Thankful for God's Protection

Today's Thankful Thursday post is very specific for me. I am thankful for my daughters, Olivia and Madeline. When I say I am a mother to two miracle daughters, I don't use that word lightly.

Last night I found Cynthiaa at Confessions of a Yummy Mummy. Cynthiaa was just 2 weeks away from her due date when she learned that her beautiful baby boy had died of cord strangulation. They delivered him and she is obviously in tremendous pain. She is relying on God to help her through & I hope you will all stop by with love and encouragement, lifting her up in your prayers.

The reason this struck a chord with me is because BOTH of my girls were born with cords wrapped around their necks. Olivia's cord was wrapped around her neck - twice! Because of the cord she couldn't fully expel the fluids from her lungs. She stayed absolutely awake for 24 hours, unable to breathe well, until they pumped the fluid out of her lungs the next day.

Madeline was a different story. She went into fetal distress after 30 hours of labor, causing the doctor to order a C-section. Fortunately, I was close enough to delivery and she was tiny enough, that we were able to push her out in a few pushes. Not only was the cord wrapped around her neck twice, but it was in a "true knot." This is a rare incident occuring 0.3% of the time and means Madeline literally swam in a circle and tied the umbilical cord in a knot. The doctor was amazed that she had made it OK through so many hours of laboring.

As I reflected on Cynthiaa's heartbreaking story, I was again amazed at God's hand of protection over both girls through difficult conceptions, pregnancies and deliveries. Please keep Cynthiaa and her family in your prayers today.

For more Thankful Thursday, go here.

A Fresh Start

Today is Thankful Thursday, and I've been waiting all day to write this post. This evening, my blog got its first design, a fresh start so to speak, thanks to Danielle. If you haven't checked her out, you should! She has designed many of the blogs I enjoy reading.

Also, she's offering $10 off a blog design to the first two people who email her. Use the name of this blog as the discount code.

In addition to being thankful for my new blog, today I am especially thankful for:

my husband and my girls,

the miracle pregnancy God has given us and for this baby,

the many, many prayers for healing and peace (they are working!),

and the support of so many, especially Emily and Lauren, who come help us out every morning (and even evenings if we need them).

For more Thankful Thursday, go here.

Thankful for a Miracle

I'm happy to be joining Thankful Thursday again. I have something I want to share, that I am incredibly thankful for. But I want to be sensitive to those of you that I have connected with because of our shared loss. I have been so encouraged by the stories of women who have dealt with infertility and who have lost babies of their own. I hope my story only continues to encourage you that God is bigger than what we can see.

If you've read my story of infertility, you know what we have faced. After my diagnosis of severe endometriosis, it appeared that we would only become pregnant after surgery, which has happened twice. And even then the doctors give us a slim 0.5% chance of conceiving.

Today, I am overwhelmingly grateful for the little miracle God has blessed us with, in spite of the doctor's diagnosis, and without surgery.




Although our intentions were to wait until we were well into the second trimester to share our news, a complication changed our minds. This little one is 8 weeks and could use some prayers. The same ultrasound that confirmed there was indeed excellent growth and a strong heartbeat, was the same to show that there is a large, threatening blood clot. It could be something old, although it was not detected in an ultrasound just 2 weeks ago, or it could be the placenta trying to separate from the uterus.

The doctor sentenced me to bedrest/no lifting, with the hope that the blood clot will reabsorb or the separation will heal. Incredibly, my husband is also recovering from double wrist surgery and has a 1 lb weight limit at the moment. I also have severe aversions to smells, mostly anything fragranced or edible. And I get extremely nauseaus when I eat, so I haven't been. The doctor said this was not helpful to the pregnancy and we are looking into a couple options to help with that as well.

Again, we seem to be in a battle to keep this baby, but that's the way it always is around here. Please pray for our little one (and for us). The pain of our last loss is still strong. In spite of that, we know who our God is and we put our lives, and the life of this very tiny baby, in His hands.

Today Iris was thankful for God's word and she shared this verse. Little did she know how meaningful it would become to me.

“This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.” ~ Psalm 119:50 (ESV)

Blessings,

Today Iris was thankful for God's word. What are you thankful for? For more words of inspiration visit her at Sting My Heart....

The Challenge Outcome

Today I am thankful for the work God is doing in my marriage. I started the 30-Day encouragement challenge 2 months ago because of an At the Well post on building up your spouse.

Wow, how our marriage has been transformed! Or should I say, how hasn't it been transformed?

