What up, yo?

I'm so behind on my blogging. But thankfully, most of you who read this are too! ;)

It's been a long time since Ash Wednesday. I did give something up for Lent--but it's fairly personal, so I'm not telling on the web. I will say this--it's partly giving up time to spend praying about something pretty specific. It has been a pretty neat time for me. Part of the committment is for very first thing in the morning. That is not easy for me--but it's amazing what a difference it makes in my day.

Here's the catch up:

Work is good. I leave on Monday for a quick trip to Columbus, OH for a conference. Should be cold.

Shauna is on her way into town as we speak!!! I'm so excited!!! She will be here until Sunday! We have lots of fun plans with lots of fun peeps! Most fun--on Saturday, Anne and I will be celebrating Shauna's b-day with her. We are finalizing the plans for the big day now. I think it's gonna start off w/ a 5k out in Warrenton--maybe end up in jail. Just kidding!!! Hopefully....

My family is doing well. My dad seems to be doing good, too. Many answered prayers and thank you for continuing to ask how we are doing. Very sweet and very appreciated.

I went on a date. Yes. A real, live, date. It went well. We are going out again. We'll see.

I may be buying a new car on Friday. Mine is awesome--and if you are in the market for an older car in great shape, I've got one for you! But b/c I have to have a totally dependable car--I don't want to push it much longer. I've put a lot of money in mine, and just don't want to put any more in. Say a prayer for me, would ya? I want to do the right thing in this for sure....

Signed up for my first tri of the season on March 30th. It's a mini--and it's backwards!! Should be fun...I've never rode my bike backwards before...hehe

Training for the Cherry Blossom 10 miler--ick. Scared. But running. That's good, I guess!

New shows (or new to me) that I am DVR'ing are:
-Ellen Show--she is so funny.
-Little People, Big World
-John and Kate, Plus 8

Oh--I got a new tv!!! It's a 27 inch, LCD, HDTV, flat screen. I heart it so much. It's probably really bad. Oh and it has a built in dvd player....***sigh***

That's pretty much all the news. I have some funny things here and there that need to be posted...won't be long now! ;)

Ash Wednesday

I wish I had a picture of the honking ashes I had on my forehead after attending a noon mass near work on Ash Wednesday. I didn't know until I walked the 5 blocks back, took the elevator up to the 5th floor, passed everyone I know and went to the bathroom, only to see a huuuuge cross of ashes the full length and width of my forehead.

I wiped some off, Lord forgive me. No wonder people kept staring.

As for lent, I did give something up--but I'm not telling what. I will say it's not my usual fare; no drinking, or caffeine, or whatever, it's more of a thought/action process. So far, I can't say it's gone great. But it's going.

Had a good weekend--low key. Finally on the upswing from being sick for so long. Meds are really working it.

It's so freaking cold here. Weather says it feels like 8 degrees. I say it feels like "hate." :) Oh yeah, I'm funny.

A life well lived....

Well, it's been a week now since my Granny died. She was 92 years and 15 days old. You just can't ask for much more than that. What a blessing to see God's mercy so evident at the end of her life. I have been praying for years that He would be merciful and sweet with her when her time to go home came...and thankfully, He was. I am grateful and humbled to have been there to see her the day before she passed. She wasn't communicative at all--and according to the doctor's she was completely blind-but she spent alot of that time with her eyes open looking at me. I don't know if she could see me, or even hear me, but I held her hand, told her I loved her, prayed with her and made peace with not seeing her again on this side of Heaven. It was a really sweet time and as much as I was torn about going home for it, it was absolutely the right decision. I will treasure those last few hours as much as I treasure the 34+ years of memories I have of her. Thank you so much for your prayers on her behalf and on the behalf of my family. They were felt immensely! We will miss her--my dad especially--but we will see her again and for that I am forever grateful.

Christmas Day 2004--sitting in my Daddy's chair --and a rare picture with a real smile!!

Christmas Eve 2005 with a few of the grandkids--(l to r-back to front)Mike, Me, Jeff, Randy, Billy, Tammy, Jimmy, Ronnie,

Michaelyn (great grand child), Gina, Granny, Tina

Christmas Eve 2005

Christmas morning 2006 with the best present ever!!