My friend, Aimee, stopped by the house on her way to Columbia, SC where she will be starting CH-BOLC in a week or two. The kids and I enjoyed spending some time with her. We hadn’t seen her in a couple months, and the kids stayed up late to see her. They were all about to keel over by the time they went to bed…two hours past their normal bedtime.
It was great to see, Aimee, and she was a ton of fun, as always.

Thanks for stopping to see us, Aimee!

Hangin' with Aimee

That’s what I’ve been doing lately…a whole lotta nothin’.

I’ve been thoroughly enjoying everyone being out of school. Chris’ class starts up soon, but I am taking the summer off. I have been reading a lot…napping a lot…laying around listening to music. It’s nice. Next week the kids are going to go to VBS at my mom’s church, so that will be fun for them. I have lots of free time on my hands, and I love it. The kids are quite happy with it, too.

I know I’ve not posted anything of much substance for quite a while. I’ve thought several times that I should blog something, but, beyond a few random posts and some photos, I just didn’t have anything to say. In the month that’s passed since my D&C, I’ve had some really low, dark days, and, in recent days, some really good days. The bad days are coming less and less. The Lord is helping me, and I’m getting through all of this.

The evening after I posted “The Neverending Sadness”, I was talking to my friend, Joy K., and she encouraged me to spend some time praying and really seeking God. The conversation I had with her helped for several reasons. First of all, she was very kind and compassionate, and I know she loves me. She let me vent for a while, and that helped. Secondly, she gave me a specific idea of how I should go about seeking God. She encouraged me to pray and pour out all of my feelings…good or bad…to God, and then sit and wait with Him. To write down what I felt like he was speaking to my heart, and then to take the Bible and see if it backed up what I thought He was telling me. I know it sounds simple, but, sometimes, when you get so low, you feel incapable of taking any initiative. Having Joy say, “Do this.” made it seem easier.

Anyway, after I spoke to Joy, I did spend some time with God. Chris was at work and the kids were all in bed. I spent some time in prayer, and the Lord really met with me. He didn’t give me some great message. He was just with me. I felt His presence, and I knew I was not alone in my pain. That was enough. It was what I needed. My days have been progressively better since then, and I’m feeling pretty good most days. God is good.

I know I haven’t blogged much for a long time, but God has been doing a lot for me. Things are getting better. Thanks again for everyone who has prayed for me. It really helps.

Hopefully, this blog will get some new life in the coming days. I kind of feel like I’m waking up from some kind of healing sleep. Ooh…ooh…or maybe a cocoon. That’s good, huh? A cocoon. I’m emerging from a cocoon, and I am different than when I went in. That’s a good word picture. Anyway, I’m emerging from my cocoon, and I might just have a lot to say. Or not. I don’t know. I might just blog a whole lotta nothin’.

Update: Daniel has been moved to a bigger city for better treatment. Read about it here.

I wanted to ask all of my readers to remember the Lockwood family in your prayers. This amazing family is serving as missionaries in Mexico. They have eleven children, and I have been reading their blog for a few weeks now. I find them amazing. Janey, the wife and mother, posted today with the news that her husband, Daniel, has cancer, he has been sick and weak, and is right now in emergency surgery. Janey is at home with their eleven children, as children are not allowed in the hospital and she doesn’t have anyone to watch their children right now (including a brand new baby). Please pray for Daniel, Janey, and their family. They need our prayers.

I found this just now when I was looking through some old files in Word. It doesn’t reflect my current mood. I just thought I would post it. I originally wrote it as a blog post, but then didn’t publish it. Anyway, here it is…many months later.

The sky matches my mood today. Gray and overcast. Ominous. The wind stirs the leaves, and I know the rain is coming.

I find myself fighting against melancholy. The old familiar tune I don’t want to sing.

The thoughts that oppress me bring with them condemnation. I shouldn’t feel this way anymore. The gray skies were supposed to be over. All blue skies and sunshine ahead.

I could pray for sunshine. He might send it. I don’t know. What if the rain is serving a purpose, though? Maybe it’s watering a seed that needs to grow.

The sky is gray. The rain is coming. I can’t wish it away, though. My ground is parched.

When the rain has served its purpose, the sun will come again. I won’t pray for the rain to go away, but I will pray that He will shine his light through the pain and display something beautiful.

Every raindrop has a potential rainbow inside. A promise of God’s mercy. A reminder to hope.

Dad's Company Picnic

Check out the photos in this album of Kyra climbing the rock wall.My daughter is the most hooah five year old in all the land. When she got to the top, everyone standing around clapped and cheered for her. (They didn’t do that for any of the other kids.) I was so proud. It was a “that’s my girl!” moment.