What a strange day!

Have you even had one of those days when you say, "This is crazy?!!"Yesterday was one of them for me. I spent most the morning in bed because my legs felt weak and hurting and it was probably good because I had a lot of time to pray and rest. I was also on the phone back and forth to Canada because my brother had fractured a vertebrae in his neck and was in severe pain and having some numbness and weakness in his arms. They were waiting to see when he would go in for surgery. It was at the moment when my mom told me that he would have surgery as soon as they had a spot when Cody came in saying he had a stomach ache. For the next thirty minutes Cody screamed and clawed his stomach while rolling all over the floor (believe or not we have had episodes of this before). It is at this point I am calling Perry to come home because I need help and I think we need to take him in to the doctor. So with a neighbor getting Bennett from the school bus ,we are off to the doctor to find after x-ray that his intestines are full of gas with some possible constipation. The doctor is speculating that his stomach issues may have something to do with all the decongestants he has been on to try and help his chronic congestion and ear problems. Needless to say we are going to try and correct these issues as well as go to the ENT for discussion on tubes in his ears.
Thankfully today is a new day and I just heard that my brother's surgery went well and they were able to fuse two vertebraes together. He will wear a neck brace for the next three months and should recover without nerve damage. Cody is also his usual self and wanting to know when he can buy the next Star Wars toy.
So, in the midst of the craziness God is continually reminding me through his word to put my hope and trust in him. With that in mind, I will enjoy the quietness and the peace of the moment and remember a quote I read recently " Each day we are blessed by the gifts from a Father above who knows our needs befroe we voice them".
Thank you, Thank you for all the ways you remind us that you are still praying! We appreciate that so much.

So thankful

I so thankful that Perry is home now and even more thankful that he won't be making any more trips to Europe this year. No more transition sounds good to me.
I am even more thankful for friends and family who have prayed for us and helped us take care of our children, cooking, laundry, cleaning.... You have been such servants and have blessed us. Thank you for your faithfulness to us during my recovery.
I am most thankful for my husband. He has been amazing and so supportive and has been such a servant to me amidst the stress of juggling everthing. This has been a huge help.

I am inching forward and it feels so good. The last week I have had more relief than previously and it feels really good to be able to move around more. I attitribute this to of course answers to prayer but also a supplement that I have taken. I have been so sensitive to medicine that I have found it difficult to take the medicine that the doctors have wanted me to take. Of course, most of them come with quite a few side effects. I have prayed that God would show me what to do. I don't believe it was a coincidence that my best friend's husband in Canada has taken this supplement with amazing relief and encouraged me to try it. This supplement is all natural and is very effective for conditions where there is a lot of inflammation which is my problem.

So, I am grateful and hope that I will even be able to go out for Thanksgiving dinner. I am trying to take it slow and working on trying to take of the boys more so that Perry can work more. I still have to rest a lot and thankfully the boys are used to me lying in my bed while we read and play games and cuddle. They don't seem to mind.

Lastly, I want to give thanksgiving for the greatest gift of all... Christ Jesus who extended such amazing grace to us amidst our sinfulness. He suffered so much so that we might have life and forgiveness and most of all hope. I am so humbled that he would do that for me.

Transition

This week has felt challenging. I realize that even if I am not doing the greatest, as long as the boys are coping and well it seems to help tremendously. Bennett caught the cold that I had and Cody continues to struggle with congestion and drainage. Whether the cause is that or just being tried of transition I don't know. They have been particularly draining. They have been more disobedient and are constantly testing the boundaries. It has been even harder because Cody often refuses help from Grandma.
I am so thankful Perry is home today and so I pray that getting back into a regular routine will help. People frequently ask me how I am doing and quite honestly I don't know what to say. I think it is probably because this is a bit unusual. I am used to what it means to have a cold or the flu where it seems like you can see improvement more quickly after the worst is over. This is so much more gradual (so slow) and seems often like a roller coaster. I have to look at a week or month rather than a day to see the improvement.
So, emotionally and spiritually I feel like I am handling it well (of course I have my moments). Physically I think I am where I am suppose to be especially since it has only been three months. That is weird to say... only three months. I am optimistic obviously because I will recover, but sometimes quite honestly I wonder how to get from the three months to the six to nine months. That seems so gray.
Please pray that I will be able to rest in the midst of the chaos. I have no problem resting when the boys are not here. The hard part is when they are here. They need me and their lives continue despite this. Yes, for the most part they have amazingly thrived and I think that they have loved the extra cuddle and reading time. I pray that I will have the emotional energy and patience to be the parent I need to be during this time.

Good to laugh

Having my sister and brother in law has been good medicine for me. They are definitely kids at heart. I have found myself laughing quite often the last few days. I am not sure they totally knew what they were signing up for but have adjusted quite well to the Glanzer routine. They are making lunches, filling sippy cups, and finding missing toys like the best of them. There have been a few surprises. For example, when they returned from Baylor and both boys were soaking wet and proceeded to tell me that while they were looking at a 2Ft deep fountain and both boys accidentally fell in. Thankfully Conrad rescued them and Coralee agreed that she realizes she needs to have eyes in the back of her head. And last night I couldn't help but laugh when I saw Coralee with water pistol in hand sneaking around the corner to get Bennett. It seems we are having a water theme lately. I really laughed later when my brother in law told me that he was glad that the person bringing dinner didn't come five minutes earlier because they would gotten a cup full of water on them ( he had been waiting at the front door for the Coralee and the boys). Never a dull moment at the Glanzer household.

So we are in good hands I think. Thankfully no one else got fever and I remain the only one fighting a cold. I am back to my original routine of resting a lot during the day so that I have energy for when the boys come home and for the evening schedule. This seems to help. I am still having quite a bit of pain in my legs after walking and am hoping that that will lessen as time goes on. Thankfully the headaches and pressure in my head has gotten milder.
Thank you for your prayers. Perry arrived safely and has started his travelling around England.

inches back

So much for the times of emotional stability. It seems like things always happen at once. I'm a couple days from leaving on a 10 day trip. Bennett came down with a fever last night. And the last few days. Rhonda has been inching backwards. Her eye problems are back and her head pressure has worsened. Plus, she's battling some sinus issues.

Fortunately, Bennett seemed to be doing better today. In the midst of times like these, I really find the spiritual battle heat up. My thoughts feel heavy and humorless, and I continually feel like I must throw my shield up at the negative darts coming in. Rhonda, who has maintained a wonderful spirit and godly focus throughout these times also starts to feel the emotional weight of it all. We do appreciate your prayers.