5012

A prize will be given to the first person who can tell me what that number represents!

(Prize may or may not be virtual.) ;-)

Wackiness

I'm still waiting for those photos from our Youth Pastor, but I can tell you about the crazy thing that happened last Friday.

See, we went to the church. Himself work a tie and a jacket. Then he handed Glenna this piece of paper.



The piece of paper reads that Glenna is . . .


. . . are you ready for this? . . . .


. . . NOW IN HIGH SCHOOL.


See? I told you it was nuts.

Last Week

Something wacky happened . . .



But I'm waiting for a photo disc from our youth pastor before I talk about it!

Tuesday is Guest Star Day!

I love Jess at Making Home. It's been a while since she's posted (she's expecting baby 5!) and I was so thrilled to read this about the Proverbs Woman.

It's all right! It's not the Proverbs Woman you're thinking of! Jess always gives me so much to think about and this post was no exception.

One Hundred Twenty-Six . . .

. . . the number of unread emails in my in-box.


TWENTY-TWO . . .


. . . the approximate number of exits between my house and work.



THREE . . .

. . . the number of times Hal has turned to us and said, "Doesn't this hallway smell like Chiquita bananas?"



SIXTY-THREE . . .

. . .the number of unread blog postings on my subscriptions list.



NINE . . .

. . . the number of hours left until Kelly's high school graduation.



TWO . . .

. . . the number of whiskey shots I'd like in order to face this day.

Night Bird

Yesterday began two weeks of the night shift. I finish my training this week and (hopefully) pass my assessment on Saturday. The following week I close for three nights straight.

We'll see how it goes!

I've noticed that when we're on stage, it's all D all the time. There's the happy D music, the D look, the D atmosphere surrounding us and the guests at every moment.

It's a different story when on the bus from the employee parking lot or when in the Utilidore. It's as if they realize we need to transition back into the real world. Sure, the advertisements on the bus are for all D shows or ABC shows (owned by D), but the music is a mad mixture of centuries of pop music and culture.

One day I could hear Huey Lewis ("Hip to be Square") followed by the Hot, Hot, Hot song (have no idea who sings it) and Gloria Estephan. What makes me laugh, however, are the original commercial songs (not commercials, just the songs) that are thrown in for some strange reason.

Who can finish these lyrics?

I drink Dr. Pepper and I'm proud . . .

What walks downstairs, alone or in pairs . . .

It's all so wonderfully random! We never know what we're going to hear. Every song is bright and peppy and chosen for its toe-tap-ability. They want us happy to go to work and happy to head home, evidently!

Today, we head off to Kelly's college to talk to the financial department. We'll probably need this peppy music on the way home after our hit of reality! Still, I'm so excited for my girl!

Tuesday is Guest Star Day!

I thought this was timely considering what I see all day at the Park.

Some great truths spoken here!

"I realized that I gave away myself through the way I dressed to other men and essentially stole from my husband what he alone should’ve cherished."

Something Smells

Every time we'd pass a certain spot in our kitchen, we'd catch a whiff.

We tried everything.

We emptied the garbage and scrubbed the can. We looked through the pantry to see if a potato had escaped and rotted. We washed all the laundry (our washer is in the kitchen). We washed the dog bedding. We wiped off the counter tops. We cleaned the microwave.

The smell began to permeate the rest of the house as well. We would open the windows to let in fresh air. We swept and mopped the floors. We'd spray air freshener and think we'd finally took care of everything, but the minute we came home from an outing, there would be that odor again. It was driving us crazy!

I finally decided to do a top to bottom scrubbing of the area and was rewarded for my efforts.

I had purchased a bag of garlic bulbs and they had started to rot! Since they still looked pretty on the outside and weren't "oozing" anything, I thought they were fine. When I picked up a bulb, however, it crushed easily in my hand and emitted the strange odor we'd been battling.

Finally!

Every once in while, something in my life stinks.

