We've all heard the saying- "If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy... and guess what... I believe there's some truth to that. Recently I've been so convicted about how my mood sets the tone for the whole family, whether I like it or not. And add to that that the way I start my morning sets the tone for my entire day!! Sooo therefore if I wake up and I feel a step on behind from the get go, or if I feel overwhelmed first thing in the morning... I'm probably going to respond negatively to nearly any situation that arises and just like that I've set the tone for 5 other people in my house (well make that 6 since hubby's office is in the basement and the way me or the kids are feeling usually affects daddy as well). Wow! That's a lot on one's shoulders!! So whether I want to set the tone in my home or not is not really the question, the bottom line is: as a mother I do set it. I have the ability to create peace or calm, stress or chaos, joy or sadness, positive or negative. Why? Because my ACTIONS are being WATCHED and my WORDS HAVE POWER- power to bring life or death!! Proverbs 15:1 also talks about the WAY in which we respond has an affect on people... "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." So it's not just what we say, but HOW we say it... softly or harshly. UGH! I don't think I signed up for that much responsibility when I took the plunge into parenthood...
Being a mother is job that needs to be taken seriously!! It doesn't have to be a burden, but it needs to be something that we are doing with help from a Higher Power. But since I tend to "wing" things, I find myself trying to "wing" mothering too. I find myself trying to snag an extra few minutes of sleep in the morning instead of getting up before the kids to have quiet time with The Father. THAT is usually my first mistake of the day!!! Despite the fact that I KNOW the importance of "turning to Jesus" first thing, and I KNOW what a difference 5 or 10 minutes of prayer, before my feet hit the floor, can make... I LOVE to sleep a little longer in the morning... but is it worth it?? Is it worth it to sleep longer, skip my quiet time, drink my coffee on the go, AND try to juggle breakfast... all the while kicking myself for starting my day like this AGAIN? Every time I do this, the frustration mounts, I snap at my kids to get moving and get started with school and wa-la... I have once again succeeded in creating a tense, hurried, frustrated atmosphere!! I'm speaking to myself people!!! I'm being transparent here!!
As a homeschool mom I have flexibility... I CAN sleep a little longer if I choose to, and sometimes I do. BUT I am keenly aware that often times my lack of discipline causes me to be stressed or frustrated, thus causing that kind of atmosphere in my home, and ultimately creating children who respond to each other in ways I never dreamed "my children";) would.
Am I ok with the role we mamas play on a regular basis? NO! I told my kids recently that "It's not fair that we can't just have a day where we can be grumpy and it doesn't effect everyone else!!" I said, "Just because I'm talking in this tone of voice doesn't mean anyone else can!!!" But it doesn't work that way!! We can't tell them how to act, we have to model it. And I know we can't always be happy, all the time... but the truth is- a mamas attitude affects her entire family.
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
Saturday, January 10, 2015
Be Inspired
I love to inspire others- Not just to new heights
spiritually, but in everyday living, in parenting, in homeschooling, whatever
it may be… I love to pass on ideas and tidbits that I’ve gleaned over time. So
here is a multi-subjected blog post, meant to inspire you—
ON FOOD CREATIVITY-
A few months ago, we were given lots of
groceries from a food distribution group called “Blessings of Hope”. Some of
the items were real “gems”… foods I use on a regular basis and they were very
useful. Other items needed some creativity to get them used up. For instance,
boxes (and I mean lots of them) of Choco Rice Krispy cereal. While my two
little girls actually like these for breakfast, my other kids do not. And I’m
not a huge fan of starting out the morning with that type of breakfast, SOOO
how could I make use of these boxes of cereal?? Two ways- Crunch Bars and Granola
Bars… both recipes call for Rice Krispys and choc. chip. So we omitted the
chocolate chips and used the Choco Rice Krispys instead. It worked great and
saved me the step of melting the chocolate chips! Pretty cool.
Another item was Philadelphia cream cheese.
But it was not regular cream cheese, it was “brown sugar and cinnamon” or
something along that line. You can use a certain amount of that on bagels, etc.
but after bit you need to get creative to use the last few tubs of it. I
decided to make the “Cheese Danish” that calls for Pillsbury Crescent Rolls,
cream cheese and a few other ingredients. The recipe calls for original cream
cheese, but we used the “brown sugar and something” brand instead. It was
actually really good, in fact, I might choose to make it that way every time.
The last item that called for creativity was-
“Pillsbury BLUEBERRY Buttermilk Biscuits”. Again you can eat a certain amount
of these as biscuits to compliment some foods, but when you have as many as we
had, you’d better think of other ways to use them. We chose to make “donuts”
out of them. Pop them open, cut each biscuit in pieces (we cut them in 6ths),
and fry them in hot oil (I actually used olive oil for this, but vegetable
works too). They are good to eat just like this, BUT to take this over the top…
toss them in some powdered sugar. YUM!!
ON HOMESCHOOLING-
I am probably one of the most laid back
homeschool moms!! By this I mean, I don’t grade every paper or test, I don’t do
everything by the book, and I don’t have everything organizedJ. Don’t get me wrong, we start school
every day by 8:00, take a break at 10:00, eat lunch at 12:00 and wrap
everything up (most days) by 1:30. We have a structure, BUT we try to keep it
simple and have fun. If my kids are getting the concept, and understanding the
principle being taught I am satisfied.
Here’s a fun idea for spelling tests once in a
while… you can purchase a kind of crayon that’s made to write on glass. If you
have a glass patio door or a nice big window in your house that your kids can
write on, allow them to do their spelling test on that instead of writing it on
paper!! Keep it fun. Keep it simple.
