I can't believe it's been so long since I posted here. Almost two months!! I'm mainly signed in today to add the little dilly whopper link thing to my sidebar for MckMama's amaaaazing contest! Click the Rebel for A Cause link on the right and see what I'm talking about. It's incredible and the donations go to some extremely worthy causes. :)

It's hard for me to believe how fast this year has gone by. My husband and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary, our godson was born, and many other exciting things. Now we're close to celebrating another year together and our godson turning 1. How quickly time flies. I hope each of you had a fabulous Thanksgiving and are looking forward, as I am, to Christmas.
23 days left!!
I'll close with some recent pics of my precious godson...

What a week...

I think I can officially say this has been the longest week of my life. My hubby has been gone to Maryland on business all week and I've really come to realize just how in love with him I am and how much I appreciate him. It's amazing how lonely you can feel when you're surrounded by people. :-(

In no way am I trying to whine though because I realize that there are so many men and women who are fighting for our freedom and know the ache of missing their spouse for much longer periods of time than a week..I'm just making it known that I've definitely learned to appreciate my husband more this week. He'll be home tomorrow and I can't wait to just have him within arm's reach again. :-)

It's "Not Me! Monday"...

So here's my list ;) :

• I so did not sleep in until after 10am this morning
• I did not stay in my pjs until after 12 (noon) watching CSI:NY reruns with my hubby
• I did not come back from brunch with the hubby to lay back down on the couch and watch more CSI:NY followed by General Hospital and One Life to Live recorded on my dvr from last week, while cuddled with my puppy
• I do not cry when thinking about my husband leaving town for full week next week
• I do not whine b/c it's the longest we've been apart since we got together
• I am not a huge baby who will not feel "lonely" until he's home again, no matter how many people I'm around

and...

• I so did not feed my dog carrot sticks and applesauce for a snack this afternoon because we ran out of food this morning and I was just too lazy to go get more food.

[[she's eating her food for dinner though :-P]] Now go check out MckMama's "Not Me! Monday" post and make sure to keep her and her precious baby boy, Stellan as well as her husband and kiddos in your prayers.

Sometimes I like to think....

I'm a good wife. :)

Happy Birthday [a little early] to my amazing husband!

I love you baby!

Totally Random...

My husband will be 32 in a little over 3 weeks! I'm pretty sure what I'm getting him, but since he reads this I'm not saying anything.

Katy [my little sister] will be 21 in just 2 1/2 weeks!! I have no clue what I'm getting her!

Jake turned 6 months on Monday. I can't believe how much he's grown in just the past few weeks. He's starting to somewhat sit up, although he hasn't mastered it yet. He's really paying attention to what goes on around him. He focuses on what you're doing now instead of just your face. Last night, mom was eating and he was staring her lasagna down big time. He watched the boys at church play basketball and was just fascinated. I just love seeing his little personality emerge more and more.

he's taking after me already with the self-portraits
definitely my favorite
there he goes again wanting to take pictures himself

i love this one even though randy looks constipated

love those eyes!!

me & Jesi [my friend's baby girl]

Charli is doing really well. She got her stitches [in her head] taken out this week, and she goes back next week for an MRI [to see if there's any tumor left and how much] and to have her other stitches [in her back, from the drain] taken out. The doctor said she's doing really well, but she has been trying to do too much so she needs to chill some.

Randy has to work a 12hr shift on Monday [Labor Day] so I'm going to the lake with Nanny, Poppy, Mom, Katy and Ryan. I love the lake, and I honestly thought when we went a couple weekends ago, that'd be the last trip for the summer, so I'm really excited to have one more opportunity to play in the water and get a little darker.

Something Special to Share...

Charli & I after church Sunday morning

Charli, Jake, & I

Jake & my daughter Shelby
Charli, Jake, me, & Shelby

I cannot even begin to tell each of you just how...well, I don't even have a word that comes close to describing what I'm feeling. We sang "Shout to the Lord" Sunday morning and I could barely even swallow and sing over the emotional lump in my throat when it came to "I sing for joy at the work of your hands." Charli surviving this surgery is a miracle. God has been so incredibly amazing in showing Himself the last week and a half. We were so scared she wouldn't make it, or if she did she wouldn't be "our Charli" anymore. Just looking at these pictures I can hardly keep from crying. Charli is back. Charli, Charli. Not confused little girl Charli (because she has seemed very "young" since the surgery -- just really really needing to not be alone, being afraid and calling when I'm not there, etc) but normal, regular, spunky Charli. I couldn't stop hugging her Sunday morning. God has been so good to allow us to keep her here with us. I am so thankful for His amazing grace.
She looks so good, you might not even be able to tell, but the only visible sign from surgery is that her left eye is still a little swollen and she's still having a little trouble controlling it. She has a wicked cool scar behind her left ear, but I don't have any pics of that.
Because she's told me herself, I know that Charli is so incredibly thankful and blown away by how many of you have prayed for her. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

For the occasional reader...