I knew it would take me a few months to get it down pat, so after I completed the first month, I started the challenge over. All the while, I did not tell him (my husband) exactly what I was doing. He noticed the changes and asked me about it often.

In the middle of the second month, Troy and I made a date night to see Fireproof at the theater. I had it in my head that I wanted to support a movie based on godly principles while it was in the theater, so the world would see that there is a market for wholesome and godly.

Without revealing the storyline, there is a key element in the movie very similiar to my 30-Day Encouragement Challenge. I was so excited, before I realized it I nudged my husband and said, That's what I am doing for you!

By the end of the movie, we were both equally stirred in our hearts. We had a wonderful, meaningful conversation on the way to dinner, about where our marriage was and where it was heading. We made new commitments to each other, with specific promises of what we would each try to do for the other person.

I'm not one to gush about a movie, but this is one that is worth taking the time for. Even if you have young kids. It's worth the trouble of finding and paying for a sitter. Consider it an investment in your marriage. If you live nearby, Troy and I will watch your kids so you can go see it. Yes, you heard me, free babysitting! We believe in it that much.

Slightly related, I am thankful for an encouragement I received from Peggy today at Amazing Grace ~ Mazes, Messes and Miracles. She wrote a note, passing on some blogging friendship awards to me that made me smile. Unfortunately, I could not access them at the time I was writing this or else I would share them with you.

Peggy also has, in the same post, a link for The World of Chelle, a discussion blog that is born from the book THE LOVE DARE which came from the movie, you guessed it, Fireproof. I was so encouraged when I read parts of it, that I made an extra stop today at the Bible bookstore to grab my own copy. I was just getting ready to start a 3rd month of the 30-Day Encouragement Challenge, so I decided to give this one a try instead.

Stay tuned and I will let you know if the outcome of my new challenge is as successful as the first challenge. I am believing it will be!

Blessings,

Today Iris was thankful for special friendships. What are you thankful for? For more words of inspiration visit her at Sting My Heart....

God Shed His Grace on Thee

I am thankful for our country. I am thankful for the opportunity to live in America. Even though the upcoming elections and issues can seem overwhelming to me at times. (Although I must admit I thoroughly enjoyed the Vice Presidential debate tonight for a couple different reasons.)

Two days ago, I had the privilege of reconnecting with an old college friend by phone, who has been a missionary for the last 10 years or so. (I am choosing to leave the country undisclosed for safety reasons). She explained to me from a firsthand perspective, how dehumanizing governments can really be. And the horrific effect that has on not only a person's view of themself, but also their basic view of others.

I came away from that conversation, with two things in mind. First, I began to pray harder than ever for souls around the world who do not have the same Christian freedoms that we can so easily take for granted. And second, how blessed I am to live in a country where we have the option to value human life.

I know our country has problems, and fittingly I kept thinking about the lyrics for America the Beautiful, especially "God shed His grace on Thee." They seem so perfect during these times. As do all the prayers included for our country (below in bold).

O beautiful, for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea.

O beautiful, for pilgrim feet
Whose stern, impassioned stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America! God mend thine ev'ry flaw;
Confirm thy soul in self control, thy liberty in law!

O beautiful, for heroes proved
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved
And mercy more than life!
America! America! May God thy gold refine,
'Til all success be nobleness, and ev'ry gain divine!

O beautiful, for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years,
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea!

Blessings,

Today Iris was thankful God has lifted her dark cloud. What are you thankful for? For more words of inspiration visit her at Sting My Heart....

Delicious Autumn

This gorgeous image came from Lori at All You Have to Give,

who creates the most beautiful Word Pictures.

I am thankful for the changes Autumn brings. This is my absolute favorite time of the year. The brisk mornings and evenings, the abundant harvests, the smell of cinnamon and spice, trips to the apple farm and pumpkin patch, the warmth of a hot cup of tea or pumpkin spice latte, the coziness of sweaters and jeans, the relief from the desert heat!

And my favorite, the changing of the leaves. A sure sign that one season is ending and a new one beginning. It's then I realize the creativity of our Maker and it inspires me to delight in my own creative gifts.

Blessings,

Today Iris was thankful for Change. What are you thankful for? For more words of inspiration visit her at Sting My Heart....

Sisters

It's that time again -- Thankful Thursday has rolled around. I've been waiting for today because I am passionate about my subject and only hope I can do her justice.

I am thankful for my sister and her family. They have not always lived nearby and I value this time we have together. I know it may not last forever, and I view it as a treasure.

