Recently a woman my age was shot by her husband. They had been separated (obviously, right?) and I guess the guy was just having a bad day so he decided to shoot her in broad daylight and then proceed to kill himself. A coward move, if you ask me, and that’s putting it lightly. She was in critical condition for several days but miraculously she pulled through and is home, safe and sound. She has three children. The story really stuck with me because it hit close to home, literally. It happened within just a few miles of my home. The woman’s oldest son goes to school with my co-worker’s son.

I heard about a girl in New Jersey who was gang raped. She is seven years old. The scenario was set up by her teenage step-sister who made some money off the deal. Yes, she pimped out her seven year old sister. I cannot even fathom the horror that little girl experienced. I think if I were her I would just rather be dead than to walk around with that memory. It’s a story I can’t stop thinking about. Though I don’t know her, I’ve been praying for the girl ever since I heard of what happened.

Just yesterday Mike read a story about a young boy in Michigan, four years old, who was brutally beaten for three days by his mother’s boyfriend simply for peeing his pants. The boy was on life support but it wasn’t enough. He passed away on Monday. I am not going to go in to the details of the abuse this boy endured because it is just too dark to repeat here. The newspaper did a sufficient job of telling the story. Feel free to read it on your own. If you read it you might understand the questions running through my head. God says that Christ came and died and rose from the dead to save us, all of us. And I grew up learning that salvation was available to every. single. person. But I am having a damn hard time believing that salvation could be available to the son of a bitch who would torture a beautiful four year old boy day after day after day and then have the audacity to say that he deserved to die. I am angered. Livid. My heart is just broken and sick imagining what that poor boy suffered and what he must have been thinking as it all was happening.

I see the picture of that blue eyed boy and I see my own son. I keep asking, How? How could someone be so evil? The story has left me at a loss for words. Well, I have some words but I won’t utter them in the presence of others. I just can’t stop thinking about what that boy was going through in his last moments. But as I think about his last moments, I try to remember that the final moment was when he got to see Jesus. He is safe now in the arms of his Creator. He now has the chance to experience true love and everlasting peace.

Just so I can prove not everything has to be about that other thing, here is some of the good news:

• Central air conditioning is installed at our house and ready for summer
• I have tickets to see Phantom of the Opera with my husband in June
• Blue Cross/Blue Shield used some gorilla math on my claims from my surgery last January and the error is in MY favor
• And did I mention my son is potty trained?

Quadruple WOO HOO!!!!

60% Of Federal Budget Wasted On Eating Out

I love The Onion.

Well, folks, I got the job! I start July 9th, which means I have one more week of maternity leave to get ready. I need to get a parking pass, do a trial run with the babysitter, and figure out what clothes will fit me that are appropriate for work (I still have at least 20 pounds to lose before my old clothes will fit). I may have to pay a visit to Goodwill to find some blouses.

I’m really excited about this job. Yes, I think I’ll enjoy the work, but what I’m most excited about are the benefits and the long-term potential. It’s a well-established, growing company and I hope to be there a long time. It’s small enough that I’ll know most everybody, but it’s growing so there’s room to advance.

The only bummer about this is that we won’t be using the babysitter we had lined up. She lives near my old job and with this new one it wouldn’t make sense to drive down there every day. But she has agreed to let us use her as a backup. We do have someone lined up for daycare that lives near Mike’s work, but I would love to find someone in Lansing closer to our house. If you know anyone who does daycare/babysitting out of their home for a seriously reasonable price, let me know!!

Homeless by choice, O.C. student learns self-reliance

Andy’s Truck Adventure!