Tuesday, September 30, 2008

War Business

Gary's surgery went really well yesterday. For the first procedure he was in the operating room for about 1 3/4 hours. For the breakup and removal of the very large kidney stone, he was in surgery over three hours. He will feel like he has had a knife stab to the kidney for a while, and he will be very bruised. The doc says he will be in the hospital two or three night.

Today our son Aaron is having a different procedure to remove a kidney stone that he has been trying to pass for a month. He will need someone with him for 24 hours. I plan to leave him for an hour here and there so I can go to the hospital to see Gary. Usually when a family member is in the hospital I stay all day there, but I guess I won't be able to today.

Thanks for praying.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Kidney Stone Wars

My husband is having actual surgery tomorrow to break up a huge kidney stone that takes up the upper half of his right kidney according to the doctor. At 9:00 or so, he will have a wire put into his kidney through his back so later a tube can follow that wire into the kidney to be used to break up the stone. That actual surgery will be at 12:30 unless it is moved up, and it will last about three hours. He will come out of post op at about 4:00 when he will be taken up to his room. He will be in the hospital about two or three days. After that he will be out of work probably another week and maybe longer. Please pray for him.

Our son, Aaron, has also been trying to pass a kidney stone for about a month. He will talk to his doctor tomorrow and it's possible the doctor may decide a manual removal is warranted (possibly as early as tomorrow or sometime in the near future). Please pray for him.

In this war, I will be the negotiator, the go-between, the medical team, the guard, the military police and the cry baby. Please pray for me.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

13 Thursday Things I Have Worried Over in My Life

1. That I have cancer

2. That my husband will die before me

3. That I will die before my husband

4. That one of my babies would die

5. That my dad would choke to death

6. That I would be grounded

7. That my house will never get cleaned completely

8. That when people get to know the real me, they will be horrified

9. That I will fall in a hole

10. That a nuclear bomb will hit somewhere near Denver, or Toledo, or Springfield (or wherever we have lived)

11. That my dog will run and jump and hit me in the face

12. That my husband will get too irritated with all that I am

13. About where Heaven is

Keep in mind that I don't worry about all these things at once. Some of them I worried about a long time ago. Some I worry about often. If all these things horrify or worry you about me (and I'm not absolutely sure I'm going to actually submit this entry), then let's just say I'm talking about someone else.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

The Whole Truth and Nothing but the Truth?

I read an article recently that someone wrote about blogs. She was very negative about blogs and blog writers. She didn't like that bloggers could say anything and not be accountable or tell the truth. She also said she had found a study that showed that 89.9% of people who wrote blogs on media websites have an education level below the fifth grade. She said that some people who read blogs accept what the writers have to say as Gospel truth.

I guess I don't have an overall knowledge of the blog world. I only know about the few blogs I read. I read some nearly everyday. Others I just read once in awhile. And others I only read once, and then I'm finished with them. Personally, I don't believe something just because someone wrote it. Maybe if the majority of the people reading blogs only have a fifth grade education, it's not surprising if they believe everything they read. The people I know who blog don't believe everything. They have brains. I have a brain. And while I love fifth graders, I don't think most of the readers have just fifth grade educations.

And one aspect of blog writing is that people CAN make things up, tell distortions, lie and exaggerate. But that is the nature of blog writing. I can believe it all or not.

I could be wrong about these things. But I'm not.

And I'm not lying.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Duets and Trios

We had special missionary/church anniversary meetings at church on Friday, Saturday and both services on Sunday. They were all good.

Part of my and Gary's responsibilty was to be involved in special music. Gary sang a solo on Friday; we sang a duet on Saturday; and the we sang in a mixed quartet on Sunday night.

When we practiced Gary's solo at home on Thursday, we started hearing a lovely, thin little high duet part being sung along with Gary's solo. It was our sweetly musical little dog. He was howling with a very delicate voice along with Gary. He was mostly on pitch. He sang with his eyes closed and his nose pointing up to the ceiling. It was a surprise. We didn't know we had gotten a musical puppy.

