It's Time To Let The Cat Out Of The Bag!

Poor thing's been hissing and clawing to get out for days!

So so so very much has happened since I last posted here. I've been teasing on Face book about "Letting the Cat out of the bag." Let me cut right to the chase here and let that poor Cat out right now! Last week, we moved to another city, closer to my husband's work. (whew! now that poor cat can breathe!) Agustin was transferred in December and has already grown tired of a near hour commute to and from work. But for today, I'm happy to report that we are all doing fine and recouping from the decisions and move quite well. Since I didn't say a peep about us moving before hand, I felt as though I was keeping a huge secret from all of my friends. It was kind of exhilarating feeling like a sneaky snake! LOL

We haven't found another home yet that feels like the proper fit, so we are staying with my parents in the city. I sort of feel as though I'm on a mini-vacation because our belongings, for the most part, are in a storage unit. I find it freeing to not have so much stuff to worry about day to day. My home needed some purging, and boy did I ever purge as I packed last week! It was really quite fun! It did frustrate me to see my empty office. I could have enjoyed it so much more for these past five years had I decluttered sooner!

Look Jackie! I finally have a clean desk!

Too bad it took a move to get me to clean my office!

We rented the largest U-Haul truck available! I had to take a shot of these words since we were moving in with my mom and dad on a temporary basis.

"Mom's Attic"

I'd like to give a big shout out to our son, Josh and Shane, and to my mom for all their help with the packing and loading.

We couldn't have done it without you!
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Friday, baby brother is flying in as he needs to pick up some important documents. Our mother has planned to prepare all of his favorite meals! He is her baby after all.

While Agustin and Shane played at Busch Gardens today, mom and I took a whirlwind tour through IKEA. I saw several items I liked but am holding off purchasing things until I see exactly what type of home I wind up living in. We plan on downsizing so our new mantra is "Simplify,Simplify,Simplify!"I did purchase a tea infuser and Mom bought some cute, round, black place mats and dishtowels.

I can't believe another weekend is already upon us since the move. Last Saturday, we went with friends to the annual Strawberry Festival in Plant City. This year we chose not to ride anything, but we did enjoy the booths, crafts, cooking shows, natural remedy liniments (yeah weird huh?), and of course all the food that is so bad for us! The best part was eating strawberries and ice cream with friends and introducing a recently arrived northerner to the festival.

Loretta, Meredith, Missy, and Pam (I'm the big red strawberry on the end)arriving at the Strawberry Festival,
Plant City, Fl
I'm wondering if the place will EVER be the same!


We appreciated the fact that the good folks at *Brandon Farms* know who the credit belongs to!


I must not close this post without proclaiming the goodness of our Heavenly Father! God has been so very good to us. It never ceases to amaze me how HE works everything out. I saw several miracles last week during the course of our moving adventure

His timing is always perfection!

I have many burdens upon my heart at this time and would certainly be grateful

for your prayer support.

Agustin Being Interviewed This Minute!

Asking for prayers as my husband continues looking for a new job. He is in a promising interview right now. It began at 3pm our time.

I miss you all so much. I hope to get back into a routine soon.

EDT: Agustin just returned from his interview. It lasted only 40 minutes. He feels like it was just getting a "foot in the door" type meeting. However, he found that two of his former employees from Olive Garden are now employed at that same restaurant he interviewed for!

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Here are a few more photos from dad's surprise event on September 26th. It was such a sweet time of hugs, surprises, fellowship, kind-heart felt words! A great time of remembering how God intertwined so many precious lives! Dad was truly amazed and oh so blessed.

Ron and Pat McQuain surprised all of us - (Yes, even me!) by flying down from Ohio. What sweet testimonies these two had to share with us. Pat was her usual, funny self. FYI: Ron used to be Secret Service back up for Richard Nixon! He installed all the radio and communications in the presidential limo for Nixon, which is now in a museum! He said seeing his work in a museum sure made him feel old! :)

Aw, Bob and Fern West! They only had to drive over from Ocala area. What a sweet Christian couple these two make. Bob's testimony dealt with how my dad spent time with him, praying and sharing scriptures, as he struggled with the security of his salvation. Dad finally said, "Bob you just aren't believing God's Word." Bob then realized that was his hang up. Since that day, he has decided to take God at his word and now lives a victorious, Christian life.

Fern is by far one of the most godly women I know! Fern had a book with her which my dad gave her all those years ago in Ohio. He saw in her a natural, God given ability to teach women. The book was titled, "Competent to Counsel". Her testimony brought tears!

Joe and Cindy West! Two of the sweetest people you could meet! He was called into ministry while dad was their pastor.


Bob and Becky! Great couple with a thriving youth ministry in Jacksonville! He too was called while attending our church in Ohio. He had us both crying and laughing during his testimony.

The huge surprise of the day!

