Catching up: Part 2

Okay. I'm really annoyed now. I started posting, complete with uploaded pictures, and lost them! Now I have to start over. And I must say that Steve Hight is trying to provoke me into blogging :) Anyway, I'm back, at least briefly. I'm going to try this again...post a few pictures of my vacation to Gettysburg December 4-8. I went with my parents, drove all day to get there. We have been to Gettysburg multiple times, but never at Christmas time. The day after we arrived, we received 5 inches of snow! What a pleasant surprise...absolutely beautiful! We spent a good part of the day driving around the parts of the battlefield that were open, taking lots of pictures. Our friend Mark drove over and spent the day with us. That evening, we went through downtown Gettysburg, and really enjoyed the way they had it decorated! It was quite cold and windy, so we HAD to duck into a tiny coffee shop to warm up. The following day, we spent a few enjoyable hours at Boyds Bears :) 3 whole floors of stuffed animals! My dad enjoyed it too, but it didn't take him nearly so long to enjoy it as it did me...haha! We also spent a little time at an outlet mall that was conveniently located just behind our motel! Very happy. I found some fantastic bargains :) Though we did visit the Park Museum, we didn't do a lot of museums/tourist stuff as we've done alot of that in the past. We really enjoyed being there in the snow :)











And so ends the little pictoral journey. The picture of me was taken in the lobby of the motel where we stayed. There are tons of pictures that I could post, but I think you "get the picture :)" On Friday, we drove to my good friend Elizabeth and Fred's home, then went together to the Shady Maple to eat. Folks, if you've never eaten there, it is worth the trip to Lancaster! I'll probably get these facts wrong, but I believe it seats 2200 people, and they serve 6000 - 7000 people per day! Massive Mennonite buffet! May I just say "Scrumptious!" Actually, Elizabeth didn't go to the Shady Maple with us, as she had some mandatory job training that afternoon. However, Fred and Mark drove over with us, and Mark's parents met us there. I have some pictures of that happy event, but I'm not going to post them for fear I might be slain if I did :) Suffice it to say, that a good time was had by all, and we left very well satisfied! We then drove over to Sight and Sound where we watched "The Miracle of Christmas." Again, I will not be posting photos, as they don't let you take pictures during the performance. It was an absolutely wonderful, uplifting experience. It made my heart thrill again to the real meaning of Christmas...God willingly laying aside His glory to become a helpless baby, completely dependent on those He had created! And all for the purpose of giving up His life for me! Really, you should see this production if you ever have the chance! After the performance, we had a snack(I can't believe we were hungry!) at Friendly's, then spent the night with Fred and Elizabeth near Carlisle. We had wonderful fellowship with our dear friends, and I was sorry to leave them the next morning. We again drove all day on Saturday to get home. The weather was fine, but Dad's car was acting a little dicey! It kept popping up error messages, and letting us know that the ABS system wasn't working. That's very comforting when you're bopping along about 70mph! But the Lord helped us get home okay, and Dad's car was fixed this past week.

The next few pics are of Jared and Janae's reaction to our Boyd's friends. Janae informed me that my bear(the one in the snowman sweater) would make a good big sister for Bunny(her constant companion.) She informed my mother that her bear wanted her(Janae) to be his mommy :) She also said in an aggrieved voice "You shouldn't keep him all for yourself." Not very subtle! We were not inclined to part with our bears, but she has one wrapped and waiting under the Christmas tree. So I think everything should be fine.




It was good to be home and see our little people, even if the craziness started up again immediately! Oh, and I should confess something funny I said in Gettysburg. The night we drove in, we passed the Lutheran Theological Seminary(the church in the picture above is located there.) I said "Oh look! There's the Lutheran Seological Theminary!" My folks were highly amused, as was I :) As my friend Anthony told me a few nights ago, yeah, my hair may not be blond, but I sure am :) I can't help it! Can you imagine me with Alzheimers? It's gonna be a trip!

Since my return home, I helped host a party/gathering/whatever for the young people of our church and school. We had 26 teenagers, plus several adults. We had pizza, and lots of cookies and pop. I couldn't find any diet pop, so drank Mountain Dew. Yuck! Pure syrup. Brent, I'm maintaining that DIET mountain dew is wonderful, but you can have all of the real thing that you want. I will admit that the frosty cold one you gave me in the summer was wonderful, but that wasn't combined with other sugar! Anyway....if you want to see a few pics, go to Steve Hight's blog :) I did take some pics, but haven't uploaded them yet. We had relay races 1) eat 3 saltine crackers and then whistle 2) chew a piece of frozen bubblegum and pop a bubble, 3) wearing MITTENS, open a candy kiss and eat it. It was pretty hysterical :) We also played 2 rousing rounds of musical chairs, where I, brave soul that I am, operated the CD player. Much less violent from that position! We also played a game where a tightly wrapped gift was passed to music, and every time the music stopped you passed it to the next person. When you got the first one open, there were tons of smaller packages, also tightly wrapped inside! What fun. Then it separated into 2 packages that ultimately contained gift cards for Walmart. After that game, we opened the gym until 11pm. Then we had all the fun of cleaning up the horrendous mess. Be warned: Don't try the cracker/whistle relay over carpet! At least our floors swept up well. It was really an enjoyable evening for teenagers and adults alike. I even enjoyed making lots of cookies, buying supplies, decorating a small tree, etc.

