Fun Mom...

I did something last night I hopefully will never do again.  I did it because I'm trying to spread my wings out a bit as a Mom.  Trying to maybe earn the title of "Fun Mom" one day.  For example, this Mom often says no to ice cream before dinner.  However, Fun Mom just flagged down an ice cream truck the other night in 60 degree weather to get my kids a $3.50 popsickle thing they longed for -- before dinner.  As I jokingly sped up so I wouldn't lose the ice cream truck, and took corners real fast down a deserted street, I made a memory I know my kids won't forget. All because I let them have dessert before dinner.  It was worth it.

So, last night was no exception.   After another great Thanksgiving meal at my in-laws' home, we got home around 8 o'clock.  I did my usual thing:  took my shoes off, slid my bra off through the arm of my t-shirt (come on, you've done that before, right?) and got under a warm quilt on the couch.  "Ahhhhhhhh.  Night-night time," I thought.

About an hour later, just as I was almost down for the count, my daughter's head pops over the couch.

"Mom, are you asleep?  she whispers.  "You know what I've always wanted to do?  Go shopping on Black Friday."

I mumbled, "That starts tomorrow.  And no you don't.  There's gobs of people who shop on Friday.  We'll go next week."

As I turned over to get more comfortable, that little voiced said over my head, "No, it starts tonight at midnight at the mall. "

This Mom who longs to be Fun Mom wanted to die.  I layed there hoping if I pretended I quickly fell back to sleep she would retreat back to her bed.  No such luck.

"Can we go?" she said with a hopeful voice.

After a very long pause, and I mean very long pause, I mumbled, "Yeah,"  hoping she would fall asleep before the stroke of midnight.  Again, no such luck.

OK, so if you've never ventured out into Black Friday, I will quickly tell you why you should not.  Here are my observations.

1.  I've never seen more people walk into the mall at one time than I did last night.  Picture what the parking lot would look like if Apple were giving away new iphone 5s.  Yeah, at midnight.

2.  No one looked tired.  No one!  I told Rachel that we would count how many yawns we saw while we were there.  Three!  Three yawns after midnight and after eating one of the biggest meals of the year.  My record, I think, was 97.

3.  In front of every cash register stood at least 15 to 20 people.  That was fun.  At midnight.  With the exception of the Crock store -- there was no one!  If you have stock in that company, sell now!

4.   All the stores I wanted to wander into were closed:  Anthropology, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn,  Nordstrom and See's Candy.  Hmm, no wonder I like these stores.  They're normal!!!

5.  There were no sales above and beyond the usual sales they always offer.  Not fun to find this out at midnight I might add.   

6.  Case in point.  Fun Mom said, "Rachel, I bet you want some Wetzel Pretzel bites at 1 am.  Let's go get some!"   Until we both looked at the line with 27 people in it and ended up in Godiva instead.  She got one chocolate-covered strawberry.  $7.  Yeah, apparently they weren't participating in Black Friday either.  

So at 1:17 am, Fun Mom and her daughter headed back home.  As I drove home, eyes still stinging from way too many flourescent lights on at that time of night, I dreamed of my warm quilt on my warm couch.

As I write this post at 8 am this morning (my eyes still stinging from interrupted REM sleep), someone is still out cold after a night of late-night shopping.  

But hopefully she'll wake up with a memory to last a lifetime.

Surprises and Blessings...

Well, as so many of you are cutting up vegetables and tearing up bread in preparation for tomorrow’s big feast, (I’m not -- I’m on clean-up duty!), I wanted to share a bit from a blog I follow.  It’s called bramblyhomeandgarden.blogspot.com.

“This year, Thanksgiving has special meaning for me. During Thanksgiving last year, my mother was in a coma after a horrific accident left her with a broken neck. Her doctors fully believed she wouldn't survive the first 24 hours -- they were wrong. My mom has incredible strength and has survived cancer, a broken neck and a month-long coma. Thankfully, she is spending this Thanksgiving with her family and taking on her traditional role of chief pie baker and mashed potato maker.”

This made me shake my head and say, “Amazing.”  We think we know how everything will turn out.  And often, we’re wrong.  

God knows how everything will turn out.  

Here’s to being thankful for a God who has amazing surprises up His robe’s sleeves.  

And bountiful blessings for us all.

Happy Thanksgiving!

A Divine Appointment...

Wow.  

Nothing better than witnessing something that again assures me that our Lord is alive and well.  

Case in point: 

His Flower Girls Class No. 7.

I'll do my best to share this story from yesterday's class with you.

