Our Babies
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Blog?
This is just a quick question: I have a "visitor" from a blog address www.thelightgetsin.blogspot.com and I want to be a reader to your blog too! But when I click the address, it says it is a private blog. Send me an invite to be a reader of your blog too: katiehbeall@gmail.com. Thank you!!!
Just an update
Hi Friends! We finally, FINALLY, made if off of the Island of Oahu in one piece after the longest 3 weeks imagineable. It was an incredible last month in Paradise but there is nothing like staying in a hotel room for 11 days with a 1 year old to make you ready to move on!
Noah handled the packing, moving, staying in different places so well. But he was a bit insecure with all the changes - he still can't figure out where his doggie and kitty are! He had a really hard time getting used to sleeping in places other than his room and eventually discovered he loved sleeping between his mom and dad (never has he done that on a regular basis before!). We are thankful that we don't have to share the bed with a toddler anymore now that we are out of the hotel room. He had several nights that he was really restless as he tried to understand what all the changes were about but he knew that as long Dan and I were right there, he was okay.
The packers did a phenomenal job of packing our belongings in 3 days and shipping our stuff onto Louisiana (it should arrive the second week of August - right around the time we are hopefully closing on a home). We were very blessed to have such efficient and professional movers. When we moved from South Carolina, we weren't so lucky: one of our shipments got packed up and taken directly home with one of the movers never to be seen again... Not cool!
We shipped our Camry off on 18 June and it actually might already be waiting on us in Louisiana - that was an easy process for which we were thankful. We passed the Pathfinder onto our friend, Lori, and are excited to purchase our new SUV once we get to Louisiana (we are heading to Dallas to make that purchase - only 2 hours West of Shreveport).
Staying in Waikiki was a wonderful way to say "Aloha" to our home of 3 years. We stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and had a fabulous view of the ocean and lots of room to "live" in while there. The village is literally that: a village. There were so many great places to eat and shop within the Hilton property (there are about 4 towers surrounding the property which is oceanfront). They have everything from flamingos to penguins to turtles and parrotts roaming the village, two Starbucks, about 6 pools and a waterpark - we LOVED staying there! And all on the Air Force's dollar, too!
However, no matter what the paradise is that we were staying in, we were ready to go on about Day 7. We had done so much outprocessing and eating out that we wanted some rest with our families. So now, we are just outside of Washington, D.C. visiting my in-laws and will head to Alabama by way of our condo in Panama City Beach, Florida next week. We are realllly happy to be with our families right now. Living so far away for so long makes you appreciate the time you have with everyone more than you can imagine.
The trip to D.C. was a crazy one. The Air Force flew us as far as Dallas on an overnight flight on which Noah slept the whole time. However, Dan and I got about an hour combined of rest which wasn't good. Then we had a long layover in Dallas before getting on the flight to D.C. We got a call from the airline saying that our flight was going to be delayed indefinitely so since we were traveling on orders, we asked to be rerouted onto another airline to get us into D.C. at a normal hour. I will spare you the details but we got routed onto an American flight instead of US Air and in the process, all 7 of our bags got lost (we had a lot because we are living out of suitcases, a pack n play and had Noah's carseat with us) AND my beloved Maclaren stroller was left at the gate when we boarded our Dallas to D.C. flight - NOT COOL, AMERICAN.
Needless to say, when I realized that we had to file claims for 8 pieces of luggage and cargo, I began to seriously choke up. We were exhausted, dirty and so frustrated. The airline lent us an ancient carseat so we could get Noah to his grandparents' home and we came with him in the hopes that our bags would soon arrive. So far, we have gotten 4 of the 8 pieces and are praying the rest find their way to us today. Noah's clothes came but not Dan's and not mine. EWW! We need to change clothes and soon!
My sister and brother in law, Annie and Todd Beall, are making their way to see us today and are bringing our doggie, Piper (who is staying with them for a month and a half). We are so excited to see all three of them! And Noah is having SO much fun with his Grandma Carol and Grandpa Brad. They are enjoying themselves with him as well, I think :) We are looking forward to a fun filled week with them and are hoping to finally get some rest with Noah in his own room and Dan and I in ours.
I have hundreds of photos from our last few weeks in Hawaii that I will upload soon and post our favorites. So hang tight! We miss our Hawaii family so much already - my two sweet girlfriends, Stacie and Melanie, came and spent the last couple of hours with me at the hotel and I was just overcome with how much I love both of them. We miss you all: the Smiths, Stacie and DII, the Herreras, Maggie, the Tebedos (now in Georgia themselves), our church family, the Walters. You all were so good to us and are a part of our hearts forever. And as Melanie, Stacie and I say: "We didn't say 'goodbye,' just 'see ya later!'"
More soon, I promise.
Noah handled the packing, moving, staying in different places so well. But he was a bit insecure with all the changes - he still can't figure out where his doggie and kitty are! He had a really hard time getting used to sleeping in places other than his room and eventually discovered he loved sleeping between his mom and dad (never has he done that on a regular basis before!). We are thankful that we don't have to share the bed with a toddler anymore now that we are out of the hotel room. He had several nights that he was really restless as he tried to understand what all the changes were about but he knew that as long Dan and I were right there, he was okay.
The packers did a phenomenal job of packing our belongings in 3 days and shipping our stuff onto Louisiana (it should arrive the second week of August - right around the time we are hopefully closing on a home). We were very blessed to have such efficient and professional movers. When we moved from South Carolina, we weren't so lucky: one of our shipments got packed up and taken directly home with one of the movers never to be seen again... Not cool!
We shipped our Camry off on 18 June and it actually might already be waiting on us in Louisiana - that was an easy process for which we were thankful. We passed the Pathfinder onto our friend, Lori, and are excited to purchase our new SUV once we get to Louisiana (we are heading to Dallas to make that purchase - only 2 hours West of Shreveport).
Staying in Waikiki was a wonderful way to say "Aloha" to our home of 3 years. We stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and had a fabulous view of the ocean and lots of room to "live" in while there. The village is literally that: a village. There were so many great places to eat and shop within the Hilton property (there are about 4 towers surrounding the property which is oceanfront). They have everything from flamingos to penguins to turtles and parrotts roaming the village, two Starbucks, about 6 pools and a waterpark - we LOVED staying there! And all on the Air Force's dollar, too!
