We are in need of runners/walkers and sponsorships and donations. If you're interested, please visit www.runforreece.com. We can't wait to see everyone there! Be sure to like his Facebook page, Run for Reece. And don't forget, if you eat at the Applebee's on Dussell on September 17, 15% of your bill will go towards Reece's medical expenses. To redeem this offer, you have to have the Applebee's flyer. Select the image below and print!
I know it's been forever since my last post, but I promise, as soon as Run for Reece is over, I will get back to it. There's a ton to update you on! In the meantime, we are busy planning our second Run for Reece. And it's a glow run, how awesome is that?!
We are in need of runners/walkers and sponsorships and donations. If you're interested, please visit www.runforreece.com. We can't wait to see everyone there! Be sure to like his Facebook page, Run for Reece. And don't forget, if you eat at the Applebee's on Dussell on September 17, 15% of your bill will go towards Reece's medical expenses. To redeem this offer, you have to have the Applebee's flyer. Select the image below and print!
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I can't believe it's been almost two months since my last post. I really didn't think it had been that long, but goodness I've been slacking. I'd like to say it's because we've been super busy ... which isn't a total lie. But the truth is that I've been feeling super anxious about our next Boston trip and, to be honest, didn't really know what to write. Every day we inch closer and closer to Reece's next dangerous procedure. I know in my last post I stated how I'm really trying to live each day rather than living for tomorrow. I'm failing miserably at that. I don't wake up every day thinking about that particular day's tasks or excitements ... instead I wake up thinking that I'm one more day closer to Boston than I was yesterday. Terrible right? I think I might need to see a doctor regularly, too. Just kidding. Well ... maybe not. =) Since I last posted, a lot of things have happened. We took out Reece's feeding tube that we were using for medicine to help with his feeding therapy. See? Pretty darn handsome if I do say so myself. Reece started sleeping through the night. I know. I'm just as surprised as he is. And ... Reece started crawling!! He doesn't do it very often yet, but we know he can. And, of course, every time I try to record it, he refuses to want to show off. Once I have it, trust me, so will you. =) We also bought a house. It feels great to be a homeowner again and we are really excited to start making memories in our new house! My first project was Reece's room. He has a cool room over the garage, which has a little "nook" that I've made into a play area for him. I even found a sign that says "Kid's Cave." I'm pretty excited about and I think Reece likes it, too. Matt also got a job at a local credit union. And believe it or not, he's already been promoted. About 24 hours ago, he was getting the great news that he got the promotion. And about 24 hours ago, I was getting the call that I was losing mine. Yep. I lost my job. A large source of our income. And our insurance. This news came less than a week from our next Boston trip.
I wasn't going to post anything about this, but a dear friend was there to pick me up when I needed it. She reminded me that this was not a reflection on me. It's life and these things happen. You have to move on and you have to keep going. But why does it have to happen now? I mean, really? Less than a week before we leave for Boston? Two weeks after we just bought a house? Am I scared? Hell yes. But in typical Bova household fashion, we will move on. And we will keep going. And we will be stronger because of this. In closing, I would like to ask that you continue to pray for Reece and our family. We leave for Boston this Sunday, August 25. Reece has all of his tests again on Monday, August 26, and his heart cath will be on Tuesday, August 27. As always, I will keep you posted throughout the day. ... This is something I struggle with every day. Every night when I go to bed, I think about the events of the day. Sadly, I find myself getting extremely frustrated lately rather than taking in these precious moments. Reece had no signs of teeth for almost 15 months. It wasn't until we left Boston the end of May that we finally started to see puffy gums. But a month later, he has nine teeth. Top two, bottom two, two top molars, two bottom molars, and I just saw one more front tooth coming in on the top. And it is making Reece miserable. Which is making me miserable. And at the end of the day when I'm beyond exhausted, I'm so frustrated with myself looking back on my behavior from the day. His fussiness has proven my patience tolerance to be a bit too small. Please tell me I'm not the only one that feels this way with a teething baby. All I want to do is comfort him, but all he wants to do it cry, and it's breaking my heart. On top of it all, instead of being thankful for the day and celebrating new milestones Reece is meeting every day, I'm more focused on August 25. Our next trip to Boston. It's still two months away, but much like the last time, it will be here