year the Minnesota Twins won their first World Series, 1987. (That's the only reason I can remember her birthyear.)

Anyway, congratulations you two! Once we get over the initial shock, it'll seem more real.

For you Riddler's out there...

A man was found murdered on Sunday morning. His wife immediately called the police. The police questioned the wife and staff and got these alibis:

>The Wife said she was sleeping.
>The Cook was cooking breakfast.
>The Gardener was picking vegetables.
>The Maid was getting the mail.
>The Butler was cleaning the closet.

The police instantly arrested the murderer. Who did it and how did they know?

Click on the comments to see the answer.

—b

A Class Divided

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 21:30:00 +0000

One day in 1968, Jane Elliott, a teacher in a small, all-white Iowa town, divided her third grade class into blue-eyed and brown-eyed groups and gave them a daring lesson in discrimination. This is the story of that lesson, its lasting impact on the children, and its enduring power thirty years later.

I had heard and read about this about a year ago. Some people think it's a great idea while others don't agree with how it's carried out. I can't say I'm all for what Jane did but it sure is interesting. If you have the time (about 30 minutes total) this is an interesting watch.

Below is a lower quality YouTube version and the other other four links. But you can view the higher quality, updated version by visiting the official Frontline site by clicking here.

Part 2 • Part 3 • Part 4 • Part 5

What did you think when you watched this? Had you heard of this earlier?

Enjoy your Tuesday night!

—b

The Christian Radio Test

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 19:12:00 +0000

This morning I took our Buick (Josey) to get her oil changed. Every time I bring a vehicle into get looked at, I always like to perform the "Christian Radio Test".

Whether I happen to be listening to the local Christian radio station (KTIS) or not, I always make sure to have the KTIS playing (on a low volume) when I leave the car. Parts of me thinks it might have a positive effect on whom ever turns the car on next, another part of me likes to plug Christian radio (even if they don't necessarily play my taste), but for the most part, I like to see if when I get back in the car, what's playing on the radio.

I would think because the mechanic isn't in the vehicle for very long, they'd leave it be. I have the same mentality when it comes to my seat/steering wheel settings. For the most part, they aren't in the interior of the vehicle to do any work, it's all under the hood. So why should any settings be changed by the time I get back in.

I have been doing this unofficial test for a few years now, and 99.99% of the time, the radio is either turned off, or has been switched to another station. The only exception has been when that particular service station was playing KTIS in the background of their garage.

This morning was no different. By the time I got back in, the Twin Cities classic rock station was playing. I can't say I blame them...but why change the station of someone elses car?

Am I wrong in thinking that's odd? I purposely turn the volume down low enough so that it can still be heard but shouldn't be a distraction. My seat/steering wheel settings have never changed, why the radio? The only thing I can think of concerning the radio being turned off is that it may be a company policy. But actually turning the radio to a different station?

I'm tempted to start leaving the station on a classic rock or something "safe" to see what the results are.

Enjoy your weekend...no matter what you're listening to! ;)

—b

Can You Find the Difference?

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 16:54:00 +0000

(Click to enlarge)

This morning has been one of mass emails. It all started last night as Dana (STEM's editor) emailed me wondering if the cover image on the website was the final version (it has since been changed). My answer was in the affirmative sense but her take on it was a negative one.

Ummm...what?

There was a major error in version #1 that had completely slipped by us all. Can you find it? So this morning, emails and phone calls were flying left and right in what could accurately be described as a "STOP THE PRESSES" situation. We were able to get the problem fixed in time (with an obvious cost) but the crisis has been adverted.

One great aspect of working at STEM is it's strong Godly atmosphere and it all starts with our CEO, Roger. Throughout the entire process he was thanking God for the error to not only come to light, but for it to be revealed in time. No pointing of fingers, tempers flaring, or obscenities streaming. It turned out to be one more way to glorify God!

—b

P.S. If you still can't find the mistake (a spelling error), look at the comments section. Of course after it was pointed out to us, we were all humbled for how obvious it was.

My Cubicle - 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 22:04:00 +0000

A little over a year ago, I posted a blurry 30 second clip of my cubicle. I've gotten a few requests to see my current working conditions so I thought I'd better take the time to do it while I still work at STEM. So with a better camera, I was able to increase the length (2:41) and add audio. Impressive. Most impressive.

Enjoy!

—b

Enjoying Life

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 19:51:00 +0000

Have I mentioned how much I enjoy not getting "owned" by life?