Charli went home from the hospital Monday, only to be re-admitted this morning around 1:15. She has a brain leak and they had to put in a drain. It'll take roughly 5 days for everything to drain, so right now she's just on orders to rest. Please please pray that they'll be able to drain all of the fluid and that she heals quickly. I know she hates being in the hospital and most especially being away from Jake.

Thanks!

Tomorrow

Somewhere between 6am and 8am one of my closest friends will be going into surgery to remove a tumor from her brain. Charli is 24, married, and has a 5 month old little boy (my godson) Jake.

It's a very serious, very extensive surgery that should only last 6-10 hours, but could last up to 24 hours if complications arise. Please please pray with me that God will not only give Charli peace as she goes into surgery, but that He will make His presence known to those of us who will be sitting at the hospital waiting. He's promised where two or more are gathered in His name, He'll be there also. Many will gather tomorrow.

After prayers and lots of thought...

I am happy to say Randy & I have decided to be Jacob's godparents. :) We are very happy with this decision as are his parents. Thank you for those who prayed. Here are a few pics of the little man:

6 days old, my first time to hold him :)

4 months old (he'll be 5 months on the 25th)

Big decision...

I had a conversation with a good friend of mine last night that could change mine and my husband's life forever. Charli is 24, and gave birth in February to a precious baby boy Jake. She found out shortly after that she has a brain tumor. The location, specifics, etc I'm not terribly sure of, but she'll be having a major operation in August (on the 6th) to remove the tumor. Last night Charli asked that Randy and I pray about being Jake's godparents. I think the definition of "godparent" has become quite a bit different than it originally was. Originally being a godparent, meant you supported the child's parents throughout his/her life, helping to ensure that the child's religious education was carried out, and caring for the child should he/she be orphaned. Nowadays, (just from what I've heard) being a godparent is more along the lines of supporting the parents and being someone special in their lives. Charli is asking us to be Jake's godparents in the original sense. She is asking that should something happen to her, and her husband couldn't care for him for whatever reason, that Randy and I raise him. Wow. At first thought, I'm like "absolutely, of course." I love this baby. I love him so much and would do anything for him, it's just scary to think of raising him. I am praying with all I am that Charli's surgery is a huge success and that she makes a full recovery and raises her child herself. That is my #1 wish. I just have to look at all aspects of what could happen. I'm sure most people would agree to care for a loved ones children in the event that they are orphaned, but don't ever expect that to happen. As we are faced with Charli's health situation, we see that it is even more real in our situation. We have to really really think and pray hard about this.

I really just needed to put my thoughts down more than anything right now. We're just praying that God will guide us to the right decision. Please pray for us.

The last several weeks...in pictures :)

my lovely friend, Rebecca (she's a CFer) at dinner after VBS
me & my mom -- out to dinner after VBS one night

Texas Rangers vs. Atlanta Braves 6-17-08

new Dallas Cowboys stadium -- almost finished!!

parachuter about to land @ the Rangers game

another parachuter

Beautiful flag during the National Anthem

Mark Texeira -- i'm so sad he's not on our team anymore :(

Josh Hamilton (LOVE HIM!) smackin a HR

Mark up to bat

rainbow at the game :)

workin hard

I loooove this man! :)

I have been blessed...

In light of just reading that Tricia does indeed have post-transplant lymphoma (aka - cancer), I want to take a minute to share things I'm thankful for ( in no particular order):

-waking up healthy this morning
-breathing in the balmy, beautiful air outside
-my husband
-waking up next to him this morning
-having his love
-date nights
-holding his hand
-having his arms wrapped around me
-my mom and dad, katy, bradley and ryan (soon-to-be BIL)
-their unconditional love and support
-my nanny & poppy
-their unwavering loyalty to me, their protection and unconditional love & support
-my car -- and still being able to keep gas in it
-my home
-iving in a free country
-my puppy and the way she's always happy to see me
-my extended family and their love
-the health of my family -- we're all doing well relatively speaking
-my church, who is a second family to me
-my friends -- their love, support, protection, and fellowship
-Annelee & Kari -- the way they keep me going sometimes and remind me it'll be ok when things get rough. I love you girls!
-the closeness my family shares -- the way we'd do anything to just spend time together
-family vacations
-church camp & seeing kids accept Christ as their Savior (i will never grow tired of that)

and those "few" things don't even begin to touch on everything I'm thankful for. I just think it's important to embrace every single blessing from God. Remind yourself daily how blessed you are. Even the poorest of us is blessed in some way. I think we may find it a little harder to get irritated or mad when we think of how we're blessed. Especially those of us who are healthy.
---------------------------------------------------------
I'm excited for mine & Randy's date night tonight! We're going to the Ranger game, but not only are we seeing "our boys" play, they're playing the Atlanta Braves and who plays for Atlanta now?? My main man, Mark Texeira!!! Yayyyy! I might even get a new Rangers shirt tonight. I like Josh Hamilton, how he plays, his story, and what he stands for so I might get a shirt with his # on it. Either way I'm excited to just be spending that time alone with my hubby. I cannot even begin to tell you girls just how much I love him. I am so thankful for him and how hard he works to provide for us. We work opposite shifts and don't see each other much during the week, so I cherish these special times together.
Speaking of "together" I would really really appreciate if you'd pray for my sister-in-law Kristen. She and her husband Jessie are separated right now. They've only been married since last October (not even a year ) but they've been together like 6 or 7 total I think. I'm so sad for her. I don't know the actual specifics, but I know they've been having trouble for a while now and she is so broken-hearted and down about this. Please just pray that God will heal their hurts and help them through this. Whatever the outcome, I love my "sister" and want her to be happy...and she's just not right now.