before we know it. The fear and worry has already begun to set in. And when I say milestones, I mean MILESTONES! Because of all the tubes and medicines Reece has had to endure, he's experiencing a huge aversion to food and will not only refuse a spoon with food, he's refusing to feed himself. His therapists with Help Me Grow recommended messy play eating, meaning put anything messy (spaghetti sauce, whipped cream, pudding, applesauce, etc.) on his high chair tray and let him play in it. Eventually he will accidentally get his hand in his mouth and get a taste. We first tried vanilla pudding. He wasn't a huge fan. We then tried chocolate pudding ... and we made progress! At least he is smiling! Then I tried whipped cream. He liked it a lot better so I started adding things to it. Things like peanut butter, yogurt, and Hershey's Strawberry syrup. And then, I thought I'd get a bit crazy and try a Gerber Graduate Fruit Strip. Much to my surprise he brought it straight to his mouth! While he doesn't chew it yet or want a lot of anything, he's bringing it to his mouth and getting interested in food. Although it sure makes a mess! He usually goes straight to the pool to rinse off! Speaking of the pool, Reece sure has become quite the water baby. He loves it! Reece is now pushing up on all fours and is extremely close to crawling. Eating, crawling, and cutting nine teeth? Now he's just showing off! A high school friend of mine is a photographer and so graciously offered to host a fundraiser photo shoot day with all proceeds going to Reece's growing medical bills. Sara Cox Photography, you rock and we are so grateful for you! Please like her page on Facebook here. Another high school friend of mine who is quite crafty also wanted to help with the photo shoot. Sara Macke put together handmade signs for the photos, again with all proceeds to be used for Reece's bills. Thank you, Sara! Her Etsy page can be found here. Here are just a few of my favorites from our shoot. It's been a really busy month! In addition to Reece progressing developmentally, we bought a house and Matt got a job! Reece also saw his cardiologist and while the improvement hasn't been huge, his ECHOs do appear to show lower right ventricle pressure. Thank you to everyone for your continued support. Whether its kind words, donations, gifts, or prayers, we appreciate you all. More than you will ever know. Please continue to pray for healing as our next trip to Boston is quickly approaching.
Before we moved back to Ohio, Reece was involved in an early intervention program called Babies Can't Wait. Every Friday morning a physical therapist would come to the house and work with Reece. She would teach us certain exercises to do with Reece to help him build strength and to make sure he was developmentally progressing. We knew with Reece's heart condition that he would be behind, but as his parents, Matt and I wanted to make sure he was getting the special attention he needed from trained professionals. His physical therapist and service coordinator would set goals for Reece and once he reached those milestones, new goals would be set. While he is still pretty behind, we definitely saw the benefits of the program and wanted to be sure we found a similar program here in Toledo. Our service coordinator in Georgia referred us to Help Me Grow. Help Me Grow identifies children with or at risk for developmental delays or disabilities; provides screenings for health, hearing, vision, and development; and provides up-to-date information during a visit from a registered nurse to parents on the child's health, development, safety, and community resources. Reece's new service coordinator came to the house last week and set up his first evaluation. And today was that day. Reece is given certain tasks to perform and then he is "graded" on how well he does. The overall scores determine whether or not he has a "delay" or "no delay." In addition to the visual assessment, they ask what seems like a bizillion questions. "Does he do this? Does he do that? How often? 25% of the time? What's his mood like when he does this? How about that? Are you concerned? Has he seen a doctor for that? Has he had genetic testing done for this? How about for that?" It's a lot for a parent to take in. After we got through all the questions, they began their assessment. First, they wanted to make sure he could track objects. And then peek-a-boo. But the props just ended up in his mouth. Playtime and books! And of course there is always time just to be cute! And after all of that, it's time for a nap ... before he even gets to the car! While I'm extremely grateful for these types of programs and very thankful for what they do for Reece, days like today hurt my heart. After Reece was born and we began to learn of his heart problems, we were told to expect delays. But no one knew how severe they would be. And to be honest, it took months ... and quite of few of them ... for me to be OK with this. I was certain I could keep him on track and that programs like Babies Can't Wait and Help Me Grow wouldn't even need to be an option. But when I realized his progress wasn't up to me and it all depended on his heart function, I started to become OK with it.