ON CHILD TRAINING-
I don’t have this one figured out yet, but
thought I’d share a couple creative training moments that took place recently…
Madison will tell you he’s
not a “people person”. Don’t make him answer a knock on the door or the ringing
phone, instead he’ll just go find mom. Phone calls sometimes get missed because
he doesn’t get to mom on time and people are left knocking on the door because
mom is nowhere to be found at the moment. So in an effort to “train” Matt in
these areas, we got creative. I told him that we were going to do an “answer
the door” drill- I knocked on the schoolroom door and wanted him to stop his
school DVD, take off his headphones, and come to the door. I asked him to open
it and ask me what he could do for me. Well, Matt’s stubbornness (wonder where
he gets that??) (his dad of course;)) kicked in!! He attempted several times to
follow the action steps I had laid out, but he would half drag himself to the
door and mumble when he opened it. We went over this several times, until he
got it right. The funny part is- older sister was standing in the other doorway
watching this go down. She was smirking. And brother was not happy about it.
Her being there watching did not help brother’s attitude or stubbornness. I
could have made her go away, but instead I told Madison to stop worrying about
her, complete this exercise, and I would deal with Shay later. And that’s what
we did… Madison finally came to the door the way I had asked, opened it and in
his most grown up voice asked,- “What can I do for you?”. Bravo! And as for Shay... She stayed to watch…
but THEN Shay HAD to stay LONGER!! Yep, I told her since she liked to stand in
that doorway smiling so much, she could just hang out there for a while until I
came back and told her she could go. Well, the first time I came back,
(probably 5 minutes later or so), I asked if she was still having fun?? She
said smartly, “YEP”!! I said, “OK wonderful, I’ll be back later”. She groaned
realizing I was out to make her regret her smart reply. I left her there a
while longer, and let’s just say that when I came back the next time, she
readily agreed that standing in the doorway isn’t everything its cracked up to
be:) and she was ready to do something
better with her time. Both Shay and Matt had a training session that they
wouldn’t soon forget:).
Now I don’t always do those kinds of things,
but some times when I want to make a point in a creative way, I come up with a
creative idea. Another area we had to drill Madison recently was to answer the
phone. It was his habit to bring me the ringing phone… and right when he got to
me, he’d push the answer button and hold it to my ear instead of just answering
and telling the person he’d get his mom or dad. Let’s just say we missed a few
phone calls this way, and then we’d have to call people back (which isn’t
terrible, but slightly annoying). So the last time (notice I said last time,
because he doesn’t do it anymore) he did this, I made him return the phone
call. We have caller ID so I knew who had called. I told him to call the
person, tell them that we missed the call because he wouldn’t answer it, and
that he would get whoever it was that they were calling to talk to. Again Matt
got stubborn!! No way! He was NOT going to call them back. Guess what, mom can
get stubborn too. I told him he wasn’t doing anything the rest of the evening
until the phone call was made. About 60 min. later, when he finally decided to
make the call, he got the person’s answering machine, he said- “Hi Dave, this
is Madison. I’m sorry we missed your call because….” And he proceeded to tell
why we missed the call, and that his dad was indeed home if he wanted to call
back. Lesson learned. Guess who answers our phone without hesitation now??
Madison. :)
You can say I’m mean or crazy, but like Dr.
James Dobson says, “Parenting isn’t for cowards”!!
Be blessed.
Monday, November 24, 2014
Extraordinary Things....
I always like to blog about the extraordinary things that happen in our lives. Mostly because we all enjoy a God story now and then, and also because writing them down helps me to remember and to be thankful for them. So here are a few special things that have happened to us in the past few months...
If you recall in one of my previous blogs, I mentioned that our Suburban was at the garage and needed some unforeseen repair work done to it, and it was going to cost more than we anticipated. Well, to start with, we are so grateful that the problem was detected before we picked up the Suburban, before we took it on a day trip- BECAUSE the issue was brake related. I'm so thankful that we were not going down a mountain road only to have our brakes quit working on us!! So we are thankful for God's protection!! Also, friends of ours that visited that same weekend had felt led to give us $1,000... that covered the extra expense of the brake repairs BEFORE we even got the bill!! So again God was taking care of our needs.
Another cool story is that I got a FB message from a friend saying she had had a dream that our kids needed shoes. She said she felt a little funny telling me that she would buy our kids each a pair of shoes, but she really felt the dream was something that God wanted her to act on. The amazing thing is, that a week before she messaged me, we went to a church outing. The weather had faded from summer to fall and I knew it would be pretty chilly since we were going to be outside. I said to Dutch, "I need to go shoe shopping, all we have are flip flops for the little girls". We went to the outing in flip flops and yes, it was chilly!! I knew for certain that I needed to get shoes in the near future, then I got this message on FB!! What I love about this story is not only that God provided shoes, but the obedience of the one that gave them. Many times the Holy Spirit prompts us to do things, and sometimes they put us out of our comfort zone, but its so important that we obey that voice. When we follow through on the things He lays on our heart, we learn to trust that inner voice and we become a vessel He can use.
