Tuesday, January 24, 2006

no faith, yes headache, yes jury duty

Well I have looked everywhere at home for the Fresh Faith book. No luck. So apparently I gave the book away. Which I tend to do. So I am sorry for bringing up a subject that I can not continue. Could have been interesting! I would write about waht I think but I have had a killer headache all day, I can't seem to shake it long enough to be productive today. Then to top it all off, I have been called for jury duty tomorrow. I know it's my civic duty and right but this is not happening at a great time!

So to sum it all up...I have faith. I work on it everyday. Am I convinced that anger is a lack of faith? Nope, not convinced. I am convinced however that excedrin migraine is excellent medicine! Thank you excedrin people! I also know that it is great that we live in a country where democracy reigns and that people die to protect our freedom and so to honor that I can go to the courthouse tomorrow and wait to see if I am called to be a juror. Hm...I am wondering what they will think of my job and how that will affect a lawyers decision to pick me or not!?

Should be interesting!

By the way, God is answering all kinds of prayers for baby Lauren! She has opened both eyes as of today and she is at her lowest weight! I have seen pictures and she looks GREAT! Now, we need continued prayers for her to be able to keep off the fluid and breathe on her own. The doctors are not optimistic about her heart condition and she is not a candidate for a transplant or corrective surgery. So more prayers in that area too! The family at Fairfax has been praying without ceasing!

Monday, January 23, 2006

anger later...24 now

I like the thoughts of Shayna and Malia regarding anger. I am going to look for the book Fresh Faith and read my Bible and I will post tomorrow....right now...24 is on.....i am all snuggled in my select comfort/sleep number bed in my fav. pj's with a warm krispy kreme doughnut!

I will pick up anger tomorrow!

Saturday, January 21, 2006

Angry words

We all get angry. I especially hate it because according to my strength finders test, harmony is my numero uno strength. Yes it is true, I love for everything to be in harmony and it really really bothers me when things are not. So as you can imagine, I tend to stay stressed out alot! Cause if you haven't noticed lately, there is very little in the world that is harmonious--is that a real word?

Anway, I remember reading a few years ago the book called "Fresh Faith" by Jim Cymbala, I believe is his name. He said in his book that anger is showing a lack of faith. I remember that because it made me stop and think. I had never put being angry and letting anger control you with having a lack of faith.

So I am curious. What do you think? Is being angry or letting anger control your words and actions a lack of faith. In very many ways, I think that yes it is. But I will share with you my thoughts so as to not sway your thinking.

I am serious. I would love to hear what you have to say on the matter. I can go for a very very long time without being angry and then when I am...well it seems to be overwhelming. Hey, maybe I am as dysfunctional as the rest of the world! :)

Ok so to recap...anger...a lack of faith or what?

Friday, January 20, 2006

urgent prayer request!!!

Baby Lauren is not doing well. The baby that I told you about earlier. She has taken a turn for the worse.

For the first time, her parents are discouraged and afraid. They know God is all powerful but they are fearful!

We are FXCC are having a 24 hr. prayer vigil. Please ask all you know to do the same. Tim and Cristi and baby Lauren need to be lifted to the Lord!

Thank you!

tgif

I am really glad today is friday! I needed it to be friday!

Something to look forward to....Feb 12th Extreme Home Makeover will air and feature the story from Blacksburg! It is sweeps week and it will be a 2 hour special! For those of you who don't know...My brother and sister in law live in Blacksburg AND they helped in the house!!!

I went to the place Dinnermyway today! I will tell you how the food tastes when we eat them! Let me just say I got 6 meals that feed 6 people for $105. That is $17.50/meal! That is waaaay cheaper than eating out!

Our menu:
Braise Brisket!
Skillet Chicken Pasta
Chicken and black bean burritos
Chicken Parmesan
Cumin and lime roasted pork loin
Shrimp stir fry

Yummo!

Thursday, January 19, 2006

favorite things to watch

Ways to relax. We all need to relax. I think Americans are way too tense. I know I am. Right now it is 7:02 p.m. and I can hardly keep my eyes open! I am tired and worn out and tense! A deep tissue swedish massage would be perfection right now! Or a really good realignment from a chiropractor! I do have a few things that I love to "do" that help me relax. Here is my list. What's yours?