I had mom and dad turn to face the baptistery while Pastor Kaster and his wife Linda approached the platform. Pastor Kaster ordained my father into the ministry back in the seventies. Dad served on the deacon board which called Pastor Kaster to our church there in Greenville, S.C. My parents and the Kasters hadn't seen each other since the early 1980's! It was quite an emotional outburst when mom and dad turned around and saw dear friends on the platform there with them!

Max and Linda drove down from South Carolina.

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Hopefully, I can share more about dad's big day soon.

Hugs!

Pam

Congrats Amber & See Ya' Soon David!

Before my post, I wanted to share this link with you all. I think it's important to be informed!

THIS IS A MUST READ! PAY SPECIAL ATTENTION TO LAST TWO PARAGRAPHS PLEASE.
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NOW ON TO HAPPIER NEWS!

I want to share with you some news that is pretty exciting to me! My friend, Amber, has recently designed the cover and written the "teaser" on the back of a novel which was written by her room-mate at Pensacola Christian College. The book was published in January of this year! You can see the work done by Amber on Amazon by CLICKING HERE. You may want to scroll down a bit once you're at Amazon and read the teaser and the review.

I'm so blessed to know Amber. Even though she is a young lady, still in college, we get along so well. I count her as a true friend. After all, she is the first one to introduce me to "sushi"! She is an "over-achiever" in a good way! So talented, that girl! I wish you all could meet her and hear her sing. What a gorgeous voice that girl has and she loves using it to glorify the Lord!

During service at church last Wednesday night, I heard some folks slide in the pew behind me. Then a tap on my shoulder. I turned and there she was - Amber with her boyfriend Nathan! I tried to not "holler" out loud (the congregation was singing at the time) but I'm sure those around me heard me squeal as I hugged Amber and got a quick introduction to Nathan. I had only seen photos of him on line. I hadn't known they were in town for the week, so it was all such a great surprise for me. I love surprises, well good ones like that anyway!

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We've had the pleasure of hosting my husband's sister's son in our home this past week. He flew in from Chicago, where he just finished his first year of college nearby, to visit with us before flying back home to Argentina. Hubby and I drove our nephew down to Miami on Saturday while Shane remained behind in Tampa with my parents. Agustin and I had all intentions of spending the entire weekend near the beaches. We wanted to head to South Beach Saturday evening, but the weather turned so ugly, we just decided to head north and drive back home. Once we got to Ft. Myers, we stopped and had a nice steak dinner. We had the entire weekend to ourselves with plans to pick Shane up on Monday. Agustin had taken the entire week off to spend with our nephew so it was nice he didn't have to go to work the day after our "road trip".

On the drive down to Miami, we had time to stop off in the North Port/Port Charlotte area (my old stomping grounds, my first apartment was on Charlotte Harbor) to see the church that my brother, my son, and our friend Justin were framing out. The guys had been living there all week which meant that Josh hadn't seen his cousin yet. Fortunately the church is just about 2 minutes off of I-75 south, allowing us the luxury of "popping in" for a quick visit. The visit was sweet as I hadn't seen my brother since his return from West Virginia and David and Josh hadn't seen each other for over four years! There's a photo further down to show what I was up against with all those men! LOL

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We'll be seeing David again the first week of July as he passed through on his way back up to Indiana to work on a farm before his sophomore year begins. We're hoping to have time to squeeze in a trip to Disn*yWorld then!

David hugs Shane goodbye!

David sees Josh for the first time when we stopped by the church Josh is helping to build.

David, Josh, Justin, John, Agustin

See what I was up against! All of them (with the exception of my baby-God Love His Heart) were ready to shoot me with nail guns!

Hey, was all my picture taking that annoying guys???

Driving across 'Alligator Alley'! It was nice to see that everything was so green now. Just weeks ago, south Florida was plagued by many brush fires and drought.


More of the everglades. Look closely, you may spot a gator's head in that water!

There were several patches which showed the damage caused by previous brush fires.

Entering lush Miami!

Can you tell we're in close proximity of Miami International Airport?


We did some shopping to kill some time while in the airport. We had to arrive three hours prior to David's flight. Poor kid, had a ten hour flight to Buenos Aires, then a sixteen hour bus ride to his family's home in Tucuman!

Enjoying a massage before the long flight!

Here I am getting my final hug at the last check point.

The manly good-byes!

Agustin and I were blessed with this gorgeous sunset on our drive home, after the torrential rains!

Update on Mom

Happy Fiftieth Anniversary to my Parents today. Two years ago, my dad was in the hospital on their anniversary for heart surgery! Not to be outdone, my mom is in the hospital this anniversary!

Twenty Three years ago today I met my handsome husband! I was living in Mexico and was invited to a birthday party for his younger brother. I'll tell more of the story at another time.

So sorry I haven't gotten back to update since yesterday a.m. Mom came out of surgery around 3:15 Friday, we were allowed to see her for a short visit in recovery at about 4pm. I was frightened when I saw her! I wouldn't have recognized my own mom had I met her on the street looking that way! Swollen face, thick lips, swollen tongue, white and pasty just like dad after his open heart surgeries.

