What a weekend.

Busy busy busy. Exhaustion. Pain. Stress. Ug. Trach....ug. Can't even describe. Eyes are a BIT better---Halleljuah for that!

Saturday we went to Costco. Again, this is a love/hate relationship for me. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Costco. The problem is, I love it toooo much. Ergo the hate part. My checkbook hates it. Thank God you can't use credit cards there, or I'd be in the poorhouse all from Costco purchases. They have EVERYTHING! I swear they pump the air full of some kind of pheromone that makes you NEED to buy things....

I ALWAYS use the Costco photo department. Well, Saturday there was a new guy there. I had a coupon for 50 free prints...perfect! That's about what I needed for my Christmas pictures to send out with cards. Awesome! Well, AFTER we got home, I realized that he didn't take the coupon off. I gave it to him, and I saw him writing on it, but he didn't use it!! Now I have to call them. UG. I had several other pictures to get (surprise, surprise, I know!) so I didn't really pay attention. Mistake number one. Mistake number two: I selected 50 of the WRONG pose from our Christmas pics. It's an okay picture, but it's not as nice as the one I wanted, and I am IRRITATED. That's what happens when you're too freakin' tired to know your own name.

Then my sister and her family came over for supper, and I made (from scratch thank you very much) chicken and dumplings, which, if I do say so myself, were amazing. I made two 9 x 13 pans, and it was ALL scarfed up. DANG!

So after that day, I was freakin' pooped. I fell asleep watching TV. That NEVER happens. It was so nice to just hang out with my sister though....she got me THE coolest earrings...she works at a retail clothing store, and gets a decent discount, plus they were on sale...anywho...they're long and delicate and have purple beads. Purple, is, of course, THE best color on the planet.

Sunday, after that marathon Saturday, I actually made it to church! WHo--hoooo!!! That's like twice in 4 weeks! Ended up bawling my eyes out to a very kind elder over a friend of mine who is hurting very badly, and having all kinds of problems...being attacked by the stupid devil like there's no end in sight. Asking for prayer for them...the guy grabs like 4 different people who are heads of this ministry and that ministry, the prayer leader, etc., and this friend has been there TWICE...and I've only been there like 5 times. This church (The River in Allegan) is AMAZING. This is the one that has the pastor that I've known since I was 8...he is a counselor there now. And the church consists of probably 100-150 people. It's not like it's some huge mega-church.

They were swearing in elders yesterday...it was just a cool place to be. I must have talked to these folks for an hour...Keith, Shelly, Ann, Gwen, and Kathy...THANK YOU. They all committed to praying for my friend and her family. It was just so neat to see all these people IMMEDIATELY want to help and step in. What a living, breathing picture of Christ in action.

And to my friend, who knows who she is: God is bigger than all this. He WILL see that all this works for your GOOD. I do not know how. But I know that I know, that I know that I KNOW He loves you and is GOING to help you through this. I love you so much, and I would do anything to help you....but I am so helpless. I can and will continue to lift you to our MIGHTY GOD, Who parted the Red Sea, who rose Christ from the dead....He IS ABLE to do immeasurable more than ALL we ask or imagine...I am claiming victory for you through the blood of Jesus!
If you need ANYTHING, call me day or night. I love you!!