I am grateful for our friendship. It runs deep and is true. We share a love of Jesus, family, God's Word, ministry, sewing, healthy living, and photography. When you have this much in common, it doesn't require much 'work' to be friends. Oh! I forgot to include phones. Our young families don't leave us much time to actually get together, and when we do there aren't many quiet moments to actually talk, so we communicate more hours on the phone than I care to admit. (Good thing we can both multi-task.)

This is my favorite recent picture of Elizabeth with baby Evan.

I am always amazed that whenever I am in crisis, she speaks to me through my self-appointed love language - food! She calls on her amazing chef to whip us up something fantasical and leaves it in our freezer.

I am indebted to her memories of childhood (as mine seem to be fading). She reminds me that a good mother knows how to give Eskimo kisses and sing This is a Story About Sammy.

This is us on a missions trip together in Russia (15 years ago!)

I am always impressed with what a great aunt she is. She really loves my kids like they are her own. My girls adore the boy cousins, and I love how often they get to be together.

I am thankful that she can put up with my different moods and often help me out of one. She doesn't hold grudges, or use petty things to stir up controversy. She listens to all I have to say and knows me better than almost anybody. She epitomizes Romans 12:15, "Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep." When we miscarried our baby boy, she cried over the phone with me -- the best consolation she could have given me. As I said, she loves my kids as her own.

"After David had finished talking with Saul, Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself. From that day Saul kept David with him and did not let him return to his father's house. And Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself."
~ 1 Samuel 18:1-3

Today I am thankful for my little sister and tomorrow is her birthday - Happy Early Birthday, Elizabeth!

Love,

For more encouraging words of thanks, stop by and visit Iris at Sting My Heart.

Mercy and Grace

It's been a week since I last posted and oh what a week it's been. I love Thankful Thursdays, because it makes me stop and focus on God's amazing-ness.

This week I am thankful for God's mercy on me that is new each and everyday. And for His patience with me that allows me to grow a little more everyday.

The faithful love of the Lord never ends!

His mercies never cease.

Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.

I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”

The Lord is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him.

So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord.

Lamentations 3:22-26

Each day this week I have needed His mercy and forgiveness for allowing myself to get overwhelmed or impatient or grumpy in my situation. And the fact that we have a "situation" is not an excuse! The Bible instructs me to wait quietly.....not child-like.

Today I was thinking, wouldn't it be nice if I could be one of those classy women who was the epitomy of "grace under pressure." You know the one -- smart suit, smooth, flawless hair, peaceful smile and not a feather ruffled even though her world is crashing down around her.

Ernest Hemingway said, "Courage is grace under pressure." When the time comes to face a problem, I want to appear graceful, but the Lord kept whispering to me today to lean into His grace instead of being concerned with my appearance.

I kept wondering, what does that mean? I lean upon the Lord all the time, but what would it mean to draw strength from His grace? So I looked up these definitions (gotta love Wikipedia):

* Grace is enabling power sufficient for progression.

* Grace divine is an indispensable gift from God for development, improvement, and character expansion.

* Without God's grace, there are certain limitations, weaknesses, flaws, impurities, and faults (i.e. carnality) humankind cannot overcome. Therefore, it is necessary to increase in God's grace for added perfection, completeness, and flawlessness.

Well, if complaining, impatience and grumpiness aren't considered for "development, improvement and character expansion" I don't know what is. It's clear that God was asking me to tap into His grace so I could grow up a little.

Seeing as it was just getting meaty, I decided to look up the Greek meaning of the word for grace, charis. And it seemed to tie up my thanks today for God's mercy and His call for me to grace in a concise little package.

Grace (charis) - That which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness (....sounds like that courageous woman of grace I referred to earlier). Also favour of the merciful kindness by which God turns us to Christ and keeps, strengthens and increases us in Christian faith, knowledge, affection, and kindles us to the exercise of the Christian virtues (sounds like my Thursday thanks).

** I know many of you are waiting on an update regarding our family's health, but I need some time to let this soak into my heart a little longer. We still need your prayers! Seeing as how we are on a family vacation, I will write to you the next chance I get to sneak away to our laptop. **

Blessings,

Stop by and visit Iris for more words of thanks....

Thankful Thursday

"being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised." ~ Romans 4:21

I am thankful ~ for a dear friend's mother who sent me this verse today. She has committed to pray for my girls' healing, from this scary infection, and continues to encourage me with a mother's heart.

I am thankful ~ for a naturopathic doctor who has cared for Madeline and Olivia (and me) for over a year. She calls on her days off, beginning the conversation with "I was thinking about Madeline today and had an idea...." Dr. Crystal really, truly cares.