This past weekend we were able to enjoy Grandma and Grandpa Johnson making the trek from Wisconsin. We got to enjoy a Gopher football victory, super-saturating ourselves at the Old Country Buffet, Sunday morning church, and just visiting with one another.

"Enjoy". What a great word.

I'm not going to say much in this post except with the busyness of life recently, I can't say I've really enjoyed going through the past month. Looking back on working constantly, health issues, and an overflowing calendar of events, God has really blessed us in making us appreciate the everyday joys of one another. The fact that I get to be home and actually focus on my wife and son is a huge blessing! Before this past month, I don't know how obvious that would have been to me.

It's not that God has given me a new job (yet), or more wealth, or even more "stuff". All of which we are told we need to enjoy life. He just made it obvious how much I enjoy what He's given me.

Thank you Father for the tough times. And thank you for showing me what I truly have. A life that, because of You, I can enjoy.

—b

...The Dawn Is Coming.

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 17:08:00 +0000

In preparing for this post (obviously my first in far too long), this quote from Harvey Dent from the movie The Dark Knight came to mind. It has been a tough couple of months for the Eidsmoe family and we are now just starting to see the dawn.

Job:
STEM as you know it, is STEM no more. Yes there still is a STEM Int'l, and there will be for at least four more years, but the short-term missions aspect is now under Bethany College of Missions (BCOM). Our main office here is located on the campus of BCOM and have had a loose partnership with them for several years. Recently Roger (STEM's CEO) saw it in STEM's best interest to have the missions side be aquired with BCOM. The current agreement is BCOM would continue STEM's short-term missions through 2012 at which point the division would be evaluated.

This is a great change for STEM Int'l and ultimately for God's glory. By having Bethany aquire the missions side of things, we can reach more people and more places. The STEM staff who worked in Team Operations are still there as well. It's an exciting time to see what God does with the division.

As for the rest of us?

Well, normally this blog suffers anyway this time of year due to Mission Maker Magazine. That was a big part of my absence as it was a tough issue to get out. With Dana (our Editor) now in Tulsa and Arika (our Saleswoman) also not here anymore, several others had to really step up and fill their roles. One of the people who really shined was the other designer, Dena (bigD). This magazine is about 90% her design. And no, I'm not trying to exagerate or be humble, she really did an excellent job.

In the past it had been me who took the lead in flowing articles and getting the layout completed but each year since she's been here (2005) her role has increased. This year I did what she had set up in the past, the GodSpace article. And even then, she gave me a great head start and help finish it. So a BIG thank you goes out to bigD.

Now, back to my original question, what does STEM's transistion mean for the rest us?

All I can answer is, "good question". Without the missions side of things here, we don't have volume of work we once did. We have a book layout in the works but other than that...who knows. As of November 1st, I'll be down to 3 days a week. I'm hoping to fill the time with freelance working with City Vision. There had been some talk of moving the office closer to downtown Minneapolis as well as talk of even staying on campus. Again...who knows.

I'd love to stay with STEM but it doesn't look like a valid option in order to keep food on the table. God has something in mind for me but I'm still waiting for his email. :)

Family:
Since my last post Brevin has:

–Had his first birthday (July 2oth)
–Attempted to say his first words - "Uh-oh" and "Cookie". Although when he says cookie it comes out as "Coo-Caa". We've also sworn he's said Bella only it comes out as "Ba-ba".
–Discovered a heroin-like craving for anything Sesame Street
–Found a love for the Vikings over the Packers despite their horrible season start. (Just checking to see if you are still paying attention.)
–Discovered high-fives and raises his arms when you say "Steve Holt!" (Fans of Arrested Development will get that one.)
–Cut his top two teeth
–Started walking

Updates on Erin:

