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Welcome Friends
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You've found a great place to come and vent, share or ask for prayer support. This is a great group who will be very encouraging, caring and loving.......anyone is welcome to join!

A Servant's Prayer --

Jesus, My Jesus....How marvelous are your ways....
Far more splendid than my mind can envision.
What an honor to be chosen by you.
A lowly child I am, but empowered by the Holy Spirit
to fulfill the great hope to which you have called me.
I give myself totally to you, Lord.
Take my imperfect heart and make it perfect.
Peel away the hardness.
Close the doors I have opened to the temptations of this world.
Gently remove the roots of painful memories, sins, doubts and fears.
Discard anything that separates me from you.
Lord, fill the emptiness with the light of your love that I might be a
beacon calling the lost back to you.

To love as you love.....
To serve as you serve.....
To forgive as you forgive.....
Always mindful of my nothingness while doing great
and marvelous things in your name and for your glory.
This I pray, Jesus, in YOUR name ...
Amen.

HI EVERYONE -- we are back from our trip; and we had a great time. I see that some people have been away but we have had some NEWBIES come our way over the last 1.5 weeks. I just wanted to come in and start the JUNE Thread as it wasn't started yet and we are already on the 11th day of the month.

We were so busy on our trip that I didn't even get my PC out or running. Just decided to enjoy ourselves each day and make the most of it. DH did well and really seemed to enjoy himself as well. I did some reading but still have a bit more to catch up on -- so will do that over the week and post (in response) as I go along.

We did some shopping today as we needed to get some fresh veggies and fruit; plus stock up on a few basics as well. The temps have been nice and warm, with the odd shower here and there. It really is looking like summer here now with lots of leaves on the trees and baby birds, ducks, and turtles around.

Have a great evening; and know that prayers are going up for all your concerns as well ...

Welcome home Rosebud. so glad you had a nice time, it sounds like a time of renewal for you.

BARGOO ~ THANKS -- I just decided that we would go and enjoy ourselves as much as possible, leaving the worries behind. Managed to do that 99% of the time; only had one evening of concern just as we were preparing to come home. Since we came back, I have felt that GOD is telling me not to worry about these strange circumstances; to just take one-day-at-a-time -- that's all one can do really.

I think the "UNKNOWN" factor is the most difficult part of it all; plus all the nightmare stories people tell you about bad experiences they have had in the past. That isn't very encouraging at all. Add on the fact that the whole thing seems ridiculous to me and anyone who hears the story. I have never heard of this before, esp in the case of spouses; doesn't even make sense to me really. I know lots of people who take care of their spouses affairs for them with their consent (before and after).

We are praying that GOD will iron all this out to our advantage. May HE turn it into good for us -- an extra special unexpected blessing would be even nicer; and our GOD can do anything. We are looking for a solution and peace about it all really.

Trying to keep our focus on the positive here and at times, it is difficult as DH is very ansy to get back home. So am I really -- I miss our house: the one GOD blessed us with. Gee, it seems so many areas of my life have been stressed lately; and some days I feel like JOBELLA ...

Went for my lab tests today and this evening, we went for a nice drive to help keep DH occupied. Sister picked up a couple more hanging baskets full or lovely salmon=colored flowers to hang on the back deck. They will look very pretty there. We had lovely most of the day with a nice breeze in the back to cool us down.

DH goes to his activity day tomorrow which he absolutely just loves -- he calls it "going to school". We went by the building today, and it does kind of look like a school, so that is likely why he calls it that. I am just so glad that he is enjoying himself there so much. He really needs stuff to do all the time to be contented; he's just that kind of person.

It's the third week of chemo and my legs are very sore of course -- the skin and muscles especially, so I will try and rest them this week before the last chemo round. Praying the blood platelets will be above 100 so that I can have my treatment on schedule and not feel too many side effects.

I have a pile of emails that I have to read and respond too as well, so guess I better do them tomorrow too as I have time. Take care and enjoy the day everyone -- GOD really wants us to be well and contented.

Yeah! So missed you ! So happy your back Rosebud!

THANKS, BOOTSIE -- yes, I always miss my friends here when I am away; just as I miss our home so much while having to be away for these chemo treatments (only one more to go; and it can't go by fast enuff for me). GOD blessed us with that home. It was a miracle that brought us that opportunity, and I pray that we'll be able to keep it -- with GOD's blessing.

UPDATE -- I decided to call the trustee's office myself as I have been getting so much conflicting advice from people (all of whom think they are right). Well, we were not told the truth, just as I suspected -- the doctor does have the ability to choose not to do what he did when there is a spouse involved. Actually, he shouldn't have done anything the way he did it.

