Tag Archives: Pope Francis

Ancestry Thursday Rundown

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And just like that, March will soon give way to April. But on this April Fools’ Eve Eve Eve Eve Eve, let’s reflect on some random topics…

Sloan’s Cake – You all know the drill, when our family celebrates a birthday, I always showoff the cake in the following Thursday Rundown. Sloan specifically requested a cake that was teal and pink so we made it happen. We trusted the skilled and talented bakers at Rosauers to turn Sloan’s wish into reality.

Rosauers baked and decorated Sloan’s 8th birthday cake.

Pope Francis Recovery – Thanks be to God, Pope Francis has been released from the hospital. Over the past couple days, details have emerged regarding how close he was to death. With these reports, there is no doubt in my mind that God still wants Pope Francis on this earth to preside over the Church. I admire the Pope’s medical team and the faithful who feverishly prayed for him.

It is important that we continue to pray for Pope Francis.

Flipside – Did you ever play Bop-It when you were a kid? We had one that we played over and over. For Sloan’s birthday, she received a gift from one of her friends that reminded me of Bop-It. Called Flipside, the object is to match the colored blocks to the lights. It has caught on like wildfire in my family. Sloan, Beau, and even Sid can’t get enough of it. In fact, Sloan is so smitten with the game that she has played it on the car ride to school this whole week. Overall, I am happy for the kids to have a handheld they can engage with that isn’t a smart device.

Sloan playing Flipside in bed.

National Scrabble Day – I would be remiss if I didn’t take a moment to mark National Scrabble Day. Scrabble was my family’s favorite game growing up as we played many intense, competitive rounds. When we moved back to Spokane five years ago, I was delighted to dust off the board and play a game with everyone for old times’ sake. Another fond memory I have of Scrabble is from the sixth grade. My teacher, Mr. Jared Hoadley, took our class to a neighboring rival elementary school to play its sixth grade class in a Scrabble tournament. We might have mobile apps like Words With Friends and Wordle, but the ultimate word game will always be Scrabble!

A look at our Scrabble board from my homecoming game five years ago.

23andMe Tough Times – An item in the news cycle this week is the bankruptcy of personal genomics giant 23andMe. The industry has fallen on tough times and it has specifically impacted 23andMe in a negative way. I find it a shame because these companies truly provide fascinating and accurate information. Nearly seven years ago I opted for the competition and submitted my sample to AncestryDNA. I learned a lot about my heritage. The test was actually a birthday gift from my mom who spent $99 on it. Let me tell you, it has been a gift that continues to give. To this day, I still receive emails notifying me about new matches when relatives (both near and distant) submit their own tests. My wife took a 23andMe test in 2019.

My Ancestry DNA test confirmed a lot of what I already knew about my heritage.

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Thanks for your time this evening. Enjoy your last weekend in March and we will be in touch next week. Don’t Blink.

Bead Thursday Rundown

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The last Thursday of February is here and by the time Saturday rolls around, it will be March. Let’s get going with my latest rundown before the month slips away…

Mardi Gras Bingo – On Sunday, Sloan and I hit up the St. Mary gym for Mardi Gras Bingo. We could only stay a short time and we didn’t win but we still had fun. Sloan got some beads from my brother Knights, I bought her a Coke, and she received some good-natured ribbing from Fr. Jeff Lewis when he was calling numbers. Another awesome event offered by my Knights of Columbus council.

Sloan and I having fun at the Mardi Gras Bingo event staged by the St. Mary Knights of Columbus council.

Pope Francis – Let’s continue to pray for Pope Francis as his hospital stay continues and he remains in critical condition. Asking the Lord that his will be done is the best thing we can do at this point. It has been encouraging to see the Holy Father’s health improve over the past couple days and inspiring to see the prayer services held across the world. It is times like these when 1.4 billions Catholics unite that you truly see the power of the faith.

It is important that we continue to pray for Pope Francis.

Special Date – It wasn’t long ago that I mentioned the importance of baptismal birthdays. Well, Feb. 27 is important in our family for more than just a baptism. On this date in 2020, Beau was baptized about a week after his release from the NICU. But joining him up front in the St. Andrew chapel was Sidney. As Beau was sprinkled with water, Sidney was confirmed into the Catholic Church. What a special day it was in front of our family and friends! We pray for Fr. Roger Morgan, the priest who administered both sacraments, every night.

Thanks be to God for Feb. 27, 2020. This is our family at St. Andrew Catholic Church in Myrtle Beach on the day Sidney was welcomed into the Church and Beau was baptized.

