Thankful this day is over!

Thank you for your prayers today.  We really needed them.  I think the effects of yesterday hit Grace today because she had a really hard day today.  She spent most of the morning and afternoon crying.  I love the way God always sweeps in and takes over when I just don't think I can handle it anymore.  Today, it was in the form of my sweet husband walking through the door right when I needed a helping hand and consoling Grace for 15 minutes so that I could get Cannon where he needed to be.  Just getting out and away from the situation for a few minutes allowed me to pray without hearing crying, gather my thoughts again, and be able to come back in and gear up for the afternoon.  I had a hard time convincing her to get in the car so that we could make it on time to her scheduled appointment and blood draw, but thankfully once I got her in the car and we were on the way, she seemed to calm down.

We are all rejoicing that, as long as things go smoothly, Grace is not scheduled to see a dr or the hospital for a few weeks!  I pray that this holds true.  We also pray for patience as we wait 2 weeks for the blood tests to be analyzed and information to be gathered regarding the latest testing that was done and wisdom as we decide how to proceed further.  

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

Carrie  

Relying on the Lord

"Do you not know?  Have you not heard?  The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.  He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.  He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.  Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."  Isaiah 40:28-31

This has always been one of my favorite verses and one that I have clung to in times where I have thought, "Ok, Lord, we just can't do this one more second."  I have found such comfort in this verse.  I am so thankful that the Lord reminded me of this verse just this morning during my quiet time.  He knew that we would need to cling to it today and be reminded that we can't do it alone.  Thank you God for your words!

What was supposed to be a 4 hour stay at Children's ended up being over 8 hours, with lots of blood draws and more pokes than we were anticipating.  Even though it wasn't the ideal situation, God covered us every step of the way.  The nurses and staff were wonderful and so compassionate.  Grace's main nurse ended up staying 3 hours after her shift to continue taking care of her and ended up making sure we made it out of the hospital okay because it was dark outside.  We are so thankful for her care.  Grace was like a little angel the whole time we were there.  She never complained and kept her radiant glow about her the entire time.  I know that it is only through the Lord that this is even possible because a little body can only take so much.  I continue to pray that He will strengthen all of us.

Tomorrow, she has will have a follow-up appointment and will then have to have more blood work.  Please pray that we will continue to rely on the Lord for our strength and that we would not question His plan for her life.

We continue to be so thankful for your prayers.  They were really felt today.

Much love,

Carrie

Here we go again....

Please continue to pray for Grace.  She will be checked in to Children's Special Procedures Unit tomorrow for at least four hours where they will be doing some additional testing.  She will have an IV put in, have blood drawn every half hour, and will have an experimental medicine pumped into her to see if it helps with some issues that she has been having.  In true Grace fashion, she seems very calm and so at ease with knowing where she will spend her day tomorrow.  I pray that it will all go smoothly and she will be loved well by all that we come in contact with.  I also pray that she will be a light to others....I know this is part of God's purpose for her life...pray that we will remember that when we grow weary tomorrow.

I am so thankful for a great weekend of rest, relaxation, and lots of fun so that we can be recharged for another week of testing and appointments.

Thank you for your continued prayers for our family,

Love,

Carrie

Psalm 55:22 "Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken."

Great 24 hours!!!

It's been a GREAT 24 hours at our house and I would like to thank you for your prayers for our family!  Yesterday was Cannon's 13th birthday and we have been celebrating for the past 24 hours.  Since Grace was born 9 years ago, half of Cannon's birthdays have been spent with Grace in the hospital, so we were all very thankful that this one was celebrated with Grace only having to make a short trip down to Children's for an appointment!  Cannon slept in and didn't even notice we were gone!

It has been really great to have both Grace and Cannon feeling so good too!  Cannon had a wonderful day getting ready for his performance and we all truly enjoyed the musical last night.  It was great and Cannon did a fantastic job.  Afterwards, we celebrated at one of Cannon and Grace's favorite restaurants and were even treated to the regular event of the raccoons coming out to beg for food...I know it is bizarre but something they love to watch.  I had to pull Cannon away from them when I noticed that he was hand feeding them...we have spent enough time down at Children's lately, no need for a rabies scare right now!  The night ended with Cannon enjoying a few presents from family and a special treat from his small group leader's (Amit) mom.  She baked Cannon a chocolate chip cake and sent it to him.  So sweet and Cannon loved it.

Since Cannon had to have his birthday party postponed due to his injury, we planned to take him to Dave and Busters today for some games.  This is another spot that Grace and Cannon love and we always take them there sometime during the summer to get out of the heat.  It was great to just watch them have fun and forget about everything that has happened over the past few months.  I loved watching them count their tickets and decide what was the biggest stuffed animal they could come home with!

