First day of ....SCHOOL!!!!

Brittney...Graduating Class of 2014

(yay!)

Monday, August 20th was the first day of Brittney's Junior year of High School. She is driving now and waiting patiently for dad to get a car so she can have his. That, of course means she is hitching a ride to school with a friend until that happens! 

Ehtan...Graduating Class of 2018

(We Hope)

Ethan began his first year of middle school. 7th grade leads to changing of classes, lockers, changing out for PE and hormones. Let's pray we all survive this one! 

Ivee...Graduating Class of 2025

(We Pray) 

Ivee was extremely excited about her first day of her second year of kindergarten. It wasn't a tough decision to hold her back, because we knew this is what was best for her. I don't think she has even noticed that her classmates from last year have moved on to another wing of the school. One thing that has helped was already knowing her teacher who was across the hall from her last year, and having a familiar face in there. One of her friends from her Pre-K days moved up to K5 this year and is in her class, and she just loves her. Ivee doesn't really take with all kids, probably cause of that fact that everyone at home is so much older than her, but she has a few that she really likes. And, unfortunately, she will let you know if she doesn't like you, not in a mean way, just in a matter of fact manner or ignoring you!  

I pray that my kids have a great year of school, that we all survive it and that they learn to succeed, either through success or failure. If there's once thing I've learned, it's that sometimes you gotta fail to succeed, cause from failure you learn valuable lessons. Let's just pray that the failing doesn't lead to flunking! 

2 weeks away...doctors visits...then we played!!

The end of July and August were quite busy. The kids and I were gone from Daddy for two weeks, and lets just say, daddy got really lonely, and eventually, we all got home sick.

 We began our adventures by heading to Memphis at the end of July. Mommy and Ivee were accompanied by Brittney and her friend, Corene. Corene has always wanted to visit St. Jude, and as it is with all people who visit there, she was quite touched. It doesn't feel like a hospital, and St. Jude is not draped in the doom and gloom that many think it might be. However, you do pass sick kids, kids on chemo, kids after surgery, and this time unlike any other time, there were many, many kids there that have lost a limb to this disease. I've never seen that many kids there at one time who are not only fighting for their lives, but have already had a disfigurement because of it. Many people who see Ivee don't know her struggle with this horrible disease, but these poor babies, many teenagers, have a very noticeable and embarrassing reminder! They're struggle, faces, and hearts are not far from my mind!

 We did leave early on Sunday morning so that we could fit a visit in to the Memphis Zoo. Ivee loves it there and Corene really loved seeing those pandas...who were awake and eating, luckly. 

And Ivee enjoyed her favorite part...

the Merry-Go-Round! 

And my favorite part was in the indoor bird house....where birds were flying at Brittney's head! :) 

After Ivee's good MRI news and her loooonngg endocrine test, we arrived home late Wednesday night. I had one day to do laundry, recover and repack for a trip to North Carolina to see my dad's brothers, sister, and all my other family there. We left out VERY early Friday morning for a 14 hour trip. We actually made pretty good time! 

My dad's brother, Wesley, is an avid fisherman/boats man. He took the kids tubing for the first time on Saturday. Ethan was a go from the start, Brittney took some convincing, but loved it as well. And once we got Ivee on the boat, she LOVED the ride. She wanted to keep going faster. 

I just love Brittney's face in this one!! :) 

Ethan even got to drive it, making Brittney, who was on the tube, quite nervous. But he did a great job! 

That night we had dinner with most of my uncles, aunts, cousins and their kids. Here is my father, center, with his two brothers and my cousin Keith, who so graciously gave us a place to stay. 

Ivee took immediately to Mary Emma, my cousin Kara's little girl and the new baby, Michael! Ivee just loves them babies. 

Ivee's two greatest loves while we were there, though, were the Gator, which she asked to ride everyday, and the Barn, where we stayed. She commented many times that she really missed daddy, but that he needed to come see us, at the Barn! Even when we got home from our trip, she said, "Daddy, you need to come to the barn!" My cousin did an incredible job of converting the old place into this really nice two story living space. We truly appreciated being able to stay there! 

The Monday after we arrived in NC, we left out early again for a two day stay in Washington DC. I and the kids had never been there. It was quite warm, but I was very grateful to be able to share that with my children, and plan on going back when it is cooler with the kids and Emmett. 

We visited Ab two times the first day, during the day and at night. The next day Ivee awoke and said, "I want to go see the big boy in the chair." Love a child's mind! 

We visited the WWII memorial, Washington Monument, passed the White House, and ended the day at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum. 

Ivee loves elephants. 

That night after supper at the GREAT Mexican/Salvadorian restaurant in Arlington, we visited the Capital at night. It was so beautiful! 

Then we visited the big boy in the chair again, and the Jefferson monument. 

Tuesday, we visited Arlington National Cemetery. I was quite moved and emotional at the massivity of the grounds and the many, many lives of service men and women buried there. 

In DC we were blessed to here the playing of this sax player outside out lunch establishment. He had only been playing 2 years, but you would have thought he was born with that thing in his mouth. He was packing up to leave as Britt headed out with money to give. She got out there and told him she had cash, but he had to play her a song for it. 

Our DC trip ended with a walk through the Air and Space Museum and the Smithsonian Castle! Beautiful gardens there! 