I am thankful ~ for Genea and Jimmy, missionaries at Rancho de sus Ninos orphange in Mexico. They called me this morning during a meeting with their local pastors and asked if they could all pray for Madeline by speakerphone. They prayed for 9 1/2 minutes straight for my daughter's complete healing (allergies and all).

I am thankful ~ for Joy. My friend who has called me everyday to check in and make sure we are OK. I am convinced if she thought otherwise, she would book it straight across 3 states to help us out.

I am thankful ~ for a friend who values our friendship so much, she would invite me to tea just to share some news with me that she thought may be hard for me to handle. Compassionate, thoughtful and kind just begin to describe her heart.

I am thankful ~ for in-laws who shared with us a commitment they made to cover Madeline's health in prayers until she is better. They also drop me emails with Scriptures and words to encourage. And they give me good books to read. Now that's speaking my language!

I am thankful ~ for modern technology. But mostly for my friends Cassie and Colleen. We were blessed to meet at a Young Marrieds Bible study years ago. And although both have been led out of the desert, they both keep in touch and pray for my family faithfully. Both check in on the girls (and me) consistently. And although I would prefer to have them live just a bit closer, I am grateful we have email which allows us to "visit" almost every day! Colleen, thank for the nurses' perspective. And Cass, thanks for thinking of my girls like family and directing me towards the natural MRSA remedies.

I am thankful ~ for my sister who dropped everything today to search online with me, to find out whether the bug bites I had just received were cause for concern. (Yes, something got in my sundress and bit me - twice!)

I am thankful ~ for a husband who is strong enough to believe that God is using our family's struggles to work towards something good and who always encourages me that it will "all work out."

I am thankful ~ that God is with us, and that is all I could ever really ask.

Lastly, I am thankful ~ for God's promises. In case you were wondering, I did follow my plan today. I improved on going to the Word when I felt overwhelmed. I wrote Bible verses that represent His promises to me on cards and folded them so they would stand up. I strategically placed them around the house: in the middle of our pile of antibiotics, in the girls' rooms, by the computer, in the laundry room. It's no surprise that my emotions were much better handled.

Stop by and visit Iris for more words of thanks....

Thankful

This is a perfect post for Thankful Thursday. I could even say for me it's a thankful, grateful, indebted, appreciative Thursday. I am still a little in awe of what God did today for Madeline. It really is a miracle, that exceeds my wildest thoughts. I didn't dare to hope it would turn out this well.

Basically, yesterday I spoke with a nurse who told me I had no option but to give Madeline the medicine we were pretty certain she would be allergic to and just go to the ER when she started to have reaction. I searched and searched online last night for an alternative, but found nothing useful. Troy and I felt so ill-equipped and lost. We felt our only option was to drive first thing in the morning to a reputable ER and give her first dose of medicine near by.

We prayed for wisdom and that God would direct our steps and keep His hand over Madeline and went to bed. I believed He would, even though my mind wondered what He would possibly do in the middle of the night to change our circumstances.

This morning I was checking my email and must have searched Google with some combination of words I hadn't tried last night. The first website I opened described multiple antibiotic allergies. It said what I had felt all along: "Multiple antibiotic allergies can be scary. If you are allergic to one antibiotic, you have 10 times the risk of an allergic reaction to another antibiotic." It also described drug challenge testing, in which case a minute amount of the antibiotic is given under a physician's supervision and the amount is gradually increased. After a certain point is reached, if there is no reaction, it may be safely assumed that the patient can take the antibiotic. The physician must be present during the test to treat any life-threatening reaction that might occur.

This seemed much more reasonable to me. So I called the emergency number for her Dr., to be sure I wouldn't be transferred to a nurse again, and asked him about this procedure. He said he didn't think they would be able to accommodate us in the office, but we might be able to do it in the ER. He said to just meet him in the office at 9 since he was on his way there (I think he's only in the office 1 day a week). This was exactly when we should have been driving to the other hospital.

I took this as a sign that God was "directing our steps." When he met with Madeline, he said he could only do this if the one compound pharmacy in town would create the right dosages of antibiotic, but he didn't think they would. After a phone call - you guessed it! - he said they had agreed to and we would begin the 1 1/2 hour process in his office as soon as I picked up the prescription.

At this point, I started to believe that God was going to do something really special for Madeline today! The Dr. was ready to start the antibiotic desensitization, as he called it. As best as I can understand, it means by starting with extremely small doses of the antibiotic and slowly increasing the dose, the "allergy" systems of the body develop a sort of tolerance to the drug and do not react to it. The goal being that Madeline would eventually be able to take a full dose without further reaction. I had never even heard of this before this morning, but was really excited that it might work.

