A look inside: A Happy Ending

Monday, November 19, 2007

A Happy Ending

Last night was wonderful. After eight straight days of sickness, we had one lovely day without vomiting. We were all healthy....almost. Daniel and Jon were still feeling a little under the weather. But Jon and I attacked the dirty house with amazing energy, doing load after load of laundry, washing dishes, cleaning bathrooms, and Jon so sweetly cleaned the toilets. He REALLY wanted to take a picture of the dirty toilets for the blog, he thought it would be the perfect post....yuk! He excitedly called us all into the bathroom to look at it before he cleaned it. I tell you, our husbands are just little boys in big grown-up bodies.

Well as of now, I still work Sunday and Monday nights at Newport Bay. I know, crazy. Well, I had to leave for work at 5:00, so I was rushing around trying to get dinner ready and the house clean before I left. I started to get in my "stressed out mode" realizing I had only an hour left to shower and get myself ready, and then like manna from heaven, the phone rang. A sweet girl from work called and wanted to know if she could work for me because she was needing to make some extra money. Hallelujah! Of course I said yes. And so after a long, tiring week we all sat down to a wonderful meal together as a family: my famous rolls and home-made chicken noodle soup for our fragile tummies, with sparkling cider to celebrate! It was completely wonderful, a perfect ending to a long, exhausting week. God is good!

13 comments:

Lindsay said...: so, so thankful that you are all feeling better... and what a great way to celebrate!!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!; November 20, 2007 at 6:32 AM
Anonymous said...: So happy you are all feeling better. It sounds like last night was much needed!
I sure wish you guys were coming up here for Thanksgiving!; November 20, 2007 at 7:27 AM
Sharon said...: That's fabulous!! What a blessing to unexpectantly get the night off! Isn't God good?? Your dinner looks marvelous and I love that Olivia used her bowl for a hat before enjoying your yummy soup! : ); November 20, 2007 at 8:55 AM
Jen said...: Okay...

Those rolls look incredible!! Maybe you can post your recipe like Becca did with her pb cookies!

Glad you are all on the way up. Love, Jen; November 20, 2007 at 2:45 PM
Ona said...: So glad to hear you all are feeling better.
Five more days till the big day...are you ready?; November 20, 2007 at 6:40 PM
LizzyG said...: Oh Ona, I'm so scared! I might not survive!!! I probably won't be able to walk at the Blog Party. I'll just show up in a wheel chair.; November 20, 2007 at 6:51 PM
Michelle said...: Liz... I am so glad that your family is feeling better! I love your love for your family. :-) Have a great Thanksgiving.; November 20, 2007 at 7:28 PM
Stefanie said...: I was feeling so bad for you having to clean and go to work like that - thus so relieved when you got to stay home. And your rolls looked great!; November 21, 2007 at 8:19 AM
Unknown said...: I'm so glad everyone is feeling better...and what a relief for someone to call and ASK to work for you!!!

What is the "big day" Ona is talking about????; November 21, 2007 at 5:34 PM
Julie said...: YEA! You made it through the sickness!!

I'm so glad you're feeling better now, have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!!; November 21, 2007 at 6:16 PM
Rachel said...: Yeah!! I hope you had a great Thanksgiving! Thank you for no toilet pics!; November 22, 2007 at 7:41 PM
HappyMomma2 said...: I am so glad that you received such an awesome blessing! You deserved it. It was so good to see you the other day. It is so good to have Olivia at the Childcare center-she is sooooo cute!; November 23, 2007 at 7:39 AM
Anonymous said...: People should read this.; November 10, 2008 at 6:16 PM

Words to Remember

"Christ's followers cannot expect better treatment in the world than their Master had. Let them not promise themselves more honor or pleasure in the world than Christ had. Let each live a life of labor and self-denial as his Master, and make himself a servant of all; let him stoop, and let him toil, and do all the good he can, and then he will be a complete disciple."
~Matthew Henry,
English Pastor 1662-1714

"I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all. But whatever I have placed in God's hands, that I still possess."
~Martin Luther King

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."
~Jim Elliot

"I am a missionary, heart and soul. God Himself had an only Son, and He was a missionary and a physician. A poor, poor imitation I am, or wish to be, but in this service I hope to live. In it I wish to die. I still prefer poverty and missions service to riches and ease. This is my choice."
~David Livingstone