Then, despite some bad weather, our adult choir performed the cantata "Emmanuel: Celebrating Heaven's Child" on 12-16 in the evening service. Although we had 3 out sick, we had 20 choir members. God really helped us, and they did exceptionally well! I was very proud of them. The narration, done by the Manleys, was gripping. The music was compelling. One of my favorite songs was "Come Make a Place" which said "Jesus, I'm empty without you. And you're everything I need. So come with your grace, come make a place in me. Oh come to my heart, Lord Jesus. There is room in my heart for Thee." That is my prayer this season...that I won't be so filled with the busyness of the season that I fail to make room for Him. Without Him, I am lost and hopeless. With Him in my heart, I have a vital, joyous life! Let us adore the Christ of Christmas.

Yes, I am relieved that the programs are over for another year. But I don't want to lose that sense of wonder...the fact that He came for me. Well, I need to get some rest. Tomorrow, my immediate family will celebrate Christmas together. You may expect some more pictures very soon :) It will be fun, but chaotic with 4 little people really into the gift-giving part of the day. We will listen to my Dad read the Christmas story, we will eat wonderful food, we will enjoy our little people as they are filled with excitement and joy. Most of all, we will just enjoy being together as a family. What a blessing they are to me!

If I fail to post again before Christmas, may God richly bless you this Christmas season, and may you have a very merry Christmas!

Catching up with Cindy :) Part 1

I know. I'm absolutely terrible at keeping up with this whole blogging thing. Thanks Bro. Hight for the reminder tonight:) Now see what you've done! I'm staying up late to satisfy your curiousity. If this is filled with typos...well, then so be it! Haha...actually, it may be a little overwhelming if I blog about everything going on in my life right now. I may have to feed it to you in segments(Oh, boy...)

First, yeah, I'm sorry! I've just been so busy. I know it seems lame, but really, don't judge me until you've tried it. Okay, that being said, let's get on with it. I had a very enjoyable Thanksgiving at my Aunt and Uncle's home. Since Steve and I are the only ones left(unmarried that is,) the two of us played games for hours that day. We had a great time, and I'm smugly reporting that I won all but one of the games. Sorry, Steve...guess it was my lucky day :)




That, in a nutshell was Thanksgiving. Oh, and did I mention that we had some really incredible eating going on during the day? Feasting, actually. As a friend of mine texted me that evening, I was "too full to gobble!" Yeah...fun!

What has been consuming me for several weeks is our school Christmas program. It was a huge undertaking...one that I really enjoyed! But I never knew I could be so busy! First, our entire school sang, and I accompanied them. Then we had our chime choirs and intermediate band, all directed by yours truly. They did really well, and I am amazed at how much they have improved in 2 months time! I was very proud of them. Then the next thing I was in charge of was our 1st-6th grade musical. Kindergarden was involved too...they were the cutest sheep in all of Bethlehem :) It was so much fun, and the kids were awesome! Kristin D. did a phenominal job preparing them for the drama portion. My dad's comment was "Who needs the Little Rascals when you can watch those kids!" They really threw themselves into it, and I'm happy to say that it went off without a hitch. Lil P. was in charge of costumes and props and did a fantastic job. Our church auditorium was transformed. I merely helped with drama and props. I did direct the music, but I couldn't have done it without these two ladies! I am including a couple of pictures of a few of the cast members :) Also, thanks are in order to our sound/light technicians, Anthony W. and Troy K. You guys rock! All the teachers were supportive and helpful, and Mr. C. ensured that we had as much time as we needed for rehearsal. Even though it was tiring, it was an incredible experience. I was sorry that it was over :)





As you can see, we have some of the cutest, most talented children in the world at SCCA :) Heaven help you if I'm ever a mother! I'm bad enough being a teacher and an auntie.... To end our Christmas program, we took an offering, and raised a nice little sum for the music program at school! Hooray! I'm preparing to place an order with BJU :) I wish I could describe the musical to you. It was so cute and funny! We did "Miracle on Bethlehem Street," and one little boy wanted to know if he should keep the lyrics sheet they had to memorize "for next year." I had to explain to him that we will try a different one next year. But they loved the songs, and in fact sang so heartily that they didn't have to be mic'd much of the time for the choral pieces! They were crankin'! But we did have tons of sound equipment set up in order to pick up the drama. All our kids did great, but our main characters, played by Lane W. and Danae B., were awesome! They memorized tons of lines/drama, usually without complaining. I'm pretty sure you won't find a better group of kids anywhere, even if I do have to keep on my high school kids about talking in class :) My band kids were so disruptive one day during practice that I told them they did NOT want to see what a red-headed temper looks like :) It was a pretty empty threat, as I've never had much of a temper, but they don't need to know that! If it hadn't been so close to the Christmas program, they would have been sent back to class. As it was, they had to endure a lecture about growing up and acting like they were in high school instead of first grade. Whew! I didn't know I had it in me. I am pretty patient and tolerant, but, boy, once you've crossed the line, there is NO turning back :) Okay, 'nuff about that.

The day after the Christmas program, I left for Gettysburg with my parents. But that shall come in the next exciting installment of this epistle to the curious :) I am getting tired, and it's really hard to say what may come flying across this screen. I have more pictures to share, and stuff to tell you about my vacation. So please do stop back soon. I HOPE to get the next installment up quickly :)

Until we read again, have a great one!

Happiness is....

Well, actually, happiness is lots of things. I just wanted to blog about a few recent happy events :) As I was so sweetly reminded today(thank you, Deb,) I haven't blogged in a while. This is turning into a once a month event for me. I hate to say that I'm really busy, but it's true. I'm really busy. So there. Now I've said it, and I'm not taking it back!

