Missed You a Ton!

Good Grief! I have missed you Siestas a ton! Thank you so much, AJ, for keeping us so well connected. That's why it's a dang good thing she and I did this thing together. Make no mistake, she is the hub of this wheel. You know by now that we had a nasty bug overtake our household and Keith, Melissa, and I all three (in reverse order) were as sick as (not cute but gnarly) dogs. Thank goodness, it came toward the end of our time with Jackson so it didn't impair his time with us nor our time with him. We had the week of our absolute lives. He is the most precious little guy in our world and at the cutest age we've experienced yet. He is the happiest, most demonstrative (gets it from his Paw Paw, I suppose) little thing you've ever seen and moves at brake-neck speed at all waking hours. We praise God and shake our heads in wonder that the little dude never got the stomach bug after being completely surrounded by it. We would have been heartsick to see him take it. It was the kind that makes you so sick you can't hold up your head for a day but then it kinda has after effects for the next week. Keith was the last one to take it (on Father's Day!) and he still doesn't feel normal. In the midst of it, however, I had a fabulous birthday and I am so grateful for all the greetings and blessings from my beloved Siestas.

My LPM staff went so over the top for the celebration on Monday (closed the office all day) that I'd be embarrassed about it if I hadn't had such a blast. They spoke every love language a set of girlfriends can speak and we laughed our heads off from start to finish. I got such darling gifts! A new purse, some new earrings, a necklace set, a cross wall hanging, a wooden birdhouse made like a daisy with PINK petals. SO CUTE! A nearly lifetime bag of birdseed, a darling dessert tray, a photo album for our mountain cabin, and, lo and behold, four of them went together on a FOUNTAIN FOR MY GARDEN/BACKYARD!!! And what great presentations! I was nearly buried alive in pink and purple gift bag tissue! I had to keep coming up for air. We usually have fun with (all of our) birthdays at LPM but this one was totally out of the ball park and I have lovingly chided them that we're not going that out of control on this woman's birthday again. I just want the same kind of celebrations we have for each of them. I love them so much.

The LPM Board of Directors also gave me a gift certificate (not outlandish, of course, but plenty enough to be a blast!) and I am just about to leave my house for a tad of a shopping spree. And, no, of course, I don't really need anything. Few of us really do. These kinds of things are just pure grace. Pure-dee overflow. I'll let you know later what I got. I love you like crazy! I haven't forgotten about our event idea. It really may have been God because we are already dialoguing with LifeWay about it. We are looking at a few possibilities and I'll let you know something soon. Yahoo-Jah!!

By the way, in case any of you Cleveland girls sign on, I could NOT have had a better time in God's Word with you on Friday at WOF than I did. I am nuts about you. Of course, no doubt you think I'm nuts whether or not about you but I just want you to know that my nutty-ness is steered toward you right about now. You were a fabulous group of women and our God was so extravagant and faithful to meet with us. I have a strong feeling in my spirit that a number of women came to faith in Christ Jesus on Friday. I can't wait to find out! I'll let you know that, too, as soon as I get word. That trumps the report on my shopping spree by about ten trillion times but I won't have the report as soon.

All this and Jesus, too!!! He is the joy of my life and what joy to rejoice in Him with all of you!