California Dreamin'

Santa Monica Beach

I have been dreamin' about a family vacation like this since my kids were too little to even consider taking along on a vacation! When Ciara was young, she carried on about wanting to go to Disney World. We told her that when she was 10 we would go to Disney. Well... we're nearly 8 years past that promise and now her and I both get sick on rides at the amusement park (bummer) - so when the opportunity came up for the kids and I to join Luke on business and mix in a little family fun in the sun... we jumped on it! If we wait much longer, our precious grown up daughter will be too busy living her own life to join us on such a trip. Brandon and Ciara have never flewn on an airplane or seen the ocean... so we're gonna wrap it all up this go around and I can't wait!! Luke's travel schedule has been horrible the last few months. I feel like we've barely seen him. He's been flying all over takin' care of business for his ever growing division. (that's another post all together!) He will attend 2 meetings while we're in California, but we can handle that - there will be things the kids and I can do to occupy our time in sunny California until Big Daddy can join us. :)

We will leave Wed. a.m. (that's tomorrow!!!!) and drive to Denver, Colo. where we'll catch a 3:15 flight into Los Angelos. That would be enough travel for one day, but once we arrive in L.A. we'll take a rental car down Pacific Coast Highway and go on into San Diego where Luke will have a meeting on thursday a.m. Once that's done, it's Sea World. Should be a fantastic time. I checked the show schedule and it looks incredible! We are gonna try to get in some beach time too. Then on Friday a.m. we drive back into L.A. where Luke will drop us off in the Santa Monica Boulevard area to hang out while he gets his meeting there out of the way. I'm sure we'll find plenty to while we wait for him... what with the pier and beach right there and shopping galore! After the meeting we'll hook up for lunch and then spend the day sight seeing. Each of the kids picked one BIG thing that they wanna do. Brandon wants to go to the Getty Villa Museum which is a Greek and Roman Museum, Ciara wants to check out Santee Alley which is supposed to be pretty incredible shopping. Also on the list of things to check out are Rodeo Drive, Hollywood Sign, China Plaza, and Venice Beach. I hope we can squeeze it all into a day! :) Doesn't it sound fun??!! The girls wanted to go on a celebrity home tour - but I don't think the guys will go for it. Maybe we'll get lucky and see a celebrity or 2 out and about on our L.A. exploration. That would just be too cool! Saturday morning we catch an early flight out of L.A. back into Denver - hop into the hespe mobile and head for Larkspur, Colorado where we'll take in a Renaissance Festival. I think the whole family will will be highly entertained by that activity! We'll rest Saturday night in a hotel in Castle Rock then once we're up and about Sunday morning we are homeward bound.

We've never taken a vacation like this before - could be a once in a life time for all 4 of us... so I'm really excited about this precious time together experiencing something new. My cousin is staying at the house with little Shoogsie and taking care of the house and outdoor pets. I'm so thankful! Now we can just enjoy our getaway. Please pray for our safety and with a shutterbug like me... you can count on lots of photos when we get back!! Until next time... PEACE OUT!

Full plate... isn't God great?

Ok, so it's 5:19 and I've been awake for about half an hour already. I woke up after having yet another bizarro dream. (this time someone had put their car in the ditch right outside my front door... I saw a guy approaching our home for help but I could see he was afraid of our dog - so I greeted him and immediately realized that there was something unusual about him. About that time - a small glowing open top bus appears in the wheat field across the road, people climb on and it vanishes into thin air.) I was glad to wake up to a shifting puppy so that I didn't have to be beamed up with this guy to some unknown dimension of the universe. ha ha. Please don't judge... I can't help that I dream this ridiculous stuff!! ;) This happens when I am exhausted. UGH... I really hate it. It's like my brain just won't stop.

Luke is, of course, out of town... so I'm lyin' in bed with my little fuzzy baby, Shoogs - and just thinkin' about all the things I need to do, how this will work out, how that will work out... wondering if it will rain Friday so that we can't set up for the reception early, etc. Then come the songs... I'm singing the songs in my head that I've heard the kids practicing for the last several weeks and that they performed last weekend at their dinner show. *sigh* Goodness, I wish I could be still. So then out of nowhere the song shifts, "I love you Lord, and I lift my voice... to worship you... oh my soul, rejoice. Take joy my King - in what you hear... may it be a sweet sweet sound... in your ear." I began to think about how my God is big enough to remove all this anxiety and just began to pray and ask Him to take it all away and to let my mind be still and my body be rested.

