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by doze id ‘tuffy!!!

The Contest!

About ten days ago, www.xanga.com/Chambray7 had a contest on her website.  She offered a little wooden Christmas train to be drawn from all the comments to that particular posting.  Chambray7 and I have been friends for several years, going back to when Certain Man and I stayed at their house while attending a church convention that was hosted by their area churches.  This isn’t the first time she has held such a giveaway, and I enjoy these little events very much, so I signed up. 

Unbelievably, I won!  One unusually challenging day, I received the following message from Chambray7:

Hello MaryAnn!! Do you mind giving me your address?? I’m assuming you got the message that you won the drawing!!!!!!!!!! =)
Be Blessed~

Was I ever excited!  I hadn’t known it until then.

And today, I got the most delightful package.  In it was the cute little Christmas train and I found a place for it right away–

It is a perfect little ledge above the pellet stove that does not get too hot.

Also, in the package was a bottle of Chambray7’s own lotion and a lip balm.  What a blessing that was.  I’ve been sick for the last few days with a bad chest cold and I have this terrible cold sore growing on my lower lip.  So I found a place for my train, and I rubbed my poor dry hands and arms with the lotion, and I slathered the bee lip balm on my ouch-ified lip and felt so comforted and encouraged and blessed. 

Thank you, Chambray7.  You really made my day!

It has been a good day to stay close to the fire.  I’ve been trying the old adage, “Feed a fever, Starve a cold” and have been just drinking liquids and I am feeling a bit better tonight.  I must say that getting a delightful package certainly did not hurt!

Blessings all around! 

The Christmas music is playing at this house..  My kids commented that I was “late” getting it started this year.  I did wait until the end of October, but this year we don’t have to have Christmas at Thanksgiving the way we did for the last two years. — so I wasn’t quite so “rushed.”  And Thanksgiving looks wonderful this year.  Youngest Son will be home for a week, Lord Willing.  Daniel’s sister is flying in from California for the weekend, and that is ALWAYS a wondrously fun time, too. Hopefully there will be a “big” Yoder Celebration on Thanksgiving day, then it will be time to set up the Christmas Village.  We are also planning for Yutzy Thanksgiving on Saturday with whomever can make it..  I am so looking forward to the family times.

How are all of you spending your Thanksgiving weekend?

If you want to know the truth, I’m trying not to cry.

I got my cast off today.  I should be happy.  But —

They replaced it with a “removable” one that I have to wear for three more weeks.  It is taller, bulkier, much, much more padded (interpretation:  Hotter!) and it throws my step off alot more, causing even more stress on my already stressed right foot.  But —

I can take it off to sleep, to shower and to “watch T.V.”  (Which I don’t do, so I will interpret that to mean, sit in my chair and read or write or study my Sunday School lesson or prepare the weekly Bible Study lesson).  I am thinking this means that I will sit more for the last three weeks of my recuperation than I did for the first seven.  Certain Man applauds this.  He went along today so he could interpret what the doctor said.  Well —

The doctor did say that the fracture is only about 60% healed, and that it NEEDS the stabilization of this cast for another 3 weeks.  Failure to comply will result in that  60% being the extent of the healing (in the least) or a refracture and much, much more trouble (at the other end of the spectrum).

I prayed as I meandered home that I could be brave and that I would not look at the dark side of this.  It is true that this fracture is actually healing well for where it is located, and I am not “behind” or anything like that.  It’s just that I am quite weary of this cast and especially my inflamed right foot. 

Complaining will not help this attitude a single bit.  And this is such a little thing compared to my sister’s pain and discouragements and the plights of so many others out there in Xanga-land.  So hear the positive news in this post and pray that God will “Make me to hear joy and gladness: that the bones which He has allowed to be broken may rejoice.” (Psalm 51:8)  (Italics mine.  I don’t blame God for my clumsiness, but I know that this broken foot came “past the Throne”!!!)

AND SO, I OFFER GRATEFUL PRAISE.

