A long overdue update

Lets start with some good stuff

I have moved out of IL.

I have a wonderful family.


Todays post was really prompted by a need for a place to safely process emotions. The other post you will see today will explain why. 

My health is now* in decent shape.

The health thing is a bit complicated. I finally have an explanation to the hair loss, the tremor in my hands and other symptoms. Turns out I have an autoimmune condition called "Graves Disease". My thyroid was not working properly. I'm now on medications that are helping. Its autoimmune so it will never be "cured" just managed. Thankfully, currently everything seems to be falling into place related to my heath.

My parents are doing great, my husband is doing fine. I am almost ready to start exercising again. Now I have motivation to do so, and I think its time to do it. I have a life to live and so do you, its time to start living it fully.

Just do me a favor tonight and reach out to those you love and let them know, even if you haven't talked to them in a while. It might make all the difference in the world.

Pax

Hi everyone , Its been a while

Hi everyone. Its been a while since I updated this blog.

My family is doing okay, my grandfather died about 2 weeks ago, that was rough(but also okay), I have moved again, got married, and currently considering going back to finish my BA .


For the next month or so I am working on posting 3x a week. Today is day 1.

I decided to post things that made me think.  This is the first one that came to mind.


Proverbs 1-New International Version (NIV)

Purpose and Theme

1 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:

² for gaining wisdom and instruction;
    for understanding words of insight;
³ for receiving instruction in prudent behavior,
    doing what is right and just and fair;
⁴ for giving prudence to those who are simple,^[a]
    knowledge and discretion to the young—
⁵ let the wise listen and add to their learning,
    and let the discerning get guidance—
⁶ for understanding proverbs and parables,
    the sayings and riddles of the wise.^[b]

⁷ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
    but fools^[c] despise wisdom and instruction.

Graduation prep thoughts

Graduation is almost upon me.

On one hand I am excited.
But..
On the other, this is the world that I have immersed myself in for the last 2 years.
I have changed so much in that time, I don't know exactly how to function in the outside world anymore. Class, homework, practicum, eat, sleep, shower- repeat. My divorce changed my life. I have set goals and am about to accomplish them, and it feels good.

 But.. What do I do Now? Change is coming. That's okay. I need to figure it out. I know I need to find a job, and apartment ,all that grown up stuff. Thankfully, I am not in debt. Where to live, what to do, its up to me! My parents are supportive, I know whatever I chose they will accept.

Graduation.. is in the evening. Graduation Party?? I am so torn. I kind of want one, and yet I really dislike parties. I would like to just curl up and read a book the next day.  But, I want to be recognized for getting this program done. At the same time, I don't like being the center of attention and all the stress that comes with the parties. What to do?  Any recommendations? Also, my parents are moving so doing anything at the house is not a good option. And remember, I'm not working yet so , my finances are tight.

I know some of my extended family would like the opportunity to celebrate my accomplishments with me. They know I worked hard to get this degree done. (sigh) Its not all about me, even though this post kind of sounds like it. :(

2nd day

So today for classes I had 2

1) ASL 3. It is a long class but it was good. We use the books/dvd's from Signing Naturally. Camp used the same one. So, today was a bit of a review for me. It felt great to be back in an all ASL classroom.

2) Interpreting 1, that was fun. I am not being sarcastic. :) My brain is a bit fatigued . I think it might become my favorite class.(maybe)

I came home and tonight's dinner was spaghetti with homemade sauce YUM!!

Right now my family is a bit bigger than it used to be, we have 2 small people living with us, one of them decided spaghetti is not THAT bad. I read a book he would take a bite or two. It worked.

Update trip #1

Well.... I am back from trip #1. I got to see 1 college but, because of timing, I did not take a tour. I was impressed by the area and feel of the campus. This trip  was part fun and part "work"(AKA not Vacation).

I got to see my other family. My other "Mom" told my the same thing that both of my parents keep telling me. I love having people who I can consider my family. My life could be a soap opera. I wouldn't believe half of what happens in my life, if it wasn't happening to my family.  Having people who can listen and not judge has been one of the biggest blessings of my life. Even if they never realize how much help they have given me in the last year.

 My mom got to see one of her Friends(my other "mom"). It had been almost 8 years since they had seen each other. We live too far away to make regular visits.
 :(

I cannot post about the "work" part of my trip. Just keep sending positive thoughts my way. The trip did not go the way we thought it was going to, which is okay, but, it means that eventually there will probably be a 2nd one.

Up next on the agenda?

• I have a observation opportunity tomorrow morning,
•  on the 10th is a workshop at school(during vacation),
• the 12th is a practicum(type) morning.
• Plus the regular stuff. Groceries, chores, cleaning, and studying.

I also am planning a 2nd and 3rd trip. The 2nd is to go explore 2 colleges. Both within a day's drive.(Henderson State University and Pittsburg State University(in KS)) Decisions are hard.

There are a few other schools that are in my top 10 list.
One got eliminated due to the cost of living:( It was my top school choice.:( I don't want to go into debt that much!!

The 3rd trip is the one I am excited about. I get to travel internationally!! I will post more about that later.

Finals&1year anniversary

I have no time to post about finals .

1 have 1 more to go. I can do this!


On a Different note.

It has been a year since my Mom lost her hearing. I am so proud of her. She continues to learn and  just keeps moving forward. Yes, I am an adult, but she is still my Mommy.
I have continued to learn ASL, she has withdrawn from the program because of the nerve damage that occurred at the same time as her hearing loss. I keep practicing my homework  with her at home so she learns more ASL.


