Clean as a whistle.

After Wednesday’s colonoscopy a Bible verse kept running through my head.

It’s taken completely out of context but read it for yourself and you’ll understand why it was so apropos: “There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known” (Luke 12:2 NIV). [Kind of makes you chuckle, doesn’t it!]

Isn’t that exactly the goal of a colonoscopy? To reveal what is or isn’t there.

Experts say colon cancer is one of the most preventable and treatable cancers. Adopting healthy habits and getting periodic screenings gives medical professionals the opportunity to take care of polyps before they turn in to cancer.

The recommendation is a screen colonoscopy at 50, followed by more screenings every ten years. Should polyps be found they are removed and though each case is different, you will probably return in 3-5 years rather than ten.

I don’t think anyone ever looks forward to a colonoscopy, but I have to admit this time I was almost welcoming it. That’s because five years ago three polyps were found and removed. I don’t ever want to risk colon cancer if there’s a relatively safe test that can prevent or provide early detection.

So just what’s involved? Well, drinking some icky tasting concoction that will have your colon clean in no time followed by a 10-15 minute procedure the following day that you are completely unaware of because you’re in a light sedation and in your happy place.

Recovery from the anesthesia is very quick because it’s not a general anesthesia– you wake up and your head is relatively clear right away.

A little blurry, but you catch my drift…the solution is definitely a big icky.

Colonoscopy over, polyps sent for biopsy, and in two weeks my follow-up doc visit. And I’m good to go for a few more years. Most of all I feel good about having had the procedure. Kind of like I took charge of my health by overcoming negative thoughts that surround having something done to that part of the body.

And my encouragement to you other grandparents is to speak with your physician and if recommended, that you indeed follow through with this important screening. No doubt you’ll discover as I did that when all is said and done you’ll realize it wasn’t nearly as bad as you perceived it would be.

Mimi

A place for everything.

 

The Container Store, yippee!

 

It’s not like I live in some back woods place. I’m in south Orlando for goodness’ sake. But I see commercials on TV or know of some great chains I wish were nearby and wonder why they aren’t.

We do have an Ikea. And after years of seeing commercials for Kohl’s they began popping up. Red Robin is also on my radar after having had a few opportunities to enjoy their burgers. But top of my list right now is a Trader Joe’s. There’s “talk” about town so I’m hopeful it won’t be too long.

And this week, after years of anticipation, the Container Store opened. This massive store must be like an amusement park to organizers, professional and amateur alike. I’ve never even shopped there but am eagerly awaiting my first fieldtrip because I don’t like clutter and do like opening a drawer or closet and having everything in its place.

As much comfort as this type of organization gives me, it truly can be a false comfort. If I have items I don’t need but am missing things I do need, even though they look nice on the shelf, what good are they? These items can take up space, making it look as though I am properly prepared when in reality I’m not.

Case in point. I made a new cookie recipe the other day using all sorts of items I don’t typically stock. (Okay already, they were healthy cookies so I needed coconut oil, almond flour, and organic honey. Who has that stuff anyway?)

But when mixing my dough I quickly realized I didn’t have the dark chocolate chips the recipe called for, only milk chocolate. In spite of my organized cabinet with the special basket for baking chocolate, I still missed this important ingredient because I assumed what I had on hand was what I needed.

I made the cookies and they were good but I do think using dark chocolate chips would have only made these better. Here’s the link to these yummy delights.

Point is I missed what wasn’t there because I assumed what looked good was correct. It was not.

The idiom appearances can be deceiving is so true. And while it was no biggie that my pantry didn’t house what I needed, my greater concern is how easy it is to deceive myself into thinking all is well with my spiritual life just because on the outside things look good.

I go to church and serve others. I talk about God and pray at supper every night. I even talk to Him throughout my day. And to others (even to myself) I look pretty good. But God is much less interested in what I look like on the outside and more interested in who I am on the inside.

Jeremiah 17:9-10 tells us “The heart is hopelessly dark and deceitful, a puzzle that no one can figure out. But I, GOD, search the heart and examine the mind. I get to the heart of the human. I get to the root of things. I treat them as they really are, not as they pretend to be.”

Father, may my inside—my relationship to you—be what matters most.

Mimi

p.s. Had a colonoscopy the other day. Oh boy! I’ll be posting about that experience soon.

Callan’s un-birthday party.

From near to far
From here to there
Birthday fun was just nowhere.
April is the month and the 6th was the day
But Callan Reid was too sick to play.

