Jot it Down Tuesday/Free Writing my Brain Out

It's my free writing day, so I'm going to throw out a few thoughts that have been flying through my brain this past week.

Some of you so sweetly asked, quite a while back, about my health issues. I hesitated to write about them because it feels too much like one more visit to the doctor's office:

"Here are my symptoms, medications, food allergies, blah, blah, blah..."

Boring! And, poor you, having to hear all of that!

Yet, I am constantly on the prowl for blogs written by people who I can relate to. This isn't easy, because what I deal with isn't exactly mainstream. Not by a long shot. Then I thought about others who were doing the same. Sooo...instead of going into all of the details, I'll just tell you what I struggle with the most. I'll leave out the rest because that is way too much drama, even for me.

Top 5 health issues:

Eosinophilic Esophagitis (Also known as EoE or Eos.). I realize that this is a very rare diagnosis, so you can go here for a comprehensive overview of this CRAPPY disease. It was once thought to be a childhood disease, but low and behold...you don't grow out of it. Of course, there are now a bunch of adults who are desperately seeking treatment, with very limited results. Me included.

Gluten free/food allergies.

Migraines and chronic daily headaches.

Constant joint and deep tissue pain. The jury is still out on this one. Some say it's fibromyalgia, but since I have bruising in my ankle joints, it may be arthritis related (I had a doc tell me it might be RA, but that was years ago.). I really need to investigate this further, but I'm sick of seeing doctors, so I'll just wait until I'm limping before I go back in for this issue.

Hashimoto's.

If I could eliminate only one of these things, it would be the EoE. I hate it's guts like it hates mine. 

Okay, I'm just going to stop there. If you have any, or all of these medical nightmares, PLEASE know that this is a very safe place to come and share your thoughts/struggles/questions. Heck, rant if you want! Let it all out! I may not have the answers, but I sure have the sympathy. And I'll support you in any way possible. Pinky swear.

(I can already tell this is going to be full of bad grammar/typos/etc. So sorry...blame the migraine.) ;)

Hmmm...what else? Well, I cut waaaaaaaay back on Facebook. I have found that to be unbelievably peaceful and conflicting. Peaceful because...eh, I bet I don't even need to go there. If you have a Facebook account, then I'm sure you already know what I mean. I've been conflicted about what I should and shouldn't post on in my status. I've learned that you really cannot trust very many people with your heart, and you will absolutely be taken the wrong way 75% of the time. You'll be accused of things that never even crossed your mind, or you'll get the preach-down for every "heretical" thing you say (Oh...if they only knew what I really wanted to write...). Here's the conflict: I want to write "it," but I'm not sure if I should. Not just on Facebook, but anywhere. (Um...yeah, I'm probably not going to write it on Facebook.) That is not a safe place. Guard your heart...guard your heart...

Tonight, one of my friends posted this quote, "Evil thrives on apathy and cannot exist without it. If we turn our back on evil, our passivity translates into approval. Silence is consent."
- Sally Armstrong "Veiled Threat

Oh, man! That was pretty convicting, because what I am silent about aren't popular topics in my social circle (for the most part). It's stuff that's going to really tick people off! It's stuff that isn't talked about in mainstream by-the-book Evangelical circles. I mean, dude, there is NO WAY I am going to just hash this out in small group! Not even if your group is "non-judgemental". *wink* The stuff I want to write about will cause me to lose readers. Shoot,  I might not even have readers left after the first post! Then I wrestle with my intentions. Am I wanting to write about these things because I want you to know my thoughts, or because I actually feel led to write them? Would I be doing more harm than good? Which path brings God glory? The path where I keep it in, or the one where I throw out thoughts/questions/views/convictions, taking the bullets as they come? Would I have the right attitude to even go there? Ugh. See? This is the stuff my brain is chewing on. It's driving me insane!

Heh...this was supposed to be a simple home school blog. ;)

As far as home schooling goes, I totally blew my cool with my oldest today. I was way too heavy with a lecture about the negative effects of a low test score, when I should have evened it out with a double-scoop of You-Have-Done-a-Great-Job-Overall Mocha Chocolate Almond Fudge.

Hi, I'm a home school mom, and I am far from perfect, pulled together, or using proper grammar. That said, my heart is 100% into my job(s), and I'll keep on keeping on until I completely give out. Not because I have something to prove, but because it's my calling. It's what I love. It's why I get up in the morning. God blessed me with this and I don't plan on letting it go. Messy? Yep. Worth it? Absolutely.

Thanks for letting me free write my thoughts into a massive gluten free word pretzel. Please pass the cheese sauce.

This is kinda how my brain feels right now.

Sorry about the mess.

