Christmas "Fun"?

Ever imagine how the Holidays would be without one of these??? My family had been having flu symptoms last week and we were relieved to call Aunt Charlotte and Aunt Anna to tell them we thought it was over so they could still spend the night on Christmas Eve. They came over for dinner but during dinner A. and I got sick. They decided not to risk getting sick right before an airplane trip to Illinois. So they left. G. was so sad and frankly, I was too. We had so much fun planned and memories to be made. But what could we do?

We were feeling a bit better in the morning and had fun with all our new loot. Thanks Santa! I served my family lunch meat sandwiches and chips for dinner. (I know, wonderful mother, but I was taking it easy.) Right after dinner, I pulled out the sausage I had planned to use the next morning for belated Christmas Breakfast Casserole. It felt strangely "not cold". I put in a meat thermometer which came to 50 degrees, right out of the fridge. I was horrified to simultanously realize I had just food poisoned my family and that the flu symptoms were not contagious. Then I realized I may have food poisoned the aunts! And how much money would it cost to replace all my food? This was just getting worse and worse...

I sent my family to bed with pots and buckets, just in case and prayed we would make it through the night. Andy was the only one that got sick, but he was down for the count for 2 days. Sick in bed, achy, cold, and symptoms that polite people do not discuss online...

I contacted my landlord. (One silver lining, it isn't my responsibility to fix the fridge.) The repairman came on Saturday. Bless him. At first he told me he couldn't find anything wrong.

(On a side note, I wish there was a class for lay people about things you should know about stuff. Like how a garage door works, how you should use your dishwasher every couple of weeks in Arizona or it dries out, and how a refrigerator cools.) I felt like a dope when he told me I had blocked the source of cold air that comes from the freezer. He told me the top shelf was probably warmer, but my pickles on the bottom felt cold. But then I told him about the thermometer the night before. He wanted to see the temp of my pickles. We checked, and on the coldest setting on my fridge, they were 43 degrees. Your fridge is supposed to be lower than 40 degrees. So glad I didn't just let him leave.

He took another look at my compressor which was only half working and told me that my freezer was probably not working that well either. But at least everything was still frozen, so I don't have to replace those things.

The warranty guy was off for the weekend and if my fridge wasn't under warranty, we needed a new fridge. Cheaper to buy a new one than fix it. Found out yesterday, we need a new one. So now I just have to survive until Wednesday. My wonderful landlord even offered to take some of my next month's rent to replace some of the food.

My dear friend Bonnie, who is a kindred fellow Washingtonian, loaned me her mini-fridge. Without it, I think I would have lost my mind by now.

So we had a crazy Christmas, one that will definitely be remembered. I am grateful for kind landlords, repairmen willing to come on the weekends, that my babies didn't throw-up too much, stores that are close, and that I actually live in a time where we have electricity and refrigerators. And I am grateful that we are almost at the end of this trial, because I am tired...

Fasting

In his church class two weeks ago, A. learned about fasting when you pray for people. In our faith, we fast the first Sunday of the month for 2 meals and donate that money to the church to distribute to those less-fortunate. We also use that opportunity to consider those that may need extra faith and prayers going their way. A. was very excited and told us all about it on the way home. He wanted to do it this last Sunday.

On Sunday morning, I woke him and asked if he was still planning on trying it. He seemed really concerned and started talking about this boy in his class at school. It took me a while to understand why S. was relevant to whether A. would fast or not. S. is in a wheel-chair and I am not sure why, because he wasn't in first grade. A. told me that he told S. he was going to fast that he wouldn't be in a wheel-chair anymore. (Could he be more sweet and believing in the power of God!?!) S. probably didn't understand A.'s intentions because S. told him not to fast for him. So my 7 year-old was concerned that he didn't have a reason to fast, so should he still do it?

I assured him that he could come up with something else to fast for. He mentioned praying for everyone in the whole world that is sick. I told him that usually we try to be a bit more specific. So he decided on some people to pray for.

At church, he got a little hungry the first hour. Andy told him that he was hungry too because he was fasting, and then A. remembered and sat back down. He fasted the whole 3 hours and told me afterward that he was doing OK. He didn't even rush to the kitchen for lunch when we got home. We went to his room to close his fast with a prayer. He prayed and just said, "Bless all the people I am fasting for."

Andy and I were planning on having him start fasting when he is baptised on his eighth birthday and only one meal for a while. I told A. that and asked him if he wanted to wait until his summer birthday, or fast again in January. He told me he wants to do it again. I am so proud of him. What an awesome kid! :)