Only in Florida

I'm back! I have lots of little tidbits from our trip to Florida... so much fun!! One thing I learned while living down South was that you literally "See it all" while on the roads down there. People don't think twice about loading up their pick-ups with all sorts of items, and then proceed to drive without properly securing them. I believe I already shared about dodging washing machines and mattresses on the highway. Anyway.... the funniest thing that I saw on this particular trip was actually some billboards... the hospitals down there had the following ads:

"Accidents Happen... The ER wait time is now only 24 minutes"

I kid you not... it had a digital clock on it that would update the wait time... you know... just in case you felt like going to the ER. Only in Florida, my friends... only in Florida. Perhaps it helped Tiger Woods the other day when he had to pay a visit to the Orlando hospital. LOL

Happy Thanksgiving

By the time the majority of you will read this it will be the day after Thanksgiving.... I've had such a great day that I didn't get on the computer until late tonight. As you know, I'm blogging from Florida. We are having a great time although our time here went way too fast and we are wrapping up our last few days with my family.

I should be asleep at this point... it's well past 11 pm and the house is dark... everyone is sleeping except for me who has been purchasing Christmas gifts online for the last hour. I absolutely refuse to go to any store on Black Friday... did it once with Shirley (my sister-in-law) and vowed never again.. was a total waste of time (and interrupted sleep!). Anyway, I was very happy with my online purchases, my free shipping and "site to store" pick-up arrangements. It's a beautiful thing people... my blood pressure remains low, no pushing, shoving or disappointment in not finding an item the store that I wasted the gas to drive to. It's all nice and tidy... that is if you know what you are looking for.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving.. great food, great times with family and friends. We finished off the day with a dip in the hot tub.... the signature of any visit to Florida... nothing better than a cool breeze at night while basking in a hot tub. I miss that!!

Anyway, tomorrow is our last full day in Florida. We are planning on sleeping in and doing some family activities together (perhaps bowling or mini golf -- it's going to be too cold for the beach.) Please pray for safe travels for us as we make our way back up to the chilly northeast.

Before I sign off, just wanted to send off a birthday greeting to my brother, Stephen. We love you!!!

Kid Funny

Yesterday Steve was showing Christopher a ton of old photos that my Dad has displayed around his house....

Steve: "Chris, do you know who this beautiful young lady is in this picture?"

Chris: (emphatically and enthusiastically): "YES! That's Aunt Ruth!"

God bless my husband.. he was trying to get Chris to recognize a picture of me. It was taken at one of my cousin's weddings and, grant it, I had very short hair in the picture as my sister does right now. But still... it was funny. Thanks for trying, honey!

More on our travels to come (obviously we made it safely). We are enjoying good weather, reconnecting with tons of friends and family and just "living the Florida lifestyle". Got to go... lots of beautiful weather to enjoy.

Out Of Time

I seem to have lost about a week on my calendar. Tomorrow we embark on our 2 day journey to Florida (yes, we are driving, not flying). But somehow in the chaos that is my life, I seem to have misplaced last week and the opportunities to put my thoughts together, put them on paper and come up with a plan of action to get us ready for this journey. Thankfully, my husband has been pro-active in getting the car ready for the trip. Little does he know that his "always-ready" wife, is no where near ready... the clock is ticking and I'm feeling the pressure.

The good news about traveling by car is that you can just throw things in... no one is going to weigh my luggage, probe through the contents of my purse or tell me to throw out any liquids. No standing in line for a security check, no "we're sorry for the delays", no turbulence, no lost luggage. I can carry as much junk as I'd like and only have to deal with some stares from my husband and perhaps have to ward off a comment like, "Do we really need to bring all this?" I can handle that.

To further explain my current frenzy, I awoke at 5am this morning in a sheer moment of panic when I realized that I forgot to pack bathing suits! What was I thinking!?!? That should have been the first thing in my suitcase. I just spoke to my sister to ensure that the swimming pool and hot tub are indeed warm! I guarantee we will arrive at my sisters, greet everyone and then dive into the pool and remain there for as long as possible.

