Encouragement: God is not Finished With Me– or the Elevator Yet...

Welcome Back Readers~

I’m sorry I let another two months go by without posting anything. But things have been quite hectic around here. Let me give you a quick overview before getting into the main topic of today’s blog.

1. My 41st birthday-It was pretty quiet around here for my birthday. Except for a few surprises of birthday balloons and a bouquet of wildflowers chosen by my dad, there were no surprises. Since my mother took care of my nieces for a week, we all decided to go to Olive Garden; it was pretty nice. Elizabeth even went out of her way to ask the waiter to “Decorate” my dessert with a Happy Birthday label with candy confetti. It was kind of cute.

   
   
   

2. Getting The Vaccine- In several posts, I have debated on getting the vaccine. Well, I finally got on the list and waited for an email. In April, they emailed with my opportunity to get the vaccine. I took it. At that time, though, they only gave it in specific locations; this time, it was a college. I received Moderma. The first shot wasn’t too bad with just an achy arm; the second dose (three weeks later) was what did me in. I didn’t sleep well that night, and eventually, I forced myself to get up. Fighting congestion and body aches, I tried to get something done; But it was useless. It wasn’t until my assistant suggested getting Pedialyte and Gatorade and we got it that I started feeling better. I know it sounds like a weird concoction, but it works!

3. Elevator Construction- If you’ve been following me long enough, you’ve probably heard me rant about my family’s troubles trying to get an elevator installed in our house. For those of you that are new, I will spare you the details except to say they are finally making progress. But it’s been a tough road full of confusion as well as disappointment. Here are a few pictures highlighting the making of the shaft for the elevator.

This brings me to the main purpose of this post. Wherever you are, whatever you are doing, God sees you. Just like the elevator, you may not see changes immediately. But he is a master at working behind the scenes. Tauren Wells' song "God's Not Done with You" speaks to this issue of feeling incomplete and useless when it comes to being a part of God's ministry team. Thankfully, Jesus can see past all of our insecurities and see who we were meant to be. To play the YouTube of "God's Not Done With You," it can be accessed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6-Pky8KFoQ

A Question of Faithfulness

 

 

Welcome Back Readers~

 

Chris Tomlin's "Your Grace is Enough" has been on my mind a lot lately; I can't exactly figure out why. Maybe it's just because this month's Faith box theme is about faithfulness- not necessarily ours, but God's.

 

As a result, we often find it easier to trust God in times of peace then in times of difficulty. But why is that? The answer is simple; we don't like change. It makes us uncomfortable and insecure.

That's where remembering God's faithfulness comes into play. It gives us an opportunity to look back and reflect on times when we have seen the Lord work in our lives on a daily basis. In this time of reflection, it is also important to note that God isn't only faithful with the with the big things, but the little things as well.

Christmas Blessings to All

  Dear Readers~

 As I sat down to write this update, I struggled with what I should entitle it. I like to stay positive and upbeat my posts whenever I can to instill hope whenever possible. But sometimes it gets tiring. Like many of my readers, I have been saddened by the events surrounding the capital and its aftermath. I refuse to go into politics on this page, but I will say this. We certainly need God now more than ever.

During my education, I have read about riots and disagreements among parties; but never in my wildest dreams did I think something like that would happen in my lifetime. Now that it has, I am reminded once again of God's infinite truth and peace- giving message of John 16:33. In this passage Jesus once again tries to remind his disciples of His impending death on the cross for all of humanity and those who choose to believe in Him. In the verse, Jesus says, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”'

Throughout this chapter, Jesus is open and honest about the struggles the disciples (as well as all Christians) will face after his death; however, because of the resurrection there is still hope. In this verse, Jesus is trying to prepare his disciples for two questions they will face: whose they are and where the foundation of their faith comes from.

What's the answer to both of those questions? 

I am a child of God (in Jesus Christ); I am trusting in the fact He Overcame!

