A Sweet Monday

After a great night of celebrating Grant's birthday with our family (pics will come later this week), our Monday wasn't quite what I expected it to be. There was fever, vomit and lots of laundry. I spent the afternoon at the doctor's office with a very sick baby and a sure case of strep. Bless his heart, can't he catch a break? He got his first penicillan shot today and spent most of the day asleep in my arms. Now that he's asleep in his crib, perhaps I can get to the things I gladly set aside today to rock and hold a dear baby. Although I'm behind on my "to do list", it was wonderful spending the day offering comfort, holding and loving a little one. This is just the type of day I know I'll miss years from now.

As I rocked, rubbed my baby's soft hair and quietly sang, I meditated on this verse. Oh, how I love it. I had the joy of the perfect mental image of how our Heavenly Father cares and comforts us.

"The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing." Zephaniah 3:17

I pray that if your heart is anxious, or if you feel like you need an extra dose of TLC, that you will allow the Lord to comfort you. I pray you will sense the peace that passes all understanding that He delights in you, quiets you with his love and rejoices over you. We all need to remember how loved and treasured with are in His sight.

When It Rains, It Pours

I've had writer's block. Actually, so much has been happening, I haven't taken time to sit down and update. I suppose the writer's block comes from the fact that I just haven't known how to say it all. So here it is, not fancied up, just to the point.

Let's begin at the top. About 10 days or so ago, Wes and his family had to put his grandfather in the hospital. Heart problems with advanced dementia. Difficult for everyone.

At the same time, I took a little test, got a positive and found out that I was pregnant. Wonderful news. I was just beside myself. This was a very planned and prayed for baby.

We began telling our family and friends about the baby news, hoping it would help alleviate much of the stress of the other situations going on. Plus we were just so excited and Wes and I are terrible with secrets.

Our family vacation was in the works, but then put on hold until we figured out the long-term issues with Wes's grandfather.

Within a couple of days, I began having trouble with the pregnancy. Ended up miscarrying.

Jack started running a fever. Went to the doctor. Swine flu. Nice. All the while, I'm still "miscarrying". Doctor wouldn't give JA any medicine because she wasn't showing symptoms yet.

Finally, my washing machine broke. Not life and death, but very inconvenient when thrown in with everything else going on.

But things are looking up. We ended up finding a fantastic deal on a new washer and dryer. Drove 2 1/2 hours on Sunday with the kids, ate at a nasty restaurant but then went for ice cream to make up for it, and brought our new front load appliances home in the rain on a trailer. All household laundry, done.

Jack's swine flu has been contained to just himself and hasn't been that bad. Just a fever for about 36 hours, a little cough and some runny nose. That's about it. Good news is that JA hasn't gotten anything and Wes and I are still well.

The miscarriage. If it's not in God's will, it's not right for me. I'm okay with it. Very disappointed, but it's just one of those things. Besides, God gave me a verse back in the summer and I've been meditating on it ever since. Romans 5:28 - "But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." Isn't that the truth right now?

Grandad. He had other plans than staying in that hospital. He went to be with Jesus on Sunday night. Reunited with his wife and in a much better, peaceful place. The visitation for him is tomorrow and the funeral on Thursday. Will you pray for our family?

Whew! So that's where I've been. I hope things are going better where you are!

Deuteronomy 31:8

"The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave or forsake you. Do not be discouraged."

Thursday, September 3rd

You may remember back in the spring I wrote about Jordan Ann having headaches. After a while of not having them, they're back again. Not regularly, but enough to cause concern. We've seen the neurologist again and his recommendation is to do the MRI.

So tomorrow morning we check into the Batson's Children's Hospital so JA can be sedated and have the MRI. She knows nothing about this yet and while I'm going to try to make it "no big deal", you know as well as I do that it IS a big deal. It will be to her when I tell her that she can't eat breakfast or drink her milk and it's a big deal to me that my little girl will be knocked out and put into a machine.

Will you please pray for us? Her appointment is at 9:00am tomorrow, so if you think about it around then, I certainly would covet your prayers. Specifically, I am praying for a definitive answer one way or another, but also for the Lord's will no matter what.

A Child-like Perspective

Swimming Lessons - Day One
When JA's teacher walked over to us, I couldn't help but notice how incredibly TINY she was. And tan. And pretty. And when she spoke to JA, she was nice. JA was set. She likes these types. But when Miss Brittany said, "Are you ready for swimming lessons?" I was fully expecting JA's natural reaction to new things: to turn away and bury her face in my lap/legs/shoulder, etc. Not this day. She reached out, took Miss Brittany's hand and didn't look back. My heart jumped for her.

She did everything the teacher asked of her. Willingly. Although, I will admit, she wasn't crazy about being dunked under the water. All three times. But she survived. And when the 30 minute session was over, she said, "Mommy I did it. I'm so proud of myself!!" I was too.

