Time for me and my bones

For those of us interested in bone health...this is a very interesting and informative article regarding the latest studies on bone, sent to me by my friend, Terry.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/03/26/the-delicate-dance-between-vitamins-d-and-k.aspx

Recently I had a bone scan and I have osteopenia (which is preliminary to osteoporosis.)

Time for some more weight bearing exercise and eating the right foods. What about calcium supplements? This article explains the pros and cons.

If you're in a hurry, just skip down to the bottom of the article and read the wrap-up. But in general, it says that simply taking calcium supplements with vitamin D will not do the trick. And bone builders like Fosamax or Boniva may make bones more dense, but not flexible, which can result in fracture.

It's interesting that the bottom line is EAT RIGHT.

Eat those good fruits and vegetables that God gave us!

And MAKE SURE you are doing weight bearing exercise AT LEAST 3 times per week.

I have tried to exercise at home...but I'm just not disciplined enough to do this regularly. Especially with the interruptions and things that must be done. Maybe I will have to take a class. I hope to play tennis on Saturday mornings. (Oh dear...I'll have to sacrifice my only free morning.) (but it should be fun.)

In conclusion, I need to spend a little more time taking care of myself. I hope I can do it!

Ramblings

My camera broke and it's no fun to post without pictures.

I feel like a part of me is missing. I can't express myself.

Okay, enough complaining. My heart and prayers have been in Japan and other places still reeling from calamities. And then there is Libya. I feel so fortunate for our peace. Here.

But we're not really at peace. So I pray for our country.

Spent the morning in court today.
My son almost had to pay $1092 for a forgotten traffic ticket.
But then it was changed to 110 hours of community labor.

My husband's friend stopped by tonight in between drum performances. He ate with us during intermission and showed us his pictures of a recent trip to the my favorite mountains....the Sierra Nevada. It took me away for a brief moment...snow clinging to trees, alpine lakes...

One thing I'm looking forward to is: My mother and I are going to go away for 2 nights together somewhere...when my birthday comes. (not for another month). Another thing I'm looking forward to is taking the train into Los Angeles. (This is a 20 minute trip.) Two friends and I will embark on this adventure in a few weeks. Nothing like exploring your own backyard! And I better have a camera by then!

Since I mentioned the Sierra Nevada, I dug up this picture of one of my favorite riding memories in the area. One day our family rode from Bishop to Lake Crowley. It was 60 miles of riding and a day I'll never forget. I loved it...because it wasn't hard riding. I could actually enjoy the scenery. No people...open country....space....beauty.

Placing Your Hope

The verse said, "...placing all my hope in the Lord".

The verse above came back to me as I worried about the details of my son's life.

Don't place part of your hope in the Lord, I counseled myself. Place ALL your hope squarely on him. (not to the right or to the left)

So I prayed, telling the Lord one more time, my worries. "I'm giving them to you."

Now I just need to remind myself, where my worries are.

And if I feel unsure as the days progress, once again, I say to myself, "trust, trust" (as many times as I need to) and it helps to move the weight of those concerns back on to God's shoulders.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

There are so many things we cannot do. So we let the Lord do them. We let him advise us. And we discipline ourselves to read His words daily in the Bible. In this, we gain wisdom. We gain strength. We wait. We hope. We are at peace IN HIM. We place all our hope in Him.

"Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."-Jesus
(Bible: Matthew 11:28)

Have a great weekend as you rely on his knowledge, know-how and strength in your impossible situation.

Peace to you, and to me.

Looking Up

I took this picture from the roof.

A thought came to me. Have you ever noticed a dog admiring the clouds in the sky?

It seems nature's artwork is meant for the enjoyment of the human eye.
The Creator's gift to us...His people.

And a reminder of what He can do...and a glimpse of what our future holds.

Just What I Needed

I have been reading an old book. It belonged to a senior woman with great faith. It ended up in the church library. On the day the library folded, the title caught my eye and I rescued the book.

SOMETHING MORE
IN SEARCH OF A DEEPER FAITH

by Catherine Marshall (Author of the novel Christy)

I read it from cover to cover. Ms. Marshall's candid sharing about the lessons God taught her in her life resonated with my heart. It's one of my favorite books. Now...many years later, I slid it out of the shelf hoping to dip into a chapter or two to find some encouragement and strength for a difficult situation. The pages fell open to the chapter on Obedience. Obedience? This has nothing to do with what I need right now. (Besides I'm always obedient. Ha Ha) I almost turned to another chapter, but something inside me said "wait".

As I read the chapter I found there are many interesting benefits to obeying God. The one that meant the most to me personally was based on John 7:17.

"When we purpose in our will to obey Jesus and tell Him so, then we shall know whether Jesus' teachings are from God or merely His own."

Now for some of you this may not sound like a big deal. But for me, it meant something. Because I struggle at times with faith. This verse reminds me that a strong desire to obey God will result in strengthening my faith in Jesus. Another way to say this is: If someone truly wants to love and obey God...the faith will follow...and will get stronger.

Just in case I'm getting off track...here is how Jesus said it. (He was responding to the Jews who were debating among themselves about who Jesus was. Were his teachings coming from a mere man, or from God?) Jesus responded,"My teaching is not my own. It comes from Him who sent me. If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own."

Back to my difficult situation: If I believe that Jesus is God's son, I certainly can trust that he has the ability to help me with my problem. There is nothing he cannot do. After all, he created the universe.

My part will be to obey him. And he will do the rest.

Our Hope and Future

We stopped at this little church in Kauai. We prayed. I wish I could be there now to spend some quiet time with God. But God is everywhere, even in my bedroom.

He's leaning on my desk this morning, as I sit in my computer chair. His Word is on my lap. My husband is sleeping quietly still. I pray for our family and friends. Then it seems to me that I'm doing all the talking.

"What do you have to say Lord?" I look into His Word.

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you...thoughts of peace and not evil, to give you a future and a hope.

I am the vine, you are the branch...abide in me and you will bear much fruit. Without me you can do nothing.

Trust in me with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding
In all your ways acknowledge me
And I will direct your paths.

And the verse that he gave me about my friend, Judy, who fought a serious illness...and became dehydrated. She had a strong faith...entrusting her life to Jesus. She passed away this week.

Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again...but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed the water I give her will become in her a spring of water welling up to eternal life.

What a beautiful promise to meditate on.

notes:
a future and hope: Jeremiah 29:11
abide in me: John 15:5
limited understanding: Proverbs 3:5,7
water: John 4:13

Girls!

Being a mother of boys, I really appreciate visiting with my nieces (almost 17 and almost 20). They flew out from Colorado after Christmas, and spent some time with us.


We rode our bikes along the coast and stopped for a break to look for shells and feel the misty spray of the sea.

I love this picture of my dad with the girls. It was low tide and we could stand on tiny "islands" surrounded by the gently flowing water. The sky was a comforting blue after the long days of rain.


We took the bikes across the harbor on the ferry. As you can see, I'm the careful one with the helmet.


The girls stayed with my parents and everyone had a great time. (That's my dad's very tall giraffe in the stairwell over on the right. He built it from scratch. My mom still doesn't know what came over him.)



The girls are back in Colorado now, safe and sound. I received a text..."Clear, cold and snow on the ground."

Here's wishing you all a Happy New Year!