I just made it into work and need to get started on some stuff, but wanted to update real quick.

I took Lucy to her vet appt this morning. Here's the rundown:
-She did amazing at her appt
-She weighs 40.3 lbs!!!! I told y'all she was a pony and not a dog
-She didn't jump on one person and was the most polite baby girl ever
-I am SO proud of her
-She didn't even whimper when she got her shot
-She does need to lose 5lbs, and switch to adult food now
-I also have to change her bowls from plastic to glass/metal b/c she might be allergic to the plastic
-I also have to give her 1 1/2 adult tablets of benadryl twice a day for her allergies

Again, I cannot express how proud I am of how well she behaved. She's got a bad habit of jumping on us -- not being mean, but to show her affection & happiness -- but I know some people don't like that and we've been working on breaking the habit. Anyways, she didn't jump on anyone the whole time and just showed lots of love and affection to her "friends" at the doctor.

VBS Night #4 went very well. I didn't take any pictures, but I'll make sure to get some good ones tonight at our finale. I've had the best time with these kids this week. Each one of our songs has motions to almost every word -- almost like signing to the songs -- and to see these kids raising their hands, getting into the music, and singing to the Lord is just the coolest thing ever. I'm really praying that most of these kids will make church a regular part of their lives. They're so impressionable at these ages. I'll miss seeing them every day though.

I'm getting more and more excited about camp. Only 22 days left!!

Well, I'm off to eat. I picked up Chik-fil-A on my way in. I hope you all have an awesome day and safe weekend. Happy Father's Day to all your hubbies with kiddos, babies on the way, and who are already fathers in their hearts but waiting for the BFP.

Pray with me tomorrow??

Tricia is going back to Duke (in Durham) for some important tests tomorrow. You can read more about those here. Her father-in-law Rick has asked that whoever is interested join together in special prayer for Tricia (and Nate & Gwyneth) tomorrow between 7-10am eastern/6-9am central. I'll be praying, will you join me?

Please, please pray for Nicol & Greg Sponberg today. Their son Luke, born March 18th, 2008 is now in Heaven with Jesus. The only information I have to give is what Angie has posted on her site, and that is that Nicol went to check on Luke last night and he wasn't breathing. The paramedics were not able to resuscitate him.

This family has gone through so much grief in such a short time. Please pray that God will rain down peace and comfort during this extremely difficult time and that He will bless their extended family with traveling mercies as they travel to be with them.

7 weeks ago it was Audrey, last week it was little Maria, now Luke. Times like these are hard to understand, but I trust that God's will is perfect and know that He carries us through the valleys.

It's Tuesday. I was not ready to wake up and come to work this morning. Is anyone ever ready to go back to work after the weekend? I feel like I didn't get any rest whatsoever this weekend. Probably b/c it was a holiday weekend.
Quick Recap:
Saturday: Spent most of the day getting mine and Katy's hair done. Verrry happy. Watched movies at mom & dad's after dinner, headed home and went to bed.
Sunday: Went to church. Had lunch afterwards at Chicken Express with the family. Went back to Nanny & Poppy's house and napped for oh, about five minutes then headed to the mil & sfil's house for poolside visiting and grilled hamburgers/hot dogs. Headed home about 10:30pm, went to bed.
Monday: Slept in a little. Headed to mom & dad's for Randy to assist in installing the new french doors to the backyard. Rested a while. Went to Nanny & Poppy's for yummy fried chicken. Watched some of the Bachelorette with Katy back at their house, went home and went to bed.

The weekend went wayyyy too fast, and left me wanting to go on a short vacation with Randy. I'd looove to go somewhere like Hawaii or something, but that's probably not financially going to happen right now. With the economy the way it is, I'm not sure what plane tickets are running for these days. I'll be looking around though to see about maybe taking a short road trip somewhere and just spending some time together. We need to get away and refresh, jump start things. We rarely ever get much alone time with trying to keep up with both families, and working opposite shifts, so we discussed taking some time away together. I told him I'd love to go somewhere for 2-3 days where if we wanted to we could just stay in bed all day and watch tv, just being together. I've heard lots of people say that it helps keep your marriage healthy when you make time for each other and get away, just for a short time at least once a year. I'm not saying marriages don't work if you can't get away some, but I think everyone could use some "time away" every now and then.
So, today starts my healthier eating [[i'm not calling it a diet]]. My sil Kristen has lost 12lbs and quite a few inches [[yeah i'm jealous cuz she looks good]] by eating healthier [[for her, it's no fried foods, and only tea/water to drink -- which means no sodas!!!]] and doing some exercising. By far the hardest part for me will be not eating fried foods and no cokes. I am not looking forward to not drinking cokes, but I want to try. I think I might start with just cutting out regular sodas, and going to diet ones. I'm mostly drinking water right now though. Lots of it! That way I know I'm drinking the healthiest option there is, and water is supposed to help you lose weight. Surely I'm flushing plenty of toxins out of my body as many times as I have to go to the bathroom. I swear it feels like my bladder shrank. I need to start exercising again. BAD. Exercising makes me feel healthier and I just know if I'd stick to it, I could lose some weight. We'll see.
It's Tuesday...hmmm, I wonder what's on tv tonight??