Here's a cute little tidbit that happened in the recovery room. She seemed to want to talk but couldn't due to the dry mouth and swollen tongue, lips condition.

I rubbed her head and told her not to speak. Did she listen? Oh no! Not Loretta! she tried and tried until she got enough strength to tell me she had been on her stomach and on her arm for the entire surgery. Her arm felt like needles pricking it. I know that feeling! I started rubbing her arm, trying to manipulate the blood flow. She squeaked out the word "Dream". I, her daugher, kept rubbing her arm and her forehead and tried to fill in the blanks. "Oh you had a dream." She said, "Jackie, soothing." (That is her grand-daughter who is a missionary in Paraguay.) I continued rubbing and soothing. I said "You dreamed about Jackie soothing you?" She replied in the affirmative. I said, "Yes Jackie is soothing when you're sick" and I kept trying to soothe my mom. Then she said, "I wish Jackie was here!" I replied, "So what am I, chopped liver?" I thought it was funny and shared the incident with Rebecca when I returned to the waiting room. Rebecca chuckled with me. I couldn't wait to get this on my blog for Jackie to read. I hope it brings a smile to her face too!

Mom continued to improve through out the evening and even walked with the help of 2 nurses and a walker. I saw her alertness and the swelling go down rapidly. So I decided to go on home and let the nurses care for her during the night since she seemed to be doing so well.

I sat with her until 11:00p.m. last night and then with hopes of her being sent home today, I went home to rest so I could help her with the transition to her house and feel well enough myself to take care of her. Dad can only do so much these days, plus he's in the midst of pastoring a family who just lost a loved one. (The funeral will be Tuesday.)

Around 4a.m.Sat. morning, her head started hurting so badly she called the nurse in. Her blood pressure was up to over 200. Then she bacame nauseus and we know what that means! She was administered a shot and later was able to walk with the walker all the way to the nurses station. She looks better as of this evening. I'm on my way back up to her room and will leave here around 11:00 again if she is still doing well. She is hoping to go home tomorrow, but dad hopes they'll keep her until Monday. They did remove her catheter today and she was able to get up and go to the restroom on her own, but it wore her out.

When the surgeon spoke to dad and I after surgery yesterday, he said it all looked good. They inserted a cage, did two fusions, trimmed a couple of bulging discs,and that all went well. Then he said "We then took a look at all her pinched nerves and that was a mess! We think we've got her all straightened out though."

Josh Daniel and Naomy just left and took my Shane with them for a few days. I could tell mom thouroughly enjoyed having us all around her bed for awhile this evening.

Thanks Rebecca and Clint for the lovely balloon arrangement!

Thanks Rose for the lovely roses you brought by!

Thanks to all my friends, both in blogland and in the real world for you heartfelt prayers. I can feel them! The Lord has given me grace and energy to keep going. Not too many complications due to my health right now. I know it's my heavenly Father watching over me!

Have a wonderful Lord's day tomorrow!

Good morning all! We are sitting here in the surgery waiting room. Mom was here at 5:30 this morning. We visited after she finished with all the prep stuff. Then around 8:00 they took her back to surgery. We sent her on her way with lots of hugs and kisses and messages from all of you. Dad prayed over her before they wheeled her out.

Her surgery will be around 9:00 a.m. We were told not to expect her out until 3:00 p.m. or so. Dr. Ridell is one of the best and is doing essentially 4 surgeries at once. A plate (rod) will be inserted, a couple of fusions, and a couple of bulging discs will be taken care of. They told her she will be on her stomach and in much pain afterwards. Wow! She seemed a little concerned about that!

We do so appreicate your prayers and we're optimistically looking for mom's quality of life to greatly improve after this surgery.

A Tragic Day For America, My Country!

Below, you will read one of the saddest pieces of news I've heard in awhile. It's an email I received just moments ago from Donald Wildmon of the American Family Association.

EDITED TO SAY: Yesterday, I mistakenly mentioned FOCA as being signed. Please read Mighty Mom's comment to get a better idea on what happened on Friday. I knew this terrible act was going to happen once Obama was elected, I mean, it came as no surprise. He told us through out his campaign he was for choice, which means Pro-Abortion! But it really hit home today when he reversed President Bush's policy which for the past eight years has banned our tax dollars from going overseas to help fund family planning services similar to Planned Parenthood. And he wants our country to be healed? While helping to murder innocent ones? God forgive us is my plea!

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Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as possible by forwarding it to your entire e-mail list of family and friends.

Obama lifts ban, will use your tax dollars to pay for abortions around the world


January 23, 2009

Dear Pam,

President Obama has lifted a ban on federal funding for international groups that promote or perform abortions, reversing a policy of his predecessor, George W. Bush.
Obama's actions mean that hundreds of millions of your tax dollars will go to help groups like Planned Parenthood perform abortions around the world.

His actions came one day after the 36th anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling that legalized abortion in all 50 states.

Please take the action suggested below. It will not cause Obama to reverse his decision, but it will send a notice to him that unborn babies are human and deserve the same rights as the born.