Here's one more little story- a few weeks ago I planned a day out. I was meeting some ladies friends from Lancaster, in the Selinsgrove area. Selinsgrove is about exactly half way from here to Lancaster, so it makes a great meeting place plus there are lots of stores there to shop. The one we were headed to was a particularly large re-uzit store. Community Aid is the name of it. But the store itself has nothing to do with my story!!! So anyway... of course since there's a Starbucks in the area my first stop that morning was to grab a "Tall White Choc. Mocha Non-fat w/ Whip", notice I said "tall" and not "venti" this time. Wow, I'm changing my ways!! Ugh, bunny trail again!! Back to the story- enroute to the store that morning, my dear ShaLyn informed me that my coffee was "on her" that morning- meaning she was buying it for me. I thought it was sweet of her, and I asked if she was planning to have one too. She said "Nope, I'll pass, I just want to bless you with one this morning". When we got to Starbucks, I placed my order and Shay started counting out her change, (she's like her mama, she justifies these things by using pocket change instead of dollar bills:)) when we pulled up to the window to pay, the cashier was laughing. She took my money and said, "For some reason the barista made two drinks for your order, do you want the second one free"??? Ummm, why sure we do, thank you very much!!! So, my daughter who of course drank the other coffee, saw her giving come right back to her!! She was so in awe of it. We thanked the Lord and went on our merry way!! Sidenote- Now, I realize that our kindness does not always come back instantaneously, but it does come back sometime... that's a promise!!
If you recall in one of my previous blogs, I mentioned that our Suburban was at the garage and needed some unforeseen repair work done to it, and it was going to cost more than we anticipated. Well, to start with, we are so grateful that the problem was detected before we picked up the Suburban, before we took it on a day trip- BECAUSE the issue was brake related. I'm so thankful that we were not going down a mountain road only to have our brakes quit working on us!! So we are thankful for God's protection!! Also, friends of ours that visited that same weekend had felt led to give us $1,000... that covered the extra expense of the brake repairs BEFORE we even got the bill!! So again God was taking care of our needs.
Another cool story is that I got a FB message from a friend saying she had had a dream that our kids needed shoes. She said she felt a little funny telling me that she would buy our kids each a pair of shoes, but she really felt the dream was something that God wanted her to act on. The amazing thing is, that a week before she messaged me, we went to a church outing. The weather had faded from summer to fall and I knew it would be pretty chilly since we were going to be outside. I said to Dutch, "I need to go shoe shopping, all we have are flip flops for the little girls". We went to the outing in flip flops and yes, it was chilly!! I knew for certain that I needed to get shoes in the near future, then I got this message on FB!! What I love about this story is not only that God provided shoes, but the obedience of the one that gave them. Many times the Holy Spirit prompts us to do things, and sometimes they put us out of our comfort zone, but its so important that we obey that voice. When we follow through on the things He lays on our heart, we learn to trust that inner voice and we become a vessel He can use.
Here's one more little story- a few weeks ago I planned a day out. I was meeting some ladies friends from Lancaster, in the Selinsgrove area. Selinsgrove is about exactly half way from here to Lancaster, so it makes a great meeting place plus there are lots of stores there to shop. The one we were headed to was a particularly large re-uzit store. Community Aid is the name of it. But the store itself has nothing to do with my story!!! So anyway... of course since there's a Starbucks in the area my first stop that morning was to grab a "Tall White Choc. Mocha Non-fat w/ Whip", notice I said "tall" and not "venti" this time. Wow, I'm changing my ways!! Ugh, bunny trail again!! Back to the story- enroute to the store that morning, my dear ShaLyn informed me that my coffee was "on her" that morning- meaning she was buying it for me. I thought it was sweet of her, and I asked if she was planning to have one too. She said "Nope, I'll pass, I just want to bless you with one this morning". When we got to Starbucks, I placed my order and Shay started counting out her change, (she's like her mama, she justifies these things by using pocket change instead of dollar bills:)) when we pulled up to the window to pay, the cashier was laughing. She took my money and said, "For some reason the barista made two drinks for your order, do you want the second one free"??? Ummm, why sure we do, thank you very much!!! So, my daughter who of course drank the other coffee, saw her giving come right back to her!! She was so in awe of it. We thanked the Lord and went on our merry way!! Sidenote- Now, I realize that our kindness does not always come back instantaneously, but it does come back sometime... that's a promise!!
Friday, October 24, 2014
Mystery of Marriage
Mystery of Marriage. Wednesday evening 6:00 p.m. - Sunday 2:00 p.m. Sounds long. Too long- too long for the kids, too long away from work, too long for a retreat. BUT. If you're looking for more than just a marriage retreat, if you want to hear some really good teaching, if you want to "go deeper" with God, grow closer to your spouse, and if you want to find out what "church" really is- you may want to consider attending our next "Mystery of Marriage" in May 2015.
Last week we had such a wonderful time as a group. Sharing, laughing & crying together. We learned to "turn to Jesus" early in the morning before we were even fully awake. We shared communion together and were reminded that we were not to examine ourselves to see if we were worthy to take communion of our own righteousness but rather dressed in His robe of righteousness. Hallelujah!!
Every couple shared a piece of their story, their life journey- because we ALL have a story. Our lives have been shaped by that story, the good, the bad- all of it really. So we give couples the opportunity to share their story, and to say what's on their hearts. If they have something they want to work through, we pray with them. We try to be sensitive to the working of the Holy Spirit at all of our retreats, so while we have a schedule, we are also flexible.
A few highlights of the week were- the one couple renewed their wedding vows, the formal dinner on Friday night, the one couple felt a powerful move of the Spirit while praying together in their room the one afternoon, the good laughs (especially about the one couple's honeymoon trip to Alaska), and so much more.
Without sharing too much personal info about the people's lives that were here, I wanted to give you a glimpse of the exciting things God is doing. We have another one of these retreats schedule for May of 2015. Please let us know if you or someone you know is interested in attending.
