I originally started this post on Tuesday afternoon, writing about how the homeschool group was from Monday. I had my woman's bible study Tuesday night, so I thought I would finish it when I got home. Nope, in the middle of the bible study my stomach started feeling weird. I have IBS, so I thought it was just that. By the time I got home, I realized it wasn't my ISB. Within an hour of getting home I was in the bathroom throwing up. Yep, I had the stomach flu. Obviously I didn't get hardly any sleep Tuesday night, since I was in the bathroom every hour. I had finally stopped throwing up around 1:30am, but by Wednesday morning, I was so achy and I still couldn't eat. The kids took care of me all day. They were real troopers. The two most exhausting things I did was shower and strip the bed to wash the sheets, and the kids helped me with the sheets. Believe me, after each of those things I practically dropped down on my bed or couch out of sheer exhaustion. Paul always says I do way more than I should when I'm sick. By 8:00pm I had some food and took some medicine for the aches and pains. By 10:00pm I was feeling much better. I slept straight through the night until 4:30am this morning, when I woke up to the room spinning like crazy. I remembered what one of Paul's doctor's said when he was going through the battery of tests. That when the room is spinning you need to focus on one object so that your mind can see that the room is not spinning, and it adjusts itself. Now, normally I just close my eyes and pray the room stops spinning, but I focused on my lamp, and it worked. It took a minute or two, but it worked. The room had stopped spinning, and my stomach only did a flip flop for a minute or two, and I went back to sleep. So now I'm up early to finish my update. I've eaten breakfast, and I feel pretty good. Shaky and a bit weak, and I'm sure I will push myself way to hard today catching up on laundry and such, but at least I'm feeling better. Sarah will help with the laundry, she has such a mothers/caretakers heart in her. She really took care of me. Paulie helped when asked, though it always makes him nervous when I'm sick. No school today either, I have to get caught up with the house, and I want to just be able to lay down when I need to. So, that is why I haven't been on for a bit. So I'll now finish my story about the homeschool Christmas party and my Tuesday night bible study.
We went to the homeschool group Christmas party last Monday night. We had such a good time. Everyone was so very nice and welcoming. Quite a few moms came up to me and introduced themselves. Paul spoke with a few of the husbands, and I was completely blessed by that. Sarah actually didn't even sit with us for most of it. There was a table of girls her age, they were all sitting and eating together (did I mention it was a potluck?). Anyway, I suggested to her to ask the girls if she could sit with them. I heard one of the girls gladly say, "Sure, pull up a chair." It was so great to hear that. Sarah is so shy, and I was blessed that with the 'step out' she did, it turned out good. Paulie sat with us, but made a friend and was running around with him afterward. There is a couple we are getting to know, the parents of the boy Paulie was playing with, and they are having us over for dinner on Friday. I exchanged phone numbers with a couple of other moms. Plus, there were quite a few families that go to church on Saturday night too. So maybe we'll start knowing people after the service on Saturday nights. We were truly blessed to be going, and we are looking forward to joining the group and getting to know these people. I have since spoken to the mom who has invited us over for dinner, they had the stomach flu too on Tuesday, so we are playing it by ear. We are both waiting to see if our kids get it (I certainly pray they don't). But she is a sweet lady, and as we were talking on the phone about the sickness, what to make for a meal on Friday, what I could bring, and different dates if we have to reschedule, I found that it seemed like I as talking to an old friend. We were just so nice and casual with each other. We've actually talked about spending Christmas Eve together for a casual meal. Paul and I are pretty excited about that. We'll see what happens. So all in all it was a great night, I'm glad we did decide to go, I'm blessed that the Lord gave us books to bring and that everyone was so friendly. Oh, Sarah got a book The Call of the Wild and White Fang, and believe it or not, Paulie got the kids version with hand drawn pictures of The Call of the Wild. It was funny, because it was a gift exchange, and each child, when their name was called, went up and picked a wrapped gift from their age group. And those are what Sarah and Paulie picked, how cute. They also gave some things away to us adults. Paul won the book The Case for Christmas and I won a beautiful leather bookmark with a bible verse on it. It's very pretty. I'm looking forward to truly getting to know these moms and their children. Thank you Lord for making it possible for us to go.
Tuesday night bible study went great too (obviously except for the stomach issues ). The ladies welcomed me nicely, and I actually spoke a few times during the study. I truly wanted to stay and chat afterward, and a few ladies did start chatting a little bit with me. But with my stomach starting to feel worse and worse, I just left. I do pray that I didn't get anyone sick there. I didn't hug anyone, and truly wasn't that close to anyone. But there was a little baby there, I pray he didn't get it.
