I know that I have been posting frequently about my family and friendships and how blessed I am lately.  I apologize if you are getting a little bored with the subject, but I guess it is what is weighing most heavily on my heart these days. 

I found this poster on GOOGLE and LOVED it!  It is so true.  And sometimes painfully so.  I have definitely mentioned this before, but from where I am standing, I am AMAZED at the people I really thought were my friends who have magically disappeared when the waters around me began to rage.  While it is quite heartbreaking, God has used this realization to remind me of those few who are hanging in there with me and He has given me an overwhelming desire to find new ways to show my love and appreciation for them. 

So, to my handful of peeps who are chasing these storms with me (you know who you are)...  I love you guys SO MUCH.  I could spend the rest of my life trying to express my gratitude and it would never be enough.  I could not stand on my feet day to day without your support and encouragement. Your calls, texts, emails etc. mean the WORLD to me.

You are my blessings.

update/our week

I discovered 90's Hip Hop on Pandora....GREAT for running!

 

 

It was awesome coming home from school early yesterday.  Preston and I spent a lot of time cuddling under blankets....FUN!

 

 

 

 

My baby and I went to the park Thursday afternoon.....it was FREEZING COLD!!!!  But, we had  a great time. 

 

 

Not too much has gone on this week.  It was a short week, which was amazing!  I live for the weekends!

 

 

We took JP to the psychiatrist on Monday.  It went really well.  I loved the doctor.  I loved the way he interacted with JP.  He was very personable and down to earth.  We go back in three weeks.  JP, of course, didn't really understand why we were there.  We told him that he was a doctor, but not the kind who looks in your mouth, ears, etc.  He is a doctor who is a friend for you to talk to and share your feelings with.  I'm not sure he grasped that!  But, as time goes on, I'm hoping it will prove to be successful for him. I will continue to keep you updated.

 

 

I was supposed to go to my friend's house in the mountains last night.  THE STUPID ice ruined that!  So, that was a bummer, but my family and I ended up staying in, keeping warm and watching movies.  It was nice!  We watched the movie, Taken.  If you haven't seen it, you need to.  It was awesome.  I think we are going to watch the second one today.  I've heard it's awesome.

 

 

Well, that's really about it.  I hope you guys are having a great weekend so far! 

alabaster box

"While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper,  a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table.

When the disciples saw this, they were indignant.'Why this waste?'  they asked.  ^'This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.'

 Aware of this, Jesus said to them, 'Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me.  The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.  When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial.  Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.' "

Matthew 26:6-13 

 

I sang this song in church tonight.  Alabaster Box.  It is a beautiful song.  The words are amazing.  Very worshipful.  I'm sure you've probably read this passage of scripture a million times.  Tonight when I sang, I was able to truly worship.  I have to be honest, I was a little worried.  The condition of my heart tends to change with the wind these days.  When I am singing, I am definitely in a very vulnerable state of mind.  I didn't want to cry.  And thanks to God, I didn't!  But, I was able to close my eyes and really play out the scenes of this passage in my mind.  It was so real. 

Part of the lyrics say,  "You weren't there the night He found me, and you didn't feel what I felt when He wrapped His love all around me.  You don't know the cost of the oil, no you don't know the cost of my praise....you don't know the cost of the oil in my alabaster box."    And it's true.  I don't know the cost of another person's praise.  I have no idea what is in the box that they are carrying into a worship service with them. I have no idea the sacrifice they had to make in order to find Jesus, gather their perfume (praise) and kneel at His feet.  But Jesus knows.  He understands the road they've traveled.  He understands the baggage they have draped across their shoulders.  He knows our pain. 

And He wants to carry it for us.  I don't know about you, but I am so thankful for that.  My box is REALLY heavy.  I offered it to Him tonight... now, I just have to work really hard not to take it back!


On another note, we are taking JP to the doctor today.  A child psychiatrist/ologist.  You have probably figured it out by now, but the dynamics of our home have DRASTICALLY changed over the past five months.  I have tried really hard not to expose JP to the details surrounding our transition, but it amazes me how much they pick up on, on their very own.  I have been advised by several clinical professionals NOT to offer any information until he comes and asks questions.  And I was assured that he would eventually approach me.  So far, it hasn't happened.  Having said that, Scott and I went to his 2nd quarter conference Friday to meet with his teacher and discuss his progress. She told me that JP talks about our situation a good bit in class.  I was completely caught off guard by this.  I guess I shouldn't be.  JP is a very smart and intuitive kid.  I think I felt so bad that he has chosen to talk to his teacher and friends at school rather than us.  She assured me that he seems happy and appears to have a healthy relationship with both me and Scott.  I was relieved to hear that, because we work REALLY hard to make things seem as peaceful and loving as possible for him.