While I would like to say I don't get jealous when I see other kids Reece's age doing the things he can't yet, I'd be lying. It hurts. Or when kids 6 months younger are doing things that Reece can't yet. It hurts. And it really hurts on days like today. Every part of Reece's evaluation came back "delayed." I knew walking into the building today how the evaluation would go. But it hurt. Really bad. Reece is perfect to me. And I know so many of you reading this agree. But when others tell me otherwise, it breaks my heart. I know, I know. It's their job. I'm not blaming them at all. And when he is older and is doing all the things other kids his age are doing, his delay as a baby/toddler won't matter. Will it matter when he is 5 that he didn't crawl until he was 16 months old? Or that he wouldn't eat anything other than baby formula until he was 16 months old? Or that he didn't say his first word the same time other babies do? No. What does matter is that Reece is getting stronger and stronger by the day. He's 15 months old and has had two heart surgeries, six heart catheterizations, he has been hospitalized seven times, he's been poked and prodded more in his 15 months than most of you reading this, and he does it all with a smile. Reece with his contagious smile is changing the lives of so many around him. He has touched the lives of thousands. Thousands of people he has never met. He's taught people to live life to its fullest and not sweat the small stuff. And to NEVER give up hope. Now THAT is what will matter. A lot of you have seen me post on Facebook that Reece has been entered in a contest to be on the cover of Parents magazine. To be a finalist, he has to have the most votes by Friday night. Of the hundreds that have entered this week, he is #13! If you wouldn't mind sharing this blog post and asking your friends and family to vote for Reece once a day until Friday, we would greatly appreciate it. He sure has quite the story to tell! To vote, please click here. As Reece drifted off to sleep tonight with the light and music of his glow worm at his side, I began to feel emotional. Blessed. Grateful. Hopeful. It was a magical moment for me. Words can't describe how much I love this little boy, and as I prayed over him tonight, I thanked God for the events of last week and for giving us hope and a future to look forward to.
I don't have much to say tonight other than to make sure you appreciate these special moments. Don't ever take life for granted. I know I sure don't. Goodnight. ... We were handing Reece over to his new team of doctors at Boston Children's Hospital. If your child(ren) have ever had to have surgery, you know how heartbreaking this particular moment can be. This moment was even worse than his open heart surgery in December. Everything was unfamiliar to me. The facility. The doctors. The potential outcome of the procedure. Before they bring the kids back into the cath lab, they are given a "twilight" medication. It doesn't knock them out, but it makes the kids very sleepy. It takes about 15 minutes to kick in, and when it does, it's quite apparent. Which almost makes it worse handing Reece over to the doctors. I know it's easier on him because he's asleep, but it's worse for me. While I was confident everything was going to be OK, what if it wasn't? What if everything didn't go as planned? How could I not look into his beautiful eyes one more time? I know this is the complete opposite of how I'm supposed to think, but I'd be lying if I said positive thoughts ran through my head all of the time ... especially right before one of Reece's heart procedures. I cried as I handed him to the doctors. Sat down on his bed. Gathered my thoughts. Stood up. Took a deep breath. And headed to the waiting room. Like all of his other procedures, we expected a phone call about every hour. We knew that the first call would be to