In the Hospital Again

Dad is in the hospital again.  He was admitted on Monday and we have spent much time there since then.  My husband took the day off and let me spend the whole day there yesterday.  He is fighting another blood infection but this time he has a skin infection on his elbow and his foot.  The doctors are concerned about the skin infection.  He is in good spirits but has not had much of an appetite.  Please pray for the skin infection to subside and for the swelling to go down.  An orthopedic surgeon saw him yesterday and said they may have to lance the area to drain the fluid.  We are hoping that they will not have to break the skin since his platelet count is always dangerously low.  Thank you for your prayers.

Bringing Her Food From Afar - Chicken Salad Sandwich




Looked so good that I took a bite before I could take a picture!

 

Shred that leftover rotisserie chicken from previous meal.  (About 2 C)

Chop up any fresh herb you may have in your refridgerator or any dry herb you may have in your pantry.  This a lemon thyme that I have growing in the garden.  (A few sprigs fresh or 3/4 tbsp dry)

Mayo (To your own liking.  I like lots of mayo so I put about 1/2 C)

Chopped green onion (2 Tbsp)

Dried cranberries.  Or any other dried or fresh fruit: grapes, chopped apples, raisins, strawberries.  (1/3 C)

Seasoning salt (To taste) and I also added curry powder (1 tsp)












Mix it all together and enjoy on your favorite bread.  We had it with salad and Red Roasted Bell Pepper and Tomato soup.  Enjoy!

Backyard Before and After

So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. 1 Corinthians 3:7

Before:

After:



The flowers are called Nemesia, drought tolerant and easy to grow.
There is also a lemon thyme and cilantro in the back.




In the back is a blueberry bush and along the bricks are pepper plants.




Rosemary, parsley, basil and lavender can be found amongst the flowers.




This is our strawberry patch with onion plants amongst them to combat garden pests.




Our first fruits.



Tomato, squash, bell pepper and cucumber.





Raspberry bush.




There are some seedlings in the middle and of course our wise old
owl to scare the birds away from the berries and tomatoes. 






Depth of Earth

My Mother has always kept a beautiful garden.  I often thought it was strange that she referred to all of her plants as females.  "She is so happy here in this spot!"  "She needs a little more water."  "She needs to be fertilized this week."   Now that I am gardening, I completely understand.  These plants and flowers need so much tender loving care and maintenance.  They are living creatures who, in return, give you joy as they smile back at you with their blooms. 

I attended a free tomato class at Armstrong Garden Center.  Almost every Saturday morning they offer a class on growing tomatoes, container gardens and maintaining roses.  With gardening being new to me, I needed all the advice I could get about getting started and this was a great resource.  They taught on preparing the soil, the root system of the tomato plants, how to maintain the soil with nutrients and fertilizers, insect control and other topics pertaining to tomatoes. 

The parallel to maintaining a healthy, fruitful relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ and maintaining a garden is so similar.  I am learning so much about both.  "Behold, a sower went out to sow.  And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them.  Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth.  But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them.  But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty...Matthew 13:3-8. 

The phrase "depth of earth" touched me as I pondered this scripture.  My heart needs to have depth of earth so that the word of God could go down and take root in my heart.  I struggle so much with the preparation of my heart.  There are stony areas that need to be worked out and areas where bitterness chokes out God's love with thorns. 

Lord Jesus, please give me a depth of earth in my heart so that You word, Your love and Your understanding will penetrate deep and allow me to apply Your precepts to my daily life.  I need You so desperately so that there could be change and growth in my life.  Thank You. 



Here is what our garden looked like before.
Tomorrow I will show you what it looks like now.

Delighting in Another Day of Life

Psalm 139:16...Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.  And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them. 

Beloved Family and Friends,

When I think about today's date and see how far the Lord has brought my Dad, I marvel and rejoice and acknowledge that we have a mighty and powerful God that knows our frame and knows our days.  It was 4 months ago today, that the doctor told my Dad that he gave him days to weeks of life.  No prayer, concern or even the smallest of thoughts has escaped the ear of our loving, heavenly Father...nor gone unaddressed.  Thank you so much for all of your thoughts and prayers for my Dad and Mom.

A couple of weeks ago, my Dad was having high fevers.  At this point in his Leukemia,  his immune system is so compromised, that he is instructed to go to the ER if his fever exceeds 100.3.  When he finally went into the doctor's office the following day for a blood transfusion, they told him that he needed to go to the ER and that he sounded as if he had a lung infection, possibly pneumonia.  Tests came back clear of pneumonia but he was kept in the hospital for nearly a week to make sure that the bacterial infection in his blood stream was completely clear.  He was given very strong antibiotics intravenously, which essentially fought the infection for him.

 

He has done well since he has come home from the hospital.  He had a platelet transfusion last week and will be having a blood transfusion tomorrow.  He has been receiving blood or platelets about every other week as he has been getting weaker and weaker.  He also has quite a loss of appetite.  Please pray for continued strength, a good appetite and the ability to enjoy his days with my Mom and the family.
 

I apologize for the delay in sending this message to you all.  Thank you so much for your love and care for our family.  It is truly a blessing and a pleasure to be part of a family of believers who live out the message of the gospel of Christ.

In Christ's love,
Girl Delighted

Falling Behind

My Father was in the hospital this last week.  He had an infection that was caused by bacteria in his bloodstream.  I have not been able to get to the computer.  I have so much to share about God's mighty power in the life of a person with Leukemia.  Also some projects...my garden is doing so well, I have painted some furniture and I'm going to recover another ottoman.  Will be back soon.