Love it!

Stephen took this picture last night while I was at the gym.

Weekend

My dad came down yesterday for Jordan's soccer game. We played in the backyard most of the afternoon, and my dad took this picture of us. I love it! I don't have very many pictures with me in them, so I was really glad to get this one. Hope everyone had a great weekend.

Woo hoo!!!!!!

Stephen got a job!!!!! He starts working at Webb's Refreshments full-time in two weeks! We are so excited!! This will be normal working hours; actually, it will be early morning till afternoon, so he may even be home early enough to pick the kids up from school. Anyway, he is really relieved and excited and thrilled and any other thing you want to throw in there. Thanks to whoever has been praying for us over these last few months. On to the next chapter...

Remember

I got this off a "friend" whose daughter is back in the hospital. Ashley Adams has been in and out of the hospital her whole life. She had some transplants when she was born; I don't remember all the details, but Ashley is precious. Anyway, her body is in rejection again, and this is what Trish wrote. Please pray for them.

Hug your children tightly. We were never promised a lifetime with them. Every moment with Ash, Blake, and Al are gifts. I have learned to treasure the beauty of home, of normal, and of nothing special. They are only ours to borrow and in some ways that knowledge comforts me and in other ways it haunts me. Only God knows the number of their days.

Little Elijah

I got this off a friend of a friend's blog. I wanted to share it here because it just touched me so much. Please pray.





Family & Friends,

I am hopeful this email finds you all in good health and spirits. Randall and I are doing well, healthy, and excited about the upcoming arrival of Elijah's little brother (I'm due on Valentines Day!). Elijah is now in the 60th percentile on the regular weight/height charts and will discontinue physical & occupational therapy around his second birthday-which means he is developmentally right on track!

I am writing to request that you pray for our little boys health. By the grace of God, a routine physical revealed a large mass on his liver. An ultrasound, CT Scan and blood work concluded that this softball sized mass is a hepatoblastoma, a form of liver cancer. The mass is too large to be removed so Elijah will undergo a biopsy to confirm the type and stage - then chemotherapy until the tumor is small enough to be removed.

Randall and I are asking our family and friends to pray that Elijah responds well to all that he is about to take on. He has already fought so hard to be with us with entering this world 14 weeks early, spending 2 1/2 months in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, struggling with bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and undergoing 4 surgeries all before he was able to walk. He has a difficult 4 month journey ahead of him so please lift him up and pray that the strength, joy and beautiful spirit we see in him everyday continues to carry him through."

Poor Cam-cam *UPDATE*

I have no idea why, but Campbell has decided that she has no intention of letting me lay her down to go to sleep anymore. The last two nights, tonight being the third, she has screamed, SCREAMED until we go get her. We are going on 46 minutes now. I have no idea what to do. She has been my best sleeper. She takes great naps, and I have never had to put her to sleep. Now, even when she is asleep when we lay her down, she wakes up screaming. I am losing it. 48 minutes and counting. She is showing no signs of stopping. The last two nights, Luke and Campbell have both ended up in our bed and we are exhausted. Pray for us.

Well, she ended up crying for a solid hour. I mean screaming at the top of her lungs. She is actually a little hoarse this morning. Anyway, she was showing no signs of stopping, so I went and got her. As soon as I sat down, she put her head down and went to sleep. I held her for about 30 minutes and then put her down. She slept till 7:15 this morning. We'll see what tonight brings. And the only reason I don't think she has an ear infection is because she is fine all the other times. No fever, not grouchy, nothing. And it's not just waking up in the middle of the night. It's when I first put her down, too. Anyway, I am going to carry out our normal routine today and stick with naps, etc. So maybe that will help. Thanks for the prayers and suggestions!!

Family time

Today I have been thinking about ways to have good family time now that the kids are in school. I really miss them, so much that I am praying about whether those feelings are just me missing my kids, or God leading me to homeschool again (next year). So, for now, I am thinking of ways to still have that strong family identity that I miss about homeschooling. What are some of the ways that your family achieves this? I would love suggestions. Thanks!!