From the Oregon Coast.... :D

It's SNOWING!!!!!!!!!!!

I SO love the snow. Right now, most of my enjoyment is coming from watching ALL the birds outside; there are dozens of them!

So. Today is supposed to be when I go to the movie with my friend. I didn't tell you! When we arrived on Friday, the times had been changed for the weekend - and Julia had to be at home for her grandkids as a special time. So, we went to Lifeway Bookstore - the new one in Providence Shopping Center in Mt. Juliet - and then to Panera for lunch. We had a good time - Julia is a wonderful person. :) So, anyway, we're supposed to go to see the movie today, but it's still snowing. I'm not sure if Julia's going to feel comfortable enough driving or not. Regardless, I have an invitation for lunch with another friend if the movie doesn't happen, and I need to go to a customer's home to show her how to do a project she bought the supplies for. Phew! A lot to fit in! :)

Here's another picture, just because I wanted to see if you could spot all 7 birds in it. :D

I wanted to respond to some of your comments, because I haven't done so in a while. Not because I don't CARE, but because things have been kind of wierd.

So. Here we go! :)

This one's from Sparrow - her blog link is to the right. This is the least-spiritual thing she asked me. :D She said, "What crafts will they be making at your church?"

What we do is have a "Craft Night" every second Friday at our church. We all bring our own supplies, and work on whatever we want. Most of us scrap or stamp, but we've had knitters and crocheters, too, and women who just need to get out of the house for some other adult female company come to visit. :) We go for six hours; there are several of us who do it the whole time, but you're free to come and go! If you live in the area, we'd LOVE to have you come - just email me for more details! :) It's FREE!

Nancy - whose blog link is ALSO to the right! :) - said, "Very fun stuff! I think I need some of those shoes. Everyone says they are the epitome of comfort. How are you feeling and how is your glucose level holding?Still praying for that."

I do LOVE my Crocs. I was kind of hesitant at first; Amy gave me my very first pair of Crocs for Christmas a little over a year ago, and they are textured on the bottoms. My feet are VERY sensitive to what I walk on; the wrong kind of socks can bother me! But I LOVE Crocs. I now own three pairs - the two Amy got me, and one pair of black Mary Janes Kenn let me pick out when we were in Oregon last May. I love them - and rarely wear any other kind of shoe!

I'm feeling a little better than I did yesterday; it's that time of the month, and not only do I have the regular mood swings, but it does affect my blood sugars. So you can pray for poor Kenn. :D

My glucose levels are doing really well! I can tell when I haven't done what I know I should, and there are still times when my bod does whatever it wants, but overall, I'm very happy with where I am - as opposed to six weeks ago! :)

Thank you for caring, and for praying!!!!!!!!! That means SO much to me!

One more before I go get busy. :) This one is from my local friend, Lori P. She says, "I really wish I could have heard the sermon but I was helping in the preschool and I really like doing that also. So for me yesterday was learning about Abraham and how he listened to God. It also put a whole new spin on sacrifice. That word is used too loosely. I can tell you that everyday I am in worship I find myself being more and more patient on waiting for God to show me what he has in store for me. For me, that is not easy so it shows me that I grow from hearing the message over and over. I hope that makes sense."

It sure does, Lori. I agree; we do use the word "sacrifice" too loosely. Webster's Dictionary says that a sacrifice (n) is destruction or surrender of something for the sake of something else. The verb definition: to suffer loss of, give up, renounce, injure, or destroy especially for an ideal, belief, or end. And that's the secular use!

God sacrificed His son for us. We say we sacrifice for Him, but what have we REALLY sacrificed lately? Ourselves should be the answer - but one of my favorite points to make is that living sacrifices tend to crawl off the altar often....

I hope maybe you've found something fun, or interesting, or thought-provoking today. :)

Know I love you! Time to jump in the shower, and get ready to be a social butterfly in one way or another. :)

GOD LOVES YOU!!! Enjoy His blessings today!

