Take a Deep Breath..but remember to exhale!

Our family in Cannon Beach, OR

I decided to wait until after our couples' retreat and the Lord's day to update my blog, but things didn't go according to plan.......

Monday seemed rather peaceful, catching up on household chores, starting afresh with school. But, as I was in the final preparations for dinner I heard it...the sound you really don't want to hear when dinner is almost ready....a child's scream of pain. Julia was crying and hobbling her way up from the basement. As I looked at her, asking what happened, I saw that lovely shade of red all over her white tights. I had her taken to the wash room to get her foot cleaned up, and after a few minutes Naomi said I should take a look. Ugh. I had a feeling... upon further examination I decided to take her to urgent care for some stitches. Thankfully, the item she stepped on was hard plastic (not broken glass) and the toy was in one piece (nothing to get out of her foot). Michael helped me with getting her situated and as we sat in the waiting room I got a phone call from my husband.....again, this should have been just a call to see how we were doing, right? Uh, yeah. Not so much. It seems that our 18 month old grabbed Anna's cancer pill as she (Anna) was preparing to take it and popped it into her own mouth, biting down on it. Have I mentioned that Anna's cancer meds come in a biohazard bag so nobody will touch it? Thankfully, it must not taste very good because she spit it out. Craig then made her throw up a few times. He had called poison control and after they had consulted with a toxicology doctor, they determined Craig had done what needed to be done for the night. So glad they didn't end up needing to go to the ER! Tuesday morning I would need to take her in for a blood test to check her blood counts as this is a bone marrow suppressant. They checked her liver functions as well.....all came back normal! Praise the Lord! What a scary thing! And I wasn't even there to hold and comfort her!

Back to the urgent care...Julia was in a bit of pain but the staff were all very kind and compassionate toward her. She did end up with a few stitches, and because of where her cut was located, she got crutches to help her walk. Three hours later, we headed home....hungry and ready for dinner!

Selah

Julia.....OUCH!

Tuesday, I got up first thing and took Selah for her blood draws. Then headed out the door with my husband for a pastor's appreciation luncheon hosted by Christian Heritage. This ended up being a full day away from home as we met up with a pastor friend who was heading to the airport. Then we enjoyed a lovely dinner at the Cheesecake Factory with our dear friends.

Wednesday, Selah woke with a fever and wanted to be held all day. There are times that, though I'm sad for my baby not feeling well, I'm thankful for moments of her quietness and snuggles! During this time, Craig took several of our school age children to Olympia, WA to the homeschoolers day at the capital. 

Today, Anna had the opportunity to speak to a class of 7th and 8th graders (approx. 50 students and teachers) about leukemia. A young lady who attends our church had a project for class and chose to do a fundraiser for leukemia awareness. She then asked her teacher if it would be okay to have a friend who has leukemia come speak to the class. The teacher seemed pleasantly surprised that Anna actually had a speech written out. I am blessed to say that Anna held the attention of the students well with her speech that included both her personal experiences as well as facts and statistics about leukemia. We passed out orange ribbons to each person to wear in honor of leukemia patients and Anna encouraged them to continue with endeavors to raise funds for research and treatment and also encouraged them to consider learning more so that they could one day be someone who finds a cure for the many types of cancers.  We ended with a time of questions and answers in which Anna did a great job of answering to the best of her ability. The science teacher was thrilled over her speech as he said that it laid the foundation to what he will be teaching the students next! All in all, they seemed quite pleased with Anna and her time. I am most blessed as she used this as a time to inform while at the same time giving praise to the Lord God of Heaven......yes, even in a Public school!

Tomorrow, we will enjoy a day of great fellowship as we host a fellow pastor and his children for lunch. Then an evening celebrating the birthday of a dear friend. It will be enjoyable and full! As the week winds down, I will update you all on our trip as well as Anna's last doctor's appointment. But until then.....take a deep breath and remember: exhale!