Name Change

I renamed the blog.....why you might ask? Because with a name like Grammatico , i have listened to countless people pronounce my last name wrong for over 35 years and I picked my favorite mis-pronounced name as the new blog title. Enunciation = jer-matt-ih-coal ! BOOM!

change.........

A little over 4 years ago, I met this girl....she is funny, smart , and beautiful. Interested? Well, you will have to wait another 10 years. And then you will probably still not get a chance. Because this is my daughter, Ella.
Let me give you a little background. Ashley and I have created a blended family. I have 2 biological daughters and Ash has one. We do not call them step children but we call them "bonus" children. Now, let me set the record straight right off of the bat, blended families are not easy. They require work, diligence and more importantly , they require more love. You see , we all came into this family with preconceived ideas, morals, virtues, and thoughts. And now we bring all of those under one roof and have to keep it all under control without explosion. You could say that Ashley and I are required to be dynamic managers of talents, love,gifts, love ,money, love, abilities, love, attitudes, love, differences, and yes, love. Do you see a theme?
Now, back to the matter at hand, Ella! This young lady has come into my world and rocked it. I believe if there is one thing that I have learned from her it is that I am a very prideful and selfish person, most of the time. it is always my time, my thoughts, and my time that get impeded on. The problem with all of that is the word "MINE". it does not fit into the theme of our blended family, "LOVE". She has stretched me to love, stretched me to look outside of myself, and stretched me to be better.
I am incredibly thankful for this young girl in my life. She has been awesome but you know how I want to end this? Today is her 8th birthday and I want to say:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELLA!!!! Thanks for loving me!

Relaxation

So I am in day two of my vacation and , as I get older, it has become more increasingly difficult to relax while on vacation. I go with the full intention of enjoying our daughters and my wife, some good food, a great book, and know that I have no responsibilities. But and it is one huge BUT......I don't know how to relax. I have spent 35 years being stressed out and always having my mind running.
So here is the new deal, I want to clear my mind, clear my minds "inbox", and put away my anxieties. And it all starts right here in my reading of Matthew 11:28:

" Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest".

I am insanely heavy laden in this point of my journey but as Ashley said to me on our drive to the beach, "It isn't the destination that matters but enjoying the journey that gets us there.". Man, I love that woman.
So here is to a new outlook:
Here is to not being so stressed out, here is to letting our kids relax, here is to letting my wife love life, here is to loving my God, and here is to the journey, not the destination.

Party over here , Party over there......

So next Thursday, July 16th, something really cool is happening in the art district of Charlotte called NoDa. The collaboration between the Surles fam, Scott Miller and Jeff Shinabarger is bring a GiftCardGiver party to Charlotte. What is a GiftCardGiver party, you might ask? Well, here is a synapse of what is going to happen. This excerpt is from the invitation that Kenneth Surles sent out on Facebook.
"With $15 Billion worth of gift cards going unused in America from this year alone the non-profit Gift Card Giver has decided to do something about it, collect unused cards and give them to people in need.

To help them out with this brilliant idea, Jess and I, along with Scott Miller, will be hosting one of the organization's popular "House Parties" on Thursday, July 16th at 7:00 PM at our home in NoDa, Charlotte, NC. There will be a wide range of card games, snacks, desserts, drinks and good times for all. Come to meet some new folks who want to bring tangible change to the world, flex your UNO muscles, or display your calm cool and collected domination of Jenga.

The only requirement is everyone gets "Carded" at the door. In order to gain access you haveto bring a gift card (from anywhere) with any balance (large or small). Cards collected will go to benefit the Habitat Family from Parkersburg, West Virginia.

You do not want to miss this opportunity to have fun and do good!

Check out the official invite here:
http://www.giftcardgiver.com/charlotte/ "

SO there you have it. Cool huh?

Well, here is one more tidbit on this whole thing. Everyone seems to have some gift card laying around in a drawer that has unused money on it. In fact, I have a Target card in my car with $1.18 on it and it is going to the party. Ashley and I would like to collect unused gift cards to take to the party. So if you can't come, I want you to think about mailing them to us or meeting up with us so we can collect the cards. Portions on the cards can range from 1 cent up to a billion dollars (BTW, if you have a gift card with a billion dollars on it, we need to become better friends :) . Send me an email at grammatico1@gmail.com to get our address to send them or to arrange for us to pick them up.

