As Christians we read in Ecclesiastes 3

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance

Knowing this, we are aware that there will be times when our hearts hurt and break. Each of us has experienced that heart break in one form or another. Thinking back on your life, what makes your heart break, and why?

I heart memes, I heart kim, and I heart cafe chat…BUT it seems like every one lately has taken me back to Isabelle’s accident! Hmmm… I tried to think of something different that is heart breaking to write about but this just trumps it all. From seeing my child dead, to giving her cpr, to the nightmare three month hospital stay with all the terrible happenings, to missing the other three kids, to seeing the pain in their eyes, to seeing them cope with it and move on with life, to finding pictures (pre-accident) of Izzy tucked away in their rooms, knowing they look at them and are haunted by them. From the what if’s and where we would be had this not happened, to the look how much we’ve grown in the Lord… from not dwelling in the past, to trusting God with Izzy and our future. From the doctors negative prognosis’ to God’s perfect plan. She is healed in Jesus’ name.

It is all heartbreaking. All of it. But, we have God… and He’s in the heart healing business!

What is mesothelioma? Mesothelioma is an asbestos-caused cancer of the membranes that surround many of the body’s vital organs. This membrane, known as mesothelium, secretes a lubricating fluid that provides easy movement of the organs within the body. When the mesothelium becomes cancerous, it is called mesothelioma. Surrounding the lung, the mesothelium is called the pleura and the form of mesothelioma is called pleural mesothelioma; in the abdomen, it is the peritoneum and the cancer is called peritoneal mesothelioma; the lining around the heart is the pericardium and there mesothelioma is identified as pericardial mesothelioma. There is also mesothelial tissue in the reproductive organs: in males, this tissue is called the tunica vaginalis testis and in women the tunica serosa uteri. Mesothelioma of the reproductive tissues has only presented in men, so it is known as mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis.

Saturday 9: Summer Movies and Oil

1. The other day I purchased gas for $3.96, which was less than the $4.37 my local station charges per gallon. What is the current gas price in your area for regular? I paid $3.75 a gallon today. At 28 gallons that would be a total of $105!

2. Will your vacation plans be altered by the price of gas? Nah. I don’t really have “vacation plans” at this point.

3. Is there any movie this summer that you’re looking forward to seeing? Not really.

4. Gas prices aside, what is your favorite vacation destination? Disneyworld!!!

5. Will you watch more film on DVD than in theaters this summer? Most likely!

6. Will you fly anywhere this summer? No definite plans at this point, but I’d love to.

7. Guess: How high will a gallon of gas peak at? In my lifetime? Don’t want to think about it, I’m guessing double and then we’ll finally learn to use things that are cheaper for fuel. Or this summer? I hope not much more than $4.00. Remember I am an optimist .

8. Will gas prices effect who you vote for in this fall’s election? Yes.

9. How much will the price of home heating oil effect you? Not sure yet, another thing to deal with.

~It’s Perfect ~ Fill In The Blanks~

A perfect day is a day with a happy and content heart?

A perfect dinner is a dinner shared with people I love?

A perfect evening is a girl’s only night out?

A perfect vacation is a trip to Disneyworld with your kiddos?

Amanda gave me a makeover. Well, she straightened my hair and did my makeup. Here’s the finished product! LOL

All us “girls” went to Edmond … went to Old Navy, Jason’s Deli, picked up CADS, and other errands. It was a fun outing!

Also I mentioned the lamp and that I had rearranged Izzy’s therapy room. There is a loveseat in there and also all her therapy stuff (table walker ball etc.). Here’s a pic of the lamp, and one of the side of the room without the therapy stuff.

See the cute little believe book? Kari sent it to me!

Last thing for the day… I got this in an email from Melody earlier and it cracked me up. I read it out loud to one of my family members who declared it, “LAME.” But I loved it.

Color IS GOOD!

Yesterday I went to the doctor for my yearly physical.
My blood pressure was high, my cholesterol was high,
I’d gained some weight, and I didn’t feel so hot.
My doctor said eating right doesn’t have to
be complicated and it would solve my physical
problems. He said just think in colors…

Fill your plate with bright colors… greens,
yellows, reds, etc.
I went right home and ate an
entire bowl of :

M&M’s

And sure enough, I felt better immediately.
I never knew eating right could be so easy!