However, no matter what the paradise is that we were staying in, we were ready to go on about Day 7. We had done so much outprocessing and eating out that we wanted some rest with our families. So now, we are just outside of Washington, D.C. visiting my in-laws and will head to Alabama by way of our condo in Panama City Beach, Florida next week. We are realllly happy to be with our families right now. Living so far away for so long makes you appreciate the time you have with everyone more than you can imagine.
The trip to D.C. was a crazy one. The Air Force flew us as far as Dallas on an overnight flight on which Noah slept the whole time. However, Dan and I got about an hour combined of rest which wasn't good. Then we had a long layover in Dallas before getting on the flight to D.C. We got a call from the airline saying that our flight was going to be delayed indefinitely so since we were traveling on orders, we asked to be rerouted onto another airline to get us into D.C. at a normal hour. I will spare you the details but we got routed onto an American flight instead of US Air and in the process, all 7 of our bags got lost (we had a lot because we are living out of suitcases, a pack n play and had Noah's carseat with us) AND my beloved Maclaren stroller was left at the gate when we boarded our Dallas to D.C. flight - NOT COOL, AMERICAN.
Needless to say, when I realized that we had to file claims for 8 pieces of luggage and cargo, I began to seriously choke up. We were exhausted, dirty and so frustrated. The airline lent us an ancient carseat so we could get Noah to his grandparents' home and we came with him in the hopes that our bags would soon arrive. So far, we have gotten 4 of the 8 pieces and are praying the rest find their way to us today. Noah's clothes came but not Dan's and not mine. EWW! We need to change clothes and soon!
My sister and brother in law, Annie and Todd Beall, are making their way to see us today and are bringing our doggie, Piper (who is staying with them for a month and a half). We are so excited to see all three of them! And Noah is having SO much fun with his Grandma Carol and Grandpa Brad. They are enjoying themselves with him as well, I think :) We are looking forward to a fun filled week with them and are hoping to finally get some rest with Noah in his own room and Dan and I in ours.
I have hundreds of photos from our last few weeks in Hawaii that I will upload soon and post our favorites. So hang tight! We miss our Hawaii family so much already - my two sweet girlfriends, Stacie and Melanie, came and spent the last couple of hours with me at the hotel and I was just overcome with how much I love both of them. We miss you all: the Smiths, Stacie and DII, the Herreras, Maggie, the Tebedos (now in Georgia themselves), our church family, the Walters. You all were so good to us and are a part of our hearts forever. And as Melanie, Stacie and I say: "We didn't say 'goodbye,' just 'see ya later!'"
More soon, I promise.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
No Rest for the Weary
We spent the night last night at our friends' home, The Smiths. So this morning, I decided to keep Noah here while everyone else is at work and Dan is about 500 yards down at our house helping with the move. So I have a few minutes of internet access on Melanie's laptop (thanks, Mel!).
To say that moving is exhausting is an understatement. We are BONE WEARY!! We counted this morning and in the past 4 days, Dan and I have had about a total of 9 hours of sleep. The movers started on Monday and by last night, they had the majority of our home packed and ready to be loaded into the trucks.
Yesterday, we sent Noah to my girlfriend, Lori's home. Her nanny is named Maggie and she's been SUCH a blessing to me in the last 16 months of Noah's life. Noah loves Maggie so much and at the last minute, she allowed me to send Noah over so she could watch him while she also watched Tori (almost 3) and Tessa (1). That is a full load! But Maggie was more than willing to do it for us so we could keep him out of the way of the movers. HOWEVER..... Noah didn't nap one time yesterday. Not once. Not even for 5 minutes. He's really being affected by the changes in his life and he certainly doesn't understand what's happening.
When Noah doesn't nap, he doesn't sleep at night. Bottom line! So, although Dan and I had had 2 hours of sleep the night before last, we somewhat expected that last night would be tough since we were in yet another new place. We didn't think it would be as bad as it was though.... Noah projetile vomited for the first time in his life at about 8. It ruined the clean sheets and Dan and I were covered in it. He'd never done that before and he seemed to feel a ton better right afterwards. I finally was able to calm him down enough to get him to drift off. He was in and out of sleep till about 11 (only about 2 hours) and then he woke up and we. were. up. till. 4:30 AM!!!!
I had to rock him, lay him down, put him in bed with us, I did everything. Finally at 3:30, I had to leave the room with him so Dan could get some sleep since he had to be up at 6:00 am to get ready to head back to the house to help the movers. We both drifted off at 4:30 (Noah and I) and now, he's finally back to sleep after SCREAMING like his dog had died for 20 minutes. I had to just put him in the pack n play and make him scream because he's so exhausted after only about 4 total hours of sleep in over 24 hours.
We check into our luxury hotel (YAYAY!) this afternoon and cannot go another night with him being overtired. We will be there for the next 10 days and are thrilled for the break. So screaming it out was so necessary. Thankfully, the Smiths let me stay here this morning and we will then take Noah back to play with Tori and Tessa around lunch time. I am also going to lie down... my body aches and I have never seen my eyes be so bloodshot and purple underneath!
Piper made it to Pennsylvania well and is enjoying her stay with her Aunt Annie and Uncle Todd! She's apparantly getting along well with her cousin, Casey (a Jack Russell) and has had to endure quite a bit of humping from Casey! But Annie said that he got a dose of his own medicine last night when she decided to hump him back!! Mind you: they've both been fixed! Thanks Annie and Todd for all you are doing to help us out. We love you guys.
Maria was supposed to fly out on Monday. However, because she's a Persian, she was denied her flight because of the temps (I wrote about that previously). So she's flying out tomorrow night into Atlanta and my sweet mother is going to go get her. It will be good to have both the "girls" settled in their new temporary homes.
I am off to rest for a minute while Noah sleeps. Please pray for us though. We are having a great packing experience and have had a lot of help from our friends and "Hawaii family" with Noah and places to eat/sleep. But we have to have rest; especially Noah. We want to be healthy and happy and rested for our week + stay at the resort in Waikiki as well as for our trips to D.C., Florida and Alabama then ultimately, to Louisiana.
"Talk" to you all again soon!
To say that moving is exhausting is an understatement. We are BONE WEARY!! We counted this morning and in the past 4 days, Dan and I have had about a total of 9 hours of sleep. The movers started on Monday and by last night, they had the majority of our home packed and ready to be loaded into the trucks.
