Post Family Camp...

Since being home from Family Camp we are trying to cope with the Family Camp blues...  We celebrated the 4th of July with David's family and my Dad at an outdoor concert in the Woodlands, swimming, and a fireworks show (that we learned is better to appreciate from inside the car compared to sitting outside in a parking lot where the sound is ear drum busting :-).  A random thought... As much as I love fireworks, I can't help but wonder how it must feel for veterans, we celebrate them and their commitment to our country by exposing them to sounds and smells (gun powder) that likely remind them of being fired on in war (igniting any PTSD that they may have).  I adore those that serve and have served in our armed forces!!!  There are times when I feel like they are celebrities, in that I want to hug their neck or cheer for them when I see them at the airport, etc.  The fact that these folks would choose to put their lives on the line for our freedom (whether they enlisted or were drafted) is humbling and mind blowing to say the least.

One of my favorite things about the 4th of July symphony/concert that we went to is when they play the theme song for each branch of the military and the service members in that brach stand up so that we can celebrate them!  My dad was in the 101st Airborne and fought in Vietnam, so I have to say that I'm always one proud and grateful daughter when he gets to stand up because it is a reminder of what he (and so many others) gave and endured, all for freedoms sake.  I also know first hand that their blood, sweat, and tears don't just last the duration of their tour, but their experiences impact them (and their family) for a lifetime.  Please join me in praying for our soldiers and their families daily, it's the best and least we can do for these amazing men and women in uniform!

This is the only picture I have with my Dad in it from our the 4th of July Symphony

Abigail and Andrew had a gymnastics camp all week last week (from 7am-3pm) and some how they (and we) survived a fun filled and exhausting week!  Abigail had a sleep over at her BFF's (Julia) house in the beginning of the week and then we had Julia over at our house for a sleep over at the end of the week.  Andrew couldn't wait for Julia to sleep over at our house because he thinks that by default, Ju Ju is his best friend too (maybe Grace is claiming Ju Ju too, there is no telling :-)!

Grace had a Cardiology appointment on Friday.  The pressure in her mitral valve remains unchanged (which is a praise), however it is still in the severe category and it appears that her weight gain has slowed down, which is a sign that she is likely ready for her next surgery in the fall.  That is the time frame that we were assuming it would be in; however, now that it is a reality my brain (and heart) has kicked into high gear trying to think through the logistics of the kids starting school, our family being split up for 2-3 months while Grace is in the hospital in Boston, all the details that go into handing over your precious child for another high risk open heart surgery, who should perform that surgery (more on that in a minute), etc.

There is no question that the older Grace gets the harder it is to send her into surgery because the stakes are that much higher.  When she was a newborn or even 4 months ago, she was obviously special to us because she was ours, a precious child God entrusted to us, however with each day that passes we fall deeper in love with her, create more memories, and get to know her personality even more, making the thought of losing her at this point even more gut wrenching.  One of the surgery details that we are praying about right now is which surgeon (in Boston) should perform her next surgery.  My first choice in surgeons has always been Dr. Del Nido, who is the head of the department and the most experienced by far.  When I sent Grace's images to Boston and requested that he be the one to review them, they said that he wouldn't be able to review them for 3 weeks.  We didn't have 3 weeks to wait because her old local cardiologist (in Texas) was ready to schedule the surgery that she was recommending ( that we were't comfortable with) right then. Therefore, I went ahead and had the first available surgeon review her images and it was just a day and a half later that he (the surgeon) responded to me via e-mail with a "yes!"  That surgeon that reviewed her images did her last surgery in march and we were pleased with his work, however, this next surgery is much more high risk.  The stakes are higher for this surgery because it is requiring a lot more of her heart in terms of work and function (making recovery time much longer), she will need extensive work done on her mitral valve to address the stenosis, and in the event of a failed surgery we may have fewer options than a "typical" (non-Up's) child because they are not an ideal candidate for a transplant, etc (due to the fact that their anatomy is different).  All that to say, I plan to talk to her cardiologist in Boston to see if we can switch surgeons.  I would really like to know that the most experienced surgeon is working on Grace.  Not to mention, Dr. Del Nido is the one who operated on 7 out of 9 children like Grace (Up's and unbalanced AV canal), so he really does have the most experience in kids most like our little Gracie Doo.  It may sound like an easy process, but for those of you that work in the medical field, you know that switching surgeons doesn't usually happen due to ego's, politics, protocol, etc.  Will you please pray for favor in this area, that if it's God's will for Dr. Del Nido to operate on Grace that He would remove any  and all obstacles?  Please also pray for us as we begin to plan and wrap our minds around this next part of our journey.  I know first hand that God's grace is sufficient for us and that in our weakness, we are strong because it is when we are weak that we MUST rely on God's strength (therefore making us strong with a power that is fueled by our almighty Heavenly Father).  Phew!  Just pondering on the magnitude of God's power as I type calms my heart...

