My three readers out there probably know about David's somewhat recent narcolepsy diagnosis. In a nutshell, it's difficult for him to function during the day and in the evening. He can manage through a workday, and if absolutely necessary he can push out a little schoolwork at night. That's about it.
Before we knew that he even had something seriously going on, we just kept trying to pursue managing depression, because that's all we could assume it was. Five years later, we've finally figured out that it's not depression, it's narcolepsy.
When I was in nursing school I thought narcolepsy was an interesting idea; the idea of suddenly falling asleep anywhere intrigued me.
In real life (we all know that nursing school is NOT real life ;) narcolepsy is debilitating. I'm watching it happen before my eyes. It's difficult to watch. I can't empathize with him, only sympathize. My latest role is learning how to best support him with this disability. It's also going to take some serious trust in God for how we will proceed financially if what is best for David is to cut back on work, or have alternative arragements made at work for him. I'm looking at how we will potentially revamp finances, living arragements, etc., if necessary. The one thing I have SURELY understood is that Jesus and family come first, and anything after that is an extra blessing. Working a job will be an extra blessing. I've lived my whole life with the priority of life being working to make money to provide for myself and family, then being free to do whatever God is calling me to after that. ALL BACKWARDS! We should arrange our lives so that Jesus and family come first, then get a job that can accommodate the first two priorites (sometimes the job is part of the first two priorities, but sometimes not).
I need to pray faithfully for healing, trusting, and patience. Will you please pray along with me?
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Sunday, October 16, 2011
The Neighbors
David and I decided to have a block party for our neighborhood. I'm really looking forward to getting to know our neighbors and being able to build relationships. When I was growing up and my parents moved us to a different town, my Mom decided to have an open house to meet all the neighbors. It's a pretty rare thing nowadays, but what a great way to get to know the people that live around us. I'm sure there are plenty of theories about why as a society we are so closed off. Really, I don't care why, I'm just going to try to turn it around.
God is still knocking my socks off through the sermons at church. I wish I could go every day and listen and be inspired...but that would defeat the whole purpose. I'm inspired to build better relationships and fulfill the command Jesus gave us to go into all nations to spread the hope that He gave us. David and I are praying about changes we need to make. I'm overwhelmed, but in a good way.
I told David tonight that ever since he made serious efforts to become the husband God calls him to be (leading, loving, and serving), my relationship with God has changed. I desire to know God better and obey his commands more fully. I know it's not coincidence. My desire to seek God's direction is a direct result of David's strengthening in areas of his own life.
I feel I'm falling short in my relationships with my co-workers. I get cranky because perhaps I'd rather be at home with my daughter. Or perhaps because I'm frustrated with the procedures at work that don't make sense. Or because I get discouraged from hearing complaining and gossiping, which is just as much coming from me as anyone else. All this crankiness totally blocks my ability to encourage and share my love and care for them.
God is still knocking my socks off through the sermons at church. I wish I could go every day and listen and be inspired...but that would defeat the whole purpose. I'm inspired to build better relationships and fulfill the command Jesus gave us to go into all nations to spread the hope that He gave us. David and I are praying about changes we need to make. I'm overwhelmed, but in a good way.
I told David tonight that ever since he made serious efforts to become the husband God calls him to be (leading, loving, and serving), my relationship with God has changed. I desire to know God better and obey his commands more fully. I know it's not coincidence. My desire to seek God's direction is a direct result of David's strengthening in areas of his own life.
I feel I'm falling short in my relationships with my co-workers. I get cranky because perhaps I'd rather be at home with my daughter. Or perhaps because I'm frustrated with the procedures at work that don't make sense. Or because I get discouraged from hearing complaining and gossiping, which is just as much coming from me as anyone else. All this crankiness totally blocks my ability to encourage and share my love and care for them.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Mind Dump
I stole this title from our pastor, who writes a weekly mind dump entry in his blog. Seems like it will be much easier than trying to write coherent paragraphs!