Yesterday, we sent Noah to my girlfriend, Lori's home. Her nanny is named Maggie and she's been SUCH a blessing to me in the last 16 months of Noah's life. Noah loves Maggie so much and at the last minute, she allowed me to send Noah over so she could watch him while she also watched Tori (almost 3) and Tessa (1). That is a full load! But Maggie was more than willing to do it for us so we could keep him out of the way of the movers. HOWEVER..... Noah didn't nap one time yesterday. Not once. Not even for 5 minutes. He's really being affected by the changes in his life and he certainly doesn't understand what's happening.
When Noah doesn't nap, he doesn't sleep at night. Bottom line! So, although Dan and I had had 2 hours of sleep the night before last, we somewhat expected that last night would be tough since we were in yet another new place. We didn't think it would be as bad as it was though.... Noah projetile vomited for the first time in his life at about 8. It ruined the clean sheets and Dan and I were covered in it. He'd never done that before and he seemed to feel a ton better right afterwards. I finally was able to calm him down enough to get him to drift off. He was in and out of sleep till about 11 (only about 2 hours) and then he woke up and we. were. up. till. 4:30 AM!!!!
I had to rock him, lay him down, put him in bed with us, I did everything. Finally at 3:30, I had to leave the room with him so Dan could get some sleep since he had to be up at 6:00 am to get ready to head back to the house to help the movers. We both drifted off at 4:30 (Noah and I) and now, he's finally back to sleep after SCREAMING like his dog had died for 20 minutes. I had to just put him in the pack n play and make him scream because he's so exhausted after only about 4 total hours of sleep in over 24 hours.
We check into our luxury hotel (YAYAY!) this afternoon and cannot go another night with him being overtired. We will be there for the next 10 days and are thrilled for the break. So screaming it out was so necessary. Thankfully, the Smiths let me stay here this morning and we will then take Noah back to play with Tori and Tessa around lunch time. I am also going to lie down... my body aches and I have never seen my eyes be so bloodshot and purple underneath!
Piper made it to Pennsylvania well and is enjoying her stay with her Aunt Annie and Uncle Todd! She's apparantly getting along well with her cousin, Casey (a Jack Russell) and has had to endure quite a bit of humping from Casey! But Annie said that he got a dose of his own medicine last night when she decided to hump him back!! Mind you: they've both been fixed! Thanks Annie and Todd for all you are doing to help us out. We love you guys.
Maria was supposed to fly out on Monday. However, because she's a Persian, she was denied her flight because of the temps (I wrote about that previously). So she's flying out tomorrow night into Atlanta and my sweet mother is going to go get her. It will be good to have both the "girls" settled in their new temporary homes.
I am off to rest for a minute while Noah sleeps. Please pray for us though. We are having a great packing experience and have had a lot of help from our friends and "Hawaii family" with Noah and places to eat/sleep. But we have to have rest; especially Noah. We want to be healthy and happy and rested for our week + stay at the resort in Waikiki as well as for our trips to D.C., Florida and Alabama then ultimately, to Louisiana.
"Talk" to you all again soon!
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
"See ya lates"
We are disconnecting our computer tonight and I will be MIA for a while. But all of you "readers," please don't give up on me! I will be back, that is for sure. The movers came and picked up our unaccompanied shipment today and tomorrow, they pack the rest of our earthly belongings to ship half way across the world to Louisiana.
Piper made it safely to Todd and Annie in Pennsylvania and that was a real relief. We were VERRRY sad to say goodbye to her last night because her leaving Hawaii made this whole moving business completely real. It is the only home she's ever known so it was sad for all of us. Maria was supposed to ship out today - poor baby. But because she's a flat faced animal, she was not allowed to be checked in today with Northwest (who merged with stupid Delta today - they have the STRICTEST rules on shipping animals) because the temp was over 70. Well, duh! It is stinkin' Hawaii - of course it is over 70 degrees. So, it was a nightmare getting her re-booked onto Continental. They are who we always use because of their Pet Safe program that ships pets in air conditioned and amazing conditions. But, they stopped flying into Alabama. So my poor mom has to drive to Atlanta and back this Friday to get our cat. She hid under our bed all day (unusual) because there were movers here and because Piper is gone now. It was really sad.
Today we were all zombies. I because I haven't slept AT ALL for days, Dan because he's worked so hard too and Noah because he's been going, going, going with us for days on end as well. We are so looking forward to getting packed up and organized completely, checked into the Hilton on Wednesday, shipping our Camry on Thursday as well as Maria out Thursday night, getting our house clean and ready for inspection by our landlord and BACK to the Hilton for some MAJOR R & R! Whhoo hoo!
So, until later, my friends! I will miss writing terribly but please know that I will be back to the blog world before you can even begin to miss us Bealls!!
Piper made it safely to Todd and Annie in Pennsylvania and that was a real relief. We were VERRRY sad to say goodbye to her last night because her leaving Hawaii made this whole moving business completely real. It is the only home she's ever known so it was sad for all of us. Maria was supposed to ship out today - poor baby. But because she's a flat faced animal, she was not allowed to be checked in today with Northwest (who merged with stupid Delta today - they have the STRICTEST rules on shipping animals) because the temp was over 70. Well, duh! It is stinkin' Hawaii - of course it is over 70 degrees. So, it was a nightmare getting her re-booked onto Continental. They are who we always use because of their Pet Safe program that ships pets in air conditioned and amazing conditions. But, they stopped flying into Alabama. So my poor mom has to drive to Atlanta and back this Friday to get our cat. She hid under our bed all day (unusual) because there were movers here and because Piper is gone now. It was really sad.
Today we were all zombies. I because I haven't slept AT ALL for days, Dan because he's worked so hard too and Noah because he's been going, going, going with us for days on end as well. We are so looking forward to getting packed up and organized completely, checked into the Hilton on Wednesday, shipping our Camry on Thursday as well as Maria out Thursday night, getting our house clean and ready for inspection by our landlord and BACK to the Hilton for some MAJOR R & R! Whhoo hoo!
So, until later, my friends! I will miss writing terribly but please know that I will be back to the blog world before you can even begin to miss us Bealls!!
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Going Away Party
Our sweet friend, Melanie, planned a going away party for us at Gordon Biersch down in Waikiki. We had such a great time seeing our friends, eating good food and celebrating our friendships. There is no doubt that we are heartbroken to have to move away from our Hawaii family.
Noah went to Lori and Nino's house where sweet Maggie watched him and Tori (2.5) and Tessa (1) and put him to bed in a pack n play till we could pick him up on our way home. So, we all got to bed at about 1 again last night! AHH! Sleep when you're dead, right?! We had another great adult night out last night and it was wonderful.
