So much to do, and so little time to do it!

I'm feeling a bit like the rabbit off "Alice in Wonderland" lately...frantically rushing here and there while repeating, "I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date!"

Paul and I finally decided on our vacation destination...Pennsylvania! I've heard from a friend of mine how beautiful the Amish countryside is, and Paul and I are ready to take a step back and relax-so we thought we could do a bit of site seeing, as well as get away from all the hustle and bustle of our everyday lives and enjoy some simplicity (with a trip to Hershey, PA for some chocolate, of course). However, that leaves me with less than 2 weeks to prepare...there's laundry to be washed, clothes and toiletries to be packed, itenteries to be made, etc. For some procrastinators out there, 11 days may seem like more than enough time! However, for this planner/organizer personality, it's not nearly enough..well, with everything else going on in my world at the moment!

I've also decided to resign from my job. I've had the honor of working part-time as our church secretary for the past 4 years, but the time has come for me to step down. Originally, I could come in when I wanted as long as I got the job done. However, now I'm required to be there at the same time each and every day. Normally, that wouldn't be a problem-especially if I was dependent on the money to provide for my family, pay the bills, etc. But that's not the case. I get to use my paycheck for extra spending money...but $10 an hour isn't worth having to miss out on some of my kid's activities at school, etc. While I'm really looking forward to being home each and every day, there are still plenty of loose ends that need to be tied up before Wednesday...and I'm beginning to wonder how I'm going to manage to get it all done.

Our church is also having a garage sale this Saturday, and I was volunteered to help price the items (during my normal working hours). And in preparation of the sale, I decided now would be a great time to clean out my kid's closets...WHAT WAS I THINKING???

I just need to keep my parent's favorite Bible verse in mind..."This too shall pass." ;)

Vacation, anyone?

Paul and I are trying to decide where to go on vacation. He'll be off from June 12th through the 25th (although we don't plan to stay gone that long). We simply can't make up our minds!?!? Do you have any good ideas? Let me hear 'em!

Paul would prefer to be outdoors, relaxing by a lake, doing some fishing and/or swimming, etc.

The kid's want fun, fun, fun, activities like swimming and more fun!

I on the other hand am not quite sure what I want to do...?

HELP!!!

11 Years Ago...Yesterday

I became a mom for the first time! Jamie Lynn Baker was born on May 17, 1998 at 8:22 p.m. weighing in at 7 lbs, and was 18 1/2 inches long. However, being born at only 34 weeks, she was a huge preemie! ;) She only had to stay in the NICU for 9 days, and has been great ever since! I would love to post more information, but that will have to wait until another time...so, I'll leave you with one of her first pictures. Enjoy!

Simple, Yet Profound

Last week, I suddenly found myself hurled into the midst of a spiritual battle-one that has left me holding up not only my shield of faith, but fighting on behalf of my husband as well, when he doesn't have the strength to defend himself. I didn't see this coming, and have been struggling occasionally with thoughts such as, "This is not fair, God! I didn't do anything to bring this upon myself. Yet, here I am having to fight for the both of us! I didn't get myself into this mess! I shouldn't be left trying to piece this back together! This isn't my responsibility." Yet, this really shouldn't catch me off guard. In the back of my mind, I knew that an attack was pending, and God in His faithfulness has been preparing me for a while now...everywhere I turned, the subject of the Armor of God was being thrust in my lap. I find it no coincedence either that we just finished "Believing God" by Beth Moore last week too! God's timing is nothing short of miraculous.

Then yesterday morning, while I was running around like a mad woman, trying to rush out the door for church on time, my nearly 11 year old daughter was taking her sweet time, getting dressed and ready for the day. She was pondering which piece of jewelry would best suit her outfit, and I suggested this necklace that my mom and dad gave her a few year's ago in honor of her baptism. So while she non chalantly walks off to brush her hair, I dashed back to my room for the necklace. All my necklaces are currently hanging on a clothes hanger since I don't own a nice jewelry box-and for now it does the job (However, if any of you reading this feel the need to mention to Paul the idea of buying me a jewelry box for Mother's Day, I'm sure it's really the voice of the Holy Spirit). ;) I attempted to slide the necklace around and off the others, but instead of coming off easily as they normally do, it got all tangled up. As I'm standing there fighting this physical battle with the necklace, some thoughts of my spiritual battle came to mind, and I began to wrestle them both at the same time. The necklace was just about to let loose, when the cord got caught on another chain, which snagged it pretty badly. Eventually, I got it off and inspected the damage. There wasn't anything I could do to hide the damage or to make it go away. I didn't have the time to attempt to make it better, and honestly, I felt it might just make the problem worse. I simply slid the cross pendant to the front so she could put it on, and the cross was hanging right over the mess! Right then, I heard these words, "The cross covers it all!"

I thought, "You're right Lord, the cross does cover it all!"