Throwback Thursday: Dance Parrttaaaaayy!!

I now introduce to you Thursday Throwback. A lot of my friends on Facebook do a “throwback” by posting a picture of themselves from their childhood—whether it’s funny or just plain cute. So in an effort to be a complete copycat, I’m bringing the Thursday Throwback to Life with the Casterlines. Shablam.

Our first real Thursday Throwback was this post that I wrote back in March about Roman's second-grade writings. But there were no pictures in that one…..so maybe it doesn’t count after all. And it was written on a Friday, so that’s two strikes against it. Ahem.

Anyways, did you know that I used to take clogging when I was little? No, you didn’t. Because there's only a handful of people who knew that, but now you do. I was actually getting pretty good at it, and I did it for around five-ish years. But then we moved and couldn’t find a good dance studio in the new town, so that was the end of that. But for five long years I danced around my parent’s kitchen in my clogs and scuffed up the linoleum floors and drove everyone half-crazy. Here’s an adorable picture of me at one of my first dance recitals. I was either five or six years old when this was taken. Am I not the cutest thing ever???!?!!?! (Just nod in agreement.)

 

So there ya have it folks. If you’re lucky I might show you a few of my awesome dance moves. MAYBE.

“Let them praise His name with dancing, making melody to Him with tambourine and lyre.” ~Psalm 149:3

Happy Birthday to Us! (and some other stuff)

I 100% missed the one-year birthday of my blog. Womp womp. As of May 2^nd, this blog has been in existence for an entire year. Sing it with me: Happy (late) birthday to you, happy (late) birthday to you, happy (late) birthday dear bloggy-blog, happy (late) birthday to you!

Now, marvel at my Paint skills:

Ahem.

To all of my readers who read on mobile devices, this post may not make much sense to you if you are reading it on your cell phone. So if you want to, please scroll down to the bottom and click “view web version” after you get done reading so you can actually see everything I’m about to talk about.

Last night I spent quite some time glued to my laptop making some changes, so I thought I would take today and let you know what I did. You may have noticed a couple weeks ago when I added a “Home” and “About Us” tab right underneath the header. If not, then guess what? A couple weeks ago I added a “Home” and “About Us” tab right underneath the header. Cool, huh? Last night I also added a “Contact Us” tab as well. All three are pretty self explanatory: “About Us” is just a short synopsis for any of my new readers. “Contact Us” is where you can go to find our e-mail address, as well as the links to our Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest page. When you get tired of looking at all of that stuff, simply click “Home” to get back to the main page of the blog.

I also added a sidebar to the left side of the Home page. I did this mainly because I did not want everyone to scroll for five minutes to see everything. So on the left side we have a few pictures, the link to the Mercy House shop that I told you about a couple weeks ago, a list of the blogs I follow, and my affiliate link.

On the right sidebar, I’ve added a search box  so you can type in a keyword and search for a post, rather than having to dig through the archives to find it. When you search for marriage, for example, it will bring up all of my marriage-related posts. I’m currently working on labeling all of my older posts so that they are sure to pop up like they are supposed to when you use the search function.

Right below the search box is a place where you can subscribe to my blog posts via e-mail-wahoo! Simply type in your e-mail address and click “submit”. Google will open up a new window where you type in those crazy looking letters to verify you’re not a robot, and then it will send you a confirmation e-mail. Be sure to check your e-mail for that confirmation e-mail and follow the instructions, because if you don’t then you won’t actually be subscribed. And if the e-mail doesn't show up after a few minutes, you might try checking your Spam folder, just in case. I highly recommend subscribing, not just for my own benefit, but because you don’t have to worry about missing my posts when they are delivered right to your e-mail inbox. Sometimes Facebook doesn’t like me and it may not show where I’ve linked to a new post in your newsfeed- this way you won’t miss it. I subscribe to my favorite blogs, and I can tell you that it is really convenient!

Underneath the subscribe option is all of our social media sites. Everything is still the same, except I added our Pinterest account as well. Next we have the top ten posts for this blog. These are the most viewed posts that I’ve written. So if you’re new to our blog and would like to play catch-up, this is the perfect place to do it! Lastly we have the blog archive. If you don’t like using the search box, or if you can’t find what you’re looking for, then I still have a by-month list of every post I’ve written.

