Happy Thanksgiving!

This is my favorite week of the year...Thanksgiving!  It is such a special time to be with family and recognize all that I have for which to be thankful...my hope in Christ, my wonderful husband and 3 amazing kids (plus one by marriage and one by choice and all the others gathered along the way), my CASA kids and the positive changes in their lives, my home and all of its comforts, the gorgeous world that surrounds me (I'm constantly amazed at the beauty that God created for our enjoyment!), my health (I honestly feel better and healthier than I have in MANY years), and the opportunities that await me in the future, as God sees to bless me.  I am very blessed!

It looks more like winter around here right now than fall with this strong arctic storm system that has moved in.  We've had freezing rain and sleet and COLD temperatures since Friday.  I think the sun is supposed to come out in the next day or so.  I enjoy winter weather, but I LOVE sunshine!

I have some CASA work to do this afternoon and in the morning, and then I can commence cooking and cleaning.  Stephen won a Greenberg smoked turkey, which is what we'll be having for Thanksgiving dinner.  I'm excited to see if it is as good as everyone claims.  Of course there will also be dressing, sweet potatoes (I'm going to roast them this year, instead of candying them for a little lighter fare), deviled eggs, rolls, olives (we HAVE to have olives), a loaded potato casserole (that Sheila is making), a veggie turkey (that Mandy is going to arrange), and I'm going to try out a new broccoli and wild rice casserole.  Then, of course, PIES (pumpkin, pecan, and plum - how alliterate!)...and cookies...and homemade candy.  It is WAY too much food for our small family (only 9 of us this year), but we'll enjoy it as leftovers, too.

Friday morning, we will accompany Stephen and Mandy to their appointment at Stork Vision for a 3D/4D sonogram.  I am so excited about this!  We'll get to see Jesse for the first time.  (We've seen pictures of the first, regular, sonogram...but this is different!)  I finally got the squares cut out for his quilt that I'm making.  I need to set up a sewing station so I can start putting it together. 

Sunday, we are having a guest speaker at Highway and a potluck in between services.  We are looking forward to having Koh and Michele's family here for the day.  It has been a long time since I've heard Koh speak, so I'm really looking forward to hearing him again.

I hope all of you have a very wonderful Thanksgiving week with family and friends! 

"Trauma and Misery"

Last week was pretty full.  I went to a symposium in FW all day Monday.  It was presented by the FW Trauma task force.  The only speaker was a widely acclaimed pediatrician/psychologist from Pennsylvania who works with children at Covenant House, a shelter for homeless kids.  He spoke to us for 6 hours on how to help children who have experienced trauma.  He was the best speaker I’ve heard on the subject…giving very detailed examples and suggestions of what to say and do.  He was also a very entertaining speaker, which made sitting, listening to one person for 6 hours SO much easier!  The emcees for the event were also quite entertaining!

Dennis and I had planned to go out to eat when I got home that evening.  A local restaurant was offering free meals for veterans.  However, Dennis had been sick at his stomach all day and didn’t feel like eating much of anything.  He had this bug all week, off and on.  He went to work each day, but he felt bad and didn’t have much of an appetite.  He felt really bad yesterday, but seemed to be ok this morning and went on to work.  Ricky was started to feel sick yesterday, too.  Hope he doesn’t end up suffering as long as Dennis has!

Mary F is still in rehab and progressing slowly…still suffering from lack of appetite and nausea.  I hope that she will soon progress to the point to where she can return home.  She is so miserable!  Jim is doing well.  He was sick with a bad cold and infection for a week or two but seems to be ok now.  His home health nurse is supposed to be setting him up with Meals on Wheels.  The ladies from church have been taking turns cooking for him, but he really doesn’t like to feel like he is “inconveniencing” anyone…even tho we repeatedly tell him he isn’t!

The girls and I left Friday after work to go watch Stephen perform in “Les Miserables”.  Jessica and I met up with Sheila for supper close to where she works.  We tried out a new restaurant, la Madeleine.  It was quite tasty and different from the norm.  They serve French cuisine and have wonderful pastries and desserts!  We also bought some truffles to take with us to snack on later in the evening.  We stayed the night in a hotel in Mesquite to break up the trip.  (Plus we knew that Stephen and Mandy would be out late that night anyway.)  We made it to Paris around 10:30 and, after a quick trip to Hobby Lobby, got to Stephen’s house around 11:00 or so.  We visited, had lunch together, and then went to the theatre to watch “Les Mis”.  It was wonderful!  I had had my doubts about a small community theatre putting on a performance of that magnitude, but they did a really good job.  I can’t watch that story without sobbing, plus I’ve always gotten emotional watching my children perform, so watching Stephen portray Jean Valjean was gut-wrenching!  It was all I could do to not blubber uncontrollably! 

