My "Baby" is turning 3

Tomorrow my baby will be 3 yrs old. It seems like just yesterday he was born, we were in the NICU with him (fluid on the lungs). The days, the months, the years fly by so quickly. Too quickly.

Saturday we had his birthday party. He's really into Thomas the Train, so a wonderful friend of mine made his cake...it's a train cake aka Thomas. It doesn't have his face, but she put the #1 on it so it's Thomas! :) Jack loved it, it was delicious!!! Everyone we invited to the party showed up and we all had so much fun. The kids let all the balloons go and they sent them to Iraq!! (I know awww) Almost all the kids there, their dad's are deployed!

Here are some pictures from the party. Enjoy!

 

Jack's cake...it looked too cute to cut (I HATED cutting it)

 

Jack showing off one of his many trains!

Jack loved this gift!!!!!

 

 

Thank You

Thank you for the kind words in the comments and emails that you've sent me on the death of my uncle. I was able to talk to my dad a little bit ago, he said he's doing better after a good nights sleep. My dad is #5 out of 12 siblings. Duane was the oldest son, the 2nd child. The only sibling that was not with all of them over the last few days was my Aunt Lori who lives in Colorado. My Uncle Dan had went to work for about 4 hrs, and got to Grandma's just about 1 minute after Duane had died. (Dan's a work-a-holic so I was not shocked that he'd went in for a little while).

All of my dad's siblings and grandma went and finalized all the funeral arrangements yesterday after the funeral home had came and picked up Duane's body. The funeral will be on Wednesday (we have a lot of extended family spread out in surrounding states for the most part, so this will give them time to get to Kansas for the funeral). Today they are going in for the first family viewing. Please be in prayer for all of them. It has sunk in my dad said, but yet it hasn't. I can understand that. They've been going for so many days of little sleep that I think today it will be so extremely difficult for all of them. Tuesday evening will be the official viewing/visitation.

He'll be buried next to our precious Jordyn. My grandma gave us the plot space that Jordyn's buried at (right next to my grandpa), so Duane will be next to her. It's a beautiful resting area, our cemetary is one of the most peaceful places I know of. Beautiful tree's and rolling land.

My precious dad was holding up very well when I talked to him, of course I kept breaking down and that would get to him. I ask that you hold him up. My mom told me that my dad and then all his sisters are the ones who've been there 24 hrs a day for the last few weeks (months) caring for Duane, keeping him comfortable, and doing their best to help Grandma. My parents sold my Grandma and Duane the house they live in (it's the house I grew up in), they only live 1/2 mile away. My mom said that "the girls" truly devoted themselves to taking care of Duane and Grandma and that's truly something I know they can hold onto and know they WERE there and that's what counts. The other brothers came at least once a week, other than the "baby" of the family who's a cross country truck driver so when he was in the area, he always would come out.

Please keep my Aunt Lori in your prayers too. She hadn't been down to see him in a couple months. I'm really not sure her reasoning, but I just think she got caught up in not being able to handle it and not realizing that her brother wanted to see her and wanted her there. She will have her own burdens to carry with this and I ask that you will ask God to be there for her as she deals with any guilt she may have.

Thank you again for being in prayer for my Uncle.

 

If you smoke, I BEG you to stop. This was not a painfree death. He was getting morphine every 30 minutes on the last full day of his life as well as Haldol to calm him down. He'd been dealing with a great deal of pain for many months. Smoking IS what killed my Uncle. It was his choice and it was a horrible choice. He was not even 60 yrs old...too young to die, so many more years he should have had ahead of him, if he'd made a better choice. I pray if you smoke, you'll choose to live a good, healthy, and longer life.

 

I'm searching through my pictures right now to see if I can find a picture of him, when I find it I'll post it. He will truly be missed and always loved, by all of us who knew him and were blessed to be related to him.

Update on my Uncle

My uncle died this morning. My dad was holding his hand and he spoke to my grandma last. My mom said his death was very peaceful. Nearly all his siblings were there. Please keep our family in your prayers and thank you for the prayers you've said.

My Uncle

I asked I think a week ago, I really am not sure right now when for prayers for him and also begged you that smoke to quit...well he's in most likely his last hours. He's in so much pain he's crying out (ok actually my  mom said screaming out) in pain and he's getting a dose of morphine every 30 minutes. My parents went to town earlier and got his prescription of haldol to help calm him down.

My grandma is hanging in there as good as she can. Mom said she's broke down crying a couple times, please keep Grandma in your prayers. Mom said my dad's having a hard time.

My mom is going to call me when he dies. I asked her to tell my uncle that I love him, my grandma, and of course my dad. (My mom had came home for a minute to make a pot of coffee and just get a break, she said it's just really hard to be there right now and so heart breaking). I am praying that God will take him soon, so that he does not have to suffer anymore and that my Grandma, my dad and my dad's siblings all feel Jesus holding them tightly to him.

I am also praying this will get my parents to quit smoking. I don't want this kind of death for them. I hate that my uncle has to die like this. It's so preventable. My heart is just aching right now.

 

Fiesta!

