Good things come to those who...

...break their toes!!

What?  Yes, you read that correctly.

In 2002, after returning from Christmas Break, I broke my toe going up the stairs of my house in college.  Yes, up the stairs!!  What a klutz!!  Anyway, because I had to keep it elevated for so long, I didn't get out of the house much.

Prior to the Christmas Break, I ran in to B at an Aggie Volleyball game.  He asked if I would pray for his family because his Dad was probably going to be losing his job with a small company, you might have heard of them, Enron!!!  Granny was in a terrible car accident over the break.  This offered me the opportunity to sit by her hospital bed each day and pray over her, sing to her, and pray for B's family, as well! 

When I returned to Aggieland for the Spring Semester, I wanted to know about B's family.  How was his dad?  What had happened?  However, Momma raised me that "girls don't call boys."  So, I waited, but it was driving me crazy.  All of a sudden, I cared more about this guy that was just a friend and wanted to know about his family.

Then, my phone rang!  No, it wasn't B, it was a friend, Mark, that had been in the Corps.  He was a Christian musician and was going to be performing on the quad (where the Corps lives).  The Corps Chaplains were having a "back to the quad bbq" for the freshman!  They had the head baseball coach coming to share his testimony and Mark was going to be leading worship.  Mark knew that I wasn't able to get out much & so he was inviting me to come to the quad.  So, I made a deal with God ; ) that if I didn't see B when I went to the quad, I was going to call him when I got back to the house.  Is it a good idea to make deals with God?  Not so much, HE's GOD, HE can handle it without our ideas as to how we think life should play out!!!!

So, I get to the quad, get out of the car, & the first person that I saw was B!!  Wow!  When did he get so good lookin'?!  I can still see him standing there!  Whoa!  I stood with him for most of the event & he walked me to my car when it was over.  A few days later, he called and asked me to Military Ball!!  I reminded him that I had a broken toe & that would make it quite difficult to dance.  He told me not to worry that he didn't need to dance.  Well, after speaking with many of our friends, I learned that B knows how to "cut a rug!"  So, I began drinking all the milk I could find and taking calcium supplements hoping that my toe would heal miraculously overnight.

The night of military ball arrived and I put on my heels (ouch!!) and danced the night away...the rest is history!!  A broken toe brought about a solid marriage!!!

So, why all the details??  We are praying for good things to come of my newly broken toe-the same one that I broke prior to military ball!!

I didn't get to ride with B to get P from school yesterday.  So, I wanted to surprise P with big hugs when she got home.  Usually, she tries to sneak in and surprise me.  I was hoping I could do the surprising this time.  As I heard them come in the door, I wanted to get to the back door in time for a big hug to be waiting for her.  However, I realized I wouldn't make it.  So, I tried to rush and hide in the Living Room behind the couch.  My sweet girl saw me and came running.  So, I tried to "slide" in for a big hug and felt an awful snap!!! 

Once I got hugs from my sweet girl, I told B that I had a broken toe and we needed to get to the doc quickly.  He was amazing!!!  He got the doc's office on the phone, loaded each of us back in his truck, and we went to the doc's office.  I called Mom to see if she could meet us because B had an appt in about twenty minutes that had already been rescheduled once by the client.  So, I didn't want him to miss this one.  Turns out Mom was with clients, but she still came to make sure that P was safe, if I had a seizure.  So, once they did the X-ray, B rushed to his appt. and Mom took over.  The client never arrived and about thirty minutes after their appt. time, let him know they wouldn't be making it.  So, he rushed back up to the doc's office to relieve Mom and get me.

This is what the doc found:

Yep, that's a break!  Same toe!  So, now I only have to worry about choosing one shoe each day since I have an enormous boot to wear!

P has been so precious in wanting to take care of Mommy!  It's touched my heart so much to see her love, as well!

Since a break was the start of a lasting foundation in our marriage!  Since Christ was broken to offer us an eternal foundation in HIM....we are praying that good things will come from this break, as well!

New baby & New snow!!

Some of our dear friends & neighbors had a new baby calf, Buttercup!  Miss P really wanted to meet the new little guy and so they let her come over and talk to him!!!

 With his Momma!

 Momma still had her eye on us, but he decided to just lay down and rest!!

 One of the other family members!!!  We liked the little heart shaped marking on her head!!!

Miss P had so much fun getting to see the new baby!  P & Daddy both made their own efforts at "calling" the cows!  I wish I had videotaped the fun!!!

We had some snowy/icy weather last week and they warned that we might have more tonight/tomorrow!

This is what we are seeing this evening!!!!

 

 Look at those snowflakes!!!

 The snowflakes are huge!!  Everything is covered!!

Wow!  It's a beautiful winter wonderland....in March!!!

First Car

B showed me these pics that he took a few weeks ago.  Break my heart, melt my heart, bless her heart!!! 

Miss P got a "new car" for her birthday from MiMi & Pa!!  So, Daddy took pics of her posing with the new automobile! 

