Wish Upon a Star

For anyone that follows this blog you have probably picked up on how much I use music to minister to me and my family. Today I was doing a search for songs about hope and found someone who talked about a song by Bryan Adams that always gives them such hope on their darkest days. I looked up the lyrics and it was all about wishing on a star. Now I actually really enjoy his music, but as I was looking at the lyrics I found it so sad that someone found their hope from a song about wishing on stars. There is only star that I put my hope in - The Bright and Morning Star (Revelation 22:16). I'm so thankful that because of Jesus I don't have to always understand what is going on, I just put my faith in Him and trust that He has a greater purpose for every single thing that touches our lives. If hurts are allowed then I trust that it is for His glory. These days feel like such a rollar coaster, ups and downs, highs and lows. I'm so thankful that I don't have to steer or even worry about whether the cars stay on the track - because I know even if they do fall, it is His hand that is guiding them and bringing them to the exact place and exact time that will bring glory to His name. I just pray that I have the serinity to be refined, "And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are my people’; and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’” Zechariah 13:9

For now, I much prefer these lyrics as they point to my Savior, and how richly He blesses us every day in ways we couldn't even imagine. Isn't it awesome to think that we don't have to look at trials as hardships but blessings - I don't think wishing on a star could help me to do that....

Blessings by Laura Story

We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
And we cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe

When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know the pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home,
It's not our home

Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy
And what if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are Your mercies in disguise

Happy Birthday Mark!

Gabie Loves Animals!

Ciah Cutie

Catching up....

I took some time this afternoon to catch up on a lot of things like, bills, paperwork, and pictures to the blog! I can't believe a month has gone by since I've done that (not that we've had anything going on....). So pictures date back to March 30th ~ enjoy! Also, I wanted to update our address. We still have the P.O. box address but only through this fall. Our permanent mailing address is 581 Elkins Lake Huntsville, TX 77340. Seems like I keep updating that to something new every few months. God's plans may continue to have it changing on us, but we with all that has happened over these past few months, we are confident that we are right where we need to be. God has brought the events of our lives together here for a reason. We are so happy that Mark and I were able to get the medical care we needed (and continue to need). But even more so we are so happy that we are here with family who has supported us and now we can help support through some difficult times (please visit www.caringbridge.org/visit/samanthapittock for the latest on our little niece). Thank you for your continued prayers for our family. God continues to bless us each day ~ He is good all the time! All the time God is good!

Big Plans

I know that the words come from a Christmas song but I've been reflecting on these words from How Many Kings by Downhere....
Follow a star to a place unexpected
Would you believe after all we've projected
A child in a manger

Lowly and small, the weakest of all
Unlikeliness hero, wrapped in his mother's shawl
Just a child
Is this who we've waited for?

These words got me thinking how different our ideas from God's ideas really are. Remember when Jesus came to earth, everyone was expecting a king that would be, well...kingly - mighty, on a throne, etc. Here he came in a totally different way then they were expecting. Then any of us would expect.

This isn't the way we would think that Samantha would be with us. This isn't how we would think God would be using her life to His glory. But He is. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the Lord. 'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.'"Isaiah 55:8-9

He is doing mighty things in little Samantha's life in ways that are far greater than anything we could've imagined. If it were up to me I wouldn't want her to have to through any of this. I would do anything to take away the pain and worry that Stephanie and Travis are going through as well. Makes everything my (immediate) family has been going through seem pretty trivial - very humbling....

God's ways are so much bigger for this precious little child than anything we could think or imagine. His ways.....His plans.....they involved saving the whole world with a child in a manger - is this who we waited for???? After just celebrating His rising from the dead to save us all from sin, death and the power of the devil - oh yeah! He's the only king that came down from His throne, His Father is the only one that gave up His Son for me - for us all! This is the king that I entrust our lives too...I don't know what His plans for little Samantha are - but I know it's bigger and better then anything we could've ever imagined.

EASTER!!!!

Getting ready for church

Everyone's ready!

We found our Easter baskets from the Easter bunny - he had to hide them upstairs so Frodo wouldn't get them! :) (thanks DeeDee!)