*Free write your brain out and then post it at the EO. You'll feel a lot better. Pinky swear.

Cheering you on & checking the fuel gauge,
Layla

Wordless Wednesday/Buggin' Out

Jot it Down Tuesday/Choke Hold

Don't lift your head to the scandalous sounds that Earth brings forth in abundant symphonies! Tuck your chin into the safety of fine tuned instruments, heeding the glossy note.

Wince at the outrageous display of sunlight dancing on the water, shift your gaze. When color dares to transform into a sense all its own, fix your eyes upon what it anchored in neutral safety.

Beige.
Grey.
Navy.

Hands filled with Field's flowers, cast aside your dirty bundles! Wash the warm earth from beneath your nails, pat your hands dry from River's stones and Hillside's dewy dandelions. Fold your fingers around one another, and sit quietly under the roof of Shade's safety.

Hold your breath when Breeze wafts her perfume through the tendrils of Baby's locks, Lilac's petals, and Pecan's woody essence. Breathe slow and steady.

Control.
Control.
Control.

When Vine, Fruit, and Nectar flow offerings of sticky, succulent drops into your cup, pour it out. Wipe clean the vibrant colors. Dip your vessel in tepid asylum. 

Never
too
full.

Or,

break free from the choke hold of Religion.

And live LIFE abundantly!

 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. ~John 10:10~

  JUST WRITE! An exercise in free writing.

Cheering you on & checking the fuel gauge,

Layla

Manic Monday/Choo! Choo! or In a Pickle

We are finally getting back into the swing of things. Today was a little tough, as we are still coughing and sniffling. Sick kids make for less enthusiastic students, and a sick mom makes for a groggy mom, so we allowed our schedule to adjust accordingly. It's possible the teacher popped in two educational DVDs at one point and took a nap. The students had quiet time. Hey, quiet time can still be learning time, right? Right. We covered the main subjects and left the frills behind. Like I said, it's going to take a while to get our steam back, but at least we are finally chugging along the track towards Routine Land. Choo! Choo! Ahhh...Routine Land...

how I love thee.

Everyone cooperated perfectly. Not one child was grounded for rolling his eyes or sighing heavily. 

Okay, it's possible that one child was grounded.

Later, Hypothetically Grounded Child discovered the rewards of finishing book work:

Cooking class with Dad.

Where were his brothers? Playing video games of course! (If they rolled their eyes during school, I didn't catch it.) All in all, I think that Tate got the better end of the deal. I mean, a cooking class with Dad and eating cucumbers...

that's living the dream, man!

 (Sure he started out in a pickle, but... 

What? Yeah, okay, that was bad.)

Here's to another day of chugging along the tracks to Routine Land. I think it'll take about two weeks to pull into the station, but the trip is part of the fun. :) Learning to work with what Life throws our way is an important life skill, so we'll just shift with the turns on the tracks. 

Cheering you on & checking the fuel gauge, 

Layla

Mother's Day Location Revealed (Part 2)

Welcome to Part 2 of our exciting day trip to the Wichita Mountains. I could tell you all about it, but I think the photos do a better job, so...

ENJOY!

There you have it! The conclusion of our fun little trip. :) It was sooo hard to only post a "few" photos, as my camera lens kept finding new things to capture on every twist and turn. If you've never visited this gorgeous reserve, you should. There are generous amounts of picnic areas, gorgeous camp grounds, and more sites than you can see in one day, so it's definitely worth multiple visits.

OH!

One more thing:

I fibbed.

I saved the coolest pics for Wordless Wednesday.

They are truly the icing on the cake.

The cat's meow.

The bee's knees.

You'll be sad if you don't come back.

Really, really, really sad.

I don't want to see you sad, so please come back.

I promise to not disappoint. 

This time I'm not fibbing.

For realz.

Cheering you on & checking the fuel gauge,

Layla

Mother's Day Location Revealed! (Part 1)

Well, we've all got the bronchitis, so I figured this would be a good time to post those Mother's Day pics I promised you. It's better than sitting here thinking about posting, while not posting, and feeling guilty about not posting what I said I would post.

Yeah, something like that.

We've had a lot of ups and downs since that weekend, but let's skip the drama and cut to the photos. That's the "cream filling" part anyway. ;)

A couple of you tried to guess where we went, yet were unable to figure out the exact location.
So...

(((drum roll)))

Mother's Day 2012 

Wichita Mountains, Oklahoma 

(Where you can contract Lyme Disease, so use

OFF Insect Repellent, or something comparable, just sayin'.) 

 

Whew! That was a lot of photos!

But, wait...

there's more!!!

Please come back tomorrow for the conclusion of our Mother's Day adventure *in photos*.

Cheering you on & checking the fuel gauge,

Layla