Friday, April 23, 2010

Friday Character


Compassion
vs. Indifference
Investing whatever is necessary to help heal the hurts of others.
1 John 3:17
"Suppose someone sees a brother or sister in need and is able to help. If he doesn't take pity on them, how can the love of God be in him?"
(New International Reader's Version)
After going through the proceedure with Caymber on Tuesday, this character quality was on my heart to share. So many showed compassion to our family through prayer, phone calls, and text to say they were there if we needed help. We were truly shown the love of God this week. There are always people who are hurting. Who are you showing God's love to today
I can not figure out why sometimes when I post it will not enter space between each line. If anyone else has encountered this and knows why this is happening, please leave me a tip in the comment. Thank you.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

What a Day!

There are just some days that you look forward to from the time you become a mom.

This was one of those days.

With Bryce's twelfth birthday only two weeks away, we decided to let her get her ears pierced today.

She was a little nervous, but did great. Oh, how grown up she looks.

This birthday is a big milestone in our house. Not only do you get earrings, but you get to start wearing make up too.

So, off we went to the Clinique counter at the mall for a professional makeover by the makeup artist. The lady that helped us did a wonderful job of giving Bryce a natural look.

I had so much fun shopping with her today. I have waited along time to get to do some of these older things with her. I can't believe the time is here, but I am loving every minute of it.

This is just beginning. I see many mall trips in our future.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

A picture that is worth a thousand words!

This picture says it all.


Yesterday, we took Caymber, who is five, in to get tubes put in her ears. She has struggled the last few years with ear infections, and the pediatrician had mentioned doing this before, but I would just say no. I know when I was growing up, it seemed like they wanted to take out every one's tonsils, and now they've changed their minds and say it should only be done as a last resort. Having tubes in your ears seemed a little like that to me. Was this just another trendy procedure? Well, after a month and a half now of Caymber being on antibiotics and nothing helping her double ear infection, I knew I had to get over my stigma and contemplate the procedure. It has been hard on her. She had not slept all the way through the night with out waking up crying from her ears in over a month. She had started talking loud and certain pitches of sound would make her throw her hands up over her ears. So, after discussing her case with an ear specialist ,we set the date for Tuesday. We told Caymber what was going to happen and she counted down the days, literally. As we led up to the surgery, my big worry was that she would not want to be separated from her parents. Anyone who knows Caymber, knows that she wants to be right by my side. I prayed hard everyday that God would help her to not be afraid as they took her away. At the same time, I tried to plan out how I could help her let go. Little did I know how great she was going to do. As we waited for the nurses to come and get her she was playing around and in a great mood. She had no fear. Then when the nurses came and asked her is she wanted to go for a ride, she told them she would and left with a smile. The picture above shows it all. All the worrying and fear that I had, and all the planning on how I could help her through this was useless, because God had taken away any fear and sadness. I was amazed! For a little girl who struggles being in new places with new faces, I could see that this kind of response from her was definitely the work of the Lord.
The procedure went well, and even though her morning was rough trying to recover, by last night she was up and playing with her sisters. Last night was the first night in almost two months that she has slept through the night. I am so glad we went ahead with the tubes. I am so thankful for my mom coming up there yesterday. I will never again underestimate how much it means to others when you come and just sit with them during their hard time. I am thankful for friends who prayed for her healing and my peace. God heard you and He answered in a miraculous way. I am thankful for nurses who know how to be gentle with children who are hurting. I am thankful for a God who listens to the "big" prayers and the "small" prayers and answers them both. And I am thankful that He is holding each one of my little ones in the palm of His hand.

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Friday Character

Sorry this post is a couple of days late, but better late, than never.





Self-control
vs. Indulgence
Instant obedience to the initial prompting of the Holy Spirit.
Galatians 5:25 "If we live in the Holy Spirit, let us walk in the Spirit."
Do you ask, "How do you know God's voice when you hear it?" I answer with a question: How do you know the voices of your loved ones? You know them because you listen to them often. Listen in obedience to the still, small voice of God.
Isaiah 30:21 "And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, 'This is the way, walk in it,' when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left"

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Product Review




I have two new products to tell you about. Well, they are new to me. the first one from above is the Color Quick polish pen from Sally Hansen. I love to use this to polish the little girls nails. I don't have to worry about a bottle being tipped over as I am painting. It is all contained in the pen. When I used it on my self, I didn't think it did as smooth of a job as normal polish and brush would do. So if you have little girls like I do who think manicures should be a daily routine and are looking for an easier way to polish, I recommend this product.
The second product, the nail art pen, is a fun little addition. We have used it to do polka dots, flowers, and stars. It looks adorable on their little fingers. My big girls love it just as much.
If you are looking for something new to try, I recommend you give these two a try. It is so much fun!

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Thankful Thursday

Normally, my thankful Thursdays come with a list, tallying up all the great things my Father has given me over the last week. But, this weeks thankful post will be for one thing. One thing that I had not taken enough notice of. An answer to prayer, and yet I had not seen how far He had carried us. I should start from the beginning.

In late August of 2001, we invited all our family members to come to church with us on Sunday morning to dedicate our new little bundle, daughter number 3. Scott's grandmother had passed away just a couple of weeks before and this was an opportunity for us all to get together and have a joyful moment celebrating life. Matching dresses were bought and lunch plans were made for after the service. It was supposed to be a good day. Bryce, our oldest, woke up that morning not feeling well. I passed it off and we went on as scheduled. As we sat in the service, she became weaker and more pale. Near the end of the sermon, as it came time for Scott and I to take the girls down front, we noticed that little Bryce's lips were looking blue. A normal person would have stopped here and taken their daughter in, but we were thinking of all the family who had come to see us. The pictures that were taken that day of the dedication show a pitiful little girl who felt miserable. Being just three at the time, she couldn't express just how bad she felt.

