What else?

So Thursday morning I was eating...RED HOTS...of all things. UGH! They were delicious and I was quite enjoying myself until...I gasped, I was no longer just chewing red hots, I WAS CHEWING PART OF MY TOOTH. YUCK!

I have had plenty of teeth problems in the past and I should have known better. BUT NO, I still do things like, crunch down on chewy red hots on teeth that have already had fillings put in them. So, I went to the dentist and now I need a crown. I was still feeling comfortable with that concept because you know, I am an insurance paying citizen and I am even a smart insurance paying citizen because I have DENTAL INSURANCE!!! But wait, apparently that doesn't mean much because AFTER insurance, my balance (lucky me!) is $600. WHAT? Are you kidding me? So I left the dentist and came home cringing with the thought of having to tell my hubby, but he of course said that we didn't have a choice. That my teeth are an important investment!

I am proud to announce that I will have a crown on that back stubborn tooth as of next Friday, July 2nd!

THEN...(and please don't think I am complaining, because I AM extremely grateful for so much!!!) THIS MORNING, Brian decides that our dish washer is broken. My response of course was, "Oh, come on! Are you kidding me?" I figured that he must not know what he is doing because he had to of pushed some button that is making it act different than what he is used to. BUT...low and behold after a thorough investigation I have also come to the conclusion that our dish washer is a gonner. SIGH....

Even though these are two great expenses that are staring us straight in the face...today is a great day! In about 10 minutes, my precious nephew, Mekele (see prior posts) who was adopted from Ethiopia, is coming over to play! I get to babysit him for the first time tonight and my boys and I are thrilled beyond belief over this! It'll be a fun...definetely boy-filled evening!

OH! Our special guest just arrived!

The Goings On of....

There are so many different things going on...why is it that when summer comes and we have the greatest intentions of relaxing, having lots of "doing nothing" days...it turns out to be quite the opposite?

Brian took Brady to his 9 month check up - which was actually when he was already 11 months old, ugh! The doctor had mentioned at the 6 month check up that she was concerned about Braydon's head being tilted slightly to the left. At the "9" month check up his head was still slightly titled. In addition to the concern over his head and neck, she felt that one of his organs might have been swollen in his abdomen.

Following that check-up we went to get a sonogram to see what was going on in his little tummy. Thank goodness the results showed that everything looked normal. He may have just had poop in there...sorry for being so blunt, but it was an EXPENSIVE poop!!!! But, it is also a blessing that everything checked out!

Next stop was to the pediatric opthamologist. The pediatrician thought that maybe he was tilting his head due to an eye development issue so she wanted us to get check out by the specialist. We learned that Brady's head is not tilting due to his eyes! However, he is VERY farsighted and we have to go back in for a check-up on his eyes in December.

So, we start physical therapy on July 1st! We are praying that after the P.T. evaluation we will be told that after some excersizes that he will be cured and his head won't tilt anymore!

God has a plan, he has a reason, and he already knows how this will turn out. We still pray and we put our faith in Him and we turn our troubles over for Him to hold so that we don't have to. He is our Father in Heaven and he loves us...he does these things for us to help us get through trying and frustrating times. In the end, the only thing that will matter is being with Him, our Lord God almighty! Praise God for all of our blessings, and I pray that He continues to give us the strength and peace to get through this little journey, called life!

Planning

I am SUCH A PLANNER!!! A lot of times the actual process of planning is just as much fun to me as whatever it is that I am planning to do!!! I know, WIERD! Whether it's planning out my day with a simple "To-Do" list, a family outing, or a trip to another world, I love every minute of it!

Right now, I am planning so many different things, I am struggling to keep everything straight in my head. Not struggling in a bad way really, because like I said, I love the planning process!!! On Tuesday, I lost my calendar...which with my phone it shouldn't be that big of a deal, but you would have thought that I lost my wedding ring because of how freaked out I was! I realize this is a bit over the top for a calendar, especially when I pretty much had everything electronically saved in the trusty phone, but I LOVE having the calendar in front of me so that I can see the week and the month spread out before my eyes!

