November Happenings

To start, my 2004 Nissan Quest got a makeover!  She got some engine and body work done, now we're just waiting on her deep cleaning to get done (had to wait until after Christmas to afford that part), so stay tuned for before-&-after pics as she gets ready for the next eight loyal years of service to this family (hopefully).

Now - Brad.  He hates it when I write or share anything regarding him... so I may very well be in for a reaming if he were to ever find out I posted this!  He has been struggling for many years with severe, chronic allergies.  He finally got tested and found out he's allergic to nearly everything!  He also found out one of the reasons he doesn't get any releif when using his prescription nasal spray is because he had a near complete blockage in his left nasal passage... so he went in for a septoplasty surgery.

Just before surgery and just after...

 The recovery proved to be WAY more than he'd bargained for.  He was told it's "no big deal" but he endured a lot of pain and swelling (and of course, there was nothing I could do to ease his sufferring).  I shared my woes with my bible study group and they all really came through for us!  Not only did they pray for a swift recovery and minimal suffering, they also brought easy-to-fix meals for me to pop in the oven or frozen dinners and snacks for the boys to eat as well, it all was so very helpful!

 God is so GREAT!!

**Random** caught Garrett asleep with his book, thought it was a cute moment to capture, so I did.  He's such a bookworm!  I love it!!

**Now back to Brad's story (sort of)**

God works in mysterious ways!  Brad and his family are not what one would call "close."  In fact, there have been times I've sworn he goes out of his way to avoid them altogether.  But when Brad went in to have the stints removed from his nose roughly two weeks following his surgery, it went so much more smoothly than we had expected and we had time on our hands and were already near where his mother & brother live so I suggested we stop in for a short surprize visit... and he agreed!! 

We got to meet our newest neice, Kailynn, seven months old.

As I compose this blog, I researched when we last saw Emberlynn & Ethan and that was January 2011 for Randy (brad's brother's college graduation) - nearly a full year ago (and they just live 30 minutes away)!!

 I've gona through a bit of a transformation (and they are young) so they barely recognized me!

 I'm not sure if I've mentioned, but Brad's mom, Joann, had a rough 2010-2011  She battle breast cancer, had to go through chemo and radiation and inevitably had to undergo a masectomy, but God has blessed her and she pulled through!

 She sees these grandchildren of hers daily and says they keep her feeling younger than ever!

 Kailynn & Lauri (mom)

 Emberlynn stole Grandma Joann's head wrap and put it on Kailynn - adorable!!

 Emberlynn & Me

 Me & my Mother-in-Law, Joann

 Emberlynn, a natural beauty.  Ethan pulled out his trombone to show us what he's been learning.

 We surprized the boys when they got home from school... we brought their cousins up to spend five whole days with us at our house!!  Hayden and Emberlynn were inseparable!

They went home just before Thanksgiving and we had a quiet small Thanksgiving dinner at home, just the six of us.  We have so much to be thankful for!



The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer {Book Review}

Michelle Hodkin - The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

Offered for review by Simon & Schuster

Available now through November 29,2011 (for free online review)

{Synopsis}

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.

She's wrong.

{My Review}
Mara is one interesting young lady.  I found her tale to be one of intrigue and originality.  After uprooting her entire family due to the accident that claimed the lives of three of her closest friends, she finds herself teetering on the edge of sanity.  She has no memory of the accident but slowly, surely, her memories flicker back in the form of nightmarish dreams and daily hallucinations of said friends.  More than that really, she starts envisioning the deaths of others around her.  Of course, there is a boy who enters the picture and claims to be something other than that of his preceding reputation of which Mara has been well warned.  He provides ample distraction from Mara's delusions and becomes a safe haven for her when things get too serious.  There was one character I hope to see make a come back in the sequel as his part seemed to vanish into thin air without much in the way of closure, making his part seem utterly useless to the storyline, but as for Mara and Noah (the boy), I look forward to finding out what more there is to their unfurling story now that they've unlocked a few secrets together.