Running Early

Why is it that whenever I find myself running early while getting ready to go somewhere, I almost inevitably end up late anyway? Today I went to the gym for a quick workout knowing I needed to hurry to make it to my doctor appointment on time. I got home about the time I had expected and jumped (well, stepped gingerly actually...I wouldn't want to fall) in the shower.

While in the shower I looked at the clock to see if I had enough time to shave my legs. To my surprise, I had almost 20 whole minutes until I needed to be getting into my car. So I went ahead and shaved. I got out of the shower and was still a few minutes ahead of time. I finished getting ready, put Simon out in the dog run, and got in the car.

I was somehow running 10 minutes behind. WHAT? How did that happen? And then a fire engine came along just as I was going to make the short light getting onto the main road I needed to be on. Another 3 minutes waiting for the next light. Seriously, what's the deal?

Oh well, I ended up walking into the doctor's office only 3 minutes late because parking was easier than I had expected.

My First Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read her story.

As for me this week, here are a few things I did NOT do...

On Sunday morning I was not running late. And since we were not already going to be late, I certainly did not open up my laptop to see how Stellan's night went. I then did not thank God that he had been out of SVT all night and had a good EKG.

When a student in my class stuck a pencil up his nose, I did not stand by and watch. And when he pulled it out and his nose started bleeding and he started crying hysterically I most definitely did not have zero sympathy because he had done it to himself.

After coming home from the gym one night I did not eat a giant bowl of ice cream to make up for all of the calories I had not just worked off.

When our puppy Simon did not decide to eat a hanging plant that I had not put on the lawn to water, I did not give in and let him destroy the whole thing and eat the pot too.

Last night when I got in the shower I did not realize that I had used up the last of my body wash and contemplate using my husband's Old Spice brand. I did not then decide otherwise and hop out of the shower, dripping all the way to the sink to grab a new bottle.

And I did not check MckMama's blog while at work. Then I did not get super duper excited, I did not get chills, and I most certainly did not praise Papa when I heard that he has not been discharged from the hospital and is not going home tomorrow.

Nope, Not Me!

It Finally Happened

Stellan is going home! Stellan, aka MckMuffin, the youngest of MckMama's MSC (many small children), or that baby with the heart problem that I've been praying for, is doing much better. I am so thankful for what a big God we have. Papa truely does love us and listens to our prayers. Stellan was discharged from the childrens hospital in Boston this afternoon and will be flying home tomorrow.

He will still need to be watched carefully for some time but his little heart is responding well to the surgery and the new medicines. MckMama and MckMuffin will be back home in the Rainy Tundra tomorrow where she can once again snuggle her entire brood of MSC all at once. God has done and will continue to work amazing change all over the world because of this little boy and his family.

Thank you Papa for answering our prayers and may you continue to keep Stellan's little heart healthy. Give him and his whole family rest and ease the transitions they are about to encounter. To You be the glory for the miracle of this little boy!

Progress Can Be Hard to See

A few weeks back, my husband and I joined a gym. Well more accurately, he joined the gym and asked if I wanted to get a membership for just a bit more per month. My sister-in-law just ran a marathon and I'd been contemplating a 5K to give myself a goal to work toward. The only problem is that I HATE running. With a passion.

I wasn't sure if I'd use the gym membership, but I thought I'd give it a shot for a month and see if I could make it part of my routine. And the bonus with the gym was that I could do something besides run. Have you ever been on an elliptical machine? Those things are so cool. It's like running but totally not at all the same. I used to use one all the time when I went to a gym in high school.

Anyway, I've been going about three times a week for about three weeks now and I was starting to get discouraged. The number on the scale was supposed to be going down with all this hard work. Instead, I got on the scale this morning and I had gained two pounds. Grrr I've even done strength training the last three times I've gone.

