Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Our 8th Anniversary


It’s so hard to believe we’ve been married for 8 years today! It doesn’t seem like it has been that long! A lot has happened in that time as I suppose a lot happens in anyone’s life in 8 years. We’ve had some hard times like Wayne’s cancer a year and a half into our marriage, my sister’s brain tumor diagnosis several months later, and then Micah being diagnosed with TSC when he was almost 5 months old. We’ve also had enjoyable times such as the birth of our boys, Kelly graduating from seminary(Wayne had already graduated when we married), job promotions for Wayne, and living in the San Francisco bay area.

Though the hard times have been challenging, I’m thankful to God for healing in certain ways for each person. Wayne was healed completely. Kim is doing fairly well, though her quality of life is not the same and she has many health problems. I remember that it was our anniversary weekend in 2003 when I found out about her tumor. It was so hard to celebrate and I spent much of the weekend crying. I was so afraid of losing her. I’m so thankful that didn’t happen.

Micah only has occasional seizures now. Though there’s so much we hope and pray for in his life concerning his development, we try and live one day at a time. He can be hard to deal with sometimes, and so much fun a lot of the time.

I’m thankful that through God’s grace we have held together through all of these situations. I’ve heard that the divorce rate is really high for those who have kids with special needs. It can be quite stressful, but I’m thankful that Wayne is very helpful in caring for the boys and he is encouraging to me when I feel like things are overwhelming. He never makes me feel like I am overreacting to frustrating situations.

Now here we are in Fort Smith, Arkansas. I don’t think either of us would have ever guessed that 8 years ago. It’s where God has us, at least for a season, and we are trying to “bloom where we are planted.”

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Gabriel's 1st birthday!


































Gabriel had his first birthday on June 29th and we had a small, fun celebration. My parents and Wayne's parents were all here, as you can see by the photos. It was nice to have them all here. My cousin and his family came as well, but I didn't get a photo of them. We had pizza and birthday cake and ice cream followed by me "helping" Gabriel open his gifts.
It's so hard to believe that a year has gone by already! He is so much fun, almost a pro at walking now and jabbering a lot. I love his little baby language and wonder what he is trying to say. Sometimes it's very clear what he is trying to communicate when he gets mad or frustrated. He is definitely learning to assert his little will! He laughs a lot and is generally pretty happy and laid back.
He is eating well and growing so much! I'm not sure how tall he is, but I know it's over 30 inches and he weighs about 21 pounds. His favorite foods are tomatoes, blueberries, and ham, so far anyway. I think he eats tomatoes every day.
Gabriel is such a joy to have and we are so thankful to God for our little baby boy!