Learning Heart Lessons

Learning Lessons

I have another Hope-ism that turned into a good heart lesson for me and I would love to share it with you for a couple reasons. . . first because I love to see God's truths go forth and I pray that it will encourage you as The Lord continues His faithful work in our lives, and secondly, because I love to give you a real picture of the weak and sinful self that I struggle with all for the purpose of showing how great our awesome God is to save, love and continue to sanctify a wretch like me!

Let me start with the story. . .

May 20, 2013 Hope-ism

This past Monday, Trevor was outside trying to start our lawnmower for the first time this year in order to mow the backyard. Hope was also outside in the backyard, sitting in her jogger stroller and enjoying some fresh air.  

The lawnmower would not start.  Trev, thinking perhaps some water had gotten in the line, kept starting it over and over, but it continually would just die a few seconds later.  After about 15 minutes of listening to Trevor try to start the lawn mower, over and over again, Hope said this to her daddy. . .

"Daddy, I've got three words for you!"

Laughing, Trevor asked, "Oh really?  What are they?"

And Hope answered, slowly and spaced out. . . 

"IT'S. . . NOT. . . WORKING!!!"

: )     : )     : )     : )     : )     : )     : )      : )

Smart girl!  We still have a lawn mower that is not working, even after grandpa's visit the next day!!!  : )   Ha ha!!!

A HOUSE FOR HOPE!!

We have created a new page that we will use to keep you up to date on the progress of our new house.  Go to A HOUSE FOR HOPE - UPDATES under the My Story sidebar.

Update on Hope

Hello dear ones!  I am finally getting a chance to send out an update on our Hopey Bear!  First, thank you sooo very much for such a outpouring of prayer and encouragement last week as our family went through one of the tougher weeks we've had for a while.  What a blessing the Lord has made EACH one of you in our lives!!!

Hope is doing much better this week and we are praising the Lord for His grace in this!  Last week was a good reminder of how far God has brought Hope as we continue this journey.  Hope started to eat last Friday and it was a massive relief to our hearts.  She started with eating very small amounts only, but by Monday afternoon, she was eating more average again.  She is definitely feeling better now and is back to surprising us daily with her little progressing achievements!  Her speech is right back on track.  Her memory is continuing to growingly impress us as she recalls details, stories and people from the past, as well as memorizes verses and even remembers things I forget!  I'm back to asking her to remind me to do things. . . it's GREAT!!!  Trevor did a little game of "Guess the Movie" from listening to songs from various kid's animated movies.  Hope and Gabs were neck and neck in the game, and we were amazed to see what she is starting to remember!

Hope finished her last day of outpatient therapy at the Children's Hospital this week.  It was a sad goodbye to some very special therapists, Logan and Fiona, that have poured their hearts into working with our Hopey.  Fiona has been the longest therapy relationship that Hope has had, and was the first therapist's name that Hope learned to say!  We love those dear girls and praise God for how He has used them in Hope's life.  Please keep each of them in prayer as they are both making transitions in their jobs as well.

Hope was able to attend the Grade 4-6 Activity Day at Cardel Place with her school this week!  It was a great adventure for her dad and I to assist her with rock climbing and finally getting back into the pool again.  Hope has had a fear of pools since last year.  Both activities were preceded with many tears and refusal to participate, but thanking the Lord for the intuition that He gives parents about their children. . . we got her to just "try it" and before you knew it, she was LOVING it and didn't want to stop!!!  I'll attach two photos. . . one of her rock climbing (harness and all!) and one of her in the pool with daddy!  She had a blast and was able to conquer some fear that only holds her back.  We thank the Lord for helping her to be brave and see what she can still do and look forward to having more options of activities for Hope to be able to particpate in!  Family pool time will be a great joy to little sister, Gabs, too!  : )

Another praise and new joy for Hope was the jogging stroller that was given to us by the Woolsey family.  We have been using it this week with the nicer weather and Hope is loving the opportunity to be outside again!  We went for an almost 2 hour walk together this week. . . she loved it!  And we have also put her in the back yard in the stroller with Gabs to have some play time outside!  Gabs is great with her and today they spent almost 6 hours outside playing. . . catching ladybugs, building forts, eating snacks, etc..  Hope was even bossing some of the neighbor kids to get down off the fence before they got hurt or broke it!  It was pretty humorous!!!  : )

Prayer Requests

Here are some of the things that you can be keeping in prayer as you continue to think of us:

*Please continue to pray for Hope's eyesight to be restored.  There is no change in this and we just humbly continue to bring this request before our able God, waiting on Him and trusting in Him no matter what He deems best for Hope's life!