–She has also started walking. ;)
–Is pregnant with a girl. We have decided to name her Elodia Grace and will call her Ellie. Ellie is due January 8th, which is the same day her namesake, Great grandma Johnson. For those of you curious about the connection, grandma Joyce Elodia Johnson was the same grandma which recently past away.
–Erin has started babysitting two little girls (2 year old Hannah and 9 month old Emma) to help make ends meet.
–Her opinion of Brett Favre has severely been depleted after becoming "Brett the Jet". (For those of you who know her, that's huge!)
–Because of Brevin's heart condition, Erin had a level two ultra sound to check out Ellie from head to toe. Thankfully everything looks normal and we are continuing to pray it stays that way.
–Currently Erin is struggling with an inflamation of the eye called "Eyeritis". Basically it has made her right eye unusable. At it's worst, the white of her eye was almost completely red, it was constantly watering, any light was painful, it caused the area around her eye to swell, she could not keep it open to see, it caused her to have a constant headache, and well...it just plain hurt. After doing everything we could to avoid her taking any type of steriods which we were concerned might hurt Ellie (including Erin getting an injection into her eye), we had to resort to the 'roids. Thankfully we got a few confirmations from a couple doctors saying there won't be any side effects concerning Ellie, but we'd still like Erin to be off the meds. She has since gotten a lot better and has a follow up appointment on Tuesday.
–Next up, jury duty. Hopefully she can get out of it but who knows. I'm trying to convice her to dress up like Chewbacca and maybe that'll scare them away. :)

Life:

–We continue to be involved with church almost to a point of being too involved with church. ;) Hiawatha Church will be our home for a long time and despite gas prices, is worth the 35 minute commute a couple times a week. We recently had our second annual retreat at Camp Shaminau where I was honored to head up the small groups. It was fun diving into what it meant to be "Living Stones".
–Betty the Jeep has since died (although I don't think it will take much to get her running again) and has been sitting in our garage for a while now. While it is a pain to only have one working vehicle, taking off the insurance has been a (in a small way) financial blessing.
–We've taken a vacation with Erin's folks in driving down to Milwaukee and back through the Mackinaw Bridge.
–Grandma and Grandpa Eidsmoe took us to a preseason Vikings game with great seats!
–Two weeks ago, both Erin and I got the flu and it was the worst I'd had it in a long time. It was one of those where you could literally time when you were going to "get sick". It sarted every fifteen minutes of bowing to the porcelin thrown and eventually made it to every hour before it stopped. What made it worse was the next day having to wait in an eye doctors office for four hours before being helped. (See Erin's Eyeritis for that one.)

Is that everything?

Bottom line, like everyone reading this, we've been busy. There were times (especially at the end of September when we wondered when it would all end. But we trusted in God to get us through. I'm not trying to be self righteous either so please hear my heart. Going through the sickness and the ongoing financial questions has proven to me (and hopefully Erin) how much we've grown in our relationship with God since we were first married five years ago.

We are still in the midst of some hardships but only because of God, can we see the dawn.

—b

P.S.

If you'd like to see some pictures of Brevin's birthday party, the Brewer game, Michigan pictures, and other random goodness, click here.

Thanks again for reading!

Brevin Photos: June 25th - July 4th

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 01:50:00 +0000

Click here to see some pics staring who else but Brevin.

—b

Please Pray...Update

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 01:24:00 +0000

Well...as some of you know, Nick past away early Friday morning. (Sorry for the delay in posting.) Here is the follow up from Fox 9 News:

SHAKOPEE -- Funeral arrangements have been set for 11-year-old Mick Hagadorn, who died early Friday morning as a result of injuries from a hit-and-run. Hagadorn suffered a torn aortic valve and had to undergo surgery.

Nick Hagadorn was riding his bike [last] Monday night during a rainstorm. The accident happened near the intersection of 17th Avenue East and Marschall Road South in Shakopee around 8:30 p.m.

The driver, 40-year-old Randal Hennes from Prior Lake, drove away from the scene but was arrested a short time later.

Hennes has been charged with DUI criminal vehicular injury and failing to stop at the scene of an accident. He has two prior convictions for drunk driving on his record.

The visitation is Monday [yesterday] in Shakopee from 4 to 8 p.m. at Ballard Sunder Funeral Home.

The funeral is Tuesday [today] at 11 a.m. at St. Mark's Church in Shakopee.

Donations can be made to the family at any Wells Fargo branch in the name of Nick Hagadorn.

Thanks to all of you who lifted up Nick in prayer. I will still pray that God uses this tragedy for good. (Only He could). Also for his brother and family.

—b

Happy Birthday Em!

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 02:46:00 +0000

Happy Birthday Emily!

(Sorry for the relatively old picture. Since my hard drive died, I'm having to resort to old blog posts for my pictures.)

Love ya!

—b

Would You Please Pray?

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 02:24:00 +0000

About 15 minutes ago our doorbell rang and it was our neighbor Kara, and she was in tears. She asked if I could call my "prayer chain" and ask for prayer for her friend Nick. He lives a few homes from us and is over at Kara's often playing with her dog Bella. I've talked with him a couple times but don't know him very well. Anyway, Monday night a boy was involved in a hit and run accident and I just found out that boy was Nick. He was hit very close to where we live. (You can see our townhome complex in the background of the news report.)

