The Boyds Are No Longer in a Shoebox in Queens

Hurts so Good

2011-09-27T06:45:00.000-07:00

A new video of my happy boys dancing. Maybe they're happy about having a little sister!

Etsy Shop Open

2011-08-23T19:33:00.000-07:00

Here is one of the many projects I've got my hands in now. I'm hoping to eventually move to selling mostly handmade items, but am currently unloading my stash of vintage goodies and some supplies.

A custom order item:

(Metro Luvie, all rights reserved)

Exodus

2011-08-04T06:56:00.000-07:00

Maybe we’re hiding in the country because we’re a little city shell-shocked. Maybe we’re hunkering down in our farmhouse and have had so much exposure to people and places and things in the last few years that we’re just lying low and recovering. Maybe our experiment in mini-homesteading is a retreat like taking a cool shower after being out in the hot sun all day...

But sometimes we need to lie low. And slow down. And retreat.

For now, our days go a little something like this: We get up and do our outside work early in the morning before it’s too hot. The boys help until they get too hot and tired, then they hop in the kiddie pool and splash around until I get too hot and tired then we all go inside for lunch and naps. We work inside until it cools down and then we go back out and finish outside work.

Outside work has, thus far, consisted mainly of yard and garden chores. Corey built raised beds and a compost bin for a little Fall kitchen garden. We’ve tried to plant only what we anticipate being able to eat, share, or preserve. I’m actually pretty excited about canning. I’d never done it before, but the experiments in pear butter and watermelon rind pickles have gone well.

(The beans wanna grow)

We are looking for, “real jobs.” Though we would both be happy to be homesteaders and small farmers or craftspeople, that’s not a sustainable option for us at the moment. At some point the pear butter is going to run out.

Then there’s the problem of friends. Well, I should say lack thereof. We’re about 45 minutes from our former hometown which seems like quite a drive for most of our friends. In regard to travel time, most of our NY friends were 45 minutes away, but it didn’t seem like such a big deal. We didn’t have as many friends as when we had the house in downtown C-ville, but we did have friends. That’s why “Friends” tops my list of things that I miss about NY. If I were to make a list, it might look something like this:

Friends
Wind
Food (the Piggly Wiggly does not carry ginger root)
Proximity to the beach (even if I only went one or two days in a year)
Walkability/Sidewalks and Crosswalks

We have visited a couple of nice churches in our area. I am sure when we get settled and find a Sunday School class we like and get some of those, “real jobs,” that the friends will come along with. Acquiring weird grocery items will take a bit more doing.

The Last NYC Post

2011-07-08T19:49:00.000-07:00

Wow. Things are moving fast!

Our great friend Boris came and took all our stuff from us, so now we have but a few things left. We've been house-sitting in Brooklyn at this incredible brownstone.

Our emptied out apartment. How did

we do it!?

We leave New York in the morning

after two years of serving the Lord as missionary support here at the Gallery Church and teaching at Evangel Christian School. I pray that God will multiply our small sacrifice as we move on to the next phase of our lives.

We did some fun stuff in the last week. Here are some pictures.

We had help loading from the Pattons and the boys enjoyed staying up late.

Our great friend Grace went with us to Governors Island.

We rode the Prospect Park carousel.

Leann went to the Brooklyn Museum and saw many cool things. Above is my favorite of what she showed me.

Today, we went to the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens and the NYC Transit Museum.

We're all packed up, ready to go, and will see our ancestral home again probably by monday if not sooner. Bye New York, and God Bless.

Draw-down of Troops

2011-06-28T05:49:00.000-07:00

Just a quick update. We'll do a final, big, pictures and video type update before we go, but this is just to say that our time as New York Boyds is drawing to a close. Pray for Leann and our fetus as we make the transition. The boys are excited about the move. We load the ABF truck on July 13 and will leave town probably the next day. We will probably keep blogging, but we're not sure if we will be able to get internet in Bumpus Mills, TN.

Pray for Freddy T. and the Gallery Church as God continues to work in and through them.

Square Feet and Square Dancing

2011-04-06T20:52:00.000-07:00

Why is she smiling?! Because she just took the blue ribbon in the "Jello Surprise" category at the recent Brooklyn Family Hoedown and Potluck. The winning entry? Lemon Chile Pepper and Cream Cheese Gelatin.

It wasn't half-bad. Grace, Becky, and I had a great time at the shindig, but I couldn't help thinking, "I came all the way to New York, and end up at a hoedown." The irony. But it doesn't stop there. I was informed that the southernness of my dish was in question. Apparently, some thought it was "Too New York" to be eligible for the prize. So, to recap: I'm at a hoedown in New York with a bunch of New Yorkers whom are pretending to be Southern. And my Southernness is being called into question by said New Yorkers.

We're beginning to think about packing up our things. I'll be going to get a few boxes tomorrow so we can start packing a little at a time and hopefully save the last few weeks of our time here to spend with friends instead of stressing over the move. Since we're almost ready to move out, here's the tour of our place I've been promising.

