Ever just had “one of those days”? I have had one of those days all this week! For starters, I have been trying to get Laci on a good schedule for going to bed at night and napping in the day. My goal was to have my devotional time at the same time each morning. And get both girls asleep for naps and teach Mitchell during that time. Well, it just didn’t work. I would get my prayer time in, but not my Bible time, or vice- versa. Neither girl would nap at the same time, Laci hardly napped at all! It was very discouraging. I was getting about 4 hours sleep a night all week because Laci just wouldn’t or couldn’t stay asleep. We checked the usual : fever? No.Runny nose? No. Teething? Well, that’s a possibility until they’re 2!! Appetite normal? You bet! She was just fussy, pulling at her ear and not sleeping! Laci’s problems caused Leslie to “fall awake” so now I had two up at 3 AM. Terry would take Leslie to our bed with him and I would have Laci. Finally, on Thursday, with red, burning eyes, I asked Terry(who was equally exhausted) if he thought I should take her in to see Dr. Sky (for more info on him read earlier post on “He’s everything he says He is….”). Maybe she had an ear infection??Well, he was booked until Fiday. So I took her the 30 min. drive to see the dr. at 9 on Fri. morning – leaving Terry with the other three – fully convinced that she was just “going through a phase, and I would just have to tough it out”. After all, I had been there, done that! Dr. Sky was, as usual, very kind and said I did the right thing to come in and have her checked. We joked about how I could save a lot of gas if I could just by an otoscope (to check the ears) and have him show me what an infected ear looks like! ha ha! Well, sure enough he said her left ear was infected! She had a cold about 3 weeks ago, and has seemed fine until this week. I guess she wasn’t really over it! Anyway, I got home, went dropped off Laci’s Rx and headed home to check on Lauren’s progress with school and eat lunch, then I went Wal-Mart in Marble Falls, picked up Laci’s Rx, came home, cleaned the kitchen, listened to Lauren read, give her an arithmetic test and a science quiz, then teach Mitch. Then it was supper time, and laundry and on and on and …well you get the idea. In all this chaos I just want to say that the Lord was so good to me in several ways:

1. I am so thankful that I listened to my husband and took Laci in to see the dr. If I hadn’t, I would only have many more nights of no sleep ahead of me, because the drs. office is closed Sat. and Sun.

2. If I had to take her on Monday, I would have had to take all of the children with me, because Terry flies out of Austin Mon. at 6 to go to West Virginia to preach at preacher’s fellowship conference. He won’t be back till Thursday! What a blessing.

3. Terry surprised me by asking his parents to watch ALL FOUR kids at our house so we could go out to eat at the Bluebonnet Cafe’!! It was so nice to be alone for 2 hours! After all the lost sleep I had had this past week, my patience and nerves were wearing very thin! What a blessing to relax and not have a child asking for something every time I blink. Thank you, Honey!

4. The BATHROOM IS DONE!! We took showers in the new bathroom last night! Yea! All that needs to be done now is the floor in there, but that will have to wait until he gets back from his trip.Here are some photos of the new, well, improved bathroom! (See above)

Today has been really busy too. Writing this now is my first break all day! Terry started his Bible Institute today (he teaches one course per semester to any church members, or non members for that matter, who are interested. It’s free. This semester is “Studying the Bible and building a Bible lesson” Next semester will be a shortened course on Baptist History. For more info about our church, click here.) Then, he had to put new breaks on the car, he gave one of our church kids a haircut, mowed our lawn and now he’s making visits. I have been cleaning, doing laundry and ironing for his trip, and of course, taking care of the kiddos. I still have to get my super church stuff ready and prep for school this week, and I HOPE I’ll get to bed before midnight tonight!

I am so thankful the Lord has seen me through this week. I am constantly amazed at how the Lord puts up with me. I gripe, I complain – oh, not out loud, but he hears my thoughts – and yet He has mercies that are new every morning. (Lam.3:22,23) He blesses me when I don’t deserve it – I never deserve it! Even when I’m good, I don’t deserve His love. Isn’t He good to us?