We wake up to a chilly house this morning. The heat isn't on. Randy turns it on but NOTHING. We flip it to Em. Heat & it kicks on, but quickly went back off. NO HEAT! What? It's supposed to get cold again after this weekend!! Noooooooo.

Now I start getting the kiddos ready for school & need to dry B's shorts for PE, & Randy's clothes for work today. The shorts get dried & they're off to school.

I go back in & check on the other stuff & THE DRYER IS NO LONGER HEATING UP!

3 kiddos & no dryer do NOT go together. It still comes on & turns, so I'm fairly sure it's on the heat element needing to be changed out. I hope that's all it is.

Now I'm a poor child since paying $400 for my glasses Saturday, Christmas, etc. It's no telling how much it's going to cost to get my heat pump fixed. They're coming out tomorrow morning to look at it. Please pray that it's minor & very inexpensive!! Dryer? I can't remember how much that will cost either.



Is God testing me?

Well Streamers, I've been having bad headaches every day now for about 2 months. I wasn't sure if it was due to stress/tension or my eyes. I went to have my eyes examined yesterday, & yes, it's my eyes (well probably both, but...).

The two girls went with me while "B" stayed with my sister & her daughter. So it's off to Birmingham we go.

I wasn't even thinking about them needing to dialate my eyes, so we had to hang around there for awhile until I could drive. The girls thought it looked wicked with my pupils SO huge! Here I am picking out frames, & I CAN'T SEE a freakin thing! I had to rely on my 14 yr old daughter to help me choose the ones that look best on me - & make me look like a goddess!(JOKE!) They're supposed to call me in a few days to tell me when they're in so I can go pick them up.

I was so hoping that it was stress as I've always had perfect to better-than-perfect vision...until now. I do NOT look good in glasses, so I'm not very happy. But, there's nothing I can do as I have to see! You definitely wouldn't want to be on the road at night with Stevie Wonder driving would ya?

One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do.

Finally, he decided the animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway; it just wasn't worth it to retrieve the donkey.

He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to
everyone's amazement he quieted down.

A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well. He was astonished at what he saw. With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up.

As the farmer's neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up.

Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and happily trotted off!

Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. Each of our troubles is a steppingstone. We can get out of the deepest wells just by not stopping, never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up.

Remember the five simple rules to be happy:

Free your heart from hatred - Forgive.
Free your mind from worries - Most never happen.
Live simply and appreciate what you have.
Give more.
Expect less

NOW ............

Enough of that crap . . . The donkey later came back, and bit the farmer who had tried to bury him. The gash from the bite got infected and the farmer eventually died in agony from septic shock.

MORAL FROM TODAY'S LESSON:

When you do something wrong, and try to cover your ass, it always comes back to bite you.

"Lessons in Life"

By Regina Brett for The Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio

To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most-requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolls over to 50 this week, so here's an update:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

4. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.

16. Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.

17. You can get through anything if you stay put in today.

18. A writer writes. If you want to be a writer, write.

19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: "In five years, will this matter?"

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive everyone everything.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

35. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.

38. Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

41. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

42. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

43. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

44. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

45. The best is yet to come.

46. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

47. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

48. If you don't ask, you don't get.

49. Yield.

50. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.

1. WHY DO MEN BECOME SMARTER DURING SEX?
Because they are plugged into a genius

2. WHY DON'T WOMEN BLINK DURING SEX?
They don't have enough time.

3. WHY DOES IT TAKE 1 MILLION SPERM TO FERTILIZE ONE EGG?
They don't stop to ask directions.

4. WHY DO MEN SNORE WHEN THEY LIE ON THEIR BACKS?
Because their balls fall over their butt-hole and they vapor lock.

You're laughing, aren't you?!?!

5. WHY WERE MEN GIVEN LARGER BRAINS THAN DOGS?
So they won't hump women's legs at cocktails parties.

6. WHY DID GOD MAKE MEN BEFORE WOMEN?
You need a rough draft before you make a final copy.

7. HOW MANY MEN DOES IT TAKE TO PUT A TOILET SEAT DOWN?
Don't know...It never happened.

C'mon guys, we laugh at your blonde jokes!

And my personal favorite:

8. WHY DID GOD PUT MEN ON EARTH?
Because a vibrator can't mow the lawn.

Remember, if you haven't got a smile on your face and laughter in your heart, then you are just an old sour fart.