A venting moment

So I have been avoiding blogging a bit this week, because I didn't really have anything good to say. Then I realized that it is my blog so I can pretty much write about what I want, I just have to do it in a way that does not reveal names or confidential information. This week I can honestly say that I do not enjoy coaching...in fact had you asked me yesterday I would have used the "hate" word. My doctors told me that stress is not good for me, that I need to rest more and reduce my hours. Yet I used to love coaching...in fact it gave me energy...I loved working with the kids, I loved giving them instruction and encouragement. This week I have felt the opposite. I feel as though I have been beaten up, all for the sake of trying to love kids and teach them the importance of structure, and respect.

I actually don't care whether we win or lose (it is kinda fun to win sometimes) I just want to have a nice group of guys that care about the sport, that care about each other, and that show respect for what their coaches. Maybe this is just a faze for me and I will change my mind later, but I just don't know how long I can continue to coach when it makes be feel so beat up.

Branching Out Retreat

It has been a week!!! I didn't know so many crazy things could happen in one week, but if I were to have written any blogs this week, I am not sure they would have been fun to read, so I chose to keep my thoughts to myself. However the highlight of the crazy week was a weekend with my middle school kids. There are a few kids missing from this picture because they had to leave early. However I did where one of their jackets in honor of them. I am just impressed that it fit me. Anyway - we climbed walls, did initiatives, did our second annual mattress jumping contest - with a quartet of boys doing a very bad version of the national anthem. We talked about Risk-Taking Faith - Daniel, Rack, Shack, and Benny. It was a great time with the kids, despite the fact that I could hardly talk...yet God gave me a voice when it came time to doing the lesson! Anyway - it was a great weekend! I love my kids and their child like faith, they love to sing, they love to pray, and they love to talk about Jesus - I pray that they don't grow out of that - like so many people!

Impact 2008

I would have to say that I am still trying to recover from my weekend at the Beach with my kids. We had a great time! Our kids were challenged by some great speakers. The worship was great, as were the skit guys! There was also a guy there that painted while we sang, check out the picture below - it is amazing!

My Kids all grown up

This weekend I went to OCMD for Impact with a bunch of my kids and leaders and it was an amazing weekend. I will definately blog more about it later, but today I want to write about my kids....the ones that have grown up and moved on. I think one of my greatest joys as a teacher and a youth director is seeing my kids all grown up and living their lives for Christ, seeking to serve Him with their whole beings. This weekend I three of my four leaders were previous students of mine. And to watch them interact with the kids and share the love of Christ with them was awesome.

In my last blog I wrote about Braedon and Jordan, they were both members of our youth group, they both now serve as leaders here at the church and with Young Life. Braedon will soon be leaving and heading out to do full time missions.

Also on the trip was my girl, Abby. She was one of my students when I taught and coached in Clearfield. She is now all grown up and is serving as an Interim Area Director for Young Life in Dover, DE. It is amazing to see how God is using her and stretching her in her faith.

I guess this is what it feels like to be a parent when your child does something really cool, and you are so proud of them. That is how I feel when I think that God allowed me to a part of the spiritual growth of these "kids" that are now adults.

The Non-Freak Version

Here are my boys - the same ones that appeared in the freak picture previously posted. I just have to say how thankful I am for their leadership and care for the guys in our youth group. I could not do my job without them! Jordan and Braedon - my brothers - you are a blessing to me and to the young men in our youth group! Thanks - I love you guys!

Freaks

So this is what my intern does all day long! No I am not kidding he really does just sit at his desk, play video games, blog which you can check out if you would like braedontabor.theworldrace.org and then sometimes he throws things at me, he complains when I ask him to do little tasks like "will you please hang up these butterflies?" That is Braedon for you, despite his many flaws - I still love him mostly (because Jesus tells me I have to!)

Aunt Jana the Hamster

A couple weekends ago my Mom and sister came to visit along with my sister's two kids Kamryn and Hayes. Kamryn and Hayes are from Potter County so they don't get to experience "city life" much so when they come to visit Aunt Jana they always want to go to the McDonald's playground. Well lucky for me, my sister volunteered me to play with them in the play area...have you been in the play area as an adult...I don't mean looking and watching from the ground - I mean in the play ground - crawling through the small plastic tubes as if I were a hamster or something. Let's just say it didn't help my closterphobia! And when I was done I was so tired I needed a nap for sure! The moral of the story...don't let your sister guilt you into being a hamster for the sake of her children!

Animals of Central Florida

So about my trip....it was very educational...too bad I wasn't still in school or I would have been able to count it as a field trip. Later this week (if Jeanne gets them to me (hint, hint!)) I will have some cool pictures of some of the animals that we saw while in Florida, so until then I will just let you know what I saw!

* Dolphins, red racoons, and lots of birds in Mullet Bay (not kidding about the name)
* Pelicans and fish and herons at Fort DeSoto
* Bees in the Orange Grove
* Turkeys on the side of the road (confused to be pheasants by some in the car)
* Alligators, Bald Eagles, Raccoons, and lots of birds in Kissimmee
* Oh and I can't forget the goats, horses, chickens and Buddy the stay dog that lived on the farm.

It was pretty exciting and if you want to know more about these animals stay tuned to later blogs so I can tell you fun facts about each of the above.

Wait for it, wait for it....

So I have gotten a lot of slack for not writing for about a week - I guess I just didn't realize that I actually had a following - wow I feel pretty honored. Anyway - I was out of town on vacation this past week and I made a committment to stay away from the computer while I was away, so therefore no posts. But now I am back and I have a huge migraine, so I am going to head to bed. It was a great trip and a great Easter - thanks to my friends for the delicious easter meal and for all the great laughs! Stay tuned for several fun posts about the many things I learned in Florida.

Do I still love my dog?

Let's just say that yesterday was not my day! I did not feel well all day, my shot did a number on my body - I couldn't work for more than three hours. I was wiped out, so I decided to listen to my body and go home early, not go to practice, and postpone my check depositing for the Oil Company. I was really proud of myself for listening....then I walked into my house and this is what I found....

What do you say to your dog when you find this? How do you explain to them that this is not appropriate behavior? Tucker has been out of his crate for weeks and has not done anything....until this. The good news is that I needed a new couch anyway...the bad news is that financially this is a horrible time to even think I can afford to buy one.

Step out of your box into the battle

After a long drive from Harrisburg to Williamsport on Saturday night - I had a cool opportunity to talk to the First Church Youth Group about stepping up to the challenge in life. Over the past few months they have been talking about different characters in the bible that have taken a step of faith and stepped up to the challenge of the battle of life. Life is a spiritual battle...the great news is that in the end we win!!! Because of Christ on the cross - he has conquered death and we have the victory in the end...but what about right now...there is a battle each day here on earth. As Christians we can sit inside our little box that is nice and Christiany, where everything is safe, where no one gets hurt (or saved for that matter!) or...we can take a step of faith and say I will step out of my box where I am safe and I will rely on the strength and the spiritual armor that God provides for me and make a commitment to join in the battle along with Christ.

To demonstate this point I think of the famous part of the movie Braveheart - where William Wallace gives his speech to the men - they had all the excuses in the book to not fight but he talks about freedom and if they really want to be free they must be willing to fight for that...the same is true from a spiritual perspective. The other thing that I love about that clip is that William Wallace leads his men into the battle and then fights right along side of them. The same is true with Christ - he leads us in the battle but then doesn't watch from the sidelines, he fights with us!!!

How about you - are you willing to fight in the battle are you willing to step up to the spiritual battles of life, even if it does cost you something? There is a song by Sara Groves called When the Saints and I think it ties this image all together...it is about this idea of taking a step of faith for the kingdom and about all these people who made a difference in the lives of others because they were willing to step out in faith - are you willing to step out in faith - even if it means you life is at stake?

Impact 2008 - Harrisburg

Take Two - I just wrote this really cool blog and I lost it all....awww!!! Okay I will try to remember what I wrote and do it again.

