JOY...

Hi Friends,

Today I am joyful because I choose to be. Joy isn't dependant on your circumstances...it's an attitude. I choose to be joyful by focusing on what I can do rather than what I can't do. I haven't blogged since Sunday, because I have been DOING a few things. Praise God!

On Monday I went out to the land with Bill, Molly, Nate, and Isaac. We spent the day there. Unfortunately, we had to leave Cameron at home so that he could work on some final projects for high school. Next Friday is his last day of school for the year.

We had a wonderful time at the land. Bill and Nate went down to the creek and observed some snakes. Then they managed to catch a very cute toad who we brought to the camp area to observe and hold before releasing him in the evening. I went on a small nature hike up to the future homesite. The view is beautiful and I was blown away by it once again. I also picked a bunch of wildflowers to bring home with us. Bill worked on clearing some more brush for the driveway. And Isaac helped with repairs on the trailer while Nate stayed busy cutting back trees in the driveway area.
We came home in the evening. As we left, we saw 3 beautiful deer on the side of "our mountain." Cam was done with his project and happy to see us when we returned home, especially since we came home with McDonald's for dinner.

Tuesday was my rest and recovery day after a Monday outside. We all slept in and then did any learning and chores in the afternoon. Today I had more energy again. My stamina is starting to come back after the chemo and my lupus symptoms are not too bad:-) So, today I was able to make a special delivery to Cam's school. He had a geography project and had to bring in a food from a different culture. So, I delivered brats with sauerkraut for him at school during his 6th period. Since that was last period, after delivering it -- I went and got a snack and then came back to pick him up. It's really nice to be able to do some driving again...I'm off the narcotics right now and so I feel safe driving again.

After bringing Cam home, I started doing a few things around the house when I was surprised by Bill coming home at 4:30...that never happens, so I knew something was up. He called us all outside to show us an RV that he bought. Yes, we already have a 5th wheel out on the land, but he got a really good deal on this one -- so now we have two campers to spread out in. I say kids in one, adults in the other. Although, Molly says boys should be in one, girls in the other. So, we'll see...I did tell Bill that two campers is enough, though. He can't buy another one unless he sells one of the two we already have. So, Bill had left his motorcycle where he bought the RV. I drove him to pick it up. Then we came home, had dinner, and went to church. We had a nice Bible study on Philippians and JOY. Gotta love it<3

We got home close to 9 p.m. Bill and the boys are still checking out the RV. I'm joyfully doing laundry -- 'cause it's a blessing to have the energy to do it. And my friend, Shirlene, called and might be coming with her son, Brandon, to visit tomorrow. I haven't seen her FOREVER, so that would be really great:-)

That's all for tonight...off to do a bit more laundry and then to bed. I've already taken my Ambien, so technically I'm on autopilot and probably won't remember this tomorrow. The joys of medicine. I wouldn't take it except Dr. Cohen insists that I sleep -- says it's necessary for my body's healing.

Much Love,
Michele