So the night before our seventh class, three girls cancelled.  One had a sinus infection, one had sick kids, and one had a fever.  Because we only hold these classes once a month, it bothered Donna and I that three seats would go unfilled.  So we started making a few phone calls.  Not much luck at 9 o'clock at night.  You women are busy on Thursdays!

Yesterday morning before the class, one of my friends who was coming asked if she could invite someone.  I said absolutely.  She asked me to email her the invitation so she could email it to her friend.

When Donna arrived, we chatted about the class being small this month.  Donna said, "Don't think it matters.  I bet you this will be an amazing class."

Uh, she was right.

As we were all seated in the family room, Joy (our fourth student) arrived.  As she put her purse down, she went to grab her Bible.  Donna told her, "Oh, you won't need that.  Just grab your camera if you have one.  You might want to take pictures."  I saw the look on Joy's face that said, "What?  What will I be taking pictures of?  What are we doing here today?"

So let me give you a little background.

Joy woke up yesterday morning.  During her quiet time with God, she thanked Him for bringing Melinda into her life (our third student who invited her).  She asked God to allow her to find some time to spend with Melinda.  Just then the phone rang.  Melinda (out of the blue) calls Joy to ask her if she'd like to join her at a friend's house for a few hours.  She said something like, "Come with me for some fellowship with some great ladies and have lunch."

Well, Joy jumped at the chance because all she really wanted to do was spend some time with Melinda.   

As we began our class, I noticed that while I was sharing how grateful I am that God is using my passion for Him and my love for decorating with others, that Joy reached for a Kleenex.  A few hours later, while Teri was speaking about how she loves to help women organize and decorate their homes so that they too can open up their homes to others, Joy was again moved to tears.  

She then explained to us that she had been on her knees that morning right before Melinda's call asking the Lord to help her 

transform her home.  She wanted to be able to feel comfortable opening it up and having people over.  To lead Bible studies.  To share her faith.  But this is something she has prayed long and hard for -- with no answer. 

Until yesterday.

Here's a snippet from the email I received from Joy this morning:

"God divinely planned this day...Nov 15th, 2012... for me to be in your HOME!  I have never been so inspired and "blown away" by God's way of answering my heart's prayer for Him to provide for me to begin transforming my home. (I prayed literally crying out to Him at 8:20 am for Him to please SEND help soon!)

He orchestrated every detail of this day for me to be at your home (without me even knowing what was to take place -- a decorating class!)  And then while at your home, he literally sent to me the help I've been praying for -- Teri! Even though I had never met her before, I had to give her a hug right away when I saw her out of gratitude to God for the gift of sending her in answer to my prayers."

Ok.  A few more tidbits of info:

1.  I had forgotten to invite Teri to our class.  Even though she's a regular now, I had forgotten to mention it to her.  Chemo brain + age = bad memory.   She was already scheduled to work with a new client, but was able to change it at the last minute and pop in just long enough to teach and serve us tea.

2.  Joy never received the email/invitation that I had forwarded to my friend that morning so she could forward it to her.  She had no idea she was walking into a decorating class!

3.  Another woman had popped in to our class, even though she had already attended a previous one.  Funny thing, though, is that Teri wasn't a part of our class back then and had never met her before. But tears flowed as this woman spoke honestly about needing Teri's help to de-clutter parts of her beautiful home.  Again, another divine appointment.

So as my partner Donna said before the class began, "This one's gonna be a good one."  
She was spot on.

As the last girl left and the door was closed behind her, I looked at Donna and said, "I need a nap."  We both agreed that we were emotionally drained from seeing God's handiwork unfold in my family room.  

And I share this story with y'all (hee hee!) to again remind you that the God of our universe hears and answers prayer.  He may not move immediately.  He's not a genie in a bottle.  But as you spend more time with Him, and give Him your heart and ask for His will to be done in your life, you will be blown away by His handiwork.  He orchestrates details to utter perfection.  
That's His gift -- just one of many.

And look how He answered a cry for help regarding a house.  To help decorate it, for organizational help.  You may not even think to ask for prayer for such a thing.  But Joy did.  

Bring every care of yours to Him.  Find the time to say, "Lord, I give this burden to You.  I need your help.  I know I can trust You.  Always.  Help me with this.  I don't want to do it by myself anymore.  Help me find quiet time every day to be with You.  To share my fears, my anxieties and my worries with You.  For in exchange, you will give me peace that surpasses all understanding.  And in my quiet time, I will be able to hear and follow you. 

 In Jesus' name, Amen."

Answer to prayer trumps a good decorating class anyday!
However, let us know if you'd like to join us.  We'd love, love, love to have you!