2011-04-02T10:31:00.001-07:00

There is a good explanation for this,

2011-03-16T07:28:00.001-07:00

...but I'll just let you guess.

2011-03-14T08:12:00.000-07:00

I know it's been a while, but we've been busy. I'm in seminary again. Just for checking in, here's a treat. If you use Google Chrome, paste the following text in to the address bar and press enter, then press start and right click to destroy the web page with a katamari snowball. One of the perks of beintg a computer teacher is learning from my students. One of them showed me this trick.

javascript:var i,s,ss=['http://kathack.com/js/kh.js','http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1.5.1/jquery.min.js'];
for(i=0;i!=ss.length;i++){s=document.createElement('script');s.src=ss[i];document.body.appendChild(s);}void(0);

Finished!

2010-12-31T16:16:00.000-08:00

As You May Have Heard...

2010-12-28T18:11:00.000-08:00

We got some snow here. A lot of snow. In our attempt to be both frugal and stay with the church here in NY through Christmas (as it turns out, almost everyone in the church went "home" for Christmas) we booked a December 28 flight to Tennessee which was cancelled following this week's blizzard.

Ezra offered to clear the runway at LGA with his snow plow (a plastic tub) so that our plane could take off. I informed him that I had no snow clearing device (we just have the one plastic tub) and he told me that was okay, I could just use my hands. After some convincing, he finally accepted the fact that he and I would not be able to clear the runways ourselves. His back-up plan was to walk to Tennessee. We could just put him in the backpack carrier. He could wear his sunglasses so that the snow wouldn't blow into his eyes and he'd wear his snow pants and we could just start walking. He really, really wanted to see his grandparents.

Here are some of the sights from Long Island City:

I took a video from our window, but will have to try again later to upload it. In the meantime, enjoy this time lapse video of the snowfall by Mike Black:

December 2010 Blizzard Timelapse from Michael Black on Vimeo.

Today, Corey completed plans for the boys' bunk beds in Google Sketchup. The plan is for toddler sized mattresses and the top bed is only 44" from the ground. We plan to hang room darkening curtains from the top rail. Ezra had been sleeping in a Kidco Peapod Plus, which we loved until it broke. (We got a lot of wear out of it and will likely buy another someday.) Elias is in a Pack-N-Play, but we'd like to have real beds for them, so this is our plan:

There WILL be a rail on that bottom bed and we may put an extra rail up top. I'll post some pictures when we get it finished.

Ezra and I went out to the playground this morning and started work on an igloo. We plan to close in the roof tomorrow and post some pictures. Stay tuned. We got our place cleaned up and are working on a video tour for you.

We're pretty bummed about not being able to see friends and family for Christmas and New Year's celebrations, but it has been nice to have some downtime together.

L

While You Were (Supposed to Be) Sleeping

2010-11-04T20:33:00.000-07:00

I came home from a late night grocery run to discover Ezra, rather than sleeping, had been doing a little work in TuxPaint. Computer on mute so as not to be discovered by Corey. Apparently he had also been shopping for a new iPod, browsing Photo Booth pics, and adjusting the settings on my laptop.

GASP! There's Blood EVERYWHERE!

2010-11-03T19:29:00.000-07:00

So today things were going fairly well. Then Ezra decided to use our apple peeler/corer/slicer to prepare himself a snack. Not to be outdone, little e. raced to get in on the action.

(DISCLAIMER: this story gets disgusting. If you are squeamish, you should stop reading now.)

Minor altercation in the kitchen.

Boys were separated and returned to a (relatively) safe position.

Ezra's world ends. Not only have I taken his hope of a snack, but I have also kept him from beating his brother in what otherwise would have been a fair fight.

Flailing ensues.

Flailing continues.

Flailing and mourning make a tour of the living room/dining room/bedroom.

The disturbed elder child ends his raging after taking a flying leap into his brother's bed. When I feel he has calmed down enough to hear what's going to happen next, I approach. (Side note: I do not condone the throwing of fits. It prompts in me such distaste that I have found it best lately to remain calm and not engage in emotional warfare with my 2-year-old.)

I stop. Blood. Everywhere. Something incoherent about boogers.

I figure he has a bloody nose, but how? It's all over his face, hands, and neck. It's almost as disgusting as the time a couple of months back that the little guy drew on the walls... I'll stop. Suffice it to say that they have now each had a "Carrie" moment.

So the elder is not injured. He's still mumbling about boogers and his apple slicer as I race off to find the younger who must surely have collapsed by now.

Little guy is clean. Back to Ezra. I managed to find the tiniest cut on the tip of his small finger. Apparently he had cut it on the slicer, but the cut was so minor he either didn't realize or didn't care. I calm down and take a look around and that's when I notice...

THERE. IS. BLOOD. EVERYWHERE.

Everything he rolled around on and stomped across. Books. Carpet, (yay, washable FLOR tiles!) pillows, rugs, couch cushions, blankets...I could go on, but I'm sure that's more than enough for you. Call it a late Halloween story. ...or Reformation Day story, whichever you prefer because believe me, there will be a reformation in the life of my elder child. (How 'bout them apples, big E.?) I sincerely hope we are nearing the end of our "fireside chats" on the topic of tantrums.

