Well, it's Friday. Praise Da Lord.

Sometimes I just love to crack myself up. Ain't it purty? Don't you just love the realness of it all? You don't have to answer that, friends. Please, don't. 

I just haaaad to show you my new glasses. I couldn't wait until I looked decent, oh no. Maybe that's because in all reality I don't want to get up and get out of my pj's and my hubbies robe. I don't want to fix my hair. I don't wanna. I just want to be lazy and drink my coffee and write a blog post about nothin' in particular. Don't you just have those kind of days? Huh? Huh? 

So, back to my glasses. They're not real glasses. They're just plastic ones with wunhunnerd percent UV ray blocking powers. That means they keep the glare from my gargantuan computer screen from searing my eye's with whatever glaring searing powers it has. 

And they work fantastically! I was amazed! I can look at the computer, and save for this annoying reflection of my eye in one corner, I can sit and stare at the computer screen without squinting, or getting a headache. 

It almost makes it worth the trip I took to Claire's in the mall, where the manager was a gay man, and most awfully creepy. I don't think the good Lord put his eyeballs in right, they were kind of off centered, and they didn't look at you when they were supposed to be looking at you, they looked another direction. Combine that with all the cubic zirconium bling he was wearing in his ears AND the fact that Claire's is about the size of a child's shoe box and I grabbed my cheapo plastic glare fighting glasses and ran. I was askeered. 

Anyway, yesterday I took a shopping trip to town. You have to live in the rural country or a really small town aways away from a big town to know that shopping trips to town mean you'd better wear your walking shoes. This was not to be confused with a shopping trip to The City. If that's the case, running shoes are in order.

But as I was saying. I went to Town. It's a pretty good sized college town, and they have a teen insy mall, but lots of other stores that you can't find unless you go to The City, in a closer radius to one another. I left at 9:30 in the morning because it takes me about 25 or 30 minutes to get to the town, and that's using the turnpike, which cost me a dollar. Highway robbery. For real. 

SO, I get to said town and went straight away to the farm and ranch store. I love the farm and ranch store, because it smells like feed 99% of the time. The other 1% it smells like kerosene, and unfortunately I went on the 1% day. Bummer. But I got my Grandma a floor heater she wanted for my Grandpa's Christmas present. I then picked up a Hobby Farm magazine for B's stocking, because he loves a good magazine about: Tractors, cows, heavy equipment, or Mac computers. 

I stood in line for 10 minutes because the barcode wouldn't scan. I sure love that man. Standin' in line for 10 minutes for a magazine....pshhh. 

Then I went to my favoritest store on the planet, Hobby Lobby, with 40% off coupon in hand. I have a friend whose cousins family own Hobby Lobby. They're good folks. 

So I tottled (it's like a trot/waddle in case you're wondering...) my way to the fabric department where I spent WAY too long gazing upon fleece patterns for some blankets I want to make. I thought it was exciting that they had fleece for 9.99 a yard PLUS 30% off. That made it a dollar cheaper than wally world. However, as I was discussing the particulars with my Mammy on the phone, she suggested I try Hancock fabric. She called them and they were having 40% percent off their fabric, so of course I drop Hobby Lobby like a rock, and tottle my way to Hancock. Where, I hit the MOTHER LOAD. They had their fleece for 8.99 plus FIFTY percent off. That made it 4.50 a yard, glory. Plus, all of their solid fleece was 3.99 a yard. 

I bought 60 dollars worth of FLEECE material. That's a lot of blankets, five to be exact. FIVE blankets. I've never made these blankets before, but for 60 dollars I had better do it right! I also bought me a sharp pair of scissors, in hopes that it'll help me cut straighter lines. 

One can hope. 

Well, as it turns out, Hancock didn't have the John Deere fleece I wanted for B's blanket, so I went BACK to Hobby Lobby and got 2 yards of it. The sweet little gal at the check out even let me use my 40% off coupon on top of the sale they were having, so praise the Lord I got John Deere fleece for 4.20 cents a yard. Hehehehe. 

Now I have an awful lot of blanket making to do. 

A camo one for my brother.

A horse one for my sister.

A baby blanket for Grace.

A preppy one for my brother in law

And a John Deere one for Brandon. 

I hope they turn out. I'm not real crafty. 

So after the fleece buying extravaganza, I went to the teen insy mall. I had to buy a garage door opener at Sears while they were on sale. 

You see, my garage is actually CLEAN enough for me to pull in my vehicular. Isn't that snazzy? My shower isn't tiled, but by george I can park my car in the garage. Woot woot. The only problem was that it doesn't have a garage door opener on it yet. So, I had to pull up, go inside, unlock and open the door, pull in, close the door manually, lock it, and go back inside. Then, to leave I had to unlock the garage door, open the door, pull out, turn off the car so I have my keys, close and lock the garage door, walk through the house and go out through the front door so I can lock it. Pain in the hiney, huh? 

So, B can just add that to his list of things to do...which grows every day it seems like. 

I went to a funeral on Wednesday. It was really, really sad. 

