A Lifetime of Love

Phew! This week was hard for so many reasons, especially since we are coming off Spring Break, but the reason that stands out the most is simply me missing my "old" life- the life prior to social distancing and coronavirus- and the many things (and people) I took for granted.  I walked a lot this week, which was good because it gave me time to clear my head and focus on the beauty of the world around me. A really bad storm passed through parts of the city late Sunday night, and when I walked early Tuesday morning, the devastation seemed just as bad as it had the day before. But, there were so many beautiful parallels to what we, the world, are experiencing that it sort of took my breath away.  Huge trees were uprooted or even split and broken in half. Branches and leaves were everywhere, covering the roads and yards. Power lines were down and some parts of the city were without for several days. As I walked and saw the devastation, I also saw the flowers which continued t...

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us," ~Ephesians 3:20 Today the little kids have their end-of-the-year parties at preschool. I just cannot believe how fast this year went by, and how gracious the Lord has been to us this school year, particularly to me. I keep thinking about and meditating on the above verse, and how the Lord has truly shown Himself to me through this verse not only over the course of the school year, but my entire life. He has answered so many prayers, and provided for me in ways that I never could have imagined. God really is so good despite the fact that I am so undeserving of any of His blessings. Let me share just a few of the ways the Lord has blessed and encouraged me: · Salvation- this in itself is a miracle and you can read my testimony here . · Meeting TJ- read about our life together here and here . · Miscarriage- God used my grief for His glory. Read about it ...

My sis told me last week that Paul received a phone call from his best friend still in Iraq. She didn’t know what was said, but when Paul hung up, he was really upset and didn’t want to talk about it. All he told her was that somebody from his unit in NC, serving in Iraq with him, had died. Here is the link to the article. Remember, only 2 people have offered to die for you: Jesus Christ and the American soldier. The first for your soul, the other for your freedom. Don’t take either lightly.

I guess the day my dad had to call 9-1-1 he was napping on the couch since it was raining outside. Erin came in and woke him up and said she thought he had better call for help. Well, he jumped off the couch, ran into the kitchen, and poured a glass of orange juice. He brought it back into the living room where Erin was sitting and told her to drink it, and that he wasn’t going to call until she did. She told him she didn’t really feel like drinking orange juice, but he insisted, so she did. When she was finished, he asked her if she was feeling any better, and when she wasn’t, he then called. She was a little confused as to why he did that, so I explained that my uncle (my dad’s twin) is a diabetic and has been since he was a child. My dad’s brain is programmed to give him orange juice to help bring his blood sugar back up, and it was probably just his first reaction, especially since he was asleep. His mind wasn’t really processing everything she was saying, and he just knows to give...

Erin was released from the ER last night. She was told she over-exerted herself yesterday which made her heart rate drop too low. I don't know exactly what tests the doctors did, but the last I spoke to my mom, Erin was having a chest x-ray taken. I'm not sure why; I think to check and see if her lungs were collapsing again. I spoke to Erin this morning and she sounded fairly good. Of course her voice was weak, but Paul was there and my mom was home from work today for the holiday. She said her biggest challenge was wanting to care for Kaylee and not being able to, especially when it came to nursing. She is not used to having to depend on others for so much help, especially since Paul has been gone since March. On the other hand, Erin told me a funny story that happened to my dad today, so at least her spirits were up and she was able to laugh (if you know my dad, you know how "accident" prone he is). As far as I know, Paul has to report back to NC this upcoming Thurs...

My sis was released from the hospital Tuesday evening (with no diagnosis and instructions to follow up with the dermatologist and rheumatologist next week). She is staying at my mom’s house where there is more space and less people so she can rest and recuperate. I spoke to her yesterday morning and the plan for the day was for Paul to take Kaylee to his parent’s apartment (30 minutes away) for the day so Erin could nap without worrying how Paul is doing with Kaylee. Paul and Kaylee left around noon, and my mom came home from work at 3pm so she was only “alone” for 3 hours (she was never alone because my dad and brother were there working on the deck outside). I called again this morning to check on her and she still sounded weak but the plan for today was the same as yesterday, with the exception of my brother being gone at Boy Scout camp until Sunday, and my dad stuck inside because it was raining (can’t build a deck in the rain!). That was about 9:30am. At 3:45pm my mom phoned to te...

Erin had a rough night last night. Her heart rate dropped really low so the nurse put a heart monitor on her. It still was not back up to normal this morning so a cardiologist has been called in to examine her. Because of the heart issues, her doctor has ordered her to remain on the IV until they can figure out what's causing her heart rate to keep dropping. So, it doesn't look like she'll be leaving tomorrow or Wednesday after all, which is both good and bad. Good because we still don't know what's wrong with her and bad because she was looking forward to getting back to normal. This heart issue has me worried. I talked to Erin last night on the phone and her spirits were up and other than her weak voice, she sounded like herself. This morning when I called she sounded worn out and a little depressed. I think being cooped up in the hospital is beginning to take its toll on her, especially since she didn't get to see Kaylee yesterday and wasn't sure what tes...

