Just Some Stuff....

Hello, dear family and friends! Hope you all are doing well. I am FEELING BETTER!!! WOOHOO!!! It's nice to get back to a "normal" life. I was able to clean the house really well this weekend...something that's been needing to be done for a long, long time. I've also been able to exercise quite a bit. Things are good!

Weight Watchers report...I've lost a total of 8 lbs. now! Eight down...20 more to go! EEK!

Have to tell some cute kid stories:

Maddie and I went shopping yesterday...just around town to K-Mart, Cato's and then to the grocery store. Cato's, if you don't know, is a women's clothing store, and it is literally the only place in town, besides K-Mart, to buy clothes. So Maddie is going through the store picking out things for me to try on, and mind you, she's doing a FABULOUS job at it! So we go back in the dressing room, and she critiqued every thing that I tried on...and she was right on the money every time! I tried on a pair of shorts that were, #1, too short, and #2, too tight, and Maddie says, "Mom...those shorts are fat on you." LOLOLOLOLOL!!!!! I heard the lady in the dressing room next to me snort! BUT(T)...they were too tight...she was exactly right. I bought the things that she told me to buy (yes, my 3.5 year old) because they were the exact right things for me to wear! I think I have a little fashionista on my hands!

Mackenzie and Maddie were playing with their Barbie's last night. I was cracking up the whole time watching Mackenzie. Now, she totally has the "second child syndrome," aka, she barely talks because Maddie talks for her. Well, she would pick up two Barbies, put their heads together and make a kissing noise...then she would make them "talk." She would make them look at each other, and then she would look at them very seriously and say, "Me, me, mo mo mo." The funny thing about it was that she would do this exact same sequence every time she would pick up two Barbies - pick them up, make them kiss, say "me me mo mo mo" and put them down. Repeat with the next two Barbies. I was just so cute! (And no, I have no clue what "me me mo mo mo" means...)

On a more serious note...

Will you all please pray for my Dad? He is having surgery tomorrow...he has discs in his spine (in the neck area) that are crushing down on his spine causing a lot of problems for him. He is pretty nervous...this is his first major surgery, so I think that is worrying him. If you will just pray that he comes through the surgery successfully and has an easy recovery, I would greatly appreciate it.

Also, you all remember me talking about my friend, Brian, from church who killed himself...well, he was "replaced" this past week with a new guitarist/vocalist in our praise band. I'm having a very difficult time accepting this person, though I still don't even know him. Thankfully, I didn't participate in praise team this week...I cried through a big part of the service yesterday. There is a song called "How Great is our God." Brian brought this song to us, and I can't even listen to it on the radio anymore because it just reminds me so much of him. Every time I hear it, I can just picture Brian up on that stage with his guitar singing so gently. It was my understanding that we were going to "bury" that song since he brought it to us. Well, this new guy starts singing this song...and he changed it from how we normally sing it. I don't know why, but I immediately felt so overwhelmed and hurt that I wanted to run out the door. I know that I have to get past this...and I know this poor new guy is probably having a hard enough time dealing with filling the shoes of someone who is gone and was so very loved. But I sit here typing this with tears in my eyes. When do you stop hurting over something like this? I have to get past this...

Anyway, that's life right now...good and bad! I just have to thank God for my family, friends, the health that I still have, the roof over my head, the food on my table, the work that helps me to support my family...all of it, I lift up to you, Lord. Thank you for your marvelous blessings. I don't say that often enough...

Much love to you all!!