Older and Wiser...

Well, today this girl turns 46.  I’m the baby of the family (I have two older sisters -- but I won’t say how much older).   And it’s weird when the baby is 46 years old.  Yeek.  But I’ll tell you something, given my latest challenge, this girl isn't gonna complain about getting older!  Bring it on!  Wrinkles, double chins, bat wings and all!

I lost one of my best friends at the age of 39.  He was a father to four great kids.  We had grown up next door to each other and had remained great friends for all those years. I loved him dearly.  A few months later, I turned 40.  Friends asked me if I had a problem with turning the big 4-0.  “Nope, grateful to be alive and a Mom,” was my answer.  Forty shmorty.  Numbers mean nothing to me.  In fact, I can never remember how old I am anyway, so it doesn’t really matter. 

So this morning, I woke up and went on a walk with my daughter up to the Coffee Bean.  This old lady is trying desperately to exercise every day and eat better.  Not always successful, but I'm trying.  On the way home, I listened to Pandora.  Know of this?  It’s fantastic!  It’s an app you get on your iphone and once you type in a song you like, it automatically plays other similar songs -- for free!   So Rachel typed in one of my faves, “Who Am I?" by Casting Crowns and then a few songs later, up came “While I'm Waiting“ by John Waller.  I’d never heard of it before.  It’s now my favorite.   Give it a listen.  

The chorus is the best.

And see the picture above?  I took it while walking home.  Two little sticks crossed on the sidewalk to remind me of how much I love the Lord and how much he loves Me.  Too sweet.

So I wanted to share something with you.  
Two days from now will mark my three-year anniversary of living with cancer.  It’s amazing.  It feels as if I’ve had it my whole life, in some weird way.  And I'm so grateful of how things have changed because of this diagnosis.  So grateful.  I wouldn’t take my old life back for nothin’!  

Here's why:

I feel more alive than ever before.  Even though I have toxic medicine running through my veins, I've never felt better. 

 I cry at the drop of a hat.  And rarely tears of sadness.  God’s love and goodness are so clear to me now that it makes me cry like a baby.  In fact, I just recently bought a travel-sized package of Oil of Olay make-up removers to keep in my car because that’s where I do most of my crying.  I have to remove the mascara marks that run through my blush and then reapply it again.  But that’s OK.   

I feel closer to God than ever before.  He has clearly shown His love for me through these challenging days.  That blows me away.  Every. Single. Time.  

I now get what's important and what's not important.  

And for a girl who has wasted her days with unimportance
 (a lot!), I cherish this new life with such a new outlook.

And finally, I begin my days with:

Before cancer, a good day used to be filled with stuff.  Stuff that wasted my time.  Stuff that meant nothing.  Stuff that made me lose sight of what was important.  Now, my days are filled with meaning.  Serving others, helping others.  And growing.  All I want to do is grow in my faith. 

  But please don't read into this that ALL of my days are filled with serving others.  Just ask my husband.  :)

So in closing my post today, I just want to thank all of you for the many birthday texts and emails I have received.  In fact, I just got a phone call a second ago from my favorite florist, The English Garden.  They wanted to schedule a flower delivery for this afternoon.  Be still my heart.  

You guys bless me more than you will ever know. 

And as they say in the South, I love ya’ll!
Oh, and before I forget, we found out last week that my new regimen is working.  My tumor markers are down 50%!

Jesus at Goodwill...

So as I ran over this morning to pick up the paper I had ordered to make more cancer necklaces, I couldn’t resist popping into the Goodwill next door.  Remember, I need to get my exercise.  :)

Well, low and behold, look what I found!  A brand new Jesus Calling book.  My fave.  For $2.49!  I buy these daily devotionals in bulk and give them out like Halloween candy.  Costco is even carrying them now.  I recently wrote the manager and thanked him for stocking it.  Never heard back, but that’s OK.  I’m a big believer in writing to people and thanking them for something they’ve done for you.   I needed to thank Costco because they carry the book for $7.99 and I was paying over $13 a book with shipping. 

So on the way home, I was thinking how fun it was to find this book at Goodwill, and then I thought, how sad is it that I found this book at Goodwill.  It was brand new.  The spine hadn’t even been cracked open.  They have no idea what they gave away.  So sad.

You see, this little book is just so precious to me.   Can you imagine having the opportunity of meeting Jesus at Starbucks for just 10 minutes before running errands and hitting the pilates studio?  What would He say to you in 10 minutes outside under the umbrella table?  How would He tell you that He adores you over a grande drip with cream and no sugar?  What nuggets of wisdom could he in part to you while eating a cake pop?   (Go on, admit it - you’ve eaten one or two of those yummy things before!)