It may not be apparent at first, but bring up a certain topic, watch a certain movie, or after hearing a certain sermon, I'll catch a whiff.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanliness.

So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. - Matthew 23:27, 28

How quickly I recover from any unwanted stench in my life depends on how serious I am about tracking it down. Do I continue to walk past it and ignore it? Sometimes. In fact, this is the easiest way, but eventually it begins to affect those around me, not just myself.

Sometimes I'll read a great blog or hear a great sermon and think I've dealt with it at last. Really, I'm only opening widows and spraying air freshener. I eventually have to come back to the fact that something stinks. Just like Lazarus, rotting in the grave, waiting for Jesus to bring him back to life. . .

. . . I stinketh.

When I finally decide to do something about it, it takes much more work than it should have if I had dealt with it right away. Still, it's so worth the effort to clean and search and scrub and hunt down the stench and purge it from my life. How do I finally get rid of it?

By calling it what it is. By speaking about it to God and to others.

By being real.

I have judged others for their sin, as if mine weren't worse. The truth is, all sin condemns! All sin needs a Savior.

I have been unloving.

I have been selfish.

I have been lazy.

I am these things, still.

I stinketh.



"Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God." 1 Corinthians 6:11

May 2

Rat lips for not having a working camera! Otherwise, you'd see photos of:

The best volleyball player out there today . . .

The brightest blue eyes . . .

The coolest drummer in the building . . .

The one who snagged the uneaten Publix oatmeal raisin cookies for me at the cookout . . .

The man who has captured my heart . . .

The birthday boy . . .

Himself.

Happy birthday, Darlin' man.

Guest Star Anyway!

No, my Tuesdays as Guest Star days have not moved to Thursdays. I just had scheduled blog posts for the week and THEN, I read this excellent post. It was too good not to share, and I didn't want to wait until next Tuesday! If you are a teen, please ask your parents to read it first, but I hope you read it, too!

This article points out that those who claim to be open-minded about so many things can be extremely close-minded when it comes to taking a moral stance. I know I have certainly found this to be true with others I've encountered.

Enjoy!

*Update: Something must be wrong with their site. It's not working at all, even if I try to go directly to their site. Word Press doesn't always cooperate. =)

**Another Update: Link should be working now!

Tues . . . Thurs . . . A Guest-Star Anyway!

This was too important not to pass along!

We have an adoption story in our family. One of my brothers had a biological mother who was 18 years old, and he was her 3rd child! She decided to place him for adoption and our lives were changed forever.

I love you, MY brother!

Dub

Twice in one month I have double-booked myself.

Why do I keep doing this?

This is definitely the crazy season of the year, topped with having a senior. I feel SO unprepared for her graduation! There are meetings and events and I'm drowning.

No wonder I've been eating and sleeping so much. It's my way to cope with stress.

Brassiness

Occasionally, Himself and I will catch an episode of the new TV show, Undercover Boss. It's intriguing to have an inside look at businesses! It's cheap entertainment, what can we say?

The show has a distinct pattern. They start by introducing us to the featured CEO and his background story, and then the CEO will go "undercover" into his own business at an entry-level job. Inevitably, he'll check into a cheap motel (Why? Who will know or care where he sleeps?) and talk about his nervousness on going to work the next day. Then he'll reach up and turn off the wall lamp.

Also inevitably, Himself will turn to me and say, "That's a nice lamp!"



Does anyone else catch the sarcasm dripping from his words? Because it's there, friends; believe me, it's there.

Many years ago in California, we had friends who had a cleaning business. They would clean offices and hotels and sometimes become the recipients of discarded items. One such item was an entire box of these wall lamps.

I managed to secure a couple of them (it was the 90's! Brass was in!), but it wasn't until we moved to Florida that I actually convinced Himself to hang them on the walls.

So what if they're featured each week in the cheapest motels on Undercover Boss? They work, don't they?

Hmmmph.

Photo taken from the internet, but this is what our lamp actually looks like - with a nicer shade and a light bulb, though!