He has overcome and I need not worry about anything else. Yes, I know there will be more obstacles to get through in the future, but I am constantly reminding myself that this is not my home…

Though earth is quite beautiful, I am just a person passing through on my way to be with the Lord.

I belong with Him

One day, He will come back and take me home to be with Him. Everything else won’t matter; only the things I’ve done for Him will last…

– – – –

*Verses used in this blog were:

1.) John 16:33

2.) 1 Corinthians 3: 13-15

Happy Thanksgiving 2020

Dear Readers,

Hello and welcome back.. Aww, who am I kidding? I'm the one who hasn't written on here in two months. But a big thanks to those friends and family and followers of this blog to this day; you're just one of the many reasons  I haven't dropped the ball completely. I know that people care about me and want to hear what I have to say.

Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. I'm pretty sure the holiday didn't look as normal as it would have this time last year with the virus and everything going around. But still.. It gives us more to be grateful for when precautions are lifted and everything goes back to normal.

Still, I'm beginning to think that idea of normal is overrated these days. Think about it, just last year it was  just the three of us celebrating Thanksgiving at our family's favorite Virginia Beach restaurant Catch- 31. Granted, the food there is fabulous and mom doesn't have to  lift a finger in food prep and cleanup; I know moms appreciate the break sometimes. On the other hand, this Thanksgiving we found ourselves taking care of two dogs

Wait.. I thought you only had one dog, Debbie?

You're right. But that doesn't account for Lolli, Holly's "dog" cousin. I'm not sure whether I wrote about Lolli's adoption into my brother's family. To make a long story short, Lolli came into our extended family just before our annual trip to Virginia Beach ; I had previously arranged for them to take care of her when we were away. That being said, you can imagine my anxiety leaving my baby with them. Thankfully, they became fast friends and cousins- except when it comes to sharing some toys

Now it was our turn to return the favor; not only that but we have a bearded Dragon, and Rebekah's pet as well it has certainly been one very interesting week. Here's some of my favorite pics for the week

It is unbelievable to think that just last year we didn't have our sweet Holly. She had brought a new sense of laughter and joy to our family that I didn't believe was possible. Albeit, she can be a handful sometimes-playing sweet one minute and racing away the next. We love her anyway.

A Writer's Perspective 2020

 

Dear readers,

Here is a picture of a plaque I have standing in my windowsill right in front of my writing desk. For those of you who can't see exactly what it says, it has the following on it:

"KEEP TRYING

KEEP MOVING

KEEP INSPIRING

KEEP BELIEVING

KEEP DREAMING

KEEP LOVING

YOU GOT THIS"

Cute saying, right? But even harder to live by these days...

Anyway, I keep this plaque as a reminder to continue writing every day on my book.

But yesterday, it reminded me of something different. It reminded me that no matter what I do every day or I come in contact with, I am a representative of Christ. Even with the small stuff-this blog for example

Strangely enough, I find it easier to write on here than I do on my fiction book; for the life of me, I don't know why.

Maybe it's because there's no fear of judgment here.. When in reality I am putting my thoughts out there for everyone to see.

Still, I do it anyway.

Like I said in my previous post, I haven't given up on finishing my book; just have changed directions for a while. I have given my proposal to another professional writer who may be able to tell me what I need to change or add to make it better. Hopefully, she will be able to give me some insight and continue editing my book when it's finished in the future

Basement apartment + puppy update

 Welcome Back Readers~

Wow, folks... I can't believe it's been over five months since I last posted on this blog.

But then again, I guess I can.

You'll be happy to know I'm finally living in the downstairs apartment; it is basically finished except for patching a few holes and creating a space for the elevator lift. I've already started putting up old pictures to make it more homey. Maybe one of these days I will decide to give you a YouTube tour once I figure click out out how I'm going to do. For now, this picture is going to have to do...