So, if you don't mind, I'll ask you to stop at 11:30 and lift the three of us up in prayer as we meet with the doctor.  I am very anxious and nervous.  It is never something that you want to do.  But, I feel that it is in his best interest. There are so many things in life that JP has little to no control over.  I certainly intend to provide him with multiple outlets to express his feelings.  Positive or negative.


Well, I hope everyone has a wonderful MONDAY!  I am off work, which is always a good thing!!

I will keep you updated....

 

 

laurie

WOW.  Sitting in a hospital makes for a very long day.  I am happy to report that my sister's surgery went very well.  They (of course) ended up having to do more than they had anticipated, but the surgeon has reason to believe that she will recover well and HOPEFULLY this will complete this two year SAGA we've experienced.  Thank you for your continued prayer support!  It works!  God is good.

I mainly wanted to give an update on the surgery.  I have lots I need to write about and SOON.  In the past 24 hours I have found myself sitting in a whole new bed of emotions.  And I really need to write them out, if possible.  So, stay tuned for some RAW, uncensored ramblings from my head and my heart.  ( If that doesn't scare you away, NOTHING will! )

For now, sleep well and have a SUPER Wednesday!

finally

Okay!  Well, thanks to TED, I at least am able to upload pictures again.  CLEARLY, I have not perfected it.  Sorry for the poor quality.  I have a lot to work on. 

 

Me and my sis at California Dreaming Friday night...YUMMY!

My two favorite girls, Kerri and Kathi joined us for dinner and afterwards we went dancing!  Fun times!!

 

 

 

 

She loves me!!

 

 

Sunday was my friend, Katie's, daughter's birthday party at Chuck E Cheese.  JP always loves to go there!  (Can you say HEADACHE?!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is JP's best friend, John.  Actually, they are only friends because his wife is JP's girlfriend.  Got that?  It's complicated, I know.  Botttomline, they are both in love with the same woman!

 

Okay, that's it for now, until I perfect the upload thing. 

Tomorrow my sister is having, what we hope, will be her final surgery.  It is in the morning around eight o'clock and we will covet any prayers you are willing to offer up on our behalf!  Laurie is a basketcase, naturally.  And mom, dad and I are ALL ready for her to be well.  Two years is a VERY LONG TIME to be sick.  Six surgeries is a lot for anyone to handle.  And while it is definitely a blessing that we are all under one roof, the stress is overwhelming at times.

Well, I had planned on writing much more, but it just so happens that I am tired.  It took me a while to figure out the pictures, so now I don't feel like writing.  I will be sure to update you on how things go tomorrow.  THANKS so much for your support.

Alright, this whole not being able to upload pictures is KILLING ME!!!  And I cannot figure out what is going on.  I am unable to get a response from Blogger.  NOT HAPPY!!  I'm sure that all of you are not too happy either....you are stuck reading my words rather than looking at pictures.  It's a bummer and I'm so sorry.  I will continue to work on it.  If anyone has any suggestions, PLEASE let me know!

Well, I was right.  This week at work was very long, to say the least.  But thankfully, tomorrow is Friday!  I have been looking forward to tomorrow night all week...  I am going to one of my favorite restaurants EVER with some of my favorite people EVER! 

California Dreaming, baby!  My mouth is beginning to water just thinking about it.  I get the same thing every time I go.  The fried chicken finger salad with honey mustard and hot bacon dressing.  YUM-E!!  Add in the crescent roll with hot melted honey butter and I am in a literal heaven.  Mmm.  Wow, seriously, I just drooled a little.  Don't be jealous!  I'm sure that whatever you are going to have for dinner will be just as good...

Okay, I have a good bit of writing to do before I go to sleep.  I hope that everyone has a fabulous Friday and an amazing weekend! 

update!

WOW, it's been six whole days since I've posted.  That is some sort of record, I'm sure!  Actually, it is the difference of me being out of school for the holidays and now me being back at work again.  I thought I would give you a bulleted update on our week...

