Working 9 to 5

Ross has been released to go back to work! Yahoo!! So, he'll actually work 7:30 to 4:00 and finish out the last week of school. His PT has turned into "Personal Training" because he is doing so well and getting stronger. We are excited to see how his body holds up next week among the crazy 5th graders. Keep Ross in your prayers as I know you have been.

Lots of love!!

~Jamie

Healing

Ross is improving weekly! Thank you for the prayers lifted on his/our behalf. In the last month, he has gone from being "up and about" for 20 minutes at a time to challenging his afternoon nap for the last week. He is up and about all day.

We stopped Glaucoma drops last week to see how his eyes are doing. The pressures have been perfect for the last month and all the inflammation is out of the front of the eye! Yahoo! His left Optic nerve is still swollen and has fluid around it. Thus, we go get a spinal tap tomorrow in Dallas to see if there is pressure in his brain. the Neuro- Ophthalmologist needs to know the pressure in order to move forward in the treatment of Ross' eye. He has ringing in his left ear and pressure around the ear as well.

He has an extended EEG June 1st to measure what's going on his brain. We are praying for no seizure like activity. No spikes. Normal movement and not "slow" like the last one.

We won't get info from this until mid July. He continues to take Keppra and will continue this from 6 months to a year. He can not drive until September.

Ross had his first PT (Physical Therapy) appointment last Thursday. It went very well! He has a ways to go and the therapist is working with him to set goals of getting back to work ASAP. Ross loves to work out, but being basically bed ridden for 8 weeks makes it challenging. HE is doing great and really enjoys PT.

Ross helped me dig out a patch of grass in our backyard for a 10x4 veggie garden. The weather was perfect midweek. He did great and considered it his PT for the day. :) We are going to start doing Yoga together... this is my Mother's Day gift. Research shows that yoga is incredible for brain health and for auto-immune health (me). I think we are perfect candidates to make it a regular practice. :)

The biggest challenges are fatigue and dizziness for Ross. His vision is getting a little better it seems. He has much more clarity and control of his thoughts and responses. He is almost "normal". We start OT next week to measure how he's improving in that area.

Ross is a trooper! He is pushing himself to get stronger yet resting as needed to allow for healing. He has a positive attitude and excitement for life. You might see him out and about more as he re-socializes himself and gets used to the outside world. :)

Thanks for the prayers and encouragement!! Keep them going!! We are nearly "there"!!

Blessings,

Jamie

It's Mother's Day and exactly one month from my last post. (sorry)

The picture above was taken april 2nd during Liam's birthday party. Ross came out for about half an hour to join the family as we celebrated our two year old red head. Ross looks stronger and healthier now; a month later.

First, props to my kiddos!! I am so honored to be your mommy!! I feel such pride and love when I hold you in my arms! We absolutlely can't get enough lovin' and kissin' in our house!! You bring so much JOY to my life and daddy's.

Myra Kate is truly the sweetness of the earth!! Myra is a bit timid at times, but being four years old has brought a bundle of fearsome conversations, thoughtful prayers, laughing smiles, and revealed to us the compassionate heart of this angel of a girl!! Myra's favorite name for her dolls is Ella. She loves Rapunzel and Disney's Tangled. She calls a girls sweetheart her "honey". In context: "Mom, is Corey Kirsten's honey?" ha!!

Myra's prayers are full of love and thankfulness. Myra is so affectionate and loving. Her patience is far greater than mine at times!! Myra can dribble the basketball still and she is learning to ride a bike. She has about four books memorized cover to cover and "reads" them to us often. I've got to video this!! Myra is pure sugar!! Although, she is a healthy eater and is very concerned about eating healthy foods. (score!!)

Liam Dale is a riot! He is full of energy and laughter. Liam means "Strong willed warrior" and that about describes him!! He is very independent and easily frustrated at times, but he laughs so hard he cries! We all cry with laughter when he gets going! The faces he can make are priceless! He runs and gets the "dad duys" through the house with a wooden spoon sword. He prefers the spoon over the actual toy sword. Liam loves people to play with him. If you play with Liam for five minutes, he will be your best friend!

He can play and imagine for hours! HE talks often and quite a lot more now that he's two. We don't always understand what he is saying, but it is seriously interesting and adorable!! Liam hugs me so tightly and so fiercely!! He loves to "nugga" (snuggle) with us and is even more affectionate than our Myra. Liam can kick a ball with precision and accuracy. It's fun!!

