our weekend & some random thoughts

I am so thankful I got to see my sister Terri one last time on Friday, when we all went to lunch together.  Have I told you her story, how she almost died about a year ago?  She is truly a miracle.  She went into the hospital with what she was told was pneumonia, but she ended up with multiple things going on and was moved to two different hospitals within a two month time period.  She was also told she would have to use oxygen the rest of her life and that she wouldn't be able to walk without a walker.

Well.

She must be mighty stubborn, because she has defied all the odds.

That was the start of our weekend~lunch with Terri and Dad.  The boys were with us, too, and after lunch, we ran a few little errands then came back to my house.

And this is where my theme for the weekend started~I put on pajamas after they left and stayed in them all weekend, but clean ones, of course.

On Friday night, Drew invited a few friends over, and we all watched Finding Nemo, while I made copious amounts of popcorn and bowls of ice cream.  :)  With strawberries and Nutella.  I do love some teenagers coming to hang out on a weekend night.  It was fun.

I didn't sleep hardly at all Friday night, so all day Saturday, I just rested and read or watched television.  (I've got some allergic reaction on my skin that I went to the doctor for on Thursday, and though Friday and Saturday were miserable, by yesterday, I felt much better, thanks to God and the medicine I'm on.)  We were supposed to go to my dad's for dinner that afternoon, but the boys went without us.  Todd went to work at the sheriff's department and I stayed home and watched the LAST FEW EPISODES OF CALL THE MIDWIFE ON NETFLIX.

Dang it.

I hate ending a good show!  No other show compares to a really good one you've just finished.

While I ate dinner and watched television, I sat like this.

I know this pup has given me gray hair and years of grief.  But y'all.  If you can just imagine how sweet he cam be when wants to be.  He can sense when his people don't feel good, and he will come snuggle up with you, as if to soak up all the yuck that you feel in your body.  He can be precious.

And he can be a royal pain, but I'm focusing on concentrating on the good today.

I got a phone call from my mom-in-love telling me that they had decided to come home from Nashville Saturday night instead of Sunday.  I was totally fine with that!  This boy of mine has my heart, as all of them do, but his presence was definitely missed while he was gone.

This is Nathan and Noah.  Are they not precious?

I know they had a wonderful time together while Noah was there visiting.

It was around midnight when Noah got home.  My mom and dad-in-love brought him home for me, since Todd was working, which I appreciated.  When he got home, they discovered a twin thing had happened: they were dressed identically.  And as they came upstairs, laughing and talking, I was struck with how thankful I am that God chose ME to have twins.  I feel strongly that everyone should know the joys of being a mom to multiples.  They were glued together as they went into their room, my room, the bathroom while changing for bed, and finally, they slept together in Noah's bed, after catching up for at least an hour and a half.

Sigh.

To say that they missed one another is the understatement of the year.

I let them sleep late on Sunday morning since I was staying home from church, because hello broken washing machine and neighbors going to church.  I washed two big loads while they were gone and got caught up again on the laundry.

In case you missed it, our washing machine has been broken for eight days now.  We had a repairman come out in December to fix the belt or transmission or something, and he failed to put it back together correctly.  Because of his error and a little piece that he possibly broke, Todd discovered last Sunday that all the imbalance had knocked a hole in the tub and water was everywhere.  This has all been a huge mess as we've dealt with our insurance company and now the insurance company of the business that was here in December.  Hopefully we'll have an answer this week.

Or the kids just might get a lesson on a laundromat.

First world problems, I know.  I am so thankful for our neighbors for letting us use their washer.

In unrelated news, I came across an image from the internet over the weekend and loved it and wanted to share.

I used to be mean and would "vent" about my husband to my girlfriends.  I confess that to you.  God convicted me of this over a decade ago, through the words of my earthly father, and I started praying that He would help me to stop that destructive behavior.  I know people who talk about their men like they are pieces of dirt.  I have done the same thing, so no condemnation from me, and I am not judging you.  But I am telling you, that if you do this, for the love of your man and for the love of God, please STOP.

(Also, I am older than a lot of you who read this, and I am taking into play my role of being a Titus 2 woman.  If you don't know what I'm talking about, read that chapter, or the whole book.  It's three chapters long and it is RICH with wisdom and insight.)

In Ephesians 4:29, Paul tells us that we are to let NO UNWHOLESOME TALK come out of our mouths, but only what is kind and helpful to build others up.  (That's the gist of the verse, I just didn't say it in all its entirety.)

I also used to talk to my precious husband like he was stupid.  (Toddley, if you're reading this, I am so sorry for how I used to talk to you!)  And again, if you haven't done this yourself, we all know those wives who act this way.  May I encourage you to not take my word for all of this?  Go to the Bible.  Look up all the verses you can find on "words" and see what the word of God says.  Look up in Proverbs, about not being a nagging wife.  (King Solomon compared a nagging wife to a dripping corner of an attic!)  Look at Ephesians 4:29, look up Galatians 5:22-23, on the fruit of the Spirit and look at the verses before those and what we are told not to do.

If you are reading this blog, I love you in the faith.  Even if you aren't a believer, I have a godly love for you and I pray over the people who read these words.  I have prayed time and again that God would give me the words to say on here and to allow me to be a vessel used by Him.

I pray that now, that if these words struck a chord with you, that you would know that it is never too late to change.

As great as I feel about myself on a daily basis (hello, sarcasm), I know that I will screw it all up again tomorrow.  Or tonight, if I freak out over somebody else not doing something the way I want in the kitchen.  But God has given us His grace as a free gift.  I have been redeemed of my past, my present and my future sin.  We are to constantly strain toward Him, as we run this race called life.  We are to fix our eyes on Him (Hebrews 12).  We are to pray and seek Him and His word.  And we are to not just read His word, but we are to take it and apply it daily (by the second, by the minute) to our lives.  Because when we are in His word, and we do that, we are TRANSFORMED by His word.

I would love to talk more about this, if you should so feel led.  I'm a keystroke away.  As always, thank you for taking the time to read my blog.  Love to all.