Going Gluten Free

So, I found out that I most likely have an intolerance to gluten. I have had stomach issues my entire life and was told that I was lactose intolerant. However, I still got sick when I didn't have milk. So a few years ago I went in to my doctor and had several tests done and they didn't find anything and chalked it up to having irritable bowel syndrome. Well, you can't do much for that except live with it.

This past week I went into a specialist for some issues that I've been having with my hips popping out of place. The doctor took a look at my lab results to make sure that nothing was wrong there. He found something completely unrelated. He asked if I had gluten intolerance. Of course I had been curious about it, but never enough to find out. He told me that if I cut out gluten my irritable bowel syndrome issues would go away and some other issues that I've been dealing with.

Anyways, yesterday was my first full day going gluten free. IT WAS HARD!! There is so many things that I can't eat! I just finished emptying my snack drawer at work that was full. Now the only thing left in there is a very small bag of trail mix and a can of pineapple. The rice crispies, nutty buddies, milano cookies, cereal, and berry pies went in the trash.

If anyone knows GOOD recipies or things to buy at the store that would help me up this steep hill that I just found, I would be very greatful!

Do you know the value of eight weeks? I just found out. Last night I took my final exam and turned in my final paper for my International Business class. Friday night, after being sick with the flu for 1 1/2 weeks, I found out that I had read my syllabus wrong - on my biggest assignment. I received a 38 out of 80. The absolute best I could do at that point was a B-, and that was only if I received 100% on my final paper. Throughout the whole term I did my best in this class often using my whole weekend to do homework. And to see it amount to this is devastating. After finding this out I was sorely tempted to take the class over next summer to erase the C from my record, but thanks to my dear husband, I gave it one last weekend of hard work. Though my paper left something to be desired, I can honestly say I did my best with the amount of time I used. Then last night I took my final exam in my math class. I went into it feeling pretty good. However, when I saw the potential results (the teacher has to review the whole thing before the grade is posted) I was devastated. From what I could see I will recieve 50%. There were things on the exam that weren't in the homework, and I am praying that other people will say something in addition to my email and that he will remove it from the exam??? I know I am grasping at straws, but I can't help it. This term has been full of hard work and this is the fruit that comes of it. I have a 4.0 at SOU and now, with just one term I have the potential to have two C's on my record.
I know that to most people getting a C is nothing compared to life's other troubles. But this is my life right now. It is what I put most of my energy into during my "free" time. And to see all of that work ....
God, please show me the meaning of this trial. I don't understand what you are trying to show me through this. Please help me to understand.

Shiloh's bout with a saw

Here is Shiloh's finger after its battle with a saw at work. :( He lost unfortuately. I had to change the bandage last night and surprisingly didn't barf. It's a little cleaner in this picture (lucky you). We are hoping it heals soon and that it won't be majorly deformed.

A Smart Man

I stole a quote from my brother-in-law's blog because I feel it is so appropriate for this day:

You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.You cannot build character and courage by taking away people's initiative and independence.You cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves......Abraham Lincoln

Army Reserves

My brother was flown to boot camp this morning. It is a day of reflection for me. I am so very proud of him for taking this step. I am nervous for him and all I can think to do is pray for him. He told us not to send ANYTHING but letters and to keep those to a minimum. Apparently if you get letters or packages while in boot camp you have to do extra work to receive them and they may open them and read them allowed. He said if it comes down to that he may refuse to take the letter. :)

He wasn't originally suppose to ship out until the 12th, but he called his recruitment officer yesterday morning and he told Kyle that he was going to ship out this morning so he needed to be down in Little Rock yesterday evening. He was upset because he didn't really get a chance to say good bye to his friends and some of his family. My dad was on the road in New York and didn't get to say a real goodbye. He unfortunately doesn't know if he will be back after boot camp or if he will go straight to AIT. Originally he only had two days between the two, but he didn't know the story as of yesterday afternoon.

Please pray for him when you get the chance. Pray that he will have the strength and willpower to get through the next 6-8 weeks (I'm not sure how long it is). I told him to keep his eyes on God and He will give him the strength he needs. Thank you all!

Believing is seeing

This past Tuesday I received a call from Shiloh and he was very upset. He was in the cafeteria and set down his backpack to order lunch. When he came back two minutes later his backpack was gone. In the backpack was his laptop, math book, writing book, homework, term notes, syllabi, money, thumb drive, and the only copy of his paper he had just recieved from his teacher to rewrite. He was very angry, and rightfully so. His friends from student government helped him search the campus, but it was a futile search - the backpack was gone.

When he called me and told me what had happened I tried to stay calm and to calm him down. As soon as I hung up the phone I went to the only person I knew could help - Jesus. For one of the only times in my life I was able to step out of the situation and really look at the situation from His perspective (with limited information). I prayed that whoever had taken the backpack would not only feel convicted, but more importantly would feel the love of God overwhelm him/her. I prayed that God would use this situation to further his Kingdom and this story would go on to magnify His name.

After I was done I tried to work on my homework, but couldn't concentrate. I called Shiloh and said that I would come out to the campus and do what I could; I couldn't do anything really except be there to comfort him. I arrived and went directly into the cafeteria and opened my laptop to work on homework that desperately needed to be done. However, all I could do was look around and pray. Since the time that Shiloh had called me I had not only felt peace over the situation, but I also KNEW beyond a shadow of a doubt that we would get it back. There were times when I would get a little spirit in me that would say "how are you going to pay for a new book and a laptop?", but within the next minute I would dismiss the thought because I knew he would get it back.

