God's gifts

God's gifts started today with a bird singing out my window. Or, should I say, he was a gift for the first 10 minutes...after that...not so much! With the gift of prayer, then the gift of good hair, ready to go without fixing. My sister, Janice, spends two hours on her hair. She looks more glamorous, but I'm out the door and back home while she's stil prepping.Then the gift of coffee made by my hubby.

The real gift... that of eternal life. The gift I pray for you. Have a great day!

GOD'S GIFTS

Today I challenge you to look all day for a gift from God. So often, we miss his gifts. Look today. realllllllly Look...Let's see what gifts he gives us. I'll report back ...you too!

Worrying ....

We all do it...worry. Some of us are better at it than others. Some us us have it perfected! Some of us don't do it enough! The expert on worrying says:

"Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear...Look at the birds...they do not sow or reap or stow away in barns, and yet your heavenly father feeds them. See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field,...will he not much more clothe you?" Matthew 6:25-30
For, for those of you who have perfected worrying, it doesn't add one day to your life. Leave everything at His feet, and learn to leave it there...A lesson for all of us.

...She's a Butterfly (Martina McBride)

She remembers when she first got her wings
And how she opened up that day she learned to sing
Then the colors came, erased the black and white
And her whole world changed when she realized
She's a butterfly, pretty as the crimson sky
Nothing's ever gonna bring her down
And everywhere she goes
Everybody knows she's so glad to be alive
She's a butterfly
Like the purest light in a darkened world
So much hope inside such a lovely girl
You should see her fly, it's almost magical
It makes you wanna cry, she's so beautiful
God bless the butterfly,give her the strength to fly
Never let her wings touch the ground
God bless the butterfly,give her strength to fly
Never let her wings touch the ground

OMG...I love great songs on people's blogs!! SO HELP!!

I admit it...I blog stalk!! Is that a word?? I love finding blogs that have great music. I minimize the site and just listen while I work on other things!SO...Here's what I need. Some suggestions for music for my blog. And then afterwards, I'll ask you how I put them on here= )

I like all kinds of music (except rap). My list will include from me:
-......see...I'm a blank!!! help!!!

He is the great physician!

The next five days Lauren was in ICU! Things are all mixed up and out of order, I'm sure to all of us involved, but God is wonderful, and although we had so many frightening times, Lauren got to come home the following Wednesday....But not without:
Joan and Elissa coming to the hospital in record time
Justin's mom and dad coming that very day
Jessica and Roy stopping everything and coming to be with us immediately
Eric coming and talking us through a difficult time
The critical care team told us Lauren may need to be on a ventilator to help her breathe, and she may need dialysis. They would watch her, but to be aware that no one was sure what would happen.
...Justin was trying his best to get there. Family on both sides had found Haliburton and he was on his way, but he was in McAllen. I'm sure that was the longest trip for him!
There are only certain segments of time that you can see ICU patients, but as soon as Justin arrived, they let him back. Lauren said that was the first time she cried.
Then there was the night when Lauren got so much worse. We were all so worried. What happened? We could all feel it. She was distant, in dire pain, not with us, not responding! What to do? Pray, and call Joan (thank God for nurses). We prayed with Justin that night when we all got back to Justin and Lauren's. Joan gave suggestions of what to ask the dr, and Maark called the hosp and asked questions of the nurse there. That was such a long night.
As she began to respond to the huge amounts of drugs given, her organs began responding, yet we were not "out of the water" yet. She always wanted Justin near, she wanted Jess and Mark to hold her hand.Jess and I bathed Lauren one day, and Jessica danced around the room and sang "I believe you're my healer." I think in our guarded laughter that day, God and Jess gave Lauren that song to claim.
In that week, people came, people called, friends and family sent Flowers, goodie baskets, cards, prayers, kolaches, mashed potatoes, anything that they could think of. Carla made soup, Ginger made pot roast, and Jess and Justin made baked potato soup. God gave us new friends to support us, and I have never had or sent so many texts ever! Jess became our official update girl, so all concerned could know what was happening.
Basicalll, Lauren had to learn to breathe on her own, like food again, and learn to get herself geared up enough to go from her bed to the bathroom. ...and the first day she walked to the nurses station, I cried!
On the day Lauren was to be released, the nurse arrived to take the iv out, and then she realized that she also had to take the central line out. Lauren and I both thought we were ready for that...Wrong! It was an awful experience, and I think it finally hit Lauren how much she had gone through...FINALLY, there were tears, and there needed to be. God had brought her through a horrible ordeal, and we all learned many life lessons...mainly, as Twila Paris says...God is in control!
Maybe all this is too much information, but it does us good to share God's gifts!...I have always told my girls to look for God's gifts daily; when our eyes are watching for those, life has deeper meaning!...SO LOOK FOR GOD'S GIFTS TODAY, RIGHT NOW...Right now is all we have.... on this earth.

