8 days post-op

Popsicle Queen

In my nightie &

"dancing shoes" playing catch w/ daddy

I remember lying beside Gracie in the hospital

bed last week thinking "I wish we could fast

forward one week..."

Here we are a week later, & it's been a long one!

Between pain, bleeding from her nose,

and not much sleep, the first few

days & nights home were pretty tough.

Wednesday morning was very scary.

Gracie woke up in our bed (so grateful

I was right there with her) and began to

throw up blood as it was also gushing out of her

nose. I have thanked God over and

over for Brian & how incredibly calm

he remained. My hands were shaking so badly

as we tried to asses the situation, but Brian

was a rock for all of us - He also was

praying in faith over Gracie for God to

intervene, stop the bleeding, and heal her.

Evidently a clot broke loose from somewhere

& we were also advised to stop giving Motrin.

She has done SO much better since then,

and we are so thankful for God's

continual healing. Her sleep is still

pretty restless, & the grumpiness can

attack out of nowhere, but she is more & more

herself every day.

We were in Charlotte this afternoon

for her first post-op appointment.

Her palate looks fabulous, & her

surgeon was pleased. We'll stick with

the soft diet for awhile longer, (So hard

for a 2 year old who loves food!) and

head back for another follow-up

appointment in a few weeks.

The love from our friends & family,

wonderful meals, and most of all

prayers for Gracie mean more than

you could ever know. They have carried

us through a long week. Thank you!

A few days before her surgery

I mentioned Gracie's favorite

picture in a previous post.

When we were in the hospital she

told us she saw her angel.

(One of my specific prayers was that

God would minister to her personally as

she was put under for the surgery.)

Yesterday Gracie was again looking at

her picture before her nap.

I asked her again,

"Did you see your angel at the hospital?"

"Uh-huh"

"What did he look like?"

"Wings" (as she spread her arms out)

"Really? Did he talk to you?"

"Uh-huh"

"What did he say?"

She looked at me with a very serious

face, & with a deep voice she said...

"Ni Hao!"

Well, of course an agent

of God the Father would speak to our

daughter in her native language! :)

heading home!

God was awesome last night.

After asking for prayer, Gracie's fever

was gone w/in the hour.

She was sick one more time after that,

but has since kept liquids

& some food down.

She had a decent night.

We just tried to stay ahead of the pain,

& work through the after effects of anesthesia

& the interesting effects of morphine.

I told Brian it's a shame we'll have to

come back here next week for me to have

a left arm transplant after holding

Gracie all night in her bed!

no. feeling. whatsoever.

Her surgeon came by early this morning.

Although he felt she wasn't ready to be

discharged just yet, he said she will go home today!

She's perked up enough to go for a wagon

ride w/ Daddy & wants to stick close to us.

we're ready to be HOME!!

The Queen is ready for her

royal wagon ride

In case you're wondering, that's not

Tammy Wynette, but our sweet girlie

w/ a major case of hospital bed head.

long day!

thank you dear friends for your messages,

texts, & calls.

Gracie's surgery lasted a little over

2 1/2 hours & went well.

my sweet sister & niece drove up to sit with us,

my sister-in-law took Ali, Erin &

Quinn to a movie,

& then they got to visit their sister

a little this afternoon.

this day has been a little more tough than the

last time around.

Gracie has been throwing up & is

running a fever.

The 2 words that ring over & over in

my mind & spirit are "grace" & "peace".

please continue for God's grace to fall heavily

in this room, that we would have a peaceful night,

that Gracie would be able to keep some liquids down,

& that the fever would go in Jesus' Name!

all my babies together...

in surgery

they just took Gracie back,

and now the waiting begins...

thank you for praying!

Hebrews 13:5

"For He Himself has said,

'I will never leave you nor forsake you.'"

Gracie's big day

it's hard to believe the time for Gracie's

next palate surgery is finally here.

we'll be at the hospital early tomorrow

for a surgery time of 8:30.

the plan is to finish closing her palate,

so it will be a somewhat more extensive

procedure than her last one.

for some reason this time around

Brian & I have had a harder time preparing.

we came to the conclusion yesterday that

it's because we now know a little

more of what to expect.

no parent likes to see any of

their children have fear

or be in intense pain.

it can also be a very lonely place as a parent.

I have been mighty weepy lately.

it was so good to see my sister this morning.

she, of all people, can relate.

she has been through countless

surgeries with her son.

she prayed over me, helped Quinn with school

so I could check one more thing off my to-do

list before we leave, and said she's bringing

a meal when we return...

your love, prayers, and encouragement

mean more than you know sista!

we leave this afternoon for Charlotte

with all the kids.

I must admit, the best part of these

trips are getting to see my brother & his family!

they are always so gracious to us

& we always feel so loved there.

we would love for you to pray for us!

please pray for incredible peace, especially

for Gracie in the morning.

pray for Dr. Matthews as the Father guides

his hands as he repairs her palate.

pray that Gracie's pain will be managed well,

and that our night in the hospital will be a peaceful one.

