Last Day of School Celebration!

The last day of school brings many celebrations each year for everyone and this year was no different.  Our family has been operating under a completely different set of circumstances for the past several weeks and so I wasn't sure how Friday would roll.  As I reported in the last blog, Grace was able to go to UP for her class visit and say goodbye to her friends and Cannon had a class party to end out his year.  I am thankful that not only did Cannon want me to come to his class party, but I was able to have care for Grace so that I could attend.  It was so fun getting to watch Cannon interact with his 6th grade friends, one last time.  He had such a great year this year!  When we left MIS on Friday, he turned to me and told me he was going to miss his friends and his teachers, something he hasn't said in years....I think this is a true testament to the incredible teachers he has had this year!  Thank you Ms. Taliaferro, Mrs. Melson, Mrs. Almarez, and Mrs. Dahlberg and thank you Dr. Pool for keeping an eye on him for me!!!

                                                 Cannon and Stuart at end of school party

Another end of school tradition in our family is to go to Benihana to celebrate the end of the school year with our sweet friends, the Bushes.  We are so thankful that this is a tradition that Grace was able to participate in on Friday!!!  As you can see from the pictures, the kids had so much fun!  We had a good night of laughter and good times and are so thankful that Grace felt good enough to be able to go!

 

Thank you for your prayers and please continue to pray for complete healing.  Throughout the weekend, Grace has been having a lot of bladder pain and she is having to take pain medicine again.  We would love your prayers surrounding this.

Love,

Carrie

Grace's visit to school

Grace was still very apprehensive upon waking up on Friday and fortunately it didn't take very long to figure out what was bothering her.  She did NOT want to ride in the school wheelchair because she "didn't need it" and didn't want her friends to think she couldn't walk.  (This was the plan we had devised for her to try to keep her safe and not worn out while visiting at school) Thankfully, it just took a phone call to our incredibly resourceful and great friend, Nurse Jenny, to brainstorm a new plan and off we went to school!  Nurse Jenny also praised Grace for being able to speak up and share her feelings with us, something that she hasn't always been able to do.  Praise God that Grace is maturing emotionally in so many ways!

Once at school, sweet Nurse Diane pushed me in the wheelchair with Grace in my lap.  Ha!  You should have seen us....we had lots of stares and I'm sure there were plenty of people wondering what in the world was wrong but I had to remind myself that it was more important that Grace was comfortable than what people thought.  Grace seemed very happy that she was able to walk into her classroom without any assistance and her friends could see that she was doing okay.  Mrs. Kuhne, Grace's teacher, did an excellent job preparing Grace's classmates for her arrival.  They were all seated and one of the students immediately said to Grace, "We aren't supposed to jump up and run to you and so we are sending you air hugs, Grace."  It was so precious.  Another sweet friend, who has known Grace for several years had told the class earlier in the day, that Grace would be very uncomfortable if everyone stared at her....so thoughtful.

It's hard to know exactly what Grace thought of the day.  In true Grace fashion, she was pretty stoic throughout the time that we were there.  She sat at her desk and ate her lunch very quietly and listened as the students one by one shared their summer plans.  I could tell she was just taking it all in.  I sat off to the side and did the same.  I can't even begin to share with you the emotions that I felt as I watched her classmates and Mrs. Kuhne love her so well.  I think they were afraid if they got to close to her she might break, like a china doll.  But, they watched her and talked to her and told her how much they had missed her.  One of her friends had even changed his afternoon plans so that he wouldn't miss Grace's visit.  My eyes are filling up with tears right now as I type this and I am remembering the day.  I think the sweetest part of the day for me, besides watching Grace walk into the classroom, was hearing several of the children tell Grace that they had dedicated their fairytale , Connen's Dream, to Grace, who they believe is a heroine.  This fairytale they wrote, illustrated, acted out, and had published.  I know that Grace and I will never forget this sweet class and Mrs. Kuhne and the love that they have shown to Grace.      

