Monty started trying to get home on Thursday, no way, the weather was bad as usual, tried on Friday, no way, the weather was still bad but it looked promising on Saturday. They flew out of El Paso Saturday morning, got to Abilene, had to land there, it was too cloudy to come on in to Weatherford. They finally made it about 3pm Saturday afternoon. We went out to eat with some friends of ours, skipped Sunday School this morning but went to the late service at church, came home, cooked chicken and dumplings and have done not much else this afternoon. It is nice having someone else in the house with me. He will be heading back to work and El Paso tomorrow morning. I am praying for the faith to know the Lord will take care of us, this is harder than I thought it could be. I know we are blessed just to have work, but I am wondering will life ever be back to normal? I prayed for an abundant life with Christ for 2010 so I am probably needing to buckle my seatbelt, I may be in for the ride of my life.

Monday Blahs

If we go to the movies as a group, we usually go on Monday afternoons so we are off to the movies today. We are going to see Extraordinary Measures. I am not really excited to see this, sounds kind of sad and depressing but I hope it has a happy ending. After the movies we will go eat together and that is always fun. Beats sitting at home alone, although this is the one night I could watch TV because The Batchelor is on. Oh well, I am sure I can catch up next week.

We have decided (some of the girls & I) that we will go to Stay Fit tomorrow and get a free week membership and see if we think we will like it. I think I will and I desperately need to get out and get some exercise. In the summer I do yard work and swim, but I am truly stagnating sitting here reading, quilting and I am ashamed to say, watching nothing good on TV at night most of the time.

Monty is supposed to come in on Thursday, of course the weather is supposed to turn bad again. How weird is that? Everytime he starts to come home the weather gets bad. He will probably come in on a commercial flight so maybe weather won't be a problem.

Monday blues today. I have tried to be busy, cleaning some, washing some clothes, doing Bible study, but I still have the blahs. Need to shake it off and get going. Maybe exercise tomorrow will help.

Last Week

Last week we started the week with pre op appointments for Ian. Tuesday the day started at 3:30am it was surgery day. The waiting for the surgery to be over was excruciating but seeing how traumatized Ian was afterwards was extremely hard to take. Once the IV and drain tube was taken out he was much better, then the swelling started. One eye completely swelled shut, his ears swelled away from his head, there was swelling in his neck and forehead and face. He was not even recognizable as Ian, but Praise the Lord today the swelling is down already and he is feeling fine. This grandmother is so very thankful for God's perfect timing in all of this and his hand in making all the wheels turn just right. We are thankful for good doctors and for insurance and it makes us wonder if Ian would even have been allowed to have the surgery should the Health Care reform insurance already been in effect. The dermoid cysts were not life threatening but if the one in his skull wallowed through the bone and into the brain it would have mushroomed causing seizures and ultimately brain surgery, which would have been a completely different and more serious surgery, but the thing is you never know if they will stay in the skull for years or if they will grow and move through the brain. In a few short weeks from the time he had the MRI done on the head, his cyst had already worn through the bone and was resting on the membrane of the brain. Thank goodness, he had the surgery as soon and as quickly as he did. God is sovereign, loves us, and works all things together for good for those that love him and are called according to his purpose. Thank you Heavenly father for your love, grace, mercy and kindness that you shower on us all the time.

Surgery Day

Well, Ian's surgery was yesterday. All ended up well, I guess. He is so swollen tonight he cannot see out of his right eye. Two dermoid cysts were removed, one under the skin on the bridge of his nose and the other in the skull on the right side of his head. The surgeon ended up scaring us all and causing us to second guess the decision to have the cysts removed, but we found out that God's timing in this particular situation was perfect ( as it always is), he is Sovereign, what else would you expect? : ) When the surgeon had the cyst out of the skull, he came out to talk to my son and daughter in law and told them had they put it off any longer (we got him in as soon as doctors could get him scheduled) the cyst would have already grown into his brain and we would have been looking at a much more serious type of surgery. This was scary enough thank you very much! The first appointment he had was with the pediatrician at the end of October 2009, she referred him to and ear nose and throat doctor the first of November. The ENT sent them to have an MRI, he got in about the 1st of December. The MRI was to confirm it was indeed a dermoid cyst on the bridge of his nose and to see if he had any other cysts in his skull. These type cysts are benign but can grow and wallow out the bone and once it is through the bone balloons into the brain. While he was getting the MRI, the radiologists saw the shadow of something, he was still asleep so they put him back in for another MRI on the one suspicious spot and sure enough there it was. There was still bone all around the cyst in December, but by yesterday it had already worn through the bone and had indented the membrane surrounding the brain. We see how God had his hand in this whole process and we are eternally grateful that the Lord impressed upon us the importance of getting the cysts removed when he did. We are so thankful that there was not much blood loss, no transfusion, no ICU and he is already home playing with toys and sleeping in his own bed. He was so traumatized when he woke up from the anesthesia it was extremely hard for this grandmother to watch. I did hold him most of the afternoon, he was having a hard time with all the drains and tubes coming out of him. He would look at them and just start crying. Children are so resilient though. I went over this afternoon and he was just playing like he had never had surgery at all. Truly amazing. We praise you Heavenly Father for your love and watch care over this precious child that has my heart in his hand.

