Prayer for today

Lead me, Lord,
to recognize you
in the person beside me.

Cookies delivered

Cookies are being delivered and people are eager to have their cookies! And we are selling more...I am picking up 15 more boxes tomorrow for people who've requested additional boxes.

We have 6 boxes in our freezer.

Almost 600 boxes of cookies!

Yes, they all fit in my car. Of course, I had no kids with me at the time. Now, the task of delivering cookies! But, at least, Marian is only responsible for delivering 115 boxes...

Thin Mints won out as the most popular cookie, I have 15 cases of them in my kitchen, that's 180 boxes!

Father/Daughter Dance

Bogdan and the girls attended their yearly Father/Daughter dance. This year it was at the YWCA and sponsored by Miss Tennessee. A fun time had by all.

Happy Birthday Karen

Karen has achieved the age that is the answer to life the universe and everything. Now if we could just figure out what the question is...

Happy Birthday to her.

The kids and I are performing 'acts of service' for her today. Wish us luck.

-bogdan

Ash Wednesday

As we begin Lent, and the journey toward Easter, I pray that I can reflect at this time, clear those things that prevent me from being closer to Jesus. May my fasting and praying and almsgiving bring me closer to Him.

Happy Birthday Anna

She turns 14 today! Happy Birthday!

Snow

Ok, it is only 1 inch. But enough to cancel school today. The kids were so excited. The school district always calls to let everyone know that school is canceled. I did not appreciate a call at 5:15am....

The kids have been watching the Olympics off and on all day.

Carpet stains

1) Marian drops a freeze pop on the carpet. Not just any freeze pop, a red one, onto a beige carpet.

2) Gabriel leaves his printer on the same carpet and stains it with blue ink.

3) Now our carpet is red, white and blue...not because we are patriotic or anything.

Moving rooms

Gabriel and Anna have decided to swap rooms. Anna is giving up her privacy and bathroom to be closer to everyone on the first floor. Should I take her temperature? Anyway, they have been moving furniture all day and are almost done. I have done nothing except tell them to get it done today.

Healthcare at its....

No, not finest.

Marian was complaining of her ear on Thursday night. I gave her Tylenol and she slept fine. Friday morning she woke up with her eyes crusted over and the first signs of pink eye. Her ear also still hurt. Now, this is a child with a high tolerance for pain. So, for her to complain, it's a pretty big thing.

I called our new pediatrician's office. I was told that they couldn't fit her in until Monday, in 3 days. That was because I was a new patient and had neglected to make a new patient appointment, and they don't take new patients on Fridays. Now, I'm pretty pissed and I just hang up. So, I call my insurance carrier and explain the situation, they advise me to see an ER or an urgent care clinic. So, I walk in to the walk in urgent care clinic at Walgreen's. We waited only 10 minutes and they gave her a thorough look over and she has an eye infection (pink eye) and an ear infection. Meds prescribed and now she's fine. Of course, the worse part of it for her is that she missed her Valentine's Party at school.

Now, while I realize there are certain procedures, and I should have made a new patient appointment, I am really tempted to drop my pediatrician, who wanted my child to wait 3 days before seen. What if it was something worse, what if it was their child?

Death to Auto-Tune

I feel like we've moved into a world where we never know what is real. In a world where the media show us what is "true" and what is not, where is the place for something actually real. It even boils down to singing. Now, I really put singing on a higher standard. Just ask my kids. I will listen to almost anything, but only if the singing is excellent. And now I can add, only if it's real. Auto-tune has changed it all. Anyone with a mouth can sing with this horrible sounding voice manipulator. But, the truth is, it's not singing. It's some nightmarish device that poisons the world of singing. Give me an a cappella group and I'll call that singing.

Ilu finu
maleh
shira
kayam...

Were our mouths
as full of song
as the sea...
...still we could not praise God enough

~Nishmat prayer, Shabbat morning service

GO SAINTS!!

YAHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Recipe for Super Bowl

Fall off the bone ribs with homemade BBQ sauce
Roasted vegetables
Chips and salsa
Pretzel sticks
Izze soda
PB covered pretzels
Cocoa Krispie footballs, see picture

Go Saints!! Don't you think it's about time New Orleans has a miracle?

For those who are busy

O Lord,
you know how busy I must be this day.
If I forget you,
do not forget me.

(Sir Jacob Astley, before the Battle of Edgehill, 1642)

Success

Bogdan had great success at work and they have sent him home to take his wife out to lunch and have the rest of the day and weekend off. :)

The incredible shrinking troop

Another girl is leaving our Girl Scout troop, making our troop probably the smallest in the area, now it's a total of 6 girls. We started out with 12 girls, but then for one reason or another, the girls have (in Anna's words) disappeared. Really, it's nothing we did! This last girl to leave loved the troop, but her parents are moving because of job issues.

Despite our small numbers, our troop sold...589 boxes of cookies!! Yahoo for them!! The most popular cookie? Thin mints!! (Of course!)

Marian sold a total of 115 boxes! Great for her first year!

Prayer for today

God our heavenly Father,
when the thought of you
wakes in our hearts,
let its awakening
not be like a startled bird
that flies about in fear.
Instead, let it be like a child
waking from sleep
with a heavenly smile.