My new model...

My dear friend Devin recently gave birth to just about the cutest baby I've ever seen (only to the exclusion of my OWN children, but I *might* be a little biased). To welcome little Lola Claire, I sent a couple of bows, and Devin kindly photographed Lola wearing them so I could post them in my Etsy shop. I haven't had the chance to update the shop, but she also posted the pics on her blog. Go check them out! Be careful not to be mesmerized by the cuteness of her family. Seriously!

Thinking of a dear friend

Today is the 2nd anniversary of when my dear friend Dev suffered the worst lost a mom can have. Thinking of and praying for her much today!!

The Worst Christmas Ever (Almost)

Yep, you read right. We're all friends here, so I'm just going to be brutally honest. My Christmas celebration pretty much sucked. I know that presents and parties are NOT what Christmas is about, but they are both something I really look forward to every year. I've always LOVED Christmas, and the fun stuff that we do along with it.

It all begins with the fact that not all of our children were home Christmas Eve/Christmas morning, so we didn't open gifts. In fact, we STILL haven't opened gifts, because we're waiting for Nans to come back from her mom's. Puckey keeps asking when we are going to let her open her Christmas "presidents". Poor kid. I have given her a couple of small things (although we don't have much for the kids to begin with, so I've had to be careful about that).

I started my period Christmas Eve. (Merry Christmas to me)

Christmas Day was spent wrapping presents for the family Christmas party and cleaning the house. It didn't even feel like Christmas. The only thing I liked was that we didn't have to rush off anywhere in the morning. We did go to Ande's parents later in the evening for a little while, but we just hung out a little and then went home.

My mom's family usually celebrates on Christmas Eve, but this year they changed the party to accommodate an out of town cousin who was coming in on the 26th. I was thrilled, because that meant I wouldn't have to rush around Christmas Eve. (I was even MORE thrilled when the weather took a turn for the worse Christmas Eve and we didn't have to go anywhere.)

The only thing that wasn't good about that was that Ande and his brother were going to play in their high school alumni hockey game the same day (the 26th), but it was prior to the family party, so I could squeeze it in. Then my mom decided that we should all (minus Ande because he had to work until right before the hockey game) should come to her house on Friday afternoon to open gifts. So that makes three things I didn't want to miss ALL on the same day, with overlapping time schedules. UGH.

Well, turns out I didn't need to worry about any of that, because I awoke (at 2:30am) on the 26th to the sounds of Puckey crying in her room. You know the one. The "I just threw up on myself and everything around me" cry. I got her cleaned up and went back to bed. In the morning, I continued to prepare for the day's festivities on the off chance that Puckey's mid-night vomit was a fluke. It wasn't. Around 11:00am she threw up again. This time on the couch.

It was at that point I had to call my mom and tell her we weren't going to be coming to her house, or the family party. She volunteered to have my stepdad come get Bubber and Bug so that they, at least, could see the rest of the family, so I sent them packing over to my mom's for the night.

Ande played in his hockey game, but I had to miss that because I couldn't exactly take my pukey Puckey out anywhere (even though she kept telling me "I feel better, Momma! I'm not sick anymore). Poor kid.

My brother in law and his family got into town on Friday, but we didn't get to see them until Saturday night (I kept Puckey in quarantine for about 24 hours after her last vomiting to try to prevent passing the sickness around).

Yesterday after church, Ande and his brother took the 3 year olds (Puckey and her cousin) ice skating. After skating, they went to Starbucks and then Puckey threw up again. I am HOPING that it was the hot chocolate and M&M cookie she drank/ate, and that she wasn't still contagious. She seems fine this morning. (YEAH)

But, see, the title says "The Worst Christmas Ever (Almost)" for a reason. Because although we haven't actually exchanged gifts, I did get a sweet (sort of) surprise from Ande.

On Christmas Eve morning, I dropped Nans, Puckey, and The Jib off at Ande's mom's house and drove to Waterford to pick up a visor/cage for Ande's hockey helmet. We don't have dental OR vision insurance, so I really don't want him to risk losing any teeth or damaging his eyes in any way. The visor was also to be part of Ande's Christmas present. It wasn't quite as fun to get it, because he knew I was getting it, but whatever. So where I was wasn't too far from where Ande was working that day, and he was getting out a little early because of the holiday, so we decided to meet for lunch.