This year I had the priviledge to once again lead a seminar at the Harrisburg Impact. The topic this year was depression. It is a topic that I am passionate about, but I wasn't sure what kind of turnout that I would have and one thing that I struggle with often is this fear that no one is going to show up...well my fears were relieved when at 8:30 am my room was so full that people were sitting on the floor, in the aisles, in the hallway - it was definately breaking fire codes!!! Between my two seminars I had over 320 people attending. It was so encouraging to have so many people come to a topic that is not exciting to say the least, but yet very important.

You never really know who is going to attend the seminars or what their needs are, but after both of the seminars I had several people come up and talk about issues and it really confirmed that I was doing what God had called me and gifted me to do . My hope and my prayer for those that attended is that if they are struggling with depression, they will know that they are not alone and they will know what they need to do to get help.

The craziest part of the whole time I was there was my media and computer stuff - for me technology is bittersweet! I had some videos to show that didn't work despite the hours I spent with some good tech guys (Joel, Aaron, Jonathan - thanks!!!) but they didn't end up working - then my computer chord fried and I had to get a new one - they cost $120!!! Crazy expensive!!
So yeah - all in all it was an amazing day despite my lack of sleep because I was up until 1:30 finishing my power point since I learned how to make it look a little better (again thanks to Aaron).

I am attaching the video that I was going to use to open up my talk - it is called "Does anybody hear her" It is a song by Casting Crowns and I think it speaks so much about the depression and struggles that many teenagers face.

Tennis, Anyone?

So we started our tennis season this Monday - the weather was surprisingly warm and we actually got to use the courts (or at least the ones that didn't have the net stolen!) We spent most of the afternoon on Sunday shoveling as well as some of Monday to get them ready. Yesterday the rains came so we were stuck inside. Since we are on the low end of the totem pole of spring sports we get stuck in the fitness lab - imagine 24 sweaty boys in a room that is 12 by 12 (I am just guessing, I didn't really measure!) It was gross!!! So today Matt and I went over to the courts to see about the possibility of getting on the courts and this is what we found.... (see the picture!) The funny part is that the courts don't really have water on them - which means we could practice outside, however the problem is how do we actually get to the courts without have to walk through a large amount of flood waters. We think we have a plan but we will have to see what happens at 3:30pm today. There is never a dull moment in my life, because if there were, I am not sure what I would do with that moment!

Swimming with Meg in the Big Pool

So my friend Meg - my recreational/theraputic director worked her magic the other day and was able to get me a month by month free pass to Bucknell. It is really exciting, but also quite scary. We decided to take a huge step of faith and pull out our bathing suits (which we both decided are a bit more snug than they used to be) and headed to the big bad pool at Bucknell....I am going to be honest- I was a bit nervous....I am not sure what it is about Bucknell but every time I step on campus I just don't feel as though I belong...I am not sure if it is the fact that all those kids are smarter than me or have more money than me or what but I just feel very inferior when I am there, and I even know many people and I still get that way.

So we went to the pool and did our first official physical therapy for our MS. Meg was able to walk in the pool without assistance (which was a highlight - yes when you have MS you celebrate all walking victories!!!!) and I was able to do some aqua jogging aerobics slash movements slash if you were watching me you probably would have laughed but it was good workout - I actually felt pretty good. At the end of our 45 minutes of exercise I decided to swim some laps - I did a total of 4 - go me!!! I could not help but think about the past when I was in college and lifeguarding - I used to be able to swim 56 laps without stopping (I think that is a mile) Anyway - I need to stop comparing because I am a different person now - instead I need to just celebrate the victory! We exercised for 40 minutes and didn't drown!!!!! WHOHOOOO!!!!

Now that the celebrating is over, we both went home and crashed - okay I didn't go home and crash I went to work and I crashed. I am not sore at all, but I am tired - super tired. I am hoping that the more we go swimming the less fatigued we will be....ahhhh we can only hope!

It is amazing what you will find in your desk at work!

So funny story...today I was going through a little box in my office desk that I keep little encouragement cards...since my friend is in basic training for the Navy I thought I would be nice and include a little card with his letter. As I was going through the cards looking for the perfect one I saw a 3 x 5 card folded in half when I opened it I just started laughing hysterically at what I found... prepare yourself... you are going to think that I am so weird - because as I looked at it - I thought the same thing about myself....can you make a guess? I am pretty sure you would never guess this in a million years. There on the card was a note that said Stitches from my nose surgery January 1997, and below it was a piece of take holding two of the stitches that were removed from my nose on that day. How gross is that...who saves their stitches for over 10 years...I guess I do - the funny part ... I have yet to throw them away - I guess it is too much of a conversation piece. So know you all officially know how weird I am and how much of a pack rat/centimentalist I am!!!

Thoughts from the NYWC day 1.5

Okay so if I was an avid bloger like my friends I would be blogging every spare minute of the day to keep you updated on the conference, however since I am more of a doer than a typer I have found the my days are so full with responsibilities that I hardly have time to rest, let alone blog. So now I sit here with a few minutes to spare, being very frustrated that I couldn't take a nap because my fatigue meds actually keep me from napping but not from being tired.

Anyway - it has been a great ride so far and I would love to be creative with this blog but I am not sure I still have the brain capacity to do so, but I will try

Here is the top 5 things that have stuck out to me so far.

5. It is fun pretending that I am kind of important - I get a free breakfast and I get to realize how real the speakers and the presenters are - it is rather refreshing.
4. It is very odd to listen to someone in the next stall in the bathroom talking on the cell phone while you are releaving yourself - Ackward!!!
3. The Affinity group idea is a big success and I am excited to see how they continue to flesh out.
2. Tony Dungy and I do have a lot in common - we are both coaches, you know!
1. I don't think I have ever laughed so hard at two 30 year old guys as they slapped each others bear flesh as they did the announcements....maybe it is funnier since I have gotten to know Josh a little, but maybe it is funny because it reminds me of Middle School boys...who knows!

I am sure that I will have a new top 5 tomorrow....until then I am going to keep myself busy, while still trying to take time to rest!

NYWC Conference

So everyone else is talking about blogging the conference, so I guess I will give my thoughts too...although mine will be from a more womanly perspective. Anyway - I am getting all of my things in order and tomorrow at the butt crack of dawn I will be driving to the airport with Braedon to fly to Cincinnati and Dayton just to drive back to Cincinnati - won't that be a fun activity - I am actually expecting something really cool to happen on that flight since it is so obsurd that we have to fly to Dayton through Cincy just to drive back to Cincinnati. If you are thinking that is dumb - you are right - if you are thinking just get off the plane - not an option unless I want to walk home. Oh the world of airline travel! Anyway - this will be my last blog from PA for a while (5 days!)

The Craziness Has Begun!!!

So it all started...Thursday...the craziness...my life...my schedule...me trying to slow down but being horribly unsuccessful....the doctor said slow down, you have to make changes, oh and I am great at making changes, in fact I have made my schedule three times as full - how about that for changes. Anyway - Thursday was Celebrate the joy of having friends day...I worked at the office in the morning, I worked at the farm in the afternoon, I had dinner with the YL Lbg gang, then Young Life....I then had to take my car to the shop and get my refresher course on driving a standard (which I think I did alright for only driving a standard once every two year!) Then Friday - I got up ran an errand for a friend, went and returned my borrow car, picked up my car, talked to Britt Nicole on the phone (she is pretty cool, btw!) Recorded a second show, went to work, took Tucker to Karen's,went back to work, picked up some gum for my girls...dropped it off, then went home, packed quickly, picked up Todd squared, and drove to Mansfield.....My girls beat Wellsboro - oh the satisfaction!!!! Our boys lost - kinda sad...then my Dad and I headed home! I didn't have to drive- fabulous!!!