Last week we had such a wonderful time as a group. Sharing, laughing & crying together. We learned to "turn to Jesus" early in the morning before we were even fully awake. We shared communion together and were reminded that we were not to examine ourselves to see if we were worthy to take communion of our own righteousness but rather dressed in His robe of righteousness. Hallelujah!!
Every couple shared a piece of their story, their life journey- because we ALL have a story. Our lives have been shaped by that story, the good, the bad- all of it really. So we give couples the opportunity to share their story, and to say what's on their hearts. If they have something they want to work through, we pray with them. We try to be sensitive to the working of the Holy Spirit at all of our retreats, so while we have a schedule, we are also flexible.
A few highlights of the week were- the one couple renewed their wedding vows, the formal dinner on Friday night, the one couple felt a powerful move of the Spirit while praying together in their room the one afternoon, the good laughs (especially about the one couple's honeymoon trip to Alaska), and so much more.
Without sharing too much personal info about the people's lives that were here, I wanted to give you a glimpse of the exciting things God is doing. We have another one of these retreats schedule for May of 2015. Please let us know if you or someone you know is interested in attending.
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
Stories, updates, and more
Many things happen on a daily and weekly basis around here that I never take the time to write about. And I know we all have things like this... little everyday things and even big "God" moments that we are in awe of but never take the time to share them. Today's blog is a compilation of events, updates and God moments that have taken place since the last time I blogged.
The Ministry-
God has been using this place of rest to touch so many people. There is a steady flow of guests coming and going. And we, as an on-site team, interact with nearly all of our guests at some point. It might be anything from sitting with them for several hrs. through a "counseling" session, to having a meal together, sitting around the campfire together, or spending some time in prayer. It varies so much- the people, the needs, the time spent... but one thing that doesn't change, it is evident that the Holy Spirit is at work here. (I know there are people on-site (and abroad) who are praying on a regular basis, and that directly affects the Kingdom work being done here). Many people testify to feeling a peace while they're here. We praise the Lord for what He is doing!!
Highlights-
The experience that one of our most recent guests had while spending time alone at The Garden Cottage, brought a renewed sense of joy and awe at what God can do in a person's life when they are ready to surrender to Him. "David" (name changed to protect identity) came here in desperate need of something, and in his heart he knew what that something was. He knew He wanted to find God in a real, tangible way. He had been raised in church, but said he had never really connected with God in a real way. When he arrived here, Dutch and Dan were actually praying with three brothers and their dad that had come for the day to work through some tough "guy" issues. Dutch invited "David" to join them down at the barn. One of the brothers experienced a major breakthrough and he had a desire to be baptized. Hey why not?? Here's someone who has a revelation, all the stuff he's known in his head finally reached his heart and he wants to outwardly show what just took place inwardly. So we headed to the pond. All the while "David" was taking all of this in....
"David" told us later that what he saw that afternoon and evening with the brothers and their dad, and the baptism and all- seemed real to him. And that was what he was looking for- real Christians. He also told us that when he sorted through what was going on in his life, he had a desire to be baptized as well. To make a long story short- "David" connected with God during his week here, and to see the change that took place was awesome!! He was excited to go home and live out what God had started in his life, knowing, of course, that this was only the beginning of the journey. Challenges would lay ahead of him, but change had come and he left here different than he was when he came.
To add to the story, "David" returned last weekend, bringing with him his wife because he wanted to show her the place where God had started changing his heart. He also wanted to be baptized. After church on Sunday, we, along with quite a few of the folks from LHF Fellowship, headed to the Loyalsock creek to allow "David" to publicly confess that he believed in Jesus as his Savior and was ready to die to the old, and walk in the new!!! It was so refreshing to see his excitement about what he had found, his hunger for truth, and his desire to follow the voice of the Holy Spirit in every decision he makes!!!
Shay & Matt-
ShaLyn had mentioned earlier in the summer that she had a desire to be baptized. We talked about it some, but didn't make any official plans. We knew she was ready, but were waiting for the right opportunity. When, LHF Fellowship, the church we attend up here, held an outdoor service here this summer, several people were baptized in the pond that day. If Shay had known ahead of time that that was planned for that day, she said she probably would have done it then. So when the decision was made to baptize the one brother (from the story above), we asked her if she wanted to take this opportunity and be baptized as well!! It only took her a minute to decide- YES!
We also gave Madison the option of being baptized since he had made a commitment to Jesus a while back and we knew that baptism was something he desired as well. He also decided to get baptized. So on the evening of Sept. 9th both Shay & Matt took the "cold water":) challenge for Jesus. They were baptized in the name of the Father, His son Jesus, & the Holy Spirit- they made a public statement that they had died to self and the world and were ready to follow Jesus!
Gracie-
The last time I posted about Gracie, we were scheduled to have a surgery to put tubes in her ears. Well, that appointment happened to be scheduled on a very busy week here at The Haft, and I could not see pull everything off. I cancelled the surgery!! So as of now, Gracie does not have tubes in her ears and the surgery has not yet been rescheduled.
As for her overall progress- she is really doing well. She has been healthy! She is learning to get around!! She doesn't venture all over the house like a typical child her age that can see far and wide, but considering her seeing handicap she is doing QUITE well. She pulls herself up on furniture, she interacts with her siblings, she half crawls, half scoots with her head and makes her way from one area of the room to another. She is very social with us her family, but when others talk to her she often puts her thumb in her mouth and lays her head on the shoulder of the person carrying her. We've discovered recently that she loves to be outside. She also loves when we sing (more on that below).