We met at the Outback Steakhouse, which was a treat because we rarely go out to eat by ourselves and could never afford the Outback if we had the kids with us!! So after we ordered, Ande says, "Well, I want to do something for you for Christmas, but I hit a few snags."

Now, before I go any further, I have to tell you that my blog friend Devin and I have joked about visiting each other for months now, and I'm always telling Ande, "On Devin's blog she said..." and "I wish Devin lived closer, I think we'd be such good friends in real life" and things of that nature. Well, a week or so ago, I got on the computer and noticed that someone had visited the Amtrak website. I joked to Devin that I thought Ande might be planning a trip to Chicago so we could meet.

So, back to our lunch conversation....I asked Ande what kind of snags he had hit, and he said, "Well, I wanted to take you to Chicago, but I don't know if we should drive, fly, or take the train. To take the train or fly would cost about the same, but driving would be cheaper." I said, "With the price of gas so low right now, it would make more sense to drive, because not only would it be cheaper, but we'd have a car to drive around. Besides, Chicago isn't really that far to drive." Then I asked what the other "snag" was....

This is what Ande said, "I know you really want to meet Devin, so I was thinking we could have them meet us in Chicago....I wanted it to be a surprise, but I don't know how to get ahold of her to plan it."

My sweet husband was trying to plan a surprise trip to Chicago so I could meet one of my sweetest friends in person!!!!! How awesome is that? Now I just have to figure out how we're going to pay for it.

So, Dev - looks like we have some brainstorming to do!!! Chicago, here we come....

I'm so excited!

Praise report & prayer request

PRAISE REPORT!!!!!

Ande went to see his grandma last night, and said that she had perked up a bit, and even was laughing with him and his cousin. Grandma even got moved to a "regular" room, which is good news. Ande didn't get to find out what the progress with the blood clots was, but I imagine it must be at least stable, as I can't imagine she would have been moved out of intensive care otherwise. Praise God! Thanks to any of you who have prayed on our behalf. The Lord does hear the prayers of his faithful.

*****I got a call from Ande's mom this morning telling me that Ande's grandma was placed back in ICU last night after experiencing labored breathing. Thanking you for your continued prayers.*****

Prayer for a friend...

I also have another prayer request, relating to a friend of ours. I can't get into much detail other than to say that someone who Ande and I care deeply about is in desperate need of prayer. Pray that he will seek help and remember that the Lord is bigger than any addiction. Also pray for his family, especially his 3 daughters, who are going to be affected in a number of ways by this.

Lord, you ARE so faithful, you CAN work miracles, you DO love us, you WILL NOT leave us or forsake us. I love you, Lord, and thank you for sending your son to die for our sins. There is nothing we could ever do to earn salvation, yet you freely offer it. I am amazed and in awe of you, Lord.

You CAN heal my friend, and I believe that with all my heart. Lord, if it is your will, I pray that you will show my friend in no uncertain terms that you have the POWER to help him, if only he will submit to you.

Lord, I don't know why this has happened to my friend. I can't even begin to imagine how this situation will be worked out. All I know is that you will hear and answer my prayer.

I pray for strength and wisdom for his family, and for you to place a hedge of protection around each of them. I pray that you would also place a hedge of thorns around my friend, so that this addiction will hold no pleasure for him. I cry out especially on behalf of those precious daughters, Lord, that you would keep old wounds closed and protect them from new ones.

Lord, I simply don't even have the words to speak, but you know my heart, and you know this situation. You knew it before my friend was even born, and if it is your will, I plead with you to intercede in his life and release him from this bondage that has held him for YEARS, Lord.

Whatever your will is, Lord, I pray that you show yourself in this situation, that my friend can have no doubt that you love him, and that he and his family will turn TO you, not from you. Help my friend turn his back on this sin, and to forge ahead with renewed strength.

Thanking you for working in my heart, Lord, and for giving me the ability to pray on the behalf of not only myself, but others as well. Thanking you as well for whatever work you do in my friend's life, Lord. In Jesus' precious name.

Amen

New Updates...

So this weekend Ande and I went to my cousin's wedding. My baby cousin. Who really shouldn't be old enough to be getting married. But he IS, and he DID. You see, I forever think of him as this silly little boy who used to follow his older brother and sister (and me) around, begging to play with us. Of course, being kids, we pretty much ignored him, or would only let him play so we could torture him...LOL

Anyway, Stan and Lindsay were married this weekend, and it was a beautiful wedding. There was a little bit of awkwardness when we were seated at the same table as my mom (who's in denial) & my stepdad (who won't speak to me). I tried to make the best of it, but I was pretty relieved that Ande and I had to leave fairly early in the evening to pick up the kids.