Saturday - woke up just in time to get ready for Kamryn's birthday party - went to Gaines played with my nephew Hayes - he is super cute (he must take after his aunt!!!) After the party back to Lbg for time with Sean and Kara, oh and did I mention dog sitting as well!!! Yes, I was dogsitting for the night as well. Dinner at Damons, Hang out with some friends at Vic's Pub, then guitar hero with my friends at the dogsitting house! Midnight to bed on the couch with an 80 pound dog laying on my legs! That was a fun activity!

Sunday up at 7am for the dog walk, then shower, Sunday School - which I taught and learned about dinosaurs, church, dogs, lunch with the RBC gang, hang out with Kara and Sean some more, dogs, guitar hero, chats with Sean....then back to the office at 5 for youth.

Had a great night with the kids - talked about memorizing scripture! It went well despite feeling pretty awful...came home, was crabby, complained and whined, took my shot,solved the problems of the world, and then finally went to bed, just to get up this morning at 7:30am to start again.....

Off to Clearfield today - pretty excited to see my friends, and have some scheduled down time on the mountain! I can't wait....to see where I am going click on the Shaffner's link and see a picture of their awesome house in the mountains.

I am so tired, but I am really looking forward to being there have some much needed quiet time and then seeing all my friends - some of which I haven't seen in years!!!!

That is it for now!

Analytics

Did you know that you could analyse how many people read your blog daily, and it can even make a little graph. It is kinda cool - since I am a bit of a novice at this whole blog thing, I had no idea that you could do that, but thanks to my Technology genius friend, Joel I am now cool enough to have an updated blog and to analyse it too. Now I just need to expand my reading audience. So friends, keep reading my blog so I can feel cool when I look at my graph of readers!!!

My Dear Friends!!!

I just have to take a moment to say thank you to God for friends and that is something that I just don't do enough. Today has been a great reminder of that. God has blessed me with great friends all over the country. Some right here in Lewisburg, although it took me quite a long time to find some of them. I have great friends who once lived here but are now gone - a shout out to Goose, my favorite "cousin" dog and his parents. Though many miles apart, I think of them often and they are always faithful to call and even visit when they need a little PA fix. I miss them, but so cherish all the great memories, watching movies, knee surgeries, and definately apple everything!

There is the Goodman family - the quads are now two - I can hardly believe it - my memory of them is 2 am bottle feedings, lots of meds, lots of laughter and lots of tears. I don't think my prayer life will ever be the same because of this family. Oklahoma is really far away but I hope that I will be able to visit at some point.

There are my camp friends - no matter how long it goes in between our time of talking - camp memories live on and those friendships will always remain dear to my heart even if it has been years since we have talked. Facebook has been a great thing for finding those long lost camp friends. How cool to chat with someone that you haven't seen or lost contact with for over 10 years. Since I worked at 3 camps I seem to have a multitude of friends all over the world. I wonder if I know of someone in all 50 states. I should check into that!

My local friends....it is hard to believe that I have only known most of you for the last 18 months. It seems as though we have been friends forever. I can't believe how much has changed in just the short time that we have known each other. Marriages (congrats on the most recent - Josh and Christy) relationships, babies, houses, diagnoses, you know ... pretty much everything. I cherish the fact that you have been by my side through this challenging time of my life. I am a different person because of your love and your influence. Thanks for being Christ to me, thanks for loving me even on my bad days when I know that I am hard to love. You have been a great example of what it means to be a rock. Thanks for giving me the freedom to be independant but yet be willing to help me when I just can't do it by myself no matter how stubborn I am.

My college friends - it seems as though I knew a lot of people at Messiah and a lot of people knew me but only a few would I say really knew me (I seem to be good at keeping my distance) Anyway - those friends that saw through that and loved me anyway - I am so grateful to you. To my professors who inviting me in to be a part of their family, I cherish those memories and that care you showed for me. To Casey in the athletic office, you gave me so many laughs I can't help but smile when I think about the delicate flower and the porcelien doll, and best yet the payroll nazi!!! Christie - I miss you so much, I am praying for you as you wait and wait longer to get Ila - I am thrilled to know that you are adopting, I can't wait to be her special adoption Aunt (pronounced Awnt!)

Now for the group of people that are the main reason that I thought to write this email. My Clearfield Friends. Wow - my five years in Clearfield were filled with challenges, from teaching, relationships, hardships, and blessings. I miss my Clearfield friends - I wish that I could see them more however, it seems to take so much energy to plan trips it is so hard to see everyone. I wish I was Omnipresent like God in times like this (just kidding)!! Anyway - I was just thinking as I was planning my two day visit to Clearfield...how am I going to get to see everyone that I would like to see, but at the same time take care of myself and not run my body into the ground which I was nicely warned against by my doctor. So today I was talking to my friend Sylvia (who I think might just fit my definition of my need for an Eli - more about that later) Anyway she suggested that I might have a central location to get together with everyone - to have them come to me, so I could see everyone and not have to worry about running myself raggid. So I get to my office about 20 minutes later and there in my email is a message from one of my favorite families ever - The Shaffners telling me they would love to host a get-together for me - to dream big - to just let them know what I needed or wanted and they would make it happen.....WOW - is God amazing or what I never said a word to them about what my friend had suggested and there it was right in front of me. I am so blessed, although it has been over a year and a half since I have seen them I know that I am loved by them and I cherish them and their gift of solitude. When I go there, their peacefulness resinates in my life. Their friendship is a great gift that I cherish with all my heart.

So now that I have ranted and raved about my friends I guess I should probably take advantage of the snow day and get some cleaning (or should I say reading up since I am in Central PA). If you are a friend that is reading this - thank you for what you have done to shape my life. If you are a stranger, take time to tell your friends thanks, and if you are anyone else...well then that is just weird because in my book you should be able to fit into one of those two categories!! Have a blessed day!

Congratulations you have MS!

Okay so a funny thing happened the other day so I thought I would just live it up with a little blog about it. I was opening my mail and I got a card, a thank you card. In the card was a gift card to get 5 free music downloads. That was very thoughtful....the reason they are thanking me....I have MS so they wanted to say thankyou. I am not kidding - okay well I am maybe stretching it a little bit but in the card it said thank you for keeping us up to date on your disease. Here are 5 music downloads. I must say this is the first big perk that I have received for having MS - So yeah - I thought it was a bit funny and since one of my resolutions was to celebrate the good days and the good things about MS - this is the first, I get free music because I have this disease.

Super Bowl - and the day after

So in my pre super bowl ignorance I didn't know which team to choose so I chose the Patriots to win the game, but I when I got more information as the whole picture unfolded I realize how much I really wanted the Giants to win - I guess I really have a heart for the underdogs. I didn't realize that the coach had never won a super bowl and how cool it would be if brothers won back to back super bowls and MVP awards. The last quarter of the game was intense - I think I actually got up and danced when they scored that last touchdown... anyway - congrats to the Giants - they deserved to win.

About the commercials - I thought they were pretty lame for the most part - I did like the Bud commercial with the horse training like rocky to get to pull the wagon - I always like the clydesdale horse commercials - they are usually always my favorite - the baby throwing up was also pretty funny. I was a little surprised by the victoria secret commercial - but it gave a great lead in to talk to my youth group kids!


Anyway - since the commercials were crappy - I found this video on youtube that I thought was actually pretty creative and much better than most of the commercials so I hope you enjoy!

So now for the day after - I am laying on a heating pad in hopes that my back will actually get better in 24 hours as the doctor thinks will be the case - so weird- I was walking out the door to head to the neurologist when all of sudden and I mean all of sudden it felt as though someone hit my back with an ax - I actually fell to the floor in pain - there was no rhyme or reason - it just happened - I can't really lift my arm or breath deeply. The doctor said bed rest for 24 hours and then hopefully it will be better tomorrow.

I hope that is the case!!! May your day be a little less crazy and painful than mine!!

I miss coaching!!