Take Action!
Send an e-mail to Obama asking him to stop funding the killing of unborn children.
After you send the e-mail, please make a phone call (202-456-1414) and leave a message that you strongly disagree with Obama's using tax dollars to fund abortion.
Watch this one minute video.


I IMPLORE you to get involved in helping stop ABORTION!! What an ugly scab on the face of our nation!

It's Not Good That I'm Home Alone Today

...Because I'm much too melancholy, I can't stop crying! I'll truly miss the Bushes.

As I listened to President Obama's speech, I was happy to hear him use muscular language concerning terrorism and I was thrilled when he acknowledged (FINALLY) that we are at war and we will DEFEAT the enemy. That, my friends, was not the language he used during his campaign.

As I watched President Bush chatting with the Obamas causing them to laugh as they came down the steps after the ceremony, I was filled with pride that Mr. Bush never swayed from his core principles but remained his friendly, down to earth self.

As I watched Mrs. Bush and President Bush embrace the Obamas then speak intimately with them before boarding their helicopter, I was reminded of the Bush's maturity and graciousness during the past eight years.

As I watched the helicopter flying away, I was met with another flood of emotion, tears flowed and I bawled loudly!

As I switched through the different channels, trying to get a handle on how some were treating this great moment in history, only on MSNBC were they allowing the sound to stream from a particular group singing to the helicopter, "La la la la, La la la la, Hey Goodbye" over and over. I was reminded once again about those Hatemongers over there! Only on MSNBC folks can you find such blatant, cheesy, disrespect!

As I listen to the news, I'm once again impressed with the Bush's graciousness and courtesy as I learn they are having a private farewell ceremony in a hangar at Andrew's Air Force Base, with the press closed out. Not Clintonesque at all! Remember the Clinton's openly hung around for way too long after President Bush's inauguration ceremony?

As I watch President Bush being escorted by the military to the hangar, he seems to be "choking up". I find myself "choking up" right along with him.

Good-bye Laura and Mr. President. You will be missed!

Aa I get started now with my daily duties, I'll be in a state of prayer for my country and my new President and his family.

Heavenly Father,

We pray today that Americans will be energized and infused with power as they see Your provision for our country’s needs. We are a wealthy country; we provide much of the world’s bounty and our resources bless the entire planet. God, as we prepare for the President Elect Obama’s administration to be ushered in, may we pray in unity for our nation to be blessed so we may better meet the needs of our people and remain a beacon of light and prosperity to the world. We ask this according to Your will, in the mighty name of Christ, amen.

Memorial Service at 6 p.m. Tonight.

I'll be heading off in just a bit to attend the memorial service for a dear friend's husband who was killed last week while riding his motorcycle home from work. Thank you all for your prayers and well wishes. It has meant so much to me and I'll deliver them in person to Marie tonight.

Marie is so strong! I'm so proud of her. She called me Thursday evening to tell me of the tragedy. I called her back Friday evening to check if she needed me to come to her town and stay with her or help with something. I just wanted to know she wasn't alone. As soon as she answered her phone, I heard many voices, LOUD voices and lots of background noise. The first thing out of my mouth was, "I called to check on you but I can tell you've got a lot of people around you." She told me she was at a football game to watch her 16 year old son walk across the field during halftime as a Junior escort for homecoming! It was also the first time her daughter attended homecoming. There are photos of them on Marie's facebook page.I'd forgotten that was coming up. It was reassuring to know the family was going on with their plans, staying busy, etc. She sounded as if everything was normal until she mentioned how she can't walk into their bedroom. We both broke down a wept a bit. I promised her lots of hugs when I arrive this evening. Please remember the family in prayer again today and then especially around 6p.m. when the service begins.

Marie will be fine. She has a faith that will sustain her. More importantly, she has a GOD that is sustaining her day by day.

UPDATE ON PATTI

Below is an email I received from Patti this evening. For those new to my blog, Patti is a dear friend of mine who just went through a couple of years of various surgeries and breast cancer, resulting in a double mastectomy. She is the sweetest thing you could ever meet. A good, ol' Kentucky girl, transplanted here in Florida.

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Here is a current photo of Patti, taken on Father's Day, '08.

!Hi Pam!

How are you, dear friend? I saw your wonderful post on Father's Day for your Daddy and Augustin. It was so sweet.

Also I got a chance to see the video clip of the cardboard testimonies.....all I can say is wow....I was so touched. That was beautiful.

Thought I'd send you a picture that Raisa took of me on Father's Day at church. It is how I look now, with my strawberry glaze hair! I went for my blood work at the oncologist's and all the counts and cancer markers were just great. Praise the Lord! I know that it is such an answer to prayer that He has healed me, and keeps His hand on me.

I saw Suzie at Lifeway on Saturday night. She said her last treatment is this week. She has quite a few burns from the radiation and looked worn down, but what a smile and a sweet spirit. It just inspires me to see her. She said that day she had stopped again to "thank the Lord for giving me cancer; because I know I have a closeness with Him that I never would have had if I hadn't gotten cancer."

