Prayer for Safe Travel

We leave in the morning with our BFs for York Beach, Maine.  Please pray for travel mercies, as we will have driven around 3,000-3,500 miles by the time we return.

Thanks!  Blessings to all…..

June 25, 1998

Dear Mama,

It doesn’t seem like 10 years have past since you ended your long fight with cancer.  Some days it seems longer; some days, it seems like yesterday.  I remember every detail of that morning, just as it was yesterday.  There are so many things I want to tell you.  Actually, there is 10 years of catching up to do.  I don’t think there would be enough paper and ink for me to write down everything.  I miss you so much.  I miss talking to you, I miss asking for your advice.  And oh, how I have needed it.  I hate it that you didn’t get to meet your grandchildren, all 5 of them.

Sis moved away the year after you left and she hasn’t been back. Sure she comes back to visit, but not to live.  I don’t know if it is too painful for her here, or if it just isn’t in their plans.  We don’t usually talk about it.  I think she wants to be here, so she can be close to Daddy, because as you know, their relationship was always so tight.  My relationship with Daddy has improved.  I don’t know if it is because I’m older or if it is because we need each other; it is probably a little of both.

Earlier in the year, I had a scare with my health. Dr.Shuttleworth wanted me checked for ZES.  Brought back many memories.  I tried not to worry about it, but I was scared.  Turns out, all my tests were normal, which is a good thing.  The docs still want me to keep a watch on it though.

I know that I have done things that you would not have approved of, but I have also accomplished things that would make you proud, I hope. I know how much you would love your grandchildren, I just wish you could see them.  I tell them about you all the time.  It is so sad that both of C’s grandmothers are in heaven.  He did get to know Granny for a little over 3 years.  Little boys need that nurturing that only grandmothers can give.  I know the Papaws love them, but it still isn’t the same. 

Dad talks about you often, and how he misses you.  I can’t imagine how lonely he must be.  Like I said, our relationship has improved, so he comes over more frequently than he used too.  I’m glad he does.  L is absolutely crazy about him….actually he has Dad wrapped around his finger.  It is actually quite comical.  C acts just like Sis, if you can imagine that.  I mean just like her, hardheadedness and all.  He is actually so much like her that he could be hers.  He looks like you, I think.  Blonde hair, blue eyes and fairskinned, although he will tan.  I guess he gets that from his daddy.  L has dark hair and the biggest brown eyes that would just melt your heart.  M is almost 16; she is such a well-behaved, kind-spirited child.  You would love her.  J is almost 14, he looks just like his daddy as well….so we know what L is gonna look like when he gets bigger.  Baby R will be a year old in September.  Sis has him spoiled rotten.  And he is quite the butterball, just like she was at that age. I wish you could have met hubby.  You would have loved him.  He is so kind-natured and thoughtful.  Definitely my soul-mate. Like I said, so much to tell you, with too little ink or paper to do it on.  We have found the best church, such a fit for us.  We love going and the boys can’t wait to go.

I guess the most important thing I want to say is that I miss you terribly, more and more every day.  I need you!  I hope you knew how much I loved you.  You were such a great example of how I want to live my life.  Although I didn’t understand why you did things the way you did back then, I do understand now and I am so grateful you raised me the way you did.  I hope that I am able to leave behind the legacy you did.  Not a day passes that I don’t think about you and wish you were here with me.  Although, it would be so selfish of me to want you back with all you went through.  Because of you, so many others have been helped.  So many others have not had to endure the pain the we all endured; more specifically, the pain you endured.

A song by Steve Wariner gets me every time:   “  ‘Cause there’s holes in the floor of Heaven and her tears are pouring down, that’s how you know she’s watching, wishing she could be here now. And sometimes when you’re lonely, just remember she can see, there’s holes in the floor of Heaven, and she’s watchin’ over you and me.”

I love you Mom!  You are missed so much everyday.  I do know, that someday, I will see you again!

