finite speck

What if someone asked you to go last minute on a work trip to Germany from the U.S. and you had to make it happen in less than a week? That's what two guys within our product support team did this past spring. The way I understand the story, the two guys were asked if they would go on Friday and I believe they were there in the country working on a planter on Monday the following week. This was all done in order that a grower could see a Precision Planting planter running and potentially make changes to some of his existing fleet for the next planting season. What if our team said, "No."? There would be no story. Even though the storyline isn't finished... we're not to the next planting season yet, the story has been started. The grower saw the dedication our team had to make sure he had the opportunity to see one of our planters running. I also left out that our 2 guys had to locate parts and build the planter in two days in Germany so it was ready to run.

We just had a baby 4 weeks ago and I just signed up for an online class for the next year. It's an online course on how to take better photos. And I'm really excited about taking it. But, I'm hoping I can figure out some time to do it regularly. I have a tough enough time having energy once the kids go to bed and there's not a lot of other time to make it happen. Looking forward to seeing how much more I'll learn in the next year with the help of the classes and online community.

"Of course I do." Would be everyone's response, right? Because to say, "I have no friends" is to feel like a total loser. But how do you define a friend? How often are you able to be with them? What do you talk about? I'm not sure that I would say I really do have a friend or friends. I definitely have acquaintances. I even have people that I get together with very regularly as a family. But, an individual that I regularly show up with and can talk about anything with besides my spouse I would have to say no. Why is that? Well... I don't think it's other people's fault I'm sure it's just as much my fault. I've heard it said, "To have a friend you need to be a friend." And I believe there's a lot of truth in that statement. It takes work of following up with someone, showing up and not thinking the other person needs to do all the work. I believe it's also not thinking the other person needs to be someone that t

I get a few cold calls most days at the office and typically I let them give their initial ask and then I decline and say I'm not interested. Many times it's because the company that chose to do this hired someone who speaks very poor english for an American to understand. The other reason I decline is due to the ask being trying to get our company to sponsor a high school athletic event. In both cases, you may say that's a poor excuse to decline to talk further, but when you get a couple a day and you've declined before you may start to understand why. So, when do I keep the conversation going? Typically it's when I can tell the person on the other end has done their homework and they ask about what I'm doing or what my needs are. They at least seem to genuinely care (whether they do or not) and they've made the call about me, not the ad they want to sell or the email they want to send me. There's a big difference. One call I'm willing to entert

One thing about having kids is it makes having conversations with neighbors easier, especially if they have kids as well. When our neighbors are out in the front yard our kids always want to go over. Our kids don't usually say a lot, at least not yet, but they just want to see what's going on and it forces me and/or my wife to head over and have a conversation with our neighbors. I'm thankful for this. And my point here is that when your neighbors are out, make an effort to say hi and try to start a conversation. You never know where it might lead. You may get an opportunity to share the gospel. You may become friends. Your kids might become friends. You may be able to help them through a tough time or they may do the same for you. Your neighbors are the closest ones to you in proximity and you have a choice to either get to know them or act as if they aren't there. Which will you choose?

Just ask. The worse thing that can happen when you ask for something is the other person says no. And then you'll at least know they don't agree or that what you're wanting to do may not be possible. But, if you don't ask you'll never know if what you want to do hinges on someone else's approval or permission. Just ask. You might be surprised at the response or it may get you moving in the direction you want to go sooner than being timid and waiting.

I was just thinking about this last night as I thought about the amount of free help we've received from my mother-in-law and my mom over the last month, especially with our new baby. I can't put a price on it and am so thankful for it. I know my wife really appreciates it! So, when I get to the age where my kids are having babies will I help? I know it won't be easy, but I hope I'll remember how hard it can be when your kids are really little and I'll pitch in and want to help as much as I can. Hopefully, I'll look back at this short post and remember what things were like with 3 kids under 5. Thankful for Grandma Jeanne and Glenda.

Last night I rode my bike in Morton for the first time since living here when I was 7. Compared to riding in Lexington, Chicago, and Peoria it definitely has a small town feel. My in-laws rode with me and the kids and we went from our house to the library and back. There were no stop lights and really no traffic and it didn't take long at all. I think we're going to really enjoy living here. It's funny because I don't know that I would have ever pictured myself living back in the town I was born 40 years ago, but here I am and it's good. Thankful for God's sovereign way in my life to bring me to where I am today.

Every day I have a choice. Do I show up and write something on my blog again or I do close up shop and just quit? Sometimes I think to myself, "Why am I doing this?" and "Who reads these anyway?" But, then I think I'm not doing this for others. If this blog ever becomes something people want to go to and read it's not because that's what I set out to do. I started this to show up every day and just become a better writer. And, hopefully, that's happening. I haven't shown up every single day since October, but pretty close. And it's been fun to record in written form (instead of photos only) the things that are going on my life as well as some of what I'm learning. And along the way maybe someone will find something here valuable too.

I tend to be pretty optimistic, thinking I can pick something I've never done up pretty quickly. But, it always takes longer than I think and more time than I think to really master it. I'm working through understanding a new marketing automation platform and it's been kicking my butt. I'm having to memorize all kinds of new things and think through all kinds of if/then scenarios. It's also stretched me even more as far as writing. This new skill has probably taken up 25% of my work days over the last month at least. I believe it will be huge once we get it all implemented. But it's taking a lot of practice.

