That And This

Someone asked what our favorite day of the week was. Mine is Thursday. You know how you reach the very top of a roller coaster in the first car and that car briefly peaks over the top before falling quickly to the bottom of the hill? That's my Thursday. Monday through Wednesday is the clankity-clank up the hill, Thursday is my peak and the excitement of what is coming and Friday through Sunday is the speed and excitement of the rest of the ride.

Friday is the loop you've been waiting on. You know, the one you see as you enter the amusement park and think to yourself, "I gotta ride that!"

Saturday is the unexpected turns and twists you had no idea were coming, but thoroughly enjoy nonetheless!

And Sunday are those last few exciting hills that bring you to the end of the best ride ever!

Yeah...Thursday is my favorite day. The peak. Because I know the rest of the ride is what it's all about!

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We had a good day today. Justin had his long day at the college and we had a pretty fair day of homeschooling. Things seemed to go smoothly.

I started supper, but Hannah took over when Bruce announced he wanted him and me to take his mom out for supper. It was a blessing treating both my parents and my mother-in-law to dinner out this week.

Hannah made BBQ pork ribs and I'll admit that, although, I ate my share at the Asian Buffet, I still tried her BBQ when I got home and it was GOOD! She also made some chocolate, peanut butter chip cookies. They were different, but they were good too. She's quite the cook, my little Banna.

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Have you been watching the Olympics? I've enjoyed it, myself. But is it just me, or has there been an unusual amount of drama this year? People dying, feelings of being jilted out of a medal, whole teams being disqualified because they cheated, rival countries making those representing them feel inadequate if they lose to the other country, skiers losing their chance at their medal because they got the raw end of the rules....It's been a crazy winter Olympics.

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I read a blog post today on Michael and Debi Pearl. I've never really DISliked what the Pearls had to say, but I certainly do not hang on every word they say either. And I think they are on the extreme side as far as discipline. I think the Bible should be our final authority in everything, including raising our children. I just want to say that if you read and try their parenting advice, remember that we should emulate Jesus Christ in our parenting. Show mercy from time to time. It's like I told someone this afternoon, sometimes showing mercy teaches a greater lesson to a child than discipline itself. I'm not saying we should NEVER discipline our children. Of course we have to. But sometimes God shows us mercy when He really should just let us have it.

I guess the whole point of this is, just be careful of the advice you seek and take from other people. Pray for discernment no matter who you're reading from.

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Tomorrow we'll be heading down the roller coaster hill into that loop by going on a date. I do love going out with my darlin'. He's so wonderful! Can't wait to hold his hand and look into those sweet eyes of his. I do love that man.

Surgery Next Week

Mom and dad saw the Vascular surgeon in Charlotte today. Daddy will be having surgery next week on one of his corotid arteries and then thirty days later he will have surgery on the other.

Thank you for praying for daddy and please remember my mom. She's feeling very stressed right now. Lord willing they will both be able to get some rest tomorrow.

OW! and an Update on Dad

Sunday night after church Bruce gave Justin some money to pick up a couple of pizzas from Pizza Hut. When Justin came home we all sat down to eat. All of the sudden there was a loud crack from across the room. I looked up to see Bruce spitting his pizza back onto his plate. I said, "DID YOU JUST CRACK A TOOTH??" He sat there a minute feeling inside of his mouth and said, "I sure did." And boy, did he!

There was a very small pork bone in one of the sausages and when he bit down, it cracked his molar right in half. Needless to say, he ended up at the dentist Monday afternoon.


These tools were laying out when I went back to sit with Bruce. These type of tools scare me. LOL I don't like these tools.


Dr. Howard has been seeing Bruce since he was a kid. He was a really nice man. I liked him a lot. His staff was very sweet also. And I absolutely loved their office and rooms.


Bruce was doing great as they ended up extracting the tooth. He had some other options, but they were going to include $3,000 and an oral surgeon. YIKES!

When I saw Dr. Howard pull this tool he's holding out of its package, I got the heebie-geebies and questioned whether or not I should be in there. Things like this are not something my stomach can handle. I don't even like to see my children wiggle a loose tooth. Grosses me out!