One great update came from that night, though - my Aunt Kathy was there. I previously blogged about her here, here, and here. She is still pretty thin (she lost about 30lbs while she was sick), but she was smiling and said she feels pretty good. She told me she spent 46 days in the hospital, 21 of which she was in a coma. Her pulmonologist told her that he had not thought she would survive. At that point, I told her that there had been many, many people praying for her, and she made the remark, "It must have worked!" It would be great if you would continue to pray for her salvation, and for me to have more opportunities to talk to her about it.

Everybody seems to have recovered from the "funk" that took out Puckey, The Jib, and Ande last week. I am SO thankful that I got away with only a mild sore throat...

Ande's job has another change, starting today. His route (the car dealerships he regularly visits) has been changed. It's a little sad, because he had made a few new friends on his route, but it's also very good in that he will now be within about 5 minutes of home ALL DAY EVERY DAY! Each dealership he has now is located within about a 5 mile radius of our house. Closer location equals less miles to drive equals less gas to buy! It also means he can come home for lunch, so that will save on "lunch money".

The kids are getting ready for camp...Bubber leaves on Saturday, and Bug and Nans leave 2 weeks after that. I'm praying that they have a great time, and wonderful fellowship with Godly men and women who will help them build a better relationship with Christ.

Speaking of building a better relationship with Christ...a friend of mine from church, Susan, has asked me to do a Bible study with her. We decided on Tuesday evenings, as that's one of the few nights I don't have other obligations. If any of you local readers are interested in checking it out, we're going to meet at church (don't have a time ironed out yet, but I'm sure it will be reasonable). It's a Beth Moore study on Daniel. The book is $15, and I believe we will have a DVD series that will go along with the study. Anyway, if you are interested, leave me a comment or send me an email to let me know!! We haven't officially started yet, so there's still time to get involved!

Another cool thing relating to building a relationship with Christ - a guy who works for one of the dealerships that was on Ande's old route was in a triathlon this weekend. Ande has been sharing his faith with Trevor, and Trevor has been pretty receptive. So, as a way of showing how much Ande (and the rest of our family) support him, we went on Sunday morning to encourage Trevor and some of his co-workers and family who participated in the race. Trevor was absolutely bowled over that we would come down to support him, so I'm really glad that we went.

I was amazed at some of the people I saw who were in the race. There were some people who were pretty old (I heard the oldest participant was 73), and one kid JUST met the age requirement (13). Some people were extremely fit, while others looked quite out of shape. I have to give everyone who was involved credit. I got winded carrying The Jib back to the car when we were leaving, I can't imagine doing the swimming, biking, and running...

Also, thanks to all of you for the compliments on my hair!!! I'm thrilled with it, and your comments have only made me feel that much more happy about it! For Cindy, I go to CC & Co. in Fenton, and have Bridget Shea cut my hair. I've known her since I was 11 (wow, that's 22 years!), and she is definitely my stylist of choice. She's also a Christian, which is an added bonus...

International and Local Phone Cards for CHEAP!

I'm pleased to share this information with all of my blogger buddies. We're all about saving money, right? Okay, well I am anyway. Whenever I find a good deal, I like to pass it on, and this is a GOOD DEAL!

Ande and I don't have cell phones, and we have many friends and family who live far enough away that to call them requires a long distance phone call. For me, there is NOTHING worse than visualizing the charges racking up while I talk to my sister in Kalamazoo, or Ande calls his brother in Oklahoma. I can only imagine how much it costs my brother-in-law to call his mother when she's on one of her international trips, or for my cousins-in-law to call home from Romania when they are there on missions trips.

I found a site that provides both local AND international phone cards at a savings of up to 95% of the rates you might pay through your long distance company. One thing I really like about the site is that it allows you to search for a card that will best suit your needs. If you're in Los Angeles and you need to call somewhere else in California, there is a card for you. Or maybe you live in a country other than the United States, but all of your family lives in the US. There is a card for you, too!

You know, I was even thinking that these cards would make a GREAT gift for someone who might be traveling out of state or out of the country! Perhaps a student going away to college, or on a missions trip?

