Just Give

This Christmas season, people have been asking themselves: 

How do you celebrate a holiday when so much has been taken? 

The answer is simple: Just give.

WATCH:

Peace and Stew

Today in church, the three speakers all talked about peace and the primary kids sang "Beautiful Savior."

If there ever was a day I wanted to hear little kids sing, today was it. 

If there ever was a day I wanted to hear people talk about peace, today was it.

The topics and music were picked weeks ago...but I desperately needed those messages today.

Every time a big event happens anywhere in the world, part of me wishes I was there.  

I think about how I would cover it, who I would talk to, the contacts I'd make, and what I would do to make my story different than the others.

I don't think there's ever been a huge story I haven't wanted to cover.

Except this one.

I want nothing to do with it.

It hurts to watch or read the coverage.

I feel for my reporter, photographer, and producer colleagues who have been assigned this horrendous event.  One of them hasn't slept since Friday.  Another says she can't write her script without crying.

Today I've been thinking about the LDS dad who is preparing to bury his six-year-old daughter. He moved his family to Connecticut just a few months ago.  He's my age.

This Facebook page has been set up in honor of his beautiful daughter Emilie.

Today I've been thinking Emilie and the 19 other children.  They were the same age as the primary kids who comforted everyone at church today while singing:

"Jesus is brighter, Jesus is purer...He makes the sorrowing spirit sing"

Fortunately Erica and I have had a busy weekend so I've been able to avoid a lot of the coverage.

In fact, after church, we went to a birthday party!

This is Derek and Melissa.  The missionaries serving in our neighborhood knocked on this fun family's door a few weeks ago.  Now we're all friends!

Derek turned 31 years old today.  To celebrate, he made this MASSIVE pot of Brunswick stew.  If you haven't heard of it, you haven't been to the south.  

There's 10 smoked chickens, pounds and pounds of beef, corn, beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, and other yummy things inside this 50 gallon cauldron.

Derek started cooking the stew around 11 o'clock this morning.  For SIX hours, he, and a few others, stirred the pot continually with this boat oar.  They never stopped until the oar stood straight up!

I'm not a big stew fan but both THIS WAS DELICIOUS!  


It was super thick and there was TONS of meat...which I LOOOOOVE!

 
There were about 30 people at the party and the pot was still FULL of stew after everyone had eaten.

Derek scooped the leftovers into these plastic bags and cups for everyone to take home.

We went directly from the party to the church for a Christmas concert and the stew was so delicious that Erica brought it inside.  She found a spoon in the kitchen and went to town!

We've decided we want our next gathering to be something fun and unique like Derek's birthday party.  Who doesn't love getting together with family, friends, and good food...especially if you get to take leftovers?

Oh...and speaking of our next gathering...do all you can to be in Richmond January 9th.  We are having our "Gender Reveal PARTY!"  
  
We don't know what we're having until that morning...and the secret will be unveiled at the party!

More details to come but you are invited!  

**Notice how the font is blue?  Yep...you already know what I think we're having....**

The Last Three Months...

Now you know all the secrets we've been keeping for months.

We won the big deal worth over $24,000.

We are having a baby in May.

We turned down a job in a top 20 television market.

We turned down the big deal worth over $24,000.

We are excited, scared, thrilled, nervous, and happy to welcome a new addition into our family.

Sometimes don't you think God has a great sense of humor?  I do. 

Here's why.

For the past year or so, Erica and I had talked about having a baby.  

We decided to wait until after we visited my mission in Australia and, more importantly, hold off until I got a job in a bigger TV market.  

We also wanted her to make sure the stupid tumor in her back wouldn't create a problem when she became pregnant.

We went to Duke.  Doctors said she needs to have another procedure so we scheduled it.

We went to Australia.  Had an incredible time (obviously!).

A few weeks later I'm at work covering a murder late at night.  Gotta love Richmond.

Erica calls me and frantically says, "COME HOME.  NOW!"

I arrive and see the pregnancy test. 

POSITIVE.

I think it's wrong.

The next day we go to the doctor.

It's right.

We cancel the Duke procedure.

FIVE DAYS LATER I get a random email from a news director in a top 20 market.

He tells me to call him.  He likes my work.  

For three weeks we email or talk on the phone every day.

He offers me a job.  It pays $15,000 more than I'm making now.

Wow. 