I slept so well last night. I'm feeling all refreshed and in a good mood this morning. The weather has been hot the past several days, but right now it's about 68* and it's only supposed to get up to 93* today. Perfect summer-ish day. Too bad I'm working and can't spend it by the pool. Speaking of, my mil is having a 3-day bbq at her house this weekend, so I'm definitely looking forward to that. I'm hoping maybe we can get over there Saturday and Monday, but at least one day. I'll make sure and take pictures.
We got our AT&T U-verse installed yesterday. It is awesome! I didn't really get a chance to play around with it much, but besides still being able to DVR [up to 4 things at once], we have the yellow pages on our tv [pulls up address, phone#, and map] and yahoo games. Too cool.
Before I go, I wanted to share just how good God is. Randy goes to the 7-Eleven right down the street from his work every night [that he's working] probably around idk, 1-2am...so I guess that'd be morning. Anyways, he always gets a drink and a snack to hold him through the rest of his shift. It's very rare that he doesn't go. So, last night he made his usual trip and drove back to work. Literally five minutes after he left, he was back at work answering a 911 call from 7-11. It had been robbed. When he told me that this morning I stopped right there and just started thanking the Lord. I couldn't stop thinking thank you Lord. Thank you so much for protecting him. He could've been hurt so badly or even killed, but you protected him. Thank you. Thank you. He says he's pretty sure he saw the guy who did it. It was a man walking around kinda acting strange, but he thinks he purposely waited til he left so there'd be no one in the store besides the cashier [who is also uninjured.] God is so good.
I hope you all have a fabulous day!

Updates:

• Nanny is doing well. She saw her surgeon for another follow-up last week though, and he says her sinuses aren't as open as he'd like. She has to continue the flushing twice a day and go back in a few weeks. He may have to redo part of the surgery. Please please pray that's not the case.
• Kaitlyn is doing ok. Here is an excerpt from Carley's post on Sunday:

"Everything is going good although, she’s still vomiting quite a bit. We still have no idea when they may do the nissen. The GI surgeon decided not to come back Friday to let me know anything. So very nice of him, huh? So this weekend I’ve been playing the waiting game….I should be used to it by now but I’m not. It’s driving me nuts. She could be home right now, if it weren’t for that. The ICU dr. said today that he’s going to push the GI dr. to do the surgery Mon. or Tues. Hoping and praying that it gets done."

• Carley, Josh, & Kaitlyn still need your prayers though. Kaitlyn has a long way to go, plus they are moving from Louisiana here to Texas in the next few weeks. It'll be a big move, especially with all of Kaitlyn's machines and stuff, so please pray it goes smoothly.
• Randy & I re-established a relationship with his mom, stepdad, and sisters on Mother's Day. It was awesome! God really answered our prayers and the visit went well. So well, in fact, that we spent 5 1/2 hrs there! :-) I'm so happy to have gotten over the slump [caused by what I can only describe is Satan being allowed to get the upper hand.] Thank you Lord for your blessings!
• Please pray for Katy. My baby sister is growing up. She'll be applying for her very first job tomorrow I believe. Pray that God's will, will be done.
• Pray also for Katy as she starts her blood pressure medicine. She's too young to have high blood pressure [in my opinion 20 yrs old is too young] but pray that she won't have any side effects and that the medicine does it's job.
• My last update/prayer request is for me. I have a kidney stone(s) that has been giving me trouble lately. My doctor referred me for a cat scan to see how many there are, how big they are, and where they are located. I was supposed to have the scan done today, but I spoke with the office yesterday and apparently my insurance requires me to pay a $1500 deductible before they'll cover the scan, then they only pay 80% after that. In other words, I'm looking at at least $4500 out of pocket for just the cat scan. I had to cancel, of course. I don't have near that much money just lying around. Even if I did I wouldn't spend that much on a cat scan. It's ridiculous. Please just pray that God will allow me to pass these stones and I won't have anymore trouble. :)

Thanks so much to those of you who read [I know it's just people here & there who pass by.] Your prayers are appreciated!

