Going to Brazil

 Last October I had the opportunity to go to São Paulo, Brazil. We partnered with a church in the flavellas (slums) and we just went down to love on the people there. We worked on some physical things around the church one day, went to an orphanage, played with babies, handed out necessities, and participated in a children's festival. It was a trip that changed me in many ways. When I boarded the plane to come home to my family, it was hard. I was leaving a part of me in Brazil. I knew I wanted to return ....

Fast forward to this past may when a team from our church went back ... I wasn't able to be a part of that team - May is a crazy month for our family. I got texts of pictures of kids who asked about me and updates on kids I asked about. I even got a text of a kid from our pastor who said that he could play Jeremy if there was ever a Brazilian movie made about his life :) I just longed to be on that team. However, that trip I was not meant to go on.

I began pestering :) my pastor about the October dates as soon as he returned from the May trip. I knew that there was this longing in me to go. Finally, last month he said it would be October, but no definite dates just around the Children's day like last year. So, I sent out my prayer letter and gave a middle of the month time frame to last years supporters.

As the last month has gone by more and more I have wondered if God really wanted me on this trip in October. We have had medical bills out the nose lately and it seems that one is paid and another comes in. As soon as we have done one test they want to do two more. Do not get me wrong, I want to find out what it wrong with my baby and will do whatever necessary no mater the cost, it just began to make me wonder if this was my time to go to Brazil or not.

I began to pray that God would just show me what he wanted from me. Did he want me in Brazil in October? Were these His desires in me or were they my selfish ones?

Over and over again God has confirmed that Brazil in October is where he wants me. Over and over as I would doubt God would confirm that this was where He wanted me. Yet, I still doubted. Then yesterday, a friend texted to say she had bought some bath and body work lotions and soaps for me to take with me. And then today I got an email from a friend telling me that he will support my trip again. Two back to back confirmations that God used to tell me that this is HIS desire in my heart and that he will pave the way. I am not to worry about the finances, they are in his court. He will take care of my family here at home and he will take care of me. I will not doubt anymore - forgive me Lord for my lack of faith!

I love how He is involved in the intimate details. I love how He confirms a prayer that I've prayed and not shared with anyone else. I love that He chooses to use me and that He speaks in a still small voice. I look forward to going back and seeing the smiling faces of the boys below. One is Gustavo and he holds a piece of many on my teams heart, not just mine! Just something special about that kid and I pray that God will use him to do great things in his flavella!

If you would like to know more about São Paulo, Brazil, if you would like to join my team through prayer or financial giving ... just shoot me an e-mail and I can answer any questions you may have. I'd love to have you join my team!

Looking forward to both the journey to Brazil - (what God does in me before we even leave) and what God does while our team is there!

Making a Come Back

It has been so long since I really blogged that I don't know if anyone really reads this anymore or not. My life has been so crazy lately. I am going to try to get back on the blogging bandwagon ... I miss it. I miss putting some of the kids crazy stories out there for one day me to remember.

For today's update I will start by sharing a prayer request. It's not new to our family. Pace has been struggling for 2 1/2 years with abdominal pain and distension. We have been to 2 pediatric GI Doctors and we are now on our third. The new GI is running some new tests - X-rays of SITZ markers and the last one of those is tomorrow. Then on Tuesday he has to start a carb restricted diet.

Can I just say that he has had the BEST attitude about all of this? Yesterday, I took him to Chick-Fil-A for one last chicken biscuit as he won't be able to have bread or breaded things on his new eating plan - I hate calling it a diet. Anyway, as we were sitting there, I told him how proud I was of him and how he is handling all he is going through. He doesn't complain, though he is in constant pain. He lets us know he is hurting some of the time, when it's really bad. But there are times where I can look at his face and tell he is hurting and he just quietly deals with it. He hasn't complained once about this new eating plan and can I just tell you he is VERY LIMITED on what he can have. His brother has complained but not once has Pace. He told me yesterday that God gives him the faith. WOW! So proud of him!