After church, we all headed to the restaurant, but on the drive over, Scott and I could see that we had to take her to the doctor immediately. An hour later we were sitting in the pediatrician's office trying to get some answers. He told us that she probably had pneumonia and he gave her a breathing treatment. It totally turned her around. She had color back in her face and was ready to go.

Months went by and then another episode. We took her to the pediatrician and this time he said it was asthma. No medications were given, just another breathing treatment in the office. Each time this would turn her around. This continued on for almost 4 years. I'll admit, I should have asked more questions about keeping this from happening, but the doctor and nurses weren't offering any information on preventing attacks and I was busier and busier as each baby came. In October of 2006, Bryce was spending the day at her grandma's. Meme had called and said that Bryce wasn't feeling well and was very tired. She told her to lay down on the couch and rest while she was busy around the house. After about an hour of resting, she walked through the room and saw that Bryce's lips were blue and she was very pale. She went over and bent down next to her and asked how she was doing. All Bryce could whisper was, "I'm scared." Immediately my mother-in-law called me and I rushed Bryce to the pediatricians. She was so week I had to use a wheel chair to get her up to the office. Her oxygen levels were so low, that they automatically started her on oxygen and began talking about admitting her in the hospital. The rest of that day was a whirlwind. We did not admit her because the oxygen and breathing treatments helped open her airway again. That day Scott and I decided we needed to check into an asthma specialist before it got worse, if that was even possible.

We saw an asthma specialist in November of '06 and they started her on an assortment of medicines. Since then, she has not had a full out asthma attack. The medicines help to ward off any triggers, and we have learned the steps to take before it gets to bad. Over the last 2 weeks Bryce has begun feeling poorly again. We tried the steps we knew, called the doctor and tried other steps, but things were not getting better, not worse, but not better. So yesterday I took her back into the specialist. They changed some of her medications and said she should feel better by Friday. As I sat there discussing her case with the specialist, we talked about how far Bryce has come. She still takes medicines daily, but they are all the lowest dosages. She had no trouble with her asthma in the fall and only one incident so far this spring. This is leaps and bounds from where we started out.

As we drove home, I poured out in my heart how thankful I was. I had missed how far God had taken my little girl. He had carried her in His loving hands in those dangerous moments and He had carried her through to where now she can live her life attack free for the most part. This is my thankfulness for the last week. I am so thankful that God keeps working even if my attention is not on the fact that He is there answering my prayers. I am so glad that He loves and takes care of my babies. Bryce has already started to feel better after just 24 hrs on the new medicines. God is good -- all the time -- God is good!

Monday, April 5, 2010

Easter Pics

EASTER PICS
What a fun Easter! We celebrated at our house Friday with Scott's family. Here are some pics of the egg hunt we did in the back yard. My little ones just walked around staring at the eggs and giggling most of the time instead of picking up the eggs, but my older girls knew just what to do.



To all the moms out there that get adorable pics of their kids on Easter, I say "How do you do it?" I try, but this is the one day of the year that it doesn't work. Of course, my older ones are pros, but the little ones just can't sit still on a day that has been filled with this much sugar. At least we got our matching dresses. I was so excited to find some. I think this is our last year. The older girls are starting to outgrow this, but I took one last opportunity to see them all match.


We went to the Saturday night service at church. Finding a pew to seat 8 on Easter morning has proven in the past to be impossible. After church, since no one had to get up early, we had a bonfire out back. Such a fun time. I could get used to going on Saturday nights, if I could just talk all of our friends into doing the same so we could still see everyone.
















On Sunday, we went and ate lunch with my family. Followed that up with another egg hunt with all 15 cousins! Then came home to a restful evening.
I hope your Easter was filled with memories just as ours was!



Friday, April 2, 2010

Friday Character


Thriftiness
vs. Extravagance
Not letting myself spend that which is not necessary.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Thankful Thursday

Another Thursday, another chance to stop and smell the roses. Time to take a moment and let my heart pour out praise for the Lord's blessing this last week.

- Answers to prayers. Some I have been lifting up for a while and others just recently, but God heard them all and works in miraculous ways.


- Wonderful weather that allows little girls to use up lots of energy and go to bed so much easier.


- Time on the back porch last night with my boyfriend. What an amazing man! I love moments like that. They are not brought together with a babysitter and dinner out (not that I don't love that too), but when we can get a romantic moment in the middle of life, it is priceless.


- Painting 10 dozen eggs with the girls and the cousins. Messy? Yes, but SO much fun.


- Sticking our feet in the pool for the first time this season. The water is still very cold, but getting our feet wet yesterday made us all want summer to hurry up and be here.


- Family getting together this weekend to celebrate Jesus' resurrection.


- Borrowed Scott's bible this morning for my quiet time, not sure where mine was moved to. But, God had a message for me there. As I was reading, I notice on the side of the page where Scott had written some notes. The note said: Failure is an opinion, not an event. How encouraging! We all struggle with feeling that we are failing. Sometimes it changes from minute to minute. These words remind me to keep going forward.


- So many other parts of spring that I could list. From flowers blooming to park play dates, the list is never ending.



What are you thankful for today? Remember to take time in the next few days and thank Him for the greatest gift ever given.