Updates

1. Elijah -

Elijah's tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy went well. He was a champ entertaining everyone in the joint right up until they took him away for surgery. The procedure took a little longer than anticipated, but we were soon reunited with him. Coming out of anesthesia he was NOT happy. As I came into the recovery room I heard his hoarse little voice crying, "I want my Momma.". It was a relief, and it broke my heart all at once. Day one wasn't too bad. The night wasn't very good though. He threw up a bunch and fought and cried over having to take drinks or take pain meds. He rested comfortably from about midnight on and I am praying when he wakes he is feeling better. During surgery they found puss in his throat which indicates he has an infection. It doesn't make much difference though because they were going to put him on antibiotics anyways.

Please pray for healing, for him to be able to keep meds (and soft food) down today, and for his pain to be manageable.

2. John

John is progressing quite nicely. He still has quite a bit of pain, but is able to manage it and work through it. He is still FAR from full strength but is healing steadily. He is finding that the cold weather really bothers his incision area and he still suffers sharp pain when moving too quickly or knocking his incision area. His biggest physical struggle right now seems to be insomnia. I'm not sure if the insomnia is from a switch in meds or from stress, but I worry that without enough sleep his body won't be able to heal properly.

Please pray for his continued healing. Please pray for no more bumps or knocks to the back of his head. Please pray for him to SLEEP.

3. Finances -

Good news first: We are SO close to the end of this tunnel I can almost feel the sunlight on my face. Also God continues to provide for our needs. We have PLENTY of food in our house. Two very generous food donations, leftovers, etc... have us WELL stocked for a while. Also someone has offered to get some presents for our kids for Christmas... When John and I heard that we both cried... We have such bigger worries right now then Christmas presents, but even that detail God took care of. This is why I REFUSE to stress about the fact that today is the first and we don't have enough to pay the rent. As the day has been looming nearer, the lyrics from a song we used to sing a lot at Happy Church keep running through my head, "He did not bring us out this far to take us back again. He brought us out to take us into the promised land. Though there be giants in the land we will not be afraid...". I just keep on praying for a 4th quarter, hail mary pass to save the day.

Please pray for a MIRACLE regarding the rent. Please pray we get caught up with health insurance premiums quickly. Please pray John is able to work his full hours soon.

Just a quick bloggish kind of ending: I know my troubles are looming large right now. I am not Pollyanna-ish enough to miss that fact. But I also know AND BELIEVE: "He brought us out to bring us into the promised land!" God bless you today!

Updates

1. John's physical condition. Ugh! We just NEED this week to end. John didn't get much sleep again last night. Today he is sore and stiff. We are also both fighting some nausea thing.... not sure if it's a bug or something we ate or stress but it is no fun! We just need it to be the weekend BAD! Please pray for John's strength to make it through this day and for his morale as well. I can feel that the toll of being a strong person stuck in this weakened body is wearing on him. Please pray for a TON of SLEEP this weekend..... for rest and relaxation.... for healing from this nausea bug AND for healing of his neck and brain.... for lifted spirits and his patience with his infirm body...

2. Finances.... THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! Encouragement poured in yesterday and IDEAS too! I am running hard after all the ideas suggested and am trying to believe as so many encouraged, "Our miracle is on it's way." However, my blanket of peace is thread bare in a few places... forgot about a bill that comes out automatic withdrawal... our poor little checking account.... It is like that little Engine that Could: "I think I can! I think I can! I think I can!" trying to chug up that mountain. I just keep telling myself: God did not carry us through months of this ordeal to drop us mere weeks from the finish line and let us crash and burn alone. But my eyes still get fogged up with the natural view of things. Please pray that John and I both will view this situation with supernatural vision. Pray that we will have God's eyes to see that this struggle in front of us is not the lion it looks like in the natural view but is really just a little kitty when you put on your supernatural goggles.

3. Elijah: I think I forgot to post this part with a detailed explanation. Elijah is having his tonsils and adenoids removed on 11/30. He has struggled with sleep apnea as long as I can remember. In fact, some nights the sounds of his breathing stopping and the gasps which follow when he starts breathing again are bad enough that I just can't sleep through it. Finally just a little over one and one-half years AFTER we first discussed it with our pediatrician, we took him to the ENT who said on a scale of 1 - 4 his tonsils are enlarged to a 3.5 and the x-ray indicates enlarged adenoids as well. The tonsils almost touch his uvula. Well..... the good news is: it is only a 30 min procedure, he should recover in 7 - 10 days, since he is homeschooled he won't even miss school for it, and since it is an outpatient procedure our insurance will cover it at 100%. Only bad news: have to let my baby go under anesthesia and watch him suffer through 7 to 10 days of healing. So surgery is scheduled for 11/30 at 7:30 a.m. Please pray!

Now that I am done being the neediest person alive and presenting my 1001 prayer requests, I feel today the need to end with a little counting of blessings. Counting my blessings ALWAYS makes me feel better!

My Blessings:
1. Jesus died to save me from my sins!
2. God is my BFF and is walking with me every step of the good days and the bad.
3. I have an AMAZING mom and dad and INCREDIBLE siblings.
4. God fulfilled my life-long dream of being a wife and a mom.
5. He fulfilled that dream by giving me the strongest man in the world as my husband.
6. He gave me my version of the PERFECT FAMILY... perfect! I gave birth to 3 rambunctious boys and 1 tom-boyish princess.... and I married into being step-mom to one VERY brave man who is currently fighting for our country, and two BEAUTIFUL, HYSTERICALLY funny, and never-endingly kind women (anyone for some pope cake?)
7. I have a flexible, work-at-home job which allows me to fulfill my dream of being home with and even homeschooling my children.
8. We have two reliable vehicles to get us around.
9. We are living in a HOUSE! A HOUSE! and we are on our way to fulfilling the dream of being HOMEOWNERS!
10. We have a VAST network of support from friends, church families, former students, former cheerleaders and former youth group kids.
11. While our collective health has needed some "tweaking" this fall, NONE of what we have had to deal with is terminal and while there are always risks nothing has been too life-threatening.
12. We found the most AMAZING new church up north here.... on THE FIRST TRY!!! That is unheard of! This place is PERFECT for us in EVERY single way! Last week, Jeremiah said, "Mom, let's NEVER leave LifeChurch. It is the PERFECT church."
13. My children LOVE Jesus. They love Him SO much. They see God everywhere they look. They love Him deeply. There are learning about Him and hiding His Word in their hearts. They love to pray and sing His praises and go to church and AWANA.
14. I got work today! All week has been slow, but TODAY I got some work!

Okay that's good enough. I have MANY more blessings but I just picked my own chin up off the ground with the typing of that list and I'm ready to get back to my busy day.

Hope I've inspired at least one of you to "count your blessings" too. God is good..... ALL the time! and DON'T YOU FORGET IT!