support our troops

this cartoon was found at stars and stripes.com

online resources

Here are some online resources to help in choosing what movies to watch. To me, all the bad language, sex, and extreme violence has ruined most movies produced by Hollywood. Many times we are watching a movie with an excellent plot and acting, but are disappointed when we have to listen to the cursing, taking God's name in vain, and sexual innuendos. In fact, many times I have turned the movie off after the first five minutes because of the language, etc. While I personally believe that there are very few "good" movies being made, there are some resources online now to help you in choosing what you watch.


Clean Flicks.com is an online rental site, but all of the movies are edited - they have removed all profanity, nudity, graphic violence and sexual content. On this web site, you can choose to pay a fee each month and receive the movies in the mail - just like NetFlix.com, only better. They also have changed their purchasing policy recently, so that if you already own the DVD, you can now buy an edited copy from CleanFlicks.com for $10.00 plus shipping. If you do not own the DVD, you can purchase the original DVD and the edited version for $19.95.

One of my favorite movies is RUDY, and the story is great, but the guy who tutors Rudy really cusses a lot. I now have an edited copy of RUDY and the movie is now excellent to watch (and to let friends borrow.)


If you still are not sure about the content of a movie, there are a couple of websites available with movie reviews. Movieguide.org is by Ted Baehr, an extremely conservative movie critic. On this site movies are also graded as moral, wholesome, caution, excessive or abhorrent and a detailed review of each movie is available. This heading is posted on the home page of the site:
Movieguide is a ministry dedicated to redeeming the values of the mass media according to biblical principles, by influencing entertainment industry executives and helping families make wise media choices.

This is an excerpt from the "current reviews" - regarding the newest "Zorro" movie -
Summary:
In THE LEGEND OF ZORRO, Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones continue the new adventures of Zorro and his family, in a rousing story about a secret society's plot to conquer the new state of California and start a civil war in the United States. THE LEGEND OF ZORRO is filled with exciting action, humor and American patriotism, as well as a very strong Christian worldview and very strong moral values.


One more resource is found at Dr. James Dobson's family.org site, called plugged in online.com This site features not just the latest movies but also reviews of movies released on DVD and music videos. This is a good resource as a parent, or even teacher, in keeping track of current movies and trends. A lot of the worldly influences are out there for our kids, and we need to be aware so we can know when to say "no" as parents.

photo gallery

New pictures of Natalie taken last week. We will get to see her again in less than a month. Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year!!

She was supposed to make a gingerbread house, but looks like she was too busy eating it.

Natalie has fun at Grandma Johnson's house

She's not the baby anymore!!

"Mmm-good!!"

Duke wins NIT Pre-Season Tip-Off

Photo from the Duke and Memphis NIT chanpionship game on Friday, 11/25/05. Duke won this close game by a score 70-67.



The current 2006-2006 Duke Basketball Schedule with results are updated at goduke.com
Coming up this week, Duke takes on Indiana in the Big Ten-Acc Challenge on Weds night at 9:00 pm and broadcast on ESPN.

e-Sword

e-Sword is the Sword of the Lord with an electronic edge

You can download this unique Bible study tool at www.e-sword.net for free. Over 3 million people have downloaded this free software.

Developed by Rick Myers - e-Sword is a fast and effective way to study the Bible. e-Sword is feature rich and user friendly with more capabilities than you would expect in a free software package. The fact that e-Sword is free is just one of the blessings...

gems from the web

From "Notes in the Key of life" at cindyswanslife.blogspot.com

Thanksgiving Forecast

Turkeys will thaw in the morning, then warm in the oven to an afternoon high near 190F. The kitchen will turn hot and humid, and if you bother the cook, be ready for a severe squall or cold shoulder.

During the late afternoon and evening, the cold front of a knife will slice through the turkey, causing an accumulation of one to two inches on plates. Mashed potatoes will drift across one side while cranberry sauce creates slippery spots on the other. Please pass the gravy.

A weight watch and indigestion warning have been issued for the entire area, with increased stuffiness around the beltway. During the evening, the turkey will diminish and taper off to leftovers, dropping to a low of 34F in the refrigerator.

Looking ahead to Friday and Saturday, high pressure to eat sandwiches will be established. Flurries of leftovers can be expected both days with a 50 percent chance of scattered soup late in the day. We expect a warming trend where soup develops. By early next week, eating pressure will be low as the only wish left will be the bone.

