This has not been a good week.

First, I woke up in afib Monday morning, with a heart rate bouncing between 130-150. Now my Kardia device is showing tachycardia rather than afib, but my heart is still beating at around 115 beats per minute. I had hoped that the ablation back in February would give me years, rather than just months of relief from this. I am beyond frustrated, yet I know stewing over it doesn’t help. I sent a note in through the cardiologist’s patient portal and was told to increase one of my medications for the next 2-3 days to see if that helps.

Our microwave also died Monday. Some of you may remember that it died last October, and after five service calls over two months, they finally replaced it in December. And now this one has failed. Jim called the company, who sent out someone, who needs a part that will take five days to get here. Let’s hope this doesn’t become the rigamarole it was last year. This is a first-world problem, for sure, and there are bigger calamities going on. But it is a frustration.

Then Mittu slipped on their stairs and has a swollen, painful area on her lower back. They don’t think anything is broken, thankfully.

And I was trying to take a pan out of the oven Wednesday, and my finger slipped from the hot pad onto the hot pan. It hurt for hours, but feels fine now. I have a place on one fingertip that looks like a blister, but it’s flat and not raised. I’m thankful, because a raised blister on a fingertip would bump into everything.

It’s is a week like this when it is even more important to intentionally look for God’s hand in our lives. I’m once again thankful Susanne at Living to Tell the Story started this practice and encouraged others to join her.

1. Good fellowship. Last Friday, before all of the above, Jason and Mittu had invited some folks from church over and asked us to come, too.

2. Grandparent’s Day. Jason and Mittu had us over again Sunday night for Grandparent’s Day. It’s funny this holiday hasn’t taken off like Mother’s and Father’s Day. But I don’t think Jason and Mittu and Timothy have ever forgotten to celebrate it with us.

3. Jesse’s birthday. We celebrated my youngest son’s birthday this week.

4. The cake came out okay! Some years ago, Mittu made a gluten-free lemon blueberry cake that came out great and that Jesse loved. He has wanted it for his birthday ever since, but it has been a challenge for both of us. This time I asked if he minded if I went back to a GF lemon cake I’ve made before and just added blueberries to it. He was fine with that. But, just because a cake has turned out well for me before doesn’t mean it always will! Thankfully, it did this time, and he liked it.

5. My husband’s help. He made dinner for us this week, ran errands for me for Jesse’s birthday (even going to Hobby Lobby!), and has helped with dishes so I could try to rest as much as possible.

Bonus: Family history. My husband’s brother sent him a ton of information he’s gathered over the years of their family history going back several hundred years. I’ve skimmed some of it but haven’t had time yet to read it all. But the guys have enjoyed delving into it.

Looking for and focusing on God’s good gifts and blessings doesn’t make the problems go away, but my perspective has shifted. I no longer feel like a little dark cloud has been hovering over me all week. 🙂 God promises grace for every need.

How was your week?

This is a solemn day in America–the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. I can still remember the disbelief and the stunned horror and grief as we watched coverage of what was happening through the following days.

Truly, we “do not know what a day may bring” (Proverbs 27:1). Yet God doesn’t want us to live in constant fear of what may happen. When we know Him, we have the promise of His presence with us and His grace for whatever we need.

As horrible as 9/11 was, I miss the aspect of the days immediately after when there was more unity in our country and a general turning to God. I remember Congress people singing “God Bless America” on the Capitol steps on 9/12. My Facebook memories show that I wrote on the tenth anniversary of 9/11, “I’m grateful people turn to God in their hour of need. I just wish they realized they need Him every hour.”

I also remember stories of courage, bravery, and compassion coming out in the months following 9/11.

Today I’m joining Susanne at Living to Tell the Story to share the blessings of the week.

1. Grandchildren. When Timothy started school this year, his parents put us on the list of people who could pick him up from school, mainly so we could get him if they were at an appointment or sick or something. But he asked last Friday if Granddad could pick him up and bring him to our house for a while. It touches my heart that he likes to hang out with us and doesn’t find us boring.

2. Labor Day. We don’t really celebrate it per se, but it’s a good excuse to have the family over for burgers and to play games. Mittu made a yummy peanut butter pie.

3. Getting more done than I thought. I was a little disappointed and frustrated that I didn’t make any headway on my to-do list one afternoon. But then I realized I did get several things done–just not the things I had planned on.

4. Finding something I thought I had lost.

5. A husband who does the grocery shopping. I know I’ve mentioned that before, but I am thankful again/still.

I hope you’ve had a good week.

Some weeks. we have to look hard for blessings. Other weeks, they overflow. This has been the latter week for us. I’m linking up with Susanne at Living to Tell the Story to share the good things of the week.

