Bonds That Are Formed Out Of Friendship

Sylvia and I have been friends for 36 years. I am proud to call her my best friend. She is one of the strongest women I know and I admire her deep faith in God. Through all these years we have shared laughter and we have shared heartaches and we will continue sharing what comes our way. We will be best friends forever. Sylvia's husband, Bob, will be having a biopsy done on a tumor found in his bronchial. The procedure will be done this Friday. It's a touchy procedure for him because he has only one lung. Please keep him in your prayers.

I wish I could be there by her side, holding her hand and reassuring her that Bob will be fine. Just as she would like to be here by my side, holding my hand and reassuring me that Michelle will be fine.

But I feel her presence and I know she will feel mine. We will keep holding each other up even if we are miles apart.

I love you Syl and this song is for you... Friends are Quiet Angels

Continuing prayers for Michelle as she goes through round 3 of chemo.

On Our Way Home...

we stopped in Carlsbad staying walking distance to the downtown area called Carlsbad Village. It's a really nice area with shops and restaurants and just across the street from the ocean.

Looking out at the ocean, so calm and hearing the peaceful sound of the waves made it hard to imagine how terrifying a tsunami can be and the devastation it can bring.

We visited The Flower Fields of Carlsbad.

It was breathtaking, so many beautiful colors!

the next day we headed to Temecula

we stopped at the Temecula Olive Oil Company.

I love their logo...

May "olive' your dreams come true"

I did the olive oil tastings,

and came home with these...

David would have preferred the wine tastings, he didn't have any interest in tasting oil!

But no wine for us because we were driving home

and good thing because google map brought us through this...

Scenic Highway 74- the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains

Winding roads going all the way to the top and back down again

with no barriers to keep us from going over the edge!!

Maybe I should have had some wine!

Thank you dear Jesus for getting us home safe and sound!

Thanking each and every one of you!

"Bear one another's burdens, and so you will fulfill the law of Christ."

Galatians 6:2

Michelle did so much better with this 2nd round of chemo. She still dealt with pain but it was not as severe. Her stomach still sour and her sense of taste not there, among some other side effects. She was very tired at times, but she knows her limits.

I have to say she has been truly amazing through it all and I am so proud of her attitude and her endurance.

I have witnessed the reading above on bearing one another's burdens through each and every one of you.

YOU have come through for her.

I thank YOU from the bottom of my heart.

You have all been there for her through encouraging and uplifting comments on her blog, emails, cards, gifts and most important your prayers.

Please continue because they do lift her up and give her strength!

She has some awesome friends who have been providing meals on the toughest days and they are very appreciated. I have met some wonderful friends of hers who are so supportive and have such warm loving hearts.

God bless you all for your kindness!

I will be going home this weekend but will return in time for Michelle's 3rd round of chemo. I have such mixed emotions. My top priority right now is taking care of Michelle and helping her through this and helping her with the kids. I miss being home and I know once I'm there I will miss being here. Makes my heart hurt. I will only be gone a short time but I will miss my Chelle.

and I will miss this little guy. and all his crafts.



oooh and he loves ice cream, like me!


and this one.

she is too adorable.

and she is at that perfect age.

ps...to answer Veronica's question on Michelle's blog about the yellow "vest" Megan is wearing (shown 5 pictures up). You have good eyes sister and a good memory. The "vest" is a crocheted dress which has been around for a very long time! It was mine when I was really little : )

I brought Michelle home from the hospital in it;

and Megan wore it home from the hospital.

Now she's wearing it as a vest!

Praying for David E.

(CNN)--The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan arrived off the coast of Japan Sunday to support Japanese forces in disaster relief operations. Read more here

Praying for my nephew/godson David E. and the rest of the crew of the Reagan carrier who are in Japan to assist in their disaster.