*****

From Joe's Links at wokv.com

Bad Turkey Jokes...

If April showers bring May flowers what do May flowers bring?
Pilgrims!

Why did the turkey cross the road?
It was the chicken's day off.

Why do turkeys always go, "gobble, gobble"?
Because they never learned good table manners!

Why did the police arrest the turkey?
They suspected it of fowl play.

Why did they let the turkey join the band?
Because he had the drumsticks

****

from "the Stroller" at goupstate.com

GOD IS EVERYWHERE: The Sunday school teacher tried to impress on her class of youngsters that God is everywhere. "Where do you think God is this morning?" she asked a little boy. "In our bathroom," he replied. "What makes you think that?" asked the teacher. "Because," he said, "just before I left home, I heard Dad yell, 'My Lord, how long are you going to be in there?' "

*****

thanksgiving day

Thanksgiving Day is here!

When our sons were still in college at Bob Jones University, and with my parents living 45 minutes from campus, we always ended up in SC on turkey day. But this year we are staying home. Josh and Janelle came to Florida this year to join us for Thanksgiving. The meal is being prepared, my favorite meal is turkey and dressing (I could eat this meal every week!) Add sweet potato casserole, green beans, mashed potatoes, homemade chocolate pie(Mam-ma's recipe), pecan pie, pumpkin pie, Janelle's homemade crescent rolls and you have yourselves one great meal!

Well, the guys are playing football this morning, while the women are cooking, and here I am blogging. I better start carving the turkey!!

Enjoy the day and thank God for his many blessings!

Psalm 26:7
That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works.

thankful for special times

I am thankful for all the special times when we can get together as a family. It may not always be a joyous occasion, but the bond of family unity is strong and enduring.


We enjoyed the summer vacation in Mountain View and Horsheshoe Bend, Arkansas
Cindy and Brandon at Mountain View Folk Center - Now, don't they look relaxed!

This photo was taken almost a year ago, when my family was all together for the holidays - Josh, Janelle, and April

Birthdays are always fun, especially when you can celebrate three at one time! You can see Josh and April take after grandpa!

When we were in Arkansas last month, a lot of the Baggett family joined together for dinner at the Catfish Kitchen Restaurant.

This photo was taken on vacation, doing what we do best - eating!!

thankful for a Godly heritage

Dad founded Calvary Baptist Church in Cowpens, SC in the mid-1960's. The first church building was named recently as the "Franklin Fellowship Hall"


I am so thankful that the Lord gave me two Godly parents. They have served the Lord together for over 50 years and even at age 79, my dad loves to serve the Lord when physically able. My mom continues to play the piano and teach Sunday School. Many people their age would be ready to "rest" and just let the younger folks do the work of the ministry. They are an example for the rest of us to follow - kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids alike.


Until recently, dad continued to go a nursing home on Sunday and conduct a morning worship service.


I thankful that God has called my oldest son into the ministry, and he is following in his grandpa's footsteps as a preacher.

thankful for family

I hope we will stop and think of the blessings of God in our lives this week. We have so much to be thankful for, the list could go on and on. But, I guess our family comes to mind first, because God has allowed some of our children to survive car accidents this year.

I think of blessings...

such as when a son graduates, and graduates, and graduates...




such as sons who still compete against each other, to see who can stand in 32 degree water the longest



such as a son and his wife enjoying each other



such as a family meal on a Sunday afternoon



such as a family vacation with a mother, wife and granddaughter

preparing for Thanksgiving

Some websites for Thanksgiving Day

The History Channel has a site with Thanksgiving history. Interesting reading includes "The First Thanksgiving" and "Myths and Legends"

Another site is called Plimoth Plantation with lots of articles on the origins of Thanksgiving, the Pilgrims, recipes, the english colonists and more.

Scholastic.com has an interactive site with info that teachers may find useful.

Hope these help you realize the true meaning of Thanksgiving all week long!!

tropics update

Is it possible that Florida could get hit with another tropical storm or even Hurricane? After a year like 2005, anything is possible...