*Please pray for all the new therapists that will be starting to treat Hope at Bearspaw Christian School.  Building rapport and relationship with these therapists is important for both Hope and our family as we continue forward.  Please also keep us in prayer, as a vast majority of her "therapy" is done at home in what we do with her.  Logan and Fiona have been great resources for us and we apply all that we learn from them in the things we do with Hope at home, both in play as well as in intentional "therapy" time with daddio!  We are also looking at getting some equipment to help Hope continue to progress as the Lord continues to heal her.  One is a walker that will be trialed next week. . . please pray that this walker will have the right attachments to suit Hope's needs as it is the only one covered by the AADL funding program.  If it doesn't work, we may need to look at purchasing one which would be a few thousand dollars.  We are also waiting on a standing frame which would allow Hope to be stood upright at home.

*Hope continues to have little seizures or almost seizures.  Her anti-seizure medication has been increased twice over the past couple weeks.  We will just continue to watch and monitor her for now.  She is starting to let us know when one is about to happen, and she has responded well with keeping calm and asking to go to a quiter cooler place to avoid going into a full seizure.  She is also able to communicate better how she is feeling during her seizures.  We are still waiting to hear back from all the blood work and tests that were done last week.

*Hope's intratheccal Baclofen pump was turned down last week.  It is getting closer and closer to the lowest possible dose or rate that can be infused.  We are praising the Lord for this miracle!  We'll see the neurosurgeon in July and are sure looking forward to showing him the amazing things that God is doing in healing Hope's broken body.  Please keep this process in prayer, as it is driven by Trev and I now. . . making the decisions when to decrease the pump.  And please pray that Hope will continue to have no issues with dystonia (too much tone or tightness in her muscles).  She still has some but nothing that is harmful, painful, or limits her functions.  Please pray that her motor control of her muscles would continue to improve, as well as the severe scoliosis in her back.

*Please keep Gabi in prayer to continue to grow in her ability to connect with her sister, and especially to practice other-centeredness in her play and interaction with her.  With all the beautiful weather, it is hard for Gabs to not want to just go outside and play and do the things that she is able to do, but Hope is now not.  It is so hard on Hope, who is very aware of the fact that Gabs is outside playing and doing things she cannot.  Hope will often say things like, "Gabs don't go outside or you'll break my heart!"  We are trying hard to find some balance in allowing Gabi to still be the healthy little girl that God has made her, but also considering the heartache of her big sister who remembers the past and knows what she now can no longer do.  So we are trying to make times for them to be outside together, time for Gabs to go out and do some of her past normal activities like riding a bike while someone else is entertaining Hope, and time where Gabi can practice other-centeredness and stay inside to be with her big sister and engage with her.

*For Trev and I, we would so appreciate your prayers for wisdom (always!), strength (daily!), and the Lord's leading in how we use our time.  There is always more things to be done than time available to do it and so we need His guidance in using our time wisely and for the purposes that God would have, always being flexible to what He may allow to change our plans. . . this happens quite often.

I think that's it for now.  As always, we are so thankful for your heart to lift our Hopey and our family up to the Lord in prayer.  What a compassionate God we serve that desires us to bring all our cares to Him, as He continues His faithful work in our lives.  His yoke is truly easy. . . not because life or circumstances are easy or because our strength never wanes. . . but rather because He is faithful and loving as we put our trust in Him and live lives dependent on Him.  Our God never EVER fails!!!  In a world where everything fails at some point or another, that is an AMAZING TRUTH!!!  May God hear our grateful hearts pour out praise to His worthy name today and forever more!!!  You are so very loved, dear ones!!!

Home from the Hospital

We finally got out of the hospital this afternoon! And it is very good to be back home for the whole family! It was hard being apart like that, on each one of us, even Trev and Gabs at home (a reminder of the painful past). Hopey did not sleep very well last night. She is not well today again. She still has not eaten (it's been two days now of eating nothing). She is having temperature regulation problems and is very warm to touch with red flushed cheeks . . . all the while she is complaining of "freezing!" She does not show a temp though, but acting like a fever. She had some seizure type activity again last evening.

Hope's Songs - "Have Patience"

Hope singing Have Patience. . . a little song from her childhood that she still remembers very well! It is a powerful testimony of God's grace in returning both her ability to talk and sing, as well as her memory of past songs!!!

