R.I.P.

Sadness abounds in my heart. As I ponder the inevitability of death, I am overwhelmed with emotions ranging from abandonment to confusion to peace. My Auntie Ruth had a full life, she was in her early 90s and was married to a wonderful man, had loving children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. My grandmother’s best friend will be missed by many; family and friends alike.


Death is a familiar word these days. My office has had sadness after sadness: a co-worker’s friend’s husband, a co-worker’s husband, a co-worker’s cousin and now my great aunt. The horror of these deaths is that they have all been within the span of six weeks.

As a Christian, I know that there is life after death. I do not know the spiritual walk of any of those that have recently passed away. My prayer is that they all knew the Lord and believed in Him.

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” Matthew 5:4

Life



A friend of mine just lost her husband due to a freak accident. He was only 47 and they had only been married since August, 2008.

I am mentioning this because it has great impact on me. Life is too short for nonsense. There are things I do without thinking of the effect it will have on others or me as time goes on. I do not want to live like that anymore.


I am not looking to have a “crazy, wild time” ~ actually,  just the opposite. I want to surround myself with the things that matter in the long run; family, faith, volunteering…

Hanging with friends is fun and gives a dose of laughter; however, I find that my focus has drifted from the important aspects of life.

I am not looking to be remembered for whom I am or what I did. I want to be remembered as one who shared the light of the Lord by who I was and what I did through Him.

Gonzaga

My daughter has now confirmed her acceptance into Gonzaga University for Fall, 2011.  Right on!  I am one proud mom.  She is transferring from a 2 year college and is currently debt-free.  I am very impressed with her motivation, thoughtfulness and persistence in moving her education forward.

She just finished finals and is on spring break.  After Spring quarter, she is even taking a class in the summer to get a bit ahead of the game for next school year.  She has chosen to live at home and I am all for that.  It is easing me into the "empty nester" season of life.  Even though she is living here, she is busy with school, work and her boyfriend. 

Furniture

My latest purchase for my home.  Now I have a completed living room ~ two chairs, a loveseat and an oversized ottoman.  I eventually need to get a smaller dining set.  The one I am using is from my dad and his wife.  It is a wonderful oval-shaped table seating 6 or more; however, my house is too small for the set.  I need to find a 2-4 (at the most) chair and table set.  No hurry or worry :-)

I am so blessed to have been able to find my little home for my daughter and I ~ even though she is now 20 and won't be here much longer.  I will soon be an empty nester.  I am enjoying her input on the house and landscaping.  I thank the Lord for our relationship and bond that will last a lifetime.

Lent

I grew up Catholic ~ first communion, church on Sundays, confession, confirmation... As an adult, I belong to a Non-denominational Christian church.  I have decided to observe Lent this year.  I have in years past, but not the last few.  I am going to abstain from dairy products and I am going to read in the Bible on a daily basis.  I am writing this in my blog to stay accountable.  I will update on a regular basis, even if it is a sentence or two with another blog posting.

My goal is to have both of those habits ingrained by the time Easter is here and keep on going strong.

Not Quite Spring Yet

We got a bit of snow the last couple of days (over a foot).  Now we get to enjoy some sunshine and frigid temperatures ~ LOL.

We were talking at work that it wouldn't be such a disappointment to have more snow and cold weather if we hadn't had the lovely 40-50 degree temps recently.


Completely different subject:  My vacuum is on the fritz.  I want to pull up our carpet but will still have throw rugs or an area rug, so I think I will be getting a new vacuum.

February is almost over and soon spring really will be here :-)

Where am I?

I am here.  It has been over a month since I posted anything.  The weather has been pretty nice ~ a bit of snow but for the most part some rain or shine.  Since the famous Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, we are in for an early spring (LOL).  The NW is such an awesome area of the U.S. to live - I love the four seasons we have.  I am ready for spring this year as I am sure so many people are after the heavy snow falls this winter.

My goal is to post regularly - not once month (haha); hopefully once a week.