Don’t give up

Posted on December 13, 2010 by Valerie

O Love that Wilt not let me go

George Matteson 1882
  1. O Love that wilt not let me go,
  2. I rest my weary soul in thee;
    I give thee back the life I owe,
    That in thine ocean depths its flow
    May richer, fuller be.
  3. O light that foll’west all my way,
    I yield my flick’ring torch to thee;
    My heart restores its borrowed ray,
    That in thy sunshine’s blaze its day
    May brighter, fairer be.
  4. O Joy that seekest me through pain,
    I cannot close my heart to thee;
    I trace the rainbow through the rain,
    And feel the promise is not vain,
    That morn shall tearless be.
  5. O Cross that liftest up my head,
    I dare not ask to fly from thee;
    I lay in dust life’s glory dead,
    And from the ground there blossoms red
    Life that shall endless be.
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Love it!

Posted on December 3, 2010 by Valerie

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.??? – Albert Einstein

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Crock pot Macaroni and Cheese

Posted on December 3, 2010 by Valerie

I got this recipe from a friend after she brought it to a church pot-luck and my husband almost fell over in love.  So here is Tracey’s Mac-n-cheese


1 8oz package of macaroni, cooked and drained

1 can evaporated milk

2 1/2 cups whole milk

1 tsp salt

black pepper to taste

2 eggs

1/4 cup melted butter

1 cup mild cheddar cheese shredded

2 cups sharp cheddar cheese shredded


Mix all ingredients together.  Lightly grease crock pot and pour in mixture.  Cook 3-4 hours on low, 1 1/2 – 2 hours on high.  (These times depend on the heat of your crock pot.)


We had this with some lightly steamed broccoli and ate it ALL.  It is soooo yummy!

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From This One Place by Sarah Groves

Posted on December 3, 2010 by Valerie

So, maybe I am tired or maybe I just need a little pep talk, but I am really relating to this song right now.  I heard it the other day and it hit home.  You know how you can hear a song a hundred times and it doesn’t even phase you until you need the words in the moment.  I am so glad for Sarah Groves’ music because so many of her songs have hit me just when I needed them!

The chorus of this song says that in this very moment I am totally in the dark.  I have no idea what’s going on around me or what’s ahead of me.  BUT, I will trust that You (God) can see something very different from what I am seeing right now.

I think that the biggest thing that has brought peace to my life is recognizing that God has a plan and has seen the end.  I mean, simply recognizing that He does have a plan, not demanding to know what that plan is.  Sometimes there are very large challenges in our lives and sometimes we are just in a “Funk” as my mom calls it.  Either way, it helps me to know that the God of the Universe who took the time to include details in our lives cares enough about me and loves me so deeply to provide for me the strong tower of his protection and forethought.

How nice to know that God’s plan for me includes the victory of cross, His promise for life abundant, and a relationship with the One who has known me since before time.  I know that God hasn’t promised an easy life, but He has promised that with His strength, I can live life to the fullest.

From This One Place

I was about to give up and that’s no lie
cardinal landed outside my window
threw his head back and sang a song
so beautiful it made me cry

took me back to a childhood tree
full of birds and dreams

from this one place I can’t see very far
in this one moment I’m square in the dark
these are the things I will trust in my heart
you can see something else
something else

I don’t know what’s making me so afraid
tiny cloud over my head
heavy and grey with a hint of dread
I don’t like to feel this way

take me back to a window seat
with clouds beneath my feet

from this one place I can’t see very far
in this one moment I’m square in the dark
these are the things I will trust in my heart
you can see something else
something else
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Crustless Pumpkin Pie

Posted on December 3, 2010 by Valerie

My best friend gave me a Gooseberry Patch magazine for Halloween.  I LOVE Fall and this was a great gift!  One of my new favorite recipes was in there.

This is an amazingly easy recipe that EVERYONE loves!

4 eggs, beaten

15 oz can pumpkin

12 oz can evaporated milk

1   1/2 C sugar

2 teasp pumpkin pie spice

1 teasp salt

18 1/4 oz package yellow cake mix

1 C chopped pecans

1 C butter, melted (I use less)

Optional” Whipped topping, chopped walnuts, cinnamon or nutmeg

Combine eggs, pumpkin, evaporated milk, sugar, spice and salt.  Mix well and pour into an ungreased 13×9 baking pan.  Sprinkle dry cake mix and nuts over the top.  Drizzle with butter, do not stir.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to one hour, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Serve with whipped topping sprinkled with nuts and cinnamon or nutmeg, if desired.

Home Made Whipped Cream

In a chilled bowl, use an electric mixer to beat 2 cups heavy whipping cream, gradually adding 1/4 cup sugar and beating until stiff.  Make it even more special by adding 2 drops of pumkin or hazelnut flavoring, or a dash of espresso powder.

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Busted

Posted on November 25, 2010 by Valerie

He finally surrendered to the fashion police!

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Funnies

Posted on November 22, 2010 by Valerie

No amount of bus driver training would prepare Donna for this!

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so sleeeeeepy!

Posted on November 11, 2010 by Valerie

Bekah has been up for almost 4 hours now…  I hope we will get back into bed soon!  I am supposed to have Yoga class in the morning and I don’t know if I am going to feel like going.  It is always nice once I get there, but such a struggle in the process!

Oh, what to do!?!