We hope you enjoy the sweet gift and love of music that God has given our sweet Hopey! She played piano and guitar before this brain injury and sang almost non-stop! So this precious "music" to our ears!!! And this is one of many songs that Hope is singing again! Praise the Lord!!! : )

A Van for Hope

Hello dear prayer warriors! Thought I would also share with you 5 little mini videos that are from last May 2012. We filmed these little clips before and after Hope's first ride in the new wheelchair accessible van. They were taken the weekend before Hope was discharged from a 5 month hospital stay! They are the best way that we can show Hope's thanks to each of you who played a part in her receiving a wheelchair accessible van. . . both through donations, as well as most importantly through the power of prayer! It is precious to see the limited ability she had to communicate back then and yet her excitement over the van and how God was providing for her through the love and generosity of so many people. It is also a great reminder of how far God has brought our sweet Hope. . . she could barely get sound out of her mouth back then, and now she is able to talk to us. . . our God is both merciful and powerful!!! We hope you enjoy these precious little videos, knowing as you watch them, that YOU are very loved!!!

Polar Snow Dip

Get ready. . . Set. . . Go!!! Hopey's first polar snow dip this year! She asked to do it and loved it! Great way to kick off the first day of her "spring" break! : )

HOPE UPDATE

Hope is loving her time at Bearspaw Christian School! Praise God for His hand over this transition and her continued healing and recovery! She is still part time, and that is going well for her so she can have a little more sleep in the mornings. We'll look at increasing her time there slowly after spring break. We are so thankful for how she is blossoming and flourishing in this wonderful school environment

My Favorite Hope-ism

I have a few things I'll try to share tonight! Let's start with my favorite Hope-ism for this week:

After returning home from school, I asked Hope how her afternoon at school was. This was her reply:

      "It was delightful! I had a very happy day of life!"

I am determined to use that most wonderful response the next time someone asks me how my day was!!! : ) Love it!!! Love her!!! Love LOVE the awesome God who has His gracious hand over her!!! : )

HOPE UPDATE and a Hope-ism

Hello dear praying friends and family! Hopey began another unwell bout this past Friday and it lasted through today, so a bit longer than the last few bouts. She was "off and on" all day, but seemed to end on a good note, so praying that tomorrow will mark a new day of talking and feeling better as well as normal eating and drinking!

Just for Fun Post

Me again. . . hee hee. . . this is going to be a "just for fun" post. I'm going to start trying to remember some of the fun things that Hope is starting to say and share them with you now and then. . . just for fun!!! Cause we have a LOT of laughs in this house with a witty daddy and a Hopey that takes after him and seems to have very much retained that wonderful quality! So here is my fun Hope-ism to share this week!

Bestest Buddies

I love this picture! Hope and Gabs sleep together every night in Hope's hospital bed! It is such a great representation of the bestest buddies they have always been! Gabi was invited to a sleepover the other day and came to me with tears in her eyes and whispered, "But Mom, I cannot sleep without my Hope!" We had the sleep over at our house instead! We thank The Lord for the sweet way these sisters still love on each other!!! : )

HOPE UPDATE

Okay here is another quick post on Hope's current condition and response to last weekend's prayer request. . . 

Thank you sooooo much for praying with us last Sunday for Hope to exit the "unwell bout" that she was in and start eating/drinking again! God gracious hand brought her out of it later that afternoon, when she started to eat/drink, communicate and such again! We were so thankful to avoid another long stretch such as the 9 day one the week before! Hope did pretty good eating and drinking the rest of the week. . . however, she went back into another "unwell bout" yesterday morning. She has not eaten or drank anything for 48 hours now and again looks physically unwell. She is very quiet and non-communicative again as well, and as hard as I worked today to try to ask her different questions about what she's feeling during these times, she just does not or cannot seem to answer me.

Prayer Request

Trev and I will be trying to contact the Barrow Institute in Phoenix this week to look into whether they may be able to shed any further light on these "unwell bouts" that Hope has so often. Please pray for us as we do this and that The Lord will lead and direct and grant wisdom to those we talk to on how best to proceed and if this will be an avenue worth pursuing.

Thank you dear ones for your continued prayers! You are so very loved and appreciated by the Peacock flock! : )

HOPE UPDATE continued

Hello dear praying friends and family! I have a few posts I'm going to try to do tonight! Let me start with one addition to the last LONG update that I forgot to mention. . . Hope's progressing and severe scoliosis! Please keep this in prayer as well!