Here in Jacksonville, we will be spared. The cold weather is keeping the storm south of us. We are supposed to hit 32 degrees for a low on Weds morning. Sorry, Josh and Janelle, I know you were coming to Florida this week to get some warm weather. Better bring your jackets!!

duke photo gallery

Basketball season had begun with pre-season tournaments. The NIT SEASON TIP-OFF tourney started this week with Duke playing on Monday night and Wednesday night. Duke defeated Boston University 64-47 in the opener. Duke was even more impressive in the second round win over Seton Hall, 93-40. Today the "Dukies" take on Davidson in Charlotte at 5 pm(ESPN2). The NIT tourney continues in New York with the next game on Wedsnesday, Nov. 23.

check out these websites

peanuts.com

Many newspapers, like our Times-Union, do not publish Peanuts in the funnies. Now you can go www.peanuts.com and read the daily strip and much, much more. You can click on the main characters at the bottom of the home page and read about how and when they were introduced, and read the strips from the 1950's. Send e-cards and read the latest news about Snoopy and the gang.

PDFOnline

This site allows you to convert document formats into PDF files online for free.
You don't have to use your personal email account. Simply create a separate email account, or a free account at Yahoo, Hotmail, or gmail, specifically for this purpose. That way, you can always retrieve your PDF from anywhere in the world.

DigiTales

Welcome to a world of resources, examples and training opportunities to inspire your own digital storytelling tales! Visit the storymaking steps, toolkits and galleries of digital stories designed to help jump start beginners. You are invited to host or join one of our DigiTales Storytelling Camps for group fun along with an enchanted, artistic, learning experience with merging the ancient art of oral storytelling with a palette of digital tools.

writeboard.com

Writeboard is perfect for...
Authors, journalists, PR folks, editors, and publishers
Bloggers or freelance/independent writers
Letter writers, songwriters, poets, comedians, creatives
Students, professors, and groups collaborating on a paper

Want to collaborate on some copy? Want to pass a memo or letter by someone else for editing before you send it? Want to work with your business partners on some text for a proposal? Want fellow students to contribute to a group paper? Want to collaborate with a client on wording for their project?

Sharing writeboards is easy — simply enter someone's email address and they'll get an invitation with a link to view and edit the writeboard.

Birthday Alarm.com

Do you have trouble remembering family birthdays. Here is free site to help you keep track of those special dates at www.birthdayalarm.com

Just follow our simple
registration steps. Benefits:
- ecards
- reminders
- calendar
- events & holidays reminder

Never forget another Birthday!

pick a bale of cotton

As we traveled to Arkansas, north through Louisiana on US Highway 65, we drove past many cotton fields. Believe it or not, when I saw these stacks of cotton bales, covered with tarps, the first thing that came to my mind was the old American Folk song, "Pick a Bale of Cotton". Now, less than two weeks later, this "cotton" song has made the news when a middle school chorus in Michigan was planning to use it in the fall concert and a parent complained. This song "glorified" slavery according to the parent. What next? Will the songs that came out of the slave era that just "remind" us that slavery existed also be banned from public schools? I think this is carrying political correctness too far! I can think of many songs that could be banned just because the song might offend one person, if that criteria is used.Stephen Foster is recognized as the first "American" songwriter, and yet many of his songs could offend someone. Songs that remind us of our history are not "bad" just because one person is offended. We should not change the teaching of history to pretend that slavery did not exist, and we should be able to sing the songs that were written during this time.



I have never seen so many bales of cotton in the field like this. The cotton is either on its way to the cotton gin, or waiting to be transported to a port. This brought back many memories of the textile industry in the Carolinas. I worked at one those "cotton" mills during three college summer breaks in the mid-1970's. The majority of the Franklins in South Carolina worked in one of those mills until they closed down. I still find it fascinating how that cotton grown in fields can be turned into cloth. Today the cotton grown in the Lousiana fields waits to be transported by barges down to the port(whenever the port re-opens from the hurricane damage.) From there it will be put on a "slow boat to China," since most of our textile industry has shifted to Asia. Also, it makes me wonder if someday there will be "no" manufacturing jobs in America!

the comedy of life

Just in time for Thanksgiving, Aunt JoAnn found a new way to cook pumpkin bread. Only one problem, no one could figure out how to get it out of the Mason Jar! If you have a solution to this problem, please let me know!

People are always telling me that I have a very comical family!


Aunt Robbie even asked the "Brookshire Butchers" for help, but to no avail!!


No, your eyes do not deceive you, this bread was cooked (and stuck) in that Mason Jar.

