Imagine delivering a beautiful baby girl. Your heart is hopeful, and life is renewed. Witnessing the miracle of life is humbling and awe inspiring. My heart was filled to the brim as I met my little girl, my Bella. She was beautiful. Curly hair, dark lashes, pink skin, and the most perfect little fingers and toes. Yet, these words, “Why do anything?” were ones my husband, Rick, and I heard … [Read more...]
Sharing in the Sorrow of Others
Yesterday, I pushed a cart around the store, grabbed coffee with friends, indulged in pizza with my husband while overlooking the blindingly sparkling Pacific, took my recyclables to their new home in big blue bins, picked my daughter up from school--that yesterday…in that span of 24 hours, two mamas lost their boys. I got home from the day, checked my Facebook feed, and came across the … [Read more...]
Why EA/TEF Awareness Month Is Grace Awareness Month
January is EA/TEF Awareness Month. If you have no idea what EA/TEF is, don't feel bad. I didn't have a clue it existed until 11:00 AM (Mountain Time) on May 23, 1982. I was impeccably dressed in a fetching hospital gown when a nurse wheeled me from my room to the nurses' station to take a phone call. Back in the olden days, cell phones hadn't been invented yet, and small hospitals … [Read more...]
When There Is More Than One Diagnosis
Lightning can and does strike the same place twice. Ask me how I know. For too many years I subscribed to the delusional belief that if I endured some sort of remarkable challenge, I would be exempt from future struggles or trials. God has made it a life-long lesson to show me the error of my ways, and to reveal the incredible difference He can make with lives that are completely dependent upon … [Read more...]
Are You There God?
Often times when things are going good we don’t talk to God as much, but when things start to crumble we look to Him and often ask “why” or “how come.” My journey through life in my 46 years so far has had some ups, downs, curves, twists, turns, and sometimes sharp drops out of nowhere. I grew up primarily in a divorced home with 2 parents that were struggling in their own right. Before age … [Read more...]
Before and After
Photo Source For almost 32 years, my life has been divided into before and after. Before our first child was born, And after he came into our lives. Before the doctor came in to say something was wrong, And after we agreed to send our son to a bigger hospital by ambulance. Before another doctor called with a diagnosis, And after our newborn was life flighted 750 miles away for … [Read more...]