Another Hurdle Crossed

We are back in the land of the living! Wow - that flu virus is a humdinger! Luckily (I guess :)) I got the worst of it! Abby took a few days to shake it. Ellie Kate is still fighting off all of the congestion but we are getting more and more smiles, so I think she is starting to feel a little better! She still has a terrible time sleeping. She just smothers under all that gunk - hopefully it will start clearing out soon!

This may sound just silly to some, but last week was a HUGE hurdle for me! I have shared my "fear" complex as of late. Well I have always had a fear of my children being sick. I really don't know why - we all hate to see our children sick, but I am a real germaphobe! I am still haunted by the first bad stomach virus that Abby shared with the ENTIRE family (extended included)! We all came out alive and kicking, but I just dread sickness so bad. Well, enter child #2, born in the winter with a preschool age sibling and two parents working in germ filled elementary schools and you can imagine my paranoia! Our pediatrician has laughed and told me I was going to make Abby think she was a bioterrorist if I kept making her change clothes the instant she walked in the door! Well who brought home the germs - ME! But you know what, the Lord really helped my fear factor last week. Instead of constantly obsessing over if the girls were going to get it, I just prayed he would protect them. As the days wore on and I realized they were going to get it, I prayed he would give us all strength. As I thought about my life saving parents and mother-in-law who pitched in to help, I prayed for their strength instead of fearing for the worst. God is good! Simple prayers - simple answers. We survived. Life is back to whatever normal is these days!

Look at my divas - Oh me! Abby LOVES picking out her own clothes (when I let her), and now she is dressing Ellie Kate too! Gotta love the crown - she certainly did!

I can't tell you how much all of my "blogger" friends mean to me! I really only started this as an outlet, and because I was so inspired by Amy George's blog. She and I have met in person a few times now, and have shared a few conversations, but without her ministry through her blog, I would not know her story, her journey, her trust and faith in God and how He can lead you through the toughest trials of life. Now I have had the pleasure to communicate with others who I haven't had the pleasure to meet, but we share in each other's triumphs and trials through our blogs. Isn't God amazing?? I'm sure most of us only live within 30 minutes of each other (maybe even 5), but we would have never had the pleasure of gaining strength from each other were it not for blogs. I have always wanted to bear spiritual "fruit" along my journey. I certainly don't want to be barren and dry. Sometimes, though, I need the fruit that someone else is bearing. Several times lately, it has come through this outlet! I can't tell you how much it means to me and encourages me to see your stories, and then humbled to see your comments that you are praying for me in my journey. Amy - you'll never know how much it meant that you prayed for me that night. God is so good to watch out for us when we don't have the strength to do so ourselves! I hope I can return the favor someday.

I hope to post this week about our family team for the March for Babies. We started our team last year in memory of Olivia. I will post more as soon as I get all of our information straightened out. If you are not already affiliated with a team, I would love for you to join us!

More soon!