Friends

Oh my heavens. What can I possibly say about our friends? Our friends are awesome and I learn so much from all of them every single day. Our friends teach me about life and the lessons that are all wrapped up inside it.

We have so many friends. Some we know in passing. Some are neighbors. Others are work friends. We have church friends. Baseball friends. Family friends. People we don't even know friends. Long-time friends. Close friends. Distant friends. All over the world friends. So many - too many to count.

Some of you we talk to every day. Some once a week. Some once a month. Others we never talk to but communicate via E-mail. Secret Santa friends and our friends at Beckstrand. Friends at Hoag and at Dr. Barth's office. My gosh. Our lives are overflowing with friends and goodness!!

Thank you all for being our friends. I can honestly tell you that we would never make it through this without you. In troubled times you really get to know who is going to bat for you. Some of you have run for the hills - don't worry - the forgiveness blog was targeted for you! ( I am totally kidding). It's good to have friends.

Last night we had our 4th & 5th grade Christmas Party at the Marvel's and I just love hanging out with those kids. I got home around 10 PM and passed out shortly after. Gary's sister left this morning and then I took Zach and his buddy Jake to get donuts and then to get Drano to try and unclog the boys shower upstairs. (The Drano was a no go but the acid worked beautifully).

I spent the rest of the day cleaning - the garage, the house, the yard and so on............. There are so many "man chores" to do and I stink at them. Gary has always done them. Drano, the yardwork, garage crap and searching for tools and other things. Chuck is always right there (our neighbor) to help me when I need it. John takes the trashcans out most of the time and Todd and Ken have all helped me out doing things around the house.

Gary and Chuck went to Home Depot today. It is so good for Gary to get out of the house. It takes about an hour to get him ready to just run a quick errand but it is worth it when he is feeling up to it. They replaced another fuse in the fuse box and changed out lightbulbs for me. Gary was outside in his wheelchair for quite some time. He even sat in the backyard and watched the kids jump.

The kids LOVE LOVE LOVE jumping on the trampoline! It is so great watching them have so much fun.

Our Secret Santa brought a game to us last night - Sorry Express (which the boys love) and today our SS brought cookie mix! So we mixed up some cookies and I baked this afternoon. They were so good! We had friends for dinner and I made my yummy chicken casserole and we sat by the fire and ate together. Nate slept in my bed next to Gary tonight and kept him company as they watched another run of Drake and Josh's Merry Christmas show. ZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzz I always try to make sure at least one person eats dinner with Gary in his room. I would never want him to feel more left out than he already does.

Tomorrow Hobie gets groomed and I will work and go to church. After church Zach and I will run errands until Hobie is ready to be picked up and then we will come home and I will "wrap" some things up for Christmas.

Thanks for loving us - even if you don't know us. Thanks for supporting us - your notes, prayers, cards, meals, gift cards, gifts, and everything else is more than appreciated ALWAYS! So many of you have done the most amazing things for our family. Poker tourneys, money collections, other fundraisers, etc.......You have made our Christmas unexpectedly MERRY in more ways than you could count!

Make tomorrow a great day and remember to laugh and be Merry! Don't be grouchy as the stress of finishing up loose ends creeps upon you. Take it in stride and don't forget why we celebrate! Don't swear at stupid drivers or dingalingy people in line in front of you. Take a deep breath. Let someone merge in front of you or go ahead of you in line. Remember - one good turns deserves another.

When you are totally fraking out because company is coming and time is running out I urge you to take time to be a Mary and not a Martha! Just breath and enjoy. This time of year only happens once.

Love,
L