Still can't sleep - so here I am!!I open up my computer and realize that I hadn't closed out the last internet page I was on yesterday. I had typed in the search, "how much ham do I need to feed 100 people?" (decided to simplify my life and serve sandwiches at the reception rather than BBQ when we got home - great idea from my parents!!!) So the page displayed on my computer is from a cooking forum and I think, "oh yeah, I never did find the answer to how much ham I would need." I scroll down the page searching... and wouldn't you know that this is what I found:

"My plate may be full, but my cup runneth over"

Isn't that the truth? Someone had put this at the end of their post and it was given to me this morning as a reminder. Thanks, Lord!! :) My cup does run over. If you wanted to pray for me also, that would really be fantastic!

Have a great day everyone... I'm gonna spend mine reminding myself that I'm too blessed to be stressed. ;)

Morning By Morning New Mercies I See...

This was the sunrise outside my front door, one beautiful fall morning.
Isn't God's creation magnificent?!

I had to be up very early twice this week to drive Brandon to school early. Both days the sun wasn't even up. On wednesday I grumbled leaving the house at 5:30, but this morning was different. Somehow things just seem different this morning. I have a lot of life changing things going on with my business and my quest for a part time job. For the last few weeks I feel like I've just been going through the motions. Walking around like a zombie with no direction, no ambition. Honestly, I think I'm just mentally exhausted, but I've seen God at work this week and it's given me a new perspective. Hope.

As I contemplated how I would spend my time with God this morning, a verse came to mind, "His mercies are new every morning!" I couldn't get that verse out of my head, I just kept thinking about it. So I looked up the passage to read more. Wow... it's found in Lamentations. I confess, that's not a book of the bible that I delve into often. I'm more prone to flip to the new testament pages, and especially the psalms when I'm looking for something encouraging... but today He gave me Lamentations. :) Here's the full verse, I think it's awesome!

"Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions (mercies) never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him." Lamentations 3:22

MM HMM! Because of the Lord's love we are NOT CONSUMED. His compassions never fail, they're new every morning and great is God's faithfulness! It's hard not to be consumed with our problems, isn't it? I'm tempted to let them consume me constantly, but that's not what God would have us do. Then I began to think of the song "Great is thy faithfulness" - so I found it on the net, listened to it, soaked it up.... and this part of the song struck me. "All I have needed, thy hand hath provided. Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me." Everything I've ever needed God has provided, He gives me everything I need, He is faithful - why should this trial be any different? He has proven himself faithful time and again! Yup, I will wait for Him. The faithful one whose mercies are new every morning. Praise Him!

As I read on in lamentations, I came to verse 55 and couldn't take my eyes off of it. This comes from "The Message" It says,

"I called out your name, O God, called from the bottom of the pit.You listened when I called out, 'Don't shut your ears! Get me out of here! Save me!' You came close when I called out. You said, 'It's going to be all right."

Now that's what I'm talkin' about! God says, it's gonna be all right. ALL RIGHT. I know I can believe that because trust me, I've been in the pits of despair and the Lord has always pulled me out. It might be hard for me, but nothing is too hard for Him. I've found myself in situations that I thought were impossible... but ALL things are possible with God. Great is his faithfulness, and his mercies are new each and every morning. What an awesome promise. It doesn't matter how bad the day before was, each morning is a fresh start and God says it's gonna be all right.
I love it!

The Promise of Spring

I've had the winter blahs lately and quite honestly I've felt a little bummed out. My spirits were lifted, however, when I went out to get the mail and noticed the field across the chalk road greening up and my lilac bushes budding!! YAY... new life, the promise of Spring. I love it and can't wait for it! I always marvel at how God gives us seasons to enjoy as well as the beauty of his creation. Whether it be the gorgeous Rocky Mountains of Colorado or the stunning sunsets in the prairie lands of Kansas... it is His handiwork and I have a true appreciation for it all! I know I'll feel better when I can get out and soak up the sun and take in the fresh air rather than feeling cooped up and sitting under a blanket to keep warm. I am hopeful!

I have this verse on my fridge as a reminder and thought I'd share it with you in case you've got the winter blahs (or blues) too! :)

"Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul? Why are you crying the blues? Fix my eyes on God - soon I'll be praising again. He puts a smile on my face. He's my God." (Psalm 42:11 - The Message)

Happy New Year!!