Perfect timing for a new baby that's on the way.

God is blessing us.

We decide we'll likely take the job.

So we think about it.  We pray about it.  We try to convince ourselves that it's right.

It's not.

We turn it down.  

Crazy?  Yes.  More like insane.  

It's rare, rare, RARE that a top 20 news director calls you out of the blue and offers you a job.

But it wasn't right.

A few days later "Let's Make a Deal" runs.  

We win big.

Then we get a letter from the CBS accountants saying we owe lots of money in taxes.

We debate whether to take the trips.

We decide to go on one but, when we call to book it, find out the black-out dates are December through May!

Yes.  Six months of black-out dates.

May won't work because little peanut will be joining is.

We turn down the trips. 

We get nothing.  Not one thing.  

Our friend who won $200 at the end of the show walked away with more than we did.  And we won the big deal!

So here we are.

No big deal.  

No new job.

BUT...a baby.

Erica will be a mom.

The best mom.

I will be a dad.

Yep, God is funny.

A baby.

OUR baby.

Joining OUR little family.

Better than a new job.

Better than trips worth $24,000.

Better than THE BIG DEAL.

A baby.

Door Number 3!!!!!!

Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS ©2012 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

I'm horrible at keeping secrets.  Especially when it's really great news.

But now...THE SECRET'S OUT!  And it feels soooo good!

I can't tell you how hard it is not to tell anyone that you won two trips worth over $24,000!  It's a good thing we flew directly from Los Angeles to Australia and had a few weeks to get over the "Let's Make a Deal" high...otherwise the confidential information likely would have been leaked.

A lot of people have asked "behind the scenes" questions about the show...so in case you were wondering:

- We signed a confidentiality agreement stating that if anyone found out anything about the show, we could lose our prize.  Not only that, Erica and I could be sued for ruining the episode because viewers wouldn't have a reason to watch if they knew how it ended.

- We hadn't planned on going to "Let's Make a Deal" until three days before the taping.  Erica and I had 24 hours in LA before flying to Australia...so Erica checked on tickets, found out the Halloween episode was being taped, and we decided to give it a shot.

- We almost went to the show dressed as candy corn.  Instead, Erica and her mom made the cute sock money costume.  My $5 banana costume came from Kmart. (Note: I was wearing Adidas shorts...but they had to be turned inside out so the brand logo wasn't shown).

Elaina is the yellow balloon.  Michael is the green balloon.

- Our good friends Elaina and Michael were in the audience with us.  Michael's brother and friend were also there...she ended up winning $200!  They were dressed as balloons and you can see them behind Wayne Brady during most of the show. 





- Wayne Brady is not very friendly in person.  In fact, he didn't say anything to us unless the camera was rolling.  Drew Carey, on the other hand, was extremely personable during "Price is Right."

- We waited in line about 2-3 hours before the taping.  Once we entered the studio, loud music was playing and producers were on the stage looking for energetic happy people.

- Between segments, Wayne Brady goes backstage.  I think that's when the producers tell him who to pick...because I doubt he saw me and Erica sitting high up in the audience.  

Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS ©2012 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

- We were exhausted when it was all over.  We had been high-energy, yelling, screaming, jumping, dancing for four hours...plus adrenalin was pumping the entire time...we were ready to crash.

- After the show, we went to Universal Studios City Walk with our wonderful friends, had dinner and ice cream...then went to LAX and flew to Australia!

Since the taping of the show, Erica and I have continually talked about how blessed we are.  I don't know why God has given us such a wonderful life...and believe me, I'm not asking for more trials or problems...but we are so fortunate.  It felt inappropriate to celebrate these big trips knowing that thousands of people became homeless during last weekend's storm.

A few minutes after "Let's Make a Deal" ended on Wednesday, the first phone call I got was from a Richmond firefighter.  Lt. Shawn Jones has worked with me on several stories and I was surprised to see him calling.

He congratulated me and Erica and said he wanted to come on the trips with us (wish we could take you all!).

Then he said, "I told my secretary that God is truly blessing you guys.  He gave you the time to go to Australia and he obviously wants you to spend more time together by giving you these trips.  He knows you have a strong marriage and wants it to become stronger.  Remember to praise Him.  He loves you.  He has blessed you."

Lt. Jones, I couldn't agree with you more.  I'm sharing that "secret" with everyone!