I love you!!! H

Horrified

Well, that word pretty much sums up my afternoon. Mike and I were interviewed by the Messenger Inquirer today for a story about our Room Service program at MCH.  He asked some pretty tough questions, and seemed to direct most of them towards me.  What was that all about? Even when I answered what I thought was a good answer, he kept on pressing.  And then I worry about the way reporters can turn things you say into things you didn’t say, if that sentence makes any sense at all?

Then I got to thinking…do we ever feel horrified when God tells us or asks us to do something?  Do we run from the requests like Jonah? or do we embrace them with faith?  I think I’ve done both, but probably more of the first than the latter.  Definitely an area I need to work on.

At least I don’t think the reporter got a picture of me….thank goodness.  If you take the Messenger-Inquirer and see the article, let me know. 

Muhlenberg Co. Welcomes PHI Air Medical to Greenville

Hub is 4th from the left.  The Chamber of Commerce had welcoming party for the base today at the Merle Travis Center.  In case you have not been to the facility, it is actually very nice.  Pictured above are the employees from Muhlenberg County; the entire flight crew is not pictured.  They will have an official grand opening once their building is complete.  Stay tuned for details.

Endurance

Bro. Ray began a series of sermons this morning entitled Running the Race.  Today’s message was “Running from God”.  Ever heard the story of Jonah and the Whale?  Running from God will eventually have consequences.

Our Sunday School class has been doing a series from Phillipians called “Running the Race with Endurance”.  I think it is all going to tie together nicely.  I hate that we are going to miss the next 3 Sundays due to vacation, but hopefully I can get the notes.  On the other hand, we are so in need of a vacation.  Pray for us, we will have to endure a 3,000 mile round trip with 4 kids!  Might get a little trying at times, don’t ya think?

Speaking of endurance, have you ever had to endure something when you didn’t want too?  It seems that we all have our stories.  Through mine, I know that I have come out a stronger, wiser person.

On the same note, I went running today….I made it 1 mile without stopping.  I am heading towards my 5K goal.  Endurance, something that has to be worked for.  God can give us the strength to endure anything.

Reflections

This afternoon, I finished a roast that I had started on Thursday.  It was yummy.  Hub has leftovers for his lunch tomorrow, since he has to work 24.  I’ve also been finishing up on laundry from last week.

In between doing those chores, I’ve been finishing day 4 and 5 of Beth Moore’s study The Patriarchs.  Here is my thought of the day from Day 4: “Wonders come all sorts of ways, sometimes in the greater miracle that results when we don’t get what we were so convinced we wanted and end up with something far more glorious.”

Wow, I just had to share that.  Isn’t amazing how God knows what is right for us, even when we think we do?

Date night

Much thanks to EP for babysitting tonight!!!!!  Hub and I had a much needed date…we haven’t been out alone since Dec. 2006.  We didn’t do much, just went to O’boro, ate at O’Charleys, took some things back to the mall and got snacks at Sams Club for vacation next week.  One week from tomorrow we leave with Touch of Glory’s clan to go to York Beach, Maine.  We will be gone for 2 weeks.  I can’t wait!

Thanks again, EP….you don’t know how much we appreciate you!

Fitness

Hub bought me the Core Secrets exercise ball and 4 videos by Gunner Peterson a couple of years ago for Valentine’s Day.  I am really trying to get in shape and I have been doing crunches on the ball since my belly isn’t tight and flat like it was before 2 kids.  I had every intention to walk/run tonight but hub decided to take call today at the local ambulance service and he got called in around 2pm and is still there.  Will likely be there half the night.  His schedule really throws off my schedule 90% of the time.  It is next to impossible to get a work out in on the elliptical while the boys are awake….they think that it gives them a license to run freely through the house and do whatever they want.  They also exhibit that behavior when ever the phone rings.

