The Final Countdown

Well, only 6 days and counting until I officially go "under the knife". Again. I am totally freaking out this time too. Why? Well, I have no idea. I mean I am up to double-digits in the amount of surgeries I have had in my lifetime and I have never, and I mean NEVER been this freaked out about a surgery before!  The only thing I can possibly come up with is that with all of my other surgeries I was having something removed - adenoids, gallbladder, disk & vertebrae, teeth etc. But this time they are installing something. That is totally foreign to me. That is just wrong. I will be sporting new hardware - literally. The last time I sported new hardware was when I got braces and that HURT!! So I am pretty sure that becoming the proud owner of 6 new screws and a cool new bar in my back some 30 years later will NOT feel good! 

I am, however, looking forward to a much needed vacation. Sad, I know. I am actually looking forward to the hospital stay as like a mini trip to some weird hotel. My grandma was in the same hospital about 2 months ago so I have some idea of what to expect. The nurses were fantastic and the food was ordered room-service style. When you're hungry you call and order off a menu and you got it in 30 minutes. Crazy! 

So, long story short, on the 18th of June I will have surgery 200 miles away from home. 

Book Review Billy Graham's STORM WARNING

Okay, it's been just over 3 years since I said I would review this book for Booksneeze. If you're wondering why it has taken me so long, well simply because it was a terrible book. I could not get "into" it. I have read some pretty boring books or hard to read books before and found a way to muddle through it but this one I just couldn't do. I tried on multiple occasions and finally gave up after 2 1/2 years and ended up donating it to the local thrift store.

Next book Review: Billy Graham's STORM WARNING

Storm Warning


Whether global recession, terrorist threats, or devastating natural disasters, these ominous shadows must bring us back to the Gospel.

By Billy Graham
 
An examination of the imminence of Christ's return in light of today's headlines and the events recorded in Scripture.



The morning newspapers are jammed with alarming headlines and stories asking questions no one can answer. In Storm Warning, Billy Graham examines the problems facing America today compared with what is to come as revealed in the Bible. He answers the tough questions as only he can with astute biblical insight, and points to the hope and renewal found in Christ—for our families, our nation, and our world.

Includes an in-depth analysis of the four horsemen of Revelation chapter six as well as insight on:


Signs of the times The Apocalypse Standing before God

I am really looking forward to reading this book!  I am fascinated by the Apocolypse and I think Billy Graham is extremely knowledgable in these things.  I've enjoyed some of his other books, so I am sure this one will prove to be interesting and exciting, too! 

BOOK REVIEW: I am Hutterite

I Am Hutterite


The Fascinating True Story of a Young Woman's Journey to reclaim Her Heritage

By Mary-Ann Kirkby
 
A fascinating journey into the heart and culture of a reclusive religious community.


I Am Hutterite takes readers into the hidden heart of the little-known Hutterite colony where author Mary-Ann Kirkby spent her childhood. When she was ten, her parents packed up their seven children and a handful of possessions and left the colony to start a new life. Overnight they were thrust into a world they didn't understand, a world that did not understand them.






With great humor, Kirkby describes how she adapted to popular culture, and with raw honesty she describes her family's deep sense of loss for their community. More than a history lesson, I Am Hutterite is a powerful tale of retracing steps and understanding how our beginnings often define us.


First I would like to comment on how quickly I received my book selection from booksneeze.  I placed my order on April 29th (Thursday evening) and had it in hand by Monday, May 3rd!  That's awesome delivery time for a service that's free!  With that said, here is my review of the book: "I am Hutterite" by Mary-Ann Kirkby. 

