Have you noticed the Pink Ribbon?

Well, this is to give you an easy way to help out with the fight against breast cancer! :) This link travels at light speed through cyber space over email forwards, so I wanted to check it out on Snopes.com to make sure it was the real deal. They said: "Unlike the way things are explained in the email, one click does not magically provide a mammogram to a needy woman...it takes 45,000 clicks, not just one. Averaging 58,000 clicks a day, The Breast Cancer Site provides funding for approximately mammograms a day." The site also leads to merchandise you can buy, with the proceeds (or portions of the proceeds) going to the fight on Breast Cancer. So, click away! Click EVERY DAY! :)

Here is some info I copied and pasted from the site...
When you click, we display ads from our site sponsors. 100% of the money from these advertisers goes to our charity partners, who fund programs to provide mammograms to women in need.
Our store gives a portion of every purchase to our charity partners.

Your click on the "Click Here to Give - it's FREE" button helps fund free mammograms for women in need — low-income, inner-city and minority women whose awareness of breast cancer and opportunity for help is often limited. Your click is paid for by site sponsors, and mammogram funding is provided to clinics throughout the U.S. through the efforts of the National Breast Cancer Foundation.

Early Detection: Do You Know The Facts?
The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2007, 178,480 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 40,460 die. One woman in eight either has or will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. In addition, 2,030 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 450 will die this year.

If detected early, the five-year survival rate for breast cancer exceeds 96%. Mammograms are among the best early detection methods, yet 13 million U.S. women 40 years of age or older have never had a mammogram.

The National Cancer Institute and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommend that women in their forties and older have mammograms every one to two years. A complete early detection plan also includes regular clinical breast examinations by a trained medical professional. Monthly breast self-exams are suggested in addition.

Click here and here for more information about breast cancer and the issues surrounding it.


How You Can Help In Mere Seconds — Every Day
The Breast Cancer Site provides a feel-good way to help promote awareness of breast cancer and provide free mammograms for women in need every day — through easy and quick online activities.

With a simple, daily click of the pink "Click Here to Give - it's FREE" button at The Breast Cancer Site, visitors help to provide free mammograms for women in need. Visitors pay nothing. Mammograms are provided by our charitable partners.

Please remember to click every day to fund free mammograms and give hope to women in need. Every click counts in the battle to prevent breast cancer.

You Can Help Even More
In addition to clicking the pink "Click Here to Give - it's FREE" button, visitors can help more by shopping in The Breast Cancer Site store. With each item purchased, shoppers generate funds that provide free mammograms for women in need. The store offers a wide array of items to show your support as well as fair-traded and handcrafted items from around the world that help families and communities pull themselves out of poverty.

You can also help fund breast cancer research at the Mayo Clinic through our Gifts that Give More program, where 100% of donations will be matched by the Mayo Clinic to create an endowed breast cancer research position. You can also use Pink Ribbon Search to fund mammograms with every web search you make.

A few fun tunes...

So, I was finding myself tapping my toes and bobbing my head every time I saw the new MacBook Air commercial, and just HAD to find the song. It's called "New Soul," by Yael Naim. Here it is...isn't it catchy? What a cheery tune! :)
*Don't forget...you have to pause my playlist on the right to hear the song. :)


Yael Naim - New Soul lyrics

It's similar to the last Mac tune I HAD to find, Feist's 1-2-3-4:

I Have 2 Prayer Requests

I have a dear friend, Jessica, who needs your prayers. Her husband, Josh, needs the same prayers. For we know that if we ask the Lord, he is faithful and will hear our prayer. "If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."-Matthew 21:22

She is about 18 weeks pregnant, and has very bad news from the doctors. Her baby has been diagnosed with Potter's Syndrome. Potter's Syndrome means the baby has no kidneys, and therefore cannot produce the amniotic fluid that is necessary for development. When the amniotic fluid is missing the baby lives in a very tightly packed environment and therefore will demonstrate very compressed features. Normally the baby is surrounded by the fluid, which allows freedom of movement, and of growth. It helps in the development of the babies muscular and skeletal system. Inhaling the fluid is also vital to the development of the baby’s lungs. The fluid prevents fetal parts growing unevenly and being pressed against the wall of the uterus or womb. Jessica has a 50 to 60 percent chance of carrying the baby to term, but the doctors have told her that the baby will not survive outside the womb. So she is going to carry this pregnancy and have to deliver!

Jessica has a wonderful attitude about all of this, one which I do not know that I could have. She told me that if this is all the time the Lord gives her with this baby (meaning the time in the womb), then she should enjoy all that she can. The baby's heartbeat is currently very strong, and Jessica has even gotten some ultrasound pictures of the precious one's little arms and face. Jessica trusts the Lord, and knows that His plan is perfect.

