Things have been quiet around here because quite frankly there is not a lot to report...and that's a good thing. Sophie Kate hasn't been seen around town much these days because it is "sick season." She is home from school, she is home from church and she is home from just about all extracurricular activities. I would normally have a huge problem with that because there is always a part of me that gets sad that she can't get out and go places with us during the winter. However, when I look back on this season so far, I know without a doubt that we have made the best decision for her. She has been so healthy so far this winter. And it's not just that she is sitting at home with her boring mama either. Sophie Kate gets 3-4 visits a week from the homebound services through our school system. Her teacher and her therapists are coming weekly to work with her and she is making wonderful progress while being in an environment that does not compromise her health.
This would normally be the time where I would tell y'all how mad it makes me when parents send their children to school sick and how my "well" child can't go to school because of the selfishness of some parents. And yes that still makes me sooo mad so don't get me started on that because I'm not doing that today. She is doing so well and is accomplishing so much here and I am just not going to go there today.
Last year was our first experience with homebound school and it came about as a result of a very serious illness that SK battled in December of 2013. So, homebound school last year was very limited for Sophie Kate because she was recovering and was so very weak. This year, however, we took her out of school in November to try and keep her well through the winter. So homebound school this year has looked quite different...she has soared. I even get the benefit of seeing her teachers and therapists work with her and let me just tell y'all that is a privilege. I wish everyone could see how hard these folks work and how much they put into these children and in turn how the children respond. It is nothing short of amazing.
Sophie Kate is using her switch to talk for her, she is making choices and she is staying strong and healthy. So as you can see, my feelings about her homebound status this season have changed a bit when I see how well she is doing. Now you know why my answers to your questions about her might be short and sweet...she's good, she's healthy. It's really not a bad thing that I don't have a lot to say about what's going on here, it's a nice change of pace.
Psalm 71:6, "By You I have been sustained from my birth; You are He who took me from my mother's womb; my praise is continually of You."
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Monday, January 12, 2015
Yes
Going back to school and getting back to a routine last week was brutal, I'm not going to lie. People are tired and ill-tempered and do not have nice faces when they wake up early around here...seriously I don't know how Chad deals with all of us some days. He is the only one in the house that doesn't wake up mad. Oh not mad at each other, just mad because it's too bright and we like sleep alot. How many more days is it until summer vacation? Come on, I know someone knows the answer to this question.
Sophie Kate is doing really well so far this "sick season," as we like to call it. We are keeping her home most of the time, but she has been to some of her oldest brother's basketball games. Do you think having her hold her own bottle of hand sanitizer is taking things a bit too far? Cause I think it sends the perfect message...back off!! No really, I used to have a little stop sign that hooked onto her stroller that said, "Stop, wash your hands before touching me." I don't know what ever happened to it, but I so loved it. Now, we just carry around our own bottle of hand sanitizer.
We are managing well with her hip right now. We did see her Orthopedic surgeon back before Christmas. We have a lot of options on the table concerning her hip situation, ranging from doing nothing to full blown surgery (which really isn't a option in my opinion at this time). We are weighing all the options and are seeking wisdom from the One who knows her best. We pray for direction from God as we navigate this new road with our girl. Please know though that she is doing well and she is healthy and for that we are so thankful.
This sweet girl is so strong and shows me every day what it looks like to be content and joyful in your circumstances. This question was asked in our small groups yesterday..."Would we still love God as much as we say we do if everything fell apart?" I have thought a lot about this very question or a variation of it many times over the past 7+ years. I can honestly answer "yes." Everything has fallen apart, everything I knew, everything I thought I would have...dreams and futures, paths and directions have all changed and the answer is still yes. My beliefs have been challenged to the core and have been rebuilt with clear eyes and a new understanding. My God, my commitment, my love and devotion to Him are no longer based on my circumstances but I didn't fully know that until my circumstances changed. And in the midst of change and unbelievable difficulty and turmoil and the shifting of everything I have ever known...He remained. God remained unchanged and unmoved and steadfast. And while I would give anything for things to be different for Sophie Kate, I never want go back to the person I was before.
Hebrews 13:8, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."
Sophie Kate is doing really well so far this "sick season," as we like to call it. We are keeping her home most of the time, but she has been to some of her oldest brother's basketball games. Do you think having her hold her own bottle of hand sanitizer is taking things a bit too far? Cause I think it sends the perfect message...back off!! No really, I used to have a little stop sign that hooked onto her stroller that said, "Stop, wash your hands before touching me." I don't know what ever happened to it, but I so loved it. Now, we just carry around our own bottle of hand sanitizer.
