Land of the Living

Well, after a couple of really rough days, I think I returned to the land of the living today. Thursday I woke up being so sore I could not move, especially my shoulders and neck. Then the nausea and vomiting started. I called my doctor because I could not imagine what was going on (even though my leg actually felt fine). They said it was probably just the anesthesia, but Steve was also having the same symptoms. We thought perhaps it was food poisoning? All we know is it was not fun! Friday, we both were better, Steve a little more so than I, as I was still running a fever. Today, we both were back to the land of the living and ventured out to the drugstore and to a new place to eat a hamburger. Burger Island on Arapaho and Custer. I had a coupon come in the mail, so thought we would try it out. It was okay but both agreed we like Red Robin better (although B.I. was much cheaper!). I wanted to get a compression sock at the drugstore to see if we can get the swelling down. I am wearing it now, but not sure how tight it is suppose to be as all I need to do is cut off the blood supply altogether. Guess I will try it tonight and see how it goes and then decide whether to keep it or take it back. I could not believe the sock was $60.00!! What do people do that have to wear them all the time and get them in several colors? Anyway...I will close tonight with this quote I read today "An optimist looks at difficulty and sees the opportunity. A pessimist looks at the opportunity and sees the difficulty." I pray that I will learn more and more to see the blessing in every difficulty and especially the opportunity that God affords me to draw nearer to Him. Everyone have a great day of worship!

Surgery Today

We arrived at the hospital at 6:00 a.m. this morning, and waited in the room until 8:45 at which time they took me to pre-op. Then about 10:00 they took me to surgery. Thank you God that this was the easiest surgery I have had during this process, as my blood pressure did not drop and my breathing rate stayed steady. I was back in my room by noon and left about 12:30. Felt so good Steve and I stopped at Red, Hot and Blue to eat lunch. It was yummy!
My leg is wrapped with an ace bandage from knee to toe. Hopefully I can take it off in a couple of days as it is really itching underneath. Of course I did not see the doctor, but his assistant talked to my mom and Steve and said everything went well. What a blessing to be able to come straight home and not have to spend any time in the hospital. Hard to describe the joy in taking off my pants and under garments without the frame! Yeah! I get to wear normal pants again! Hopefully the swelling in my foot will go down soon so that I can fit back into my
normal shoe size. Now the challenge is to push myself to walk, walk, walk. Let me close today by sharing a cute quip that was on a church's board today "Christ Is Risen. No bones about it!"

Fixator Removal

Woo-hoo! Went to the doctor today and was totally surprised when he said he would take the fixator off tomorrow!! I have to be at the hospital at 6:00 a.m. and will have surgery around 8:00 a.m. It will just be daysurgery, so hopefully I will be home early afternoon. I am thankful that my doctor is willing to put me under to take the frame off. I am part of a chat room of others all over the world who are wearing a frame and some doctors take it off right in the office. I can't even begin to imagine how much that would hurt! I would be less than honest to say the excitement is guarded in that the doctor cannot guarantee me that we are out of the woods yet. There is still a noticeable line across the bone that has still not filled in. He does not know why and is in hopes it eventually will. I am just praying that I do not have to take any more steps backwards. In the meantime-I am so looking forward to sleeping tomorrow night frame free!!

Swimming and Kids

What is it about kids and swimming pools? Friday night when we went to Jami's for dinner. The Siburt kids and Stevens kids were there. They loved the pool! Did not want to get out.
Didn't mind jumping in over and over again. Don't know what it is about swimming pools that make me and the kids lose track of time. When I have kids over to swim in my pool, it is a no brainer. Most of the kids don't even want to get out of the pool for snack. Then they jump off the diving board over and over and over again. I wanted to post a picture tonight of mother and daddy duck who have been visiting my pool, but I guess because of the rain they did not show up today (they have been here for the last five). Maybe tomorrow.