Myra and Liam together are best friends. They hold hands and hug through out the day. In between fusses, of course. There really are no words to explain the sibling love they have. It is God in the flesh.

Thank you Father for the gift you have given me. To be a mother to Myra Kate and Liam is the most humbling and honoring gift. May we raise them to love You and seek Your ways always.

Shhh, I'm talking to the Doctor

Thank you for all your prayers! Thank you for all the food and play dates!! And thank you for encouraging us with cards, tokens of affection, thoughtful gifts and emails! Thank you, family, for taking days off work to come watch our children while we hit the HWY for appointments. The collaborative effort of all of us has given me such strength and peace. "Strength in numbers" was chalked onto my driveway when I drove home for the first time after the trauma. It has held true!

Yesterday was a long day in Fort Worth. We saw Dr. Cheng (neurologist) at 10:00 am. She came in and said, "Wow, Ross you look so good! You are all better!"

It was hard to see Ross' face when he had to say no. He wants to believe he is all better. I want to believe he is all better!! But, he isn't. Those of us who know Ross can tell he doesn't look all better, but all Dr Cheng has to compare to is what she saw in the hospital. (He looked pretty bad there with excruciating headaches!)
The night before our appointments, he was unable to follow conversation and was very confused by simple questions. It scared me a little bit, so of course I made him sit up in bed and try harder to have a conversation with me. It was strange. He did not comprehend half of our conversation. He would answer off subject. It was like talking to a drunk man. :) He is not like this all of the time. Mainly when he is tired. He has had a low grade fever twice in one week. We don't like that either.

Dr. Cheng lowered his anti-seizure drug hoping to help with the sleepiness/drunkenness. She also added a drug to help with the headaches he is still having everyday. The drug is designed to lower swelling or inner-cranial pressure in the brain. It is given to head trauma patients and to those with migraines. It's a diverse drug and she hopes it will help with the eyes as well.

The second prescription from Dr. Cheng is to exercise! To get his body and brain moving! Funny, huh? She said even if his brain is swollen, exercise will not hurt that. The dizziness makes this challenging, but Ross is up for the task! So, if you see him running down the street, watch out if he's in the middle of the road! ha! He's got to work up to running... he walked about 8 laps around the house today, bathed the kids, and served himself often. He's conflicted inside because he doesn't feel well, yet he wants to do his best to follow Dr. Cheng's request. I'm considering getting him a gym membership so he can get on an elliptical machine and lift some weights. Ross doesn't want to go because of all the germs and his risk of picking them up. WE will see. We hope that in a month at his re-evaluation, he will be doing much better and Dr. Cheng will run an EEG to find a normal brain wave pattern!

Now, let me introduce Dr. Jones the neuro ophthalmologist. He is from UT Southwestern and has an office in Fort Worth he visits Tuesdays and Thursdays. He is very thorough! (4 hour appointment, mostly waiting) He found Ross' eyes to be swollen. :( The optic nerve is swollen which made him conclude Ross' brain is probably swollen. He wanted to do another spinal tap to find out the exact pressure, but at 5:30 could not get clearance from Dr. Cheng who had just left for vacation. He felt the new medicine Dr. Cheng prescribed would be a perfect fit for the swelling in the eyes as well. So, he sent us home with more questions and more "self-research" about swollen optic nerves. I don't like what I've read so far... he has typical symptoms from the infection. I pray we have caught it in time to preserve Ross' eye sight. I'm wondering why we didn't see a neuro ophthalmologist sooner?
We go back next Thursday to measure the swelling.

Please pray for Ross' eyes and brain. Pray for us to feel like we are improving or for us to have clear signs that we aren't. Pray for us to have PEACE as we push Ross' body to exercise and as we wait and watch for his body to respond. In all of this, there are so many questions and unanswered theories as to what virus Ross had. If a spinal tap would give more info to the doctors about this as well, we are all for doing another as long as it is safe for his brain.

Here's a scripture my sister in law prayed over us Thursday and it's just perfect! Please join her in praying this scripture for us...

Romans 15:13 in the Message says: "Oh! May the God of green hope fill you up with JOY, fill you up with PEACE, so that your believing lives, filled with the life-giving energy of the Holy Spirit, will brim over with HOPE!"

