Blessing

I am so proud of some of our youth group students who helped collect food for our local food pantry tonight.  We call the event, Faceless Hope.  Each student paints a mask which symbolizes their story or testimony.  Last week they went door to door handing fliers out to let the neighborhoods know.  Tonight during trick or treat hours we collected the food.  It is such a blessing to see them in action loving our community.  :)  I don't have the pound total yet but when I do I will give you and update!  :)  


How are you being a blessing this week to others? 

The cutest trick or treaters

We started our evening with the jack-o-lantern pizza from Papa Murphey's.  Cute and yummy!  It had a ton of cheese on it too...I am a Wisconsin girl so lots of cheese is AWESOME!

 In our town we had trick or treating tonight so here is my adorable bear and lovely unicorn.  First we went to a church where they do "trunk or treating."   It was a bit rainy/misty here tonight so we did not go to many houses after we went to the church.  My daughter was having so much fun she could have kept going.  

9 years

Let me just say this and get it out of the way, CANCER SUCKS!  As I write this I can picture all the events leading up to this day 9 years ago and the agonizing days following.   


My mother was diagnosed with ALL  (leukemia) in March of 2002.  It was my senior year of high school and I recall my mom getting sick and sick enough where she called me to come home from school to take her to the clinic which was just a block away, but she said she could not drive.  At first  they thought it was Hepatitis but then I believe it was March 8th when we finally got the diagnosis.  I know the next day I went to school and everyone was acting normal but I felt like nothing was normal, I secluded away from my friends and went to the best teacher ever and cried on her shoulder for a few minutes.  Mrs. Wakeen... you were an awesome teacher that day...you were anyways but you went above and beyond and I was so blessed!  


My parents let no time go by as my mother started chemo and radiation right away.  We prayed for a bone marrow match and sadly non of my mom's 5 sisters were a match.  It was very sad that we had no bone marrow match but we still felt that my mom would do great with her treatment. 

One of my last favorite memories I have with my mom is celebrating my 18th birthday with her while she got her treatment and I stayed at a nearby hotel with her.  We had pizza, watched movies, read all the get well cards, and just prayed and loved on each other.  Our birthdays are 2 days apart so she was celebrating her 46 birthday.  


The treatment plan was going well and my mom was released to come home just in time to be at my graduation.  She had to wear a mask to keep away from germs but I did not care one bit...she was home! After graduation she did go back for some more treatments but on September 11th she was out of the hospital and she had a letter stating she was 100% 
cancer free and she came to visit me at my college dorm room.  She was so happy to be out of the hospital and so excited to see where I was going to school.  We went to Perkins and had a great meal.  It seemed that the hurdle was done we were on the other side but none of us expecting what was going to happen in just a couple short weeks. 

Only 2 weeks after she visited me at college she went to her follow up appointment and sadly her numbers were bad.  The leukemia was back and it came back strong.  :(  My mom signed up for a trial program and started a new chemo round.  


October 18th rolled around and my mom was getting very sick and was moved to the intensive care unit.  I left my dorm and got to the hospital right before they put her in a medicated coma.  When I went into the room I could see the pain and the last thing she said to me was "I have never felt like this before" and I thought she said "I'm falling into the floor."  I know I'm silly.  

The next few days were ups and downs and on October 29th our family gathered around her and prayed and said our good byes...our SEE YOU LATER as I know 100% she was going to have a party with Jesus.  She held on till the morning when she passed away on October 30th, 2002.  I was 18 years old and I was very mad and honestly I was angry at my God.  Don't worry my daddy God and I worked it all out.  :) 


I endured the longest car ride with my father driving... still not sure how he was able to drive.  We got home and it was a terrible feeling.  I knew I would never see my mom walk down the steps, I would not hear her giggle in the kitchen.  After I gathered my thoughts I found my dad at the foot of his bed kneeling on the ground sobbing.  It was terrible to see him in so much pain but it opened a door to a deeper caring relationship with my dad.  I did not have to say anything but I hugged him and cried with him for a few minutes.  It was healing to me and I think maybe to him it was too.  Later I would join my dad at a grief group and the bonding we shared in the car was awesome.  I know my mom and my dad had a great marriage and I am thankful to witness and share in seeing there marriage.  My dad is still not dating or thinking about dating, he says my mom was his one and only.  


