–Answered prayers (thank you, Jesus!) for this precious little girl and her family. (The x-rays came back completely normal!)

–A sweet tribute my brother-in-law wrote to his wife.

–You sweet single gals HAVE to read this (and the rest of you should read it too). I met Lindsee in Houston in January and not only is she stinking gorgeous, she’s stinking awesome.

–This heart-wrenching post written by a military wife whose husband is deployed. (Be sure to click on Part 1 too)

–A powerful, beautiful seatbelt ad (of all things).

–I cannot wait to do this with my husband.

–There’s something about this Missy Girl that always gets me laughing, whether she’s talking about fanny packs or turning 40 or whatever.

–These comments blew me away yesterday afternoon. Thank you, Gabe, Holly, Peter, Brian and Jill.

Did something bless you this week? Leave a link!

And have an awesome weekend, friends!

(Gabe may beg to differ. And I probably do correct people more than I realize, but  I do really try to let stuff go, because really? Who likes to be around a smarty-pants? NOT ME.)

HOWEVER, I’ve seen one particular mistake about 46 times in the past little while and felt the need to make a Public Service Announcement.

You might not believe me, but there’s actually an honest-to-goodness word in the English language spelled L-O-S-E, as in, “I hope we don’t LOSE the game,” said Olivia. I know some of you didn’t know that such a word existed, because when you want to talk about losing games, you spell it L-O-O-S-I-N-G.

In your defense, the word LOSE sure doesn’t look like it rhymes with CRUISE, but it does.

There IS a word spelled L-O-O-S-E, but it’s used to describe things like “Ava’s LOOSE tooth” or “Don’t tell Marla, but I think she has a few screws LOOSE.”

The whole LOOSE TOOTH thing is actually your key to remembering. LOOSE and TOOTH both have two O’s.

And I don’t know how to tell you to remember how to spell LOSE. Suggestions anyone?

And while we’re at it, does anyone have any other mnemonic devices to help us remember confusing grammar/spelling rules?

Happy Weekend!

p.s. If it makes you feel any better, I HATE the words further and farther, because even if I’m 98% sure I’m using the right one, I still pause in anguish before I let it leave my tongue.

Today I tweeted/facebooked the following: I just had a startling revelation. The tireder I am, the more I eat. Great.

I may or may not have already mentioned (I can’t remember) my plans to scale back on how much food I consume (I refuse to use the word “diet.”). I see no reason why the jeans I wore last August should be impossible to pull up past my knees the following April. I also see no reason for my middle to bulge out of a tankini whose pieces previously overlapped with room to spare.

You get the picture. (And I apologize for that.)

So, the past 2-3 days, I have been so stinking energized by this writing project that I realized I wasn’t snacking nearly as much. And then I did a whole bunch of jumping jacks and felt even better.

And then today happened. For one thing, Nina climbed in our bed at 4am, and that marked the end of my REM sleep. Add that to the midnight oil I’ve been burning lately, and ugh. Then Nina and I went to the zoo with my darling friend Krista, and we met up with our darling friend Dara and ran into our darling friend Erin. Four hours later, I came home DEAD EXHAUSTED.

I shoveled a bunch of junk food in my mouth, tried to stay awake to write, but ended up taking a nap instead. Woke up in a stupor when the girls got home from school, shoveled in more food and went to a soccer game.

On Facebook, my friend Katie commented that when she was working three jobs, it was very bad for her waistline.

My cousin Michael said,”That is why you need sleep. I would say seven hours. Here is another interesting thing. When I run (more than 2 miles) I do not crave snacks and have more energy. Amazing.”

My aerobic-teachin’/physical-trainin’/best-bod-in-the-universe cousin Camy chimed in, “When we don’t get enough sleep we do indeed crave foods- particularly sugary carbohydrates to help keep us going. (Or so our body “thinks” it needs that) And yes- exercise will give you more energy! Seems like it would be the opposite, but it isn’t- we have to “burn” energy to get it. Exercise will also help you sleep better and it will be more restful sleep! I could write a book here, but I won’t…”

So. The plan is to start running again. And sleep more. But I just need a couple (10) more days to hammer out this writing project first. I know, I know, I’m not going to make it that long if I don’t start running/sleeping, right? Sigh.

So tell me, oh, wise ones. How do you fit exercise and/or sleep into your busy life?

Have an awesome weekend!

Like this post from Whimzie who used to want to be famous, then wanted to be famous for doing something big for God and now she wants to be… (read it to find out) I’ll be clicking on this link again today and putting myself through the torture of conviction one more time.

Or how about this post from Amber where she admits that she’s vain? Vain as in she wants people to want to be like her and her family. Ouch, ouch, ouch. OUCH.

Or this crazy-amazing post from Missy. Are you guilty of re-designing God? Yowzers.

Are you afraid of doing big things for God? As I commented on Jen’s post, I’m not really scared of doing big stuff; I’m scared that God’s not going to like my big dreams, and He’s going to ask me to do something small and insignificant that I don’t want to do. Talk about pride, a lack of trust, and a completely misguided sense of what God’s love really means. Man.

Have you read/heard/seen anything this week that God used to smack you upside the eyeballs?

And, oh my word, could I BE any more delinquent in announcing the winner of Thin Places from ages ago? It’s Rachel from Life Off the Shelf (commenter #5).

And from even longer ago (I think I announced this but never heard from her), Beth in the City won the Living Proof Ministries yearly planner. Now that we’re exactly 1/4 of the way through the year, it’s the perfect time to get a planner, right?