The most important and highest priority when planning is to be sure to LEAVE GOD IN CONTROL, even though it's not fun when the plans fall through, the plans as a whole mean nothing without God in the driver's seat! I didn't realize that until about 8 months ago now. December 19th to be exact! I've blogged about the significance of that day before, but that is when I realized that it doesn't matter how badly you want something or how hopeful you are, or how expectant, when it comes down to it...the only PLAN that matters is God's!

One of the things that I am planning right now, that I am overcome with excitement about is....THANKSGIVING MISSION 2010! My friends, Alex and Laura, at www.reachouthonduras.org, even posted an announcement of this event on their organization's website! There are 3 words that go along with the ReachOutHonduras logo...PRAY, GO, GIVE! Whether you have been on a mission trip before or maybe you've never been anywhere on missions, this experience is ABSOLUTELY SURE to make an impact in YOUR life.

If you are at all interested to learn more about this opportunity to serve God by reaching out to the people in Puerto Lempira, Honduras...let me know and I will get you more information!

Until then, I am praying for people to come forward to join this effort, I pray that each and every one of us recognizes who is really large and in charge! It sure isn't us!!! I pray for continued focus and awareness of the priorities and the things that are important to our Lord, not the things that I want. I pray that He gives me the continued sense of peace when I hand over the keys and get in on the passenger side for this journey we call life, because no other way that we could get to our destination is as effective or fulfilling.

Spring Break 2010 - The Journey to Puerto Lempira...

I realize that when people read blogs, they typically don’t care to read a minute by minute description of someone’s life. Rather, people like to read about the thoughts, points of view, and analysis on life, events, situations, etc. I want to blog about as much of my trip as I can…as a form of documentation for myself because as time goes by we loose so much of our short-term memory and I do NOT ever want to forget each every single special moment that Brian and I (and Team Texas!) spent in La Moskitia (Puerto Lempira, Honduras).

My first thoughts that I recorded in my journal after boarding the plane in DFW were these, “The nervousness is gone, I am completely at peace, and the excitement to serve God has completely consumed me. I can say with absolute certainty that this moment, this week is where God has been leading me. I know that THIS is what I am supposed to be doing, I know that THIS is where I am supposed to be.”

We did go through El Salvador, but it was a very short lay over and we were quickly back in the air in route to San Pedro Sula, Honduras.

The feelings I experienced after we got off the plane in San Pedro Sula were ones that I was unfamiliar with. We were trying very hard not to be the typical “American tourists”. We had to stand in line for a short time at the customs desks. It wasn’t fear…AT ALL, but it was a feeling of being careful, vigilant, and aware of my surroundings, more so than I can ever remember doing in the past. This was my first time ever to be in a foreign country, one that has a COMPLETELY different culture from what I have ever been exposed to. It was very eye-opening.

Once we had claimed all of our luggage, Alex found the driver of the shuttle to the hotel we were staying at. Our group gathered in a cluster and followed our driver out the doors, headed to the shuttle which had been parked in the parking lot. As soon at the glass doors opened and we stepped out in the darkness of night, we were swallowed by the thick, humid night air of Honduras! I can still envision the senses I paid such close attention to as I stepped through the threshold and actually took in my first look outside!

The smell was one of the first things I noticed, but as I am searching for the right words to describe it, I am at a loss. I suppose the closest description I can paint is that is was a faint burning smell. Not a bad smell, not a fruity pleasant smell, it was just different. And, I loved it! I loved that I was in a whole new world from anything I had been to, and I loved that God had called us to this country.

Once we were boarded and settled on the shuttle, I was simply along for the ride! I tried to take in as much as I possibly could of everything I could see in the limited light that shone through the darkness of night. The driving of course was completely different from what I am accustomed to!!! I tried not to acknowledge how fast we were going, and I concentrated on the giddiness I felt fluttering like butterflies in my tummy with the building anticipation of being so much closer to our final destination!

After dropping our bags in our rooms, we met in the hotel restaurant and had a great meal and an unwinding and relaxing conversation. Every one of us was completely exhausted from the day!

It was here, at the restaurant, that I looked at my husband with the look and thought of, “WHO ARE YOU!?!?” He revealed that he really does know way more Spanish than he led any of us to believe!!! I was so proud of him, and I admire his modesty! We joked that he was hiding his fluent Spanish speaking ability!!!