OK, before I get going, I do have a couple of prayer requests. First, that everyone I've been in contact with, especially my family, would not get sick. Truly, if I had known on Tuesday night what I was starting to feel was the stomach flu, I would have left a lot earlier. But with my IBS, it's hard to tell. I can get those same feelings, come home and relax and I'm fine. I didn't realize until the end it was something different. Anyway, please pray for those. Most importantly though, please pray for Paul's boss, Travis. His father passed away in a plane crash Tuesday. It was a small plane, that Travis' father owned. We don't know the details, but it was in the rugged forests of Utah, and two other people died also. That's what the news media reported anyway. At Paul's work, they thought they heard 6 people had died. I'll know more today. I don't think Travis or his family know the Lord. So I pray that somehow the Lord will use this for their salvation. I know the Lord can use Paul with his boss, and I'm truly praying for that. They are around the same age, and have truly been getting to know each other since Paul has started working there. And I told Paul last night, a month or two from now, when everyone is gone and Travis and his family are left to deal with it all by themselves, I think the Lord will use Paul. For those of you who don't know, Paul lost his father tragically when he was 15 years old. So Paul knows what Travis is going through. So if you think of it, could you please say a prayer for Travis and his family, thanks.
OK, well, while I still have some energy, I'm going to get a few more things done. I'll try to catch up on everyone's blogs later. I hope you are having a good week.
wow, I do hope that good will come out of this quite possible tragedy. I do hope you get to feeling much better as the days come. I remember reading those books as a kid and I enjoyed them and hope they do too!
I'm glad you are feeling better now. I think stomach bugs are the worst kind of sick. I would so much rather have a respiratory thing.
I'm excited to hear how quickly your family is forming friendships with other families who you have so much in common with. It's evident that God is blessing you.
I hope you get some rest today and don't try to jump back into a full schedule too quickly.
That was quite a blog entry. You have the makings of a novelist. LOL
I feel bad for you--getting sick before Christmas, but it should have run its course completely by Christmas Day. The grandkids and kids have had one thing after another. 2 ER visits for my DD with her little ones (for croup!) and high fevers on her others and now my DS's kids are sick. Doctor, coughs, THey've even done the stomach flu. AUGH. I"ve been spared, thankfully, but my DH has had a long, long, cold that never seems to get better.
Hi Joann, I am glad you are feeling better and hope the rest of the family doesn't get sick. I will be praying for your family to stay healthy and for the families of the ones in the plane crash.
Oh my! You've been through enough this week. Blessings and trials abound! I am glad you are on the mend. I am so happy that things are working out. And yes, you are right, Paul will surely be a blessing to his new boss in this trial.
Jenn
JoAnn, so glad to hear you are feeling better... REST is an uncommon thing to most of us moms, but a much needed thing when a virus catches up with us, huh?
Praying,
Patti
I hope you are feeling better . I am sorry you had to go through that. That is so great that you are settling and meeting new friends. What a blessing. Thanks for the tip of how to stop making things spin. I will have to remember that one. I will pray that Paul's boss finds the Lord. Lifting them up in prayer.
Blessings and ((hugs)) my very sweet SSiC
In Him<><
-Mary
This blog is so I can share my journey with the Lord, my journey as a wife and mother, and my journey as a homeschool mom. I pray that you will see the Lord in my life through happy and sad times, and that this blog glorifies the Lord.
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Obviously I didn't get hardly any sleep Tuesday night, since I was in the bathroom every hour. I had finally stopped throwing up around 1:30am, but by Wednesday morning, I was so achy and I still couldn't eat. The kids took care of me all day. They were real troopers. The two most exhausting things I did was shower and strip the bed to wash the sheets, and the kids helped me with the sheets. Believe me, after each of those things I practically dropped down on my bed or couch out of sheer exhaustion. Paul always says I do way more than I should when I'm sick. By 8:00pm I had some food and took some medicine for the aches and pains. By 10:00pm I was feeling much better. I slept straight through the night until 4:30am this morning, when I woke up to the room spinning like crazy. I remembered what one of Paul's doctor's said when he was going through the battery of tests. That when the room is spinning you need to focus on one object so that your mind can see that the room is not spinning, and it adjusts itself. Now, normally I just close my eyes and pray the room stops spinning, but I focused on my lamp, and it worked. It took a minute or two, but it worked. The room had stopped spinning, and my stomach only did a flip flop for a minute or two, and I went back to sleep. 
So now I'm up early to finish my update. I've eaten breakfast, and I feel pretty good. Shaky and a bit weak, and I'm sure I will push myself way to hard today catching up on laundry and such, but at least I'm feeling better. Sarah will help with the laundry, she has such a mothers/caretakers heart in her. She really took care of me. Paulie helped when asked, though it always makes him nervous when I'm sick. No school today either, I have to get caught up with the house, and I want to just be able to lay down when I need to. So, that is why I haven't been on for a bit. So I'll now finish my story about the homeschool Christmas party and my Tuesday night bible study.
). The ladies welcomed me nicely, and I actually spoke a few times during the study. I truly wanted to stay and chat afterward, and a few ladies did start chatting a little bit with me. But with my stomach starting to feel worse and worse, I just left. I do pray that I didn't get anyone sick there. I didn't hug anyone, and truly wasn't that close to anyone. But there was a little baby there, I pray he didn't get it.