We are managing well with her hip right now. We did see her Orthopedic surgeon back before Christmas. We have a lot of options on the table concerning her hip situation, ranging from doing nothing to full blown surgery (which really isn't a option in my opinion at this time). We are weighing all the options and are seeking wisdom from the One who knows her best. We pray for direction from God as we navigate this new road with our girl. Please know though that she is doing well and she is healthy and for that we are so thankful.
This sweet girl is so strong and shows me every day what it looks like to be content and joyful in your circumstances. This question was asked in our small groups yesterday..."Would we still love God as much as we say we do if everything fell apart?" I have thought a lot about this very question or a variation of it many times over the past 7+ years. I can honestly answer "yes." Everything has fallen apart, everything I knew, everything I thought I would have...dreams and futures, paths and directions have all changed and the answer is still yes. My beliefs have been challenged to the core and have been rebuilt with clear eyes and a new understanding. My God, my commitment, my love and devotion to Him are no longer based on my circumstances but I didn't fully know that until my circumstances changed. And in the midst of change and unbelievable difficulty and turmoil and the shifting of everything I have ever known...He remained. God remained unchanged and unmoved and steadfast. And while I would give anything for things to be different for Sophie Kate, I never want go back to the person I was before.
Hebrews 13:8, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."
Sunday, January 4, 2015
A New Thing
"Forget the former things, do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing. Now it springs up, do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland." Isaiah 43:18-19.
How is it that we relagate a new beginning or a clean slate or a fresh perspective to just once a year? We kind of do, don't we? And I get it, it feels natural it's the beginning of a new year, hope and possibilities seem to lay out before us. We feel a renewed sense of being able to change things and get things done. Then life happens and disappointment sets in and we find ourselves living the same life and doing the same things we have always done day in day out, week in week out and year in year out.
But our God isn't confined to a new year or the start of a new month or the beginning of a work week because we come up against trials and difficulty and tough decisions continuously. "Now it springs up, do you not perceive it?" Oh, I so want to perceive it. It may not look like we want it to look, but we want to perceive it Lord. He's making a way when it looks like there is no way, He is pouring streams into our wasteland. He is sustaining us and holding us in the seasons when the answers to our prayers are "no" or "not right now" or "wait." He is still doing a new thing. He is doing a new thing in our hearts, if we will let Him. He is doing a new thing in our families and in our churches and in our communities.
We can't fathom it, we can't imagine it in our pain and in our hurt, but God let us perceive it...through the fog, through the tears, in the brokenness and in the heart sickness of this life let us perceive it! In Your name there is hope, in Your love there is peace, in Your word there is truth, in Your death and resurrection there is life. You are light, let us shine everything You are on our darkness, on our hurt, on our worries and into our decisions and watch what "springs up."
He is doing a new thing!
How is it that we relagate a new beginning or a clean slate or a fresh perspective to just once a year? We kind of do, don't we? And I get it, it feels natural it's the beginning of a new year, hope and possibilities seem to lay out before us. We feel a renewed sense of being able to change things and get things done. Then life happens and disappointment sets in and we find ourselves living the same life and doing the same things we have always done day in day out, week in week out and year in year out.
But our God isn't confined to a new year or the start of a new month or the beginning of a work week because we come up against trials and difficulty and tough decisions continuously. "Now it springs up, do you not perceive it?" Oh, I so want to perceive it. It may not look like we want it to look, but we want to perceive it Lord. He's making a way when it looks like there is no way, He is pouring streams into our wasteland. He is sustaining us and holding us in the seasons when the answers to our prayers are "no" or "not right now" or "wait." He is still doing a new thing. He is doing a new thing in our hearts, if we will let Him. He is doing a new thing in our families and in our churches and in our communities.
We can't fathom it, we can't imagine it in our pain and in our hurt, but God let us perceive it...through the fog, through the tears, in the brokenness and in the heart sickness of this life let us perceive it! In Your name there is hope, in Your love there is peace, in Your word there is truth, in Your death and resurrection there is life. You are light, let us shine everything You are on our darkness, on our hurt, on our worries and into our decisions and watch what "springs up."
He is doing a new thing!
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