Please pray for my dear friend Carley's baby girl Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn was born October 4 with tetralogy of fallot, a congenital heart condition. She's already spent most of her short life in the hospital and undergone surgeries. She now has double pneumonia and her heart stopped for 27 minutes yesterday. The doctors were able to restart her heart, but they don't know what inititally caused it to stop and if she will make it. Please please pray for this sweet baby girl. Pray for wisdom for the doctors, and peace for her parents.

Thank you!

I'm in a good mood today. :) We went to the Rangers game last night. Now I know, I know the Rangers aren't doing so well this season. Heck, they haven't done very well the past few seasons, but I still love em. They're my boys..even if they did get rid of Mark Texeira. Anyways, my boss gave me a voucher last week to get four free tickets to any game in April, so Randy, me, Katy, and Ryan went last night and the seats were awesome! We were right at left field, in the bottom section. We lost, but we still had a blast. I'll post pictures below.

My eye is feeling much better. Thankfully it wasn't anything serious, just overuse of my contacts resulting in symptoms of an infection, but nothing a little antibiotic drops won't fix. Thank you all for your prayers.

I also want to thank each of you who've checked up on Nanny and who've been praying for her. It is because of your prayers and God's amazing grace that her surgery went so well and her recovery is going even better. She hasn't once complained of pain since the surgery! The only discomfort she's had is congestion, which the surgeon said is normal. She hasn't had any bruising at all and she's already up walking around and can't wait to be able to clean house and get back to normal. She goes for a follow-up with the surgeon tomorrow morning so pray that he gives her a clean bill of health.

Have a fabulous day!

It's been a while...

I hardly ever post on here and I need to get better at doing it. :P

Life has been busy. I went from part-time to full-time at my job [a total blessing from God] so that takes up alot of time I used to have for blogging. Hopefully I'll start again soon and keep up with it this time.

I have a special prayer request. My Nanny [maternal grandmother, but more like a second mom] is having surgery on her sinuses tomorrow. It's a routine-type surgery, but surgery is always scary, so please pray for steady hands for the surgeon, that the surgery will be successful, and that she'll have a smooth and speedy recovery. :) She's literally one of the very most [do those even go together?] important people in my life. I love her more than anything in this world. :) I'll try and remember to update after the surgery.

It's been a while...

Well, really only a few weeks, but life has been busy. :-)

I turned 25 Monday. A quarter-century old. Lol. I had a great birthday and was very excited to have my aunt Tammy in town for the weekend and throughout the day on my birthday. We are very close and don't see each other as often as I'd like so I love that she was able to spend my special day with me. We shopped all day and then had a nice family dinner before opening presents and having ice cream. Yum. God is good for allowing me another year on this earth. I am so grateful for each day I'm able to wake up and walk, talk, see, hear, etc on my own. Each is a blessing and I try not to take any of it for granted.

Special Prayer Requests today:
-Don Casey [my dear friend Annelee's father] is in heart and renal failure. He was taken to the ER last night because his BP was 207/106 and he was dizzy and having chest pains. They're running many tests right now and doing a heart catheterization today.
-Gwyneth Lawrenson - possible infection/some fluid in lungs -- please pray for NO infection and quick relief for this sweet little miracle.

I don't really have much else to update on. I think the biggest prayers right now should be for our country's leaders and also for each of us Americans for wisdom in the upcoming election. Our country is facing some big issues and BIG changes throughout the rest of this year.

Until next time...

Good morning! =]

Congrats to my good friend Melissa on the birth of her first baby Liam!!

So, I went to the doctor this morning because I've been having these pretty severe episodes of chest pains near my heart. My EKG was normal, but he says that only shows what's going on with my heart for that short period of time, so he has me hooked up to a holter/halter (something like that) monitor for 24 hours to monitor my heart. Hopefully this will give us some idea of why I'm having these "attacks" of chest pains near my heart. He says it's very possible that my heartbeat is irregular. Also, he's referred me to a specialist for my vertigo. Please keep me in prayer that this monitor will tell the doctor what he needs to know and we can do something about these chest pains. =]

Please also keep praying for Tricia as she should be listed any day now.

Get out the tissues...

Words cannot even describe just how much this moved me. I really can't explain it...several minutes later I'm still bawling like a baby. God is so good. So so very good.

Please keep praying very hard for Tricia, Nate, & Gwyneth. Tricia could be back on the transplant list as early as Monday. Wow. You guys God is still very much in the prayer-answering business. What a mighty God we serve.

Two Updates in one...

Update from yesterday (Sunday, Jan. 27th):

Today has been a blast.
Of course, I was a little disappointed when we woke up and had no hot water. Ugh. I got over it though. Our services went really well. Have y'all ever heard of Faith Promise Missions?? We have a mission conference every year, where we have 3 different missionaries come to visit and we decide afterwards if we want to support them or not. Our church currently supports 42 missionaries. I'm very proud that we are such a missions-minded church. Anyways Faith Promise Sunday is the Sunday after our mission conference where each person (as they feel led, it's not pushed on anyone) decides what they feel God would have them to give each week towards support for our missionaries. We had our highest amount promised in the history of our church...$101,000!!! I know that might not sound like much for a church to raise over a year, but our church runs under 100 people every week. I think it's amazing and I'm so excited!