Happily Ever After

Tonight Steve and I went to Dustin Autery's wedding. It was in the back yard of Deb Tietjen's sister, Kathy. What a great day it turned out to be! The weather was just beautiful! The Warman's have a beautiful backyard and Deb and Piper had decorated everything with lots of twinkle lights and candles. It was a beautiful wedding. Matt Mcbryde did the ceremony and did a great job. I love going to weddings, there is something about seeing a new couple's express their love that strengthens my own love with Steve. Reminding me of the covenant we made with each other. Remembering all the dreams I had for us on our wedding day, and being so thankful that for 17 years those dreams continue to come true. I couldn't help but think during the vows tonight "in sickness and in health" that Steve has really got the short end of the stick in our marriage. He has been in the hospital two days in our 17 years. I on the other hand had a few stays in the hospital even before this past two years. I am so very thankful for a husband that has kept his covenant with me and continues to love me in sickness and in health.

Water Music

Tonight we were invited to Jami Bell's house for a staff get together. It was nice to be with one another outside of the office. Jami and Greg have a new swimming pool that has a waterfall. I love the sound of water. I can sit by the river for hours just listening to the water flow over the rocks. I love listening to the ocean waves come in and out. Some of my favorite times have been staying in a motel on the ocean or river and leaving windows open to fall asleep to the sound of water. I have a fountain in my sun room that has a great sound, I can't let the water run for long periods of time because the water splashes and gets all over the floor. So I have several CD's that are just water sounds. So today I give thanks to God for the sounds of water He places all around us to remind us of His continual cleansing in our lives. He is the living water.

Dream A Little Dream

Tonight as I was returning from a ministry meeting I started thinking about dreams I have for my experience at church. Sowhile I realize that I could never be as eloquent as Martin Luther, let me share with you.
I have a dream of a church where:
-We don't just talk about outreach, we truly do it.
-We don't talk about being a house of prayer, but we are a house of prayer
-We are more concerned about other's needs than we are our own
-We are so much "the body" that no one is unnoticed
-Everyone uses their gifts to glorify God
-We truly have intergenerational opportunities to share our stories
-We who have much give to those who have less
-Instead of the 10% doing 90% of the work, that 100% join in as partners in ministry
-That our community knows us as the church that is there to serve them
-That there is a waiting list of teachers eager to teach our children
-That every classroom has a man in it as a teacher or mentor
Of course for almost everyone of these I am pointing at myself as much as anyone. I just wonder sometimes if Jesus were to write us a letter as He did the seven churches in Revelation what would he say? How about you? What are your dreams for your church experience or what dreams have come true?

Not Sleeping

It is 3:25 a.m. as I lay here in bed and type this. I hate these nights where I just cannot go to sleep! I have prayed, I have watched T.V., I listened to a CD, I played 2 games of Suduko, I read 44 emails, and 12 blogs and I am still just laying here! My leg is really hurting tonight and the pain meds are not kicking in as they usually do. I played bunko tonight and did a lot of moving around, so it is really swollen, which makes the wires pull more on the skin. But I guess it is worth it, because I won tonight for the most games won. So Steve will be getting up in an hour. My luck I will be falling asleep right about the time he gets up and I will wake up and not be able to go back to sleep? At least I have something to look forward to a little later. My mom and I are going over to Mesquite to get our haircut and going to have breakfast at the Cracker Barrel. I love their pecan pancakes.