He taught me something in that moment. Because if I can be honest I'm not excited about this new eating plan. I know it's healthy but if I can just be honest ... It's expensive. We have had a lot of expenses lately and it's all overwhelming to Jeremy and I. But here is my little one who is facing the pain and will be facing losing all of the fun desserts he enjoys sometimes, losing eating what all the other kids eat and having to be the different kid eating different things and he says "God Gives Me The Faith!" ... Faith of a child. In that moment I realized that my own faith for my child was weak. The things we learn from our children.

So if you think about it, please keep us in your prayers. Pray that the DR's will be able to find out what is going on and help him feel better. It is affecting so much of his life and keeping him from school and play.

Thanks ya'll .... Here's to blogging more ... I hope :)

A little sprouts update

Hey there long lost friend! Hope you all are doing great! Life has been busy since lately. I'm trying to do a better job of being present in my kids lives which means less computer time. Let's face it .... in 10 years it's not going to matter to them how many blogs I wrote about them, what will matter is how much time I invested in them. And as naps have just about gone away in our house - my computer time has lessened. I realized the other day that I have been bad about documenting things lately. I was looking over old posts and remembering the crazy things they said and did and think .... I've not blogged lately about anything that they have done. So here is a little catch up while they are each having a few quite minutes and Keegan naps :)

Ryan just finished 1st grade. He will be 8 in December! WOW! Right now he loves to read, I mean LOVES to read. He devours about a book every 2 days if not sooner. He loves football - GO DAWGS! I've trained him well :) He also loves legos and comes up with some very neat creations. For the last 2 to 3 months of school he got into writing stories. He has written about 20 so far that he keeps in a binder. There are a couple that melt my heart - One that he wrote about Keegan and her birth. That binder will definitely be saved!

Pace just finished kindergarten and turned 6 in May. He is amazing us at his wit and humor. He is definitely following suit with a second born/middle child characteristics. He loves to do most of the things his brother does but he still loves playing with Kennedy. There are days when I find him cooking with one hand and building legos or throwing a football with the other :)  He also enjoys writing stories and following in his big brothers steps.

Kennedy - Oh Kennedy - She is our spunky, drama llama :) Just kidding - well sorta :) She definitely keeps us on our toes. She is as sweet as pie but she sure knows how to pull all of our strings. She is probably closest to Pace and they have a fun relationship. Kennedy will be going to pre-k this year and she is so excited to get to go to school. She has been looking forward to this for a while .... it's all we hear about. She will be 4 in August and blows my mind at how advanced she is for her age. Girls just do things faster than boys!

Keegan - just turned 6 months old. She'll get her own post for that .... so I'll save what I'd write here for that!

That's a little catch up for the kids. Jeremy and I are just plugging along trying to be the best parents we can be and lead these 4 little ones to be the ones God created them to be. Life is never boring around here!

If you think about it pray for me ... I will be going to Brazil this fall with our church on a mission trip. I'm so excited about it! We will be working with a church that our church is partnering with for the long term ... this will be our first short term trip. We are going to be going into orphanages, which pulled at my heart strings when I first heard about the trip. God has not let go of my heart - having 4 kids and being adopted myself ... I cannot wait to go love on the least of these that many people forget about! If you want to hear more about my trip or support me financially - let me know!


 

4 Months Old & an update

Keegan turned 4 months this past weekend. It is hard to believe that 4 months have passed since we went to deliver her. So much has happened since she joined our family. The blog has been unusually quiet. I've been busy being a mom to 4 kids. I think we are finally settling into a routine where I can hopefully pick back up journaling about our lives .... for the 2 of you that read this still :)

At 4 months Keegan really lives up to her middle name of Joy. She is such a little joy. She is always smiling - well most of the day - she does have her witching hour like all babies do. It is so fun to watch the older three interact with her and love on her. She is laughing and just taking in the world around her. However, what is funny today and draws out cackles will not tomorrow. Makes for funny times as the kids try to get her to laugh at them. I've got to pull out the video camera more often!

Yesterday, we took her for her 4 month check up. For the most part she is healthy. A week and a half ago she had two episodes that scared me to pieces. I rushed off to the Pediatrician with her only to walk out and find a new one. Yesterday, was our new appointment with a new pediatrician, who did not treat me like an idiot. He asked tons of questions and really listened to Jeremy and I. We both felt validated and understood the path that he was asking us to take with her.