Time With Boys and Fun at Maker Faire

2010-09-29T18:06:00.000-07:00

Couple of pictures taken recently;

the boys driving around inside Home Depot, and Ezra at the cafe for man-time. The pictures say enough about themselves

What great boys!

Trying to upload video from the make magazine world maker faire, which Leann presented at, making paper with her partner Grace. I sneaked away and watched this cool demonstration of the coke zero and Mentos trick.

Kimpossible and the Civil War

2010-07-24T16:13:00.000-07:00

We're still alive! Our neighborhood is not Mr. Rogers' in the least, but they haven't gotten us yet. We're pretty fast. Don't worry about us! We're safe here and so are the kids. Well, little e. is shaping up to be quite the scrapper, so at least one of the kids is safe. There are a number of things to account for our recent lack of posts. Nothing, I'm sure that would be of interest to you--just ordinary life stuff. I have started a business with a friend of ours. We've made a whopping $15. We would mow yards to supplement, but we haven't found any yet. Heh.

If you know any kids in NY, let them know they're missing out on some top-notch arts experiences.

As for our living arrangements, I had some old photos, but the place looks completely different now. We've got a storage unit we're clearing out so every time we bring something home, the whole place has to shift. I'll get some pictures of our apartment on here for you to see. Here are a couple of winter photos for you to puzzle over in the meantime:

I'm not sure what Queens residents have with cartoon characters. Maybe Garfield and Kimpossible are unrelated and we shouldn't make a case study.

Corey says it's like we're living in a puzzle. And it is! For example:

Yesterday we brought home some furniture so I had to get rid of a floor lamp and replace it with a wall sconce. The sconce-hanging process involved unplugging and rearranging 6 different devices whose cords were wedged behind large pieces of furniture. It was moderately comical. I had to unplug everything we have and move every piece of large furniture in our house in order to hang a lamp. (I told you you wouldn't be interested to hear what we've been up to. Heh.)

For those of you who were wondering what we've been up to with The Gallery, here's the rundown:

-Corey has been working to fine-tune membership stuff. That includes record-keeping, letter sending, and all that goes along with that. The things that, if you've been in a church that's had a hundred years to fine-tune, you probably haven't thought much about. We hadn't.

-I have been working with the Gallery mommas to get a story time running. It ultimately geared toward helping us get to know the families in our area. I'll also be stepping in to a more hands-on role in our children's ministry.

-Corey has also started seminary with the SBTS extension here. We feel that the strong presence of a theologically solid seminary will be vital to ministry in the city. We have seen first hand the effects of misinformation and lack of knowledge on undue prejudices against believers.

-We have been building relationships with members. We have tried to love and encourage and strengthen the community of believers and the church whenever possible. I'm not sure how to quantify this for you, but we feel we have been able to be of particular help in this area.

We plan to send out a more detailed letter in the near future to let you know where we've been and what the future may look like for us. If you've never received anything from us at your current address, please send mailing address to: leann [dot] gregory [at] gmail [dot] com.

One thing I've picked up on is that there exists in many New Yorkers I have spoken with personally a certain prejudice against Southerners. I wonder how much of that is still left from postbellum America. I've been thinking a lot about...about how we develop our systems of thought and belief or, in some cases, fail to adequately develop them... (by adequate, I might just mean adequate by my standards.) I've been hanging around artists and watching a lot of Civil War movies. And bits of reality TV. If you shake that up in a person's brain with a little bit of Chesterton and a night time view of Manhattan, strange things happen. Maybe I'll save all of this for later.

Let's see who's still reading. What's your favorite Civil War movie? If you're not into Civil War movies, what's your favorite book about the Civil War?

Leann

Tents, Beer Pong, and Providence

2010-06-01T07:16:00.001-07:00

So this weekend we went camping. That's the commonality between the three things in the title.

Obviously, we stayed in tents. The Burtons (thanks for inviting us!) went with and we had lots of fun. It seemed like eating supper on time was not in God's plan for us. The first night, right at supper time there was a random rain storm. We had to wait it out and then eat. On night two we came back from a day of exploring the beaches and coasts of Rhode Island, and our secluded campsite had turned in to the state's largest beer-pong game (not saying much, since we were in RI). So we had to move our entire setup to a different campsite before supper in case someone decided to give our children beer (Ezra will have to wait till I get out of Seminary) or pee on our tents. There were no hard feelings between the two factions (family vs. underage drinkers), but we had to eat supper after dark.

On the way home we stopped in Providence. No, I don't have a great story about how God made something great happen. We did stop at Cracker Barrel, though, which is always providential.

Hulio the Cartel, and Original Sin

2010-05-19T12:18:00.000-07:00

So Greg Hitt has been bugging me to go see Michael Daves play for almost as long as I've known him. The only problem is he plays on Tuesday nights at 10:00, which would make for a rough Wednesday at school. I decided yesterday that there are more important things than sleep, so I went down to SoHo with him last night, and oh my was it good.

