Chit Chat

Busy, is how things have been.

Exhausted, is how I feel.

Talked to my endometriosis doctor on Friday, going to try the Arimidex (which is used after breast cancer treatment to suck estrogen out of the body). Have to try it. My pain level is down and I have noticed I am able to eat more, but still something wrong in there. Might be able to live with it. Taking it on a month by month basis.

Went to my niece's graduation and party. My niece is a very accomplished young lady. Her parents (my sister) are so proud.

Got all my books ready for the book sale. We have lots of books. Hoping to make some decent money. Eric turned in his final project for my history class. It took a bit to get him to do a good job of it. He is so capable, but lacks effort. Sigh. Have to grade it and enter it into my books. Do my final write ups, etc. and submit the paperwork.

Mark & I took Brandon out to lunch and gave him his graduation present & card. He felt blessed. He has come down sick, so I am mothering him. I do not feel well myself, body aches and a bit of a scratchy throat. Going to need a nap.

Boys

This is a picture of my boys cooperating and getting along.
I just had to snap this off, despite them saying "Mom!".
It was so nice to see them like this.

When I opened my freezer this evening I found the Invisable Woman from the Fantastic Four.
When she is cold she turns blue, when warm she is clear.
The boys have a tradition of breaking out their favorite toys when summer vacation begins, so when I see her in my freezer it is officially summer vacation.

This is something Eric built with Knex.
At the top is a ping pong ball.
When the ball is released it goes through the maze he has built.

This is Brandon with his army men.
He has always loved to put things in rows since he was a toddler.

I know, this is a very odd picture.
Actually, I am documenting my son's bad habit of not throwing
his trash away. Since I was going to take a picture he picked it up.

Here he is laughing after throwing the banana peel away.

We had a nice day.

Summer is Coming

This week is finals week so our workload for school is light. The boys went to school today. After school Eric and I started cleaning up the sunroom. It has been a mess of books, papers, school supplies, etc. It certainly feels nice to have that room cleaned up. Next I have to go through all their books and tag them for the used book sale at the school next week. The last day of school will be June 12th. The boys and I have mixed emotions because they will be leaving private school behind. It will be a big change for all of us. Even so, we are looking forward to summer, especially since I am in less pain since staying off hormones. It looks like we will be able to have some fun this summer.

I have been feeling melancholy, but certainly perk up when Lady Bird comes for a visit. Before I left for my uncle's memorial she would come by at least 3 times a day. Since then, I only get to see her once a day if I am blessed. She comes with the other birds to eat the seed I put out. Sometimes she waits for me in the plum tree where I feed her worms and we visit. Monday morning when I came out she flew from the plum tree and sat on my head. She is always happy to see me, but then she flies away and I miss her.

Been Thinking

I love to write, but it is hard when there comes a flood of emotions. At those times it is best to be quiet and reflect. To sort out the mess. In untangling the emotions I came face to face with a verse of scripture after tripping over my slippers. It is written on a cross that hangs on the wall by my bed. A familiar verse, "In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy path." Proverbs 3:6. Looking at that verse the Lord spoke to me very clearly. I realized that I have done what this verse says.

When I was in college I laid out a fleece about meeting the right man. When I wanted children I went to the Lord. Before I adopted my boys I went away by myself to pray. And before I had my surgery, I went on my knees in prayer. Staring at this verse, I realized He has directed my path. All this flood of emotion has been an attack of the enemy. I got hit, but not without good reason. It is an area that the Lord wants to work on.

Whatever your calling, remember… spiritual growth impacts our fruitfulness. The longer we’ve been believers, the greater our service should be. That does not mean tasks will be highly visible. Satan tries to convince people that some jobs are trivial. But the moment a believer falls for that lie, growth is stunted. God will promote those who put forth the best effort, no matter what the task is. ~Charles Stanley

The society that we live in does not respect the stay-at-home mother, but the Lord does. In His eyes my work here is important. When I work hard at the job He has given me, I please Him. There are days when I feel like giving up; that I am not able to make a difference. In those times I need to let go and let Him take over. I need not think on my feelings, but I do need to think of others'.

I remember the Lord speaking to me in the hospital when I had sepsis (which nearly killed me). He spoke to me through several people. I was chosen to stay, because my work is not finished. Because He wants me to take care of my family. This is His work for me, this is what He deems important.

NOTE: The picture above is of my boys when they were in elementary school.

Living for Him

"Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it." (Luke 9:24)

Are you in a situation where you must put up with misunderstanding and loss of esteem? Do you get little or no credit for the work you do?

The proper response is the willing attitude of "dying" daily that continually characterized our Lord. He was willing to be misunderstood and maligned, to take an obscure place, to give up those things that made Him look good in other people's eyes. He met His detractors with kindness and meekness, reacting not in strength, but in weakness.

And if we die with Him, God's gift to us is "the life of Jesus" the most attractive life that ever was lived. His beauty will gradually grow in us and become our beauty as well.

The portrait you draw of Jesus by your humble, tranquil presence in the face of grievous wrong is worth a spate of words.

(Taken from the book "Out of the Ordinary" by David Roper pgs. 96-97)

Thank You!

Dear Readers, thank you so much for your prayers for our family. I am very thankful to God for your prayers.

All in the Family

I am back from my trip to my hometown, but I have yet to unpack. I was very tired on Sunday after arriving home. Monday, the boys were finishing up projects and studying for tests. Things were going fairly well until I got an email from the principal. The email informed me of something my youngest son has been doing at the school. Something that broke my heart. The matter caused me grief not only with my son, but with my husband. I have been the one to handle the matter with the principal and thankfully he has been kind.

Because this has happened, I am questioning my choices in life, my marriage, my abilities as a mother. But I know what the Lord wants me to do. He wants me to reach out to Him, not rely on my own strength. He put me here in this little family for just such a time as this. Colossians 3:23-24 says, "Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve."

Please, if you feel lead, could pray for our family. Thank you!