What's Going On

If life was any busier, I think I'd forget to breathe. Heck, I think sometimes I DO forget to breathe!

First off - Lent. Wow - I started off with such great intentions and doing really well, and now I feel like I am struggling. I am focusing on the theme "Pray+Fast+Give," but I sure feel like I'm becoming more aware of how much more growing I need to do. Praise God we serve a merciful Savior.

This past week, Bill and I had the stomach flu. YUCK. And for some reason, this particular illness really frustrated me. There was so much I had planned for spring break, and so much that needed to be done. I did NOT handle it gracefully. Again, I'm thankful I can start over tomorrow.

After being encouraged by my friends, I started training for a 5K. I just have to get in shape! I've been running for more than a month, and I still can't run very far, but I think I'm improving. I'm having some serious knee pain, so that's kinda slowing me up, but it is really pretty fun to run. I've been praying for motivation to keep running, and the Lord is answering my prayers.

In the next few months, I'm hoping to finally get to go to training to become a FertilityCare Practioner with the Creighton Model of FertilityCare. I'm so excited! It will be a lot of hard work, and I hope I can handle it. Any prayers for this journey are appreciated.

Last weekend, I went to a conference to learn more about God's Plan for a Joy-Filled Marriage. It is a marriage preparation/enrichment program based on JPII's Theology of the Body as explained by Christopher West. Fabulous stuff! I was familiar with Theology of the Body, but hearing it again was great. I hope to get to work with the program more in the future.

Here's to hoping this coming week is filled with peace, health, and a big win for the K-State Wildcats! Go State!

Small Successes

So Faith and Family challenged more gals to link to the Thursday Small Successes post, so here I go. Don't mind me...I just haven't blogged in two months. I swear I will get back in the game. We only moved to a new house in those two months...no big deal. :-)

1. I have nearly finished my application for FertilityCare Practitioner training. I put together the cost analysis of different training locations, completed the app, and wrote an essay.

2. I finished all the laundry - as in the basket was empty. That never happens!

3. I made several meals out of stuff we had around rather than going shopping for easier things to make. This is more than a small success when you consider how much I HATE cooking.

New House!

We bought a house today! After much drama, we closed on a beautiful little house today. Then we moved a bunch of boxes in and realized how much work we have ahead of us. So at least I have an excuse for why I haven't been blogging. I need to add some new pics of the kiddo - she is so blessedly adorable that I can hardly stand it.

While I'm here at the computer, here are two precious children who need your prayers:

Baby Joaquin was born last week and coded immediately after being born. He was rushed to a children's hospital where he has been in critical condition. Please pray for him and his parents, Dan and Amy.

Sweet, 3-year-old Gianna (nicknamed Gigi), was diagnosed with leukemia last week - acute lymphoblastic leukemia. This has a really great survival rate, but she's looking at a minimum of 2.5 years of chemo ahead of her. Please pray for her complete healing. Her mom and dad are Laura and Cal.

Both of these couples - Laura and Cal and Amy and Dan - are relying on the strength of the Lord to sustain them. They are such a reminder to me of how precious life is and how I need to turn to God more in my everyday life. I had a priest really challenge me last week when I was in Confession, and so I've been working harder on my relationship with God lately. May He be glorified in all things, in every way.

Pray for this Sweet Boy

I need to be a better blogger. Really, I do.

Please, please, please pray for this little boy. I've been following his story for a long time, and I can't imagine how hard it is for his parents.

Please, Heavenly Father, bless this little boy with health!

http://www.mycharmingkids.net/

Baby Got Back

....a bad back, that is.

On Tuesday night, I was bending down to pick up some laundry, when pain exploded in my lower back. I ended up laying on the floor while I whimpered like my almost-2-year-old. Bill finally lifted me to my feet and I laid down in bed. I called my doctor who called in a rx for muscle relaxants.

And here I am, Sunday afternoon, and it still hurts so darn bad. Sometimes it feels okay, but only when I am laying down, which is kinda hard to do with Bridget. I wish I knew what to do to make it better. It is driving me nuts asking for help and not able to do anything.

Sitting and typing on a computer sure doesn't feel good, so this is going to be short...I'm headed back to the couch.

Post-Convention Blues

It happens every year - State FFA Convention is over and that makes me kind of sad. I never realize how much I enjoy helping with convention until it is over. We had a great time, and it never gets old. I love working with such fun people and seeing students accomplish great things. I really struggle when I see kids disappointed, but I know there's nothing I can do about that but pray that God gives them peace. But seeing the faces of the students who were elected to state office just makes me smile. Their faces just light up. I love it.

So we're back to the daily grind. I have a dissertation to edit (not mine! I'm DONE with school forever!), and Bridget has discovered a love for swimming, so we're doing that a lot. I'll start watching a little baby girl in July, so we're gearing up for that. Next weekend I'm visiting some friends in KC, then two weeks after that we'll be in Pittsburg to visit Bill's sister and bro-in-law. It will be a busy month! (And somewhere in there I'll turn 27. Oh, I feel old!)

A little better

So my little sweet pea has some sort of mouth infection. We don't know the cause, but now she's on antibiotics and she seems to feel better. The doc assured me it wasn't because of something we did, but I still feel bad, and I pray she didn't infect anyone when she thought she was feeling better.

I got to go to Confession today! Hooray for the Sacrament! Praise Jesus for His everlasting mercy and love. I love the way I feel after Confession, and I pray that God will grant me the grace to keep away from the sins that I struggle with.

Let's see - this weekend - I'm thinking of going home for the day because Bill needs a good day to work on stuff without the beautiful distraction that Bridget often provides. I asked my mom what she was doing on Saturday, and when I said we were thinking of coming down, she used this really sad little voice to say, "Come and spend the day with me." Okay.

Bill just started using a sleep apnea mask. It is a CPAP machine to keep his airway open while he sleeps. We'll see if it helps his energy level. Poor guy was waking up 40 to 80 times an HOUR because of apnea. No wonder he always feels tired. The CPAP machine is going to cost a pretty penny, but I'm just deciding not to worry about it. We've had so many unexpected bills lately - car problems, medical problems, unexpected expenses - and at first I freaked out, but what's the use of freaking out? Everything will work out. We will work hard and do what we can, and God will take care of the rest.

And now I must go. Bridget is taking everything off the desk and throwing it on the floor. Fabulous.