Bigger than me day!

I haven't had a Bigger Than Me Day for awhile, I guess I was due for one. For the last couple of days I have had some sensitivity in my teeth. I just had my 6 month check up and was told everything looked great, so I was sure that the pain was just in my mind :) But I should have known better, teeth are very unsure things... there is really no rhyme or reason. Some people eat all kinds of junk and sugars and they never had any cavities. I try so hard to eat healthy and have been for over 20 some years, and my teeth have tons of problems. What, did I hear you say ...life isn't fair? You are sooooooooooo right!
Last night I woke up with some throbbing pain in my lower left side and I began to worry. I even prayed about it... tried to convince God that I had too many things going on right now to have trouble with my teeth. And they are all good things too... for some reason I thought that might give me some leverage? Who am I kidding?
So first thing this morning I thought I had better call my dentist, the last time I had throbbing pain in a tooth, I was in another state and it went into a terrible abcess...so I didn't want to wait too long. They were great and got me right in, I didn't have time to eat but thought I could do that right after. Once the Dentist looked at it, he said he thought I should get right over to a specialist...it didn't look good. We called them right there from the office and they say they didn't have any other time this week or next except for today in 20 minutes...so I went. After lots of X-rays and testing, the verdict was I needed a root canal done right then. :(
Oh well, as my Grandmother used to say " If it wasn't for bad luck Lynn, you wouldn't have any at all". No truer words have ever been spoken...or so it seemed today. After 2 or more hours we were all done and I was told to go home, stay on the pain medicine and lay low.
Now I have to admit, that wasn't at all what I had to do on my calendar today...shocking. I did come home and lay down, but had big plans to catch up on a few things tonight... that didn't happen either. So I just checked this off as a Bigger Than Me Day, and I am going to go back to bed and try again tomorrow. I tried to think of something positive about today... so here is my little, but positive list!

1. At least I wasn't out of town when I had my tooth ache this time
2. It was raining outside, so a good day to do something inside ( like a root canal )
3. I wasn't able to eat much, so did well on my Weight Watcher's points :)
4. ........?????

Ok, so I only had 3, but that was more than 0. Good night dear friends!


"There is no education like adversity."
~Benjamin Disraeli
"Fractures well cured make us more strong." ( sure hope that is true for teeth too? I had some fractures on that same tooth :)
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Red headed temper?

Have you ever wondered where some statements, or so called well known facts, or even some habits originated from?  Like for instance, that all red heads have fiery tempers? When I know some red heads that don't . Or the comments that are made about blondes all being dumb. Or even other habits or traditions that are passed down. Like when you make a statement and then you knock on wood so you don't jinx yourself. Things like that...I have always wondered where they came from and why we keep doing them, even when we don't believe them?  Most of them are harmless but I notice that even I say and do those things many times, then I stop and realize that I just made a blanket statement or that I just knocked on wood too and I am not even superstitious. I guess some of them are just habits, but many times I have thought I probably shouldn't pass them on to another generation.
I thought about this subject when my daughter had this photo of my granddaughter, Jenny on her blog. She is fiery and she is a red head, then I quickly remember our little Lauren and her hair was brunette, and she was one fiery toddler too...so that proves that some of things are just ....passed on ...stuff, not necessarily true or correct... just passed on. It does make one stop and think though of the power of our thoughts and actions. Sometimes I wonder if the person (who first said you have to knock on wood so that you won't bring back bad luck to you or whatever the reason is behind that) knows what a powerful thing they did, because it has continued on for years? I wish I could come up with something positive that the whole world would just pick up and do every time they encountered something negative. Wonder what that would be?  Oh well, just food for thought tonight!

"Superstitions are habits rather than beliefs."  ~ Marlene Dietrich

"You'll find superstition a contagious thing. Some people let it get the better of them."  ~ Curt Siodmak

Luck of the Irish to you!

What a fun and busy day it was. First I was able to go out with a friend for her appointment and then we went to lunch. It was great catching up with this dear friend, we are definitely going to have to do that more often. Next Amy and I got things ready for our St. Patrick's Day dinner. She got the Corn Beef, I made Cabbage Soup, we had green salad (that was the easy part) then we decorated the table with Shamrocks. We even had cute dessert plates that were for St. Patrick's Day and green utensils, yes... it was a fun and family filled night. Just wished that Brad, Krystal and Lauren could have been with us. At least they were all together celebrating on their own, in Idaho!.
It is funny that we never really celebrated St. Patrick's Day very much in years past. I might have put some food coloring in a couple of things, but that was about it. Then Krystal ( my daughter-in -law) was here last year on March 17th and she really showed us how to celebrate St. Patrick's Day! It was so much fun, that we made a lot more preparations for it this year. I made pillows, table runners, and a wall quilt out of green materials, Amy made Shamrock banners, I made green wreaths for the front doors and last but not least... I was able to design and make these St. Patrick Day shirts for my granddaughters.

I have my health (which is huge), my family and so many dear friends that I can't hardly count them all.

Yes, I feel like I am one of the Luckiest girls in the world!

I will leave you with an Irish Blessing, and say Good Night dear friends!

