Life With Thorns ... A Book Review

I was a bit skeptical as I began reading this new book. I've grown a few rose bushes in my life but not had much success, living in the heat of Arizona; I have never found the perfect spot for rose bushes around my home.

As I tackled the first chapter or so I began to find I had something in common with the main character, no, not roses, kidney disease.   A disease that led our family down a difficult path for 8 long years, which gave us glimpses of God in new ways, which allowed our family to grow closer together than ever before and a disease that ultimately took my husbands life on Christmas Eve 2010.

Though there were portions of the book that brought back painful memories, there were also many more portions that filled my heart with understanding. Our lives can all be filled with thorns, things that cause us pain and sometimes even injury, but what would life be if everything was always roses without the thorns.

Margaret Dilloway captured parallels of life as she weaved this story, adding interest, intrigue and truth to a world that is not always rosy.

For the next several weeks we (over at BlogHer) will be talking about how roses and thorns and people can lead us down a path of joy and understanding, as well as gleaning knowledge from them all.

Though I did received a small compensation and a copy of this book, all opinions and writing on my blog are my own.

When Daddy Laughed In Heaven

Today I have a little story

It is my nature to take control and get things done

Around The Place since Mark moved on to Heaven

I have tackled many projects and

Have felt good about the results

So, I had NO concerns about replacing the handle

In the guest bathroom tub

I purchased what I needed

Came home and proceeded to get to work

As I was unscrewing the handle from the wall

There was an 'explosion' of sorts

The handle AND the internal parts decided to burst

Off the wall and water began shooting Everywhere

OMGoodness~~~

Let me just say

I wish I had thought to take photos during the 'crisis'

Because they would have been hilarious Today

My youngest son was home so I immediately

Told him to grab a trash can and start taking water from the tub

And throwing it in the sink

He was smarter and began dumping it out the back door

I ran outside to attempt to shut off the water to the house

With no avail

I could not find the main water key

Which is necessary to shut the valve off



As son #2 continued hauling water out back

I called son #1 and yelled for help :)

Fortunately he only lives a couple miles from me

And high tailed it over as quickly as he could

My neighbor came home just then and tried to find his water key

No luck but brought over a couple of tools

By the time he arrived my son arrived as well

And they got the water shut off

Ok, so things didn't go as smoothly as when

I replaced the garbage disposal or the kitchen faucet

But with a bit of help from my boys

And a trip to Ace Hardware

We got the faucet fixed and a new handle attached

When all was said and done

My youngest sat on the couch and told me about

The conversation my boys had while going to Ace

Oldest tells youngest

"Daddy is Laughing in Heaven"

Youngest tells oldest

"Yes, Like This"

So the picture I get from youngest

Daddy sitting in Heaven

With head in his hands

Shaking his head

Laughing at Mommy

Oh My Goodness

What am I going to do with Her

We laughed ~ A LOT

Because Daddy Really Was

(Probably)

Laughing In Heaven

Oh, And By The Way

I had the Water Valve Key

It just looked different than what I thought

I Won't Forget Next Time

I Try To Flood The House :)