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Rebekah Update 11/5/2010

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Valerie

Wow!  We are in the middle of a whirlwind of appointments.  Our next appointment is to get fitted for AFO (Ankle Foot Orthotics).  We go on Monday for fittings.  How exciting!  I am all for anything that will help get this girl MOVING!  Rebekah is on the schedule to be getting a Gait Trainer too!  Who knows how fast these things go with the insurance.  I am excited to see how she responds and how quickly we can get her going!  This is a picture similar to what her’s will be.

Rebekah is doing great!  She is so happy and “in the moment”.  She makes everyone smile around her and any kind of shopping takes twice as long when she is along.  Everyone wants to stop and talk with her!

We had a sleep study a few weeks ago and found out that Rebekah doesn’t sleep well.  Ha Ha Ha!!  We knew that already huh?!?!  Well, they found that she had two episodes where she stopped breathing and six episodes where she almost stopped breathing.  We are going to and ENT (Ear, Nose, Throat) doctor soon to see what they say about that.  Maybe needs surgery to have tonsils and adenoids removed.  We will repeat the study once we have surgery – if we have surgery.

We also went for a feeding evaluation at the children’s hospital.  They have noticed things like – Rebekah doesn’t move her tongue from side to side.  So we have some exercised to do to help that movement.  We are trying to figure out how often we will go back for updates and new plans to help her along.  A lot of this is dependent on insurance coverage and Rebekah’s medicaid funds, unfortunately.

We continue to see our wonderful trio of girls every week.  We could not make it with out Lydia, Shirley, and Stephanie.  These ladies work diligently with Rebekah and push her a little more each time they see her.  She is highly motivated herself and they work with her to focus that motivations to help her move and improve!  I am amazed and inspired by her every day!

Rebekah has been on some medicine for a little over a month now that has helped her rest peacefully at night.  She used to startle herself awake and then we were up for a few hours.  This medicine helps calm her movements and really seems to clear out some neurological clutter that was going on.  She and I are both sleeping better!

I took her clothes shopping the other day and she is in 24 month and 2T stuff!!  She is so long although she is so slim.  Those pants tend to slip down!

We had a wonderful time this Fall picking out pumpkins and visiting the petting zoo at the pumpkin farm.  I am so happy to have these opportunities with my sweet girls.

Something to pray about is our renewal application for Rebekah’s medicaid funds.  We had about 10 days to get together evaluations, doctors forms, therapy notes, etc and get them returned to the office.  They are very strict on following instructions and deadlines and DO NOT answer the phones when you call.  Please pray that everything was in order and that we will hear back with positive results.

Thank you friends and family for your love and prayers.  As always, we so appreciate your support and count on you!  Much love and prayers to you!

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Free Membership

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Valerie

I never asked to be part of this group.  In fact I was pretty sure that I wanted nothing to do with it.

Just over two years ago, I was given a life-time membership to a community that, before then, I had thought very little about.  Since that day, I have thought about it every day.  I did not understand my membership.  In fact, two years later, I am still discovering the depth and breadth of it.  As with any membership, there is a payment to make.  But, there is also a long list of benefits (I am just now beginning to see the first glimpse of this) to having my membership.

To hear the news that you have a special needs child can be devastating.  We dreamed for nine months of a happy healthy baby.  I dreamed about my two children playing together and learning side by side.  I dreamed of family pictures, family vacations, and family dinners.  One day, all those dreams stopped.  I became dead and dried up on the inside.  The beginning of these last two years was the lonliest, darkest time of my life.  My prayer was to just survive each day!

In a phone conversation with one of Rebekah’s therapists, I heard “the words”.  She said, very non-chalantly, “From one special needs mom to another, … ” and went on to finish what she was explaining to me.  I doubt she even knows what a load those words carried for me that day.  Eventually, Slowly, Hesitantly, I began to read, pray, and research.  I began to see that this was a membership and not a punishment.  I began to make friendships with those around me also in the club.  It took a long time for me to just accept our shift in “normal”.  It took a long time for me to thank God for our child.  (I remember that day clearly, sitting in church with my sister and my mother.)  It took a long time for me to talk about it openly.  I still cry a lot.  I still grieve a lot.  I still worry a lot.

I am beginning to come alive again on the inside.  I began to realize just how dark the darkness had been.  I wasn’t sure how I would ever bloom again when my leaves and branches were so charred and dry.  God has done an amazing thing for me.  He has shown me that not only does He love me, but He also has blessings in store for me.  He knew my end before I had a beginning.  He has a plan for my life – and that plan is for life abundant, not harm and hurt.  He knows that this is an incredibly large burden and never intended for me to carry it.  He is carrying me through it.

A couple of months back, I jumped the gun and planted some mums for some Fall color.  Well, they dried up and died.  At least, I had thought they died.  I just about threw them out and started over the other day when I noticed something.  There were new blooms!

I have been so scared for my mailbox clematis because this Summer was SO HOT.  For weeks at a time the temperature was in the high 90’s.  There just was no relief and not enough water for the plants.  My clematis is in full sun from morning to night.  It burned to a brown crunchy crisp.  I love my bacon that way, but knew that my clematis was done for!  Until just the other day, I spotted it – – new green leaves!  I could not believe it!  I had to laugh out loud because I had been forming all these thoughts together over the last weeks and there was another example of life springing forth where you least expect it.

I am going to hold these pictures dear to me as a signpost to remember that God can do anything.  That He can take me through the darkest, driest times and bring life, joy, and abundance on the other side.  My prayer now is to be a champion for my sweet girls, a helper to my amazing husband, and a help and aid to those around me.

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