Alas, the extraction was a success. :) Yep, that's one tooth. The piece in the middle has little horns, if you look closely. Those are the nerves.

And lest anyone think we are upset at Pizza Hut, we really are not. These things happen and we will be ordering pizza from them again. However, we did run into Wanda from the children's dentist's office and she told us they've had several of these cases come in from Fatz, from where people have ordered their hamburger steak. So this has made us decide that we won't be eating any kind of ground meats when we're out. If this had happened at Pizza Hut we would have insisted that they take care of it. Personally, I don't believe we would have had to insist. But since it was take out and happened here at home, well, you can't really do anything about that. We're just thankful that we have dental insurance and that the Lord knew about this little incident long before we did!

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And as an update on daddy, Bruce and I did meet them at the Sanger Clinic today for daddy's stress test. We actually got there just minutes before they finished up. He'll see the vascular surgeon tomorrow afternoon and we should know more then. Daddy came out of the stress test very hungry and so was mom, so we took them out to eat at the Western Sizzlin'. We all enjoyed it very much and, of course, we had a good time. However, none of us ordered anything with ground meat. :)

A Go, Go, Weekend!

I've said several times that we've had a lot of visitors coming, new members joining, and new converts. This week, Brother Dusty came back to Faith. We were all happy to see him come "home"!


Marigrace was playing on her daddy's lap. She's so cute and sweet. She gets that from her mommy. :)


We had a very unusual evening service. A lot of things I could tell you, but I don't really even know how. All I can say is the Holy Ghost was there and this young man came forward to be saved.

It was a GREAT Sunday and I'm looking forward to another great week. God is good and He does supply us with our needs. Both physical and spiritual.

Mrs. Ava had a lunch for the Widows and Widowers of our church today. It was blessing to be a part of that and help bring some smiles to their faces. They had a really good time and so did I! Our Senior Saints are special people. I hope you get to know the seniors in your church. They'll be a blessing, I'm sure of it!

I never did go home today. After the lunch, Mrs. Ava dropped me out at the church to wait until choir practice. I played the piano for a little while and then used Harrison's jacket as a pillow and took a nap on a pew until I was awakened by Mrs. Carolyn and Mrs. Tammy. It was actually a pretty good nap.

Saturday we went to a youth meeting at Morris Memorial, Brother Chris Emory's church. I've only ever seen Brother Emory and I don't know a whole lot about him, but he was a funny guy. I'd like to hear him preach sometime. He called several preachers from the floor. I'm not sure exactly how many we heard, but I'm guessing twenty or a little more. There was good singing, great preaching, pizza, and HOME! :)

CLICK HERE FOR PICS OF THE YOUTH MEETING

CLICK HERE FOR PICS OF THE DINNER FOR THE WIDOWS AND WIDOWERS

Please continue praying for daddy and remember my mom too, please. She's really sick. She's not sure if it's her nerves or if she has a virus. The way she talked, it sounded like a virus. I hate she has it and I hope daddy doesn't get it. I know they would covet your prayers all this week as they go back and forth to the doctor.

Psalm 145:3 "Great is the LORD, and greatly to be
praised; and his greatness is unsearchable."

We Know More....and Fun Fondue!

Daddy saw Dr. Eusebio at the Sanger Clinic today. We really liked him!

Dr. Eusebio was very nice. He talked to us slowly and explained some things to us, read us the doctor's notes in daddy's charts, asked a TON of questions, etc. The nurses were wonderful!! Really, really liked this office! Dr. Eusebio got in touch with the Vascular surgeon in Charlotte and they are working on setting up his surgery. He does have more blockage than what we were told. It is actually 95% on one side and 90% on the other. Dr. Eusebio said with Plavix, we should not worry too much between now and his surgery. So, we're going to take each day as it comes until then!

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Tonight we went to The Melting Pot in Charlotte with Chris and Amanda. We had the BEST time.



Chris and Amanda are a lot of fun to be around. Mander and I think alike and can talk about everything under the sun. Chris and Bruce are both crazy and share a love for golf.


Me and my sweetheart! I just love this man!

Chris and Mander have a pretty steamy relationship too. ha!!

