Friday, June 8, 2012

Just Rambling

Today is Friday, and my to-do list covers one whole page in my notebook, two columns!  First of all, we have school today.  We are winding down this year's schoolwork, but we are not completely done.  Here is what's left:

Sam:  finish two Sonlight books
Leah:  about 20 math lessons, and she will continue to work in her Daily Grams and Building Thinking Skills books until she is through with math.  She also has daily independent reading and Sonlight reading.
Clay:  one more general science test, independent reading, and Sonlight reading
Julie:  two more biology tests, about 10 math lessons, finish her Mississippi History notebook, and one last play to read.
Olivia:  one advanced biology test, Sonlight reading

I can continue my part of the Sonlight reading throughout our summer.  In fact, when we finish this year's Sonlight books, I plan to read The Secret Garden, and then begin reading next year's Sonlight books.

I received an email yesterday saying that my Sonlight order (for next year) will arrive on Saturday.  In three boxes.  Weighing 91 lbs.!  That's a lot of books!  I have already told my children that they cannot begin reading the new books until they have completed all of their Sonlight books for this current school year.  After that, I don't care if they read every single book before August!

Also today, I have to clean my house (more than my normal Friday cleaning) because I am hosting a bridal shower for a friend's daughter tomorrow.  Also, we are having a Gospel Meeting at our church next week, beginning Sunday, and the visiting preacher and his wife are staying in our home all week.  You know what that means!  Clean the house!  And buy groceries and cook for the shower and the potluck dinner we will be having on Sunday.

I read this passage of Scripture in my Bible reading this morning.

"And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God."
Philippians 1:9-11

That's a pretty tall order--so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ.  I need to think about this verse all day.  As I am diligently working on my huge list, I need to make sure that my love abounds more and more, that I use the knowledge of how I know God wants me to act and treat those around me, to use discernment....to think about the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control), and let those qualities rule my actions today.

Yesterday marked 3 months since my mastectomy.  Physically, I am doing great!  I consider myself about 99% recovered.  I have full range of motion in my arms, but I still have minor muscle aches and twinges from time to time.  So I am afraid to do push-ups or any other arm/chest workout.  When I go back to the doctor in July, I am going to ask him if doing an upper body workout would help or hinder.  I am still so grateful that the cancer is all behind me.  To be honest, I still think about it almost every day, but it is usually with thoughts and prayers of thanksgiving.  Sometimes I wish I could have skipped this chapter in my life, but what is the use of that?  It is what it is.  It was God's will for me, and who am I to question that.  I feel like I have made the best of a less than favorable situation, and I hope that those who know me in real life feel like I have done that.  I have really tried.  I still don't know when my next and final reconstruction surgery will be, and I will be so happy when I do know!  So for now, I am gradually building up my running miles so hopefully taking 5-6 weeks off for recovery will not impair my marathon training too much.

I am off to begin my busy day!

3 comments:

  1. Good luck with all of your work! As always, you are such an inspiration. Congratulations on 3 months of being cancer free!! You're inn my prayers every day.

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  2. "It is what it is.." I think I say that every day! *Smile* So grateful that you are recovering and feeling so much better.

    People always tell me I am so busy, like they are watching and I am making them tired. But I would not want to just sit and waste the days away. We are trying to finish up this year still and I haven't even ordered next years Sonlight books yet! So you are way ahead of me!

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  3. Hi!
    I just stumbled across your blog and found that we have a lot in common. For one, I also had DCIS- I was diagnosed almost 11 years ago, at age 28 (I'm 39 now). I had a mastectomy/reconstruction at that time and was pronounced "cured", no other treatment, just frequent checks. After I had my boys, I was tired of the constant worry over the risk in my remaining breast. I had an abnormal mammogram, and instead of the biopsy they recommended, I told them I wanted a prophylactic mastectomy instead. So in 2010, I had that done (the suspicious area turned out to be benign), and am SO glad to be done with the worry and risk. I had wonderful reconstruction done at the Center for Restorative Breast Surgery in New Orleans. I think I'm happier with my reconstructed breasts than I ever was before, lol! :) I still see my oncologist once a year to have a checkup, and occasionally an MRI or cat scan just to be sure nothing is going on.

    More in common:
    I'm also a (Christian) homeschooling mom. And, I saw your Seaside pictures- I live in Santa Rosa County, FL, also part of the beautiful Emerald Coast. We drive the hour & a half trip over to Destin every fall for our family vacation. We've been to Seaside a couple of times and it's indeed a quaint little paradise.

    It's good to run into you and I wish you the very best for your full recovery. It does take a while to recover 100% from the mastectomy- about a year for those weird pains and aches to start diminishing, and even now 11 yrs out from my first one, I'll feel a weird twinge or phantom itch (HATE those!).

    If you ever want to chat you can email me at cam at sasser creative dot com.

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