  

Irish Blessings
Like the warmth of the sun
And the light of the day,
May the luck of the Irish
shine bright on your way.
May your pockets be heavy-
Your heart be light
And may good luck pursue you
Each morning and night.
May the good saints protect you
And bless you today
And may troubles ignore you
Each step of the way.
May joy and peace surround you,
Contentment latch your door,
And happiness be with you now
And bless you evermore.
May brooks and trees and singing hills
Join in the chorus too,
And every gentle wind that blows
Send happiness to you.
May good luck be your friend
In whatever you do
And may trouble be always
A stranger to you.
May the roads rise to meet you.
May the wind be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
The rain fall soft upon your fields
And, until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

"I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it."  ~ Thomas Jefferson

"If you are lucky enough to find a way of life you love,  you have to find the courage to live it."  ~ Unknown

What a wonderful day!

I am completely worn out but very happy. Tonight was our Annual Neighborhood Open House and we had a ton of people come and stay, to enjoy the food and atmosphere of the Season! We started having our Open Houses over 16 years ago, only missing one when I was diagnosed with cancer. How blessed we feel to have soooooooooooooo many dear friends that are like family to us. There were many that couldn't come or who have moved away, but some how I felt they were still here in spirit with us ( maybe because I was missing them so much). But I am beyond spent so I will leave you with this sweet Christmas story.

Gift from the Heart, A

---

December is the busiest time of the year. Everyone's busy preparing for the holidays and continuing family traditions. Has it ever crossed your mind, as to how many really stop and think what Christmas is all about? Are we teaching our children the true meaning of Christmas or how many gifts need to be bought? If we have taught our children the true meaning of Christmas, what we've instilled in them will be carried into generations to come. I like to see families create traditions all year long. After all, the original gift to all of us here on earth, was given from His heart. For through our hearts, one single gift of kindness, can touch an endless amount of hearts forever.

This is a story about a child that saw the importance of giving and never thought about giving up. Some may think a child isn't old enough to carry enough wisdom to teach us all a lesson in living. But I've learned a heart grows from life's many challenges and sometimes a child's challenges can be far greater than some adults. We met a little girl seven years ago, during one of my daughter's occasional hospital stays. Her name was Beth and she was my daughter's room mate for a week. Beth was a very happy girl despite her medical problems she was facing. Her long blonde curls always seemed to bounce with her smile. The girls got to know each other well and had become good friends. On the pediatric floor of the hospital, we saw many seriously ill children. It was so sad, even though my daughter had an incurable kidney disease and not a very good chance of living to see old age herself. We always saw many children with all kinds of cancer, and sadly enough Beth was one of those children. She was doing two weeks of chemo and radiation. I was amazed at her will and determination to never give up despite how very sick her treatments made her. She was always concerned about my daughter and the other children with cancer she grew to know over her many hospital stays.

My daughter's IV treatments were done after a week and I was happy to finally bring her home. We were awaiting the final discharge orders when Beth appeared from the other side of the curtain that separated their beds. She said, "I want you to have this. I know you need a new kidney, so keep this angel pin with you till you get better. She will watch over you so you smile all over. My friend, John gave this to me to watch over me, but it's time for this angel to watch over you. When you get your new kidney and smile, you can give this angel to someone that needs her too. I'm done reading my book so here's my bookmark that has a poem on it called, Don't Quit!, I know it by heart anyhow." My daughter thanked her and the girls exchanged hugs and big smiles. I knew, we may never see Beth again, but we never forgot the gift she gave from her heart that day. During that year, we found out Beth has passed away. It was so sad to know such a beautiful little girl was no longer bouncing smiles to everyone she would meet. Her sincere kindness will stay with us forever.

We kept that angel for six more years. My daughter had gone beyond what medical journals had studied and expected from her disease. Was it the angel watching over her or pure luck? My daughter ended up on kidney dialysis for over a year, and one month after almost loosing her, a kidney became available and she received a transplant. My heart tells me, an angel upstairs was watching with a loving smile. My daughter had kept that angel pin and now she felt it was time to give it to someone who needed watched over till they could smile again. She gave it to an elderly man trying to overcome the damage from heart problems and undergoing extensive therapy. His family has informed us, that when he returns home he wants to give the angel to someone he knows suffering from a brain tumor.

How many families and hearts this angel has touched no one knows for sure.

But all it took was one single gift of kindness, that has and will touch an endless amount of hearts forever.

So this Christmas season, look around and see that gift that can't be bought. Create a tradition with your children or maybe someone you love. Make someone's day and do the unexpected, let a friend know you care, or greet a stranger with a warm smile. Give the gift that keeps on giving. It's open twenty-four hours a day, three hundred and sixty-five days a year, it's a gift from your heart. After all, isn't that what Christmas is all about?

"From home to home, and heart to heart, from one place to another. The warmth and joy of Christmas brings us closer to each other." ~Emily Matthews

"The joy of brightening other lives, bearing each others' burdens, easing other's loads and supplanting empty hearts and lives with generous gifts becomes for us the magic of Christmas."  ~ WC Jones