I love this picture of Elie - makes me think of Anne of Green Gables....

Easter Baskets

The girls got their Easter baskets from mom/dad and nana/papa in the afternoon. They also got beautiful dresses and shoes from Ryan and Callie (aka the Easter bunny ;0) which they wore the rest of the day. I think the best part about the new shoes was during church. Rachie and Callie have quite a bond and when she spotted Callie in church she made a bee-line for her and of course found her Easter basket which included a pair of jelly-shoes. And these shoes just happen to light up (by light up I mean like 4 different colored strobe lights!). Well she put them on and RAN up the aisle to where mommy is parked in her wheelchair and announced "Look at my shoes mommy! They light up!!!!" Right in the middle of the sermon. Ahhh, kids - they make us smile and laugh and bring such joy :)

Daddy/Daughter

For all of you that know what a daddy's girl Rachel is.... :)

11 Months!!!

This picture is a little late - can't imagine why with all the craziness here! But Micaiah is already 11 months old! Where does the time go???? Oh course it's getting harder and harder to get her to sit still for a picture so this was all I got - but at least we got it :) and only a week late. Also we did find sometime in the past week that she has 2 more teeth on the bottom! What a big girl! Seems like she's hit a lot of major milestones before her first bday - walking, talking, feeding and 6 teeth!

Because He Lives!

God sent His son, they called Him Jesus
He came to love, heal, and forgive.
He lived and died to buy my pardon,
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.
Because He lives, All fear is gone.
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living just because He lives.

How sweet to hold a newborn baby,
And feel the pride and joy he gives.
But greater still the calm assurance,
This child can face uncertain days because He lives.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.
Because He lives, All fear is gone.
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living just because He lives.

And then one day I'll cross the river,
I'll fight life's final war with pain.
And then as death gives way to victory,
I'll see the lights of glory and I'll know He lives.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.
Because He lives, All fear is gone!
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth the living just because He lives!

I cried all the way through the 2nd verse of this beautiful hymn this morning in church - it just touched my heart. We are so thankful for some positive news for little Sammy today! (check out www.caringbridge.org/visit/samanthapittock)

We had a very blessed Easter day with breakfast with our church family here @ Faith and then worship time. We also felt the love and prayers of our other church families all over lifting us up as well - thank you so much!

This afternoon we enjoyed quiet time as a family. We had a group 'nap time' and even Frodo and the kitties took a little snooze with us all. The girls enjoyed the magic of Easter through their eyes as children. We are so thankful for the empty tomb, and rejoice that He Lives!

Moments

I had some precious time with my little niece this evening. I read to her all the caring bridge entries that were written to her and read her various Psalms and verses as well. I also told her stories about her family. It's just amazing to me how healing God's word can be. The words I spoke to her were healing for me as well. Today one of the things I focused on in Scripture was Psalm 77,

I cried out to God for help;
I cried out to God to hear me.
2 When I was in distress, I sought the Lord;
at night I stretched out untiring hands,
and I would not be comforted.

3 I remembered you, God, and I groaned;
I meditated, and my spirit grew faint.[b]
4 You kept my eyes from closing;
I was too troubled to speak.
5 I thought about the former days,
the years of long ago;
6 I remembered my songs in the night.
My heart meditated and my spirit asked:

7 “Will the Lord reject forever?
Will he never show his favor again?
8 Has his unfailing love vanished forever?
Has his promise failed for all time?
9 Has God forgotten to be merciful?
Has he in anger withheld his compassion?”

10 Then I thought, “To this I will appeal:
the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand.
11 I will remember the deeds of the LORD;
yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.
12 I will consider all your works
and meditate on all your mighty deeds.”

13 Your ways, God, are holy.
What god is as great as our God?
14 You are the God who performs miracles;
you display your power among the peoples.
15 With your mighty arm you redeemed your people

Thank you for your continued prayers for Samantha and for our family. As these verses remind us, our God is a God of miracles - we are praying for an Easter miracle for precious little Samantha. Happy Easter! He is risen! He is risen indeed - Hallelujah!

