Beautiful Blessings - 10/15/15

~ The Muppet's Christmas Carol!

~ White Christmas!

~ Mary Poppins!

~ The scent of an October rain!

~ Challenging a friend with a riddle! ;~)

Beautiful Blessings - 10/14/15

~ Having a "Princess Day!" with Lil' G, L-Jo, and T-bug!

~ Making goodies together for our lunch!

~ Watching Princess movies! Cinderella (by Faerie Tale Theatre), The Dancing Princesses (by Faerie Tale Theatre), Cinderella (2015), Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses, and Beauty & the Beast (Disney)!

~ Ending the day with a princess book! "Ponyella" by Laura Numeroff and Nate Evans!

~ T-Tot having and adventure and overnight at our grandparents!

Beautiful Blessings - 10/13/15

~ The pretty fall leaves the kids found!

~ The various colors from vibrant to dull!

~ Air scented from fresh crackly fall leaves!

~ Turning them into window decor!

~ Cute decorations for the front step that T-Tot made!

Mono: Seven Things I Have Learned!

As we near the 9th month since I came down with mono last winter, I was thinking back about all that happened, and all that I learned. How am I doing now? Well, I'm still getting migraines. I'm slowly regaining my stamina and strength. Its taking a while, but as Ive told several people, God will heal me completely in His timing! So now, Id like to discuss seven things Ive learned while having, and recovering from, mono!

1. Mono is very depressing to have. You cant go anywhere. You have no energy. You watch everything you love to do fall by the wayside. I got very depressed during the mono. I remember I would just cry some days in my bed because I didn't feel up to doing anything else. Sometimes even getting dressed made me cry! Praise God for the day He came to me, held my hand, and got me out of the depression! Isaiah 41:13 was an incredible encouragement! As I read through my journal during this time, I wasn't very depressed on the outside...and it wasn't until God pulled me out that I realized just how much I was! God is so very good! 
2. Sleep. Constantly. Tired. Exhaustion. You actually grow to dislike being in your bed because you're in it so much. And the couch for that matter. And sleep....golly when I first had the pneumonia (got that first during all this illness) I remember one day I slept 9 hours, got up for 3 or 4, went to bed for another 5 and was up for another 3 or 4 before I went back to bed for the night. You actually count down hours until you get to take a nap. I also recall a day in which I was thinking about the future and planning naps, 3-5 YEARS in advance! (Not normal for me, in case you want to know. lol!)
3. I said this a little in the first thing, but, you miss out on a lot. I missed dance, and Church! I couldn't do St. Patrick's Day, and ended up not doing my ballet recital either. I went to Irish Step once during all this, and my teacher told me I looked dreadful...which I did! It was very hard for me to give up dance! I missed Church for 7 (or so!) weeks in a row! And when I first started going to Church again, sometimes I had to go home early because I felt so bad. 
4. I missed seeing people during this. I had one friend who would come and visit a couple times a week, and I was so thankful for that! I didn't have a lot of energy, but its always nice to have someone to chat with for a little while. Some friends came from out of time during this, but I couldn't spend much time with them because I just felt so dreadful. I did spend a couple hours with them one afternoon, but when I got home I went to bed for the same amount of time! I was so thankful when my birthday came! I started planning it in early March so I had something to look forward to! I got to dress up and spend the evening out with my friends! I was wiped out the next day but it was worth it!
   
5. God changed me during this! My faith is much stronger than it was when it started! As I read through my journal, preparing for my post, I was amazed to see how much I praised God through it all! God was faithful through every bump and trial! (2 Thessalonians 3:3) He helped me through all the tests I had! I was scared when I had all the various tests scheduled for various things, but God gave me a boldness! Psalm 138:3! As my one friend told me, during this, I went from being a scared chicken to a bold bunny!
6. Prayer! Prayer is so important! It kept me together as it was one of the few things I could do! I was able to pray for others as well! I also (and still am) was so thankful for the people at Church who prayed hard for me while I was sick. Some of them still are praying for me since I'm still battling the migraines. Prayer is powerful. Never doubt the power of prayer! Prayer has gotten me this far through this chapter of my life, and it got me through all the battles. Ephesians 6:12 comes to mind. I am so thankful for prayer!
7. Encouragement kept me going! Notes, birthday cards, get well cards, emails, messages, hugs, small gifts, time to nap from Mom, pictures from the kids, and so much more was such a blessing! God was so good throughout it all! 

God was so good, is so good, and continues to do so much for me! Psalm 116:12 comes to mind. So many things to be thankful for about the mono! I grew spiritually, it happened during my junior year of high school instead of my senior, and just the fact God is always with me...will never leave me or forsake me! So I can say with confidence, the Lord is my helper! (Hebrews 13:5-6 if you want to look up the exact verses!) Through the trials you're going through right now, remember God is with you! Turn to Him and ask Him to help you! As I end this, I shall leave you with 2 Corinthians 12:8-10. It was one of my favorite passages throughout this!