Although the book description talks mostly about Mary-Ann (Dornn) Kirkby's family moving from the Hutterite Colony to main-stream English life, the actual move does not take place until three-quarters of the way through the book.  For the most part, the book describes life in a Hutterite Colony beginning with her great-grandparents who left main-stream English life and freedom for the security of living in a colony.  The beginning is a little confusing because the author seems to jump around between her childhood to her grandparents marriage and then on to her great-grandparents courtship.  Although that can be confusing, reading about the history and day-to-day lives of a Hutterite is very interesting.  I really enjoyed reading how the community operated and how they lived as one big, happy family. 
Colony life was basically set up like it's own little world.  Everyone had a specific job to do, and as children turned a certain age, they were given more privledges and more responsabilities. A very devout Christian people, they read constantly from the Bible and also had their own bible for living with other rules and ways of life that were based on the Bible. 
Kirkby peppers her story with many Hutterite phrases and words and one can imagine being there at the compound with the other Hutterites. 
When the Durnn's finally decide to leave behind the only way of life they have ever known, it is very interesting to see how Kirkby adjusted to life outside. 
I give this book 4 stars for originality and it really is a very interesting book.  It's only downfall was that it didn't seem to "flow".  Like I said earlier, there seemed to be a lot of jumping around and some paragraphs would end and the next would really have nothing to do with the one before it.  I will also say that learning about a life that is much simpler in so many ways had me reflecting on my own life and thinking that I could incorporate some of the Hutterite views and ways of living.  Simplicity and God-fearing.  Very good standards for anyone to learn and live by.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Leave a comment and one winner will recieve my copy of this book for free!  Drawing will be held at random in two weeks on Tuesday, May 18th.  Thanks and good luck!


 
  Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Free Books? What could be better?

I just learned of an excellant opportunity to review books for free!  I found it through one of Lisa Whelchels' monthly e-mails.  I just signed up yesterday and had to wait for acceptance into the club.  I just got the email that approved my application!

The first book I'm going to review will be "I am a Huttertite" by Mary-Ann Kirkby

A fascinating journey into the heart and culture of a reclusive religious community.


I Am Hutterite takes readers into the hidden heart of the little-known Hutterite colony where author Mary-Ann Kirkby spent her childhood. When she was ten, her parents packed up their seven children and a handful of possessions and left the colony to start a new life. Overnight they were thrust into a world they didn't understand, a world that did not understand them.


With great humor, Kirkby describes how she adapted to popular culture, and with raw honesty she describes her family's deep sense of loss for their community. More than a history lesson, I Am Hutterite is a powerful tale of retracing steps and understanding how our beginnings often define us.

I am very excited to start reviewing books!  So, today is Sunday, April 25th and I'm not going to really count it because it's not an "official" work day.  We will pretend that I actually ordered it tomorrow the 26th.  I'm curiouse as to how long it will take before I get it. 

If your interested in reviewing Christian books for free - just follow this here box thingy.

Out of the mouths of Babes

Yesterday was the funeral service for my father-in-law, Danny.  It was a very sad day for me and Charlie, but I will write about that more later (maybe).  What this particular post is about is how utterly adorable Cameron was when we got home last night.  After the funeral and reception, Linda gave us a bunch of leftovers some of which included some really good cookies.  Well when we got home Cameron, of course, grabbed a cookie and asked if they were from grandpa.  We said kind-of yes.  He asked if Grandpa had made them. We said no, Grandpa didn't make them but they were kind of "for him".  So he then asked if we could go see grandpa sometime soon and charlie, not quite knowing how to respond, asked me what you say in a situation like that.  I told him to tell him the truth, but sensing that might be difficult for Charlie to do, I told Cameron that Grandpa had died and he went to Heaven to live with Jesus now and we won't get to see him for a long long time.  Well Cameron looked at me all serious like and said "Well you better give me 15 monies for the bus cuz that's really far away!"  It just tickled my funny bone and made me laugh.   To see how the mind of a child works is priceless sometimes. 

What's for Dinner?

Every day it's the same routine.  Day in and day out.  It could be 10 am or (and this is the usual way it goes) it's 6:00 am.  Charlie will barely make it out of bed, grab a cup of coffee, change whatever it is I'm watching on t.v and immediatly ask me what's for dinner. 