So today I had the priviledge of coaching a JV Basketball game. I haven't coached a basketball game in two years and the "real" coach wasn't able to make it so they asked me if I would be willing to help out - well of course I can't pass up an opportunity to coach basketball for a night. I have to admit - I was a little nervous - I really wanted to be prepared and I didn't even know who played what position and what plays they were running....and for a person that likes to be in control I was a bit out of my comfort zone, but it was just like riding a bike - it felt just like old times and I loved it - I was so energized by interacting with the girls and I had a blast. And on top of all we even won!!! After the game the girls told me how much they loved having me as their coach - it was so cool - I felt so loved!! Then later I had a couple parents come up to me and say thank you for coaching the girls - it was such a good experience - but to be honest you don't realize how much you miss something until you experience it again. I really miss it! At least I can say that I am undefeated as a basketball coach this year.

Oh my I forgot resolution number 28

Bad me - I almost made a huge blunder and skipped number 28...I forgot all about coming back that day and finishing... dang it I thought I was done.... Okay number 28. Here we go - can you tell I am trying to stall...which is kinda silly since you would have no idea that I was just sitting here looking at the screen...okay I am going to stop rambling and write a resolution.

Resolution number 28 - Pursue speaking as option for a future career. That is a bold statement with a lot to consider. Anyway - I have had a big dream for the last several years that I would love to "Grow Up" and be a conference speaker whether it would be to girls, or teens or women. I just feel as though God has laid that on my heart and I love doing it. I have had some opportunities to speak over the past couple years and I love it but I think it is something that I want to do more of. And be intentional about seeking this out. Next month I am meeting with some people from Group publishing about the possibility of Emceeing some events. I am really excited about that - I just need to start looking for some avenues to get my name out there and seek God in the midst of it all. So there is my big dream! Let me know if you need a retreat speaker - I think I would love to do it.... as long as it's not a men's retreat :)

Day 31 - My last three resolutions!!!

Oh my!!! It is January 31st and I still owe three resolutions to finish off the month so let's get started so I can get to bed and feel as though I have accomplished my mission of coming up with 31 resolutions by the end of January - well friends I have one hour until the end of January so I guess I better get started so I can get to sleep.

Number 29 - Stay better connected with my family. Because I am the only one of the family that moved away I sometimes feel disconnected, because I live a couple hours away. We have a big family and as my siblings have kids we just keep getting bigger. I love the little ones they are so much fun! Holidays are so much better when they are around - they make me smile. Anyway - I am going to make it a point this year to make a call to at least one family member each week, making it a point to stay connected! Included here is a picture of the family the only one that you can't see in this picture is Hayes (he is there he is just hiding in my sister's belly!)

Number 30 - Conflict resolution is the topic of our radio show this weekend. Conflict is something that I hate - wait I think most people don't really like it. Anyway - throughout most of my life I have avoided conflict just to keep the peace thinking it was better to keep my thoughts to myself especially when someone hurt me. Well - I don't think that is what God wants for me and my life as a Christian - I am committing this year to deal with conflicts as they arise and not let too much time laps because that just makes for anger and bitterness and I don't want that in my life. So I am going to confront even when it is hard. Even if it is just a letter or an email, of course the best is face to face but that is not always a possibility - so I am starting this today! Confronting in love through prayer will I get strength and gentleness and love.

Number 31 - WHOWHOWHWOHWWWW!!! This is the last one!!! No pressure but this should be really good... I hope I can handle the pressure. I was going to resolve to keep my resolutions at least 80% of the time - but I thought that might be cheating. So what can I write for my resolution. Well I have one and I have greatly debated whether or not this was a good resolution or if I should write it down, but after a great conversation with my friend Sylvia I feel like this has been confirmed. It is actually kind of personal, but I think I can share the jist of it and why I am making this resolution.

I will tell you my resolution and then I will explain why... well I am resolving not to date, pursue dating, or think about guys in a romantic fashion during lent this year. One of my greatest hopes and dreams is to one day get married and have a family, I have longed for that for many years. Obviously it has not happened yet, and often I get very anxious saying "God - I am ready now - I least expect it" because that seems to be everyone's response - "oh when you least expect it" - let me tell you that gets old fast - so let me speak for all the single people in the world - please don't say that - it is very annoying. Anyway back to my point - I have been mostly content with my singleness - going through stages that I am mainly content and then some where I am not content at all.

But I am not sure if I have even gone through a time in my life that I was content with me....content with just wanting to know God better and get my life on track with him. In fact - I know that I have not. The past two weeks I have really been focusing on looking at my life and who I am in Christ and have realized that I have not ever really been content with me until just recently. I know that this may sound silly to some of you but to me this is huge and I am going to celebrate that during lent, by not worrying about relationships with others, but instead just focusing on my relationship with my creator! He loves me, for me...just how I am...I am his favorite (don't worry you are his favorite too!) So I am taking the 40 days of lent and giving God 100% of my attention, my love, my feelings, my adorations, no distractions, just God! Now don't get me wrong - I will still hang out with all my friends, but I don't try to figure out my feelings, I won't let my heart wonder from my savior for this period...I see this as a time of preparation....a time of waiting.... a time to Be Still and know that He is God!

I can't believe I just wrote all of that but that is me, that is my heart and that is my last resolution!

Catching Up on the Resolutions

Since I was away all weekend I have gotten a little behind on my blogging and on my resolutions, I don't have one more week of resolutions and then I can just work on actually keeping my 31 resolutions of the year. So without further waiting here are my resolutions for the past few days.

#25 - This one is work related - last year I did an awful job recording my miles for reimbursement, so then at the end of December I was scrambling to remember where I had gone in April - it was a bit stressful, so this year I am resolving to keep a notebook in my car with a mileage log and each time I got somewhere work related then I will have the log right there. Along with that I will also resolve to turn them in at the end of each month.

#26 - Since on of my goals of the new year is to work on my finances I am going to try to do a better job setting up a system of keeping all my bills together so I don't forget to pay them. You see I have always been very organized, but over the last year I seem to be a little flustered in my organization, and overwhelmed by all the papers and such that I have. What I really need is a desk so I can organize my bills and such as I get them, and pay them on time. This is going to be a challenge.

#27 - This resolution is to help me stay connected to my adventurous side. I love adventures especially outdoors, however sometimes with my fatigue and such I shy away from those things, for fear that it will use up all my energy (which it often does). But regardless I still want to have adventure, so I am committing to do at least one spontaneous adventuresome activity each month. The first one was this past Sunday - we were on the church family retreat and everyone was outside playing, so I decided to play also - I played football for about 40 minutes (I threw two touchdown passes!!!) Then I ice skated on the pond for a half hour, and then I went tubing for two runs down the hill with 4 middle school girls piled on top of me. Now that my friends is an adventuresome moment!!!

Now for today's resolution....this is the one that I have been avoiding until closer to the end of the month because the longer I wait the longer I get to be a little bit lazy, but here it goes! I have become significantly weaker over the past few months - I even have trouble picking up the bag of dog food. (What a wusss!!!!!) Anyway - I would really like to work on that - so I am committing that each day at some point I will do 20 pushups and 50 sit-ups. My goal is 5 days a week (it is much more realistic than seven days a week!) I will start that tonight.

Now I only have three more resolutions to go - I hope I can think of some good ones between now and then!

Resolution #24

My resolution today is a little shallow I must say but it is kinda fun so I am going for it. My resolution for this the rest of this year is to get 700 facebook friends by the end of the year. I currently have 470 friends. So if I can 650 I will be really excited but if I can get 700 by Dec. 31st I think that would be fun. The rules of this resolution are that I must actually know and have interacted with that person at some point in my 32 years of life. The challenge is that since I am a bit older many of my close friends do not have a facebook account, so then I have to rely on meeting new kids at church and at school. So yeah - this will be a fun one to see if I can actually complete it.

An update on one of my other resolutions is that I called about Life Insurance today! One step closer to fulfilling that resolution. Now I just have to work on the will thing. That will be a little weird I am going to be honest. Anyway - there you have it!!

