It’s Not About Me…

My last post was in the wee hours of Sunday morning exactly one week ago.  Well, here I am again!  It’s almost 2:00am, 7 days later, and no sandman for me!  I figure I can at least make some good use of this sleepless night by writing, so here I am.   Hopefully this will be short but sweet as I will get so tired that I will be falling asleep as I write.  NOT! 

Okay, update time!

1. I started on the Atkins diet today….  again.  I did it years ago (like 9 years ago!) and lost just over 30 lbs. and I felt great while on it.  Although it will be harder now as I am GF and low-carb, I must do it and stick with it!  Pray for my willpower to make it through the hardest part - which is the first 2 weeks. 
2. I had a really nice birthday.  It started out not so good, because my expectations are always too high which only brings about self-induced disappointment.  But Greg gave me the entire afternoon to go shopping all by myself and spend some of my birthday money on some much needed clothes. Shopping by myself, with no kiddos…  what a concept!  Then my daughter got me a beautiful necklace, but the best thing about it was the beautiful silver box it came in, on which she had engraved, “Mommy, I love you!  You are everything to me, my strength when I am weak.  Love, Brittney“  Awww…    I cried when I read it.  How sweet is that?  It is so amazing the power that words have on me.  (My love language is “words of affirmation”).  I got lots of phone calls and cards.  My wonderful mother-in-law (who in 24 years of being married to her son I have never heard her sing) even sang Happy Birthday to me!   So it was a very good birthday.  I feel old, but loved.  :) 
3. We also had a super fun 4th of July.  We went to the amphitheatre in Heritage Park where the Greenville Symphony Orchestra played prior to and during the fireworks show.  It ranked way up there as being one of the best July 4th celebrations ever.   Very cool.  The first song they played was the Indiana Jones theme song and Elijah FLIPPED!  He loves Indiana Jones!  Then they did lots of great classics and of course patriotic songs.  It was excellent and a very fun way to celebrate America’s independence.  J. Jay loves the orchestra, so he enjoyed the music as much if not more than any of us.  Brittney brought a friend along as well and at one point I was sitting in the lawn chair just watching all the kids on blankets in front of us and I just sighed with contentment.  There is absolutely nothing more rewarding in life than sitting beside your hubby and together enjoying the very presence of your kiddos .  I am so blessed to be a mom and that I get to enjoy my kids.   Robby is grown and has been away from home for almost 5 years now and Brittney only has 1 more year at home left.  I am glad Elijah is only 6!!!  More often than not I just want to close my eyes and imprint the moment as I want to soak in and enjoy my mommy days while they last.  I know all to well how quickly childhood turns into adulthood! 
4. I am feeling way, WAY better and still off my prescription medicines.  YEA!!!  Other than some weird isolated (and quite scary) panic attacks during which my BP spikes and my heart races, and a general yucky, intolerant, snippy disposition (which is NOT very becoming, I might add) the worst of the withdrawal nightmare is over.  I will be VERY glad when all of the withdrawal symptoms are history.  I am sure that Greg and the kiddos will be even more glad to get their nicer, calmer and a great deal more patient version of me back as well!  They are not used to me being so snippety (is that even a word?!?!?!) and neither am I!    I pray that I am in the final stretch…
5. Now I just need to sleep already!!!

 I just want to share a verse that I can not get out of my mind.  Having some difficult times causes one to pause quite a bit and just ponder it all.  It seems like every time I pause lately, this verse just pops into my mind: 

For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?   

  

Matthew 16:26 (New King James Version)

New King James Version (NKJV)Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

It really puts everything into perspective for me.  It doesn’t matter how tough life may seems, it is well with my soul - and that’s a really great feeling!  All else is meaningless.  (I threw in a little Ecclesiastes for good measure!)

That’s all for now, folks.  See ya!!!