Right now Katy, Bradley, Randy, & I are playing Life: Twists & Turns. I LOVE this game! Anyways, I'm off to finish playing, but I also wanted to mention my baby sister, Katy will possibly be engaged soon. Ryan's been in Alabama for work the past two weeks and all he's talked about since he left is getting married. Katy says she thinks he'll be proposing soon. I'm so excited for her!!!

And today:

I had the best weekend! Of course Friday and Saturday were great with celebrating Bradley's birthday twice...once at Olive Garden with friends and once at Cheesecake Factory with family. (Can you believe I lost 3.6 lbs after eating at those places? I did good!) We then spent Saturday and Sunday nights at Nanny & Poppy's. It was so much fun. We love spending time with them and had a blast.

Today I slept in til around 11, then watched All My Children, the news, One Life to Live, and General Hospital. I love my soaps. We had praise team practice tonight and it went really well. It tends to go pretty slow when a certain person is there, but she was sick so it went really quickly tonight. After praise team practice we stopped by Sonic because Katy wanted something sweet, so she and Randy got sweetheart shakes and I tried a Java Chiller. It was good! Then we came to mom and dad's and played Life. We played about two hours. Have I mentioned we love that game?

I'm anxious. This week is the last week for employers to get their W2s out, so I should be getting mine and Randy already has his. I'm ready to know what we're getting back. I know I've mentioned it before, but when Randy got divorced, his work somehow screwed up his deductions, so he owed $4400!! Yeah. So, we just finished paying the rest last year. We're looking forward (and praying for) a nice return this year so we can put some in savings.

I'm also super excited to report that after two weeks of being part of the biggest loser challenge on xanga I've lost 4 lbs. I know it doesn't seem like much, but losing 3.6lbs this week as opposed to only .4 lbs the first week is exciting!

Well, I'm off to finish watching Legends of the Fall with Daddy & Randy. Please continue to pray for Nate, Tricia & Gwyneth. I know specifically right now Tricia just needs some good quality sleep to detox from all the stress going on. It must be so hard to be away from Gwyneth right now, but I know that God will make this difficult time all worth it for them in the end.

Real quick...

Because it's time for bed and Praise Team practice before church comes earrrrly in the morning. I'm having problems with headaches again. I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but please pray that God will just intervene and they'll go away without another exploratory surgery or lots of medication. Also please pray for my friend Paula-Beth. Her father passed away unexpectedly this summer and next week she'll be making her first trip back home with her new baby Lucy...and her daddy won't be there. It's going to be a hard trip for her, so please pray that God will give her strength and peace. She's an amazing friend.

Also continue to pray for Nate, Tricia, & Gwyneth. Specifically that Tricia will start sleeping better through the night and that Gwyneth will continue to poop regulary so she's not all stopped up. :) Thanks y'all!

Got a call from the doctor's office....

They want me to come back in (I was there Friday) to discuss my lab work. Blah. I'd really rather "discuss" it over the phone and not pay another $35. Either they say "your cholesterol sucks, do better about taking your medicine" or "your cholesterol is good, stop the medicine." How hard is it? It's just frustrating because it seems like these people will do anything to get you in the office and paying them. Grrr. I'd change doctors, but I LOVE my doctor and I've been with him since I changed from a pediatrician. Please just pray that it's nothing serious and they can just tell me over the phone. Also, I'm starting to have really bad headaches again and I'm not sure what's causing them. I had some problems with severe tension headaches/migraines for a year or so, and had surgery last March to check for a condition, but thankfully I didn't have it. Since the surgery I haven't had any trouble with the headaches, but now they're back again. Please pray I can get some relief.

Please also pray for Tricia & Gwyneth. Tricia woke up with a slight fever and Gwyneth has some intestinal inflammation (I believe, check the blog). Thanks!

Happy Wednesday!!

Recap from the past few days:

Sunday: Started antibiotic for my upper respiratory infection. Those are rough since I have asthma, but my PFTs were the best they've been since I was diagnosed with asthma. My antibiotic made me severely sick, so I stopped it. (I'm calling today for a new one.)

Monday: Relaxing day with Randy. Saw 27 Dresses for the 2nd time. Loved it even more!! :)

Tuesday: Fasted from internet for prayer for Nate, Tricia, & Gwyneth and Josh, Carley, & Kaitlyn. Had lunch at Chili's with Randy. Praise Team practice. We're singing "We Speak to Nations" and "Lord Most High" since they are somewhat mission-themed. Our Mission Conference starts tonight at church, so please pray for the missionaries who'll be sharing their fields with us.

Today: My stomach seems to be trying to get itself straightened out. I'm not convinced it was just my medicine that caused me to get sick. I think I might have had some type of 48hr viral thing because Randy had some of the same symptoms. Also, I've been fighting one of those on-the-verge-of-a-migraine headaches since Sunday. Woop-de-doo. I seriously wanted nothing more than to stay in bed this morning. And I mean I really wanted to stay home. My head hurts so bad! Randy mentioned this morning that I may need to see someone about those again. I haven't really had trouble with them since my surgery in March.