It's scary watching her drive through the yard as the girl got her Gamma's ability to drive fast (once an Indy driver)!  Praise the Lord we have many years to prepare for her to actually be driving.

Thank you!!

If you look out our kitchen window, you can see a bird feeder that B has hanging on the tree.  Each day this week, as I have walked in to the kitchen, a Red Cardinal has landed on a sparse limb, with no leaves.  He has then worked his way over to the bird feeder and partaken of the food.  It reminded me of this promise in the Bible:

Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?  Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

-Matthew 6:26-34

I shared with B and Mom that watching the bird was a reminder to me that God can provide through man, as well!  I hear this verse and imagine the bird on the edge of the field searching for food and God happened to provide a bit on the edges of the land or it fell from the sky.  So often, when I pray for healing and our monthly provision, it's like I'm trying so hard to walk in faith, that I believe the only way it's answered is if there is an incredibly miraculous moment of healing that is so obvious or manna will just fall from the sky.  

However, I shared with Mom & B that I felt the Lord was saying, "I can provide through man, too!"  Just as B took the time to put food in the bird feeder and then the bird came, the same can occur for us.  Man can provide and be a vessel for the Lord's plan!

Well, tonight that occurred.  The Lord provided through man.  Just as the cardinal will probably never see B "filling his plate," we have no idea who sacrificed to fill ours.  So, whoever you are, Thank you!!!!  Thank you for listening to the Lord as you are such instruments and vessels for the Lord!  The funny thing is that yesterday, when the cardinal landed, he ate from the other side of the feeder.  Thus, I couldn't see him very well.  I spoke to the Lord about not always seeing HIS plan or being able to see where our next "bite" would come from...

So, though we can't see you, Thank You!  We praise the Lord for you.  Thank you for being such an incredible vessel for the Lord's teaching and provision! 

The Eighth

Yes, today is the eighth of December. 

However, it is also the eighth year of celebrating the Lord healing B from cancer!!!!

He was diagnosed September 11, 2006 and declared Cancer Free December 8th 2006!!!! 
Praise the Lord!!

 Here is the post from that day!

It was amazing to walk by this man's side as he journeyed through what most consider to be such a frightening road.  However, he never saw the word 'cancer,' he saw the word 'Christ!'  To each and every chemo appt., he wore his shirt that says, "Not I, but Christ!"

I pray for many more years of learning from B how to love others and live for Christ!  What an amazing example B is of what God commands of us in marriage!!  I love how the Lord shares HIS intentions for us in marriage in Ephesians 5!!!

²² Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. ²³ For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. ²⁴ Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.

²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, ²⁶ that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, ²⁷ that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. ²⁸ So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. ²⁹ For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. ³⁰ For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. ³¹ “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” ³² This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. ³³ Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

To my amazing husband:

I feel so blessed to get to call you my husband and truly experience the gift that you are to me, each and every day, from the Lord!!  I praise the Lord that HE has allowed me to be with you for 12+ years.  However, I have truly learned to treasure you these last EIGHT years!!!  May you always know my love for you is unending and that you are My Man, My Prince, My Cancer Survivor!!!

To my Savior and Lord:

Thank you, God, for healing B's cancer so that I can continue to physically love on this man that you have placed in my life to love and submit to until death do us part!  Thank you that death has not parted us!!!  Christ, thank you for paying the ultimate price and being a sacrifice for all of our sins!  May we daily live for YOUR glory!!!  Thank you for also providing a new life, Miss P!!!!

She has such an amazing Daddy!!!

Family!!!

To each of you that is still reading:

Thank you for celebrating this eighth year with us and loving us through the many roads the Lord has chosen for us!!!!

Thanks!!!

...Be at peace among yourselves.
Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all.  See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all.
Rejoice always,  pray without ceasing,  in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.

1 Thessalonians 5:13-22

Hello Kitty!!!!

Be prepared that a video will probably start playing, you can listen to it while you read or pause and listen when it's over!!

Once again, there's never really a boring moment in this house (or out of it)!!

We noticed last week that Hank wasn't eating like he usually does (finishes his entire bowl by 9a), but didn't concern ourselves too much.  However, that continued.  So, B put some coconut oil on his food and he ate that day, very quickly!  So, we were thrilled!  The next day, we repeated the coconut oil and he ate most of his food.  However, Sunday night he started to dry heave!  Then, Monday morning, he started to vomit and that continued all day.  He has been known to eat Miss P's socks since she was born.  Thus, we are used to this routine on occasion.  However, as the evening progressed, we knew this was different.

Our sweet little man!!

As soon as B awoke Tuesday morning, he called our vet and they got him in immediately.  He had lost almost five pounds.  They did an x-ray and blood work.  They couldn't see much on the x-ray and the blood work indicated Pancreatitis.  Our vet warned us that Pancreatitis is usually fatal.  He wanted us to get to an emergency clinic immediately.  So, B drove us to the specialty clinic.  B had a work appointment and so Mom met me at the clinic so that B could leave.

