Look at the time

"Look at the time " – I love that I gotta go phrase.

Where did it all go? I seem to have lost one-half month of my life even though, on the whimsical

daylight savings time,

I re-gained a whole hour stolen from me 6 months ago. A don't know who it actually helps; but I hope they don't take the hour back, if I say I dont like it.

Let me ramble in an attempt to account for where some of the time went. If I don't count the all-consuming 3 adult and one non-adult children living in the house and the usual demands of church ministry and a full-time job commute, what do I have left?

Parent teacher conferences

the little man having finished a quarter was reviewed by his teacher with us his parents. It seems he is quite easily distracted with his own preferred interests and just generally fails at being neat or constructing legible, intelligible writing. Some call this laziness or lack of focus or prioritization. I was um disappointed but Dad was really not happy! So while the little man is off-track he has assignments guaranteed to cure what ails him - can't be worse than castor oil!

Medical appointments

there have been various and sundry check-ups. I’ve found that while my blood pressure is better my cholesterol has crashed off the charts. Does health every really just improve?

Chloe's nightmare

a beagle

It's a fact - Dogs like to dig and the closer they are to being a terrier, the more they love it. In fact, just about all breeds of dogs who were developed to hunt are infamous diggers. So you think Fido's habits are the "pits" and you've tried to ban him from the area and scolding is a waste of breath?

crossed with American-staffordshire is a guaranteed recipe for an escape artist.

Many Staffords also like to dig, therefore these dogs may need a more secure environment than some other breeds. An "L" of chicken wire attached to the bottom of the fence can prevent persistent escape artists from successful getaways. Other Staffords are excellent climbers. To prevent vertical exits from the yard, you can top the fence with a horizontal overhang or choose an unusually tall fence.

Our Chloe took another mad dash around the square block but didn’t complete the trip this time. This time she encountered some sort of kill-joy beast that left her with gashes on her hip and a gnarled foot with a hairline fracture. While part of me was screaming ‘see what you get!’ I was so distraught at her condition. I sat beside her hand feeding her water and food (when she wore the ever-offensive cone around her head), dressed her wounds, took her to the vet while he set her leg and provided antibiotics (hidden in pieces of sausage), and cleaned up behind her little accidents in the house because of her inability to be outside as much. She is recovering quite nicely now and being coveted by the other dogs for all the attention she’s getting.

Hostel'ities

I don’t know if we are running a boarding place for ungrown children in the midst of finding themselves – but the food disappears (where is my microwave popcorn?) along with toilet paper and other valuable commodities, the washing machine has died-vacuum cleaner doesn't work anymore, stuff is borrowed and never find its way back, no one wants to do anything because so-and-so should do or doesn't it either, and when dishes and stuff get broken – its all a mystery (maybe we have a haunt

?). Whatever happened to grateful to have a roof over my head?

Adult School anyone?

the husband is pursuing higher education – so he's immersed midway through the Evangelism Training Program (an accelerated ministerial education) of the Christian Reformed Church - a quite intensive 3-year course requiring a lot of reading and resulting work assignments. Even though he is very smart and adept, on top of his already brimming plate, this additional involvement requires understanding and patience on my part, sometimes amounting to having a lot less of his company and requiring a lot more tolerance. At this point or any time soon I, myself, can't even imagine going back to school *sigh* - and time aint on my side!

Major appliance decisions

having to replace the washer and dryer – the husband and I have been scouring the world of Maytag, Whirlpool, Fridigaire, front loaders, top loaders to replace the slow assisted death of our own.

We also entered the spa world of CalSpa, HotSprings, Caldera, Sundance (which we really like the product and the salesperson), even Walmart/Sam's and Costco along with others (many seen at the fair) and learned everything you'd want to know when purchasing one (you can even at some places arrange to try them out), encountering the good and the crafty sellers - to add a conducive relaxation element to our premises. Hey but we didn't have the electrical just right - sooo, getting that taken care of and then it's soak city!

The Dish on Direct - While we had Dish Satellite TV with HD which was conveniently through ATT (formerly SBC/PacBell), the customer service was horrible especially after they moved to the overseas system. Over and over we pondered switching to Direct TV – would it be worth the hassle? Wel,l it absolutely has been - a nicolishly ginormous improvement! The programming, extras, and picture quality (HD and non-), accommodation, are beyond compare. Customer Response is not only generally responsive (guess one can’t assume a correlation between those two words) but also generally quick.

Cingularly Sprinting - We also a little further back made the move from Cingular (also connected to ATT--formerly SBC/PacBell and thus the convenience) to fewer dropped calls on Sprint – yes, on Sprint! Again a great improvement in customer service - like night and day!

Fellowship

I really enjoy the women’s and couple's studies, praise team practice, and the monthly fellowships – they consume their own amount of time but are a profoundly great means of stress release and getting back in Christmindedness. Getting together with friends that are really family and seem to have a home away from home is the best medicine ever too - they know who they are!

Remembering to chil' lax

I of course take time when possible to watch movies, and take measure to de-stress my day, to stop and smell the roses, and just count my blessings and give God the glory in all things.

God's time

is His; not mine – no matter what clock I look at. He makes all things beautiful in His time.

Sometimes the time gets away from me, but I have to remember to live each day as unto the Lord for tomorrow is not promised. If I go to be will him tomorrow, I want to accomplish what today was due including sitting at and washing the feet of Jesus!

For I was hungry, and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty, and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in; I was naked, and you did not clothe Me; I was sick, and in prison, and you did not visit me. Then they will also answer Him, saying, Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to You? Then He shall answer them, saying, Truly I say to you, Inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me. Mat 25:42-45

“But one thing is needful, and Mary has chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her”. Luk 10:42

O - look at the time!
Let's call this an October wrap. Until next time ...