Dinner? At 6:30 in the morning I'm still wondering what I'm going to wear? Are the kids going to miss the bus? Did Cameron wet the bed? What's my pain level?  What important things do I absolutly HAVE to do today? What day is it anyway? 

Nope, every morning like clock work he has to know what we're having for dinner.  But here's the kicker.  IT DOESN'T MATTER!!  He probably won't be here anyway and if he is, he ends up not eating with the family and just reheating it a few hours later.  Grrr.  Take yesterday for instance.  I have been really trying to get better organized.  I finally found the planner I absolutly love.  I used it for 2 years in a row about 5 years ago, then kind of stopped.  In case your wondering it's the family organizer by Amy Knapp.  I've used a lot of organizers over the years and this is by far the most complete and portable one that I've found.  With that being said, it has a spot every week for menu's.  So, yesterday I had actually had something down for dinner.  Beef Tips and Noodles.  When Charlie asked (at 6:30 that morning) what was for dinner, I immediatly told him it was beef tips and noodles.  His response? "I don't want that." WHAT?  I FINALLY tell you before 6:30 pm (when dinner is supposed to be on the table) and YOU don't want that???  I gave him a look somewhere between "you're unbelievable" and "I am seriously going to kill you."  Needless to say, we had the beef tips. It wasn't ready until almost 7:30 and he still didn't eat until almost 9:00.  By that time he has already been to the bar, come home and had a few more and is ready for bed.  He really only eats so he doesn't starve to death.  At least thats my opinion. 

So, now it's 9:30 am and no, I don't know what's for dinner.  I know there is a whole frozen chicken, and some steaks in the freezer.  We will probably have the chicken because we just had beef yesterday.  Heaven forbid if we had beef two nights in a row. 

As for the menu?  I'm still working on it.  I've even tried those menu's you find in some magazines like Better Homes and Gardens or Ladies Home Journal or even Redbook.  There was one I just looked at last week for April and there was exactly one recipe that I could use.  Most were these weird, gourmet type meals.  Who has time for that?  Who has the ingrediants for that?  I'm still working on my menu's.  The digital organizer from Amy Knapp has this cool feature where you can save all your recipes and drag-n-drop them to each day.  Once it's built with all the recipes that our family enjoys, I think it will be a very useful thing.  Right now I'm still in the panic each day mode.  Oh well.

 

Goodbye's are never easy.

I'm an adult, I know that.  I know that as an adult I will not and do not have as many "close" friends as I did at, say, 16.  But, the friends that I am fortunate enough to call friends are very near and dear to me.  My closest friend, Dee, and I have only known each other for about 7 years.  In that time we have shared a lot of laughs and a whole lot of coffee!  She has helped me through the good times and bad, and I hope I have done the same for her.  It felt good to know that I had someone close by that I could call up anytime and I knew she would be there for me.  Anytime. Day or night...she was there.  Well, tonight her and the family packed up a U-Haul and headed to Florida.  Some 1400 miles or so away.  To say I am upset would be an understatement.  I am absolutly heart-broken!  Her children were like my own.  They called me mom and I considered her my sister.  What makes all of this even harder is the fact that tonight she had a "packing party" and they were planning on heading out in the morning.  Well, the packing must have went faster than anticipated because by 6:30 they were done and Chris wanted to hit the road. Now. Needless to say, I had been planning on going over at 7 - after dinner - but they were gone.  Like dust in the wind.  My daughter KC called to tell us and I cried.  I talked to Dee, and I cried.  I made promises to visit and passed the phone to my daughter then went in the bathroom and, you guessed it, I cried.  I got myself together for a while, then my husband asked why I hadn't left yet (for Dee's). I broke down again.  I know that's a lot of crying for one adult, but I really feel like I didn't have "closure".  I didn't get to say good-bye.  I've already been online to check plane prices.  $189 round trip.  I just have to fly when it's 150 degrees out and even the "palmetto bugs" (ie: mutant cockroaches)are despretly searching for ac.  No, goodbyes are never easy.