National Chili Day – Today is National Toast Day and I usually share a priceless chart that Sid always teases me about. However, I have mentioned/featured it a lot over the years (tap here to see) so today I choose to celebrate the other big Feb. 27 food-related holiday—National Chili Day! Bringing up my wife again, she hates chili. Me on the other hand? I love it! Regular chili, thick chili, white chili, three-way chili…I enjoy it all. When I released my popular Top 5 Soups post, you better believe it landed on the list. But the photo I am choosing to share with this topic is me with a Papa John’s Fritos CHILI pizza. I tried this bad boy in 2014 and although it was pretty bad I still ate most of it.

Me holding the Papa John’s Fritos Chili pizza.

Bunny and Claus – To send us out on a humorous note, here is a look at yesterday’s Non-Sequitur comic strip. I am a fan of when childhood legends get together—hence why I enjoy the movie “Rise of the Guardians” so much—so this depiction made me laugh. This rendezvous couldn’t have come at a better time because it truly is “between the holidays” for Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. With Christmas on Dec. 25 and Easter on April 20 this year, yesterday’s “meeting” at the tavern came pretty close to the midpoint.

This was the Non-Sequitur comic strip from Feb. 26, 2025.

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I hope you have a nice weekend and that March starts off on the right foot. I know I have already mentioned it, but please pray for Pope Francis 🙏🏼. Don’t Blink.

September 2015: A Month Worth Recapping

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Every now and then when a month ends, I like to quickly reflect on it. These posts typically come just twice a year and usually cover March or December and a summer month. I have never focused on September before. However, there is a first time for everything.

September 2015 was great from both angles. When I say “both angles” I mean work life and personal life.

Even busier this September than last, I have had my hands full on the campus at Coastal Carolina University. The month couldn’t have started off with a bigger bang. On Wednesday, September 1, we announced that our institution would join the Sun Belt Conference. It was a historic announcement that made for a busy and fun day. Speaking of sports, our football team made its debut on the brand new teal turf. I was there to cover that first game as everything that went out socially that night seemed to turn to gold. I was then back on the #SurfTurf the following week for the second home game. Yes, football season entails that we all work weekends and many times don’t leave the office until late at night but I wouldn’t trade it. Lucky for me, the four game football home stand will continue for the first two Saturdays in October.

Me standing in Brooks Stadium on our teal turf after the September 26 game. Moving to the Sun Belt and the first game played on this field with the new turf brought a lot of excitement in September to TealNation.

Me standing in Brooks Stadium on our teal turf after the September 26 game. Moving to the Sun Belt and the first game played on this field with the new turf brought a lot of excitement in September to TealNation.

With September being the first full month of the academic year, things were just busy in general. I got to fully implement the numerous social media campaigns I created for the year and evaluate their performance. I presented to a couple departments on campus, worked with several student groups, met with my CINO Legacy Mentee twice, and visited several different classrooms where I had the opportunity to capture learning in action. I staged the #CCU Periscope Marathon, an exhausting day where we broadcasted live for nine hours straight. I received recognition from a couple publications, including the student newspaper.

But the crowning achievement for the month of September was no doubt the establishment and inaugural meeting of the #CCUSocialMedia Student Advisory Group. This was a long time coming and one of my original goals so to see it come to fruition was the professional highlight of the month for me.

No questions asked, meeting with my #CCUSocialMedia Student Advisory Group was my favorite professional part of the month.

No questions asked, meeting with my #CCUSocialMedia Student Advisory Group was my favorite professional part of the month.

The overall highlight of the month for me, however, was having my brother come and visit me. As I mentioned in a blog post recapping Glen’s vacation here in Myrtle Beach, it can only be described as epic. Sidney and I had such an enjoyable time showing him around the area and just being able to have fun. It will be something that we will always talk about for a very long time.

Nothing was better this month than having my brother visit me in Myrtle Beach.

Nothing was better this month than having my brother visit me in Myrtle Beach.

September was also the month where I finally learned how to formally play golf. Sidney and I completed our fourth lesson last night and have really gotten a lot out of them. Living in Myrtle Beach, it was definitely time that I actually learned how to play. I also watched as my new favorite show came to a conclusion. It was an intense month of “Big Brother 17,” an emotional roller coaster as my two favorites (Vanessa and Austin) both had their ups and downs. Unfortunately it culminated with a major disappointment as Steve won.

Of course I will always have the lasting images of Pope Francis making his visit to the United States. Watching him make the tour through Washington D.C., New York, and Philadelphia was special. The way he conducted himself and the way the American people and media embraced him will always be cemented in my brain.

Tomorrow, October will begin. It is the month of my birthday and Halloween so it can’t be that bad. If I missed you in September, I hope to see you in October. Don’t Blink.