Resolution #23

I have been thinking about doing this resolution for a while, but after last night I have confirmed that this is a resolution that I am going to do and have some accountability on.

Before I reveal my resolution I want to take a moment to say how much I enjoyed our small group bible study last night. It was our first one of the semester, so it was me and 7 girls from Bucknell. We had dinner together, celebrated an early birthday for Allison (aka Loveeeee) and then we got our spiritual butt kicking from our study. The study is so good! We all love it!

Last night part of the study was the idea of claiming scripture for your life and using the power of God's word to break down the walls in our lives. We all decided that we need to know scripture better. So we have all made a commitment to each other that each week we would pick a verse and memorize it and share it with the group the next week.

So I am resolving to memorize one scripture a week for the year. I am thinking that this is going to be a challenge but I am hoping for some accountability from my girls. My first verse is from Isaiah 61:1,2 and it says this....

"The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners. To proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengence of our God, to comfort all who mourn."

Resolution #20, 21, 22

So I guess this whole house sitting thing is keeping me from blogging regularly. In fact I have been so tired this past week that I don't even remember some of my resolutions. Last night before I went to bed I made up three good ones and for the life of me I can't remember what they were. Wow I need to get a better memory!!! Anyway - just to catch up on my resolutions here we go....

Resolution #20 - Since this was a Youth Group night - My resolution is to drop a note or an email to a student each week that has missed Youth Group - letting them know that they were missed and that I hope they will make it the following week. This will be good because it will help me to stay connected with the kids that seem to miss youth group regularly, and encourage them to get involved. I will start this one today!

Resolution #21 - This resolution is made along with my friend Jeanne - we have this little new obsession - it is called Gilmore Girls - we never watched the show when it was on TV - but when I got sick this Fall a family from my church bought me season one and two - I became hooked! Now I am on season three and can't wait to see what happens next. So we are both resolving to watch all seven seasons before the end of the year - this will be a very fun - non-productive resolution - my favorite kind!!!

Resolution #22 - This is for today - I have lots of friends from lots of different places. The bad part about that is that I don't get to see them or talk to them very much, some of that is my fault as I get so involved in my work and my life that I just don't make the time that I need to make to stay in touch. So with that being said I am resolving to stay in better touch with my friends. Each week I will either make a phone call or send an email or a card to one of my long distance friends. I am actually really excited about this one! I really miss my friends!!!!

So there you have it!!! I am caught up on my resolutions, and I would like to update you on my past resolutions. Last night at the basketball game Dr. DiRocco came up to me and thanked me for my letter to him and said that he would keep it in a special file! What a great encouragement! Now that makes me want to write even more letters to people when they exercise random acts of kindness!

I have been doing pretty well on the whole resolution things as a whole! I only have 8 more to make, let me know if you have a suggestion for a resolution, just in case I run out!

I owe some resolutions!

Don't worry I didn't forget about making resolutions, In fact I actually have been good about making them and keeping them, I just haven't had my computer for the last couple days so I am a little behind in blogging about them.

So here is #18 - Find an Eli - that is a strange one you may think, but let me explain - we are doing a bible study right now about Descerning the voice of God and one of the things that they encourage people to do is to Find an Eli - he was a mentor, he trained the young men and taught them. I want to find an Eli - a woman who is spiritually mature who would be willing to mentor and encourage me to be a Godly woman. I am praying that God will give me a great woman of faith to challenge me in my walk with Him

#19 Is a result of our radio show this week - we did a show called Cats Got your Tongue - it is about being willing to share your relationship with God to others and not be ashamed. So many times in my life, God has given me great opportunities to talk about my faith to non-believers and too many times I just change the subject because it feels uncomfortable or I am afraid of what they will think. So I want to resolve to speak up for Christ when given an opportunity.

#20 - Well it is only 12:30 so I still have some time to think about this one....I will get back to you on this one!

Sanctity of Life Sunday

Today is a very meaningful day - I actually can't even put to words what I feel or what I think, but I can say thankyou - to my birthmom - thanks for giving me life. I don't know who you are, or where you are, but I love you and thanks for loving me. I have included an interview with Mark Schultz about the song that I included earlier in the week. His interview says it all.

Resolution #17

WOW - I am at 17 already - where has this month gone! I can't believe it! It has been one of those days...a dog day if you will. I love my baby but sometimes he just finds things to do that just get him in trouble.... for instance, this morning I was getting out of bed and went to the living room to find my dog eating a chunk out of the front of my couch - the worst part is that I must take the blame for this one, I spilled some of Boo's fish flavored medicine on the couch and didn't have time to clean it up properly, and of course that is the part that Tucker ate. Then later we came home from a nice 50 minute walk and as I was doing something I noticed that Tucker was destroying a pillow - this I take no blame for! So it has been a not so good day in that department. And speaking of bad things happening....my water heater is leaking water, my shower is still leaking in the basement and to top it all off - that resolution that I made last night...well I may take that back since today I got my electric bill....301 dollars - oh my - and that is with my heat at 54 degrees - could you imagine what it would be if I actually turned it to 60? It is just crazy!!!

So anyway - I have now vented, and I am ready to make my resolution for the day. I am resolving to buy new furniture for my living room sometime in the next 6 months. I was hoping to wait until the end of the year but I think it is time since I am missing a large chunk of my couch, and my furnature is about 25 years old - it kinda smells and it looks pretty crappy. So the bathroom update is going to have to wait and my new saving project will have to be my furniture. I am thinking dark sage green for the color - does that surprise anyone????

The resolutions continue!

So today has been a long but eventful day! Up at 5:30 to make breakfast for my kids - Choc. Chip pancakes! It was yummy - I even made some banana pancakes in honor of Jack Johnson's song banana pancakes, they actually weren't too bad. Then office work - I actually got a couple things done. I have been struggling to get office work done this week, I don't know what my problem is...well okay maybe I do know, maybe I am really deep down inside a lazy person and it is finally coming out..hmmm we will have to see about that.

Well then I spent some time with my friend Sylvia, good times, great discussions, lots to think about! Then Tucker and I went for a little lunch time walk. Then off to the school for tennis sign-ups, it seems that once again that about 1/3 of the team are kids from our church, cool then I guess I am working double time!!!

Back to the office after nice chats with the LHS office ladies - they are so nice! I got a little more work done, then I went for another walk - this once much longer - 1 1/2 hours long - I think I am going to be a bit sore tomorrow. Too bad it didn't tire Tucker out - he seems to have so much energy tonight! And he will not leave Boo alone. Then I was off to see my girls play some bball...tough nice for the Lbg girls! It was a hard game to watch, we really made a run in the third quarter but just fell apart during the fourth. Then back home for a nice conversation with a friend, and now finally in bed and ready to call it a night if my dog would just settle down a bit.

So my resolution tonight is going to sound a little strange but there are a couple avid readers who will really appreciate this resolution starting tomorrow. I resolve that for the next few cold wintry months I will not let my house get below 58 degrees. As I was typing I realized it was really cold, so I looked at the temperature and realized it was 54 degrees in my house. I think that is a little too cold. So I got in my bed and loaded on the covers and tomorrow - I will turn the heat up so my animals won't have to have those silly dog and cat sweaters. Sorry if you have them for your pets I just think that Tucker would eat his then it would make him want to eat Boo's and her while he is at it.

So starting tomorrow - the heat wave begins I think I am going to try for a 60 degree average just not getting below 58!!!! If only electric heat was cheaper!

Resolution # 15

It is hard to believe that the month is half over! WOW!! I can't believe it, better yet I can't believe that I have not run out of resolutions yet, I guess that means I am such a mess that there is a lot of fixing that needs done (hahaha!)

Before I get to my thoughts today I figured that I would say that I just went for 30 minutes walk and it was so nice! And on a Tuesday, to be honest I was really tired and I wanted to just take a nap (and I guess I will find out later when I crash that I should have taken the nap), but Tucker needed a walk desperately!