One very happy October thing was that I started teaching music at our local Christian school. And despite my bundle of nerves, I love it! Currently, I have an intermediate band(which is somewhere between beginning and intermediate,)Jr. High Chimes, Sr. High Chimes, and general music grades 1-6. I am staying very busy between all of that, plus continue to teach private piano lessons to my 11 students. The most challenging thing I have right now is band. I played in the GBS band for 3 years as a percussionist. But I have very little experience with wind instruments. To complicate matters, 95% of my students are in high school. Now, they're not bad kids, but they very seldom shut their mouths. They tend to try to run over me a little, so we had a little chat on Wednesday. After speaking with a couple of teachers and our principle, I told them that I would be sending them back to class if they felt like what they had to say was more important than what I had to say. Also, I informed them that I would be submitting their names to the principle, and that I had decided that I was not going to yell at them all year. Now may the Lord help me to walk the talk. I've got to learn to get tough with them while still loving them.
To help with the band thing, I am currently teaching myself to play the flute. And I'm really enjoying it, and am surprisingly fairly adept at it. When I took the instrumental methods survey courses at GBS, I did better at flute than any other instrument, so that's why I picked it. I had absolutely NO success with trombone, tuba, baritone, or even saxaphone. I was decent at clarinet and trumpet. I tried on those other instruments, but my lips are small, so I had great difficulty filling the mouthpiece to create good sounds. Believe me, if you were to hear me play the trombone, you would think it was a cow dying in the pasture! It's bad, people. Just take my word on it. For those of you who found it amusing that I was teaching myself flute(you know who you are,) I am posting a picture....



I have found that I love teaching smaller children to sing. We are currently working on our Christmas program for school, and it is so much fun! They are so ready to sing, and they have been very attentive, thanks to the tips from my friend, Dixie! Dixie allowed me to come to GBS and shadow her for a day to watch her teaching methods. I have adopted her points system, and it is VERY effective! They are angels for me most of the time. And if they start getting out of hand, a red minus on the board quickly puts things to rights. Dixie, you're a genius. One extremely funny thing that happened this week happened during auditions for parts on Monday. One little boy was reading for a part. The line went something like "What about all the B's?" But he had a little different take on it, being the very literal child that he is. He read "What about all the BS?" It went completely over the heads of the kids, but we teachers nearly died from having to stifle the laughter. We were all shaking, but didn't dare laugh out loud at him! Ahh....teaching is fun! It was the highlight of my week so far :)

Another fun thing in October was my birthday. Yes, I'm still a kid at heart, so I enjoy my birthday. I was teaching that day, so the entire student body filed in during the end of 5th-6th grade music, and sang to me, presented me with a card and a cake. It was very touching. I also got many lovely cards from friends and family, as well as some nice gifts. To top off the evening, we went to Pinto's for a great meal, then followed up at our house with more cake. It was a happy day, and I'll post a couple pics for you. One of me and my mom at Pinto's, my kiddos at our house.





Another happy thing in October is the Booth Brothers. I could say "Happiness is the Booth Brothers :)" I went to the covered bridge festival in early October, and my friend Mark B. rode with me and my cousin Steve. All the way there and back, we listened to his new Booth Brothers CD's. I already owned 2 by them, but now I own most of their CD's! I am completely, hopelessly smitten. They have such beautiful voices, and sing such a nice mix of old and new. If you haven't heard them, I highly recommend them!

I am still working part-time in nursing, enough to keep my insurance. Whatever days I don't work in nursing, I am teaching. So I'm even busier than I was when I was working full-time. But I'm lovin' life. Coming up in my near future is Homecoming at our church this sunday. I am playing/singing with Hope. Sonja has a prior engagement, so I am going to try to fill in for her. PRAY!!!! I am looking forward to seeing Dixie and Heidi for a little while, but we will really miss Sonja. Also, church choir practice continues, and is going very well! Very enjoyable. Then there are other events associated with holidays that will keep me hopping for awhile yet. I probably won't slow down until Christmas now. I'm also going to Pennsylvania in early December, after our school Christmas program. Very much looking forward to that! That should provide some R&R just prior to Christmas. Also helping out with the Youth group at church, and enjoying that as well. There's always something to do, someone to practice with, something...

I'm just really thankful to God for helping me through these transitions in my life, for taking the fear/dread out of it for me, and helping me to really enjoy life. He is good, and He knows just what we can handle. I'm also thankful to family and friends who have been very supportive: Sonja, for prayers and advice: Dixie, for endless patience with my thousands of questions, spur of the moment phone calls for advice, etc. And then there are my fellow co-workers, my principle, etc. Everyone has been wonderful! My family has put up with my crazy schedules, and even tolerated my flute playing :) So yes...I'm happy. I know that there will be low points again, and I know happiness is not dependent on people or circumstances. What it really is is being in the center of God's will for me right now. The deep peace that comes from simply resting.

Well, this is long, as usual. And I really need to work on some housecleaning before Dixie and family get here! So, thanks for reading, thanks for being patient for this post to arrive. Ya'll are the greatest!

Tag. I'm it.