I love to watch the following tv shows:

LOST--THE best show EVER! Hands down!
Grey's Anatomy--he didn't pick her--yet!
American Idol--it makes me happy and sad at the same time.
30 Minute Meals--while I am eating my take out!
24--I find myself yelling at the t.v. with this show! INTENSE!!!
Gilmore Girls--I am now beginning to believe that Logan is Rory's "lobster"!(you know, in the tank holding the claws! mates for life)

That is 6 1/2 hour of pure escaping and enjoying per week!

If there happens to be reruns then I watch the following DVDs:

Any of the 10 season of Friends--Love them all, they make me happy.
A knight's tale--heath ledger, need i say more?
Sweet Home Alabama--josh lucas--again...enuff said!
How to Lose a Guy in 10 days--Matthew McConaugHEY!!!


Ok well the afore mentioned plus a bubble bath are how I relax! Maybe I need to go and do that now! Happy watching and bubbling!

Monday, January 16, 2006

The Prayer chain

I have an urgent request for prayers. On Friday last week a member of our church who was 33 weeks pregnant started to have light contractions and the baby was not moving. She was headed to the hospital anyway to get her firstborn child's allergy shots and so she went to see her dr.

As they checked her, they decided to admit her to the hospital because the contractions were going full strength. They gave her all the medications to slow down/stop the contractions. When it was determined that they were not going to stop they gave her very detailed sonogram because the nurse could not get the regular sonogram to work so the only specialist they have was there and gave her a detailed sonogram. Upon finishing it was determined that they baby had a large amount of fluid. Maybe even an inch of fluid between her skin and skull!

The did an emergency c-section and a baby girl was born. Not sure what was going on and why this was happening to the baby. They wisked her off to the NICU. Her birth weight was over 9 pounds! Remember she was 6 week premie! The doctors told the parents that because they didn't know why this happened to her, they were not sure how they were going to treat her. The onset determines the treatment. She did try to cry when born which was a good sign but she was a sick little baby. The next few hours were going to be touch and go.

The prayers went out and up. The Lord is good. She has survived to today and she has lost over 3 pounds of fluid!!! She is intabated (sp?) and has a chest tube to drain off more fluid. The fluid is gone from her internally but not from under the skin. Her eyes are swollen shut but she is doing well.

The doctors have given her status as stable BUT she is still at risk. She is responding to stimuli and they have cut back some on the ventilator and she is able to keep up on her own and take up that slack!

God is amazing! This little baby is being lifted up and she is getting better and better! Our whole church is on prayer vigil for her.

Please do the same. Because this is on the WWW, I am not giong to tell you the parents name and the baby's name. God knows who they are. IF you go to my church then you know who they are!

Just please pray! Pray for full recovery! Pray for comfort for the parents. Pray for the doctors and nurses who are giving this precious life around the clock care.

The doctors can't tell them anything about a future for her becuase they are trying to figure out what is going on themselves. I will tell you though that the military has only 3 pediatric kidney specialists and one of them "just happened" to be there this weekend and has stayed on to help out. He has determined that it is not her kidneys!!! Isn't God wonderful!!!!

Thank you! I will update as I get information!

Saturday, January 14, 2006

California dreamin con't

Can I just tell you how much I love southern CA. I mean who wouldn't. I keep thinking....i could live here! But then Lisa reminded me that what I absolutely LOVE about VA is that we ahve all 4 seasons. True that! I would miss snow and a cold christmas...oh wait..i missed that this year! Some of my fondest memories are snowy christmases! Like the one where it snowed Christmas morning and my family went out to feed the troops that guard the pentagon andhave to work on Christmas day and are not with their families! See just makes you all cozy inside!

The conference was great! A high light of the conference was a group called Go Fish who sang to us! They are 3 young guys who sing acapella! They were fabulous! I just love good music! I bought their cd for my neices and nephews. One of our keynote speakers was Lisa Welchel from the Facts of Life. Ever wonder where she has been? Well she has great story! She came to know Christ by walking up the church near her because they had donuts! Her family didn't go to church and she got up on sunday mornings and went becuase they had donuts! She of course kept going because she was finding what she was missing but what got her in the door was donuts. She has 3 children and they are teenagers and she wrote a book on creative correction. I ordered th e book!

