Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Today, October 2, 2010 would have been my Daddy's 62nd birthday! Instead of a celebration and joking about how old he's getting (which he obviously was NOT!) it's a time of sadness for me. How selfish is that? My dad is in Heaven with his Jesus and I can only think about how much I want him here with us! I will always cherish the past we shared but I miss, nearly every day, the future we will not have. He lived life fully, courageously and passionately after being diagnosed with lymphoma. I am very grateful that I had him in my life, that he knew my daughter and that Maya has precious memories of him. Her most precious memory of him is also mine. After a lifetime (literally) of praying for Salvation for my dad, we were able to witness the moment that he asked Jesus into his heart, exactly one week before he passed away. By witnessing this, on days when I miss him with a huge ache in my heart, I know that the One who is holding me and comforting me is also holding my Daddy! That closes the distance between us! So on his birthday, I will sing to him and close my eyes and imagine him laughing and eating a gigantic slice of German Chocolate cake! Love you Daddy!

10/02/48 ~ 05/14/2006

"Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope."

Grateful & Grouchy?

As summer was coming to a close and we began to get ready to start school this week I have to admit I wasn't doing back flips & happy dances! I was a little grouchy and my Valery called me a big whiny baby...does that give you a clear picture of my state of mind? I decided that Valery was right and I realized I was lucky I'd had a summer off with my girl. I also chose to focus on the fact that I have a job in a time where many people don't. There's that quote, 'The best way to appreciate your job is to imagine yourself without one.'

It's hard to be grouchy when you're grateful!

Maya woke up Wednesday morning, our third day of school with a HUGE cloak of grouchy wrapped around herself! It was apparent before she even spat out her, 'Morning Mommy'. She stomped around the house almost steping on her bottom lip a few times. BUT...just before we walked out of the door she asked me to pray with her because she recognized her emotional state was less than attractive. As soon as we sat down on the couch the words spilled out of me. I began by thanking God. No, not for my daughter's attitude, I'm not crazy. I thanked Him for the roof over our heads, the food in our bellies, the water in our bottles, the car that would drive us to her Christian school and on and on and on...she began to join in by naming the things I'd left out and by the time we said amen, her mood had shifted!

It's hard to be grouchy when you're grateful!