This KATF is a celebration of all things summer! Are you enjoying it? Is the weather global-warming-hot where you are? If you’re a parent with school age kids, are you enjoying having the kids home? We will delve into these and other exciting topics, RIGHT NOW…

• Which is your favorite season? Why?  I love Fall & Spring.  WhY?  The weather is mild, the leaves are either turning beautiful yellows and oranges (fall) or finally turning green again (spring).  I think I love something about every season though… Summer is great, hot, but great… and Winter includes Christmas which is awesome!
• Are you a bikini or one piece gal? Do the same rules apply to your daughter, if you have one?  I’m a one piece or tankini girl.  I’m not very strict about the girls suits, they do all their swimming at home.  I think two pieces are easier for bathroom trips.
• What is your favorite summer getaway? Beach? Lake? Mall? Indoor ice skating? Why? I’ll take one of each.  Any getaway is fun.  My favorite would probably be the mall or ice skating because they are air conditioned!  I heart ice skating.
• You’re on a sandy beach, looking out at a perfectly blue ocean. The weather is perfect. What’s on the table next to you? What book are you reading? Who is sitting next to you? What are you drinking?  I’m finally reading the book “twilight” that everyone I know has read and loved and it’s been sitting on my nightstand since it arrived via amazon.com.  I’d be having a nice cold coke!
• Do you tan? If so, are you an all-natural tanner or do you go to a salon?  I do tan.  I usually stay out of the sun and stay pretty pale, but I get brown when I am in the sun.  Which this year with all the work I’ve been having to do maintaining the pool that won’t go clear… I’m getting a tan.  I don’t go to tanning beds.  I don’t ever want to do anything to help nature age me.
• What is your favorite summer clothing?  Easy capris or long shorts with a sleeveless or short sleeved top.  I like to wear strapless tops when it’s cool enough for a jean jacket but don’t like to wear them without something over them.  I also like to wear knee length skirts and lots and lots of sandals and flip flops in the summer.
• You’re suddenly able to transport yourself to any summer in your past. What year would you choose to be in?  The Summer before Izzy’s near drowning. 2003.  I would have a fence and several security features installed on the pool when it was being installed.  I would have the foresight to treat it with much much more caution.

Visit Heather & Reese to play along!

I love this!

“Forgetting the past.”
Philippians 3:13 NLT

(1) Focused people don’t live in the past. Too many of us yearn for the past and get stuck in it. Instead we should learn from the past and let go of it. Elbert Hubbard wrote, “A retentive memory may be a good thing, but the ability to forget is the true token of greatness. Successful people forget. They’re running a race. They can’t afford to look behind. Their eye is on the finish line. They’re too big to let little things disturb them. If anyone does them wrong, they consider the source and keep cool. It’s only the small people who cherish revenge. Be a good forgetter… success demands it.”

(2) Focused people don’t think about the difficulties, but the rewards. If you dwell on the difficulties too long, you’ll start to develop self-pity instead of self-discipline. As a result, you’ll accomplish less and less. By focusing on results, you’ll stay encouraged. Make Christ your example. “He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy He knew would be His afterwards” (Hebrews 12:2 TLB).

(3) Focused people choose their friends carefully.

Here are five types of people you’ll encounter:
(A) Refreshers – who strengthen your faith and energize you.

(B) Refiners – who sharpen you and clarify your vision.
(C) Reflectors – who mirror your energy, neither adding to nor subtracting from it.

(D) Reducers – who try to diminish your goals and efforts to their comfort level.

(E) Rejecters – who don’t understand you or what God’s called you to do.

So remain focused and you’ll stay grounded; the praise of others is less likely to go to your head, and the negative impact of your critics will be minimized.

- Bob Gass Ministries

visit Sheryl at Taking the Challenge for more faith lifts~

Appetizer

If you could live on another continent for 1 year, which one would you choose?

Probably Europe.

Soup

Which browser do you use to surf the Internet?

Firefox!

Salad

On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being highest), how much do you know about the history of your country?

Maybe a 3-4. I took History all through school, and in college… but I’m not really into it.

Main Course

Finish this sentence: Love is…

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self?seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. I Cor. 14:3-7

Dessert

Have you ever been in or near a tornado?

Yep! Many many times. I live in central Oklahoma. The sirens don’t even scare me anymore. We just take shelter and keep going on like nothing happened. The last tornado that came close was this one.

