TGIF. It's been a long, albeit good, week for Bethany and me. Thank God. We are so looking forward to the weekend. Bethany is hardly on any pain killers, however, she still needs some because of the chest and arm pain from her pic line. Yes. It was adjusted. And yes. We have spoken with her doctor.

Bethany's home health aide came today and Bethany was still in alot of pain. She discussed the fact that her doctor appointment isn't until Wednesday, and that she doesn't think she will be able to stand the pain that long. So, the nurse asked Dr. Chiyazda to call me. He said that the nurse could come back on Sunday, after Bethany's dosage, and remove the pic line. Thank God! Please remind me again, how did we ever survive before modern medicine?

Well, after being away from home for so long, I had decided to organize my entire home; not a small task, even for a girl like me. I'm typically a very organized person, however, since coming home, I have felt extremely disorganized; Disillusioned? Disenchanted? Nope. Disorganized. That's the correct word.

Anyway, I've been on an organization streak:

•The bathroom is now color coded; Joy is blue, Bethany is green, Jonathan is red and I am pink. The girly accessories are in drawers; there is a drawer designed for each item: toothbrushes/paste, makeup, accessories, combs/brushes, and towels are in the cabinet.

•The kitchen only has items in it that I use weekly, if not daily. The baking stones are stored vertically; my pantry only has foods and herbs that we will actually eat; the dogs' dishes are put in a drawer that slides out when it's feeding time.

•All of my digital photos have been categorized and saved onto CDs that I have stored copies of in safety deposit box; Jonathan's high school scrapbook has been updated through his Freshman year, and I've downloaded enough pictures to completely fill my digital photo frame.

•Koda has officially graduated from Obedience Training. Hallelujah! He is the calmest, most well behaved dog, on the planet-next to Domino, of course.

•I was able to finish both the front and back yard before the snow came this afternoon. Koda's holes are filled in with fresh dirt; bushes are covered; bird feeders are freshly cleaned and hung with bird seed; snow blower is freshly oiled and ready; garage is cleaned and all of Bethany's dorm furnishings are neatly stored until Fall, when she will move back into the dorm.

And then.........I suddenly awoke.. Apparently, my heart couldn't handle this amount of heavenly, dreamfilled bliss. And alas, reality struck. My home may not be as organized and clean as I would like, but at least I have a home, a place to call my own. I may have all my photos digitally mastered, but Praise God, I have a camera and a laptop. I may not have the world's best dog for a pet, but he has substantially calmed down--to the point I barely recognize him. And, although my garage is an absolute mess, at least Bethany is back at home. Ahhh.

Although life may not seem to be going as I would have planned, or would have liked, I know the Lord has a plan for me and for my family, and for that, I am truly thankful. I prefer to get straight to the plan, whereas the Lord appears to prefer me going on tangents and indirect roads--I guess that is how He is polishing and perfecting me. Geesh! Enough already. We all know I will never be totally polished and not nearly perfected, but just allow me to get straight to the plan. Hallelujah!

May you know His vision for your life and may He see you through to it (soon). Ha.

Thanks again, for everything, especially your continued prayers.

Love, Shari