Validation

My arm feels a lot better today. I started noticing a difference last night , so I'm going to continue to baby it for a couple of more days. My daughter texted me from DC. She spent a lot of her money on some souvenirs for our family, and now has $17 left for the next three days. Thank goodness her breakfasts and dinners are covered!! I'm almost thinking about overnighting some money, but the other part of me wants her to learn a lesson about spending wisely on a trip. It was very nice of her to buy things for us, but not a wise thing to do, when she only brought a small amount of money. She has enough to buy her lunches for the next three days, but that's about it. It's really all she technically needs, but I think she would have liked to buy some more things for herself. She made it sound like some other kids had brought hundreds of dollars to spend, which I'm sure it might seem like that when you only have $17 left! Anyway, we sort of had a deal, that w...

I hurt myself yesterday or the day before. In the process of working out, I somehow hurt my neck down into my left shoulder area. I think part of it is muscular, and part of it might be a pinched nerve. I'm not sure. All I know is, I hurt. I have been taking Ibuprofen, and doing heat and ice packs. I'm bummed because I have PE class today, and its "upper body" day. I hope the teacher will be nice to me, and let me do something else. I'm also bummed, because I was really on a roll with doing exercises at home as well as at the gym. I suppose I could do some other things until this arm heals up, and try not to let it slow me down. I can turn my head to the right, but not all the way to the left, or there is this pain down in my Trapezius. I think it's either my Trapezius, or one of the other long neck muscles that is connected in that area somewhere. As an A&P student, I should know the name of those, but I can't seem to! I have a virtua...

So, I just thought I would write about what's up. Tomorrow I drop Amanda off at the airport for her symphony trip to Washington, D.C. She will be performing three concerts and touring EVERYTHING. She is really excited, and has worked very hard to get ahead of her schoolwork. I think it's going to be an awesome trip for her.... I am plugging along in my online Psychology class and PE class. I have taken a few quizzes and an exam online, and I'm holding on to a 4.0 in the class so far. PE has been good for me. I am learning some good body-weight-bearing types of exercises that I can do at home, which is cool, because I don't think I will re-join the YMCA after the class is over. After class, I do about 25-30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical machine, and I really like that. I wish I had one of those things at home. I bought myself some exercise bands at Wal-Mart, which I am using at home for some extra toning time. I have been trying to do sit-ups, pushups a...

I am struggling with some thoughts and ideas regarding relationships. Now, I have read almost all the "Boundaries" books, as well as other great insights on relationships. Yet, I still struggle with what's right and what's wrong in setting boundaries and dealing with difficult people. I understand that, just because I'm a Christian, doesn't mean that I should be "nice" and let people walk all over me and treat me like crap. I understand that I should set limits on how I am treated. On the other hand, I am supposed to forgive "seventy times seven," according to The Bible. Maybe it's not correct to say "on the other hand." I know that you can forgive someone, releasing them, but it doesn't mean you then welcome the poor treatment again. The thing is, isn't reconciliation the highest goal? Or, is it? Didn't God model reconciliation by reconciling us to Himself through Jesus, and that's what we're sup...

We heard a great message at church on Saturday night. Sometimes I like to write about it, so it implants in my memory banks. I'll try to remember the highlights. Here goes. Our pastor (Roger) spoke about Jesus words "I Am The Life," in John 14:1-6, to begin a series about Jesus being THE way, THE truth and THE life. He used the acrostic, LIFE to structure his outline. The talk was generally about how to experience Jesus as "THE life." L: Love God and love people. (see Mark 12:28-31) -Jesus was asked by religious leaders what commandment was the greatest one, and he answered, "love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength." Then, "love your neighbor as yourself." -Are we loving God and others this way? One way to know is to look at your day planner and your checkbook. It will tell you a lot about who or what you love! I: Intentionally live l...

What a lovely Spring day for a BBQ! Not. Yes, friends. It is April. The Spring Fair is even running today. And, we're expected to get a few inches of snow accumulation....

Is that not just a perfect cup of coffee?? Imagine you can smell these....Joe brought them to me on our anniversary day......