Here is what Fox News reported:

SHAKOPEE, Minn. -- An 11-year-old boy is in the hospital after he was struck by a truck in a hit and run accident Monday night.

Nick Hagadorn was biking home during the Monday night thunderstorm. The child was hit while riding his bike near the intersection of 17th Avenue East and Marschall Road South in Shakopee around 8:30 p.m.

The police officer on scene reported that the child was unresponsive and not breathing. He was critically injured in the crash.

Hagadorn was airlifted to St. Francis Regional Hospital and suffered a torn aortic valve. He underwent surgery.

The driver of the truck, a 40-year-old Prior Lake man, left the scene, but was arrested shortly after. He was in jail Tuesday, booked on three traffic violations. Several witnesses saw Randal Joseph Hennes leave the scene. He is awaiting charges at the Scott County Jail.

The driver has one prior conviction for drunk driving on his record.

The Minn. State Patrol is reconstructing the accident.

You can watch the report here.

Would you please pray with me? How cool would it be if he would be healed and God would get the glory! (Flashes of my cousin Josh ran through my memory as he was hit by a car when he was younger while riding his bike. Thankfully he survived without any lasting effects.)

Thanks.

—b

Vader Plays Golf

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 22:35:00 +0000

Always remember who your competition is when you play golf.

I hope your enjoying your Independence weekend!

—b

Walking With Dinosaurs

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:56:00 +0000

I have always loved Dinosaurs. When Jurassic Park was released, my dad took my brother and I to see the 10:00 pm showing opening night, (I won't embarrass my brother by telling you he ended up sleeping in my room that night because he was afraid of the raptors...oops.) and I ended up seeing it six more times in the theater. Anyway, when I saw this on YouTube, my love of Dinosaurs emerged once again.

I would LOVE to have that costume! Any authentic Star Wars costume now pales in comparison to that one.

(Erin, if you get me that costume for Christmas, you can count it against all future birthdays and Christmas' and I will never ask for anything ever again...or at least for a while.) ;)

—b

Case of the Mondays?

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 02:22:00 +0000

If you had a bad Monday, look on the bright side, at least you weren't this guy.

Now I know how NOT to fix a sprinkler.

—b

Your Pregnacy: 12 Weeks

noreply@blogger.com (Bernt and Erin Eidsmoe) — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 15:50:00 +0000

Yep, Erin is pregnant! For most of you, this comes as old(er) news.

For those of you not in the loop, this pregnancy came as a surprise. Because it took us almost two years of trying and thousands of dollars to have Brevin, we figured the same would be for our second child. We were wrong. We have friends who also had trouble conceiving the first time and their second time was no different, so figured we'd have the same difficulty. We were wrong, again. Erin's "body" didn't seem to correct itself after having Brevin, so we figured we'd be in for another long and expensive haul. For a third time, we were wrong.

See a pattern?

We found out she was pregnant the middle of May (she's due January 8th) but wanted to wait to tell people until the second trimester. We unfortunately couldn't wait to tell some people because we already have had to go in for a second ultrasound as some red flags have been appearing. Thankfully, after several friends and family have lifted up the little one in prayer, God has answered in the positive and after a follow up appointment a couple of days ago, the baby is doing great!

It's been a little different this time around in notifying people of Erin's pregnancy. A relatively unknown website called "Facebook" (please note the heavy sarcasm) helped leaked the news. On second thought, the word "leaked" isn't appropriate, try Jack and Rose trying to escape the quickly sinking Titanic definition of the word "leaked". In wanting to be as sensitive to those who have been trying to conceive without success, we have tried to let the news out relatively low key but task seems about as likely as...well...the Titanic not sinking. It's not going to happen.

So now what?

Great question. God has and always will provide for our needs. (Notice I said needs and not wants.) Right now finances are a secondary concern, albeight a close second. We'll keep praying for the little one and take life one day at a time. The Lord has granted us two healthy children and we'll continue to praise Him for that. Right now our family's verse seems to be Matthew 6:34:

"So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

So in the meantime, if you wouldn't mind lifting up our family in prayer when you think about it, we'd greatly appreciate it. We'll keep you updated whether you want us to or not. ;)

Enjoy your weekend!

—b