Peace!

Fast for Darfur - Day 1

Fast for Darfur - Day 1 from Ryan Grammatico on Vimeo.

Here we go ...Day 1! Join us!!!

Do you see what I see?

What do you think when you see this picture? I see potential, I see hope and loss at the same time, I see anger, I see confusion, I see a kid who should be watching LeBron instead of killing, I see a child who should smile instead of making a grimacing face, I see a child who should be holding a skateboard instead of an assault rifle, and I see that I can't take this anymore.
I am joining the fight, the only way that I can right now.

I am going on a three-day water-only fast next Wednesday through Friday (May 20-22), and would like for you to consider joining me. There are several things from which you can fast – it doesn’t have to be a water-only fast. You can fast from meat, alcohol, coffee, or even TV – pick something you love and go without it. The point is to be constantly mindful of the people of Darfur during this time. Every time you experience a hunger pang, or start to crave whatever it is that you’re fasting from, say a prayer for Darfur.

But don’t stop there. Tell your friends, ask them to join you, and ask them to tell all their friends and family about this terrible humanitarian crisis. Send letters to our president and members of Congress. Send letters to the editor of your newspaper. Send letters to TV stations. This is a chance for us to raise our collective voice for the orphans, widows, and outcasts of our world. I hope you’ll join me. (via Steve Cook's blog, but it's my hearts cry, as well)

I am tired of seeing the fighting , the hurt, the killing, and the lack of smiles in Darfur.

Daniel McCollum (click here for Daniels take)and myself, are joining our incredible friend , Steve Cook,(check out his blog here) for a time of prayer on Wednesday at noon at the Billy Graham Library Garden, here in Charlotte, NC. PLEASE COME JOIN US FOR AN HOUR OF PRAYER.

Directions to Billy Graham Library


2 Chronicles 7:14 : And my people, my God-defined people, respond by humbling themselves, praying, seeking my presence, and turning their backs on their wicked lives, I’ll be there ready for you: I’ll listen from heaven, forgive their sins, and restore their land to health.

Check out my video for a personal invite!

Mrs. Grammatico

Every once in a while, we cross paths with people who impact our lives. The past few blogs have been about some of those people in my own life. Well, I have intentionally saved the best for last. Webster defines the word, unconditional, as not limited by conditions; absolute. My bride is the epitome of the word unconditional. Nothing I did won her affection and it seems, as stupid as I sometimes am, nothing I do now can lose her affection.
On the day that we married on February 3, 2007, she read vows to me, but what set those vows apart from any other promise, was the look in her eye. It SCREAMED, "unconditionally Ryan"! She is the first person in my life that when she says she loves me, I believe it. Not that other people don't love me but that I really , truly, and earnestly believe it when she says it. She has taught me so much in these past years. She has taught me how to focus better, how to love better , how to be more compassionate, how to communicate better, how to parent better, and how to be a better friend and spouse. She stretches me, pushes me, hugs me, holds me, encourages me, prays for me, and is never scared to call me to the carpet for anything in my life. This woman has been the greatest gift from our Creator that I could have ever hoped for. Every night, we fall asleep with my arms around her and when we wake up, her arms are around me. EVERY TIME! That's what I'm talking about!
I can't get enough of her laugh. When i make her smile , I feel like I can do anything. I love sitting across a room and watching her interact with people, because I know that those people are better off now that she is talking to them. Hearing about her passions strengthens my desire to give her the world. She always puts other people first and if you know her then you know that this is true.
My wife has this habit of leaving me a card and telling me about little things in life, about her love for me and just how she sees us.
When my wife is quiet, she is beautiful. She has this strange way of saying a thousand things without uttering a word.
The coolest thing about her is the vitality that she brings to life. not just our life, but every life that she comes in contact with. It is mind blowing to me.
I am writing this because I wrap up this "who inspired me" blog point with the one person who has impacted me more than anyone else, and that person is, ladies and gentlemen.....Mrs. Ashley Grammatico. I love you, babe!