The doc told us that most of his labs could be attributed to his seizure medication.  So, she wasn't as concerned about the labs/pancreatitis, but she wanted to do an ultrasound to see if there was a blockage that the x-ray missed.  She told us it would take at least an hour and would cost more than we spend monthly on all of our utilities.  She said there wasn't reason for us to wait and she would call once they were finished.  So, Mom ran me to a nearby grocery store to try to complete my grocery trip for the week.  As we were checking out, we received a call that Hank was ready and our suspicion was proven that he clearly had something obstructing his stomach!!

So, we got back to the hospital quickly.  At this, she came in and gave us our options.  We could do incredibly invasive surgery and they could cut his abdomen open and then start digging through his stomach to make sure they could find any and everything.  Or, we could attempt endoscopy.  They would need to anesthetize him and send a camera down his throat, into his stomach, and see what they could find.  Then, they would go in with another tool and try to pull it out.  This was much less invasive and had a much quicker recovery.  He could even come home the same day.

When we found out how much this would cost (all of our household bills for a month), it made the decision so difficult.  This is our little man.  We've had him since our first year of marriage!!  He has become P's protector and tried to sleep outside of her bedroom door as often as we will allow.  He seems to know when I'm going to have a seizure.  He is just such a precious gift to our family from the Lord!!

B was finishing his appointment and so I called him and cried for a while as I tried to make this decision for our family and our sweet little fur ball.

We love this little guy so much and can't imagine not having him with us.  So, after conversations with our vet, B, Mom, the doc, and then, most importantly, the Lord (I know I had it out of order); we moved forward with the endoscopy.  At this point it is late in the afternoon and my heart is broken that he is going to have to go through this surgery.  I continue stalling, just hoping that he'll throw it up as he had typically done.

Then, we called in the Chief of Staff at the clinic and got his opinion and had a nice discussion with him.  If you can believe it, all of this delay was helpful.  My delay in deciding what to do, gave the outside radiologists a chance to finish reading Hank's films.  When the radiology techs were taking some more x-rays, they happened to get some of Hank's chest, not just his abdomen.  Due to this, the radiologist happened to notice a tumor/growth in Hank's lung, that even the doc had missed.

It could be cancer.  It could be benign.  It could be brand new.  It could be ten years old.  They have no idea and it would require very frightening surgery for them to just be able to do a Fine Needle Aspiration.  So, back to prayer.  We are just supposed to pay close attention to noticeable changes.

They sent us home at this point saying he wouldn't be ready until close to 9p.  We got back in time to meet P at school!  She was immediately asking for him.  Rudder was singing at the top of his lungs (aka: weeping and gnashing of teeth) when we returned home and P noticed it was different without Hank at home.  All of these events confirmed that we made the right decision.

So, I began to prep everything for our Bible Study/small group that would be joining us for the evening.  Within a few minutes of returning home, the phone chimed with a call from the doc.  The surgery went very well and he handled it much better than she expected AND they found the problem!!!! 


HELLO KITTY!!!!

Yes, Hank ate another one of Pierson's socks.  However, this one was lodged much deeper in his stomach than the others (this is why they believe he wasn't able to get it out on his own).

 I thought I got a good deal on these socks since they were in the dollar section at Target!!!

BEFORE!!

AFTER!!!

Thus, the most expensive sock purchase we've ever made!!!!  As B put it, it was starting to compete with the price for his senior boots!!!

Then, as the doc went further, she found that one of P's dolls was missing an important undergarment!!!

How in the world he ate all of that, whole?  How he survived?  It is all amazing!!  Thank you, Lord!!!

The doc said she would call after he was up and walking around and then she like to give them another hour or so.  However, she called back soon after and said he was improving much faster than expected and we could come get our little man!!!

We were so blessed through the whole process.  It was a blessing that Mom was able to be there to step in while B had his appts.  Then, it was a blessing that Hank survived.  Then, it was a blessing that we each celebrated a birthday and had a little bit of cash from family and precious friends that we were able to use to help with the cost of his surgery.  We still have some saving to do in order to pay it off completely.  However, P's reaction and Rudder's reaction when Hank returned home was priceless!!!!



"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Roman 8:28

July 5th-The Shore

Miss P, the photographer!

She wanted Mommy to be a ballerina!

Mimi and Pa always talk about the shore.  So, we got to go today...It's not Galveston or Galveston isn't the Shore!  This was a beautiful beach!!  Mimi & Pa really enjoy going and so they took us to experience it, as well!

Playing in the sand!!!

Best lookin' man I've ever met!!!

As much as she loves to swim, she wasn't so sure about getting that close to the water!!!

She finally went out to the water!!!

So much fun with Daddy!!

Now, we are getting sleepy!!!

Sand animals!

Learning to play frisbee!

WHOOP!!!

Aggie Bonfire in NJ!!

Miss P got to help build bonfire!

Aren't they a pair?

Three generations!

My tough man!!!

I'm so in love with this man!!!