Next Monday she will see a neurologist and have an EEG and depending on the results of that she will have either a MRI or a cat scan. This will determine whether or not she had a seizure or this was just a reflux type situation. Our prayers are that this was just a reflux episode and not a seizure of any type. She has not had another episode so we are thankful for that. We would appreciate your prayers for her that this is nothing serious.

For fun I thought I'd throw up the stats of all 4 of them at 4 months. It helps me remember the other 3 and also is just fun for me to see the differences in our kids. Keegan definitely is our little peanut!

KEEGAN
Height: 25 inches
Weight: 12 pounds

RYAN (at 4 months)
Height: 25 1/2 inches
Weight: 13 pounds 11 ounces

PACE (at 4 months)
Height: 25 1/2 Inches
Weight: 14 pounds 13 ounces

KENNEDY (at 4 months)
Height: 24 1/2 inches
Weight: 13 pounds 5 ounces

Keegan Joy

Keegan Joy arrived last Wednesday for anyone who may not know already. Life has been a bit hectic and I haven't been able to update the blog as much as I would like lately.

She was 7 pounds 1 ounce and was 20 inches long. Far from the 9 pounder they told me I would have :)

Right now she has been admitted to a local childrens hospital for jaundice. Her levels have come down some but they are also looking into a few other things. We are waiting this morning on her Doctor to round and also a gastroenterologist to come by and check her out. They did some bloodwork last night and will do more this morning around 8:30. Her thyroid levels came back elevated - we haven't been able to talk to the dr to find out what this means yet. We will this morning when he rounds.

Thank you to those of you who have been praying. Please keep praying for her and for us when you think about it.

Back to school

Today Pace was tested for Kindergarten ... yes, I said Kindergarten. It doesn't seem like it should be here already. He is more than ready ... momma is not. For the past 5 years he has been with me, minus a few hours a few days a week that he went to pre-school. Now he will be gone all day every day and will learn from other teachers and kids. He will grow and learn. Today he is excited for school - in a few years I may drag him kicking and screaming to school :)

Ryan is going to 1st Grade - WOW. He is in the real grades. He is growing way to fast. In a few months he will be 7 - S.E.V.E.N. How is it even possible that I should have a child that is almost 7. I feel like I am still in my 20's .... and he still loves school too. He is excited. He is ready and he will do great!

I'm praying for both of my boys and for their respective teachers. I pray that they are placed with the teacher that is their best match. That they will continue to have a love of learning and that the teacher they both get will continue to foster that love of learning in both of them. I pray that they will each have their perfect match for teachers and that Pace's first year and Ryan's second year will be incredible. I also pray that my boys will shine the light of God's love to their teachers and to their friends. I pray that they will be a bright light inside their school. I pray that they will be a joy to their teachers and that God will use them to show His love to their teachers as well!

Shine on Boys, Shine on!

A New Pediatric GI Doctor

Yesterday, I took Pace for a second opinion. Pace is still in Pain and nothing we were trying was helping. In fact one of the things was actually making it worse. The next thing our GI Doctor wanted to try just didn't seem to make a whole lot of sense to me. Now, I freely admit that I'm not a trained Doctor and I haven't been to med school. However, I am a mom and something inside just told me that we should get a second opinion. I just can't stand seeing my boy in pain and not being able to do anything for him.

So, we made the call to another GI and we got in yesterday. Our other doctor was nice, this doctor was personable. He played games with Pace and made him feel at ease. He actually talked to Pace as well as me and that made him feel included in the process. He took his time with us and he laughed with Pace. Most of all he used words that I can understand and validated my feelings that the route we were about to take with the other Doctor wasn't necessarily the best route to take. I left very thankful for my gut feelings and mothers intuition.

Our next step is that Pace will have a upper GI done next Thursday morning. He will drink some contrast drink and they will take xrays of his intestines. This doctor thinks that his small intestine may be holding on to bacteria and that there may be an overgrowth of bacteria in his intestines. This can cause bloating, abdominal pain, excess gas (Pace's belly is FULL of gas that we could see on the ultrasound), and distension. ALL of the symptoms that Pace has. In the "meantime" he is treating Pace with an antibiotic that is meant to get rid of the overgrowth in his intestine.

