HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIKE!

Today is my SIL’s 25th birthday!! My daughter Melody just called to tell me that as she was opening her pantry door this morning to get out the ingredients to make his birthday cake, she saw a quick glimpse of a tiny little mouse! She quickly shut the door of course somewhat hysterical. I think I would have been more than a little hysterical, haha…Why such a tiny creature can have that affect on me, I am really not sure, but apparently Melody has inherited this from her mother. Her little dog has remained pacing at the pantry door barking and alerting her (a little late in my opinion, haha) that the mouse is indeed still inside. Living in the country where she does, this sort of event has become much more common place than she would have ever thought, (or wanted, haha) so everything in her pantry is in sealed plastic containers. She of course immediately called her hubby to “come get it” and I am sure he has probably already done so even as I type this. One thing nice about living right on the dairy is he is always around. But then again, maybe if they didn’t live right ON the dairy, there would be less of those unwelcomed little creatures, lol. Anyway, today I am grateful for this man who loves my daughter and brings her such happiness, and is there to protect her from mice as well! haha HAPPY BIRTHDAY Mike, and may the Lord bless you and strengthen you, and make His face shine upon you always.

This has been a good week. I am completely over my cold and I am grateful that it never got very bad. Maybe all the extra vitamin C I have been taking recently has done me some good after-all. The diet is going MUCH better. I imagine it is a combination of things. First of all I know prayer has helped my attitude and frame of mind, and I am grateful to anyone who said a prayer or two for me. Also, it took a while I think to get all of the sugar I was consuming out of my system. I REALLY do already feel better. Not so sluggish and slow for one. It honestly makes me wonder “WHY” I do that to myself in the first place, but I am grateful that I have managed to cut it WAY back again. Jenny Craig does have a few SMALL little treats which satisfy my sweet tooth just fine, so guess it’s not like I am consuming NO sugar, but just in the right quantities. I have lost an official 6 pounds according to the weigh in on last Wed. morning, so guess that is pretty good for two weeks. I will NOT dwell on the fact that this is not even really a drop in the bucket that needs to go, as it is WAY better than nothing at all or worse yet..still gaining! I have also purchased the book (it will take a couple of weeks to get it I guess) Made to Crave by Lysa Terkeurst, which many of you have suggested. I also got the work book to go with it. I am excited to get it as it does sound just wonderful, and thank you to those who suggested it for me. In the meantime, I am trying to get my head focused on this as I need to, and yet not let it become TOO mind consuming if you know what I mean.

I spent Wed. afternoon with my mom which is the first I have been able to do this since right before Christmas. She had guests for a while over the holiday, and then she was sick, and then I was sick, and so now we are finally able to get back on our weekly schedule I am thinking. We had a good day. How I enjoy her. She is doing sooo much better and is just about finished with her various therapies. She is reading again (though slower) and writing is coming right along. She is keeping a daily journal which she both enjoys and does help her. We are going to play cards with them tonight which every one of us is looking forward to. It is played with 7 decks of cards and requires much thinking and adding etc., and is REALLY good therapy for my mom as well, so I am glad she enjoys it as she does.

We have a busy week-end coming up. We hope to spend time with Annabel as we haven’t had the opportunity in a while, and we have her 14th birthday to address yet. And Sun. morning my son James is the guest speaker at another Calvary Chapel down in San Diego for their Sun. morning services. There is a VERY good chance that he is to be the new senior pastor at this church, so we are anxious to go and see the church for ourselves and met some of the people etc. We have all been praying about this for a while as they approached him about this several weeks ago. Obviously James wants to be as sure as he can that this is what the Lord has for him to do. It is all very exciting of course, but no matter what ends up happening I love that he is able serve the Lord, no matter where he does it, and we should know soon. In the meantime, if you get the chance, a prayer or two that the Lord accomplishes just what it is that He wants would be soo appreciated. After the service we could either stay and lunch with them and spend a little time, or travel quickly back to Upland to attend my niece’s 3rd birthday party. My other set of grandkids will be at this party so I am really kind of torn. We THEN have a retirement dinner that evening out in Seal Beach for a wonderful man who worked for my husband for many years. It is A LOT of driving and hurrying around, so I think I am going to let my hubby make the decisions as to what we do.

Just one more quick little story….We were without electricity ALL day yesterday as they were working on it in the park. This is the third time in the six months we have lived here that they have done that! Seems kind of weird to me, but guess it is what it is….But you know it’s funny how much we depend on such a thing and don’t realize it until we don’t have it. Like soo many other things in our lives. I want to appreciate more the things I have and spend a lot less time whining about the things I don’t!

Hope you all have a wonderful week-end.  I will leave you with this verse which I have sinking my spirit into this week..

 1 Cor. 15:10  But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.

The grace that saves us also changes us. You can’t receive the grace of God without being changed by it. The changes don’t come all at once, and the changes are not complete until we pass to the next life, but we are indeed changed.  I need to wrap my head around this truth.  More on this later as the Lord works this all out in my heart.