This, too, Lord?
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and when you pass through 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. (Isaiah 43:2,3)
Praise be to the Lord, to God our Saviour,
who daily bears our burdens. (Psalm 68:19)
Strength and courage for the everyday.
I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation,
whether well fed or hungry,
whether living in plenty or in want.
I can do all everything through him who gives me strength. (Phil. 4:12,13)
Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified;
do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be
with you wherever you go. (Deuteronomy 31:6-8)
It is all part of YOUR plan.
For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth.,
your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be. (Psalm 139:12-16)
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord,
"plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future.
Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me,
and I will listen to you.
You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:11)
Fill me.
May the God of HOPE fill you will all JOY and PEACE
as you TRUST in Him, so that you may OVERFLOW with HOPE
by the POWER of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)
I pray that out of His glorious riches he may strengthen you,
so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
And I pray you, being rooted and established in love, may have power to grasp
how wide and long and deep and high is the love of Christ,
and to know this love that surpasses knowledge -
that you may be filled to the measure of all fullness of God.
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,
according to his power that is at work within us,
to him be glory in the Church, and in Christ Jesus
through out all generations, for ever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:16-21)
Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,
for I have put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. (Psalm 143:8)
I pray for healing.
"He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." (Psalm 147:3)
"For with God nothing will be impossible." (Luke 1:37)
"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)
Monday, June 11, 2012
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
The Misadventures of Nate the Great
Just when you think your plate is full....well, just push everything over a little and you'll find you can squeeze a bit more on the side! Now, this would be fine if we were talking literally, and you were scooping on another serving of verenki or something! Unfortunately, in our case, we're adding on something a little less savoury.
This afternoon, Nate took a fall off of his chair while finishing up lunch. He landed smack on the side of his body. To make a long story short, he broke his collar bone.
He's doing pretty well, but it kind of changes every part of the day to day. Right now, he's sleeping on the recliner. He tried lying down in bed, but that was obviously causing him pain. The injury is on his right clavicle which is rendering his dominant hand useless right now, being in a sling. It feels similar to how life was post-operatively, the careful way of picking him up 'scoop style', feeding him his meals, and just being wary of his every move. I'm told these things can take up to six weeks to heal, but I'm counting on the resiliency of a child, and the power of prayer to the Great Healer, to get him back to his regular self.
This afternoon, Nate took a fall off of his chair while finishing up lunch. He landed smack on the side of his body. To make a long story short, he broke his collar bone.
He's doing pretty well, but it kind of changes every part of the day to day. Right now, he's sleeping on the recliner. He tried lying down in bed, but that was obviously causing him pain. The injury is on his right clavicle which is rendering his dominant hand useless right now, being in a sling. It feels similar to how life was post-operatively, the careful way of picking him up 'scoop style', feeding him his meals, and just being wary of his every move. I'm told these things can take up to six weeks to heal, but I'm counting on the resiliency of a child, and the power of prayer to the Great Healer, to get him back to his regular self.
Monday, May 7, 2012
Our Day
Thanks for each one of your prayers today. They were felt and answered in different ways.
The drive in was great until we got grid locked on Route 90. It took 45 minutes to travel less than 2 km's between Corydon and Academy. SO frustrating. And I hate being late. That's why we always add in a good 1/2 hour of grace time anytime we travel in for an appointment. Well, we used up that grace time, and more. But the clinic was very understanding, and had some other people who were stuck in the same traffic. And the lemon poppyseed bundt cake I brought for them helped, too!
The awesome news is that Nate did pretty great! There was a little bit of resistance, but nothing that I couldn't talk him through. I didn't even have to pull out the new toy I had bought for this purpose....the gummy bears seemed to have done the trick this time around!
The news that was a bit harder digest is what the echo showed. Good new is that his liver is normal and he is not showing signs of heart failure. Bad news is the gradient, which 4 months ago finally showed it's first increase and improvement since surgery 2 years ago, has decreased significantly. We're back at the numbers we were before surgery. The band hasn't changed, still showing the same diameter and position, so it isn't a problem with the band, or that redoing that banding surgery would correct.