A good exercise program begins with commitment.  Even though I am committed, our schedules are not meshing lately to allow me to be as committed as I would like.  Our community is sponsoring a 5K Run/Walk on Saturday and I really wanted to be in shape enough to run the whole thing.  But, that isn’t gonna happen.  I guess I am going to have to start getting up earlier so I can get in my exercise before hub begins his day.  It looks like that is the only way I am going to get it in.  I have to wait til later in the evening to walk/run due to my asthma, so I can’t come home from work, run/walk and then go pick up the boys from daycare.

I have also been trying to lay off the unhealthy snacks….I love me some potato chips.  I have gotten back into taking Lean Cuisine dinners for lunch and eating more salads if I don’t take a dinner.  Since they moved my office to the cafeteria at work, I’ve had much easier access to food and I have found myself being tempted much more frequently than I would like.

Speaking of commitment, leading a “fit” life requires commitment, whether it be to an exercise regimen, a diet plan, a spiritually fit life.  Being spirit-filled and Godly requires commitment.  For instance, how easy is it to sleep in on Sunday mornings and skip out on church on Sunday night. On Wednesday nights, you are tired when you get home from work.  Satan can easily talk us out of going to church.  It requires commitment and wanting to be there.  Satan works in any way he can to cause us to be away from God, whether it be controversy, cliques, divorce, etc.  Last night after our Beth Moore bible study, Bro.Bob asked us to think about what other Gods we sometimes put before God.  Some of the responses included addictions, food, money, work, internet, TV, shopping, etc.  In our small group Bible study on Tuesday night, we talked about being satisfied.  Why is it that we always want something more?  A new car, a new house, new clothes, new shoes….the list could go on and on.  In my first marriage, I used shopping to fill a void and make me happy, but the happiness only lasted momentarily.   I guess I feel that if you are unhappy in aspects of your life, whether it be with your partner, with God, with your employer, Satan is going to throw things up at you to make you think “if I have that, then I’ll be happy”.  It can cause a terrible downward spiral if you aren’t careful.  I know…I’ve been down that road myself.

So, how do we protect ourselves from the enemy and be happy at the same time?  We put God first in everything we do.  I have found that when I am more committed to my spiritual life, all of the other troubles either go away or don’t have nearly the profound affect on me that they normally would.

Now, I just need to find a way to be able to meet my commitment to my physical health.  My mental health is a work in progress.  As for my spiritual health, I am committed to God and constantly learning to satisfy those needs, through regular church attendance, bible study and small group bible study.   The Lord has blessed me with a loving spouse, a wonderful supportive BF, and a great group of sisters to study the Word.

As for that 5K on Saturday?  I still might enter and do the best I can…after all, you can run and walk both.  I just don’t want to finish last.

Getting in shape….

is a hard job.  I have set a personal goal for myself….I want to enter a 5K (and finish it respectably).  So, I have been trying to do a little on the elliptical when it is too hot for me to breathe well outside, and I’ve started walking/running on other days.  I am slowly making progress.  The first night, I ran 0.2 miles and you would have thought someone killed me.  My sides hurt so bad and I was doubled over in pain.  It has since become easier. I ran/walked a total of 3 miles tonight and I ran about 1.5 miles (off and on; the most I ran at a time was 0.6 miles).  I have read that your muscles get a better work out when you walk and run both (it supposedly confuses them).

How, I just have to get back into my routine of doing hundreds of crunches daily (that was in the day prior to kids) and find time to do some arm exercies.  Maybe, by the time next summer rolls around, I’ll be in shape.  That is my goal anyway…bathing suit ready for Jamaica!

Does anyone else have any fitness goals?  If so, what are they and how do you stay motivated?  Time is a huge factor for me, since hub is gone a lot at night and I work such long hours, there just isn’t enough time in the day to do it consistently.  But, I am trying real hard.  Maybe, by this fall, I’ll be able to run that 5K.

Future pilots

On June 9, 2008, PHI Air Medical opened its base at the Muhlenberg County Airport in Greenville, KY.  The boys were so excited, as you can tell from below:

The official Grand Opening is Monday, June 23, 2008 at 2pm.  We are all very excited to have Dad back working in the county. 

Happy Father’s Day babe!  I love you.