-I'm beginning to be unsettled about how much excess I have in my home, when there are so many starving and poor people around the world.
-This is partly because of some recent sermons at church and partly because I've been reading the book, Radical by David Platt.
-Also I've been really thinking about how my life is so little like what Jesus actually calls us to.
-Kinsey has been saying new words constantly. I used to be so amazed that she was saying one new word almost every day, and now it's more like 2 or 3 every day.
-She pooped in the potty once. We are not potty training, but she told me "poop" when she was in the bathtub the other night so I took her out and set her on the toilet. I was about to take her off because nothing happened for a little while when all of a sudden I heard a plop. Now, if I ask her if she wants to get on the potty she shakes her head no really fast.
-We went to a gymnastics place this morning that has an hour of open playtime and Kinsey loved it. She ran around like crazy. Her favorite part was the trampolines that were built into the floor.
-I'm beginning to be unsettled about how much excess I have in my home, when there are so many starving and poor people around the world.
-This is partly because of some recent sermons at church and partly because I've been reading the book, Radical by David Platt.
-Also I've been really thinking about how my life is so little like what Jesus actually calls us to.
-Kinsey has been saying new words constantly. I used to be so amazed that she was saying one new word almost every day, and now it's more like 2 or 3 every day.
-She pooped in the potty once. We are not potty training, but she told me "poop" when she was in the bathtub the other night so I took her out and set her on the toilet. I was about to take her off because nothing happened for a little while when all of a sudden I heard a plop. Now, if I ask her if she wants to get on the potty she shakes her head no really fast.
-We went to a gymnastics place this morning that has an hour of open playtime and Kinsey loved it. She ran around like crazy. Her favorite part was the trampolines that were built into the floor.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Back to Blogging
I was going to stop blogging about everything except Kinsey's milestones. I changed my mind. Sometimes there is nothing more encouraging to read older blogs. I could just write my own journal but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be nearly as consistent because I would get lazy, since I'd know I'd only be disappointing myself. If I make it more public people might expect posts every now and then. And it's easier to let myself down than to let others down!
I think I've mentioned before about a different church we started attending last November, Revolution. I can tell my life has been gradually changing the longer we attend. Currently we are doing a 4 week marriage study and it has knocked my socks off. Our marriage is CHANGED! It is fantastic. We really had to be truthful about what our priorities had become. We had to be reminded that becoming Christlike is the aim in marriage. And as spouses we need to do whatever it takes to encourage our spouse to seek Christ and his likeness.
More when it's not so late. I'm trying to decide if I have enough energy to make it to the bedroom or if I should just crash on the couch!!
I think I've mentioned before about a different church we started attending last November, Revolution. I can tell my life has been gradually changing the longer we attend. Currently we are doing a 4 week marriage study and it has knocked my socks off. Our marriage is CHANGED! It is fantastic. We really had to be truthful about what our priorities had become. We had to be reminded that becoming Christlike is the aim in marriage. And as spouses we need to do whatever it takes to encourage our spouse to seek Christ and his likeness.
More when it's not so late. I'm trying to decide if I have enough energy to make it to the bedroom or if I should just crash on the couch!!
Thursday, August 4, 2011
July
At the beginning of the month David and I went to Scottsdale for two nights, and Kinsey stayed with Chris. It was so relaxing. We met my cousin for dinner on Saturday night. On Sunday we went to the Arizona Mills Mall and David couldn't stop buying stuff for Kinsey. We also went swimming and went to dinner at Four Peaks Pub. On Monday we stopped at IKEA on the way home because David had never been. Oh, and lots of naps were involved, of course! We can't wait for our next getaway!
We held a going away party at our house for some dear friends who are off to spend a year in Phoenix for an internship before heading to India as missionaries.
I went with a couple friends to spend the night on Mt. Lemmon in a cabin. It was very nice, I'm getting very spoiled with getaways! I'm ready to go back!