Held

I think I am still in shock at the sobering news of Samantha's MRI results. If you want to know her story please go to the caring bridge website that was created for her: www.caringbridge.org/visit/samanthapittock

The only words that I can think to say that keep playing through my head are a song by Natalie Grant ~ Held:
Two months is too little
They let him go
They had no sudden healing
To think that providence
Would take a child from his mother
While she prays, is appalling
Who told us we'd be rescued
What has changed and
Why should we be saved from nightmares
We're asking why this happens to us
Who have died to live, it's unfair
This is what it means to be held
How it feels, when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved and to know
That the promise was that when everything fell
We'd be held
This hand is bitterness
We want to taste it and
Let the hatred numb our sorrows
The wise hand opens slowly
To lilies of the valley and tomorrow
This is what it means to be held
How it feels, when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved and to know
That the promise was that when everything fell
We'd be held
If hope if born of suffering
If this is only the beginning
Can we not wait, for one hour
Watching for our Savior
This is what it means to be held
How it feels, when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved and to know
That the promise was that when everything fell
We'd be held

Of course we're asking why and of course it feels like it's unfair. But this song also speaks about why God did send His son so many years ago on 'Good Friday'. He didn't promise that life would be easy or fair or even pleasant - He promised to love us, to save us, to hold us, to be with us. We are still praying for big miracles in little Samantha's life. We pray that God will show His awesome and amazing power through her life and through her healing to show just what He can do. He can heal her. He can save her. But then again He already has healed her - He has saved her. He saved her so many years ago on that cross. Who am I to say that I will trust God when it comes to some things but not others "can we not wait for one hour...."

God, you are so much bigger then anything that I can fathom. Tonight I am choosing to trust You. I may not understand, I may be feeling angry and afraid. But You are still my God. You love my niece, my sister, my brother-in-law far more than I can ever comprehend or imagine. I will entrust their lives to your hands. Please, dear Lord, if it be Your will, heal our dear Samantha. Perform a miracle - leave all the doctors with nothing more to say then 'it was a miracle'. And Lord, if Your healing plans are different then my ideas, then Lord help me to declare, 'I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!' (Mark 9:24). Take away any doubt, and remind us all that we are held. Amen

caring bridge

I have set up a caring bridge web site for Samantha. It will be updated with any news. Please visit and continue to keep her in your prayers. Thank you!
www.caringbridge.org/visit/samanthapittock

Baptism

We just got to be a part of a very special baptism of our little niece. We were honored to be asked to be godparents with Doug and DeeDee Dretke. They put us all on speaker phone so that we could hear her become a child of God. What a precious moment to be a part of and listen as the words were said "Samantha Renee Pittock, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen" AMEN - let the healing waters of baptism bring healing to her physical body as well. We continue to pray for a miracle, that God would reach down His tender hand to her little body and heal her. His is the Great Physician, and He loves her so much. We are choosing to trust Him tonight with her life - Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy, Amen!

update....

9:07 - Samantha is in septic shock

Samantha is not doing very well. She doesn't seem to be staying stable. The doctors are with her and working on her - Lord have mercy! Please keep praying

update....

Diagnosis: bacterial meningitus. Next 48 hours are critical, she is still on life support but stable.

update

Samantha is stable now. They called a code blue on her early this morning (she stopped breathing). I was able to spend the last hour and a half with her (along with Donna P) so stephanie and travis could rest. Her blood pressure is still low. Her heart is also good and stable. While we were in the room they turned her sedation down and she woke up! It was such a blessing to see those beautiful eyes of hers. We are praising God and thanking Him that she was in the hospital when she stopped breathing. They were able to care for her quickly that way and save her life - we are so thankful! Now it is a waiting game. They have done many tests and now are waiting on results. Hopefully that will give them insight as to what happened and why and how to fix it. Thanks for the continued prayers!!!! Keep them coming, and praise God for this precious life that He holds in His hands!

Samantha

As I write this tears are running down my cheeks. My little niece is very very sick. She was sent from here to The Woodlands to downtown Houston tonight. They don't know what's wrong with her but she isn't doing well. For all our prayer warriors out there please pray for this little girl, her parents and family right now.