And since all the giving away and the tax prep has about done me in today, I just want to know one thing: what’s the tastiest thing you plan to eat this weekend? Me personally? I do love a good Easter ham.

Nothing. Just nothing.

Either my head is so full of stuff that I can’t pull out a lone blog post topic, or my brain is just empty. Whatever the case, I got nothing.

This might be my cue to take some time off.

Anyhoo.

Have a fabulous weekend!

Then there’s the whole Leaving-a-Piece-of-My-Heart-in-New-Jersey deal. What an incredible weekend. God is so good. SO good.

I want to tell you all about all of it, but honestly? I’m completely pooped. I got about three hours of sleep last night, and I’m feeling it. So, a nice big fat blog post coming soon.

In other news, my Diapers books are being delivered today (Tuesday) between 9 and 11 a.m. Woohoo!!

And my hubby has some really big news.

My heart is full. How does yours feel today?

I know! I’ll write something that’s not really even relevant NOW. Then I won’t have to stress about it. After reading my friend Amber’s post (that totally cracked me up), I decided to follow in her footsteps (but customize it for me, of course). Seriously, if you get bored reading mine, click over to hers. She’s a hoot-and-a-half.

Without further ado…

1. What is your name spelled backwards? A-L-R-A-M. Gabe’s is EBAG. That always makes me laugh.
2. What did you do last night? Well, I’m writing this on Thursday night, so I watched the guys sing on American Idol.
3. What was the last thing you downloaded onto your computer? Worlds Apart.
4. Have you ever licked a 9 volt battery? Wow.
5. When was the last time you swam in a pool? Zoo trip in July. St. Louis to be exact. Thanks for reminding me that my swimsuit isn’t going to fit me this year if I don’t get busting.
6. What are you wearing? Black “Will Rock 4 Food” t-shirt and black sweats.
7. How many cars have you owned? It’s late, and this question is too hard. My first car was a 1991 Chevy Cavalier, I think.
8. What is the type of music you dislike most? Opera.
9. Are you registered to vote? Yep.
10. Do you have cable? Yep.
11. What kind of computer do you use? Dell Inspiron 9200. A huge silver laptop that will probably bite the dust soon. I’ll convert to a Mac after that.
12. Have you ever made a prank phone call? Unfortunately, yes.
13. Would you go bungee jumping or sky diving? Not on your life.
14. What is the furthest place you ever traveled? Okinawa, Japan.
15. What’s your favorite comic strip? Never really got into comics much. I liked Family Circle when I was little and Far Side in college.
16. Do you know all of the words to the national anthem? Yep.
17. Do you shower in the morning or at night? Morning. Or mid-morning. Early afternoon?
18. What is your favorite pizza topping? Just one? How about pepperoni, bacon, green olive? From Benny’s!
19. Chips or popcorn? Chips.
20. What cell phone provider do you use? AT&T.
21. Have you ever smoked peanut shells? I used to eat them, but don’t believe I’ve smoked ‘em.
22. Have you ever been in a beauty pageant? Hee hee. No.
23. Orange juice or apple juice? How about grape?
24. Who were the last people you sat at lunch with? Gabe and Nina.
25. Favorite chocolate bar? Skor or Heath.
26. Who is your oldest friend and how long have you known each other? Oh, wow. I don’t even know.
27. When was the last time you ate a homegrown tomato? I ate a bunch of grape tomatoes at lunch, but homegrown? Last summer at Gabe’s parents’ cabin on the lake. Oh, summer! I need thee, HOW I NEED THEE.
28. Have you ever won a trophy? Yes. Quite a few. Bible Fair, Best Actress (high school), Champaign County Spelling Bee Champ, softball, cross country… I threw a bunch of them away a few years ago in a fit of “these do not define me.”
29. Favorite arcade game? Ms. PacMan!
30. Ever ordered from an infomercial? Yes, we actually ordered an exercise thingy once for $100. Sold it for $5 at a garage sale after lugging it from house to house for a few years.
31. Sprite or 7-UP? Nasty. Makes me think I have the flu.
32. Have you ever had to wear a uniform to school/work? I’m thinking yes but can’t remember for the life.
33. Last thing you bought at Walgreens? I never go to Walgreens. Wait! I think I went there in Miami in December 2008. I bought candy to take to the Miami Zoo.
34. Ever thrown up in public? Um… Hmm… I’m not sure.
35. Would you prefer being a millionaire or finding true love? Stealing Amber’s answer here. Already found true love, so I’ll take the cash, please.
36. Do you believe in love at first sight? Not love exactly, but lust that turns into love? Sure. (Gabe the Babe!)
37. Spongebob or Jimmy Neutron? Not a fan.
38. Did you have long hair as a young kid? Yep. Always.
39. What message is on your voicemail machine? We don’t have an answering machine. My cell phone? Man, I don’t even know.
40. Where would you like to go right now? Cambodia. And a Washington/Oregon Zoo Trip and meet Ang and Gretchen.
41. What’s the name of your pet? No pets.
42. What kind of back pack do you have, and what’s in it? No backpack.
43. What kind of tennis shoes do you have? New Balance. They’re about 7 years old and worthless.
44. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? Mom.
45. Mickey Mouse or Bugs Bunny? Neither. Mick if I have to pick.

Missed y’all while I was gone! See you in person (well…) tomorrow!