A Good Report

Daddy went for a follow up appointment with his surgeon this week, and got a good report. The doctor is sending him for a follow up scan and lab work, but said that the recent lab work he had done at his annual physical looks good, particularly the indicator of his liver function (I know what it's called but don't know how to spell it). Apparently Daddy ran into all the surgeons while he was at his appointment (they are all amazed to see him doing so well), and was handing out business cards left and right!

Happy Father's Day!

To anyone out there who still checks this occasionally, Happy Father's Day! We are grateful to celebrate another Father's Day with Daddy. It almost slipped my mind to post because we are celebrating with him next weekend instead (along with all the June birthdays in our family) since he and mom are en route back from Texas as I type. This time last year when Daddy was in the hospital, they were talking about taking a road trip to Texas this summer and (honestly) I was thinking, "Yeah, right." But God is good, and they got to go (driving Daddy's big truck all the way to Houston and back) and should be home soon. I talked with them this morning and they had a lot of fun visiting my mom's sister and her husband. Every time I call my dad and he answers his phone, I think about how blessed I am that he is still here to pick up the phone and talk to me, even if it's just for a minute. He's a great Daddy who has taught me about what's really important and valuable in life. I'm posting a new family picture taken in May when we celebrated his recovery -- notice that we have one more than this time last year. :)

One Year Ago Today...

We were sitting in the waiting room at the hospital waiting to see Daddy in recovery after he had the cancer removed and his insides rearranged. The two months that followed were two of the most difficult of my short life, and I'm pretty sure that the rest of my family would say something similar. Today, looking back I am so grateful for the friends and family who came alongside us and held us up on many of those days. We are acutely aware of God's grace in allowing Daddy to be here celebrating with us today. And he's not just "here" -- he's active, back to his usual activities and working on new projects. His garden looks better than it has in years. He's learning new programs on his new computer (although I don't think blogging is on his list yet). He's back to making BBQ -- to everyone's delight. He gets down on the floor and plays with the girls. He goes to "the spa" almost daily (his words -- otherwise known as the gym), and has actually gained back some muscle.

This time last year, I could not envision this day -- I struggled to hope for this day and believe that it could happen. Even now I wrestle with why God has allowed Daddy to beat the statistics (which are horrendous, by the way) and we have lost other friends and family so suddenly and unexpectedly in the past year -- even the past week. Don't get me wrong -- I am so very thankful to have this time with my Dad, and for my girls to know him and make more memories, but I am also aware that this is purely the result of God's grace, not a result of anything we have or haven't done -- our family does not deserve this, it is a gift from God. So...

Praise God for allowing us this time with Daddy. Praise God for teaching us and carrying us through the past year. Praise God for His church, family, and friends who are like family. Thank you for all your encouraging words and prayers over the past year and a half!

Here are a couple of recent pictures...

Shock and Sadness

Let me preface this by saying that Daddy's doing great-- preparing to celebrate his good health one year after his surgery, and we continue to be grateful and feel extraordinarily blessed. However, today our hearts are heavy. Our family learned this morning that my cousin Nicole (my dad's niece, daughter of my Aunt Betty) passed away suddenly overnight. They suspect she had a heart attack. Please pray for my Aunt Betty and my cousin Trey. We are all in shock and sad, obviously. My Aunt Betty and Aunt Linda were quick to come up here to encourage my parents and have tea parties with my girls when things were especially tough for our family last summer, and we hope that we can love on Betty the same way. I do know that in these tough times, I am so thankful for our huge, crazy, generous, loving extended family.

Pray for Clara!

I think I posted a while back about Wendi's close friend (Chrissy) who was pregnant at the same time as her and had found out that her baby had a serious birth defect (CDH). Clara was born the week before Chloe and is still fighting. She was able to have surgery to repair the diaphragmatic hernia last week, and now her lungs need to kick in. Below is the link to their blog. Please pray for this little baby girl, her parents and her grandparents -- they have loved my sister like family, and thus we consider them family as well! http://thehardylife.blogspot.com/

New Grandbaby!

Chloe Elizabeth arrived early, early this morning at 12:53am weighing in at 8lbs, 11oz. Mom and baby are doing great! I'll post pics when I get permission from the mama... Pop-Pop and Nana have already visited and returned home.

Famous Belly

Daddy had his follow-up post-hernia surgery this week, and apparently his surgeon has been using pictures of his belly (just his belly, not his face) as he teaches all around the country about how to repair this type of post-surgical hernia. Mom and Dad were a little tickled that his belly is famous, I think--certainly they are glad that his experience can help others. In other news, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our past-due niece/granddaughter/daughter. If she doesn't make her arrival on her own, Wendi will be induced next Wed.

And since we know many of you who read this blog pray, please pray for Wendi's friends Chrissy and Robert, and particularly baby Clara. Chrissy is Wendi's best friend from college, and they were excited to find out they were pregnant and due within a week of each other. They found out fairly early on in the pregnancy that Chrissy's little girl, Clara, has a birth defect called a herniated diaphragm (CDH). Clara arrived yesterday, and did well through the birth but had a rough night last night. The short version is that she is a very sick little girl, and she faces many challenges particularly related to breathing and getting the oxygen she needs. Please pray for Chrissy and Robert as they watch her struggle, and as Chrissy recovers from a C-section. If you want the link to their blog, please email me and I'd be glad to send it your way.