This site, Phone Cards Avenue, is easy to navigate and the best part is that once you place your order, you received your calling card information INSTANTLY. No waiting to receive the card in the mail, or having to go to the store to buy a card. It's simple and easy! Each card listing gives detailed information about per minute charges, connection fees, and it will even tell you how many minutes you will get for your money. To learn more, please click here: online phone card



Don't forget, you can get PAID to review my post! Click the link below...

Laura

Not long ago, I asked you to pray for my friend Destini's friend Laura and her family. Laura passed away on Monday. You can read Destini's post about it here. Please keep Laura's family in your prayers. Thanks.

And we're back....

Wow, I can't believe how fast the last several days have gone! I've been trying to limit my computer time, and I usually choose to use my alloted time to check blogs instead of write in mine.

So, a few updates:

My aunt Kathy is still in the hospital, but slowly improving.

My sister-in-law's sister is still with her parents and seems to be doing better all the time.

My MIL is in OK visiting my BIL and his family.

I'm recovering from a UTI, but feeling better since Ande forced me to go to the clinic on Friday night (we don't have health insurance, so all I could see were $$$ floating out of our already limited account) Hooray for free antibiotics from Meijers! (With a prescription, of course)

The motorhome has had a little more demolition done to it, but between the weather and other obligations, we haven't done much work to it this week. I've got the fabric and the zippers for the cushions, I just need to make my patterns. I'm holding off because we might be changing the seating configurations, and I don't want to make covers for cushions we might not use. Well, that, and have YOU ever tried to make a pattern on your kitchen floor with a 2 year old and a 1 year old in the house? Yeah, not an easy task.

We're on "spring break" here, but it's about 37 degrees here (but feels like 24 with the wind) and it's been spitting snow on and off all day. The kids are less than thrilled.

The Jib ALMOST walked the other night. She was standing at the coffee table, and she let go. She started to take a step towards me, then realized she wasn't holding on to anything and grabbed the table again. Oh well - she makes up for her lack of walking with her complete mastery of climbing. Given the right set of circumstances, she can climb into her highchair all by herself. Who needs to walk when you're Spiderbaby?

Got the kids' registration for summer camp (UPBC) taken care of this weekend. They're pretty excited.

Found out Nans' mom is planning on moving as soon as school gets out. Still wondering what we are going to do on Ande's weekends - doesn't seem quite right that he should have to spend a total of at least 6 hours of his time driving to pick her up/drop her off each time she comes to visit.

Haven't really had any terribly funny or exciting stuff happen in the last several days, so sorry if this post was boring. I'll try to make it more exciting next time!! Hope all is going well for the rest of you in blogland!!

Goodbye Corey Ford

A few weeks ago, Ande found out that a guy he used to be pretty close friends with was in the hospital with a pretty serious condition. It had been a few years since Ande had seen Corey - the last time being when Corey was on a basketball team that was sponsored by our church. He was a great athelete.

When Ande went to visit Corey, he found his old friend to be paralyzed from the neck down. Corey couldn't even speak. From what I know, Corey just woke up one morning this way, with no explanation. Since Corey couldn't speak, Ande wasn't really able to communicate with him, until the nurse brought in a board with letters on it so that Ande could point to the letters until Corey nodded his head to indicate it was the right letter. Ande said it was a slow process, but after visiting a couple of times, they got pretty good at it.

Ande went to the hospital after work last night to visit Corey, but when he got there, he found out that Corey had died. Corey Ford, age 31, passed away on Easter Sunday. It took a moment for that to sink in when Ande told me, but then I burst into tears. How appropriate that on the day we celebrated our new life in the risen Jesus that Corey was able to celebrate his new life in Heaven. No more suffering and pain for Corey - and it's all possible because Jesus went to the cross for us.

Although it's always sad to lose a friend or family member, it's comforting to know that if they knew Jesus, then they no longer know pain and suffering! What an encouragement.

If you're local and knew Corey, the visitation is on Friday, March 28 from 1:00pm to 8:30pm at the Lawrence E. Moon Funeral Home, 906 W Flint Park Blvd, Flint, MI. The funeral service is at the Antioch Missionary Baptist Church at 1083 E. Stewart Avenue, Flint, MI at 1:00pm on Saturday, March 29.

Random Stuff

Well, there are several things I wanted to blog about, but didn't really want to do a bunch of different posts, so this post is going to consist of a few different topics.