Oh dear. Kim! Now you've done it. You tagged me on a night that I'm feeling extremely verbal. In fact, I've already left several very wordy comments on my friend's blogs, and on myspace. But now that you've asked me to come up with 7 random facts about myself, hmmmm.....well, we'll see what happens.
1. I'm getting ready to go part-time in my nursing career. Yippee and yeehaw! It's supposed to come about sometime in the next month, and it can't come soon enough. Not that I dislike being a nurse, I'm just ready to be part-time. I will be working more with my music on my days "off." More on that later.
2. I'm going to Pennsylvania in December to see "The Miracle of Christmas" at Sight and Sound Theater! I can't wait!!!! (For those who don't know me well, I love to travel. In fact, I think I could do that for a living...) I am also going to be seeing Gettysburg in the Christmas season. I've been there in summer and fall, but never around Christmas. Also looking forward to spending time with some good friends.
3. I enjoy talk radio while I'm traveling on my nursing rounds. Let's see. I regularly listen to parts of : Rush Limbaugh, Dr. Laura, Nancy Leigh DeMoss, Focus on the Family, Family Life Today, etc. Oh, and mustn't forget Midday Connection :) I even know what time each of these shows plays. I also love to find Alistair Begg upon occasion. That's a real happy day! I think I'm getting old.
4. I love watching "The Honeymooners," a TV show from days gone by. I own the DVD set of the 39 classic episodes. If you wanna do some great laughing, I highly recommend it. They just don't make 'em like that these days.... Another thing(btw) that will make me laugh out loud is the James Herriot books. I had to stifle my laughter while reading late at night when I had a roommate in college :) Good stuff.
5. I just started conducting our Christmas choir at church. What I mean is, I've done it for a few years, but just starting for the season. I like the program we're going to do, and I do enjoy conducting(If any former teachers from GBS are reading this, I apologize if you just fainted and had to be revived.) It is alot of work, but it's fun and rewarding. I enjoy hearing the finished product. It never feels like it's going to "fall into place," but somehow God always helps us, and it's better than we expected. So glad that when we've done our best, He steps in and makes it better!
6. In a former life, I was very shy. I know you don't believe that now. But we're talking painfully shy. Actually, being a nurse has been very good for me in some ways. When you deal with the public day in and day out, you either get over it, or you find something else to do with your life. When you have to ask elderly, hard-of-hearing people sensitive questions that lots of other people are hearing, well... Need I say more? Nope, better not.
7. I am well-known to carry goodies in my purse. Stuff like fruit-flavored gum, tic tacs, etc. I tend to be rather generous with my stuff, so my friends and family benefit regularly. In fact, one of my nephews came to the front of the church a week ago, just as I was ready to begin the evening prelude. He whispered in my ear "Aunt Cindy, can I have some orange tic tacs from your purse?" What a sad day to have to tell him that I had actually run out. But that situation has been remedied, I'm happy to report.
Okay. Do you feel like you know me better? I sure hope so. If there's anything else you want to know, just ask. I DO reserve the right to not answer if I deem it more appropriate not to :) Okay, better close it up, so that I can get up when that hateful alarm clock goes off. I'm sorta a morning person, but not a 6 o'clock morning person. I much prefer 8am....
Later. Hope you enjoyed my ramblings :)

Another Cindy Moment...or at least a stupid moment.

Okay...I'm not sure I should even post this. But for those of you who know me well, you will enjoy this hugely. So I don't want to deprive you of the laughter that is soon to follow. I also want to make sure that those who are nearest and dearest understand that picking out the nursing home may soon be a matter of concern. You may want to make sure that there is an Alzheimers unit....

Okay. So here's what happened. As a home health nurse, I visit many very rural areas. In all the little towns that I go through, I know where there is food, and I know where there is a bathroom(clean or not!) So one day last week, I was way out in no-man's land. I got myself this absolutely wonderful turkey and colby on white. Very yummy. I got it at a tiny grocery store, and they put on miracle whip, lettuce, mayo, etc. It was kind of messy, and there was no place to eat. So I looked for a place to pull my car over and eat. I finally found the deserted fish/game club, and pulled in there. Like I said, the sandwich was messy, so I was doing my best to hold it together, and WHAM! I bit my own finger. Yes, you read that correctly. And let me tell you, while it did not break the skin, it really smarted! I don't know when I have felt so dumb. I sat there and laughed for a while before I could even finish my sandwich. I was just so grateful that I didn't do that in a public place :)

So now you know. There will not be pictures of my sore finger to illustrate this little post with. I didn't think that was completely necessary.

Oh, and one other thing. I now have a patient that never brushes his teeth. He's middle aged, and doesn't ever remember brushing them, and he's not about to start now. I knelt on his floor to change a dressing on his foot, and came back up with black knees. I had to stop at yet another rural gas station, go into the bathroom, and clean up the best I could with soap and paper towels. Life is interesting, if nothing else :)

Okay...that's all for now. For those of you who may have the misfortune of being responsible for me when I can no longer think for myself, please help me to recognize when the day has come that I need to be placed. And if I don't recognize it, place me anyway, for the good of society. But please...do pick out a nice facility. I do ask that of you....

'Night :)

A Cindy moment....

