I'm Thankful For...

My wonderful husband and precious children
Every New Day God gives me
Sunflowers and kittens
Saving Grace
Bright stars in a clear, dark night sky

God's True Love for Us

Last Sunday, we sang a song that had been going through my mind for the past week. The song talks about letting the Power of the Cross work in your life and not forgetting about keeping Jesus first in your life - in ALL you do.

"Believe"
I say on Sunday how much I want revival, then on Monday, I can’t even find my Bible.
Where’s the power - The power of the cross in my life?

I’m sick of playing the game of religion. I’m tired of losing my reason for living.
Where’s the power - The power of the cross in my life?

I’m not content just to walk through my life, giving into the lies, walking in compromises - now we cry out as a generation that was lost, but now is found in the power of the cross

Chorus
We believe in You. We believe in the power of Your word and its truth.
We believe in You, so we lay down our cause that our cross may be found in You.

I’m not satisfied doing it my own way. I’m not satisfied to do church and walk away.
I’m not satisfied, there’s no love in my life but You.

I’m not satisfied living in yesterday’s hour. I’m not satisfied to have the form, but not the power.
I’m not satisfied, oh Lord, I am crucified in You.

So we lay down our cause - that our cross may be found in You.

Hillsong Music Australia

God's Amazing Creatures

Have you ever sat back and thought about how much fun God must have had creating all the animals He put on this Earth? Think about a spider. Maybe he said, "Hmmm, I wonder what it would be like if I created one of these that lived in the ocean. I can put a hard shell ectoskeleton on it and give it bumps to live on the rocky bottoms of the sea." We might call it a crab.

Things I'd Like to Do or See... Someday

Watch the Aurora Borealis shining overhead
See the twinkling lights of fireflies on a warm summer night
And finding other bioluminescent creatures God put on Earth to inspire us
Travel the states during a leisurely Road Trip
Have friends over for "Sunday Dinner"
Live in Texas Hill Country
Decorate my house, so it has more character

"Lunner" with Friends

Today I went to our church's Women's Business and Crafts Fair and, according to God's timing, ran into my scrapbook friends who I hadn't seen in months. After chatting away, we all admitted we hadn't started working on our Circle Journal pages! We went to the different booths - Stampin' Up, Creative Memories, PartyLite, were among the different booths. We met a very nice young woman who had an Interior Design business and very reasonable rates who I'd like to call for help on giving our house some character. When I tried to explain what I had in mind for our Living and Dining Room - based on Adventureland in Disneyland - I'm not sure if she understood quite what I had in mind, but will be sure to show her photos!

After visiting the tables, my friends invited me to have lunch with them, although it was more like dinner, since in was 3pm! We tried to go to a Thai place that was supposed to be really good, but it was closed. Then we tried to go to another Thai place, but it was closed too. After lots of discussion and some voting, we ended up at Panda Express, which was very good. We had a great time catching up and just hanging out together.

When I was very lonely and didn't know any Christian friends, I prayed for God to bring some friends into my life. God blessed me with these wonderful friends to care about and who care about me. It is always so awe-some watching God do his wonderful work in my life and in the lives of my friends and family. He truly is an Awesome God!

A Reason for Caution

Being home sick with a really bad cold brings into focus the concern over the increasing news about the Bird Flu making its way around the world. What can we do to keep our families safe? Where can we get good information? I'm glad our country is taking steps now to prepare. With God's grace we can be ready to save many lives with vaccinations. Have you gotten your flu shot yet?

When I was a child, I don't remember ever getting a flu shot. I had friends that had gotten them every year, but most of my friends didn't get them either. But when Cooper was young and had so many asthma episodes, and we ended up in the hospital emergency room once or twice a month, the doctors recommended we all get flu shots to protect him. Since then, we have gotten annual flu shots.


How do we know if we have a cold or the flu?

The CDC has a very informative website that includes a webpage where you can select a time-frame and display a map that shows where the flu has been reported. I remember checking here a couple of years ago when the flu outbreak was occurring.

Cold Symptoms
According to the Kaiser website, symptoms of a cold are cough, mild sore throat, stuffy and/or runny nose, sneezing, and sometimes a low grade fever (101F or lower).

Flu Symptoms
Kaiser describes flu symptoms as fever, body aches, headache, fatigue, loss of appetite, a dry cough, and a sore or dry throat. Flu symptoms are more severe that cold symptoms.

Pneumonia Symptoms
Kaiser states that pneumonia often follows an upper respiratory infection brought on by a cold or the flu. Typical symptoms would include fever, coughing that brings up colored mucus, and rapid, shallow breathing.

Bird Flu Symptoms
The CDC website describes bird flu symptoms as being much more severe than the typical flu. Symptoms range from fever, cough, sore throat and muscle aches to eye infections, pneumonia, severe respiratory distress, and other severe, life-threatening complications.


Taking Time to Take Care of Yourself

It's so hard to stop and take care of yourself. When you're a Mom, you're used to taking care of your family. But having to stay home from work makes me feel like I'm neglecting my duties. Since I got bronchitis last year, it seems like this cold has affected my lungs quicker, so I am being cautious because I remember how bad it was last time. So, now I have to be patient (and be a patient) and rely on God's grace for a speedy recovery.