"I must keep alive in myself the desire for my true country, which I shall not find till after death; I must never let it get snowed under or turned aside; I must make it the main object of life to press on to that other country and to help others do the same. "
~C.S. Lewis

"I want Thy plan, O God, for my life. May I be happy and contented whether in the homeland or on the foreign field; whether married or alone, in happiness or sorrow, health or sickness, prosperity or adversity - I want Thy plan, O God, for my life."
~Oswald J. Smith

songs with meaning

If you hear one of these songs playing while visiting my blog, here is why it is so special to me:

I Will Be Here by Steven Curtis Chapman: I would listen to this song as a young teenager and dream about finding a love like this song describes. Guess what? God gave more then I ever dreamed.

Any Song by Keith Green!!! I first heard Keith Green as a young child and knew all his songs by heart. As a teenager, I loved his music because he is so honest and authentic. I also read his autobiography when I was in my teens. He is one of my all-time heroes! I remember my friends laughing at me when they were in my car, wondering why I would be listening to songs from the 70's. Yes, the music is cheesy, but the lyrics are simply amazing!

How Could I Ask For More by Cindy Morgan: My senior year of high school I was on homecoming court with four other girls, who were all good friends of mine. We all picked this song to be played during our ceremony. I still love this song!

Have I Told You Lately by Rod Stewart: The song Jon and I danced to at our wedding. I smile every time I hear it.

I Can Only Imagine by Mercy Me: This song was played at Brian Ditchen's memorial service. Brian was Jon's cousin who he grew up with, and who I went to school with, and he was a dear friend. He passed away in March of 2004 in a tragic plane accident, he was only 28. It shook the core of our faith. The only comfort came from knowing, without a shadow of a doubt, who Brian lived his life for: Jesus Christ. He was a dedicated believer, and we can't wait to see him again. Every time we would hear this song, it touched us deeply, it still does. Heaven has become very real to us.

The Scientist by Coldplay: My younger brother, Ben, sang and played this song on the piano at my brother Jeremy's memorial service. Jeremy passed away suddenly in September of 2004, he was only 31. Once again our faith was shaken (see next song)....

Cry Out To Jesus by Third Day: Whenever I hear this song I am reminded of my brother Jeremy...."To everyone who's lost someone they loved, long before it was their time, you feel like the days you had were not enough, when you said goodbye....cry out to Jesus" I am reminded to turn to God in the midst of my pain and loss, and it's OK to go to Him with my questions

We Will Dance by Steven Curtis Chapman: My current love song. It so beautifully describes mine and Jon's relationship.

I'm Not Cool by Scott Krippane: This is Daniel's song.Not in a mean way. He absolutely loves this song and sings along with it every time. The funny thing is, it describes him perfectly.

She's a Dancer by Phil Keaggy: This is Sarah's song! It so sweetly reminds me of Sarah...."she's a dancer, she loves to dance, she's a singer, she loves to sing, she's a lady, walkin' round in mama's shoes, standin' tall in mama's shoes" Sarah has also been caught singing into the bathroom mirror. And when she was younger she put on many "dance performances" for us in our living room.

Olivia by Phil Keaggy: Obviously Olivia's song! I've sang this song to her since she was a tiny newborn. She knows the words and sings along now. Whenever I put this song on, she stops what she's doing and gets a big smile on her face, and says "my song!"

Beautiful by Bethany Dillon: OK I'm 32 now. And sometimes when I look in the mirror, the depression creeps in. I don't look like I did ten years ago, I don't see a beautiful young woman looking back at me. And that can get you down sometimes. This song reminds me that true beauty is who I am in God's eyes. I could be perfect in every way on the outside and yet not be beautiful in the eyes of God, and when it's all said and done, my life would have been lived only for myself. I want to be beautiful in God's eyes, I want Him to look inside my heart and smile, and most importantly, be pleased.

Who Am I?, The Voice of Truth, and Praise You In The Storm by Casting Crowns: All three of these songs are very special to Jon. These are three of his all-time favorites. These songs brought him close to God when he was going through a hard time in his life.

I Am by Nicole Nordeman: The first time I heard this song was at a Women of Faith conference. She played it live on the piano. It was so beautiful and moved me so deeply. God is truly my "I Am", He has been my one firm anchor through every season of my life.