It was for a young man who I knew from when I went to our Church college and career group on Wednesday nights. I used to be really active in it from 2003-2005. I got to know everyone there really well. I didn't know this guy all that well, really. He had a crush on my friend Hollie, and she and I hung out a lot, so he tagged along and sat with us a lot of the time. He was 27 years old, and worked as a correctional facility officer. Sunday morning he was driving to work early in the morning, and ran off the road. He always had a bit of a lead foot, and never wore his seatbelt, and I guess the police report says that more than likely he was fiddling with his radio or phone and just ran off the road. 

I think the saddest part for me was the fact we sat right behind his former fiance and her Mom and friends. Apparently two months ago they had sent out wedding invitations, and then a month ago sent out retractions calling the wedding off. I imagine it was the girl who called off the wedding. Mostly because girls tend to do that more so than the guy does. They had dated for 2+ years, and we often joked that he was lucky he found someone to put up with him! He could be a rather difficult individual to deal with. :P 

Anyway, she was broken hearted, and it showed. Can you imagine? I'm sure she loved him, and for whatever reason they called the wedding off for, I'm not sure it was final, it could have just been that they weren't ready yet. But oh my lands, seeing her there with her eyes all puffy and her face so sad just broke my heart. 

The family had done their best to make it as up beat a service as possible. It was really, we sang worship songs and all of their music selections were very up beat. But still, having to sit behind that poor girl as she tried to hold herself together, knowing what I knew about their wedding plans, just broke my heart. Plus, Hollie was boohooing her eyes out right next to me. I know funerals are emotional times, even though I've only been to a handful for people I actually knew. But it's hard to be sitting in the midst of such sadness where it's so close you can feel it soak right through the pew you're sittin' on. 

Even harder when in the back of your head you're hoping and praying that the deceased person's heart was in the right place when they passed. 

Really makes me think about how I don't want to leave people wondering that question. I don't want the preacher to tell the audience that he knows where I am because of a family heritage. I want to leave my own heritage. I want people to be able to say they know because of what and Who they saw working through and IN me. Ya know. 

Anyway, that's enough sobering thoughts for one blog. 

You know what the Lord has been telling me over and over again this past week? 

You can find it in Zechariah chapter  4 verse 6. 

"So he said to me, This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the Lord Almighty."

We're learning a lot in our prenatal classes about how to manage pain naturally, and what all our options are for pain relief in child birth. Our instructor makes sure everyone knows that regardless of whether or not you plan on using an epidural, you will have to face labor pains up until a certain point. 

They teach a lot about using a "focal point" to help you get through your contractions. Basic psychology that teaches if you get your mind off the pain, you can distract yourself through your contractions. I'm sure it works for some people, but I just can't see me staring a picture and he-he-he'ing through my contractions. 

I really have a desire to try to get as far along in labor as naturally as possible. Don't get me wrong, I'm signing my epidural consent for as soon as I get to the hospital, but I don't want to tell myself I can or can't do something. If I realize that I'm not going to get through the birth without the aide of an epidural, I refuse to feel like a failure because I chose to take one. I'm also not going to go into the hospital with an epidural set in my brain. I want to play it by ear (and our instructor told us that is the best way to go into Labor and Delivery, with that mindset) ANYWAY, this does have something to do with that scripture, I promise. :)

I was thinking about all of this one night, and I was thinking about how I handle pain as an individual. I tend to get really irritable when I'm in a constant state of hurting. I also tend to doubt myself, and my ability to make wise decisions under the pressure of excruciating pain. So, there I was laying in bed contemplating such deep matters of life, when the Holy Spirit just plain as day brought that scripture to mind. And all of the sudden it just clicked with me, and I instantly knew I had my "spirit point" - because while the mind is a powerful player in our day to day getting through life - our spirit knows the Ultimate Truth. Our spirit is what is renewed in us as a Believer. HIS spirit working in OUR spirit, is what sustains us when the flesh is weak. 

I'm not trying to turn childbirth into a spiritual experience, because quite frankly I think it's just a part of life. Dadgum that Eve for messin' it up, but it's a natural process of life that our bodies were created to do. 

But, you have to understand that in everything I do, I desire that the Spirit of the Lord be present. I want Him there in the day to day happenings of life. I want to have His Word hidden in my heart, so that when the pressures of life come up, I can call upon it.

So, I'll be he-he-he'ing Jesus name and remembering that Word of the Lord until I'm 4 centimeters dilated and begging for an epi, or until I'm at a 10 and the baby is on my chest - but by golly I plan on reminding myself that it's not by might, or by power, but it's by HIS spirit says the Lord. even if I have to growl it like a wild amazon woman. ;)

 

*climbs off soapbox* 

And now, I must go. I have tamales to make, and more laundry to put away. 

I pray each of you have a wonderful weekend, and that you remember that the Lord loves you and that Jesus has already fought your battles for you. Don't know why I feel like telling you that, but I am. Maybe you need reminded every little while, like I do. ;) 

Be blessed, friends!

LeAnna