notify us that they were starting. It usually takes about 45-60 minutes to get lines placed, get him completely asleep, etc. And about 11 a.m. they called to say they were starting. Deep breath. Our second update came around noon. They were still working on opening his pulmonary arteries in his right lung, but so far, so good. Deep breath. And then we got our 1 p.m. update that Reece would be staying the night in the CICU. We were warned before that if the procedure went well, there was a good chance he would stay the night in the CICU. Once his small pulmonary arteries are opened, the lungs can see an increased about of blood flow, which can cause pulmonary edema. In the CICU, he would get extra dosages of Lasix to help him pee out the extra fluid that could build up. We knew this was why he was going to the CICU, but in the past, Reece was always admitted to the CICU for other reasons. Scary reasons. So while I knew this was a good thing, I was still a little weary. At about 3 p.m., we were able to see Reece. He didn't look much different than he has after his other procedures. At that time, we were given his plan of care, but were told that the procedure went well. Reece's pulmonary arteries in both lungs measured around 2 millimeters. Take a second to think about just how small that actually is. Because the lung arteries are extremely delicate, the doctors inserted a 3.5 mm balloon and dilated eight of his 10 lung arteries to 3.5 mm. If they try to go too big, too soon, they risk a lung artery rupturing, which is what happened in Atlanta. During Reece's pre-op lung scan, they could see that his left lung was receiving 30% of blood flow while his right lung was receiving 70%. Obviously that needs to be closer to 50/50. After his cath, the lung scanned showed 42% blood flow to the left lung and 58% blood flow to his right. Definitely on the right track. Also while in the cath lab, his right ventricle pressure was around 120. Normal is 20, which is why he is in right-sided heart failure. Clearly the right side of his heart is working way too hard. The left side of your heart pumps blood to your body and the right side pumps blood to your lungs. Because Reece's lung arteries are so small, his right ventricle is working extremely hard trying to push blood through his tiny arteries. But when the procedure was over, his right ventricle pressure went from 120 to 90. Again, definitely on the right track. We were able to talk with both of the doctors after his procedure. The first thing Dr. Lock said was that "he really needed this." But that the procedure went well and they feel good about what more of these lung artery dilation heart caths can do for him. They seemed so at ease and confident. Almost like, "What are you guys worried about? We got this." Their experience and confidence is definitely reassuring, although I don't think I will ever stop being scared. Reece was discharged from the hospital the very next day ... straight from the CICU, which they said hardly ever happens! But come on. This is Reece we are talking about. Am I surprised? No way! So, now we wait until late August-early September when we do this all over again. The doctors said it is possible that he will need these procedures done until he is close to school age. They may not need to be every three months, but he will definitely need many more to get his heart healthy. I'm so thankful for his new doctors and their experience. It is very obvious that he is in the best place. And with all of his prayer warriors and God on his side, Reece is going to continue to amaze each of us. God has BIG plans for our sweet Reece. And I can't wait to see what they are!! Here are a couple of pictures since we have been home of the bravest, happiest boy in the entire world! At his first bonfire... Just being plain happy ... And trying to sneak a sip at Nana's birthday dinner ...