Kinsey had her 15 month check up and is doing great. She does get a rash around her mouth with acidic foods but it doesn't bother her, so the pediatrician said to just keep giving her those foods, no worries. There was this really long questionnaire I had to fill out about her development and there was one area where she didn't quite meet up to norms, but I don't remember what it was. Some of the stuff on the questionnaire I couldn't answer because I just had never seen her do what they asked...for example putting something small like a cheerio into something like a water bottle. Huh? So I'm not at all concerned about her supposedly being behind in some area. She seems perfectly normal to me!
The only other thing we really talked about was her weight because she is very "healthy" in that area. I had been giving her 2 percent milk because I figured based on her appearance she was getting plenty of fat in her diet so I thought I'd trim in that area. Pediatrician said not to do that, she needs the fat for brain development. I'm not convinced she actually needs it because like I said she looks like she's holding on to plenty of it. But, I switched her back to whole milk anyways because that's what I'm supposed to do. I was worrying a lot about whether I was feeding Kinsey properly and how her mealtimes were going. But I talked with one of my friends and she said basically as long as I'm feeding her good foods, to stop worrying. She doesn't eat junk food at home except on rare occasions, otherwise I do fruits, veggies, dairy, bread, eggs, and some meats. She doesn't seem to be a big meat eater but since she eats eggs I let it go. She used to love lunch meat but now she won't eat more than one or two bites.
Her favorite word is puppy. She wakes up saying this word, says it all day long, and sometimes it's the last word she says before she goes into her crib. I have a bunch of stuffed animals from when I was younger and one of them is a Pound Puppy. It is her absolute favorite. She also has a knit blanket made by my grandmother that was mine when I was a baby. She will laugh or shriek when she sees either one of them if they haven't been in sight in a while.
She also is big into testing limits now. Standing up on the couch, hitting, kicking when we change her diaper, and on and on. She gets a nice healthy amount of pack n play time each day when she's doing these things!
We held a going away party at our house for some dear friends who are off to spend a year in Phoenix for an internship before heading to India as missionaries.
I went with a couple friends to spend the night on Mt. Lemmon in a cabin. It was very nice, I'm getting very spoiled with getaways! I'm ready to go back!
Kinsey had her 15 month check up and is doing great. She does get a rash around her mouth with acidic foods but it doesn't bother her, so the pediatrician said to just keep giving her those foods, no worries. There was this really long questionnaire I had to fill out about her development and there was one area where she didn't quite meet up to norms, but I don't remember what it was. Some of the stuff on the questionnaire I couldn't answer because I just had never seen her do what they asked...for example putting something small like a cheerio into something like a water bottle. Huh? So I'm not at all concerned about her supposedly being behind in some area. She seems perfectly normal to me!
The only other thing we really talked about was her weight because she is very "healthy" in that area. I had been giving her 2 percent milk because I figured based on her appearance she was getting plenty of fat in her diet so I thought I'd trim in that area. Pediatrician said not to do that, she needs the fat for brain development. I'm not convinced she actually needs it because like I said she looks like she's holding on to plenty of it. But, I switched her back to whole milk anyways because that's what I'm supposed to do. I was worrying a lot about whether I was feeding Kinsey properly and how her mealtimes were going. But I talked with one of my friends and she said basically as long as I'm feeding her good foods, to stop worrying. She doesn't eat junk food at home except on rare occasions, otherwise I do fruits, veggies, dairy, bread, eggs, and some meats. She doesn't seem to be a big meat eater but since she eats eggs I let it go. She used to love lunch meat but now she won't eat more than one or two bites.
Her favorite word is puppy. She wakes up saying this word, says it all day long, and sometimes it's the last word she says before she goes into her crib. I have a bunch of stuffed animals from when I was younger and one of them is a Pound Puppy. It is her absolute favorite. She also has a knit blanket made by my grandmother that was mine when I was a baby. She will laugh or shriek when she sees either one of them if they haven't been in sight in a while.
She also is big into testing limits now. Standing up on the couch, hitting, kicking when we change her diaper, and on and on. She gets a nice healthy amount of pack n play time each day when she's doing these things!