Family Cabin

This is a picture of one of my favorite places in the whole world. Our family cabin in Ruidoso, NM. Growing up I would spend weeks here in the summer time with my grandparents and aunts. We had such a great time. This cabin was built in the 30's, so it is very rustic. I loved listening to the rain on the metal roof. There is a wonderful redwood deck out back that I just loved to sit on and read. It used to overlook the river, but for years the river has not had much water, and unfortunately businesses have been built that now block the view. At the bottom of the hill is a motel, so there was always alot of activity. When the cabin was first built it was pretty isolated, but not so much now. I remember the first time Steve went there he was rather disappointed. I had talked about the cabin for so many years and sitting on the deck and how relaxing it was. He thought the cabin was more isolated, and now from the deck you can just watch all the traffic drive through the city. But because of all my memories, it does not bother me. I do really miss the swing where I used to sit and write letters or notes. My grandfather's old outhouse is still there too, but it has sunken into the ground. Anyway...my aunt Gee Gee bought the cabin from her siblings and my grandmother and she keeps it up for all of us to still use. She wrote the other day that she did not know how much longer she would do that and might sell the property. What a sad day that will be! But, I know it is inevitable as the cabin cannot last forever. But my memories will, let me share some with you: My aunts taking us hiking up the hill for a pnut butter and jelly sandwich picnic; my brother getting bucked off a horse and having to have stiches; playing scrabble with my grandmother; playing gin rummy with my grandfather; roller skating at the skating rink for hours; eating crab apples; walking to the post office to get the mail; my brother throwing rocks off of the deck and breaking someone's car windows at the motel below; making and pulling taffy; working on jigsaw puzzles, petting horned toads and so many more. I haven't been to the cabin in about 6 years, I think this summer will be the perfect time to revisit before the time comes that I won't be able to.

Watched the U. S. Figure Skating Championships tonight, I grieved because it was the first time in so many years that Michelle Kwan was not part of the competition. She has to be my favorite skater of all time. I know they can't last forever. None of the current skaters captured my heart. Wonder if any of them will be around 10 years from now? The last time I felt like this was watching Andre Agassi play his last tennis game. Hard to think about tennis without him as well. I think maybe they should come up with senior categories for skating and tennis like they do golf, then I could still see my favorites. How about you? Have a favorite athlete?

Last week I posted about Psalm 37:4 "Delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart". For as long as I can remember God has always communicated with me in song. As I was getting ready today I was listening to my cable Contemporary Christian channel and a song came on I had never heard before. The artists name was Scott Krippayne and here are the lyrics
"Okay, I don't want to wake up today Guess I'm just a little bit afraid afraid to face the mess that I left behind yesterday Alright, after tossing and turning all night do I see a little sign of daylight I think I hear the words you're speaking to me I believe, I believe it's true every morning your mercies are new.
CHORUS: I'll be waking up early long before the sun, long before the sun I'll be waking up
early long before the sun, long before the sun to be with You.
My eyes have never seen such a perfect sunrise guess I really shouldn't be surprised but the way that You forgive me leaves me breathless and amazed I know it won't be long before tomorrow between now and then I'll probably stumble And I'll need your light of grace all over again I believe, I believe it's true every morning your mercies are new
CHORUS: I'll be waking up early long before the sun, long before the sun I'll be waking up
early long before the sun, long before the sun to be with You.
Great is Your faithfulness I can never get enough I don't want to miss a single second of Your love."

This song caught my ear and then penetrated my heart. Would I ever be so eager to meet with the Lord that I would get up before the sun came up not wanting to miss a single moment.
This gave me a new perspective on delighting in the Lord!

This morning I had a doctor's appointment at Downtown Baylor at 9:00 a.m., so I wnet down Greenville so as to miss the traffic on Central. Well, I don't know the name of the church I passed, but their marquee said "God said, kiss me I'm Irish". Is that not the dumbest thing? I just struck me the wrong way, not to mention it was smack dab in the middle of an African American community. I just wondered who's idea was this and what did they hope to accomplish? Anyway...everyone please be praying this week that my leg is strong enough to hold on it's own. The doctor undid all the struts today which means my leg is holding all the weight and not the frame. I return next Tuesday and if everything looks okay, then he will give me a removal date. It is nice to have a possible "light at the end of the tunnel".

This is a picture of my backyard fence and my alley neighbor's trees. A few days ago I walked by the sunroom window and it was just like overnight the trees were brillantly white. They were and still are beautiful. But unfortunately they wreck havoc with my swimming pool! About 5 years ago, Steve and I spent a significant amount of money to have alot of vegetation taken out of our backyard to increase the deck size, but mainly to make pool maintenance easier. Now every Fall and every Spring we spend weeks cleaning our neighbors leaves or blooms out of our pool. Don't you think it would be neighborly of them to offer to clean our pool for us? The truth of the matter is they have their own pool, so I can't even imagine how many more they have dropping in their pool. Anyway...fortunately this is only a problem for 6-8 weeks of the year and not in the summer when I really love my pool! In closing I just want to say Happy 83rd Birthday to my dad! We are so thankful that he is still here with us and God allowed us to share a birthday meal with him! May the days ahead continue to be ones filled with peace and joy for he and my mom.

