Validation

What a title for today's post, huh? hee hee :) Today I am fighting back my sinuses from what I think is developing into a sinus infection. I realized that I have had a cold for over a week now, and am just feeling quite tired and rundown. I am also developing some sinus pain. The way I am going to attempt to avoid the doctor, is by flushing out my nasal passages with salt water. I make a little solution of warm water and salt, and put a little in the cup of my hand and snort it. It kinda hurts, but I think it might be working. I am feeling myself perk up a bit. I am also using a spray decongestant, because I can't stand how the oral medications make me feel. I'll let ya know if this works... I am also increasing my fluids, which isn't hard for me since I love tea. I drink a few cups a day. I usually drink herbal, like Celestial Seasonings Red Zinger. But, I found an awesome black tea by Lipton called "Vanilla Caramel Truffle." Ohhhhh.....put a lit...

I was thinking the other day how different it is going to be when I eventually finish school and start working. I am hoping to have a work schedule that fits with my family, but it's still going to be a big change. I feel blessed that I have stayed home with my kids thus far. They are little for such a short, short time, and I am so grateful that I haven't missed a thing. Plus, I know it's been good for them on many levels. Staying home hasn't come without "sacrifices," which I almost can't call them that. In our younger days, it was very, very tough financially, but God always provided for us. We didn't have nice cars, and we didn't buy our first home until we were married for 10 years. We're doing better today, but we still don't live extravagantly. There's just things we don't buy, and places we don't shop. We've learned how to make decisions about things we just don't NEED or HAVE to have. We have learn...

On Saturday, Joe and I decided to purchase new appliances for our kitchen. Our fridge was starting to malfunction, as well as our overhead microwave. All of our appliances are about 10 years old, and we had been talking about updating them for the future sell-ability of our house. Since we probably won't move for three years, we thought we could at least enjoy them (rather than just buy new for the next owners!). Anyway, we shopped around for the best deals, and found a set at Home Depot. We also wanted a new washer and dryer, as ours are also 10 years old, and the dryer kept putting little burn lines on all of our light-colored clothes. But, we decided to wait on those. HOWEVER. The very NEXT day, we were washing clothes, and the motor that drains the water out of the washer died. We have a washer full of water and wet towels. So, on Sunday, Joe and I went out shopping for a new set. Since we will probably take this set with us when we move, we went for higher quality th...

I had a weird dream last night. In my dream, I was with my counselor and she was telling me that I needed to be in a spiritual battle right now, or something like that. So, I was half awake, and a little scared from the dream, when I responded by quoting scripture and praying silently in this half-dream state. I kind of opened my eyes and looked around, which made me feel a little creepy, and realized my husband had come to bed at some point. So, I put my hand on his back, and continued my half-dream-state-praying-silently thing. Then, I started getting more scared that there was really WAS some reason I had this dream (was something in my house?) and was trying not to be scared, and trying to go back to sleep, so I just kept praying the name "Jesus," over and over again until I fell asleep. As I kept praying His name, though, I got less and less scared and actually more confident. That part was cool. Huh.

Hello People. I know! It's been awhile. Ben is all recovered from his surgery, and things are looking good. He even has half of a front tooth that seems like it keeps coming in more and more each day. No other teeth in sight yet, but I'm hoping we'll see them soon. Melanie finished her gymnastics season at the high school. Her team actually went all the way to the State championships, which has made history for their school. The top six girls went to districts, and after that, the top two went the rest of the way. Melanie wasn't in those top girls, but she hopes to work her way there in the next three years. We're going to look into her working out at a local gym during the off-season, so she can continue to work on her skills. I think we figured out that we're not the kind of people to make our lives all about gymnastics, so she won't be on any local club teams. Being on the high school team seemed just about right, and I'm happy for Melanie...

Wow. I just finished reading a post from Anne Jackson. Please click on the link "Flower Dust" on my sidebar and read today's post. She is on a trip to Uganda at the moment, and has taken some pictures of some living conditions and people they have spoken with. She also shares the story of a woman. It's quite a reality check for all of the things that we think are stressful and hard. It's a keen reminder that there are people who need our help. I am going to talk to my family about sponsoring a child. Check out Anne's website for a link where you can sponsor a child in another country who desperately needs money just to go to school......