Fab-o Christmas!!

So we had a fabulous Christmas!! We've been in Midland with my parents since Tuesday, and just had a great time hanging out, playing Wii, and Brian spent most of the time recovering.

Speaking of which, he got the "all clear" from the surgeon this morning, so he's truly on the road to recovery.

Brian's parents and sister came and spent Christmas day with us in Midland, which was fantastic because we could all be together. I feel truly blessed that our families get along so well together, and it's easy and fun to spend time together. Linda had her last day of radiation on Christmas Eve, and although she's hurting, she's glad to be all done with radiation. (Let me tell you, even though radiation is much preferred to chemo, this is nasty stuff. Her skin is SO burned... I hadn't really thought about how they're actually using chemicals to treat her cancer.)

I got to see my friend Susan and her boyfriend Jason on Saturday, and I had a great time getting to know Jason and catching up after 7 1/2 years. (I can't believe it's been that long since I've seen her!)

Speaking of Susan, her family owns my FAVORITE restaurant ever- Luigi's in Midland. It's friggin' fantastic, and that's what we ate Saturday night. SOOOO good. (Luigi's really is the thing that brought Susan and I together as friends in the first place. I met her in the 5th grade when we were both attending GEM two days a week. I saw a watch either she or her sister was wearing that had the Luigi's logo on it. I went crazy telling them how it was my favorite restaurant, and Susan was like "It's my favorite too- my grandparents own it!!" How could I NOT be her friend after that??)

Anywho, we got back in to town yesterday evening after the fastest trip back to Plano EVER! (We must have had a tail wind because the trip that usually takes us 7 hours only took 5 1/2 hours.) No, we didn't speed. Honest.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot the drama that ensued on the trip back. We were about ten miles east of Midland on Interstate 20, and I was passing an 18-wheeler in the left lane. I happened to glance in my rearview mirror, and saw a PT Cruiser barreling towards us. I'm not kidding- I honestly thought that it was going to rear-end us. I was braced for impact and screaming "Oh, God, oh, God, oh, God!" (All I could get out- I'm sure God knew it was a desperate prayer!) When the cruiser was INCHES from us, he braked, and I was able to get past the 18-wheeler and back into the right lane.

This is when it got weird. Instead of racing past me like I thought he would, he slowly crept by at a normal speed. I was able to turn and get a good look at him (and give him a scathing look as well!) and then he kept on at a normal speed. I was kind of weirded out because he had been going SO fast, and was now going at about 75 mph or so.

He approached the next cluster of cars ahead of us, and started accelerating again, and when he couldn't pass them, swerved way over onto the right shoulder. I thought he would try to pass on the shoulder, but swerved back into the right lane, and then into the left and managed to pass a truck, changing lanes within inches of hitting other cars. Now ahead of that cluster, I saw him again swerve WAY over onto the right shoulder and then back again.

He was changing speeds really rapidly, going from WAY fast to slow, WAY fast to slow. I could not it good conscience do nothing. (The way he was driving indicated that he was on something, and even if he wasn't, he needed to be stopped.) I tossed Brian the phone and told him to find the number to someone who could do something, and I sped up to try and get his license number. Brian was not able to get anyone from the DPS on the phone, and I could not get close enough to get his license number.

Watching him continue to swerve in and out of traffic, I decided to call 911. We entered Martin County and I told them what was happening, where we were, and then gave a description of the driver. As we passed into Howard County, a dispatcher called me and asked if we could see him. I couldn't at this point, but gave another update as to where we were. Shortly after, the sheriff passed us looking for the crazy. We knew there was a slim chance they would catch him.

90 miles down the road, we approached flashing lights. They had caught him!! Crazy guy was pulled over!! I, of course, will never know if he was just a really bad driver or if he was actually on something, but I feel much better knowing that he got pulled over. If you see crazies on the road, call someone!! Don't do nothing!! The dispatchers had to pass this call through 3 counties before someone caught this guy, but it worked.

