News.

Last week has been quite the week for my family. It couldn't have gotten over fast enough, and it doesn't end just because its a new week...
Getting bad news is one of my least favorite things in the world. Especially when there is nothing you can do about it. When you have no words of comfort, when you are not with the person you want to be with, when something happens that is completely irreversible... That kind of news sucks more than just about anything else. I got that kind of news this past week.

I was in a staff meeting when I got a couple phone calls but couldn't answer them. Why is it that this news always comes at the most inopportune times? I called my mom back to see what was up, and she had let me know that her great-aunt died. My aunty Muriel. That was mostly hard for me because it was hard for my mom. I hate to see people hurting. It is worse than me hurting. And I do not like funerals at all...

Then she asked me if I talked to my sister, to which I said no, so she put her on the phone. This was when the news got really bad. Ashley told me she had a miscarriage. It just kills me. I can't even imagine the pain she must feel. She is married, but her husband is in Iraq, this was her first time being pregnant, and her husband was SO excited about it.... everyone was. I just wanted to be there to hold her and comfort her. But I was such a wreck that I would have done no good. And what do you say to that? I didn't know what to say, I just cried, a lot. Knowing that my sister is hurting is so hard for me.
She is my best friend, and she has been my whole life. When she hurts I hurt. So right now I am hurting a lot, but she is hurting so much more. I am writing this a week later that I found out because it is easier for me. Right now I ask for you prayers for my family. For Ashley and Tim, for my mom, for all the family that was so excited for them. It may be a week later, but it is still hard, and I suspect it will be for a while.

Murder at the Juice Joint

This weekend my sister was having a Murder Mystery theme party. I have never been to one before so I was really looking forward to it. The theme of this one was Murder at the Juice Joint, it was based on the 20's prohibition, so we were partying in a "speakeasy."

Here we have the "boys" of the Juice Joint.

Left to right- Chief Cameron the Chief of Police, Mayor Biggs who is none other but the mayor, Cy Ramsey who is Nick's henchman and the bouncer at the Juice Joint, Bernie Booze who is the bootlegger, South side Sal the south side mob boss, and Notorious Nick who is the north side mob boss.

And here we have the ladies of the Juice Joint

Left to right- P.I. Pinkerton the private investigator, Molly Moll the hoochy gold digger who is Nick's lady, Lieutenant Lucille the lieutenant on the police force, Kitty Cocktail is Cy's girlfriend and loudmouth, Rosie Marie the owner of the Juice Joint, and Cindy Butt the cigarette girl.

The night started out with socializing and getting to know the characters over dinner. Then we played out the night. Well, until someone was murdered that is! Notorious Nick was shot halfway through the night. Oh no! Poor guy, but my character was not in good with him, so I was secretly happy he died... After he died, we had to talk to the different people and try to figure out who may have done it.

Only the murderer knows who they are. The goal is for everyone to figure out who did it, and for the murderer to cover his butt! The P.I.s job is to get info out of everyone and pin someone with the murder. By the end of the night everyone has lied to someone and been lied to about what they "know." Its really funny the stories that people come up with.

The murderer ended up being the Chief of Police, with my tommy gun that was stolen from my warehouse in a police raid.

It was really fun messing with people and trying to figure out who is lying to you and who is in good with who. Its almost like real life ;) Everyone had a really great time playing their part, and we hope to do it again sometime soon!

Changes

Changes by David Bowie was stuck in my head today, which got me thinking about changes. Which made me want to blog about them. Its nothing too exciting, but it is something!

I am moving! (again) This will be my 4th move in about a year and half... And this won't be the last! I first moved to Rochester the summer before last. I moved from the cities into my dads house, in the middle of nowhere, also known as Oronoco. It was good moving in with him and getting closer to him, which was a struggle when I lived my entire life in the cities. But that only lasted about a year, and I needed to get out. Not like it was a horrible experience, I just needed to be out of my parents house.
From there I moved into the Jensen's house. I had so much fun living with them! They treated me like family. (and still do) I stayed with them while I looked for roommates. It was so scary to think that I would have roommates that I was not related to or close to. But I found some and moved out of the Jensen's in less than 2 months.
So, now I am with the roommates. I have been here since mid-November. It has been a good experience at times, and a bad one at times as well. Anyone who has had roommates can attest to that! But after 3 months I have decided to not stay here. So, at the end of February, I will be renting the basement of a fantastic family here in town.
Its crazy to think I will be packing up yet again and settling into another "home." This is not a permanent move, it will be for at least 6 months, but I don't know how much longer after that. Only God knows what is in store for me with this move or the one after it. I am looking forward to settling in to the new place in just a couple short weeks. And hopefully this will be a much more positive experience than this last place. But speaking of positive, lets here some not so positive roommate stories! I love to hear a good story about something I am going through!

Also, I have already told you all about my lovely sister Ashley and her baby. But just a couple days ago, she had to go into the doctor because of some issues. They basically told her before hand that she was either good to go, or not... I was very worried for her. I don't think I have prayed so much about anything in my life! I couldn't even imagine the pain she would feel if she lost the baby. She had to have been 7billion times more worried that I was. And the thought of her husband being in Iraq and not being able to be by her side at the doctor just hurt my heart. It all got me thinking.
The idea of a baby growing inside of you, getting bigger until it is time to deliver is the most amazing thing in the world. I can't think of anything cooler than that. And actually having a baby!?!? Unbelievably awesome! I thought about it so much while waiting to hear back from Ash after her appointment. But she finally got back to me and all is well! I was so relieved. I have never stressed so much over anything. My prayer for her, the baby, and her husband is safety, comfort and the feeling of God's constant presence. I love them all so much!

And lastly, I have decided that Cambodia is a yes! I am going. I am going to save up money, pray about it a lot, and go. I can't think of a cooler way to spend that time than in Cambodia. So, pray for me as I try to get better control of my spending so I can afford this trip, and as I go through the training and such for this trip. I think this will be an amazing experience and I can't wait!

That's it for now!