no worries

God is so funny! I just have to tell you what happened. I wanted to post something about my problem with worrying about entertaining. Our friends invited us to go see a play with them tonight. Since they bought the tickets we thought we should buy dinner. After all, it's the least we can do. Plus I think they are on to my not wanting to entertain. They keep asking us when we are going to have them over?

So, tonight's the night. I bought the food (although I went to this great store and bought the sides), got a new candle to make the house smell "homey" (and pretend I am not stressed out). But the truth is... I am! I don't know how I lost my confidence in entertaining. Actually the more I think about it I've always had a problem with it. I think it's a gene because I remember my mother stressing out before entertaining. So... what to do about it? I know, be a Mary... not a Martha. What I've learned is that the more nervous I am the more times I really do mess up!

I want to be different this time. I want to be more relaxed. I think I'll put on some of my good praise and worship music and clean the house. These are friends we're having over. They are good friends. They would not like it if they knew I was going to stress out all day.

I usually like to add a song to my entry and I looked up a song from the play we are going to see and this is what I came up with. We are going to see "The Lion King" and guess what song I found? Yep, God is so funny!

Only with God can we have days with no worries!


Have a stress-free day in whatever you are doing!
Love,
Angie xoxo

given grace

Please if you have a second (after you listen to this song), jump over to my sister-in-law, Stacey's blog and read her post from yesterday! She and my brother have a prayer request that would mean so much to them. It's not life or death (or is it?) but it holds a special place in their hearts!

Thank you very much!
Have a great weekend, dear siestas!
I love you all,
Angie xoxo

sweet patients make me smile

It's Thankful Thursday.

I have a thirty minute drive home from work. I drove in silence today. Usually I listen to the radio or make a phone call (I know, I am very careful). As I reflected on the day I was full of joy. Part of it was that it's Thursday and I don't work on Fridays. But there was more. I was thinking about all of the patients I saw today! I have to admit... I LOVE them and I love my job. I love the one on one relationships I have with them. Today was one of those days when I truly enjoyed every single one of them. I also love how I get to use my hands. It's probably difficult for you to understand, but I really do enjoy it. I've been doing this for 23 years and I never dread going to work and the fact that I get paid for it is just a bonus.

I am blessed to work with some amazing girls. I admit, sometimes we feel like sisters and we are definitely family. We have to give each other a lot of grace. We are all very different, but I think we really have a bond and I love all of them in their own way. My boss is also a friend and a great guy to work for.

I learn so much from my patients and consider them friends. I look forward to seeing them every 3 or 6 months. I am surprised when they remember my family and ask how they are doing. We laugh together, cry together and I am so blessed to know them. God is so good to me and He gave me a job that is very rewarding.

I am so Thankful!
In His Grip,
Angie xoxo

My friend

I have this friend...(wink). Her daughter had a relationship with a guy that ended over a year ago. I should mention that this guy broke her daughter's heart. For some reason whenever her daughter seems to start moving ahead and getting over him, the guy makes a reason to communicate with her. He is clearly over her and is even dating another girl. So, why would he do this to her? He gives her crumbs and immediately her mind starts going a million miles an hour trying to analyze the situation. My friend gets so frustrated with this boy. She wishes he would just leave her daughter alone. She knows, all she can do is give her daughter to God and pray for healing. Will you please pray for my friend's daughter? She wants to get over him, she really does. And please pray for my friend who needs wisdom to guide her and point her straight to the only one who can heal her heart and bring her someone who will treat her like a queen!

My friend thanks you from the bottom of her heart!
xoxo

For Patricia

Good evening, sisters (and brothers) in Christ,

My sister, Patricia helped me get my husband's Animal Hospital on the number one spot when people do a google search. (It wasn't easy!) She helped me do it without me having to delete my blog. She and I were so excited when it worked! The next day she e-mailed me asking me to post this song to my blog as a little thank you to her. I've never heard of her before I just posted this. She is my sister's all-time favorite singer and she cried when she died. She asked us to watch it to the end.