Apprehension

Yesterday and today have been normal days around our house.  We are definitely in a routine.  Grace continues to work on reading, writing, and math during the day, but we split it up throughout the day so that she doesn't wear out.  I have been a little concerned about Grace's recovery progress because she is still not wanting to venture very far from her room but I have been told that she looks good and seems to be doing well....so I am not going to worry that she is still pretty tentative.

We did have a little excitement at our home last night when Taylor brought his girlfriend, Larren, to our home for the first time.  It was so fun to get to meet her and it definitely put a smile on Grace's face.  We all enjoyed our time with her and can't wait for her to come back!

Tomorrow is the last day of school for Cannon, and he is thrilled!  Grace's elementary school's last day is tomorrow too, and so we are planning on making a visit to her classroom to say goodbye to her classmates.  They will be eating lunch in the classroom and so that is when we will visit them.  Grace seems a little apprehensive about this but I know she will be very happy to see her friends.  Please join us as we pray for her anxiety about seeing her friends again and for protection for her body while she is at school.

Thanks for your prayers,

Carrie  

Venturing out

Our family had a nice relaxing weekend.  Grace went on her first official outing on Saturday.  We decided it would be fun to go to the movie.  So, we packed a pillow, a blanket, and off we went.  We all enjoyed getting out as a family, and Grace was so comfortable in the movie that she fell asleep!  It's amazing how quickly she gets worn out but it was fun to get her out!  

On Monday, we celebrated my mom's birthday (a few day's early) and enjoyed a picnic lunch outside.  Grace and Cannon both thought it was a little too sunny and so that is why they are holding umbrellas.  

Today, Kevin headed back to work and Cannon went back to school for just 4 more days until the last day of school.  Grace and I decided to venture out again.  This time to the bookstore to buy Grace a new book.  We were gone a little over an hour by the time we went to the bookstore and I drove through the line at the bank.  By the time we got home, Grace was worn out again.  Every couple of days, we will venture out again, in hopes that Grace will begin to build back up her strength and stamina.  I am so thankful that she is beginning to be able to get out even if it is every few days for just an hour or so.  I am also thankful that her spirits are so good!  She is such a joy to be around.  

Please continue to pray that she will continue to make progress toward strengthening her body and gaining endurance, that her body would heal, and that she would ultimately make a full recovery.  Thank you for your prayers!  Love, Carrie  

Do Not Fear

Grace has had a busy week with drs.  She got to get out of the house twice...for 2 doctors visits...orthopedic dr and neurosurgeon visits on Tuesday and Thursday.  The ortho. dr said her elbow should be healed in 3 weeks, which was good news to hear.  Yesterday, we made a trip to see Dr. Swift and spent a long time with him discussing Grace's progress.  Overall, Dr. Swift continues to be pleased with how well Grace is progressing.  He believes that she will still need about 4-6 weeks before she will be able to resume her normal activities, and so we will continue doing about what we have been doing now, up some during the day, with lots of rest in between.  

Grace and I both were curious about swimming, since most pools will be opening this weekend and Grace loves to swim.  Swimming will be great for Grace because it will help regain her muscle loss without impacting and straining her spine, BUT Grace will not be able to swim until her incision heals completely which could be another few weeks.  I am thankful she will be able to swim this summer but to a child who is missing out on so much I am wishing and praying for that incision to heal rapidly.  He also told us she can never ever get on a trampoline again....another sadness for her and horseback riding (which she did weekly last year and loved) she will only be able to do occasionally, like once or twice a year, but not weekly.  Basically nothing that impacts her spine.  So, again, I am thankful for so many blessings that she will walk and run and dance again in time....but there is sadness too, that limitations have been set.

Lastly, he told us that the goal of surgery was really to help with endurance and strength of her legs, and he is still hopeful that he achieved that.  He would love to see that she is able to walk and run for distances, without tiring out, or needing to be carried, eventually.  Due to the area of surgery needing to heal completely, he said there is no way of knowing if this was successful for about 6 months from now.  I look to Isaiah 41:14 for comfort "For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you."  I know my nature and that is one to worry over the next 6 months and so my prayer is to take each day, each minute as a gift from God and not worry about the next 6 months.  I know God will help us and guide us through that.  He has brought us this far and given us so many blessings in the process.  I am so thankful for everything that the Lord continues to do through Grace.  I am also thankful for each of you.  I know that if worry takes root in me that I can call out and the Lord will be there and answer and many of you will show up.

