What was I supposed to be?

I just had to share this. I saw it on another site and it touched my heart. I can not tell you how saddened by abortion I am. Someone once told us how his sister had been pregnant with a baby that the tests showed had Tuberous Sclerosis (what Joel has). She had an abortion. I wept when I heard that because Joel has been such a blessing to us and I can't imagine our lives without him. It breaks my heart that that mom is missing out on her blessing and her child is missing out on life.

Hello again!

Oh boy, have I been busy. Between the San Diego fires, evacuation, my parents and grandparents homes burning and all the aftermath that comes with that, starting a new business, helping plan my parents 40th wedding anniversary party, Isaac changing jobs, Christmas, the New Year starting, my husbands and my 7th anniversary, having 5 nieces and nephews live with us for 3 weeks and 2 days (8 kids in a 1000 sq. ft. home is something else), my grandma breaking her hip, me having Shingles, Joel with all his therapists, the kids school, and everyone being sick with severe colds I haven't had time to blog. So please forgive me, not only for that run-on sentence, but also for not being here and not giving updates to all you wonderful people who are praying for us.

Other than being busy and sick, we are doing great. Even though Isaac's work has not been the greatest this month, we are doing great. Joel is making great progress. Jonny and Jason are wonderful. Isaac and I are making plans to try and pull ourselves out of debt (all his time laid off from work has piled up some pretty deep credit card debt.) It's hard to figure out a way to start paying some off when you can't make it from week to week. Isaac is going to try to get a second job on the weekends. We have been trying to make it without because family time is so important to both of us, but we can't put off the inevitable any more. It's kinda funny, I've had a song floating around in my head all evening (don't know who sings it or the name of the song...if you know please comment)...I'm a survivor...I'm gonna make it! Seems to be the theme to my life.

And on a different note, I don't just want to survive. I want to thrive. I want to make a change in the world. Isaac and I just finished watching Freedom Writers. A great movie! I have decided that 4 and 7 is not too young to learn to make a difference in this world. Starting this week, we are going to do something good for someone every week. Even if it's small, it'll make a difference to the person the kind act is bestowed upon and it'll also make a difference in us. I want my children to learn to do good. My dream for them is that it would be second nature as they get older. If they can learn this...it will change their future. I don't think there is anything more valuable I could give them. Please pray for us as we start this journey and if anyone would like to join us, please share. We would love to hear your stories.

Our Homes and the Fire

Here is an email I just sent out to friends and family:

Hello to all,

I just wanted to send out an update. We found out this morning that my parents and grandparents homes have burned to the ground. There is video of it at http://video.knbc.com/player/?id=170532. Our home is still in grave danger. The fire is headed right for it. The good thing for us is that we are so close to downtown Fallbrook. The firefighters are going to do their best to save downtown. My brother is a reporter and he has stayed in Fallbrook at the command center. He said it is concievable that the entire town could burn today. Please pray that our home is spared so that we can help my parents and friends affected by the fire. Also, please pray for his safety and for my parents and grandparents (for peace). My parents have had a great attitude about the whole thing, that it is just stuff and we are all together and safe. (It is sad, though, to lose my great-grandma's china and my other great-grandma's dolls, heirlooms, etc.)

I really can't believe this is happening. So many friends affected. Where is everyone going to go? We love you all and are thankful for all your prayers and calls of support.

Please Pray

We are surrounded by fire. There have been strong Santa Ana winds that are making everything crazy. Two of my aunts and at least one friend have been evacuated. Our whole town may be evacuated. So we are preparing right now just in case. Also, our huge 50+ year old Chinese Elm has had two of the main branches (more like trunk) break off and they are hanging. So please pray that when they fall that they miss our house and the guest house where my brother and his wife live.

This just in...my parents and grandma have been told to evacuate. They live about ten minutes from us. I'll post updates as I can (and hopefully pictures...my camera decided to act up just today) :(

PS The crazy thing is that I met someone yesterday who said there is a white out blizzard going on in CO. Fire and blizzards...all on the same day and in the same country. If you life in CO please comment and let me know about the blizzard. Thanks.

Shoes

Jonny just tied his shoes all by himself for the first time! He got new shoes and they aren't Velcro. They are laced shoes, so we figured it was time to teach him how to tie his shoes. I have to admit I've kinda been dreading and putting off teaching him. I don't know why. It wasn't so bad when we actually did it. Joel's speech therapist was here yesterday and when she heard him ask me to tie his shoes she was surprised he didn't know how. So she taught him. I did join in on the teaching but it made me feel guilty that I hadn't found time to teach my (barely) 7-year-old. Part of the problem is I just got caught up in life and used to the routine of tying his shoes. The other part of the problem is all the shoes with Velcro. He could do that by himself and his play shoes have always had Velcro so I just don't think much about tying shoes. One kid down, two to go. :)

Storybooks

Would you like an easy way to get your photos into beautiful, quality, hardback books? I am now an independent consultant for Heritage Makers.

The heart and soul of a family is in their stories. - Leah Gutierrez
Whether they're happy or sad, old or new, we all have stories. Now we have an easy way to get our photos and stories into books, preserving our memories for future generations. How many people don’t know their grandparents or great-grandparents stories? How did they grow up? What was life like for them when they were young? What were their most treasured memories? Or, how many of you have sat there looking at pictures and wondering who they were of? Don’t let that be your family. You now have an easy way to enjoy, save and share your family’s stories. Make memories last with Heritage Makers. Heritage Makers offers a fast, affordable way to actually do something with your photos and stories. Storybooks are high quality and will last for generations to come. And, I am here to guide and support you. If you have questions or need anything please contact me. I would love to help you start sharing your stories! If you'd like to host a Celebration in Southern California for your friends, family, church, or community group, need help on your own books, or would like more information on the exciting and rewarding opportunity of being a consultant, please e-mail me or give me a call.

We sell Storybooks, cards, Family Folds, posters, and calendars. You create them on-line (kinda like on-line scrap-booking) and then when you are done you click publish, pay for them, and they will be delivered to you approximately 10 days later. You can create a free account at www.save-your-stories.com. Once you have an account you can watch tutorials, upload photos from your computer or you can scan in non-digital photos (at a high dpi), upload them and start your project. You don't have to pay anything until you are ready to publish your project. Book prices range from $34.95-$129.95. Cards range from $1.75-$5.99. If you would like access to over $2,000,000 worth of premier art provided through a partnership with Scrap Girls, then that is only $24.95 for the first month renewing each month at $19.95. Ask me about specials. My e-mail is saveyourstories@gmail.com