Rounds Inspirational Journeys

Hello! Well, I am really feeling the spirit this morning.  I am sitting in our family room, the tree lighted, the fire warming, and my mom and dad drinking coffee on the couch.  They arrived on Monday night and as soon as we picked them up the excitement of Christmas entered my heart and everything fell into place. Christmas is all about family and I am so glad to finally have mine all together again. I probably won't post again until after Christmas, but please know you will be in my thoughts and my heart this Christmas. God bless you all!  Merry Christmas!  Nancy

Well, it is that time of the year again to figure out what to get for the teachers in our lives.  They deserve our thanks and gratitude, but when there are 8 of them, you need to come up with gifts that won't break the bank. Here is a great gift idea that we will be giving out this Christmas: Sand Art Brownies Layer the following ingredients at the bottom of a quart jar as follows: 1/3 cup cocoa powder 2/3 cup sugar 1/2 cup chocolate chips 2/3 cup brown sugar 1 Cup + 2 tsp flour 1/4 TSP salt 1/4 cup chocolate chips On the card remind them to add the following ingredients to make their brownies. Add: 1 TSP vanilla 2/3 cup vegetable oil 3 eggs Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes in a 9x9 greased pan. This recipe makes 16 brownies. Here is the card we attached: I purchased 1 ounce plastic storage containers and glued Christmas doilies to the top.  They turned out really cute and though they take time to make, I think they will be an appreciated gift. I also made the re...

I have to share with you the sadness I have been feeling this Christmas.  In every store I go to there are Christmas trees with childrens' names on them.  Children who will not have a merry Christmas without us.  I want to take every name and get them something wonderful, but, alas, I am not wealthy and do not have the resources to provide each child with what they need.  I walk by those trees and pray that someone will choose that child this Christmas and be their Santa. Yesterday I had the joy of delivering gifts to the family we adopted for Christmas.  The mother wept and thanked me so genuinely, it touched my heart.  She told me that now they would have a Merry Christmas.  That was better than any gift I will ever receive. St. Nicholas lives in each of us, right in the center of our heart.  He is as real as you and me.  Don't forget what he was truly all about.  Let's remember who Santa Claus really was: The true story of Santa...

It is hard to believe, but two years ago, right now, I was in surgery receiving the most amazing gift of all, the gift of new life and lungs.  God bless my donor! What an amazing two years this has been.  I have so much to be thankful for!  Thank you all for your continued love and prayers! All my love!  Nancy

I wanted to share this response with you from a comment made to my "This is Awful" post.  I really appreciate the research Julie has done on this topic.  She is a mother of a child with CF, so I truly value her feedback. It saddens me that the transplant patients in AZ who happen to be so low income that they qualify for Medicaid will no longer have access to transplants. Although I want to find out the background of why this happened because I think it is important to research what caused the decision in the first place so that perhaps other patients at or below the poverty level do not have to suffer the same consequences. There has been much speculation of fault in this instance, but for me it is not so much about fault, but about what preceded the decision that needs more scrutiny. After extensive research I found that much of this rationing is directly related to what is coming with the new federal health care reform law. AZ was the first to catch public scrutiny but ...

What a wonderful weekend for Hannah's Lego League Team the Portville Prosthetic Panthers. They had a great time in Rochester at the Finger Lakes Lego League Tournament. There were 35 teams competing, so it was a long and busy day. Meeting with their coach, Bernice Pierson Some great quotes! Before the Awards Ceremony the kids got to have a dance party.  They had a blast!! Portville was one of ten schools to win a trophy.  Theirs was for perseverance.  These kids overcame a lot; their computer that had all of the robot's programs on it crashed, so they had to start from scratch and re-program it.  They also missed two days of school before the competition because their school was closed due to flooding.  They didn't let these things stop them and they were honored for that! Great job Portville Panthers!

I wanted to make you all aware of the current situation in Arizona where the state's Medicaid program has cut financing for transplant patients.  I am HORRIFIED to think a that Arizona would cut transplants before other unnecessary budgetary items.  I am really angered by this. This article was in the New York Times: December 2, 2010 Arizona Cuts Financing for Transplant Patients By  MARC LACEY PHOENIX — Even physicians with decades of experience telling patients that their lives are nearing an end are having difficulty discussing a potentially fatal condition that has arisen in Arizona: Death by budget cut. Effective at the beginning of October, Arizona stopped financing certain transplant operations under the state’s version of  Medicaid . Many doctors say the decision amounts to a death sentence for some low-income patients, who have little chance of survival without transplants and lack the hundreds of thousands of dollars needed to pay for them. “The most ...

I am so proud of my dad!  He received a much deserved "Hats Off" award from the  Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance : "For his dedication to and leadership in the community efforts to ensure wildlife crossings are incorporated into future highway expansion  projects in Jackson Hole" Being the humble man that he is, he didn't feel he deserved it, but I DO!!  I don't think there is anyone who is more passionate about the environment and preserving it for future generations than he is.  Daddy, I am so very proud of you!  Well done! We are off to Rochester today for the Lego League competition.  Please pray we don't have problems with the weather. May God bless you all!  Nancy