Well, I can't believe it has been this long since I posted.  MIN is going to kill me, ya' think?

Anyhoo, things have been a rollercoaster around here.  Aside from the regular problems of life (sheesh), there have been all kinds of things going on.  But, praise God I finally see a light at the end of that tunnel!

My husband has been struggling with his "inner demons" and that always affects the whole family.  But praise God -- we have a praying church family and he is coming out of the valley and heading to the mountain top again!  The girls and I have been praying steadily and so has our whole church family.  It never ceases to amaze me the power of our God.  As for me, I have been reading "Battlefield of the Mind" devotional, reading the Word on a more consistent basis, and trying to come to grips with my own shortcomings.  It was truly a life-changing moment when I took the step to apologize to my husband for the part I have played in our problems.  What a freeing experience.  I am trying daily to look at our lives differently than in the past, forgiving and forgetting the past hurts and disappointments, and looking forward to the future. 

Also, I belong to a yahoo group of users of the RC for homeschooling and recently posted about other NC RCer's.  I have had responses from about 6 or 7 folks, and one of them is also another blogger here!  I went to her blog (whirlwind) and it was such a blessing to read through.  I can't wait until I have the time to read more.

Rachel has been teaching herself HTML and has set up a website (very much "in progress") for me to put my favorite recipes "out there."  She is so excited about getting this up and running.  And she has been teaching herself Spanish (finally).  I have had a running argument with her about her wanting to learn Japanese -- which will cost a fortune to purchase -- I had to make a deal with her that if she would learn the Spanish we already have (Power Glide) then I would buy her the Japanese she wants (Rosetta Stone).  So, now we'll see how the Spanish goes, huh?

Missy is gearing up for her spring dance recital.  She takes dance at a local dance studio, run by a Christian young lady that I have known since she was just a baby herself.  She is not really into the stressed-out kind of dance training, more the leisurely, let's enjoy this for the sake of dance kind of thing.  Missy has really blossomed and is one of the best students there (if I do say so myself).  She has a solo this year.  She is taking the hip-hop class (3rd year) as she absolutely detests the ballet classes and she says the jazz classes just weren't "powerful" enough for her!

Tomorrow is pot-luck Sunday and I have made a variation of "Goldwater Beans", said to be Goldwater's favorite meal (though my dad would have died before eating any of it just for that reason)!  Don't know how it's going to go over...I put extra jalapenos in it (just the way we like everything around here).

The church is gearing up for the big move into our new building.  We expect that our church will take off in leaps and bounds once we get moved and folks start realizing we are there.  Also, we expect that the Celebrate Recovery meetings will be growing.  I have been asked to lead a women's group for CR...but I have to give that a lot of prayer as right now just does not seem like a good time for me to take on something extra.

Lastly, I am almost a year out from the gastric bypass surgery (April 6th).  I have not quite reached my goal of being down to 200 pounds (I started at 305 and am now somewhere between 205 and 210) by my anniversary date.  Now mind you, I'm not complaining.  Folks at church who did not know me before the surgery have even been commenting on how much weight I have lost and it is finally becoming a reality to me that I really have lost almost 100 pounds in the past year!  MIN knew me before and it always makes me feel good when she mentions how much better I look.  I never really thought I cared much about what others thought about how I looked, but I must say that when my husband told me it was almost like he was cheating when we are "together"...well, let's just say that really turns my head!  The only down side is that just last night I had my first bought with vomiting from eating too fast...came home from the Celebrate Recovery meeting and had 3 minutes before Numbers was coming on...woofed down a very small piece of pizza and still missed the show because I got sick.  What a bummer.  But, that is the first and only time I have been sick since having the surgery.  My friend's husband was a year out in February and is still consistently vomiting because he eats way too much and way too fast...though she has begged him to stop it, he still continues and she said he has even started putting back on some of his weight.  I can't imagine going through everything entailed with this surgery and then sabotaging your own efforts like that.  I am just grateful that with God's help and this wonderful surgery I finally have a life that includes my being able to do things like go to concerts, play with the grandkids on the floor, and walk every morning with my grown daughter at the local gym!

In closing (this small book, it seems), our God is awesome.  No doubt in my mind about that.  He has seen me through many valleys and is pulling us out of this one as I sit here typing.  His hands are working in our lives each and every day.  Our church family and friends have pulled together to help us through this, too.  So, get together with your friends and family, pray to our awesome God, and believe the He will pull you through whatever may be looming on your horizon!