Today we had believer’s baptism at church. It was amazing and powerful. I love watching fellow Christians publicly declare their faith and that they are followers of our risen Savior Jesus Christ.  Today before the baptisms Pastor John preached the definition of believers baptism. That it’s baptism by immersion, Jesus himself was baptized and it’s a practice that Jesus commanded believers to spread the Gospel and baptize believers. I was baptized as a baby as were my children. That was all I knew. However there’s isn’t anywhere in the. In the Bible that says we need to baptize babies.  As per the Bible the short version is that we are to form a relationship with Christ and then go public with that relationship with immersion believers baptism.

When I was first saved I had no intention of being baptized “again” since I was already baptized as a baby. It wasn’t until I actually met with the Lord did I really desire to be baptized. I finally understood, I got it.

My testimony of how I met the Lord is one I’ve written about before. I never got tired of telling it because it’s so true that Jesus will meet you where you are. You do not have to have it all together or conquer sin to meet Him. He is glorious and caring and amazing and everything you can imagine that He is. Six years ago life was not easy. Thomas has to stop one of his medications due to a dangerous side effect. That led to him becoming totally unglued and multiple hospitalizations. I was so, so angry. I was angry at God for allowing this to happen, and I wanted to know why our lives were suddenly turned upside down. I wanted to know God’s plan for us and I was angry because I wasn’t privy to that plan. One morning I was driving home after dropping Samantha off at pre-k. I was stopped at a traffic light listening to “Praise you in this storm” by the band Casting Crowns. Out of nowhere I started crying and crying, tears running down my face. “Every tear I’ve cried you hold in your hand…” when those lyrics came up I had a distinct vision of Jesus standing behind me with his hand on my shoulder as I’m crying and he then cupped his hand to catch my tears. It was so powerful I felt as though this was really happening. After that encounter I wasn’t angry anymore. I placed my trust and confidence in God and I no longer worried about what He had planned.

Meeting with the Lord isn’t anything magical or supernatural in fact it was the most natural experience ever. I feel as though I had a taste of His glory and it has made me want more of Him.

I get my nails done every other week. I get what’s called powder gel or SNS. Don’t ask me what SNS stands for, I think it’s the brand of powder gel. I really like the look of my nails being done I think it looks professional and neat on me. I don’t get wild colors or designs not are they long like just past my fingertips.

Just a little background; my nails don’t grow very well, are soft and will bend at a certain length. Now before someone starts diagnosing me with some sort of nail revealing disorder my nails have been like this all my life. I’m fine.  There were times in the past that I would get acrylics but I hated that I felt like a slave to getting a fill in. If you let them grow out too long it looks really bad and you need more acrylic to fill in the growth. Plus when you take the acrylic off, your nails are so so thin and damaged.

Where I get my nails done is owned by a woman from China and all but 2 of the employees are also from China. They speak nail talk very well and also they know how to present you with a bill and they speak money. They might speak more English than that but it’s hard to tell. Most are very, very nice and want you to be happy with their service. It’s pretty competitive where I live. There are 4 nail salons in a 3 block radius. But I notice there’s plenty of business to go around. I have my favorite spot which happens to be right around the corner from my house. I prefer one woman who calls herself “Billie” to do my nails. Oh I didn’t mention that all the Chinese women have names that would be considered “American.” There’s Helen, Linda, Shirley and so on.

I’m not particular who does my pedicures. I do like going at least twice a month especially in the summer when sandals are the shoe of choice. The reason I can maintain this mani pedi habit is how reasonable the cost is here where I live. There’s pretty much an average price for services a pedicure is around 18.00 and my nails cost 35.00 for the powder gel. The powder gel lasts at least 2 weeks, I might get 3 weeks if I didn’t get bored with the color. It always happens though, it will be 2 weeks since my last nail appointment and I’ll say to myself, “Oh I can go another week…” and BAM I’ll hit my nails on something and the gel will crack. Never fails.

So my toes are done and I’m finished writing. Happy weekend to all!

Everyone who knows me knows I arrive to work early to land a great parking space. I don’t mind, three days a week I stay late working until 5:00 covering an after school program. I’d rather know I have a close parking spot when I get there in the morning rather than worry about moving my car closer later in the day or walk to my car alone blocks away in a not so great neighborhood.

What I don’t understand is the people who park so inconsiderately. Like taking up two spots on the street and all they had to do was move up or back a few feet and another car would have fit there. It’s quite rude especially around here where parking spots are at a premium. And I must say it’s not my coworkers but the people who work at the grammar school down the street. Interesting.

Somedays I wonder what it would be like to sleep a little later, leave my house a little later and have to actively look for parking. But it’s a domino effect. If I slept later then left the house later I’d be stuck in traffic by my house and behind the dreaded multiple school buses which would delay my arrival even more. It’s amazing what a delay of  10-15 minutes can do to your travel time in the morning.

