Easy like Sunday morning...

I woke up early this morning, early enough for church but decided that since Carey agreed to go with me this evening at LSU, that I would wait and we'd go together. It makes my heart happy to know that he will go to mass with me, whether we have to negotiate a time or not, it's progress.

When we met, he hadn't been in years and I fell in love with the sweet, funny man before I realized that a man who didn't go to church and wasn't as passionate about the Lord as I was, wasn't for me. A smoker, from Gonzales (ha) - that's two strikes already, but my heart knew that he was what I needed, a complete opposite but the most lovingly blue eyes and a voice (singing) of an angel. God knew that 3 years of praying for a husband, the right person for me, would be answered with Carey.

Well I got off my blog and strolled over to the "Gaut"- Wolfe blog to see Chris posting about "God's Whispers" I pray everyday for Carey's heart to be opened to the Lord and I was thinking that this is God whispering to him through me about the important about Sunday mass and worship. What a crazy "coincidence" although I don't think those exist with our God. It's all planned. I guess that's why Jeremiah 29:11 is my favorite: "For I know my plans for you says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you hope and a future." This is what keeps me going to know that when and if we get our first home together that Carey and I will know it is a blessing from God and we will make a family to honor Him and to love Him with everything that we have.

He's asleep now, but I couldn't fall back asleep so I got up and finished the 2nd Steig Larson book, "The Girl Who Played with Fire," and what got me to start writing today was that at the end of the book they mentioned that Steig Larson passed away in 2004 shortly after he dropped off the manuscripts for the three books. How sad. I don't know if it was his dream to write these books but he would never reap the benefits of the success that would come from them. It just got me thinking of all the things that I want to do and need to do.

If I'm serious about writing my own book, then I need to do so and I need to start now so that I can reap the benefits and my family and friends can do the same.

Going to have birthday lunch with Mom and family in Donaldsonville, Brandi Villamarette's baby shower today and then Bible Study this afternoon. Why do the weekends go by so fast?

It's 9 am and I guess I should take a shower. Pedro is asleep on the other couch and he's just adorable. What will he do when we have a baby, he's soooo jealous and spoiled.

We shall see won't we, we shall see.

I sit here and read and pray and drink coffee and look around and see what many blessing and I thank God for what He's given me and I continue to trust in His plan. He never lets us down. Someone even called about the condo yesterday! YAY, and Jennifer and Travis Creel, Danielle and Doni's neighbors, sold their house yesterday. SUPER excited for them and well it gives me hope that it'll work out for us too!

I'm a ninny. I'm not sure how you spell that but I'm one of them. I cry all the time for the most unemotional things. Watching Oprah and I'm just boo hooing. Then again this is really sad: I watched the Bachelor the other night and cried then too. I hear these stories about struggles in other peoples lives and realize how wonderful my life is and how I'm somewhat selfish to think that I want more.

I'm just so blessed. I'm even more blessed now than I was a week ago because my Dad is home and doing well. And yes I'm jealous. There is that one "something" that every person wants and knows someone else who has that something. It's just our nature to want more. I grew up without a lot of things that most children had, but at the same time I had a lot more than those on the opposite end of the spectrum.

I realize we didn't start of 2011 the way we had hoped, but that means it can only get better. I think this year is the year that Carey and I will have our first home together and maybe even start a family.

How exciting to think that this time next year I could be living in my own house (not a condo) and be a Mom.

Winter jam 2011 is coming to BR and it's a Christian Jazz Fest type music extravaganza and I'm super pumped about going.

Carey and I also started talking about going to Vegas. I learned that Joni and Marvin have also mentioned that they may go there soon too, I'm hoping we can coordinate something and go "together." That would be SOOO fun.

Winning Dad...

6 days ago at 12:45 am I got a phone call. It was my mother. I then knew it was not a good one. With tears in her voice, if you know what I mean: "We're taking Daddy to the hospital." I don't remember anything else she said, less than 30 minutes later, I was in the Emergency Room at Our Lady of the Lake hospital waiting for a helicopter to arrive with my daddy.

Jason, Carey and I watched as the paramedics, my father intubated, rushed into the ER. I prayed the Rosary and the Chaplet of Divine Mercy and thought, "Please don't take my Daddy!" When I finally got to see him, I was so overwhelmed with emotion. Nurses and doctors had no idea what was going on. And we really wouldn't know for 4 more days. I initially thought I'd be going home without my Daddy. Bronchitis, fluid in the lungs, too much smoking, irregular kidney function...all a combination of things caused him to get weak and fall.

It has been one of the most exhausting weeks of my life but if it has caused my father to quick smoking, I'll do it all over again to see him quit. He was put in his own room today and I'm thankful to my heavenly father for His blessings and answered prayers.

I'm sorry that it takes life or death situations to make us realize how important life is. I need to start spending my time with my father and my friends, my nephews too! I need to get my husband to stop smoking before he ends up like my dad, with a breathing tube down his throat for 6 days. :(

I'm just glad to be home and can relax a bit. He's in a room and I'll go see him tomorrow and as often as I can. He is still a stubborn old man, but the first thing he said to Jason and I when the vent came out was "I'm throwing every G D ash tray I own away and selling all my cigarettes." Mom wasn't there to hear it because she had gone to Donaldsonville to clear up some loose ends. They took him off the ventilator early and said we could go be with him. She passed up the exit on the way back to the hospital because she was so excited. Two nights ago, or maybe one, I can't really remember, we were talking to him, he wasn't extubated yet, and Mom asked him if he would stop smoking or something of that nature and he started to cry. We were all crying, Jason, Mom and I too. We thought he was going to die. I didn't want to lose my Dad and Grandmother within 3 months of one another. I just couldn't think of how my Mom would take care of Maw Maw alone...I just prayed that he would be ok. I love my Daddy so much. He later told Mom that he was scared and that he wouldn't smoke again. This really scared him and he didn't want to be in that situation ever again.

Thanks be to our amazing and Awesome God for answering our prayers. I can't wait to go to Germany. Once the hospital bill is paid off Dad said we are taking a trip to Germany. He has always wanted to go there and so we may take a family trip.

I'm just glad he's alive. "Hey Dad!" is now embedded into my brother's memory.

I thought for a while we'd lost him; we've actually won him back, smoke free!