I love Sunday nights! I have such fun with the 3-5 year olds at my church. I have them for 2 hours and the time just flies by. They make me laugh. They make me feel special. I love their hugs. Tonight was especially fun because we were able to go back out on the playground due to the time change and it being lighter outside and the great weather today. They are so proud of themselves when they cross the jungle gym on their own. Sydney won the "monkey" award tonight! They did a great job of remembering the 10 plagues we talked about last week. Another highlight of my day today was listening to Emery Heflin sing the books of the Old Testament to me. For those of you who don't know Emery she will be 3 in October!!!! She did such a great job. My favorite was 1 and 2 Comicals (Chronicles). Too precious!! Then her sister Matlaee (who is four) sang them for me as well. I am so thankful that there are parents who are taking the time at home to instill God's Word into their children's hearts, and I am even more thankful for those parents taking the time to share those precious children with me for a little while each week.

Don't remember if I have posted before about Don Piper's book "90 Minutes in Heaven". If you have not read it, it is very interesting. Not only was he declared dead for 90 minutes and spend time in Heaven, he ended up wearing a frame like mine and the book describes that experience as well. For Valentines Steve bought me a Daily Devotional book that was inspired by the "90 Minutes in Heaven" book. Yesterday, this caught my attention "So many of us grumble and complain when things go amok. I don't think that's totally wrong, afterall who wants to shout and rejoice over misery? But I do think we need to be consistent. If we are going to whine about the bad things then consistency says we need to pause and give thanks for the good things such as when we have a good day. Be thankful for the days we are free of pain and healthy. What about when we feel loved? Isn't it wonderful when someone makes us feel important? Isn't it marvelous to reach the end of a day and feel we've accomplished important things and we're now relaxed? Do we give thanks for our families? Do we rejoice that we have jobs? This list could become almost endless. Some of us may have to seek harder, but we can always find causes for giving thanks.
I love the attitude of Job. He lost just about everything in his life, but he held on with an upbeat attitude. His attitude was that if we're going to grab hold of the good in life, we must also accept the bad. Perhaps it's because we don't grasp the good and appreciate what we do have that we fall so emotionally low when the bad hits."

He then writes this prayer:
All-wise God, at times I don't know your will, even though I would like to know. Most of all, I need to know that you will give me the strength to get up every time life knocks me down. With your strength, I can keep on fighting and for this I thank you. Amen"

May I find the reasons in each day to praise my God for all the good things in my life.

Guess it is too idealistic to think that I can always post something that will be positive and uplifting? I have been sick since yesterday morning with some kind of intestinal bug. I am better tonight. I asked Steve to bring me a grilled cheese sandwich from Sonic. Definitely not as good as mine, and bless his heart he is allergic cheese. If I had asked him to make one, he would have, but even the smell of cheese bothers him, so I couldn't think of anywhere else to get one? When I was in the hospital there was a diner really close that made a great grilled cheese and Steve would get it for me every now and then. Well, Sonic does not toast theirs near long enough. I would have been better off just getting a cheese quesidilla from Taco Bell. Anyway...so far so good at it not coming out either end! So hopefully this was just a 24 hour bug and is gone. But I have done nothing except sleep and watch T.V., so nothing much to write. I am truly disappointed with American Idol this year! Unless someone just steps it up at notch there is no one that I am rooting for. Well, won't bore anymore, hopefully I will have a better post tomorrow. Oh yes, one neat thing that did happen is through an online chatroom of people wearing a frame like mine, I met a girl in El Paso that comes to Dallas and has the same doctor as me. I actually got to meet her after one of my appointments when she was in the hospital. She just emailed that she has a doctors appointment on Tuesday and will be getting her frame off on Wednesday. I also have an appointment on Tuesday so emailed her back to see if our times are close so we can meet again. I was born and raised in El Paso, so it has been a neat God connection because she is also a believer.