So, you're probably wondering how we are feeling emotionally. We are both a little frustrated. This is to be expected with any prolonged recovery. Letting go and healing and becoming who we really are is not easy (Rachel Naomi Remen). We are not frustrated with our doctors. We have been cared for extremely well. We are both so tired that we forget to ask certain questions even when I have them written down. ha! (or grrr) I think of new questions to ask after we get home. (grr, grr)
Honestly, Ross has a hard time answering questions about how he feels. He has a difficult time assessing. He has never been sick and when you are sick for a long time, pain or discomfort starts to feel "normal". We journal at the end of the day short notes about how he felt that day. I know Ross is not back to himself because it takes a long time to get his mind to process and understand simple questions. His classic response these days, "I don't know." And you all know me, I won't settle for an I don't know. So, I put on my nurse hat and start probing. :)

We make a great team! The kids are doing well! They are great therapy for us!! Liam is such a ham, and Myra's sweetness melts us! Liam is wanting to play with and be held by Daddy more and more each day. Ross is a great Father!! He is a wonderful husband and friend! We are BELIEVING in HEALING and focusing on positive thoughts!! God's truths and God's peace really do reign most hours. We look forward to the day when we post, "All better!!" Until then, keep us close to your heart.

* Myra calls the doctor through out the day on her "cell phone" and is sooo serious about her conversation regarding her baby doll. She's even asked me to be quiet because she was talking to the doctor. She leaves and takes her baby to the hospital and comes back. Myra always tells me, "See, I told you I was coming back." I love how kids cope. :)

Good Grief

I cried tonight! Hard!
Is it okay to be scared? Ross said, "Yes."
As the shock and awe of what we've gone through starts wearing off and reality starts creeping in, the emotions are coming with it. I've needed to cry. You know how women are- a good cry gives such release and clarity. I've only been crying a tear here or there over random songs or certain parts of Tangled. :) Tonight, as I tried to muster up my sleep, I just sat here next to my ALIVE and always handsome husband and cried.

Today Liam turned 2!! The emotion I have at my children's birthdays is up and down under usual circumstances, and today I just felt numb. I am very tired from a long night of checking Ross' temp and dealing with the fear of "it" happening again. But, I felt like I wasn't ALL there with my sweet boy's monumental day. I felt like WE weren't all there.
(I'll post pics of the celebration when I get them from my photographer friend, Jordan. It was a great party!)

I don't want to sound depressing to anyone, and hope that you will read with the framework of 'this is my place to post my thoughts as we grow' and embrace my transparency. That said, today's party was a realization of how we aren't functioning in normal Thomas Family Four ways. It hit me square today for some reason. I LOVE birthday parties, baby showers, and weddings! Celebrating life and love are one of the things I can get OCD about. I get all squishy inside and it explodes into a party!! But today something was "off".

Right about now your saying to your self, "Duh, Jamie!" When "it" is happening to you, you feel, or at least I feel one step behind in reality. It's part of trauma, I think. So my trauma-fied, sister tells me. ;0)

Today's celebration felt incomplete. Please don't hear me be ungrateful... Soooo grateful for the friends and family who came to celebrate and helped me pull off a party in the midst of our "current situation". I'm beyond words THANKFUL that our family is still the FOUR of us and Liam is well!! It's just the gut wrenching reality that the head of our family is somewhat absent. (resting his head-ha! I couldn't resist) I feel lonesome for the old us.
It was comfortable.
It was easy.
It is gone and we are forever changed.
Praise God for the GOODNESS being worked out in our troubles!!

I know healing takes time... you who know my personal health journey know I KNOW about healing. There is something inside me not comfortable with how Ross is doing. (I'm calling all the professionals Monday, don't you worry.) I don't know if it is fear based or intuitive based... I've been to strung out to take the time to meditate. It's just tricky and so technical when dealing with the brain! Not many answers and only some understanding. It's weird when doctors look at your husband with fascination and intrigue! (Most scratch their head- they don't even realize they do it.)

Ross is sleeping soundly next to me as I type tonight. My now TWO year old sleeps in his big boy bed and my four year old princess snoozes away. The FOUR of us under one roof, blessed beyond measure and my emotions go haywire. Good Grief!

Today's feelings were just unexpected for me.

Peace and Good night!

Jamie

P.S. Happy Birthday, my precious, red-headed son! I love you infinitely!