We left DC, headed back to NC for a little more family time. Saturday, made our way back home through the Smokey mountains, and into the arms of one happy Daddy!!!! Who was smothered by one happy Ivee! 

Two days later we finished out an exhausting time with my birthday "party", cause if you have a birthday in this house, there MUST be a party. This law is know as Ivee's LAW! She and Britt even went and got me a cake...it happened to be Brittney's favorite kind of cake! 

And so ended a long 2 weeks that left us with 1 week to prepare for school! 

Headed home late...

Ivee is currently sitting in a chair in Radiation Oncology waiting for her growth  hormone test to begin. We are waiting on a medicine from the pharmacy, one they didn't have in stock. I don't know other details, but I got a simple text message from Dr. Merchant yesterday stating, "MRI is fine!" Well, that works for me! Thank you for your prayers, but remember to still lift up her body in prayer today, that she won't become sick from this four hour test, and that we will be able to drive home immediately afterwards without her feeling horrible.

Live... From Memphis

Yes, we are on Memphis. Its that time again. Ivee's MRI is early tomorrow morning. We will probably get the Results Wednesday morning. We were only scheduled with appointments through tomorrow, but Dr. Merchant wants to add growth hormone test Wednesday morning. I tried to get the endocrine clinic to add it this time, but they were full. He really would like to see something happen ASAP with ivee's growth, so he asked if we could stay some on Wed. To have his clinic administer it. It is a long four hour test of bloodwork every 15 minutes. It will probably make her very sick to her stomach as well. Please pray that Ivee does fine during it, and that she won't feel sickness. This will also be two nights in a row that I have to make her fast. Praying that the get the answers that they need from this test as well so we can do what we need to for her. 

So, clear scans, no nausea, answers! Thank you again and again for your prayers. 

On a brighter side today...

Ivee received her hearing aids this morning. She fought us to put them in, a good old tempertantrum!!! Once I finally convinced her to let us go near her ear  we got the right one in and turned it on. She got this wide eyed look and then a smile covered her face. I asked her questions, and I made sounds for her to copy and she was able to form an F and S sound better then she ever has. Once she got the left aid in, we headed to the store down the street. She started telling me she could here the car beeping (it beeps when you crank it), her walker squeaking, her cough better (that one was funny), and her feet stomping. She is amazed and momma is excited! Her reaction has been great. She kept them in for four hours, which is pretty great. She didn't even ask me to take them out. I offered though, cause I know her ears will get a little sore and she needs to adjust to them. When daddy get's home, though, they are going to go right back in so she can show or should I say "tell" him her whole new world!!!

Lucy....

Precious Lucy's cancer has returned. There isn't much time for her, but Kate and Erik are going to make the most of it. God, please don't let Lucy suffer and make she pass into your arms peacefully....

Urgent Prayer Request

Please say a prayer for my friends Kate, Erik and their sweet Lucy (link to the left under medulloblastoma-Lucy). She was in surgery and treatment in Memphis at St. Jude when we were there for Ivee's recurrence. Lucy needs some Supernatural healing right now and some perfect clarity for her doctors!!!!

Happy Birthday My Ivee!!!!

My baby is 6 years old today. We have reminisced so much this weekend on how we never knew if we would ever see Ivee have this many birthdays! I feel so incredibly blessed to celebrate another year of life with Ivee here on this earth. I am reminded everyday of this when I see the pictures of links of friends that will only see their child again in heaven. 

Well, we celebrated like a Princess and had a great time at Ivee's Birthday Festival of the Lanterns. Enjoy the pictures of our celebration this past weekend, and if you would like, leave Ivee a birthday message here. I will read all of them to her!

We begin with Ivee's Rapunzel/Tangled cake. Mom likes to experiment and try new things. This year it was sugar art. Unfortunately, as I suspected might happen, humidity won out on some of it. My grass art didn't quite make it over night to the party. Some managed to stay upright, however! 

Mom took a shot at this Pinterest Idea. I combined some ideas to come up with Jello sailboats. 

I spent a couple of months planning and this past week making most of the decorations. Here are the festival pennants, and some frying pans! :) 

Couldn't be a Tangled festival without lanterns. I spent a couple of nights drawing, cutting, taping, and gluing about 15 of these! 

We are blessed to have so many friends who love and cherish our baby girl. Wish we had room to invite them all. Many have shared Ivee's journey with us. 

Getting some lovin' from Mrs. Cathy, Angela and Catina!

Present time!! 

The candle really tried to win that night. It took MANY tries to get that thing out! 

(This one just kills me!) 

Favorite Cousin in the whole wide world. They are so precious together. She loves her Haley!  

The Princess on her royal Trike! Ms. Elana and Mr. Brian got her three license plates to change out. Ivee chose the "Jesus loves me" tag and mom put "Spoiled" on the front! Oh, is she, and she deserves every bit of the spoiling!  

The decorations and paintings once the sun went down, from our porch. 

Lanterns and turtle pond all lite up!  

I spent Tuesday baking cakes, cleaning and painting this mural for Ivee on the back door! She loved it so much she gave me sugars without asking!!!! 

Anna, Brittney's bestie, helped with painting as well. She relived the moment of Rapunzel letting her own lantern go. 

 Brittney brought us some nature and Pascal!!!! 

Thank you God for your every blessing on this family! For the things you have taught me, things that I could never have learned without this journey!!! You are a gracious and loving God and I thank you for the miracle of Ivee I see everyday!