I got to see Emily yesterday.  I sure missed her while she was gone.  Although she worked around the house while I took a quick shower, she stayed and had lunch with me and we had a chance to visit, then.

The weather has been gloriously beautiful.  Only 80 - 81 degrees in the afternoon with a light breeze.  The house was chilly this morning because temperatures dropped to 54 degrees overnight!  We may be getting some rain Friday or Saturday.  Whatever happens, I'll be happy.  I'm glad the 100's are gone until next summer!

I've been making lots of soups this week.  Partly because of the weather and partly because it's a meal I can easily manage.  We had pinto beans with turkey ham and cornbread on Monday; vegetable beef soup with sour dough bread on Tuesday; and today I found leftover chicken that needed to be used and made chicken and noodles for lunch.  That leaves the vegetable beef soup and chicken and noodles as leftovers for tomorrow's dinner.  I'm making some sausages (smoked turkey and chicken with spinach and asiago cheese) tonight and will also fix shells and Velveeta and a green vegetable.  Something else easy for me to manage.  I don't think I could serve soup again tonight and get away with it!

Speaking of beans and cornbread.  Our family reached another milestone on Monday night.  I fixed one pound of beans with quite a bit of meat and a 10" cake pan of cornbread.  The girls each ate two bowls and Jesse and I only got one bowl a piece.  There were only two beans, a 1/2 cup of sauce, and two small pieces of meat left in the pot!  Hard to believe my children have bigger bodies and aren't babies anymore.  I guess I'll have to start fixing 2 pounds (or packages) from now on.  It was a "cooking" milestone for me, kinda like realizing the last child is able to buckle and unbuckle their own seatbelt!  They're growing up!

I'm off to put my feet up and watch Jeopardy! before Luci gets home and it's time to serve dinner.  I'm not going to attempt to go to church tonight.  Going to the Sunday service and the Tuesday medical appointment has been enough for me for this week!  Jesse will take Annamarie to her Thursday appointment and Luci to hers on Friday.

Thursday, I woke up feeling quite a bit better.  Friday was an even better day, with no heaviness in my chest or tightness in my throat.  Saturday I did things around the house even more so than I had done on Thursday and Friday.  And, on Sunday . . . I WENT TO CHURCH!

It felt so good to be dressed and have my hair done and NOT feel short of breath!  Then, I actually got in a car and went somewhere!  Woo!  Hoo!

We went to the church that had been so kind to us while I was sick, Whispering Pines: the one we intended to visit before I became ill.  I thought the service started at 10:30am and we arrived at 10:20.  I saw the sign out front that said, "Service times:  10:00 and 2:00."  YIKES!  We decided to go in, anyway, and just slip into a back row.  THAT plan wasn't in the picture for us at all!

To our horror, from the reception area, we looked through the 2 windows at the back of the church that looked into the sanctuary and saw both sides of the church PACKED all the way to the back row.  Only the 2 front rows on each side remained.  We were mortified!  PLUS, you know with windows you can see both ways, we didn't know how to go back to the car and leave without people wondering why we left!

Lo and behold, out of the restroom walked one of the ladies, Cherie, who had brought dinner to us.  She acted thrilled to see us standing there.  She welcomed us and said, "No problem if you're late, we're glad to see you" and found an available row that would hold all FIVE of us.  It was the second row from the front and next to the lady, Reba, who I've gotten to know almost as well as Emily.  RIGHT UP IN FRONT!!!!!  Double yikes!

So in we marched - literally - our family looking like a small army!  There's nothing like being almost a half hour late your first time at a church and having to sit on the front row!

All of our children behaved very well and the topic of the message was "raising children," given by Reba's husband.  I enjoyed the service immensely and soon forgot we were the newbies on the front row.  I felt VERY comfortable!

Several people introduced themselves afterwards, and a few ladies I knew from delivering food to us greeted me.  No huge throng of people and nothing overwhelming - well, nothing overwhelming after our initial "swallowing hard" and walking in late to the "front" row!

I go back to the doctor today for my recheck.  She is back from her illness that caused her to cancel my Thursday appointment last week.  I feel so much better than I did last Tuesday, when I made the appointment.  I would have never guessed I'd improve this much.  I'm going to get the green light from her before I proceed with what I "think" I can and can't do.  Obviously, I will not be around chemicals (cleaning products) for a few more weeks.  And, no vacuuming.  But, I think I can cook, do laundry, clean a bit here and there, etc. without any ill effects.

Emily will be here this morning to clean.  Her grandfather is doing very well.  It ended up that her grandmother needed her care more than her grandfather.  I know she's glad to be back in her own home.  I missed her company while she was gone - and she was only gone a week!

Today is the first cool morning without humidity!  I have the windows open and I'm enjoying airing out the house.  I think our high won't quite reach 80 degrees.  Later in the week, we are supposed to have another few days in the upper 70's.  I really appreciate the pleasant weather!

I must eat and bathe before Emily gets here, so I'm going to quit writing.  I'm just so happy to write something positive for a change!

From left to right:  Annamarie, cousin Aolani, and Rissy.