Must See Movie

My husband did make it in last night and we went to the movies this afternoon. I was extremely impressed that Hollywood put out a movie that had the theme this one did. I definitely want to find out more about the producer and director of the movie, "The Book of Eli". I didn't really know what the movie would be about but we both really like Denzel Washington, I mean, who do you know that doesn't like Denzel? The movie is a futuristic movie that takes place after a world war that ends in nuclear holocaust. The people decide that the Bible was what caused the war in the first place and they take them all up, search high and low and destroy every trace of it, except for the one the Lord God protects and gives to Eli to take to safety. God gave Eli a mission, equipped him to carry it out just like he does all of us, Eli was obedient and I can't tell you anymore it would ruin the movie. I will say that the movie is wonderful in depicting the depravity of man and what will occur when all Christian influence is removed from this earth. If man can imagine this, it probably will be much worse and I am glad I will not be here to observe it. Lots of violence and some language. Usually foul language really bothers me but I was so engrossed in the story I didn't realize it had any until my husband pointed it out to me. I think a very true depiction of what life could be like one day on earth. I highly recommend this movie just because of the content and message. Denzel Washington was awesome as usual.

This is the Day the Lord has Made

As I started to write this blog, I was going to title it, Just Another Day, but you know what? Everyday we are given is a great blessing, clouds and all! Thank you Lord for today, its blessings and for all the things you blessed us with that we don't even realize yet.

I can't believe I haven't written in my blog since the 9th. Time is flying and this has been a busy week. Bible Study started up again on Wednesday mornings. I love all the ladies in our class. Such a great group, so many of them from our Sunday School class. By the way, I am teaching our class on Sunday. I am excited about the lesson. We have been in Ecclesiastes for a few weeks and in studying I did a study on Solomon and wow, what a guy. He had God's hand and blessing on his life (as long as he was obedient and didn't worship other gods) as no other person every has. His life is chronicled in I Kings 3-11 and a very interesting read. It also struck me when I was reading Solomon's writings in the book of Ecclesiastes, that he was a blogger, that is what this book is all about, Solomon's thoughts and insights. He just didn't have a computer and wasn't able to post pictures along with his thoughts. When he was born II Samuel 12:25 said..."God loved him and called him Jedidiah which means Beloved of God. I am excited about presenting this lesson the Lord has given me to teach.

My youngest son finished up his training for Enterprise Leasing in Austin today. He is driving home as I write. He has much turmoil in his life right now and as I studied Solomon I saw many parallels between Solomon's life and my son's. I still praise the Lord for the job he has given my son. I pray he has the wisdom to take care of it as those jobs are so hard to come by these days.

My husband is trying to make it in tonight. Those pesky clouds in the sky seem to be hampering his flight. : ) I have commented on this before in an earlier blog entry. It has been two weeks since he was home, it would be nice if he could make it in this weekend. I actually have a brisket in the oven, since I rarely cook anymore for just me, it is a treat even for me to have a home cooked meal.

Next week is full already, Ian's surgery is scheduled for Tuesday morning at 7:30am. I know we will all be happy to have that behind us. I love that little guy so much. It is less than 30 days until we welcome baby brother, Mac. That is really hard to believe. Ian's daddy is considering changing jobs, so there is much change in store for the McLeod clan this next month or two.

Sunshine - Sonshine

Well, it is still extremely cold here. Someone said 9 degrees this morning, BUT tomorrow it is supposed to start warming up and I am more than glad. The only thing about this cold spell was that the sun kept shining through it. As long as the sun is shining I can handle the cold. I think that is how it is when we go through trials and hard times in our lives, if we can still see the Son, God's son, and feel his presence we can come through it with flying colors. We don't like the trial, we don't ask for it, but if we keep our eyes on the Son, we emerge that stronger, better person, more ably equipped to help others through their trials.

This morning though I am still in my pjs and my warm robe, no makeup, bed still unmade and have been just sitting reading news on the computer and playing bejeweled. The day is half over and I need to get busy, but what a luxury to do exactly what I want not worrying about being somewhere or accomplishing something for myself or someone else. It is nice, but there is something in me that makes me feel guilty when I do things just for me, or don't hop up and make up the bed or put on my makeup and do my hair, of course that is probably because the one time I don't do it will be the time someone just drops over unexpectedly. : )

My children's friends just lost their baby this morning, it is a sad time for all of them. They have a large circle of friends from church and so many of them are pregnant and of course besides prayer, they are at a loss as to how to help their friends through this trial. God's timing and will is perfect though and even though we can't understand it, he knows what he is accomplishing through those that are willing to let him live through them. He will use this to grow this young couple if they stay close to him for their comfort. Then when another couple has fertility issues or lose their precious baby, they can emplathize totally and truly be able to say, "I understand how you feel and what you are going through." I have found this to be true in my life, and though we don't desire the hard things in our life they are the very thing that strengthens us and makes us into the people we need to be.