Precious Moments

A few months ago I found the boxed set of American Girl books Samantha edition. This started a new tradition in the Moldenhauer household of reading a chapter each night whenever possible. This along with a devotion and prayers is a precious moment that I enjoy with our girls and I hope that they have this memory too as they grow.

I had my follow-up appointment with Dr. Dickson today, and it went great. The x-ray they took today looked exactly the same as the one they did right after surgery which is perfect :) He even said "you must be behaving yourself" - I don't get told that very often! haha. He counts 3 months as 12 weeks so I can start walking June 29th with 10 weeks of PT starting then. This will be followed by a CT and if all looks (and feels) good I'll be good to go (and cleared to run again! :)

On our way home we were parked at the post office and a lady backed into our car. Mark wasn't in it, but the girls and I were - no one was hurt and even our car seems fine - the panel that was pushed in popped right back out. The other person's car had far more damage. We were just so thankful that no one was hurt! Praise the Lord for that.

We have continued to receive an outpouring of love and support through cards, letters, meals, packages, etc. We are so thankful for it all! So many of you write the kindness notes that just uplift us each day. I want to thank each of you individually and will get to that one of these days. It seems that even the normal everyday tasks take so much longer with the wheelchair, please know that we are so grateful for all the love and support you continue to show. This is an amazing journey that the Lord has taken us on. I even found myself thanking and praising Him this past week as I combed through hair for hours, but I trust Him and His word. He says in His word, "Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 He is changing our hearts, and we are so happy that so many are sharing this journey with us and we pray for you all each day. God's blessings to you all!

Micaiah - 11 Months

We were actually a little late taking this picture (on Easter) but I'm placing it where it 'should' be in the calendar way of things.

Palm Sunday/Birthday Party!

We had a fun, busy day with church in the morning - the girls got to be a part of the processional and wave palm branches. It's a precious picture to see them doing it, although there is a part of me as a mother that wonders why we give children weapons when they come into church once a year - haha....always seems like I'm taking away the branches long before the next hymn! That afternoon we were invited to a bday party of a little girl from school. Her mom is one of the teachers at Faith as well. They also live just down the street from us in Elkins. It was a fun afternoon. We didn't stay too long since we were all pretty worn out, but it was fun to visit with friends from school, and as you can see, Micaiah LOVED the ice cream :)

End of the Week

Can I just say that I'm so glad this week is over!!!! I can remember days in jr high and high school of the melodramatic "this was the worst day of my life!" idea. I'm so thankful that the older I get the more I realize that in spite of days or weeks that seem to want to compete for 'worst' on the list that I realize how much my blessings far outweigh my woes. Today Mark woke up with a particularly bad headache - one of the worst he's had in awhile. With both parents seemingly unable to do much Eliya really had to step up and Gabie was a big help too. that I'm beginning to appreciate the verses in Matthew where God speaks about knowing our every hair, "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father's care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. SO don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." (10:29-31). After going through my daughter's hairs many times over to check for more 'pests'. Only someone who has been through this can understand what I'm talking about. In the end our week did finish up nicely. We hope that we have the pest issue under control, time alone will tell. The sinks and counters are all put back in place and I have 4 beautiful sleeping children right now. This next week will be no less busy, but hopefully less stressful :) On Tuesday I have my first post op appointment with Dr. Dickson and the girls all have dentist appointments. This past week Thursday Rachel broke her glasses and so she has an eye doctor appoinment on Wednesday to both check her eyes and see if the frames can be repaired (I'm not holding my breath on that one....). Then we jump into Maundy Thursday and on through the Easter holiday. I am very much looking forward to a long weekend and some time to just reflect on all that the Lord has done for us and rejoice in His blessings. P.S. Thank you to whoever sent the Mandisa cd - Stronger is one of my favorite songs right now!

Protective Kitties!

Our kitties do such a good job of taking care of me - even making sure my seat stays warm ;)

Why, Oh Why? Oh Me, Oh My!

