kevinandlindsay.net

Recently on Facebook, I have noticed a trend- people writing 25 or so things about themselves that others may or may not know and then “tagging” friends to read the note and respond. Seems like a great thing to do and then I remembered that I have a hard time keeping up with my blog. So, as the saying goes, I decided to kill two birds with one stone. I will write the 25 random things about myself on my blogspot and then let my friends on Facebook know that they can come here for this most riveting knowledge. (How ever riveting it may be.)

1. My husband and I pray together every single night. I can’t remember the last time we let a day go by in which we didn’t pray together. I actually knew that I would marry Kevin the first time he asked to pray with me.

2. I found a lot of my identity in teaching 5th grade, specifically in a Title I school. However, being a stay-at-home mom is an unbelivable blessing, and I praise God for this opportunity.

3. Living in Kingwood is a dream! I often feel spoiled, though completely blessed.

4. I can make a “chicken” out of a bath towel. My husband can too! He’s the only one that I’ve ever met who too has this talent.

5. I once weighed almost 270 lbs. The pictures of my “fluffy” days are quite shocking.

6. I have a passion for girls’ ministry. I believe that God has called me to work closely with these teen girls and share with them my life experiences as well as guide them to a closer relationship with God their Father.

7. I desire to have a physically fit body like that of Mariah Carey. Shameless, I know.

8. My abdomen looks like a road map! In the last 5 years, I have had five abdominal surgeries. Despite the many scars, my husband says that I am still beautiful.

9. When people walk past me, I subconsciously hold my breath. Strange, I know. I do it without even thinking. I don’t wish to smell “their” air.

10. I want to be able to run a mile with out stopping.

11. Lord willing, I will homeschool our children one day. In doing so, I hope to change any negative connotations that some have about homeschooled children. My children will not be socially awkward or intellectually inferior.

12. I desperately want my Masters and to be considered an expert in a particular field, though “that field” has yet to be determined.

13. I mocked my husband for joining Facebook for quite some time. I am now completely addicted to it!

14. I am not pleasant to fly with. The flight itself is fine, but waiting in the airport or delayed flights make me ill and, I often express my dissatification with whomever I’m with.

15. I would really like to own a summer home in Kennebunkport, Maine, but never would even if I were financially able to. I believe that owning more than one home is a bit much. There are so many people in this world without even one home; I would choose to use my financial blessing to bless someone else.

16. I am a procrastinator …in all things. ( As I write this, I should be reading the lesson for tonight’s small group discussion. Yet again, I have waited until the last minute.)

17. My husband says that I am prematurely 80. I enjoy game shows such as Wheel of Fortune and The Price is Right and old television shows such as I Love Lucy and The Andy Griffith Show.

18. I really like food! I prefer “real food.” I’m not stuck on sweets though ocassionally I get the craving for a good doughnut.

19. I secretly wish that I could play the violin (really, the fiddle) and speak a second language. I also wish that I could use a handgun proficiently. Not that I ever REALLY want to use it; It would just be nice to know that I could if I needed to defend my family. (I can hear my husbands thoughts now, “You’ve watched too many episodes of Oxygen’s Snapped!)

20. I sweep and/ or vacuum every single day.

21. 2008 was the most challenging year of my life, and I am still dealing with the effects of all that transpired: physically, mentally, and emotionally.

22. If the house is tidy and smells great, I feel like it’s clean, even if there are cobwebs in the corners and dust on the picture frames. (I really appreciate pleasant smells; they can set my entire mood. My favorite are candles that smell like coffee.)

23. My mood completely changes (for the better) when the time changes. Something about “springing forward” puts a spring in my step. I really like that the sun is still shining at 7pm.

24. I would like to change this generations’ mindset on “Thank You” notes. Why do we give gifts and then expect to receive a card in the mail? I give gifts because I want to bless someone. Perhaps, we could begin giving gifts and not put who they are from. Then the person receiving the gift would not be able to send a note thanking that person. And if we ALL did that, then we, as a community, would have mastered the concept of “Pay It Forward.” Yes…yes…I think this is what we should do.

25. My favorite poem is “The Dash” by Linda Ellis. I think of that poem often and hope that when I am no longer on this Earth, people will remember me positively. I want to know that I’m not just taking up space and wasting oxygen, but that I am truly making a difference.

<>< LinZ

It’s true. I am the worst blogger. I can’t tell you how many times this year my husband has asked me, “Are you ever going to post another blog?”

“Yes…just as soon as I give Victoria a bath, dress her for bed, feed Thomas, change Thomas, put away the laundry, unload the dishwasher, check my email, look at the budget, vacuum the den…” And the list goes on and on. Well, those things are always going to demand my attention so I decided just to sit down and write. This particular entry will have no real direction, but I know that I have a lot to say.

