Tonight Scotty got his little brother his first tricycle and it was easy to see how much it pleased them both. It even pleased Steph, who joined her brothers out on the sidewalk pushing Ben all around. He just cannot figure out the pedals.

After we went inside, Ben and Scotty went immediately onto the floor and spent their time playing and wrestling. I told Amanda that I have come to the realization that they are indeed twins, just twins who were born 14 years apart. They played and played, and the highlight was when it was time for bed. Ben went over and grabbed his “blankey” and then reached out and grabbed his trike. He pulled it to the bottom of the stairs and then said to Scotty, “stuck, help.” Pretty sweet, but no matter how cute it was, he wasn’t allowed to sleep with the bike. He was pretty disappointed too.

But it has been a long day and I am off to bed. Life is pretty great, and filled with many unexpected blessings….after all, today I just learned I have twins.

Goodnight and God Bless.

Tommy+

Gee, all this forgetfulness would be easier to handle if I were only Otis the drunk from the old Andy Griffith Show, but I am not. I have just been very busy as of late and I cannot seem to get a handle on my entire day for more than two days in a row apparently. I AM working to adjust how I am doing things and I believe I am making a lot of progress. With a good night’s sleep tonight (yes, with my wife and my toddler son right next to me —he is convinced it is his bed and I do not belong there!) I hope to be a lot sharper for tomorrow.

I am proud of myself today though. I was up at 4:45 am and now at 11:30 at night I am just finishing up….AND remembering to do this. I did not have the opportunity to rest today, so I am certain sleep will come quite quickly……hopefully before the toddler feet attempt to eject me from the bed!

Life is busy, but it is good. I get to work among some great people. It is such a blessing. And what’s a little confusion amongst all that?

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Fr. Tom+

Steph is at the NHS vs Ben Davis HS scrimmage at Ben Davis. Scott is at work for another hour. Amanda is out like a light on our davenport, and Ben is watching Veggietales while I type. Yep….it is just a typical evening at the Tirman home. But the good news is that Ben will not have to head to bed on time and get to see his brother. It is a good thing too. Ben is wearing an orange shirt, and Scott will think it is a Little Caesar’s shirt (where he works), or at least pretend it is! They are pretty tight.

The sad part is that the later that Ben stays up, the harder it is for him to go to bed. He gets so involved with what he is doing the later it gets, that he forgets all about the day ending. I suppose Scott is the same way. It is all about the fun with those two.

But as for me, I will retire soon after they reunite. I probably cannot wait for Steph….I am a fossil. But they will all be home and in bed soon. Life is good, and despite the chaos, it is still my life and I enjoy it!

I hope and pray your day was equally as blessed.

Tom+

Forgive me Father, it has been quite a few days since my last blog! Dear Lord, I cannot believe how very forgetful I get at times! I know I have been busy, but you would think that things I do every day I could remember….apparently not! Maybe today will help get me on the right path!

Today we prayed a parishioner from our Nashville Mission, Bob Nixon, into eternal life. Bob is a great guy, married to his wife Nancy for 59 years, but the 5-bypass surgery he had just a few days ago was too much for him to handle. Bo entered into eternal life this afternoon. Please keep Nancy and their family in your prayers.

As for me, I am just trying to catch up. It is almost 11;30, and I think I have done about all I can do for today. I will try and make sure I post tomorrow!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless. Thanks for checking in!

Tom+

My lack of posting was certainly not intentional. We have been away all weekend to attend my 30th high school reunion in Mishawaka. Yep, I was a Mishawaka Caveman, although my friend Randy was the actual mascot. And no, we didn’t stay in a cave, it was a hotel, with indoor plumbing and everything……but there was no Internet on the third floor.

My reunion however went quite well. I gathered together with a lot of people I have known most of my entire life not having the slightest idea of who most of them were. But all and all it was a great time. My only regret was to have lost touch with so many of them for so long. I really was blessed to grow up with a great group of people. Sadly, when I was in high school, I wasn’t mature enough to recognize that. I am just glad to know I do now.

With the advent of things like email, Facebook, blogs, Twitter, and such we all have the possibilities of reconnecting in ways we couldn’t back then. I am thankful for the opportunity too.

Home sweet home….I am thankful for that too.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless.

Tommy+

As many regular readers know, I am the lacrosse coach for the Noblesville Lady Millers Lacrosse Team. And even though school does not begin until next week, we gathered together incoming players (mostly freshmen) and interested young women, to talk about our program and assess their interest. It was a great meeting. We had a lot of girls there. Four of our seniors were named captains for next year too. It was a great time.

But this year is more intentional than any other. This is Steph’s senior year and yes, she is one of the four captains……we are calling them “The Four Horsemen.” They are four girls who have played together their whole careers and are ready to make a difference! They placed fourth in the state, and want to win it all this year. They have the talent….let’s just hope they have the drive. They will need both!