So we are hopeful for answers and I finally feel a peace about the direction we are heading with him. I'm praying that this antibiotic will help him find some relief. Thank you for all your prayers for us and our little man! We are very thankful for your care and concern for all of us!

May 7, 2011

May 7th this year is a date that has changed our family forever, it was our original due date with the baby we lost in September and it was also my Dad's Birthday. Anyway, the day started like any other. Jeremy's parents were in town to celebrate Pace's 5th Birthday with us. They left right after breakfast. We had some errands to run so we got to it. Pace delivered some of the toiletry loot he got at his party to the school/church that he attended. They were taking up a donation for the tornado victims in Alabama.

On our way home, I asked Jeremy if he thought we should stop at the store and buy a test. I knew I was late but I was just thinking it was stress from all that we had going on with Pace and his medical stuff. The LAST thing I thought was we were pregnant. We were doing our best to prevent this from happening. So Jeremy ran in and bought a box of tests and we went home. Again, I did NOT expect it to be positive ... He didn't either.

He and the kids began washing the car. I ran in and thought I'd just get it over with. I was SHOCKED when I saw what it said ... I ran to Jeremy and gave it to him and said this HAS TO BE WRONG .... I told him I'd do it again the next morning and it would be negative :) It wasn't.

We were scared out of our minds. In the past 6 months we have had two miscarriages and the idea of facing a third was overwhelming to say the least. I think I cried for a couple hours - because I was scared, fearful, overwhelmed and wondered if this pregnancy would some how "make it".

We decided to keep it quiet for a while. We didn't want to tell people only to have to go back and tell again that we were not. We told a few close friends and asked them to pray for us, especially for me and my fears.

Well, fast forward 3 weeks and we were able to see a tiny little heartbeat on Friday. We still know that anything can happen, but we decided to share our news and trust that God was doing something and we needed to trust him. Jeremy is still freaking out - his reasons totally manly and different than mine. His fears lie with my health since Pace and Kennedy's pregnancy were so difficult on me and with our finances after the baby is here. My fears are totally just making it to the birth and having a crying/healthy baby on the other side. We are both leaning on God and trusting that he has everything under control and that He will continue to take care of us and our family.

We are beginning to get excited for this new life and starting to dream about what being a family of 6 will be like. Starting to look out for bargain deals on baby stuff as we gave away everything we had :) Dreaming is scary but I have to trust my God and no mater what the outcome, I know he holds me in the palm of his hand. So, we have decided to try our best to not live in fear and to enjoy this process just as we did before the miscarriages.

So if you think about it, you can pray that for us and pray for a healthy baby and pregnancy.

Pace GI Update

First of all, THANK YOU all so much for praying for Him and for us!!! We are very grateful and humbled by all of your concern and prayers! They mean so much more than we can put into words!!!!

Pace DOES NOT have celiacs!!!! We are so thankful for this. I about leapt out of my seat when she said this news! It was the best thing my ears heard all day long today. He also does not have a lactose intolerance. She said that he has most likely had the hernia since birth and that right now it's not anything that she thinks needs to be corrected with surgery.

Those are the answers that we do have .... She still is not sure why he is having the gas in his belly that he has or why he is having so much pain. So we are going to try some fiber chewable tablets and continue with the miralax over the next month and see if we can regulate his digestive system a bit. We are going to reduce the amount of dairy he has as well. We will go back in a month and if he is still having pain we will try an acid reducer and see if the hernia is causing reflux and that is the cause of his pain.

This is what we know ... I'm thankful for what we do know and what he does not have ... hoping that he is able to find relief with the measures that she is trying and that we do not have to continue "trying" things with him to make him feel better.

Thank you all for your prayers ... seriously means the world!!

Upper Endoscopy

The upper endoscopy is over. We do not have any results at this time. There were a couple things that she could visibly notice but nothing that was alarming.

Pace has a hiatal hernia. It's pretty obvious in the picture once you know what you are looking at. The hernia could cause reflux and that could be what was causing him pain.