Huh? If all it takes is donuts to get the lost in the door then why are we not doing it?! I mean we don't have to compromise our beliefs and our faith. All we have to do is rethink our donuts!

This generation of kids is not donuts but more media driven. Teen "donuts" are also different than kid "donuts" Our church is in the middle of 2 neighborhoods. I wonder if we went and asked what would bring them in to church we would find that it probably wouldn't take much, just not what we are doing now.

But I digress...the other speaker worthy of being noted was a lady named Lee Ezell. Waht a great lady she is. She gave up her baby for adoption after she became pregnant from being raped. Later got married. He died of cancer. She was diagnosed with cancer that same month and then her daughter who she gave up called her and wanted a relationship with her and guess what? That daughter is a Christian, just like this woman! AMAZING! Through it all she could still laugh and know that God was with her! What amazing faith! What a testimony to all of those who are going through hard times and fall into the pit of self pity! i ordered her book too!

The workshops were good. Most of them for me just reaffirmed something we need to be doing at Fairfax and in Children's ministry. I.e. equipping parents to be the spiritual leaders of their children and revamping Kid's worship. We connected with others in the ministry and made some new acquaintances.

One night we did go to Downtown Disney and eat out and shop and take in a movie!

Now i need to get my energy level back up to par and clean my house and get organized and ready for the next several months! A mommy's work is never done! A big shout out though to my lovely husband for not complaining that on my day off and his day off I laid in bed all day watching t.v. and doing sodoku puzzles!!! What a kind soul he is! He even went in and volunteered in Alex's class for me! I am blessed!

Until next time here are some books I suggest you will find a good read: Three by Ted Dekker, Redeeming Love by Francine River.

Movies to watch: Sense and Sensibility, Emma, Cinderella Man

If you are not into the LOST craze! go rent the 1st season!!!! It is AWESOME!!!!!

Monday, January 09, 2006

California dreamin--Tuesday

My co-worker/friend and I went to lovely Anaheim, CA. for the Children's Pastor's Conference held by the INCM (International network of children's ministry). We stayed at the lovely Anaheim Hilton. Literally right around the corner from California's Great Adventure and DisneyLand! We could see the fireworks at Disney every night from our room!

Anyhoo--we left at the crack of dawn on Tuesday (5 a.m.) and as we were about 10 minutes from Dulles Airport a United Airlines agent calls and tells us that our flight ahs been cancelled. Hmm...ok? So we ask what flight they are putting us on instead and they said "sorry we can't do that". So taking our chances, Lisa and I went on to the airport and stood in the "special" line with about 200 other people who were also "special" as the one agent helped us. While standing in line I started to call United and talk to an agent to get us on any flight leaving anywhere from the Washington DC area to anywhere in the LA area. The newly trained phone agent, who was doing a suberb job of reading his script word for stinking word, kept asking me if I could be put on hold and then would come back tell me how sorry he was but the only flight he could confirm us on would be the Friday flight! Um, that won't work! Then he was very so helpful as he told me that a flight would be leaving from Reagan in 15 mintues and oculd I make it? Um, no!

So as I watched people trying to finagel (sp?) the system to work in their favor, i.e. the lady who tried to cut in front of 200 people so that she could check her precious little yippy sweatered dog on the plane, I went over to the man at the United informaiton counter and guess what information he had for me....there was no way to confirm Lisa and I on any flight except until Friday! Our best chances were to fly stand by. We decided that this was our fate for whatever reason and God was trying to tell us something so we took the stand by tickets.

By this time the security line was out the front door of the airport!!! We take our stand by tickets and wait and wait in line to be scanned. It actually wasn't that bad until we get up to the scanner thing and our tickets are marked so that we are pulled aside and scanned extra! Yes, I do look like a terrorist! I know, many people wonder about me and my loyalities! Me and my lily white skin and complete american features! I wanted to scream..."Excuse me! My father lost 46 men in the Pentagon that day! DO NOT question my loyalty to the USA!!!" I didn't. I stood there as the lovely lady (thank God) ran her hands up and down my body to find...whatever seh was looking for....I guess I needed to have worn my I "heart" America shirt. Anway, taht goes over fine and we head to the terminal. ON the litle shuttle thingy there were 2 I am guessing Marines...they were very young so they may have been in a military school but anyway, they did not give up their seats to any women! That is another blog...

