Best Halloween Ever

It has always been my least favorite holiday...so today I turned all the lights out...went to sleep. No trick or treaters here! :) Had another chest compression today. First my throat hurt, then I had the warning, tick I can recognize, so I immediately tried to take deep breaths so as to not let stress make it happen but it came anyway. In a second, I was dripping wet with cold sweat and I gripped my chest. I managed to make it to my class and lay back in my chair. My class knew something was wrong, but I knew that last time I went to the nurse it went away when I lay down...so I kind of did in the chair. Five minutes later was specials and I went to the nurse..even though it had passed. My blood pressure was higher than my normal but not the 160 something as when I had her take it before...so I knew I was on the good side of it, but it took its toll on me the rest of the day. I just felt like I was whispering and going through motions to make it to the end. I don't know if the medicine I am taking triggers it. Today, the previous activity I was doing might have triggered it, (45 mins of non-stop clapping, cheering, and whooping for the cake walk). I just want to be normal again. Sometimes I think I won't make it to retirement alive.

Everything I like...

...is either a dairy product, involves sugar, and beef. Well, I've been sick for 7 weeks now and so my doctor did some blood work on the 2nd visit. On the third visit, he spent about an hour with me. He has taken over my life. He took me off everything I like. He took me off dairy products. He took me off sugar products. He took me off red meat. What else is there? Gone are my pity parties with a pint of Blue Bell. Gone are my teacher queso runs. Gone are all my favorite dishes at my favorite restaurant. What will I eat? Where will I go? How can I socialize when there is nothing I can eat? I went to my restaurant to eat and had to study the menu for a long time before I ordered chicken fajitas and ate one serving on one tortilla. (Thank heavens I can have guacamole.) And my choices of cafeteria food...eew. They definitely have healthy...it's just not my taste. I am balking at one thing. I am not ready to give up my regular milk. We had quite the argument in the doctor's office about it, but when I'm out of his office...he just doesn't need to know. He thinks I am going to fax him my exercise log and blood pressure every week. NOT. I'll wait till I see some weight loss and hope that will suffice.

Busy Day

I'm still sick. But...life goes on and my job is to talk (which makes my throat more sore and swollen). It's been 7 weeks and I'm going to take off tomorrow to go to the doctor again.

We've had a lot of goodbyes and here we still are in our ward. The entire YW had a surprise party for me two weeks ago and had made pictures of them and me and had refreshments. Then last week the choir which I have directed off and on for years (cough, cough, 25+ years??? in several wards in this area) we had a huge going away party...and still here we are. It is getting embarrassing. The youth went to the temple last Friday and Kevin and I were with them. I work with the Laurels and he is an adviser with the Priests, so he was doing confirmations for the dead.

Today I led choir practice in the a.m. then gave a talk in church on "Obedience to the commandments brings Freedom"...a very interesting topic which was very fun to illustrate and find some very powerful quotes from general authorities. Then I gave a Laurel lesson on developing patience. Wow. I had prayed to know which of the 3 remaining topics to choose and this was it. After the Uchtdorf marshmallow video, scriptures, brainstorming of people in the scriptures who were examples of patience and for what reason, ways to develop patience, the girls talked about their own lives and the things that they needed to have patience for, then I had them write to someone to buoy them up, to help them through a trial. In the end, they shared some of what they wrote...and then the tears came. One at a time, they shared trials that someone in their family was going through, even the visitor from another ward was crying...and she even hugged me. We went overtime sharing, hugging each other and when they heard it was my last lesson, they all wanted pictures with me. Then it was choir practice, but I sent them all to stake choir since it didn't make sense to have me rehearse something I don't know if they'll sing.

I've so loved my Laurel calling. Every week we would have this huge class. The girls love each other and love the Lord and the gospel. Every week they invite people from other wards and nonmembers. We have 9 girls on the roll and with all the visitors, we just crowd our room. Everyone wants to be in our ward with our girls. I just hate to leave them.

Quote me!

Same ol...same ol... Teaching. Young Women's was a Cupcake Wars between the MIAMaids and Laurels. The cupcakes were all premade and the girls brought decorations. They had to create a picture with the cupcakes. The Laurels won...with their bouquet of flowers (each cupcake was a flower.)

Thursday, MIDI. Friday..teaching, my Mentors meeting that I run, and Los Tres. Saturday, Teacher Heaven, babysitting Janet's children, and...last, but not least, running to Panera before the RS session. I had the car loaded with books we were getting rid of for a service project to give chapter books to children in a less fortunate ward. Mike and I had boxes we needed to get rid of. We still do. But the sister missionaries came in helping carry the boxes and a lady was taking all our pictures, then found out I was a teacher getting rid of my books and so the article had quotes from me. :) Check it out on FB.

How can I keep from singing?

Today, I'm still sick. Still on meds. Found out that my principal is leaving in a week. She's had a lot of personal trials lately...but our scores were so low I wouldn't be surprised if it was a forced out.

Today's Sunday lesson was on keeping the Sabbath day holy. I had the girls share their favorite thing they like to do on Sunday. I remembered my blue treasure box I made for the children. I remembered the Sabbath Day jar I made for the children. I remembered the scripture story videos, sitting on the couch and round robin telling what we learned in church and then round robin choosing our favorite church hymn or song to sing. I remembered the no bake chocolate cookies David would make...Fast Sunday's movie and popcorn.

But what I loved most about Sunday traditions started when I was a child. I would sit on the couch with the album cover of a Tabernacle Choir record and sing with the choir. I knew all the words. I knew all the parts. I loved the songs. When I got to be a mother, I had a binder of EFY type songs that we women would sing in parts around the piano. I also remember everyone going to choir practice and singing in the choir. As I have become an empty-nester, I've gone back to my childhood tradition where I play the Tabernacle Choir CD, but now I have ordered the actual written music that I sit on the couch and sing with the CD. I passed out some music today and we sang with the CD in my class. I loved it.

My next to last choir practice was today. My last performance number is quite apropos, "How Can I Keep From Singing" (a freebee download from Sally Deford.) I have so many people coming to choir to sing it. It is going to be beautiful. How can I keep from singing?

Guardians of Virtue

My lesson today...I was sick, so I was inspired to not talk. I showed the video on Mormon.org about setting the limits...where the drawings of the trees and the planes that crash because they have a goal to not fly into the tops of the trees, not 500 ft. above the tops of the trees. So I gave each girl a poster. They drew the trees and the tops of the trees and the things that were representing each of those things, then each girl added personal and items we talked about as we shared experiences and things we read that were ways we could aim higher than the tops of the trees. Every girl went home with a poster for her bedroom and somethings she had decided to keep herself chaste and virtuous. They loved it. Easy lesson.

OK. My first post was 5 years ago on this blog...and it was still there...with my same username as Xanga. So I guess I am just starting up using this site. Not sure how to link to anyone or set up my site...but I'll get there.