Jaguars update

Jaguars update - just in case you missed it, the Jags beat the Baltimore Ravens Sunday! Matt Jones scored a touchdown and the Jags also used his QB skills today.

Jaguars 30,
Ravens 3

By MARK LONG, AP Sports Writer

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- The Jacksonville Jaguars finally ended their scoring drought, and they had Kyle Boller to thank for it.
Greg Jones ran for a career-high 106 yards and a touchdown, Matt Jones had a career-high 117 yards receiving and a score and the Jaguars beat the slumping Baltimore Ravens 30-3 on Sunday.
The Jaguars needed a field goal and a late defensive touchdown to end the streak.
Byron Leftwich completed a 42-yard pass to Matt Jones with about 4 minutes to play, setting up Josh Scobee's third field goal -- a 26-yarder that gave Jacksonville a 23-3 lead.read more

fall colors in Arkansas

Photo taken at Good Faith Cemetery

I took these pictures of the fall leaves in Pine Bluff last week. Arkansas is at it's peak right now for the fall colors. This year is a "good year" for colors because of the warm weather lingering into September, and many shades of orange, red and deep purple are being seen. For those of us in Florida and Texas, this is about a close as we will get to seeing the fall colors! Our leaves just turn brown and drop off the trees, a few at a time, from now until February.


I found a couple of web sites you can visit to view pictures like the one below from across the state of Arkansas. I know a lot of people like to drive to these locations, but I can enjoy them online and save all that gas!


Ozark Mountain Scenery

First site is at www.arkansas.com and you will find a "fall colors" link to pictures from around the state.
Another site is www.ozarkmtns.com/foliage Just click on the word "photos" on the sidebar of the homepage.

Caney Mountain, Ozark County

new wheels

Brandon and his new 2006 Toyota 4-Runner. He felt like the 4-runner saved his life when he wrecked, so he chose the newest model as his new wheels.


He chose the 2006 model over a new 2005 because this is the year Toyota made slight changes to 4-Runner. They change something every three years, so the front grill and rear end have been re-designed for 2006. Looks like his Florida gator survived the wreck also!!


His new wheels will be great for long trips, except for the high price of gas right now. His 4-Runner is fully loaded, with a moon roof, leather interior, and 5-disc CD surround sound stereo(no GPS or satellite radio). I must say the ride is much nicer and smoother, as his 1999 4-Runner had a "bumpy" ride in the back seat. The 2006 model is also slightly larger.



Link to Miracles still happen - photos of the wreck posted on August 25, 2005

Veteran's Day 2005

Today, I would like to honor our family members who have served in the Armed Forces or who are currently serving.

My dad, Gene Franklin, served in the US Navy during World War II, from 1944-1946. His ship was on its way to Iwo Jima, and as dad likes to say, the Japanese heard he was coming and surrendered!! He is recovering from rotator cuff surgery this week and would appreciate your prayers.


Cindy's grandfather, Joe Baggett, served in the US Army during World War II in 1944. Jesse G. Franks (Uncle Bo) also served in the Army in WWII. As the years went on, most of her uncles served our nation. Kelsea Baggett was in the Air Force from 1956-1960 and served as a pharmacy technician. Ralph (Sonny) Baggett was in the Army from 1954-1956 and served as an armored engineer. Two other uncles served during the Vietnam years. Leslie Baggett was in the Army in Vietnam from 1969-1970. David Baggett was in the Navy from 1966-1968 and served on the USS Finch.

Our younger generation continues to serve our nation - Two of Uncle Kelsea's sons are in the service today. Daniel Baggett graduated from the US Navel Academy, Annapolis, MD, in 1986 and will be retiring after 20 years of service in June 2006. He is currently working for the Secretary of the Navy in Maryland. Doug Baggett is in the Marine Reserves in California and spent some time serving in the War on Terror in Iraq. I also have a cousin, Ray Pettit, Jr., who has made a career of the US Army and is currently stationed in VA.

I am sure there are lots of stories these men could tell, and maybe some day we will get some of them posted on this site. "Thanks" from all of the franklybaggs family.


You might want to check out this blog by Major K who is currently in Iraq. He is a Major in the US Army deployed to Iraq in the Global War on Terrorism, no he is not a family member, but his site is neat.

photo gallery

New pictures of our favorite (and only) granddaughter!



What are these things?


Fall is a ball!!


More fun with leaves!



Natalie is "tired out" from playing


Natalie with Daddy