So, you have to forgive me for not blogging about the Christmas Spectacular which we attended last Friday, which was ...ummm... Spectacular. I'll have to save that for my return to NJ. We'll be gone for a week and maybe I'll be able to blog once or twice from down south.

Please pray for a safe journey for us and that we all get the rest that we need. I feel a pedicure coming on... ahhhh.....

Twas The Month Before Christmas

A Special Thanks to my Sister-in-Law, Ivette, for this poem...

Twas the month before Christmas when all through our land
Not a Christian was praying nor taking a stand.
See the PC Police had taken away, The reason for Christmas –
no one could say.
The children were told by their schools not to sing, About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.

It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say
December 25th is just a ' Holiday '.
Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit
Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!
CDs from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-pod
Something was changing, something quite odd!

Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa
In hopes to sell books by Franken & Fonda.
As Targets were hanging their trees upside down
At Lowe's the word Christmas –
was no where to be found.

At K-Mart and Staples and Penny's and Sears
You won't hear the word Christmas; it won't touch your ears.
Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-si-ty
Are words that were used to intimidate me.

Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton, Wolf Blitzen
On Boxer, on Rather, on Kerry, on Clinton !
At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter
To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.
And we spoke not a word,as they took away our faith
Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace
The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded
The reason for the season, stopped before it started.

So as you celebrate 'Winter Break' under your 'Dream Tree'
Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me..
Choose your words carefully,
Choose what you say
Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS,
not Happy Holiday !

What's On Your Agenda?

My son is like me in the fact that he likes to have a plan of action. You can imagine my surprise as he went into our supply closet, grabbed some construction paper, a marker, scissor and tape and headed off into the living room. He grabbed some of his favorite videos and made the following:

The fact that he could copy all of these titles was amazing. If you can't make any sense of it: Videos: Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Noah's Umbrella (love the fact that he ran out of room and had to tape the "ella" to another piece of paper; Saint Nicholas and Heroes of the Bible (all VeggieTale Movies... and, yes, we seriously own each and every one of them).

If you don't know what to get me for Christmas, a case of scotch tape would be great... I seem to have run out...

Sister Visit

Can you tell I've finally been able to post some photos? Here is one of my sister, Ruth with Chris during her visit a few weeks ago. What I appreciate about her so much is that she always takes time to get down on the floor and play games with Chris... tirelessly! Thank you!!!

Just Because

My wonderful husband bought me these recently... just because !!

A New Passion

My son has picked up a new passion, a new love... tattoos. Thankfully he has only discovered the playful, temporary, take a bath and they are gone, tattoos. Here is one he got from "Fire Safety Day" at school. In case you can't make it out it says, Dial 9-1-1 in an Emergency. He also has an assortment of Dinosaur tattoos. Let's just hope that he never tries to wipe one off a person who has a real one (or discovers you can HAVE a real one...)

He's Growing Up!

Chris lost his first tooth tonight. Not sure if the tooth fairy is also suffering during this economic recession... or perhaps she received a government bailout ... she is still negotiating fair market value of the tooth.

Kid Funny

Conversation in my car yesterday:

"Mom, how old do I have to be to drive the car?"
"18"
"18 !?!?!? Why can't I drive it at 13?"
"Because that's the law... you have to be 18 in this state."
"But I'd like to start learning now"
"That would be too dangerous.. besides, your feet couldn't reach the pedals and it's really complicated."

He seemed to take that information but he's been really "observing" me behind the wheel... I'm hiding the keys for sure!

Just Stuff

First, thank you to my dear friends who responded to my last series of blogs.. the comments and the personal emails you sent me were so supporting and encouraging. I thank God for your friendships each day. It never ceases to amaze me how God brings people into your life that have similar experiences and situations. God is good - no matter how crazy life gets.