Let’s say you met up with Him on September 1st.  He would have told you this:

“Seek Me with your whole being.  I desire to be found by you, and I orchestrate the events of your life with that purpose in mind.  When things go well and you are blessed, you can feel Me smiling on you.  When you encounter rough patches along your journey, trust that My light is still shining upon you.  My reasons for allowing these adversities may be shrouded in mystery, but My continual presence with you is an absolute promise.  Seek Me in good times; seek Me in hard times.  You will find Me watching over you all of the time.”

Maybe a month or so later, on October 17th, He'll split a blueberry oat bar with you.  He would have shared this little tidbit with you:

“Anxiety is a result of envisioning the future without Me.  So the best defense against worry is staying in communication with Me.  When you turn your thoughts toward Me, you can think much more positively.  Remember to listen, as well as to speak, making your thoughts a dialogue with Me.”

Good stuff.  It’s like Tuesdays with Morrie.  Only it’s every day with Jesus.  I think that’s better.

So the next time you’re buying way too many beef taquitos at Costco, maybe head on over to the book department and spend the best $7.49 you’ll ever spend.  

P.S.  I spent a whopping $9 on all of these books at Goodwill:  

God's Promises & Answers

The Life of Jesus (I promise to read this!)

Married for Life, and

The Greatest Sailing Stories Ever Told (not for me).

Hi Ya'll!

Well, we are home!

And all I want to say is "Ya'll!"  

"Ya'll want breakfast?  Ya'll want to help me take these suitcases upstairs?  Ya'll want to go on a walk later?"

This California girl wants to be a Southern girl!

And as soon as I'm done blogging, I'm going on Netflix and ordering the movie “Steel Magnolias” for Rachel to watch.  Because for the last seven days, I've felt as if we've been in it!

The cast of characters include Sandy and Cheryl (Donna’s funny and sweet Southern sisters), “Nanny” (Donnna’s momma who I can barely understand as she’s as original as they come!) and all their Southern girlfriends who say, “Y’all,” “Fixin’” and 

“Kee-yute!” (Californian for “cute.”)

Our days were spent shopping, shopping and shopping.  Poor Rachel, I’m sure, wanted to pull out her eyeballs and throw them in a tree.  But between the antique stores and the boutiques, we were treated to a good ol’ hometown Friday night football game (go North Hall Trojans!) and met so many of their dear friends.  One in particular, a beautiful woman named Jane, lived in a 10,000 square foot to-die-for Southern home.  It was filled with everything we buy at antique stores, but every item actually belonged to her family. She had her "Gran-Gran's" childhood books, tables and reading glasses.  Jane was the quintessential Southern lady who I just fell in love with. 

 We also spent our time getting to know Sandy’s three handsome boys.   They have been beautifully raised as the perfect Southern gentlemen.  And yes, they're all available ladies!  (Well, Matt is only 15 so I'm hoping he and Rachel may have a future one day!)  And I just l-o-v-e-d hearing their deep-voiced Southern drawl when they said, “Yes, Ma’am.”  I ate that up I tell ya!  Is it too late to teach my kids to say that to me? Or to teach Ed?  :)

At night, I found myself in a sweatshirt walking around Sandy’s neighborhood.  Picture Sherwood, but affordable!  As soon as I would be alone, the tears would just sting my eyes as I was just so grateful to be on this trip.  My body feels great, I’ve had no side effects from this new chemo regimen and my feet have always wanted to walk on Georgia soil.  To put it simply, it was seven days of pure joy.

However, on the fifth day of our trip, I experienced joy times a trillion!  Yes, I said a trillion!  For that is the day we drove to Dunwoody, Georgia to the First Baptist Church of Atlanta to hear my boy Dr. Charles Stanley preach.  Can I just tell you that I was freaking out!  With a capital F!  When I heard him preaching in the 9:00 service (we had arrived early for the 10:30 service), I could not believe that he was actually there.  Or that I was actually there!  Hearing his voice.  In person.  Not through a car radio.  Not on my bathroom radio.  Unreal.  And when we sat down in the sixth row, front and center, and he came out to sit down while the choir sang, I just about died.  I could not wipe that giddy smile off my face.   And his sermon was on “Your Constant Companion” (the Holy Spirit) and the Gifts of the Spirit.  I ate up every single word of it.