The year 2008 has been the most challenging year of my life, and I hope that in fifty years, I will still look back on 2008 as the most difficult. I have learned that the simple things in life really aren’t to be taken for granted. For instance, the ability to eat solid foods and walk without assistance, to leave the house without concern if you’re going to need to take your IV antibiotics with you, going a week or even a day without being stuck by a really bad lab technician, or the simpleness of being alone in your own home without someone waiting on you hand and foot. (Some consider that a blessing; I consider it troublesome.)

Someone told me soon after I returned to normal health, “Well, it can’t get any worse than this.” But you know what? It could. When I hear of the trials and tribulations that others are going through, my year seems like child’s play. Yes, this year for me has seen its struggles, but it has also presented its amazing blessings! I ended my 5th grade teaching career at Cedar Grove Elementary with a superb group of students and an amazing team, my husband and I moved to a beautiful community filled with so many great opportunities, my family is part of an awesome and Godly church family, we have two precious and loving children…and the blessings go on and on. I see God daily and am constantly awed by His love!

In just a few days, we will gorge on turkey and homemade sides. Remember that each day is a beautiful gift from God not to be taken for granted, not even for a second. Find the blessings in your year no matter how small.

I Chronicles 16:34 “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, His love endures forever.”

<><LinZ

This year, a person, very near and dear to my heart, defended this nation in Iraq- my precious, baby cousin, Sam. (Okay, so he’s 27 years old, but he’ll always be little to me.) For 7 long months, my husband and I prayed for him, along with countless others. We prayed for his safety, we prayed for his spirits, and we prayed for his sweet wife, Leigh, as she waited anxiously for his return.

As a teacher, I often talk with my students about the brave men and women who protect us everyday, and I listen to the students talk about these soldiers. Children are not concerned with the politics going on behind the war. What they do know is that these people are their heroes. Forget Batman or Superman or Spiderman. Place a soldier in their presence and for a few short seconds, they are speechless. Give them time to make a card to send to a soldier and they will not tell them their opinion on whether or not they support the cause. But what they will do is write very largely in their CRAYOLA marker, “Thank You!”

Many times I have heard, and even said myself, “You can learn a lot from children.” That statement could not be more true. Currently, their is a video circulating through email courtesy of “The Gratitude Campaign.”

Please visit

http://www.gratitudecampaign.org/fullmovie.php

and see what a simple sign can do for the random soldier you pass on the street.

My cousin returned, physically unharmed in September. I will have the pleasure and joy to see him at Christmas, and I will be telling him, “Thank you!”

<><LinZ

Indulge me for a moment while I tell you what’s been going on in my life these last two months. In August, I began feeling less than wonderful. I was tired and ill (not as in mean, though my husband may disagree, but as in not feeling well), and I feared that I might be pregnant again. (Yes Mom, I said feared; I’m not quite ready for a second Nut.) So, after much complaining, I went to the doctor. Turns out I have mono and apparently have had it for quite some time. Well, that definitely explains the tiredness. One night two weeks later I began experiencing a stabbing pain, much like a contraction. (I have quite a few pregnancy connections.) I journey to the emergency room only to discover that I have passed a kidney stone. Lovely! Also during this time I meet with a gastroenterologist who proclaims that I have irritable bowel syndrome, to which I translate as, “I’m not really sure why you’re having constant stomach pains.”

Well, some time passes and I begin to feel great again. As a reward, my husband and I take what we hope to be like a second honeymoon- a cruise. It was going to be wonderful! I boarded the ship (childless by the way…a week with zero responsibility) and I was giddy, like a kid in a candy shop. The first two days were amazing! We laughed, played Bingo, and tanned by the pool. And then Monday hit and I was sick. Not sea sick. “Chop my head off because it hurts so bad” sick. For the next two days, I would see the doctor and nurses in the infirmary more than the poolside waiters.

Thursday morning, the day of debarkation, couldn’t come soon enough. I visited my doctor and learned that my mono is still hanging on and I have viral meningitis. It’s not deadly, just a pain in the neck! (No pun intended.) I am slowly recovering and hope to be myself again soon.

I titled this blog “Bad Takes On Good” but I’ve yet to mention anything good. Here’s the good. A couple of weeks ago, a package was delivered to our house addressed to me from Belk. Upon opening, I found 12 five-piece place settings of lovely flatware. My step-dad had received a phone call a couple of days earlier from a Belk store saying that the package had been sitting there for a couple of years and was never mailed. It seems that it was a wedding present. So, my step-dad gave them my address and now I have this wonderful gift. Curious though, there wasn’t a card. Not a single piece of evidence that would reveal to me who sent this rather extravagant gift. I am bothered in knowing that some kind and generous person is cursing my name for having never received a proper “Thank you” from me. Any takers?

And in other good news…my cholesterol is quite desirable at 122!

<><LinZ