Sad news

I am sad to say that I found out today that my friend Cyd and her driver who were kidnapped in Afghanistan on January 26 are believed to be dead. I had been checking the updates every couple days or so, but just found out this news in an e-mail from another friend of mine living there. I know many of us are sad today, but please keep praying for the expat and Afghan women and men who are grieving in a much more personal way. Cyd had such a beautiful heart that never failed to give life and hope to those around her. She will be missed by so many people, but we can rejoice today that she is now celebrating with her Father! :)

Here's some of the news...

ARLDF site

Fox News report

to do list

Here's my list of accomplishments today...

1. got out of bed after 10:30 AM
2. ate 2 pieces of sourdough toast with jam
3. watched some tv
4. brushed teeth...mine
5. put on clean if just a bit wrinkled t-shirt that says "Princess" and sort of clean cozy pants
6. went on a leisurely, meandering walk in my new Chaco's
7. sat under a tree for almost an hour
8. spotted a bluejay
9. prayed for a redbird
10. spotted a redbird :)
11. started to walk home
12. stepped in mud
13. scraped off mud
14. watched 7-8 turtles slide into pond, albeit man made...pond, not turtles
15. rinsed more mud off shoes by stepping in puddles
16. completed cleaned Chaco's with garden hose to preserve their sweet and shiny newness a bit longer
17. propped Chaco's in rungs of picket fence to dry in sun
18. ate pimento cheese sandwich
19. drank water
20. changed facebook status
21. watched too many design shows
22. got back in bed
23. lay there
24. read some Romans
25. talked on phone
26. ate southwest chargrilled chicken salad which my sister brought me from Chick-Fil-A
27. ate 4 girlscoutthinmints and put rest in freezer
28. watched more design shows
29. guzzled some cold milk with even colder thin mints
30. web-surfed like crazy till I developed a bad case of mouse wrist

No wonder I'm getting tired. I'm going to bed.

P.S. It didn't rain. :) Me of little faith.

Where's Elijah when you need him?

James 5:17 "Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years."

Okay, so I have a need. I need you to pray. (First of all thanks for praying for my mom! She's doing great...at least I think so. She got a balloon inserted yesterday which they will use Monday - Friday next week for her twice a day radiation treatments. Keep praying please!) Okay, but back to the immediate need today. Spark is today. Spark is where over 230 students come to a kick-off tonight and then spend the weekend in 31 different homes with 31 different leaders. Thing is, it's "supposed" to rain and storm this afternoon and evening like crazy. However, this will make it quite sketchy for our leaders driving and flying in and for well over 230 students, parents, and host families trying coming this evening. So, if you could pray that the rain holds off...until Monday would be great - If God can handle 3 years, I'm pretty sure 3 days isn't a problem for Him! :) And why you're at it, could you also pray that the ice storm coming to Louisville in a few hours will hold off until Will & Kristi can get on their already delayed plane to come here? Gee, thanks!

Okay, so mostly, will you just pray that Jesus reveals Himself in a life-changing way to our students this weekend. We need Him, oh so desperately.

p.s. Who knew Elijah was a blonde? No wonder I like that guy.

Something I love

Okay so I admit that sometimes my family drives me crazy. Sometimes it's really easy just to shut myself in my room and enjoy the peace and quiet. I mean when my sister comes down with strep throat and my brother-in-law's captured the entire living room and kitchen cuz he's laying on the couch watching TV, and my nephew's playing outside, what else is there to do? So yeah, I took a nap. And don't get me wrong I do love naps, but let's be honest, that's not worth blogging about. But this is...my sister comes in my room, climbs into my twin bed with me, all three dogs parade in with incessant barking because they all want on the bed too. That moment was not full of happy thoughts for me, not yet.

But then I get up to send the animals outside and we all hang out in the living room watching design shows. Meanwhile, I'm sitting far across the room from my sis so I don't breathe in any of those germs...let me just say, I CANNOT GET SICK this week. Not an option. So anyway, I eat some cornflakes w/chocolate bits in it - typical healthy Sunday night dinner while my sister pitifully eats some ramen noodles, gives up on that, and then goes for some cereal which she also shuns. Nothing tastes good when you're sick. And then, it comes to our attention that my nephew hasn't eaten yet. Alas, the often helpful brother-in-law is nowhere to be seen at the moment so I start to rummage around thinking what I can make for him that we actually have the ingredients for and that he'll actually eat, and even eat without complaining. A tough order to be sure. Eureka! Inspiration strikes. A breakfast taco with scrambled eggs, cheese, and bacon. I'm guessing you're not mesmerized by such a thought, but my nephew was estatic so I went to work. I was beginning to think I'd almost forgotten how to make scrambled eggs for some reason because the last two times I've made it have not been stellar...the eggs getting all stuck on the pan and such. Anywho, I pushed through the doubts. (Can you hear the dramatic music in the background yet?) I even tried out the new secret new tip I learned to add just a bit of cream cheese to the eggs right before they're finished cooking to make them extra light and fluffy. Try not to mention that to my nephew please. So I served him up his breakfast taco which he gobbled down. Not a crumb left. And my sad puny sister was so jealous that I served her up what was left - just enough for a mini-bite size taco. She acted like it was the best thing she'd ever eaten. "Now, that actually tastes good to me!" she says. :)

