In Christ Alone our Hope is Found

Micah's scan came back clear. The gratitude we feel is indescribable. The amazement is just as profound as the first clear results we received years ago. The day we spent at the hospital was a gift to Micah and I. The scan was smooth, we connected with old friends and he spent some beautiful time in Art Therapy. He did two new canvases with paint. We are going to frame them to remember this day by. Not only did we enjoy ourselves, more importantly we got the news that Micah is ready to move into 'aftercare'. Aftercare is a word that I have heard for six and a half years but didn't really understand what it was. Now I do and it has made me cry many happy tears in the last week. It means that Micah just had his last scan.    Micah is 4 years post cancer (relapse). This is the point that we will stop looking for a relapse. He will have an appointment once a year and we will start focusing on how his body is coping with all the chemo and radiation he has had. They w...

We are in Canada for part of Spring Break. We have many appointments booked, including new passports, dentist, MRI, speech therapy and a few more!  It will be great to get them all done. (: This morning we got our passports done. Phew! I was thankful to get that checked off of our list. They should be done Wednesday by 12. That is service! It has been so nice to see family and step out of our regular paces. We always love to come and worship in St Thomas, even though it's not exactly home anymore. In the past year we have become more comfortable in the Grand Rapids church. But connecting in person with the people that we have known for most of our lives feels like a big giant hug. It's a beautiful thing that almost made me cry. We didn't realize how much we needed it!  We love these people and they will always be special. Tomorrow morning at 8:30, Micah has a scan. The past 6 months have gone so quickly. It's hard to believe. We would appreciate prayers for peace ...

Four years ago today was one of the hardest, yet one of the best days of our lives. This day marks the 4 year anniversary of Micah's lung surgery. That day Dr. Merritt removed 2 lobes of his left lung. That day his cancer was taken away. That day started his season of healing. That day our mourning turned into hope. We didn't know it yet on that day, but that day God gave us our miracle. Please thank the Lord with us for His tender mercies and His beautiful gift.

Wowza!!! For a while I completely forgot about this here blog. Life is so full. I have noticed in the last bit how my family is growing. In January, Micah turned 12. In April, Natalie turns 10, Josh, 16 and Siah, 8. Then in June Grace turns 4. We are back to evens. I like evens. But those numbers are big. For everyone of them the number seems like it's in a different category than the last. Josh is turning 16.  He will be in Kentucky on a mission trip on his birthday. That's kinda too bad! We will be in Canada then and he could have got his beginners. It's hard to comprehend that we will have a driver. I have watched kids at church turn 16 for years and always felt butterflies for the parents. Now we are here. For the record, I am not concerned. Josh will be a great driver. He is level headed, capable and mature. He can drive well already. No biggy.  Although the highways make me nervous. They are fast and we do have weird ramps (131 to 196) that make me yell  ahhhhhh...

This past week, we took Josiah in to the hospital for a follow up on his foot. We are so excited to report that it's completely healed! When he found out that it was healed he told me that, " I don't get excited about small things. But big things like going to the museum or getting my boot off is very exciting. So I am very excited!" He makes me laugh. He is very much like Ken and Josh. When Ken is happy or excited, we just get a smile or "I am so thankful." or "That is so great." I am more of a, "WHAT?!!! SERIOUSLY?? THAT IS SO AWESOME!!!!", smile really big, a jump up and down, laugh and maybe even throw in a little squeal kind of person. You will know it. Sometimes I want to say to them, "Really? That's all you've got?" I can't really relate to those boys in that way. (: We have been feeling yuck in this house for the last month. We have had sinus cold after bug after chest cold. Micah has not felt well for at l...

Today I have some pictures to share. We just had Micah's birthday. He is 12 and it's very exciting. 12 is way older than 11. It just is! We are beginning our 'even' year. Micah first turns 12. In April Josh turns 16, Natalie 10 and Siah 8. In June Grace turns 4. I think it's fun that all of our kids are all odd or all even. I think I say that every year! (: Here is a picture of Grace and her new kitty slippers. She is thrilled. It's the small things! Excuse her mis-match reds. In person, they looked much closer! (O: They just suit her so well. They remind me of her! ( : The kids always get a choice of whether we make the cake or buy the cake. It's special either way. Micah picked a Meijer cake. It's nice that you don't have to order them. They are just sitting there waiting to be chosen. This year he chose a marble. It looked good !(: I love that he still likes the house decorated. We always decorate after they go to b...

This was written on a Monday a few weeks ago. We were planning to be done school Wednesday at 12 for Christmas holidays. But we woke up in a big-gigantic mess this morning, so we decided to do school on Thursday so I could put the house back together today. Sometimes it's hard to keep things organized on Sundays. It's a luxury for me to have the flexibility this week to take today off of school. (: So we started upstairs in the bedrooms, collecting all the wash, hanging up clean church clothes and cleaning up. We always start there! (: The kids usually do their own rooms, but because things were so upside down, I decided to help them. While cleaning up Micah's room, we started talking about his stuffed animals. I asked him if he was ready to put them away. They kept falling off and were always so messy (not unlike the rest of his shelves! (: ). That is  partly because Grace kept wanting to play with HER doggies. It felt right to ask. I was starting to feel it was time...