I think the best part of Cannon's bday showed up at around 5:30 today....My brother and nephew drove up from Houston and surprised Cannon.  It was so fun to see his expression when they showed up!  He said it was the best present he could ever receive!  Cannon, Grace, and Brett Jr. had a ball at dinner at Magic Time Machine joking with all of the characters and just plain laughing.  I don't think any of us have had so much fun in months.  It was so good to get out, laugh, forget about health issues, and be normal!!! 

Thank you for all of your prayers.  We feel so blessed that our family has had such a great Friday and Saturday and that everyone has felt so good!

Carrie

  

Cannon as The Caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland, The Musical

                         Cannon feeding a raccoon at one of his favorite restaurants in Dallas

      Cannon's cake from Amit's mom flown in from New York!

Happy Birthday Cannon from Grace and bunny!

      Cannon and Grace with their prizes at Dave and Busters

Having fun at Magic Time Machine....Grace is hiding in my lap...my brother (Brett) is the one on the far left, my nephew (Brett Jr) is next to Cannon...my dad took the picture.

  Our family celebrating bday at Magic Time Machine!  

 Happy 13th Birthday Cannon!!!

Refreshed and ready

For those who have been following regularly, you will be happy to know that Cannon is going to be able to participate in his musical tomorrow night.  His theater teacher and all of the instructors at PCD have been wonderful throughout this past week!  He practiced his role today and they say he is ready!!  I can't believe he is ready and we are thrilled for him!  I know how much it means to him and am so thankful that he feels so much better!  He hasn't even taken any pain medicine today!!  

So, they will be performing in the Bob Hope Theater at SMU (really cool!!) tomorrow night at 7pm.  General public invited!  $5 tickets at the door, so come if you want to!  It's Alice in Wonderland.  His role is the caterpillar and he has a solo.  Should be really cute!  If you can't tell, I am really proud of him and the way God has wired him to be so passionate about this.  For those who have known him for a long time, you know he has always loved dressing up and doing some type of dramatization and we are just excited that he can finally have an outlet for this!  Thank you God for healing Cannon's body and we pray that he feels loved tomorrow as he celebrates his 13th birthday!!

Grace had a quiet day today of resting and building up her energy again today.  I think she is getting used to this new routine and I am thankful that she is so cooperative.  Tomorrow, she will spend the morning down at Children's for further testing.  We will all need our strength and patience for that!  Please pray that no abnormalities will be found in Grace's sweet body tomorrow.

Last thing I wanted to share was that I had a sweet, sweet friend treat me to an afternoon out. For a few hours, I was able to forget about life at home and I came home refreshed and with a full cup again!  I continue to be overwhelmed with the blessings that our family receives from so many wonderful friends!

Thank you for the way each of you continues to love us!

Carrie   

Another great day!

I am so happy to report that Cannon and Grace both had another great day!  Praise God! Cannon was able to go to his theater workshop again and was even able to participate!  I can't tell you how excited he was and how happy he looked when I picked him up! 

Since I felt that Cannon was being taken care of,  I was able to take Grace and a friend to the pool for a few hours to swim.  Grace had such a good time at the pool and really enjoyed hanging with one of her buddies that she has known for many, many years.  It was so good to be out and to know that both of our children were enjoying themselves!  I felt that a huge burden had been lifted off of my shoulders.

We also enjoyed a nice evening too.  I am so thankful for a good day and pray for more to come!

Thank you for your continued prayers!

Carrie  

A Good Day...Praise God!

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."

Praise God for a good day today!  Cannon woke up and seemed rested, his color was back, and so was his personality....dimples and everything!  He had a good morning and so he ended up getting to go watch his Musical Theater camp today.  It was so fun to see his face light up when everyone in the room shouted his name when he walked in!  I think they were all relieved to see him!  And it was great to see him back where he loves to be.  Although the afternoon was really good for him, he came home really exhausted and so he rested this evening.  He did get enough energy later in the evening to ask if we could have a family game night...again, it was just so good to see him back to himself!  WE compromised with 1 game and then bedtime.

Grace also had another good day.  She enjoyed some one on one time with me this afternoon as we played Polly Pockets and her dolls.  I asked her if she was bored with staying at home and if she was ready to start going places and she told me, "No, momma, I get too tired when we go out.  I really like it when we just play at home."  I think some of this is true but I also think she feels safe at home too.  My prayer for her is that she will learn to feel more comfortable being out more and will gain more and more strength, as well.  She did walk to the end of the street and back with Kevin tonight, which is great exercise for her!