Then I'm finishing up washing the stuck-on eggy mess frying pan when my nephew says, "Can I have another one?" "No, you can't!" I sweetly say, more because of the thought of rewashing the pan more than anything else! "But...I'll make you something else if you're still hungry." So in a few minutes after my sis tells him it's time to go take a bath, he pipes in with "I don't mean to be rude, but can I have that snack?" Guffaws all around. "Well, okay Pooh, but I need some inspiration." At this point I do a little hip hop moves to get the blood pumping. (We were currently watching some dance crew competition show on TV.) Apparently, I wasn't too impressive because the dogs immediately started howling, either that or they're baptists and just won't tolerate my gyrations. :) So yeah, I get inspired to make some sweet treats out of tortilla strips with sugar and cinnamon, toast them and serve with some nutella, sprinkle some powdered sugar over top and drizzle some chocolate sauce, and add just a smidge of chocolate sprinkles. BTW, I totally burnt the first batch and set the smoke alarm off! But finally, the secret desert was ready for my sis and my nephew and they were mesmerized. My nephew even spent about 5 minutes licking his plate when he was done. Thing is, I didn't even make myself a taco or a plate of sweet tortilla thingamabobs, but I was so happy. Just the little simple thing of feeding my family is something that I really love. Gives me endorphins. Just makes me feel good. Was my cooking a work of culinary genius? Doubtful. But, my family didn't care and neither did I. I may not have a husband and my own kids, but I do have a family. And serving them and making them happy makes me happy. And that's something I really really love. And that my friends is worth blogging about.

Thank you for praying!

No sign of cancer!
I woke up this morning at 4:15 a.m. to begin my journey. I had a great quiet flight with an amazing view of the sunrise! Believe it or not, last night I somehow remembered to check-in for my flight online and when I checked out my seat assignment for some reason I felt like I should switch to the other side of the plane. The only seats open were by the window even though I usually like to sit on the aisle. All that to say, if I had not been sitting in the window seat on the right side of the plane I would have missed the most beautiful picture that God was painting for me. I first started paying attention because in some of the clouds I could see the lightning that was flashing underneath them. The clouds would luminate every few minutes. And meanwhile, the sun's light was just starting to peak up over the cloud horizon just to the left of the stormy ones. Oh my goodness! I was so amazed and even though I've been on tons of flights in my life, I shamelessly pulled out my camera and started taking pictures. When the sun finally came up over the edge it was too bright to look at for more than a second. I could feel the heat even through the couple panes of glass. Oh, can I even tell you what a gift that was to see. What a difference it makes to see things from a different perspective. Down below it must have been stormy and rainy, but up above it was the most glorious thing. God was sweet to remind me that even things like cancer are all woven into purpose for his glory when seen from an eternal perspective. I'm telling you, it was so so cool! It was like Psalm 19:1-6 was playing out in front of my own two bleary eyes... "The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heart. Their line has gone out through all the earth, and their utterances to the end of the world. In them He has placed a tent for the sun, which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber; it rejoices as a strong man to run his course. Its rising is from one end of the heavens, adn its circuit to the other end of them; and there is nothing hidden from its heat."
Goodness, and I know you'd really rather just hear about how my mom is doing! I drove up to the hospital and was able to hug my daddy and a few of my mom's close friends about 15 minutes after she went into surgery. We actually had a delightful time laughing and sharing stories during the almost 2 hours my mom was in surgery. Finally, whew, deep breath, the doctor walks out to give us the news that the two sentinal nodes were cancer negative!!!!! Yippeeee! And, that the surgery went perfectly well! Exhale. My poor mom spent an hour in recovery while we walked down to the cafe and ate Thai chicken and apple quesadillas with peanut sauce (clearly, we're not in Texas!) Shortly after, my dad and I were able to go see her and give her a kiss. She didn't look too chipper and was in a lot of pain at first, but she was quite the chatty thing. We soon got her dressed and in the van to go home where she told her friends that she had decided beforehand that she would be okay no matter what the news about the cancer. So sweet that she had come to that place of trusting Jesus, but for me, even sweeter that they didn't see any cancer! They will have a full pathology report probably available Monday.

At the moment, my mama is asleep snuggled in her bed and my dad is picking up the prescriptions. I can't tell you how good it is to be here. Thanks for praying. Thanks for caring. And if you actually read all this, thanks for your patience beyond measure. :)

Good News!

I just talked to my mom! The doctors she and my dad met with today basically agreed with the first opinion which is great news! She will be having the lumpectomy (the less invasive surgery) on Thursday to be followed up by radiation. Thanks for praying!

Big Day for My Mom

Hey, my mom sent out the following e-mail about her big day today. Thanks for praying...

Dear ones,

Thanks SO much for the covering of love and prayers from you. Since some of you are wondering how things are going, here is some info. Tomorrow morning, Mon. Jan 28, I'll have blood work and chest x-ray done for my expected lumpectomy on Thursday. Richard and I will spend all Monday afternoon at Fox Chase Cancer Center for my second opinion for surgery and treatment. We'll see a surgeon, an oncologist, and a radiology oncologist and a social worker. Tuesday afternoon we'll see my surgeon Beth DuPree for my pre opt visit for the lumpectomy Thursday Jan 31. During surgery she will clear out the cavity surrounding where the lump was, and also examine the sentinel lymph node, or others if there is cancer in the first one.

If Fox Chase Cancer Center recommends a mastectomy, (with reconstruction), I would likely comply, though this could mean delaying surgery, possibly a couple of weeks because of surgical schedules. I am taking a number of questions to ask tomorrow, as we'll be with each doctor for about an hour. The necessity of removing any traces of the malignant lump, 8mm by 6mm, that was excised during the biopsy is the first need. Second is for the lymph nodes to be clean of cancer or "pre-cancer". Third, and extremely important, is for us to choose the route with surgery and treatment that will be effective in keeping any cancer from recurring.

God answers your prayers in all kinds of ways to bring smiles, faith, or encouragement to Richard or me. I actually cooked supper last night. Stir fried cabbage and cornbread! And.....God reminds me of His words like: Trust in the Lord with all your heart; and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and He shall direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5 And, Let the weak say, I am strong. Joel 3:10

Love and thanks....

Jane