Meet my friend Maggie

 I have been meaning to introduce you to a dear friend. I want to show you how she organizes her large family. Share some of her amazing vision. Follow her around and start a whole tutorial series. But that's not going to be the tone today.



Maggie and I are real life friends. I dont just mean that in a "not on the Internet" way. We have lived side by side in the trenches. I can come to her in tears and we can cry together or hold each other up and find a way out. She is how I imagine extended family and having a sister to be.

She has been with me through so much and given he so much of herself. Her hard working husband, who has always worked at least two full time jobs and still managed to be an incredible father to their brood of ten, has lost his job. Actually, he worked for awhile while they didn't pay him. So he worked and worked and his days were taken up and money was spent driving an hour away and back for long long days but there was no money coming in.

You can meet him here: PoserDad.com 

Maggie has started a small blog and today shared her heart and the threat of losing their house very very soon. I know this scare and fear and am once again so impressed at how she handles it and has the strength and courage to share it with others. She writes not in a spirit of fear but knowing that God is in control, has a plan and they are safe in his hands. What a lesson to us all.

Their problems seem so huge right now and ones that only God can turn around...but could you stop over and say "hello" on her blog: Blessingsdythedozen.com? Maybe say a prayer today for these dear friends of mine? I wish I could do something to turn it all around but right now, I just want these dear family ot know that they are NOT alone and there is someone in their corner: routing and praying. That we can do.

Community and a Coming Home Story

I wonder sometimes. Why blog? Isn't it a little shallow and narcisstic? What do I really have to contirbute anyway? This isn't "real."

THEN..I see something like this.

The "blog world" acting as community. In an amazing way. Maybe blogging is silly but God can use WHATEVER HE WANTS.


Have you heard about this family


and Baby Sergey

and their coming home story?

This is something I want to be apart of.

READ THIS and come back. I'll be here waiting.

Yeah. Are you crying? I LOVE that the Farley Family's blog has under 100 followers. Yet, somehow, word has gotten to every corner or the internet and sooo many people came forward and reached out in HUGE amazing ways.



 

PRAISE GOD for His tender Mercies!!

I got the results from my biopsies yesterday.

I DO NOT have cancer!!


Amazing thinking of all that could have been. What a relief.

Our van is done. Our mechanic looked us square in the face and said, "this is when you don't drive it anymore."


My husband was made full time AND given a raise (both of which were not "possible.")

Life is such a constant mixed bag.

I don't like not having a vehicle. Not being able to go to church as a family and going to the grocery store at midnight when everyone else is asleep. But right now. I am so thankful that I can. So grateful. We were given this vehicle. We were also given the truck that my husband drives to work. Even in this we are so so blessed. We were given a van (that we bougth for a dollar) and we drove it for 4 years. I don't know what comes next and I don't want to ever expect anything from anyone or demand from God.

My husband was working this Sunday and we weren't able to go to church. My daughter and I made a double batch of crescent rolls. It was our first really baking, having fun in our kitchen. We actually had a plug to plug in my Kitchen Aid mixer and didn't have to kneed by hand. We had this amazing Food saver to freeze the food after. Both gifts from an amazing woman that God has put into our lives. We have been in this house for 4 months now and it is still so amazing to us. "Our" warming drawer and oven actually have a "proofing" feature. I got the recipe from an amazing blog and looked at it on my laptop at the little desk in the kitchen. The whole time astonished at how very very blessed we are.

Pray for Me?

I wouldn't hesitate at all to ask you to pray for someone else but I feel really strange asking you to pray for me. Why is that?

I had stage 3 malignant melanoma removed from my back in 2002. They sliced a 7 inch line down my back and took out all the flesh to the muscle. (that is my understanding anyway:) All the cancer was removed and my lymph nodes were unaffected.

I now have 3 very sinister moles all around the site. not good on a few different levels. There was a rush put in to have them removed and biopsied. That is being done tomorrow. I don't know when we will receive the results.