What a testimony!

Love,

Patti

An Invitation to Prayer

SUSAN (A.K.A. AS PENLESS WRITER), has felt led of God to begin an online prayer group. I'm so honored to be a member! I've found that it has already drawn me much closer to the Lord. Not that I didn't pray before, mind you, but now that I'm committed to a time slot, it's a great motivation to spend more time on my knees before my Almighty.

You too are invited to join this blog if you're willing to commit to a time slot to pray. Your commitment can be a small as 15 minutes per day to an hour or two. You can visit SUSAN HERE to learn more about "Hearts in 1 Accord". I'm telling you now, YOU will receive the biggest blessing from this!

If you'd like to leave a prayer request for us, simply click on the button below to send in an email with the request. I'm also adding this button to my sidebar.

A Timely Quote

Even though the following words were spoken by Thomas Edison many years ago, we should take it as wise advice and encouragement in today's climate. Wouldn't you agree?

"Be courageous! Whatever setbacks America has encountered, it has always emerged as a stronger and more prosperous nation...."
"Be brave as your fathers before you. Have faith and go forward"

--- Thomas Alva Edison

OF course, as a Christian with a strong faith in God, I know HE has the future in HIS almighty hands. I am committed to prayer as I see my country seemingly spiral downward, further and further from being the great nation that our founding fathers intended. As we see contention rise during this political season, let's agree to commit each candidate and our citizens into God's hands and pray for HIS will to be done. Whatever the outcome in November, I will pray for my new president.

1 Timothy 2:1-5

vs. 1)I EXHORT therefore, that, first of all supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;

vs. 2)For kings, and for all that are in authority that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty,

vs. 3)For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;

vs. 4)Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

vs. 5)For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus."

I wonder, if we spent as much time and energy in prayer for those in authority and for each other as we spend criticizing - - -would we experience more of that peace and holiness as mentioned above in verse 2?

Questions For Today...

My heart is heavy as I contemplate over a few things and am spending time in prayer. I have some questions upon my heart. I know God has a plan and is in control. Thankfully, nothing takes HIM by surprise, but is it alright to wonder why things happen?

Have any of you ever taken the test on Temperaments? I usually come out as a Sanguine/Melancholy. Sometimes, I come out as a Melancholy/Sanguine. I guess it depends on what kind of mood I'm in the particular day I take the test. Talk about Bi-Polar!!! Well, it seems today all of you are going to see my more melancholic side.

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1)Why is sweet Patti continuing to have health difficulties? I've included the latest journal entry.

SUNDAY, JANUARY 20, 2008 10:35 PM, CST
Well, when we were celebrating Patti's recovery and today being her first day back with the church, something happened.
At 1:00 all of a sudden she was in a lot of pain, ended y at the emergency room in Saint Joseph Hospital and now has been admitted with what it looks like some type of obstruction, she has been vomiting as well. There were no signs , everything was working in the proper order and now this.
She needs your prayers again, I'll keep you informed.

God bless,
Raisa
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2) Why am I heavy in spirit? I haven't really posted much in the past few days. Have any of you ever had so much on your heart and mind, that you considered it best to just be quiet and not post? That is where I've been for the past few days, hence, the ready-made posts.
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3) Will I ever realize that my grown son is his own man and must live according to his own personality, not mine? Will I soon learn how to parent an adult?
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4) How much longer will I remain submissive, perhaps the best word to use here would be "patient", concerning a certain situation in our lives?
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5) Am I failing in the same areas with my second son as I failed in with my first?
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6) How many hand fulls of hair is it normal to lose in a day?
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I know the answers to most of these, but wanted to share what I'm praying over right now. God is revealing some changes I must make. I'm enjoying some extra quiet time with Him. A well known passage of scripture I'm earnestly trying to apply to my life this year is Philippians 4:8&9.

Verse 8 - "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report: if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."

Verse 9 - "Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you."

I love that passage and it's exactly what I need right now!



Blessings to you all!

Update on Patti-thanks for your prayers!

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2007 10:10 PM, CST
Good evening, I finally was able to visit Patti today after not seeing her for a couple of days.... It was not easy for me to see her so, so pale, so fragile, so skinny.

I figure she must not be more than a 100 pounds now. Tomorrow it'll be a week she had the surgery and all she has eaten are ice chips, so you can imagine how weak her body must me, she was already weak before her procedure....

Todd and I don't believe they are going to send her home any time soon. They need to know when she starts to eat how things are going to work for her, there are a number of concerns that will be difficult to deal with at home.

She was fast asleep, very peacefully, had cards on the wall, flower arrangements, a pink kitty cat, everything to cheer her up when she is able to notice it all. To my surprised, she called me this morning to see how I was feeling, I know, that took a tremendous effort on her part, I did not recognize her lettle voice at first, once I did, all I could do was to cry, happy to hear her, and knowing how difficult it must have been for her to do it, I knew at that moment how much she loved me and cares for me, that was one of the greatest gifts I have received in my life! We all know she is an amazing loving, kind soul, that is why we all love her so much.