After the play, we headed back home.  That is such a long drive!  So glad we didn’t have to do it all in one day.

The guys had a business meeting/study between services yesterday.  Sheila had to go on a visit for her CASA case at 2:00.  Jessica ended up going home after services with a bad headache, so that just left Ricky and I together for lunch.  Instead of cooking my usual Sunday dinner, we opted to eat out at Chili’s.  I enjoyed our “date”.  Dennis gave a wonderful lesson last night…despite the fact that he was miserably nauseated.  It was a wonderful assembly all around!  I could tell from everything done and said that the guys had had an excellent study…it shown through in all they did.  Since Dennis was feeling so sick, tho, we came straight home afterwards.

Guess I’d better get on with my day…lots to get done.  I hope the week goes well for all of you!  And remember that throughout the trials and sufferings life dishes up, we have One who can calm any storm.

2 Corinthians 4:[8] We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; [9] Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; [10] Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.

 

 

Blessings abound

I’m loving this cool fall weather!  The forecast shows it getting down into the 20’s one morning next week.  I love sweater and blanket weather!

Well, I was able to exchange my defective Yoga (computer) for one that was fully functional.  I am loving it!  So far, it has done everything that I’ve needed from it, and it is so easy to use (which is something I REALLY need!).  It is portable enough to carry with me on my CASA visits, but it still works like a laptop when I want it to.  Then it can convert to a “tablet” when I want to play games or just surf the web.  For someone who has never used an Ipad or smart phone, it is quite an eye-opener to how versatile those things can be!

Last weekend Dennis headed out to Spur to do a little hunting.  He killed 4 hogs...a sow for Daddy and Bobbie to butcher, a couple of boars and a piglet…just to trim the “herd”.  They are really overrun out there!  I took advantage of him being gone on Saturday to go visit some of my kiddos in South Dallas.  That pretty much ends up taking most of a day!  Then Sheila came over and hung out that evening.

We were very pleased Sunday to see Donnie and Tammy show up at Highway!  Donnie stood in for Layne and spoke for us that morning…gave us a very good lesson on making the most of our opportunities.  It was good to see both of them again.  After services, James and Renee invited everyone over to their house for a potluck…lots of yummy food and good fellowship!

Attended a CASA roundtable on Wednesday morning.  My program director approached me when I arrived and asked if I would give a short talk at our Volunteer Banquet the next evening.  She wanted me to share the story of my babies.  I reluctantly agreed.  I am TERRIBLE at public speaking…I get so nervous and flustered!  But my babies’ story is so encouraging that I felt like it needed to be shared.  I spent HOURS working on what I wanted to say and practicing!  Of course, when I finally found myself behind the microphone, I forgot everything that I had practiced.  But I had my notes and this story is one that I can recount anytime…it holds such a special place in my heart.  I made it through without passing out or crying, so I guess it was ok.  I followed another advocate, standing off to the side at the front of the room while she told a story of one of her cases…one with a sad ending.  I wasn’t expecting it and had to try with all my might not to burst into sobs during her story! 

The banquet was wonderful.  The prime rib (my first time to try it) was wonderfully smoky and the chocolate tart was out of this world!  For entertainment, they had a very talented young woman, Abbey Cone,  sing a couple of songs for us…one that she had written.  The second song was “Nobody’s Child”, which was written about children in foster care.  It was such a moving song…I was really fighting the tears again!  She has recorded this song and donates $1 every time someone purchases it off of ITunes. Then we had a motivational speaker talk to us.  It was a very inspiring presentation, as well as entertaining.  It was a wonderful evening…and surprising!

We got deer #2 butchered and in the freezer this week.  There were three of us working on the meat and all three of us ended up with bandaged thumbs!  My freezer is quite nicely filled now.  I asked Dennis to please hold off on killing any more deer until it has time to clear out a little!  That is the nice thing about having such a long season (October – bow, Nov-Dec – gun, and then muzzleloader – January).

I have an all day symposium to attend on Monday.  It is entitled “Building Resilience:  Children and Trauma”.  It ought to be very informative.  It will entail getting an early start on my day, which will be quite a change after having Dennis off on vacation these past couple of weeks.  We have been sleeping in most days…gonna have to get back into a regular schedule!

Matthew 25:[34] Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: [35] For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: [36] Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. [37] Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? [38] When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? [39] Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? [40] And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.