Since the evening of Christmas Day, my husband and I have been visiting with his family on the west coast. Although it's rainy here half the time, when the sky is clear, it's really very lovely. The view of mountains in the east, the smell of the ocean not too far away, and the knowledge that we might be able to see that huge wet oasis again is wonderful. (I've only seen the ocean once before in my life, and it was three years ago when we were last in this part of the country.)
Yesterday, we visited my husband's grandmothers, who are both in senior care homes. His maternal grandmother's doctor didn't give her more than just a few more months left to live, so we wanted to make sure we got up here to visit before it was too late. With prayers, maybe she'll be around long enough to see us have at least one child, depending on how long it takes us to start our family.
Saturday, we'll be having supper with my husband's paternal grandmother at the nursing home. When we went to visit yesterday, we looked over the menu and read it to her (she suffers from macular degeneration and can't see well anymore) so she could tell us when the food would be most appetizing. ;) She's a very sweet lady. Well, both grandmas are very sweet. I love them both.
My parents-in-law are wonderful people, too. I couldn't ask for more loving and fun in-laws. They love me and treat me the same as they do their own kids. And once in a while, they take my side over my husband's in a debate. ;) They're so cool!
I guess today we're going to do some site seeing. Mount Hood isn't too far away, the ocean isn't too far away, and I guess there are some really majestic canyons and waterfalls to see in this area. The landscape is so gorgeous, especially compared to my native Kansas.
Whenever my husband and I fly anywhere, I try to get a window seat on the plane so I can look out over the land below. I love looking at the mountains, the ocean if I can see it from my seat on the plane, and anything else that pops into my view.
This is a very beautiful part of the country, made more lovely by the family we're visiting. And although we're only going to be here for a few more days, I'm going to enjoy every minute of it that I can. Maybe next time we're in this area, we can come during one of the summer months, when, I'm told, there are lots of flowering trees and the sights are even more beautiful.
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, and I'll post more in the New Year.
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Sleeping on a Cloud
After more than four years, my husband and I finally have a real bed to sleep on! For the entirety of our marriage, we have been sleeping on a futon, which was absolutely killing my back. We are now proudly using our futon as a couch (and emergency bed if we have guests, so they can sleep on it), and have a new memory foam bed to call our own.
TempurPedic will tell you that theirs is the only one out there like it, but the reality is that there is another company out there that makes the exact same mattresses for about half the price, and they have the same 20-year warranty. So, we went with the other company: Sleep Level.
My husband and I did a lot of research into the kind of mattress we wanted to get, because this is something you don't want to have to be buying every five to ten years. I talked to my family doctor and also my orthopaedic doctor about it, too. They both said that this is the best mattress we could possibly get. About 98 percent of people who had woken up with back pain or other muscle pains reported that after sleeping on a memory foam mattress, their pain was dramatically reduced, if not gone completely.
I've only slept one night on it so far, and my back already feels soooooo much better! I had been seeing a physical therapist about it because it had gotten so bad! (But I stopped going a few months ago, even though I was still having problems.)
Now, I can't wait to get into bed at night. I pray that I'll be tired during the day so I can take a nap on the new bed, just because I like it that much! But today, I wasn't tired enough to need to sleep, even after sleeping only about 6 hours, compared to my usual 8! And I work until midnight tonight!
This bed is such a good investment. Actually, anytime you make an investment in your health, it's a good investment.
Sweet dreams!
TempurPedic will tell you that theirs is the only one out there like it, but the reality is that there is another company out there that makes the exact same mattresses for about half the price, and they have the same 20-year warranty. So, we went with the other company: Sleep Level.
My husband and I did a lot of research into the kind of mattress we wanted to get, because this is something you don't want to have to be buying every five to ten years. I talked to my family doctor and also my orthopaedic doctor about it, too. They both said that this is the best mattress we could possibly get. About 98 percent of people who had woken up with back pain or other muscle pains reported that after sleeping on a memory foam mattress, their pain was dramatically reduced, if not gone completely.
I've only slept one night on it so far, and my back already feels soooooo much better! I had been seeing a physical therapist about it because it had gotten so bad! (But I stopped going a few months ago, even though I was still having problems.)
Now, I can't wait to get into bed at night. I pray that I'll be tired during the day so I can take a nap on the new bed, just because I like it that much! But today, I wasn't tired enough to need to sleep, even after sleeping only about 6 hours, compared to my usual 8! And I work until midnight tonight!
This bed is such a good investment. Actually, anytime you make an investment in your health, it's a good investment.
Sweet dreams!
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
My nephew will be born in two months!
The picture at the right is a picture of my sister's pregnant belly as of one month ago. She's a
little bigger now.
The lower picture is what she looked like in October.
I'm really looking forward to meeting my nephew. My mom is helping me plan a baby shower, which we'll have in January. The baby will be born in February, and the baptism will be in March.
My sister said she feels like she's starting to waddle now. And one of her frustrations is finding warm sweaters she can wear over her baby belly. Most maternity sweaters she's seen are really thin, and if she tries a non-maternity large sweater, it bags in the arms. Any suggestions would be great.
little bigger now.The lower picture is what she looked like in October.
I'm really looking forward to meeting my nephew. My mom is helping me plan a baby shower, which we'll have in January. The baby will be born in February, and the baptism will be in March.
My sister said she feels like she's starting to waddle now. And one of her frustrations is finding warm sweaters she can wear over her baby belly. Most maternity sweaters she's seen are really thin, and if she tries a non-maternity large sweater, it bags in the arms. Any suggestions would be great.