Rwanda Hope and Heavenly Hope

I cannot get her out of my mind.

Last Friday, we sat in our church's sanctuary and watched a young mother trembling and trying to speak. It wasn't because she was nervous or had stage fright; no, it was far more heart wrenching than that.

We had enjoyed some praise music from the Access218 Band from Jacksonville, then Jeremy and Allie B. began to speak about their hopes for adopting a baby girl. The concert was a benefit to help raise funds for the adoption. Jeremy and Allie each spoke on their journey to adoption and how all of their "papers" are now gratefully in Rwanda, awaiting final approval from that country. Then Allie began to give us some background information on the history of Rwanda.

Allie and Jeremy have two boys, ages 3 and under. As I watched Allie fight her tears and try to speak through the pain of separation, however, I also realized that they are parents of a little girl as well.

They don't know her name.

They don't know her birth date.

They don't know if right now, today, she's warm enough or has enough to eat.

They don't know the circumstances that led to her placement in the Rwandan orphanage.

They don't know her family history or even if she has been born yet!

They do know that God has hand-picked them to be her Daddy and Mommy. They know that their arms are aching to hold her, their hands are aching to tuck her into bed with soothing and comfort, and their lips are aching to kiss her goodnight.

Allie was struggling because one of her children is not at HOME. Her pain was just as real as if one of her boys were thousands of miles away and in need of a miracle to get home!

Lastly, my eyes were fully opened to the beauty of adoption - not only for Jeremy and Allie and a little girl in Rwanda but for each one of us. God has paid the ultimate price to adopt us into HIS family, so that we might be called His children.

He knows our names.

He knows our birth dates.

He knows if right now, today, we're warm enough or have enough to eat.

He knows the circumstances that led to our separation from Him, and He did the only thing He could to bring us back: He sent His Son to the cross.

He knows everything about our history, even things that we ourselves have forgotten!

I also know for certain that His arms are aching to hold us, His hands are aching to sooth and comfort us, and His lips are aching to kiss us goodnight, just like any Father.

A little girl in Rwanda is waiting to be united with her family.

From watching Allie struggle to speak on that stage, I have also come to realize just how eagerly my Heavenly Father is waiting to be united with me . . . and because of the word picture painted that night, I have felt that same eagerness to be united with Him; probably for the first time in my life.

Even so, come Lord Jesus.

What's that Again?

A conversation between a cheerful cast member and me:

I'm going to have to ask you a couple of questions before I take your fingerprints. Writes something on a piece of paper before brightly turning to me. Is this your SSN?

Yes, it is.

And your current address is this? She points to the screen, where my name and address appeared after she scanned my license.

Yes, that's correct.

Ok, what is your eye color?

Well, I have those eyes that are sometimes blue, sometimes gray, and sometimes green.

Which color would you prefer we list? Blue?

Blue, I nod in agreement. We smile at our conspiracy. Blue is definitely the best choice for me.

Then, for the first time, she seems a little unsure and hesitant.

Ok, Mrs. W. What is your hair color?

My hair color?

Yes, your natural hair color.

Natural? Well, actually, it's going gray and that's why I've made it blonde.

Gr . . . oh. . . um. . . Both of us together -

. . . We'll say blonde!

There you have it, friends. Blonde haired, blue-eyed me.

Straight on Until Morning

I went to the Casting Castle and was fingerprinted today. No more inky fingers - a small scanner instantly records each print and sends it off to the FBI. They'll know all about me within 24 to 72 hours. Isn't that amazing? As far as I know, there's nothing to tell. There's no accounting for the time spent in alien abduction, however, and besides; that was all BT's idea.

While walking into the casting castle, I passed some landscapers who were obviously from Africa. I couldn't help but admire the smooth sound of their voices and language. It was so beautiful! When one of the men responded to another in a rich baritone, I wanted to stop, sit in the shade of a tree, and simply listen.