He should have consulted me first; and he should have inquired about our circumstances before doing anything. He should not have made the request at all becuz in our case, DH already had a competent person managing his finances and property well, and with his full consent.

Secondly, the SW was incorrect -- the trustee's office can also stop the request, especially in special situations like ours. Unfortunately, becuz I was told so much incorrect info, the process has already started; and once started, it cannot be stopped.

Sadly, the situation was worse than I was told -- they have literally seized all of DH's income for July 1st and onwards, without thinking about the bills he/we have to pay (including a mortgage, etc). His assigned worker is going to try to make sure all the bills for the house continue to be paid (as I had set up PAW's for all but one). Please pray that she does this before July 1st so both of our financial standings are not affected in a negative way.

Plus, I have to apply for trusteeship to manage his/our financial affairs -- they now deem most of our income as "HIS" income regardless of the fact that some it was supposed to be for me. All this is becuz my health is such that no-one would hire me in the shape I am in at this time; well, I am too sick right now anyways.

I will definitely need lots of prayers to get all this sorted out ... and his worker implied that I may not want the responsibility of being his trustee when I find out how hard it is -- there is a mile of red tape involved, probably done so you don't want to do it; yet they claim they want the family to do this, so they should make it easier, not more difficult.

I told her that I don't know why I am having to apply for managing our financial affairs when I was doing such a great job of it already. She was surprised when she found out how well I had done and that we have no debt other than our house mortgage, which I would pay off too, if I had the money. I have already arranged our payment so that we pay it off a bit faster too. I couldn't do any better really ...

From my info today, this should never have happened in the first place; a lot of mistakes and misjudgement came into play in our situation. Trying to fix this situation will be hardest part, IMHO. So, now I have to go with the process and see what happens. GOD will have to take control and bring about his will and purposes -- it is out of my hands now.

So, I really need your prayers that what is good and right and best comes to be for us in this situation; and that we have peace and not beat ourselves up for other peoples' mistakes and for listening to bad advice. We surely cannot trust that those who think they know the rules really know them, or the law for that matter: as that was just a pat answer to justify what they were doing. We were all misled. Why -- we still don't know.

Hopefully some day, we will be able to look back and see GOD's plan or divine providence in all of this somewhere; or at the very least, be able to see His help & grace when someone else brought us harm (whether by accident or on purpose). Either way, we have prayed that what others may have meant for harm, will be turned around for our good -- praize GOD, for He alone is able.

THANKS for your prayers ...

Rosebud-wow.....I will continue to pray for your health, chemo treatments, DH, and the mess that doctor has put you in. Hugs for you...You will get through this-God has a plan and it will work out for your good. I'm convinced of it Sounded like you had a wonderful trip! Glad you were able to get away, enjoy your family, and the scenery!

DH & I got home from his conference in Champaign, IL last night. We were just gone 3 nights, but seemed a lot longer, since the boys were not with us. There were very bad storms on Wednesday at home and 5 tornadoes within 20 miles of our home- DS3 saw one of them from our back yard as it descended just north of town! We were very worried about them being home alone, but they did just fine.

My sister came to see us while we were in Champaign, so we got to do some shopping and discussion about Mom and her situation. It was very nice to see her, especially since they are moving to Arizona very soon and it will be a much longer trip to get to visit-thank goodness for phone, e-mail, & Skype!

Mom's situation took a sudden turn. She finally agreed to start taking the meds last weekend after getting a new doctor. When her case came to trial on Thursday, she was going to agree to treatment and, last contact I had, the social worker said that she may be released next week. All this depends on how she reacts as the dosage is increased-she was still having some delusions last time I talked to her, but they tell me now that sometimes some of the delusions never go away-they continue to believe that the people are after them and controlling them by making them take the meds. So, of course, our concern is that she'll just quit taking meds as soon as she gets home so 'they' don't 'win'.

Lots of stuff going on. DS3 is finishing up his help at the church's VBS today and then we have to get all his stuff ready for the youth group's mission trip to Pine Ridge Reservation, leaving on Sunday. They work with a missionary out in White Clay, NE. If you're interested, look White Clay up on Wiki or google-it's a travesty what the state of NE is allowing to go on there. The missionary heads up Lakota Hope Ministry (http://www.lakotahope.org) and is working to improve the situation out at Pine Ridge/White Clay. The kids go out and help fix buildings, plant flowers and vegetables, serve meals, and just try to be a working witness to the Native Americans out there (and, by the way, they do not mind being called Indians). Pray for them to have safe travels and no problems.

Thanks, everyone! TTYL!

Rosebud, I continue to hold you up in prayer in this unjust situation. It is unbelievable what has been done to you and DH but God can turn it around to his glory.