1. Family visiting. My step-father, two sisters, and nephew from TX flew in Monday afternoon. Jesse came over–Jason and Mittu had previous plans. Then we all went to J&M’s house Tuesday night for a great dinner. My aunt and uncle from Knoxville were able to come to that, too. Then we followed my TX family driving down to SC to visit with two sisters and our niece and great niece there. We enjoyed so much the time together, the conversations, and the laughter. It’s been four years since we were all together, and I hope it won’t be another four years until the next time.

2. Celebrating sobriety. My nephew celebrated nine years of sobriety this week. We’re so thankful and proud of him.

3. Celebratory cake. My youngest sister asked Mittu if she’d make “one of her fancy cakes” to celebrate my nephew’s sobriety anniversary. She outdid herself.

4. Thrift shopping. The last time my TX family was here, we found out the very last might of their visit that they enjoyed thrift shopping. We have two thrift shops near us, so we proposed visiting them one afternoon while they were here this time. It was a fun outing and we each got a little something.

5. Discovering a good restaurant. When my TX family is here, they like to go to local restaurants rather than the chain places they can visit at home. There was a little sandwich place near the thrift shop that we’ve often wondered about but never tried, so we went there. It was so good. It’s a family-owned place that makes its own bread fresh every morning. I got a wonderful brownie there that took me three days to finish. We saw some other things on the menu we want to try, so I am sure we’ll be back.

Bonus: A sweet memento. My aunt brought something they had found while going through things–a Gideon’s New Testament with my mom’s name in the front in her handwriting. I don’t know if she used it, or if it was given to her and stuck in a drawer–but it is special to me.

Today (Thursday) has been a quiet day–washing sheets and catching up with computer stuff.

How was your first week of September?

It’s the last Friday of August and time once again to reflect on and share the week’s blessings. Thanks to Susanne at Living to Tell the Story for starting this weekly exercise.

1. More family time. My oldest son was here through last Sunday morning. This was a quieter than usual visit with no major outings except to each other’s houses, but we all enjoyed just hanging out, talking, and playing games.

2. My birthday. My family always goes out of their way to make my birthday special. Mittu made this pretty and tasty Texas Sheet cake.

3. Family photos. When everyone’s here, we try to get a photo of us all together.

4. Cracker Barrel take-out. Monday night, I had a craving for Cracker Barrel’s meat loaf. That’s not even what I usually get there, but for some reason I was hankering for it that night. I asked Jim if he’d mind getting take-out from there for dinner. It’s not his favorite restaurant, but he indulged me. Thankfully, he said what he got there (their Monday special of chicken and rice and a salad) was the best meal he’d ever had from there. Mine hit the spot, too.

I had also been wanting to try their biscuit beignets, so we split an order of those for dessert. They were so good. We had enough left over to last for a few days.

5. Haircut coupon. When I don’t need a haircut, I see coupons for the place I go all the time on Facebook. When I am looking for one, I can’t find one. Their FB page (and phone app) just has ads, not coupons. We’ve had coupons pop up on sites after we’ve discussed the business or the product, which is creepy. But I decided to see if I could work the system this time. 🙂 As I scrolled through FB, I kept repeating the business name out loud. “OK, Facebook, I need a coupon for _______.” “Hey, Facebook, where are your coupons for _______?” Nothing happened. I force-closed the FB app and opened it again–and there was my $5 off coupon right at the top. 🙂

When I told the stylist about this, she said next time I see a coupon but am not quite ready to use it, I can just take a screenshot. All they really need is the coupon code. Good to know for next time.

How was your last week of August?

I can’t believe August is more than half over already. Sharing our favorite blessings of the week with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story doesn’t make time move any slower, but it gives us a chance to pause, reflect, and be grateful.

1. Family all together. My oldest son is here from RI for a little over a week. Jesse took a couple of days off to be here more for Jeremy’s visit, and Jason, Mittu, and Timothy have been here as much as they could between sickness and school. We haven’t had any big outings this year, but we’ve enjoyed hanging out together, talking, eating, and playing games.

2. Jeremy’s birthday. So glad he could be here for it!

3. Taking turns with meals. Mittu made dinner one day, Jesse another day. We’re going out tonight for my birthday and to Jason and Mittu’s tomorrow.

4. A pretty fix. The pocket of my housecoat had a hole worn in it. I thought I had some leftovers from a craft project years ago–you used to be able to buy sets with iron-on designs to decorate tee shirts and sweatshirts. I rummaged around in a drawer in my sewing/craft room, and, voila, found just what I needed. I put a regular iron-on patch on the inside of the pocket and this floral design on the outside. It’s a little off-center to cover the hole, but that’s all right. I like how it turned out. The ironed-on part is a little stiff, but I’m glad I could extend the life of my housecoat a little longer.

5. Cooler temperatures. We were under a heat advisory this week, but the next several days it looks like we should be in the 80s rather than the 90s.