A few other notes:

As I mentioned above, I am working on applying labels to all of my posts. Some examples are “Life”, “Marriage” and “Spiritual”. In addition to the search box, this can help you find other posts related to that topic. For instance, if you click on the label “Life” at the bottom of yesterday’s post, then all of the posts with that label will be displayed.

And last but not least, I have also changed the way the Comments work after a couple of you notified me that you had a hard time submitting them. You now do not have to be a Gmail user to submit a comment, nor do you have to do the weird word-verification thing. This may open up the comments to the occasional spammer, but I monitor the comments and will make sure I delete anything that should not be there. But hopefully it will make it easier for all of you to interact on the blog, rather than having to resort to Facebook to send comments.

Woo! That was a long post. But I hope it was helpful to you. And please let me know if anything is not working like it should. I’ve tested everything, but sometimes things behave differently depending on what reading device and/or web browser you use.

“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.”  ~Colossians 3:23

Opposites Attract

The saying that opposite people attract may have something to it. One thing I’ve noticed over our (almost) three years of marriage is that Roman and I think quite differently. And not just in a “he thinks like a man and I think like a woman” kind of way. I mean more along the lines of “is the glass half empty or half full” kind of way.

Roman is an optimist. I am a pessimist.

Example: There is a forecast for thunderstorms and possible severe weather tonight (hypothetically speaking, not really). I assume that we need to be ready to lock ourselves in the closet because we might get a tornado. Roman assumes that he’s going to sleep awesome tonight because it’ll be rainy/stormy outside.

Example: Duke has a bump on his back that we have to get removed tomorrow (for real). I am secretly freaking out because it could be cancer. Roman is not freaking out because he just thinks it’s an old sore that the dog wouldn’t leave alone.

Roman naturally sees the good side of everything and hopes for the best. I do not. Well, I hope for the best, but I assume the best is not going to happen.

I have been at war with my own hormones over the past nine months, and it’s been quite the struggle. (I may or may not go into deeper details at a later date, but for now, I’m going to leave it at that.) The other day in the car I was lamenting to Roman just how tired of it I was and how I felt like I was going to be taking all these medicines for the rest of my liiiiiiiffffeee. I went through all of my frustrations and aggravations and then I waited for him to agree with all of my concerns. But he didn’t. He sat there for a few seconds and then he basically said that he understood and he was slightly frustrated as well, but he wasn’t worried like I was. He said he knows it will all work out in the end.

God bless the optimistic people in this world.

This is one of those examples of how your spouse can make you into a better person if you let them. Because my husband takes my pessimistic thought process and shows me how to think more positively probably at least once a week. Sometimes it is annoying, I’ll admit. But sometimes, it helps me to calm down and see the other side of the picture that my narrow thinking can’t see. And I can tell you this: it’s a much prettier picture from his point of view.

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."  ~Matthew 6:34 

A Tribute To My Mom

When I was little, my younger brother got in more trouble than me…..boys generally do. Lots of times, my mom would just wait until my dad got home. The dread of waiting the rest of the day for our dad’s return was just as bad (if not worse) as the spanking we got soon after. But there were a few times that I can remember that mom didn’t wait for dad to get home. I have no idea what he did, but my little brother did something bad. My mom reached for him….and he ran.

It is never a good idea to run from your parents when they are trying to discipline you. Never.

I remember sitting on the couch watching them run around the big coffee table in front of me. I wanted so bad to trip one of them, but I couldn’t figure out which one. If I tripped my brother, then he wouldn’t share his toys with me. If I tripped my mom, then I would be in big trouble too. Thankfully she caught him before I had to make up my mind.

My mom is one strong lady. She will exercise with a hurt knee and scrub her house from top to bottom when she’s sick. She’s taken great care of all five of her children. I’ve seen her love all five of us with a fierce love. She prays over us daily…through the hard times and the good. She is wise in her advice and you can always count on her to lend a listening ear. She is kind to friends and stranger alike, and visits the sick in the hospital often. She loves Jesus and reads her Bible every day. She is the perfect example of a godly, Proverbs 31 woman.

