The Newest Addition...The Journey

A new addition joined our family on Friday, September 15, 2006. I am grateful to have something else to remember that date for instead of what it has been for the past 3 years. September 15, 2003 marked the end of my marriage, 14 1/2 years after it began. Three years later, I can stand back and say I am blessed to have lived the life and am blessed to be where I am at today.

The girls and I made a trip of it that morning. We headed up to Palmdale to pick up our 'little sweetheart'. We made the trip easily in 3 hours and that included stopping for Starbucks, Gas and getting lunch at In and Out (a California staple). Its been years since I was up there, and it kind of bummed me out I couldn't have stayed longer to visit with my Aunt and Uncle who live in that area, but I knew that since it was Friday we needed to head back out as quickly as possible. We stayed and played with the remaining 4 puppies, the momma dog and saw a handful of other Shelties. Breeders are such 'interesting' people, they know the dogs they are raising well, and are sticklers to making sure they are placed well and going to be well taken care of. Two of the 3 girls are huge animal lovers, so that wasn't a problem. Emily on the other hand, well, lets just say the lady there noticed right away her indifference to the puppies. I wasn't worried, even today I saw her playing with 'Cleo' on her lap, Em just needs time to warm up to the animals, but never takes to them immediately. So after paying the bill having her go over the paperwork with a fine tooth comb, we headed home.

I thought I was going to be smart and get lucky in the path I had chosen to go home. I thought wrong. I believe my mother is right, coming through LA on a Friday....just plan to live on the freeway. We did! We left Palmdale at 2:00 pm and got home around 7:30 pm. I was talking to Dennis as I drove up, he had been worried about me, Ill explain that in a minute, that if one is going to drive for over 5 hours in a car it is rather disappointing not to see him at the other end of such a drive. I suppose this could be another of my potential arguments later if I need to move, "Well, I could move up a bit and still be in California but it would still take you 5 hours to see the kids even though it would really only be 2 hours apart!!" Sadly they are saying that the congestion of this area will be 80 percent worse in the next few years. I want out! So home we went, slowly............and then the clunk.

“A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials.” Chinese Proverb

When Dennis had been out a couple weeks before, he had looked over the suburban and told me I needed to get those tires replaced, but we decided this trip wouldn't be too much on them. We were right, but as luck would have it, or my luck with transmissions, the clunk, was the transmission. Of course this is still all my best guess, I have yet to get the truck into the dealer or shop, but after having had every car need a transmission replaced that I have owned to date, Im quite positive thats what is acting up. The only good news is that I did have this transmission replaced 2 1/2 years ago, so it is still under warranty ( I think). So we clunked our way home with a puppy in the back puking every now and again. Poor thing. I didn't want to stop, I didn't want the truck to stop working. I didn't want to die in the middle of the lanes either so I had to take the slow lane all the way home. If you know me you can imagine how difficult that was for me. A journey is what we had. One that makes you stop and fall apart, or look to God. I do thank God that I have had enough experience now in life to stop reacting, and start thinking. I did call Dennis immediately and did my best to explain in my female way what the heck was going on with the truck. He offered some good advice, encouraged me and off I continued. I called ahead and prepared my parents, talked with Luke who lives along that path I was taking home and had people ready to help me if I needed it. My head was thinking clearly. Something that a few years ago I could honestly say wouldn't have happened. In fact it didn't happen. With the first flood of three in that period of 1 1/2 years my head was clouded and even feeling self pity. Why me? This time it was, OK Lord, what am I going to get to learn this time. .... oh and PLEASE just let me get home safely! :) honest I am! I spent many hours looking over Philippians 4 in the past, but today I can now say it is easier to look at it in the way the scriptures lay it out. That in all things, whatever the circumstances, consider it pure joy. To find contentment with what we have where we are at, not sitting back waiting for it to drop in our laps, mind you, but knowing with Christ on our side, we can do everything through him go gives us the strength. (paraphrased)

I made it home, I finished the first part of this new journey, the joy of driving up knowing I was being looked out for, but had been prepared for whatever layed out that afternoon was pretty awesome. And so with that I present.....My Lords "Cleopatra"........a little sweet heart!

We have had a few stare downs by "Cleo" and kitty (boo-boo) so far, at this point I fear more for Cleo since I don't believe she has ever been in the presence of a cat before, so we are working at just keeping the two calm around each other for now. :)
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