Yet another life lesson....

This summer we went through a pretty rough time - health wise.

The mayor was scheduled to go on a missions trip to the Philippines with the high schoolers at our church. He had been planning this for about a year. Raised the necessary money, got his passport in order. Plane ticket was ordered. It was a done deal.

About 2 weeks before the scheduled trip, the Mayor started complaining of some burning feeling in his stomach. Eventually, this resulted in an unscheduled trip to the ER on a Sunday morning (aren't all ER visits unscheduled?).

While our children were in Transit, the Mayor and I 'snuck' off to the ER. Before you freak out about what a terrible parent I am, know that we made sure people were aware of what was going on. My plan was to get the Mayor checked in to the ER and then head back to church to pick up Songbird and Slugger. From there, I needed to find someone to take care of them so I could go back to the ER.

As I sat in that ER waiting room, I remember thinking 'Man, I am SO mad at the Professor for moving'. The Professor is BFF's husband and you'll remember that they moved to Iowa last year.

Why was I angry with the Professor? You see, my friendship with BFF was so secure that should this type of thing had happened while they were here, BFF and Professor would have just taken over, I would have remained at the ER and the kids would have been taken care of.

What that move did was totally push me out of my comfort zone. I knew that I could lean on BFF and the Professor, no questions asked. However, I hadn't established any other relationships remotely similar in trust.

The Mayor's health crisis forced me to step out of my comfort zone. I needed to learn that there are other people that God has placed in my life that I can trust. That are willing to step in during a time of need.

Man, what a humbling yet necessary lesson. Phone calls were made. The kids were taken care of that day and I was able to go back to the ER and hang with the Mayor until he was released.

Sadly, the Mayor still didn't make the trip. That's a WHOLE nother story!! He didn't make the trip, but we managed to utilize that time to strengthen our relationship.

I still miss BFF and the Professor. I probably will for a long time. There's a hole in our lives. We won't be able to fill that hole, but we will be able to lessen it by continuing to trust in God and the friends He has blessed us with.

So, to our friends - THANK YOU!!!!
To BFF and the Professor - WE MISS YOU!!
To the Mayor - I LOVE YOU BELOVED!!
To my Creator - THANK YOU FOR TEACHING ME!!

Many blessings,

No regrets...

When I would talk to people, I would often say that I had no regrets. That the troubles I've been through throughout my life were merely lessons that I've learned from. Part of that statement is true.

It wasn't until a friend spoke at church one Sunday talking about regrets that I had a change in mindset. You see, the troubles I've been through were mistakes. Mistakes that either I made or someone else made. God doesn't want to see us hurt or suffer. However, its through those mistakes that we can take away lessons.

I do have regrets. More than I'd like to share in a public blog at this point in time. It's how I respond to those regrets that matters.

I can choose to wallow in my regret, never moving forward in life. Always looking back saying 'I wish I didn't do that'.

OR

I can say 'Man, what a stupid mistake' and share that story in hopes that someone else doesn't make that same mistake.

Do I have regrets in life? You bet.... but I'm going to take those regrets and turn them into something great.

What will you do with YOUR regrets?

Many blessings,

Ho hum...

We're back into the swing of things.... The Mayor is back to work. Songbird & Slugger are back to school.

Songbird has begun her final year of middle school. 8th grade. I just can't believe it. She's really turning into a beautiful young woman. I see so much in store for her this year. I believe that this is when she'll find herself... her niche in this world

As for Slugger, he's started his FIRST year of middle school. 6th grade.. My baby is no longer a baby. He's become a young man. He's opted to join band this year. Not sure what instrument just yet, but his goal is to be a part of the Jazz Ensemble in 7th and 8th grade. I'll let you know how that goes.

For me, work is going great. Still have a lot to learn. Training is going slower than I want, but I am blessed beyond belief to have this job. I feel like I have a purpose in life. That my job is no longer just a JOB, but something I enjoy doing. Granted, I work 12 hour days - I actually look forward to going to work.

How are things on the home front?

In the words of Tony the Tiger - THEY'RE GREAT!

The Mayor and I are really committed to make this marriage work. And that means BOTH of us need to work at it. Communication is key. While we're probably not communicating as much as we SHOULD be, we certainly are communicating more than we had been.

Well, Pablo the beast just started barking which means the house is about to be invaded!

Many blessings,