Dan, Melanie and I went to a wine party on Friday night and got a sitter for Noah. We had a blast but drank one too many glasses of wine and stayed out way too late. Noah was up and at 'em early yesterday morning and Dan and I packed/organized ALL day. ALL DAY. We were zombies by last night! But we realize how little time we have left here so we decided we can sleep later. Thankfully we have great friends/neighbors who took turns taking Noah when he was up from his naps yesterday which allowed us to get so much done.
Today, we go to church, come home, put Noah down, pack, go to a bbque at our friends, Kendal and David's house across the street. (Sidenote: talk about a small world! I went to Troy University with David and was in ROTC with him. We commissioned together into the Air Force and he then transferred into the active duty Army. They bought the house across the street from us a year and a half ago and we ran into each other after all these years! Kendal and I are now very close friends - our boys play together almost daily. They are from Enterprise so it has been great to have "southern" friends here in Hawaii with us).
After that, we come back home to pack some more, then go to the Smith's for dinner, THEN TO TAKE PIPER TO THE AIRPORT TONIGHT!!! It is finally real: shipping the animals out and then the movers coming starting tomorrow makes this move too real.
Noah went to Lori and Nino's house where sweet Maggie watched him and Tori (2.5) and Tessa (1) and put him to bed in a pack n play till we could pick him up on our way home. So, we all got to bed at about 1 again last night! AHH! Sleep when you're dead, right?! We had another great adult night out last night and it was wonderful.
Dan, Melanie and I went to a wine party on Friday night and got a sitter for Noah. We had a blast but drank one too many glasses of wine and stayed out way too late. Noah was up and at 'em early yesterday morning and Dan and I packed/organized ALL day. ALL DAY. We were zombies by last night! But we realize how little time we have left here so we decided we can sleep later. Thankfully we have great friends/neighbors who took turns taking Noah when he was up from his naps yesterday which allowed us to get so much done.
Today, we go to church, come home, put Noah down, pack, go to a bbque at our friends, Kendal and David's house across the street. (Sidenote: talk about a small world! I went to Troy University with David and was in ROTC with him. We commissioned together into the Air Force and he then transferred into the active duty Army. They bought the house across the street from us a year and a half ago and we ran into each other after all these years! Kendal and I are now very close friends - our boys play together almost daily. They are from Enterprise so it has been great to have "southern" friends here in Hawaii with us).
After that, we come back home to pack some more, then go to the Smith's for dinner, THEN TO TAKE PIPER TO THE AIRPORT TONIGHT!!! It is finally real: shipping the animals out and then the movers coming starting tomorrow makes this move too real.
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Saturday, June 13, 2009
My Silly Head
This is about a 4 minute video of Noah being so silly! He starts swaying and running into things/falling down when he's tired. He loves to put the camera bag around his neck all the time but when he's tired, it makes him even more unsturdy.
Noah LOVES to be chased - especially by his daddy at the end of the day. And lately, he's been trying to get Piper to chase him. So when he started doing it last night while he was already super tired, silly and with the camera bag around his neck, it was hilarious! He giggled and giggled and soon Piper caught onto what he was doing and started being silly with him.
Enjoy!
Noah LOVES to be chased - especially by his daddy at the end of the day. And lately, he's been trying to get Piper to chase him. So when he started doing it last night while he was already super tired, silly and with the camera bag around his neck, it was hilarious! He giggled and giggled and soon Piper caught onto what he was doing and started being silly with him.
Enjoy!
Friday, June 12, 2009
Little Sis
Today is my little sister, Kelly's 28th birthday. What a blessing that young woman is to me, my family and the children in the State of Alabama. Becoming an assistant attorney general of Alabama at 27 was so impressive. But what's more impressive is her heart for victims. Everyday, my sister rescues infants to pre-teens who have been robbed of their innocence and purity. Then she gets to find, prosecute and hand over the punishments that the sickos who harm these children will have to serve out.
There are few that I admire more than my baby sister. She certainly represents what I will always aspire to be in this earthly life; she lets the love of her Savior shine through everything she does. Kelly's testimony is long and full of struggles. But to see her where she is today makes those struggles and shortfalls so worth it. She blesses me daily - I will never be able to convey to her my gratitude and depth of love for her. So I will simply say: I love you, Koodlebug and am so proud of you. Happy birthday.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Ave Maria
My beautiful Persian cat, Maria, has been in my life for years and years now. She's the most beautiful cat: solid white with silver tips and the most piercing teal blue eyes you've ever seen. She's a Chinchilla Persian so it looks like she's always wearing eyeliner. She's registered as "Ave Maria" but we've always called her Maria (I didn't choose the name; her previous owner did).
Maria's moved with me from Texas to Alabama to South Carolina to Hawaii and has been such a trooper. She turned 9 just this month and has always been healthy - always. I adopted her many years ago from a breeder who used Maria as a showcat and then as a breeding machine. She was entirely too little of a Persian to have as many kittens as she produced in her early life. So I got her fixed and brought her home with me when I was stationed in Texas.
She has loved every minute of living in Hawaii these 3 years because she has so many windows for her to lounge in the sunshine for hours on end. At 7 a.m., she's ready for her breakfast and at 5 p.m. on the nose, it is her dinner time. She often lingers around after dinner in the hopes that I will give her a little taste of milk. Maria loves to play at the most random times - usually it is in the wee hours of the morning when she jumps on my head, purrs loudly and starts meowing at the top of her lungs to get me to play with her. She loves to drink water whenever and wherever she can find it. She loves dripping water in the sink, Piper's water bowl, her own water bowl and especially any toilets that are left open.
Noah chases her from one end of this house to another and squeals in delight in the off chance that he might catch her. He says "e-ow, e-ow" and "itty, itty" over and over to her. He adores her as much as I do but she's a total "mama's girl." Never has she been a lap cat on your terms. But she loves me (and now Dan) so much that she will slip onto our laps from time to time.
I just returned from taking our overly anxious dog, Piper, and Maria to the vet for their health certification that they must recieve in order to fly. Piper goes on Continental on Sunday to arrive into Pittsburgh on Monday and Maria goes on Northwest Monday to arrive into Alabama on Tuesday. We will be separated from them for about 6-8 weeks and are very sad. But they cannot travel all over the country with us so we are very blessed to have family members willing to take care of them while we are apart and getting settled in Louisiana.
