~stepmother’s philosophy in Ever After

they’re married,
and we don’t have to practice wedding music for…a long time.
it was beautiful.  very personal. 
and a good testimony of trusting in God’s plans for us and waiting on Him.
everything came off beautifully with the ceremony and reception.
old friends (and some new ones), lots of laughter, and some very good food.
we sang well, as far as we can remember.
it was even more special when we found out later that the sound system
was piping it into the wedding party’s dressing rooms.  so the
bride and groom got to hear what was basically our gift to them.
her dad said the only bad thing was that they all kept stopping preparations to listen.
that was worth everything.

the best part of the night was, i was so busy thinking about other people,
and having fun, that i didn’t even worry about how i looked.
i needed that.

and now i feel free….

God is taking care of my voice even
though I didn’t go to bed early every night, or completely avoid
sugar. 
(thanks for praying)
And Stacy is making me a skirt to wear for the wedding.
She just…came up with it. 
I’m impressed.

rehearsal tonight

wedding tomorrow

i’m feeling distinctly un-stressed
and i think that’s worrying my sisters.

Ya’ll, pray for my voice?  It
seems to be taking a while
to recover from that crazy weekend. 
Overtired-ness
always seems to equal a bit of dehydration for me. 

I’m supposed to be able to sing beautifully on Saturday
with
my sisters.  Right now my singing voice sounds very
small…
*grin*  I know, I know–that sounds funny.  But, hey, it’s accurate!

sleep!  beautiful, elusive sleep!

i didn’t know i could push myself that hard 
yikes!
it was crazy
but it was worth it

i keep waiting for life to slow down
maybe after the wedding
summer actually seems like it might be
a break, for the first time in my life

~ my parents were married 29 years ago yesterday~
dad’s getting mom carpet for the stairs and hall for anniversary and mother’s day 

it was nice to be home all day
play games with my family
hug on my Gracie
marvel over Dad’s hamburgers and steaks
watch the cold front approach
make jokes with my cousin
hug on Gracie some more
(she’s amazing at ‘gestures’)

the best part of life right now is
i feel rested.
peace.
God.

We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in
despair;  persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—
2 Cor. 4: 8-9

is pain bad?

it makes  me….

~appreciate normal life, a life without any real pain
~be glad for work to do when I get better…it’s more fun to feel strong when you can work hard than otherwise
~appreciate help, and learn how to ask for it humbly
~remember to save asking for help for when I really need it…I don’t want to be known as a whining wimp
~just think…my family will be thrilled when I’m able to do all my own work again!
~now I have time for other things, like maybe more quiet time with God

Yes, it’s inconvenient.  I’m missing out on the beach (my
favorite thing in the summer) right this minute.  It makes me feel a bit useless at times.  It hurts
(hello!–it’s called ‘pain’).

C.S. Lewis said pain is a tool God uses to make us grow.  I usually think of emotional pain
in that case, but physical pain can do the same.  You learn to see
things from a different perspective.   You learn to be
thankful for little things, and big ones.

So, maybe I want to be made whole.  I like having my body work
properly.  But maybe I should just take this for what it is…a
chance to learn something.  A chance to grow up.

Gracie can’t say “Scott” so she calls  him “Hot.”

(Scott is our almost seventeen-year-old brother.)

ever notice the many ways God takes care of you?

sometimes it’s the big things, like keeping you out of the path of a tornado by giving you a slow waitress (or cook) at Denny’s.
sometimes it’s the tiny things, like sending help at just the right moments when you’re babysitting in a strange hotel.
and sometimes it’s just things at home, in your family…so personal that no one else would get it.

obvious (and not so obvious) “God moments”

i’ve had a lot of those lately.
was i just not looking before?

how has God cared for you lately?