Brrrrrrr, It's Cold in North Texas

I really have a hard time believing it is already January 7th of 2010. It is so cold here, the high temp is supposed to be 24 degrees with the windchill putting the actual temp in the teens and tonight the high is to be 14 degrees with the windchill in single digits. The kiddos' did not have school today and tonight is my night to keep the girls so I am hoping no school tomorrow if it is 14 degrees outside. Of course I have not been to the store and don't have much in the house to eat so I really need to go to the store, but can probably get by if I have to. At least we are just dealing with bitter cold and a little wind unlike the blizzard up north that had 90 mph winds and dumped 44 inches of snow.

Monty left on Monday morning and I will have to say I was pretty worried about being here again by myself since he had been home for over a week, but all has been okay. I have been really busy with stuff at church and of course spending time with girlfriends. The Lord is good to provide what we need right when we need it.

My new Bible Study, "He Speaks to Me", by Priscilla Shirer begins on January 13th. I am so excited to begin this study and get some new insights into listening to God when he talks to me. I learned so much through Priscilla's study "Discerning the Voice of God", so I am anxious to start this study and learn more about communication with my Saviour through studying His word. He is speaking to us, we are so busy listening to other things we fail to hear his still, small voice. One of my favorite verses in the Bible is, "Be still and know that I am God." In our daily busyness we forget to get still and let Him speak to us. How sad that is because He should be the one we are wanting to commune with more than any other.

We found out yesterday that Ian's surgery to have two cysts removed from his head will be on January 19th. It will be approximately a 2 hour surgery and then he will stay overnight in the hospital. We will all be glad to have this behind us. It has been a taxing time but we are choosing to trust our heavenly Father to keep him safe and well and provide healing for him. We will also be welcoming baby brother a few weeks later on the 10th of February, so Mr. Man needs to recover quickly from his surgery to take on his new big brother roll.

My youngest son begins training for his new job on Jan 11th, so lots of things going on in Deb's world this month. 2010 has been a great year so far, can't wait to see what else the Lord has in store for us this year.

Friends, Food and Fun

We had a girl's night out tonight. Well it started at 4pm at Applebees with the food and then the fun was the visiting we did for the next 5 hours. No one bothered us after our waitress left for the evening so we just stayed and visited. I went with two friends from church that are one of my biggest blessings and both are great encouragers. One of them a talker, the other one more a listener, but we all three have a great chemistry together that includes sharing our lives. That gets harder and harder as we grow older to find friends to be totally honest and still have great fun with one another. I feel so blessed to have these two women in my life.

Happy New Year

It's been a few days since I sat down to write on my blog. I just looked at my daughter-in-law's blog and remembered that last year my precious grandbaby Ian, 10 months old at the time, spent his first New Year's Eve at Cook's Childrens Hospital. He had pneumonia and was so sick. Very scary. It was so funny last night I was trying to remember where I was last year on New Year's Eve. I could tell you where everyone was except for me. Weird, huh? I didn't remember until I saw her blog today. Monty was out of town last year and it was prophetic for our whole year, but last night my husband and I kept Mallory and Emily. Mallory's birthday is tomorrow so we took her to Walmart to pick out a birthday present. She really couldn't get very excited about anything but finally picked out some weird thing like transformers but they are called something different. Anyway, when we got home we played 2 rounds of the Memory game, I won! Go me! Anyway, Mallory said, "Y'all are the best parents." It means so much to kids to sit down with them and play with them on their level. I always dread them coming but I know they enjoy it and once they get here it is always fun for me too. I wish they had more stability in their home life.

For 2010 my goals are:
To know my Lord more intimately everyday, and to learn to give Him all praise, honor and glory that He is due. I want to truly grasp the fact that He is sovereign and had written all my days in His book in heaven before I was formed, and rest in the fact that nothing is a surprise to Him. I want to give the Holy Spirit free reign in my life to empower me to love and trust Him the way I need to that I can live the abundant life of peace and joy that my Heavenly Father wants to give me.

I want to be cheerful and an encouragement to those who need it most.

I want to worry less and live more.

Of course there are all those others, like exercising more, being more healthy mentally and physically, being a better mom and grandmom, and a better person in general.

I would love to fulfill the destiny that God has for me.

I would like to see God work in an amazing way in mine and Monty's life this year. Most of all I would like to live in such a way he can carry out His plan for me to bring Him honor and glory in all I do.

I pray God's blessings on all my grandchildren for healthy, safe lives, stability in their home life and safety and health especially for our new baby boy we are welcoming on February 10, 2010, Mac Andrew. We already love you baby boy.

It will be interesting to see how all these things shape up next year when I look back at this year's goals and see how all the things we have prayed for have worked out.

Happy 2010!