day by day

August is here. I don't know how it got here, but it did. It still kind of feels like May to me. Maybe because of the weather... I keep waiting for the inevitable long, hot, SA summer. The blessed rain has been wonderful and makes me feel like I'm in the Hawaii rainforests again. We love rain.

Rain is not all this summer has brought to our house, though. Summer brought us practically a brand-new house as Mom and Dad (mostly Mom) had people (mostly Dirk) install new carpets, floors, air conditioners, lighting, and trim, we planted new trees, and repainted the entire downstairs. I think most of it's great, and as soon as Dirk gets rid of the awful purple paint in Mom's bathroom that most definitely was her one mistake, it will all look great.
August has finally brought me close to the time when the military insurance, Tricare, will be cutting me off from their coverage. As you know, this is a huge problem. For most girls my age, I'm sure it doesn't matter much, but it's big deal for me. Anyone familiar with Tricare knows that they cut kids off at 21 unless they're in school fulltime. For me that means that I have about 5 months to convince the school to let me back in ("I won't have anymore seizures, I promise!") and jump back into the World of Academia. I definitley have some issues to get over about going back to school, but I hope that as it gets closer, God will calm me down and keep the panic at bay. I really don't want to go back to school (because of my stupid insecurities) but if brain surgery is going to be the answer to my problems, Dad will definitely need that insurance. :) Please pray for wisdom and guidance for us to make the right decisions about school, work, insurance, health, and family.

The store is going well and getting busier all the time. We're getting ready to convert it into the franchise that my boss is involved in. That will mean major remodeling and branding which I'm really excited about because it will make the place look SO much better. Hurray for redecorating.

What I'm more excited about than anything right now is going to Virginia next week! I haven't seen the kids in almost a year, and I miss my sisters like crazy. It will be so very nice to spend several days with them and enjoy the "northern" part of the country. :)

Help me then, in every tribulation,

So to trust Thy promises, O Lord,

That I lose not faith's sweet consolation, Offered me within Thy holy Word.

Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting, E'er to take, as from a father's hand,

One by one, the days, the moments fleeting, Till with Christ the Lord I stand.

summer

Well, it's been an interesting week. For some reason, we're still trying to recover and unpack from vacation while putting our house back together. Vacation was wonderful, and if Mom will ever send me the pictures, I'll put some on here. :)

We've recently been hammered at work with Back-to-School season approaching. The workload was so bad that yesterday I had to call Aubrey to come in, and I had to get another girl from one of the other stores to come over here and help Beth and me. We got through about a third of what needed to be done, and I'm hoping that we'll be very productive today.

I had an appointment yesterday with some sort of lower brain specialist who, I thought, was going to tell me that all the effects from the Chiari and CSF leaks were causing all the lower brain troubles. Instead, he told me there was "significant damage" to my brain that wasn't going to go away if they were actually able to get rid of the Chiari. He was in a hurry and didn't really elaborate on the "significant damage" (gotta love AF doctors)except to say that it made my test results from last month "very abnormal." After my next MRI in a couple of weeks, he's going to give me over to some other sort of specialist whose field I really couldn't distinguish from this doctor. Dad or Mom will be going with me to that appointment so they can take notes and, unlike me, can actually remember what the doctors say.

My best friend, Emily, was in a car accident this week and got her spine all messed up. She was in alot of pain for the first few days and so, for a change, I went over to her house to bring her magazines and ice cream and to threaten her life if she tried to walk. She's usually the one doing that to me, so it was pretty fun to be able to bark at her. Anyway, her car is finished with it's life but thankfully, Emily is doing much better and says that she'll be in to work today, which means that my store will be a happier place. :)

Time to work...

crazy

Well, I'm at the Russell's house, camped out with their 6 kids+Josiah for the next few days. Aubrey and Dirk left this afternoon on a much-needed mini vacation and left me their house, van, kids, and unfortunately, Luther. The last time they went away like this was 5 years ago. I also had their kids then, but they seem to have acquired a few more since then... :)
But it's been fine. The only one who's gotten in any trouble is Luther, who somehow thinks that I'm here to kill "his" kids. I think I might send him over to Adeana in the Cat House and see what he thinks about that. (Luther's the dog, btw.)
Miss Stephanie was SO sweet to bring back treats from DisneyLand for the kids since she knew the parents would be away. She gave me a very heavy bag of what she calls "bribery" and the big boys especially are very eager to obey and help, since they know that Pirate Candy is the reward.
Speaking of sweet people, this morning at church, Geoff (who lives next door) told me he'd be watching for any strange men, loud noises, and flashing lights coming from the house. But I told him not to worry because if I had a party, I'd invite him. :) He also granted me VIP access to his Endless Supply of DrPepper, which I'm sure many people covet.
I'll be out tomorrow renting movies and buying pizza, chocolate milk, and any other fun food I'm guilted into purchasing.

Feel free to stop by with a pep talk. As long as you're not a strange man, I'm sure Geoff will allow it.