God Answers Prayers!

Sam has always enjoyed going to church and learning about the Bible. Even when he was very young, his Sunday School teacher would come and tell me how he would get so involved in the lesson that he practically taught it himself. Last year, Sam got up in front of the church and said that God had called him to preach, and he was very active in the youth group. Then, for the past several months, he has suddenly not been interested in church, especially youth group. At first, I thought it was just because he was still fatigued from his bout with mono, from which he still hasn't fully recovered. I came to realize, though, that there was an obstacle keeping him from church. I told Sam to pray about it, and I also prayed that God would either remove the obstacle or reconcile Sam's heart to the situation. Tonight, God removed the obstacle, and Sam is happier than I've seen him in a long time. He has missed the youth group and even become depressed over the situation, and now he has a renewed vigor and a great big smile on his face. As concerned as I was about him, being his mom, I know God was even more concerned, and He took care of the problem without our having to do anything other than pray. Thank You, God, for loving my son even more than I do!

Observations From My Kitchen

1) If a messy kitchen is a happy kitchen, my kitchen must be delirious.

2) A husband (or son) is someone who takes out the trash and gives the impression he just cleaned the whole kitchen.

3) Countless people have eaten in this kitchen...and gone on to lead normal lives.


I can't take credit for this. It was on today's page of the daily calendar in the Money Center. I thought it was cute and wanted to share it.

#1 is not really true in my house. My kitchen is actually quite clean (at the moment, anyway).
#2 is in fact a reality when referring to my beloved Sam.
#3 is also true.

My Favorite Memories

Some of my favorite memories are:

1) All-day shopping sprees with Mom, even though I've never been much of a shopper. Just getting to spend the day with her made it special.

2) The many times Daddy and I "fished" in Rocky Creek without ever catching anything. Again, just getting to spend time with him made it special.

3) My 18th birthday present - going to San Antonio to see the Celtics play the Spurs. The only disappointment was that Larry Bird was out with an injury and wasn't even there.

4) Tagging along (with my Aunt Kitty) on Mom and Dad's 2nd honeymoon. It was an EPIC trip!

5) Camping in a tent in Colorado for a week with Sam in 2002. He was sick and running a fever all week, but he still says it was our best vacation ever.

6) Angel, the best dog that ever lived. RIP

7) My Grandma's 80th birthday party.

8) Spending all my allowance and then looking at my brother with just the right amount of "puppy dog eyes" so that he would share his with me. (He was the BEST big brother, just sayin.)

9) Staying in a tent at Anastasia State Park, near St. Augustine, FL. We had a blast, even though it rained the whole time we were there.

10) Being the only one in the family who could get the campfire started ... when I was only 10 years old.

11) Getting to see the beautiful Cola de Caballo (Horse Tail) Waterfalls near Monterrey, Mexico.

12) Riding the Alpine Slide in New Hampshire.

13) The trip Kiki and I took to New York City.

14) The trip Sam and I took to New York City.

15) November 18, 1995.

16) My trip to Wasilla, Alaska, in the summer of 1996.

17) Patti and Nic's visit to see us in Texas Christmas 2002.

18) My college graduation present from Mom and Dad -- a two-week road trip with a friend. I got to visit friends in several states, including PA, CT, NH, KY. It was awesome!

19) My 1991 Pontiac Firebird.

20) Watching a chicken cross the road.



So many, many more, some of which I can't seem to put into words.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Where Do You Want To Be?

You don't look back, just keep looking forward,
Until the way ahead becomes too dark to see.
Then, as you glance back over your shoulder,
You see the place where you really want to be.

More Teenage Driving

I put this on facebook earlier this evening, but since not everyone who reads my blog is friends with me on facebook, I decided to post it here as well.

Sam and I always have very interesting conversations. Just ask my co-workers--they put up with my telling them all the witty things Sam says. This evening, while Sam was driving, we had this short conversation...

Me: To me, a good driving trip is when I don't have to correct you on anything.

Sam: To me, a good driving trip is when I make you yell, "SAMUEL!!!" at least three times.

Chronic Pain

I've never been one to suffer much from pain, rarely even had a headache, until the last few years. My mom was in pain a lot due to arthritis and fibromyalgia, but I didn't have as much sympathy for her as I should have. A few years ago, I began experiencing muscle aches all over my body, and the last year or so they have gotten much worse. I used to be very active and love to play sports. Now, pain keeps me from doing so many things, and makes me feel horrible for days if I go ahead and do what I want to do.

A previous doctor of mine said it was probably fibromyalgia, without doing any tests since I didn't have insurance, and I had all the symptoms. Talking with friends of mine with fibromyalgia, it sure does seem like a possibility. My new doctor is taking time to do some tests, and I'm glad she is. The MRI I had last month came back normal. My lab work has indicated deficiencies in a couple different vitamins, so I'm taking those now to see if increased levels will ease my pain. My insurance company sent a note to my doctor indicating that one of my prescription meds could cause muscle aches, so I'm going a month without it to see if it makes a difference. So far, nothing has helped.

Last night my arms and legs felt as though I had been working out with weights much too heavy for me. They were weak, limp, and very achy. I took a Lortab and went to bed. At least I was able to get a good (and long) night's sleep. This morning, when I awoke, my arms and legs felt better, but the muscles in my torso were hurting very badly! It felt like I was being squeezed to death by a boa constrictor. (When I told Sam that, he asked how I knew what it felt like since I've never had a boa constrictor squeezing me.)

Along with the pain, I'm having some strange neurological symptoms. I have numb spots on each leg and one arm. Periodically, I have shocks shoot through my body. When they are in my back, they shake my whole body, and I look like I'm having some kind of fit. Also, whenever I laugh really hard (which is several times a day), I start to black out and feel like I'm about to faint.

All of this is very disconcerting, not to mention scary. And, a diagnosis seems to be a long ways off. Those of you who pray, please say a word or two for me and for my doctor to know what tests to do and what to look for. Thanks!