My shopping trip was successful!

I spent all the gift certificates from Macy’s in one swoop. I took a arm full of stuff in the dressing room and everything I took fit and I liked. It ended up totaling just about the amount of the gift cards so I got it all! There were three dresses and I couldn’t decide which was “cutest” so I told Amanda to take pics of each for a vote… but she had to leave for work so maybe tomorrow!

I hit bath & body and got a couple of bags of stuff! Lots of soap and lotions and all kinds of yummy smelling stuff. I grabbed stuff off the $1 rack to keep for memory verse rewards for my class.

I ran into Kirklands and found a really cute lamp with a pineapple at the base for $11!!! Can you believe that? It is so cute.

I got this devo book and I can’t wait to start it!

By this time my arms were hurting from carrying all the stuff so I headed towards the door… stopped at Gymboree to pick up a few things on sale for Izzy…

Ran into Game stop for Bailey’s XBOX 360 subscription blah blah blah… and then to the car!

I ran into Walmart to get my toes painted (french manicure)… last time they were red with designs that were kinda weird. The guy doing it must have been in a creative mood. I saw an old friend and talked to her for a bit. Had a freaky experience when I was checking out.

This creepy man came over while I was paying and tapped me on the arm and said, “I just wanted to come and tell you I really like your outfit.” The cashier was straight up gangster and she even said it was creepy. He then waited at the door until I came out and followed me into the parking lot. I looked back and noticed the cashier had followed me too and said she was just making sure everything was ok. I locked up my car and then noticed he was waiting to follow me out of the parking lot. It was creepy! I lost him finally and was glad I didn’t have to drive into the police station parking lot. ***sidenote*** I told matt about this experience. He asked about the guy… like how old (late 40′s)… looks (creepy but normalish)… car (newer small)… Matt summized it was probably his way of meeting chicks at walmart and thought I was being silly. I did point out that the checker thought it was too weird too, but he just thought it was my imagination and also thought my mall outfit may have been too much for walmart lol! (my outfit was a knee length denim skirt that buttons up the front from Orlando (banana republic) and a sleeveless striped top I got at Kolhs with brown wedge sandals. Nothing crazy here!!! ***end of sidenote***

That was the day. It was a fun outing and I’m looking forward to a quiet night!

It’s almost officially Summer. Just a couple of days away, although here in Oklahoma it is officially summer if you are judging by the daily temperatures! Motorhomes and Summer go hand in hand. I remember many trips to different lakes and camp sites growing up with a motorhome either in tow or as our transportation. So how about you, any favorite motorhome memories? Are you looking to buy a new or used motorhome? You can browse through many to choose from.

My favorite memories are the funny ones… like being in the mountains with another family. A few funny things happened that trip including a can of biscuits exploding in the night. We thought we were being shot!

1. I’m thankful for another anniversary. 19 now in all. Looking forward to number 20!
2. It’s Summer!  I am thankful for long summer days.
3. I got the front room cleaned and rearranged, I’m thankful for finished projects!
4. We studied about Stephen last night… and Saul/Paul.  I’m thankful that I don’t have to fear being stoned for my beliefs.
5. I finished up the broccoli salad last night.  I’m thankful for yummy healthy food!
6. 29 pounds lost. I’m thankful for weight loss success!
7. I slept great last night, I’m thankful for sleep!
8. Quiet mornings are so peaceful.  I’m thankful for these quiet times.
9. Finished all but one new load of laundry. I’m thankful for fun kids who make laundry, and for finishing it for a minute!
10. Matt took the trash out before I woke up this morning.  I’m thankful I don’t have to do it. (I hate trash!)
11. We’ve been watching 7th Heaven each night.  I’m thankful for shows that are wholesome enough to watch with family… and there are years of reruns!
12. Blogging! I was telling Amanda how cool it is to have friends all over the place (she suggested I get some sun shine and fresh air)… but I heart you all.
13. Shopping!  I’m going to the mall today.  I’m thankful that I can go shop for fun stuff! (mylistincludes: get pedi, check sale at b&b … aromatherapy stuff is on sale and I love it for Izzy, Kirklands… need lamp shade and small rug for front room, Victoria’s secret annual sale, spend Macy’s gift cards, look for a few birthday presents)

Visit Iris for more thankful thursdays, or to link up to yours!