Then I realized, working out is a lot like my journey with Papa. Things are changing and I am growing whether I can see the results or not. Today, while not easy, I actually ran most of a mile on the treadmill after having done a lower body weight routine and 15 minutes on the elliptical. If I had tried three weeks ago to do that, I probably would have come close to passing out.

Likewise, it is easier to talk to Papa today than it was a few weeks ago. Both my physical and spiritual muscles are growing despite the lack of obvious external signs. But I pray that if you were to take a look at me a few months from now, you would be able to see forward progress. And in that hope, I will continue to push myself to the gym a few times a week and spend time talking with Papa even when I can't see the results in the numbers on the "scale".

Learning to Rest

Have you ever walked outside on a beautiful day and just stopped to take it all in? Have you ever then thought about the fact that 9 times out of 10 you totally miss those moments of beauty?

I'm currently sitting outside on my back patio soaking up the beauty that Papa has made. The sun is shining but it's not too hot. There is a nice breeze rustling through the trees and it is making my favorite wind chimes sing to me. Simon* is running around the back yard enjoying the freedom to roam the whole back yard playing with sticks and grass and a plastic bottle. I am sitting in the shade and resting in the peace.

*Simon is our boxer puppy who is usually confined to the dog run when not inside with us.

It is here in the quiet still moments that Papa and I sit and talk.

"Good morning, kiddo. Thanks for coming out here to sit with me. Look at what I've made for you today. Do you see it? Do you see how much I love you?"

"Thank you Papa. It's beautiful. I'm sorry I don't thank you for it more often."

"Shh, my child. Just enjoy it now. That is enough. Just rest here with me. That is what I desire."

"But Papa, I..."

"Shhh...just rest."

Where to start?

Well, I guess the beginning would be good, but I don't feel like writing out my whole life story tonight. You'll just have to wait for that. For now, you get the basics and few random facts about me.

- I am 26 years old and my husband rarely lets me forget that he is 14 months younger and therefore closer to 20 than I.

- I have been very happily married for just over two years. Being married is the best thing that has ever happened to me.

- We just bought a 5 bedroom house so that we will have plenty of room for all of the kids that we don't yet have.

- I plan to cloth diaper, breastfeed, and babywear all of said, as of yet unborn children.

- I reserve the right to change any and all opinions on parenting once I'm actually a sleep deprived, hormonal, emotional basket case of a mother.

- I have the most amazing church family I could ever ask for.

- In real life, I tend to be a bit anti-social and am self conscious in big groups.

- I love to write and used to write poetry and short stories all the time. I don't know exactly how I fell out of the practice, but I miss it. Maybe this blogging thing will rekindle my love of writing.

- And speaking of exactly, I get made fun of for pronouncing the t in exacTly all the time. And apparently I say costume wrong too, more of a ch instead of a t.

So now you know a few pertinent details and a few extraneous ones. (Yes, I am also the kind of person who uses words like pertinent and extraneous in real life. I enjoy the nuances of our language immensely.)

What on Earth?

I've known about blogging for almost as long as blogs have been around. My computer savvy brother told me about them long ago and has a few himself. He even helped me set one up several years ago to chronicle my treatment of Lyme disease. I think my grand total posts for that one before its demise, however, was in the single digits. So what on earth, you may ask, has prompted me to start a new blog?

The answer to that is nothing. Well, nothing on earth, that is. God has recently used the blogs of two women and their families (MckMama and Angie) to stir my heart. It has also gotten me thinking about how I could use a blog to share the journey He has for me. I'll tell you right now, though, it's a bumpy road and I can't tell you where it'll take me along the way but I don't mind traveling companions.

I don't know if tomorrow will bring laughter or tears. I don't know if I will resist the next temptation that comes my way. I'm not sure when I will next be putting my foot in my mouth and apologizing for saying something unkind. I don't know if this blog will ever even be read.

So what do I know? I know that my traveling guide on this journey called life is the King and Creator of the Universe. He has a plan and a purpose for my life. He is also known as Abba Father or as I like to call him, Papa God. And He loves me.