THANKS, RONNI ~ you are dealing with a very difficult situation too (so similar to mine); I really empathise with you in all of this. We are praying that your mother continues to take her meds and that she comes to some kind of understanding that she needs them, and that without them, she will only get worse.

We have a friend that went through a similar situation -- eventually his doctor and other medical workers were able to help him understand this (after a prolonged court-ordered stay in the hospital). He is doing better than I have ever seen him in the 20+ years I have known him & his wife. (PS -- it did take them a while to find the best medicine & dose for him though.)

Dealing with these kinds of things are difficult for the families, so they need all the co-operation and assistance they can get. I am grateful to the workers who have offered me help with him, esp for the day-away activity program, the funding to pay for that, and personal support care help which will help at home. He wants to stay in his home as long as he can -- and I don't blame him for that.

Nursing homes and long-term care should always be a last resort. We are looking into a manor near our home that offers temporary stays which can be helpful for both of us like when I have to go to Sudbury for my check-ups, etc. That has already been arranged for me.

The point is that we need help, not control. These organizations need to work with the families (especially spouses), not against them. As the population ages, this will be more & more important as there are not enuff places (that means, available licensed beds here in Ontario, Canada) available for everyone, esp good quality, affordable ones for those in the lower-middle income stratas.

Plus lawyers need to get on the ball and make sure that everyone has POA's and wills in place as soon as you purchase any property, and preferably before that, just in case of this type of thing happens. I would recommend it then and if you are age 40 or older (some may even recommend it sooner). The government worker explained that there are two kinds of POA's as well -- I could get one and/or my DH could have had one as well. No-one knew this either.

There seems to be way too much misinformation out there -- no wonder people are blind-sided with all this stuff; and by the time you find out, it is too late already. There should be measures in place to help those in these kind of situations. I was told it would take several weeks to process and told that they would contact me -- wrong & more wrong. It was one week from the time my SW talked to them and they also processed the request before talking to me. Is it any wonder that I am starting to feel like a non-entity? To me, the family should ALWAYS be contacted before anything is done (especially a spouse, becuz their whole lives are directly affected by this drastic action).

Thanks for letting me share my thoughts with you all here -- it really helps me not to eat my sadness and frustration. I appreciate and need your prayers too. I know that I must trust GOD in all things with prayer and thanks. HE will work things out; and I must not worry, although it is the human thing to do -- to be concerned. Thanks again ...

EDIT2ADD: one thing that you/we can do is share my story -- make sure that you and your family have your POA's and your WILLs in place and up2date NOW! And tell anyone and everyone you know how important it is to do this ASAP. Also, make sure you know the rules and laws of your jurisdiction (area/province/state, etc).

Rosebud-Great advice! I'll be sharing it along. Glad you're able to get today's last round of chemo done and over with! Prayers sent up for you. I know you'll be glad to get home after all this is done. You've been blessed with such wonderful family to help you through this time. I know everything else will work out.

Mom's release from the hospital was delayed until tomorrow, but I actually can't go get her until Thursday, so they agreed to keep her another day. The social worker said the extra stay was to 'tweak' the meds a bit, which probably means they realized she was still having delusions over the weekend. I realize at this point much of what she believes may not go away, but at least, on the meds, hopefully, she won't be acting out on those delusions. She just thinks 'they' won and will leave her alone because 'they' got her back on the meds again. She has never been able to understand that she has an illness and these things don't actually happen. So, unless something else changes, I'll go get her Thursday.

Tomorrow, we're going to Mall of America to get DS2's laptop fixed before the warranty runs out (3 days to spare!). DH is even taking the day off to go along and we may be able to meet up with some old friends who live up there.

DS3 is out in NE/SD area. He called yesterday and said there's a rather intense-looking protest going on out there on the state line. If you look up the information on Whiteclay, NE, you find that this protest has been going on, off & on, for years. The state of NE refuses to enforce the no alcohol sales buffer zone around Pine Ridge and allows the merchants in Whiteclay to sell and sell and sell. Makes Nebraska a lot of revenue at 10,000 20oz cans of beer each day. It's shameful what this country has allowed to be done to our Native tribes. DS3 said there were state police and locals lined up on both sides of the state line yesterday. Pray for the safety of our kids and our missionary. Hopefully, as this has been going on a long time, there won't be any kind of escalation of the issue and the state of NE will start paying attention to their own laws and crack down on the booze merchants in Whiteclay.

Well, must be off. I'm going to talk to a counselor about Mom and how to deal with her from now on, because, obviously, I need to do something differently to keep this from happening again....

WINTER ROSE -- glad that you found us over here. You can just jump right in and share your heart away, any time you like. Looking forward to getting to know you better.