I’m so used to waking up early to get good parking I sometimes get up early on my days off and that’s ok. I find I get a lot done early in the day when I’m off. Last Saturday I was in ShopRite by 8 am and it was glorious!  I was done grocery shopping for the week by 9:30. It’s all good

 

 

Everyone who knows me knows I arrive to work early to land a great parking space. I don’t mind, three days a week I stay late working until 5:00 covering an after school program. I’d rather know I have a close parking spot when I get there in the morning rather than worry about moving my car closer later in the day or walk to my car alone blocks away in a not so great neighborhood.

What I don’t understand is the people who park so inconsiderately. Like taking up two spots on the street and all they had to do was move up or back a few feet and another car would have fit there. It’s quite rude especially around here where parking spots are at a premium. And I must say it’s not my coworkers but the people who work at the grammar school down the street. Interesting.

Somedays I wonder what it would be like to sleep a little later, leave my house a little later and have to actively look for parking. But it’s a domino effect. If I slept later then left the house later I’d be stuck in traffic by my house and behind the dreaded multiple school buses which would delay my arrival even more. It’s amazing what a delay of  10-15 minutes can do to your travel time in the morning.

I’m so used to waking up early to get good parking I sometimes get up early on my days off and that’s ok. I find I get a lot done early in the day when I’m off. Last Saturday I was in ShopRite by 8 am and it was glorious!  I was done grocery shopping for the week by 9:30. It’s all good

 

 

You haven’t lived until you’ve been shopping with my youngest, Samantha. She’ll be 13yrs old in August. She is the picture perfect specimen of shopping with a not so girly girl sneaker loving kid. I have learned the hard way to not suggest anything whether it be clothing or shoes or sneakers that I may find to be cute because in Samantha’s eyes the stuff is not cute at all. Alyssa and Lelly weren’t like that. They were pretty easy to shop with. I know one shouldn’t compare, that every child is different, blah blah…yeah yeah.

Today Samantha and I went to the mall to return a pair of sneakers that started ripping after only a month of semi regular wear. So we had a credit in one of the big sneaker stores. I suggested a style or two but learned to not take her look of “no” personally. I’ve come a long way in the art of shopping with Samantha. I used to get very frustrated and take her rejection of my choices or suggestions so personally. Since I’ve let go of my expectations things are a lot more pleasant when shopping. The only torturous experience is when we have a party to go to and Samantha needs something dressy to wear. Oh my gosh…it’s so not fun. But…again I’ve let go of the girly things my older two would have worn and just let Samantha be Samantha. There’s nothing wrong with jeans and a nice top with dressier sneakers. I’m ok with those choices.

Its nice to write a post about such typical behavior. And to be honest now that I’ve let go of my shopping expectations, being in the mall with Samantha is a whole lot more enjoyable.

 

I am employed by the Dept of Education of the city where I live. So essentially I am a city employee. It’s no secret that I love my job, I enjoy my co workers both nurses  and paras and teachers alike. It’s great that I work with other nurses. In this profession you need someone to talk to, to bounce things off of or simply vent to someone who really gets it.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my position of working for the city and my commission to spread the Gospel. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t afraid of putting my job in jeopardy if I were to talk about God to the students in my school. I’m not concerned with fear when it comes to talking about God to my coworkers, although I could use some boldness in that area. There are many I work with  who could use more Jesus in their lives, but then again who couldn’t use more Jesus in their lives? I know I could.

There are a few people at work that I’ve been transparent with concerning my faith in God. And I’m sure the ones I haven’t talked to about God can guess. But I don’t want them to guess I want all to know I am a follower of Christ, that He is real and has changed my life and He can change theirs as well.

My church is having a block party at The National Lighthouse Museum down by the ferry this Saturday June 15. I wish we could go but it’s Lelly’s prom that day. I don’t want to miss any of it. It seems like yesterday I was chasing this toddler down the street, man she was fast and strong willed. She’s still strong willed. Good for her! If there’s something she wants she goes after it. God has been so good to me concerning my children and my husband. Even the challenges we faced with Thomas, God was with us all the way even when I couldn’t feel His presence I know He did not forsake us, there’s too much evidence that His fingerprints were all over our lives.

I am employed by the Dept of Education of the city where I live. So essentially I am a city employee. It’s no secret that I love my job, I enjoy my co workers both nurses  and paras and teachers alike. It’s great that I work with other nurses. In this profession you need someone to talk to, to bounce things off of or simply vent to someone who really gets it.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my position of working for the city and my commission to spread the Gospel. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t afraid of putting my job in jeopardy if I were to talk about God to the students in my school. I’m not concerned with fear when it comes to talking about God to my coworkers, although I could use some boldness in that area. There are many I work with  who could use more Jesus in their lives, but then again who couldn’t use more Jesus in their lives? I know I could.

There are a few people at work that I’ve been transparent with concerning my faith in God. And I’m sure the ones I haven’t talked to about God can guess. But I don’t want them to guess I want all to know I am a follower of Christ, that He is real and has changed my life and He can change theirs as well.

My church is having a block party at The National Lighthouse Museum down by the ferry this Saturday June 15. I wish we could go but it’s Lelly’s prom that day. I don’t want to miss any of it. It seems like yesterday I was chasing this toddler down the street, man she was fast and strong willed. She’s still strong willed. Good for her! If there’s something she wants she goes after it. God has been so good to me concerning my children and my husband. Even the challenges we faced with Thomas, God was with us all the way even when I couldn’t feel His presence I know He did not forsake us, there’s too much evidence that His fingerprints were all over our lives.