If you don't read past the first paragraph of this entry, that's fine. But please, please read this part. I'd like to kindly ask everyone reading this to take just a minute tomorrow morning at 9:30 and pray for Reece. At 9:30, we will be arriving at the hospital, with Reece's procedure starting around 10:30 or 11. All I ask is that you talk to God and pray for a miracle. Please pray for Reece to remain stable throughout the procedure; for the two amazing doctors who are giving this their all to give Reece a chance; for the anesthesiologists, nurses, and everyone else who will be involved; and for a successful procedure. Reece's pulmonary arteries in his lungs need to respond to this intervention. If you're reading this, please share this page with your friends and ask them to pray tomorrow morning at 9:30. And ask them to share it with their friends. I know God hears our prayers, and if we all storm the heavens together, we will be that much louder. Our family sincerely thanks you. For updates, please follow We Love Reece and Run for Reece on Facebook. We arrived in Boston yesterday afternoon around 3:30. Reece couldn't have done any better on his first airplane ride. I was a bit nervous because a couple of the doctors in Atlanta advised us to make sure Reece wore oxygen on the plane in the event his oxygen saturations dropped, but his new doctors assured us he would be fine. Even with their assurance, I still couldn't relax. I was constantly staring at his fingernails looking for even the slightest change of color to blue. I was watching his lips for color change ... constantly watching him breathe to make sure he wasn't struggling. I was a nervous wreck, but in typical Reece fashion, he was fantastic. He was such a good boy. Look how chill he was! We had to be at the hospital this morning at 7:30. As we turned the corner to the entrance of the hospital, I felt calm. I felt relaxed and confident. As I looked at the building, I told myself, "This is the place that is going to save Reece's life." It was a day full of testing. A chest X-ray. Vitals and an EKG. Doctor consultations. A lung scan. An ECHO. Blood work. It took the doctors an hour and a half to find a good vein. And again, in typical Reece fashion, he was fantastic. The nurses were stunned. They absolutely couldn't believe how good he was. They tried getting blood from both feet and both hands. He didn't even cry. He was incredible. But it sure is tiring being such a strong boy. Even after all of this, he's still smiling. "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." — Jeremiah 29:11
It's been almost two weeks since my last blog, yet I'm still stuck. I have no idea what to write. The only thing that's been clouding my mind the last two weeks is this: I'm scared.
In just about 48 hours we will be getting on an airplane heading to Boston. This is the third time I've been on a plane in the past year. I've dreaded the departure of each trip. And this one isn't any different. When we first scheduled Reece's procedure in Boston, it seemed so far away. I think it was almost three months ago that we heard from Boston. I was worried then. But I had time to deal with it. Now, there is no time. It's here. I'm more scared now than I was for Reece's open heart surgery in December. On the outside, I'm sure it looks like I have it all together. But on the inside, I just want to cry. I want to scream. I want to be angry with all the other parents out there who don't have to experience this. I want to be stronger. I'm so absolutely terrified. And I have no idea how to make these feelings go away. I know Reece will be in the best hands, but it doesn't make it any easier. Reece's new cardiologist here in Toledo is a friend of the doctor who will be performing Reece's heart catheterization. When he first told me that, I felt relived. Reece's cardiologist and the doctor who is going to save Reece's life. What a perfect combination. But then he said this: "Dr. Lock is a tremendous interventional cardiac catheterization doctor. You don't get much better than him. He really knows how to get out of trouble." At first this made me feel better. Reece's new surgeon knows how to get out of trouble. Trouble. Trouble. Trouble. Trouble. I couldn't stop thinking about what he said. While at first I felt relieved, now it terrifies me. We can't have any "trouble." We experienced trouble during Reece's heart catheterization. And following that trouble was gut-wrenching news. As I said before, sending Reece to Boston was the easiest, most difficult decision we have ever had to make. But hearing things like that makes it even more difficult to get on this plane. I'm certain we are going to get back on the plane next Thursday and head home as scheduled. I'm certain Reece's procedure will be a success. I'm certain future surgeries will be a success. And I'm certain Reece will live a long and happy life. But sometimes, I'm not certain. And I feel like this trip just rubs it in my face. I really have nothing more to write. I'm scared. And I don't want to continue writing that. Because everything is going to be OK. Please continue to pray for our trip, Reece's