Fast forward several hours to 6pm and it's Jack's lesson. He's in the Water Babies class. All the other children were, in fact, babies. Comparatively, Jack seemed like a first grader. He was the oldest one and most opinionated, for sure. Wes went in the water with him and had a rough time holding onto him. Poor Jack kept saying, "I do it myself." Yeah, he definitely NEEDS the swimming lessons. He's fearless.

But watching my children conquer the water yesterday was very eye opening for me. It all started when JA and I were sitting on a bench waiting for it all to begin. The pool was filled with "older people" going through their daily routine of socializing and pool walking. I noticed a banner on the wall outlining an aquatics arthritis program. These folks were easily in their seventies and eighties, some frail and some still quite active. None of them looked good in their swim suits. Most were wearing rather unattractive swim shoes. None were tan. None were too proud. They just were doing their best to keep going.

So we were watching them. And Jordan Ann leaned over to me and said, "Look mommy at all those big kids. They are having so much fun."

Oh, how I long to be able to look past the surface to see what is truly on the inside. I pray that the Lord will continue to give me reason to have a child-like perspective. What a blessing it was yesterday to hear JA say that, just as a reminder that we all start young and when we're not anymore, we are still young at heart.

Just like all those pool walkers yesterday.

this is why i voted 10 times

I watched American Idol on Tuesday, as I always do. Then I proceeded to sit there and hit redial over and over and over. I got through 10 times.

Can I tell you how much I love Kris Allen? From the very beginning, I thought there was something different about him. (Plus, he's from the South and I have a tendency to cheer for my fellow Southerners.)

And then today, I read this post on Kelly's Korner and watched a You Tube video of Kris leading in worship at his home church in Conway, AR!! This makes me like him even more!

If you don't click to read the post yourself (but I hope you do!), let me tell you the best part...

Apparently, Kris told his mom that "he needed one more week because he was witnessing to Adam and needed a little more time with him." I have chills.

I truly believe this: Almost 100 million votes were cast in this finale and Kris turned up the winner, because our sovereign God saw fit to bless HIS child in an abundant way.

Now I feel like it's my honor to begin praying for him, his new wife, their marriage and their witness. What an opportunity they have! My prayer is that they will be strengthened as a result of this recognition. And also, that the seed that Kris Allen planted in the heart of Adam Lambert won't be wasted. Won't you pray for these lives, too?

I fell asleep last night before the report came on, but on Bill O'Reilly last night, he was reporting on American Idol in his Culture Wars segment. I'll see if I can find the link to this story, as I think it relates to the "WHY" on Kris Allen's win on American Idol.

God's at work here. Don't you feel it?

Would You Mind?

****UPDATE****

First, thank you for your prayers. I felt them for sure.

The appointment could not have gone any better. We were seeing a pediatric neurologist for a series of headaches she has been complaining of. Fortunately, the doctor did not find anything upon exam that concerned him. Our next step would be to sedate her and conduct an MRI, but before we go to that degree, we're going to wait and watch her. If the headache episode happens again, we'll get the MRI done right away.

Again, thanks for your prayers.

****************

Good morning! I hope you and your family had a wonderful Easter Sunday yesterday. Ours was perfect.

But right now would you mind sharing your prayers with me today? Jordan Ann has a doctor's appointment today and while I'm hopeful that all things are just as they should be, I'm still feeling a little anxious. I'll update more when I can and after we get finished with the doctor.

Specifically, pray for bravery for her - she's so skittish in unfamiliar environments - and an outcome that is in line with God's will for our lives.

I love you, blog readers!

An Attitude of Gratitude

With so many thoughts running through my head, I'm not sure where to start. Do you ever get those feelings that there's so much to think about that it all seems fuzzy? Blurry? Hard to make out? That's where I am tonight.

So, I thought I would stop for a minute and write what I know to be true.

I'm so thankful. Thankful for so many things . . .

1. That I have a Heavenly Father that listens to my pleas, and answers my every call. I see that He is at work in my life daily. It's humbling and I'm honored to be one of His beloved children.

2. Everlasting life, paid in full at Calvary, many Easters ago.

3. The husband and children that are mine to care for. And the home that we create together as a family. I just love it.

4. And then there's the trivial, but still important things to be thankful for. Things like Easter meals planned for our family, with groceries already purchased. Baskets and goodies for the kids. Eggs in the fridge to boil and color with two wiggly and excited children.

5. New and challenging projects to keep my mind from simply melting into a heap of "mommy brain."

6. Birthdays and birthday parties for my children within the next month. (Be on the lookout for some train and cupcake party ideas!)

7. The joy of "child chatter." Hearing JA play in her imaginary world of princesses and pirates while Jack begins to string full sentences together brings me so much pleasure. I love listening to them play.

8. A quiet home filled with comfort and peace that only comes from our Father.

Give thanks to the Lord. His love endures forever.

-- Psalm 107:1 --

Do You Know This Baby?

If you're a regular blogger and blog hopper, you may have seen this picture on various sites. I have recently started following this doll baby and his mother as he "deals" with a heart condition. What a blessing his mother's blog is. She tells it like it is and does it with a genuine honesty that is refreshing. Take a few minutes and be blessed. And pray.