I've been battling a stomach bug for several days.. just when I think I'm back to normal, it strikes again. It's going to be a very busy 2 weeks leading up to Thanksgiving. We are going to the Christmas Show this Friday and then next Friday we start our road trip down to Florida for Thanksgiving. It's going to be so much fun!

Most of you won't be surprised to find out that I've already started my Christmas shopping. There are some great deals out there already! If you have little kids on your list, I found some great games, books and such at Marshalls for a fraction of the cost at Walmart, Target and Toys R Us. Of course, you need to go there now before all the good stuff is picked over. Trust me.. my Marshalls and TJ Maxx's toy section can look like a tornado passed by at times, but everything is so nicely stocked and organized for Christmas.

I also have purchased some great deals online... shipping is free in most cases. Sign up for email alerts from your favorite stores so you can find out when they have free shipping or at least discounted shipping. With family living all over the country, if I can get free shipping, it's sometimes cheaper than me buying it, wrapping it and mailing it. Although I do love to wrap !

Well, enough words of wisdom from me today. I'm off to get Chris ready for school. Unfortunately I have to miss my amazing and awesome Beth Moore "Esther" Bible Study today. I wish I was feeling better, but I am just not up for the drive today. Oh well. I can watch the video online later.

Have an awesome day everyone!

The Revelation - Conclusion

The bad news was that the blood work revealed that this blood clot had caused my body to activate a blood disorder that to that point had been dormant in my body. It is most likely hereditary. Anti-Thrombin III disorder, to be exact. The long and the short of it is that I will be on an aspirin regimen for the rest of my life (or until Jesus heals me) and, more disturbing, that I would put my life at risk if I were to get pregnant again... insert deep, heart-wrenching gulp followed by (unless Jesus heals me).

I went to 2 different specialists and, unfortunately, they all told me the same thing. With the history of cancer in my family, my age and now my blood disorder, having another baby would be high risk for me and the baby. Do I believe Jesus can heal this disorder and that with him all things are possible? Absolutely. But I also don't want to put my life at risk...especially when I've been blessed with one son who needs me. Yes, adoption is an option, but I'm not there yet.

The blood clot and subsequent events was quite a revelation and drastically changed my life and the scope of what I thought my family would one day look like. Growing up with a brother and a sister I had wanted the same for our son and it makes me sad to think he'll never know that joy. But, God is in control and I can trust in that. I thank God for my precious little boy. If one is what God has for me, I will be eternally grateful that he entrusted his life to me.

I am blessed!

Sick

I have to take an unexpected blogging break as my son and I are both battling some type of stomach bug. Not fun, but praying that it will not hold us down for long. Thanks for your prayers!!

The Revelation - Part 2

I didn't quite know how to handle the news of my blood clot. I was thankful I was still alive, but was so scared and had a hard time realizing that I would have to stay overnight at the hospital for a few days. They started me on blood thinners right away to dissolve the clot. The hospital was so crowded that they literally had to put me in a small room...actually, I believe it was a linen closet. I was so out of it, I didn't really know where I was.

Steve was picking up Shirley & Domingo (my sister-in-law and father-in-law) who dropped everything the minute they heard about my blood clot and flew from NJ to FL to basically run my household while I was away and to take care of Chris. My Dad and sister live in Florida so they were able to drive up and help out too. I am blessed with an incredible family. While Steve was at the airport, Pastor Jerry & Linda Lubrano from our new church in Florida literally found me in the linen closet. The front desk had no idea where I was, and instead of just taking that news and leaving, they combed the hallways and every door possible to find me. We had only visited their church twice, yet they came as soon as they heard what had happened to me. They sought me out, found me, prayed for me and encouraged me. Two other associate pastors and their families came from the church as well over the next 2 days... I was truly grateful for all their love and prayers. If nothing else, I knew that God had led us to this place, to this church, and that the timing of my blood clot, were no accident.