As a coach, it is exciting to see all the girls come out and consider playing. It always makes me wonder what will be. Last year we had only ONE freshman, so this year just ONE sophomore….but if any turn out like her LOOK OUT! It is going to be a great year.

But despite all the excitement, I am still middle-aged, and I still need to go to bed!! So I hope and pray your day was as wonderful and encouraging as mine!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless.

Tommy+

I was able to speak to Deacon Conley this morning. He was finally able to get out, and God willing, he and I will meet tomorrow between Nashville and Indy for a couple of hours. It was great to hear his voice. We have been worried about he and his wife, and to know he was actually off his property and in cell range was wonderful. There is still a lot of work to do in Brown County to recover from the storm, but hearing his voice and getting a first hand report gave me great hope.

Dan does so much for others, we just wish there was more that we could do for him. I WILL buy his breakfast tomorrow, but it is a far cry from what he is worth. I mean seriously PT and I think he just might be worth two breakfasts. Deacon Tony was also on his way to Kokomo last night and his car broke down! It is amazing we were able to have any of us there! But God is still leading us and calling us to plant there. No wind, nor rain, or hail or storm will stop us. And since the post office is apparently cutting back, we might as well pick up there themes.

Anyway, I am thankful for a peaceful night and low worries. Ben and I are out on the deck with the puppy and are awaiting some of Steph’s friends to watch movies and stay the night. It should be a good night.

But as for me, I will have some Ben and puppy time. Ben is pretty fascinated with the gold-wonder and I can tell that they are quickly becoming partners in crime. I clearly need to keep and eye on them!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless.

Tommy+

It has been an exceptionally weird day. Although we were to hold our second formation meeting in Kokomo and tour a facility up there too, as we waited for Deacon Dan Conley to arrive to drive with us the time just kept rolling on. Dan never called in fact…..which was something that worried us deeply. He is the kind of guy who will call if he is going to be only a few minutes late, but after 30, then 45 and then 60 minutes. We finally left, in two cars, just in case we needed to head his way to help. We knew something was amiss.

We called the Brown county Sheriff’s department on our way to Kokomo. There were storms all across Indiana and we were worried. They of course knew Dan, not because he is a convicted and dangerous felon, but because he is a retired police officer, and most of them had worked with him at one time or another. The dispatcher said there were trees down and power out everywhere, and from what they knew then, getting to Dan’s house was unlikely for some time. But we asked that they call us when they heard.

They did call us some time later and both Dan and Merry Ann were fine, although stranded. It made us feel good to know they were okay.

The meeting went well and we are still on track for a September 12th launch. A day of worry turned to be out fine….thanks be to God. Please pray that we continue to move ahead in Kokomo and pray also that Dan and Merry Ann, as well as the people of Brown County recover very soon. It has been a tough 12 months down there, and of all the people in Indiana, the people of Brown County deserve a break!

Keep praying!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless.

Tommy+

I am trying as best as I can to enter the “electronic age.” I have this blog which has just surpassed 420 entries. I am on Facebook under my name Tom Tirman. AND, I even have a Twitter account which is “frtomtirman.” It seems I have everything going on to be considered “hip,” that is of course, other than the language.

What bothers me about all of this is that at one time I was really and actually cool. Of course being cool in the Dark Ages these days apparently does not count. Steph and Scott laugh at how very out of touch I am, and to be honest I feel often like I am adrift in a sea that is more unfamiliar than I would care to admit! Am I cool for almost 50? Well probably as much as 50 year olds can be cool. But I am not holding out any hopes of an invitation to the VH1 awards this year! I am still a big fan of the 70’s.

But regardless, I am doing my best to be relevant to the culture. Lord knows I try. My 30th high school reunion is this weekend, and at least there I have the expectation of support. I still think I am pretty cool. And there is nothing like gathering with a large group of equally delusional old people to set one’s mind at rest!

Thank God for all my classmates!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

Okay…the last few days have been sporadic in terms of posting, but the traveling was a lot. I also found that certain developments led to my need to be at two of our services this morning to address our congregations. I will address the congregation in Nashville sometime this week or over the weekend if need be. That’s just a part of being a priest…sometimes things happen and plans change. My vacation day went goodbye, just like many others have before. It was however, good to be among such wonderful people.

Things here at home are getting back to normal. Ben was excited to see us, and Steph and Amanda seemed to be, though they clearly were much more enamored with the fudge and salt-water taffy we brought them. It was just good to be home. And though I am happy to be among such familiar surroundings, I will miss and always remember my adventure with Scott to DC. It was a great time for us both.

I have two more trips scheduled this year (so far), one to Texas and one to California but sadly, I will do them alone. One is a meeting of the Anglican 4th Day National Steering Committee at the end of this month, and the other is the consecration of my friend Doc Loomis as a bishop in September. Both will be short trips, but well worth it. I like to travel and particularly to fly. Thankfully both Texas and California are far enough away to dissuade me from even thinking about a drive!!

Anyway, I am back on the porch and back with the cat. I have missed being here. There truly is no place like home.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless.

Tommy+