Obama Rally in Leesburg

Hearing that Obama was coming to Leesburg, Virginia, I decided to take off work and go up for the rally (Leesburg is about 25 minutes away from our house). After 7 hours of standing and waiting, I managed to get a front row spot for the speech! It was a very good event, with his typical, yet powerful stump speech. I even got a hand shake for my efforts! :)

Here are some of my best shots.











My ugly mug with Obama in the background.


In this short clip of Obama's entrance, the guy next to me yells "we love you" at the end and Obama retorts "I love you back!"



This is a really good clip on the importance of our time in history and the critical issues facing our nation and our world. At the end I pan the crowd briefly.



A short, but very good clip on healthcare. Obama gets personal about his Grandmother and her death from cancer.

July 4th Celebration in D.C.

This fourth of July we braved the crowds and rain and descended upon D.C. for the 4th of July celebrations. Standing on the memorial bridge behind the Lincoln memorial, we had a great view of the show. Kieran had a blast and gets very animated when reminded of the event. His favorite new word is "exploding."

Here is a short clip of the celebration, you can see the back of the Lincoln memorial to the left, and the Washington monument in the distance at the center.

Air & Space Museum

Today Kieran and I visited the Air & Space museum with the Doan boy's from our church. Here we are standing in front of the space shuttle, pretty cool!




Here is Kieran and his friend Keenan looking down on the shuttle (Kieran is on the right).



Kieran and Keenan sitting in the cockpit of a little airplane (Kieran on the right). I think they make good co-pilots!


Kieran and Keenan checking out the shuttle one last time.


We saw lots of other aircraft, was an amazing arrangement. I didn't take many pics as the boys were fired up by all the cool sights and really on the move!

Our church in US News & World Report

US News & World Report did an article this week on the emerging church movement in the United States. The article features Common Table, the small faith community that Maranda, Kieran, and I have been a part of for over two years. This type of publicity is certainly not something our discreet group aspires to, but it is interesting to see a national publication's take on our small community. To their credit the journalist arrived early and stayed late, as well as interviewing one of our team leaders.

While I don't expect the emergent movement to become the norm for U.S. christianity, I am optimistic that the emergent emphasis on freedom, authenticity, relationship, the arts, and service, will impact the greater christian body. However, even if that doesn't happen, places like common table (and many other like-minded communities), serve an important role within the faith community by providing a sanctuary for those who don't comfortable fit in a traditional church setting.

Check out the US News & World Report article HERE.

Native American Dance

On our way back from lunch with our friends Mike and Shawn & Sara, Kieran and I spotted a drum circle, so of course we had to attend! It was fun watching the native american dances. Our favorite was the men's hunting dance which I recorded on my cell phone. Watch the men sneaking up on their prey, then rejoicing at their success. Really, really enjoyable for Kieran and I.