Thank you my sweet friends,

Carrie  

We will Rock You!

Thankfully, Cannon is feeling better and was able to go back to school yesterday.  Today, he and Kevin are on a field trip at Six Flags...reward for being a Safety Patrol Officer at his middle school this year. I'm glad he was well enough to be able to go and thankful that Kevin is with him.  I know they are having fun!  I just received an photo email of Cannon rocking out on the bus, singing, "We will rock you!" He hasn't stopped singing since he saw KISS on American Idol Wednesday night.  Cute side story...we "somehow" received 4 tickets to the finale of American Idol for Wednesday night and would have LOVED to have gone but really knew there was NO WAY we could make it happen.  When I told Cannon, he immediately said to me, "Mom, there is no way I would ever have wanted to go without Grace."  Love the way God is shaping his heart.... Even after watching the show and watching all of his favorite rock bands, he still said the same thing. 

Rock on Cannon!!!

 

                                                                Six Flags....More Fun!!!

Blessings in the trials

The past 24 hours have been quite eventful at our home.  Last night, Grace woke up several times in the night with her back hurting and about the time she finally went to sleep Cannon woke up and was violently ill the rest of the night and throughout the day.  Trying to keep Grace from being exposed to this stomach bug, we kept him on the second floor of our home and Grace stayed in her room downstairs.  Grace continues to require a great deal of attention and so I spent most of my time with her today and just kept going upstairs to check on Cannon.  I was so proud of him.  He never once demanded my attention but waited patiently for me to check on his needs, when I could break away from Grace. 

 

By evening time, Cannon was feeling a little better, thankfully.  I also was able to spend some alone time with Cannon this evening while Kevin spent some time with Grace.  I am hoping that Grace learned a lesson tonight as she had a hard time sharing me with Cannon, even though she had her daddy with her.  I talked with her and prayed with her explaining to her that she always had her mommy all to herself when she was sick but Cannon had to share mommy when he was sick.  I reminded her of what Paul told us in Phillipians 2:3 "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves."  I know this is a hard concept for her to understand because most times it is hard for me to understand.  I pray that one day we will all understand this.  I am thankful that Cannon modeled this for us today.  I am so thankful for the man that God is shaping him into.  I know that much of this has happened due to the trials that our family has faced and therefore there are so many blessings in the hardships.

Thank you for your continued prayers for our family.

Much love to each of you,

Carrie

  

Birthday Blessings

Today was Grace's birthday.  She met me at my bed at 6:50am and as I said, "Good Morning and Happy Birthday" to her, she said to me, "My back hurts."  She crawled in bed with me for a little bit and I cherished that snuggle time.  Thankfully, after getting some more pain medicine in her sweet little body, she seemed to be doing better and made herself a birthday hat and a birthday sign for her door. 

After Kevin (Kevin took the day off since it was Grace's special day....I am so thankful that he could do that!) took Cannon to school, he came home with Grace's favorite breakfast, pink donuts and we had a pink donut celebration with candles on them!  After that, when I told her that we needed to do her schoolwork, she quite frankly told me that she wouldn't be doing any school today because it was her birthday!  I'm sure you all know who won that battle and so after a session of reading, writing, and math, we spent the afternoon watching reruns of Little House on the Prairie.  At one point, she looked at Kevin and me and said, "This is the best day ever, TV....my mom and dad....and pjs!"  I love that! 

This afternoon, Grace was blessed with several special visits.  Her teacher, Mrs. Kuhne came over and brought a video from Grace's 2nd grade class where they all sang Happy Birthday to Grace. 

Grace also had several other visits from special friends today.

 Lastly, we had my parents over for dinner where my sweet good friend, Jackie, and her family brought Grace's favorite dinner, McDonald's, and Chuy's for us.  We ended our evening with an ice cream cake and Grace almost falling asleep.

