Random Musings

• I got allergy shots today.  After my mandatory 20 minute wait to make sure I didn't have an allergic reaction, I went to have the nurse check the shot sites.  Should it concern me that after checking them she asked if I had my Epi-Pen with me?
• This is the first night I have not had rehearsal on a Monday since mid-January.  I celebrated by watching old episodes of Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team on Netflix.
• My dog gets very excited about riding in the car.
• Unbeknownst to me, I left my work badge at the public library today.  A sweet librarian called me and let me know they had it.
• My friend Lauren has some of the cutest children on the planet.  Seriously.  They are awesome.She is awesome.
• Twinkles the Pink Pony is currently wearing a tutu. 

 

Reading in February

February was a weird month and clearly, I didn't make much time for reading.  Between Willy Wonka rehearsals, work and helping to take care of a friend in the hospital, my stack of books to read fell by the wayside.  The good news is that I've already finished two books in the first six days of March, so I'm hoping to catch up and get back on track with my goal.

Books read in February
8.  Moon Over Manifest-Vanderpool
9.  The Total Tragedy of a Girl Named Hamlet-Dionne
10.  The Ask and The Answer-Ness (Book 2 of the Chaos Walking Trilogy)
11.  Reshaping It All: Motivation for Physical and Spiritual Fitness-Bure

I haven't been blogging, but I have been reading!

As one (or more) friend said to me recently, "Now that you work part time, I expect you to update that blog more often, woman!"

I am hesitant to make too many promises, but I will come on at least once a month to post about my reading.  Last year, I set a goal for myself to read 100 books in 2010 and I did it!  My personal rules for the challenge were that the books would be "chapter" books (not picture books), but they could be children's, young adult, or adult, fiction or non-fiction, print and audio.

Side note:  I love picture books.  They are a valid form of literature.  It is a wee bit (okay, a large bit) annoying to me when I tell people about my awesome accomplishment and they joke about how it was probably all picture books.  Well it wasn't picture books, but if I chose to read 100 picture books, that would still be pretty impressive.

This year, I have upped my goal by 10% (is this right, math people?) to 110 in 2011. The same "rules" apply, though I'm going to have to step it up this month, since I only read 7 books in January.  My list includes title and author, and denotes if I listened to it on CD.  An * denotes a book that I found particularly outstanding.

Books read in January

1.  *The Lost Hero-Riordan
2.  Work Hard. Be Nice. How two inspired teachers created the most promising schools in America-Mathews
3.  Artemis Fowl-Colfer
4.  *Redeeming Love-Rivers
5.  *The Knife of Never Letting Go-Ness
6.  Incarceron-Catherine Fisher (audio)
7.  Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters-Standiford

I actually really enjoyed all of the books I read in January.  I thought about writing a brief summary of each, but that really stressed me out and made me feel like suddenly my reading was part of a school assignment.  I will say though, that should you choose to read book #5, DO NOT, whatever you do, get attached to the dog.  I only wish someone had told me this before I read the book.  You're welcome.

If you want to know more about any of the books I read, just ask!  And if you have any books that you think I should read, leave me a comment and let me know.

There's no place like home . . .

Praise the Lord, my dad is getting to leave the hospital!

He spent the night at the hospital being monitored for atrial fibrilation and waiting for the doctor to come see him.

We believe it is no coincidence at all that the on-call doctor was one of the experts in cardiac electrophysiology, and are praising God for His provision.

Starting tomorrow the doctor will begin exploring the causes behind my dad's atrial fibrilation and working to find the best treatment plan for it.  Dad does not have to go to the hospital for every episode any more, but can expect to have continual bouts of atrial fibrilation for some time.  The doctor spent a ton of time talking with my parents, making sure they were educated on atrial fibrilation, explaining it in "engineering" terms (which was awesome for my dad, the mechanical engineer), and assuring them that, while there may not be one permanent fix, that they were in the best hands possible.

One of the best parts about hearing this news today was hearing the relief in my mom's voice.  She has been so strong for my dad through the past 6 weeks, but last night was a struggle for her.

So while my dad's physical heart issues are far from being resolved, we trust that his journey is now in the right hands.

And friends, I would be remiss if I didn't say how it fills me with hope to know that, as a believer in the Almighty God, I know that no matter what happens to my physical body-even my physical heart, my soul and my spiritual heart have been saved and healed for eternity by Him!

Prayers for my dad . . .

As many of you know my dad had a pacemaker "installed" about 6 weeks ago to take care of an extremely low (30 bpm) heart rate.  The pacemaker appeared to be successful in alleviating my dad's heart issues; however, about a week and a half ago he started experiencing SVTs (supra ventricular tachycardia).  His cardiologist was able to prescribe medication that corrected the problem, but this past Monday he began experiencing atrial fibrillation and was admitted to the hospital.  He was given a different medication along with heparin (there was concern about blood clots) and monitored to see if the medication would correct the issue, or if he would need cardioversion (electric shock to the heart).  Thankfully, the medicine regulated his heart and he was able to come home last Thursday, feeling much, much better.

Well, the healing was short lived as I just received a call from my mom saying that they were headed to Willowbrook Methodist's ER to be admitted and be seen by a new cardiologist-part of a group of specialists at the medical center that dad was supposed to see for a 2nd opinion this coming Wednesday.

My family would really appreciate your prayers for the following:

• That the new cardiologist would quickly detect the real issue and know the proper treatment
• That dad would stay positive and be encouraged as this experience has been very hard on him and made him feel discouraged and old
• That we would all be free of anxiety and would trust in the Lord's perfect plan
• That the Lord would be glorified whatever the outcome

Thank you all!

In case you didn't know, my mom is awesome.

My mom is a champion scrapbooker and card maker.  And this month, she (along with her BFF Miss Nancy) is featured on the Operation Write Home Stars and Stamps Blog!  My mom loves making cards, and uses a lot of her supplies to make cards that get sent to our troops so that they can write home to family and friends.

Check out her story and some of her amazing cards here.  I'm so proud of her!

Catalog Living

Ever wonder what kind of people might live in the pictures in your catalogs? 

Then this hilarious website is for you.

http://catalogliving.tumblr.com/

Here's one of my favorites:

We’re so happy you could visit!  The room’s all made up for you, and I ripped out some pages of my favorite book and taped them to your wall in case you’re like me and enjoy reading before bed.

 

And this one too (with apologies to those of you who haven't  yet been exposed to the darker side of my sense of humor):

 

 

Oh that?  That’s my Wish Plant.  It’s where I clip pictures of people who I want dead.

Shout out to my mom for sharing this website with me.  This definitely changes the way I will look at catalogs from now on.