Piper got a clean bill of health and I just expected Maria would do the same. She has always weighed 5 lbs on the nose but today, she weighed about 4.7 lbs - meaning she's lost 6 ounces in less than a month... not good. But I didn't think anything of it till the vet started feeling around on her midsection and pulled out a huge mass of skin and said "What's this?" My reply was that it was just a matte - she's constantly shedding her 2 inch long coat. But the doctor made me come feel it. Well, it was her right kidney which is currently about 3-4 times bigger than the normal sized kidney she should have. Her left kidney is about the same size.
Going back to the stress levels I am already experiencing, that was more than I could bear. I held back the tears long enough to find out that Maria has renal disease and her kidneys are on the downward spiral. The doctor asked about how much water she was drinking and I told her the same thing I just wrote about - where there is water, there is Maria drinking it. She said she's doing that because her kidneys are enlarged and are putting out the water she intakes too quickly for her body to absorb any. So she's dehydrated constantly.
The vet immediately pumped her with an antibiotic and an i.v. bag of fluids. She said she would allow Maria to travel but that this will need to be her last flight. I have to take her back to the vet before she boards her flight Monday for more fluids to be pumped into her and that my mom should immediately take her to the vet for further testing on her renal system because she's at some stage right now of renal failure.
Once they took Maria out to get the i.v. and it was just me and Piper in the room, I broke down. Yes, this is just a cat. But she's MY cat and she's been MY companion for many years now - through some of the hardest years of my life when I was stationed alone in Texas while Dan was stationed in South Carolina for 3 years. And to find this all out after I paid $500 a month ago for Piper and Maria's annuals and for many antibiotics for Piper, then another $150 for more antibiotics for Piper's ears, then another $200 today for this appointment, and a total of $650 for both Maria and Piper's flights out on Sunday and Monday, I wanted to scream.
I am so sad about my little cat quite possibly near the end of her life and what lies ahead for her if her kidneys are already too damaged. And I am mad that this is something we are finding out right before we move and my life is turned upside down already. This might just be the nail in the coffin for me and the amount of stress that I can handle. I need prayer because I cannot take much more emotional and physical draining than I am already experiencing.
Maria's moved with me from Texas to Alabama to South Carolina to Hawaii and has been such a trooper. She turned 9 just this month and has always been healthy - always. I adopted her many years ago from a breeder who used Maria as a showcat and then as a breeding machine. She was entirely too little of a Persian to have as many kittens as she produced in her early life. So I got her fixed and brought her home with me when I was stationed in Texas.
She has loved every minute of living in Hawaii these 3 years because she has so many windows for her to lounge in the sunshine for hours on end. At 7 a.m., she's ready for her breakfast and at 5 p.m. on the nose, it is her dinner time. She often lingers around after dinner in the hopes that I will give her a little taste of milk. Maria loves to play at the most random times - usually it is in the wee hours of the morning when she jumps on my head, purrs loudly and starts meowing at the top of her lungs to get me to play with her. She loves to drink water whenever and wherever she can find it. She loves dripping water in the sink, Piper's water bowl, her own water bowl and especially any toilets that are left open.
Noah chases her from one end of this house to another and squeals in delight in the off chance that he might catch her. He says "e-ow, e-ow" and "itty, itty" over and over to her. He adores her as much as I do but she's a total "mama's girl." Never has she been a lap cat on your terms. But she loves me (and now Dan) so much that she will slip onto our laps from time to time.
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I just returned from taking our overly anxious dog, Piper, and Maria to the vet for their health certification that they must recieve in order to fly. Piper goes on Continental on Sunday to arrive into Pittsburgh on Monday and Maria goes on Northwest Monday to arrive into Alabama on Tuesday. We will be separated from them for about 6-8 weeks and are very sad. But they cannot travel all over the country with us so we are very blessed to have family members willing to take care of them while we are apart and getting settled in Louisiana.
Piper got a clean bill of health and I just expected Maria would do the same. She has always weighed 5 lbs on the nose but today, she weighed about 4.7 lbs - meaning she's lost 6 ounces in less than a month... not good. But I didn't think anything of it till the vet started feeling around on her midsection and pulled out a huge mass of skin and said "What's this?" My reply was that it was just a matte - she's constantly shedding her 2 inch long coat. But the doctor made me come feel it. Well, it was her right kidney which is currently about 3-4 times bigger than the normal sized kidney she should have. Her left kidney is about the same size.
Going back to the stress levels I am already experiencing, that was more than I could bear. I held back the tears long enough to find out that Maria has renal disease and her kidneys are on the downward spiral. The doctor asked about how much water she was drinking and I told her the same thing I just wrote about - where there is water, there is Maria drinking it. She said she's doing that because her kidneys are enlarged and are putting out the water she intakes too quickly for her body to absorb any. So she's dehydrated constantly.
The vet immediately pumped her with an antibiotic and an i.v. bag of fluids. She said she would allow Maria to travel but that this will need to be her last flight. I have to take her back to the vet before she boards her flight Monday for more fluids to be pumped into her and that my mom should immediately take her to the vet for further testing on her renal system because she's at some stage right now of renal failure.
Once they took Maria out to get the i.v. and it was just me and Piper in the room, I broke down. Yes, this is just a cat. But she's MY cat and she's been MY companion for many years now - through some of the hardest years of my life when I was stationed alone in Texas while Dan was stationed in South Carolina for 3 years. And to find this all out after I paid $500 a month ago for Piper and Maria's annuals and for many antibiotics for Piper, then another $150 for more antibiotics for Piper's ears, then another $200 today for this appointment, and a total of $650 for both Maria and Piper's flights out on Sunday and Monday, I wanted to scream.
I am so sad about my little cat quite possibly near the end of her life and what lies ahead for her if her kidneys are already too damaged. And I am mad that this is something we are finding out right before we move and my life is turned upside down already. This might just be the nail in the coffin for me and the amount of stress that I can handle. I need prayer because I cannot take much more emotional and physical draining than I am already experiencing.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Happy Hump Day
I never watch You Tube videos unless they feature my child/family or my friends' children or families. However, someone sent this video to me a couple of years back and when I am having a bad day or just need a good laugh, I watch this clip. It can bring me to tears I laugh so hard. Have a Happy Hump Day and watch this clip! Hope it makes you smile ;)
Baby Toes
I know I have talked and talked about how much we have going on right now and I know that some of you out there must be sick of reading it by now. Just understand that when I complain via my blog, I am allowing myself some "venting" privileges that I don't get too much around my house these days! Unless it is my poor husband or a 16 month old, no one else is really willing to listen. So, indulge me, my blog friends!
