Lion and Lambs

Another year older, another year merrier! This is the first time in years that I spent Christmas away from my immediate familly. I can’t recall ever spending it without my boys. And it was still a good day, blessed by the Baby that came so that we would not have to suffer forever; the Baby that came so one day the lion will lay down with the lamb. Which reminds me of one of my favorite quotes:

I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. ~Charles Dickens

This year I spent Christmas with my SO and his family. So nothing unexpected and possibly ugly would happen, I drugged myself well. I am so thankful to the medical field, that that is available to me, and even more blessed that God allowed it to work.

My baby girl, Tootsie, was with me but one of the other family members has three dogs and one of them is an alpha female like Tootsie. Bran Dee absolutely was not happy about another dog invading her territory. When she growled at Tootsie, Tootsie thought she was playing so she would let out this cute little bark and jump at Bran Dee and Bran Dee, not intending to play would snap at her and the tussle would begin. Tootsie also kept climbing on my SO’s bad knee, so I decided Tootsie needed to go visit her sister and her other mother.

At the last minute this morning, one of the families canceled and they were responsible for the vegetable tray. The tray was all we had planned for vegetables with the meal. Since I was going out already, I got designated to find an open grocery store to get some kind of vegeys. Yay Safeway! Though far, they were opened, and packed full of people!! I got about six phone calls on the way with more things people wanted. I got the last vegetable tray, the second to the last bag of marshmallows for the sweet potatoes, forget tortilla chips, and no sugar free candy!! Thankfully they had what I needed because they got wiped out at the table.

Then it was time for presents, more food, and then the annual Christmas tradition, “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation!” Though I wish they would do a version without the vulgar language, the movie is hilarious, especially when the cat gets fried under the Christmas tree.

Everyone went home after the movie, MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!! (oops, wrong movie, but the sentiment stands!)

Besides the demands of managing school, chronic illness, and some social life, this poor blog has been left behind again. Then on top of that I have this mental block against starting. Where? What? When? How? That keeps me from journaling also, and I love what happens when I journal, but how do you start??

With guilting prompting from my loving sister, I have finished school and now am returning. Did I mention I got 100% on my Algebra final?? So I decided I don’t need a special place to start, I just need to start, so here I am.

Today is my birthday and I am sitting in the hospital with my SO who is getting total knee replacement surgery. His blood preesure was 218 over 118 and they threatened to call off the surgery, but the anethesiologist was confident she could control it so in he went. Telling all the loved ones I needed to tell, I started get anxious so I took myself out for my birthday lunch.

One of my gifts was this fantastic little laptop that only weighs 2.3 lbs with the big battery! I love it! The reason I didn’t carry my other one around was because it was so big and heavy on my bad neck and shoulders. This is great, it is about the size of a Bible cover and goes everywhere now. It is an Acer Aspire One, and it’s PINK! My phone has WiFi so I am set to go almost wherever I want.

So I wait with all the other friends and loved ones of all the other patients, waiting for some news from a surgeon. It seems a sad time of year to be in the hospital, especially unplanned. Many galbladders coming out today. I am thankful that there are hospitals though to give us relief when we need it.

Tonight it is off to Sedona for my annual slumber party. Looks like there will be 7 women this year; and lots of relaxation in front of the fireplace!!! May have snow as well and that will be beautiful if we don’t have to go out in it. Hopefully I will be able to get phone reception so I can continue my blogging….or I will have to face my sister!!

I am not known for having a green thumb. I have always said that I could kill silk plants. Little did I know that compared to my friends, I am an expert. For fun, my friend L, bought these plants to see what we coud do with them…basically, who would kill them first. Much to my astonishment, here is my plant:

This is a few weeks after they were purchased. When I emailed this picture to my other two friends who are participating, L proceeded to turn over her dying plants to me. Mind you, this is a week after I put them in plant therapy.

When L went on and on to D about how my plant looked, she too turned over her plant to me. Not as desperate as L’s plants, this poor thing was still headed for a quick death.

Soon they will be ready to transplant into a garden. I think this forsaken place could use their flowers to brighten it up. Whatdaya think?

One of our local radio stations, KFLR, is hosting an event called the SHE Event with Rebecca St James. To promote this they are having a SHE’s the One contest to win great prizes associated with the concert. The idea is to describe who you would bring to the concert with you and why she’s the one. My mom will always be the number one she in my life, but she is NOT a concert person.

This set me to contemplating all the “she’s” in my life and why they are so special. I thought about what each one is willing to do, and does do for me. I thought about why I enjoy the company of each one individually, and at many times, collectively. I thought about the sacrfices each has made for me, without a negative word. I thought about how incredibly blessed I am by the love they give me, and the love I have for them.

When your cup runneth over as mine does, there is no way I could possibly pick one.

My sister wrote a post the other day about the difference between her and I when it comes to friendships.

My sister has several groups of friends, whole herds of girls, she hangs with. She has groups of girlfriends in other states! She talks to many of her friends every day, sometimes more than once a day, and they talk for a long time. They get together as a group for dinner. They get together for chatting. They go on vacation together. She and I grew up together, yet this is completely foreign to me. ~my sis

It reminded me of a paragraph from the book When God Weeps, Why Our Suffering Matters to the Almighty, that describes how I feel about my friends. The book was written by Joni Eareckson Tada and Steven Estes, but this paragraph was written by Joni.

Every good pleasure on earth is but a shadow of it’s fulfillment in heaven. The best of friendships are embryonic on earth, snatching only a few short years to mature. There’s never enough time. Words can never convey what overflows our heart. (How many times I have said that!) I experience this bittersweet sadness with intimate friends. I love them so much that I want to pass through them, reach the other side, to know them fully, be one with them. Not to possess but to meld with them. I can’t on earth. I’m on the outside of their heart’s door, always wanting to get in, get closer, even while relishing in their company.