Please continue to pray for Tricia, specifically that she'll make it onto the transplant list soon, get her lungs, and that her body will accept them. Also pray for her donor. Pray that the Lord will prepare his/her family for this difficult loss and that if they don't already, they will come to know Jesus as their Savior through this.

Also pray that Gwyneth continues to be infection and complication free. :) I am so excited as she continues to grow and as Tricia continues to do better and better. See Nate's blog for more details and pictures.

Also pray for Alice. She just received her lung transplant yesterday and so far is doing well. Pray she recovers quickly and herbody doesn't reject the lungs.

.edit.
Just from what I've read this morning, they've done the autopsy but it was inconclusive. They say they need to run more tests, but I read an interview where he said that since filming "The Dark Knight" (the new Batman movie that comes out in a few months) he hadn't slept well. He plays the Joker and according to this interview, he said he was very disturbed by the character and hadn't been sleeping well. The pills found near him were Ambien and he was reported as saying at the time that he'd taken two one night and they only worked an hour. It seems to me like it was probably an accident. He took a pill or two, couldn't sleep so he took another...and was so out of it he might've continued that way...
It's so sad.
.end edit.

RIP Heath Ledger

I'm sure you've all heard by now about Heath Ledger. Ugh. I'm so sad. No, I didn't see him in Brokeback Mountain, and I didn't agree with the story of that movie at all, but I'm still sad. My heart hurts for his family and I can't help but wonder if he ever came to Jesus as His Savior. I pray he did. His poor baby girl won't ever really know him. I can't imagine how his family must feel. Pray for them.
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Happy Martin Luther King, Jr Day!

It's chilly outside and has been raining/misting all day. Randy & I went to see 27 Dresses today. I liked it so much he wanted to see it, so we went. We actually have a theater here that has matinee tickets for $3.25 so it's not breaking the bank to go. He loved the movie. How could he not? He loves him some Izzy! After the movie we had a bite to eat and then ran to Walmart for Lucy's food, a new collar, and a toy. We also stopped by Dollar Tree and I grabbed a gift for my secret pal at church. I got her some body scrub and a snowglobe. You definitely can't tell either were only $1.
We had dinner with my parents and little sister, and we just finished playing Life. I love that game! I won too! I think we may end up playing again in a few minutes. Mom and Katy are making brownies right now (I'll probably have something else for snack.) It's Girl Scout Cookie time. Ahhh. Bad timing with me being on a diet, but I ordered three boxes of the new kind that are in 100 calorie packs. They're SO good.
Well, I'm off have family time.
I won't be online at all tomorrow. A friend of mine setup a week long fasting for Nate, Tricia, & Gwyneth and our friend Carley, her husband Josh, and baby girl Kaitlyn. Most of you know The Lawrensons story, but most don't know Kaitlyn's story. Basically (in short form) Kaitlyn was born by emergency c-section Thursday morning (October 4, 2007) at 11:14. She weighed in at 6 lbs 2 oz. She was imediately transported to Children's hospital in New Orleans. She has a heart condition. Baiscally one of her valves is too small to flow blood through AND she has a hole in her heart. At the very young age of 2 months old she's already had open heart surgery and has a long road ahead of her. She's such a sweet, special baby girl and her mom is a friend from xanga. So, each girl is taking a day and fasting from something. It's not necessarily food because many are pregnant, breast-feeding, or recovering from EDs so food would not be a possiblity to fast from. The point is, fasting means giving something up to pray for a need. I decided to give up internet for the day because the internet is a big part of my life, so fasting from it would mean alot of praying time. Tomorrow is my day, thus the reason for not being on here tomorrow.

Please continue to keep Nate, Tricia, & Gwyneth in your prayers and also Carley, Josh, & Kaitlyn.

I just heard the most amazing sound....

Tricia speaking!!! Wow! I linked the post w/the video so check it out. After praying so hard for her, it's amazing to not only see her, but hear her voice. God is so good. I'm beyond speechless.

Fabulous News, Prayer Requests, & Praises...

The big news for today is that Tricia is awake!!! Woohoo! Praise the Lord!!! Nathan has asked that if you would, please join him (and me) in making this Saturday, January 19 a day of prayer for those who are on transplant lists and awaiting transplants. :)

Prayer Requests:

• Bro.Cooper is having an angiogram this morning. Pray it goes well & the doctors find the info they need
• Paige Jeter - my friend who's father passed away yesterday morning
• Harrison Hoke - liver biopsy Friday (she's 10 yrs old)
• Lois Cooper - fighting a nasty sinus infection as well as working & spending the rest of her time at the hospital with Bro. Cooper
• Jessica Turner - having her baby any day now
• Kaitlyn Rousse - preemie dealing w/multiple open heart surgeries, extubating not going well
• Carley & Josh Rousse - her parents; strength

Special Prayer Request

A dear friend of ours, Bro. Everette Cooper was taken to the hospital by ambulance tonight. They think he had a heart attack. When we left the hospital they had decided to keep him overnight for observation, but hadn't given us any definite answers as to what was going on with him. We were able to have prayer and let him know we love him, but please just pray for wisdom for the doctors and for this to not be anything serious. Please also pray for his wife, Lois as she is fighting a nasty cold right now and can't stay at the hospital with him.