Now I'm ready to share specific prayer needs!

Rather appropriate verse for me today. :) Let me explain.

As a reader of this blog, you know I've really been struggling with my glucose levels. Well, today was my diabetes specialist 3-month appointment. Well, we both put stuff out on the line, and what's been happening is glycemic toxicity. That's where my body has too much insulin in it, because I've been putting more in - but my body is also extremely insulin-resistant, so my glucose level is too high. It's a vicious cycle, and one that I have to try to stop.

She wants me to eat 90 grams of carbs a day - which is easy, because that's about what I eat already. The hard part is WHEN.

So, starting tomorrow, I HAVE to eat a bigger breakfast, which I really, REALLY hate. And I can't eat after 6 pm. THAT will be true torture!!!!!

I go back in three weeks, to see how things are going. It's my fasting sugars that are really out of control, and when I get stressed, forget it.

Next week is my check-up with my retinal specialist. He's not going to be happy, but I'm doing what I can. Please pray that this works to get me out of this awful loop!

I've also got the respiratory crud again, which HURTS. Kenn is in a depression; he's not feeling very well, AND his jobs have fallen off - so we're hurting. With co-pays for expensive COBRA for meds and doctors appointments and the monthly payments, I'm EXPENSIVE.

OK. :) I'm done. Thank you for praying, dear friends. I can't tell you how much I appreciate knowing you're there!

Glucose update. :)

Hi, ladies. My new dear friend, Nancy, is praying diligently for my glucose readings, and keeps asking me how I'm doing. :D I'm glad you care!

This is my "lifeline", my meter.

It's a vampire! The biggest problem is the cost of the strips for this puppy - I'm not testing as often this week as I should, because I'm running low on funds. However, I am trying to watch it!

My readings have been really, really high lately. I've been stressed, and that NEVER does well for me. This morning, my fasting reading was still high, but lower than it has been every other morning for a week. I just tested, right after I took this picture: it's PERFECT right now, even though I feel INCREDIBLY stressed. So PLEASE keep the prayers coming!

As far as my eyesight goes, I have another check with my retinal specialist the end of this month. My left eye continues to have "episodes", and I'm in the middle of one now. I don't say anything around the house about it, because there's no reason to worry anyone. It's just something I'm going to have to live with. :)

Thank you for caring, ladies. I hope you're having a wonderful day!

Good morning!

God is SO good!!! I love snow, and I've been thrilled to watch the snow flurries that have hit the Nashville area late yesterday and this morning. Nothing's sticking, but it's definitely chilly! :D As you can see by our backyard fountain - now THAT'S a tall, COLD drink of water! :D God knew how much it would please me to get to see the snow. JUST as I started blogging, it started again. Just a few flakes drifting gently down, but enough to absolutely bless me! Thanks, Abba!

How are YOU doing today? I'm looking forward to today; my best friend here, Amy, and I are going to get to spend some time together - AND we're meeting another friend for lunch. Girls' day just doesn't happen often, so I can't wait! :)

Yesterday was a little scary. My blood sugar rose SO HIGH that I was afraid I'd have to get Kenn to take me to the ER. It was starting to come down when I went to bed, however, and I prayed hard and believed that God would take care of it. When I got up to - well, why else do we wake up in the middle of the night and stumble into another room, hmmm?? :D - it was down to normal. PRAISE HIM FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW! It's not a nice feeling to have that happen, and you can't control anything!

You know what brought me to Him? All I could hear when I closed my eyes was, "Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY, Who was, and is, and is to come!" If HE isn't able to take care of me, who CAN?????

Well, Amy should be here any time, so I'm going to cut it short. :) I MAY talk again later today; I've been SO blessed by the comments y'all are leaving/emailing me. Thank you!

God bless you, dear sister! Have a WONDERFUL day - be sure to look for the ways YOUR Abba is telling you He loves you!