Confidence in the Name of the Lord

"Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked, for the LORD will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being snared." Pr 3:25-26

Well, my dad is in the hospital again.  But this time it's under much better circumstances when compared to his last stay in June/July.  ...Let's consider the blessings, shall we? :)

#1

Mom got to drive him there herself,

instead of having to call 9-1-1.

#2

He's fully responsive,

instead of being totally unresponsive.

#3

Well... I can't think of anything that fits here. 

It just seems like there's always a "number three!" ;-D

Last week (and the week before) Dad started to slowly go downhill again.  We noticed his balance and coordination were off and that he was having more trouble cognitively.  Each day his symptoms seemed to gradually worsen.  Mom ended up calling his MS doctor last Thursday and the doctor said he wanted to do an MRI.  On Monday they got that done, and then yesterday they called and said he needed to be admitted in the hospital!  (Even with all the surprises we've had thrown our way, we honestly weren't expecting to hear this one!) We found out he has a new, large 'enhancing' lesion on his corpus collosum.  He also has a smaller lesion on his medulla, which controls the swallowing.  Thankfully that lesion isn't considered to be enhancing.  They were able to get Dad started on IV steroids last night, which they'll administer every 24 hours through next Sunday.  They are also going to get him started on plasmapheresis treatments, hopefully sometime tomorrow.  That being said, he will probably be in the hospital for a minimum of 10 days. 

I can honestly say I'm feeling quite confident right now.  And while the doctors, nurses, and entire medical staff are awesome at this particular hospital, our confidence does not lie in any one man's ability alone--but solely in God's healing power and provision!  "For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh..." Philippians 2:3b 

Like always, God is in complete control of everything and we trust that He will work all things out according to his perfect will.  In the mean time, we will continue to pray, trust, hope, and believe. :)

The fruit of righteousness will be peace;

the effect of righteousness will be quietness

and confidence forever.

Isaiah 32:17

This is the confidence we have

in approaching God: that if we ask anything

according to his will, he hears us.

1 John 5:14

Happy Birthday, to My Best Friend :)

I couldn't let the day pass without wishing my dear Mommy a happy, happy birthday! She is such a special person to me and she truly is my best friend. I don't know what I'd do without her! :)

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Thank you, Mommy, for all that you do.

You do such a wonderful job at taking care of us girls,

and Daddy too.

I am so grateful to have a loving, godly mother like you.

I love you so very much.

Happy Birthday!

~Love you, Taylor

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My Mom at a birthday party when she was a little girl.

(Pictured front right, with the black socks!)

"This is the day that the Lord has made;

Let us rejoice and be glad in it!"

Psalm 118:24

Dear Mom,

Thank you so much for all that you are and all that you do. I pray that you have a wonderful and blessed Mother's Day. I love you! ♥

Love,

Taylor

"A wife of noble character who can find?

She is worth far more than rubies...

Her children arise and call her blessed;

her husband also, and he praises her:

'Many women do noble things

but YOU surpass them all!'"

PROVERBS 31:10, 28-29

All Ready for Spring! :)

We've been having such lovely weather these past couple of days... Sunny, cool, and not a cloud in the sky! I don't know about you, but I'm really looking forward to spring! It's one of my most favorite seasons. I love having all the windows open in the house and feeling the nice, gentle breeze come through. It makes me want to curl up on the couch with a good book! And that's exactly what I've been doing this week. :) Wednesday we took a trip to the library--one of my favorite places. We hadn't been in a really long time so I was looking forward to finding a good read. I didn't actually have any particulars in mind, so I just headed over to the Christian section and started searching. I found three books that looked interesting and checked them out. I've only read one of them so far, and I really like it. The book is a sweet story set in the late 1800's. (It reminds me a lot of the "Love Comes Softly" series.)

Yesterday was a lovely day as well. I got to spend the afternoon out with my mom and we had a really nice time together. :) I even did a little bit of shopping! It's always hard for me to spend my money because everything is just so expensive these days. But I found a few items I liked at some really reasonable prices... and, well, I bought them! :D

Here's what I got...

A long, colorful dress with a cute pair of brown shoes to match. ;)

When I got home I found a nice top to fit underneath the dress... it matched perfectly!

(The book pictured is what I'm reading right now. :)

I also got a couple more pairs of shoes...

If you haven't noticed yet, these are my favorite kind of

shoes to buy--they're cute, comfy, and affordable... at only $15 each. :)

Anyway... Yesterday and today we've been doing some serious cleaning in preparation for starting the full diet/therapy we're on next Monday. We had to get a water distiller for our sinks and the only place for it to go was in the utility room. Therefore, we had to move our coats and boots out of there and into our newly cleaned-out pantry! Since we can't eat any pre-packaged or processed foods we had to get rid of a lot of stuff, which actually worked out nicely. Now, we are only using three shelves on the left side of the pantry for food and the right side is where all of our coats and jackets are now hanging--with the boots sitting underneath! ...I guess you could say we've been doing some "spring cleaning"! ;D

I just thought I'd share a bit of what's been going on this week.

...It looks like spring is just around the corner...

and when it gets here, I'll be ready! :)

(This is the gorgeous sunset we had last night.)

~ Have a blessed Friday, everyone!

Mothers Day Blessings

May God supernaturally bless your Mothers Day

as you show and share your love for one another!

"For God said, 'Honor your father and mother...'"

Matthew 15:4a

"May your father and mother be glad;

May she who gave you birth rejoice!"

Proverbs 23:25

PRAISE THE LORD FOR MOTHERS! : )