She was my absolute best friend growing up, and she still is today. I’ve always told her everything…..from who made fun of me at school that day, to what I was thinking about going to college for, to who I wanted to marry. She taught me how to tie my shoes and write, and she always took great care of me when I was sick. She let me cuddle up with her when the boogie monster came to visit and promised me that the thunder would not do anything to hurt me.

And if you know her, then you also know that she adores her four-legged children too. But don’t you dare bring a snake around her…..you’re dead meat then, and so is the snake.

I’m not a mother yet, but I can tell you that I’ve got a good one. And she set the bar pretty high when I do become one. I thank God all the time that He gave me such a great woman to call my mom. She is the perfect example of how I want to be when I grow up.

Mom, happy Mother’s Day. And thank you so much for everything you have done for me. I love you!

“Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: ‘Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.’ Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.”  ~Proverbs 31:28-31

WFMW: How to Get Your Husband to Do Stuff

It’s Works for Me Wednesday here at Life with the Casterlines. This is where I share little tidbits of *hopefully* helpful information. And please feel free to leave your own tidbits in the comments! Today’s post focuses on how to -ahem- get your husband to do stuff….

The Problem: My laptop continually freezes up and crashes. Not a good thing when you need it for your ministry or when you’re trying to do a blog post

The Solution: Hubby needs to wipe laptop clean, re-install operating system, and possibly do a dance around a campfire so laptop will continue to work

****Problem persists for over a year….with no Solution****

Step One: Over-exaggerate your reaction every time laptop messes up. If that doesn’t work, proceed to Step Two.

Step Two: Find a $1,200 laptop and request it for your birthday which is coming up in *one month*

Step Three: Explain (again) why the new laptop is needed

Step Four: Watch your laptop get repaired the very next day and admire your handy work.

Done.

This method will work for almost anything that needs to be accomplished. Hubby forgets to change the oil in your car? Start sending him prices for a Mercedes. Need him to give the dog a bath? Dump dirt all over his pillow and blame it on how dirty Fido is. Tired of ironing his clothes? Accidentally burn a hole through his favorite shirt.

Any questions?

;)

Note: This is 100% not-godly behavior and was meant as a joke. Ladies, let’s please not be conning our men into doing all of the housework. But seriously, if it’s been a year and your laptop/car/dishwasher still isn’t working…..well, you have the game plan! Hop to it!

Also Note: Thanks for the fixed laptop, darling!  Xoxoxo

Functioning laptops work for me! :)  :) 

“She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.” ~Proverbs 31:27

Superwoman!

Sometimes in life we have to admit we are not superheroes.
We cannot do everything for everyone every time.
We cannot be and do and help and organize and accomplish just how we want to.
Like it or not, we are not superhuman and we cannot ignore the fact that we need rest.

It is hard for me to sit in a recliner every day with my leg propped up on pillows. I try to get some work done on my laptop and I aimlessly flip through channels and look at my phone. This resting thing is hard, and I am not well acquainted with it. I wish I could snap my fingers and all of a sudden the recovery time would magically be over and I could start vacuuming my house, but it just doesn't work that way. My body desperately needs this time of stillness and quiet to fully recover from the trauma of surgery. I can't rush the process or I risk not healing properly. I could easily wind up causing more damage than there ever was before by ignoring my body's needs.

Ever been there before? Perhaps it wasn't a surgery or even a physical ailment, but something happened to cause you pain and you knew deep down that you needed to rest. You needed to heal. But instead, you kept charging forward, unwilling to grant yourself even the smallest ounce of time to process the issue and heal from it.

Or, perhaps nothing happened at all and you just work. You work and you work and you work. There are always appointments on your calendar and tasks that need to be accomplished. As soon as one thing is checked off, another gets added.

I have had the experience of fitting into all three of these categories at one point or another, and for some reason my hard-headed self still hasn't learned the lesson: sometimes I just need to rest. I am not superwoman, no matter how much I may act like it.