He decided to come home and try to watch some TV (he couldn't do homework). He calmed down after a while and went about the day as normal. That night around 9 or 9:30 we received a call from security at the school. They found his backpack in a classroom with everything in it (even the laptop and his money). Nothing at all was damaged or taken! The security guard was completely flabergasted. He said that he has never seen a situation like this where something has been stolen and then found completely.

Praise Jesus! To Him be all the glory forever and ever, Amen!

Alcatraz: A small city of desperation

So in my previous post I mentioned a "break" from homework. Well, our break was going down to San Fransisco. We left around 3 p.m. with the intention on going to the coast for some peace and quiet to get some homework done there. Well, when we arrived in Cresent City one of us wondered aloud, "How far is it to San Fransisco?" (Who this person was will remain unknown). So, we started the trek. If no one has ever told you, let me be the one to enlighten you - San Fransisco is a lot farther from Cresent City than from Grants Pass! You may wonder how that is possible, but let me assure you that it is true. Unfortunately, cars to not have the advantage of flying as the crow flies; we have to adhere to the construction of man that must have been drunk when designing the roads. There is not a straight road between Cresent City and San Fransisco that isn't in a town with a speed limit of 25. The short story is that it took us 9 hours to get to San Fransisco on the way there and only 5 hours on the way back.

The reason for this blog was not to tell you of our driving experience, but of our experience at Alcatraz. Before going there I thought, "This will be cool to see what a prison was like back in the day". However, by the time I got out I had the most creepy feeling I've felt in a long time, and even now when I think about it I can feel a creepy feeling crawling up my spine. Don't get me wrong, it was a great experience and I learned a lot. However, it was creepy. There are photos of both the prisoners and the guards. There are headphones that conduct a tour throughout the prison and there is even some action that you can hear: fighting, running, gunshots, and even the reaction of people getting shot. Because they have pictures of the prisoners and the guards up on the walls you can picture what is going on very vividly. It is creepy. If you have a weak stomach I wouldn't suggest going.

These past couple of weeks I've been sinking in homework in the evening, while during the day I'm sinking in work. So last weekend I took Friday off so I could catch up on sleep and homework. Well... that didn't exactly happen. I will post another blog on that. So I didn't really do any homework until Sunday - we stayed home from church so I could get some done. I spent five hours straight doing homework and then another hour. Some may say that I'm crazy, however, I felt impowered as I came up for breath. The amount I got done and the feeling of relief was incredible. This week I had/have three midterms, 4 quizzes, 2 chapters of homework, 2 outlines, 2 papers, 4 experiential exercises, and some other minor stuff. When I look or think about this list I cringe, however I know I will get it done and will feel amazing when its over. We are going to the coast this weekend, and the following weekend/week we are going to Arkansas and there I hope to get a good chunck of homework done then. After that term will be over within 2 weeks. Yay!

Disclaimer: Homework is not for the faint-hearted soul. It takes hard work and dedication - and a realization that it won't be like this forever. Enjoy this opportunity to learn fathoms of useless information like the elasticity of demand, because you won't get this joy after graduation.

Give me revelation!

I was driving to work the other day singing along with the radio and the song "Give me Revelation" by Third Day was playing. I sang my heart out. That evening I was driving home from class and I was listening to Kenny G. I love the song Sentimental because there is so much different feeling in it. As I played it over and over again ideas started shooting around in my mind--ideas that I've had in the past, but that I let die for one reason or another.

These past couple of days I've really been praying that God will give me courage and wisdom as to how He wants me to procede. I don't want to jump into anything before the time is ripe. At the same time, I don't want to restrain what He wants for me. I find myself scared in one minute, and crazy excited the next. I find that the more I pour His word and truth into myself the more strength and courage I have.

Please pray that this revelation I've been given will ripen and come to full harvest.

Travel

I love to travel! I've been to Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Brazil, Mexico, and, of course, America. We are also planning a trip to Arkansas this May and on the way back we are stopping in Canada! Though we will only be in the airport, we will be able to see it.

One of the places I have on my list to see is Chatsworth House, known to Pride and Prejudice fans as Pemberley. This amazing house is in Derbyshire, England. My best friend, Shera, and I have been planning on going to see this and other places for the past several years. It is one of the things on my bucket list. For those that haven't seen this phenomenal movie, I encourage you to take a day and become part of this historical story. (Watch the one with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle as the other one with Kiera Knightly is a pathetic redition of the original.)

Cards

What is it about cards that is so fascinating? And why is it that there are thousands of games that you can play with just these insignificant 52 cards (or 54 if you count jokers)? Who invented this deck that adds so much meaning to my life? Why is it that there are no other games that can be manipulated in thousands of different ways to make new games? Dominoes is one of the only other games that I now of that can be flexible to create other games, but not nearly as many as cards.

All these questions and no answers. I guess I will have to live with this mystery. However, I'm ok with that because I enjoy them so much.

Random Thoughts

I've created this blog as sort of a journal. I have an account on MySpace (which I never check) and an account on Facebook. However, neither of these really allow you to put thoughts down in the same way. They are typically for people to get a quick idea of where you are and some trivial information, however, they don't allow a person to really reflect on an issue or something major (at least not that I've found). In addition they don' t work at my work. So this will meet both criteria.

I am excited about life! I am overwhelmed at times being a full-time student and worker. I, however, am enjoying life (most of the time) and realize that it could be a lot worse. I have a job that I enjoy (for the most part), I am able to go to school, my husband is going to school, and I have a wonderful Grandfather that is allowing us to live with him while we are trudging through this stage of our lives. I wonder at this phenomena. Around 100 years ago it was common that several generations lived in the same house, and yet now if you say you live with your parents or relatives, or even next door to them you become labeled as "one of THOSE people". What is up with that? As if our relatives are people that we shouldn't want to be around all the time. I love my family and enjoy most of the time that I spend with them.