I’m linking up my Daybook with Jenny and I am also linking up with a blog I just found – A Mama Collective.com for their Currently Link-up. Go check them out!
AND
Moments of Gratitude…
Today I am especially thankful for
- For the dirty dishes in my sink – it means we have plenty of food to eat.
- For the piles of dirty laundry – it means we have plenty of clothes to wear.
- For the bathrooms and toilets that need to be scrubbed – it means we have running water.
- For the beds that need to be made – it mean we have a place to rest our head at night.
- For the Legos and Star Wars figures… the sketch pads and nail polish bottles scattered around the the house – it means we have three little boys and a tween girl who fill our home with sweet smiles, warm hugs and joyful giggles.
- For the inconvenience of cooking from scratch and carefully checking ingredient labels so I am aware of what we put into our bodies – it means my husband is alive and that I can do something to help him beat this cancer.
- For the grace to let go of the frustration and see the blessings amidst the mess – it means God is working within me.
(I’m trying to be more positive these days. Can you tell?) 😉
DISCLAIMER: After I posted this, the kids got in trouble and I yelled at them so don’t think that it’s all Pollyanna around here. I am a work in (slow) progress. LOL.
Beauty in the Ordinary…
Our weather has been weird – in the 70’s one day and the 50’s the next but there are flowers blossoming everywhere!
In the Kitchen…
M – Turkey Enchiladas with Green Guacamole (to make it a bit more Irish.) 😉
T – Minestrone Soup and homemade wheat bread.
W – Sneaky Spaghetti Sauce: Pureed zucchini, carrots, celery and peppers.
Th – Chicken, Baked Potato and Veggies.
F – Quesadillas & Low-Fat Broccoli Slaw
S – Homemade Veggie Pizza & Greek Salad
S – Leftovers
Praying…
- For Brian’s continued recovery from cancer and for the chemo treatments that start March 24.*
- For all those who are fighting cancer and for their families.
- For all those who have lost loved ones and for the repose of the souls that have died.
- For those who are alone and feel unloved or contemplating suicide.
- For the who are spiritual leaders, that God will strengthen them and help them to live humble and unselfish lives.
- For each of us to be faithful to God and live his love throughout his day.
- For the conversion of sinners and the souls in purgatory.
- For some special intentions.
*Originally Brian was supposed to start his chemo on March 10 but it was pushed back because the port they put in his chest wasn’t fully healed yet. So his first round will start this Monday the 24th instead. I’ll keep you posted and I appreciate all the prayers, especially from those of you have have commented and shared your own cancer survival stories!! I shared those with Brian and he asked me to send you a big thanks. The encouragement means a lot! 🙂
Pondering…
Last week I shared about my Lenten journey and how I was working on regaining my happiness in daily life. I still struggle to remember to take care of myself – like drinking my water, ugh! – but God must have dumped out buckets of grace to get me started because it seems like there is much more peace in our house. Well, there is still chaos at times but I think I am dealing with it better.
Turning my heart to God throughout the day is helping and spending more time doing things as a family (or at least me and the kids) has helped. When the kids were much younger I longed for the days when they could play by themselves so I could wash dishes or put a load of laundry or even shower. With Matthew almost three, I have much more free time than before but now I have to remember that they still need “play time” with me – to read them a book or take them to the park or blow bubbles outside with them. I think these little things have made us happier.
Plus I’ve been trying to talk to Brian more. I mean, more than the usual small talk. He is not exactly Mr. Chit Chat so this takes a little work but asking his questions and allowing him to share without me interrupting has been beneficial and made us happier together.
Continuing this theme of finding joy, I decided to join Elizabeth Foss‘ online workshop Restore.
The Restore Workshop is a six week online course geared towards adult women who have struggled or are struggling with or want to avoid burnout. It is for any woman who wants to nurture joy within her life and the lives of those around her.
Around the house…
The house is actually straightened up since my in laws came over for dinner last night. Whenever the house gets too messy I just invite people over to ensure I get it cleaned up pronto. 😉
Reading…
This morning I was reading this article A former MLS player lost his battle with cancer today, but he won so much more. Elizabeth Foss had the link on her website. (Her son that wrote the article.) The article was beautiful and moved me to tears. Here is an excerpt:
As I sit in the dark, I find myself wondering about the end. Was Shawn right to believe what he believed? Did it “work”? After all that pain and suffering, was faith in something he couldn’t see or even fully comprehend worth it?
The answer to that question is the greatest victory of Shawn Kuykendall’s short life.
I remember sitting on the couch with Shawn on a Saturday morning last November, watching an English Premier League game. Out of seemingly nowhere (though thinking about it now, he had probably been working on this thought for the first 60 minutes of the game), Shawn looked over at me and spoke these words, which I imagine will follow me until my end.
“I’m not really worried about death or dying, I’m not. Because here’s the thing – you know – we’re all dying. I mean, right? We’re all dying. So whether it’s tomorrow or 90 years from now, the end is going to be the same. We’re going to die.”
I hit pause on the DVR at this point because I knew he would want to come back to the game and Liverpool’s buildup play once he finished his thought.
“We are all given this great gift of life and we have this finite time to do whatever we want. So we live the best we can, and for me, that means living the way I think God wants me to live. I need God more than ever now.”
There was a pause as he rubbed his head, once full of dark flowing hair, now bald from the chemo.
So praise be to God. I’m not going to waste time being sad or worried or scared. I have to fight. If I trust in him and fight, everything else will take care of itself.
That is what I am trying to do. Trust. Fight. And know that God has a plan and purpose.
Listening to…
The trees rustling as the breeze flows through them… and Matthew “fixing” my chair with his Thor hammer.
Watching on my DVR…
When Calls the Heart (I love that show!!), The Walking Dead (Last night’s episode was insane) and a St. Patrick cartoon to watch with the kids tonight.
On the blog…
This week I want to finish my post on Baby Names. I think Kathryn’s link-up is there until Friday.
Posts I’ve Liked on my Bloglovin
I have 300 unread posts in my reader. I’ve been a negligent blog reader. Sorry about that, my fellow bloggers.
Pinned…
I saw Vani (aka The Food Babe.com) on TV the other day and she as talking a lot about diet and eating whole foods without additive, preservatives and GMO‘s etc. That is what we are trying to do with Brian (and all of us.) I pinned a number of her articles and these recipes are next in line for upcoming Pinterest Parties. 😉
Plans for the Week…
Lots of the ordinary stuff plus a movie night on Thursday to see Divergent (woohoo) and it’s the school’s end of the quarter Family Fun Night this week. The kids dress in their pj’s and bring sleeping bags and watch a movie in the gym. This time it’s Frozen so there will be a of of singing too. 😉
Captured…
This is my photo from yesterday’s #holylens photo challenge. The theme was “Mercy.”
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