Noah

So the Noahmeister has decided that sleep is no longer his friend. Not that he has been a great sleeper over the past couple of years, but who can blame the kid after all the crap the poor boy has gone through?

So, now that his life is stable, I think it's time for a normal sleep schedule. This means at least 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep.

Is this too much to ask?

From Noah, yes.

Night before last he thought 1 a.m. was the perfect time to wake up for the day. I kept thinking he would eventually fall back asleep, but, alas, no. And with Noah, if he's not sleeping, neither is the momma.

So, we're working on a few ideas to help his "sleep hygiene." I know some of his sleep issues are learned behavior, but we know some of them are neurological. So, we are totally clueless how to help him. Do we just buckle down and get really strict or are we dealing with brain issues. Hmm...

pondering...

if you would, we would really appreciate your prayers for our sweet little boy. :-)

Snuggling

I'm all snuggled up in the hotel room, the smell of the down blankets and pillows. The A/C is on full blast. I love it.

Josh is alwaaaaaays cold. I, on the other hand, am NOT.

Today, I control the thermostat.

Gonna order room service and not leave the room until tomorrow. Aaaaah (contented sigh)...

Nights away

My hubby sent me away. I love him for it. There is something about getting away for a night or two that just refreshes this momma's soul. After a crazy three weeks (see the previous post from yesterday), I needed a break. Josh's dad came for a visit and to help with the two older kids, and my mom and sister got in on the fun with Ephram. So, I'm sitting here, doing a bunch of nothing and loving it. And will continue to do it until lunch on Friday. Yaaaay!!!!

Life got hectic for a while. Thankfully it seems like we are getting back to normal...which is still hectic, but "predictable hectic."

Ephram got his first set of stitches on Sunday. He was playing in the top bunk with his sister and cousin and all of a sudden, I hear one of the girls screaming, "He's bleeding!" but in a panicky sort of way. I was being the non-supervising mom that I am and helping Josh in the bedroom when I heard the ruckus. Thankfully, Ephram calmed down pretty quickly and we headed out to the ER.

I was disappointed to have to miss church AGAIN, after having missed the last three weeks in a row with Josh being sick. Which is where the real stress was.

Josh went in to have a baclofen pump installed (a little metal hockey puck looking thingie that is in his abdomen and pumps the drug into his spinal column). We were supposed to be there all of about 24 hours. We figured we would be back up and running in the next few days. Wrong.

Josh got a spinal fluid leak, which in itself, is really not a huge deal. The problem was, no matter what we tried, we couldn't get the stinkin' thing to stop leaking. Josh ended up spending two weeks, with horrible headaches, lots of puking, and lots of laying flat on his back. Frustrating, but I knew he wasn't dying.

It was hard for Noah, who thought daddy was back at Mary Free Bed for the long haul like last time (three months) no matter how I tried to explain to him that daddy was just going to be gone a few days.

All in all, Josh was down for about 2 weeks and is now doing waaaay better.

We are now back to working on our new ministry that God has laid on our hearts called Real Time Church. We are excited to see where God is leading this. It's also nice to have this sense of peace, knowing we are doing exactly what the Lord is asking of us.

Loss

Loss seems to be everywhere.

Not the kind of loss like I lost my keys.

Loss like I am ready for heaven.

People all around me are suffering. In the past 5 days, two different families have come to my attention after losing babies. Both of them were about 6 months old. Loss. Why?

I talk with my girlfriend who is dealing with her daughter having a brain tumor. Loss.

Children losing their childhood. Brothers and sisters losing their innocence.

With all this pain in this world, why do I cling to a God who could heal and yet doesn't? Or does he, just not like we ask?

When I feel like there are no answers for these questions, I think of what my life would be like without my faith and trust in God.

Ugly.

There is so little that one person can do for another. So, I do the one thing I can. PRAY!

Pray that the God of all Comfort will guard these families minds and hearts and use these circumstances to grow closer to Him. To the truth that sets us free.