Continue to pray with all your heart, we need patience, we also, this is for me, know the Lord is in control and she is in the hollow of his loving hand, He'll protect her and carry her through this storm as He has done before.

Victory is near for Patti Byrd, and when it comes, what a celebration that will be! I love you all, God bless,

Raisa


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WHAT A DIFFERENCE A DAY MAKES!!!

Let me start by telling you that before I went to see Patti I went to the store to buy a Christmas gift I saw in the paper. I was walking down to the register, I saw that the pajamas were 50% off, then instantly one in particular got my attention, it was green and had kitty cats dressed as Santa everywhere, well, green is Patti's favorite color, and cats, she is crazy about them, without hesitation, I got the pajamas, paid for them and drove to the hospital.

I was dreading the visit, yesterday I came out very down, very sad. I opened the door and she opened her eyes, inmediately she started to cry, quickly I kissed her and said, no tears, I'm not here for tears, do I have a surprise for you! She smiled and got a little excited as I handed her the pajamas. What a sight that was!

She was opening them up as fast as she could, between crying and smiling real big, she kept on saying, they are green and have kittens on them, turned around and told the nurse, everyone should have a Raisa in their lives... I told her I have been shopping and found a beautiful skirt that would be great for our Florida Worship Choir outfit, I told her that I had left it in the car because I thought she would be asleep, asked her if she wanted me to go get it, all this conversation was very happy and uplifting from me, I wanted to raise her spirits and I was doing it! I went to the car, came back and to my amazement, she had the nurse change her to the green Christmas pajamas! The poor nurse had to disconnect and connect all of the equipment so she could wear them, not only that, the pajamas came with a strap, she had that around her bald head like a bow, she was acting like a little kid with a new present.

You can imagine, my relief, my joy my happiness.... The Lord had taken me to that store to get that present for her, which in turn uplifted her and ME! She loved the skirt and I told her I would buy one for her birthday in January and not to ask for another thing, that would be it! She laughed when I told her that my daughter Becky wants to be the first one to take her out to dinner to the greasiest restaurant in Tampa to begin the process of fattening her up, she said she could not wait to do that and go shopping with me. She also said her mother in law was going to decorate her house for Christmas and the theme for the tree was going to be pink kitties like the one I gave her and the color of the breast cancer ribbon. It was awesome, rewarding and made us aware of God's love for his children, how He does things to get the results that are needed....

She started with a liquid diet today, however, all she wanted was 2 popsicles. They have to see how food agrees with her as it is introduced slowly and she has to have at least a couple of BMs before she can go home.

I apologize for going on and on but, I knew you would enjoy reading today's events after so many somber reports.

Pray on, for that's what the Lord is looking for, get on your knees for that is how the battle is won, and IT IS!!!! God bless you all,

Raisa

Patti

Hi Dear Friends! I just got off the phone with Patti's husband, Todd. Please remember him in your prayers as you remember Patti. It has been quite a few long months for him as the spouse of a very sick gal. Thanks y'all. I know I can count on you. I'm sure Todd and Patti will both appreciate your prayers for them. Patti did well through her surgery yesterday and is now starting her long recuperation time. You may read the journal entries below if you want the details.
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 06, 2007 07:42 PM, CST
Hi everybody, Patti had her surgery at 12:30 p.m. today, everything went smooth, they did find another infected pocket, the surgeon did not know about that one, she was able to clean it and of course she'll be on antibiotics to make sure the infection goes away. They took the piece of the colon that was bad, so we can thank God that the surgery went fine under the circumstances.

She has and is connected to all the necessary things with that type of surgery, the hose in her nose does not let her talk very clearly. When she was taken to a room, (temporary room) until she gets a private room, she had pain, headache, don't know if it is a migraine...

Has nausea and the expected discomforts, they were prepared and started giving her morphine, nausea meds, etc. That is all I can tell you at the moment, tomorrow is another day. If everything is okay, she'll go home after a week at the hospital.

Please continue to pray, with this type of surgery the recovery is difficult and lengthy, only the Lord can control the outcome

God bless you all, I'll keep on updating you until she can do it on her own.

Raisa

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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 07, 2007 07:08 PM, CST
The tube down her throat is gone, that was aggravating the nausea, so she feels more relief, the head still hurting, they took her for another brain MRI tonight. Praise God the tube is gone, we'll see what tomorrow brings.

She is not in a private room as of yet, we hope it'll be soon. I'll spend some time with her tomorrow, just sitting there, not saying a word, the ones that know me know how difficult it is for me to keep my mouth shot, but for Patti, I'll do it! I just want to keep her company and let her know I'm supporting her through this journey.

Let's pray that tomorrow will bring more relief, keep the prayers coming , God bless you all.

Raisa




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Patti Is Home!