Then on Saturday Gary and I were practicing our duet. Riley sang with us again. It was really an enjoyable trio. We may have to take him to church someday to sing with us. He may, however, detract from the message of the song. Oh, yes, he rocks back and forth to the beat.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

13 Thursday Free Things

1. Perfume of flowers

2. Sound of bees

3. The view of the mountains

4. Interaction with some people

5. Headaches

6. Dirt

7. Leaves

8. The sound of crying

9. The sound of laughing

10. God's love

11. Doubt

12. Happiness

13. Salvation

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Crime and Punishment

A few years ago I remember hearing a sergeant at the Sheriff's Office laughing out loud every few minutes. She was down the aisle from me so I couldn't hear what she was talking about or who else was there. When she came by my desk I asked her what was so funny. This is the story she told.

She and another officer had been dispatched out to a call at a residence. When the older man came to the door, he was only wearing his underwear--nothing else. When the man saw who was at the door, he said he would go put something else on.

When he came back to the door, he had put something else on alright. It was a hunting cap with ear flaps. That's all. Underwear and a hunting hat.

While the other officer was trying to talk to the man, Cindy, the sergeant, started to laugh. She tried to hold it in but the laughter just kept getting louder and louder. After some explanation to excuse her, she finally had to step outside the porch--where she could still be heard by the man and the officer very clearly.

That's the story she told every few minutes at the Sheriff's Office while laughing rather hysterically each time. It was a good story.

Thursday, September 11, 2008

13 Thursday Famous Quotes by Benjamin Franklin

1. Money: Remember that time is money.

2. Achievement: Little strokes fell great oaks.

3. Success: God helps them that help themselves.

4. War: There never was a good war or a bad peace.

5. Planning: Never leave that till tomorrow which you can do today.

6. Wisdom: Experience keeps a dear school, but fools will learn in no other.

7. Teamwork: We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.

8. Wisdom: Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

9. Money: A man may, if he knows not how to save as he gets, keep his nose to the grindstone.

10. Time: Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of.

11. Freedom: They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.

12. Democracy: Our Constitution is in actual operation; everything appears to promise that it will last; but in this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.

13. Success: A little neglect may breed mischief: for want of a nail the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe the horse was lost; and for want of a horse the rider was lost

Monday, September 8, 2008

1066 and All That

1066 and All That is a book title that strikes me as being interesting. I think I would like to have this book. Here is what the intro says:

'1066 and All That: A Memorable History of England, comprising all the parts you can remember, including 103 Good Things, 5 Bad Kings and 2 Genuine Dates is a tongue-in-cheek reworking of the history of England. Written by W. C. Sellar and R. J. Yeatman and illustrated by John Reynolds, it first appeared serially in Punch magazine, and was published in book form by Methuen & Co. Ltd. in 1930.

The book is a parody of the Whiggish style of history teaching in English schools at the time, in particular of Our Island Story. It purports to contain "all the history you can remember", and, in fifty two chapters, covers the history of England from Roman times through 1066 "and all that", up to the end of World War I, at which time "America was thus clearly Top Nation, and history came to a ." (this, last, chapter is titled "A Bad Thing"). It is based on the idea that history is what you can remember and is full of examples of half-remembered facts.'

Jen, you may need this book. So do I.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Gail Annette Horn Suhler, My Sister

Gail Annette Horn was born September 28, 1950 in Pueblo, Colorado. She was the younger sister of Paula and the older sister of Keith. She graduated from Centennial High School in 1968. She took piano lessons as a child and was a member of the local swim team.

Gail accepted the Lord Jesus as her Savior when she was a child. She also helped her mom with Bible Clubs that were held in the family home.

In high school Gail was a member of the high school band and played the cornet and later switched to the French Horn. She was an excellent musician. She took both French horn lessons and voice lessons.

In church she sang in the choir, sang special music and played in a church orchestra.

