Oops

Just a quick note to say I'm obviously having trouble with formatting! For some reason, I can't figure out why some parts are double spaced & others aren't... my apologies....

Coasting

The title pretty much says it all--we're just kind of coasting right now, riding on the energy we have received from so many people in the form of prayers, encouragement, help, gifts, food, etc. But, I fear we are losing altitude! Not that the help has tapered off--it hasn't--but I guess you could say we are settling in for the long haul. The adrenaline has worn off & we're all pretty tired.

Things are going absolutely as well as we could hope, but it's still rough. Caroline does best when we are out & about rather than at home, but there is only so much she can do. When we are home, I don't get much done, because she is so dependent on me. And to add insult to injury, the lovely allergy season has hit Nashville full force! Blech.

Ok, enough whining. I do have some good news to report. The swing we ordered came in this week, so Caroline is able to resume her favorite pasttime. Hooray! It was so pitiful before, every time her sisters were outside she'd point at her old swing & say "Swing? Swing?" Here she is in the new one:

I have been meaning to write for a while about the amazing level of love & generosity we have been receiving. I honestly cannot express how grateful we are. This would be completely impossible without all the help we've gotten and are continuing to get. Just to name a few: we are getting dinner 3 times/week, rides to school & back for the big girls, visits, babysitting, 2 months worth of lunch fixins for the girls, a brand new "tricked out" wagon, coffee gift certificates, grocery store runs, packs of diapers, flowers, balloons, gift cards, notes & cards & gifts galore! Ellery & Lauren have gotten care packages of their own so they don't feel left out.

One sweet friend who is a talented seamstress whipped up some custom bloomers to fit over the cast, AND made 3 matching dresses for the girls! (I will post a pic later.) People have brought bean bags, yoga mats, hiking backpacks and other equipment to try to help find ways to make Caroline comfortable. The other day, a group of Keely's co-workers at Regions brought this to him:

This is a full-size toy box, y'all! Stuffed to the gills with goodies--and I took this picture after the girls had already raided it some. The lid wouldn't even close.

Another group of Regions folks donated a TON of money to pay for housecleaning for us!!!!!! Seriously, how do you say thank you for this kind of stuff?

There is so much more, I just can't list it all. It is so awesome how God provides!

So, if you see us, and we seem to being doing well... now you know why.

Checkup

Happy Friday everyone. We had our first follow up appt. with Dr. Martus today. Her x-ray looked great & he was very pleased. The nurse also said Caroline looked great & smelled great so I must be doing a good job!

The one piece of semi-bad news is that he pushed off her cast change date. His office had scheduled it for May 5, which was only 5 weeks post-op instead of the 6 we expected. When he realized that today, he said he'd have them change the date b/c he'd rather wait the full 6 weeks. Bummer. I had kind of been hoping we'd end up with 2 5-week casts, but it was not to be. So, now we await a new surgery date (the cast change is considered surgery b/c she has to go under general anesthetic).

BUT thankfully all looks good and in 9 weeks, 3 days we should be cast-free!

In the meantime, Caroline has made her big debut at church where she enjoyed bible class again. Here she is last Sunday:

Shout out!

Just a quick note to give a shout out to Grandma Darlene! (what do I think I am, 19? first a blog, then facebook, now this...) Seriously though, for those of you who don't know, we have some very dear friends in California, Dave & Darlene Mackey, who have adopted our girls as grandkids. They were our marriage mentors and we developed an amazing relationship that has lasted lots of years and lots of miles. Isn't it wonderful how God provides? Our kids only have 1 biological grandparent living (my mom) and all of their aunts, uncles & cousins live very far away. Although the Mackeys live in California, they have stayed very involved with us & visit often. When we first found out about Caroline's hip, I was overwhelmed & scared. We found out literally the day before my mom arrived for a pre-arranged visit, so I knew she wouldn't be able to come back to help so soon. I called Darlene at work on my way home from the dr's office and she said--absolutely, I'll be there, whatever you need. Just like I knew she would. She came & stayed with us for 12 days (how's that for a friend!). She kept Ellery & Lauren while we were at the hospital & took care of everything. She was the extra pair of hands we needed at first and the companionship we needed even more. So here's to Grandma Darlene--and Grandpa Dave--we love you more than we can say. Caroline and Grandma Darlene

Addendum to Sidebar

I can't believe I forgot this! Add this one to the list below: one member gave birth to her second child just a couple weeks ago. Days after he was born, her husband got shingles. Then last week, her 2 year old fell & broke her arm, which required surgery! Mercy!