procedure, the doctors, and future procedures. Please continue to pray for Reece's heart pressures to return to close as normal as possible and for his pulmonary arteries to grow. Please pray for healing. This little boy is so special. My heart aches when I think about not having him in my life. He has changed our lives forever. And I'M CERTAIN he will continue to move mountains. I will keep everyone posted with all the specifics when we get to Boston. It's pretty darn hard to believe that I will be 30 years old tomorrow. My 29th year has been the most difficult year yet. Well, really it started at the end of 28. On the eve of my 30th birthday, it felt appropriate to reflect upon the past year. The highs and the lows. At a routine doctor's appointment on March 2, 2012, my blood pressure was too high and my OB decided today was THE day. At 3:15 my induction began. And at 9:23 p.m., our miracle Reece was born. Silent. Blue. Matt cut the cord and they took our baby away. By midnight, our families were in what seemed to be the smallest consultation room known to man. And as the bad news kept coming, the room seemed to be caving in on us. The next morning, Reece was sent to Egleston Children's Hospital in Atlanta where he spent the first two weeks of his life. On day 9, we were finally able to hold him. While it was the most incredible moment of our lives, we almost were more focused on untangling him from all the wires that seemed to be keeping him alive. Until Reece's first heart surgery in September, we were able to take him home and watch him grow. On September 4, Reece had his first heart surgery. His surgery was Tuesday morning, and he was discharged Thursday night. I couldn't believe how perfect ... and fast ... everything went. I had high expectations for his next surgery. On October 19, my brother Josh and his best friend Kenny were involved in a terrible car accident that took Kenny's life. It's been extremely hard watching my brother suffer from the loss of his best friend. The world lost an incredible young man and the lives of so many have never been the same. And then something incredible happened on November 18. Run for Reece. This wonderful event planned by an amazing family has helped us pay for Reece's growing medical bills. To find out more about Run for Reece and the Youngs (the family who organized this event) please click here. We went from this incredibly high high, to the lowest of lows. The day after Thanksgiving, we found out our precious Lucy was very sick at the very young age of 4. Saturday morning we found out she had acute lymphoblasic leukemia. And on November 28, just six days after we learned of her illness, we had to say goodbye. Lucy was the first "baby" Matt and I had. I've never loved a dog like I did Lucy. And I never will again. I mourn her loss every day and look forward to the day I get to hold her again. On December 14, Reece had his second heart surgery. This surgery was his complete repair and lasted nearly six hours. We waited. And we waited. And we waited. Each hour we would receive a call from the operating room giving us an update. If we didn't receive a call within an hour, I would panic that something was wrong. But every time the phone rang to give us an update, I was terrified to hear what they were going to tell me. Finally, at about 10 p.m., his surgery was over and he was moving to the CICU. The surgery was a success, however, Reece was still experiencing high pressures in his heart. The doctors were a little concerned but believed once his heart was healed, the pressures would return normal. Then, on December 15, or maybe even December 16, I'm not exactly sure of the time ... all I know is it was extremely late ... as we were sitting next to Reece in his bed, he coded. We had to step away and watch the team of doctors and nurses save him. It was the most terrifying moments of our lives. They even brought out the ECMO machine because they weren't sure if they would be able to stabilize him without it. I can't even relive the moments to finish this, so I'm going to move on. Due to the possibility of oxygen loss to his brain during the time he crashed, he had to have further testing to make sure he didn't have any brain damage. No doubt Reece came through with flying colors! And was back to his normal self in no time. Reece was discharged from the hospital on December 22, just in time for Christmas, but unfortunately had to go back to the hospital on Christmas night. On December 26, he was sent back to Atlanta in an ambulance. Due to an excessively fast heart beat for unknown reasons, Reece was in the hospital until December 31. He was able to ring in the new year at home! Although he didn't make it until midnight. =) And then on the morning of February 8, I got a call from my dad that my grandma Shirley had gone to the hospital. All he really knew was that something had happened with her heart and that it was bad. About an hour later, Josh called to tell me that we had lost grandma to a heart attack and the young age of 68. My grandma Shirley was an amazing woman who touched the lives of everyone who knew her in a very special