Gail attended Western Bible College in California and in Oregon. She completed a couple of years of school and later she attended Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Missouri and earned her degree.

As a young adult, Gail lived in Canon City, Colorado where she taught in the Christian school. Her students loved and admired her. She had great influence on many lives. She also worked at Park Hill Baptist church as a secretary and at a Baptist church in Michigan. She had a servant's heart and accepted people for who they were.

Gail was an avid reader all her life. She read comic books and novels as a child, and as an adult probably read thousands of books. Her husband Bryan still has a collection of her favorite books.

When Gail was about thirty years old, she married Bryan Suhler. Our mother had invited Bryan over for Sunday dinner and that was the beginning. They talked and talked. After they were married, Gail talked about how much she appreciated Bryan taking care of their finances because as a young woman who taught Christian school, she had had her struggles.

After being married a year or two, Gail and Bryan had a wonderful baby boy named Benjamin. She loved that little boy. Later when she knew she had cancer, she prayed that God would let her live until Ben was finished with junior high, and that's what He did. It was an answer to her prayer.

Gail and Bryan moved to Colorado Springs after living in Pueblo for a while. There she gave birth to Ben and she worked in her home running a day care. She was really good at it, and her kids loved her.

In about 1993 Gail found out she had cancer. The doctors didn't know where it started, but it was first found on the lining around her lungs. She had surgery to have it removed. When we sorted our mother's belongings after she passed away, we found a note Mom had written. Mom said that when Gail came out of the surgery okay, it was the best day of her life. Gail took that note home and kept it.

After many months of chemo and losing her hair several times, the cancer was found in her ovaries. She had extreme surgery to remove as much as could be done--about 99%. It seemed really good. Sometime after that, Gail had to switch doctors, and the new doctor thought she needed to take a break from the chemo to give her body time to recuperate and because Gail was so tired of all the treatments. That was in about May of 2000.

After that tests were run to see what was happening with the cancer, and Gail's whole abdomen was filled with tumors.

I went to visit her many times during that summer. I kept thinking that something would be done about the tumors--surgery, chemo, or something. But nothing was--nothing could be. Clear up to the end I didn't realize we were really coming to the end.

I drove down to see Gail on Saturday, September 3rd. She was uncomfortable but still functioning almost normally. On Monday, she fell and couldn't get up for hours. After she finally got up, she called Bryan. That evening she lost her ability to control some of her functions. He took her to the emergency room, but on the way there she quit breathing. She passed away on September 5, 2000. This is the 8th anniversary of her death.

When Bryan called, it broke my heart. I just couldn't come to grips with it.

At her funeral, a song recorded by Gail for her church was played during the service. That was very hard.

The good news is that Gail is in Heaven. I always did everything ahead of her, but she got to Heaven before me. I am so looking forward to seeing her. She is my best friend and I miss her.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

13 Thursday Memories of My Sister

1. One time somebody marked on the window in the house in the condensation there. My mom made Gail and me sit in the living room behind the arm chair to discuss who had done it because one of us was going to be in trouble. My dad came home at lunch and said he did it accidentally.

2. My sister, a neighbor girl and I were in a beauty contest and two neighbor boys were the judges. Gail won. I lost.

3. My sister loved to read. She was a reader before I was. (She was two years younger than I was.)

4. I gave my sister a hard time sometimes, but when anyone else tried to bother her, I was there to take care of her.

5. When Gail was little she had big freckles, glasses and a gap between her two front teeth. She was a beautiful little sister.

6. Gail and I both took piano lessons and because I was older, I learned more quickly. As a result she wasn't very interested in learning piano. As she got older she learned the French horn and took singing lessons. She was a very talented musician.

7. When Gail and I were doing dishes (I washed; she dried), that's when we got into the most trouble. We started throwing water or making a lot of noise. Doing dishes sometimes resulted in spankings. Gail usually got the worst end of the deal because I stood in a gap next to fridge and Gail was right out where Mom could get her more easily.

