Thankful Tuesday

I am thankful today for a lot of things. Some of them I will probably not remember, but thank you Jesus for everything.

I am thankful today for:
-- feeling better after dealing with intense morning sickness for the last 6 weeks.
--for the medication my doctor has me on that has helped to cease the vomiting.
--for my husband, he has been my anchor more times than I can count. These past weeks, I've had to lean on him for strength. Not once did he back down from the task. He went above and beyond with helping me and tolerating my mood swings as well.
--for my children. Although they drive me crazy sometimes; I am blessed to have them. It's like a breath of fresh air for me when I see them after being away from them, even if it's just a short while.
--for friends, who I can always count on.
--for everyone who said a prayer for me.

My grandmother has often said, "ungratefulness is worse than witchcraft."
Always remember to say thank you.
Thank you to all of you that are reading this. I pray that you will be blessed today!

Remember: Let God lift you up, and you won't let yourself down.

"He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and
set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings (Psalm 40:2)."

Change

is inevitable.

It's going to happen regardless of how we feel about it.

Like most people, I don't handle change very well.

It's very hard for me to embrace change.

When faced with change, I feel like going in the opposite direction.

Trepidation grabs a hold of me and sometimes I feel so consumed by the fear of change that I can't even think straight.

It's scary.

For me, it's mental.

It's emotional.

Recently while on our vacation, Greg and I had the opportunity to read, "Who Moved My Cheese?" by Spencer Johnson, MD.

I know, the title sounds hilarious but it is a very informative book. It's an easy read. It doesn't take very long to finish it. We were both able to read it in one night. We were with another couple (Greg's cousin and his wife). Over dinner, we discussed the book and which character we identified with the most. There are 4 characters in the book: Sniff, Scurry, Hem and Haw. Each one is a mouse, but is portrayed with human-like qualities.

After having a huge supply of cheese, they wake up one day to find that their cheese was gone. As you can imagine, each one had to address how to handle the change. They no longer had cheese and needed to decide what they were going to do. Sniff and Scurry were able to move quickly and started looking for new cheese.

Hem and Haw struggled with how to handle the change. Hem was unmovable. He refused to go looking for new cheese. He decided to stay and wait in hope for the cheese to magically return to him. Haw was afraid to go looking for cheese. For a long while, fear had a hold on him and he couldn't move. He was so worried about the new journey that he didn't know whether to stay or go. After beating up himself internally, he finally decided to go and look for new cheese. Although, he only decided to do that after he realized that if he stayed he could die from not eating any cheese. Therefore, he realized that his situation was getting worse. He tried to get Hem to go with him but Hem wouldn't budge.

So, eventually Haw went out on his own and started his journey searching for new cheese. It was a long, hard journey and he went through a lot. He had to deal with fear, anxiety and worry. Throughout his journey he left some "writings on the wall" to share his insights to whoever needed it (although he was hoping it would help his friend Hem the most).

Eventually Haw found new cheese and was very happy to see that Sniff and Scurry were also there (they had made the journey long before him). He was very sad that his friend Hem hadn't come along but he was still hopeful that he would come one day soon. The author left us hanging on that and we still don't know if Hem decided to change.

In the end, we can draw some conclusions from the book:

1) Some people will never change. (Hem)

2) Some people are afraid to change but will do it eventually. (Haw)

3) Some people move quickly to change. (Scurry)

4) Some people sense (sniff out) change and is ready to act. (Sniff).



We all identify with 1 or more of these characters.

Knowing which character we identify with is very beneficial to assist us in the process of change. Think about which character from the story you identify with. Then use the traits of that character to prepare you. Understanding how you handle change is the first step towards helping you. Also, learn how to adapt other traits from the other characters that are more beneficial in helping you become successful when change comes your way.
Change will come.
The bottom line is: how will you handle change?

Good News

It is always nice when you receive good news.

It definitely beats hearing another piece of bad news. I think we've all had our share of that lately.
Today I am celebrating with my good friend, Latoya and her family. She and her husband just welcomed their second child into the world at 9:30 pm last night. I am so excited for her. She delivered on her due date and her son weighed in at 9lbs 2oz. Little Patrick Jr. will meet his big sister, Skylar sometime this morning.

I mentioned in a recent post, that during the midst of a storm we received some very wonderful news. If curiosity had gotten the better of you then you'll be happy to know that you don't have to wait any longer. Here is the good news I was talking about: it seems that the stork has paid my husband and I another visit. We are expecting our third child. I am due March 9, 2009, which will only be a few days before my birthday. As one can imagine, we are all very excited in the Todd household about this information.

Actually, I'm not sure how Arjay will handle it but we'll just have to wait and see. Adryana is as thrilled as anyone can be because she's actually been praying now for about a year that she would have a baby sister. Even while in preschool, when she was asked to name one wish that she would like, she said she would like a baby sister. BTW, we do not know yet whether we are having a boy or girl. Either way we will be happy; we are just praying for a healthy baby. God is good and we are very grateful for this blessing.

Jamaica Mi Proud (Olympics Triumphs) and Todd Squad Update

As a Jamaican, I have to admit, it has been more than amazing watching the Olympics and seeing fellow Jamaicans win gold medals for running. It's extremely electrifying watching Usain Bolt winning the 100m race and then the following night watching the Jamaican girls sweeping their race. Everyone in Jamaica is celebrating this victory and my husband and I are just as happy to watch this moment in history.