All the presents had been bought and wrapped. All the food prepped and ready. The house was cleaned. Everyone was coming. And all were ready for Callan’s second birthday party…until he got sick. Came down with the exact same gastro thing his brother had the week before.

The family had been to dinner and Callan had eaten a lot so the first time some of the dinner “came back up” you think No big deal…he just ate too much! Then it happens again and again and you realize he’s sick. No party, no nothing. Just taking care of a sick kid and changing sheets—lots of sheets.

The plans were laid
All prep had been done
But with young Callan sick
There’d be no fun.

At least no fun that particular day. Callan is better and the party has been rescheduled for later this month.

But have you ever experienced the stress of planning and prepping for something, only to have it interrupted or cancelled? Even if for good reasons you can’t help being disappointed and frustrated. You’ve spent a lot of time and money to make everything perfect, only to realize the event has to be postponed.

Maybe it was a trip – that almost happened to us last fall when a few days before our cruise our travel partner got sick. What to do? Should we cancel, too? Do we go without our loved one?

Or maybe it was a quiet evening home with your spouse. Kids were staying overnight with friends, the house would be quiet, and romance was in the air. Until some change of plans meant the kids would be home instead of with friends and that romantic evening just flew out the door.

Truth be told most of us don’t handle last minute changes too well. We like to think we do but if we really give voice to our thoughts we’re actually stomping our feet and complaining to beat the band when we don’t get to follow through on something that was so important to us.

This became all too visible to us this past weekend at church when the pastor talked quite a bit about complaining. He was referring to the Israelites who had had everything supplied by God. But they were never content with what He did for them. And at first you think Glad I’m not like them; I’m always grateful and never complain. Until you realize you absolutely DO complain and you complain about a lot.

I started thinking about my own speech lately (and remember your speech reflects your thoughts and intentions):

• Every single light red! Really? Are you kidding me? Can’t we even travel two miles without a long red light? After all, we’re on the main road.
• What’s with these long lines at Costco? Why can’t they have an express line? I’m only getting milk and everyone else has a packed cart.
• The new fan in your car just isn’t working properly. It’s hot in here. You need to take it back and have the place look at it. Man, everything is made so poorly these days. Your old fan never acted like this.
• Does this burger look like medium to you? I ordered medium and I really should send it back. But then you’ll be done with your meal and I’ll just be starting on mine. Forget it. I don’t feel like waiting. I’ll just eat it.

Unfortunately, these are real life scenarios in my recent life and it’s shameful to realize how selfish I’ve been. And how petty over things that really just don’t matter. In the scope of things, if this is all I’m complaining about then I think my life is pretty good.

So hubby and I were actually quite challenged by the message and are determined to make changes. Our new mottos after we say something we shouldn’t is “BWNC” (but we’re not complaining!). My hope is that in the long run we’ll continue to see the patterns that need changing and be willing to do what’s necessary to be grateful and trusting in God rather than full of complaints and bitterness.

Philippians 2:14-15 reminds us to “Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people” (New Living Translation).

Mimi

Poop Happens

Poop Happens

I guess it was bound to happen at some point, although I completely escaped it when my own were young. But last week Callan (who turns 2 on Friday) came to his Mommy holding up his hand, stating “Dirty.” Dirty indeed!

The yuck factor kicked in and Mommy stepped it into high gear to get the kid cleaned up. Oh, I shiver just thinking about it. Aren’t you glad I shared the picture with you!

Life kind of has a way of getting yucky, too. And sometimes it just hits you upside the head. All is well then wham! Someone gets sick. And wham! A job loss. Another Wham! Marital troubles begin.

We’re not expecting the unexpected and it often catches us unprepared. And when it comes, it’s dirty and we want to get rid of the problem.

Unlike Callan’s yucky hand, sometimes our problems are not so easily cleaned up or fixed. Sometimes we remain affected for quite a while. And sometimes our lives are altered forever.

And while not all problems or yucky situations can be easily remedied, there is one kind of dirt that can easily and most assuredly be cleaned. And that’s the soil of sin. The soil that separates us from our loving Father.

But there’s indeed an answer for this kind of dirt and it comes with great assurance of restored relationship with God.

“…if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness” (I John 1:7-9).

Callan had his hand cleaned and was good as new. (Hopefully there will be no repeat!). But better than that is knowing our loving Father completely cleanses our souls when we come to him seeking forgiveness.

Have a blessed week; and look for some birthday pictures and news coming soon.