How was you week? Have a great weekend!

It’s been a busy week, but a good one. I’m pausing with Susanne at Living to Tell the Story to share blessings from the week.

1. Jason and Mittu’s 17th anniversary! It’s hard to believe they’ve been married that long! It was fun to look at wedding photos in my Facebook memories.

2. Timothy’s first day in a new school. He has been taught at home with an online curriculum up until now. Jim texted to ask how his first day went, and he said, “Cool and amazing.”

3. Dinner and catching up. Jason and Mittu brought dinner over Tuesday night, and we got to hear more about the school experience and what classes Timothy is taking.

4. Anticipation. My oldest son is coming to visit for a little over a week.

5. Jim’s help. I have a master cleaning list that I work through before someone comes to visit. I asked Jim if he could sweep and vacuum the floors for me. He did that plus a few other things on the list. I usually divide it over a couple of days, but we got most of it done in one.

How was your second week of August?

Fridays keep coming faster than ever! I’m thankful Susanne at Living to Tell the Story started this weekly practice of pausing to count blessings.

1. A ladies’ event at church. Our church has a “Girl Talk” event periodically, with the most recent one occurring last Saturday. The topic this time was self-concept and how the Bible tells us to think about ourselves. One woman spoke about the topic, with some opportunities to ask and answer questions. Then a lunch was catered. I had a few really good conversations with different ladies afterward–not on this topic, but on others. All in all, a good morning.

2. Voting and another good conversation. Our state and local primaries this week garnered a longer line that I have ever seen at our polling place for a non-presidential election. About half-way through a line that snaked around and across a high school gym, I found out the lady behind me taught at a school where I knew a teacher. “Do you know so-and-so?” led to a conversation that was not only enjoyable, but helped the waiting time fly by.

3. Good numbers. I had a six-month appointment with my primary care doctor to discuss my lab work. I was concerned about my blood sugar, because my own readings at home had been high. But my A1C was better than last time, just a hair above “normal.” And my thyroid level is back in normal range after being too low last time.

4. Going the extra miles(s). Ladies at church were asked to make food for a back-to-school breakfast to honor teachers at our Christian school. When I signed up to bring pigs-in-a-blanket, I asked Jim if he could take them over for me, as I would have had some difficulties getting them there. He agreed to, but had forgotten he had another obligation that morning. Mittu was contributing food as well, and had also been asked to help serve, so I asked Jason, and he graciously agreed to swing by and pick them up for me.

5. An evening with Timothy and a dinner I didn’t make. Jason and Mittu had a meeting one night this week and asked if Timothy could stay with us. They offered to bring dinner as well. We just hung out in the family room and talked most of the night. Timothy played some videos of when he was little–his voice was so cute and high!

Bonus: We went to lunch with Jason, Mittu, and Timothy at our favorite food court for the first time in a long time. I tried a new Asian place which, sadly, was a disappointment. But I love a bakery there which makes “cronuts”–a cross between croissants and donuts. The regular ones are about four or five inches square, but they also make mini ones, about two by two inches. I like the smaller ones because I like all their flavors–chocolate glazed, glazed, and cinnamon and sugar–and this way I can get more than one. And, more importantly, we enjoyed catching up with the kids.

How was your week?

I’m pausing as always on Friday to savor some of the week’s happening before they fly out of memory. I’m thankful that Susanne at Living to Tell the Story hosts this weekly exercise in gratefulness.

1. Time with Timothy. We watched him Saturday night when his parents had a meeting. After dinner, we watched A Bug’s Life. I think he enjoyed it. 🙂 As I was putting it away, I looked over the DVDs and videos in our cabinet, most from when the boys were younger, and thought we really need to have more movie nights.

2. My blog’s 20th birthday! To celebrate, I am hosting a giveaway on my blog birthday post. God has taught me so much through it, and I am so grateful for the friendships that have arisen through it.

3. Family celebration. Jim told me he wanted to take the family out to a favorite restaurant to celebrate my blog birthday. That seemed maybe a little odd, but I won’t turn down a dinner out. 🙂 Then I heard talk that Mittu was making a cake for it, and Jim asked the restaurant if it was ok to bring it in. And then, as we walked in, Jim grabbed a gift bag from the car. This was going to be a bigger deal than I thought. 🙂 I was a little self-conscious, but I appreciated their love and thoughtfulness. We even Face-Timed with Jeremy at the restaurant for a little bit. Jim had put together a summary of what was going on in the world at the time I started my blog and how old we all were at the time, and then he had printed off my first and tenth blog birthday posts and read them out loud.

One of his gifts was taking the picture from the header of my blog and having it put on a coffee mug. He also added an “extra” in front of the “ordinary” of my tag line. 🙂

Mittu made this beautiful Coca-Cola Chocolate Cake, and Jason 3-D printed the “blog anniversary” decoration.