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
I've got some catching up to do!
It's been some time since I've posted anything other than the rules for commenting on my blog (which, by the way, still apply). So, I've published another new post below this one.
My sister is now about 6 1/2 months along in her pregnancy, which means I'm going to have a little nephew very soon! It also means that I have a lot of planning to do before the baby shower I'm throwing for her in January!
The pictures of her belly that I posted before look so small now compared to how big she is now. And still, she is the cutest pregnant lady ever!
The little baby in her belly is very active. I've felt him move around and kick several times, and it is just the coolest thing in the world! I'm looking forward to meeting, holding and babysitting the little guy!
It makes me more anxious for my husband and I to try to have a baby, too. I want our kids and my sister's kids to be close enough in age that they can play together and relate to one another easily as they grow up.
In other news, my husband and I will finally be going to visit his parents and grandparents on the west coast over Christmas and New Year's. This will be the first time we've seen them in three years, because travel hasn't been very possible on either their end or ours for so long. Please pray for my husband's maternal grandmother, who is in very bad health and who will celebrate her last Christmas and New Year's this holiday season. We're basically going to visit with the knowledge that we're saying goodbye to her for the last time. She'll never know any of our kids, and that makes me very sad.
Also, my grandma's eye surgery went well, and she's able to see much better now. She still has to have a total knee replacement, which is scheduled for sometime in March. That's going to be very difficult for her, because she's not going to be able to go back to her hometown until she's completely healed. The reason is that she likes to help her husband (who is in a nursing home) stand up, get into bed, etc., and it's too stressful on a newly-remodeled knee for her to be doing that sort of thing. But she'll do it anyway, given the way to go back home too early. Please pray for her, too.
Nothing particularly interesting in the news today that I could share, unfortunately. I'll try to post something more before we leave for the west coast in a couple of weeks.
God bless you all.
My sister is now about 6 1/2 months along in her pregnancy, which means I'm going to have a little nephew very soon! It also means that I have a lot of planning to do before the baby shower I'm throwing for her in January!
The pictures of her belly that I posted before look so small now compared to how big she is now. And still, she is the cutest pregnant lady ever!
The little baby in her belly is very active. I've felt him move around and kick several times, and it is just the coolest thing in the world! I'm looking forward to meeting, holding and babysitting the little guy!
It makes me more anxious for my husband and I to try to have a baby, too. I want our kids and my sister's kids to be close enough in age that they can play together and relate to one another easily as they grow up.
In other news, my husband and I will finally be going to visit his parents and grandparents on the west coast over Christmas and New Year's. This will be the first time we've seen them in three years, because travel hasn't been very possible on either their end or ours for so long. Please pray for my husband's maternal grandmother, who is in very bad health and who will celebrate her last Christmas and New Year's this holiday season. We're basically going to visit with the knowledge that we're saying goodbye to her for the last time. She'll never know any of our kids, and that makes me very sad.
Also, my grandma's eye surgery went well, and she's able to see much better now. She still has to have a total knee replacement, which is scheduled for sometime in March. That's going to be very difficult for her, because she's not going to be able to go back to her hometown until she's completely healed. The reason is that she likes to help her husband (who is in a nursing home) stand up, get into bed, etc., and it's too stressful on a newly-remodeled knee for her to be doing that sort of thing. But she'll do it anyway, given the way to go back home too early. Please pray for her, too.
Nothing particularly interesting in the news today that I could share, unfortunately. I'll try to post something more before we leave for the west coast in a couple of weeks.
God bless you all.
Non-Christian Organization Serves Godly Mission
I may not work for an organization that would be listed in a Christian business directory, but that doesn't mean that we don't do God's handywork.
Every year around Christmastime (and apparently for the last 30 years), the company I work for organizes a charity drive in which listeners call in to the radio station they listen to within our broadcast group, and "adopt" a child for Christmas. By "adopt," I mean that these kids have been put on a list by the local police department because they live in a family with little to no income, and would otherwise not get any gifts this Christmas.
Listeners called a hotline number, asked what the children wanted for Christmas, and bought those items and brought them to the station to be gift-wrapped and delivered by the police officers.
There are other times when we have charity drives or relay races or other fund-raisers for organizations that help children or adults with whatever may be plaguing them. Some may call these publicity stunts or things we do for public relations, but as someone who's actually gotten to know the people behind these events, I've realized that these people are different: Sure, the PR is good, but they really do care about these people that they're helping.
At a time when there are so many people all-too-willing to receive gifts this year, it's wonderful to see so many people volunteering to give to complete strangers without anything in return.
Every year around Christmastime (and apparently for the last 30 years), the company I work for organizes a charity drive in which listeners call in to the radio station they listen to within our broadcast group, and "adopt" a child for Christmas. By "adopt," I mean that these kids have been put on a list by the local police department because they live in a family with little to no income, and would otherwise not get any gifts this Christmas.
Listeners called a hotline number, asked what the children wanted for Christmas, and bought those items and brought them to the station to be gift-wrapped and delivered by the police officers.
There are other times when we have charity drives or relay races or other fund-raisers for organizations that help children or adults with whatever may be plaguing them. Some may call these publicity stunts or things we do for public relations, but as someone who's actually gotten to know the people behind these events, I've realized that these people are different: Sure, the PR is good, but they really do care about these people that they're helping.
At a time when there are so many people all-too-willing to receive gifts this year, it's wonderful to see so many people volunteering to give to complete strangers without anything in return.
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