About half an hour ago we watched the ball drop in Time Square in New York to ring in 2009. (neat lookin' isn't it?) Surprisingly I still have the ability to stay awake until midnight to witness it. ha ha. I'm remembering last year's New Year - Luke and I were so excited that on New Year's eve he had begun to walk with a cane rather than the crutches he had been using after breaking his leg. May seem silly to some, but to us it's a huge deal. As we say hello to 2009, we are grateful. He is walking upright and on his own, with nary a limp. The surgeon has released him and says "resume full activity". I guess he took that to heart because he drug a decent sized doe by himself when he went deer hunting a few weekends ago. :)

2008 was a busy year, and a year full of not-so-great surprises that help us to appreciate the beginning of a new year. Besides Luke's double broken leg... you may remember I had a scare with a bad report from the eye doctor - he thought I had papiledema which can be a symptom of many things, including a brain tumor. I underwent extensive testing including MRI's (see previous posts to read more). I eventually found out that the condition I actually have is optic nerve drusen which means that I have protein deposits on my optic nerve and my peripheral vision isn't as good as someone without the condition. I don't even notice that I have the condition, so all is well. GOD IS GOOD! This fall, my dad had some problems and went to the doctor to find out that he had bladder cancer. He had surgery and they removed the cancer and treated the bladder with chemo in recovery. To date he is cancer free! My mom had surgery on her wrist and is fully recovered... 2009 will surely be less eventful and we are filled with hope.

Looking ahead, Ciara will be graduating on Saturday, May 16th. *sigh* Can you believe it?! Mark your calendar, because we'd love to have you join the celebration!!

Well, precious daughter should be home any minute from a little party at her friend's house, and my eyelids are very heavy. Here's wishing you a blessed and prosperous 2009!!

Much Love...
Jami

Yes, for real!

This morning I filled up my gas guzzling SUV for only $25.27!!

Wow... sure beats the $65 - $70 I was paying prior to the gas price plunge. I LOVE IT!! I just wanna drive my trailblazer, all day long... wherever I wanna go... until all the gas is burned out. That way I can fill it up again - for under $30. WOO HOO!!!! :)

Are you suffering? Pray. Are you happy? Sing Praises!

James 5:13. I just finished reading the book of James. I think it's fantastic! I love the words of wisdom found within those pages... for a book with only 5 chapters it is jam packed with great advice and challenges. Here's a few nuggets I got from James:

"Don't grumble about eachother", "The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.", "Remember, it is a sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.", "God opposes the proud but favors the humble", "If you are wise and understand God's ways, prove it by living an honorable life", "you say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this", Love your neighbor as yourself. But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin", He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession", "when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy".

Yeah, so I've really been touched today by 5:13 - "Are you suffering? Pray. Are you happy? Sing Praises! It's easy to pray when we suffer, but do we sing praises when we are happy? I think too often we forget about God when things are going good. I sing all the time. I sing in the shower, in the car, in the soap shop, in the kitchen. I love to sing! But I want to sing God's praises!! He is so worthy. God has been faithful in my life and I will endeavor to sing his praises at least as much as I ask for help... or maybe more! :)

About prayer... so my friend Kristi (South African Missionary and fellow manic ) told me about how she has a prayer book. She writes down all the people that she's promised to pray for so she won't forget. Isn't that a great idea? I've been guilty in the past of saying I'd pray, but then after a few days or a week... I guess I just kinda forget about it. I know... SORRY!!! But I don't do that anymore. I was really convicted about my faithfulness and committment to pray for those I love, so I began this process about a couple of months ago and it works really well for me. I have so many on my list though, that I had to divide them equally and go every other day. M,W,F and T,T,S. It is actually quite effective and I feel good about not forgetting anyone. The biggest joy is when I can go in and write that a prayer has been answered. Opportunity to SING HIS PRAISE! :)

A while back... as I contemplated my friendship with Kristi, I had come to the conclusion that God had absolutely put us together as friends so that we would pray for one another. I truly believe that. Kristi is the type of person that will pray for you if she says she will. It's important to have a friend like that, praying for each other is incredible. Right about the time I had the revelation about us being "praying friends" a box came in the mail from Kristi, all the way from South Africa... and here's what it was:

It's an African Prayer Doll. The note said that I should put it in my home and whenever I dust around it or move it, I should pray for her and her husband, Dan. Isn't that cool? It's been quite a conversation piece. As luck would have it and as you can see, it has a very narrow base. Guess what that means? It falls over a lot. Falling over a lot means that I have to set it back up a lot, which means that I pray for Kristi a lot!! :) Kinda neat how that all works out. Here's how my prayer doll looked this morning as I had my morning devotion:

Yup, I "lifted her up" in prayer today. Actually their mission there is really awesome and they are feeding lots of hungry kids. It's pretty exciting. She posted today about the "Soup Clubs" they have going on where kids can get fed 6 days a week. They also have a child sponsorship program where you can sponsor a child that Dan and Kristi may even know. Our family has been talking about this for a long time, and this Christmas we are going to sponsor a child. It feels so good to give, and it's amazing how much you are giving with only $25 or $30 a month. It puts these kids through school and feeds them and gets them clothing. It's quite humbling actually. Maybe you feel the nudge to be part of this fantastic mission. If so... check out Kristi's page. She can getchya hooked up. Plus she has a lot of cool pictures on her blog.

Well, that's it for now. PEACE OUT! :)

This is what 300 looks like!

Yup... 300 small fresh snow lotions

This was in addition to 200 fizzy bombs


And it's all for one customer! I've been busy, as you can see. :) It's great to have so much work and my new retail outlet in Hays is doing lots of business for me too. So... as we approach this time of Thanksgiving, I'd have to say that I'm thankful that God is blessing my business and work is steady. I seem to finally be reaching a place that's a bit more manageable - even though I'm worn out and ready for time off for the holidays! :)

What a difference a year can make!!

November 3, 2007

November 3, 2008

Praise the Lord! After a gruelling year of recovery from his double broken leg, my husband is back up on his feet walking, running and once again doing all the things he enjoys doing. He pheasant hunted with my dad and brother this last weekend and last month played paintball with his brother Marshall, and some of my cousins. Besides a bit of swelling in the ankles and some achy-ness where the hardware is in his leg... he is doing great. Tonite the kids are at an MCL music competition for school, but we still celebrated with a candlelit flat iron steak dinner and a delicious bottle of sweet rose South African wine given to us by our dear ole friends, Dan and Kristi. (Thanks guys!! We loved it!) :)

"The prayer of faith will save the sick person and the Lord will raise him up..." (James 5:15)

So we just wanted to share the joy with you all about Luke's recovery and thank you all for your prayers. Peace out. :)

"The Weary"

You've probably heard the expression, "No rest for the weary." I'm weary today... my kids are home from school sick with nasty colds, my husband is in Pennsylvania for the week... my house is a mess... I'm behind in my work... I need to make the second of 3 trips to town this week in my gas guzzling SUV - I'm weary. I could use a little renewal and strength, not sure how it's gonna happen except by the grace of God ~ so I'm grateful that I always have a place to go for encouragement. He is so faithful!


"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Matthew 11:28-30


"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 40:29-31


THANK YOU LORD!!

Morning Observations

Tuesday morning I made lots of outdoor observations. It was the kinda morning where you go outside and the sun is shining and the birds are chirping and all just seems to be well with the world. I took my little Shoogie outside for her first potty break of the day and noticed that the moon was still out and it was beautiful! Once pup had finished her business, I ran in the house to grab my camera. This is what I saw:

A lingering moon over a country road. Gorgeous!

A magnificent blazing sunrise

A green pinecone... I'm in awe at how those things grow. so cool!

A spider that had made it's home between our pine trees

A baby kitty in a tree

Mums waiting to be planted (maybe the cats got to them?) Oh well. :)


"God saw all that he had made, and it was very good." (Gen.1:31)

"Beautiful to God"

This was the name of my bible study lesson this morning. I had an interesting time chewing on this one. The author gives this verse before the study even begins:
"He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not." Isaiah 53:2-3 NIV

I find it interesting that scripture says Jesus wasn't beautiful in the eyes of man so that people would be drawn to him only by his spirit, not his physical beauty. I am so humbled by that. I want for people to be able to say, "wow she is a beautiful person" not because of what they see when they look at me, but because of the KIND of person I am. I want others to see a beautiful heart. The world is such a cruel place soemtimes, so much importance is placed on physical beauty but the bible says "Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7) Thanks for that God!! In a world full of skinny, large chested, blonde haired girls with orange tans - God says that I'm beautiful because he looks at my heart, not my physical appearance. Really what he thinks of me is all that matters when you get down to it - so that takes a load off. I think trying to look your best is alright, but obsessing about your looks or your size just to impress others is pointless. I sometimes wonder why people are surprised that we have so many young women with eating disorders - when such an emphasis is placed on looking like celebrities or super models.