Anyway - this morning when I finally got to work (getting out of bed on Tuesdays is pretty hard, it is like moving a large bag of sand!) I took care of a couple business/financial things that have been hanging over my head. So that was a huge relief and it got me thinking... I really need to have a plan for my finances. I have a couple books that I haven't really read, and now that I have so many medical bills and suck, I really need to sit down and come up with a budget, so I will not overdraw my account and I will be able to pay my bills on time. So that is my resolution for the year, make a budget, stick to the budget, and set up some saving places for emergencies, for trips, and for home improvement projects such as my bathroom and my living room furniture. If I would be around next weekend I would go to the Financial Map Seminar at the First Baptist Church in Danville, it is sponsored by How to Manage your Money.

So there you have it - Resolution #15 - Make and stick to a budget!

Resolution #14

I have so many options for resolutions today - I am not sure which one to choose, I guess the good news is that I am not running out of new ideas for the rest of the month as I was fearful that I might. Anyway - before I get to today's resolution I will do a little update on my others. I am doing pretty well with the water thing and I have not had a rasp ice tea in over a week. I have been walking, today I just went around the block because I feel like crap. My bible reading is sub-par - I need to work on that one. Accountability - we are chatting tonight, journaling ---um yeah this is the one that I have yet to accomplish, I know that I need to do this and it will be good for me and I love writing, but sometimes it is really hard for me, for reasons that I am not willing to go into at this time. Anyway back to following through on the resolutions...I wrote and mailed a letter to Dr. DiRocco today so I am glad about that. I am reading a book about the cognitive struggles of MS so check on that one.

So over all I would say that I am doing pretty well for the most part. I really need to work on that journalling thing, maybe if my hands felt better then I would be more willing to write - I guess I could always type it and then print it out and tape it in. We will see.

Resolution #14 - So tonight on my way back from the farm I was listening the WGRC and a song by Mark Schultz came on. His songs are often stories, and the one I heard tonight was no different, it is called Everything to me.

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As I listened to the song tears came to my eyes I realized that the song was about a teenaged mother who chose to give her child up for adoption. It was about me and my mother who is out there somewhere. So when I got home tonight I found the video which I have embedded in this blog, if you have a moment you should watch it. Once again I cried as I heard the song again and watched the video. So now to the resolution part, I am not sure if you can resolve to consider something or if you have to resolve to actually do something. Well I guess since this is my blog and my resolutions I can do whatever I want....so here it is, I am resolving through this year to think about my adoption, to consider if I would like to search for my birthparents, especially considering all my medical issues. My mom keeps bringing it up and I keep pushing it away. I am not sure what all this will mean, but I do know that I have a lot to think about and consider, not that I haven't thought about it before, but I really want to be intentional about it and pray about what God would want me to do.


I will close with the words of the song: Everything to me by Mark Schultz

I must have felt your tears
When they took me from your arms
I’m sure I must have heard you say goodbye
Lonely and afraid had you made a big mistake
Could an ocean even hold the tears you cried

But you had dreams for me
You wanted the best for me
And you made the only choice you could that night

(Chorus)
You gave life to me
A brand new world to see
Like playing baseball in the yard with dad at night
Mom reading Goodnight Moon
And praying in my room
So if you worry if your choice was right
You gave me up but you gave everything to me

And if I saw you on the street
Would you know that it was me
And would your eyes be blue or green like mine
Would we share a warm embrace
Would you know me in your heart
Or would you smile and let me walk on by
Knowing you had dreams for me
You wanted the best for me
And I hope that you’d be proud of who I am

(Chorus)
You gave life to me
A chance to find my dreams
And a chance to fall in love
You should have seen her shining face
On our wedding day
Oh is this the dream you had in mind
When you gave me up
You gave everything to me

And when I see you there
Watching from heaven’s gates
Into your arms
I’m gonna run
And when you look in my eyes
You can see my whole life
See who I was
And who I’ve become

Resolution # 13

I am having a pretty rough day I must say... instead of going to youth group tonight I am laying on my couch feeling like someone has just beat me up... but that is actually beside the point and has nothing to do with my resolution... other than this may be shorter and less explained than usual. Anyway - I was talking with some friends last night and we were talking about wills and living wills and life insurance and all that fun mature people stuff. So this resolution is that sometime in 2008 I need to look into writing a will/living will and look into getting life insurance. Now I know for some people this may be a very boring resolution but I think it is important and so I guess this means I am officially a grown up now - YUCK!!

Resolution #11 and #12

Yesterday was crazy - I went to bed at midnight and I couldn't remember for the life of me what my resolution of the day had been...well at least I am not going crazy because I hadn't written one so that is a really good reason to not remember what it was.

So now I have to come up with two and make one of them retro-active. So here goes with Resolution number #11 - Since this past year has been a very rough year with my diagnosis of MS, I have had to process a lot of things...infact I am still processing a lot of things. There are days that I feel like I have come to grips with it and there are days that I just struggle to understand why. One of the hardest parts about the disease is that it is so unpredictable and it affects different people differently. One of the challenges of the disease is that many people don't really understand it (sometimes I don't understand it and I have it) but it can be awkward for people to not know what to say. It is also hard when people tell you that you look like nothing is wrong but you feel like someone put a 100 brick in your body and you can't really move and if you do it takes excessive amounts of energy. So what is my actually resolution after this disertation.... well, I am resolving to educate myself with the disease, to read books, research, and stay up to date on new findings. Also with this I will educate my family and friends, so they can better understand my struggles and my need for independence despite my also needing their assistance. I have actually already started this one, at Christmas - I gave all of my siblings a booklet about MS since no one ever talks to me about it, I figured it would be a nice way to open the lines of communication. So if you are out there and you would like to know more about MS, please don't be afraid to ask me I would be happy to share, suggest books, or maybe even let you help me on one of my "bad" days.

Resolution #12 - Many times in my life I see someone do nice things and think to myself - wow that was really cool that they did that, but they it just slips my mind and no words of encouragement are ever shared or sent. I don't want to do that, I want to do a better job of letting my kids, my friends, or maybe even strangers know that I noticed something cool that they did and I just wanted to let them know about it. I mean think about, I love getting random letters in the mail thanking me for doing something that I didn't think twice about. So this resolutions is called Catching Random Acts of Kindness! So I resolve to do one of three things when the thought go through my mind that someone did something cool that stood out to me. I must give a call, send an email or send a note to let them know. And the first person that is going to get a note of encouragement is our superintendant - I have thought on several occasions that I should write him a note to let him know that I admire his integrity in the midst of challenging situations, but I have never sat down to do that - so on Monday - that will be my first note of affirmation.

Resolution #10

So I am on resolution number 10 already...I better start thinking ahead so I don't run out of resolutions, someone asked me today what my new resolution was and I had no idea so I figured I better start to think about it! So after my drive home from job #2 I decided that my next resolution about be about walking. The weather here in Central PA has been rediculously warm, to the point of wearing a long sleeve t-shirt and pants. So I have been spoiled this past week! Anyway - back to my resolution, walking! I have been much better at walking daily since I have Tucker, but sometimes that is just a short walk to get him out - what I would really like to do is at least three times a week go for a longer walk, at least a 30 minute walk, maybe even throw in a hike every now and then... but that may be it's own resolution. Anyway walk for at least 30 minutes three times a week that is today's in a nut shell, if anyone wants to walk with me just let me know!

Resolution #9

So I was told yesterday that I should have a resolution about blogging - so here it is...my blogging resolution. I resolve to blog for it is good for the fingers, although it hurts my fingers and sometimes my fingers aren't very coordinated, I think it is good for them. I will blog because it is good for my friends that actually care about what I am thinking and the silly little things that happen each week. I will blog because sometimes I think I am actually funny and can say really funny things to make people laugh. I will blog because it is good to get my thoughts out of my head and into my computer, because I have way too many thoughts going through my head every minute of every day - it gets really tiring just thinking about the thoughts, so yeah...blogging is theraputic, so everyone should do it. I am going to blog a couple times a week - don't worry I chose the word couple because it is just vague enough to help me if I have a slow week of exciting things to write about.