Wow...another post from me. And so soon too! Well, I just had to tell you about a funny happening in my day. I'm on-call this weekend, and after seeing patients for a few hours this morning, I was hot, tired, and ready for a little refreshment. As I was heading back into the office to get started on a few hours of paperwork, I decided to stop at Starbucks. I ordered a tall blueberries & cream frappacino, light, double-blended, thank you very much. Starbucks is literally just across the street from the office, so I decided to take it with me. Well, I had my arms absolutely loaded...my laptop, all my pertinent information for the weekend, charts, my huge water jug, with alas my poor frap on top of my jug. I got the door unlocked okay, but my frap tipped over on the way in the door. Children, there was blueberries and cream frap ALL over the floor, all over the cloth-type divider wall. The little plastic cup shattered when it dropped, so I lost it all. Very sad. I would've been better off to just toss $4.03 out the window of my car. At least there wouldn't have been a mess. So instead of blissfully enjoying my little treat, I cleaned up the mess as best I could with paper towels, and had to call housekeeping for a little spot remover help. It was just such a Cindy moment. Always trying to carry too much - save the extra steps, and then making a big hash out of it :) Oh well, guess I didn't need the extra calories anyway!
btw, if you haven't tried the blueberries and cream, well, you need to get right on that. You will not be sorry...
'night.

August happenings, verbal rambling

Okay, kids. Here goes. The promised blog that you've waited for for so long! If you're so excited that you're in need of a nerve pill, now would be the time. Go ahead. I'll wait on you....

As you, my faithful readers, are aware, vacation is long over. That makes me a trifle sad, as it was the most relaxing vacation I've had in a long time. But life moves on. And so must I (cough, sniff...I'm trying, really I am!) The good thing about going back to work was taking that sense of peace that filled me up while I was in Florida, back to work with me. Wow...what a long sentence. There seems to be something amiss with the structure, but I'm too bushed to linger on it :) Anyway, suffice it to say that God has really helped me at work the past few weeks. On August 8th, my favorite patient passed away. We have been expecting this for some time, but it was still hard. I was not working the day that he passed, but they called me, and I arrived shortly afterwards. I had taken care of this gentleman since January, and we had grown very close. As he lay slowly dying for all those months, I had numerous opportunities to pray with him. He told me on more than one occasion that he was ready to meet God, that he'd done everything he knew to do to make things right with Him. That made his passing easier, believe me, because that's not how things started out. I am so thankful for God's immense love, and His patience with us as we try to find our way to Him. When I returned from Florida, "D" gave me flowers. I have never had a patient do that before! But he was so happy to see me, that he sent his daughter for them while I was caring for him. I was so touched...The day before he died, after we had prayed together, he told me( in his drugged state) "Cindy, I love you very much...very, very, very...." before drifting to sleep. I could hardly see for the tears in my eyes as I left his bedside for the last time. (Actually, I'm a little teary right now, if you must know!) "D's" family had asked me to sing for his memorial service even before he passed away, so Sunday, August 12th found me at the local Christian church. It was an honor to sing for my buddy's memorial, and God really helped me. I also ended up playing prelude/postlude type music impromptu, as the family hadn't thought about it until time for the service. Again, I'm thankful for God's help through even the little surprises in life. Yeah, I still miss "D," it seems my car wants to just automatically drive up his street. But I know he's in Heaven, and I'll see him again one of these days.

Okay, moving on to some other things I've been up to. I went to Cincinnati one Saturday to check on a violin. We found it in my grandparent's home, under a bed, and it had a tag inside that said "Stradivarious,etc,etc." So I felt compelled to check on it, even though we thought it was probably not worth much. You guessed it: it's absolutely worthless. But if we hadn't checked, I would've always wondered if it was one of the ones worth millions :) The same day, I visited with some cherished friends, saw my little buddy Carson, and did some errands in the big city! It was a fun day.


Here he is...my little "nephew," lookin' ever so much like his daddy!




A wee little smile for his adoring audience :)



"C'mon, Aunt Cindy! You're boring me!" :)

Anyway, it was a really fun day! Have I mentioned that I love my friends? 'Cause I do! And I should probably mention that this all took place while my parents were vacationing in another state. I stayed home, worked, and tried to stay busy! I don't mind being home alone on weeknights so much. After all, I've worked all day, and can get home and just crash. Watch a video, hang out in my jammies, whatever. But the weekends are another story. My sweet brother and "sis" invited me over both Saturday and Sunday of the first weekend. We had a nice cookout, and some great games! We teamed up sibs against sibs(me and Dave, Bradley and Jilayne) for a game of Rook, which Dave and I lost BADLY! It was one of the worst games I've ever played, but we had a blast anyway :) Dave is still reeling from the loss...haha! One extremely funny Cindy thing that I did on Sunday, was that I took a 2nd piece of the delicious, melt-in-your-mouth ham that my sister-in-law prepared. I then proceeded to eat it with none other than the MEAT FORK! I was aghast when I realized what I'd done, but we all had a great laugh! In fact, it still makes me chuckle :) Fortunately, I do NOT have a pic to show you! So, the time passed quickly, and I didn't even burn the house down...haha. I even spent one day in a drug-induced coma after waking up ill, as in unable to keep anything down :) But one Phenergan put everything to rights, and I slept most of a day away...oh well.

My sweet Momma also had her 63rd birthday this month. I just hope I look as young as her when I'm her age! I am posting some pictures of her and the grandkids for your enjoyment. Please be aware that these kids were trying on their funny faces...that seems to happen alot in my family :)






The cake was scrumptious, the flowers were beautiful, and a good time was had by all!

Other happenings: I attended a great pitch-in dinner for our new principle and his family. I went to a cookout sponsered by my cousin Steve, and our friend, Mark. In both instances, the food and fellowship were great! I also hosted a really fun cousin's night at our house while my parents were gone :) I can still hear the echoes of laughter! We had such a great time, and played games until after 1am! Have I mentioned that I love my family? Well, now you know.