I don't feel as stressed about leaving now. When she 1st lost her hearing, I thought I would never feel comfortable enough to leave home again. I was wrong. I feel like she has enough independence now for the most part that I can leave home when I graduate. My Dad is getting better at understanding all the nuances of deafness in my mom. (yes I did leave deafness lowercase, he isn't in the Deaf community, but mom is...) I feel like now they can cope, last year I wasn't so sure.

Life has been a rollercoaster this year, and while there were ups and downs, I am learning to be thankful in all of it. (its not easy). Soon I will add one more update to make it clear why this was not the easiest year for me. Soon.

To my family who might be reading this: Thank you for your support and understanding through these transitions.

 

I know...

I know I have been lax about writing recently. The 1st couple of weeks of school were not easy . I don't say this as an excuse, just a fact.

Today I got to meet up with an old friend that I haven't seen in close to 9 years. God is awesome. We talked and talked, it felt like we had never been apart. It was so wonderful to be able to speak my mind and heart with worrying about judgment or condemnation. I hadn't realized how much I had missed her. We talked about her life and some things she is dealing with, and how God is doing incredible things in the background even if we can't always see it.  We talked about change, family and of course Faith.  We both have struggles that are similar but very different. I gave her some counsel, learned, on my end, the hard way. I wouldn't trade the learning process,but if I can help her avoid some of the painful steps along the way....

God is good, and I am grateful for his Grace.

Pax

Fathers Day-Belated

Lets get this done 1st.

I have an amazing Dad.  He has been deployed overseas,been home, been gone and is now home every fathers day. I am blessed. My dad has always been encouraging. My dad read to me.. A lot.My mom says the first big book he read to me was Moby Dick, followed by Ivanhoe. I now have a love of reading. If I have wanted to try something(within reason) he was all for it. I have jumped off mountains, gone canoeing on river trips, worked for the mouse and have traveled the world.
One of the things my dad still says is " try your best, God has the Rest," I don't know if that is something he made up or if he is quoting someone else,but  it does not matter. Its OK to fail. I tried. Some of the recipes that I have attempted, for example, have been great, others, A HUGE flop.But its okay, I tried.

 When I was a kid, he used to tell me it was okay if I dyed my hair purple as long as it was clean and tidy. I have yet to dye it purple, but knowing I could was amazing.

I went to camp every summer and he would write me stories in letter format and give them to my counselor to be handed out one day at a time.It kept me connect to my family while they were moving, it was also fun.

I grew up, now, he is my sounding board when I am writing papers and sermons, my place to vent, the proof- reader of all my papers, and  he gives me suggestions when I get stuck. He understands that I need time to myself, and lets me have it.

He is my dad, and I am glad that I still have him.

But....For me fathers day is complicated.

I have my "Dad" but I also have had Godly men in my life who have made an impact. Some of them are no longer on earth and some still are still here. Fathers day is a chance to remember them as well. Some of them  knew a little girl who missed her dad while he was deployed,they all kept me out of trouble, they challenged my beliefs and they blessed me with their time and attention. I know my mom appreciated it too.  So to those men : Thank You and Happy Fathers day.

There is a 3rd father for me. God, he has been there through everything.
The ups and downs. The Good, The Bad and the Ugly. Even though there have been rough spots, God has always been there for me. I don't know how I would have handled some of the curve balls these last few years without him. Fathers day is/was a good day to remember my commitment to Him

Every Day is a gift. Use it wisely. Talk to your father. Heavenly and Earthly if possible. For those of you whose dad is no longer on earth, share Happy stories if you have them. Because, Believe it or not, every person you encounter, good or bad makes an impact in your life. That means you make an impact also. Be a good impact.  Encourage each other and live life to the fullest.

Peace to all.

Sunday Sponges Sandwiches ???

Sunday-Sponges-Sandwiches-

What do these have in common??

Believe it or not the answer is CHURCH!!

The object lesson was about being a sponge.

 The sermon was about private devotional time and that is where the sandwich came into play.Feeding yourself daily is important.(both real food and spiritual food)  How to do devotions is like building a sandwich, I learned this at a camp but it was used again today in church. It is an easy formula to remember.

Update: My mom is healing well she got the staples out, is up and moving more, she is wanting to go out and do stuff like fabric shopping :)


If you want to know more ask me. I am keeping it short today . There is still a potluck at church, a forum about a new building and Minion Meetings tonight. ( My day is only partway done)

Thoughts on Balance

Today is almost done. Dinner is done and everyone has eaten. Dad is doing the dishes, my hubby is getting ready for work, mom is relaxing in the recliner and George is laying on the floor guarding mom. This is the 1st time I have gotten on the computer today. I have checked FB and email. I wasn't going to write anything today but I figure if I don't I will get out of the habit. After all....

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."-Aristotle

Since I want to eventually excel, I will have to work at it. I was going to write down a kids sermon idea but decided that it was not what was really on my mind. 

I want to take a few minutes to write about balance, as far as I can see there are 3 parts to balance (feel free to disagree) there is: your head(mind), your heart (spiritual/emotional) and physically(body).

 I am in the process of relearning that balance is very important. I have been working on the mental part( I am learning new stuff)  and I am in the process of training for a 5k so my body is in the physical  process but.... the heart(spiritual ) part? 

 Well I need to focus more on it. 

 Am I meeting my spiritual needs? Honestly? NO. "Well what are you going to do about it?"   I have a 3 step plan:

1: Pray

2 :Find Substitutes teachers for youth and Sunday school

3 :Find a Bible study that doesn't meet on Sundays that I can attend and learn from someone with more knowledge than me.

Ok, 4th Step - Let God figure out the rest. 

Thanks for taking a glance, I have some ideas peculating but I need to think them out some before I post them here. Hang in there.