Wow....how fast time flies!

Well, in only two short months I will have an empty nest!! I have
always loved having a house filled with kids and laughter.
This is proving to be one of THOSE "hardest things I've ever
been through" moments.  I take joy in knowing that both

 of my children will be together at Mississippi State University
and that it is only a three hour trip, but not seeing them
 daily is the part I will miss.  I am blessed to have a husband
who helps me refocus and remember that we have raised
them to be capable, smart, and strong....knowing that
they are ready for this next step in life.  But now...what
to do with me! My Rheumatoid is still taking over my every 

joint.....and I am trying daily to think positive and claim victory
that things will even out soon.

My next journey will be gastric sleeve surgery.
My doctor thinks getting the weight i've gained with all of
 the steroids this year, will help my hips, ankles and knees and 

feet.  Also, a new stomach lining for ME!
After 23 years of Rheumatoid Auto Immune Disease
and anti inflammatory meds.... my stomach lining has thinned
... OH THE JOYS OF THE SIDE EFFECTS of meds!
TIS SCAREY! But I am all for it....if it helps, prevents
stomach lining tear (due to meds) and makes me more mobile-----
let's go! I think this journey will keep my mind off of the
 empty nest, as I know it will not be aneasy surgery and
recovery.  BUT it is a necessary one and will not only help the

 RA, but also my high blood pressure and borderline diabetes.
Onward...... each day brings us a little closer,,,and I know
that God will prepare me for both of these journeys!!
and all the while I WILL SING MY BRAVEST SONG!

Wow.... I haven't posted in 3 months....

Thanks Melody Ross ... I am loving ART II  class.

The holidays have come and gone..... and things are pretty quiet

around the house with both kids in college now.  I have been

doing a little crafting (above pics) and taking care of the 

puppies during the day.  I am finally getting use to staying

home again.  My RA has been pretty aggressive, but we

are praying that the new chemo treatments will be the

answer. Hope everyone is doing well... I have done inventory
of my time and God has shown me how I have not been
truly appreciating the MOMENTS that He has given me
with the ones I love.  I have been spending so much time
on Facebook with friends and games! I uninstalled it from
my phone in order to BE completely WITH the loved ones
I am able to still spend time with AND BE TOTALLY
with them! NOT LOOKING AT MY PHONE EACH
TIME IT BEEPS!! It was so easy to fill every moment
when the kids were at home .... we either learning, creating,
going, eating, reading, riding.....well, all the things we do
with our children.  This season is so different..... and
I am ready for God to show me what my purpose is in this
season of my life.....and I WILL ENJOY EACH MOMENT.

Fall is in the air.... :)

After the storms pass..............the sun WILL shine!

She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future. -Proverbs 31:25

It has rained in Mississippi for the past two weeks and my 

body has been crippled by it.  My RA has been so very 

active that I have landed in the hospital twice unable to

stand on my own two feet, grasp toilet paper with either

hand, or simply open my mouth due to my jaws being

locked.  The pain has been so overwhelming that I am

now on a new journey to the Mayo Clinic in Rodchester, MN

to enter a three week Pain Management Program. I've

had RA for over 21 years and it has gotten progressively

worse.  For so long I thought that I was one tough cookie!

I could press through the pain and grin as if nothing was 

wrong.  But the past two years it became harder to mask

and harder to deal with.  I do NOT want to have to

use medicine that zonks me out or changes my

 EVER-SO-UNFORGETTABLE personality!

So...we are choosing this new path.  I ask for prayers

as I begin this journey.  My rheumy has referred me

and now it is the insurance approval wait.  OH THE JOYS!

They won't always be babies!

It is strange how I viewed my kids as they were little

tikes.... I soaked up each moment so that I never

fully grasp the idea that they would indeed grow "UP".

As middle school and high school hit, I was still 

viewing my kids as my babies... they still needed

me and were always coming to me with questions.