He also had lumps on the lining of his stomach. Which she said could be an indicator for celiacs disease. We will not know anything conclusive until the biopsy results come in. We have a follow up appointment on the 5th where she will go over everything with us.

After she dropped off the pictures of his insides to us there was a code blue that came over the loud speakers right where Pace was. I was scared out of my mind but it was not for Pace. I walked out in the hall, with a panicked look on my face and a nurse calls out our last name a few times. She then motioned to come to her and when we got there, Pace was sleeping soundly in a bed. I just bawled and held my child. I have never felt such relief before!

Thanks to everyone for praying for my little man and for us! We could definitely feel them and even though Pace was scared this morning ... you could see the peace come over him as it got closer to time. So thank you so much!

Tomorrow is the day!

At 5:30 AM tomorrow morning we will arrive at the hospital for Pace's upper endoscopy. They will do the procedure at 7 AM. Please be in prayer for him and for the Doctor who will performing the endoscopy. She will be going in to look around and see if there is something that she can physically see that is wrong and to also biopsy the intestines and check for celiacs disease, lactose intolerance, or allergic gastritis.

He was very nervous this morning and throughout the day but seems to be more at peace tonight. He knows that people are praying for him and God is answering the prayers! Thank you all so much!

Dear Pace

Dear Pace,

Yesterday, you began the most amazing journey in your life! You said "yes, I trust God." Yesterday, you made one of the biggest commitments you will ever make. A party was held in heaven in your honor. The angels sang and rejoiced and God smiled at your decision to begin your walk with Him. Easter 2011 will always be a special day for you and for your father and I. What a special day it was. Your joy was contagious. I pray that you always remember the joy of your salvation!

Your relationship with God is like a going on a long journey with Him. Many start off well but don't realize they need to keep going in order to reach their destination. You are almost 5 but God has been working on your heart for a while. You have been asking questions and pondering the Cross for some time. Your child like faith really challenges me in my own walk with Christ.

Before I ever held you for the first time, I prayed that you would come to know Him at an early age. I prayed that you would love him and that your life would be one used to further his Kingdom and bring him Glory. Little did I know that you would give your little heart to him at the tender age of 5.

I pray that you will continue to walk with him. There will be many dips and bends in your road as you journey with Him. One thing I hope you always cling to is that HE is ALWAYS faithful to you. He will lead you if you allow him to take you by the hand and walk with you through life. At times you will face trials and you will wonder where he is. I want you to know that He will be by your side at every place you will find yourself in.

You will not be perfect in your new walk. You will fall, but you can rise knowing that there is a God who longs to forgive you, dust you off and set you back on the right path. Faith is an amazing thing, son. You are just at the beginning of a great journey.

I pray that as you grow that your knowledge and understanding of exactly what the cross means will resonate within your heart. I pray that you will remain tender to the things that grip the heart of God. I pray that you will use your life to glorify Him in ALL you say and ALL you do. I pray that you will love him even when it is not cool to do so. I pray that you will stand for him even when those around you sit down. I pray that you will be a champion for the weak and a warrior for the wounded. I pray that you will be sensitive to that still small voice inside that will guide you along life's journey. I pray that just like you sang today "break my heart for what breaks yours" - that your heart will break over the things that break His heart. I pray that you always make much of Jesus.

There's so much more I'd like to say to you and I will. I look forward to walking with you on your new journey. I love you and I'm so proud of you!

Love,
Mommy

Honestly

Waiting is not easy. Wondering what the tests are going to tell us. Wishing that I could take away the pain that plagues my son. This is what my days are like these past few days. I am oh so thankful that we are not facing a diagnosis like a mass, a tumor or cancer like we feared in the beginning of this process. Yet, if I am honest, I'm tired of my child hurting. I wish that our prayers would be answered "on the spot." Yet, each morning he wakes up and within a few minutes he tells us he is hurting and continues to tell us throughout the day. By the end of the day his belly is distended more than that morning. It is tough knowing that I can't fix it, that I can't take away his pain, that I can't make him better. I want so badly to be able to do this.

I'm praying for answers and hoping that the "mean time" is not too painful for my child that means the world to me and makes me smile no matter how hard a day may be. I know that my God is able to heal him - I'm praying that He will. If he chooses not to - I pray we can find answers and that his Dr will be able to help us get him out of pain.