There was a request for some updated pictures of the boys and their gals.

So, here you go!

Eldest Son with his Regina-girl.

Youngest Son with his Jessica-girl.

Say a prayer today for my sister
(www.xanga.com/Jeremimah)

She is having knee replacement surgery this morning at Bay Health, Dover.

Over the years, she has endured much pain.  She nearly died with a ruptured appendix, she has had migraine headaches that would have stopped lesser women.  She has had back surgery following unsuccessful pain management therapy.  The knees have been giving her excruciating pain over the last few years, actually, and she finally decided the time was right to do something about it.  She is first of all, Godly.  But beyond that, she is warm and funny and has a heart for people that is as big as the whole outdoors.  Please pray that the surgery is successful, that the results will be beyond our wildest expectations, and that the time between now and full recovery will be filled with unexpected joy and wonderful surprises!

I love you, Sis!

Update, 1100AM–

Sarah is out of surgery.

The Dr. says
everything went well!

“Lord, we offer grateful praise!”

My Baby is 17 today!

(Do you see why they call her “Blueberry Eyes”?)

Happy Birthday, Rachel!

I’m so glad you are ours!

I went to the doctor today.  I had hoped to have my cast taken off.  It has been five weeks.  The good doctor says that there are signs of healing, but not very much.  They will re-evaluate in two weeks.  He insists that things are going good.  He did not take the cast off.

The hardest things about a cast have nothing to do with my broken foot. 

For one, it is hard to have a hot cast and a heat flash and a husband who is always chilly in the same bedroom.

Another thing that isn’t nice is that the foot that isn’t broken has had to work so hard compensating that it has something wrong with it, now, too.  Today the doctor gave me a shot in the “good” foot because it has gone so bad.  My lower back has been extremely out of alignment, too, so the pain medicine that I take has been for stuff other than the broken foot.  I am very thankful for my chiropractor these days.

I must confess that I wasn’t surprised that they didn’t take the cast off today.  Two weeks ago, they had to change it because I had gotten it wet.  I entertained the thought then that maybe they would put on the “removable” cast that they had promised me “when things were a little farther along.”  After all, it had already been three weeks.

It turns out, I didn’t even ask  They had no more than gotten that cast cut off than I was silently begging, “Please, please, please, just get it back on.  Quickly!”  I didn’t say anything, but the beads of sweat on my brow or the panic in my eyes must have betrayed me, because today the doctor said he knew that was how I was feeling.  The cast went back on without discussion.

Today, I briefly considered doing a quick Dover shopping excursion, but decided that I maybe should just bring myself on home.  I drove the thirty miles and made good use of my cell phone, planning food for yet another funeral.  About the time I was coming into good old Milford, I had hung up my phone and was thinking about life and getting older and things that matter.

I was in the last residential district before the end of Canterbury Road when I saw an old, bald headed man on his mower by the left side of the road.  I thought momentarily that he was a bit near the road, when I saw him raise his right arm and cheerily wave.  His smile was broad, and he looked so happy.  I looked over to the other side of the road, (to see what he was waving at) and there was another old man, on his mower as well.  He was waving back as best he could around the big yellow dog that was riding on his lap.  The dog sure looked like he was enjoying himself, though I’m not sure how the old man was able to see around him.  It was a sight!  It made me laugh and it made me all warm inside.

I thought about friendship then, and about how thankful I am for all the friends who have been cheering me on.  I’ve had so many people who have gone out of their way to bless me.  And I am so better off because of their prayers and friendship and helping hands.  So much better off because of cheery waves that have come my way and the smiles that people give me inspite of the big yellow dog that insists on riding on my lap.  Well, I guess it is a clumsy black cast that is on my leg, but it sure does get in my way. Sometimes I think I can hardly see around it.  But my friends seem to know that I’m somewhere inside that cast, and they have helped me to keep perspective. 

So thank-you, all of you!  I am grateful for my precious friends!  And maybe that removable cast can happen in another two weeks.