This home is in chaos right now. There are suitcases strewn about that will not be unpacked from our Maui trip because we intend on adding to those suitcases already semi-packed since we will be "living" out of them these next several months. The dog is constantly following me around and just asking for me to put her back on Prozac for dogs; she's sensing some major changes in the air and rightly so since she's boarding a plane on Sunday for Annie and Todd's home in Pennsylvania where she will live for the next month and a half. The cat will leave Monday for Alabama for a few months with my parents in Alabama. Dan's finishing up his last work week at the Joint Intelligence Operations Center. The first set of movers come Monday to take our unaccompanied baggage and then the primary movers come Tuesday - Thursday to pack up our entire home. We ship our Camry a week from now, sign over our Pathfinder's title to our friends who bought it this weekend, and get ready to live out of those previously mentioned suitcases indefinitely!
To add anything extra to do to the mix is just out of the question.... unless it involves our Noah. This past weekend in Maui, Noah was constantly trying to rid himself of his clothes, diaper and shoes so he could enjoy the Maui sun and sand in the way God intended for him to enjoy paradise! At some point, he must of tripped and snagged his 4th toenail on his little right foot because the poor thing was ripped down to the cuticle. I mean, that nail peeled all the way back, leaving a pulpy mess of skin underneath it exposed. But it didn't come all the way off so sweet Noah kept catching that nail on everything, including his shoes. He never even whined when it happened so we aren't sure when the accident occurred (boys never cry over anything that girls would expect them to cry over!)
By last night, the toe was starting to turn really red and starting to ooze just a bit. And throughout the night last night, our boy was waking up every half hour or so in tears; it was obvious something was causing him a great deal of pain. When he woke up this morning after a fitful night of sleep, his toe was purple, oozing and twice its normal size. The baby was limping around the house - it was heartbreaking. So our pediatrician squeezed him in and got him started on some serious antibiotics: his FIRST EVER antibiotics! I was so sad to have to give him such nasty meds - he's never had more than Motrin in his baby system so this was a hard thing for me to deal with. I hate having to medicate him - that is for certain. Even our doctor couldn't stop commenting how he was one of her only patients to never have had an ear infection or something requiring antibiotics. I was thrilled to hear that!
Our doctor also discovered that what we thought was just a tiny rash was actually a fungal infection so she started him on an anti-fungal cream on his tummy and leg. She suspects that that occurred because of how much time he's been spending in his swimsuit on the beaches here in Hawaii.
I tell you all of this not to garner sympathy because it is just one more thing added to our overflowing plates but to tell you that no matter HOW busy a mom becomes, she will stop everything in its tracks to make sure her baby is 100% healthy. It is so amazing to me how I hurt when Noah hurts. I felt my toe throbbing today as he limped around the house and I couldn't help but pray that his pain could become mine. He wanted his Mama today and there was no one else that could take my place. He wrapped his arms so hard around my neck over and over and showered me with kisses. And when nap #2 time came around, he wouldn't let me go; he just wanted to be held and rocked as he fell asleep on my chest. I just allowed him to be close to me and although he couldn't say it, I know that it made him think he was feeling better.
There will be a day one day soon that I will ache to hold Noah and rock him like I did today yet he will be "too big" or it will be "gross" to him to be with his mama. I try to remind myself of that during moments like those that I had today with my baby. Never a greater feeling exists in this world than when your child wants ONLY YOU! Noah makes me feel so loved and appreciated and I would give my right arm any day, all day if it meant that he didn't have to suffer in even the slightest way.
It is amazing what an antibiotic will do when it is treating an infection. After his first dose, his toe was returning to a normal, healthy shade of pink and the oozing had slowed. I am very grateful for that. With all we have coming up, we need our boy to be as healthy and happy as possible.
This home is in chaos right now. There are suitcases strewn about that will not be unpacked from our Maui trip because we intend on adding to those suitcases already semi-packed since we will be "living" out of them these next several months. The dog is constantly following me around and just asking for me to put her back on Prozac for dogs; she's sensing some major changes in the air and rightly so since she's boarding a plane on Sunday for Annie and Todd's home in Pennsylvania where she will live for the next month and a half. The cat will leave Monday for Alabama for a few months with my parents in Alabama. Dan's finishing up his last work week at the Joint Intelligence Operations Center. The first set of movers come Monday to take our unaccompanied baggage and then the primary movers come Tuesday - Thursday to pack up our entire home. We ship our Camry a week from now, sign over our Pathfinder's title to our friends who bought it this weekend, and get ready to live out of those previously mentioned suitcases indefinitely!
To add anything extra to do to the mix is just out of the question.... unless it involves our Noah. This past weekend in Maui, Noah was constantly trying to rid himself of his clothes, diaper and shoes so he could enjoy the Maui sun and sand in the way God intended for him to enjoy paradise! At some point, he must of tripped and snagged his 4th toenail on his little right foot because the poor thing was ripped down to the cuticle. I mean, that nail peeled all the way back, leaving a pulpy mess of skin underneath it exposed. But it didn't come all the way off so sweet Noah kept catching that nail on everything, including his shoes. He never even whined when it happened so we aren't sure when the accident occurred (boys never cry over anything that girls would expect them to cry over!)
By last night, the toe was starting to turn really red and starting to ooze just a bit. And throughout the night last night, our boy was waking up every half hour or so in tears; it was obvious something was causing him a great deal of pain. When he woke up this morning after a fitful night of sleep, his toe was purple, oozing and twice its normal size. The baby was limping around the house - it was heartbreaking. So our pediatrician squeezed him in and got him started on some serious antibiotics: his FIRST EVER antibiotics! I was so sad to have to give him such nasty meds - he's never had more than Motrin in his baby system so this was a hard thing for me to deal with. I hate having to medicate him - that is for certain. Even our doctor couldn't stop commenting how he was one of her only patients to never have had an ear infection or something requiring antibiotics. I was thrilled to hear that!
Our doctor also discovered that what we thought was just a tiny rash was actually a fungal infection so she started him on an anti-fungal cream on his tummy and leg. She suspects that that occurred because of how much time he's been spending in his swimsuit on the beaches here in Hawaii.