Journey to Healing

March 7th, a day that will be forever ingrained in my head as the day we almost lost my soul mate and best friend far too early.
I woke up to a text from my friend, Kerri Bates. It was a beautiful prayer for strength and for peace to cover me that day as we had planned to get more answers from doctors as to why Ross was so sick and in so much pain for a week. We had been treating him for an upper respiratory infection gone flu for a week and he was only getting worse over the weekend. Kerri knew my concern was heightened and Monday morning began the prayer coverage.

Moments after reading her text, I heard Ross' alarm going off in our bedroom. The kids had gone to Abilene to be shared by our family with hopes of them dodging the flu from daddy. I went to our bedroom to find Ross barely responsive. His alarm had been going off for 2 hours. I "knew" at that moment something was VERY wrong. He could not talk to me and the more I tried to get him to talk, the less responsive he became. Within 10 minutes, he could only say "huh" and didn't know who I was, who he was, or what day it was. I tried to dress him to take him to the ER, but he was uncooperative. I called 911 immediately and they were here in literally 5 minutes. In that time frame, Ross left me. He explains it as being trapped in his body. He could hear us, but could not respond. He looked as if he was having some sort of small seizure... stiffened, eye twitching, and no bodily control. It was shocking and terrifying. Praise God my children were not home!

You know you live in a small town when you call 911 and the preacher arrives on the scene before the EMS can get Ross out the door! Dorman drove me to the hospital and there the fear unfolded.

Doctors in the ER were wonderful! They explained that he had some kind of meningitis and they had to do a spinal tap ASAP.
I held Ross' head as the nurses and I tried to keep him still. Ross was in so much pain... his head was hurting him so badly! My Aunt Debra was in the ER with me praying and keeping me calm and fed. Being in shock, I was amazingly collected and almost fearsome in strength. It was surreal. I was not going to let my mind go were it wanted to lead me. When the doctors said sepsis, my Aunt immediately prayed over me as I struggled to breathe. Jenny, my friend and wife and mom died less than a year ago from the flu gone bad. My mind wanted to scream in fear, but the God strength in me allowed for hope.

Ross was Care Flighted from Graham to Fort Worth arriving at Harris Methodist in 20 minutes! It was long drive for me, for all of our family, not knowing what awaited us in FW. Ross' brothers were the first to arrive in Fort Worth from Abilene. ( Officer Mark had a little more legality in his speed!)

When we arrived at the ER, Ross was stable. Still non-responsive for the most part. I could get him to squeeze my hand every now and then. He would smell me when he would get upset and uncooperative and he would calm down. It was such a reminder to me of how much Ross loves me. Those hours were precious to me. Those moments of nearness thrilled my heart not knowing what the next moment held. Through all of this, we wore masks and gloves not knowing what "disease" was trying to take over Ross' body. It was a real life ER Episode!

After EEG, blood work, IV's and all kinds of tests, it was time for his MRI and move to ICU. I could not leave him. Something within me HAD to stay by his side. The ER nurses approved me following along and praise God I did! He came out of his "non responsive state" just moments after being wheeled out of the ER! He called for me and asked where he was going. We explained that he had meningitis very bad and he replied, "No way! I have meningitis" He hugged me and told me he loved me and he was wheeled into the MRI room.

You see, we kept doing the neck to chin test like we read about and Ross was never stiff. He had a low fever never above 102. He was atypical in his meningitis symptoms besides the piercing headache and dizziness. All of which kept him home and in bed the full week prior to March 7th. I had researched on Mayo Clinic website all of the possibilities, and yet his symptoms kept leading us to flu. We had gone to the doctor twice and an eye doctor because his eyes were extremely red. So weird.

Ross talking at 11:30 pm was the first time I really breathed all day. His working diagnosis was/is Herpetic Meningoencephalitis. (Herpes 3- same as chicken pox or cold sores) He had a teeny tiny stroke in the thick of things. The Neurologist, Dr.Cheng, says there will be no repercussions! He stayed in ICU four days and was moved to a private room Thursday afternoon.

Thursday evening, March 10th, Liam our 23month old son back in Abilene, had been sick with his sister, Myra and cousin, Hank all sharing the same virus. Liam just wasn't getting better. Katie, my sister, knew Liam needed his mommy. So, Ross' parents, Roger and Janet, came from Abilene to be with Ross. And I, in a round about way, got to Abilene. (a shout out to Lindsey McKnight and the Pearces- holla!!)