4. An excellent waiter.He was not only generally good, but he offered to being clean plates and forks when we cut the cake and take-home boxes so we could divide the remnants of it among ourselves.

5. A funny moment. Someone with the restaurant–not a waitress, but maybe the manager–saw the cake on our table and asked what we were celebrating. When we told her, she came over to me and asked me about my blog. As I was telling her, she told another server who came by, “This lady has had a blog for 20 years called Stray Cats.” 🙂

Bonus: Lunch with my friend Melanie yesterday at Red Lobster.

How was your last week of July?

I’m pausing in the midst of life’s busyness with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story to remember and share the blessings of the week.

1. Jason’s birthday. It’s always a joy to celebrate his special day.

Mittu made this adorable cake:

2. Timothy’s end of school year party. He actually finished a few weeks ago, but this was our first chance to celebrate. He didn’t just finish the school year–he finished the sixth grade! Thus Jason 3-D printed this topper for the chocolate cheesecake Timothy requested–not only for the change in grade level, but for whatever the “sixes and sevens” thing is all about. :).

Mittu made this cheesecake as well. She’s batting 1,000!

3. My heroes. I was on my way to a ladies’ potluck dinner and prayer meeting at church when this happened:

My GPS was sending me a way I don’t normally go. I almost went the usual way, but there was not a lot of time to decide whether to take my usual exit or not. I decided to go with the GPS, but it took me on some back roads, where I must have hit something that put a hole in the tire. I called Jim, and he drove out to where I was and talked with me via cell phone the whole time. Then he called a tow truck. We waited half an hour or so, then we got a text that the tow was going to be an hour.

Jason was a couple of miles away at the church and had asked if there was anything he could do to help. So at that point I asked if it would be too much to ask for him to swing by and pick me up and take me home. So he and Timothy came. But it was just about time to pick up Mittu from the ladies’ prayer meeting, so we went to the church first.

By that time, I was getting a little light-headed and then headachy because I hadn’t eaten yet. So Jason went in and made up a plate from the potluck leftovers and brought them out to the car for me. Afterwards, I realized I could have gone in and done that. But I was still a little rattled.

When Mittu came out, they took me home and shared some of the leftover cake from the potluck with us, and I shared some of the broccoli salad that I had made for it with them.

Then Jim texted and said the tow truck was now expected to come at 11 p.m–we had first called them around 6:45. Poor guy!

I’m thankful for everyone going out of their way to help.

4. Warranties. We had just gotten those tires recently, so the repair and the tow were covered.

5. Friends who pray. A decision came up unexpectedly this week, and I was thankful that I could email a couple of friends and ask for prayer about it.

How was your week?

I’m joining Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story to pause, share, and be thankful for the blessings of the week.

1. Camp leftovers. Jim had some burgers, potato salad, and baked beans leftover from the guys’ camping trip last week, so we enjoyed those for lunches. Then he also had some teriyaki chicken leftover that he grilled for dinner one night.

2. A light cooking week. Besides the camp leftovers, Jim was away Wednesday night for a men’s get-together at church, so I didn’t have to make dinner. Then another night, I was tired at dinner time and asked if we could get something out.

3. Getting shower curtains and liners cleaned. I saw some time ago either from Martha Stewart or Hints from Heloise (remember her?) that you could wash plastic (or vinyl?) shower curtain liners in the washing machine with towels, and the towels help scrub them plus keep them from bunching up. I usually use rags rather than towels so I can use bleach without messing anything up. We have hard water here with lots of minerals which leaves a white residue on things that’s hard to get off. The spray cleaners only go so far. So every now and then I’ll toss the curtain liners in the wash, and then wash the shower curtains in a separate load. Two of my shower curtains need to be ironed. So all of that, plus stretching to get them all off their hooks and back on again, took a chunk of time. But it was satisfying to get it done.

4. Killing a bug on the first try. That may sound silly. 🙂 But I do count it as a blessing! When I walked into my bedroom last night, I saw a centipede scurrying across the floor. They move really fast, so I didn’t know if I’d have time to grab some tissues and then smash him. I thought about just letting him go, but then I’d wonder where he was and when he was going to come back out. Jim is usually the designated bug killer (it’s a subdivision in our marriage vows under “love and cherish” 🙂 ). But he was asleep. For some reason, the centipede just stopped as I walked past him. So I got a couple of tissues and aimed for him, thinking he’d take off before I reached him (which is what usually happens). But I got him on the first try.

5. Some productive afternoons. I had gotten discouraged after a few days of not getting things done that I needed to. One or two of those days, I was sleepy and took a longer nap than I wanted. But I had several productive spurts this week and got most of my to-do list crossed off.

How was your week?