"Holy Moments" w/ Gracie-
Gracie absolutely loves when I sing to her. I have started recently to intentionally sit on the rocking chair at some point in my crazy day and just rock her and sing. I really love to sing to begin with, so now I finally found someone that really appreciates it.:) I often sing old hymns that I grew up singing in church- Amazing Grace, Just As I Am, My Hope is Built on Nothing Less, and many more. Gracie simply positions herself, head tilted, and looks directly in my face and watches me for as long as I'm willing to sing. And you know what? Time stands still!! And Gracie and I worship together. I refer to these times as "Holy Moments". I have no doubt that this child will sing and worship in a powerful way one day. I also told the kids recently that if Gracie can't see well in the physical realm, she will certainly see into the spiritual realm. It will be exciting!!
The Suburban-
I find myself writing this blog right at the same time we get a call from the garage where our Suburban is once again having work done to it. And the repairmen says to Dutch when he answers the phone- "I'm afraid you don't want to hear what I have to say".
Our Suburban has served us well in that it has made many trips back and forth to Lancaster and beyond, but this vehicle has not been without its many problems. Every garage visit, or so it seems, is not a small deal- it has had rust issues, therefore causing many parts needing to be replaced. When we purchased this vehicle we would have told you that God provided it at just the right time since we needed something on rather short notice (back in 2011 when we moved to the Haft the first time). We were not planning to trade in our minivan (that never caused us any problems) until plans changed and we realized we couldn't use a truck from Twin-Mar Const. to haul our trailer back and forth. We had to have a vehicle that could pull a trailer and we knew a car dealer that had this Suburban on his lot, so it seemed like the perfect fit. We purchased it a week before we moved North. If any of you recall- the very first weekend we were planning to head back to Lancaster, this same Suburban had a major leak in the gas line. We didn't know it then, but that was one of many issues we would have with it.
I say all of this to say- pray for us that we have the wisdom to know what to do? Do we continue to fix it? Do we trade it in? I still believe God provided this Suburban, but I certainly question why it has had so many issues.
And one more thing- we had planned to take a family day tomorrow, go off-site to Cabela's, and celebrate Madison's 10th birthday. Now that the vehicle is not fixed, we may have to change all those plans, which would be disappointing for all of us... so if you think about it, say a prayer for the Suburban situation.
The Rest of Us-
As for life in general, and how we are doing overall? We are blessed, and most days we're excited about what God is doing in our lives and the people around us. Of course, we feel completely overwhelmed some days and even get burned out. We appreciate all the prayer support we can get!!!! We love hearing from our friends whether it's through FB, email or phone calls.
PS- And we're looking for someone to come serve here at The Haft with us. Is God calling you????
Be blessed!!
The Ministry-
God has been using this place of rest to touch so many people. There is a steady flow of guests coming and going. And we, as an on-site team, interact with nearly all of our guests at some point. It might be anything from sitting with them for several hrs. through a "counseling" session, to having a meal together, sitting around the campfire together, or spending some time in prayer. It varies so much- the people, the needs, the time spent... but one thing that doesn't change, it is evident that the Holy Spirit is at work here. (I know there are people on-site (and abroad) who are praying on a regular basis, and that directly affects the Kingdom work being done here). Many people testify to feeling a peace while they're here. We praise the Lord for what He is doing!!
Highlights-
The experience that one of our most recent guests had while spending time alone at The Garden Cottage, brought a renewed sense of joy and awe at what God can do in a person's life when they are ready to surrender to Him. "David" (name changed to protect identity) came here in desperate need of something, and in his heart he knew what that something was. He knew He wanted to find God in a real, tangible way. He had been raised in church, but said he had never really connected with God in a real way. When he arrived here, Dutch and Dan were actually praying with three brothers and their dad that had come for the day to work through some tough "guy" issues. Dutch invited "David" to join them down at the barn. One of the brothers experienced a major breakthrough and he had a desire to be baptized. Hey why not?? Here's someone who has a revelation, all the stuff he's known in his head finally reached his heart and he wants to outwardly show what just took place inwardly. So we headed to the pond. All the while "David" was taking all of this in....
"David" told us later that what he saw that afternoon and evening with the brothers and their dad, and the baptism and all- seemed real to him. And that was what he was looking for- real Christians. He also told us that when he sorted through what was going on in his life, he had a desire to be baptized as well. To make a long story short- "David" connected with God during his week here, and to see the change that took place was awesome!! He was excited to go home and live out what God had started in his life, knowing, of course, that this was only the beginning of the journey. Challenges would lay ahead of him, but change had come and he left here different than he was when he came.
To add to the story, "David" returned last weekend, bringing with him his wife because he wanted to show her the place where God had started changing his heart. He also wanted to be baptized. After church on Sunday, we, along with quite a few of the folks from LHF Fellowship, headed to the Loyalsock creek to allow "David" to publicly confess that he believed in Jesus as his Savior and was ready to die to the old, and walk in the new!!! It was so refreshing to see his excitement about what he had found, his hunger for truth, and his desire to follow the voice of the Holy Spirit in every decision he makes!!!
Shay & Matt-
ShaLyn had mentioned earlier in the summer that she had a desire to be baptized. We talked about it some, but didn't make any official plans. We knew she was ready, but were waiting for the right opportunity. When, LHF Fellowship, the church we attend up here, held an outdoor service here this summer, several people were baptized in the pond that day. If Shay had known ahead of time that that was planned for that day, she said she probably would have done it then. So when the decision was made to baptize the one brother (from the story above), we asked her if she wanted to take this opportunity and be baptized as well!! It only took her a minute to decide- YES!