In the lobby were peoples representing diverse countries and cultures. Made me wonder how on earth I was selected for employment? Maybe I'm just the Caucasian. I was given a book that informed me that I was to dress according to "The Look." My hair cannot be purple and neither can my eyeshadow. I violated three parts of the dress code by having two earrings in one ear, open-toed shoes, and denim pants. (Hey! I thought it was dressy with heels and a red blazer!) Good thing it was all right to violate the dress code for the fingerprinting, but I must have "The Look" when I attend the 8 hour orientation known as Traditions!

Work (by attending Traditions) begins on April 17th.

Come on everybody, here we gooooooooo!

A Scene of Agony

My eyes blink open at 3 am.

I can hear voices in the living room, so I know that Tyler and his friends are still enjoying the celebration of his birthday.

This gladdens my heart. It's been too long since he's had 3a.m. conversations with friends.

I can't get back to sleep, and the torture begins. If I could just read a while, I know I could go back to sleep. Turning on the light would be unfair to Himself, though.

I realize I have to go to the bathroom and I could use something to drink. I don't dare make an appearance outside my room, since that would break up the party!

Blink. Blink.

The most agonizing part, however, is that I can hear their voices, but I can't hear what they're saying! What mom wouldn't want to know what they were talking about so earnestly?

Blink.

Desperately, I turn onto my side. I notice my alarm clock and remember that the display panel is on dim. Maybe . . .

Four a.m. found me huddled around my alarm clock, using it's brighter red light to read. Sleep finally came at 5, then I had to be up at 7 to do the science carpool.

There's no guessing on who will be taking a nap today.

Catch of the Day . . .

. . . and he also caught a fish!



Angela, tell Ben it's 4.7lbs. =)

Twenty-One-derful

All of our hopes and dreams for our firstborn pale in comparison with the reality that is you.





My son, if your heart is wise, my heart will indeed rejoice.
My innermost being will cheer when your lips say what is right.
Don't be jealous of sinners; instead, always fear the Lord.
For then you will have a future, and your hope will never fade.

- Proverbs 23:15-18

Happy birthday, Sweetheart. Proud doesn't begin to describe how we feel about you; in fact, we have no words to express how full our hearts are, how much our "innermost beings" are rejoicing, how incredibly blessed we are because you are our son. How did we ever get to become your parents?

I hope it gives glory to God to honor our son, His beloved child, on the day that HIS Son defeated death for all of us, that we all might be called children of God to the praise of His glory!

Back Off

In March of 2005, so five years ago, Himself had excruciating back pain. Several agonizing trips to the chiropractor and two weeks flat on his back, and he was able to function.

Every once in a while, his back will go out again. X-rays can only tell so much, so he finally went, this year, and had an MRI. Yesterday, he discussed the results with his doctor.

"Well, I have some bad news."

"Just give it to me doc. What is it?"

"Your back can't be fixed through surgery. It also can't be fixed through cortisone shots. The news is pretty bad."

"It's cancer, isn't it?"

"I'm afraid your back can only be fixed by diet, exercise, and strengthening your core muscles."

"Noooooo!!!!!"

Let's walk through the history of this, shall we?

2005 - the chiropractor:

"I can get you walking again, but these back exercises will make all the difference."

Himself, later that month: "I'm going to a doctor for a second opinion."

The doctor: "I won't be able to know for sure without an MRI, but I can prescribe some non-addictive pain relievers and muscle relaxers. The best thing to do would be back exercises."

Me: "Here! I bought you this book on back exercises like the doctor recommended."

Himself: "That can't be right. He can't know without the MRI."

A visit from Uncle Terry, 2009: "I had to stop running because of my back. Now, every day I do my stretches and exercises and my back has been great!"

Himself: Silence.

Periodically from well-meaning friends and family to me: "How is his back? Is he doing the exercises?"

Me: "Pffft."

And he wonders why I have no sympathy for him.

Oh, and if you want to know how his back is or whether he's "doing the exercises," please ask Him. Thank you.