FW:

Well, I am super excited about my new stay home mom status, these last few weeks have been pretty stressful and only remind me I am making the right choice.  Momo is doing better, but she is still pretty shaken up and sore, she is really down but who wouldn’t be, she had one bad fall with a fractured arm and another with a concussion and heart surgery…  At least we know now that she was blacking out because of the clogged arteries, she is so sore, two falls and bruises everywhere so that is to be expected, then she is afraid to take anything for pain because she has been throwing up so bad… that seems to have let up so praise the Lord for that.  I have been in so many doctors offices lately that it is absolutely crazy, thank God my Mom has been doing good because if both these old ladies have drama at the same time I might just let go of the rope … LOL  Noah started flag football practice this week and he cried the first few practices but is doing great now, Johnny is all grins because Noah really pays attention and is doing good, this proud Mama sure loves her little Seguin Steeler.  They practice 3 days a weeks so it is messing up our daily routine, we have been eating after he gets out at 7:30 because I don’t want him to workout in the heat with food in his tummy but that means our evening routine starts late… we already need to start getting Noah to bed earlier because school is starting and he is not gonna like getting up earlier.  I am also going to help teach his Sunday school class this year, hopefully that will keep me in check to get him there.  I feel like the summer is already over for us and we are getting ready to hit the floor running…  This mama is looking forward to kindergarten!

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Oh Lord, you grant me peace...

Yesterday I went to Adoration, even took my Mom with me to get her out of the house. I felt so overwhelmed, tired… I wasn’t even sure what to pray for because my mind seems to go 100 miles an hour and I have no energy. So I sat and prayed in the presence of my Lord and asked him to fill me, hold me… he knows what I need I don’t have to struggle to find the words. It is absolutely amazing the power of his love, to replenish my soul and give me the peace that I need. God is so good and sometimes I forget that the worries of this world do not belong to me, I need to place them in his hands where they belong… He knows exactly what to do and he is always there waiting to take the burdens from us. I am truly blessed.
I remain…Living in His Love… have a wonderful blessed day!

...the road goes on forever and the party never ends

Well my honey was convinced that after the week we have had that we were being punished for taking a vacation... yes, it was that bad... The challenges have been many, but today it seems like the sun is finally peeking through the clouds. I seem to be destined to spend my time at doctor's offices and hospitals. In summary, Momo had two stints placed in her heart and she has a fractured arm... she has had two doctor visits an emergency room visit, a hospital stay and surgery, she came home today. Noah has had two doctor visits and is finishing his antibiotics for strep. My honey and I are trying NOT to pass out from sheer exhaustion. LOL
I feel terrible because I haven't spent time with my Mom but we havent even had time to unpack from vacation, it has been crazy!
Despite all of that, I am so very grateful that everything has turned out okay and that I have great friends and family to pray for us. In the long run all this does is confirm the fact that leaving my job is the right choice for my family.
God is good, stay blessed....

Beach Babe...

Here is my precious monkey hanging at the beach, don't you love his hat! Everyone gives me a hard time because I coat my baby in sunblock and still searched hi and lo for a hat that would provide plenty of coverage... Being overly cautious doesn't always pay off, my lovey got sick on our last night of vacation, I think he caught Jay's cold and had a fever... still does... His daddy and I don't do well when this baby has fever ever since he had his seizure the last time, very very scary... so, we have pretty much had sleepless nights since Sunday and I am exhausted...

We had a wonderful time in Port A, fun... relaxing... and just great to get away... this week is going to be a killer though, we came back to find the momo had fallen while we were gone and I feel pretty sure she has fractured her hand and she has an awful black eye... so that started my day with a sick child, a trip to the doctor for the momo and xrays and another doctor visit tomorrow AND a visit for momo to the Cardio doctor in SA for tests that will take 5 hours on Thursday... Just another reminder that leaving my job is the best choice for my family... Gotta hit the sack, we have our appt. at 8:30 in the morning on the other side of SA tomorrow... YIKES! Peace and love from our crazy home to yours....

