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Not Quite AwkwardFamilyPhoto-Worthy … But Fun Nonetheless
As my sister and I plowed through boxes of old paperwork to try to find the documentation we need to submit my mother’s application for Medicaid, we also found a few childhood treasures. Including these sweet photos. Yay, 1970’s! But not so much yay early 1980’s. Blech, blech, blech for my tomboy days. But wasn’t my sister pretty as always?
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Confusion, Fear, and Sadness
I don’t know what to write. It is a confusing and sad time for all of us as we sit around my mother’s nursing home room, waiting for her cardiac rehab to begin on Monday. She’s scared. We’re all scared. Everyone cares about each other. Everyone is trying to do their best. But conversation is hard. My mother is physically uncomfortable and we’re all stilted in our strange, mass-produced chairs dispersed around the room. My sister is a star at being patient and generous. She’s trying to help our stepfather get on top of the financial details of their lives since my mother usually takes care of those things. And…
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Glad to be Here with My Mom
I’m so glad to be here in Michigan with my mom and stepdad. It is a true honor to get to serve them. Yesterday was a full day in the hospital. Sophia’s gift of a handmade ornament in my mom’s favorite colors (red and purple) was a big hit: I took a lot of notes after her transesophageal echocardiogram and electrical cardioversion. And today I got to help with a little cleaning, shopping, and setting up all sorts of home cardiac care nursing appointments and follow up doctor appointments. My sister, Kali, should be joining us Friday evening and we will hopefully have a couple of days together as a…
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Res Ipsa Loquitur: Destructive Church Conflict Reveals Worldliness
A great post by Cap’n Dave over at our Redeeming Church Conflicts site:
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Flying to Michigan Tomorrow—Would Appreciate Your Prayers
In just a few months, my mother’s heart failure has gone from a 25% to a 15% ejection fraction. This is “severe decrease” in heart functioning and she is suffering all of the standard results: shortness of breath, cardiac edema (build up of fluids), and extreme fatigue. She is also experiencing cardiac arrhythmia and was hospitalized this weekend so that she can have some procedures done beginning tomorrow morning (Monday morning). Thanks to the amazing generosity of my sister and her Fred (who are paying for my ticket) and my dear friends (who are helping with childcare for Sophia & Ella), I am going to fly out tomorrow to hopefully…
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Silly Fictions
We don’t bash Santa in our home. Rudolph, candy canes, winter wonderlands—it’s all fine and even sweet silliness to us. Like pumpkin patch time or bunnies at Easter, we understand why some of our Christian friends completely eschew any contact or acknowledgment of such things. It is strange to have so many things be culturally and seasonally traditional, without any real tie to the true meaning of the holidays. So, like all debatable matters, we try to honor the convictions of our friends, but we also feel the freedom to enjoy what we call “silly fictions” in our home. Like the tooth fairy. I loved it when Sophia started losing her baby teeth…
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How to Deal with Holiday Family Tensions (Russell Moore)
Brilliant! And so helpful: How to Deal with Holiday Family Tensions (by Russell Moore)
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Five Aims for Holiday Family Gatherings (by Dr. Kathleen Nielson)
I love everything I’ve ever read by Dr. Kathleen Nielson. Including this! Don’t miss it: Five Aims for Holiday Family Gatherings
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My First Indian/Pakistani Recipe (SO Easy and SO Yummy!)
It only took me 17 years of married life, but I finally stepped out of my fears and tried my first Indian/Pakistani recipe. This was SO yummy and SO easy! If you’ve ever had an Indian meal in a restaurant and thought (like me), “I wish I could cook something this good!”, then this is the recipe for you: PAKISTANI “OLD CLOTHES” BEEF CURRY (NIHARI) IN THE SLOW COOKER (From The Indian Slow Cooker; with my personal notes in parentheses at the end) 2 medium yellow onions, peeled, cut in half, sliced (I used only 1 onion b/c we don’t usually like onions) 2 lbs of beef…
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When Death Comes
Death has been heavy on my heart this week. Two of my friends in Billings are facing medical crises that lead them both to consider seriously that their time on this earth may be drawing to a close. None of us knows the length of our days, to be sure. And God alone marks out the span of our lives. But sometimes, we know that we are facing medical diagnoses that, apart from God’s supernatural working, will more than likely be the secondary cause of our last breath. Such is the case with my friends. And on Monday? Someone I love dearly went home to Heaven. She had been suffering…