What comes next? Well, to start, we're upping the lasix (diuretic) to twice daily. We'll try that for a month and go back for another echo on June 18th, to see if that gradient number is staying put. If there is no change, Dr. Soni feels that intervention is required. And this is the tricky part with Nate's L-TGA (or Cc-TGA), valve replacement or repair really isn't going to be an option. So, that leaves us with Transplant.
To me, right now, that's a scary word. A word that if I allow myself to go there, even for just a minute, it overcomes me. So, I try to think only of our God who is stronger. Who is greater!
I'm sure I'll be back soon with more, but for now, I hope this gives you the info to update you. It's the best I can do with just a few hours to process this ;). Thanks for praying us through this day! And thanks to my mom for company for the drive and help along the way!
The drive in was great until we got grid locked on Route 90. It took 45 minutes to travel less than 2 km's between Corydon and Academy. SO frustrating. And I hate being late. That's why we always add in a good 1/2 hour of grace time anytime we travel in for an appointment. Well, we used up that grace time, and more. But the clinic was very understanding, and had some other people who were stuck in the same traffic. And the lemon poppyseed bundt cake I brought for them helped, too!
The awesome news is that Nate did pretty great! There was a little bit of resistance, but nothing that I couldn't talk him through. I didn't even have to pull out the new toy I had bought for this purpose....the gummy bears seemed to have done the trick this time around!
The news that was a bit harder digest is what the echo showed. Good new is that his liver is normal and he is not showing signs of heart failure. Bad news is the gradient, which 4 months ago finally showed it's first increase and improvement since surgery 2 years ago, has decreased significantly. We're back at the numbers we were before surgery. The band hasn't changed, still showing the same diameter and position, so it isn't a problem with the band, or that redoing that banding surgery would correct.
What comes next? Well, to start, we're upping the lasix (diuretic) to twice daily. We'll try that for a month and go back for another echo on June 18th, to see if that gradient number is staying put. If there is no change, Dr. Soni feels that intervention is required. And this is the tricky part with Nate's L-TGA (or Cc-TGA), valve replacement or repair really isn't going to be an option. So, that leaves us with Transplant.
To me, right now, that's a scary word. A word that if I allow myself to go there, even for just a minute, it overcomes me. So, I try to think only of our God who is stronger. Who is greater!
I'm sure I'll be back soon with more, but for now, I hope this gives you the info to update you. It's the best I can do with just a few hours to process this ;). Thanks for praying us through this day! And thanks to my mom for company for the drive and help along the way!
Sunday, May 6, 2012
FOUR
Our little man turned 4 last week. A fun day for all involved!
Even strawberry jam toast seems special for breakfast
when you're sitting on the birthday balloon chair!
There were a few moments of stress, when at 3:00 he decided he no longer wanted his Flyers vs. Sharks cake.....suddenly a construction cake is what was all that he wanted! Oh yes, there were tears involved! Somehow, in the end, his hockey cake met his approval.
And what is just as good as Lego?? Cold, hard cash is!
Just a note, tomorrow is another trip to see his cardiologist. Please pray for Nate! I sure would love for this appointment to finally be a good experience for him (and us!). Thanks in advance!
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Spring
What has 'sprung' in the Hiebert home?
Easter!!!
What's better than an outdoor Easter Egg hunt?
Opening each and every little treasure to discover the treat inside!
We had such a great weekend together as a family. From the wonderful services at church and celebrating communion, to the great food and time spent with both of our families.
The extended Hiebert family descended on our home and we had fun getting ready for it. Brady took some time to create the name tags for all of his cousins.
I took inspiration from some of our favorite restaurants that cover their tables with paper, and did a copy cat for the kids' table.
After the kids were done their meal, but still needed to wait for the adults to finish before getting their dessert, the markers came out and kept the kids totally occupied (and happy and quiet(ish)!) until we were all done.
It was fun to see their creations!
Game Night!!!
Well, it was more like Game Afternoon. It was a lazy Sunday afternoon, when Don heard these words:
"Daddy, can you teach me to play Risk?"
It was like music to his ears! Now, Don and Risk go way, way back.