I tell you all of this not to garner sympathy because it is just one more thing added to our overflowing plates but to tell you that no matter HOW busy a mom becomes, she will stop everything in its tracks to make sure her baby is 100% healthy. It is so amazing to me how I hurt when Noah hurts. I felt my toe throbbing today as he limped around the house and I couldn't help but pray that his pain could become mine. He wanted his Mama today and there was no one else that could take my place. He wrapped his arms so hard around my neck over and over and showered me with kisses. And when nap #2 time came around, he wouldn't let me go; he just wanted to be held and rocked as he fell asleep on my chest. I just allowed him to be close to me and although he couldn't say it, I know that it made him think he was feeling better.
There will be a day one day soon that I will ache to hold Noah and rock him like I did today yet he will be "too big" or it will be "gross" to him to be with his mama. I try to remind myself of that during moments like those that I had today with my baby. Never a greater feeling exists in this world than when your child wants ONLY YOU! Noah makes me feel so loved and appreciated and I would give my right arm any day, all day if it meant that he didn't have to suffer in even the slightest way.
It is amazing what an antibiotic will do when it is treating an infection. After his first dose, his toe was returning to a normal, healthy shade of pink and the oozing had slowed. I am very grateful for that. With all we have coming up, we need our boy to be as healthy and happy as possible.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Maui Videos
Here are some cute videos from our trip to Maui. The first one is my favorite - a cute little girl came up to Noah to "talk" and she let out a loud squeal in his face. It excited him so much that he ran over to a doorway and let out the most shrill squeal ever! Listen closely. Be sure to pause our music player at the very bottom of this page so you can hear the videos.
I will be adding more videos later so check back.
Maui
We had a fabulous time in Maui these past 4 days. It was a wonderful trip for our family but now we are back and into the weeds with moving. I can't tell you how much we have to do - everywhere I turn, there is something waiting to be taken care of. So this past weekend was much needed.We left Thursday morning and landed in Maui after lunch (just a 30 minute flight). Noah was in desparate need of a nap so when I went to check in, our room wasn't going to be ready for another 2 hours. I quietly asked the lady if she could give us another ocean view room (or anything) so we could put him down. She didn't say anything and handed over the keys to a pent house condominium free of charge! We couldn't believe it. It was gorgeous and overlooked the ocean - we were thrilled.
We woke up Friday morning and went to the beach. As you can see, the beaches are amazing. In our opinion, Maui is the most beautiful of the islands and is FAR more beautiful than our island of Oahu. Don't get me wrong: Oahu is gorgeous but there is no more beautiful place in the Pacific than Maui. Noah had a great time swimming in the ocean with the technicolor "dishies" (fish) that were swimming around us.
After the beach, we took Noah to the Maui Aquarium for a few hours. He LOVED it! He was so tired but couldn't stop running around from tank to tank. He especially loved banging on the sharks' tank... not funny to me!
Friday night, we ate at a place called "Kimo's" on Front Road. We sat on the deck and I had orange glazed Leihe fish and Dan had the lobster stuffed Opah. YUMMMY. We sat right next to the Miami Heat basketball star Dwayne Wade which was really cool, too.
Saturday we had big plans to drive the Road to Hana on the northern stretch of Maui. Now, we expected to make many waterfall and garden pitstops but we had no idea what we were in for. To sum it up: the Road to Hana is absolutely stunning - our eyes were so overstimulated by the end of the day! But it is a long drive. We left at 8:30 am and finished the driving tour by 2:00 or so. HOWEVER, we didn't think it made sense to turn around to get back to our hotel via the same tiny, curvy, bumpy roads we'd just travelled so we decided to go straight. Well, we ended up in absolute no man's land. I am not kidding you: the southeast stretch of the island of Maui is exquisite but for 5 more hours, we drove one a one lane (not big enough for even our car) that was gravel and we saw no humans and no cows for hours on end. It was desolation at its finest. It was AWFUL! But so beautiful as you will see in the photos. However, if you ever drive the Road to Hana take note: TURN AROUND AND GO BACK THE WAY YOU CAME! There are no gas stations, no humans, no guard rails even at 100+ feet above the ocean, rock slides, you name the hazard and we saw/passed it!
So by the time we made it back to our glorious hotel resort, we were spent. Dan got take out, I put Noah to bed (he was exhausted from being in the car for almost 12 hours and he didn't nap because he was so overtired!), we opened a bottle of wine and some beer and watched our favorite show "Harper's Island." We were so tired!
Yesterday, we spent some time by the pool and then flew home. Everyone of us were exhausted but so happy from the weekend. We had such a memorable time. Now, we are up to our eyeballs in moving but we won't complain: life is good. We have a lot of going-away events to go to, lots of friends to say goodbye to, we ship our animals off island this weekend and we are on our way.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Dirty Boys and Doggies
This is the proof of how nasty (minus the loads of poo I have had to deal with these last 2 days) things are right now! But I made sure to put some cute pics in the mix too ;)
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Take a Minute
I am having a heck of a week so far. I was just about to log on to start typing a post to let you all know how bad my past two days have been when I got this email from my dad. Wow... to say it put things in perspective is an understatment. I ask you all to take a minute to write this young man and say "thank you." I am about to go do the same.
****************************
"Here's a guy that could use our help. He lost his arms and legs in Iraq and has been in the hospital for two years without visitors outside of his family. I am going to send him a card (that's all the family wants, no money) and express my gratitude for his service. If you would do the same and perhaps get a few others to join us, it might help his will to survive.
Sgt. Daniel Thornhill USMC
Fort Sam Houston Fisher House
3623 George C. Beach Rd
Fort Sam Houston, Texas 78234"
*****************************
May we all consider ourselves blessed today.
I also have three thanksgivings that I want to share with you all. Back in December, I fell down a flight of stairs at my parent's home in Alabama while holding Noah. Thankfully, he was okay but my foot was not. I have no idea if I fractured anything because I just wanted to tough it out. It still is painful but not debilitating - I run 6 days a week on it so it hasn't been that bad.
However, about a month ago, I noticed a marble sized knot forming and growing ever bigger on top of my foot where I first injured it. It has been increasingly painful and the lump was hard to the touch. Finally, I got an appointment set up for yesterday morning to get it looked at but when I was about to get ready for the appointment, I looked down and noticed that the lump (which I was scared to learn more about) was GONE. Simply gone! There is no pain there, no swelling, no lump. So, I cancelled my doctors appointment and gave up some praise to the Lord!