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2007 02:27 PM, CDT

Well...... SHE IS HOME!!!!!!!! When she walked in her house she broke down and started to cry, overwhelmed of being back home and thanking the Lord for making it possible.
She'll update you when she gets stronger, in the meantime, I'll continue to do so.

God bless you prayer warriors, keep praying!

Raisa
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I was thrilled to read the above posting in my email this afternoon. I know that after so many days in the hospital, home is such a comfort. Thank you again for all your prayers and concern for my sweet friend.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We had a wonderful mid-week service at our church last night. A young, visiting evangelist by the name of Jason Tester, presented an awesome sermon which made us consider this question:
"What are you doing with your sins? You are either CONFESSING them, or COVERING them!" Of course, he was speaking mostly to saved individuals who have already accepted Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour.

He shared a couple of his failures when he, as a Christian teen and later as a pastoral college student, had tried to cover his sins rather than dealing with them. His transparancy had each one of us listening attentively and tears were shed as we saw how his sins were found out and he had to deal with them eventually. The teens of our church were in the service rather than in the back classroom, in their usual Wednesday night setting. I am so glad, because much food for thought was offered them in last night's sermon. I was also taken back in time to occassions I had sinned and tried to cover them. Then once that thing had been brought to light, and made right through true confession, oh what joy, what delight!

One of the illustrations given by Bro. Tester last night was at the end of his sermon. When in college, he came face to face with the guilt of a couple of UNCONFESSED sins he had committed while in high school and still living at home. Finally, after allowing the Holy Spirit to really get ahold of his heart and work in his life, he confessed to the Lord his sin he had been hiding for 7 years. He then wrote a long, heart felt letter to his dad, being honest and including his first pay check to pay his dad back for some money he had stolen for basketball shoes and later track shoes. His dad called him after receiving the letter and check and said, "Jason, I knew you had taken that money." Jason said back to his father, "Why didn't you tell me you knew?" Guess how his father responded? "Jason, I was simply waiting for you to come to me first!" Our Heavenly Father feels the same way as Jason's dad did! He loves us so, but waits patiently for us to come to Him with our sins and confessions. We can never simply HIDE our sins from God.

Of course, the amazing scripture of Psalm 66:18 was used, "If I regard iniquity(sin) in my heart, the Lord will not hear me."

Another point that was put forth very clearly was this: to have good success and a prosperous life, we must maintain the right relationship with our Lord. We wonder why our lives are falling apart sometimes and it seems things just aren't going well for us, but we aren't in the Word daily, we have no real prayer life, we aren't faithful to the house of God, we aren't sharing our faith, God is on the back burner until Sunday morning. Joshua 1:8 says: "This book of the law shall depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to ALL that is written therein: for then thou shalt make they way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."

I've learned through my life as a Christian that God certainly blesses OBEDIENCE! It isn't always easy to do what I know is right, but it is rewarding!

Good News About Patti

What a wonderful day we had to day! Hubby didn't have to work so it was nice having him around, even if he was so engrossed in the Buc's game that he was oblivious to everything else happening around him! He did put on a big pot of his homemade chicken soup before the game started. It turned out yummy! Oh and the game turned out pretty good as well - our Buccaneers won!!

It was nice being in the Lord's house today. Shane had his program for Patch tonight. His group had two beautiful songs they performed after reciting their scriptures. The 2nd song was a little more difficult than other songs they have learned. It was a combination of "Amazing Grace" tied in with "Grace, Grace, God's Grace". Shane had told me Wednesday night after Patch Club that Jon Yates, our music director, had come into their classroom to work with them on their music because one of the songs they would be performing Sunday night was *quite sophisticated"!! (Shane's words!)

If you have time to read the update on Patti below, I think you will receive a blessing. Our prayers are working, but all in God's time. It is my nature to want to just "fix" her and have it all be over and better for Patti. As I look at her life, I realize how God has been prepping her for this *interruption* for some time now. She has been awesome through this time of trials. My dad stopped by the hospital to visit with her Friday evening and said he left there so encouraged and blessed by her! Her spirit was so sweet, no bitterness there! Isn't that awesome!
Love you guys and thanks for leaving all the wonderful, loving comments for both Patti and I! Have a great week!

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2007 09:03 PM, CDT

Hi everyone!

Well, prayers are definitely working for our Patti. Her Oncologist told her he has never seen a person with migraines as bad and as often as hers. He started her on Ativan, she was taking this nausea medicine with her Chemo, if the Hospital would have checked her records they would have realized she needed it, a half an hour after she took it, her migraine and nausea were gone, praise God! She also started on the preventative medicine for her migraines.

She had a rough evening and morning until she took that medicine, then she had peace and great relief. She was able to eat grits and mashed potatoes, she said it felt like a Thanksgiving Meal, the hunger part is now gone, if the food agrees with her, she would be able to eat that and a liquid diet until her November surgery. Last night while she was in such pain told me "When I get well, I'm going to eat my way back to a size 14!) Here she is after working so hard to loose weight, they are feeding her from a fat bag, all they had to do was connect the tube directly from me to her and she wouldn't have to see it drain!