 

Tomorrow starts VBS (Vacation Bible School)! I'm excited! I'm a Group Leader and also a Crew Leader until we can hopefully get another volunteer to come up and do it. The crew leader leads the children around from one event to another and answers any questions to the kids have, and makes sure the kids stay on task. There are 4 crews in 1 group...so I'm also over those crews, just to make sure every group as a hole gets to where they need to be.

I'm really excited. We spent our afternoon decorating the gym and classrooms. Jacob's so excited about it! He wants to sneak a peak at everything I have! LOL I haven't let him, I told him that tomorrow he'll get to check it all out! I really think it's going to be a great week! We have so many new kids in our community, so I think this will give them all a chance to meet other new kids and kids who've been here for a while!

It looks like it's going to be a great week!

My Uncle Is Dying

My Uncle Duane is the oldest son, he's the 2nd of 12 children from my dad's side. My dad is #5. My uncle has smoke all his adult life and as a teenager. Because of this CHOICE he's now left with 2 or 3 days left to live (from what the hospice nurse has told my grandma).

I know there are at least a few of you who read my journal that smoke. STOP! IT IS possible. If you have children, you ARE hurting them. EVEN if you are going outside unless you stay out for a MIN. of 30 minutes it's still on your skin, hair, and clothing. If you come in before that 30 minutes it'll be all on you unless you take a shower, WASH your hair and body, and put on CLEAN CLOTHES.

 

I have NEVER made it a secret that I HATE smoking and I think it's a SELFISH act. IT IS. You are killing yourself, your family, and anyone else you smoke around. There are now PROVEN studies that have linked 2nd hand smoke with AML leukemia. That's the cancer that killed MY Jordyn.

I do not doubt that you love your family. If you think that you getting cancer will not hurt them, you're wrong. How will they be effected when you can no longer take care of them because you're sick from chemo & radiation. Do you think it will not destroy who they are when you DIE from cancer? Cancer destroys more than JUST the person who has it.

My grandmother will now have to bury the first of her children because of smoking. My dad, my mom, and some of his siblings are in so much denial they continue to smoke, and one day I have honestly no doubt I will get that call that one of my parents has lung cancer and that another aunt or uncle has it or another cancer caused by smoking.

QUIT. If you love yourself and you love your children, QUIT. I am BEGGING YOU. LOVE yourself and your family MORE than those disgusting, money sucking, cancer stick's. I will pray for each and every one of you. I will give you all the support I can, I just beg you to quit smoking. PLEASE don't think because you're young that well "I'm too young for it to happen to me" quit fooling yourself, IT CAN. If you're middle aged and think well you've been at it for so long, you've tried to quit, etc, etc...so what...try again. You have so many GREAT years ahead of you. Wouldn't it be GREAT to wake up and be able to taste food the way it's meant to taste? Wouldn't it be great to smell things they way their supposed to? Wouldn't it be great to know that you are no longer putting cancerous toxins inside your body? If you're older and think "well I don't have that many years left"...look at the legacy you're leaving to your family and friends? As long as you have a single day left to live on this earth it's NEVER too late.

If you have a friend or family member who smokes, support them to quit. BEG them, plead with them, etc.

 

YOU ARE WORTH IT. You DESERVE to be healthy.

(Oh and don't say it lowers your stress level...evidence now shows that smoking actually rises your stress levels. )

 

This is not going to be the last time I post on this, as long as I have family and online friends who continue to smoke I will keep up pleading with you and praying for you to quit.

I'm back

Wow I can't believe it's been a week and a half since I last updated! This past weekend the boys and I went to Edelweiss in Garmish for a chapel retreat. The sessions were great. Our speaker was Ian White he's a Christian Singer/Song Writer...I highly recommend getting any and all his cd's. He's put to music many of the Psalms!! He's also written many originals and has an AWESOME Children's cd! I bought 3 cd's this weekend and plan on buying the rest of them over time! You can het them at: http://www.littlemistymusic.com

Saturday I went on a hike initially it was only supposed to through Partnach Gorge (to get to it, you go through the Olympic Stadium for Ski Jumping! The first of the 2 ski jumps they have there was built for the 1926 Olympics and the 2nd was there in time for the 1972 ones!!) We walked through the beautiful gorge, then because I was with these very in shape, hike loving crazy people they decided they wanted a more "interesting" walk back...so we hiked up the mountain! Ok just so you know, this mountain is part of the Bavarian ALPS! So I've officially hiked in the Alps. I thought I was going to die, I really did. It was hard to catch my breath with the air getting thinner...but I had great support from the friends I was with and they encouraged me and supported me and I made it!

On Sunday after we checked out of the resort the boys and I went to Linderof Castle. It's one of the 3 castles that King Ludwig built. He's the King who had Neuschwanstein built (well it was never finished on the inside since he mysteriously died before it was fnished), but for those who don't know that's the castle that Walt Disney saw and was inspired by and created the Princess/Sleeping Beauty Castle from. Linderof is the only castle (it's actually so small that the King didn't consider it a castle, but called it his Villa) one he actually lived in and was completed. It's small. I have no doubt a good amount of American's have homes bigger than this castle. Granted they don't have all the crystal, gold, etc in them....but sq ft wise! The grounds though were amazing. So beautiful!

I'm including pictures!