I purchased 5 doses of different strengths of the medication. Madeline and I sat in his office, as each dose was administered, with 15 minutes between each dose. She was quite content with all the attention, a dvd and some snacks. She was monitored by the Dr. and nurse throughout the procedure and had NO reaction!!!! Unbelievable.

We were sent home with our original prescription, she is able to take a normal dose now. (We also have a prescription for 3 epi-pens, which we have desired to have on hand for quite some time.) But apparently if she stops taking the drug, the desensitization does not last, and we cannot just start it up again at any time. We will return in 2 weeks for another culture of the infection. This is an incredible answer to one of our prayers (that she would not be allergic to the antibiotic)!

What we need to continue to pray is that THIS antibiotic effectively kills THIS particular strain of bacteria. The Dr. did tell us that if this one does not work, the only next option for a child her age is hospitalization (in-patient care and IV drugs), which lasts days.

God has provided a miracle today, and we believe He will provide another. We won't know for about 3 weeks (2 weeks + 6 days for the culture results), so we have all that time to pray for her healing and ask God to do another miracle.

Thank you for all of you who have forwarded our request on to other friends and left me encouraging messages today. I feel like an army got together on Madeline's behalf and I am so blessed.

Lots of love,

Praying for a Miracle

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts,

since as members of one body

you were called to peace.

And be thankful. ~ Colossians 3:15

** For an update on Madeline, read Thankful. **

I'll get right to the point. I am asking for your prayers for my daughter, Madeline. She has contracted 2 serious infections, Beta-Strep Group C and a strain of staph called MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterium responsible for difficult-to-treat infections in humans).

Since the second or third day of her life, Madeline has had a compromised immune system. Her body cannot handle or process chemicals, additives, preservatives or fragrances - which makes up most of the modern world we live in. This includes many of the foods we eat, the cleansers we use and even disposable diapers and wipes. It also includes medicines as simple as tylenol or motrin and as complicated as antiobiotics and vaccines. In the past, she's had a 100% allergic reaction rate to antibiotics. And by allergic reaction, I mean her lungs start to shut down and her breathing is compromised.

Her current infections CANNOT be treated without antibiotics. And since it is a strain resistant to antibiotics, often many different kinds are used until one works.

Tomorrow we must give her an antibiotic to stop these infections from getting into her system. Even though we are completely aware there is a good chance she will have a serious allergic reaction.

After consulting two godly medical professionals who know Madeline's history and whom we trust, we have decided it would be best to drive her within a short distance of a hospital in a different city, whose Emergency Room is not as overcrowded as ours and which has more access to specialists in pediatrics, allergies and infectious disease. We will also be closer to an excellent Children's Hospital.

We will be driving about an hour to my mother-in-law's house first thing in the morning and administering the antibiotic there around 9:30 AM pacific time. If she has any type of allergic reaction, we've been advised to get her to the ER for IV drugs to counteract the reaction.

As a mother, I am overwhelmed and scared. Her history doesn't make this an easy situation. But I KNOW God has His hand over Madeline. He has kept her and guided us and given us wisdom time and time again. We have worked hard to keep her healthy, and I am praying specifically that God will allow the improvements in her immune system to handle this medication, clindamycin, so that it can wipe out the infections.

I am relying on what God showed me yesterday, that is her in the picture by the way. It's so appropriate today, that I would look at her picture and read the words, "How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered!"

So instead of being overwhelmed and scared, I keep reminding myself that God is thinking about her, He knows exactly what it is she needs. I know God has a plan for her, (plans to prosper her and not to harm her, plans to give her hope and a future as Jer 29:11 says).

Just this morning, I read a WFW verse that has been very meaningful to me all day. "From the rising of the sun, to the going down of the same, the name of the Lord is to be praised." Psalms 113:3

And there it is again. When things are going well - PRAISE. When things are hard - PRAISE.

The verse doesn't say what happened during the period of time between the sunrise and the sunset.... just that every day it happens, God is worthy of our praise.

Psalms 113 is actually an inspirational chapter. It speaks of the poor, the needy and the barren - and God rescues them all!

Today I am thankful for many things, but most of all that I have my God to turn to in my scariest times, a God who is my Rescuer. How would I get through these things without Him and without that hope?

And so, even though the sun has set some time ago....I will praise Him.

Stop by and visit Iris for more words of thanks....