Some people actually care if people read their blog, and they actually have blog followers, well I am not sure if anyone actually reads mine, but if you do I hope you enjoy it, and if you don't well then at least I am enjoying it!

Resolution Series #7 and #8

So the resolutions continue and what's great about this whole series is that I have now sucked one of my other friends (Jeanne) into doing the same - she is doing 31 resolutions and blogging about it. She even admitted that she is going to copy some of my resolutions. But that's cool imitation is one of the best compliments!

Anyway - so resolution number #7 could be one of my hardest resolutions to keep, sad to say, but it is the truth. I hate flossing my teeth!!! I am not sure why - my mom actually loves it - she is obsessed with it - she flosses several times a day - she even keeps floss in her pocket! For Christmas I got her an electric flosser - I didn't even know that they made such a thing - but it is true and I am sure my mom loves it. So back to me and my flossing issues, every time I go to the dentist they ask me about flossing and I have to tell them that I don't floss and they tell me I should and then proceed to rip my gums apart with floss. You would think that that alone would be a good reason to floss, I always have good intentions but bad follow through. So here is the deal - like all my resolutions I have decided not to go overboard and say that I am going to floss daily - because I won't, but Mondays are now my flossing day. I figured if I floss 52 times a year, that is a lot more than one or two days a year. GO ME!!!

Resolution #8 - Since 8 is my favorite number I thought I would resolve to do something that involved one of my favorite things....Raspberry Ice Tea - I love it - I could drink it everyday for every meal....I especially like the Rasp White Tea - thinking about it makes my mouth water, however it is full of sugar and all that stuff that is not good for you. So last night as I was enjoying my first Rasp tea of the new year, I decided that I would limit my tea intake to once a week. I actually love Rasp tea so much that I gave it up for Lent last year, not because I feel that I have to give up something, but to see if I could do it. One of my friends thought it was so silly to give that up that he would put bottles of Rasp tea in my car, on my porch, in my fridge, just to try to get me to budge! But I was strong and I made it, so lots of water for me and little tea - that is the theme of the new year.

Updates on my resolutions so far....not bad so far...accountability - last night - good times had by all. The water thing - I definately need to drink more but I have been drinking it daily. The bible thing - need to do that tonight! The journal thing....need to do that tonight as well. Celebrating the good days....that is today - it is a beautiful day and it is a shot day but I feel pretty good!! AMENNNN!!!! I think I will celebrate with a nice walk in this 60 degree weather. Know when to rest, listen to my body - I think I may stay home this weekend instead of going skiing again...although I have not made that decision yet.

Resolution Series #5 and #6

This was actually supposed to be for yesterday, however since I was putting my resolution into practice I was not able to write....Resolution #5 - Celebrate the good days! Yesterday was a good day, I actually felt pretty good, not too tired and not too fatigued, so I went with a bunch of kids from the school skiing! It was so much fun to feel somewhat normal and enjoy time in the great outdoors with my kids. We had so much fun! So I have decided that when I have good days, I am going to celebrate them! Enjoy them, live them up, and go all out just like old times!

So the only problem with the Celebrate the good days, is the day after the celebration! The feel like you got hit by a car day... that leads me to resolution number 6 - Listen to your body! I am getting older (so i have been told by several people) and with that comes slower recovery from activity, but with my MS I have to now plan in recovery time. (yuck!) I just really wanted to hang out with my friend Meg today and see a movie but instead I need to spend some recovery time on the couch because my body is saying - DO NOTHING! So listening to my body is something that I Have had to really learn this year...I am not great at it, but I am getting a little better at planning recovery time. Actually last night, as I was going up the lift, I could feel my body shutting down so I said to the girl next to me, my body is done for the night and this will be my last run, I think she thought I was kidding, but it is amazing how quickly the shut down happens.

So that is it for my weekend of resolutions, celebrate the good days and listen to my body! I think they are both good ones to work on - especially since I am a little stubborn from what I have been told!

Resolution #4

So the series continues....and today's resolution is to journal! I could just say journal more and that would mean that I would just have to journal one more time than I did last year, so I think for this one I need to be a little bit more specific, or I won't follow through. So I am going to say weekly. I need to journal weekly. I love journalling so I am not sure why I don't do it more often. It really is a great way to get things off your chest. For me it also is a great way to help me focus when I am praying (I think I have prayer ADD!) Anyway - I will keep you posted on how that is going.

An update on the other resolutions - Accountability - I have a partner, now we just need to set a time to meet! Water drinking - that one is going well so far, but I had a friend tell me that if you want to lose weight you need to drink the same amount of water in ounces that you are in pounds. For example, if I weighed 160 pounds I would need to drink 160 ounces of water daily. That is a lot of water. Maybe I will try that. And the Bible reading...well I found the Chronological bible and moved it to my night stand - that is a start!

Resolution Series #3

So far I have been able to keep my first two resolutions but I actually had to make a conscious effort this morning to remember to drink a glass of water.

Another snipit of information about resolutions as I have been thinking about them...people should avoid saying that they are going to do something everyday...because then if you miss one day then you feel like you blew it and it is off all together...but if you were more general in your resolutions they would be easier to keep... so that leads me to resolution number 3.

Resolution #3 - Finish reading the Chronological Bible this year. So three years ago I decided to try to read the Chronological bible in a year, each day there were specific readings and it is supposed to help you get finished in one year...well it is three years later and I am about half way through it. So instead of saying that I am going to read every night before I go to bed or every morning when I wake up, my goal of 2008 is to finish it!

Resolution Series #2

I should really start to make a list of all these resolutions that I think of so I don't forget them - it would really be ashame if I couldn't come up with 31 good resolutions!

Anyway - today's resolution is water! Yes water - I am going to start the new year and hopefully the whole year off with a nice glass of water. Instead of tea or something like that. Water is so good for you - so I am going to drink more of it - starting today! So far so good - it is 4pm and I have already had three glasses! They say 8 a day is what you are supposed to have - I am not sure I will get there but if I try to drink more I think that will be a good start to my new year!

The Resolution Series #1

Happy New Year!!!! With the new year comes a new start and new resolutions and new everything (okay not everything!, but you know what I mean). Anyway - I am not sure about you but sometimes I really get into things that are a series, I always want to see what is going to happen next ... which is why I had to go online today and get Season 3 of the Gilmore Girls just so I can stay in the loop (I don't have tv, so cut me some slack)

Anyway - I am going to do a series through the month of January, it is called the resolution series. Each day of the month I am going to blog about a resolution that I am going to make to allow for a great 2008! So let the fun begin.

These are going to be fun and serious but all things that I legatimately should be able to keep. So here we go.

Resolution #1 - Accountability Partner - last year I had talked to my friend Jeanne about this and we both agreed it would be great to have an intentional spiritual accountability partner. We actually did it for a while and then our lives went crazy and our accountability time went down the drain - so after chatting with her this afternoon we are both up for the challenge.

So what does this entail - asking direct questions about our prayer time, our bible time, talking about our bible study, and just being real with one another about what is going on in our lives. And making sure that it happens weekly or at least bi-weekly.

So there you have it folks - Resolution #1 - stay tuned for tomorrow's resolution!

Christmas Pictures!

Well even though the camera broke I was still able to get some good pictures of my kids on Christmas. Just a note - we are a hick family, so that will explain the fact that my sister's kids came to Christmas dressed in Camo! They are so funny up there in Potter County! My brother's kids are Paige and Matthew and my sister's kids (in the camo) are Hayes and Kamryn. They were all so good at Christmas - I was really impressed! I had so much fun watching them open their gifts! It is fun being an Aunt - you get to spoil the kids and then send them home!