Here goes!!!!!

These are my 3 girls and our visiting niece (the one child wearing pants) outside of a Build A Bear store waiting for the doors to open.  It was taken last June.

My plan is to put away the large cooking and serving dishes from Monday's cook-out (no one but me knows where those unusual items are stored) and to take a shower.

IF I'm up to it, I want to make a carrot cake (I enhance a box mix with raisins, crushed pineapple, nuts, etc.) and my plan for dinner is something simple with chicken breasts.  All easy stuff, but not so easy on me if I do too many "easy things" one after another.

I have a return appointment with the doctor tomorrow afternoon.  I have lots of questions.  The foremost and first question is, "WHY IS THIS TAKING SO LONG??????"  However, the way I will word the question to the doctor will be more like, "Am I still ill or am I recovering?"  I'm not sure that, at this point, maybe I should be pushing myself each day to regain strength.  I also will ask why I find it so difficult to talk.  It's like I have continual laryngitis, which may simply be from all the inhalers I've been using.

I have decided to read more, which keeps me occupied in a resting position.  I'm reading a 2 year diary of an Amish woman which is easy to pick up and put down and doesn't take a lot of brains to follow!  The title is Sarah's Seasons and written by Martha Moore Davis.  I have been showing more interest and stamina for reading meatier things.  That's good and a sign  that my brain didn't crumble up and die!!!

I just can't get into television.  I enjoy the news and Jeopardy! and a few shows that come on here and there in the evening.  Evening shows seem to be switching around as far as the nights they appear.  At least I haven't found much consistency.  I like Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader? but I think the shows are all reruns, now.  My friend Tangi and I have decided the show's questions must be from gifted or honors classes.  I sure don't remember knowing facts about the structure of our government when I was in the second grade!!!  I think I was just coming out of the Dick, Jane & Sally readers!

I'm still excited about fall and our weather is, somewhat, cooperating this year.  We don't have temps much over 90 degrees each day (mainly upper 80's) and the weekly rain patterns continue.  That shortens the Indian summer we normally would be experiencing now through the end of October.  I'm talking long, dry spells with muggy, hot temps and only cool (60's) temps in the mornings.  Things have actually been pleasant this year.  I've made Luci quit wearing her white sandals and change to her pink sandals and blue crocs!  Something about that "not wearing white after Labor Day" I was taught as a child . . . !!!

This week, Rissy's been itching to clean house for me.  She ran the Swiffer dry duster over the furniture, glass, knick knacks and picture frames yesterday.  She woke up this morning and (barely awake) asked if she could vacuum.  I told her "no" since it was 8:06 am and I wasn't quite ready for the noise!  I took a broom to the kitchen floor yesterday.  I can't be around chemicals at all (can't take a chance on inhaling them) and so I may have Rissy take the 409 spray and some paper towels and spot clean the kitchen and table area floors.  She's the only child I know who begs to do housework and begs to have school lessons!  I always enjoyed housework and maybe she'll be the same.  I can't say I enjoyed school until I was much older!

Well, off to make myself an egg salad sandwich or some leftover charcoaled hotdogs and baked beans for lunch.  Decisions!  Decisions!

Doing the "smart thing" next, I decided to go back and lay on my bed and pick a book to read.  I ordered a bunch of short stories a few weeks ago.  Reader's Digest condensed books/4 stories in each book.  I feel obligated to read each story in each book.  There was one story about a woman who went to Peru (the jungles) and ended up helping orphaned children.  It didn't look like my cup of tea AT ALL, so I chose to read it first to get it "out of the way."  I loved the story!  I've done that before with these Reader's Digest books - take the least interesting stories and read them first - and I've never been bored.  Maybe I should trust the Reader's Digest people who select the stories!

The rest of the girls' homeschool books arrived on Saturday.  I might have forgotten to mention that.  I was momentarily filled with panic, as I doubted my ability to teach, while perusing the new material.  BUT!!!  I also remember feeling this way when my girls first started school, and the reality hit me that not only did I need to teach them their letters, but also how to write them and . . . panic attack! . . . how to hold the pencil!  We got through that time (they all hold a pencil properly now!) and I will survive this new, scary material.

My sweet friend Emily called Sunday morning to say she wouldn't be able to help me this week.  Her grandpa had been run over by a tractor and air lifted to a hospital and her grandma, subsequently, ended up in an urgent care facility with health problems.  They live in Kansas and her cousin called her to ask for her help.  We've been praying for Emily and her grandparents.  And, we'll manage around here while she is gone.  (Long lives the big Riss' and her 6 year old talents for cleaning!!!) 

This week is predicted to be a rainy one.  The temps aren't supposed to be much above 90, with cloud cover each day.  I don't know if that means the humidity will be sky high OR if there will be much of a breeze.  I didn't open my windows this morning like I have done for the past few days.  It's been in the upper 60's in the morning and the fresh air through the windows makes me feel like I'm getting rid of all the sick germs that accumulated!  Kinda like I'm sending them all out the window to the great beyond!

I'm going to get my towels out of the dryer and try to do a few things this morning. Mornings are when I feel the best.