It was a great day and Grace felt loved beyond words.  Thank you to each of you for making it so special for her!!!  I continue to be overwhelmed by the way you model the love of Christ to our family. It reminds me of the passage in 1 John 3:16-18, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.  And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.  If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?  Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth."  

Love,

Carrie 

  

Ups and Downs

Grace spent most of Friday and Saturday in bed.  I know that she will have ups and downs and this is to be expected, but I was sad for her to watch her be in bed most of the day after doing so well earlier in the week.  She also had a little bit of a temp on Friday and some swelling in her back around the incision.  We are praying that this area does not get worse.

  

Thankfully, today was a better day again.  She woke up happy and after seeing her neighborhood friends outside playing in the sun, that is where she wanted to be too.  So, I pulled her little pink feathery chair outside and she spent most of the day outside with her friends.  She was so excited to be outside on such a beautiful day, enjoying it with her friends, even if she was confined to her chair!

Please continue to pray for her recovery and for her pain.  

Thank you for your continued prayers,

Carrie

Progress!

Lamentations 3:22-23

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed,

for his compassions never fail.

They are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness."

Well, we have been home 72 hours now and Grace continues to do well.  Praise God!  We have implemented a good schedule for her to follow throughout the day.  She seems to be adjusting to her new routine, although she was hoping to just get to lay in bed and watch TV 24/7, I think.  Ha!  I have to say, the day passes pretty quickly between medical needs, medicines, working on school activities, meals and snacks, and getting up 3 times a day for an hour each time and resting in between.  She is sleeping great and getting up fairly well (like a little old person) the three times a day that she is supposed to be up.  She is still in some pain but it seems to be decreasing each day.  She also is very tentative with her steps and needs/wants someone with her at all times, even when she is resting.  I am so thankful to have her bedroom downstairs so that someone can realistically be with her or we can just all congregate in her room.  It makes things so much easier and makes her feel included in the family.

My mom has been a huge help to us as she has spent each day with us.  I can't imagine having tried to do this past week without her.  She is here every morning by 6am and helps get Cannon to school which has allowed me to sleep in and try to catch up on my sleep...what a luxury and I am so thankful for her!  She has spent a great portion of the day tending to Grace's needs which has allowed us some much needed breaks.  Thank you Mom!

I continue to be overwhelmed by the love and support of our friends and neighbors.  The sweet emails, calls, and cards have been so heartwarming and all of the creative ways that you have loved us with meals, food, snacks, desserts, a welcome home cookie cake, snacks, potted plants on my porch, flowers, balloons for Grace, crafts and activities for Grace to do in bed (not to mention every stuffed animal known to the animal kingdom!), caring for Cannon so that he doesn't feel left out, Mother's Day gifts for me, donations to March of Dimes for Team Grace, and I'm sure I have forgotten so many things....these have all taken my breath away.  My cup is overflowing right now because of each of you.  I know that God has sent each of you to carry us through this time.

Please continue to pray for complete healing for Grace as she struggles to be pain free and get back to some sense of normalcy.  Also pray for her as some of her nerves are starting to wake up and do funny things.  Pray that I would not worry about this.  Please keep Kevin in your prayers as he transitions back to work tomorrow.  I know it will be a hard day for him.  Pray for stamina for all of us.  Lastly, please pray for Cannon.  His cornea was scratched in a little accident last night and we have spent part of the day at the eye dr and feeling horrible.  We are thankful that it is not worse and that there is medicine to make him feel better.

Thank you for loving us,

Carrie

Pictures say a thousand words....

Friends and Family,

Here are just a few of my favorite pictures that we captured over the past week that I thought you might like to see.  To me, they exemplify one of my favorite passages from the Bible, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?...For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither the present not the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."  Romans 8:35, 38-39.  When I look at these pictures, I can see Christ holding Grace in the palm of His hand.

May 7, 2009:  Pre-op appt with Deanna from Child-Life explaining about surgery.

May 8, 2009, 6:30AM: Grace is ready for surgery!

            

May 10, 2009:  48 hours after surgery...celebrating Mother's Day!

May 11, 2009:  After working hard with PT, Grace needed a nap!