So hard watching your baby hurt and not be able to help them immediately!

How's Pace doing?

Lots of people are asking how he's doing so I thought I'd post about it :) Pace has been Dairy free since Friday. I don't think it's enough time yet to get it all out of his system. We have been reading labels on everything he eats and we changed him over to Almond Milk. At first he didn't like the milk but he seems to be adjusting pretty well now - he just has it with his cereal for now - not ready to drink it just yet :) We have been giving him something to help him go to the bathroom and he seems to be going more than he was before :)

His pain: he is still in pain BUT it is not near as bad as it was before we started the no dairy path. He will complain about it off and on through the day but he is not crying himself to sleep like he was. This is a huge praise!

THANK you all for your prayers and support over the last week! Please continue to pray for him as we are still seeking answers for him. He asked me this morning if his belly was smaller yet. Please pray for him to not have any worries over the size of his belly or be self conscious of it. Up until now his belly has been his pride and joy :) Seriously, he loves it and it has never been something for him to see negatively or think of negatively. I do not want this to change that, especially if the belly does not go away completely. Pray for healing and answers.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

Friday DR Update

Today we visited the Pediatric GI. She does not think that he has Hirschsprung's disease. YAY! The results for a few more of the blood tests had come in since we were at the doctor yesterday and she was able to go over them with us. The test for Mono came back negative. The test for celiacs had one indicator negative and one indicator as borderline. She said that there was controversy among doctors around whether a borderline result meant that the person had celiacs, didn't have it or would develop it later in life. She is going to do a upper endoscopy on Pace on the 28th and do a biopsy to get better more conclusive results. There are two other possibilities other than celiacs disease .... a lactose intolerance or allergic gastritis. Our prayer is that it is NOT celiacs or allergic gastritis and that it is just lactose intolerance. We will get the results back from the biopsy on May 5th.

From now until the 5th we will be taking him off all dairy - no milk, cheese, yogurt or ice-cream, etc. until we go back. We will also be giving him something to help him have a BM :) One day he will look back at this and be so mad at me for talking about this on a public place :) Hopefully, he will forgive me :) Hopefully, this will help with the pain he is experiencing in the evening and maybe even some of the distension of the abdomen.

Thanks for the prayers and please continue to pray. We will update more as we know more.

Learning

I'm learning more about my Pace through this process. Yesterday, we had a few conversations that made me realize that even though his little personality would lead you to believe that he is not bothered by much ... this is bothering him. Pace has such a happy personality and he is always smiling or making a joke about something. He is your typical middle child. He makes light of everything, everything!

First conversation yesterday was in the doctors office as we were waiting on the doc to come in. He asked me "what happens if people think I'm weird, or my belly is weird." Oh just rip my heart right out of my chest. I asked him if anyone had told him this and he said no, he was just wondering. Which made me realize that he thinks this. We talked about how he was fearfully and wonderfully made and that God doesn't make mistakes when he makes us. We talked through a lot in that little room and my heart was breaking for my child. In the past 3 days he had been poked, mashed, and scrutinized by lots of people. We had a great conversation and I was thankful that God gave us that time so that I could see past the funny side to the side that he rarely shows us!

Second conversation was right before bed last night. He had been a little clingy yesterday afternoon and evening and so as we were sitting together talking he told me that he didn't want to go to the doctor anymore and he hated it. Pace rarely uses this word so I knew this was really bothering him. We had a good conversation but when he was down and heading to sleepy land, my heart was breaking for my child. I know that he doesn't understand what is going on, why he is hurting or why he is having to go to so many appointments. It's hard on his almost 5 year old mind to understand what is going on. He is picking up on our fears and concerns and he has his own as well.

I'm thankful that I was able to peel back a layer with Pace yesterday. To see behind the funny front that he shows to so many - and makes everyone fall in love with him instantly, he knows no strangers. Because of this most people don't just like Pace, they love him. He makes such the impression on everyone he meets.

I pray that he will continue to allow me (and Jeremy) into these places in his heart and his mind. I pray that God will also give us the discernment to know when we should help peel back those layers and when we should leave them alone.