In 1981 to be exact. Don's family was living in South Korea when this game was first introduced to the Hiebert boys. The boys liked to hang out at the Hospitality House on the American Airforce base nearby. They would spend hours playing games and watching movies with real life soldiers. Life couldn't get much cooler than that. Somewhere along the way, the GI's brought out this game and taught the boys how to play. The game made it's way home with the Hiebert family, along with many memories!
Unfortunately, I really have no desire (yet) to learn how to successfully play this game, so you can imagine Don's pure enjoyment teaching Brady and Nate how to play.
That first game was played over the course of 2 days: before school, a quick turn or two at lunch, and after supper. And to the ultra-competitive Brady, it was a good thing that he won that first game!
The game looks every bit as aged as you would expect. The cards worn and bent. One can only imagine the hours the Hiebert boys spent battling it out!
And now our own Hiebert boys are continuing the tradition!
Outdoor play!!!
How do we survive the winter each year?? So thankful for impromptu baseball games, soccer, and street hockey games.
Easter!!!
What's better than an outdoor Easter Egg hunt?
Opening each and every little treasure to discover the treat inside!
We had such a great weekend together as a family. From the wonderful services at church and celebrating communion, to the great food and time spent with both of our families.
The extended Hiebert family descended on our home and we had fun getting ready for it. Brady took some time to create the name tags for all of his cousins.
I took inspiration from some of our favorite restaurants that cover their tables with paper, and did a copy cat for the kids' table.
After the kids were done their meal, but still needed to wait for the adults to finish before getting their dessert, the markers came out and kept the kids totally occupied (and happy and quiet(ish)!) until we were all done.
It was fun to see their creations!
Game Night!!!
Well, it was more like Game Afternoon. It was a lazy Sunday afternoon, when Don heard these words:
"Daddy, can you teach me to play Risk?"
It was like music to his ears! Now, Don and Risk go way, way back.
In 1981 to be exact. Don's family was living in South Korea when this game was first introduced to the Hiebert boys. The boys liked to hang out at the Hospitality House on the American Airforce base nearby. They would spend hours playing games and watching movies with real life soldiers. Life couldn't get much cooler than that. Somewhere along the way, the GI's brought out this game and taught the boys how to play. The game made it's way home with the Hiebert family, along with many memories!
Unfortunately, I really have no desire (yet) to learn how to successfully play this game, so you can imagine Don's pure enjoyment teaching Brady and Nate how to play.
That first game was played over the course of 2 days: before school, a quick turn or two at lunch, and after supper. And to the ultra-competitive Brady, it was a good thing that he won that first game!
The game looks every bit as aged as you would expect. The cards worn and bent. One can only imagine the hours the Hiebert boys spent battling it out!
And now our own Hiebert boys are continuing the tradition!
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Blog Fog
That about sums it up! I've not had a lot to share; and even fewer pictures to go along with that! The mundane of our everyday has felt just that....mundane. And yet, it's kept us going non-stop for the last few months, too!
We officially have our house on 'the market', and have showed it a number of times. I thought it would be long sold by now, but that's not what the market has been doing lately, so we wait patiently! I'm very thankful for the contentment and peace that I've felt while waiting, too!
We celebrated Don's birthday a few days ago. We enjoyed a quick family supper and devoured some tasty Flyers birthday cake. It was my first attempt at a frozen buttercream transfer for the logo, and I was surprised how fun (and easy!) it was. I brought supper to my parents house and we ate there, since they were away and we had a showing scheduled for right after supper (trying to have birthday supper, presents and all the rest, and be cleaned up and ready for a showing in an hour is a crazy proposition....I'm learning!).
We should be finding out about Nate's next cardiology appointment soon. I'm prayerfully optimistic. I've been noticing a few changes in Nate in the last 1-2 months: a wetter sounding cough, a bit more fatigue and grumpiness/laziness. I hadn't mentioned any of my concerns to Don. But a couple of days ago, Don asked me if I'd been noticing those exact issues, and we both agreed there has been some negative changes. It's funny how I didn't really want to voice my concerns, even to Don....it was like admitting that something might be wrong; like maybe if I don't mention anything, maybe it really isn't happening?? So we continue to pray!