We also gave Madison the option of being baptized since he had made a commitment to Jesus a while back and we knew that baptism was something he desired as well. He also decided to get baptized. So on the evening of Sept. 9th both Shay & Matt took the "cold water":) challenge for Jesus. They were baptized in the name of the Father, His son Jesus, & the Holy Spirit- they made a public statement that they had died to self and the world and were ready to follow Jesus!
Gracie-
The last time I posted about Gracie, we were scheduled to have a surgery to put tubes in her ears. Well, that appointment happened to be scheduled on a very busy week here at The Haft, and I could not see pull everything off. I cancelled the surgery!! So as of now, Gracie does not have tubes in her ears and the surgery has not yet been rescheduled.
As for her overall progress- she is really doing well. She has been healthy! She is learning to get around!! She doesn't venture all over the house like a typical child her age that can see far and wide, but considering her seeing handicap she is doing QUITE well. She pulls herself up on furniture, she interacts with her siblings, she half crawls, half scoots with her head and makes her way from one area of the room to another. She is very social with us her family, but when others talk to her she often puts her thumb in her mouth and lays her head on the shoulder of the person carrying her. We've discovered recently that she loves to be outside. She also loves when we sing (more on that below).
"Holy Moments" w/ Gracie-
Gracie absolutely loves when I sing to her. I have started recently to intentionally sit on the rocking chair at some point in my crazy day and just rock her and sing. I really love to sing to begin with, so now I finally found someone that really appreciates it.:) I often sing old hymns that I grew up singing in church- Amazing Grace, Just As I Am, My Hope is Built on Nothing Less, and many more. Gracie simply positions herself, head tilted, and looks directly in my face and watches me for as long as I'm willing to sing. And you know what? Time stands still!! And Gracie and I worship together. I refer to these times as "Holy Moments". I have no doubt that this child will sing and worship in a powerful way one day. I also told the kids recently that if Gracie can't see well in the physical realm, she will certainly see into the spiritual realm. It will be exciting!!
The Suburban-
I find myself writing this blog right at the same time we get a call from the garage where our Suburban is once again having work done to it. And the repairmen says to Dutch when he answers the phone- "I'm afraid you don't want to hear what I have to say".
Our Suburban has served us well in that it has made many trips back and forth to Lancaster and beyond, but this vehicle has not been without its many problems. Every garage visit, or so it seems, is not a small deal- it has had rust issues, therefore causing many parts needing to be replaced. When we purchased this vehicle we would have told you that God provided it at just the right time since we needed something on rather short notice (back in 2011 when we moved to the Haft the first time). We were not planning to trade in our minivan (that never caused us any problems) until plans changed and we realized we couldn't use a truck from Twin-Mar Const. to haul our trailer back and forth. We had to have a vehicle that could pull a trailer and we knew a car dealer that had this Suburban on his lot, so it seemed like the perfect fit. We purchased it a week before we moved North. If any of you recall- the very first weekend we were planning to head back to Lancaster, this same Suburban had a major leak in the gas line. We didn't know it then, but that was one of many issues we would have with it.
I say all of this to say- pray for us that we have the wisdom to know what to do? Do we continue to fix it? Do we trade it in? I still believe God provided this Suburban, but I certainly question why it has had so many issues.
And one more thing- we had planned to take a family day tomorrow, go off-site to Cabela's, and celebrate Madison's 10th birthday. Now that the vehicle is not fixed, we may have to change all those plans, which would be disappointing for all of us... so if you think about it, say a prayer for the Suburban situation.
The Rest of Us-
As for life in general, and how we are doing overall? We are blessed, and most days we're excited about what God is doing in our lives and the people around us. Of course, we feel completely overwhelmed some days and even get burned out. We appreciate all the prayer support we can get!!!! We love hearing from our friends whether it's through FB, email or phone calls.
PS- And we're looking for someone to come serve here at The Haft with us. Is God calling you????
Be blessed!!
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
The latest on Gracie's eyes....
If you put your fingers on your eyes and held them closed part way, you would get an idea of how much Gracie sees. At our most recent visit with the ophthalmologist, the Dr. explained that at 8 wks along in the womb, the part of the eye that forms at that stage of gestation, simply didn't develop like it was supposed. So when he looks into Gracie's eyes, what would typically be a healthy eye, is in Gracie's case- undeveloped tissue. They call this coloboma. In her case, the coloboma is extensive, meaning that over half of her eyes are of no use to her. She would be considered "legally blind", but let me clarify that a person can be "legally blind" and still see something. So let me try to say this in a way that makes sense- Gracie can see, but the vision she has is not even half of what you and I have. And I don't know how clear or blurry it is. No surgery will correct it. Glasses may be a help down the road, but that is yet to be determined. Only a miracle from God will correct Gracie's eye sight.
It breaks my heart when I think about how little she sees. I do, however; choose to pick out the positive things like- she could be completely blind, but she's not!! or the fact that this is all she knows from birth so her brain and other senses will make up for her poor eyesight. I believe she will use her mind to do amazing things!!
As for our medical expenses with Gracie- someone asked recently what kind of coverage we have for all of Gracie's Dr. visits etc. Several months ago we were told by "Early Intervention" that we would most likely qualify for the PA Medical Assistance Program. We weren't sure at first if we should apply or not, but after asking several people and talking to parents of special needs children that are part of the program, we decided to apply. And because of Gracie's diagnosis she qualified. The next step was to insure that the Dr.'s we've been seeing were on the list of caregivers on the program. Thankfully they were, so all of Gracie's medical bills have been paid by the state or by the sharing program (Samaritan Ministries) that we are apart of. We are so grateful for this!! So for us personally, the only expense that we've had (and trust me it does add up) is the cost of travelling back and forth to Lanc or Delaware (DuPont Hospital) for her appts and check-ups. We try to make our trips count, and work around other plans or events that we may already scheduled to go to Lanc. for. Unfortunately, it doesn't ALWAYS work out that way.
