2009 - A Bright Shining New Year

OK I am a gal who makes resolutions. I know many people groan and smack their forehead and say really? But yes really. There is something forgiving about the past year's mistakes and hugely inspiring and positive about a new year. What I didn't accomplish is no longer thought of. My mind whirls with anticipation and excitement as I plan big things to accomplish in the new year.

And what about those things that we don't accomplish? Perhaps we bought a gym membership for $500 and only went twice. BLECH. Or perhaps we want to lose 10 pounds and gained 2 or we stopped organizing the house when we looked in our kiddos bedrooms.

It's ok. Stop - regroup - look up - redesign those resolutions and start again. Making a resolution doesn't mean you won't have grace if you screw. Isn't being a Christian all about grace and mercy? But it truly is a beacon of hope for many people. Even if you choose not to make a resolution - start fresh and be optimistic about 2009. Even if life is full of massive problems (I have them too) don't focus on the problems - focus on the solutions. Dream about something better.

Dream and then create a plan then do it. If you mess up along the way - figure out where your mistakes started - recreate then do it again.

Seriously - life is too short to live a mediocre life. Think about Jeremiah 29:11 - For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. Have you ever wondered what that hope and future is? I do - almost everyday. So join me - find out who you are. Be who God wants you to be. Be inspired. Be positive. Live a life of no regrets.

Big Week!!!

First of all we had a great but busy Christmas. Nannie came home on Christmas Eve, then we had Christmas Eve with my family, Christmas morning was just us, then we went to Snyder for lunch with Brian's dad and step brother's family, then home the next day - Korie came in and we drove to Brownwood to see Brian's mom and sister. We came back Sat night. It was hectic but fun but I am SO looking forward to a laid back going no where Christmas next year. :) We'll see if I win that! LOL.

I have a big week. Salem is still out of school and they are loving playing with their toys. I hope to post some Christmas pics soon! But I have a lot to get done

• I went on this huge cleaning organizing spree yesterday and I cleaned out my desk and threw away or recycled a ton. Next is my bedroom.
• I have to pack for my surgery in Mexico
• Tomorrow we're going to a local hotel for swimming and NYE with the girls and will have a bday dinner with my sister at a Japanese steak house
• Get the girl's schedule's and needs all lined out for next week while I am gone. LaRae and a wonderful lady from church are going to be a great help.
• There are some MOPS things to work out for the meeting on the 12th.
  
• Get Nannie's needs all lined out for next week while I am gone. Thankfully home health is going to come everyday and help mom get her out of bed and Brian will help her get in bed.
• Go to GNC and the health food store to look at some protein supplement stuff. I should have done that already.
  
• Do billing! Leave instructions for Brian on deposits while I am gone.
• Friday Brian and I are scheduled to get our chromosome testing done. I am nervous about this but it needs to be done.
  
• Relax? LOL. Yeah right. I can relax on the plane.

So I do have a lot to do and a short time to do it but I am SO very excited about my surgery. Please say a prayer!!!

Misc Update

It's just Tuesday and I feel it should be Saturday already! :lol It's just crazy. I am SO tired but I can't sleep so I thought I'd update.

Brian is still working long hours - the downside to having such a huge Christmas business is that we have a huge maintenance business when the lights get knocked down in the high winds Abilene has been having lately. ARG. So the single mom stuff is getting old. Old I tell ya.

The girls have been fun. Salem is SO melodramatic that is seriously stresses me out but she's loving and kind. Raina is talking more all the time. :) I am SO excited they are doing. We might get Salem out of speech in Spring! WOW. After 4 years no more speech and PT (she left PT in October I think) and we'll just have riding! Thank God!

I love my van! :) I'm such a mom! LOL. My sister got engaged to a wonderful man named Randy. He's a nurse practitioner and an old friend of mine from when I was 18.

Tomorrow for Christmas Eve and I need to get to the grocery store to get food and we're going to Christmas service at Beltway and then having presents/food at my house. Christmas morning is at my house with just us and the girls and then we'll go to Brian's dad's for the rest of the day and see Brian's mom on Saturday.

Can you believe I am less than 2 weeks from surgery? I am SO excited. Please be praying. :) I have lost 2 1/2 pounds and I am praying the surgery goes well enough for me to get off my diabetes meds.

I am having a lot of tingling in my neck and it hurts a lot but that will have to wait until I get home to think about.

So that's it for now I guess. Merry Christmas.

New Car...

I got a new used car - errr I mean van! I was originally looking at a brand new Ford Escape but my sense of frugality won out and I started looking at used cars. Then I found a Dark Smoky Gray Impala. LOVED it. 2005, low miles, leather all the bells and whistles. I was about to say yes and just HAD to ask if they any small SUV's or vans with good gas. Of course they did. He had one that gets 18 miles to the gallon (what I would have had in the impala) and with similar low miles. LOL. So I am back in a van - a white Chrysler Town and Country! I am SO fickle! LOL. But I have to drive this car at least 4 years so it's done!

Nannie was hospitalized tonight

So last Sunday we took Nannie to the hospital and after 6 hours the Dr. was a little snooty and said he didn't see anything in her xray to think she was developing pneumonia (which I and her home health people did think cause of past history) and they sent us home.

That Dr. was WRONG.