                               
      May 11, 2009:  Playing on Daddy's computer.

May 11, 2009, 2:00pm: First steps!!!

May 11, 2009, 4:00pm:  Going Home...72 hours after surgery!!

May 11, 2009, 5:00pm:  Home at Last!!

May 11, 2009, 7:00pm:  Home with Rachel, best friend!

When Plans Change

Hi Sweet Friends and Family!  It's me, Carrie, finally writing a post again.  I know it has been several days since I have written anything and I am so thankful that Kevin did such a great job keeping ya'll informed on how to pray and on Grace's progress while we were in the hospital. For those of you who know me, it's not really like me to remain so quiet and so you might be wondering what happened to keep me so quiet and so I wanted to explain my silence, besides the obvious fact that I have been spending a lot of time caring for Grace and her needs.

When Dr. Swift told me several weeks ago that this surgery would be Grace's hardest to date, described the details in great length of what he thought he would do in the 10-12 hour surgery, and how he thought this would be a very long recovery for Grace (at least 2 months), I began to mentally and emotionally prepare myself and our family for what was ahead of us.  For the next several weeks, I was in a state of nonstop movement getting every detail ready, so that we would be ready for whatever happened.  Although, I did spend a lot of time praying, reading my Bible and mediating on His word, much of my day was spent checking off "the list".  By the morning of surgery, I believed that I was completely prepared for whatever God had in store for us that day.  Looking back on that, how truly crazy is that to think that I could have been ready for all that Dr. Swift had warned us of!  I had convinced myself that I could prepare myself for this...Ha! I truly believed there was nothing that I wasn't prepared for.  How prideful I had become!  Looking back on last week, I would have thought a fractured elbow and someone rear ending me would have knocked some sense into me...that things are not in my control...but it didn't.... I can't tell you how shocked I was when Dr. Swift came out hours before we expected him to and told us he was finished.  I remember thinking in my head, "wait a second, something can't be right, he is finished way too early...." As he called us over to talk to us privately, he began to tell us about the surgery and tell us that once he opened her up, he found something new, something he hadn't anticipated, and that he had decided to operate on this area instead of the area that he intended to operate on (which would have been much riskier), all I could think of was, "No, wait....stop....it can't be, that isn't what you were supposed to do."   As I looked around the waiting room and saw all eyes on Kevin and me, everyone seemed so excited and relieved and so I smiled...yet inside I was falling apart as I began to internalize all of my emotions and I began to allow my worry of the "what ifs" to rob me of the joy that God had intended for us in the here and now.  How could I have missed the blessings?

Throughout the next 24 hours, as Grace was in horrible pain and couldn't sleep, I began having thoughts shouting in my head over and over again, "What if this area that Dr. Swift decided not to operate on needs to be fixed and it didn't get fixed....how soon will it be until Grace will need surgery again?....How can she go through this again?....She is in so much pain....God, what are you doing?"  Instead of being able to rest in the comfort that God was in control and that He had planned the day for us long ago, I continued to unravel as I tried to humanly gain control of the situation, by reading scripture and trying to understand what God could be up to, meticulously taking care of Grace, and ordering around everyone and everything in sight of me.  

Thankfully, we have an incredible support system that came around us and loved us so well in those first 48 hours.  There were several faithful believers that I was able to share my fears with over the next several days as I honestly struggled with questions to them about my panic and whether it was being caused from plans changing or fear of the unknown of what could be ahead for Grace.  One very wise friend put it beautifully as she said to me, "You must let go and release it to God."  There was such freedom in hearing that.  I had been searching scripture, talking a lot at God, and trying to find an answer...yet it wasn't about me doing anything but just being still and letting God be God.  

Over the course of the past 17 years, I have had many times in my life that plans have changed.  Just when I get settled in and think things in life are going to be just perfect, that I have it all figured out, I am faced with a different set of plans.  What I have learned is that God always has a better plan for my life than I do and He loves me so much and wants what is best for me and my family.  Sometimes I don't know why things are happening, but He does and I can trust in that. (Jeremiah 29:11)  I am thankful that I know and love a Saviour like that and one who loves me in spite of my consistent failures.  