Well, 9 years have passed and I think about the things that have occurred in my life I get a little bummed she was not hear to share it with me, but I will hold on to the promise of seeing her again in Heaven.  

 God saw she was getting tired, and a cure


 was not to be. So He put His arm around her 


and whispered, "Come with me." With 


tearful eyes we watched her suffer and saw 


her fade away. Although we loved her 


dearly, we could not make her stay. A 


golden heart stopped beating, you're now at 


peaceful rest. God broke our hearts to prove 


to us, He only takes the best. Love you Mom

Cookie cutter prints

HAPPY HALLOWEEN 

 

Only a couple more days until Halloween so we are squeezing in as many fun activities as we can.  Recently I purchased a big cookie cutter set from Goodwill so I am trying to get as much use as I can.  

Melted Crayon Pumpkin

I saw this on another blog a week ago and I can't remember where...so I'm sorry I can't give you credit!  


So I started doing this with my daughter using the hair dryer but the crayons fell off from the air of the hair dryer.  So my hubby came over and started helping.  Then he got a great idea and went to the  garage and came back with his heat gun and I think he had more fun then Selah and I.  WE LOVED IT!  :) 

First with the hair dryer. 

Moved onto the heat gun.  

ALL DONE!  

Some of the color's mixed and we got to talk about what colors would make when mixed together.  

The Lump: A Gynecologists Journey with Male Breast Cancer, REVIEW and GIVEAWAY

The title and sub title of this book caught my interest immediately.  "A Gynecologists Journey with Breast Cancer"  makes your head turn and think, "did I just read that right?"  Yes, it is very ironic and rare for a male to develop breast cancer but then a male gynecologist...kinda makes you chuckle which is true when many of his patients had a little laugh too.                                                         This true story read very quickly and the author was real in expressing all the stages he went through from denial to anger and frustration.  For me it is always hard to read a story dealing with cancer because my mother passed away from Leukemia 9 years ago.   It was a nice read for me to reflect on my mother but also hear a success story.  Doctor Alan starts his book discussing high school and how he came to choose medical school.  

Enter to win your copy:

Non spooky spider web

The first thing I did was add a few drops of dye to some glue to make really pretty glue.  :)  Very simple and inexpensive.  

 The first thing we made were some colorful spider webs. 


                                                               Good Job, Selah!

This was my example. 

 

After the web's we did some more fun ones.  

My hubby found  HELLO KITTY... Do you see her?  HOW COOL!  :)

Pumpkins everywhere

 Here is Selah's carved pumpkin she did while at her friends.  

This is in our neighborhood...I really liked them!  :) 

                     This is Selah's sticker pumpking... Tangled of course!  :)

7 month update

It is so hard to say my little guy is 7month's old!!!  He is such a cutie and a cuddly boy but I sure am praying his tooth comes in soon.  Today was a rough day for him and for mommy!  

He is also a wiggly boy and this time it was hard to get a good photo with the 7 month sign.  LOL

Halloween Safety Tips

HAVE A SAFE HALLOWEEN

	Swords, knives, and similar costume accessories should be short, soft, and flexible.
	Avoid trick-or-treating alone. Walk in groups or with a trusted adult.
	Fasten reflective tape to costumes and bags to help drivers see you.
	Examine all treats for choking hazards and tampering before eating them. Limit the amount of treats you eat.
	Hold a flashlight while trick-or-treating to help you see and others see you. Always WALK and don't run from house to house.
	Always test make-up in a small area first. Remove it before bedtime to prevent possible skin and eye irritation.
	Look both ways before crossing the street. Use established crosswalks wherever possible.
	Lower your risk for serious eye injury by not wearing decorative contact lenses.
	Only walk on sidewalks whenever possible, or on the far edge of the road facing traffic to stay safe.
	Wear well-fitting masks, costumes, and shoes to avoid blocked vision, trips, and falls.
	Eat only factory-wrapped treats. Avoid eating homemade treats made by strangers.
	Enter homes only if you're with a trusted adult.
	Never walk near lit candles or luminaries. Be sure to wear flame-resistant costumes.

Worship Wednesday

This is a new band my husband introduced to me, Anthem Lights!  :)  I like!  :)

Fruit or Nut?

Think about it? Are you producing good spiritual fruits or are you being a "religious nut"?


This did make me chuckle at first but very true.  What fruits are you producing?