Had I had a chance to speak with Dr. Stanley, I would have told him that his words have impacted my life greatly since my cancer diagnosis.  “Obey God and leave all the consequences to Him” you know is my favorite.  I also love, “Fight all your battles on your knees, and you’ll win every time.”   We all agreed that from the moment he spoke, we all felt such comfort.  And by the way, he said “Now watch this” seven times -- I made tally marks on my church bulletin.  I will frame that.

And want to hear a great story?  At the beginning of summer, I wrote an article to submit to the Guideposts writing contest.  Twelve winners were going to be selected to win an all expense-paid trip to Washington over October 15th through the 19th.  I had finally condensed my cancer journey into a 1,500-word article that I actually thought had a chance of winning.  I printed it out, addressed the envelope, put a lot of postage on that big envelope and then let it sit on my desk.  “Lord, is this where you want me to be on October 15th?” I asked.  Never having peace with sending it, I missed the deadline and tucked it away.  Notice the dates I’ve been in Georgia?  I think there’s something to this thing called obedience!  :)

On our way back to the airport, we spent a few hours in downtown Atlanta.  We walked through Olympic Park, saw the CNN and American Cancer Society buildings, and had a great time at the Georgia Aquarium.  And no shopping -- it was a good day for Rachel!

So these past seven days have just been a dream come true.  We were surrounded by Southern hospitality, gorgeous scenery and great food.  I didn’t pass out any cancer necklaces, but I did leave one for a Georgia artist who is known by the locals as “cap man” as he nails an old bottle cap on to every piece of art work he completes.  He also has nailed over 100,000 old bottle caps onto his truck.  If anyone deserves the name “cap man,” I think this guy does.

So here are just a few of the highlights from our trip...

Our first night in North Carolina making s’mores and wearing matching pjs to celebrate Rachel’s 11th birthday.

One of many steeple churches.  My favorite thing to see!

A country club in North Carolina.  I don’t golf, but I would certainly learn to play here!

One of the charming homes in Sandy’s neighborhood. 

 It's so not a cottage, but I'll take it!

A sweet ol’ boy named Bucky Jones who greets people in a furniture store.  I needed to love on this boy ‘cus I missed my own!

One of the cute bathrooms in the Southern Living Idea House...

My favorite photo of Rachel and I outside the cute stores in North Carolina.  They're all decorated with mums and pumpkins...

An amazing old Southern home on Green Street...

And leaving the best for last...

Us girls standing in front of Charles Stanley’s church.  

We made it!!!

Thank you, Lord, for a very special trip.  And thank you to Donna’s family for welcoming Rachel and I with open, lovin' Southern arms!

Be Still...

So a few months back, my husband and I were having dinner with friends.  The question was asked, “What living person would you most love to have dinner with?”

Well, given my very bad memory (despite chemo), I can’t remember any of the names that were mentioned that night.  But I do remember who I said I wanted to have dinner with.

“Charles Stanley.”  

Given that our friends are Jewish, they both said, “Who?”  Some hot guy in a band, a gorgeous actor?  Nope.  Just an old pastor out of Georgia who I’ve loved for some time now.  You can catch him on tv and he’s on the radio every morning at 9:30.  I try and stay home ‘til he’s done preaching, or I’ll sit in my car til 10 a.m. in a parking lot.  I just love the guy.

So this morning’s message is something I want to share with all of you.

He spoke about “being still” -- my motto for the past five years of my life.  “Be still and know that I am God.”  (Psalm 46:10) He broke down that succinct scripture beautifully in 22 minutes.   As only he can do.  I love when he says in his Southern drawl, “Now watch this...”  Oh, I’m watchin’, Charles!  (Does anyone call him Chuck, I wonder?)  I doubt it.  

But if any of you wonder how a mom with cancer can see this  as a gift, then I thought by hearing his message, it may help you figure me out a little better.  Most importantly, it may help you ride out a storm in your own life with peace that surpasses all understanding.  Got 22 minutes?  I so hope so!

So here’s his link:  

http://www.intouch.org/broadcast/audio-archives.

  When you get there, click on Radio.  Then click on Radio Archives.  Then click on today’s broadcast, 

                    “Confidence in the Midst of Distress.”

And just to let you know, Donna, Rachel and I are headed to Georgia in two weeks.  The girl (me) who has issues with flying, just booked 4 flights to and from Georgia (notice I didn’t say direct flights!) to spend a week with Donna’s family and friends.  And guess who cannot wait to sit in church and listen to Charles Stanley speak?  Me! Me! Me!  Donna texted me last Sunday and wrote, “Guess who turned 80 today!?”  And I said, “He better not die or retire by next month, or I’m gonna’ kill him!”

So please find 22 minutes to be still today or tonight.  Then  listen to his beautiful message about truly being still...