Phew!

okay, despite my feeling very confident that my test results would be good, i am SO relieved to actually know it to be true! i just got a call from my doc telling me that my "fibroadenoma" is nothing to worry about - and definitely benign. yeah!! so, that's the update. thanks - again - for all the prayers!!!

no news is good news?

well, there's been no news yet today. we're just waiting on the results of the biopsy. i'll keep everyone posted. thanks for all the prayer support... it seems to be working well, as my anxiety level is pretty low (considering) and i feel peaceful enough about it. keep praying!!

new experiences

well, this has been an interesting week. i've just returned from my very first mammogram (& sonogram) and i survived it. about a week ago, we found a lump in my breast, thus the mammogram, etc. because of said lump, i also got to experience a needle biopsy for the first time. good times. actually, none of it was nearly as bad as i feared. but, now i have to wait on the results. sometime early next week, i'm told. in the meantime, i have to just lay low and not strain myself. guess that leaves housework out for a while, right?

okay, so that was the bad news. here's some fun news. last night (wednesday) we got to go to the pittsburgh pirates baseball game and watch taylor (along with the rest of the sixth grade band) play the national anthem. it was so exciting! i was sick as a dog all day yesterday and up until the last minute didn't think i'd get to be there. but memories of missing important events because i get sick (like my sisters' double wedding...) and taylor begging me to come anyway made me pull myself together and head out. i'm so glad i did! how often will we have a kid performing the national anthem at a professional sporting event?! the band was great and we were all there to see it (ed, myself, the boys, my folks, carrie & frank and bob). taylor had quite the crowd cheering him on!

that's it for now. thanks for prayers, thoughts, calls, cards & gifts... i'm feeling very loved!! i'll keep you posted on the results.

the big green house on a hill...

well, for those of you who have never seen our home, here's an old photo of the outside at least. actually, i'm not sure how old this is, but it was taken before any abbotts lived there, because we've never seen the row of bushes along the left side of the yard (or at least i don't remember it!). anyway, it looks quite a bit different already - that big flowering bush (it died) is gone and the driveway is more than tire marks - but this gives an idea of where we live. the window at the top (now the younger 3 boys' bedroom) is the best view in town - looking over the village with a view of the river and the sewickley bridge too.

anyway, ed's uncle just celebrated the 50th anniversary of his entering the priesthood and so far, the cards i've picked out were unacceptable to my hubby... so i'm going to run out to try again. maybe there's a trick to this that a protestant girl wouldn't get?? :)

back to grace

way back at the start of lent (feb), our church started a study on grace. that series carried through to easter and was then followed by our current (thru july) study on galatians (we're working through the book in church and in our bible study). wow. this topic is hard for me to begin with. and now it has become infused into everything i do!
here's my struggle: i am more than happy to RECEIVE grace (particularly the Lord's saving grace!) but i am very hesitant to really give it. i want to only give "grace" to those who deserve it... which, of course, works directly against the concept of grace - undeserved merit!
and, in the midst of me trying to learn how to destroy my natural self in order to offer Jesus' grace to others, i'm a prime target for attempts to thwart those efforts!! in fact, in the past few months, i've probably had more "attacks" than i've ever had in my 30 years prior! we seem to get slammed at every turn and it becomes so hard to even want to give grace!
and while it is hard for me, it is also a great blessing that my hubby really takes this teaching to heart. i can't imagine how he does it, but ed continues to offer grace to those who lash out at him. it makes me want to fight to defend him and at the same time, i am unbelievably proud of him and the hard choices he makes. and i want to learn from his example and choose to be like Christ. oh, how i thank God for choosing this man to be my husband!!!

back to earth

i know, its been a really long time since i've left an update. sorry. its been a mix of things keeping me from posting anything: very busy at home and at work, being lazy, and waiting to tell what we hoped would be really good news. well, we're still busy - work is still keeping me on my toes and things at home haven't slowed a bit. in fact, things are busier! drew is still doing track and now we've added baseball for drew, noah & evan. taylor isn't participating in any sports, but his social life (and babysitting) seem to be taking off. so, we're pretty much all running wild from the minute we get home until bedtime. honestly, i'm still feeling pretty lazy... i'm trying not to be a control-freak, but i don't seem to have the "happy medium" down yet, so i drop a lot! as for the news (no, its not a baby - we're not even thinking that way yet)... we'd hoped to be announcing a new job for ed. for some time now, we've been convinced that the magazine he was working for was not a good fit for him after all. he's done an amazing job with it and created a great product, but he (we) tend to disagree with the parent company and it just wasn't what we thought it would be. ed resigned when we had high hopes about another opportunity that came up. but, that fell through. so, now ed is looking for a new job... anyone have a great lead for him?! :)
so, that's pretty much the update from us. i've still been working on borrowing a digital camera in order to show pics of the house, but then again, i'm crazy busy (read: disorganized) these days and still lazy... maybe someday.