Loved and Engraved

Some of my regular readers have probably been wondering about the frequent posting these last few days after several weeks of not much posting because I'm so busy. Well, let me tell you.....

I really enjoy blogging and although I often feel guilty for the time I spend here, I think I'm seriously addicted to this blog world. I usually get up early and spend some time first thing catching up with my blog friends as a way to wake up. Then I usually do some studying or homework assignments for school, before getting ready for work. I usually work a pretty full day and then come home and collapse in my love seat recliner with my laptop. And it's time for more blogging and studying.

So Sunday morning I woke up especially early (around 3:00) and had some serious thinking time. Among the things I thunk---was to develop a pattern for my blogging. I came up with the following pattern for my blog. Sunday's Inspiring Scenes, Monday Memories, Tuesday's Tribute, Wednesday Weekly Review, Thankful Thursday Alphabit, Friday's Furball Tales, and Saturday Silliness. So I figured I'd give this a try and see how it goes. I always reserve the right to change my mind and pretty much do whatever I want. I'm really not a very predictable person and really like the freedom to change my mind. I'm pretty whole hearted with whatever I'm doing at the moment, but when I grow tired of something then I can move on pretty quickly.

So to review this last week.....
We've been pretty busy at work with the final tax deadline (Oct 15) quickly approaching. We still have LOTS of returns with those last few questions or bits of information outstanding. So I anticipate the next couple of weeks to be really difficult.

Another of my early Sunday morning thoughts resulting in me spending almost all of my Sunday in the kitchen. With my full schedule of school & work outlined above, I really have not been cooking much and our whole family has been eating way too much fast food. I had been to Wal-Mart Saturday evening and purchased groceries. While in the store I thought of several foods I'd enjoy cooking (and eating) and bought the ingredients. Then Sunday morning I was thinking and realizing that when I got home at 7:30 or later each night, I would no longer be in the mood to cook. Soooooo I decided to cook for the week on Sunday. So I cooked the whole 5 lb package of ground chuck and then divided it into various main dishes. Before the day was over I had cooked 7 different main dishes and put them in the freezer or refrigerator. Again because our schedules are all mixed up, I put a list of what I had cooked on the frig. So hubby, 22 year old son, and I just pick our leftover for the meal whenever we want it. I have food to take to work for lunches and something ready to warm up when I get home.

On the school front--
My online graduate school class requires some formal writing assignments about accounting topics. Our first of 4 papers was due about a week and a half ago and I stressed big time over this because although numbers come easy to me, I really have to work at formal writing. It takes me forever to write, read, edit, read, edit, etc. I wanted to do well, but I really wasn't certain that I fully understood what she wanted. So after many agonizing hours I had turned my paper in on time. Sunday afternoon, I discovered that she had graded my paper and returned my paper with the following comment. "This is certainly one of the few quality critiques I have read. It was refreshing after reading about 70 others." And I made 95. She did give a little more feedback individually for how I can do better. Then yesterday she posted to the whole class and basically told us how badly we did as a class. THEN, she spelled out in detail several things I had wished to have known before turning in the first assignment. Anyway, now I have about a week and a half to write another one. It will still be time consuming and I'll have to work at it, but at least now I feel like I know what she wants.

Now--I'll end my weekly review with a couple of prayer requests.
#1--Pray for my husband to find a job that he can do and enjoy. It's a really long story, but the super short version, is that he was injured at work about 18 months ago. Worker's comp paid him for a while, but all those benefits have been gone for a long time now. He has several physical limitations and doesn't really know what he can do. God is good and has supplied, but we really need for Garry to be providing some income.

#2--Pray for my middle son (22 years old). He's the paramedic, lives at home, in nursing school, great kid!!
He has ulcerative colitis and PSC which have been determined to be caused by a problem with his immune system. He was diagnosed a few years ago and takes regular medication which keeps it under control for the most part. There isn't a cure and he will just have to manage it for all his life. He knows there is a good chance the PSC will lead to a liver transplant in years to come. Well, he's had a flare up over the summer and the doctor has been adjusting medications, etc. They finally had to put him on steroids. Now the steroids are causing numerous side effects. So now he has meds to control the side effects. They are starting to wean him off the steroids, but it is a long, slow process. I am praying for it all to get back under control.

WOW--that was long!!!