To God Be the Glory

There are those of you who know me recently and for you, Lauren was just part of the package. A package that was growing in intellect, creativity and spiritually.

But for those of you who have known me almost all my life, you have been witnessed to a child conceived out of wedlock and born of a mother who in her youth was foolish and selfish and could not possibly understand the redemptive love of Christ. You have seen the very hand of God, grow and bless in the life of Lauren in ways that only His loving, compassionate and goodness can.

Today as I reflect Lauren turning 18 -- legally an adult, I am humbled beyond words. Which one of us, who were there the day I found out I was pregnant and then the day she was born could have planned the steps of her life to where it is today? Her young life has seen its share of undeserved heartache at the hands of her selfish parents, but her God would not let that go to waste. He would protect her, ensuring that she would know Him personally.

I am so profoundly grateful to many of you who have faithfully prayed for me and for my daughter over the last 18 years. Many of you who loved her, cared for her, babysat her, encouraged her, taught her and helped me to raise her.

I remember after she was born and I was nursing her, I thought, "What in the world will God do with us? What could our lives possibly amount to?" She may not be the person I thought she was going to be, but she is exactly who she should be. And it is far beyond what I could have accomplished. She is a young woman who knows and loves the Lord Jesus.

Happy Birthday, Lauren.

Lump Eck Toe Me #3

Yesterday, I had my third minor surgery on my left breast. It was the exact same procedure that was done as seen in my post here last year. The reason for the surgery is the same as last time; the test results from a biopsy showed "abnormal" cells. In fact my surgeon said she would be okay if I opted to forego the surgery, but still recommended it as a super precautionary thing.

Danny and I decided we'd better go for it. We are at an "easy" time in our lives and have good health insurance and he has the flexibility to care for me (just like last year). Plus this gives me a legitimate reason to pop percocet.

I knew God was going to get me thru just fine when my surgeon showed up in a UNC surgical cap (GO TARHEELS!). Then she asked if I wanted snickers or a kit kat after surgery. I love that Dr.!

Since I knew I wouldn't be able to wash my hair until Sunday or Monday, I made sure to wash and fix it Thursday night. I had several nurses tell me how pretty my hair was when they prepped me yesterday. Then I felt embarassed wondering if they thought I did my hair for the surgery. Vanity is a curse. And if for some reason I didn't make through surgery, it was probably important I still looked good, ..... well dead.

Surgery is so weird especially when they start to anesthetize you. This is my memory of it all. Danny was in the pre-op room with me. We were saying good bye as they administered the "I don't care juice" in my IV. The nurse said to Danny, "It will hit her in about 30 seconds when we go around the corner." And it did. But I was fighting it trying to concentrate on the signs I was passing as they rolled me to the operating room. I was trying to focus on the lights in the ceiling and convincing myself, "I'm okay."

The operating room was cold and everyone seemed in a good mood. It felt like they threw my body from the bed to the operating table with ease. There was a Lionel Ritchie song on and my surgeon commented on it and I remember saying, "Hey, I have this on my iPod." To which she retorted,"We played it just for you." And that was the last thing I remembered.

I slept on and off yesterday and was fairly comfortable. Today, the pain is noticable but I'm not in any major pain this morning. I have been surviving on Tylenol because I ended up throwing up my dinner last night. Probably due to the anesthetisia, but it could be percocet related too.
BTW, percocet makes you constipated. And even as I type this, Danny handed me some prunes, a metamucil cracker and water. I feel so sexy.

Thank You

Thank you to the men and women who have and do serve our great country. I am often saddened that as each new generation emerges, they seem less and less aware and down right ungrateful for the sacrifices our military men and women have made. I am saddened that there are men and women who have spent their entire lives serving our nation with integrity, and yet there is a generation of younger military service people who do not hold to living their lives with all the honor of this calling. I don't mean to sound like an old foggie!

Mostly I want to take a moment to honor my Danny for his 20 years of service to your country first as a marine and then in the Army National Guard. He served in two peacekeeping deployments: 1 in Bosnia and the 2nd in Kosovo. Even though they were peacekeeping missions, they were considered combat zones.

He will credit the military for many good things in his life and how it has shaped him as a man, father and leader. He has always served with enthusiasm and a deep respect for his responsibilities even though it took him away from his family.

One of the things I think is cool is how his service has affected Lauren. Because of Danny's example, she initiates thanking military personnel we might see in public.

We need to be raising a generation who fear and love the Lord, but who also honor and respect our military.