Tonight as I was waiting for dinner to finish cooking there was a pamphlet on our table called Our Journey. I picked it up and began reading only to find out it was a daily devotional book. Steve said he had been getting it, but didn't know who had sent it or how he got on the mailing list. Anyway. in the front cover were some quotes and this one by Beth Moore really stuck out to me. We glorify God to the degree we externalize the internal existence of the living Christ. She goes on to say in her article that God wants to make Himself recognizable to us and through us. She says that living a life that glorifies God is synonymous with living a life that reveals God. 2 Corinthians 3:18 says that we are all be transformed into the image of Christ. The prayer of my heart is that more and more I can remove less of me from the equation and allow the Lord to radiate from me and use me to be His presence here in this world. There are so many that need to know the wonderful life He has in store for them.

Today I did something else I had not done in 2 years. I went to the post office. First of all I have to say the Richardson Post office on Bowser and Apollo has to be the most inefficiently run post office I have ever been to. They usually only have two workers and the line is always to the door! Today was no different. I had to wait for the line to move up to even get in the door. I stood there for 20 minutes waiting for someone to take pity on me and tell me that I could go before them in line. Never happened. Seems like there should be some kind of special arrangement for handicapped people? I couldn't help but chuckle inside that we were all standing inside a sign that said this "It is one of the most beautiful compensations of life that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself." The good news? I made it!! I stood in line and actually mailed a package!! I do know that this journey that I am on has made me much more sensitive to accomodations for those that are handicapped. Saturday at the movies, I saw a mother trying to take her son out in his wheel chair at the end of the movie and she had to stand a wait for at least a dozen people coming down the stairs before someone just stopped on the stairs and let her go ahead and push her son out. I wanted to stand up and scream "Let the boy go by". Anyway...I pray that I will not forget the lessons I am learning and I will always look for ways to help the handicapped. I appreciate all the many doors that have been held open for me!

Part of my Sunday morning ritual is listening to Dr. Charles Stanley as I am getting dressed for worship. I like Dr. Stanley because He preaches very direct sermons that are very textual. This morning he said something that struck a cord with me. He was talking about the verse in Psalms 37:4-"Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart." It is one of the promise verses I have struggled with, but this morning Dr. Stanley's sermon led me to be confessional, that perhaps the reason I do not necessarily get the desires of my heart (which right now would be healing of my leg) is because I do not delight in the Lord. I love the Lord, and I think I am about the Lord's business, but do I delight in Him? Then in worship this morning we sang "My God And I" and there is the phrase "we walk and talk as good friend should and do". And I once again had to ask myself do I? I pray, but it is usually what I do when I am going to sleep at night and usually fall asleep while praying. If the only time I talked to my friends or Steve was when I was so tired that I fell to sleep talking to them would they feel I thought they were important? I don't think so. I do have some other times of prayer but not on a daily basis. I am afraid that if you looked at my habits they would say I delight more in television than I do in my God. I pray that today my heart has been pricked and I will truly delight in the Lord and spend more time in His word letting Him speak to me and more time in prayer talking and listening to Him. Not so that I will get the desires of my heart, only because I love Him and need to spend more time in that love relationship.

Steve and I had a nice day today. We got to eat breakfast at IHOP. I had cinnamon pancakes, yummy! Then we went to see the movie Amazing Grace. I left questioning what have I done in this life that has made a difference? There is so much injustice in this world and have I ever stood up against it? When I was a social worker, I did help abused children. But that was over 17 years ago. William Wilberforce made a difference. It took him over 15 years of being persistent, but he helped abolished slave trade. I thought it was a good movie, and it has made me want to research the story and find out more about this amazing man and his preacher friend who actually wrote the song "Amazing Grace". Hope you all have a wonderful day of worship with our awesome God tomorrow.

So anyone else watching "Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader"? Oh my goodness, how humiliating is this show? I have a Masters in Education and cannot answer half of the questions. Guess it has just been way too long since I was in school!