Liam was very sick. High fever, wheezing, coughing, lethargic. He started a stronger antibiotic Thursday evening. By Friday morning, he was hallucinating and completely out of sorts. Inconsolable. Screaming, Yelling and barking. Scratching his ears and cheeks, stuffing hid hand down his mouth, arching his back, It was awful!
Dr. Schudde had been treating him, and after seeing him in his office behaving so strangely- loopy, silly, playful and dizzy one minute, then snaps into the above "episode"- admitted him to Hendricks for a Spinal Tap and observation.

I am not one to speak ill of much anything. But our experience at Hendricks was awful. The nurses had written me off as a wife who was overreacting due to her husband's situation. It was absurd. It was amazing I kept cool. My sister and brother in law helped me write down everything Liam was doing because my brain was fried by this point and the nurses were of no help. God provided a way out when two doctors, both not at Hendrick hospital, Dr. Schudde who had to leave town for family illness and Ross' Infectious Disease doctor, Dr Colquitt, recommended I ask for a pediatric neurologist because of Liam's neurological behavior. Abilene does not have a pediatric neurologist and that was why we were sent to Cooks. (hallelujah!) Should I delete this complaint? Les, tell me and I'll delete it. :)


But the story changed for us as we step onto the Guardian vehicle that hauled Liam and I to Cooks. Peace. Peace so thick you could cut it with a butter knife! Liam slept in my lap and Matt, the EMS guy, prayed over us. He spoke to me a word from the Lord. Literally. He spoke a very intimate and unusual word that Ross and I and my very close SIC Bible study girlfriends would know. I was listening. Intently. God's peace reigned and the "knowing" beyond understanding that everything was going to be fine gave me such resolve. It gave Ross, a worried, sick daddy (we'll get back to him) resolve and peace. I only had to say our "word" and he and I cried with Joy. Yes, Joy that in the midst of all this trauma, God was cradling us in His arms and we were okay. Matt saw a 10 minute "episode" and said, " You aren't crazy like the nurses said. Something IS wrong with your little boy!" Ha!

side note-Ross was discharged Saturday night as we were riding to Cooks and Home Health was waiting to train him on his home IV in Graham. He was up until 2:00 am!! Roger and Janet were troopers!! They hauled him home and cared for him so well!

Liam's tests were all negative and after getting his lungs cleared out, he had had ENOUGH. Little Red Man was throwing crying fits now. Very different from the "episodes" he was having for shorter bursts and maybe twice a day. The doctors think the virus got into his brain as well as having an allergic reaction to the antibiotic making for a sick, scared baby. Apparently, its not uncommon for viruses to get into toddler's brains and cause erratic behavior. Dr. Aldridge at Cooks was so encouraging having had her son do the same thing Liam had done when he was 20 months old. God supplied peace again as we left Cooks.

So, Monday evening (14th) Liam was discharged...

...As Ross was being readmitted to Harris. His headache had become horrible again and he had fever. And oh, so very red eyes!!

Talk about wanting to be two places at the same time. Liam was like a leech- he was not letting go of Mommy. Mommy did not want to leave Ross. But, Ross' mom was there so I knew Ross was in good hands with his mom and Liam needed to be cared for by his mommy. My parents drove us to Abilene because Liam wanted his sister and cousin and at this point, I needed to see Myra, too!

Ross improved and rested and got his pain managed. He saw Dr. Willis, an eye doctor and surgeon, who diagnosed Ross with Secondary Glaucoma. He was discharged Friday, March 18th after the kids and I went to visit him in the hospital. He was sent home with another week of IV Antiviral medication. We finished the IV's and saw Dr. Colquitt (Infectious Disease) last Saturday who took out his PICC line and said, "call me if you need me. Start walking a little bit each day with someone." ( In case he falls)

BTW- Ross is not contagious and has not been contagious since day three in ICU. :) And Liam did not have the same virus as Ross.

He is currently taking an anti-inflammatory drug, an anti- seizure drug to keep his brain from going haywire again, and eye drops to keep pressure down and help with redness.