As my son's senior year approached it began to hit

home that my "babies" were growing "UP" and 

soon they would be growing "OUT".  I always

knew in my heart they were a gift from God to 

guide, guard and protect until the day I was 

to help them fly own their own.  YES, it hit

hard and I cried tears of joys and tears of 

"where did all the years go" when my son left

for college.  BUT oh how this year has marked

the beginning of a "TRUE EMPTY NEST".

I watched my baby girl leave for Indiana 

for summer missions with a joy filled heart.

As the days passed, she began vocalizing 

how much she missed home and then

came her "countdown to return". It made 

me think..... upon her return, she will have

one year left at home before joining her 

brother at MSU.... where did all the time

go? It is a blessing to know that my kids are

healthy, happy, intelligent, and moral young 

adults that are able to fly own their own....

but OH how I will miss them.  I will smile

and help fix up her dorm room at the junior 

college a mile from our house this year...

but in my heart there WILL BE TEARS!

MY BABIES are growing "UP"!

Learning .....

I woke up Monday feeling better than I have in over 7 months! I took advantage of it and cleaned, washed clothes and put them away, made tshirt flowers, took my sweet puppy for a walk and cooked a meal for my husband. THEN... I woke up Tuesday STILL FEELING GOOD....ohhhhhh... what did I do...the same thing... took advantage of every moment and spent the day "crafting" with a friend, finished up all of the laundry, and cooked dinner for my hubby.  Wednesday didn't follow along..... it was a day that RA reminded me that it has a mind of its own! Before having to retire in February of this year, I would have kept pushing and would have ended up feeling much worse!! SO .... I have learned a lot .... and I rested all Wednesday! I woke up today feeling better.  Of course, I wasn't able to run a marathon...or even walk two miles! However.... I finished cleaning the house, did a little organizing in my craft room, cooked a yummy meal for my husband, and am wide awake thanks to a little puppy who had to go potty! I am grateful for weeks like this.... when I have more good days than bad! These are the weeks I try to focus on when it is the opposite.  Now....back to bed??..... hopefully.

Isn't it beautiful...............

  Isn’t it beautiful how God leads us to EXACTLY

 what we need to feed our souls.  I have been

unable to attend my home church due to my

 low white blood cell count and have been 

  watching sermons on television with my 

husband. Recently I started reading 

several bible study blogs posted by women, 

and have been so blessed by their diligence, 

desire to spread the love of God, and

their sweet, sweet spirits. 
 http://www.mydailywalkinhisgrace.blogspot.com/2012/06/what-do-you-do-about-that-thorn-in-your.html  

This is a wonderful message about learning
to lean on Christ THROUGH the difficulties
we face.  Each of us has a "thorn in the flesh"
and how we choose to deal with it makes
all the difference in our lives and our
state of happiness.  God desires for
each of us (the healthy or the sick) to 
walk in His fullness.  We must learn
first that HIS GRACE IS SUFFICIENT!
It is all about perspective.... 
HOW WE CHOOSE TO view things...
HOW WE CHOOSE TO handle them.  
WITH GOD it is much easier...
He will supply the strength we need to
get through each day IF we realize 
that indeed HIS GRACE IS SUFFICIENT.  


Living with a chronic auto-immune disease.
 I've learned that as long as I 
stay focused on the TRUTH... 
THAT my creator has a purpose for 
everything under the sun (even my
illness....the thorn in my flesh) it
is easier for me to face each day.
Knowing that YES, indeed I have
limitations....but I HAVE A PURPOSE!!
and I know that if I choose His grace
and choose to rest in Him, that I will
be able to handle the pain, the
limitations, the fatigue, the treatments,
and learn to use this THORN IN MY FLESH
 as a way to spread His love THROUGH it all.
My favorite quote :"We go through what
we go through to help others go through
what we went through." I can choose to 
be bitter or better....I choose to be better
and empathize with others who are 
traveling the same road as I with this
roller coaster of ride "thorn in my flesh" 
called Rheumatoid Arthritis, Fibromyalgia, 
TMJ, and Psjogrens Disease.
Thanks Tracy....for sharing your heart!