Okay, no more jokes, let's just be thankful that she feels better and that your prayers are being heard, but remember, keep on lifting her up in prayer until she is completely recovered from her upcoming surgery. She wont be going home tomorrow, they are keeping her for a couple of days more.

God bless you and keep you,
Raisa

THANK YOU, THANK YOU DEAR PRAYING FRIENDS!

Join me in shouting "HALLELUJAH" after you read the following post by Raisa concerning Patti!
Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for approaching the throne of the Father on her behalf. Please continue to keep her in your prayers though as she still has much to face. I wish I had the words to truly express the gratitude I feel for your prayers and concerns for a dear friend of mine. Once again, thank you very much!
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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2007 10:09 AM, CDT


Good morning,

I just spoke with Patti and she was able to sleep last night!! Thank you, thank you all! She is reading all your comments and feels extremely blessed by the love and the prayers, she feels this awesome power working to heal her , she knows the prayers are working, praise God!

She still has a headache and nausea, but she sounds stronger, sleeping last night gave her strength. Today she is having a CT scan of her stomach and also, I'm happy about this, an MRI of the head, a Neurologist is also involved now, that is a good thing, she can't continue having these awful migraines on top of everything else.

I'll be going to the Hospital today and plan to stay a long time with her. I'll update you later on. Keep the prayers going!!!!!!


God bless you all,

Raisa

Please Pray For Patti!

I just read the following. It was posted by my friend Patti.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 03, 2007 06:04 AM, CDT
Dear Friends and Family,

What a difference a day makes.

I'm writing to ask you to please pray for me. It seems that severe symptoms have set in, and they are pretty bad.

I have large blisters on the inside of my throat that hurt really bad, my hands are burnt again, the yucky bone aches are horrible...and on top of that, the diverticulitis is causing pretty bad constant stomach pain, enough to curl my toes and double me over.

Ok, enough of that. Lets smile a little.

I'm reading a book by Stan Toler called "The Buzzards Are Circling, But God's Not Finished With Me Yet". I have to share some of the chapter titles with you.

**when your world crumbles, you don't have to be one of the crumbs (you can survive your situation)

**life is full of uncertainty...but i could be wrong about that (gaining confidence in tough times)

**God created the world in six days and did not once ask my advice! (letting God take control of the situation)

**hold the phone! can't we talk about this first, Lord? (God uses testing times as building times)

**help, i've fallen, and i don't want to get up (settling the issues that hinder healing)

**the undertaker may be smiling, but God's not finished with me yet (finding hope above the hardship)

Thank you again for your prayers.

Still blessed,

Patti

Latest Journal Entry by Patti

My long time friend Patti posted on her Caring Bridge page yesterday. I posted it here for those of you who are aware of her recent bout with breast cancer and double mastectomy. She has told me over and over how much she appreciates my "little blogging community's" prayers and thoughts!
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2007 02:54 PM, CDT

Dear Friends and Family,

First, for the good news: I had my last chemotherapy this past Thursday, the 27th! yippee!! I actually got a graduation diploma with a purple heart on it, signed by all the nurses and my doctor. How cool is that!

The bad news is that somehow I've gotten a flare up of my diverticulitis, and yesterday had to call the doctor, my fever was 102.5. He said it was too early for it to be related to the treatment, and with the cramping, it was just another flare up of the previous problem. He prescribed me 2 strong antibiotics and said hopefully by Monday I'll be feeling better.

Next Wednesday, the 3rd, I'll be having a cat scan of the abdomen in preparation for the upcoming colon surgery, which will probably be at least in 5-6 weeks. I met with one surgeon last week, but he doesn't do the laproscopy, and if I qualify, that's what I'd prefer to have done. He recommended a colleague that does the laproscopy, and my appointment with her is Monday, 10/8. I'll get more information about when she can do the surgery then.

My big concern is that we don't want to do the surgery as an emergency surgery with infection or inflammation....they said the ideal way is to go in as preventative surgery so it lessens the recuperative stage.

This past treatment, #3, was by far the worst of them all. The side effects lasted all through out the whole 3 weeks, and were pretty severe. So, I don't really know what the next 3 weeks will hold. I'm just glad that it is the last treatment. How thankful I am!

When I got into the car to come home from my treatment, I had a CD of the Booth Brothers in my CD player, and this is what came on:

Yesterday's Battles

I've lived through days filled with heartache and pain;

And prayed to the Father to take them away;

Then I heard Him whisper, "I'm always with you,

I hold tomorrow, I'll bring you through."

Yesterday's trials give me strength for today,

And they serve to remind me that He'll make a way.

The nighttime is over, and now I can see

That yesterday's battles are today's victory.

Isn't that amazing that is the first song that I would hear? My God is so good to give me His peace that passes all understanding. I trust Him with my life.

Keep trusting!

Patti

p.s. Thank you for praying for me!