A Wild Week

As you can tell by the number of posts, we were quite busy last week. Knowing that this week could be just as busy or more, I humbled myself to knowing that I needed help. I called on my sister-in-law, Jessica to fill in the gap as she graciously agreed to take Hunter and Holly. We planned to take them to Ohio right after morning worship. That idea was brought to a halt when we arrived home from church to find sick dogs. I'll spare the details here, but needless to say, they had to be dealt with and our jaunt to Ohio was off. We began the week with Mom's doctor's appointment early Monday morning. We learned that she had a UTI and the doctor postponed the chemo until next week. They were also going to look more into her pain in her esophagus. We took her to the hospital Wednesday morning to have a procedure done to determine if it is an infection, or a result of the radiation. If it is a result of an infection, it can be treated and she continue the radiation again. We're still waiting to hear the results and she will come home later today. To add to the week, Haley and Bekah will be in the CEC production of Narnia on Friday. They are practicing hard each night this week. What may be a little harder is fighting the traffic where the play will take place. Tonight will be the real test - roads are closed due to the Pegasus Parade! But wait - that's not all! We got a call on Tuesday that Tim's brother, Mark, was sent to the hospital with a very high fever, bad headache, chills, and chest pain. I'm sure you've been watching the news as we have and immediately think "swine flu." The original diagnosis is pneumonia, but they have yet to say it's NOT swine flu. He is being treated with IV antibiotics and remains in the hospital. I now see why God didn't allow for Hunter and Holly to go to Ohio this week. Jessica is having a hard enough time, she didn't need our two children in the chaos as well. Sometimes I wish God would give us His eyes to see the things it takes us longer to see. I'll close by adding that my dear cousin, Emily, is back in the hospital. Boy, all this sure makes us look forward to the time that there will be no more suffering and no more pain. Until then, we're praising Him in the storm.

Haley's 16th Birthday Party

About 6 months ago I began thinking of Haley's Sweet 16 birthday party. The girls would all dress up and it would be a fancy, girly, extravaganza. As I began discussing these thoughts with her, I realized that my plans were not her plans. She had more thoughts of it being casual and heading to the go-carts. Well - it's her party and if driving is what she wants, then that's what we decided to do. She invited Alex, April, Hannah, Katie, Kayla, Sarah, and Sophie - all 16 or almost there, to share in the fun. Add a little bit of putt-putt golf, pizza, and chocolate cake and we came up with the perfect evening for Haley to remember. They drove a little to fast for me to capture any "driving" pictures, but here's a few others to share. I will also take this time to comment about how blessed we are with Haley's friends. They are such a great group of girls and we love them dearly.

Prom 2009

It just so happens that prom fell right into birthday weekend for Haley. Her "guest" was Sophie, but they all attended as a group of friends. The evening began with dinner at the Olive Garden. Haley, Sophie, Jill, Sarah, Katie, Emily, Brandon, and Dalton feasted with us as well as Mr. & Mrs. Wilson, and Mr. & Mrs. McNeil. We then helped to escort them over to Wildwood Country Club where they danced to an English garden theme. We are so blessed to have the opportunity to attend a well planned out and supervised prom, that is not characteristic of typical high school mayhem. Ms. Cretella, the Wilsons, and the prom committee did a fantastic job creating memories that will last a lifetime.

Driving 101

As I mentioned earlier, Haley drove us to Wendy's for lunch. After her guests left tonight it was time for more driving lessons. Tim got her into his truck and they did a little stick shift practice. I must say, she did better than her mom! I looked to make sure that our neighbors across the street were gone before she backed out of the driveway. Thankfully she didn't end up in their yard like I did when I was 16. When Tim got her back home I took her back out in the Suburban. We even got on Bardstown Rd. to get to the car wash. She drove it through there and she and Bekah vacuumed it out when it was done. Nothing like teaching them from the beginning to take care of their vehicle!