So, future prognosis- GREAT!! Timeline to get "there" a long while. Six months of no driving. Two and half weeks until we see the neuro Dr. Cheng for another EEG of his brain. Seeing a Retina Specialist tomorrow in FW and a Neuro Eye doc April 7th in Dallas. The Secondary Glaucoma is under control and is expected to dissipate when the brain inflammation is gone. Ross' vision is very impaired right now. 4x's worse than his previous vision. We got him some glasses with plans to change out the lenses as his eyes heal. He can't read right now, so he's pretty bored. I think its more reason for him to close his eyes and sleep. :)

We wait for his body to heal. Encephalitis is a tricky thing. Most don't make it or have morbidity... we have none. "We" means "Ross" but ya know the two shall become one thing... it feels like "we". WE feel blessed beyond words. Ross is very tired and weak- although his strength is improving. He can stand for longer periods of time on good days. And his endurance is building to 20-30 minutes out of bed. He lapped the yard 5 times two days ago! And today was a marathon of doctor visits and picking out glasses. He's helped me put the kids to bed three days in a row... lays beside them and sings or "reads" a story to them. HE is an amazing Daddy!

Now you know what your prayers have been covering for the past three weeks!! Thank you for ALL the PRAYERS and support for our family during this trying time. We have yet to wrap our minds around the last month, but our loved ones have truly helped us feel a little "normal". We have been completely humbled by the outpouring of love... from people we know and people we don't. To know humans all over the planet are praying for us gives us such strength and peace!
Thank you for the meals. Thank you for the money. Thank you for loving our children! We praise God for you hourly!

Sorry this is so long and "raw". I'm still quite tired myself, but really wanted you to have the facts of what we are going through.

Our prayer today is for his eyes to heal completely, headaches to go away, and for his strength to grow. And as the healing takes place, for us to both listen to God as our hearts and minds are being transformed during this journey.

Love you & 4 Big Hugs from us!!
Jamie

A few updated pictures

I've attached some pics of Myra and her cousin Ben at Christmas time. They has so much fun! Myra prays for Ben every night thanking God for him. It is so cute! He must have stolen her heart like he has all of ours! They would run up and down the hallway 100 times a day. They did well to share the push toys and play together. Grandpa and the two cuties enjoyed many "forbidden" sweets during the Holidays. We all ate and ate and ate! It was so fun! (Until I went to the doc for my checkup-- I gained 8 pounds in 4 weeks!)

The picture of Myra and Hank in a tutu is SUPER cute! This was back in August. (I "lost" all my pics from Aug- Dec)- teardrop -

Notice the writing on Hanks' t-shirt. It reads, "I'm the smart one". It makes this picture a classic blackmail picture when he's 16 and needs some humbling from his Aunt Jamie! :)

Baby is growing and is very active. He looks cute in his 4D sono pics. I'll try posting some later. I'm currently being summoned by my almost two year old sweetheart wanting to share popcorn. She also thanks God for popcorn every night!

In Case You Haven't Heard

Time is flying by!! I can't believe my last post was in October!! I didn't even post the sex of our new baby! We are having a BOY!! I'm due April 7th, but from the comments of those around me, they don't see how I can last that long. Hmmmmmm... I guess I'm really starting to grow! In my mind it is April 7th. I don't want to get my hopes up for an earlier date and I want this baby boy to "bake" as long as necessary!

I would love to post some updated pics from the holidays-- but I LOST MY PICTURES!! Chalk one up to pregnancy brain- I was messing around on my camera and deleted all my pictures since August. I cried. If any of you have pics of my sweet Myra in the past 5 months, please email them to me!

Myra Kate is growing!!1 Can you believe she will be 2 in a month? She is talking all the time!! She is currently singing Ring Around the Rosies as she plays with her bathtub toys. She sings Jesus Loves Me all the way through, but only when she wants to. She is also potty training and doing very well. We are blessed to have one who wants to sit on the potty.

I'm wanting to use cloth diapers for our little guy, and Myra's potty training has started to prepare me for that. I'm using cloth training pants from Mimsy Vimsy and the few times she has had a big accident, I kind of shutter. It will take some getting use to-- especially the stinky diapers! Hats off to our moms who used cloth diapers from day one! Too bad our generation has opted for the "disposable" diapers that sit in our landfills for 400 years!! Maybe more will catch on to the need for us to be more responsible with our diapering. :)

oops- I got on a salt box. I have been doing that a lot lately! I think my hormones are going crazy with this little guy!! Ha!!

