On Your Knees

Just a reminder for those pray-ers out there, today is the day of little Carly Grace's surgery #2 to remove her brain tumor. They started sugery around 7:30AM PT and the first report out of the OR was a positive one. They do expect the surgery to last all day; her first one back in August was 15 hours and only got about 2/3 of the tumor out and the remaining portion has continued to grow. Anyway, just a reminder to lift this family and her medical team up today.

White Rabbit

Rob and I have a tradition (inspired by Dr. Rick McGuire, the track coach at Mizzou) where we try to be the first to say "white rabbit" to the other one on the first day of each month. I know it doesn't sound very exciting and perhaps sounds a bit corny, but it has been kind of fun over the years trying to win each month. We have been married almost 12 years and have probably been doing this for at least 10 of them.

A couple of months ago, Rob explained the tradition to Robbie and Alexa and so they have joined in the fun as well. I'm not quite sure they understand you really have to be the first person to say it to "win", but they do enjoy spreading the cheer on the first day of the month.

I don't know how many years Coach McGuire's family has been doing this, but he has some entertaining stories of he, his wife, and his two grown children trying to best the others. It seemed like it has been a fun way to continue some lighthearted contact with one another after his kids left home.

So, WHITE RABBIT to you all out there. Happy April!

By the way, Rob got me this morning.

Right Now

I took a moment to look around, and this is what I saw . . .

Robbie shooting baskets.

Cole sitting on a potty seat trying to go poop.

Alexa doing some dance routine (she has no dance experience) with Rachel right next to her trying to keep up.

It made me smile.

Carly Grace Update

Carly is back in the hosptital. Click here as: She has another long surgery scheduled for next Friday. Maybe up to 15 hours. Please keep her in your prayers as she and her parents continue to need to be lifted up.

Dog Troubles!

I am sure some of you knew this was coming. All along you probably thought we were crazy to get a dog with everything else we have going on. I bragged and said what a good dog Birdie is, and you thought to yourself, "Just wait! The honeymoon will soon be over!" Well, you may have been right, because EVERYONE (everyone under four feet tall, that is) wants to feed the dog! There is crying at each of Birdie's meal times because -unfortunately, it seems- it does NOT take four people to feed the dog. We had a good routine going of Robbie feeding her in the morning; Alexa feeding her in the evening. Well, this weekend while Robbie was sleeping in, I let Cole feed her because she was hungry. Rachel was interested in having a turn, so Alexa gave up her turn that evening so Rachel could do it. Well since then, Cole and Rachel seem to think that they are getting denied their rightful duty at each meal time and get a little bit upset! I guess Rob and I are going to have to sit down and do some meal planning so we can get through this rough time or else enroll the two smallest feeders in an anger management course. The bigger feeders have actually been very good with letting them do it, or at least help do it, but it does seem to be an issue at every meal time.

Power of Love

Amazing what showing compassion can do for people. Love is a powerful tool........

Some days.....

I just do not enjoy my job and today is one of them. I know many people deal with this as well, but when I put in as many hours as I do, some days I get tired of being a phone call away from having to go in or back to work. Twice this week I have had after hours calls that have sent me back to work to care for someone and today is one of them. It is a beautiful day here and I should be at home playing with the kids. Instead I am at the ER waiting on diagnostics to be completed for someone. It becomes quite painful to wait on but somewhere along the way this became my profession of choice in the setting I chose. As a result I am the guy that gathers all the information and passes it on the the families, coaches, and friends as they go on with their lives. Rarely is there a thank you. Ocassionally there is and it is often way after the fact and I am so bitter at that point that it doesn't register. I write to you now in the ER missing yet another meal with the family.

Happy Birthday Krista!!!!!!

Happy Birthday Krista!!!

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Carly Grace Nelson

The best man in my wedding has a one year old girl who is absolutely amazing. She has had multiple brain surgeries and other procedures that have required anesthesia over the past five months and keeps on truckin' along. He has created a blog to keep family and friends updated and we have posted about her on here once asking for prayers. Well I continue to pray for her and Brad and Christa as they continue to manage Carly's brain tumor and I am asking for the few of you who read this to please pray them too. Brad and I grew up together and have known each other since we were five. If his daughter is anything like him, and she appears to be, she will be extremely determined and fight for everything she deserves. As a father, I can not imagine the stress that this has placed on them as parents. I think that I am tough, but know deep inside that if one of my kids had to fight as hard a Carly has, it would tear me up inside. Brad is an amazing man and I am sure he is dealing with it all as best he knows how and I pray that he continues to battle right with Carly and that this fight has a wonderful finish soon. Spread the word and pray for Carly, Brad and Christa!!!

You can read about cute Carly here: Carly Grace Nelson

Trouble at night?

Okay, so in part three of my last post where I was relaying the switch from cribs to toddler beds, I mentioned that it has taken the kiddos a bit longer to fall asleep at night but they weren't having trouble through the night. Well . . . I have actually gone in the room a few times since reporting that (like when I check on them before I go to bed at night) and have found one or the other of them on the floor! Each of them has fallen out at least two times, but it never seems to wake them up, they just keep on sleeping! I guess that is good, but I feel bad that they are falling. They do both move around a lot in their sleep, and I guess they really were used to the crib bars holding them in. I guess if the fall out doesn't wake them up, there isn't much to worry about. The beds are only a foot off the floor, and there isn't anything dangerous around them- as long as they don't fall out on one another in the small space between the beds; that probably would wake them up!