Haley's Sweet 16

This evening we were able to have a little celebration with some special friends. Haley is so special that she had guests come in to share her special day from all over the world. Mr. Craig was there from the Middle East. Of course Mrs. Cindy and Sarah are always honored guests at our home. Mr. Rob represented his family (including the other Sarah who Haley wanted here) from Florida. The evening was complete with chocolate cake and a few gifts. Tim and I gave her a purity ring (another post) and her first string of pearls that she'll wear to prom tomorrow. Mix these special events in with the beautiful day we had and we have a very happy 16 year old.

Let the Gray Hair Grow!

It's so hard to believe that our baby is old enough to drive! We gathered all the needed items and headed out to the department of motor vehicles. She took her test with flying colors - 90%! After she had the piece of plastic in her hands we stopped to pose for the picture above then she drove to Tim's office, which is the next parking lot over. She gave Tim a call and asked to take him to lunch. She then drove us all to Wendy's and back to the Reserve center. While we have some learning to do, she will be a great driver.

Decisions, Decisions!

Before I get too far into this, I do want to let you know that my mom, Maggie, and Emily are all home from the hospital and are recovering at home. I'm sorry I didn't get this posted earlier.


As we are preparing for this upcoming move, there are a plethora of decisions that need to be made. Should we keep something or thow it out? Alexandria, Woodbridge, or Stafford? Older home or newer? While some of these are time consuming in the thought process, they're all minor compared to some bigger decisions that need to be made.


One such decision is the one that is faced by my mom. She has to make the decision of whether to continue with treatment for her cancer or stop it. While things started off well, she is at the point that the radiation is significantly altering her lifestyle. Eating and drinking has been a struggle to her and causes much pain. There is nothing more frustrating than to see her in pain and not be able to do anything about it. We did go to see the radiology doctor today and received a couple of new meds. Hopefully they will help. No one has been able to tell us based on past experience how long they think this treatment will extend her life. While we realize that only God knows the number of our days, estimates in this area would prove helpful. The doctors did say that barring a traffic accident or something similar, this cancer is what would ultimately take her life. Our thoughts are, does the cost in side effects outweigh the promise of a longer life. Something that makes you say, "hmmm." This isn't a matter of what color cabinets are in the kitchen, but a real life and death decision. I have promised my mom that I will support her decision either way. While the thought of losing her is devastating, seeing her suffer is even worse. We do believe that God could use His power to supernaturally heal her. However, we have surrendered to the fact that He is soverign and will do what He wants to accomplish His purposes and bring glory to Himself.


I had an important decision to make once. That was the decision to make Jesus Christ my Savior and Lord. I was only 7 years old, but I remember it like it was yesterday. I knew that way back Adam and Eve had disobeyed and caused havoc for all the world. With disobedience, there was punishment - eternal death. As a 7 year old, punishment was easy to understand. Then I learned that Jesus, a man who walked the Earth, God's Son took the punishment for MY disobedience by His death on the cross. Not only that, but he came back to life three days later! I'm sure most everyone believes that. The Bible even says that the devil does. Not only did I decide to believe that He is my Savior from an eternity in hell, but I chose to make Him my Lord. I want Him to help me make other decisions and direct my life. So far, He's done a pretty good job. The mistakes come when I have my say and not Him.


My mom has made that decision as well. Jesus is her Savior and Lord. When cancer does take over her earthly body, her soul will be in Heaven - forever. Now that's a way to live in a Mansion!


So I have some questions for our readers. What would you do if you were in her situation? Would you continue treatment? Is it wrong not to? I will add, that this isn't like some of the "curable" (5-10+ years survival rate) cancers. They say half of lung cancer patients die within a year. We want to do the right thing for everyone involved. Proverbs 15:22 says, "Without counsel, plans go awry. But in the multitude of counselors they are established." Also - have you made the decision to make Jesus your Savior and Lord? If not, and it's a decision you want to make, give us a call sometime.