So, now I have another time in my life where I thought I had the road map all planned out and things got rerouted once again, but I am confident that God is in control and this will be a better plan for our life, if only I will trust Him and let Him lead.  Please pray with me that I will allow Him to lead my life and that I will trust in His perfect plan for our lives.  (Prov 3:5-6) None of us know what our future holds and trying to control our daily lives doesn't help keep our children safer.  I have no idea whether or not Grace will require another surgery but I don't want that fear of the unknown to rob me of the blessings God has for us for today.  Please pray that I will not fear for Grace's future but will rejoice in the gift of today.  

I am so thankful for friends who love me despite of my many weaknesses, who pick me up when I can't stand any longer, and who are willing to stand in the gap and pray for us when I can no longer stand anymore.

Thank you for being the hands and feet of Jesus,

Carrie 

 

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work; 

If one falls down, His friends can help him up. 

But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!  

Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.

But how can one keep warm alone?

Though one may be overpowered,

Two can defend themselves,

A cord of three strands is not quickly broken."  Ecclesiastes 4:9-12   

Home sweet home

We are home! Grace was great with physical therapist and so brave-she was apprehensive because of the pain but she did all that the therapist asked.

When we got home some friends and neighbors had a little impromptu welcome home party and started clapping and yelling encouragement as Grace got out of the car. Those that know Grace know that she didn't exactly join in the middle of the party but I can tell you it is something I think she will remember for a very long time. I know I will remember it because I know that these friends have known, prayed for, and encouraged Grace so many times before and are so geniunely excited for her.

We will no doubt have hard days in front of us helping Grace get through painful days and working through soreness but the welcome was a great way to start it off.

We have enjoyed the messages, posts, emails, and messages. Apologies as our response has no doubt been sporadic at best. Know that we feel loved and very much appreciate your support. For these first few days home, please know that while Grace would no doubt love to see friends, it would be best if she rests as she is supposed to be up for only a short period every couple of hours. So you might call and confirm that it is a good time before dropping by.

If are praying that Grace continues to progress over the next 2 weeks, if so, she might be able to make a short visit to school before it lets out for summer. It might be brief but we are hopeful...

Kevin

First Steps

Praise God!! Yay Grace!! Great night for Gracie. She was up early with Physical Therapy and took several steps this morning. While she is not exactly gleeful in this picture, she was pretty happy to be up and she would like to go home. She is resting now and will get a second round of physical therapy this afternoon. Rumor has it that if all goes well with therapy this afternoon we may be able to go home late this afternoon. I think a nap and another work out topped off by a ride home would be genius...but I have learned not to take anything for granted so we will see what happens.

Thanks for all the prayers, keep em coming. Grace will still have some pretty significant strides to make once we get home before we get back to "normal"....whatever that is.

Love ya all

Kevin

At last!

Blissful sleep! Grace finally slept for more than a few minutes at one time. She started to take a turn for the better in the afternoon yesterday after a great pain management doc took control of getting her pain managed. Then last night she (and we!) slept in between every scheduled medicine intake. Amazing how sleep and a shower change your entire disposition.

Today will be another eventful day as they will try to get Grace to sit up-this is the precursor toward working to go home. Once she sits up they will be able to make an evaluation towards what physical therapy what might be necessary.

So for those that are prayin'...and we know your out there thanks to the emails, comments, texts, voicemessages, etc. Here's the list for today:

1. That Grace would do as she has in the past and "just do it". She has always just hit a point where she is tired of the all the hub bub and just done whatever it is that is needed to get her home. She is apprehensive about the back pain she will experience when she sits up in part because she's older and in part because she is experiencing some of it already when they check her dressing. Pray that her incredible spirit kicks in full bore today...we have seen hints of it as she recovers.
2. That Carrie would experience a unique experience today on Mother's Day that lets her know how much she's loved. She has already observed that this is one holiday that we have never spent in the hospital -unlike most other holidays. I was kinda thinkin of some other type of unique experience.
3. Pray for Nannie and Papa. They have been a huge blessing in taking care during the day while Carrie and I at least close our eyes for a minute and in taking care of the home front with Cannon. That they would be sustained by the love of Christ and know they are appreciated.
4. Praise for Cannon. He has matured incredibly over the last couple of years. He is a great brother and has been reponsible, loving and under control in this whole process. Thanks to several folks that have pitched in to help Papa by spending time and hangin out with Cannon to keep him occupied constructively.