THANKS RONNIE -- hope things work out better for your mother; prayers continue for her and your whole family.

Welcome Winter Rose!!! You've joined a great group. I've received so much help here. Again Welcome.

Rosebud, as always I continue to pray for your perpetual prosperity and good health, and I'm so thankful that you've returned safely home.


Ronni, I pray that your mother's emotional and physical health continues to improve. I also pray that the Lord strengthens you and provides you comfort and support in your time of need. Also, I was distressed at the news of the trouble on the NE and SD border. It's just another example of how the powers that be value profits over people. Hopefully, good sense and decency will kick-in and the law will be upheld and administered without prejudice for the sake of the people who reside in the region.

As I read this and your other post above I thought of a few things.

I heard a minister today that when we got saved things happen in our lives because satan sees us as a threat to him. That helps me see that he throws a lot of things at us to try to get us to stop trusting in our Lord Jesus. That said, I see the negative experiences that well meaning people told you are the devils way of trying to break your focus off of God so you will not trust God. He knows if you stay strong in faith that God will work this out for your good and you will bring God glory through your victory.

As I read what you wrote in the quote, I thought of Joseph's words to his brothers "What you meant for evil, God meant for my good". God saved a nation through them selling Joseph into slavery. And then the promise of God that "All things work together for good for those who love the Lord and are called according to His purpose". Also "God will do for greater than we can ask or think".

So just keep focused and rest in His promises. I believe you are going to come through this with another wonderful testimony that will Glorify our Lord. Love you Rosebud and glad you are back.

Met a man the other day whose dad has Alzhiemers. I thought of you and your DH. He said they had to take the keys away from his dad and his Mom drives his Dad everywhere so he calls his wife his chauffeur. Also he still remembers what his favorite foods are and looks forward to going out to eat his favorite foods. He said his Dad always went to get the mail so he makes 12 trips a day to the mailbox to get the mail. Even if he got the mail the first time. He can't remember that he went. The guy moved in with his parents to help with his Dad and at first he tried to stop him from going out to the mailbox so often until one day he realized that it kept his Dad from just sitting aroud doing nothing Said he realized that at least he was moving around getting exercise. Just sharing.

Praying for you.

TRISH -- Thanks so much for your insights and comments. I was feeling a bit down tonight after receiving the detailed package in the mail. Much of it seems so ridiculous and silly. They seem to forget that he has a family; he has a spouse who he lived with and we put all our income together; we own our property jointly; we made decisions together; and we use our material possessions together like a married couple would and should do.

My sister thinks that the application would be a cinch for me, but just very time consuming. I have still yet to find a copy of the complete application, that I thought they were sending me; and I have a time limit to get it filled out, checked-over, seen by a lawyer, and sent back to them.

It isn't easy to guesstimate the value of someone's personal property when some are old, some semi-new, some are worth nothing, some are hand-made gifts to me, at least half are mine, and most are worth nothing more than what you could get at a yard sale. DH made me much of our stuff and gave them to me as gifts. I bought his tools as gifts; and my Dad gave him some second-hand tools as gifts, and so on; and some of the tools are mine (as I had them before I met him). Plus we need to keep them as we still need them to maintain our home; and I can still use them, even if he can't.

So, that's the answer really. Seeing that written down gave me an answer to my concerns. We need to keep our stuff for our own use. Keep stuff in our home just as we have been doing becuz that's what normal people do. I was noticing the posts of the injustices to the natives in some of your states. We have that here for some of our natives too, and all citizens as you can see by our example. It seems the almighty $dollar$ is always more important than the people, when it should be the other way round.

Sending up prayers for this situation as well; may GOD grant us wisdom and peace while trying to achieve equality, fairness, and a decent quality of life for us all. That is all people really want, and the right to manage their own affairs without excessive outside interference. Isn't that what all people want and need? Isn't that the basis of our supposed freedoms in our nations?

When did democracy start slipping away from the hands of the people in our countries? When did the government become more important than the people it is supposed to be representing? Why have they forgotten their mandate is to run the country for us? It's our country. It's our money. It's our land. They are our resources. We are supposed to have as say on how things are managed and run; plus, we should have the ultimate say, IMHO.

Boy, this situation has really made me think about how GOD really wants his people looked after. How HE wants us to live and be. How HE wants us to treat people. How HE wants us to run our countries. Are we really one nation under GOD? I wonder ...

As per usual -- THANKS FOR LETTING ME RANT a bit; I so needed to get that off my chest. I ate some chippies tonight; thank goodness I ate lightly the whole day through. We will overcome. I corrected my mistake right away. Each day is another chance to get it right, friends ...