But the real story is what happened afterward. Greg and I were hanging around outside the subway, and up comes Soren from Denmark, complimenting us on our incredible style (yes, I thought it odd too). Shortly thereafter, Hulio, the owner of the establishment next to which we were standing, came out, introduced himself, told us he could tell we were good men, and then briefly defended the actions of the Mexican drug cartel.

He went in, came back out to tell us about his life and his catholic girlfriend, and muse about the human condition. The most pointed moment was when he said, with his thick, Cuban, son of a gangster accent, I think we are all basically good, etc. I replied that I didn't think I was born good. He replied to my reply that, yes, I was born good. I contested saying, maybe you're right, but something bad happened, and indeed happens to us all, which comment he wholeheartedly agreed with. Good talk.

If you'd told me two years ago I'd find myself standing at the entrance to a subway with my new friend from Ohio, talking to the owner of hispanic club about original sin, I'd have said...well...I guess I'd have said that sounds like fun; indeed it was.

Letters

2010-03-24T08:43:00.001-07:00

Dearest Husband,

Please make SURE I am AWAKE before you leave for work. This morning I rose to find our eldest engaged in a rousing game of Settlers of Catan. He refers to it as, "The star game." It seems we will need to do some remediation in the area of shape identification.

Thank You,

Your Loving Wife

P.S. After he finished Settlers, he designated a plastic comb as a knife and proceeded to saw his granola bar into tiny pieces while using his foot to try and turn on the TV to watch Wonder Pets. "If I push that button, The Wonder Pets will come on TV. They certainly will."

Dear Elias,

Please stop waking up at 3:30 AM. I realize it's probably habit and, being the social creature you are, you just need company however we would all be much happier if you could just tough it out. Since we are in this tiny studio with neighbors on both sides, we can't just let you cry it out. Perhaps you could just restrain yourself between the hours of 7PM and 6AM. I feel this is a reasonable request.

Love,

Mom

Dear Reader,

Thank you for bearing with us through endless stories about our children. We are faring as well as a couple possibly could in a tiny apartment in NYC. This past week, we spotted some crocuses peeking up out of the ground in Central Park. It seems we have made it through the cold night. Winter is on its way out. It's not too much of a stretch to imagine what Noah must have felt when he saw that first patch of dry land. We've been lost at sea all winter, but it feels great to be able to get out again and stretch our legs and remember how warm and wonderful the sunshine can be.

We have decided to stay in New York another year. We miss friends and family, but we feel that we have been able to be of some service to the church here and have finally met some kindred spirits with whom to share bits of our lives. We are spurring one another on toward love and good deeds. The church here has had its share of struggles, but we see signs of life too numerous to count. The Lord has graced us with His light in many ways.

This Stick

2010-03-12T13:43:00.000-08:00

DO TOOO.

12345 Go! Yay! Yaaaaaaay!

My Mouth is for scraping my teeth.

Tonodono. Ewayowayo.

We can't talk.

Note: The previous post (including the title) was dictated by my 2 yr old. So, here are some pictures. One is of two kids at my school that dressed up like you know who. The other is my beautiful wife and youngest son, Elias.

Ezra said...

2010-01-12T12:58:00.000-08:00

"Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great...job."

I guess if you have to work, that's not a bad job to have!

Rene Milot

34 Degrees

2010-01-11T04:17:00.000-08:00

It's cold outside. Today I moved into the final stage of grief for warmer weather: acceptance. I miss the summer. I look forward to warmer weather with great anticipation. By the time it is reasonably comfortable outside, little e. will be sitting up. Maybe he will start crawling. Big E. might be big enough to walk to the playground, or at least pedal his tricycle. There will be leaves on the trees and flowers in the grass. It is beautiful that our Creator gives us a concrete reminder of what it is to hope for renewal.

I made a green tea cake for church this week. Boy, was it ugly. Have you ever seen the cakes I have made? I have made some seriously ugly cakes. I should keep an ugly cake scrapbook. The matcha colored the frosting a terribly unappetizing moss green. E. won't even eat it. He doesn't know his colors yet, but he knows there is something wrong with that cake. I tried putting powdered sugar on it. That made it worse and I didn't think it could get any worse. It looked like mold. Needless to say, I kept the ugly (but absolutely delicious) cake for myself. Today I offered a piece to E. He said, "Okay. Momma, will you cut the green part off my piece?" Maybe I'll save this recipe for St. Patrick's day.

Happy New Year!

2010-01-05T12:41:00.000-08:00

Not much to say about these last few weeks. We've had our ups and downs. How about some pictures? (Most recent first--all the way back to Christmas morning.)

E. and I went up to the roof to build a snowman.

Is this your headband? No? It's not mine, either.

Friends!

White Christmas (notice that the bag of trash is actually whiter than the snow)

Ezra got a guitar for Christmas. It's a little green guitar.

Opening Christmas presents

B is for...