One quick sister update. For those of you who read of her accident, and subsequent terrible break of her arm, we have good and bad news. The good news is that the elbow area seems to be healing well, and they will remove the hardware next month. The bad news is that her wrist is now dislocated, not healing. They will have to do more surgery to insert a screw, in hopes that it will help it. Her doctor told her that she may never be able to work/lift again, and her boss is encouraging her to apply for disability. We are praying for God's will to be done, and she seems to be in decent spirits most of the time. But she and her family could use any extra prayers that you may have.

Okay, I am drawing to a close...sigh of relief on your part! There is more I could say...lots of changes just around the corner. But I'll write more about that later. If you're wondering why I'm home on a Friday night blogging instead of doing something cool, well, I'm on call this weekend. So I'm home alone, boring you to death :) Hey, don't blame me! You chose to read this... I turned my pager on at 8 this morning, and won't be able to turn it off until 8am Monday morning. I do have some patients to see both Saturday and Sunday, but it's not looking too bad so far. The last weekend I worked, I got 26-30 hours of overtime, can't remember. We're talking late nights, exhaustion, frustration, etc. So I'm hoping that this will be a little better.
So...that's it. The post you've been eagerly anticipating. Not sure it was worth all the excitement, but there you have it! I'll try not to stay gone so long next time!

Until we meet again....

Bogged down in blogging...

I know you're just splitting your sides over the title of my blog. Basically, I should not be allowed around a computer after 10pm. The later it gets, the more amusing I become. Or maybe I should say the more easily amused I become. Either way, it can be a hoot :)
What this little blog is really here to say is this: I'm sorry that I've been such a slacker in the blogging department. Life sometimes gets a little away from me. But since I was told to get with it, I thought I'd just post this little blurb. Hopefully, it will satisfy the blogging expectations of my friends. And I promise to post an absolutely mind-boggling post at a near date. You will be so amazed at my exciting life.....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. JK!
'K, that's all I have for now. How'd you like that for a teaser? Please, dear reader, keep checking back for more news. I will try to make it worth your wait :)

'night......

Practice run arranging pics...I still need help!

Here is the couple that took such good care of me in Florida:) Treated me like a daughter.

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Here is the private pool, where Sonja and I spent many happy hours. She was swimming, I was flailing:) But it was fun!

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Here is a shot at Blowing Rock Beach...neat picture.


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Here is a cool one...the waves dashing against a big rock.

Just wanted to share a few more pics, trying to figure out how to arrange them, really. Had a lengthy discussion with Kim tonight, and she is trying to educate me on the blogging world:) Good luck, Kim! Sorry your cuz is such a dunce sometimes:) Glad you love me anyway!

Florida Vacation :)

I know it's been a bit since I've attempted to blog. I was sweetly reminded by Kim M. on Sunday night that I needed to get with the program. So here I am.
Just want to say that I had a wonderful vacation in southeast Florida! I flew to Florida( on an airplane, in case you were thinking of a smart-aleck comment,) and spent a lovely week with my good friend, Sonja. She and her family were gracious hosts/hostesses...they treated me like I was family, made me feel so at home. We did lots of fun stuff. We went to tea with Sonja's mom, Ruthie( and no, George, we are NOT stuck-up ladies now..just common folk like always :) Sonja and I also spent a great day at Seaworld in Orlando. I loved all the shows, don't know if I could pick a favorite. We spent a little time at the beaches, taking pics mostly and enjoying the sunshine. And we spent several hours enjoying a private pool nearby. Ahhh....the cool water was absolute heaven in the Florida heat! No, I haven't gained a lot of confidence in my swimming abilities, but I can navigate from one end of the pool to the other wearing a noodle( don't laugh..it kept me from drowning.) Also spent alot of time just vegetating, which I hardly ever get to do. It was one of the most relaxing vacations I've had in awhile.

The only small fly in the ointment was on Sunday, when I became ill. As a nurse, I'm a terrible patient, and I really hate to be sick, especially away from home. But I did make it to church for both services, and even accompanied Sonja when she sang a solo. Those who may have watched it via livestreaming, may have noted that the accompanist looks pasty :) Indeed, it was shortly thereafter, at the end of the altar call to be exact, that she had to beat a hasty retreat to the bathroom. There, she lost her lunch in a very undignified manner. But she was just soooo grateful that she made it out of the auditorium first :) Are you enjoying this little story? I warn you that nurses can sometimes be a little gross... I started feeling better the next day, and Sonja's family was very gracious about everything. The only good thing about my getting sick was that I actually lost weight in Florida, instead of my usual gain! In fact, my appetite is still not quite up to par, so hallelujah, the weight loss continues :)

One movie that I watched on vacation was "Facing the Giants." Sonja has already blogged about this movie, and said it much better than I could. But I will say that I am very convicted about my lack of faith. I have tried to protect myself from disappointment and disillusionment by keeping my hopes/expectations low. To trust God with abandon was frightening...afterall, if He didn't answer my prayers the way that I thought He should, would I still be able to trust Him? Or would my fledgling faith die completely? It has been easier to just stay within my comfort zone, to not step out in faith and "risk it all." God is digging up the soil of my heart, and I am finding peace in trusting Him to know what's best. I want to be used of God...whatever that may mean for me. If it means leaving the comfortable and familiar, then I am willing. If it means giving up a good paying job with good benefits, and trading that in for minimum wage, then I'm willing. With God's help, I am willing to face the giants of fear in my life...to allow Him full control. I am praying for specific guidance in the coming weeks, and I would appreciate your prayers as well. If you're wondering if I'm considering a move to the far east...well no, not particularly. But I have to be open to God's leadership. I have to learn to pray about offers/decisions, not just write them off because they're out of my comfort zone. I could probably say more, but I'm gonna call it a night. Thanks for your prayers...