And the countdown begins

So my eyes are definitely being affected by whatever is in the air today, my allergies always seem to affect like one eye, one side of my head, sinuses, ear  and throat…  good thing I am already on an antibiotic so I know it won’t turn into anything nasty.  Bad thing that tomorrow we start our vacation and I don’t feel good.  I am wearing my granny glasses because sometimes they help my eyes focus a little better when I have this throbbing head, I probably need bifocals since I am wearing my contacts and they do seem to make some things easier to see, they stay perched on the tip of my nose and I do the librarian head tilt back when I need to look through them….  Oh, it is not fun getting old, I say this because my hubby was feeling age last night he had a sore footsy, he thinks it’s gout, which is probably the only thing we know that could hurt a toe so we are real scientific about our diagnosing in our house…  Hummm, guess I need to start watching a little more discovery health to get up to speed, or maybe that show medical mysteries…  I am really feeling like I need to lay my head down because it will feel so much better in that position…okay… ALL of me would feel so much better in that position.  I managed to finish all the laundry except for one load last night….  I feel like making my family wear the same clothes for two days so it won’t start piling up again.  I am totally going to wash our clothes at the Condo so that I don’t’ have to do laundry when I get back (ya sure I will)…  Yesterday I put my cell phone in the cup-holder of the truck where someone had spilt some water and my phone got wet so I can’t text because some of my keys don’t work, I am trying to figure out which keys do and don’t work and have figured a work around but alas…  some of the letter buttons are dead so I can get and read texts but can’t reply…  waaahhhh!   My honey told me to just go get another one…. I love him, he spoils me, but HELLO, we are going on vacation, I will have to make do with this one for a while.  Maybe God is trying to keep me from overusing my phone…  Noah has been going through this crying phase with his Momo and it is making me crazy, I know it is because she has been watching him this summer and we have told her to not tell him she isn’t going to see him when we pick him up or make him feel bad for doing something on his own, it has gotten a little crazy and that makes me crazy, yesterday he cried because she was going to stay with her brother while we are at the coast, so I ended up taking him to the movies last night instead of tonight because I didn’t feel like dealing with a crying child, once he gets distracted he is fine and doesn’t even remember….  Jeez, if it is not one thing it is another, and of course I had to drop him off at my sisters today and he gave me a hard time, I was trying to keep him from crying for momo and making my mom and sister feel bad, so I had to do some fast talking to get out of there this morning…  good luck to my sister today….  Ya, sometimes you are just too tired to work on handling things a better way and just kinda bribe them to do what you want…  I told him my sister was taking him to get a  new airbender toy since we saw the movie…  NICE! Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do…. 

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Plantation House

I decided to add a new section for my Blog... 'Everything Seguin' I'll be back later to explain the neato house!

testing

I was testing my wet phone to check and see how bad the damage was... camera works!

New life....

This is my new project…. We have these plants along the walkway at work they are called Fox Tail Ferns and I love them, they are nice and fluffy and green…AND they never seem to die, I mean they are pretty year round and didn’t even die during the freezes. Everything else died and they remained beautiful. I went to Home Depot and found some and they were $25 for a small one, couldn’t believe it! ugh! Well while I was standing in the breezeway waiting for the girlies to leave for lunch I was looking at them and guess what… they must have dropped seeds because little sprouts were popping up! I found 5 little sprouts and even though they might look big in this picture they are actually about an inch high. I gently removed them from the soil and the bulb was attached so I put them in an envelope and took them home to see if they would grow. I cut little cups to make tiny pots and will replant them into bigger ones when they grow, but they are still green and Noah and I gave them all names… So excited that they may be huge beautiful bushy ferns some day… We’ll see….

Graduation Party

A little delay posting these pics of my honey, my love love and Jeremy the animal (can you tell me and my brother in law like to pick on eachother)

So the last weekend in June we made the trek to Victoria to Johnny's cousin Suzie's son Andre's graduation party (whew)... It was outside and I DO NOT like outside parties or gatherings that don't involve water... They had JUST taken down their above ground pool so Noah went decked out to swim and didn't get to... :( Thank goodness they live in the country and they had a really nice breeze because outdoor parties in Texas summer... BIG nono! too dang hot... the bad thing was I freaked out Sunday when we were going to church, I looked down at my leg and pulled a tick or chigger or something off.... OH NO! Now I like to think of myself as a little outdoorsy but that sent me over the edge... HELLO!? I have seen that show Monster Inside Me... I know where that can lead, i texted Suzie on the way into church I was so freaking out and she didn't reply... guess she thought I was over reacting.... Humph, no more country treks for this girly for a while... Not to worry, I monitored myself for fever, tenderness and rashes... I was fine.... LOL....

Me and My Tio

Here is Noah with his Tio (Uncle) Jeremy, yup... Noah looks like his mini-me....

Hanging with my cousins....

My Niece Jenny and I try to do a once a month outing with the kiddos, Here is Noah with his cousins Isabel (looking so darn cute) his other cousin JJ (who does NOT like to pose for pictures) and in the back row are Isaac and Daniel.... these kiddos play hard and it was not easy to get them all together for a picture so posing was put on the back burner... you take what you can get...