8. One year when we went to Bible camp, we both got to worrying and crying about whether we were really saved or not. I think we got it settled, at least temporarily.

9. Gail always had more and better friends than I did. She was my main friend most of the time.

10. When we were grown and married, at one point Gary and I were having some pretty serious money problems and didn't have much money for anything. She made sure to get me things I needed.

11. When our children were born, she thought of my children as being partly hers and I thought of her baby as being partly mine. As the kids grew up, we didn't feel as strongly about that.

12. When my parents died, Gail and I and our sister-in-law went through the folks' things. Having Gail there made the job easy.

13. Gail was my best friend and a wonderful Christian person. I loved to spend time with her.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Random Thoughts

1. We cooked out on the grill yesterday. I like to cook extra meat so we can have two or three meals from the grill. We cooked chicken, sausages and a few hamburgers. Now tonight I don't have to prepare much. It's all good.

2. Today I have a new piano student starting. He is in about 6th grade. He attends our church. I also have a little girl starting on Monday. She is seven. Hopefully they both will practice. Practice is the key to learning the piano.

3. I called Jen yesterday but didn't get hold of her. Maybe she will call.

I guess that's it. I don't have many thoughts today. (;>

Monday, September 1, 2008

Family Get-together

On Saturday a number of my family members got together at a state park near Castle Rock, Colorado for a mini reunion. It was so much fun to see everyone and talk and talk and talk. We had lots of fried chicken (not homemade but really good), green beans, pasta salad, fruit, chips, salsa, brownies, seafood salad, and cold soft drinks.

A minor highlight for me was the breaking of my full plate of food which landed on the ground in front of me. A sad, sad situation. I picked up the chicken and ate it anyway...I think this horrified Kay, but I'm still alive two days later (however, I do now have a twitch, a rash, and a speech impediment).

We did a lot of teasing. Some people had a lot of fun poked at them, which was better than a stick. My husband, who doesn't do a lot of talking at these things, had the most fun made of him especially by my brother. I made a lot of smart remarks, as did others. The remarks probably only seemed smart to the remarkers. But still a good time.

The list of those who were there included my two aunts and one of the husbands, my brother and his wife, his oldest son and his wife (they were just married a few months ago), my brother-in-law, my cousin, her daughter for awhile, my husband, son and me. And, oh yes, my uncle's dog Hairy--a girl dog who was quite nice. I guess I should mention a few other attendees: many mosquitoes and wasps. We missed Jen and the other nieces and nephews.

We were supposed to meet at 10:00am, but nearly everyone got there late. My family was the latest, arriving after 11:00. We had many reasons for being late, but they are too numerous and too lame to mention. We did have time after our arrival to talk for three hours nonstop. Then my husband was needing to get home. And if you say nearly everything in three hours, then you have to start meddling or you have to start over. The rule is, leave while everyone is still smiling!!

I loved being with all these lovely people. Who cares more about you than your family? I'm always sorry my mom and my sister aren't there. In Heaven, I don't know if we will get to sit and talk with people or not. Our whole motivation and desire may change.

My husband was in a good mood even though he didn't talk much. My son had quite the conversation with several people. The men tried to stay on one side of the circle, but they couldn't quite get away from the women. I didn't get to talk very much to my brother or nephew. Maybe next time.

Every time we get together as a family we discuss who the bosses are. The trouble is, many of us are bosses, but over time we've tried to tone it down. My brother declared he was taking a break and wasn't going to be bossing. He did, however, decide when it time to pray so we could eat. That was a really good thing. Being the delicate flower that I am, I have to push myself to boss others, and I succeed really well! No one was too bossy Saturday. Just the right amount of bossing.

I love getting together with other women. We all remember things like wipes--both cleaning and bug types-- tablecloths, paper towels, toilet paper, ice and more ice, trash bags, and extra chairs. The men carry things and set them up and take orders, I mean requests pretty well.

Anyway, I look forward to doing it again at Thanksgiving.