We appreciate all the prayers on our behalf. And for all who truly care. It is our desire that Gracie's story, and her life be a testimony of God's goodness and faithfulness. Continue to believe with us for miracles for Gracie's life!!!!
It breaks my heart when I think about how little she sees. I do, however; choose to pick out the positive things like- she could be completely blind, but she's not!! or the fact that this is all she knows from birth so her brain and other senses will make up for her poor eyesight. I believe she will use her mind to do amazing things!!
As for our medical expenses with Gracie- someone asked recently what kind of coverage we have for all of Gracie's Dr. visits etc. Several months ago we were told by "Early Intervention" that we would most likely qualify for the PA Medical Assistance Program. We weren't sure at first if we should apply or not, but after asking several people and talking to parents of special needs children that are part of the program, we decided to apply. And because of Gracie's diagnosis she qualified. The next step was to insure that the Dr.'s we've been seeing were on the list of caregivers on the program. Thankfully they were, so all of Gracie's medical bills have been paid by the state or by the sharing program (Samaritan Ministries) that we are apart of. We are so grateful for this!! So for us personally, the only expense that we've had (and trust me it does add up) is the cost of travelling back and forth to Lanc or Delaware (DuPont Hospital) for her appts and check-ups. We try to make our trips count, and work around other plans or events that we may already scheduled to go to Lanc. for. Unfortunately, it doesn't ALWAYS work out that way.
We appreciate all the prayers on our behalf. And for all who truly care. It is our desire that Gracie's story, and her life be a testimony of God's goodness and faithfulness. Continue to believe with us for miracles for Gracie's life!!!!
Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Gracie: A Wildflower Child
Someone once referred to their special needs child as a "wildflower child". And I can't think of a better term to use to describe our Gracie. When I think of a wildflower I think of a flower that grows differently then a typical annual that you would plant in your flower bed. Wildflowers are so pretty, yet they grow in different places, and under different conditions.
Gracie is now 7 months old. And yes, she is growing and learning things at her own speed. In a lot of ways she's like a typical child, and yet, there are ways, because of her vision issues, that she is developing slower (and sometimes faster) then other children her age. I did not realize how much the human mind learns by seeing until I was given a child who only sees "in part". For instance, what would drive you to sit up, and put your head in space, if there was nothing to focus on or look at? It's kinda scary putting your head up not knowing completely what is around you. Wouldn't you choose to roll or scoot around on the floor too, where you can "feel" what's around you? This explains why Gracie learned at a very early age to "feel" her world by putting her butt in the air, and her head on the carpet. It "feels" safe. So one of the areas we are working on with Gracie is sitting- teaching her to feel comfortable with her head up, even though she can't see completely or feel what's around her.
Observing Gracie, the things she does and doesn't do, and why she does or doesn't do them has been so fascinating to me. Not that I have time to sit around all day and watch her :) but when I do spend quality time interacting with her I'm amazed at her world!! She, for the most part, is a happy baby. In ALOT of ways she is MUCH more content playing with toys, being in her saucer, and just plain down entertaining herself then what our Gabby ever was!!! (thank you Esther Riehl for the saucer, it has been good for strengthening her back and teaching her to hold her head). She explores the floor by rolling, scooting and almost crawling... she plays in her saucer and "feels" the different toys, she watches her own hand and she LISTENS. She knows when I walk in her bedroom to get her out of her pak n' play after a nap- not because she sees me too well, but because she hears and senses that I'm there. If you watch her eyes you will see her "scanning" a lot, when she does this, she is tracking with the vision she has and processing with her mind. I can almost "see" her little mind working sometimes.
As for Gracie's over all mental development... I can't tell you exactly where she is at compared to a "typical" 7 month old. She seems, from my view point, to be doing things on time. She seems to understand and interact with us. From what I've read of children with CHARGE syndrome, their mental ability varies from child to child, and a lot of the ones that are delayed mentally become that way because of their overall health conditions and from spending months in the hospital due to physical complications. Gracie is very fortunate to have had no hospital stays or surgeries.
What is next on the "to do" list for Gracie with her ears and eyes?? She has a follow-up appt. with the ophthalmologist (eye specialist) on Aug. 1st. I don't know what this appt. entails or what we'll find out. The first time the ophth looked in her eyes, he didn't give a lot of hope of future development. He made it sound like the hand she's been dealt is not a good one when it comes to sight and that this all happened in the womb already so it wouldn't change as she grows. BUT people have been praying for her and her eyesight, SO that means things could change. It will be interesting to see what they say at this follow-up visit!! And as for her ears- the fluid is still in her middle ear, and it is affecting the quality of hearing. This causes her to not pass her hearing test. This means Dr. O'Reilly will be putting ear tubes in, which will help the fluid to drain. They will put her to sleep to do the minor surgery. While she's asleep anyway, they will do the ABR test again to get a good read on her overall hearing. Now, I can tell you that she hears! She jumps at noise, she sleeps lightly and hears me if I walk into her room while she's napping- but how CLEARLY she hears, we do not know. Does it sounds muffled like we're talking to her under water? If so, this could affect her speech development. So again it's one of those things that we "typicals" take for granted, but for the "wildflowers" they need some assistance in some of these areas. Of course, my prayer would be that the fluid would disappear and none of these tubes, tests, etc. would be necessary, but on the other hand I do not want to be negligent. There is always the fine line of what does God want us to do in this situation?? I'll never forget what another mother of a special needs child once said about believing for healing versus accepting this to be God's will, she said- "I don't know if this is something that God wants me to cry out and ask Him to heal/change my child or is He asking me to accept this?" In other words, does He want to increase my faith and want me to see a miracle and completely heal my child or is He asking me to love this child just the way he/she is? I've come to the conclusion it's both- God wants us to ask for the miracle, believe for it, but ultimately He wants to change me by givng me the opportunity to love a wildflower child!!!!
