The glass IS half full

The last week and a half have been very difficult. I love being a very positive and upbeat person...but sometimes life can still be difficult...and I am learning that is ok. For those of you who don't know...my dad has had some health issues this year. He had 2 strokes prior to this year...and before Christmas he had 2 more. That is the main reason that I went to NY after Christmas with the babes. He seemed stable when I left NY...but I just found out last week that he had to be taken back to the hospital. Since Christmas 2009...he has had 6 more strokes. They are considered to be minor strokes...but because he has had so many of them in such a short amount of time...they are having some huge side affects. His speech is slurred and it is hard for him to use a lot of the left side of his body. Right now...we are trying to figure out what care we can get for him and what we need to do to help and try to fix what is happening in his body. It has been really hard for my brother and I to try to talk through decisions that we thought we would not have to be talking about for a long time (my dad is only 59!!!) So...as I am trying to deal with the emotional and mental stress of that...I have definitely been under the weather this last week. I had a really yucky sinus infection and the antibiotic has made me VERY sick to my stomach. I am not quite sure why...but being sick made everything seem even worse! So...I sat down last night after everyone was in bed and just took a few minutes to reflect on the week. I cried for a little bit (which seemed almost therapeutic in itself) and then I tried to find a positive for every "negative" that had happened. Here is what I came up with...

- I felt nauseous all week....what a great weight loss jump-start (6 pounds and counting :)!!!)

- My babes were on spring break and I didn't get to take them out every day because I wasn't feeling well...I got some great cuddle time with them and we had a couple of amazing pajama days

- My brother and I had some really difficult phone conversations about questions for my dad's health that we didn't really have answers to...we also had some great conversations about our lives, about how much we meant to each other, and about how much we would always be there for one another


- I got very sick of being cooped up in the house...the weather was BEAUTIFUL this week and I sat on the front porch swing while the babes got to ride bikes and blow bubbles


- I was not a very patient momma because I wasn't feeling the best...my kids totally understood and they taught me even more about grace. I am blessed!


- I didn't get to spring clean the basement...my upstairs stayed pretty "spring cleaned" and I am pretty sure the basement will still be ready for a cleaning this week :)


- My husband was SUPER busy this week at church planning and preparing for all of the Easter services and I missed him...I am so proud to have a husband that is the most creative man I know...the services he planned were AMAZING! And...in just the first 2 services on Easter...there were over 40 people saved!!!! (and we are still waiting for the final count of all 4 Easter services).





Had it been a rough week? O MY...yes. But even in the midst of some hard situations and some questions without answers...I realized that my glass IS half full and I am very blessed. Just look at some of my biggest blessings...


I just love them!!