2 Corinthians 12:8-10 (ESV)

Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 

Other posts about my mono and pneumonia:

Pneumonia, and Why I'm Thankful For It

A Mono-logue!

Beautiful Blessings - 10/12/15

This one is a bit different today...as I went about my day, I caught sunlight in beautiful places <3 Here are some of the spots I found it!

~ Sunlight in the fish tank!

~ T-bug was thrilled that Turtlebunny was in the sunlight! She also has an abundance of golden curls...so cute!

~ Designs on the ceiling!

~ The plants thriving and glowing in the sunlight!

~ Seeing the lace all lit up! <3 And seeing how the sunlight falls onto the banister! Sooooo pretty!!! <3

100 lbs of Apples and other Beautiful Blessings

~ Watching "The Wizard of Oz" with the girls. I love this movie <3 Its one of my absolute favorites <3

~ Realizing Lil' G is dressed like Dorothy

~ Picking apples from our tree!

~ Getting 100lbs or so of apples!

~ Having Heidi and her sis come over to help pick apples!

~ Seeing T-bug having fun with her Sunday School teacher...aka Heidi lol!

~ Going on a mini vacation to the Y to go swimming afterwards!

~ The girls being brave with ice skating and swimming!

~ Seeing how big T-bug is now <3 T-Tot wore that dress when she was little. 

~ Realizing that all the girls were wearing dresses from Aunt N! I love this one on L-Jo!

~ Being amazed by how big Lil' G is getting! She looks like a big girl!

~ Knowing I cant imagine life without my sisters <3

~ The fields being harvested!

~The beautiful fall leaves! <3

~ T-Tot getting compliments from an art teacher on her work! The lady told her that her paintings/pictures are better than some of the kids in her class.

~ T-bug's creativity for sleeping lol!!

Beautiful Blessings - 10/8/15

There is no place like home! ~ The Wizard of Oz

~ Watching L-Jo wear these around!

I have to tell you a secret that will see you through all the trials that life can offer. Have courage, and be kind. ~ Cinderella (2015)

~ Watching this again with T-bug seeing it for the first time! She was in awe of the carriage when the "Hairy Dogfather....er...Fairy Godmother" made it!

You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me. ~ C.S. Lewis

~ A cup of jasmine tea that was inspired by a friend!

So the small things came into their own: small acts of helping others, if one could; small ways of making one's own life better: acts of love, acts of tea, acts of laughter. Clever people might laugh at such simplicity, but, she asked herself, what was their own solution? ~ Alexander McCall Smith

~ Being able to help Mom out today!

When we love a person, we accept him or her exactly as is: the lovely with the unlovely, the strong along with the fearful, the true mixed in with the facade, and of course, the only way we can do it is by accepting ourselves that way. ~ Fred Rogers

~ Seeing everything my Mom does for my Great Grandma! <3

Beautiful Blessings - 10/7/15

~ Great Grandma turning 93!

~ Making her a pie and applesauce!

~ Picking out the perfect cards for people!

~ Seeing a cute hat on my favorite librarian! She is such a sweet lady! The hat made my day!

~ Meeting up with my dance teacher for a workout so I can regain strength I lost with the mono!

Beautiful Blessings - 10/5/15

~ Dirty dishes... which means we have eaten!
~ Dish soap to clean them!
~ Clean dishes!
~ Dish towels given to Mom for Christmas last year!
~ An apron to wear while washing dishes!

A Missing Hairbrush and other Beautiful Blessings!

#worstbloggeroftheyear ;~)

Anywho, since I have forgotten to post the past several days, here are some blessings!

~ Meeting up with my old dance teacher so I can begin strengthening myself for the dance year ahead!

~ T-Tot's surgery (last one!) for a mole went well!

~ The smell of fresh picked apples!

~ Taking a mini-vacation at Walmart! Aka......drooling over cookware and squeeing over CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

~ Rejoicing that there are only 81 more days till Christmas!

~ Plotting Christmas presents!

~ Celebrating the fact it is October!

~ Squeeing over the beautiful colors on the trees!

~ Watching the kids use their imagination with their Color Clix! Here is a gun that they made!

and double motorcycles!

and, what I like to think of it as, "A Great Big Electric Whocarnio Flook" from "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas!"

~ Crocheting 85 baby hats so far!
~ Fresh Apple Cider Donuts from Grandma and Grandpa!
~ A play tea set from our "adopted Grandma and Grandpa"!
~ Seeing "twinsies" again!

~ Having a long video call with a friend!

~ Having an unexpected 10-minute visit from a friend!!

(I had to have a picture for proof that she came over ;~) Heehee!)

Nearly forgot the one in the blog title!

~ A missing hairbrush! For then I had to use a comb on the kids' hair this morning which required me to slow down and be gentle as we were getting ready for Church this morning!