And praying for his wife Chanin, his parents Gil and Linda, and all his family, may God calm any fears you have for David's safety and give you peace of mind and peace of heart. Love you. Julie

Chemo-Round 2

Day 1 & 2: Michelle had her second round of chemo yesterday. Her port was used for the first time. Came home and slept but not as long and as deep as last time. She was feeling tired but did good. The injection they gave her last time to boost her immune system was too painful so a different type will be tried this time around. Instead of one full strength she will be going in for 4-6 shots depending on her white blood cell count. She had one yesterday during chemo and went in for a 2nd one today. Hoping this one is not painful like the last. She also had her port stitches removed today. What has bothered her the most today have been her legs and knees hurting and swelling. As you have read from her blog, she has lost her hair. She looks so beautiful!

Praying for all the victims of the earthquake and tsunami.

The Ant and the Contact Lens

I got this email today from my purdyful friend Lorrie.

"I wanted to share this with you. I immediately thought of you and Michelle while reading this." Love, Lorrie

Thank you Lorrie. It tugged at my heart!
Love you!

Brenda was almost halfway to the top of the tremendous granite cliff. She was standing on a ledge where she was taking a breather during her first rock climb. As she rested there, the safety rope snapped against her eye and knocked out her contact lens.

Great, she thought.'Here I am on a rock ledge, hundreds of feet from the bottom and hundreds of feet to the top of this cliff, and now my sight is blurry.' She looked and looked hoping that somehow it had landed on the ledge. But it wasn't there.

She felt the panic rising in her so she began to pray. She prayed for calm and she prayed she might find her contact lens. When she got to the top her friend examined her eye and her clothing for the lens, but it was not found. Although she was calm now that she was at the top, she was saddened because she could not clearly see across the range of mountains. She thought of the bible verse, 'The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth.'

She thought 'Lord you can see all these mountains. You know every stone and leaf, and you know exactly where my contact lens is. Please help me.'

Later when they had hiked down the trail to the bottom of the cliff they met another party of climbers just starting up the face of the cliff. One of them shouted out 'Hey you guys! One of you lose a contact lens?'

Well that would have been startling enough, but you know why the climber saw it? An ant was moving slowly across a twig on the face of a rock, carrying it!

The story doesn't end there. Brenda's father is a cartoonist. When she told him the incredible story of the prayer, the ant, and the contact lens, he drew a cartoon of an ant lugging the contact lens with the caption, 'Lord I don't know why you want me to carry this thing. I can't eat it and it's awfully heavy. But if this is what you want me to do; I'll carry it for you."
"I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me" Phil 4:13

I think it would do all of us some good to say 'God, I don't know why you want me to carry this load. I can see no good in it and it's awfully heavy. But if you want me to carry it, I will.'

God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called.

A time of Grace, Conversion, and Renewal

Lent - A personal journey of grace, conversion, and renewal.

A time to read the word of God,

to pray and reflect on it and apply it to one's life.

This lent I will focus more on my relationship with God and those around me and pray for spiritual growth. It's time for snipping and pruning to make way for new growth. This prayer that I posted on January 19 is appropriate.

A Prayer to Shape My Life

by Marsha Maurer

Keep snipping, God.

Prune my weedy excesses,

my struggling imperfections,

my lop-sided selfishness.

Remove any branches that impinge on others;

trim the disorder from my life.

Fashion me in the image of Your perfection.

Shape my life into a balanced, pleasing form.

Amen

~~~~~~~~~~

A prayer for Michelle

Heavenly Father,

we lift Michelle up to You as tomorrow she starts her 2nd round of chemo.

We thank You for her healing.

We pray that she continues to feel Your abiding presence.

We pray that You relax every tension,

releasing every care and anxiety,

receiving more and more of Your healing life into every part of her being.

You are the only source of health and healing,

the spirit of calm and peace in our hearts.

Lord, you know what Michelle is feeling,

her thoughts, her fears, and her pain.

We pray for healing in whatever way You know will help her,

look upon her with mercy

and rest Your healing hand upon her.

Send Your life-giving power flowing through every cell in her body

and into the depths of her soul

cleansing

purifying

and restoring her

to wholeness and strength for service in Your kingdom.

Grant her a tremendous consciousness

of Your indwelling and surrounding presence

so she will permit You to give her complete healing and strength.

In moments of pain, help her turn to You for strength.

We trust completely and totally in Your healing power.

Father, in Your name we pray.

Amen

Thank you Laurie from Heaven's Walk for this beautiful prayer.