2009-12-13T18:49:00.001-08:00

Baby...

Birthday...

and now...

Bedder watch your head.

Last night it snowed in New York

2009-12-06T04:48:00.000-08:00

My sister and I made the trek to the grocery store. In the snow. Strangely they still had plenty of bread and milk.

Sherpa Mom, NY

2009-11-20T12:01:00.000-08:00

Today I needed to get groceries. Fresh Direct is easy. I love ordering stuff online. I even got a doctor online. (Yes, the rumors are true! Well, the ones about having a Dr. make a house call, at least) The doctor was great. If you live in the area, I definitely recommend him. Sure beats hauling an infant and a sick toddler on public transportation then sitting in a disease-ridden waiting room for who knows how long then going to the pharmacy... Anyway. You see my point, right?

Today I could not justify the price differences for a Fresh Direct order. (My bill was $50.70 at the local grocery and would have been $61.10) This is what I got: (bear with me, there is a point to this)

Apple juice, 1 qt.

Applesauce, 46 oz.

Pasta sauce

1 box linguine

1 box spaghetti

Dried white beans

1 box Jello mix

1 box pudding mix

1 loaf Bread

2 bags frozen veggies

1 box frozen spinach

1 gallon milk

1pk. tortillas

Baby carrots

Celery

4 On-the-vine tomatoes

1 bunch bananas (actually cheaper at FD)

Plastic wrap

1/2 lb. coffee

1/2 lb. lunch meat

1/2 lb. cheese

There were other things I needed, but couldn't figure out how to haul them home. I took Corey's backpack and loaded the milk, juice, applesauce, and a few other things in it. I put Elias in the Bjorn. I put Ezra in the stroller and handed him the breads to hold on his lap. With one bag looped over each hand, I pushed the stroller 10 blocks home. I wish I had a picture.

As I loaded up to head out, the cashier asks, "You're not going to have these delivered?" What?! The dang grocery store delivers for free on orders that are more than $30. Are you kidding me? I was too flustered/proud to unload my burden at this point, so I carried every bit of it home. If I had known they delivered, I definitely would have splurged on the rum raisin ice cream.

Tomorrow I will go back. I will get everything I need. And I will have it delivered. Except for the ice cream. I will eat that while I am waiting for the truck to come.

New York is crazy.

Hanging in There

2009-11-10T09:31:00.000-08:00

We (the boys and Leann) got back to NY about a week and a half ago. I have some great pictures to share, but since Corey moved us while I was gone, I am still unable to locate some of my belongings. (One of those belongings being my camera cable) I can't wait to give you the grand tour of our apartment. Corey did a great job getting it ready for us. The only hint that it was arranged by a man is the projector rigged from the underside of our loft bed with a white rope secured by Boy Scout knots.

We can see the Empire State Building from bed. I'm pretty excited about this only because I didn't realize that it's lit in different colors every night until 2AM. It's kind of fun to go and see what color it will be each night.

Corey was sick for about 4 days and then Ezra got sick. It's day 3 for him doesn't have a fever! Elias and I have avoided getting sick. Thank you for all of your prayers. I was sure in our less than 300 square foot apartment we'd all be sick until Spring.

Quick Update

2009-10-23T17:49:00.000-07:00

Leann is coming back to me Thursday, with Erin and Sir James Patton in tow. A day before, Nathan and Young William Jack Patton will roll in with a moving truck to move in to our old apartment.

Teaching at a Christian school is very much a beautiful thing. Since this year began, two souls have been added to the kingdom, and much knowledge, understanding and wisdom has been transferred to young New Yorkers and students from all parts.

I just fell in love with a radio show. So shall you. WNYC's Radio Lab

Keep praying for The Gallery. This is a crucial time in the life of our church.

Welcome, Elias!

2009-10-06T06:27:00.000-07:00

Elias Gregory Boyd was born October 5th at 11:07 PM. That's 12:07 AM for you NY folks, so I guess we'll have to celebrate his birthday on October 6 in New York. :) Thank you for all of your prayers. We are all doing well.

God has Provided...again.

2009-09-09T15:51:00.000-07:00

Since I have been keeping track, every time I have asked for God's physical provision, he has provided, even when I find in hindsight that I didn't really need what I was asking for. What can I say, but that He cares for His children. For a well stated version of our recent events visit nycmission.com . Also, there is one last thing that we need help with. We need to find someone to take over our old apartment. Here is what we posted on Craigslist. Please forward the link to anyone you think may be interested! We need to get someone in there quickly!

BTW: I am so glad that I will be able to stay and teach at ECS! They are fighting the same fight (and winning many battles) as The Gallery Church, which is very enouraging.

Papa is in Manhattan...

2009-09-02T14:15:00.000-07:00

and Ezra told me, "Bye, momma. I leave you. I taking Mr. 'tatohead's car and drive Manhattan." I told him , "Good luck honey. It's going to be a long trip."