Post two: She needs ICU or - IGNORANCE IS BLISS!

Ignorance is bliss. I’ve heard that expression all my life. I never agreed with it. I hate being the only one who doesn’t know what’s going on. HOWEVER, that Wednesday, Ignorance was bliss!
Within minutes of transferring Lauren to the larger E.R. room, filled with much equipment; it seemed to me the room was full of drs., nurses, people plugging in monitoring devices. I was hearing conversations, commands, frustrations all around us, but there seemed to be no time to digest all the things that were happening. As two people began to place oxygen on Lauren, I heard words like seizure (which I reassured them Lauren never had)…I saw them exchange glances to one another…I saw trouble with the IV; words like veins collapsing, can’t find a vein (I offered up somewhere in the conversation that Lauren was so small she once needed a pediatric blood pressure cuff and iv equipment. Someone rushed to get those items. Still can’t get a blood pressure; blood pressure way to low; need to move quickly. I heard words like…central line..They were starting to cut her leg. I quickly asked if she couldn’t have something so she wouldn’t feel the line going in and heard the words …no..blood pressure too low…need her to stay with us!. Somewhere in the pandemonium, Lauren smiled and said she felt like this was an episode of “Grey’s Anatomy.” People chuckled.
I thought Lauren needed me to make sure they were doing everything right, but cutting I wasn’t quite ready for, I felt a little queasy, and someone handed me a coke. The E.R. Director asked me where her husband was. Could I find him. Was I from this area. How far away was family. Lauren herself, between her small yelps of pain (never tears) told me that she heard the dr. say she needed to go to ICU. I briefly told her I thought they were talking about another patient (I really did think that!) …I told you ignorance is bliss. I asked someone, and was told that she was being taken to the intensive care unit of the hospital. They did an x-ray somewhere during that time, and told me Lauren had pneumonia and had sepsis. I had to ask the er doctor what that was. After all, I just thought she needed an iv of fluids (a kind of drive-through fluid service and although painful, we’d be on our way.) What is sepsis??Are you kidding me; body shutting down…It is true that when you hear something so frightening, the mind cannot process!
I stepped outside to call my husband, who was on his way to Dallas for a conference. He and I were going to make a weekend getaway of it, and then visit my daughter and her husband for church on Sunday. As I told him they were putting a central line in Lauren’s leg to give her fluids and whatever…he heard her scream, and said I’m on my way. He said he’d call Jessica, Lauren’s older sister. I called Justin, her new husband, and left a message. I knew he works on the oil wells and wouldn’t get the message til lunch, but I’d leave it for him. I called my sister-in-law and she calmed me. I could almost hear her praying for Lauren. Actually, she told me she’d pray with me, but the attendant came to take her to ICU and I had to hang up. Joan was also on her way, with Elissa, Lauren’s cousin.
A nurse that I just loved how she took care of Lauren suddenly came out of the er room crying! That upset me, although I loved her more for it. There was an emt trainee who was telling his story to a friend of how he couldn’t find a vein, or get any blood out for the blood cultures that were needed. I remember feeling people were staring at me. I wanted to say, “Why are you talking like I’m not here!” I began to feel the panic of the unknown well up inside of me. I went back to the room in time to see the dr. stitch Lauren’s central line in place. I thought to myself, “Why is there not a ton of blood with that?” I remember things out of order, I’m sure, but I spent a lot of time praying and talking to Lauren, and getting out of people’s way. No one ever asked me to leave. They were all working so feverishly, it was as if I wasn’t really there, or at least an uninvolved bystander. There was a need for a catheter, which I questioned. Again, no meds to help with the pain, and to make matters worse, her kidneys were starting to not work. Suddenly there was an ultrasound machine to verify this, and more pandemonium. I wanted to scream, but I thought Lauren needs you to be strong. Help me stay with her Lord. Another dr. said to me, “We’re taking her to ICU. She’s severely dehydrated, has pneumonia, and sepsis. You got her here just in time.” We’ll get her settled there, and we’ll come and get you in 15-20 minutes to see her there and meet the critical care team. Did you find her husband?”
What? My ignorance was no longer blissful! Off they went with her, me telling her I’d see her shortly. The nurse gingerly took me to an empty icu waiting area; and I began to weep, first a little, then a lot. I remember there was no bible in that room. There needed to be one! I thought that 15-20 minute wait was so long in the icu waiting room. I didn’t know what was ahead of us, or how long the next few days would be. When you have no strength, you lean of others. This I know, and I wanted Lauren to have a strong support group, and she would have...