Huge praise for today...  Grace went to the nursery at church today for the first time and she did GREAT (and I did too :-)!  I can't thank the sweet nursery workers enough for their love and support in making sure that Grace is safe and that David and I have peace.  An added bonus, since Grace was in her class today, David and I actually got to really listen to the message and it was the best that I have heard our dear friend and Youth Pastor, Bryan Glass preach!  He always does a great job when he preaches, but today was extra special because he taught on one of my favorite verses (especially during our journey with Grace) 2 Corinthians 12:1-10:

... “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.¹⁰ That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

Let's just say that God used Bryan in a powerful way today (just what I needed ;-).

The perfect ending to a long post (in my opinion :-)...  I took this picture this morning, it makes my heart smile when ever I look at it (I hope it does yours too)...  Check out Grace's face, she has her best "Downsy Doo" face on and I LOVE IT!!!

I always intend on my updates being brief, but some how I end up getting so long winded...  I apologize for that, thanks for sticking with me :-).

Family Camp highlights!!!

Thank you for your prayers, our week at Family Camp was full of God's blessings big and small!  I just knew that we would be under attack leading up to Family Camp (4 out of 5 of us falling victim to the stomach bug just before leaving) because I had already had so many fears as to how it was going to work out with Grace there, etc.  It's no wonder that the enemy (the author of fear) wanted to distract us and possibly prevent us from making it to Family Camp because it is truly a place were God is glorified by the uniting and strengthening of families!  At Family Camp, we were reunited with so many families and counselors (staff) that are near and dear to our hearts, as they prayed us through one of the most difficult years of our lives with unwavering faith.  Grace was certainly a celebrity at Family Camp, since she is living proof of answered prayers (even if the answer we received from God was "no" :-).  Remember, God said "no" I won't heal her from her serious heart defects without requiring surgery and "no" she needs to have Up's in order for y'all to become who I created you to be.  God's "no" was hard to hear a year ago, but we celebrate His "no" today; it is good because HE is good!  What an honor to celebrate with the families and staff at Pine Cove!  For those of you who don't know what Family Camp is exactly....  it's impossible to explain because it's one of those things that you have to experience for yourself to understand just how AMAZING it is, but I'll do my best to give you a glimpse of a vacation full of pure sweetness (and craziness :-)!

For starters, the counselors are in large part what makes Family Camp so special!  These counselors are college age men and women, who know and love the Lord deeply, so deeply that they choose to spend their summers serving families every single minute that they are awake.  They do everything possible to prevent you from having to lift a finger (they serve you each meal, cut your kids food for them, beg to hold your baby so that you can eat or just relax, etc).  They have a way of pouring into your kids in a way that causes your kids to want to spend every second possible with them.  Our kids faces seriously light up when they see these counselors and to be honest my face lights up too because I'm so grateful that my kids have the opportunity to look up to such God honoring men and women and they are so encouraging and affirming to David and I as parents :-).

Here are two of many very special counselors to us...  The kids fell in love with "Hunka" last year, so it was such a treat to get to see him again this year...

We met "Manly Stanley" for the first time this year and he was extra special to us for many reasons, with one of them being that he found us on the first day to tell us that he has a 14 year old sister with Up's.  The way he spoke about her and how much he loves her was just precious!  We were actually blessed with the opportunity to meet his family (including his sweet sister with Up's) one night, since they had come into town (all the way from Georgia) to visit him for the 24 hours that they get off between camps.  In the short time I was able to talk with his mother, she shared with me some insights and encouraging words that I will carry with me forever!  Praising God to have met this sweet family!  On a side note...  they have something called "camper call," where some of the counselors come early in the morning to get your kids up and take them to breakfast so that you can have some alone time with your spouse (we did the breakfast trail ride, where you ride a horse on a trail until you get to a place were you have a cowboy breakfast and then ride back- it's super cool!) and while at breakfast that morning, apparently everyone marveled at how "Manly Stanely" got Grace to sleep on his shoulder despite all the noise/chaos and her Mommy and Daddy not being there.  He must have some serious skills, that's all I can say...

Here is a typical day at Family camp...  Each morning after breakfast, we have family worship time outside...

 and then family devotionals where our assigned counselor for the week joins us....

Next the kids go with their counselors (where they have all kinds of fun!)...

This was during a glow stick dance party, that's where all the crazy colors come from...

 while the kids are with their counselors, the adults go to speaker sessions, where we have the opportunity to learn valuable truths about God's word and how to apply them in our daily lives.  Then, we eat lunch as a family (at each meal the counselors do fun skits, etc) and after lunch the kids go back with their counselors while the adults get to have some free time.  Adult free time is a chance when many people go in the pool or rest, but not if your married to David the energizer bunny who never likes to sit down :-).  We had a great time playing pickle ball (it's a cross between tennis and ping pong) most days in one million degree weather.  It was actually a lot of fun since we can get competitive (in a fun way),  the proof of that was what we looked like after playing for just 30ish minutes... we looked like we had just gone swimming (sorry, no pictures of that pretty sight :-).  Next, you have family free time where you can go horse back riding, zip lining, wake boarding, swimming, go in the lagoon on the giant slide, blob, battle bridge, etc).