All of this week she's been week and tired but seemed better. Today she was VERY off. Very disoriented - wouldn't even talk - I think she had a TIA. We called home health and her lungs sounded worse. So we called the ambulance and took her to the other hospital where they were SO sweet and took such GREAT care of her. She has bacterial pneumonia in her right lung and fluid in her chest. Randy (my sister's boyfriend who is a nurse practitioner) thinks she has more problems with her heart. But we got there right before 6 and we just got her admitted and home. MUCH better. We were at the other hospital almost 2 hours longer and they sent her home.

So we just got home. I am VERY tired. I actually had a date night planned with my sweet hubby whom I haven't seen much of in 6 weeks. :( So we'll go in the morning before church and go from there.

The last 2 years she's been hospitalized 2-4 weeks around this time and it really helped build up her strength with fluids and PT and all. But this year her congestive heart failure seems worse.

So we're just praying. If it's her time to go we just want to be quick and painless. She's 82, on oxygen 24-7 and totally imobile. She misses Papa too. I do too. We all do.

Tiring Week

You know I am almost ready for the holidays to be over. I am just not in the spirit this year. My tree is up but so much other stuff is in boxes on my table. My goal is to do that tomorrow.

Our Christmas light business is usually dead right after December 1st. Not this year so I am STILL a single mom. Brian is out right now installing a new job.

My grandmother was sick and we took her to the hospital on Sunday and besides being their for 6 years they didn't do anything. It's getting harder and harder to keep her at home. We're going to have to think about her going to a nursing home in 2009.

I still have to find a delivery confirmation receipt, mail a package to Korie, file a claim with the post office, do payroll and that's on top of the regular activities and compounded by a busy week next week with Salem's school party and The King's Table at the Mission. GRRRR.

I need a hot bath, a margarita and a valium! LOL.

Chromosomal Anaylsis

Remember the whole unknown marker thing on Salem's chromosomal analysis? Harvard wants to see if Brian or I have it as well. If we do we'll test Korie and Raina. They still don't know what it is but it would be good information to have down the road if it's ever identified and related to anything. We did get approved for a grant to cover the testing thank God as it would have easily been a couple of thousand.

Then once that is all done Salem will have the PTN11 test for NS and we'll go to Dallas to Cook's so it will done correctly.

I've not heard from her cardiologist about the endocrinologist referral but for now I am going to sit on that til Spring cause with all I have going on I am not sure I can handle all that. So we'll see.

Almost Ready To Relax

I had a crazy November with Brian gone so much and us all taking turns being sick. Normally my tree and all the decorations are up the weekend after Thanksgiving. I just got my tree up today. It is beautiful though. One of my beautiful stocking hangers is broken! :( And I am not sure I can find another. It's pewter and I am crazy in that they MUST match. So I will go to Hobby Lobby this weekend and see what I can find. But the tree is up and I have to get the Happy Halloween vinyl sticker off my door! LOL. I can't find a razor. I have two little trees to put outside but I'll do that when it's less cold. Salem and Raina can decorate their pink trees tonight and I'll take pics tomorrow.

MOPS is over for the year too. I LOVE MOPS but I have had a hard year with shingles and illness and such that I was struggling the past month. I am so glad we have an assistant coordinator this year. I don't know what I would have done last year when I was doing my job, Joann's job and part of publicity (website/blog).

So what are we doing this year? Well believe it or not we scaled back on commitments and we're still booked SOLID. I have a girls night out with LaRae, Julia, Deanna, A'lisa on the 16th! WHOO HOO!!!!

Salem's school program is this Thursday, Saturday night they are going to an AMOM Parent's Night Out so Brian and I can go to a movie. I want to see Four Christmases. He wants to see something more action packed. I feel like I get to choose since I've been a single mom for 6 weeks! LOL.

Love and Care Ministries Christmas on the Streets is next week and next Wednesday is the Mission's King's Table. That's Brian's baby. We have health care professionals doing cholesterol and diabteic screenings, give flu shots, eye exams, back adjustments and hair cuts. We feed the guests and give out presents and give a gospel presentation that includes a 6 foot cake!!! :)

We still need used toys and donations to use for food if any one wants to help you can email me at leah @ abilenemops.com. And we could always use volunteers both serving and if you're a health care worker.

Then we have LaRae and her kiddos over on the 22nd for our traditional family dinner and present exchange. We will SO miss John this year.Then I am scheduling NOTHING the week of Christmas or the week after except a night at McM Elegante om New Year's Eve. The girl's don't know. Salem's been asking for weeks to go swimming at a hotel.

So all I have to do is finish these cards, wrap the gifts, finish sprucing up the house and help plan Salem's party at school! Thank God I have the last 2 weeks of December to relax.

Bebo Norman's New Song

Even if you're not a Brittney song - listen to this song! Then say a prayer for Brittney.

A Few Of My Favorite Shots From Family Pictures

Well it's that time of year - family pictures. It's almost the only time of year my photo is taken. I typically am behind the camera and truth be told I hate my picture being taken. But I am fairly pleased with these. I really do like my hair dark. This is really almost my natural color - I just highlight it so much. I hate how overweight I am but am not focusing on that! This time next year I should be at goal or close to it. I will look better and more importantly feel amazing!

I love that she had me take pics with Brian even though I groaned for a minute. We've never really done that aside from being married except at special events at MOPS.

Raina truly hated the tulle Christmas skirts that Rachel made. She kept trying to take them off. LOL. But she did keep her fingers out of her mouth and actually smile! Lindsey was shocked! She's taken her pics three times and that has SELDOM happened. And Salem was a pose queen!!! Anyway - here are a few of my faves. Thanks Lindsey!!!