Thanks!

Here's a laugh...

Wanna hear something funny? Ok, not funny to me but I'm sure y'all will get a laugh out of it.
Randy's at work so I ran with Katy & Ryan to grab a bite to eat (Whataburger, it was delicious), stop by Academy for Ryan to use one of his Christmas gift cards (I never realized what cool stuff they have!), and were getting in the car leaving Academy and somehow I poked a hole in the bottom of my cup. Well, needless to say Dr.Pepper went everywhere including my pants, front and back, and all over the seat of the truck. Ahhh! I was so ticked. So since we were running to Walmart to grab Ryan some coveralls for work, I just bought a cheap pair of pants and changed in the bathroom. I hate that feeling though. I was so mad!
So back to eating dinner. We went through the drive-thru and took the food to the airport and watched the airplanes take off and land. That's so much fun.
Anyways, just thought I'd share my story. Also, please pray for Ryan. He leaves Monday for Alabama and he'll be there for three weeks for work. Katy's upset..they've been together for 5 years and never been apart that long. Just pray for his safety and that he'll be ok.

Oh Happy Day

It's been a wonderful day so far. Fridays are my day off, so I slept in with Randy (since he didn't get home til 6:30ish) and then we woke up and had a sandwich together. I love those times. The ones where we just sit together and do nothing but just be together. Through Nate & Tricia's story I've been reminded not to take those times for granted. God has drawn me so close to His side through this story. I'm ashamed that it took someone else going through such a scary situation, but I am very very grateful that Nathan has shared his story because I find myself praying even more than usual which was quite a bit anyways, and I enjoy those times with God. I'm just amazed every day as He continues to perform miracles in these lives.

I'm looking forward to Sunday morning's services at church. The Praise Team is doing "Shout to the Lord" and "Days of Elijah", two of my very favorite praise songs. We also practiced "It is You" by the Newsboys and that's probably my most favorite worship song. It's almost impossible for me to sing "Holy Holy is our God Almighty, Holy Holy is His name alone" without raising my hands. That song just really touches my heart.

Well I'm off for now. Going to browse around.

Attention

Clara O'Kella!!! Invite me to read your blog please because otherwise I can't read it or message you silly goose!

Give katybug my love and hugs!

Urgent Prayer Request

I just received this email from my mom's best friend's (Sheila) sister (Cindy):
We received a call at 3:00 AM this morning that Mike's nephew, Christopher Sanders, was killed in Iraq. We are heading to New Mexico today to be in support of his family. Please pray for Christopher's wife Dara and 2 young children, Mike's brother Kelly and his wife Marie and their 2 other children Beth and Mike. Mike's mom and step-dad, Shirley and JW Weldon. Mike is close to his brother and and was close to his nephew. He needs much prayer as he ministers to his family, of whom many are catholic. He has witnessed to them numerous times. Pray that the Lord gives us words of comfort and hope for them.
Mike is Cindy's husband. Please pray for this family.

So...

I'm trying to think of something smart to say other than "I'm new to this," but I am, so I'm slowly figuring out how all of this works.

I needed a place to express myself and write daily that's more like a journal. I'm excited! :) I do need help with figuring out how to add pictures(to the top) and "jennyize" (Webster's definition: make like me) things on here, so if you know how and don't mind enlightening me I'd appreciate it.

My thoughts are everywhere today, yet I'm focused. Does that make sense? I've been reading (as I know so many thousands have) Nathan's blog. What an inspiring story. It is such a true example of some of the strongest faith in God I've ever seen. God has been so good and continues to answer the many prayers offered for Tricia and Gwyneth and I continue to be amazed. I've always felt that I had a very strong faith, but these people, they put my faith to shame. It's most definitely not a competition whatsoever, I just strongly believe that God has placed this story in my life to cause me to trust in Him even more and be more grateful for the blessings He's given me. I am a big prayer person. I pray all the time, for everything. I pray when my puppy is sick, I pray when something small is bothering me, I pray when I hear police, ambulance, or fire sirens. I pray all the time. I believe in prayer. It's speaking with God and what could be greater than laying my burdens at the feet of, or sharing my gratitude with, (whatever it is at the time), my Heavenly Father? There is nothing greater. God is wonderful, merciful, and gracious and I am proud to be His child. I am so thankful that He sent His one and only son to die and pay the price of not only my sins, but the sins of every person who lives or ever will live, if they only accept Him. Amazing love.

If you haven't already, you should definitely check out Nathan's blog: www.cfhusband.blogspot.com and please keep him, his wife Tricia, and their new baby Gwyneth in your prayers.