Lastly, you have theme night dinners or date night, followed by "club" where we worship as a family with lots of energy and motions!  So, that's a general overview of what a week at Family Camp looks like, but you have to take what ever you are picturing now and multiple it by a thousand and then you will be a little closer to getting a feel for it :-).

MUSICAL THEATRE theme night...

 Grace was obsessed with doing zurberts all night, so most of our pictures are of her doing this face :-)

 Grace had so much fun that she knocked out sitting up during dinner with all kinds of excitement going on around her...

SPACE COWBOY theme night...

 They had a rodeo after dinner and the kids got to chase counselors dressed up as cows to try to get a flag off of them..

 And the grown ups got to chase real calves to try to get a ribbon off of their tail.  David was the first one to catch a calf...

We also had a date night and a PIRATE theme night...

Here are some more specific highlights from our week...  Our first day was rough for Grace and I because when she was awake in her class she was not happy (remember she isn't suppose to cry for more than 15ish minutes), so I was ready to call my Mother in Love to come get her and keep her for the rest of the week because I was afraid that Grace was going to be miserable there.  Not to mention that Grace has never even been in our church's nursery, so the thought of her spending a good bit of the day in her class was a lot for my brain (and heart) to take in.  Also, there were so many sweet, ready, and willing arms that wanted to hold her (during meals, etc); however, I had a lot of anxiety about it because of my fear of germs (remember my love of hand gel and lysol?).  The first day we sang "How great is our God" during one of our worship sessions and through my tears (that were flowing from the anxiety and uncertainty I was feeling about how to mange the week with Grace), I begged God for His peace and the ability to trust in His provision for the week.  That song reminded me at that moment of just how big and great God is and it was at that point that I felt my anxiety begin to subside.  I have to admit it didn't go away completely that instant, but by day two of camp, Grace and I experienced God's peace in the most tangible way...  Grace grew to love her class/teachers, she even ate full bottles for them (you know feeding has never been easy for Grace, so this really felt like a miracle for me)!  More people held and loved on Grace this week than in the past 10 months of her life combined and I loved every minute of it!  Once again, I was reminded that when I open my hands (stop holding onto to my will and my fears), exercising my faith, it unleashes God's power and the end result is His perfect peace and joy!

Grace with her teachers, "Trips" and "Pie Fly"...  Grace and "Trips" were a match made in heaven because Grace loves when you sing to her and "Trips" is an amazing singer!

 I promise Grace loved "Pie Fly" she was just super tired on the last day and started getting fussy right before we took this picture :-).  These girls worked hard to win Grace over and they were certainly successful!

Grace thought that all of the counselors singing, dancing, jumping around, and chanting were super entertaining...  I must have too, check out how hard I'm laughing :-)

At the end of camp each child gets a "character quality award" which is when their teachers recognize them for a character quality that they observed in them throughout the week.  Abigail got "thoughtful" and Andrew got "considerate". Their teachers pointed out how they were compassionate and thoughtful to their classmates and teachers, but especially to their very special friend Julia!  Julia is such a special girl to our family, she's 15 years old and is confined to a wheel chair (or while at Family Camp, a jogging stroller :-) and while she can't talk, Abigail and Andrew love to communicate with her in their own way.  It would melt my heart to see their genuine love for Julia.  If they saw her at a distance they would beg us to run and go say hi to her, they would argue about who got to sit next to her and hold her hand, Abby loved reading her books, Andrew would wipe her mouth with her blanket or cover her legs in case she was cold.  I told the kids that they could each make one craft at the camp craft store (only because it cost money, otherwise I would have let them craft away :-) and Abigail had her heart set on making Julia a shirt.  Here is a picture of Abigail, Andrew, and Julia (she's wearing the shirt that Abigail made for her).

 Abigail and Andrew with their teachers "TiBi" and "Thunder" after receiving their character awards!

Abigail also got the "Best Around Award" which was one of about five awards they gave out the last day to random people for random things...  When they were giving out the award they said, "this person looks super sweet, but when she gets on the battle bridge (where you get on a little plastic island in the lagoon with a helmet on and try to throw the other person off into the water) she beats everyone that challenges her, even bigger/older boys."  She may be small, but she's mighty!

We are all missing Family Camp in a big way, but our future camp counselor (Abigail) continues to do the counselors chants and cheers over and over and over and over and over and over.... so, I guess we will have to do camp at home until next year (Lord willing of course).  If you are looking for a great family vacation, I would love to tell you more about Family Camp or you can check out their website at
http://www.pinecove.com/family-camps/.  Don't think that you have to live in Texas to go to Family Camp because plenty of people come from all over :-).

 ***an added bonus to Family Camp is that they take pictures and video all throughout the week, so you don't have to (you get the pictures and video at no additional cost)!

Thank you village for praying us through Family Camp!!!  Your prayers were answered and felt!!!