Week in review

My sweet niece, with her baby, "Bunny." My Dad with his granddaughter...they love each other :)

Dad with all his grandkids...precious little people! And Dad with his kids...he thinks we're pretty special, too :) In the next pic, we put on our funny faces...do you think it's an improvement?

Here is the famous "Canasta Cake." Yep, it's just as good as it looks. Above are the ecstatic dads(and Janae) ready to eat the cake :)
Here is Cameron, enjoying his new double barrel shotgun...relax, it's a toy! Below, Jared can't wait to see what he's opening :)

Tonight it is my happy privilege to help you understand my scattered thoughts. I'm just gonna tell you a little about my week.
On Saturday, we attended my nephew Cameron's 5th birthday party. It was a nice day, though a bit hot, and my sister grilled out. We had a lovely meal, and wonderful cake and ice cream, always a happy happening! It was fun to spend time with the fam, and watch the kiddos play together.
On Sunday, we had a Father's day celebration for the dads in the family. I had secretly fixed their very favorite cake in the whole world on Saturday, and presented it with a flourish on Sunday! I don't make it often, as it takes 2 hours to make, and that's if you don't pause to do anything else. It is the most delicious cake in the whole world, I promise. Adding the sprinkles to just the bottom of the cake is my personal purgatory :) It is called Canasta Cake...(Philip Bishop, eat your heart out.) The funny thing was, my brother and brother-in-law were teasing me at Cameron's party Saturday, trying to put me on a guilt trip about making them a cake. I hadn't been able to keep it from Dad, as we live in the same house, and he was really enjoying it! Dad finally told them "No one in this house is going to go home and make a Canasta cake tonight." And it was true: it was already done and ready to eat :) I could hardly keep from laughing. When I took it into the dining room Sunday, I made David and Daniel close their eyes. David closed his eyes, and said "Oh, please let it be a Canasta cake...." Imagine their delight when they saw it. They couldn't believe it...that was fun. We ALL enjoyed eating it, and I'm happy to say, that we polished it off completely on Sunday.We had a really fun day together. I love my Dad, and think he's tops. I am including some pics of Dad and his kids, and his grandkids. (btw, I don't know how to rearrange pics to flow with the story line, so if you can help me, sing out...)
On Monday, I went to work as usual, and got a call from my Mom in the afternoon that my sister, Diane, had been in an automobile accident. It had been raining, she was in a bit of a hurry as she was running late for an appointment. Those of you who have been to my house will probably remember a treacherous one-lane bridge. She met someone as she was trying to get on the bridge, and she was in the middle of the road. She hit the brakes, and thinks she skidded. The next thing she remembers is waking up in the ambulance. Cameron was with her, and just got a small bruise on his belly from the seatbelt. He seems to be adjusting well. However, Diane was hurt pretty badly. She broke her left arm in 3 places, 2 breaks in the radius, and one in the ulna. She also has a small skull fracture, but it doesn't seem to be causing her any problems. They wanted to do her surgery that night, but had to send to Fort Wayne for a special screw. She was in surgery 4 and a half hours Tuesday evening. The surgeon really struggled, because the x-ray looked like clean breaks. However, when he got in there and tried to get the rod into the bone shaft of the ulna, he found that it had shattered into fragments. He finally got the rod in to his satisfaction, and then had to wire the bones together. We were really getting worried, as the whole surgery was supposed to take 2 hours. We spent some time talking to God, asking Him to help the surgeon. Diane was released to our home yesterday. Before he released her, the surgeon told her that it was one of the worst breaks he had ever seen, and that when he saw it, he thought that she would lose her arm. He said he was very surprised that they didn't have to amputate. He didn't tell us that prior to the operation, or we would've been really scared! Thank God for His unfailing mercy! The surgeon is still worried, not sure about the final outcome. But we serve a great big God who hears and answers our prayers. If you think about it, please pray for Diane, that God's will be accomplished through all this. Diane is concerned about being off work for a long time, and worried about possible disability. Please help us pray that she will be able to rest in God's provision. After all, He loves to give good gifts to His children! We're just so thankful that she is alive to tell about it....
Diane and her boys are here to stay with us for a little while. She needs help dressing, combing her hair,etc, and is unable to care for her 2 small boys right now. Her husband works long hours, and can't be around much to help out. So, the Matlock convalescent home is now open for business :) It's definitely a full house, but we don't mind. We're glad to be able to help out. Our extended family and church family is helping out by providing meals for a few days.
Other than that, I've had an incredible work week. TGIF!!!!!!! I worked 12 and a half hours yesterday, as I was on call plus my regular hours(no lunch break.) Today, it was over 9 hours. I've got some really sick patients right now, a couple of which are trying to die. God has been helping me to be a witness to my patients, and I pray that He will continue to use me in whatever way seems best. Anyway...I've been really busy. I fear that I'm starting to look my age...it may have something to do with sleep deprivation, not sure. Last summer/fall, I had a guy bugging me about wanting to have a relationship. I was NOT interested, but didn't want to hurt his feelings, so I told him that I was really busy, too busy for new relationships. While that is true, for the right person, I would make time :) Since I last talked with him, I fear that life has gotten even crazier. I really don't know how I would make time for anything else. Right now, I'm working full time, teaching piano, and now trying to help out caring for my sis and her babies. Not to mention that I have to play for a wedding in 2 weeks...and am woefully unprepared. I expect I will be pulling out a lot of old faithfuls...:) Fortunately, the bride isn't too picky. Tomorrow, I'm taking a long awaited and much put-off trip to Cincinnati to see the Creation Museum. While I'm excited about that, I also wish I could just sleep all day. Not gonna happen.
So now I trust you understand a little better why my mind is so boggled sometimes. And please pray for me, and the entire family. We really do need it. I know God has promised not to give us more than we can bear, but sometimes it seems we're just hanging on by a thread and the rope's gonna give way any minute. I'm really not complaining...life is too precious for that. Just gotta learn to hold His hand through the storms.
Okay, I probably should try to sleep for a few....thanks for listening.