Our appetizers included raw veggies, granny smith apples, and bread, dipped in a combination of cheeses and garlic fondue. Mmmm!

They brought our salad out next and I really enjoyed their tangy dressing.

We all chose the same entree...shrimp, beef, and chicken, served with potatoes, broccoli, and mushrooms, to be dipped in a bouillon fondue. Yes, the meat was all raw...to begin with.

You skewer your meats and drop them in the pot. We chose the bouillon and it was so delicious. You also drop your vegetables in the pot to stew. Chris kept dropping them in and splashing himself with the hot bouillon. And Bruce left the metal spoon in the pot...which got hot. You can't take these two anywhere. I didn't leave the spoon in the pot at all. :X

And last, but not least, we ordered the white chocolate fondue and this yummy plate of bananas, strawberries, oreo covered marshmallows, graham cracker covered marshmallows, cheesecake, brownies, and pound cake. Did I forget anything?

Man, it was good! We had a GREAT time and enjoyed everything about our Melting Pot experience.

Chris and Mander....we love y'all!

We Don't Know...And Doing Fondue

They did send daddy home. We really don't know what to think because just a few days ago there was an urgency for surgery and they weren't going to let him go home until it was done. Then all of the sudden the urgency is gone. So we were very uncomfortable and confused that they did send him home. Mom dumped those doctors that are hired by the hospital and is going with the Sanger clinic, which is who we wanted in the first place. She's on her way to the hospital right now to collect his medical charts.

Sanger clinic in Charlotte was not going to be able to see him until Monday at 2:00, but with the help of some great staff at the Sanger office in Shelby and THE LORD, they are able to see him today at 1:00.

So we really don't know anything, but should know more in a few hours.

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On a more fun, lighthearted note, we have a double date tonight. We're going to The Melting Pot, which if you don't know what that is, it's a fondue restaurant. We're going with some friends and we're looking forward to that!!!!! We've been looking forward to this night for a few weeks now! I'm excited. *big cheesy grin.* Get it? Cheesy? ha

Hmph!!

I'm a little put off at what the doctors are saying about daddy now. The CAT they did on him to confirm the ultra sound showed that his left carotid was all mushy and there is some bleeding but they don't know why. Well now they want to send him home...make an appointment in their office for a stress test...come back for paper work for the surgery....and then set up an appointment for surgery. Are you kidding me?

Mom is giving them "what for" in a little bit. At least I hope she is! We'll see what happens. She's been advised by me, Mrs. Janet, and our Pastor to take him on to Charlotte if they release him regardless of how she feels. SO! We'll see what happens.


On a lighter note, we did have a good day yesterday. I picked mom up and took her Secret Pal gift to her. Just in case her secret pal is reading this, I thought you might like to see the pictures. She just LOVED her apron. She had a fit over it.


She died laughing at the coffee....I think because it's Jack Daniel's brand and she can sip on it after taking her homemade medicine. ha haaa!


And she loved her trivet. She's thinking of a place in the kitchen to hang it. Thank you, mama's secret pal, it was such a great "pick me up" for her!!

When we got to the hospital, daddy was resting from his dialysis treatment. Doesn't he look peaceful? Should have seen him later when he was all slumped over and drooling.

Mom was able to read him the little card Ally made for the two of them, using the little Valentine candy hearts. It was so precious. They both loved it.

I had stopped at Walgreens in Gastonia to pick up the picture I had developed and he died laughing over that. He thought it was really funny.

He's been eating great, but after his CAT yesterday, his vertigo kicked in and bless his heart he was sick on his stomach for a while after. So he took a few bites of his chicken, a green bean and bite off his roll and that was it for him. Before I left that evening, I made sure he had crackers, fruit, and drinks on his table in case he got hungry through the night.

I crawled in bed with him too. It was peachy warm and comfortable.

:)

My sweetie pie showed up. I really wasn't expecting him, it being church night, but he decided to come because he was afraid he wouldn't get to see daddy again before he had surgery. One of the nurses came in and she happened to be someone Bruce graduated with. So they did a little catching up.

All in all a good day. Just waiting now to see if the doctors will actually listen to my mom's concerns or if they'll send daddy home anyway.

