Thursday Thoughts

What's been going on this week?  Plenty.

- It's been a wet and rainy week yet again.  I can't recall one day that has been completely dry.  Either we get rain in the morning and sunshine in the afternoon, of vice versa.  Today it rained most of the morning.  It's sunny now, but it doesn't look like that sunshine is gonna last.

- My daughter did a special at church this Sunday.  She sang a solo, a song from an upcoming BarlowGirl album, and she was amazing!  No, that is NOT a biased opinion.  Not only were people singing along with her while she sang, she got a huge applause and cheering, and plenty of congratulations.  I only wish it had been recorded.  I thought since the service is recorded every week her song would be too.  It wasn't. :(.  I'll have to remember that for next time.

- Monday, Memorial Day, we stayed indoors.  It was (and still is) hot and muggy.  Of course plenty of people were barbecuing, but our grill has been out of commission for years.  Instead, I found a great recipe for baby back ribs which were on sale at Winn-Dixie.  The night before I boiled the rack in a mixture of half water/half apple juice for 45 minutes.  I took it out, let it cool, then covered it in Sweet Baby Ray's honey barbecue sauce (because Sweet Baby Ray's is the BEST) and put it in the fridge to soak up the flavor.  Next morning I put the rack in the oven at 250 degrees for 3 hours.  When those ribs came out, OH. MY. WORD.  They were incredibly tender and delicious!  All that prep and cooking, and they were gone in 20 minutes.  Soooo worth it!!!

- My daughter has gone to some interviews, has filled out numerous applications online and in person, but no job yet.  One positive, though - she applied to volunteer at a local orphanage, and she finally got clearance.  It's her desire to help out with the kids, and see if a possible future career is there.  We had talked about her working at the orphanage, but I told her this wouldn't be just another "job".  The majority of the kids there aren't orphans in the true sense; many have been placed there because their parents are unable or undesiring to care for them.  They've been through trauma, disappointments, and heartache.  It's a tough decision to say, "This is where I believe God wants me."  She wants to be sure first, and we both agreed volunteering would be the best way to see if it's something she can and wants to do.

- Another things we've agreed on:  Starting tomorrow, my daughter and I will be doing a mother/daughter study of the book of Proverbs.  We'll be reading one chapter per day and discussing what we've read and what impacts us the most.  I thought it would be good to do something different than what I'm doing with my son E (we're reading through Genesis), so I told her to pick anything except Isaiah (because Isaiah is HARD!!).  She chose Proverbs.  This is gonna be good!

- Tomorrow I'm going in for a sonogram of my gallbladder.  Due to some issues I've been having, my doctor had ordered a CT scan of my abdomen and found that I have gallstones.  I'm hoping it's not too severe.  Truthfully, I haven't had those intense pains some people complain about, but there is discomfort, and often bloating.  First the osteoarthritis, and now this.  Getting older isn't all it's cracked up to be :P
 
- Five days of school left.  The last day of school is next Thursday.  Sixth graders have their field day on Tuesday, which my son is looking forward to.  He's looking forward to the last day of school even more ;)

That's my weekly update.  Have a blessed rest of your week!