I continue to be so thankful for my sweet friends who love us enough to continue to call, email, and post to this blog to check up on us.  I am also so thankful for the thoughtful friends who take time out of their busy summer to check in on us here at the house.  Cannon had a nice visit last night with his small group leaders from church that really seemed to bring him a lot of joy and ice cream for the kids and we had sweet friends today who stopped by with the kids favorite treats!  Thank you for the way you are loving our family,

Thank you also for your continued prayers,

Carrie  

Trusting God

Proverbs 3:5 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding."  I know you know this verse, as do I.  I have said it a million times in my lifetime and have prayed it even more today.  

After a rough night with Cannon again we decided that we needed to call the dr to see if he wanted to see him again.  After a full evaluation at the dr's office, he quickly sent us to Children's for a CT scan.  I am very thankful to report that his scan looked good!  I am also very thankful for a great team that saw us very quickly and also got the news back to us very quickly.  It seems that this stubborn little concussion is just going to take some more time to heal and that Cannon's body is just going to need to rest more.  Please pray for Cannon's body to heal, for patience for all of us, and for us to continue trusting in God's perfect plan.

Grace's appt also went well today.  Best news we have received in a long time....the cyst in Grace's nasal septum hasn't grown and this particular dr doesn't need to see Grace for one year and then reevaluate then!!!!  Praise God for this good report!  Praise also that she has had a good day and seems to be feeling good today!

If all goes well, we shouldn't have to go back to Children's until Friday when Grace will have a sonogram.  We would love for your prayers surrounding that test and that the drs would not find any abnormalities in the sonogram.

Please pray for all of his to get rest and be comforted by Him.

Thank you so much for your prayers,

Carrie     

Continued prayers for Cannon and Grace

Thank you for your prayers and calls regarding Cannon and Grace.  Cannon has improved a little since Thursday getting a little more of his personality back but has spent the entire weekend laying flat, in a dark room.  He has continued to experience incredible headaches and when he walks he has been dizzy. We thought he had perked up a little more this afternoon and even tried to move him to a sitting up position but that only lasted about 15 minutes before he became very sick to his stomach and started having blurred vision again.  So, he had to lay back down.  We continue to pray each day that he gets better.  Now that he seems to have more of a memory, he is very upset about missing his theater camp last Thursday and Friday and we are all praying that he feels better tomorrow so that he will be able to go tomorrow afternoon and throughout the week.  He is supposed to be in a musical on Friday evening but looking at him now it is hard to think that he could rehearse for 4 hours each day and be ready for that on Friday.  But, we are still praying for him since we know how much he loves this and this is the only activity he signed up for the entire summer.  His 13th birthday is also 5 days away and so that is another prayer....that he will be well to celebrate that.  He already knows that his party (taking a few friends to Six Flags) has had to be postponed for several weeks but it would be nice to have him feel better.  Please just continue to pray for him and thank you for all of your prayers for him to date.

Grace's appt at Children's on Friday was very long and hard.  We heard a lot of information regarding a new medical condition that will require further testing this week and in the weeks to follow.  Grace came home from the appointment and had a really hard afternoon, spending most of the day crying.  I am not sure if she was sad from what she heard at the appointment, tired from the long day, frustrated that her brother was getting so much attention from me, or a combination of all of the above.  Saturday wasn't much better for her and so Kevin took her to swim for a few hours and even though she seemed tired, I think it did her good to get some one on one attention alone with Daddy.  Today has been a better day for her, but overall, she is still very tired.

Tomorrow, Grace and I head back down to the hospital to see another specialist.  This time to discuss MRI results from April regarding the cyst in her nasal septum.  I expect that he will want to just keep watching this area, based on what the MRI report said, and so I hope this appt is just routine.  But, I will tell you all of the drs appts are starting to wear on Grace and me.  Please pray for our patience tomorrow and that Grace will have a good day.

Thank you for continuing to pray for all of us,

Carrie   

Prayers for Cannon and Grace needed

Please pray for our sweet Cannon.  He was hit in the head last night and has a concussion.  He has been in terrible pain all day today along with severe headaches, blurred vision, dizziness, nausea, and bouts of vomiting.  He is supposed to be laying in a dark room until his headaches go away and we are unsure of when that will be.  Another hard part of this is that he has lost his normal bubbly personality.  He is like a blank screen....no smile, no dimples, just staring into space.  It has been really weird all day but the drs promised me that this is very normal for a head injury and he should return to his old self when he begins feeling better. Please pray that he will feel better soon and that he will have no long term effects of the injury.