Just yesterday, my dear friend Lori Herrera read some of our blog updates when she noted that I mentioned we were trying to sell our Pathfinder. Within hours, she and her husband bought our Pathfinder for her mother-in-law who is also their nanny to their girls. What an answered prayer! No more advertising that car or trying to sell it to strangers. And we can keep it till we leave island on the 27th so we don't have to worry about renting a car. That might seem like a small thing to many, but when you have to pack up your entire lives to cross back over an ocean, selling a car right away that you can't take with you is a BIG thing.
Another praise that I have concerns my dad. Back in July of 2000, I was in the officers version of basic training for 5.5 weeks at Tyndall AFB, Florida. We had no phone privileges, no internet, no connection with the outside world. I knew that my parents were in and traveling around France but I didn't know which dates they'd be flying.
Our basic trainers never announced the news to us until one day when we were in the auditorium and one of the trainers got on stage to tell us that an plane with many Americans on board had gone down in Paris. Well, sitting at attention and hearing that was very difficult for me because I knew my parents were there. I just silently prayed for their safety and waited to hear that everything was okay with them. Thankfully, it wasn't their flight - it was the last flight of the very famous, super-sonic Concorde jet.
2 weeks ago, my dad left for his annual trip around the world (mostly in Asia) with several of his employees to Troy University campuses in various locations. They were supposed to go to one of the Russian countries following their trip to Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Korea but their flight in Dubai was delayed so my dad and his best friend, Colonel Schmidt, sent the rest of the team onto Georgia (the country) and they took a flight to Paris where they had a 1 day layover then came home to Alabama.
That was less than a week ago that they were in Paris. Just 1 1/2 days ago, an Air France jet disappeared into the Atlantic Ocean. They still haven't found it. My dad and Colonel Schmidt could have been on that flight had they been delayed a few more days.
God does answer our prayers of healing and safety. He wants us to pray for ourselves and take authority over our bodies as well as take authority in prayer over our loved ones.
Psalm 91
1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust."
3 Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5 You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
I encourage you all to just give thanks today when you find yourselves in trying situations. I am not exaggerating when I tell you that my patience and endurance has been tested beyond what I think I might be able to handle at this really stressful time in our lives.
You name it and it has happened to me and Dan in the last 48 hours (lots of poop eating, dog-sitting two very high maintenance dogs that have done more damage to our home than you could imagine, mud, water hoses brought INTO the home all while we are trying to get our lives organized and packed for Maui AND to move to Louisiana while taking a month's leave between here and Louisiana... you get my drift). But NOTHING is worth complaining about when I could use that energy to praise our Lord and thank Him for our safety, our health, our happiness.
I am so thankful for those three answered prayers today and I choose to be thankful and cast down satan and his "snares."
****************************
"Here's a guy that could use our help. He lost his arms and legs in Iraq and has been in the hospital for two years without visitors outside of his family. I am going to send him a card (that's all the family wants, no money) and express my gratitude for his service. If you would do the same and perhaps get a few others to join us, it might help his will to survive.
Sgt. Daniel Thornhill USMC
Fort Sam Houston Fisher House
3623 George C. Beach Rd
Fort Sam Houston, Texas 78234"
*****************************
May we all consider ourselves blessed today.
I also have three thanksgivings that I want to share with you all. Back in December, I fell down a flight of stairs at my parent's home in Alabama while holding Noah. Thankfully, he was okay but my foot was not. I have no idea if I fractured anything because I just wanted to tough it out. It still is painful but not debilitating - I run 6 days a week on it so it hasn't been that bad.
However, about a month ago, I noticed a marble sized knot forming and growing ever bigger on top of my foot where I first injured it. It has been increasingly painful and the lump was hard to the touch. Finally, I got an appointment set up for yesterday morning to get it looked at but when I was about to get ready for the appointment, I looked down and noticed that the lump (which I was scared to learn more about) was GONE. Simply gone! There is no pain there, no swelling, no lump. So, I cancelled my doctors appointment and gave up some praise to the Lord!
Just yesterday, my dear friend Lori Herrera read some of our blog updates when she noted that I mentioned we were trying to sell our Pathfinder. Within hours, she and her husband bought our Pathfinder for her mother-in-law who is also their nanny to their girls. What an answered prayer! No more advertising that car or trying to sell it to strangers. And we can keep it till we leave island on the 27th so we don't have to worry about renting a car. That might seem like a small thing to many, but when you have to pack up your entire lives to cross back over an ocean, selling a car right away that you can't take with you is a BIG thing.
Another praise that I have concerns my dad. Back in July of 2000, I was in the officers version of basic training for 5.5 weeks at Tyndall AFB, Florida. We had no phone privileges, no internet, no connection with the outside world. I knew that my parents were in and traveling around France but I didn't know which dates they'd be flying.
Our basic trainers never announced the news to us until one day when we were in the auditorium and one of the trainers got on stage to tell us that an plane with many Americans on board had gone down in Paris. Well, sitting at attention and hearing that was very difficult for me because I knew my parents were there. I just silently prayed for their safety and waited to hear that everything was okay with them. Thankfully, it wasn't their flight - it was the last flight of the very famous, super-sonic Concorde jet.
2 weeks ago, my dad left for his annual trip around the world (mostly in Asia) with several of his employees to Troy University campuses in various locations. They were supposed to go to one of the Russian countries following their trip to Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Korea but their flight in Dubai was delayed so my dad and his best friend, Colonel Schmidt, sent the rest of the team onto Georgia (the country) and they took a flight to Paris where they had a 1 day layover then came home to Alabama.
That was less than a week ago that they were in Paris. Just 1 1/2 days ago, an Air France jet disappeared into the Atlantic Ocean. They still haven't found it. My dad and Colonel Schmidt could have been on that flight had they been delayed a few more days.
God does answer our prayers of healing and safety. He wants us to pray for ourselves and take authority over our bodies as well as take authority in prayer over our loved ones.
Psalm 91
1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust."
3 Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5 You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
I encourage you all to just give thanks today when you find yourselves in trying situations. I am not exaggerating when I tell you that my patience and endurance has been tested beyond what I think I might be able to handle at this really stressful time in our lives.
You name it and it has happened to me and Dan in the last 48 hours (lots of poop eating, dog-sitting two very high maintenance dogs that have done more damage to our home than you could imagine, mud, water hoses brought INTO the home all while we are trying to get our lives organized and packed for Maui AND to move to Louisiana while taking a month's leave between here and Louisiana... you get my drift). But NOTHING is worth complaining about when I could use that energy to praise our Lord and thank Him for our safety, our health, our happiness.
I am so thankful for those three answered prayers today and I choose to be thankful and cast down satan and his "snares."
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