Summer fun at the Library

Noah made the daily news! Here he is with his cousin Angela at the Library touching the Boa Constrictor... Yikes!

Story Tails

Today the Library's summer program had animals! So I went with Noah and his cousin's to see, it was WAY crowded but the animals were really neat...

The walloby (i am sure i mispelled that)

the African Porcupine..

The Boa Constrictor.... (yikes)

That also had a peacock and some others but I didn't get to snap pictures of all of them. Noah loved it and even got to pet them afterwards...

Proverbs 31 Ministries....

Love these emails…  I even answered their questions for thought!!!

Sometimes I feel so overlooked…

8 Jul 2010

Lysa TerKeurst

"After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart, he will do everything I want him to do.'" Acts 13:22 (NIV)

I'm sorry. I try not to complain very often. I do know that I am incredibly blessed to have a grocery store down the street and a washer and dryer to use when doing laundry. But sometimes I wake up on Monday mornings a little grumpy. Time to do it all again. I'll go buy food that gets eaten. I'll wash clothes that get dirty again. I'll sweep floors that just an hour later will be littered with crumbs.

Is there more to all this than just doing the tasks of everyday life?

Before I jumped into the normal routine this morning, I sat with Jesus. And this is what I found... some big truths by taking a little glance at David's life. Despite how other's saw him, his own propensity to sin, and his lack of position in his own family, David had the sweet reassurance of God and that was enough.

Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.

To his older brothers, he was a pest. To his father Jesse, he was just the youngest son. To on-lookers, he was just a shepherd boy. But to God, he was the one destined to be king. And not just any king. His lineage was the one from whom Jesus would come.

Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.

Even how he was anointed to be the future king is such a telling story. In 1 Samuel 16, God tells Samuel that He has rejected Saul as king and chosen one of Jesse's sons to be the replacement. Think of the list of qualifications that must have run through Samuel's head as he pondered which of Jesse's sons would be qualified for such a position: tall, smart, articulate, brave, groomed, well mannered, regal, a natural born leader. "But the Lord said to Samuel, 'Do not consider his outward appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. (meaning Saul who had these qualities.) The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" (vs 7).

Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.

Next Samuel has Jesse line all of his sons up before him. All of them were to be looked at. Yet Jesse doesn't call David in from tending sheep. Was this an oversight? An assumption? A judgment call? A necessity? A deliberate choice?

Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.

Samuel passes on each of Jesse's sons and then asks, "Are these all the sons you have?"

I imagine Jesse with a quizzical expression replying, "There is still the youngest but he is tending sheep." Surely one who spends his time taking care of animals is not the one to take care of a nation.

Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.

As soon as Samuel saw him, he knew he was the one. David was anointed to become king. But he was not immediately ushered to the throne. It was years before David would be recognized by the world. So, where did he go after being anointed as king? To a refining school? A government academy? Military training? Nope.

He went back out into the fields and continued to shepherd his flock. A king doing lowly tasks. A king whose character was being refined in the fields of everyday life to prepare him for his calling.

How like us. In the midst of smelly laundry, dirty dishes, snotty noses, misplaced keys, overdue library books, bills, and that birthday gift that still needs to be mailed to grandma - there is training there. There is character building. There is attitude shaping. There is soul defining. There is heart grounding. All which must take place for us to become what God intends.
Ever feel overlooked by the world? Take heart sister - we are handpicked by God.

I am not just doing tasks. I am building a legacy. I am shaping God's kingdom. I am in the process of not only discovering my calling but that of my family as well. And I don't know about you, but it sure does make me look at my everyday tasks, even the smelly laundry in a whole different light.

Dear Lord, thank You that even when I feel overlooked, I can rest in the fact that I am handpicked by You. Help me to live my life for an audience of One. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Related Resources:
Visit Lysa's new interactive website full of free resources and encouraging videos. You can get to www.LysaTerKeurst.com by clicking here.

Today's devotion is taken in part from Lysa's book and Bible Study, Becoming More than a Good Bible Study Girl. This is the perfect 6 week summer study or one to consider doing with your women's group this fall. To order your book, click here, to order your Bible study workbook and DVD study click here and here.

Am I Messing Up My Kids? by Lysa TerKeurst

Application Steps:
Write down in your journal a list of qualities that you sense God is developing in you. Next write down why you think God might find it necessary to develop you in this particular way.
Patience…. Empathy… understanding

I truly feel that God is working in me to become less so that HE can become more by using me to help others…

Reflections:
Are there any tasks that you particularly struggle with not wanting to do? Ask God for a new perspective and spend time listening for His voice while you do this job.