Please also pray for Grace.  She is going tomorrow for another evaluation down at Children's.  Please pray that the drs will have wisdom on how to proceed with some issues with Grace.  Please pray for our decisions that we will need to make.  Most importantly, please pray for Grace as she will have to undergo some more testing.  

So many of you have asked how we are doing and I would be lying to you if I just smiled and told you we were fine.  But, I will say, even though we are weary, we are hanging in there.  It takes a lot of Bible reading and praying to make it through the day and I still fall so short in how He would have me live my day.  I am thankful for sweet friends that continue to check in on us and continue to lift us up in prayer.

2 Corinthians 4:8 "We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed.  We are perplexed, but not driven to despair."

Love,

Carrie

Swimming, at last!

On Friday, Grace woke me up asking me if her incision was healed enough to be able to go swimming.  This has been the ongoing question for weeks now and something that I had been saying "NO" to over and over again.  But, on Friday.....the answer was "YES"....there were NO MORE stitches sticking out of her back!!!  I think that one little word, "YES" is what she has been holding onto hope for, for so many weeks now.

So, what does a little girl want to do that has just been cleared to swim?  She drags her parents to her brother's VBS family night at Hawaiian Falls on Friday night, knowing that there isn't much there that she will be able to physically do but in her words she tells us, "All I want to do is go to that big area that dumps water on you, Momma, and just sit there, please." "Oh yea, can I please, go down the lazy river, too?"  So, for 72 minutes, one little girl who has been counting the days until she could swim again, had the time of her life!  Then, it began to lightning and we came home.  I think most people were sad to have to leave, but not our car, I think we were the happiest family leaving the parking lot. 

Saturday evening, we took the kids to see The Wizard of OZ at the Dallas Summer Musicals.  Another fun outing for the family! Even the wicked witch didn't seem to scare Grace.  I guess when you have been through what Grace has been through, not much can scare you! 

Sunday, Grace got to go back to church for the first time since her surgery and was excited to    see her teachers and her friends, but also seemed a little nervous.  Her OYM teachers and friends were so sweet to her and made her transition back to church very easy.  Lauren was there and even though Grace seemed a little apprehensive when she walked in, as soon as she saw sweet Lauren's face, she was able to just kind of peal off of me and onto Lauren.  I am so thankful for the way she and the other OYM leaders serve and love Grace!  

The question of the day after church on Sunday was, " Could we please go swimming at Royal Oaks?"  Grace was thrilled to get to go swimming at her favorite watering hole and looked like a fish in the water.  She definitely is such a natural in the water and I am so thankful that she has a place that she feels so comfortable being.  And, so thankful that she can swim again!  

I am so thankful for the blessing of swimming for Grace!  She was so happy this weekend!  Please continue to pray for her as her body continues to heal.  She is very worn out today and is needing to rest.  I pray that her strength and endurance will come back, but that in the meantime that we will be able to balance fun and rest.  I pray for her body temperature that doesn't regulate properly....I ask that we would be able to keep it under control as the Dallas temperatures are increasing.  I also pray for her bladder pain and other issues going on in her body.  I pray for complete healing of her body.  I pray for her studies as she is being tutored each morning throughout the summer; that she won't grow weary but that she will grow in knowledge and understanding.  I also pray for Grace as she begins to adjust to having to be more independent, after months of relying on me for everything this is hard for her.  She deals with so much, but right now I am going to bask in the memory of this weekend and the pure joy that I saw on her face, and not be burdened by the many hardships that she faces!

Thank you for continuing to pray for our family,

Carrie

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass thorugh the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
when you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
For I am the Lord, your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour;
I give Egypt for your ransom,
Cush and Seba in your stead.
Since you are precious and honored in my sight,
and because I love you 

Isaiah 43:1-4

The Land of Imagination

Grace had a quiet Wednesday.  I think her body had to rest from all of the playing in the sprinkler that she did on Tuesday.  I think she was also sad because Kevin left for New York on Wednesday.  This trip had been planned for him months ago...a celebration dinner for a big event that happened last fall for him.  Our family had been planning on joining him on this trip and staying on extra to see the sights of NYC but had to cancel due to Grace's unforeseen lengthy recovery.  Although everyone in our family was very sad about canceling the trip, we knew that it was the right thing to do for our family and that God had something better planned for our future!  We just needed to be patient and wait.   

Thankfully, by Friday, Grace's body was ready to venture out again.  Mrs. Kuhne came by and picked Grace and a friend up to go get icecream.  They had so much fun!  Grace left giggling and came home giggling.  Grace felt good enough when she came home to play with her sweet friend for another hour and a half!  They escaped to the land of imagination.  It was so fun to listen to the world they went to.  I am so thankful for friends and for imaginations that can take Grace to a world that sometimes can be much more fun than the one she lives in!