I didn't do anything Saturday except start laundry.  I didn't feel real peppy during the second half of the day.  That's typical.  Lots of steam in the morning and then a feeling of exhaustion by 4 or 5 in the afternoon with a tightening in my chest and shortness of breath.

Sunday, Jesse went to church.  I think, at this point, my getting up, getting dressed, and doing my hair (and then dressing the 3 girls and doing THEIR hair) would be a bit much for me - so, he went alone.  He asked me to get ready (as well as get the girls ready) while he was at church.  He came home to pick us up and we went to a small (not crowded) Mexican restaurant for lunch.  It was perfect because it wasn't loud or busy, and I didn't feel rushed or nervous.  It did make me tired to be up, dressed, and to go somewhere.  After being sequestered in my house for months, it's hard to get back out and do things without feeling jumpy or tired when surrounded by normal activity.  Weird, I know - but the truth.

After lunch, we drove around the lake near our house - the one that flooded and where the high school boy drowned while jogging (about 10 days ago).  It was a pretty drive and helped me to settle down after my restaurant "experience."

We had 99 cent McDonald cheeseburgers for dinner last night and, like always, I was dead tired by 7:30pm.

Last night, Jesse took out a bunch of meat (marinaded fajita meat, ground beef, hot links, & a cut up chicken) from the freezer to thaw and cook outside today.  He is with a friend this morning tuning up his truck.  I'm thinking of simple things to make this morning - like deviled eggs, flavored rice, buttered corn, etc. - that will taste good with the charcoaled meat.  I was pleased yesterday when I weighed myself and found I have NOT gained back more than 2 pounds of the weight I lost (lost 14 pounds) at the beginning of my illness.  I'm still being VERY careful with the amount of food I eat because of the steroid medication, which makes me feel ravenous all the time.

I've been on E-bay a bunch these past few days buying clothes for the older girls for fall/winter.  I'm thrilled that I have come in UNDER my budget.  There are a few items left over the next 2 or 3 days to bid and (hopefully) win, 2 heavy coats are included in those things left.  Long skirts, jumpers, tops, and a few warm dresses will give them a wardrobe when the chilly weather hits.  Luci gets tons of hand me downs and (poor thing) not many new clothes.  She's also the one who rips and tears clothing easily - so, it all works out.

It won't be long until nights cool off and days drop down into the low 80's on a consistent basis.  Then, suddenly, the bottom will fall out, and it will be Thanksgiving time and colder weather will appear.

I'd love to have some plants in the ground for fall (mums, etc.); but, due to circumstances, I've had to give up my landscaping dreams this year!  My fall goal is to be able to drive again and go places: places like my children's medical appointments and the grocery store.

I'm going to quit now and eat breakfast, get dressed, and get myself moving around here.  It takes me longer than usual to accomplish small things. 

I hope everyone enjoys a relaxing Labor Day holiday!

I don't know why, but I feel like the slate is clean with ANYTHING being possible as the month unfolds.  I feel a sense of  excitement within me and my attitude (or outlook) feels refreshed and filled with hope.

I'm looking forward to regaining my full strength, as well as being able to handle my old, daily, drudgery of chores.  I hope I remember this experience forever and never complain again about all the things I do to keep our home running smoothly.  It would be sheer joy to get out of bed and start laundry, fix a *real* breakfast for the girls, and think about what meat I need to take out of the freezer for that night's dinner . . .  then continue with whatever I do on any given day.  That's how it used to be and I believe WILL BE again, very soon.

It's pleasant outside this morning and I've opened the windows to get some fresh air *in* the house and the stale air *out*!!!  It will be near 90 again today; but, for now, I'm enjoying the cooler mornings and fresh air through my windows.

Jesse went to work this morning to finish 2 or 3 customer's lawns.  He expects to be home around 2pm.  He decided to NOT work on Labor Day Monday.  It's uncomfortable for him to take a day off, because he's programmed to be a very hard worker.  We love it when he's home.

Last night, I asked him if he could take me to Wal-Mart this week end to pick up just a few things.  He said he'd rather try taking me to dinner before we make the big hike through Wal-Mart.  Last week end, getting dressed was hard and I had to rest before piling into the car and going for a ride.  I've been dressed every day this week, except for one, and getting dressed is no longer taxing like it was last week end.  PROGRESS!

I'm still waiting for my second set of textbooks for Rissy and Annamarie.  A Beka sent my book order quickly: actually, they were VERY quick - considering EVERYONE is ordering for their new home school year.  I'm waiting for my Christian Light Education book order.  They will be sending Rissy's reading and both children's Bible curriculum.  I assume this 3 day week end will slow things down.  Maybe next week??????

The date, September 1st, has made me feel so very hopeful.  I want to say I can write whatever I want on a clean slate for the month of September; but, I've learned I'm not really in control of the course my life takes.  I can make choices (and hopefully WISE choices); but, it's God who ultimately directs my path and it's MY job to follow. 

Still, the anticipation and hope I feel ahead of me for the month of September is filling me with joy today: it's very refreshing to have a new outlook!