Erin is doing okay. She went off the intravenous steroid and started an oral steroid yesterday for her lupus (although she hasn’t officially received a diagnosis, they are treating it as such). So far she can’t really tell a difference but it’s probably because the stronger intravenous steroid is still in her blood system. She also began physical and occupational therapy on Friday. She has lost so much weight (about 15 pounds) from a combination of not eating or exercising her major muscle groups and just laying in bed. My mom walks with her when she comes to visit to try to strengthen her muscles and lungs, but Erin is so weak that she has to stop to rest often. She can only make it a distance of about 7 feet before she has to stop, and only gets about 30 feet before she has to turn around and go back to her bed. Paul, her husband, flew in from Iraq today so he came to see her for about 3 hours. She was excited to see him and he’ll be able to stay for 2 weeks. Erin got the okay to see...

Sorry for not updating sooner but I really had no news to share until last night when I spoke to my mom. Erin is still about the same. While my mom was visiting yesterday, the internal medicine doctor (who is overseeing the entire team of doctors caring for Erin) came in to say he was releasing the infectious disease doctors and adding an oncologist. He does not believe Erin has cancer of any type, but he wanted some tests run to simply rule it out. Makes sense and we (my mom, sis, and I) feel better knowing that EVERY possible test has been done to figure out what’s wrong with her. So, more biopsies this morning of her lymph nodes (when she had the CT scan the other day, they found some that were enlarged but still within the “normal” range) and more waiting for results. However, the rheumatologist (specializes in Rheumatoid Arthritis) came in last night and said he is about 75% sure Erin has lupus. The preliminary tests all point in that direction, but again, more blood tests are ne...

Erin is about the same. Still running a high fever despite being on a different antibiotic. She had her biopsy taken from two different places on her arm and has stitches at both places. She said they don't hurt but she's been on Tylenol for her fever so I think that may be masking some of the pain. She also had a CT scan done last night and received the results today. Thankfully my mom was there when the doctor came in so she could ask questions. Everything on the scan looked good (mainly her lymph nodes were checked to rule out lymphoma) but he saw that her lungs are beginning to collapse from the bottom up because they are not filling to capacity. The doctor explained that when a person breaths while standing and walking around, the lungs are able to fully expand. But, when a person is sitting or laying for extended amounts of time, the lungs cannot get as much air as needed and carbon dioxide builds up. So, Erin will now be placed on oxygen while she is in her room in order...

Erin, my sis, has been running a fever of 103 or higher since mid-May. She has gone to a doctor close to her home (NOT a military doctor- a private physician) several times, has had some testing done (i.e. an ultrasound on her kidneys and liver and other blood work) and has had no relief. She is weak and very tired. This past Friday my mom flew down to drive Erin and Kaylee back to Ohio so Erin could have help with the baby. Sunday morning she was so weak she could barely lift her head off the pillow. My mom took her temperature and her fever was 104, so my mom rushed her to the hospital. Because of her low blood pressure and high fever, she was seen immediately in the Emergency Room and was admitted to the Critical Care Unit (CCU) last night. At first she was going to be admitted to the ICU but because her blood pressure stabilized, they moved her up one level. She was given fluids for dehydration and an antibiotic to help reduce the fever. She was doing better until about 10pm when h...

I just want to write about how proud I am of my sister. She amazes me more and more! Not only is she caring for her infant daughter as a single mom while her husband is deployed to Iraq, she is growing and maturing in her walk with the Lord, and what a blessing and encouragement to me it is to witness this growth. She has been attending a church near her home for a couple of weeks now. The church is similar to mine in doctrine and beliefs, and they have very similar programs for the youth. This past Sunday, she not only attended the morning service, but she braved a horrible thunderstorm in order to go back for the evening service. Not only that, but she doesn't know anyone in the church yet so she goes alone. Why is she doing this? Because she has learned the importance of "training up a child in the way he should go" (Proverbs 22:6). TJ and I have been praying for her, as well as other family members, for so long. It is easy to get discouraged, especially when we have b...

First, let me begin with the news about Kiana . Her mass is pretty much gone with only a small, residual spot remaining. The doctor is confident it was an infection in her bone and contributed to the pain in her hind legs. She probably got some type of puncture wound (from a stick or something) that was too small for us to notice, causing it to become infected. The vet took her off her arthritis medication because her hips look better, too. We have to monitor her behavior over the next 2 weeks to determine if the pain was mainly caused by arthritis or the infection. If she begins to show signs of pain, we'll put her back on the medication. That was a huge answer to prayer and I thank God for teaching us the lessons we learned but also sparing her life (at this point). Second, Paul made it safely to Iraq on Wednesday. He called my sister and has emailed a couple of times. She seems to be doing okay, but is dreading returning home to an empty apartment. I don't blame her! Kaylee ...

My sis made it late last night with Kaylee. She (my sis) seems to be doing okay considering what she is facing. I spoke to her on Thursday and could tell she was very distraught and trying her best to keep it together, at least until after seeing her husband Paul off on Saturday. I called her about 3:30 yesterday to see where she was. She hadn't left yet. She was at the Marine base until about 1 with P. and was so emotionally drained she went home to nap before driving here. I can't say I blame her. . . I had difficult sleeping Friday night. I kept thinking about her. I experienced a similar situation with Carole the days leading up to Joseph's birth. I really, honestly, with all my heart believe that times like that, the Holy Spirit is prompting me to pray. So I did. I just kept trying to put myself in my sister's place. The fear she must be facing, the uncertainty . She was telling me everything P. is going to be doing in Iraq, and I must say, he will be facing death...