After leaving the restaurant, we went to the little convenience store on the hotel grounds to buy bottled water for brushing our teeth and for the next day. I chose 3 huge bottles of water and confidently set them on the counter to pay. I looked straight into the cashier’s eyes and (using my VERY limited Spanish) I asked her, “Quiero dinero?” I actually asked her this same question with these same words a total of THREE times, and the only response I got from her was a look of confusion. I began motioning at the water bottles trying to communicate that I wanted to know how much money I owed her. Brian lightly nudged my arm, stepped beside me and shaking his head, and while trying to hold back his laughter, he explained, “You just told her (the cashier) that you want money!!!” I was mortified! Of course the members of my group, Wendy and Alex who were standing right there got a HUGE kick out of this embarrassment! This became something that was brought up numerous times throughout the week and each time we all cracked up laughing! Hey, what can I say…I was making an effort and I failed miserably!

We finally got back to our hotel room at 11:00 and prepared our things for the travels we would do the next day to La Ceiba. We had to be awake, ready, completely packed, and we were meeting the group at the hotel restaurant at 7:45a.m. Needless to say, we fell asleep before our heads actually hit the pillows!!!!

I know this is an abrupt place to stop, but there will be more tomorrow!

MIA

Missing in Action -

When life is going, Going, GOing, GOIng, GOINg, GOING...it seems you can't slow down long enough to even catch your breath, but then God gives you some fresh air and all of a sudden you are able to regain your balance and stand up straight once again. That is where I am right now...standing up on two feet, able to breathe in and out and take in life as it comes with a sense of relaxation. FINALLY, but I am reminded once again how God has given me blessing so amazing and fulfilling that I cannot truly grasp how phenomenal he really is.

I title this entry, MIA, because that is what I have been. BUT, for the next 2 months, I pray that I will once again be able to get my priorities in order. Summer is sure to bring an array of possibilities!!!

And, yes...I have a list of things I need (desire) to accomplish during this resting period of the year that I am grateful to have as an educator! (For those who know me...the list is a product of my personality...I LOVE LISTS!!!)

Summer 2010:
1. BLOGGING - I hope to come back to the blogging world once again. I have so many blogger friends that I need to catch up with and I have many many things that I need to blog about for myself. First and foremost...I need to finish my blogs over the Spring Break trip to Honduras. Oh how I pray that I have not lost the emotional and heart felt words I have tried to engrave in my memory of one of the most impacting and life changing weeks of my life.

2.Bible Study - I definetely need to catch up on and complete the bible study I participated in over Daniel, by Beth Moore. I LOVED it and even though our women's group has completed our meetings, I want to go back to the daily assignments and finish the individual studies. I am looking forward to our next study, hopefully in the near future!!!

3. Organization - As much as I try to keep it all together and fulfill each of the roles I have in life, I just cannot do it all. One of the areas in my life that I need to get back in order is the organization of my home. I pride myself in being able to keep a house, my kids, soccer, church, work, marriage, and my selfish pleasures of reading and writing, but truth be told I can't keep up with it. The things that never fail to get overlooked are my house, my writing, and quality time with each of my boys, including my hubby.

4. Friends - This summer brings about many joyful memories to be had, new friendships to be made, newish friendships to be strengthed, and special special and cherished friends to say good bye to.

5. Travels - Though I do not want to spend a lot on travels this summer, I want to take the boys away for a weekend at Broken Bow for hiking, swimming, fishing, smores, playing, laughing, learning, and fellowship.

6. Saving - SAVING, SAVING, SAVING - I want to get as much money made and saved as possible! I know that money is struggle for many people, but I need to get some control over this area. I am planning TWO (2), yes TWO trips to Honduras in the next 10 months and one the 2nd one Brian and I are planning to take Mason (our 5 year old - then 6 year old) with us. So we need to be thinking passport and shots!!!!

In conclusion, this is going to be a BUSY summer, and I pray I can slow down and enjoy every second that God has granted us with over this break. I am no longer MIA, and until next time, I've missed you and I can't wait to get back in touch with the blogging world!!!

Love,
Amy