Today David and I have been blessed with the gift of time. We slept in after our big fishing expedition and it was apparent that David was just tired and cuddly today. The most ambitious thing we have done is make treat bags to hand out in clinic tomorrow. We are so appreciative of their care, competency, kindness, and overall amazingness that we made mostly healthy little bags to hand out when we go tomorrow. This nightmare has shown us that acts of kindness big and small can be such a blessing that we want to pass on the kindness that has been showered upon us.
Today we have watched movies and just enjoyed out time together. I love having all three kids here, but it is a full, busy house when everyone is here. Today David enjoyed some movies and I read, rested and had time for some serious bible study. Sadly when life is in full swing I barely have time for a quick devotional or podcast, so today was a treat. Mike is very faithful with his Max Lucado email devotionals that he sends my way.
Today I had time to linger and my bible study led me to Acts 16 where Paul and Silas landed in prison for preaching the gospel and casting out the demon from the fortune teller. They were beaten, stripped naked, and thrown in the tightest security prison around. Verse 25 gets me every time. Verse 25 says that about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.
After their day of being stripped, beaten, and thrown into jail for who knows how long, their first response was to praise the Lord. That verse convicts me because I am not sure praising and worshipping is always my first instinct all the time. I pray to be more like Paul and Silas and worship God no matter my circumstances. Whether life takes us to the mountaintop or to the deep, dark valley I desperately want to be the faithful servant that still sings How He Loves Us when the news is good or bad.
Then I realized that our eight year-old with a significant disability is often more like Paul and Silas than I will ever be. I remember that afternoon before he was wheeled down to his major surgery he laid in his bed and sang praise songs and old VBS tunes for the crowd in our room. I will also never forget all the hours he has worshipped God while in the hospital either for chemo or for a bad bacterial infection. No matter how bad he felt he still was able to sing praises to God.
I am so thankful for Gods word as a life guide for us, and tonight I am thankful that God put a reminder in our own home everyday on how to praise Him no matter what our external circumstances are. Whether we are feeling great at home or sick in the hospital I pray we as a family will keep singing How He loves Us because truly he does.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Fishing, friends and pizza
The Lord has blessed us with another amazing day here in Charlottesville. The weather was perfect-overcast and not too hot. This morning we had a lazy morning and then I took Hope and Kye to the pool to burn off some energy before they headed home today. Pops took them to Radford and Mike will get them tomorrow-I think Mike has not enjoyed the house being this quiet for him this week :)
Shortly after Pops, Kyle, and Hope got on the road, we had some special visitors! Lisa and Logan Morris showed up with Sam Wagner with a car full of fishing stuff. We headed to nearby Chris Greene Lake and had a ball catching some fish. I hate to brag, but I did catch two on my own!!! Dave had such a ball with these two awesome guys. What amazing people who would drive all this way to brighten our boys day!! They gave Dave his very own pole to fish with and Lisa had even made him a CD of some cool music!! Our boy is so blessed to have so many people that are rooting and praying for him.
For three hours tonight we did not think about cancer, chemo or UVA and we just enjoyed being outside catching up on life at home and trying to outsmart some fish. I have some awesome pictures but I will have to download Friday evening when we get home. After our fishing expedition we headed to Cicis Pizza and Dave chowed down! He ate five pieces of pizza!!!! He wanted his appetite to match those big boys :)
David had a ball today and it was so good to see him outside enjoying some fun and fishing. It was probably the longest he has been outside in a week. We were blessed with such wonderful weather and it was so good for his stamina to be outside. I cannot wait to share my pictures-what a memorable day for our boy. Sam and Logan you are both amazing young men and we are so thankful that you took a day to come see us!!
The other great news is that Davids labs came back great today. Hs hemoglobin is ten which means that Fridays chemo so far has not made his counts dip down too low. We are cautiously optimistic that taking that port out was the best decision. This is the longest he has been without a fever and/or sickness in a month. We are so thankful to see him have an appetite and some energy.
We return to clinic Friday at ten for labs and his monthly Pentamidine drip to ward off the scary pneumonia. We hope to head home Friday after his appointment if all continues going well. Dave is sound asleep now dreaming of fishing and friends after our wonderful day on the lake :)
Shortly after Pops, Kyle, and Hope got on the road, we had some special visitors! Lisa and Logan Morris showed up with Sam Wagner with a car full of fishing stuff. We headed to nearby Chris Greene Lake and had a ball catching some fish. I hate to brag, but I did catch two on my own!!! Dave had such a ball with these two awesome guys. What amazing people who would drive all this way to brighten our boys day!! They gave Dave his very own pole to fish with and Lisa had even made him a CD of some cool music!! Our boy is so blessed to have so many people that are rooting and praying for him.
For three hours tonight we did not think about cancer, chemo or UVA and we just enjoyed being outside catching up on life at home and trying to outsmart some fish. I have some awesome pictures but I will have to download Friday evening when we get home. After our fishing expedition we headed to Cicis Pizza and Dave chowed down! He ate five pieces of pizza!!!! He wanted his appetite to match those big boys :)
David had a ball today and it was so good to see him outside enjoying some fun and fishing. It was probably the longest he has been outside in a week. We were blessed with such wonderful weather and it was so good for his stamina to be outside. I cannot wait to share my pictures-what a memorable day for our boy. Sam and Logan you are both amazing young men and we are so thankful that you took a day to come see us!!
