Today I am cleaning out my room -- all the drawers and
everything.  Our desk is in our room too, I'm hoping to get to
that, but what a mess!!!  That
would probably take a whole day in itself.  Please pray for
diligence... cleaning out isn't the problem... it's ALL those things
that need to be sorted/filed to here and there.

Everything in it's place, all the junk gone, etc. etc.
etc.  Just think of the little piece of serenity I will have created when
I'm done. 

Well not quite... but you get the picture...

So much to do before I leave on Saturday ... Yea! Only 6 more days!!!!! So excited!

Here's the song I'm currently listening to by FFH (Far From Home)

"Hide me in Your heart, O Lord.
Hold me in Your arms.
Still the wind and calm the storms.
Hide me in Your heart."

Cool... ~Me

Just as I promised...

Here's the pictures of the girls.

I've also changed the picture of me from Miss Baldy in January to 1
month of hair growth... that would have been around May 8th. 

 ~Me

Don't you just hate it when your writing an entry and you accidently hit the back button!!!  It's so difficult to be

spontaneously funny again... ha!

The girls had their yearly portrait taken today.  It went well.
There are two I like.  One is on a white background and I don't
like it quite as much because it's kind of washed out with what they
are wearing.  The other is on a green background with a soft
lense... it's really pretty of them.  One christmas gift I can
check off for all the grandparents.

I'll post it here tomorrow for you all to see.  So check back!
(Hopefully I will remember I told you that! ha! Remind me if I forget!)

I FINALLY managed to pick out this weeks worship music.  It usually takes me 5 minutes... this time it took 4 days!  
Don't quite know what the problem was.  I chose a song I don't
know how to play, so I'm trying to come up to speed on it real
fast.  There's nothing worse than getting up to play worship and
bumbling a song!  

We only have 8 more days till vacation!  WOOT!   YAY!  WHAHOOOO!  What more can I say!

~Me

The many phases of me....

I've changed the picture on my site.  The picture I had was taken
Christmas of last year before my chemo in January -- my nice long
golden hair.  This picture is 14 days after my first chemo
treatment (taken around January 20th and I'm bald!!  I love the
other picture of me, but it's not really what I look like now. 
Now I have 7 months of hair growth back -- almost 3 inches all
around.   I'll post a picture of me of how I look now in a
few days.

I never went around bald through my experience - always wore hat or
scarf.  But I did take some pictures as something to look back on
and remember. 

God is so good.  When we yeild up our fears and insecurities to
Him, He is faithful to hold those for us and to give us the grace to
walk through what ever we need to walk through -- with joy and
peace.  I look at this picture of me and it's difficult to believe
that it's me.  I recall that it was difficult the day my hair fell
out, but it doesn't stir up all kinds of intense emotions in me. 
Actually, no emotions at all -- other than, when I look at it, I think
I don't look half bad bald!  HA!  And I really can't identify
with having to wear a scarf all the time.  I mean I know I did it
for 5 months, but it seems like a life time ago.  Yes, God is good.

Most everyone just loves my short hair.  I think it's cute too,
but I cannot wait till it's long again.  I've always had very
straight hair, so it cracks me up that it's come back in curly -- the
"chemo curl" as it is called.

That's all for today.

~Me

Often in my reading My
Utmost for His Highest, I read more than just "today".  I jump around
and re-read some others.  Here is a condensed version of  June 14 that
I am pondering today - bolds and parentheses are mine.

"Abide in Me" John 15:4
God
will not make me think like Jesus, I have to do it myself; I have to
bring every though into captivity to the obedience of Christ....He never chose His own circumstances, but was meek (yielding,
patient, long-suffering)  towards His Father's dispensations for
Him...Think of the things that take you out of abiding in Christ --
Yes, Lord, Just a minutes, I have got this to do; Yes, I will abide
when once this is finished; when this week is over, it will be all
right, i will abide then. Get a move on; begin toabide now.  In the initial stages it is a continual effort until it becomes so much the low of  life that you abide in Him unconsciously. Determine to abide in Jesus wherever you are placed.

This
is a good reminder for me. So often I procrastinate my abiding because
it's just easier to not think about or deal with my
circumstance. hmmmm...yes, good to think on.

On other
fronts, Steve's parents found out that the sons and families are
getting together for Thanksgiving and it wasn't received well. But
for some reason, they think Mike is flying down here instead of the
other way around.  We got another letter from his mom yesterday
and it was very disturbing.  Please continue to lift us in pray in
this situation, specifically that the God's love would be evident
through us towards them especially as we attempt to establish healthy
boundaries with them.

Anywho --  10 more days...... WOOT!   (ha! a new word I learned... see your never too old to learn!) 

~Me

11 days....

Well, my busy weekend is over.  The retreat meeting, I thought,
went well and we have some good ideas to start planning with. 
Church was good.  Two children were baptized.  That is always
so special.  Worship went well too.

I play again this week, but an having a difficult time picking
music.  Not so much difficult, maybe rather too many songs, too
many different keys.  I'm sure it will come together over the next
few days.

We are leaving on vacation in 12 days.  
So much to get ready for and so little time.  I am SOOOOOOOOO
excited!  I think my biggest obstacle at this time is figuring out
who will feed the bunnies.  Not that it's any big deal to dole out
some food in a bowl, but we have 2 naughty biting bunnies and one
that's completely crazy. <-- Psyco
Bunny!!  Well, he hates everyone except Steve.  He's really
quick, so to try and feed him, you have to distract him upstairs while
you quickly open the door and throw the food in the feeder downstairs.
He comes zooooooming down the stairs and scares the heck out of
you!!! 

Steve will have to rig it up so that the Psyco Killer Bunny can be feed
from the outside of the cage.  I found these nice ceramic (small)
dog bowls at Target for a buck each so I put them in the other bunnies'
cages and they hold a week and a 1/2 worth of food -- so hopefully, it
will just be a matter of making sure they have water and feeding the
cats.  For that I can get a kid, otherwise I'd need an
adult.  However, Mr. Howell fed our bunnies the last time we were
gone and one of them bit him! OOPS! 

We are staying the night in Seattle on Sat. the 20th, then on Sunday
were are going to visit Steve's old roommate (and his family) from
college.  On Monday we will travel to Bellingham to Steve's
brother's home.  I just can't wait; *cannot wait*; but I have to wait... 12 more days ... darn!

~~~~ Good Night ~~~~~

Hey -- not a bad movie.  I enjoyed it.

I had a candle party last night and I am SHOCKED
that it was $423 in sales!  Yow!  I wasn't really planning on
getting much of anything because I was just honoring my word to have a
party.   But pleasantly surprised because I get like $107 in
free stuff....  which I'm planning to spend all on just candles.

I also got this awesome christmas tree/music box thing (reg ~$89) for $29!!!!!!!! and
this crystal bowl (reg $110) for $39!  Not bad -- but when I was
planning on spending nothing... HA!  They really drag you
in!  I also have 3 half price items and there's really only one
other thing I want (a candle snuffer), so I'll probably spend the other
two on some 3 wick candles to go in my GIGANTIC crystal bowl!

This weekend is busy, going from place to place
and a meeting here on Sunday as we start planning for the women's
retreat.  Also, I play for worship for the first time since the
end of September!  Can't wait!

love you all