Another quick car story. Humor me. Ezra slept late and we missed church, but I had to take some things by there so we loaded up and arrived as the last service was letting out. Ezra looked around and asked, "Momma...why...all...dese...people....is...getting in...dey...tucks?" He was 20 months old. I was floored. What a neat kid. :)

What?!

2009-08-18T10:50:00.000-07:00

Does anyone else understand this?!

It looks like an accident waiting to happen. The images that come to mind are simultaneously hilarious and horrifying. Imagine a room full of hungry Kindergartners hooked up to these things. What would happen if there was a fire drill?

Lest you think I am squandering my free time with foolishness such as cakes and foot pillows, be assured I am actually doing important things these days. I am reading through Isaiah, making a great effort to be deliberate about being a better mother, wife, friend, and daughter, and attempting to order my classroom in such a way as to not be a burden on the teacher who will be covering my maternity leave. Corey and I have been apart for two weeks now and it has been very difficult for both of us to say the least.

Over and over the pictures of destruction in Isaiah have reminded me that God does not see suffering the way we see it. It is difficult to think that the thing I want most may not be best for me and that ultimately the Lord works all things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Sometimes what He seems to think is best is not the most immediately pleasing to me. I know that some of the destruction described in Isaiah is God's wrath, but there is none of that for me! Correction, sure, but not wrath. Yesterday, we had a brief summer shower and we let Ezra run around and play in the rain. So much good in God's creation. So much I never did anything to deserve. We laughed and laughed. I cannot describe to you how beautiful it was.

Leann

Maundering

2009-08-13T07:08:00.000-07:00

This week my 3rd graders are learning to draw cylinders via the art of Wayne Thiebaud. I have never tried this project before, but, as always, it is turning out to be quite complicated. Maybe it's not the project that's complicated. At least, not inherently. Last year one of the 5th grade teachers told me her students thought art was hard. "She, like, actually makes us do work." Indeed.

All this talk of cakes and such has gotten me thinking about Bogie's Delicatessen in Memphis. In New York, it took an hour to get to anything exciting. Suddenly a 3.5 hour drive to Memphis doesn't seem unreasonable. Especially when the reward is a big exciting chunk of hummingbird cake.

Image: Ciara N., Yelp.com

--L

John Smith

2009-08-07T20:44:00.001-07:00

In the ressurection, I think it likely God will rename us. He's known to have done that. I wonder if we'll all have a different name to reflect the truth that he cares for each of us. But then I think about my social security number. Each of us have been given a different number, but this does not necessarily mean that the SSA cares for each of us. Then I think of twins and how they are two people. What makes them distinct souls to God?

Maybe I should go for a walk. Perhaps the East River would enjoy my company for a few minutes.

-C

Two Random Thoughts

2009-07-24T19:41:00.000-07:00

First, I'm glad to say that I have boldly and happily shared at least elements of the gospel with two people. It's an opportunity and responsibility I haven't taken up faithfully in a while. I'm glad that God has enlivened our hearts to this. I want people to know the truth, but my fear and self-preservation instincts have been hard to overcome. Leann has been doing a good job initiating friendly conversation with people we meet, which itself is very difficult for her. God is working in our hearts. Of this we are both sure.

Second, and totally unrelated, my computer died the other day while I was backing it up. I had just started, so most of my old files were still on my computer; pictures videos, podcasts, and a bunch of documents. Well, to make a long story short. I went to www.bootdisk.com and was able to create a bootable cdrom (for 4$) on Leann's computer, which I then used to boot up my computer. I got back on the old MSDOS bicycle and am right now copying all the files I thought I'd lost to my usb hard drive. If anything like this has ever happened to you, you know how much money I just saved by recovering my files myself instead of paying a techie. The other part is that my computer is still broke, so I'm not sure what I'm going to do, since I need a computer to do almost all of the work I am doing. For now I use Leann's, but she goes home in less than 2 weeks, but don't get me started on that.

My wife says I'm too wordy for the internet...

2009-07-19T12:09:00.000-07:00

So here are some pictures. They should be worth around 6,000 words.

Quick Update

2009-07-16T06:43:00.000-07:00

All,
I thought it would be encouraging to give a quick update on our progress here. Our family is doing well, as you have seen in previous posts. We are quickly finding ways to be of service to The Gallery Church. I am beginning to invest heavily in to the membership strategy of the church. This will enable the pastors of the church to provide better pastoral care. Also, it will encourage an accountable, involved membership. I am excited about this work. Leann has begun to think about doing art (and possibly music) camps, which, like the Church's Easter egg hunt, will be a great outreach opportunity.
Leann is going home to Clarksville in a couple of weeks to work for 6-8 weeks before Elias is born. Pray for us during this time. We have never been apart for more than a week.
We are in need financially. We have sent out support letters, hoping that our brothers and sisters back home will partner with us in our ministry here. We have begun to receive financial support, but will need much more help if we are to be established here. If you have not considered supporting our ministry financially, please do even if you don't know us personally. Check out this post for more details on how to support us.
I am getting in gear to start teaching guitar lessons, which should be great in several ways. It will be an evangelistic opportunity, a chance for me to use my talents, and a supplement to my income. I don't start teaching at Evangel till September, but I'm already working on that as well. I'm excited about working there, as the job allows me to work and minister at the same time.
That's probably more than you wanted to read, so I'll leave the rest for later. We are greatly encouraged that God is doing a good work in our hearts and in our church and in this city.