I get annoyed (down right indignant, actually) when I hear people put down others because of their size or their color. It may be hard to believe, but I actually know people that do this. Love a person for who they ARE, not what they LOOK LIKE. To make reference to a black person in a negative way (as if they can help what color their skin was when they were born!) It's just sick and wrong. I wanna scream to that person, "what makes you superior!!??" Surely not their "white" skin. I guess I would have to say that God is color blind. He just doesn't care if we are green, white, black red or fuschia. We are made perfect in Christ and he will love us regardless of all the imperfections that the world is so ready to list about us.

Anyway... I get really fired up about the subject of discrimination and racism - but whenever I have the opportunity I share my 2 cents with the people I feel I can share it with, as for the others... I pray that I would actually muster up the courage one day to stand up to them and open up their eyes to the truth, and the truth is this: God loves us exactly the way we are. We don't have to change our hair, bleach our skin, get rid of our glasses, lose 50 pounds or even try to zap our zits, he loves us "as is." Afterall... he made us and "God doesn't make junk". He says that we are "fearfully and wonderfully made." He would know, he's the one responsible!

I'm thankful for this study today, because it's always good to be reminded that our worth should not be measured by the world, but by God. Afterall, he's not looking at my clothing size or what brand of shirt I'm wearing... he's looking at my heart. I can't begin to understand God's unconditional love, but I'm so thankful for it!! The author finished the study with this statement: "I pray when we look in the mirror, we will learn to see what God sees and love who He loves."

Indeed! :) I just want you to know... YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL!!

Dad's Cancer Update

We're relieved to find out that according to the lab results, it would appear that the surgeon was able to remove all the cancer and that it didn't go deeper into the bladder. We praise God for that news!! I still feel a little nervous, as we haven't actually seen or talked to the surgeon since the lab results came in. I guess I'd like to see some blood work or an MRI or something to prove that there are no other tumors in the body or other visible signs of cancer. But for now we'll just rejoice that the lab results were favorable!

Dad's feeling great, so great in fact, that we are having a hard time keeping him from "overdoing it". He wants to mow the lawn, work in his machine shed, etc. (SIGH) Can't keep a good man down I guess. :) We enjoyed a hectic 4th of July weekend with family and this whole thing with Dad helps a person keep their perspective about life and how precious it really is. Thanks for your prayers and I'll post updates as they come in. :)

"See you in 6 months"

That's what we heard from Luke's surgeon at his appointment this week. He is doing so great and his leg is healing well. Dr. Ahad said that both bones are filling in where the fractures were and that the last surgery where he plated the fibula was a success! He looks good when he walks now, his foot is more straight as opposed to turned out. He has little or no pain and now we're just working on keeping the swelling down still, especially after a long day on his feet working outside, etc.

This is certainly a praise... so thanks to all of you who prayed diligently for his healing! He was released to do whatever physical activity he's comfortable with... so you can guess what he's looking forward to - PAINTBALL! :)

Auf weidersehn!

Sunday, May 31st we said good bye to our German girl, Tina. Her dad and brother flew into Wichita on the nite of the 30th after experiencing a 3 hour delay in Chicago due to weather. They rented a car and drove to Hays on Saturday morning, then spent the day with our family. It was cool to meet her family (Mom couldn't come due to anxiety issues with flying) but the tricky thing was the language barrier. I'm afraid that Tina didn't do a "great" job translating, so there was lots of dead air that made me feel a bit uncomfortable - but her Dad was very kind and thanked us many times for caring for his daughter. It was pretty neat. We visited the T-Rex exhibit and toured Sternberg Museum (which is a dinosaur museum for those of you that aren't from around here.) - we came home and her family rested as they had only 3 hours of sleep and were exhausted, then later in the evening we went out for dinner at Gellas. It was great! Sunday morning they left at 7:30 a.m. and flew out of Wichita for New York for a few days vacation in America - then they'll be back in Germany on June 6th. It was hard to say goodbye, but 9 months has passed and everyone is ready for life to return to normal. (whatever normal is) :) Her mother has emailed me sharing how much she misses her daughter. Tina has been homesick off and on since Christmas and really, all of us here are ready to go back to being a family of 4.