I am employed by the Dept of Education of the city where I live. So essentially I am a city employee. It’s no secret that I love my job, I enjoy my co workers both nurses  and paras and teachers alike. It’s great that I work with other nurses. In this profession you need someone to talk to, to bounce things off of or simply vent to someone who really gets it.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my position of working for the city and my commission to spread the Gospel. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t afraid of putting my job in jeopardy if I were to talk about God to the students in my school. I’m not concerned with fear when it comes to talking about God to my coworkers, although I could use some boldness in that area. There are many I work with  who could use more Jesus in their lives, but then again who couldn’t use more Jesus in their lives? I know I could.

There are a few people at work that I’ve been transparent with concerning my faith in God. And I’m sure the ones I haven’t talked to about God can guess. But I don’t want them to guess I want all to know I am a follower of Christ, that He is real and has changed my life and He can change theirs as well.

My church is having a block party at The National Lighthouse Museum down by the ferry this Saturday June 15. I wish we could go but it’s Lelly’s prom that day. I don’t want to miss any of it. It seems like yesterday I was chasing this toddler down the street, man she was fast and strong willed. She’s still strong willed. Good for her! If there’s something she wants she goes after it. God has been so good to me concerning my children and my husband. Even the challenges we faced with Thomas, God was with us all the way even when I couldn’t feel His presence I know He did not forsake us, there’s too much evidence that His fingerprints were all over our lives.

We took a Memorial Weekend trip down to Florida to visit my brother and sister in law, my husband’s brother and his wife. Our flight down was nice, we had an 8 am flight so it was nice to have almost the whole first day there. The whole weekend was great, it started with lunch with Vinny my bro in law and his daughter. Lunch was awesome and comfortable and  relaxed as if we’d been having meals together forever.

Then Alyssa and I went exploring to check out the nearby outlet mall. It was hot and we were tired so we only got as far as The Gap which was cool because we don’t have a Gap store nearby. By the time we returned to Vinny’s house his wife Zuny was home from work. She is such a wonderful, warm, real person. She’s really easy to be around and you just feel loved being around her. I’ve known Vinny for around the same amount of time I’ve known my husband (going on 30+ years) but until we all became adults we never really hung out together. I swear the older we get the more we love being together. My brother in law is also a very warm, easy to be around person. He’s got a great sense of humor and I love to laugh with him.

We spent the whole weekend together with a dinner out at this restaurant on the water. The food was great and so was the company we were with. I swear we only slept at our hotel, the rest of our time was spent with Vinny and Zuny. We visited 2 beaches not far from their house but there was this seaweed that was all over the beach and all in the water. A lot of seaweed, a lot. It was kind of disconcerting to be in the water and have seaweed be wrapped around your ankle when the tide came in and out. So we didn’t spend all that much time at the beach. But that’s ok we went back to the house and went in the pool, sweet!

Coming home we had a 6:15 am flight. It was as bad as it sounds. The upside is that we were back in our home by 10am. That was really cool, no traffic at all. I spent the rest of the day playing catch up from not being home for 3 days  it that’s ok it was well worth it.

I really enjoy the students in my school. There are medically fragile students that I provide care for everyday and give medications and they have feeding tubes, some have seizures quite often and some simply require a lot of care.  But I really don’t mind. I enjoy taking care of them. I’m doing for them what they cannot do for themselves. It’s real nursing with various procedures that must be performed, giving prescribed medications and taking care of emergency situations.

I also enjoy the students who walk and talk. There are no 2 students that are the same. They’re each so different and unique and they all have their own strengths. Some students have cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, autism spectrum disorders, brain damage. There doesn’t seem to be a limit on diagnosis for these kids. And there doesn’t seem to be a limit to what they can learn to do.

We have frequent flyers just like any other school; meaning students who are literally always in the nurse’s office. We have some who we see on a daily basis because they want the attention and that’s ok. They usually have a very small abrasion on an arm or leg if they’re wearing shorts and they always want a band aid. Band aids and water from the water cooler cure quite a large amount of ailments. It’s amazing. Of course I have my favorites. There are some who simply crawl in your heart and take up residence there. And there are some parents who you just click with.  Being Thomas’ mom I I can relate to so many parents. I know what it’s like to have complete trust in other people to provide care for your child. It’s difficult to get to that point. I get that, I really do.

I never thought I would have a job that I enjoy as much as I do this one. Never mind a job in the field of nursing. My next class for my bachelors begins on May 28. I decided to take a short break after my last class ended. I can wait for the next class to start, it’s been nice to have nothing I have to do after work or on the weekends.

I’m off tomorrow because of plans we have for the Memorial Day weekend. It’s the first time I’ve taken a day off except when my father passed away a year and a half ago. I don’t mind not taking days off, I mean I’m on the same schedule as the schools so I’m off for Christmas break, February break, Easter break, please…that is more than enough time off.