My prayers recently have been that our LORD's perfect Will be done, and that the family of this precious miracle is comforted by our savior during this time. I CANNOT fathom how difficult this must be! My heart has been breaking for the last few weeks, and it is not my child. I love Jessica dearly and I hate to see her hurt. I have said that I am frustrated that I can't DO anything...but I can! I can intercede for her! Psalm 46:1 says that "God is our refuge and strength,A very present help in trouble." I am putting her and her husband at the foot of the throne, and lifting them to rest under the wings of our Lord and savior! Please pray with me! Please pray for the physicians to be knowledgeable and caring. Please pray for the hearts of all of Jessica's family. Please pray for Jessica and Josh to be able to rest in the Lord's perfect will. Please pray for them...I can only imagine how difficult the loss of a child will be on a marriage! I know there should be more, but my broken heart clouds my mind, and I know that is where you come in! Please pray for this little family!
Here is a picture of Jessica and Josh with their two beautiful children, Luke and Raylen: (Raylen is Emmalyn's best friend...they are only 10 days apart!)

Second Request:
Jessica's sister, Hannah, is also pregnant (only 8 or 9 weeks), and is very sick. She has ulcerative colitis, and cannot take her medication while pregnant. She is already very ill. Please pray God heals her and provides a healthy, enjoyable pregnancy for her and her little miracle. Here is Jessica with Raylen and Hannah(they are 3 B-E-A-utiful women!):

James 1:2-6- Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

I am so grateful for the prayer warriors in my life!!!

Show And Tell

I would just like to brag for a moment, on my niece. We'll call her Beautiful Sunshine b/c my sister doesn't use her kiddos' names on the world wide web. Well, Beautiful Sunshine is 16 years old, and MADE(knitted) a sweater for Emmalyn for her birthday that I would honestly expect to buy at Baby Gap! It is complete with collar, buttons, and a cute little pocket(which she said was the most challenging part). It is awesome! And lest you think I am just biased, everyone at Emmalyn's party "oohed and ahed" over it too! It fits the baby just perfectly, and I would like to share it's beauty with the world! I would SERIOUSLY have bought this at Baby Gap had I seen it there! :) So, without further ado...here it is.

Isn't it adorable?! (FYI...you can look closer by clicking on the picture.)

And doesn't Emmalyn look like a big girl in this picture...WALKING, in her BLUE JEANS?!

My Little Houdini

When I put Little Bit down for her nap the other morning, she was still wearing these pajama bottoms! I guess she decided she was too warm, and took them off. She was so cute, proudly holding them up to me when I went in to her room to get her!

And I do not understand why her nose looks orange in EVERY picture I take of her! I am careful not to give her the orange fruits and veggies very often, and it doesn't look that way in real life, but yet...in every picture...look at her nose! ARGH!!!!!!

Aren't they purty?!

So, the irises weren't quite open yet on Valentine's Day, so I chose to wait until all was blooming to photograph and post the pictures. So, here are the beautiful sunflowers and irises my wonderful hubby brought me. Aren't the gorgeous? :)

Valentine's Day, Continued

Well, I thought I should add how much I LOVE MY HUSBAND to this tribute to Valentine's Day! :) For our Valentine's this year, we simply went to dinner at a great sushi restaurant and to a local VERY YUMMY bakery. But, the magic was spending time with my hubby! I am so in love with him! He brought me beautiful flowers...sunflowers and irises, some of my favorites!...and a very sweet card!
We made cherry pies in MOPS on Wednesday, so I cut a heart out of it and baked it for him.

I made him a love letter, using those funny little conversation hearts they sell this time of year. He loved it! :) I also wrote him a list of 57 things I love and respect about him. It included how he loves my sacrificially, how great a daddy he is, how much he loves the Lord, his heart for the lost, his intelligence, his sense of humor, his generosity, his strong character and integrity, ability to live by his convictions, his love and devotion to family, how he takes such good care of me when I am sick, and his faith...among many other things! I am so in love! :)
Here is a picture of the letter. I think you can read most of it if you click on it and make it larger.

And HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY (a day late:( ) to all of my friends and family! I hope you all had a great day! I love you very much and thank the LORD for bringing each and every one of you into my life! What a LOVING GOD we serve!!!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I love this time of year! The time when you get to tell those you love just how much you love them! But yes, you should be doing that all year....but I digress...
I feel so blessed these days! I have a wonderful daughter, who at only 1 year old, is my best friend! Here are some of the things I love about Emmalyn:

• She keeps me laughing all day
• She teaches me patience, abounding love, and how to get my priorities straight
• She gives the BEST hugs!
• Her smile melts my heart every time I see it
• Watching her dance (by bouncing up and down, sticking her little bootie out) makes me laugh hysterically!
• She understands a LOT more than we give her credit for!
• She likes to grab the brush and hold it to her head and "brush" her own hair...so cute!
• It's funny how she grabs anything, especially the tv remote, and holds it to her ear like a telephone
• Watching her eat is even cute...she is so deliberate with "chewing," even though she only has 2 teeth
• I love to see her watch for Kris to come around the kitchen corner when he comes home from work, and the subsequent huge smile and squeal to see him!
• She waves bye-bye by holding her hand palm-up, squeezing her fingers in and out. She even waves when she hears the word bye, like when I was saying we should "buy" a certain item! Too funny!
• She doesn't "say" anything, but the oohs, aahs, whoas, and other cute sounds make her communication pretty clear!
• I never tire of watching her sleep...is there a sweeter vision?
• I never tire of watching her walk...she is so proud, and it makes her look like such a big girl! *sigh*
• Her smile when I go in her room to pick her up every morning is the best way to start the day!