• JP was GREEN his first week back to school.  PRAISE GOD!  I made him take a picture with me.  It's on Facebook, but for some reason my blog is not allowing me to upload pics right now.  I'll have to get to the bottom of that.
• We both transitioned back to school fairly well.  My week at work was decent, considering.  Of course, we were only there three days! LOL  Next week may be a different story!
• I have been hitting the treadmill pretty hard this week.  I am working towards my first 5K race in March.  I will be running (very slowly BEHIND..) my girl, Kerri and cousin, Jamie.  But, it will be fun!  I also would like to do a mud run this year.  We'll see about that one...

Okay, I had planned on more bullets than that, but I guess it's been a pretty slow week.  I haven't done much this weekend either.  I ran around town yesterday with my mom and aunt.  We ate an AWESOME late lunch at Cheddars - LOVE THAT PLACE!  Mom and I ran in to an old friend and caught up with her.  That was amazing!  Today was church and it was GOOD!  I picked up JP from his dad's house around 3:00 and we've been pretty lazy since.  (Although we did have a "dance party" with the boys in the living room after dinner...instead of the WOBBLE though, this time it was the Party Rock Anthem!)  Fun times!

I am supposed to sing in church a week from today.  I am trying to choose a song.  Today I went through a box with some of my old tracks in it and found one called, "Why" by Nichole Nordeman.  If you've never heard it, you should find it on ITunes or YouTube.  It's worth listening to.  It is more of a song you would sing around Easter time.  It is a story of a little girl who is following the crowds up the hill at Calvary to see what all of the shouting is about.  She sees Jesus and doesn't understand what is happening to him.  Anyway, the last verse Jesus is crying out to His Father and asking him where He is and why He must die.  (Keep in mind the whole time this is taking place, this little girl is hiding behind her father and watching....)  This is the final verse (God's answer to Him):

"My son, I hear you screaming.  I'm watching the face of the enemy beaming

But one day I'll clothe you in robes of my own

Jesus, this hurts me much more than you know

But this dark hour, I must do nothing, although I hear your unbearable cries

The power in your blood destroys all of the lies

Soon, you'll see past their unmerciful eyes...

Look there below, see the child, trembling by her father's side

Now I can tell you why

She is why you must die."

 

 

Now you see why I fell in love with this song!  All because of that one verse.  We are the reason Jesus had to die.  And sometimes that overwhelms me...

 

 

 

 

Have a super week everybody!  



happy 2013

Well, here we are!  A brand new year.  From where I sit, it can only get better.  Let's hope.  I am not one to make New Year's resolutions.  But, I will say that one of the things I have decided to work on is being a better role model for JP.  Specifically with spending time with God and exercising.  I bought him a new devotional book for Christmas....well, Santa brought him one!  I have wanted to get it for him for a while.  Believe it or not, his VeggieTale one was a little over his head.  Go figure.

This is the book.  If you are looking for one to read with your kiddos, I HIGHLY recommend this one.  Our whole family has actually been reading it together.  It is written from Jesus' point of view.  The devotions are short and very simple.  It also gives you additional verses to read in your Bible. 

The next thing I am going to do is encourage JP to exercise along with me.  We do a pretty good job at getting outside and playing, but when I got off the treadmill tonight, he begged me to let him walk/run on it.  I told him no at first, but then I thought, what the heck am I saying??!!  So, I cranked it back up and let him walk for about ten minutes.  JP is not really in to sports.  We are going to sign him up for soccer, but that is the ONLY thing he has ever shown interest in.  I think that if I make exercising fun and exciting and allow him to walk/run on the treadmill when I am done each night, maybe he'll develop a love for running.  Who knows.  But, it's going to be a goal of mine.  If nothing else, he will sleep better and it will be a GREAT release for some of the stress and anxiety he has been experiencing.  I'll let you know how it goes!  Here is a picture of him from tonight (while I was passed out on the bed...I went just a LITTLE over ten minutes! Ha!)   

Our New Year's Eve was actually pretty quiet.  Once the boys and I got home from Falls Park, they ate dinner and we all just relaxed around the house together.  This was actually one of the first years that we have not been to some sort of party.  It worked out just fine.  I wasn't really in the "partying" mood.  JP fell asleep around 10:00, ( I told him he could stay up as late as he wanted...that's all he could handle),   and Laurie and I watched a movie.  I stayed up to tell my Facebook friends Happy New Year and then I fell asleep shortly after midnight.  Like I said, QUIET.  Nice. 

 

  I did get to kiss the little man of my dreams before bed!! 

 

My prayer for all of you is that you have a blessed year!  This year is going to bring forth a LOT of change for our family, but God is already beginning to guide us in very positive directions.  We are going to make the best of it!! 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!  (Heading back to work tomorrow....YUK!)