Melanie and Macy This blog is becoming a kitten blog, apparently! Macy is already growing so much, I have to capture these kitten days while I can! :) Cat Nap

Joe built Macy a cat tree with some extra carpet and supplies we had in the garage. It turned out AWESOME. This tree would probably by about $80 at the pet store. The angled post is wrapped with sisal rope, which Macy immediately began scratching on. We were so entertained watching her play on it. At one point, she was hanging with her front paws, and her back legs were swinging freely - so FUNNY!! We're hoping this will keep her away from our couch and leather chair!! Diego had to get in on the action. I can't wait for the day when Macy jumps off the top onto the dog! HAHA!

Joe and I went to our B&B last weekend to celebrate our 18th wedding anniversary. This was one of the best ones we have been to, in my opinion. When we arrived, there was an envelope with a note and the key to our room. The innkeepers don't live on site, so it felt like we were entering someone's home when they weren't there! We scouted out the house, and then went upstairs to our beautiful "king suite." It had a fireplace, private deck and a jacuzzi tub. They provided bathrobes, CD's for the Bose music system, chocolates, etc. It was quite nice. They were not serving dinner that night, so we took a drive to a local seafood restaurant. It's such a beautiful area on the Hood Canal, and last weekend was sunny and warm...... I'm fast forwarding to breakfast now.....hee hee :) Breakfast had two courses, which was served out in the sunroom. Ahhhh.....We had our own private table, and later on, another couple came out and sat at the other table...

I haven't disappeared. And, I read blogs almost everyday. I just that, I sit down to write a post, and I can't think of anything that I think would be exciting to read. It seems like I get the most comments when I am opinionated. So here you go. I am studying faith this week in my Beth Moore Bible study. We've been looking at verses when Jesus healed people, and He said things like "your faith has healed you," etc. I try my best to have a balanced approach to what I think, and I've been thinking how unbalanced some people can become when it comes to the topic of faith. For example, my friend once said that she thought she wasn't being healed because she "probably didn't have enough faith." Or, those people who think that God is like a bubble gum machine, and if you just put in the coin: "name it" and "claim it," you get what you want. I could be wrong, but I think that faith means believing that God CAN and is A...

Today, Joe and I sat down to the computer and made a couple of camping reservations for this summer. We have this cool, camping guidebook that rates and describes campgrounds in our area. We like to tent camp and have tried to visit new places every summer. This year we're going to visit one new one called Ike Kinswa State Park, which is on a lake and an "old" one on the Puget Sound called Fort Flagler. Fort Flagler has hiking trails, a museum and a little convenience store. It's also an old military base, so there are remnants of history there, like restored buildings, cannons and bunkers. We went there a few years ago, and the kids loved getting treats at the store, riding bikes all around and playing at the beach. Joe is also planning a "guys-only" camping trip, which he started last year. They had such a good time, all the guys wanted it to be an annual thing, so Joe reserved that camping spot again, too. In a couple of weeks, Amanda is heading...

I saw this 5-minute video recently on www.cloudtownsend.com about leadership burnout. Click here http://www.cloudtownsend.com/videoserver/player_ev2.php?clip=CCNT1774 " I also highly recommend this site for articles and little videos about relationships, leadership and life. Drs. Cloud and Townsend are awesome!!

This week has been a week of adjusting to my online Psychology class, but I'm off to a great start. It's a little weird to take a class this way, and you have to do a lot more reading and writing. Plus, there are all these specific rules, as to how to post things and a lot of deadlines to remember. It takes a lot of organization, I can tell you that. I also was able to get into a PE class, which is held at the YMCA. I was a little nervous on Thursday, because we were timed running the mile. I am the oldest in the class, besides another lady, who is probably in her 40's. (I have to add that she is very strange lady, and showed up in a dress, flip-flops and no bra - hmmmm). I was relieved that I wasn't the slowest runner in the class, since it is made up of most 18 19 year-olds! Still, it was not a fast time, and I hope to improve it. I am SO sore now, though!! Joe and Ben have been sick this week, but Joe improved enough to go out to dinner and see the show ...

This is my daily entertainment..... This is what Macy and Diego do many times a day. Diego gets just close enough to get a quick sniff, and backs away when Macy bats at his face. Then, Macy pretends Diego is some big threat, and puffs up her tail and runs sideways at him, often running away just as fast. I find myself laughing all the time.....I think this is what people mean about pets being great for stress relief....