I am now cleaning and checking the fluids on my van (nagging my husband to actually) and figuring out school for everyone while I am gone. My husband wanted to go with me but honestly, I need him more here. In the back of my mind I'm wondering if I am going in for surgery again and will be out of commission for another year. Should I be getting school ready for then? Will I refuse chemo-therapy. Will I be open in the recovery room. I'm sacred.

I KNOW that I should worry about nothing and bring all my concerns before Him with thanksgiving. I KNOW that no matter what happens He is still the God of all.

Will you remember me and my family in prayer as we keep those two facts in the forefront of our minds and our hearts focused on Him.

Scleroderma-Good news

When we first got Nate's diagnosis of Sceleroderma we were told we needed to see an oral surgeon. It has only been a short period of time and we have been contacted a few times to make sure that we going to see an oral surgeon. The oral surgeon is not covered by our insurance. I called and asked them why we needed to see them. It is obvious even to me that Nate's *jaw* is crooked and I was told they want to find out the amount of bone loss. We did get skull X-rays that showed no bone loss but this is different. We needed to pay $70 for the consultation and $110 for the X-ray.

We prayed about it and decided to make the appt. and not wait until we really had the money. (that may never happen :) We were given an unexpected $100 the day before th appointment.

We saw Dr. Tyler Wilson, DDS. Great. Great guy. He sat and spent a ton of time with us and he had really done his homework.

Nate's bite is perfect. It is "slanted", what I called "crooked" but both jaw bones are crooked together and his bite isn't effected. WOW.

The Oral surgeon had a reccomendation for surgical implants for Nate's cheek bones. It is "only" cosmetic and we won't look into it right now. At this point, it seems wise to work on any treatments to stop progresssion. Technically, this is an untreatable, progressive auto immune disease. There isnt a known treatment to stop progression. There are a few alternative methods that we are looking into. Although we are concerned about Nate's facial features, Our bigger concern is that this disease can get painful and he could lose use of his mouth and eye.

We have had some comments that the disease must be very quickly progressing because just a few months ago it wasn't noticable. It has actually been going on quite awhile (6-7 years) we just werent able to get a diagnosis. The amazing thing is that the damage really isnt that noticable and you arent aware of it until AFTER it is pointed out :)

A Time of Mourning and Change

Going to be a rough few days here.....
My husband's grandfather died Thursday evening. He was an amazing man of God in his ninetieth year. There are very few people who you feel you KNOW without any doubt that they are believers and that Christ has a hold of their lives. Grandpa was definitely one of them. We know where he is now and can imagine him running, dancing joking...Talking with C.S. Lewis? Spurgeon? Moses? There is such joy in knowing that he is no longer in pain and all his questions are answered.

We couldn't have planned our night better. We gathered and said goodbye and prayed. Now the hard part begins. My husbands family isn't very close. We live, mostly, in a pretty small radius of each other, yet we don't get together. We don't talk regularly. AND we all get our feelings hurt and feel left out.

How do we figure out what life without Grandpa means? How do we cope and deal with our grief not knowing how to rely on and support each other. These remain to be seen.

I can see God's hand clearly even in this mourning. Each of us has had a time with Grandpa recently to say goodbye and. Hospice came in and gave Grandma an opportunity to grieve and prepare for losing Grandpa.

On a much more personal note--My hormones are wacking out and I need to wean my 10 month old..IMMEDIATELY. He is exclusively breastfed and doesn't want a bottle :)
We were up until 2:30 am on Thursday and in our little home everyones nerves are raw and vulnerable....A lot of crying, unplanned meals, misplaced blame....Then there is the Wedding on Sunday and my husband returning to work. I'm feeling torn in so many directions and left with no support. Will be a long next few days but God is good........

Thankful Thursdays

I have a lot to be thankful for. We all do. Even when life feels bleak and like there isn't much to be thankful for, we are called, In Philippians 4:19, to bring our thanksgiving to God, . I think we miss out on a lot of Joy and Blessings and the fruit of the provisions of Jehovah Jirah because we don't take time to be thankful....