A bit of light from the darkness.

2009-07-11T17:47:00.000-07:00

I have seen the standard subway performers, from the nondescript to the truly Global, but the guy we saw today took the cake, ate it, and spit it in my face. I had to, in Ripleyan fashion, document this mystical and musical oddity of light and sound. It's not that I've never seen anything so indescribable. It's really just that the only other interesting thing I saw today was a bloody-faced drunk guy trying to light a cigarette and find the door to Whole Foods at the same time. When I went in to check on him he had been apprehended by the nice people at the Whole Foods. Anyway, without further ado. . . Michael Shulman, the Electric Violinist

See Michael here

By the way, if you ever see him, remember, he does not play for tips...He plays for pasta.

Corey

ManHAPPY!

2009-07-06T12:25:00.000-07:00

The first New York word he learned to say (in the UHaul on the way through town) was Manhattan. Somehow this morphed into ManHAPPY! He seems pretty happy to me.

Raising Financial Support

2009-07-06T08:08:00.000-07:00

Here is our Family Update Letter that we sent out to about 200 people this week:

We arrived in New York on May 29 and have an apartment on Roosevelt Island between Manhattan and Queens. We write to keep you updated on our family situation and ask for your support in a variety of ways as we answer God’s call to New York City as followers of Jesus and as church-planting missionaries. We will begin with a brief family update.

For most of our lives, we have attended First Baptist Church in Clarksville, TN. We are both gifted to be teachers and have taught within the church and without. Our first son, Ezra Franklin was born on November 27^th of 2007. He is 18 months old and is excited about all the busses and trains we get to ride, not to mention the occasional taxi. Ezra is an incredibly smart boy, and we are glad he gets to be with us as we make the boldest moves in our life. We hope that we are an example to him. We have another son on the way due in early October.

In May of 2008 Corey graduated from Trevecca Nazarene University with a Master’s Degree in the Art of Teaching, and has since earned endorsement for teaching middle and high school mathematics. Depending upon God’s plan, he has his heart set upon seminary, with the expectation of teaching and training within the church. By teaching at an Evangelical school here in New York he is already fulfilling his convictions in a large way.

Why would we move to New York City? We are convinced, that by following first the teachings of scripture- which we understand because of His Holy Spirit- God has called us to first, worship Him, second, serve the church, and third, serve others. Jesus said that there is a harvest and that few would labor in it. We have had trouble deciding how to talk about our decision to serve the church in NYC. The easiest way to say it is to say that God has called us, by his Spirit, through His word, and by the asking of his servant, Freddy T. Wyatt.

Corey’s official role at the Gallery Church is Worship/Pastoral Associate. He will be working as a missionary to assist in a wide variety of projects that will serve both the pastors of the Gallery church and the people of New York City. Though the Gallery needs his help, the church cannot support him financially. We will need to supplement our income by asking for the loving financial support of our church family elsewhere.

The thing we need most is for you to pray for us as a family. This move has been stressful for us, though it has come with many joys as well. Pray also that God would increase our joy as we are made to be light in a dark place. We know that many have made much greater sacrifices for the sake of His kingdom. Pray for our finances. We do not make enough to live in the city. The only way that we will be able to plant ourselves here is to raise support from our brothers and sisters. We were hoping to be able to work within the church without burdening the church, but with the high cost of city living, that will not be possible. Pray that our house at 99 Union Street in Clarksville will sell soon. Profit from the sale of our house would help sustain us here and would help the church. Finally, pray for the people of this city. The one who is not worth naming is under the impression that he owns this place. He is wrong.

Included is financial information for your consideration. If you are able and willing to support us financially, please prayerfully consider doing so after reading through this material. Please note that our projected income is based on what we currently know Corey will be making at his teaching job here. It is Leann’s desire to stay at home with our two children as long as possible; however she may too be working to provide additional income. My hope and faith is that any gift would be used by God to produce great return in His kingdom.

May God bless you,

Corey and Leann Boyd

Also, If you are reading this blog and did not recieve a support letter, but would like to support our work or the work of the Gallery church for His kingdom, go to www.gallerychurch.com and click “online giving” under the Gallery Info tab. It is simple to set up an account. Our fund is one of the "sub-fund" options. All gifts are tax deductible. We are not eligible for financial support from NAMB, so we are depending on our personal income and the faithful support of individuals.

Ezra montage

2009-06-23T07:24:00.000-07:00

Ok, so Ezra likes to cook, just like his papa and grandpa. He also likes his mama's electric toothbrush.

Morning Worship

2009-06-21T15:50:00.000-07:00

For a change, it took only 45 minutes to get to church this morning. (The last three times we've tried it's taken and hour and a half) Ezra and I went alone as Corey had left early to set up and practice.