Okay, off my responsible-driving soap box.

I hope you had a fabulous holiday, and I hope that you have an even better New Year's!! Be safe out there! Don't get crazy! (He he... That's for you, Zip!)

Update

Okay, so last night when Brian was in recovery, he coughed against his breathing tube and caused negative pressure in his lungs, thereby drawing fluid into them. So, it became extremely hard for him to breathe.

We had to stay overnight in the ICU because he needs oxygen right now and needed more constant care than the regular hospital floors offer.

Talked to the pulminologist this morning and his chest x-rays don't really look much better. He has got to work on coughing up some of that fluid, and also being able to expand his lungs further with the sperometer (?). Anywho, looks like we're staying another night here.

As far as the surgeon goes, he says that the appendectomy/ surgery part of everything is looking really good. So, we just have to get his breathing right and we'll be okay.

Thank you all for your prayers, well-wishes, visits and food. We truly could not do this without you!! (Well, I couldn't- Brian's getting food and rest from the hospital staff!!) :)

Thank you, thank you!! Will keep you posted.

Appendectomy

Update: 8:06pm. Appendix was ruptured. We're staying overnight due to the major doses of antibiotics.

How do you spell appendectomy?? Okay, so last night around 7:30pm, Brian started having sharp, stabbing stomach pains. (I thought it was gas...) Turns out it wasn't... He was up all night with horrible stomach pains. This morning, I asked him if I should call the doctor, and he said yes, which was a sign to me that he was completely miserable.

So I called the doctor, and he told me to go ahead and bring him in. When we got there, the doctor couldn't localize the pain within his stomach. So he sent us straight to the ER for a CAT scan. Of course, when we got to the ER, we did not get in right away. (In fact, I had to throw down some serious angry words before we got into the ER...)

Anywho, after we got Brian some morphine, he got his CAT scan, and sure enough, Brian needed an appedectomy.

So, long story short, after 8 hours in the ER, Brian went in surgery at around 6:45pm. Now we're waiting. Ick.

Boo.

My heart is burdened for my friend. I have this friend who is sunshine on a cloudy day, and she got some really icky news yesterday. Really, really icky. You know when you would give ANYTHING to heal someone's heart? You'd give anything to make it all go away? And the trouble is, you can't do anything at all. For in reality, there's nothing to be done except wait and see what God has in store.

I cannot share what is not mine to share, but I can ask you for this, because I know you guys are REALLY good at this: prayer. Please pray that my dear friend will find solace in her heart. Please pray that God will grant her the serenity to accept the things she cannot change. And more than anything else, please pray for healing and strength for my friend. God has wonderful, beautiful things in store for her, even when she cannot see it right now.

Thank you, friends!

It's NOT a Pageant!!

So I'm in a Christmas Pageant... Except it's NOT a Christmas Pageant! My friends Casey and Melissa insist on calling it that to tick me off, and it's not!! Well, not in the sense that you picture with actors telling the entire story of Christ's coming through a dramatic production. It sort of is a pageant in that there are actors, and there is a play, but it's so much more than that!

McKinney Fellowship Bible Church is the church that Brian and I have attended for several years now, and this year, they decided to take on a full-blown Christmas event. I'm talking five different actual productions plus Mainstreet activities (crafts, bake sale, roaming carolers, etc.). It's pretty insane and at this point, I can't promise you that it's all going to come together without quite a few disasters. So come if for no other reason except to see me forget my lines and hear the children with no supervision murder each other backstage. (Hehe... I actually almost witnessed this very thing last night, except I was going to be the murderer...) There's the Christmas spirit!! :-)



A Christmas Festival Dec 12-13, 6:00-9:30pm

"McKinney Fellowship will come alive with crafts, music, baked goods, and multiple performances on two main stages each night, all the while carolers and musicians may weave through the evenings’ program. The main performances will range from smaller vocal teams to larger choirs, from children to adults, including a drama. And we are proud to bring you a version of Las Posadas, a celebration unique to the Hispanic heritage. Regardless of age, language, gender or taste there will be something for everyone at this year’s Festival!"