Overall it was a positive experience and we learned a lot from her and she learned a lot from us. The biggest and most exciting thing I think for me... is that when she came here she called herself an Atheist. When she left here, she no longer called herself that and I praise God for the seeds that have been planted and trust that if they are meant to sprout and grow, that He will see to it. I don't think it even occurred to us that our student would possibly not believe in God. That was a bit of a surprise. When we agreed to host a student, I don't think that we saw beyond all the excitement or considered that this person wasn't just someone to have fun with, but truly a family member that we didn't know. Our family grew stronger, we learned so much to depend on one another and to support one another. While this experience was trying at times, I believe that we did the right thing and God blessed it. Sunday in our worship time we read in Matthew about "whatsoever you do to the least of my people, that you do unto me". I hadn't really thought about that before, but God did use us to provide this young girl food, shelter and love... among other things. God is faithful and I'm humbled that he chose our family for such a mission.

It makes me feel good that Tina said that she would do it over again, even though her year of school here doesn't count and she will still have 2 more years when she gets home. I would probably say the same, that I would do it all over again because of the good that came from it where our family is concerned... but we will most likely not host another exchange student. Anyway, we plan on keeping in touch and she has dreams of working hard to save money and fly back to the U.S. for a visit, but I also know that she is wanting to buy a car in the next year or two... so who knows when we might see our Deutch Machen (German girl) again. So for now it's auf weidersehn - Good bye, Tina... we'll miss you.

Where we've spent the day.....

Our day began at 5 a.m. when we got up and began to get ourselves ready for what was sure to be an exciting day. :) Luke has been dreading his second surgery, but finally the day has come. We checked in at 6:30 a.m., he was taken to O.R. at 7:50 a.m. and finally at 8:20 his surgery began. The surgeon found me around 9:15 or 9:20 and told me that the surgery went well. Apparently once he got into the leg he saw that there were SOME signs of healing, but not much, also the fibula had began to shift towards the tibia. He said we definitely made the right choice in having the surgery, now the bone is completely straight and should provide good stability. He is supposed to walk on it and bear as much weight as possible and only use crutches as necessary. The surgeon showed me a photo of the work that's been done on his leg. Luke says now he's "like the bionic man". ha ha. I'll have to scan it in later and post it so you can see what he's been through. He put in a metal plate and 6 screws to hold the fibula together. The nurse also told me that the surgeon used some form of putty to help hold the bone together while it heals now. Weird. I had never heard of such thing. Whatever it takes to get him totally well... I'm all for it.

We are in recovery now and have been for what seems like forever. He is doing well, has had some pain, but it's being controlled with percoset again. He was able to use the restroom and eat some italian ice, water and crackers without nausea. These are all good things, because if he has problems with any of this, he wouldn't be able to go home today. I'm not sure when we'll find out how soon he can go. He is sleeping well and getting some rest, so I'm just trying to be patient. He did walk with crutches to the bathroom, then was a little dizzy. They said that could be from anesthesia and/or the percoset.

Thank you all for your prayers and please keep them coming for a speedy recovery. I know it makes all the difference and means so much to me and Luke. We are praising God for a successful surgery! I'll update again once I have some news. :)

Look Mom... NO HANDS!

We are thanking God for the healing that's taking place in Luke's leg. The first of February, he began mostly walking (limping) without assistance! WOO HOO!! The kids and I are so proud of him. He's worked really hard at gritting his teeth and dealing with the pain and discomfort. The pain is under control for the most part and it's been weeks since he's taken anything for pain, but sometimes after a long day he really feels it.

He got a good report at his appointment on the 10th. The doc said that the bones are fusing and rebuilding and that he's very pleased with the progress. He did say that it's not good for Luke to walk with that foot out rather than straight forward and he is doing that to compensate for the discomfort of walking with it straight. Doc thinks this is cuz he is walking on the inside of his foot because the arches have broken down some since he hasn't been walking on the foot for months. He's giving him an arch support that he says should help with that and Luke is just supposed to conscientiously walk properly so that things continue to heal right. Overall we were really thrilled with the outcome of that visit. We were a little bit disappointed that the doctor never suggested compression stockings to help with the swelling in his ankle and foot though. He just began wearing them on his own and it's made a world of difference, he can even wear normal shoes. It's incredible how that thing keeps the swelling under control.