We've had our third swimming lesson and after the second one, my daughter said no to jumping off the diving board. I wasn't surprised. I figured it would be a while until she decided she would jump. But, yesterday we got there early and I had her and my son just climb up the ladder on the diving board and stand at the back. Then I told Josie, "You can do it." and offered her some fruit snacks if she jumped this time after swim lessons. My son and I both didn't think she would and she told us she wasn't gonna do it. But then her teacher asked her if she wanted to and she said she would and she jumped! It was a proud moment for me. I figured we'd be waiting until the end of swim lessons at least. There's something good about doing things in a group where there's some pressure to perform I believe. To see others doing something and thinking hey maybe I can do that too. I could teach my kids to swim on their own, but I believe at least in the beg

Mac, our 2-week old baby, went five and a half hours last night before he needed to eat again. This is huge. It means mom and dad also got to sleep that long without waking up. As I was thinking about what to write this morning and I struggle coming up with things in the morning, this just hit me as something to be thankful for. Also, I'm super thankful that nursing has begun to go better than it ever did for our other two kids it seems. The first 2 weeks are really rough, but it's starting to feel like we're getting into some sort of a rhythm that's more manageable.

This weekend feels really big for us. I took the kids to the Tremont Turkey Festival yesterday for breakfast and we stuck around for a couple hours to get faces painted and to watch Julie K. Then last night I took the kids to the circus at the Peoria Civic Center and we didn't get home until about 9:30. Today, we're getting ready to head to church in a little bit and then we're going to be in the Tremont Turkey Festival parade... so no naps today. We'll see how the kids do today. Last night I was impressed with how well our kids did in staying in their seats to watch the circus. They stayed still for 2 and a half hours, with a short intermission! I feel like that's good for a 2 and a 4 yeard old. I'm glad too because I was outnumbered it was just me and the kids.

There was a sense of accomplishment last night as I pulled both cars in the garage for the first time since we've moved into our home in Morton. We've been living here since March and it's now June... so it's only taken 3 months. It's not a big thing, but to me, it always feels good when you get a project to a place where it's pretty well done and you can mark it off. Pulling both cars in the garage last night and not having to move anything else and having plenty of room felt really good last night.

Yesterday I got work and had a couple packages that had arrived. One I wasn't sure what it was. I opened it up and it was a branded onesie for my new son from one of our vendors, HubSpot. I just mentioned to them the other day that we had a baby or maybe that we were about to have a baby and they must have an easy way to make delivering a branded onesie to customers a reality. It was a nice touch with a little note. How are you interacting with people using your brand in specific moments in their life? It's easier than it has ever been if we just listen to the customer to make little things like this happen.

Are you thankful? How do you show it? Do you write a note? Do you tell someone? Do you make a list? How do you express thankfulness? It always is good for me to think about and express thankfulness to others and God. Never have I gone through the practice of giving thanks and been disappointed. Thankfulness gets the focus off of me and onto others and God. Having meals brought to us in the past week after our new baby has brought the idea of expressing thankfulness to others into focus for me again. I wrote a few thank you notes to those that brought meals and it just feels good to do that. Plus, the act of receiving thanks is good for others as well. I ask our kids quite often when they're whining, "Are you having a thankful heart?" And sometimes I ask them to tell me one thing they're thankful for. It's good to get in the habit of being thankful.

Went to sleep last night at 11:30PM, woke up around 1:30AM and then was up at 4:45AM this morning. That's the life of a having a new born. And he just started crying again now... and it's been off and on since 5:30AM. But, I'm making it and so is my wife. Somehow we learn to survive.

I was on the phone yesterday with my mom and I had her on speaker phone. All of a sudden my son asks my mom, "Grandma do you not have any clothes on?" My son is so used to seeing his grandparents on FaceTime or seeing a video on a phone that he couldn't figure out why else he wouldn't be seeing his Grandma. Hearing a two-year-old say something like that is hilarious. But, it got me thinking more as well about why he said that. I believe it speaks to something that God puts in us as well that helps us understand what sin is, even though we need the law to help us know what's right and wrong. There's something in us that somehow knows the way God designed for things to be. My son knew that if his Grandma didn't have any clothes on he shouldn't see her and believe me I never had that conversation about my mom with him! He didn't see his Grandma, only heard her voice, so he thought well this fits that scenario. Maybe I'm reading too far into th

How much should you spend on a TV wall mount? How do you know if it's good quality? Where do you shop for it? The last TV wall mount I asked a co-worker for advice on what to get and I just bought something simple. And it worked great. But, this time I think we want to get something that's adjustable based on where it's going and there are tons of options... so how do I decide? I put a request out on Facebook and got no replies. Does no one care about my problem? There's one mount that's a big seller on Amazon, but I'm leary of it after reading some of the reviews about poor quality and it being a cheaper option. I just want a good TV mount at a fair price. It seems like there are a couple brands that rise to the top like in just about any category and they try to differentiate themselves in some way. Echogear seems to be one of them and they look like they have good customer service, which I believe is always a good thing. Another one is VideoSecu, but th