Today was the first day church has felt like home. Our last Sundays at First Baptist Clarksville were bittersweet because I could look around and name a family or individual in each section with whom we had some kind of bond and a deep spiritual connection as fellow members of the body. It was so hard to leave those relationships behind. Today, I was able to begin to put together those kinds of connections at the Gallery. We did communion a little differently this morning. We had time beforehand to prepare our hearts, but then we talked and fellowshipped with one another as we ate and drank. It was beautiful. We were able to come together around the table with members of the body whom we have already come to love dearly. The Lord has been good to provide community for us in addition to providing for our physical needs.

On a lighter note, I wanted to share with you about our laundry situation. The first time I took our clothes downstairs, I discovered it would cost me about $6 to wash and dry a load. We just can't swing it. We have instead invested in the Laundry Alternative's Wonderwash and Mini Spin Dryer as well as an adjustable-height drying rack to go over the shower. Now, those of you who know us well are likely not surprised. It's just the kind of hippie-rig you might expect from us. It's worked amazingly well and is not much different time-wise than a traditional wash and dry. It's kind of fun. For now.

Creative Family Fun

2009-06-20T12:30:00.000-07:00

This is the kind of stuff you don't get to do when you're constantly working on a house. I definitely recommend the creative use of cardboard over an expensive trip to the toystore. One is his house and the other is his oven.

Growth in Community

2009-06-11T08:12:00.000-07:00

Last night we met with our new growth community group. For you from FBC, this is the same as community groups. We are looking at the book of Philipians. We enjoyed being able to study the scriptures methodically and in depth with others. We even got out the white board. Many thanks to Paul and Meredith for hosting. We are starting to feel more at home, even though we'll have to find a new apartment soon.

little things

2009-06-04T03:59:00.000-07:00

We left at 4:30 yesterday. Four hours later we had obtained...get ready...a shower curtain.

On the Road

2009-05-31T16:20:00.000-07:00

So the first 18 hours of the drive were mostly fine. Ezra was a trooper. The kitty not so much, but we were able to turn up the radio loud enough to compensate. Actually the roughest part of the drive was the hour it took to cross New York City. That's right. An hour! Manhattan is a little more than two miles wide where we crossed. Have you ever been through Pennsylvania Dutch country?! We considered pulling over and unloading there.

Our building has a little roundabout which made parking the U-Haul super easy and several people showed up to help us move in. We have a tiny little apartment that, oddly enough in some ways feels much bigger than our house in Clarksville because it has cabinets and closets. Roosevelt Island is like a dream. It's clean and quiet. There are trees outside our window! There is also a parking garage outside our window but hey... Yesterday we took a break from our unpacking and walked up the island. Ezra watched some guys play baseball and we shared a snack.

Things are definitely different here, but not in such a bad way. One thing we will have to figure out is transportation. This morning we left an hour early for church (it's about 2 miles away) and we were still late. Our subway was shut down and it took quite some time to figure it out. We should have walked the whole way. :)

--L

Looking over the edge...

2009-05-26T06:40:00.000-07:00

...it doesn't seem so scary. We are about to head to NYC to help in the work of the Gallery Church. Our Pastors there, Freddy T. Wyatt and Aaron Coe have asked us (and Erin and Nathan Patton) to transplant ourselves there to love people and serve the church. Our pastor here in Clarksville, Roger Freeman has sent us with his blessings and we are loading up, Beverly Hillbilly style this Thursday Morning.
We will be tied up for a couple of days in our new apartment, but will soon start blogging. Perhaps we will be even more prolific than the Wyatts.
We are very excited about meeting new people, doing God's will as he has revealed it in his word, and being able to get green tea ice cream, Even if the city is a bit too gray for our taste.
I hope all our friends and family will keep track of what we are doing and encourage us as we try our best to bring light to a dark place.

The Boyds Are No Longer in a Shoebox in Queens

Hurts so Good

Etsy Shop Open

Exodus

The Last NYC Post

Draw-down of Troops

Square Feet and Square Dancing

There is a good explanation for this,

Finished!

As You May Have Heard...

While You Were (Supposed to Be) Sleeping

*GASP!* There's Blood EVERYWHERE!

Time With Boys and Fun at Maker Faire

Kimpossible and the Civil War

Tents, Beer Pong, and Providence

Hulio the Cartel, and Original Sin

Letters

This Stick

Ezra said...

34 Degrees

Happy New Year!

B is for...

Last night it snowed in New York

Sherpa Mom, NY

Hanging in There

Quick Update

Welcome, Elias!

God has Provided...again.

Papa is in Manhattan...

What?!

Maundering

John Smith

Two Random Thoughts

My wife says I'm too wordy for the internet...

Quick Update

A bit of light from the darkness.

ManHAPPY!

Raising Financial Support

Ezra montage

Morning Worship

Creative Family Fun

Growth in Community

little things

On the Road

Looking over the edge...

GASP! There's Blood EVERYWHERE!