The Great Mahalia Jackson - "The Lord's Prayer"

So, there you go Patricia... THANK YOU so much!
By the way... it is absolutely beautiful! It is a great addition to my blog!
I love you,
Annie
xoxo
p.s. I would have posted it for you even if you didn't help me!

THE TREE

Our Christmas Tree

This weekend we decorated for Christmas. We decided to use our artificial tree after going back and forth. We love the real one that smells good and is just plain... the real thing. But we decided we could save a little money by using the artificial one. I whined for a little while, but now I'm okay. My husband put on the colored lights although I prefer plain white ones. The first thing my husband did (while I wasn't looking) was put on stuffed animals from "Rudolf's island of misfit toys". I thought since the kids are gone we can finally have a "pretty" tree. Instead, we decorated it with all of the familiar ornaments that we've collected over the years. I love seeing the ones that date back from when the kids were in pre-school. Then, we used to buy them one from whatever they were into that year. I placed the one of a church that I gave my husband the year we were engaged. I also saw the one from when my son first started playing lacrosse. Then, I saw the one from Sigma Kappa (my daughter's sorority)! So much has happened through the years. I have an ornament from the year my sister passed away... and my father... and one from a little gift of perfume that I got from a family whose home we fixed up in West Virginia on our first mission trip.

I never really gave the tree very much thought. Until today...

While we were at church this morning the pastor was talking about the tree. THE TREE. The one that Jesus hung on and he reminded us how Jesus was born to die on that tree.

I pray I never take the tree for granted again. Whether it's real or artificial, decorated pretty or traditional or silly. I will walk by our tree every day. I will turn on the lights. I'll notice the ornaments and the angel on top. I will not look at it the same. I will smile and remember how much Jesus had to sacrifice for me... and for you! He's the best gift I have ever received! I'm a different person because of that tree.

I love our tree!
In His Love,
Angie xoxo

no one deserves it more...

I'm so happy for my sister! Today she was notified that she won a contest that entitles her to go to Kentucky to see Wynonna Judd's Christmas concert on December 18th. She will get to meet her and she gets 6 tickets! You must understand something. My sister LOVES her more than any other musician. (She compared it to me meeting and going to lunch with Beth Moore.) I will never forget the summer when she (and I) listened to one of her c.d.s (actually it was probably an album or tape) over and over and over again.

She had to send in an essay about her favorite Christmas memory. I have not read it and didn't even know she wrote it until today. She told me Wynonna will read it during her concert!

I would love to join her, but it looks like all of the tickets are accounted for. That's one of the joys of being in a big family! I could not be happier for my sister, DeNaze! No one deserves it more than her! She is probably the most generous person I know!


When I hear her sing the above song, it makes me want to think of some way to get there!
I'm so excited for her!
Thank you for sharing in the excitement!
Praise God for being SO good!
Love,
Angie xoxo

12-4-07 ***UPDATE***
My sister gave me permission to add this. It's the essay that won her the tickets to "meet and greet" Wynonna . Apparently the concert is sold out so she will only get 2 front row tickets. The plan is for her to take her daughter, Rebekkah! I can't think of anyone more appropriate to take...


"Family traditions are wonderful, I know because I grew up in a large
family that had many, especially during the holidays. When I raised my
daughter as a single parent, though, I often worked as a nurse's aide
on Christmas Eve or Christmas day, which used to sadden me. We had
very few Christmas traditions as she grew up except that we were
always with family. One year she was with my brother and his boys on
Christmas morning. Because it was impromptu, he didn't have a stocking
for her. He managed to produce an old black tube sock on which he
wrote her name in glitter and filled with candy. Over the years, she
had different stockings because of different reasons, of course, that
one being her favorite. Traditions are nice, they provide a certain
stability and memories, of course. But honestly, I have learned that
the one constant in life is change and being flexible and appreciating
what little you may have is the only way to get through life. People
have died in our life, babies were born, nothing stays the same and as
long as we realize this, we make the most of every day. That is the
tradition I have tried to instill in my daughter. Live and love, each
day, as if it were Christmas."