Thanks to all for the many ways that you have let us know you care. Nannie has commented a few times that we are blessed to have so many thoughtful friends that have loved us in so many ways, and she is so right. We recognize it, are humbled by it and wish that we knew of some way to adequately say thanks to all of you.

Kevin

Oh what a night

Grace had a hard night last night-seems like they could never really get her pain managed. She might have slept a total of 2 hours. Not the norm for her post surgery as she normally sleeps very well. This morning when they looked at her incision, she also got a horrible headache due to the leakage of spinal fluid from the surgery yesterday.

So specific prayers would be:

1. Praise that the surgery is finished and a hope that issues identified and corrected yesterday do truly help Grace's quality of life long term. That we not be left evaluating the need for surgery again.
2. That Grace's pain would be better managed today so that she might be able to focus on something other than her discomfort. That she would get some rest today and sleep tonight.
3. That Grace's incision will heal just as it should and that her fluid intake will help her spinal fluids to be restored as they should be without any further leakage. Pray for no more headaches!
4. Praise that Grace's tenacity is what it is.
5. Rest for Carrie and I. Thank goodness for Grace's Nannie (Carrie's mom) who has taken over care for the moment so we can at least sit down and close our eyes a bit.
6. Peace for Cannon. Thanks to friends that are making sure he feels loved and is not overly anxious about Grace's situation.
7. Patience for me with medical staff. Many have been wonderful and really are caring well for Grace. My lack of rest and watching my little princess suffer give me zero tolerance for those that are less than "at their best".

When it comes to prayer I always have to think of Philipians 4:6-7, "Do not be anxious about anything but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God that transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."

We haven't really received a clear indication of how long we will be here but I am at least hopeful that it is shorter than anticipated. I think a lot depends on making sure the pain is under control, that she can sit up without headaches, and that she can at least stay upright for very short periods. We know that recovery will still include some period of time staying flat-just not sure how much. When we know exactly what the things are that need to happen for her to go home, we will post those to pray for.

Ever since I wrote the title to this post the Four Seasons tune by that name has been running through my head. Another prayer that you can pray is that it is not still running through my head at 2 am....and 3....and 4....because we all are fast asleep! Thanks for your friendship and faithfulness in praying for my family.
Kevin

Praise the Lord!

Grace is out of surgery and in her room. The neurosurgeon was very pleased with what he was able to do. He identified a place where her spine was tethered and freed it up. It was not what he expected to find...what he expected to find was a bunch of nerves bound up in scar tissue that needed to be cleaned up in a very tedious fashion. He was very concerned with that process because it was so invasive and would have included a graft to enlarge the area around the lower spine. It also would have included several more hours of surgery and any number of weeks of additional recovery. As it is, she was in the OR until about 2:30 and that seemed long enough! So once again, Grace remains unpredictable....

We are relieved that he was able to free the tether without the need to do more a more invasive procedure. It should shorten the hospital stay and we are hopeful it will dramatically shorten recovery at home. We are hopeful that it is a long term solution....so now the hard part, waiting to find out.

We were blessed to have family and friends sit with us for the entire morning and into the afternoon....as well as what seemed to be hundreds praying throughout the surgery. To all, a huge THANK YOU. Grace is in quite a bit of pain so I will sign off for now. Thanks for loving on us.
Kevin

Specific Prayer Needs

Well, pre-op is over and Grace was cleared for surgery, bags are packed and everything is ready to go.  I'm thankful that this day is almost over.  It has been a really tough week for all of us... 

I keep having to remind myself what I know to be true...that God is in control, that He loves Grace more than we do, that this is for His glory, that He will carry us when I don't think any of us will make it one more step, that He has sent loving friends here on earth to be His hands and feet, and so much more....