I got a book with this title in the mail this week - subtitle was "the story of Job". This has been pretty much my state of being this week - why oh why? I guess you could call it a pity party, or frustration, I'm not sure what. I tried going back to school but ended up spiking a high fever Monday night so had to stay home Tuesday and continued to run a low-grade fever all day. The spike wasn't normal, but the low-grade fever is normal after a surgery like what I had. In the meantime we were supposed to get new counter tops in our kitchen on Tuesday (the ones there now have some pretty bad cracks). So we had the plumber come and take out the sink and were all ready to go. By late Tuesday afternoon we knew something wasn't right. The company had lost power and there was a mix-up with scheduling and the soonest they can do it is Friday - awesome, so we'll just go without water in our kitchen all week. Then today Eliya came home from school with a note - the kind of note all parents dread seeing - the "there has been a case of lice at school...." note. First I checked Gabie's head - totally clean - whew! Then I checked Elie's.....thought it looked okay at first but the closer I looked - sure enough she had nits. I actually sat and cried for awhile. I know that sounds ridiculous, but I did. A call to the doctor and a $100+ bill at the pharmacy later we have everyone washed with the special soap and have been rapidly trying to get laundry done - at least enough so we can sleep tonight since pillow cases and sheets are a priority. Thank goodness for our friend Donna who graciously came and got 3 heaping baskets of laundry tonight to help us out. Thank you thank you!!!!! I think it's these 'little' things that just about push me over the edge. I was saying to Mark tonight - God could've prevented this from happening. He could've put His protective hand over Eliya's head and kept this from happening - why didn't He? Mark's response? "He could've prevented you from falling off a horse - He could've kept me from having any head problems. He could have! But He is God. We trust Him regardless." So tonight as I laid in bed I went back and read some chapters from the book of Job - my heart was speaking from verse 2 of chapter 42, "I know that you can do all things; no purpose of your can be thwarted." I believe and trust that He can do all things, but to go on and read....His purposes. When His purposes for my life don't coincide with when is easy or convient for me I get mad and frustrated and rant. I am humbled by Job's response in 42:3, "Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know." I don't always understand, but His ways are for more wonderful then anything I could ever know or understand. I will praise Him because He is, He was and He always will be, even on the days that we want to ask "why, oh why?"

No Lapses

I think I am surprising even myself with how well I am doing so far since I've been home. I think I was expecting it to be like it was this summer, and although there are similarities it really isn't the same. I can't take most pain killers as they make me nauseous so I just take ibuprofen, and as long as I stay on top of it and some tylenol I do fine. Last night however, I didn't set an alarm so I woke up in horrible pain and could hardly move. Since then I caught up and have set an alarm for myself tonight. It made me think of our walk with God. When we keep our eyes on Him, He doesn't promise things will be pain free or perfect, but He does take care of us. But letting our eyes 'lapse' (kinda like letting the pain killers lapse) can cause a lot of problems. There are so many times when I think I know a better way or have a better plan and try to go my own way and 'lapse' in my staying focused on following Him. It usually ends up pretty painful - not necessarily physical pain, but painful in someway or another. But when I keep my eyes on Him and follow His plans and His direction, well, let's just say things seem to go a lot better. Hebrews 12:1-2 says, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Notice how it says we have to fix our eyes on Jesus. I love how that verse points that out. We are so incredibly blessed. I know many of you think that we are facing so many trials, and although at times it does seem that way, but God has immersed us with His blessings. He has been so faithful in taking care of us and we are so thankful to Him and so many of you out there that He uses as His instruments to help to provide for us through cards, letters, encouragement, love, prayers, meals, and so much more. Keep the faith in your calling, whatever it is! God is good - all the time! All the time - God is good! Tonight we had a wonderful time at Faith Lutheran School's gala - it was an awesome event and although we didn't think we'd last the duration we were having such a good time that we stuck it out. What a fun evening with friends and family! We got to hear Eliya and Gabie sing with their classes and they both did an awesome job!

School Fundraiser

I think everyone thought I was crazy for going to this just a few days after surgery, but it was so much fun. We were so glad that grandma and grandpa got to be here to see Eliya and Gabie sing with their school. It was a wonderful evening with delicious food, family, friends and of course fund-raising for the school.