(the last time had some tough moments

between pain & recovering from the anesthesia)

and finally, please remember us as we come home

on Friday - that Brian & I would have the strength

to be there for Gracie, & her siblings as well,

and that Gracie's recovery will be a

grace-filled process.

I know God will Father us well tomorrow.

He is always so faithful to us.

we have sensed His peace already.

Gracie has always loved a certain picture

that is in one her favorite books.

it is of an Asian little girl who has

a guardian angel hovering over her.

she will stare & stare at it & say

"Wacie's angel!"

the other night she just wanted to hold

onto it in her crib.

Psalm 91:11

"For He will command His angels

concerning you to guard you

in all your ways."

the latest...

the latest

game of pretend

Gracie is the mommy

driving anyone who will sit in the "back seat"

to the store and school.

she's such a cautious driver -

always remembers her seatbelt

& watches movies on her "tv screen".

this morning I am baby Gracie

buckled in my car seat.

she took me to the store

and bought me a bear.

for a little girl who had to

be taught how to pretend and

play with toys...

I say "praise God!!"

46 things I love

about a certain 46 year old!

Happy Birthday Honey!!!

46. I can't imagine going through 3 labor/deliveries & one long paper pregnancy with anyone else!

45. His blue eyes.

44. Hearing him read to our kids.

43. He doesn't snore.

42. The dimple in his chin.

41. His expertise in preparing our taxes every year.

40. His love of the Tour de France.

39. The fact that he will say "no" to things to spend more time with his family.

38. His patience, patience, patience.

37. I loved watching him the first time he saw Gracie's referral photo - Absolute Daddy love at first sight!

36. His snowman making talents.

35. His love of Charlie brown & Bugs Bunny classics.

34. His compassion and heart for the plight of orphans -Internationally and here in our own country.

33. His willingness to learn new skills, and the humility to admit when something is out of his league!

32. His pumpkin carving talents.

31. His text messages for no reason other than checking on me.

30. He knows all my "favorites".

29. His spur-of-the-moment cravings for ice cream.

28. His heart for the people of China, and the spread of the Gospel there.

27. The fact that he bought me a mixer one year for Christmas, and took it back before I opened it & bought jewelry instead. :)

26. The fact that we're at the place of not having the finances to even buy each other a large Christmas gift & he's OK with it. (Stocking stuffers are more fun anyway!)

25. His dreams for our future.

24. The grey in his beard.

23. He really tries to not bring any work stress home.

22. His sense of humor, and his kindness to still laugh at my sense of humor after all these years.

21. His understanding of all things "math" - especially when it comes time to help the kids w/ homework!

20. His sand castle making talents.

19. The way he's up before anyone else to spend time on his knees in prayer & in Scripture. (and to make a pot of coffee)

18. His french toast!

17. His "handy man" abilities around the house & with the cars.

16. His biker legs :)

15. It's taking me no time at all to come up with 46 things I love!

14. His undoubtable commitment to his family - Next to his love of Jesus, he always puts this family first, and we are blessed because of that!

13. The way he plays "penguin" with Gracie - You should see they way she makes him walk around behind her - straight arms & legs...funny stuff.

12. His management/administrative skills.

11. His love for the sport of cycling.

10. His openness to trying countless new recipes and culinary creations that change with the whims of his wife.

9. His ever growing faith in God's ability to do the miraculous.

8. His calmness in stressful moments.

7. His patience with teenage hormones. :)

6. His compassion for others...Always keeping those blue eyes open to help someone.

5. He kills spiders and other assorted insects for me.

4. He can play a mean game of Bocce ball.

3. He loves coffee as much as I do.

2. His heart to bring the Kingdom of Jesus everywhere he steps.

1. His heart to know the Father's love.

moving day

mountain moving, that is!

"I tell you the truth,

if you have faith as small as

a mustard seed,

you can say to this mountain,

'Move from here to there'

and it will move.

Nothing will be

impossible for you."

Matthew 17: 20

Would you consider joining with others today

in a day of prayer and fasting?

Check out Linn's blog

where many "mountain sized" requests

will be mentioned throughout the day.

I can't wait to see how God will move!

"The prayer of a righteous man

is powerful and effective."

James 5:16

counting down, cows, and a Bat Mitzvah

well, we're counting down the days once

again to Gracie's next surgery.

In less than 2 weeks, we'll be back in Charlotte

for her next palate procedure.

we've been staying close to home

and avoiding indoor crowds per the

pediatrician's advice to keep little miss

as healthy as possible!

we were able to make our yearly trek

to the Happy Cow Creamery anniversary.

we love free events,

& it was outdoors so Gracie could join in on the fun!

(a little cabin fever may be settling in for both of us!)

"As Miss Bovine SC, I vow to end

hunger for every cow in the southeast US,

and to promote peace for cows around the world."

Erin attended her friend Sophie's

Bat Mitzvah & looked fabulous!

today also happens to be the annual day to

pray for the peace of Jerusalem and Israel.

our church is honored to be a part of this event.

have a beautiful week!