Sidebar

Ok, sidebar for a moment... This idea has been buzzing around in my head for a while, but after the info I received this morning, I just had to voice it. Back in January, after having taken a break for various reasons, I started the new Ladies Bible Study at OC. I felt really compelled to do so because of the topic: Cultivating Contentment. Since I had been out for a while, I was put in a new small group, which has been just awesome. It's been a great study, but after a few weeks we began to notice that our ideas of contentment were being challenged. I know of several tough situations that have arisen during these few weeks, even in other small groups--major health problems, etc.--and I'm sure there are many more I'm not aware of. At first, I thought, that's just life, I'm only more aware of it now b/c of the study. However, in my own small group of about 15 women, here's what's happened since January: -Caroline's hip issue -another member's young son had 2 surgeries and potentially faced serious heart problems. -one member lost her only remaining sibling -2 members lost grandmothers and the one that just pushed it right over the edge -one member (6 mos. pregnant) was awakened at 3 a.m. by a car crashing into her house! There are more; many "minor" health issues & job situations, several women are pregnant and several are moving, things that although they are difficult I would not consider unusual. And there are other more sensitive issues that I will not discuss. But the list above, by itself, is pretty crazy. I know that you could look at it & explain it away as bizarre coincidence or even just a run of "bad luck." But as a group of women struggling & striving together to understand contentment, it's much more than that. I wonder if God is honoring our pursuit by allowing these situations to destroy our worldly concept of happiness? Whew, that's a tough one. I wish I had some profound word of wisdom with which to end this post, but I don't. I'm still working on this one. I would be lying if I said I had this contentment thing all figured out, but I know that "He who began a good work in me will finish it through to completion." That's a relief.

Tuesday

Hello all-- Sorry it's been so long since the last post; now that my little munchkin is home I am finding it hard to find time. We are doing well. With the exception of one night, so far she has slept great. We have found a few more ways for her to sit, and Keely actually made an awesome chair for her this weekend. (Pics below) Caroline is completely off pain meds, not even taking Tylenol except at bedtime. We are getting the hang of diaper changes, not as bad as I expected. Baths are ok too, she doesn't love getting her hair washed. She has to lay on the kitchen counter while I wash it in the sink. Seems like a salon treatment to me, but she's not crazy about it. I guess I understand though, yesterday after we were done she pointed to the bathtub & said "splash!" while waving her arms. She misses her regular bath. We ventured out on Saturday & she did fine. We went to toys r us to find some things she would fit in. It was rather discouraging b/c at first we couldn't find much, and to add insult to injury, the place was chock full of sand & water toys. Made me a bit sad... then we went to the park yesterday and I was pretty rueful that all the other toddlers were running around. But the truth is, she didn't care! She had a ball, and hopefully before long she'll be out there with them. She's fallen asleep in her carseat twice, so she must be pretty comfy (though she doesn't look it!). Her appetite is back--she ate a ton of taco meat on Friday, and chowed down on chicken/broccoli/rice casserole yesterday. The big sisters are doing quite well. They are very concerned & helpful with Caroline, with just a few signs of jealousy. They have enjoyed blowing bubbles for her, which delights her. We have been completely overwhelmed by the amount of help we have been given (and are continuing to receive). I want to post more about this later, but for now just let me say that we absolutely could not do this without all of you. For now I'll leave you with some pictures of Caroline at her various "stations." Melissa Camp chair At the kitchen table On the couch, with her laptop & cell phone (hmmm, wonder where she gets that???) In her pink & purple custom made Spica chair!