Mimi

“I do it, Mimi.”

That’s just what the nearly two-year-old stated Monday when he wanted to use the ipad I held in my hands. New to the ipad experience, Callan is just a bit rough so it’s definitely something that must be done with an adult until he learns the proper finger swipe finesse.

English: An image of an iPad 2. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I chuckled at his resolve and resourcefulness in trying to obtain the goal as he clambered over the arm of the recliner right into my lap. He wasn’t going to give up! And while he was resolutely trying to achieve the coveted prize, you’d better believe I used the opportunity to get in an extra snuggle.

We raise our children to be independent so listening to Callan confidently state, “I do it, Mimi” shows me he’s growing up and learning new things. Yet this sense of independence is actually contrary to what God has in mind for his family. We are sons and daughters who need Him. But we often echo Callan with similar statements such as “It’s okay; I can do it on my own. I don’t need you God. In fact I don’t need anyone.”

I thought about my own kids and how we rejoiced as they matured and started making their own decisions. Greg and I found ourselves more and more in the hands-off position, though always available should they need us.

So often this is what we do with God – we become independent of him and at times rely on him as nothing more than a safety net. But God is looking for so much more than this; he’s after a relationship with us. One where we are completely dependent on him.

Our greatest example of this is Jesus. “I tell you the truth; the Son can do nothing alone. The Son does only what he sees the Father doing, because the Son does whatever the Father does” (John 5:19). And later on in John 15:5 he declares “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.”

It is definitely not easy to live a life dependent on God. I’ve been a believer for 45 years and I’m still learning this. But with Jesus as my example, my heart’s cry is “less of me and more of you God.”

Mimi

Is anybody listening?

Writing (Photo credit: jjpacres)

Today I had the wonderful opportunity of assisting two people on their way to blogging success.

While teaching my recent blogging class it became quickly evident that I was learning as much if not more than my students—both about blogging and about using WordPress. It also became apparent that I was thoroughly enjoying both the learning and the teaching.

Since the class ended I’ve had many opportunities to sit one-on-one with my former students, assisting with their blogging efforts. And it is extraordinarily rewarding. I guess this is why teachers are teachers. I had no idea how much joy I would receive from simply helping someone find a way to express their thoughts in a public forum.

One of the students today observed that when you take the time to post and no one comments on it, it can be quite a let-down. It makes you wonder if anybody is reading your posts or if anybody even cares what you write about.

I giggled inside because I’ve felt the same way. On one hand blogging is about you—YOU getting to express your views or share information and yet on the other hand we all like to know we’ve been heard. So when you take the time to post something, especially something you think is important, and no one responds back it can be very discouraging.

And this brings me to a few of my own observations: (1) sometimes people read your blogs and don’t comment. They may even agree with you or like what you had to say. But they don’t feel a pressing need to let you know. (2) Sometimes people aren’t reading your blog at all. Hhhmmph! Not much you can do about it except to keep writing, hone your skill, be engaging and if people still don’t read, they just may not be interested in what you have to say. It really isn’t the end of the world. (3) Since encouragement is always nice, I’m going to ask all you blog readers out there to post comments from time to time (not just to my blog, but to any you read). Why not take the extra minute or two and let the author know what you think. Doesn’t take a lot of time but can really be appreciated.

Maya Angelou reminds us that “A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.” So fellow bloggers – sing your song—whether or not anyone answers back. Just sing. Because you can!

Mimi

“Callan”-etics

One of the things we can’t help doing is comparing our grandkids to each other or to other children their age.

Konnor is very verbal and from an early age has been a yacker. Callan, on the other hand, is an observer. He talks when he needs to but often you simply see the wheels of his brain going round and round while he figures out how things work. Puzzles seem to hold an attraction to an extent that if you turn one over, he’ll no doubt complete it even if he wants to do something else. Just can’t leave it unfinished.

Blocks back in the box.

Blocks in a box.

Our sweet neighbors gave the boys a set of blocks – you’ll see the photos here. At age 2, Konnor would stack them up and make towers. But Callan could care less about the towers and just really enjoys dumping them and putting them back in the box. (Cuz he’s a puzzle guy…with [perhaps] just a little of the family OCD trait thrown in.)

Last week Callan played with his blocks for 30 minutes which in toddler time is a very long time indeed. And this grandma thoroughly enjoyed watching every second. Catch a 30 second video below.

Can’t wait to see what entertains him this week!

Mimi