The other great news is that Davids labs came back great today. Hs hemoglobin is ten which means that Fridays chemo so far has not made his counts dip down too low. We are cautiously optimistic that taking that port out was the best decision. This is the longest he has been without a fever and/or sickness in a month. We are so thankful to see him have an appetite and some energy.
We return to clinic Friday at ten for labs and his monthly Pentamidine drip to ward off the scary pneumonia. We hope to head home Friday after his appointment if all continues going well. Dave is sound asleep now dreaming of fishing and friends after our wonderful day on the lake :)
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Overwhelmed
Tonight I am simply overwhelmed. We have had an awesome day considering Dave had to endure the dreaded dressing change and labs. The boys enjoyed a $1 movie and saw TinTin while the girls played at Bounce n Play around the corner. We had a great pizza lunch before we headed to clinic.
Sadly David did freak out for the dressing change, but we can handle anything when the end is sooooo in sight. We still have not heard about his labs today, but Nurse Pat said he looks great to her and heaven knows he had the energy to fight that darn dressing change.
Tonight as a reward for enduring the dressing change, Pops and I took the kids to play putt putt golf down the street. It is thankfully cooler here so it was a night nice to let him get outside some. The boy loved putt putt and the kind young man that was running the putt putt place handed me six free passes to come back sometime. He said "mam I can tell your boy has been through a lot and we would love for him to come back and visit us!!" I am so clueless that I thought for a second how he knew that Dave has gone through so much until I remembered that the bald head and PICC line are dead giveaways!! Ha!
Then this afternoon while we snuck away to the pool while Dave rested and watched the movie Hook AGAIN, I was scrolling through Facebook and saw that one of our dear Orange County friends, Tracey Stakem, had donated hair to locks of love and David was one of her inspirations for doing it. I was so touched and overwhelmed even though frankly that does not surprise me about Tracey because she has a heart of gold.
Then this evening I finally connected with Lisa Morris who is planning to bring her son, Logan and his BFF Sam Wagoner down to Charlottesville to take Dave fishing at nearby Chris Greene lake!!!!! Dave is so excited that getting him to sleep was a challenge tonight. He wants to take Sam and Logan to dinner at Five Guys after the fishing trip!!! I am overwhelmed that these two young men would take a day out of their summer to come fish with our Dave.
We are homesick and beyond ready to come home but God has used some amazing people today to encourage us and to remind us that He is with us here! We have genuinely had fun today, David has felt great, and we have felt the love from you all!! God has blessed us with some happy memories here today. I am overwhelmed with gratitude tonight for our amazing friends, family, prayer warriors, and anyone who is apart of Team David! I am also beyond overwhelmed at our Lord wo has provided the love, and encouragement, and happy memories despite the nightmare. Goodnight from Camp Pendleton from a grateful Jesus lover!
Sadly David did freak out for the dressing change, but we can handle anything when the end is sooooo in sight. We still have not heard about his labs today, but Nurse Pat said he looks great to her and heaven knows he had the energy to fight that darn dressing change.
Tonight as a reward for enduring the dressing change, Pops and I took the kids to play putt putt golf down the street. It is thankfully cooler here so it was a night nice to let him get outside some. The boy loved putt putt and the kind young man that was running the putt putt place handed me six free passes to come back sometime. He said "mam I can tell your boy has been through a lot and we would love for him to come back and visit us!!" I am so clueless that I thought for a second how he knew that Dave has gone through so much until I remembered that the bald head and PICC line are dead giveaways!! Ha!
Then this afternoon while we snuck away to the pool while Dave rested and watched the movie Hook AGAIN, I was scrolling through Facebook and saw that one of our dear Orange County friends, Tracey Stakem, had donated hair to locks of love and David was one of her inspirations for doing it. I was so touched and overwhelmed even though frankly that does not surprise me about Tracey because she has a heart of gold.
Then this evening I finally connected with Lisa Morris who is planning to bring her son, Logan and his BFF Sam Wagoner down to Charlottesville to take Dave fishing at nearby Chris Greene lake!!!!! Dave is so excited that getting him to sleep was a challenge tonight. He wants to take Sam and Logan to dinner at Five Guys after the fishing trip!!! I am overwhelmed that these two young men would take a day out of their summer to come fish with our Dave.
We are homesick and beyond ready to come home but God has used some amazing people today to encourage us and to remind us that He is with us here! We have genuinely had fun today, David has felt great, and we have felt the love from you all!! God has blessed us with some happy memories here today. I am overwhelmed with gratitude tonight for our amazing friends, family, prayer warriors, and anyone who is apart of Team David! I am also beyond overwhelmed at our Lord wo has provided the love, and encouragement, and happy memories despite the nightmare. Goodnight from Camp Pendleton from a grateful Jesus lover!
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