Surgery

OK, let me explain this picture. LOL My friend, Tammy, said he looked like the pope in this picture, all wrapped up in those blankets, and all he needed was the hat. So naturally I found a picture of one on the Internet and cloned it on his head. He'll crack up when he sees this.

The results from daddy's ultra sound showed that his carotid arteries are 70% blocked. The doctors feel that surgery is necessary and is not sending him home until both arteries have been cleaned out.

It is looking, right now, that he will have the first of two surgeries Thursday. We do not know that for sure, however, he will have dialysis Wednesday (today), so I doubt they will do the surgery before Thursday. Because of dialysis on Friday, I would think they would do the second surgery between Saturday and Monday. All of this is speculation at the time. I'm sure we will know more tomorrow.

The doctor has explained that this is a serious procedure and there are complications that could easily arise. So we are much in prayer over safety.

Daddy is certainly not looking forward to this, but he knows that once he has it done he will feel so much better. His blood pressure will not go sky high, his oxygen numbers will go up, and he won't pass out any more.

There are other issues I am concerned about, but I do not think they are linked to the particular problems with his carotid arteries. I'll ask the doctor about it when I see him/her.

I plan on taking mom to the hospital sometime after lunch.

Thank you for all the prayers going up on daddy's behalf!

Back In The Hosptial

Daddy was put in the hospital Sunday morning.

On their way to church, daddy told mom he wasn't feeling right and then slumped over. Mom thought he was kidding at first and nudged him but then realized he had passed out. He woke up and passed out again. Mom, of course, pulled the car over and jumped out to get to him. Bless her heart, it terrified her. Someone passing by stopped and called 911 and he was taken by ambulance to the hospital.

Although he is on dialysis, his body is still retaining a great bit of fluid. He has shortness of breath, loss of memory, and his blood pressure has been extremely high this past week.


While visiting with him yesterday his spirits were very high. We shared a lot of laughs and hours of story telling. He's so silly. I guess that's where I get it from.


The doctors have not been able to tell him what's wrong with him, so when I found this card I had to buy it. He loved it, showing it to every person that walked in.

This morning my mom called to tell me the results of the ultra sound on his carotid arteries. His arteries have been blocked for a while, but the ultra sound has showed more damage since the last time they were checked. This would explain the lack of oxygen, which has been in the 80's, and of course the passing out and his blood pressure. There's no good blood flow there. The good news is that his MRI did not show a recent stroke. I was thankful to hear that yesterday. So right now we're just waiting on the doctors to decide what they're going to do about those main arteries. They are discussing a couple of options right now.

Please pray for wisdom and direction in their decisions.

Valentine's Banquet, 2010

The theme for our Valentine Banquet was Winter Wonderland. We had a good time with a LOT of good laughs. It was great!


Pastor Goodman gave a good sermon on LOVE and then introduced our talent for the night. We always have a skit or something going. This year we had.....


...the Joebob Brothers, who sang to us.


And also the Bluegrass group that sang some funny songs.

I still was not able to get up and take a lot of pictures as I usually do, but I did get a few. I like this picture of Joel and Pam. They look playful, don't they? :)

Brother Dusty and his friend. I can not for the life of me remember her name. But she has the sweetest smile and seems like a very sweet girl.

And I love this picture of Mrs. Linda. So pretty!!

I thought this was a good one of Ted and Rebecca too.

I liked this one of my Mander and her Chris. I think this is the nicest pic of them.

My buddy Dana and her Chris looked dashing too.

And then of course, there was Bruce and me. I love him.

Jennifer, Johnathan, and baby Owens were attendance as well.

I think this is a sweet pic of Pastor and Mrs. Ava.

Kelsey and Nathaniel were decked out in their purple and sliver.

And Bradley's Melissa was able to join us. It's always good seeing Melissa.

And let's not forget Taylor and Evan.

And of course, Evan's parents, Teresa and Greg. They are so funny. I would love to spend more time with them!

Justin invited a friend he knows through Jeremy.

I did grab a picture of Brother Wayne and Mrs. Vicky before they headed out to go home.

Here are a couple of videos of the Joebob Brothers. This was so funny...


....and little bit gross. LOL