First of all, thanks to all of you for your prayers for my family and friends (Carol, who lost her husband Bob, my Aunt Kathy, who became critically ill while on vacation, and my sister's friend Kathrina (who lost her husband Kenny, and is now a widow and mother of a small baby), as well as Daniel (the boy who was born a micro-preemie and had surgery to help relieve seizures), and Nate, Tricia, and Gwyneth (the family with the CF wife and micro-preemie baby). And of course, thanks for all of your prayers regarding Ande and his job situation!!

Carol is doing as well as can be expected. My husband has stopped to visit her a few times, but she's not ready for our whole "gang" to come over yet. With time, I think that will pass. Continue to pray for healing for her broken heart.

Kathy is still in the hospital under sedation. The last I heard, she has not gotten any better, but she's not gotten worse, either. My Uncle Steve could use prayer, too. My Aunt Kathy is his whole world. Continue to pray for her healing, as well as a conversion of her faith (she is Wiccan).

Kathrina and her baby are staying with her parents. The church she currently attends, as well as the church she and Kenny used to attend (where my sister met her), has pledged to help Kathrina financially through this situation. My sister said her church had a great memorial service for Kenny, and that Kathrina was really blessed by it. Continue to pray for her in dealing with her loss.

Daniel is unfortunately still struggling with seizures, and his family could use prayers in seeking medical treatment that can help him.

Nate, Tricia, and baby Gwyneth are still doing remarkably well. Tricia was placed on the waiting list to receive a set of new lungs. Nate continues to deal with having his wife and child in the hospital with grace and humor. Please pray for Tricia, as well as her donor's family, for Gwyneth (for continued growth - she's really doing great!), and for Nate, that he is able to find time to rest and renew himself through all of this.

Ande is struggling with his new job a little (it's mostly outside work, and it's COLD here in Michigan!). He really likes the people he works for/with, and is looking forward to the warmer weather. Pray for his attitude to remain positive (and for warmer weather!).

Next, my mother in law forwarded an email to me, and I would like to share yet another prayer request. This is for my sister in law's sister, Julie (great name, BTW!). Julie is a very sweet girl, who unfortunately has made a few pretty bad choices in life. A few years ago, she married a guy against the advice of her entire family. This guy is very controlling, and abusive towards her (both physically and mentally). Right now, I believe Julie is with her parents after a very ugly incident with her husband. Please pray for Julie, as well as Chris and Wes (her mom & dad), for protection and healing. Her husband, from what I've heard, is a real piece of work. Please pray that he would get out of Julie's life without there having to be any police intervention.

Now, onto a totally unrelated topic...

My oldest daughter, Bug, took dance lessons from the ages of 5-10. Last year she decided to stop dancing because she was unable to participate in other activities that she wanted to do because of timing conflicts. There are a few other reasons, as well, but I just don't feel like going into all of that right now. These are two of my favorite pictures of her...

Anyway, last week, we were at a local restaurant and we saw her dance teacher. I asked Bug if she had gone over to say "HI" to her, and she said she hadn't. I encouraged her to go after we were finished eating. Now, Bug went to the same dance school, and was in the same class of girls, for 4 years. It's been about 8 months since she's gone there. Her teacher had no idea who she was. Not only that, but she TOLD Bug that she didn't recognize her. I had no idea that happened - Bug told me that she told her "hi", but that was it. Then a few days later, Bug was talking about how she was glad that she didn't go to dance anymore, and when I asked her why, she told me that story, as well as one from when she missed a week, and the teacher never even knew she was gone. Mind you, there were only 12 girls in that class.

You know, that really makes me mad. Thousands of dollars were spent (not by me, thank goodness) to send Bug to this dance school. She wasn't a star or anything, but she tried hard, and she did whatever they asked her to do. It absolutely breaks my heart that this girl's memories from dance include the fact that her teacher doesn't even remember her.

Maybe it's because I have spent much of my life being "invisible". Most of the people I went to school with have no idea who I am. I ran into someone a couple of years ago that I had been "friends" with, and she had no recollection of me. It makes me a little sad, to think that no one remembers my name. I mean, I can see not recognizing me because I do look different than when I was in school. But when my name comes up and they still don't know me? Oh well. Maybe I'm just too sensitive.

The whole point I am going to eventually get to is that when a child approaches you, and calls you by name, the least one could do as an adult is JUST FAKE LIKE YOU KNOW THEM! It wouldn't have taken but a moment for her teacher to say, "Hi Honey, how are you?" Then Bug would have felt good, and the teacher wouldn't have been stuck trying to match a name with a face.