PS- We appreciate your continued prayers for Gracie's healing, for us as we make decisions, for the Dr's that are working with Gracie, and for safety as we travel to and from her appointments.
PSS- And to the mama who referred to her special needs child as a "wildflower child"- we don't know each other and you might never read this blog, but if you do: "I hope you don't mind me borrowing the term. I don't know if you coined it yourself or heard it somewhere else, but it is a brilliant way to describe a special needs child!! And by the way- I know that your 'wildflower child' was picked for a Heavenly bouquet... I'm sure she's blooming beautifully there among all the others who have gone on before!!"
Gracie is now 7 months old. And yes, she is growing and learning things at her own speed. In a lot of ways she's like a typical child, and yet, there are ways, because of her vision issues, that she is developing slower (and sometimes faster) then other children her age. I did not realize how much the human mind learns by seeing until I was given a child who only sees "in part". For instance, what would drive you to sit up, and put your head in space, if there was nothing to focus on or look at? It's kinda scary putting your head up not knowing completely what is around you. Wouldn't you choose to roll or scoot around on the floor too, where you can "feel" what's around you? This explains why Gracie learned at a very early age to "feel" her world by putting her butt in the air, and her head on the carpet. It "feels" safe. So one of the areas we are working on with Gracie is sitting- teaching her to feel comfortable with her head up, even though she can't see completely or feel what's around her.
Observing Gracie, the things she does and doesn't do, and why she does or doesn't do them has been so fascinating to me. Not that I have time to sit around all day and watch her :) but when I do spend quality time interacting with her I'm amazed at her world!! She, for the most part, is a happy baby. In ALOT of ways she is MUCH more content playing with toys, being in her saucer, and just plain down entertaining herself then what our Gabby ever was!!! (thank you Esther Riehl for the saucer, it has been good for strengthening her back and teaching her to hold her head). She explores the floor by rolling, scooting and almost crawling... she plays in her saucer and "feels" the different toys, she watches her own hand and she LISTENS. She knows when I walk in her bedroom to get her out of her pak n' play after a nap- not because she sees me too well, but because she hears and senses that I'm there. If you watch her eyes you will see her "scanning" a lot, when she does this, she is tracking with the vision she has and processing with her mind. I can almost "see" her little mind working sometimes.
As for Gracie's over all mental development... I can't tell you exactly where she is at compared to a "typical" 7 month old. She seems, from my view point, to be doing things on time. She seems to understand and interact with us. From what I've read of children with CHARGE syndrome, their mental ability varies from child to child, and a lot of the ones that are delayed mentally become that way because of their overall health conditions and from spending months in the hospital due to physical complications. Gracie is very fortunate to have had no hospital stays or surgeries.
What is next on the "to do" list for Gracie with her ears and eyes?? She has a follow-up appt. with the ophthalmologist (eye specialist) on Aug. 1st. I don't know what this appt. entails or what we'll find out. The first time the ophth looked in her eyes, he didn't give a lot of hope of future development. He made it sound like the hand she's been dealt is not a good one when it comes to sight and that this all happened in the womb already so it wouldn't change as she grows. BUT people have been praying for her and her eyesight, SO that means things could change. It will be interesting to see what they say at this follow-up visit!! And as for her ears- the fluid is still in her middle ear, and it is affecting the quality of hearing. This causes her to not pass her hearing test. This means Dr. O'Reilly will be putting ear tubes in, which will help the fluid to drain. They will put her to sleep to do the minor surgery. While she's asleep anyway, they will do the ABR test again to get a good read on her overall hearing. Now, I can tell you that she hears! She jumps at noise, she sleeps lightly and hears me if I walk into her room while she's napping- but how CLEARLY she hears, we do not know. Does it sounds muffled like we're talking to her under water? If so, this could affect her speech development. So again it's one of those things that we "typicals" take for granted, but for the "wildflowers" they need some assistance in some of these areas. Of course, my prayer would be that the fluid would disappear and none of these tubes, tests, etc. would be necessary, but on the other hand I do not want to be negligent. There is always the fine line of what does God want us to do in this situation?? I'll never forget what another mother of a special needs child once said about believing for healing versus accepting this to be God's will, she said- "I don't know if this is something that God wants me to cry out and ask Him to heal/change my child or is He asking me to accept this?" In other words, does He want to increase my faith and want me to see a miracle and completely heal my child or is He asking me to love this child just the way he/she is? I've come to the conclusion it's both- God wants us to ask for the miracle, believe for it, but ultimately He wants to change me by givng me the opportunity to love a wildflower child!!!!
PS- We appreciate your continued prayers for Gracie's healing, for us as we make decisions, for the Dr's that are working with Gracie, and for safety as we travel to and from her appointments.
PSS- And to the mama who referred to her special needs child as a "wildflower child"- we don't know each other and you might never read this blog, but if you do: "I hope you don't mind me borrowing the term. I don't know if you coined it yourself or heard it somewhere else, but it is a brilliant way to describe a special needs child!! And by the way- I know that your 'wildflower child' was picked for a Heavenly bouquet... I'm sure she's blooming beautifully there among all the others who have gone on before!!"
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