Many times I get frustrated and overwhelmed and yes…  I feel sorry for myself but then it seems that he fills me again with his peace and I am refreshed… 

Power Verses:
Psalm 28:7a, "The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped." (NIV)

2 Samuel 7:22, "How great you are, O Sovereign Lord! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears." (NIV)

© 2010 by Lysa TerKeurst. All rights reserved.

Proverbs 31 Ministries
616-G Matthews-Mint Hill Road, Matthews, NC 28105
877-P31-HOME (877-731-4663)

 

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Iowa

Here are some pictures from my sister's new home... she promised to send more once she is settled but a couple of them didn't come through...

Looks like she will have a wonderful view from her front yard... can't you just see it covered with snow!

I am sure she will make everything just as beautiful on the inside... just wish it was around the block instead of across the states.... :(

Find a happy place...

• Okay, so I am trying to get things straight in my head today… it has been a busy weekend and I am a little frustrated today, running late for work (won’t it be nice when I don’t have to say that anymore), look like a basically jumped out of bed and came to work (which I did!) and I am just fussy! Let’s just say that I have had to swallow air A Lot and the gas is building up… My problem is everyone else seems to think they are the only ones requesting things from me and I seem to get pulled everywhere and not staying put with my own little family. But… NOT TODAY! I am hand delivering 3 “No’s” today and staying home tonight to do laundry, clean MY house, run MY errands and spend time with MY family…. Who knows, this may be the start of something new… LOL Oh don’t get me wrong, family is not the only guilty party, but being the willing person that I am I need to start saying ‘no’ a little more and worrying about it a lot less. Here are my helpful hints for today.
  If someone is doing something that is bothering you and you are sick and tired of it, call THEM and tell them…
  If you think someone is fed up with you, your probably right…
  Be considerate that even though you may not have anything else to do, the person who’s time you are taking MAY….
  If you are mad at someone, please direct those emotions to that person and don’t share with the innocent bystanders.
  If your grouchy stay home
  If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything
  If people get up and move when you sit down that is the first sign that you are behaving badly…
  Guilt worked when I was a child, I am not a child anymore. If you choose to give in to guilt, don’t drag other people along for the ride…
  If you don’t want to do it, what makes you think someone else wants to do it for you?
  If you want to be happy, make yourself happy… happiness is a choice… If you can’t be happy… then don’t share your unhappiness…
  Life is good, don’t waste it…
  You are not the only one with struggles, you just like to share yours… A LOT
  Laughing makes everything better
  Don’t ask me how someone else is doing, call them and ask them…
  I make enough of my own bad choices to worry about someone else’s
  I get myself out of my own messes and solve my own problems. Try it…
  My phone is not the number for information or emergencies that don’t involve me.
  If you want to feel sorry for yourself, go right ahead… just don’t expect people to do the same…. No one wants an invitation to a pity party.
  We can only do what we can, everything else will get taken care of eventually.
  I don’t care if you get mad because I can’t do something when it is convenient for you but I do care if you get mad at me and forget everything that I have done…
  I love doing good deeds, I just don’t like feeling like I have to list them all to prove to you that I do as much as you do… It stops being a good deed when you have to tell everyone about it.
  God died for our sins, he is the only one I am going to praise…
  I am having a good day, I am having a good day, I am having a good day…
  Ha ha… do you have any to add to my list? Just when I think I am done another one pops into my head!
  Peace Love Joy Serentiy …. NOW… :)

worn out!

Wow, we had an event filled weekend but it was great and Noah and I aren't done, we are fixing to go hit the pool with some friends... woohoo, Friday we went to Gattiland, Saturday morning we went to the parade and had lunch at my sissy's... BUT, We had a wedding in the afternoon and they had my most favoritest Tejano Singer Gary Hobbs at the dance! I was so excited because they didn't have it on the invite and when we got there and saw his road crew setting up I felt like I won the lotto!!! woo hoo... too bad my son was grouchy after a long day and he only let me and his daddy dance once but he did join us for a couple of cumbias.. I told Johnny we are totally having him play for our 10th anniversary, I decided we are going to do a dance for that one because I am not waiting until I am old and can't enjoy it!!! Sunday we had a birthday party and it was HOT at the park, then we had family over and I made chili and we watched a scary movie, it had all of us screaming, it was really ugh! and we couldn't take it out because we had to see how it ended, it started off slow but overall it was an awful movie, I had nightmares!... In case you want to traumatize yourself it was called The Collector...NOT a kid movie... This morning I am gonna straighten up a little and then head out to the pool for some splish splashing fun... chow baby!