Now that I'm thinking about dance....it brings me to another thing - the other dance parents. Never in my life have I seen such a "clique-y" group of people. Two summers ago, Bug's dance team was invited to Myrtle Beach for a National competition. Pretty big deal, right? So for months prior to the competition, I worked different fundraisers to ensure that Bug could go. We couldn't afford to stay in the same hotel with the other girls, but our hotel was only about a 3 minute walk from theirs. I gave the other moms my cell phone number so that Bug could be included if all the other girls were getting together for something. I even called a few of the other moms while we were there to try to arrange something. NOT ONE PARENT CALLED ME BACK. Not because the other girls didn't do stuff together, they just didn't call. Now, frankly, I was annoyed by it, but whatever. Bug, on the other hand, got a serious first taste of being left out. I think that was the beginning of the end of Bug's enjoyment of dance. (We did have a good time, anyway, spending some mommy-daughter time together) Here's a great picture of Bug next to a statue of the world's tallest man (Robert Wadlow).

Again, maybe I'm just too sensitive. But it really ticks me off when someone does something that hurts my kids.

Wow, I didn't expect to write all that!! Sorry for being so long-winded in this post!

One last thing - Ande just called and asked how I felt about him giving his "two-weeks notice" at the homeless shelter he works at on the weekend. I'm thrilled, because I miss having him here on the weekend (it's been almost a year), and we'll be able to go to church together again. I don't think we'll feel a huge difference financially, either, because even if he only works 8 hours of overtime in a week (just over an hour a day for 5 days), he'll make up for the lost income from the shelter. Doing this will also give him more time to work on his amps for the New York Amp Show in May. He wants to get 5 or so amps built to take with him. Pretty hard to do when you work 60+ hours a week!

He's still debating it a little, but I am pretty sure he'll give his notice today.

Okay Amanda.....

Since you tagged me, and listed me as being most likely to respond, I didn't want to disappoint...so here goes:

THE MISSION:

1. Post the rules and link to the person that tagged me, which is Amanda from Lutz Family Blog (she and her husband Brad used to go to our church before they moved to OK)
2. Share five random/weird things about myself.
3. Share five places that I "want to see or want to see again."
4. Tag five random people and link to them...and let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

So, without further adieu...

Five random things about me:

1. I can write upside down and backwards in print and cursive (that's from years of practice writing notes on the paper of the person sitting behind me in school)
2. I graduated when I was 17.
3. I have secretly always wanted to be a dancer.
4. My second toe is longer than my big toe on both feet. (Apparently an inherited trait, my mom has the same thing, as do some of my kids)
5. I once walked 19 miles in steel toed shoes just because I was stubborn. It took 6 hours.

Five places I want to see or want to see again:

1. Hawaii - never been there but I'd like to go.
2. Yellowstone National Park - my dad took us when I was a kid and I'd love to take my kids.
3. Alaska - I've heard it's just beautiful.
4. Italy - for the food.
5. Ireland - because that's where my dad's family is from.

Five random people I have to tag:

1. Heather from Rice-A-Roni-ville - hopefully she'll humor me....
2. Michelle from My Semblance of Sanity - because she seems so nice....
3. Jules from Z's life - because her name is Julie, too....
4. Melany from Viata Mea - because she's my cousin in law and as such just has to participate...
5. Hmmm...who to pick for number 5....well, since Amanda didn't pick her, maybe her mother in law Cindy from 12 Arrows will oblige me?!? Please?

Okay, I did my duty, Amanda....LOL Hopefully I won't get any hate mail from the 5 I asked to participate.

Please continue to pray for Nate, Tricia, and Gwyneth, along with the Avery Family, and the Stanfield Family. Thanks!

Why does there have to be so much drama?

Earlier today I wrote an email to a friend of mine. Well, I guess we're more like acquaintances now, but I used to consider her a good friend. Anyway, I wrote an email to her about something I read that she had written. She got mad about what I said, but I didn't really get it until her third reply within the email conversation. When I realized that she was mad, I asked her why, and she basically told me that I was arrogant and self-righteous. Now, not that I have NEVER acted that way before, God knows I have, but I really wasn't trying to be that way. I had actually put a lot of thought into the original email I sent in an effort to NOT sound that way. I guess it didn't work. She was apparently mad enough to remove me from her list of "friend's blogs". The issue between us is over, but it leads me to wonder, "Why does there have to be so much drama?"