way. Anyone reading this who knew her would absolutely agree. Because of Reece's health and the fact that we lived so far away, my grandma never got to meet Reece. And that will forever weigh heavy on my heart. She loved Reece so much. She told everyone about Reece. In fact, at her funeral, I just started introducing myself as Reece's mom because as soon as I did, they knew exactly who I was. She shared his story and made sure everyone was praying for him. She had Reece's first birthday present already purchased. And let me tell you ... it is one of Reece's favorites. The world lost such an amazing woman. We all look forward to the day we can see her again. On February 20, we headed to Atlanta for Reece's fifth heart catheterization. It was then that we were told the most devastating and heart breaking news. Reece's pulmonary arteries are not growing, which is going to make his heart fail between the ages of 2 and 5. On top of that, Egleston Children's Hospital in Atlanta said they could no longer help us, and actually advised us not to continue with procedures due to the danger. But as I have said before, we will not give up and we will not accept that there is nothing or no one out there that can help. And that's why we are heading to Boston. And we continued to smile and move forward and celebrated a very special day. Reece's first birthday. While it wasn't the first birthday I had spent so much time planning for him, we were still surrounded by loving family and friends. He didn't particularly enjoy the cake, however. And he got his very first kiss on his first birthday! And here we are. One year later on the eve of my 30th birthday. What a trying year this has been. It still doesn't all seem real even as I write this. I saw this on Facebook awhile ago and found it quite humorous. But really, in all seriousness, I couldn't get through any of this without Him. And that's what I will continue to do. Rely on Him.
Fitting for the closing of this post is this from today's devotional: Living in dependence on Me is the way to enjoy abundant life. You are learning to appreciate tough times, because they amplify your awareness of My Presence. When you feel tired, you remember that I am your Strength. As you bask in the blessing of My nearness, My life can flow through you to others. This is abundant life! I can't believe it's been over a week since my last blog post. Time has really gotten away from me this past week. For those of you who don't know, Matt, Reece, and I have relocated. We moved from our first home as a family of 3 in Ringgold, GA, (just outside of Chattanooga, TN) to my hometown of Toledo, OH. Between packing, working, going to last minute doctor appointments, making the drive here, and actually getting settled into our new home, I just haven't had a chance to sit down and actually focus on what I would write about next. When Matt and I first moved away from home six years ago, we really didn't have any intentions on returning permanently. We first moved to Phoenix, AZ, and then two short years later, my job at the time sent us to Chattanooga, TN. We were certain that this is where we were going to spend the rest of our lives. But I think as time has gone by, we realized there really is no place like home. I know that's a cliche statement, but it has proven true. It's no secret that Reece's medical bills have been piling up and causing a bit of financial stress for Matt and I. But even greater than the medical bills was the lack of family presence in Chattanooga. We had amazing friends in Chattanooga. And they will forever be such an important part of our lives, but nothing or no one compares to family. When our house finally sold in Georgia, we knew exactly where we needed to move: home. Until we can get on our feet and save some money for our new home here, we will be living with my mom in Maumee. I think it's pretty safe to say Reece is enjoying all the extra attention. He even got to be meet his Great Grandpa Ron for the very first time. This was a bittersweet moment as my grandmother Shirley wanted desperately to meet Reece. I'm absolutely sure she was there in spirit during this very special moment. We know that we have a long road ahead of us, but with family by our side ... literally this time =) ... anything is possible.
And while I know I spend so much time thinking about the future, I need to live in the present. Whatever we lack, whatever inadequate resources we have for each day, rely on God. When some basic need is lacking — time, energy, money — consider yourself blessed. Your very lack is an opportunity to latch onto Me in unashamed dependence. When you begin a day with inadequate resources, you must concentrate your efforts on the present moment. This is where you are meant to live—in the present; it is the place where I always await you. Awareness of your inadequacy is a rich blessing, training you to relay wholeheartedly on Me. The truth is that self-sufficiency is a myth perpetuated by pride and temporary success. Health and wealth can disappear instantly, as can life itself. Rejoice in your insufficiency, knowing that My Power is made perfect in weakness. |