As far as the Olympics go, I have been enjoying watching most of the events. I think that the city of Beijing did a tremendous job of preparing for the events. It has been splendid watching the meets at the Bird's Nest. In addition, watching Michael Phelps compete and win 8 gold medals has been awesome. It's really unbelievable that any one person is capable of doing. Michael Phelps seems like such a nice guy and I am so happy for him. Everyone that has done exceptional at the Olympics, in my book, are pretty special.

Todd Squad Update Ahead:

This morning sweet girl went off to her first day of school. It is such a bittersweet moment for me. Part of me is so happy to see her go off to school. She was somewhat nervous but a bit excited about her new experience. I took some pictures of her and she went in to her class, followed her teacher's directions and got ready for the day. I'm so impressed with her. She did not cry at all. Oh my big girl! I was sad to leave her and I miss her so much already. Thank God that she went to preschool so this is not entirely new to me. I know everything will be fine but it's a bit tough on my nerves. I will survive!!!

In other news, our son has started potty training. We actually started about a week ago but it has been going very slow until now. He's really stubborn and determined to do things his own way. Today, he finally took the bribing bait and went potty on his own. I was so proud of him. He will start part-time preschool tomorrow. We will see how that will go. He can be a tough cookie so I will brace myself.

The Weeding Process

Yesterday I spent over 2 hours pulling weeds from our flower bed. Pulling weeds is one of my least favorite chores. However, it was way past due. I was extremely embarrassed by the "look" of our flower bed that greeted us when we return from our vacation. I was so frustrated and angry while outside pulling weeds. I simply hate to do it but if I don't do it then I hate to see it left undone. I'm really torn with this chore, because I'm upset when I have to pull the weeds but I'm also upset when I have to look at them too. Sigh.


While I was out there pulling the weeds, a thought occurred to me. Does God ever get tired of pulling weeds from our lives? I mean, does He ever stop and think that these people mess up so much and have so much "crap" in their lives that I'm just plain tired of bailing them out? I wouldn't blame Him if He did. There's nothing glamorous about weeds. They come up in a place where they are unwanted. They make it difficult for the flowers to thrive because they will literally choke them to death if they are not removed from the flower bed.

So, it certainly cannot be an exciting job to pull weeds all day. However, I have been told that there are many people who enjoy this type of work. I've heard that pulling weeds can be very relaxing. And while I won't say that I feel relaxed when I am pulling weeds, I can definitely see where a person could be so lost in thought and they could actually enjoy that. When I allow myself to, I can think about several things but every once in a while frustration will creep up and consume me again. Then I will get so angry that I have to be out there pulling the weeds in the first place.

Anyhoo, anyone who has a "green thumb" will tell you that pulling weeds and pruning are very essential to plant care. While I've certainly killed my share of plants and will never claim to be anywhere remotely close to a "green thumb", I am still very aware of the process. As a homeowner, I also realize that it is my responsibility to care for my home and its' surroundings. So, until there is another effective way to handle these weeds, I will continue to pull them and vent about it.

Besides that, we've been keeping pretty busy with getting ready for school. My daughter is starting kindergarten on Monday. She's not nearly as excited as I would have hoped but I know she will come around. We had to do the parents' night for kindergartners and then the school wide orientation and meet-the-teacher day. It was a rush to get all the supplies once we got back from vacation because I didn't get the letter until the day we were leaving for vacation. However, we are prepared for Monday for her and Tuesday for my son who will be going to part-time preschool. Unbelievable!! Pass me the Kleenex.

I am already very nervous about both of my kids growing up and going off to school. It has been a week of boo-hooing and I know that next week will be pretty much the same. Yep, that's me. Change doesn't come very easy for me. It takes me a little while to adapt and that's exactly why I am so patient and understanding with my daughter. She has the same struggle with change and I feel her pain. Fortunately, she usually adapts very well after a little while too. We are bracing ourselves for the ride. We are also staying prayed up!

Vacation Week

We are in Ft. Lauderdale this week. I've had such a crummy week this past week that a vacation is very needed. We were supposed to be in Tennessee for vacation and the devil kept attacking us so much that not even our vacation was safe. About a week ago we had to cancel our trip, due to circumstances out of our control. We were so disappointed because we were looking forward to getting away. I've never been to Tennessee and I was so excited to go. Bummer! I was so bummed out by it.
But God is good. We were able to still make new plans for our vacation. Now here we are in Ft. Lauderdale visiting family. Then on Tuesday, my husband and I will go to a hotel while the kids stay with my mom (she's still not working so she is able to watch them). We will get some "quality" time together. Ha!
Then Friday, we leave Ft. Lauderdale and head to Orlando. Yippee! We will not do the whole Disney stuff this time around but we will be going to Universal Studios. We've never been before. We've always gone to Islands of Adventure and so it will be a treat to go to somewhere new.

We are now at my parents' house and I am so delighted to chit-chat with my Mom. We are so close. We talk every single day sometimes several times per day. But no matter how much we talk on the telephone, we can't seem to stop talking when we see each other face to face. It's wonderful!! It's amazing how much my spirit have lifted already. Tomorrow we will attend church at my parents' church (which is also the church where I went growing up and where Greg and I got married at). Following church services, we will visit Greg's parents' home. It's always great to see family.
I will try to get back and post something about my day tomorrow. I will take pictures but I doubt that we will be able to download and post them until we get back home.