a hop, skip and a jump!

google image

That's about how far I am headed down the road with a friend. We are going to the next town over for a couple of days to stay in an old quaint hotel and go "shop-hopping'. Our hubbies are going on a church retreat, so we have planned an adventure of our own! I look forward to sharing it with you when I return.

Thanks for all the ways you bless, inform and encourage me! I hope you have a wonderful weekend filled with unexpected blessings!

 "The Lord bless you and keep you.

The Lord make His face to shine upon you

and be gracious unto you.

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you

and give you peace."

 

on the job

A week ago on July 31st, I celebrated 12 years

 of working for the kind doctor.

 I've talked about my job here a few times,

 but I realized that I have never shown you where I work.

So, I will give you the "nickel" tour!

This is the office from the outside.

It is an  attractive building...

 ...and landscapers keep it looking pretty and well-kept.

There is always something blooming...

pansies, begonias, and whatever this is...

I'm not sure! :-)

 These are the front doors opening into the waiting room.

The receptionist's window where patients check in...

 

 ...and the television they can watch while they wait. 

We play DVDs of nature, travel etc. rather than choosing a

 network channel.

This is the desk where patients check out.

You can see two of my co-workers

hard at work!

 

This is the nurse's station where paperwork is done, 

phone calls are made and where the medical assts.

hang out when there is a lull between patients...

which isn't very often!

A "few" of the charts that I am responsible for...

the Ts through the Zs.

Notice the handle on the front...

when I turn it, that section of the wall moves 

to the left for easy access to the next section. 

There are two moving sections.

 

There I am at my desk...posing and

not working hard at all!

 

 I have a nice view while working...

pictures of my precious family!

We have an esthetician who does glycolic washes

and micro-dremabrasion one day a week in this room.

And these are the skin care products we sell.

 

 This is information central...the window

of the office manager's office.

The calendar is there so everyone knows when a member of the

 staff is going to be off, when the office is closed,

 or when medical students will be in the office

"shadowing" the doctor and the PAs.

Other memos are posted there as well.

We also have a laser for hair removal

 and spider vein treatments...forgot to take a picture of that! 

Oops!

So, there you have it!! Now you know where I spend 

my mornings...and sometimes part of my afternoons.

It is a great place to work and

 I have the best job in the place!! :-)

today's gifts

Here are ten things I am grateful for today:

61. answered prayer (our son and DIL sold their house in just two weeks!)
62. sunsets ( I know sunrises are beautiful, too, but I don't see those if I can help it!)
63. time to rest
64. string cheese (just tried this recently...a good low-carb snack)
65. opportunities to celebrate with friends
66. teachers (our new DIL is a teacher and we will have three grands in school this year)
67. the honey lime dressing at Cheddar's ( I love it...wish I knew where I could buy it!)
68. my alarm clock (though I am not usually ready to hear it when it rings, it sure helps me get where I need to go on time! And I really don't like being late!)
69. tomatoes fresh from the vine
70. lovely fresh flowers awaiting me when I got home from work (pictured above!)

I was watching one of the Olympic women's beach volleyball matches last week when one of the commentators told us the height and the weight of the athletes. I can understand why knowing their height would be important....getting up over the net, reach, etc. But, why in the world do we need to know their weight? Another thing I am thankful for...no one is announcing my weight on world wide television!! :-)

"Give thanks to the Lord for He is good..."

Psalm 118:1a

worth the wait

About a week ago, I wrote a post about the blessings that

come to those who faithfully wait on the Lord.

Well, I have another story to tell you...

I have known the young woman in the middle (between me and my sweet girl) since she was in kindergarten. She went to school with my children and her mom and I were friends. About 8 years ago, God brought us together again when we moved to the church she was attending with her fiancee. Then we became friends... it was a sweet thing! 

After several years of struggling with infertility, she and her husband believed God was leading them to adopt. Two precious little boys (who were brothers) came into their lives. And they have been grateful to God for the gift of children in their home. This past January, they received the amazing news that their was a baby on the way...their own!! Believe me there was a lot of rejoicing going on as the news spread!!

The first time I saw them after hearing the news, they said, "We understand why God asked us to wait. If we had gotten pregnant sooner, we would not have been ready to adopt. God wanted those boys in our home. He didn't just want us to adopt any children...He wanted us to adopt them!!" What a blessing their faithfulness to and their trust in the Lord has been!

Saturday, there was a beautiful shower to celebrate the coming of their new baby boy and what a happy day it was!!

It was a jungle themed party...

so this is what greeted us on the porch.

The centerpiece on the food table was so cute!

The banner that hung from the mantle spoke the truth...

"a little miracle"!

 A friend made these adorable cookies for favors!

Not sure how she did it...but they were perfect!

Friends and family were very generous.

Part of my gift to her....

I really got into the theme with

monkey stuff!!

I thought this was a cute bag...

and this one, too!

 

The happy grandmas...

number five grand for both of them!

 Her sweet and thoughtful friends (and Little E) who hosted

this special party.

 We saw this as we were leaving...

and I am so glad I had the privilege of "swinging by"!

That's one baby shower I would not have wanted to miss! :-)

"Wait on the Lord; be of good courage,

 and He shall strengthen your heart;

Wait, I say, on the Lord."

Psalm 27:14

first taste

She just had her first taste of ice cream...

And she liked it!!! :-)

Hope you  are smiling today, too!!

can you say... queen size?

Hubby and I went furniture shopping, well, looking today. We have decided after 39 years of marriage to upgrade to a queen size bed. I know, I know... we are the only couple in the world still sleeping in a full size bed! I can't tell you how many times I've heard something similar to that! :-)

There are many pretty choices.....

mahogany...

pine...

 poster beds...

sleigh beds...

simple dressers and

 dressers with "marble type" tops.

We got some prices and plan to look some more.

We've waited this long... no need to hurry now!! :-)

consequences

  Most of the time, our patients (at the office where I work) are very nice. Buuut, sometimes, we get a difficult one. Yesterday, a gentleman accompanied his daughter to an appointment. When he checked in with our receptionist, he was informed what his insurance would pay and the amount that he would need to pay at check-out. They saw the doctor and made their way to the check-out desk, When told (again!) the charge, the father said. "Oh, well, if I had known I was going to have to pay, we would not have kept the appointment." My co-workers' mouths fell open in surprise because they knew he did know! There was some discussion and, eventually, to avoid a scene, we agreed to bill him. But, the point was he had all the information, he just chose to ignore it.


  Made me think of the times that we make choices and then act surprised at the consequences. We know the right thing to do, the correct way to respond, the appropriate attitude, but we choose another way...and then when the result is heartache, disappointment, pain, we question why. We have all the information, we just choose to ignore it.


  I looked for some words of wisdom to end this post... a great quote or sage saying. Then this came to mind..

 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart;

   lean not on your own understanding.

  In all your ways, acknowledge Him

 and He will direct your path."

Prov 3:5,6

  That's about as wise as you can get! :-)