This little girl has given me and Kris more joy than we ever could have imagined! What an amazing God we serve that would allow us the blessing of taking care of His precious child! Happy Valentine's Day, my sweet angel!

New stuff!

Hey everybody! I'm finally having fun with this here bloggin'! :) Notice my cool new playlist! Now you can enjoy some of my favorite music while you read my musings! Oh, and it's not my fault that Sarah McLachlan's "Angel" is spelled wrong...that's how they have it listed in Playlist.com, and I can't change it! ARG! Do you know how aggravating that is to a teacher?!
Anyways...I found a cool new website called imagechef.com too, and had fun creating the photos on the right! You should check it out!

And for the sake of the blog, would some of you start leaving comments? Please? Pretty please? How else am I supposed to know anyone reads this little online journal? :) [Other than Jana and Kristy, of course!..thanks ladies! :) ]

Okay...off to play some more!

btw, does anyone know how I can get smilies?

A Three Level Lumbar Fusion

So, this is an MRI image of what my spine looked like BEFORE my surgery. Notice the three lowest disc spaces do NOT look like the 5 healthy ones above them. Especially the middle one of the three. That is where I had a disc removed in 2003, and handy dandy little bone spurs had developed. Very painful! I apparently inherited my mother's degenerative disc disease (lucky me!), and have already had LOTS of excruciating back pain for my age. So, all three of the these spaces needed to be repaired.

I tried desperately to show you the AFTER image, but the surgeon gave me a disc with my x-rays on it, and he must not want you to use the images for ANYTHING other than your own personal use. I could not get them off that disc! (ARGH!!!)
But...picture 8 screws and 2 very long rods in my spine, connecting all the vertebrae surrounding the unhealthy discs. Kris just calls me RoboWife now! Here is an image I found on Google Images that looks much like mine, but I have 2 more screws, and the rods are a bit longer.

We are desperately praying that this solves my back pain problems, for the most part. Would you pray with us, please? The surgeon told me that I will probably always have slight pain and have to repeat the surgery in 5 to 10 years, as other discs will eventually disintegrate as well. He actually used the phrase "This is your cross to bear." Scary, but apparently true. And before you ask, I did ask...nothing I can do will slow down this process. No weight loss, no diet change, no supplements or vitamins will help. This is genetic and irreversible. But if I can avoid the horrible flare-ups that prevent me from being able to take care of Emmalyn, I will be happy. I am still in pain today, but am REALLY hoping it is just surgery recovery, and I will be pain free any day now. Besides, we want more kiddos, right? I have to get this back healthy to have more babies! :)

The surgery was 6 weeks ago today, so I am cleared to pick up Emmalyn now. This has been a rough 6 weeks! But God has, as always, provided! Kris's mom has been here almost every day, and his Grandma has helped out too. I was extremely blessed to have my sister come stay with us for 4 days at the beginning, too! This help has made this experience less daunting...and man! is my house CLEAN right now!!! :)

She's on the move now!!!

Can you believe it?! She has the confidence to finally let go...and she is all over the place!!! Notice the baracade we have set up to the right. This is to keep her from the kitchen, especially away from the dog food! :) Kris and I cannot BELIEVE our little baby can walk!!!

I guess I am just not a blogger...

Thank you to those who read my blog, and I aplogize for being so inconsistent. I just don't find that I am a very good writer, so I don't feel I have much to offer. I also feel that I simply don't have the time, or the desire to sit at the computer for very long at a time. So, I think I will keep the blog, but quit promising to update very often. (Where is the "embarassed" smilie icon to insert here?:) )I will probably get into moods every now and then, and post every couple of days, I may very well then leave and not come back for a month. :) Please forgive me. So, with that said...here is what has been going on for the last 6 to 8 weeks:

• I had back surgery. A three-level fusion in my lower back has kept me SERIOUSLY out of commission since Dec. 28th.
• Kris celebrated his 33rd birthday, with me in the doctor's office for a surgery follow-up apt.
• Kris and I celebrated our 3rd anniversary. (Have I mentioned I have the most awesome husband in the world?!?!!!)
• Emmalyn celebrated her FIRST birthday!
• Other stuff going on in my life...I am currently battling a cold, my dog is sick (I will tell more about that later), Emmalyn is starting to walk!, etc......

I will try to elaborate on these things over the next few days... but in the meantime, please enjoy these photos!

and PLEASE go see more adorable photos at my online photo gallery!