Learn more about the McFBC's Christmas Festival here.

Purchase tickets here (they're $2 for BOTH nights, people!)

Side note: This is my first production since the highly-acclaimed, award-winning production of "Charlotte's Web" my junior year in Pickwicks. (I was a narrator then too!)

Feeling (not so) Thankful

Well, we had a wonderful Thanksgiving with Brian's parents in Lubbock. Susan!!! I made pies!!! Check it out- they actually turned out decent!!!


Apple Pie


Buttermilk Pie

It was just a great time of togetherness and family, and forgetting. (I mean how when you leave town, you get to forget about everything at home that weighs you down, and just be happy-go-lucky for a few days.)

Then, we were driving home yesterday, and it all just slapped me in the face. (You know, all the stuff that you left at home comes rushing towards you at 100 miles an hour, ready to greet you!) I wanted to keep driving and driving, because as long as we were driving, I wouldn't have to face reality.

You're probably wondering what's going on here that I wouldn't want to come home... And I don't want to bore you with the details. (Truthfully, that's a cop-out. I'm just not ready to share yet.) But please, please be praying for wisdom for Brian and me. We really need your prayers right now. I promise I will let you know what's going on once I feel ready.

Anywho, having this weight kind of hanging over me all weekend, I haven't really stopped and really thought about all I have to be thankful for. I sat down to write this post, and there was another slap in the face! I feel so self-absorbed for not having spent some time over the holiday really listing out the things (people, events, etc.) that I have to be thankful for this year and giving honest, straightforward thanks to God for all He's given me. So that is on my agenda for this week... I'll give you a taste now, but I do so with the caveat that this is what I'm thankful for, and by no means am I intending to boast about all I have (because I know that I have a TON to be thankful for...):

1) Family. My family is healthy. My family is happy. My family truly loves and cares for each other. So many other families cannot say the same this holiday season, and I feel so richly blessed to be able to say this. There have been reminders this entire past year that our life as we know it is fleeting, and anything can be gone in a blink of the eye- I WILL not take this blessing for granted.

2) My God. I think that too often I expect that God will just be there for me all the time, so I can choose to "leave" Him, or neglect to spend time with Him, and He'll be there when I get back. And it's true- He WILL be there for me when I return. However, I have been so incredibly challenged this year to stay "in touch" with God at all times. Asking Him about everything that's going on, thanking Him for small blessings, just chatting with Him about my day. It's an intimacy that I've never known before, and it's changed me. I'm not the same, and I'm very thankful for that!

3) My Husband. I'm madly in love with him!! This year has been hard. We've had to make a lot of tough decisions together, and the love that has grown between us in spite of these hard times is amazing. I know that it's God bringing us closer and closer together, and having seen how love blooms despite the stormy weather, I treasure those years to come, when I know our love will grow even more.

4) New Friends. Words cannot express what your presence in my life has meant this past year. I've had the extreme pleasure of getting to know a group of ladies this past year who I CANNOT imagine my life without. We knew each other before this year started (met last year) but '08 finds us in a new place. We've shared some incredible times, and we've shared some rough times, and now, I'm not "me" without "them". I love you, I truly do!

5) Old Friends. Is it weird to be thankful for Facebook?!?!? (Uh, yeah, think so...) But regardless, I am! I joined the Facebook revolution this year and have re-kindled old friendships that I thought were long gone. I couldn't be happier to have these folks back in my life, however far away they are. We've been able to share some truly authentic times together. Some more gut-wrenching than I ever thought possible, and some more blissful than I've ever dreamed of. I thank you for your willingness to have me back in your life (from a looooong distance)!

6) The Team. My rock. You mean more than you'll ever know.

There's a ton more that I could list, but this is what counts. This is what I know I could not live without. This is what I know God has blessed me with. It's not things. It's not stuff. It's people who love me more than I deserve. Thank you- I'm thankful for you.