The Dead Camera

Well ...tomorrow I get to go in the office and let my boss know that once again after two years - the camera has died. It seems as though each time we buy a digital camera - it last exactly two years, and then it breaks. The bad part is since I am the one that takes most of the pictures at the church, it is always in my possession when it decides to stop working. The worst part of it all was I was taking a really cute Christmas picture of the nieces and nephews when it breathed it last breath. I am not sure if I got the picture or not - I will have to let you know at a later date, if I did I will post the picture - if not - imagine four really cute kids all smiling because they are with Aunt Jana! (you can laugh now!)

Well it was a great Christmas despite the broken camera - it was really fun and somewhat relaxing being home. Now back to my real relaxing by my fireplace, it is my night to do nothing! I love it - I am not even going to try to clean up!

The Monday After

Well...it has come and past...the 6th Annual Holiday Open House! After cooking and preparing my house for over a week (which by the way - I just love cooking, the cleaning, I could do without!) the event took place and was a huge success. I had over 120 people come and enjoy the festivities. It was so fun to have so many people come and eat the food that I made. That does sound kinda weird, but I just love cooking for others and having people over. I guess maybe because my spiritual gift is hospitality. Anyway, I am glad that the freezing rain held off and people were able to come to the party! Now the downer - I have to clean up my house! The other downer, my little puppy Tucker had to go on a playdate during the party, I think he would have tried to sample some of the food and tried to get a little too friendly with the guests. So a big thanks to Miss Karen for babysitting Tucker. And since he missed the party and many people didn't get to see him - I thought that I would include a picture!

Kids are so cute!

So I must admit that I am a sucker for cute kids, but I am especially bias towards my nieces and nephews. My sister Jill sent me this picture the other day and I just loved it so I thought I would share it with all my friends. I am pretty sure they may be some of the cutest kids ever (maybe because they are related to me). Anyway - I think the blue clothing really brings out their beautiful blue eyes. It is hard to believe that Kamryn will be four in a just a couple months and Hayes is now 16 months. Wow - how they grow. I can't wait to see them along with my brother's kids (Paige and Matthew) at Christmas time.

One reason I love having them around on Christmas is the excitement that they bring. I love my family but since it is just Dave and I with my mom and dad, Christmas morning can be a real dull time. Dave doesn't really talk or smile or get excited about Christmas, nor does my dad so my mom and I talk to each other and show each other what we got. But later in the day when the kids come, life gets fun at the Grant house. Four grandkids, five grant kids, three spouses, mom and dad, cats, dogs...let's just say it is crazy but fun!!

OCC Trip Highlights

So I must say that one of the highlights of this years trip to Charlotte would have to be the song that Brittany and Emmy wrote and performed for me. It was amazing. Take a few minutes and watch this - you will clearly be impressed! They are such fun kids!

Operation Christmas Child

So we are here in Charlotte North Carolina along with my kids and some adults - it has been a great trip so far - The kids have been awesome and I am so proud of how well they worked yesterday. The trip down was uneventful - but so good that we didn't have to drive. I love taking the bus - it saves so much energy, although - despite being excessively tired I could not sleep on the bus!!! I was like a child with ADD - I couldn't sit still!!! We got in around midnight and got to bed around 1am the first night. Last night my kids were all in their rooms by 10:30pm...where did these kids come from - they are so good!!! It must be their leader :)...anyway..there are some really cool videos of our trip on You Tube, but last time I tried that I got two copies, so until I get a little assistance from my friend Joel I will have to refer you to his blog to see the videos... to see his blog go to www.joelsnyder.net

So until I write again - check out his blog and his video - it is really cool!!

Good Friends! God's Blessings!

Well, I can honestly say that this is the best that I have felt in a few days, maybe a few weeks, maybe this whole month. I was graciously reminded today about God's goodness and faithfulness and his ability to provide, when hope is lost.

It seems as though his timing is impecable!!! (I don't really know how to spell that word but it sounded really good!) Anyway - I was having some financial burdens because of my medical condition and it was stressing me out - and killing my bank account, in fact today I went to get my mail and I was negative 200 - that is bad, but I knew that God would provide, especially since tomorrow if payday (thank goodness!) But much to my surprise I found an envelope on my dresser from my friends, with enough money to pay my taxes and several of my bills. WOW - God truly does answer our prayers! It is funny how he brings people into our lives for such a time as this! Last year at this time I had just met most of these people and over the past year have grown to love them like brothers and sisters.

I still can't believe it - I am so honored to call them my friends, I am humbled and thankful for God's provision in the midst of one of the biggest challenges of my life. God is good, even during the hard times!

Waiting!

I hate waiting.... I hate waiting for many things.... like for instance I hate waiting in line at the grocery store, I hate waiting for my food to cook, I hate waiting in lines at Christmas time (that won't be a problem since I am not buying any gifts this year) I just hate waiting period. The reason that I am writing this blog about my hatred for waiting is that I am currently waiting for test results. It just makes me crazy having to wait for them, especially since the tests were done on Friday, you would think that by Tuesday afternoon someone would have read them and they would have had the decency to call my doctor to let him know, so that my doctor could then call me and let me know, then I could stop waiting. Sigh, deep breath.... patience I know, I just need to be patient. And speaking of that don't ever pray that God would help you learn patience unless you are really serious about learning it, because he will put you in situations that will require a ton of it. Okay I am done ranting and raving for a little while, and I will sit back and wait some more in hopes that they will call me and let me know what is going on in my brain!!!!!

The cold hits Central PA

Much to my disdain I had to turn my heat on....not just in my room but the whole house! Ahhhhhh!!!!! And worse yet.... electric heat is supposed to go up 17% in January...for real...what is going on that makes the price of electricity go up that much - that is ridiculous!!!!! AHHHHHHH!!! Okay so I guess this is more of a venting session than it is a blog....but hey that is what I am thinking. At least it is free to blog so even if I have to freeze to death I can still blog, or better yet I could sleep in my office - it is much warmer here!

Harvest Festival

When I think about the crazy things that I do to make kids laugh I must now add this weekends Harvest Festival. For over an hour and a half I wore these ugly teeth and talked like a redneck... if it didn't make the kids laugh (which I think it did) it sure made the parents laugh. The event took a lot of work but it seemed to be a big success, we had games, food, worms in dirt, pies in faces (mine and braedon's) and lots of other fun stuff... not to mention the Virginia Reel - that was super fun also. I must say I was exhausted at the end of the night but it was well worth it!

320 Boxes Packed

So Midnight Madness was a great success - we had lots of kids and adults show up to prepare, shop, wrap, and put together 320 shoeboxes. It was a pretty amazing night and I am glad that all the hard work and preparation paid off. I have to admit that earlier in the day I was a bit nervous that no one would show up, but thanks be to God - I was wrong - we had a great turn out and everyone seemed to have a great time. A special thanks to all our volunteers from our church and from the local Kiwanas group - I could not do my job without you!!!

Technology is not my thing...

So if you look at the post before this one you will learn really quickly that I hate technology and it has taken too much of my time just to try to get the video posted and then for some reason I am so good at getting the video on that I decided two copies of the video would be better! Ughhhh!!! So I have about four other things to blog about but I should clean my desk instead!

New Orleans

One of my boys did this video about our New Orleans Mission Trip. It is really cool - you should check it out!

Midnight Madness

It is OCC Time again and with that brings our 5th annual or maybe it is the 6th annual (I am going to need to check on that) Midnight Madness. You may be wondering - what is midnight madness...well it is an All-Area Shoebox packing party. We wrap shoeboxes, go shopping, and pack close to 300 shoeboxes. It is open to all Youth and Families, so feel free to come and join us from 6pm to....who knows when maybe 10pm. There will be pizza and snacks served, so come on out and join us! Oh and for those of you who are wondering why it is called Midnight Madness, well it is because if I am not home and in bed by Midnight then I am mad the next day! Isn't that a great reason to name an event! Like I said before all are welcome to come, we would love to have you join us!