We would love for you to join us in prayer as we pray for:

1.  Dr. Swift and the entire medical team...for steady hands, clarity and wisdom as Dr. Swift and others will be operating for many, many hours.

2.  Good sleep tonight for all of us.

3.  No anxiety for Grace or any of us but a peace that surpasses all understanding.

4.  No fear for Grace as she heads into the operating room but a continued trust and faith in God.

5.  Pray that Grace will feel a closeness to Him and that He will comfort her.

6.  For Grace's spine and nerves that are attached to her spine....that every little tiny one would remain in tact with none being injured, severed, or bruised as the team operates to detach the tethered cord.

7.  Pain management for Friday night, pray that somehow that she would feel very little or no pain.

8.  For God to be glorified through this.

9.  For Cannon tomorrow as he is at school, that he would be able to somehow keep focused and that God would surround him with loving friends to support him.

Thank you for your prayers and for your love for our family,

Carrie

 

Room Makeover....Jen and Sally Style

I couldn't go to sleep tonight without telling you about the AMAZING thing my sweet friends did for us today.  We decided several weeks ago that while Grace was recovering from surgery it might be good to move her room downstairs, our room is downstairs and overall it would just be a good thing to not have to manage stairs, etc.  For those of you who have not seen our home, we have a small guest room on the first floor that used to be Taylor's room and before that it was a one car garage.  This is the room that we were going to let Grace use, but it was very bare and basic...no pink in it at all and I just didn't have the energy to try to re-do a room right now.  

When I came home from Bible study today, two precious sweet friends had "made over" this room and transformed it into an incredibly pink and fun room for Grace!  I couldn't believe my eyes and when Grace saw it she loved it too!  These friends didn't miss one detail and even left matching pjs for us to wear!

I continue to be amazed each day at the outpouring of many sweet friends who are loving us so well with emails, calls, cards in the mail, dinners, prayers...just letting us know that we are loved.  Thank you!

I am also so thankful for these friends who loved us in a very creative and amazing way today. Attached, you will see a photo with Grace in her "new room"!

Carrie

"A friend loves at all times."  Proverbs 17:17  

Not worryin'

Several of you have asked me how is Grace is doing regarding Friday.  Whether she is scared, anxious, or worried.  So, I decided to ask her since she hasn't really talked a lot about it to us or anyone else.  Here is how the conversation went:

Carrie:  "Hey, Grace, I wanted to ask you if you were getting anxious or worried about Friday."

Grace:  "No"  (with a look that said that was such a stupid question, Mom)

Carrie:  "Well, I just thought I would ask you because several of my friends have wanted to know how you were doing and if you were anxious."

Grace: didn't comment, just still gave me that look.

Carrie:  "Well, you know, if you do start worrying about anything or just need to talk, you know we are here for you and if it is at school you can always talk to Nurse Jenny or Nurse Diane."

Grace:  "Mom, your friends must never have had surgery before.  I have and I know about it.  It's really not that big of a deal, you know, everything is going to be just fine."(huge smile on her face)

I think my mouth must have dropped down to my ankles at this.  It reminds me of one of my favorite passages in the Bible about worry from Matthew 6:25-34. I love the way my daughter consistently teaches me about having faith.

Carrie 

Prayers needed

We are very thankful for everyone who has read the blog and is praying for our family!  I wanted to update you on a current prayer need for Grace.  She fell at recess yesterday and has fractured a bone in her growth plate in her left elbow.  Sadly enough, she is a lefty and is not able to use her arm at all right now.  They put her in a sling and that seems to be helping with some of the pain, but she is pretty helpless right now.  What seems to be even more of an immediate issue is that she has an open wound, where she scraped her elbow.  We are treating it so that it doesn't get infected before she goes to the hospital and are praying that the wound begins to heal so that there is no question about whether to operate or not due to possible infection.  

Please join us as we pray for Grace to quit having pain in her elbow, for the wound to heal quickly and that there would be no infection, for rest for us, and that surgery would go forward as planned.  

Thank you for your continued prayers,

Carrie