I hate argumentative essays!

I think I've finally lost my mind.  See, last December sometime I got this bright idea that I would finally finish my degree.  I originally started college back in 1993 and after 17 years and 3 kids I had exactly 28.9 credits. that's not even a half of a class a year.  Sad.  But, now that the kids are getting older and my 13 year old daughter has already taken a class at the the local college, I figured I had better step it up and finish my education.  So, in January I signed up at Asford University for their online degree and signed my life away - again - to NelNet.  Each class is only 5 weeks long and you complete 3 classes in a semester.  So, it's similiar to taking three 3-month classes but you only have to concentrate on one class at a time and it's all at your own pace.  Loved the first class and finished on the 8th with a 4.0. woo-hoo!  Now I am in my second class - English 122 (or sophmore level english).  Not doing so good.  Yesterday my first essay was due and I still haven't even nailed down my subject.  I originally thought to do the essay on Physician Assisted Suicide.  It's an argument essay and until recently I was for PAS, but now that I am born-again, I realize that Suicide is suicide no matter how you phrase it.  That is my only argument but I didn't feel comfortable writing a paper that had 10 pro's and just the one con. So, back to the drawing board and I decided to do it on Religion in schools.  Lots of Pro's lots of Con's and tons of variables.  Too many for a 2-3 page essay.  Now I'm on Freedom of Religion. I feel more confidant about this one.  Last night I was truckin' along at 9:00, working diligintly and then I dozed off...fingers still on the computer.  Needless to say I couldn't comprehend half of what I was reading or try to form any ideas or coherant thoughts.  It was only due by midnight.  So, here I've been since 8 this morning trying to research and write a paper and aside from my title page I have nothing else.  Can you say procrastination?  This is crazy!  I'm usually the type that can spit out the final draft of an essay within an hour or two and here I am a week after starting and no closer to the end than before.  I think part of my problem is that it has to be an 'argumentative essay' and I am simply and totally not a confrontational or argumentative person.  I avoid them at all costs.  Whenever I do have to argue my blood pressure rises, I feel faint and my tongue seems to swell to 5 times it's normal size.  My mouth goes dry and I lose all ability to think and speak coherantly.  I could never be a lawyer, that's for sure! 
Well, I suppose I should at least try to get something down before it's too late to get even a partial grade. 

Houdini Lives!

I haven't written in forever. After my surgery there were the holidays, then I was working a bazillion hours a week and now that the 'season' is over I can finally relax. Or so I thought.

I have officially come to terms with the fact that my youngest will be the next Houdini. He has managed to escape every conceivable way possible. And at the tender age of 3, he has already gotten to ride in a police car. Great. Sign me up for "Mom of the Year"!

A few weeks ago he managed to get out of the house without me knowing it. I thought he was in the house. After searching a good 3 minutes inside and outside the house I quickly deduced that he was not on the property. Well I called the police and they already had him. All within 5 minutes. He had managed to get out of the house, over to the next street, and (because the police happened to be right there) taken to the police station. Holy Heart Palpitations!

I honestly thought the yard and house were secure. The fence we put up last summer was specially selected for it's smaller than normal holes that he can't get his foot into and every door has at least 2 latches on them. So how did he get out you ask? Well, take a look....




Of Course he didn't succeed that time. But that's how crafty he is. A little later the same day, he succeeded again in getting out of the yard.



We ordered LO-JACK that night. Okay it's not "LO-JACK", but it works and I'm not afraid to use it. I did nothing but chase him for 3 days until the security devices came in. It's great. Next I'm getting the Harness Buddie. I don't care if people think it's wrong to put your child on a leash. I think it's wrong for parents that don't do all they can to keep their children safe. Especially when they know they have a runner like I do.