And a sidenote, after a horrible thunderstorm, rainstorm, and lightening storm that began Wednesday night and didn't end until Thursday afternoon in Dallas, dropping over 10 inches of rain in the Park Cities, Kevin made it back on the ONLY flight that left La Guardia the entire day!  The report from NYC was it was raining there too so we didn't miss much! 

Thank you for continuing to pray for our family,

Carrie

Fireflies and Sprinklers

Yesterday and today were much better days for Grace.  She seems to be feeling better and we are so thankful for that.  We have been trying to push her a little more to try to build up her strength. We have also been trying to find activities to keep her occupied as summer is in it's second week and she still can't swim.  To a little girl who didn't seem to mind having to miss out on so many end of school activities, having to miss out on swimming AND the trampoline is starting to take it's toll on her.  So, what does a big brother and friend do about that?  They find other things for Grace to do that also represent summertime fun....catching fireflies and running through sprinklers....good old fashioned fun! I have to tell you, my little heart leapt for joy when I saw Grace's face last night as she watched the fireflies in amazement.  It was so good to see her on her feet and giggling to her heart's content.  And again, today, when she was sad about not being able to swim, the sprinkler was dusted off and put out in our front yard and the giggling began all over again.  The afternoon ended with a few of the neighborhood kids shooting water balloons with a huge slingshot and all of us watching it fly down to the next block.  I don't think I have laughed that hard in weeks.  It was great to see the smiles on my sweet kid's faces and know that we are so blessed.

Thanks for your prayers for our family!

Love,

Carrie 

                   Cannon and the water balloon slingshot!

Let Go and Let God Be God

I will have to say that this has been quite a long week for us; this being the first week of summer. While it started off with some fun activities, Western Day on Monday and a lemonade stand on Tuesday, the week began to drag on.  I think a lot of this had to do with Grace not feeling very well.  She complained much of the week that her bladder was hurting and seemed to be in a lot of pain.  We ended up making a trip on Thursday to Children's Hospital to see her neurosurgeon and after a very rough Thursday night, we made a trip to the urology office on Friday.  I am disappointed to say that we don't know much except that she is still not feeling great and no one seems to know what could be wrong.

I spent a lot of yesterday feeling down and sad for her, as I watched her seem so accepting of just laying in her bed and feeling rotten.  I wanted to scream at someone as I looked at her and thought how unfair it is that she has this "lot" in life.  Thankfully, I didn't.  I took her cue.  She seems so okay with where she is and so I must learn to accept it to.  As a parent, I want so much for her, but I must shrink back and remember that God has a perfect plan for her life....what is so amazing is that she gets it....why can't I?  Some times I can rest in Him and be so strong and 

other times I fight so hard to take it back and be in control.  My prayer for me today is to let go and let God be God.  

I am thankful for the joyful moments of the week where we definitely felt loved....the fun activities that Cannon planned for us, a visit from Lauren (one of Grace's OYM leaders from church) and her dog-Jack, a visit from Grandma and Grandpa, several visits from Grace's friends, date night for me and Kevin, "samples" made from Papa and Nannie (the kids favorite dinner), porch sitting and chatting with my mom, and making Kevin and Grace's favorite cake and singing Happy Birthday to Kevin (his bday is in September, just to make Grace smile), and all of the other ways that each of you have showed up and made us smile this week.

Thank you for your continued prayers for Grace and for our family,

Love,

Carrie

First Day of Summer!

Monday was an exciting day around our house.  It was the first day of summer and Cannon and his friend, Lydia, declared it National Western Day.  They decorated our house and dressed up in western wear and demanded that we all put on our best western wear to celebrate.  It was quite a change from the quiet days Grace and I had been living!  The day ended with a Western Party in our backyard, where they invited several friends to join in the fun.  They read a story, played games, and even had a scavenger hunt.  It was so good to see Grace smile and have so much fun!  I am so thankful for Cannon's tender heart for wanting to entertain his sister and for his creative spirit.  He always knows how to have a good time!!  Kevin's parents were in town visiting from the weekend (our oldest nephew, Jordan, graduated from high school, Yea!!) and so they got a real kick out of watching the festivities too!  Praise God for good times and brothers who know how to think outside of the box!  (you can have fun in summer without going swimming!)

Sack Races

Grace playing pin the rope on the bull

Grace after bobbing for apples

Cannon after bobbing for apples

The Gang

Thanks for continuing to pray!

Love,

Carrie