What a Year it has been!

 What an amazing year this has been! I have watched both my children grow and mature this year in ways I couldn't have imagined. I have watched them navigate a life that is often difficult and filled with pain and illness and lean on their faith and persevere. What a gift being their mother is. I thank God daily that he chose me to be their mother and try to guide them during their time on this earth. I am so blessed that I get to watch their determination, courage, and strength. They have made me so much better and taught me more than I could have imagined. The last part of this year was very hard as we lost PopPop and Zoey, but as is our way we have found a way to laugh through the hard days and hold each other up with love as we have each had our days full of tears. Christmas was a quiet, lazy day spent with Mimi and creating more memories. 

I am incredibly grateful for the friends and family who continue to walk this journey alongside us, sharing in our laughter and our tears. May 2024 be all that you have hoped and prayed for!

Ali

So proud

 Alex is officially home for the holidays. What an amazing first semester he had! He grew and matured more than I could have imagined. After spending his first 19 years with me by his side every step, he took on his medical care and independence and week by week I saw him learning to stand on his own two feet and figure things out. As I have mentioned before he had one professor that was very difficult to work with and did not want to help or even follow his accommodations, but her powered through and when all was said and done, he finished the semester with a little over a 3.2 GPA. He had 3 A's, a B and a C to finish off. He also had extra "work" and commitments as part of the Honors program and Stone House. He also made it through with a remarkable attendance record which is no small feat with his level of medical issues. I had conversations leading up to his time where other moms had warned me about multiple hospitalizations due to their kiddos not taking great care of their health. This is a testament to Alex's diligence in his care and his commitment to do well in school. He made amazing friends, connected with his professors and enjoyed every minute of his life on campus. He is happy to be home for a few weeks, but excited to start back in January. This semester left no doubt that DBU was the right choice for him. I am so proud of him for going after his dreams and wanting to make something of his life after all he has been through.

Maddy also is finished for the semester and had straight A's. She loves her school, and the schedule and small class environment is the perfect fit for her. She continues to grow in confidence and independence at the barn and has really matured over the past few months. I say this often, but she is the hardest worker I know. She pushes herself in every instance regardless of if things are hard or she feels bad. Besides the barn she also performed in her winter dance performance. I love to watch her push past her fears and perform. She is surrounded in every instance of her life by strong, faithful women who believe in her and push her to be her best. It is such a gift as her mom!

Last, I wanted to update on Mia. Thank you for everyone who has prayed for her. She had a "sore" on her back end that we first noticed on Thanksgiving. Our vet was pretty concerned when he first saw her. We basically had two possibilities: infection or cancer. We did two weeks of antibiotics and anti-inflammatories and then had a recheck. The swelling and mass were still there on recheck. We made the decision to proceed with a needle biopsy and were pretty concerned about what the results would be. However, I received a call on Friday that the biopsy showed no cancerous cells. What an answer to prayer. We will do two more weeks of antibiotics and then do another recheck. 

Please continue to pray for her healing.

Ali

Blessings and Prayers

 This time of the year is so crazy so this will be short and sweet...

For so many years my heart would break as I watched kids participate in all of the fun activities that are a part of growing up as Alex missed out while sick in the hospital or not able because of his health...imagine not going to camp or having sleepovers or prom or homecoming or graduation. I could go on and on. He missed it all. This first semester of school has been the answer to so many prayers, not the least of which was that I prayed Alex would make amazing friends. Friends who could see past the meds and the ostomy and the tubes and just see Alex for the fun-living amazing young man he is. That prayer has been answered tenfold. This Mom's heart is so full of joy as I receive snippets of the fun he is having and selfies from school. 

My Ms. Moo keeps me on my toes... between school, dance, art, children's choir and the barn we are constantly on the go! She is at an age where I really enjoy my time with her. She is kind, helpful and fun. I love watching her go after what she loves and push through so much pain and feeling bad and anxiety to just live her best life. This week she got to ride a horse she has been asking to ride for several months. She was really happy, and it went so well that we decided to let her ride this horse once a week. I love watching how far she has come in her riding and how well she can read the horses and adapt. She is most herself at the barn with her horses and her people. The "family" we have created see her true personality in a way that few do. I love that she knows she is loved and trusts them enough to just be herself. What a gift! And her connection with the horses is magical. The horses sense how much she loves them, and they appreciate her quiet demeanor and soft touch, and they respond to her in a way that is different. We jokingly call her the horse whisperer, but it isn't far from the truth. As was the case with Alex, while the kid's health issues have caused us to do things a little differently, I am forever grateful that we have been "forced" into a life that demands togetherness and I get to witness all the special moments in my kids' lives. 

Moo taking care of her best girl!

Maddy and Kenny

Moo and Cooper with their World Champion jacket!

While we are choosing to focus on all the blessings in our life, we could use some prayers as well. Maddy is currently sick with a fever. We could also use some prayers as our "old lady" Mia (our yellow lab) was at the vet on Wednesday. She has some stuff going on. We will follow up in a few weeks. We are praying it is just an infection as we can't bear the thought of another loss.

Thank you for being a part of our lives.

Ali