I'm praying today that we get closer to answers so Pace will not have too many more things to go through. I'm praying that this appointment is not too painful for him and that he doesn't have to spend many more days in pain!

Thank you all for your concern and prayers for our little man! We appreciate it more than we can express!

Another Pace Update

Today I called our pediatrician to see what we could do for the pain he was in in the evenings. They told me to bring him in immediately. Thankfully, I was with some friends who gladly helped with Kennedy and I was able to get out the door quickly.

Some of his blood work is back in. His liver enzymes are normal. The test that tests for Celiacs is not back in and there are a couple others still out there as well.

One of the things that the Doctor did say today is that Pace could have Hirschsprung disease. We have been referred out to Pediatric GI doctor and that appointment is tomorrow at 10 AM. He said they would most likely have to do a punch biopsy to determine if this is it or not. From there if he has this it would take surgery to correct. BUT it is correctable and it is something that he would not have to deal with for the rest of his life.

So we are getting closer to answers. Thank you all for your prayers and please continue to lift him up.

I'll continue to update as I can and as we know more! Thanks for checking in on us!

Quick Update

Just a quick update for those of you that haven't already seen our updates via facebook. This morning we were able to get Pace in for the ultrasound. A little over an hour after we left, our doctors office called to tell me that his spleen and liver were enlarged and she wanted us to go immediately to have blood work done. We took him to the lab and he was a champ, and the tech did a great job only having to stick him once.

So now we wait .... the hardest part of the process so far. The mind can take you crazy places when it is let loose to wonder. We are doing our best to control the "could be's" and "might be's". But it is hard as you watch your little one hurt and not be able to do anything to help him.

We have such an amazing group of friends and family both near and far who are holding us up before the Father and that means more to us than we can ever put into words. We know that people are on their knees for our little man and for us as well and we are more than thankful for this!

Thank you for your prayers and thoughts! I'll keep you updated as we know more ... they did say that the blood work would take a few days for all of it to come back in. We are also trying to get all the stool samples completed but that's taking Pace some time to complete :) GRIN!

Have a great night y'all!

Do NOT worry ...

Matthew 6:25-34 (NIV)

²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

²⁸ “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

It says for me to not worry ... in fact in my Bible these words are in red which means they are the very words of Christ himself ... HE is telling me not to worry. So then why do we find that one so hard to follow through on?

Last night Pace cried for an hour before he went to bed. He was in pain and there was nothing this momma could do but hold him, pray for him and cry with him. I tried very hard not to let him see me cry but as soon as he was in bed, they came. I know that many parents are facing far worse diagnosis with their children .... however, it is still so hard to see your child in pain and not know what is causing it. Knowing that we are doing everything we can to help him but it's not fast enough to keep the pain away from him. Seeing the pain get worse every day is hard. I just want to scoop him up and take it away, wipe it out and tell him that all is well. I can't do that and it is hard for me. I'm a fixer and this one I cannot fix.

Worry creeps in and I pray. I pray that God will heal my child and give me peace. I pray that I can just leave it in His very capable hands .... that part, if I am honest, is hard for me. Leaving it and not worrying.

So today I am telling myself ... Do NOT worry!

Please pray!

Please pray for our little man Pace. He has had a rather round belly since he was around 1 year old. Over the past few weeks we have noticed it getting bigger and bigger. He has also been in more intense pain in his abdomen. Today, I took him to the DR and they are running some tests on him. He will have an ultrasound done later this week. His doctor didn't tell me much of what she was looking for - she didn't want to scare me she said ... too late already scared. Here are a few of the things she will be checking for:

1. How his body processes his food.
2. How his body processes fat.
3. Celiacs disease - we are praying that this is NOT the case!
4. H Pylori

There are a few other things but I cannot remember the names of them all. Should have had a note pad with me at the appointment. He is not in constant pain but he does hurt off and on every day - the pain seems to be more severe over the past few days as he has been crying more saying he hurts.

Anyway, our minds are mush right now with the "could bes" and "might bes" ... pray for peace for us as well. But more importantly, please pray that the DR is able to find answers. That whatever is going on in his body can be treated quickly and will not be something that he will battle for the rest of his life.

Thank you all!