A Bloggy Shout: Annie

Howdy!

Time for another Bloggy Shout! Annie's Blog! This blog is perhaps closest to my heart because there would be no blog without the tragedy that occured on Jan. 21, 2006.

My friend Jean is a wonderful mother of s.e.v.e.n. children. And I can attest to the fact that her hair and makeup are fresh and fixed every time I see her. We won't speak of my personal appearance. Jean, and her husband Bill, a former pastor of ours, are members of our church, and up until 5.5 years ago, had 6 children. They also had witnessed a full-on miracle in their lives. You can read more about it here, but suffice to say, that Bill lived through a disease process which should have killed him, and almost did.

Fast forward a few year to a new baby. A new start. A fresh testimony of the Lord's abundant love.

Then, fast forward to an unknown (at the time) disease which caused massive seizures and respiratory arrest in a three year, nine month old princess. Princess Annie.

Bill and Jean, and their amazing family had to wait.and.see. for 52 days at Children's Hospital to see if Annie would live, and if she lived, how she would function--if at all. First phone calls and prayer requests were grave. Time at home, therapies at home, hospital visits, and new medical jargon overwhelmed and overtaxed these parents and siblings. But God was there. Experimental drugs and/or diets have been tried. And discarded. And God was there. Seizures have been many, many an hour, and none at all. And God was there.

At this point, Annie is still receiving therapies, and has a nurse at her school because she is medically fragile. She's relearning to eat and walk and talk. All things princesses should be able to do. Praise God, she's been seizure free for about 2 months. But...what happens when something like this strikes a family? And God is there? I'll tell you.

Pain.

Angst.

Sadness.

Weariness beyond measure.

and...

the most faith I've ever seen displayed in my life. Praise for Him whether good days or bad. Realizing that there may be new definitions of good days. And bad. Realizing that as they mourn the loss of the "old" Annie, God has given them a "new" Annie. The Annie that He always knew about. The one that He loves just as much as the old one.

Lest you think that Jean is some high and mighty "christian" writer, let me tell you that the other reason her blog touches my heart is that she's so authentic, so transparent, and so real. I'm blessed to call her, "friend."

Go now, and be blessed.

A Bloggy Shout: A Chelsea Morning

I thought that it would be nice to remember and share why I enjoy the blogs which are displayed in my sidebar. These aren't the only blogs I love, but are the most consistent ones I read. Sometimes it's fun to meet new folks, so every-so-often (see how I'm giving myself the wiggle room of not committing to a specific time-frame??? Smart, huh!), I'll be giving a Bloggy Shout to those folks in my sidebar.

Many of you know Barb, at A Chelsea Morning. I call her Barbtha in emails and in most of my comments because she's a "Martha Stewart for real folks with real budgets". I luurrrve her tutorials for her delish meals and amazing craft projects. Plus, I adore how much she gets a kick out of being a grandma. Excuse me, a nana. :) Honestly, she's one of the most refreshing women I've had the chance to "meet." Also, she's old enough to be my big sister. I don't say this to make anything of our ages except this: I think women need girlfriends of all ages. We need the toe to toe contact, if you will, of same aged peers, but oh.my.gosh.what.a.comfort.it.is. to hear from someone else that "this too shall pass."

Other quick thoughts about Barb? Her blog is named after her sweet dog, Chelsea. Chelsea can be found working really hard to take care of Avery and Cameron, Barb's little grandchildren. Also, she loves to read, and lives in western CO. And lastly, she's part of a blogging dynasty family, and they're all terrific, too.

If you're not already visiting her site, I encourage you to go and be blessed.