So Thankful

I am home now and the surgery was a success. I am so thankful that I had a wonderful surgeon. I'm also very very thankful that Mark will be having his surgery at Memorial Hermann and not the hospital I was at as their post op care was less then impressive. Thank you so much for all the prayers! I will update more when I get a chance.

And here it is

I report for surgery at 5:30 a.m. I have no idea what time the actual surgery is scheduled for, just when we need to get there. Grandma and Grandpa are here now and will be taking care of the girls for us. We are very blessed to have Stephanie and Travis so close as well to help with things. Hopefully I will be posting here tomorrow evening with a great report - but if I don't I will as soon as I feel up to it. Thanks for the prayers!

Story Time with Grandpa

Little Cousin

I had forgotten about these pictures till I decided to catch up on posting today (4-26) ~ brings tears to my eyes to see Eliya holding her little cousin. So sweet!

Preparing

Mark had his appointment with Dr. Shephard this morning. He definetly recommends that Mark have the decompression surgery now. The timeframe was discussed and he basically said that Mark isn't going to get any better or any worse by waiting a bit. Since my doctor has advised that I could in fact get worse by waiting (nerve damage) we have opted to keep my surgery scheduled for Wednesday and wait with Mark's till I'm into the healing part. Mark's surgery should get scheduled tomorrow sometime so we'll have a better idea when his will be based on that. (we are thinking May sometime) We knew that surgery was in the works for both of us this weekend so we did a lot of preparing - praciticing driving around in the motorized wheelchair that we have to see if there was any adjustments that need to be made. We also moved the girl's clothes down into our closet so that we don't have to go up and down stairs with laundry. We have been very blessed to find someone to clean our house once a week for the next 3 months that is amazing and trustworthy. The church here is also helping to organize meals for us on an every other day type schedule to help us out as well. It's amazing how much we are blessed through these things - I don't know how we'd do it without such wonderful help. Mark's parents arrive tomorrow so they will be here for the first week after surgery - the timing on that could only be God's timing! We are so thankful. Please pray for safe travels for them. I am getting very nervous about my upcoming surgery for a lot of reasons: During Surgery - this is a dangerous surgery because of the location of where they have to operate. After Surgery - how much pain there will be (I'm not sure how much there will be?) After After Surgery - being in a wheelchair for 3 months and all that will entail. Please pray that God will guide the surgeons hands, and also pray for peace that I put my confidence in the Lord and His healing hands through all of this, and pray for patience afterwards, for me, my family, my students and my aides in the classroom. We know He has promised good for our lives so we will trust Him. Thanks for your continued prayers - we are so blessed to have an army of prayer warriors fighting with us! "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." Philippians 4:8

Great Place to Take a Nap

Swirling

So very much to process....as of right now I have surgery schedulled for April 6th. There is a lot to think through on this though as I will be in a wheelchair for 3 months afterward, so I am waiting till Mark's appointment on Monday to know if I will keep it or try to push it off. These are very big and difficult decisions. The doctors (both Mark's and mine) have gone over risks and what could happen worst case senario if we go forward with surgery but also worst case senario if we wait. It's a lot to take in and hard to know what to do. Each of our doctors is looking at us as an individual, but we are making the decisions for our family, which is a different perspective. We are going to take this weekend and Monday to pray through things and ask that those out there reading this will do the same for us. Please pray that we have confidence in the decisions to have surgery but also the timing of the surgeries. We are confident that God will hear our prayers and guide us accordingly - "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. " 1 John 5:14-15 I'm so thankful that God already knows the outcome, now we just need to seek His will. Thanks for the prayers!

Surgeons

I'm off bright and early this morning to go to one floor below where Mark sees Dr. Martin to see Dr. Dickson the orthopedic surgeon for my consult. We also got a call yesterday from Dr. Shepherd's office that he had talked to Dr. Martin and wants Mark to come in on Monday for his surgery consult. Hopefully we'll know more of the time-lines and details of what we are looking at after meeting with these doctors. Thanks for the continued prayers!