When I was finally released from the hospital, I had to go for weekly blood tests to make sure the blood thinners were doing their job. It was very tiresome, but I knew the importance of it. For some reason, my body was not regulating well to the blood thinners. My levels were all over the place, no matter how they adjusted my doses. So, after 6 months of weekly blood tests and a host of other tests, the doctor came with good news and bad news.... The good news was that the blood clot eventually did dissolve... the bad news is that....(to be continued)

The Revelation

The pain was so not going away... in fact, it was getting worse. What felt like a pulled muscle now was feeling tight and throbbing. I couldn't for the life of me remember what I did to mess my leg up like that. Perhaps when I was exercising, or when I reached for something or when I was walking? I didn't know the cause, but I was looking for a cure.

We had just moved to Florida and Chris was about 10 months old at this point. We were adjusting nicely to our new Florida surroundings. Steve was settled in at his job, we survived 3 hurricanes, and, after 3 months of searching, we FINALLY found a new church home.

The pain came from nowhere, or so it seemed. I didn't let it slow me down... I stood on a very long line to vote and I walked all over St. Petersburg with Steve & Chris on this particular weekend. But nothing seemed to work and I was desperate to figure it out. It had been about a week since I first sensed the pain and I was fed up.

One afternoon, when the pain seemed unbearable, I remember crying out saying, "Lord... I don't know what this is, or why I am in so much pain, but you know what it is, you know how I got it, and more importantly, you can cure it. Lord, give me wisdom as to what to do." For some silly reason, I had yet to find myself a primary care physician in FLorida at this point. I guess as a Mom, sometimes we put those little details aside. Chris was all set with his doctors, but I was another story.

No sooner did I utter my little petition, I felt the Lord impress on me to search my mind about my daily schedule... about what may be different in my life. So, I did just that. I thought about what Chris & I do every day, where we go, what activities we do, about what we had been eating, vitamins, etc. and then... the great revelation... The only thing different in my life was that I had started taking birth control pills about 6 weeks prior. Could that be the culprit for my pain?? I grabbed the bottle, and as clear as could be (as if written by the Lord himself) it said "IF YOU HAVE ANY PAIN IN YOUR LEGS, CALL YOUR PHYSICIAN IMMEDIATELY" (I don't know about you, but sometimes I need the Lord to hit me over the head with something.) I immediately grabbed the phone, called my new OB/GYN (at least I had seen an OB/GYN when we moved to FL) and explained my pains. Without letting me even finish my sentence she told me to get over to the E/R as soon as possible.

So, with baby and hubby in tow, I made my first trip to the Emergency Room. Because my pain was a "10" on the scale of 1 - 10, they took me right away and ran some tests. The technician showed no reaction and just told me that the doctor would be right in to speak with me... .that's never a good sign.

The doctor assigned to me came and explained to me that I had a DVT otherwise known as a BLOOD CLOT from my RIGHT KNEE ALL THE WAY UP THE RIGHT SIDE OF MY LEG TO MY WAIST!! She told me I was lucky that it didn't break off and cause an embolism and kill me. Lucky... no. The hand of God.. absolutely.

I am here today to tell this story because God gave me a revelation.. just in time. There's more to this story that I believe I need to share and will do so in the coming days.

Joy

Sometimes at night my mind just races. Does this happen to you? The events of the day... the stresses and to do lists for tomorrow.. the uncertainty of the future... it could really just steal what little joy you many have left at the end of that exhausting day. My husband works late many nights and, unfortunately, he often gets the part of me that is weary and warn, broken and has little left to offer at the end of a busy day. I thank God that he loves me and encourages me -- I am truly blessed.

May you each find comfort that no matter how dark your day or how weary, exhausted, frustrated and all-out stressed out you may be, we can look forward to what God promised us in Psalms 30:5 "..joy comes in the morning."

Timely Chocolate

I am very grateful that Halloween was this past Saturday. It was as if the stars, moon, and the planets were all perfectly aligned just for me because I am in full PMS mode and the bounty of chocolate now residing in my house is surely a blessing from above... I'm just saying. Thank you!!