Wow

Look at mine and BG's feet, she has ski's!!!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy Fourth! (okay third) We had our parade on the 3rd since it was Saturday and thank goodness it wasn't too hot, it rained like crazy the day before so we weren't really sure there would be one but it was nice. Here is our priest Fr. Dennis in the blue cap with the Catholic riders club... isn't he the coolest priest ever!!!!

Lots of Fun!

My little boy deserved a night of fun so we went with him and some of our friends and their kids to Gattiland Friday night... the kids had a blast and so did we playing the games... Just ate way too much pizza!

Lots of this and that

Wow, it has been a crazy week and all I can say is TGIF, there is a lot going on but I will have to catch up on my blog hopefully this afternoon. I am so looking forward to this three day weekend, it is rainy but hey, I will take rain over heat ANY day! We are going to take the monkey to Gatti-land tonight, he deserves it he has had to endure lots of waiting room time this week because Momo and my sister had appointments we took them to. The weather is wet, my hair is frizzy but It is Friday… woo hoo!!!

Momo had her appt. with the cardiologist, since her diabetes had been so out of control her endocrinologist wanted a full cardio eval to make sure she hasn’t had damage to her heart, we have been waiting and waiting to get into this doctor. I have been through two other doctors and referrals out the wazoo to get Medicare to find her a cardio doctor… Momo has had dizziness, itching and pressure on her heart so it needs to get done. I get there at ten and she says our appointment was at 9… um, I have a letter that says 10 (which I produce), receptionist: “that was the first one, you rescheduled and this one is at nine” (That’s when I remembered I did reschedule bc my sister was having surgery and I was driving her… jeez) So I do the appropriate thing, I play dumb and start sucking up telling her we came ALL the way from Seguin, she hands me the paperwork and tells me we are now a “work in” (praise the Lord!) I was totally not on my game yesterday because I usually have new Doctors send me the new patient paper work to fill out ahead of time, so it took me forever to fill it out and turn it in so we could get back there… We finally get called and we are sitting there waiting for the nurse to complete the paperwork and she asks Momo, what are you seeing the doctor for today. Her reply…”I don’t know” …. I was like WT? Are you kidding me? Me: Excuse me, nurse, we are here today because her sugar has been out of control and Dr. Cruz would like to have a full cardiac eval to ensure there has been no damage to her heart… she ignores me, but writes on her pad (rude!) Nurse to Momo: Have you had any itching…? Momo: No, not really… (WHAT!), any Dizziness… Momo: No (OMG) heart pain? Momo: No…none (!@*#!!)... Me: EXCUSE me, but (me looking at momo with the I am going to ring your neck look) You have certainly had itching, you hadn’t been able to stand the itching and we had to take you to the dermatologist… REMEMBER.. and you are always saying you can’t keep your balance because you feel dizzy and like you are going to fall and you have been telling us you have felt cramping in your heart and feel like you’re going to have a heart attack…not to mention your headaches. Momo: oh yeah, I forgot… (Lord, just take me now) Nurse: any headaches (who was I just talking to the wall) Momo: not really (hello! Is anyone listening to me!!!!)… EKG came back abnormal (really… you think?) The nurse leaves the room, Me: MOMO! How can you tell her no to all those things… You know darn well Dr. Cruz said you can have a heart attack at any time with your sugar as high as it is! Momo: I just forgot.

You see… THIS is why I have to go with the Momo and Mom to the Doctors appointments. Yaw, on one of my Mom’s visits she asked the Doctor when she could drive again and he told her maybe in a few months… WHAT!!! So I had to follow him out of the office and tell him “ Um, do you realize she has Dementia with indicators for Alzheimer’s? Do you realize you just told her she will be able to drive again, are you seriously not thinking! The Doctor looks at me… Me: I have told your office to request her files from her Neurologist and Neurosurgeon months ago, have you reviewed those?, have you read the diagnosis..? He looks in the file, they are not there (really?)… You need to go in there and tell her you were wrong, get those files and read where she is at in her treatment… (I had to have my Xanax refilled that day LOL)…. We leave the office and Mom looks at me and tells me, “Next time you won’t have to take off work Mija I will probably be able to drive myself”…. (really?)

Iowa or bust!!!

There they go! My sister Nena and her husband Keith left for Iowa early Thursday morning, they stayed the night with us on Wednesday night so they could head out fresh in the morning. She'll be back to visit in October and it will be here before we know it... I know she is going to miss us too!