So here's a thought for today, as we start our work-weeks across America (and as I head back to work for my first day). God created a day for rest, and He knew that we would need it. He knew that we were more than a machine and He understood the importance of taking a day to unwind and to rest. But do we ever take His advice? Do we ever take a day to sit down and rest? Or do we busy our calendars from Monday through Sunday every week? Because I can assure you, if we over-work our bodies day after day, it will eventually catch up to us...whether it comes in the form of a panic attack or an illness or an injury or whatever. We need to take good care of ourselves, and that includes scheduling some time on our calendars to take a break.

“By the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on the seventh day He rested from all His work.”  ~Genesis 2:2

PS: Again, thank you to everyone who has been praying and thinking about me over the past week. The nurse said at my follow-up on Friday that my knee seems to be doing very well, and I am set to begin physical therapy this Wednesday. Praise God!

Thank You!

I'm so very thankful for all of your prayers and well wishes as I recover from my surgery. I have the best family and friends I could ever ask for. All of the phone calls and text messages and Facebook messages mean so much to me.

Yesterday was not the greatest day. After I woke up from the anesthesia I was in a lot of pain, so they gave me some pretty strong stuff through my IV within minutes of me waking up. That worked well, but when they got me up later on to get me dressed and to see if I could put any weight on my leg, I realized that the medicine they gave me was making me extremely dizzy, which in turn made me extremely nauseous. So for about an hour I tried sipping on some Sprite and nibbling on some crackers, but that really didn't help much. The nurse saw that my color in my face was still not returning so she asked me if there was any anti-nausea medicine I knew I could take. I did, and so she started me on an IV drip right away.

The new medicine started working quickly, but it always makes me sleepy. So I slept pretty much the whole way home. Unfortunately, when we got to the pharmacy they said that the prescription I had was not very clear and so they would have to call and get it figured out. It would take about an hour. So we went home and got me inside and situated. But by then the other pain medicine had worn off and I was in a lot of pain. We called the pharmacy and they told me I could go ahead and take some Tylenol while I waited on my prescription stuff. I ate a baked potato, took the Tylenol and went right to sleep.

I remember Roman telling me he was going to get my prescription, and I told him not to wake me up when he got back because I wasn't hurting too bad and I wanted to sleep. That was a big mistake. I went from 3 that afternoon until I woke up at 7 without any pain medicine except Tylenol and I was hurting. BAD. Roman warmed me up some soup right away so I could take my prescription, but the pain had already gotten ahead of me. The vicodin (sp?) knocked me out within thirty minutes (hallelujah). Roman got me up at midnight to take some more and get me ready for bed. I was still in a ton of pain because I still had not "caught up" so to speak. So getting ready for bed was not fun for either one of us. But thankfully when I woke up at 4 this morning for my third round of meds I had finally gotten ahead of the pain. I am feeling a whole lot better now and it doesn't bother me much at all when I get up to go to the bathroom and all that, so praise the Lord!
Thankfully, a full ACL reconstruction was not needed. Unfortunately, my meniscus was torn (we couldn't tell from my last MRI if it was just my ACL that was torn or if my meniscus was torn as well.) So he had to do a good bit of "cleaning" around my ACL and my meniscus. And Roman said the doctor told him something about some flakes of cartilage that he found as well that he cleaned out. I'll know better details this Friday when I go back for my check-up, but it sounds like my knee was quite a sight for sore eyes. But the other great news is that there was no arthritis under my knee cap, so I am expected to make a 100% full recovery! That is definitely good news because my doctor wasn't sure if I had early onset arthritis or not, and if I did then I was basically going to be in some amount of pain for the rest of my life. So praise God that there was no arthritis and that I'm on the road to a full recovery!

Again, thank you all so much for thinking about me and praying for me in all of this. I can't tell you how much it means to me and Roman. Having a great group of family and friends makes all the difference in the world. And of course, a big thank you goes out to my dear husband, who has had to put up with all of my "demands" and whiny faces. You're the best, babe!

I'll be sure and keep all of you posted as I continue in my recovery! I love you all!!

xoxoxoxoxo,
Sarah

"The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed."  ~Psalm 103:6