childhoodcancer – Page 14 – Sundaygratitude

~ thankful for a super fun day celebrating Samantha’s birthday! How can it be that our little Stinky Girl is 11 years old!? School was out, so we got to really got to do it up. The day started off with donuts for breakfast, and then a trip to the mall. Not just a leisurely trip to the mall to look around. No sir, this was a trip with a purpose. And that purpose was getting Samantha’s ears pierced! This is a milestone first offered to our girls upon reaching the age of 10, but Sam was NOT INTERESTED last year. This year she was SET. Until we got there. Then there was a dramatic change of heart. There were big tears. There was a call home to big sis for a pep talk. There may have been some time spent huddled in a corner of the store. But, she rallied her courage and eventually walked proudly out of the mall with red, swollen eyes and sparkly blue earrings! Then came a Subway lunch date with Dad, and home to make her own ice cream cake, and finally a delicious dinner that evening. She said it was the very best birthday she’s ever had. What a blessing is our sweet, sweet Sam.

~ for encouragement from the Lord through the gift of worship music. Several times this week, certain songs have just ministered to my heart… “have you come to the end of yourself? Do you long for a drink from the well? Jesus is calling…”. and “who am I that the highest King should welcome me? I was lost but He brought me in, oh His Love for me.” What a gift music is! And then also what a gift it is to experience watching my daughter grow into her gifting as she continues to lead worship at school and at church. I’m including a video of Carson Grace from our service this morning. Be blessed. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XE6ANdzNVOo

~ for the simple sweetness of the kids feeding the ducks at sunset. Something so little makes them so happy. All it takes is a little time.

~ for the opportunity to share in our friends’ joy. This week, one of our brave Gold Network Hero friends took his very last chemotherapy medication after more than 3 years of treatment for leukemia. What a day of celebration! And that morning, his entire school dressed in superhero costumes and greeted him with cheers and well wishes, a true heroes welcome! I’m not sure if Sawyer and this dear boy have even actually met, but Sawyer simply knows him as one of his “friends.” He watched the video with me and clapped and cheered for his fellow leukemia warrior, and it filled my heart with so much hope and joy. We HAVE to celebrate the victories!

~ for a great time at the mid-week worship service with my kids. I am loving the intimate setting, and the opportunity to explain to them WHY we are doing what we are doing…explaining WHO GOD IS and why He is worthy of our worship. And everything I share with them is a fresh reminder to me, right where I am. Oh Lord, keep my faith like that of a child!

~ and for a big finish to our week: it’s official – WE HAVE LOST OUR MINDS! We got a new puppy! Josh and I found a sweet pup on Craigslist that captured our hearts, and Saturday morning we loaded up all the kids, sleepy and confused, into the bus, telling them only, “we’re going on a family adventure!” You can imagine the squeals of surprise and delight when their eyes were met with a fluffy new friend! It was such a fun day, and I know we will all remember it forever! Everyone loves “Bear,” and his name suits him perfectly, as he more closely resembles a cuddly teddy bear than an actual live animal. Puppy kisses are the best! A “family adventure” INDEED!

Thank you to so many who have liked the Sunday Gratitude Facebook page or signed up to follow this blog. I am so thankful for this community and all of your support. I hope this week finds you well. If you are weary, hang on, and don’t lose heart. YOU ARE NOT ALONE! If you’re in a season of joy – SHARE SOME! I promise you, somebody’s desperate for it! You never know when you may be the answer to somebody’s prayer. Thank you for giving thanks with me.

“But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high.” Psalm 3:3 NIV

fullsizeoutput_9600 — Brave #SawyerTheWarrior

~ Thankful for a much-needed, long-overdue evening out with my Love. We started with a stop at Lowes, (doesn’t everyone?) and then a delicious meal at FD’s. Finishing the tile floor nearly killed us both, so it was the perfect way to end his week of vacation.

~ for the warmth and comfort from a crackling fire. I love cozy mornings snuggled up in the dark with my Bible, or painting beside it in the afternoon.

~ for impromptu hugs from my little people, and “I love you Mama” for no reason at all.

~ for a fun night for Carson Grace at Winter Formal. Thankful for sweet friends.

~ for a wonderful refreshing at our newly reinstated mid-week church service. Intimate worship, spirit-led prayer…it was such a blessed way to refuel our hearts with our church body. And I loved experiencing it together as a family. On Sundays, we worship together and then the Littles head off to their classes. In this service, we were all together (all but 2 youngest). No electronics, no coloring pages, no “you-keep-busy-so-mom-and-dad-can-listen.” At ages 7-17, they are all old enough to take in the Word of God for themselves. And pray with adults. Who knows how much they actually listen or understand, but I just truly believe seeds are being planted. I’m excited to see them grow into who God has made them each to be.

~ for Sawyer’s wonderful Clinic visit on Thursday! CANCER-FREE!!! Glory to the LORD! Josh and I are always freshly amazed that Sawyer is doing so well. And it is such a blessing to see others see him as a miracle, too. The doctors scarcely know what to think. It’s my favorite to see Dr. Winick’s eyes shine as she listens to him tell her stories about his family or about school, and be genuinely thrilled with a picture he has made for her. I’ve recently heard of so many of Sawyer’s “friends” specifically those that I’ve met through the online Infant Leukemia community: kids who have dramatic speech delays due to underdeveloped mouth and facial muscles from being fed through a tube for years instead of learning to eat by mouth. Kids with social anxiety from being kept on isolation and never learning to interact with other kids. Cancer in an infant can cause so many issues, with the disease and treatment occurring during the most formative months and years of brain development. BUT GOD! Sawyer has faced so many traumas, yet the Lord has chosen to show healing mercies here on earth. I will never understand why Sawyer is doing so well, when things could be so very different. And have turned out so very different for people who I love. But we just have to choose every day to trust that Our Good Good Father knows what He is doing, and that His plan supersedes our instincts on every level. And keep praying and praising.

~ for good laughs. Near the end of his appointment, Sawyer said to Dr. Winick, giggling, “I know what comes next… you’re going to check my business.” (Each visit includes inspecting his testicles – “business” – for any irregularities. Infant leukemia has a high rate of relapse in boys as testicular cancer.) Then he looked over at Gina, and said dryly, “you might not want to yook at this Aunt Gina. That would be inappropriate.“

After we returned safely home on Thursday, I was astonished to realize it was EXACTLY TWO YEARS since Sawyer’s treatment ended (thankful to have all my Caringbridge entries to look back on!). We didn’t have the long-awaited celebration marking his very last chemo. Instead, he was riddled with multiple infections and unexplained fevers, even requiring blood transfusions. He was getting weaker instead of better. So on January 17, 2017, the oncology team abruptly discontinued his chemo at his Clinic appointment. Very anticlimactic. And unnerving. That day, just 3 hours after returning home from Dallas that afternoon, he spiked a fever and we were right back to be admitted to the hospital. It was such a terrifying time, to see him so sick when we were supposed to be celebrating. BUT GOD! I never could have imagined him two years later: an active, vibrant, healthy, and THRIVING 5-year-old! A living, breathing picture of HOPE! Glory to the Lord!!!

Thankful for a good week. Thank you for giving thanks with me!

“I would have lost heart, unless I had believed That I would see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living. Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD!” Psalms 27:13-14

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