I'm so excited for my sweet friends, the Smiths! Amber had her baby girl New Years Day! What an answer to many prayers!

I've been thinking of my brother a lot this week. He had a birthday Tuesday and man we are getting old!! He has dedicated the last two years of his life to planting a church in the Denton/Frisco area and I'm very proud of him. Lift up a prayer for Les' family and the Body at Vinelife as a gift to him. :)

Our house is a COMPLETE wreck! We are moving furniture from room to room, painting shelves and beds, and trying to make room for baby brother. (These are times when living on a budget stinks!!) It seemed so easy in my mind, but now that we are in the middle of it, I wish we could pay someone to finish up our mess! It doesn't help that I can't move furniture or lift heavy things. Much of the work has fallen on Ross' shoulders-- as if he doesn't have enough going on! Too bad I can't get HGTV in here!

I've not been good at sitting at the computer... I get uncomfortable quick. And, Myra Kate wants to sit in my lap and type herself. She is "doing laundry" now, which means she takes all the dish towels out of the kitchen and lays them perfectly straight on a chair in the living room. It looks like she found the bath towels, too. Too bad putting them away isn't as fun.

Love to all!
Jamie

First Tri Down!

Hey friends!
The last 13 weeks were a real doozie! I was so nauseated I had a hard time looking at the computer screen! I am feeling great now! No more "morning sickness" and am really getting excited about #2!

We went to get a sonogram of the baby last week (thank you, Leesa) and saw some sweet pics of our little 4oz sweetie! He/ she had its legs crossed like it was posing for the sono! How cute!

After much whining, temper-tantrums, and begging.... from Ross, we are going to find out the sex of the baby! I wanted to be surprised, but my sweet OCD husband wants to be able to "decorate the nursery". He said it and I will hold him to it! Ha! I think that was one of his persuasive arguments meant to convince me I HAD to know the sex of #2! I'm okay finding out, but I really didn't think Ross would be okay not finding out, so I submitted. :) Love you , babe!

Myra is growing so fast! She is adorable! She really is the most precious little girl! She is so loving and cuddly! She loves nature and her daddy! Myra said a prayer at SNL Sunday night after we talked about how God sees us as His precious, perfect child in Jesus! It was quite a moving experience to listen to Myra and to see her sweetness and to think that God looks down and sees me like her! WOW!

She asks about our family everyday, by name. She is a people person! Her eyes speak so loudly a language of love and interest to even a a stranger in the grocery store! She is speaking more clearly everyday and communicating so well. It is the most blessed fun to be honored to be her mama!

Now to some deep thinking! I have really been mulling over in my head the Church. Sleepless nights give me many hours to weed out the weird dreams and focus on the ones that are important. (As I continue, I am in no way thinking specifically of Eastside, I am thinking broader in terms of the "Body of Christ") I dream of a church that one day will have no walls! A church that truly loves, that we love so much that we can't see enough each other! It seems that just to get people to attend worship or Bible class is a struggle, a trick, a secret! When will be like the early church and have worship and fellowship daily and add to our numbers because they SEE Christ in us! It is a lot to ask this society we live in... to give up your tv shows, your overtime at work, your "down" time. Trust me- I am there... when I think of the work involved I get tired! BUT, I really think if we could just try it for a few weeks, we would be amazed at how little work it really is, how awesome it is to really KNOW one another, to encourage and pray with each other in our struggles, and to rejoice in Jesus! I think our kids and teens would see and learn true devotion to God without us having to pound a Bible over their heads and make them sit quietly in worship.

The morning dawns and the dream is overwhelmingly too big! It gives me hope, though. Maybe one day, we can BE the Church, the Bride of Christ, the Body of our Savior. And yet, aren't we? Romans tells us that God sees us as little Christs-- He doesn't see the imperfections! So why don't we believe God and start seeing ourselves that way! Stop buying into the lies - no one cares about me, they are hypocrites, don't trust, they will never... That is not what God sees, why do we?

Join me in embracing the dream! join me in loving one another and believing that the church is God's perfect child! And soon, very soon will start acting like it. What you think about you bring about!!

Hugs!
Sorry for rambling...

Help!

I changed my background and lost all of my favorite people's blogs! So, if you ever visit my blog and your name was in the right column, email me or comment so I can find you again!!! Please!!! PLease!!! I'm missing being on the inside already!
Love you all!