Well... I promised myself that I'd keep this shorter than several of the last ones so I guess that's it for now. Just wanted you all to know how awesome Luke is doing and to ask you to continue praying for total healing - and more specifically, please pray that he never has to have that steel rod removed! Thanks in advance.

Oh, one last thing... I'm really thankful for my "Valentine" of 18 years. What a blessing he is to me this Valentine's Day and EVERY day! I love my Lukie! Just thought you'd like to know. ;)

Love n Hugs,
Jami

Finally... some GOOD news!

I went to my opthalmalogist appointment yesterday and even though the office experience wasn't good - the outcome was. (Thank you all for your prayers, and thank you Lord!) I'll spare you the details of the 2 1/2 hour visit where I spent a total of maybe 10 minutes with the doctor.

He told me that I DO NOT have papilledema - what I have is "Optic Nerve Drusen" Drusen are little white protein deposits on the optic nerve. This condition is often hereditary, so it's possible that my parents or my kids may even have it. There is no known cause or cure. Namely, this condition doesn't cause any real problems, though it is often mistaken for papilledema (which is a far more serious condition)When I go for my regular eye doctor visits and he does visual fields testing, they will be a little wacky because of the drusen. Apparently, over time the drusen can get larger, and eventually may cause some peripheral vision loss, but not central vision loss. So... thankfully, my vision should not be affected much by this condition. In very rare cases, optic nerve drusen can interfere with blood flow in the eye and cause bleeding, but I'm not too worried about that since the doc said not to be. The exciting thing about this diagnosis is that I do not have to have a spinal tap, I don't have any tumors, I don't have MS - I just have an eye condition that has no known cause, can't be prevented or cured, but shouldn't cause me too many problems.

From here we are going to monitor in 3 months and make sure there's no change and then just keep an eye on it. The doctor said if there is change that he would probably give me some eye drops to take. Since there is no cure for optic nerve drusen, he said he feels like he should do "something" if my condition worsens - and he would treat it like glaucoma to hopefully keep the condition from advancing - but there is no known treatment. I can live with that. Finally.... I know what's going on with me and I'm relieved. Now... let's get Luke's broken leg healed and we're in business! :) Thanks again for your prayers, I know God is honoring them. The outcome of my "issue" is proof! God is so amazing.

Update on Luke:
His appointment went well, the dressings were removed and the incisions look "good" (according to the surgeon) - I think seeing metal staples in human flesh is a bit oogy... but that's just me. The doc says that even though the bones really haven't begun to mend themselves back together yet, not to worry cuz it's only been 10 or so days, and this will likely take about 6 weeks. He said that the bones are staying straight with the rod and that's a good thing. Overall, the surgeon was very pleased and will see him back on the 19th to remove staples. No more saran wrap showers, woo hoo!! :) Luke is getting around well with the crutches and getting antsy already to get rid of them - but no weight bearing until about Christmas, and no driving until MAYBE after Thanksgiving sometime. He said we'll have to see how he's doing and then decide when he's ready to be in a car for 3 hours with his leg not elevated. Overall - things are ok and each day improving just the tiniest bit. We'll take whatever progress we can get! :)

Love Box Company Fire

This is what Luke saw when he got to work in Wichita Tuesday morning. Love Box Company was on fire! We are praising God that nobody was hurt, which is really a miracle since there were 3 explosions and fire hot enough to melt "fire proof" ceilings. Here's what the news had to say about it:

Fire causes $2 million in damage

at Love Box Company

Watch the Video

WICHITA, Kansas, Sept. 11, 2007 –

A fire at Love Box Tuesday morning did $2 million in damage. The fire started around 7 a.m. in the 700 block of East 37th Street North. Investigators say the 3-alarm fire was caused by a generator malfunctioning.It took firefighters about an hour to put it out, even though the flames were discovered and reported to dispatchers quickly.

"There wasn't anybody directly in this building," Battalion Chief Rob Hughes, Wichita Fire Department, said. "There were people in close proximity to it and they heard the explosion and they investigated and quickly found the fire and alerted 911." The flames were contained to the one building, but there's heavy smoke damage in that area as well as damage to generators and boilers.

Luke spent most of his morning helping people set up temporary offices since their building was blocked off and smoke damaged. It was quite a day. While he was discouraged that he didn't get any work done all morning... he was so thankful that there was not even 1 person injured.

Thank you Lord, for your protection!