Links: How in the world do you create them?

Okay. Technology is once again defeating me. Which is really nothing new! I seem to be technologically challenged :) Right now, I would like to create links to my friends on my blog...make it a little easier to go back and forth between blogs. But even after reading the help section on links, I don't understand it any better than I did! So if anyone who has been doing this for awhile can help little old me, I would be EVER so grateful :) There would just be no end to my gratitude....

Other than being challenged by computer technology, it has been a decent week. Not terribly busy, not terribly boring. Just kinda status quo... My nephew Cameron turned 5 today, so I do have a birthday party to go to on Saturday. Which means cake and ice cream :) Oh boy! Only problem is, I'm not one of those naturally thin people. You know the kind: they can eat whatever they want and it never shows! I just think that's so unfair...sigh. 2 years ago, I went on Weight Watchers with the wonderful result of 40 some pounds of weight loss. Yay! I've kept MOST of it off, and no longer am a member of WW online. I do another dieting system, vfl.com instead. I try to watch my diet and exercise, but alas, I fear that I will always be on a diet. I would like to lose another 10-15 pounds, but wow, it's really hard work when you don't have much to lose. Seems like it comes off at a snail's pace. But hopefully the end result will be a more presentable me, and a healthier me :) I don't really know how I got started on diets, except that I just ate at an Italian restaurant! Can you say "Chicken Scampi?" Yum! And salad to die for. And yes, I only ate half of it, but it'll probably still show on the scale tomorrow. Maybe I'll wait until Saturday to get weighed ;) Okay, I think I'll waddle downstairs now...haha!

Have a terrific day! I'm sure I'll have more really profound thoughts to share at a later day.

Busy happenings...faithful God.

Just a quick note to let you know about my week thus far. Actually, it's been quite a month! Some of you know that my Grandpa passed away on May 15th. We had been caring for him in our home for 2 months prior, and my Grandmother Matlock continues to live with us. Then came the usual graduation/awards hoopla, campmeeting at GBS(even though I was just there 1 night,) the birth of my newest "nephew," Carson..(adorable btw, as you can see from this pic,) the annual family cookout last weekend, and the trip to Cincinnati to meet Carson. Then this week, my Grandma Speer got married last night on her 82nd birthday, and we had a big dinner, cake, cleanup, etc. Thankfully, we did NOT have to decorate, but did provide food, music, etc. It was a nice ceremony, and everything's good ( See pic at top to view the happy couple!) Then this morning, my mother had a cardiac cath after flunking her stress test last Friday. Well, they found a 90% blockage in her left anterior descending coronary artery! A heart attack waiting to happen. Thankfully, they were able to stent it, and she is doing well, despite having some problems with bleeding this afternoon. If she continues to do well overnight, she will be able to come home tomorrow. So we're very thankful...God is good!

If you're tired after reading all this, imagine what it's been like around here! I think we're all ready for life to slow down just a tad. Don't get me wrong, I like a break from routine. But I don't like it much when there is NO routine to life, just one new challenge after another. As far as I know, there isn't much excitement in June...just birthdays, work, etc. In July, I have to play for a wedding early in the month, then vacation in Florida! Yay!!!! Hopefully, it will be time spent with friends, getting some R & R :) So now you have an idea what life's been like lately. Sometimes people think that when a person is single, they don't have much to do. I hope you understand that that is just not always the case! And all this was with working full-time, and teaching piano on my day off. But I'm not complaining, really. God truly gives us strength one day at a time.

So now you know :)

Early beginnings...late at night

This should be short and sweet, as I didn't sleep much last night, and it's late AGAIN!!!! I don't know why I stay up late when I have to get up at 6am! Dumb!!!! I have another blog spot at myspace.com....where I have posted some (ahem) rather lengthy postings :) Oh yes, I can really ramble on, jump the track, etc. I have a very one-track mind, and am VERY easily distracted. But I'll be fun when I'm old :) Shoot, I already am!
Okay, enough of that. Due to the lack of creativity, I am struggling with what to name my blog. So if you think of something brilliant, witty, cute, etc. just let me know. I'm open to reasonable suggestions. I was trying to think of something to go with a nickname. I have several names. My brother calls me "Cinj"...pronounces "singe." My co-workers call me "Cindy Lou." My friends call me "Loo hoo" or however you spell that. BTW, my name is NOT Lou! I don't know how that got started, but seems to have stuck! Anyway.... I need to travel on to bed!
Later....