A Long Week

To say that it has been a long week is an understatement. Reagan has been sick since Sunday, so I haven't left my house the entire week. She was acting puny Saturday night and didn't feel great when we headed to church Sunday morning. I kept her with me in our Sunday School class instead of sharing her germs with all her little friends in her class. She slept all day long Sunday, which is highly uncharacteristic of Reagan, and by Sunday night she had a fever of 103.1. Sigh!!!! There has been a fever virus going around so I wasn't all that worried about it. The doctor said it could take 4 or 5 days to run its course. By Tuesday around lunchtime, she was feeling a little better, only to have the fever go back up on Tuesday night. Last night, her temp. was 100.1, the lowest it has been all week, and this morning she is "cool as a cucumber". Maybe we are over this, of course, I am sure Gracen will have it next week. I am not really a pessimist, but definitely a realist, when it comes to raising children. Maybe they are one in the same.

Dealing with sick children is a special "test" I think. It tries my patience like nothing else. I am sure the lack of sleep has something do with my lack of patience. Reagan got up several times in the night on Sunday and Monday, so by Tuesday, I was a little irritable. The constant whining during the day reminds me of the sound of nails on a chalkboard. On top of Reagan's temperament, Gracen must be teething or something because she is drooling like crazy, not wanting to sleep, and a little fussy to boot. I thought I would never get her to sleep Monday night. I have prayed more this week off and on through the day than I normally do. I have prayed for patience, to be all my girls need, for healing for Reagan, for protection for Gracen, for strength and energy to make it through the day on little sleep, for a complete night of rest as my head hits the pillow, etc. Strangely, I have felt closer to God than I normally do. Could it be that I have actually talked to Him more? Imagine that! This reminds of that verse in 1 Thess. 5:17 that tells me to pray without ceasing. I have definitely done just that this week and He has faithfully meet my needs. In the verse preceding this, it says that I should rejoice always. That is a tougher command. It has been hard to rejoice in the yuckies of fussy children. On the flip side, there have certainly been some positive things. I have gotten to stay in my pajamas a lot, I haven't had to be any where, I haven't had to get everyone dressed and ready and out the door by 8:00 (which is stressful every morning) , and I have had a lot of snuggle time with both girls because they have both wanted their Momma. I can certainly rejoice in those things.

Yesterday, was Gracen's 9 month well visit with her pediatrician. You'll remember that she if off schedule. She is actually 9 months and 3 weeks old right now and this still drives me nuts. Anyway, as I said, I haven't been anywhere all week, so I was actually excited about going to the doctor. A first, I can assure you! There are no shots at the nine month visit, just a finger prick to look at cholesterol levels and test for anemia. Gracen cried during that part, but all of her results came back normal. Praise the Lord! She weighed 17lbs 12 oz (in the 30th percentile on the growth chart) and she is 26 & 3/4 inches tall (in the 25 percentile). Both of these numbers worried me of course. Average is 5o% and Reagan was always in the 90th percentile. The doctor said that this is her normal and she was completely fine. She is actually quite chunky despite the numbers, but it looks like she is going to be short, a trait she must have inherited from my mother's side of the family. We will see.

Gene was off yesterday, so I also got to go buy groceries by myself. It was heavenly! I felt like a bird out of a cage. I think I spent well over 2 hours walking up and down the aisles of Wal-Mart. When I got home, I discovered that both girls slept the entire time I was gone...almost 3 hours. Why do they do that for Gene and not for me? I missed the best nap of the week and I was buying groceries. I would have loved to be doing something fun, or watching a movie, or cleaning my house, or napping myself. And wouldn't you know it, as soon as I got the car unloaded, both girls were wide awake, and then I had to cook dinner, then clean the kitchen, then bathe the girls, etc. No rest for the weary, right!

I am working on my questions for the study So Long Insecurity. I am suppose to be identifying the roots of my insecurity and so far, I am having trouble with this. I'll be praying through the different roots over the next couple of days and we'll see what God shows me.

Gene and I are also still working through the Love Dare, even though I haven't been discussing it much. Gene would probably prefer that I didn't discuss it, if you get my drift. Some of it is personal but I'll do an update...maybe when we get to the middle of it.

Well, I need to go. Gene has a men's conference tonight and I have the college girls coming over ....yeah! I should probably be cleaning or something. We are having lasagna, salad, garlic bread, and a dessert. We are watching the movie One Night With the King, the story of Esther, and then I am leading a Bible study and discussion time after the movie. I love Esther's story. It is amazing to think that, as Christians, we have a special purpose in life, that we were created by God with a plan in mind. My older sister let me borrow her copy of the Beth Moore study on Esther called it's Tough Being a Woman, complete with all the DVD's. I am going to start it as soon as I finish the study So Long Insecurity. I can hardly wait!

Well, lots to do today.

Until next time....