Let's see... What else? Oh yes, my adorable puppy Holly; although I don't know whether I can call her that anymore, she's getting so big. But she's still a handful. Don't get me wrong, having a pet is great especially with the pandemic going around. But Holly seems to think that since we don't go out much it should be all about her-all day every day. Still, she has quickly become an integral part of the family; my dad has quickly become Holly's favorite person.. Strangely, the feeling seems to be mutual..

With Covid, we had to postpone lot of our dog,'s regular activities such as training and grooming; as a result, she's developed some annoying and exhausting habits - everything ranging from playful nipping to jumping up on strangers. You can imagine our relief when Petco called to offer us one-on-one training since we hadn't attended the group sessions I already paid for. Anyway, we just finished Holly's second week. She's doing well but got a long way to go if we want her to to be an assistance dog- which  we do. Right now, we are focused on the basics of walking to the left of my wheelchair and distraction as well the basic commands like "come", "sit", and "stay".

A few weeks ago, Holly had her first grooming. Here is a "before" photo:

And the amazing transformation:

I know what you're thinking... It's not a different dog

On a more personal note, I kind of have switched gears when it comes to my writing. During my last post, I may have been preparing my first proposal to send off to a potential agent. Unfortunately, they passed. That being said, I was obviously disappointed; I haven't given up on finding an agent just concentrating on finishing my book. Although it would really be nice to have the person on my team besides my parents supporting and encouraging my passion for writing

Life With a New Puppy

Okay~

If it this isn't love at first sight; I don't know what is. Granted, just a moment before this picture was taken Holly Joy was licking my face. Now that would have been the perfect picture. But as I've learned life with a puppy is far from perfect

But I wouldn't change it for the world..

It's hard to believe that just a few weeks ago we brought this little girl home and she's already become such a integral part of our world.The first few weeks were hard:Both of us had some adjusting to do.Holly had to adjust to being in a new home without her brothers and sisters and we had to adjust to the puppy potty schedule. Thankfully, I had mom to help with that.Otherwise, I don't know what I would do.

From the most part, Holly stays with me in my room. In the beginning, though, she woke up 2 to 3 times a night in order to go to the bathroom. What a wonderful wake-up call that was. Now she last until 6: 30 a.m. in the morning. She sleeps in a crate on a chair right next to my bed.

 If I wouldn't have read that puppies sleep 18 to 20 hours a day, I would not have believed it. But they do. Sleep plays a valuable role in a puppy's routine otherwise the can regress into biting or nipping. Her routine is something like the following:

6:30 AM- Holly wake up
6:45 AM Bathroom
7 AM- Breakfast
7:30 a.m.-another bathroom break
8 AM-morning play
8:30 AM- 9:30 AM- Morning nap
9:30 AM- Bathroom
10 AM - mid- morning play
10:30 a.m. another nap
12 PM- bathroom before lunch
12:30 p.m. Lunch
12:45 p.m.-another bathroom break
1:00 p.m.- playtime
1:30 p.m-Bathroom/naptime
5:30 p.m-Bathroom
6 PM-Dinner
6:45 PM- bathroom
And so on and so forth into 10- 10:30 PM when I go to bed

During most naps, she can be found on my couch in the living or in the crate. She just loves being around people. Her favorite spot seems to be in mom's lap on the couch in front of the fire while we are watching TV together.

In the midst of Holly's arrival, I have also been interviewing and vetting possible PAs to give my parents a break during the day. Thankfully we did not have to look very far; I have hired a daytime caregiver to work during the week. Since the basement is not finished, however, she only works part-time. Most of my days are spent in the front room watching TV or playing cards with her. I made sure that Mia was comfortable around pets and capable and okay with dealing with Holly as needed. She has picked right up offering to walk her and take her out. In my mind, that is going above and beyond all the call of duty.

All in all, things are going well. Holly has yet to get used to my wheelchair. However, I have gone with my mom on several walks to get her more accustomed to the power chair. Puppy training starts March 21, so that should help. I will keep you guys updated on her progress.

Holly's proud mom

Debbie