That is one reason why I was so excited that my dear friend over at Monkeys on the Bed is doing Thankful Thursdays





This Thursday...I am thankful for my children. I am thankful that they are easily contented. Sometimes this breaks our hearts. My ten year old son fell head over heels in love with NERF">Nerf guns

These guns are great and VERY inexpensive. My sons came from a yard sale. He made a box for it and wears the ammo..My husband was a little choked up that our son was so excited about a $5.00 gun, and wishes he could give him more. But the thing is that our son is happy.

It has been hot here. We don't have access to a pool. We don't have an above ground pool.
We DO have a sandbox that we have been meaning to fill.......
They didn't seem to notice that it wasn't very deep, and that they didn't actually fit.

My oldest son (12) wanted to take our toddler to McDonalds to play in the toy structure there. I finally gave in. The thing is that the oldest four played and played and played and had SUCH a blast.

I worry sometimes that we won't be able to provide for our children. That financially, we won't be able to give them what they need: Do they need thier own room, 10 pairs of shoes, private lessons catering to every whim, 30 electronic devices, dessert every day? They do have 3 square meals a day, a warm and safe home, constant supervision, an education, time to grow.....I am thankful for each of these things and the lessons they have taught my children.

Praying for Stellan

Any sick baby can break your heart. Here is a very young, very sick baby. He has SVT. We know that. But it is not a textbook case of SVT and no one can figure out just what to do.

This family has amazing faith, and three other little ones at home (two of them were so sick this week they were rushed to the ER.)

I KNOW that it shouldn't matter, a single bit, what I think of these people. BUT I really really like them!! Their latest post is titled "I will praise You in this storm" ....see what I mean? and Stellan's mom is funny too. But I'm not going to convince you :)

Please head over here and look around. Please pray for this family. For each one of them. There is also a place to make donations and an Etsy shop is set up. Then....could you kiss your little ones for me, your nieces, nephews, (not your neighbors, better just wave to them) Why do terrible things happen to some and not others? Why are children ever sick? I can't answer that but am so glad that I know the One who can. Please remember Stellan when you spend time with Him.

Our night in the ER

We were figuring out wether or not to let our son go on a camping/fishing trip this weekend, on our way to get food for dinner, sorting out a fist fight at a homeschooling co-op, pondering running noses.....and then we realized that my husband's back ache wasn't a backache. The pain got progressively worse all day, was tender to the touch and was in the kidney area. Hmm....Could NOT wrap my mind around all that needed to happen in the next few hours. Called to say that our son wouldn't be at his Boy Socut meeting. Started dinner (son finished.) My dear friend came by and assessed. She then went to the store and bought unsweetened cranberry juice, saline for our babies' noses, and magnesium. My husband's pain got worse and worse and he writhed. We both will do anything, just about, to stay out of the hospital. Especially our local hospital. (Remember that when my baby's heartbeat got odd, we drove with me on oxygen, to a hospital an hour away :)

We spent 6 hours in the ER. They were kind. They were efficient. They found nothing and gave him pain meds.

We had our 6 month old who if at home would have slept soundly through anything but cried and cried. I had a BAD attitude after a few hours. My back ached with no where to sit and waiting and waiting tested my patience. I went outside to get a diaper and saw a sweet women crying on her cell phone. Her husband starting having chest pain out of nowhere. I wanted so badly to help her somehow. Later we saw him transported by ambulance to a hospital an hour away (this hospital can't treat heart issues :) As he wheeled by each of us in the ER, he made eye contact and smiled. What an example of the good attitude that I needed. There were people crying in the hall. There came to be so many people that they were pulling up chairs and waiting by an ICU room. The hospital security threatened to cal the police. Their heartfelt sobbing touched my heart. THEN I found out why they were crying. The night before, a 14 year old boy was shot. He died while we were waiting in the ER. The faces of the young men waiting. Large, grown men. Strong men. Crying their hearts out.

A lot of things came in to perspective, including a renewed respect for the work that my husband does. He works in a hospital. He sees these situations every day. He respects the privacy policies of his employer and isn't able to share them when he comes home. I could NOT do what he does. Speaking of, what he does. He had to call in sick for a few days. We cant really do that. Our prayers are that his pain will stop and its cause found.