While waiting at the terminal...well I guess I better back up and say that Lisa and I have a few traditions when we fly. One is that we ALWAYS buy a cinnabon to eat on the plane. So we wait to buy one until we get to the terminal. Guess what Terminal D doesn't have....yes, that is right, a Cinnabon. So I go to the stupid Dunkin Donuts and buy a stupid and not good bagel and donut. Apparently that was the only vendor open because everyone in the terminal was there to get their not so good bagel and donut and coffee.....ok.....so I am in line waiting and I get my stuff after telling the new guy at teh cash register 4 times what I wanted and then he charged me the wrong amount and didn't give me my donut! I turn around and Lisa is in line....I look at her funny and she says with a big smile! We are on the plane at 8:25!!! You see unbeknownst to us there is a trick to flying stand by...."Be standing by the ticket counter when they call names" Yeah for Lisa standing by!

So we get on the over booked flight and fly over 5 hours in a very cramped and small plane to CA. We did get to see a movie! Another thing that Lisa and I pray for on long flights! We LOVE to watch movies!

We get to CA and our luggage made it!!! Some famous child or a child of a famous person was picked up by his driver! Not sure who he was but interesting all the same. We head to the Avis place and we got an upgrade for a convertible!!!! hee hee a red 2006 Chrysler Sebring convertible!!!! We put down the top and put on our sunglasses and headed to the beach! Ahhh...we love conferences!

Saturday, January 07, 2006

Four Real

Snagged this from a friend of my cousin's....sorry not original but fun!

Four jobs you’ve had in your life: Linen's n things, School Age Child Care, Interpreter for the deal and hard of hearing, worked at a hair salon washing hair.

Four movies you could watch over and over: A Knight's Tale, The Count of Monte Cristo, Sweet Home Alabama, and Bruce Almighty

Four TV shows you love to watch:LOST, Grey's Anatomy, The Amazing Race, Gilmore Girls

Four places you’ve been on vacation: The Outer Banks, NC; NYC, Mountain Lake, Orlando, FL

Four websites you visit daily: Fxcc.org, Chelsea's My space, Sammies blog, Bruce Black's blog
Four of your favorite foods: A good sloppy cheeseburger--i.e. 5 guys, 7 layered salad my mother in law makes, Cheesecake from Outback, Shrimp scampi

Four places you’d rather be: The beach (OBX), the beach (CA), the beach(Hawaii), maybe NYC

Four albums you can’t live without: I can't pick just 4. but since you asked...Les Miserables--the original London Cast, Point of Grace Christmas CD, John Denver and the Muppets Christmas, and.....i dunno

Four people you’d tag to play this game: You, you, you and you. YOu know you want to play!

Just got back from sunny CA today! I will blog about that tomorrow! well, maybe! Jet Lag and all!

Monday, January 02, 2006

Prayers and blessings

Well as of 5 a.m. tomorrow...I am off to sunny CA for the next 5 days. Why you ask? Lisa and I are going to the International Children's Pastor's Conference in Anaheim! Very exciting!

Last year we went to Saddleback's Purpose Driven Children's ministry conference! That was probably hands down THE best conference I have ever been to! We heard amazing speakers, such as, Craig Jutila, George Barna(love that man!!!), Rick Warren. The praise time was wonderful! Going to church there was so fantastic!!!! Lisa and I learned soooo much!

Please pray for my family as I am gone this week. I hate being so far away from them but after the hectic holidays I am looking forward to some peace and quiet and the beach! Pray for the pilots and the men and women working on the plane. Pray that the Lord keeps the crazy people off the road while I am gone. Pray for my families peace of mind that things will be just fine while mom is gone.

Lisa and I land in LA at 1:13 and we are headed to the beach before we head to our first session that evening!

I think being at the beach is a blessing. The beach is so relaxing! hearing the waves roll in and out. Just can feel the tension roll away! My family is an amazing blessing, that they encourage me to go and learn more about what will make our children's ministry more successful. The elders of our church and our church family is a blessing that they are supportive and encouraging to Lisa and I. Our church's financial situation is a blessing too. We hear of so many people at these conferences that have to pay their own way to these things. These things are expensive!!!

Everyone have a great week and I will check back with you on Sunday!