A couple of weeks ago, after my mom read a Bible story to Brady, one of the questions in the story was Do you believe God can do anything? Brady's immediate response was 'No, God doesn't heal Nate's heart'. When my mom told me this later, my own heart broke. Brady prays for Nate every single night, always asking God to heal Nate's heart overnight while we sleep. This has driven me now to be even more conscious of our talks, and about God's power, and about waiting on God. Big lessons for us adults, and how much more for a 6 year old.
Another little guy who has been on my mind and heart even more lately is little Tim. Tim and Nate have a few things in common! They were both born with the same congenital heart defect. Tim is 5, just a bit older than Nate, and has had a few more surgeries, too. Last summer he underwent the major 'double switch' surgery to reroute the major heart vessels. Although the surgery was completed, his heart has begun to fail. As of this week, it has been decided that Tim needs a new heart, and has spent this week in hospital getting listed for transplant.
Tim's mom holds a pretty special place in my heart. She was the first 'heart mom' who reached out to me in the days following Nate's diagnosis. We were strangers, living almost 1000 miles apart, but connected together by two very special boys with extraordinary hearts. She has helped me in so many ways; through stories of their own experiences, advice, a listening ear (or, I guess open eyes to read emails!), someone who in many cases had 'been there' and who understood. Here is the link to Tim's website, where they will continue to post updates, or if you're a Facebook person, search for Friends of Tim. And say a prayer when you can! This is one guy who will amaze you, and probably make you smile along the way!
We officially have our house on 'the market', and have showed it a number of times. I thought it would be long sold by now, but that's not what the market has been doing lately, so we wait patiently! I'm very thankful for the contentment and peace that I've felt while waiting, too!
We celebrated Don's birthday a few days ago. We enjoyed a quick family supper and devoured some tasty Flyers birthday cake. It was my first attempt at a frozen buttercream transfer for the logo, and I was surprised how fun (and easy!) it was. I brought supper to my parents house and we ate there, since they were away and we had a showing scheduled for right after supper (trying to have birthday supper, presents and all the rest, and be cleaned up and ready for a showing in an hour is a crazy proposition....I'm learning!).
We should be finding out about Nate's next cardiology appointment soon. I'm prayerfully optimistic. I've been noticing a few changes in Nate in the last 1-2 months: a wetter sounding cough, a bit more fatigue and grumpiness/laziness. I hadn't mentioned any of my concerns to Don. But a couple of days ago, Don asked me if I'd been noticing those exact issues, and we both agreed there has been some negative changes. It's funny how I didn't really want to voice my concerns, even to Don....it was like admitting that something might be wrong; like maybe if I don't mention anything, maybe it really isn't happening?? So we continue to pray!
A couple of weeks ago, after my mom read a Bible story to Brady, one of the questions in the story was Do you believe God can do anything? Brady's immediate response was 'No, God doesn't heal Nate's heart'. When my mom told me this later, my own heart broke. Brady prays for Nate every single night, always asking God to heal Nate's heart overnight while we sleep. This has driven me now to be even more conscious of our talks, and about God's power, and about waiting on God. Big lessons for us adults, and how much more for a 6 year old.
Another little guy who has been on my mind and heart even more lately is little Tim. Tim and Nate have a few things in common! They were both born with the same congenital heart defect. Tim is 5, just a bit older than Nate, and has had a few more surgeries, too. Last summer he underwent the major 'double switch' surgery to reroute the major heart vessels. Although the surgery was completed, his heart has begun to fail. As of this week, it has been decided that Tim needs a new heart, and has spent this week in hospital getting listed for transplant.
Tim's mom holds a pretty special place in my heart. She was the first 'heart mom' who reached out to me in the days following Nate's diagnosis. We were strangers, living almost 1000 miles apart, but connected together by two very special boys with extraordinary hearts. She has helped me in so many ways; through stories of their own experiences, advice, a listening ear (or, I guess open eyes to read emails!), someone who in many cases had 'been there' and who understood. Here is the link to Tim's website, where they will continue to post updates, or if you're a Facebook person, search for Friends of Tim. And say a prayer when you can! This is one guy who will amaze you, and probably make you smile along the way!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)