Saturday, July 9, 2011
June in Review
I'm not sure how much more I'll be blogging, but I realized I would like to keep writing about Kinsey and what we're doing because I will want to look back and read about it in the years ahead.
Things seemed like they were a little more steady for me at work this month, so I felt like I got into somewhat of a pattern which feels good. I'm still a little torn on how much God wants me to be working. I don't feel very in tune with what He wants probably because I'm spending very little time with Him. I need some radical changes in my attitudes, decisions, and desires.
We went to Chris' house for a Memorial Day picnic. It's always a good time going over there and feels like family. Without them we would feel a lot more lonely on the holidays!
Kinsey's child dedication was the first weekend in June. I blogged about it in a previous post.
All three of us caught a cold toward the end of June and I ended up taking almost a whole week off work. It was not a fun time. Kinsey was a trooper though and it didn't really even seem to bring her down.
We finally got our pool up and running so we were able to go swimming a few days. I think we fixed it around the middle of the month so every day I'm off I've been swimming with her since then. She loves to swim and when we get her suit on and go outside she says, "Yaaa!" She still says that to a lot of things though, it's very cute.
She also started feeding herself with a spoon. She doesn't get much on the spoon and half of what she does get ends up on her bib, but she totally gets how it's done.
She still cannot get enough of books. She will bring you one, turn around, back up to you, and sit down in your lap.
Her latest obsession is the vacuum, which she calls "up". Our floors stay well vacuumed because of this!
Things seemed like they were a little more steady for me at work this month, so I felt like I got into somewhat of a pattern which feels good. I'm still a little torn on how much God wants me to be working. I don't feel very in tune with what He wants probably because I'm spending very little time with Him. I need some radical changes in my attitudes, decisions, and desires.
We went to Chris' house for a Memorial Day picnic. It's always a good time going over there and feels like family. Without them we would feel a lot more lonely on the holidays!
Kinsey's child dedication was the first weekend in June. I blogged about it in a previous post.
All three of us caught a cold toward the end of June and I ended up taking almost a whole week off work. It was not a fun time. Kinsey was a trooper though and it didn't really even seem to bring her down.
We finally got our pool up and running so we were able to go swimming a few days. I think we fixed it around the middle of the month so every day I'm off I've been swimming with her since then. She loves to swim and when we get her suit on and go outside she says, "Yaaa!" She still says that to a lot of things though, it's very cute.
She also started feeding herself with a spoon. She doesn't get much on the spoon and half of what she does get ends up on her bib, but she totally gets how it's done.
She still cannot get enough of books. She will bring you one, turn around, back up to you, and sit down in your lap.
Her latest obsession is the vacuum, which she calls "up". Our floors stay well vacuumed because of this!
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Status Update
I was about to post this status on Facebook:
"I'm thinking the two huge bumps in Kinsey's gums would explain her fussing and me getting called from the nursery early to come get her tonight."
So many times I write a status like this and then think, "Who really cares?" and erase it, like I did tonight. Status updates seem like a way for us to be known by others. It feels so vain. I don't mind reading status updates of friends I am very close to. I also like reading updates from people who have a sense of humor. But mostly, it's just about details in life that we all experience. Does everyone really need to know when Kinsey is teething or when she started eating with a spoon? All my Facebook parent friends experience these times so it's nothing new to them. The friends I am close to know what's going on without my status update because I already talk to them almost daily. So what's the point?
It's just a weird phenomenon to me, and for some reason I still do it. Not much different than blogging, but I'm still doing that too. For all 2 of my readers...haha. I really don't know my purpose in all this social media. Is it actually some sort of addiction?
"I'm thinking the two huge bumps in Kinsey's gums would explain her fussing and me getting called from the nursery early to come get her tonight."
So many times I write a status like this and then think, "Who really cares?" and erase it, like I did tonight. Status updates seem like a way for us to be known by others. It feels so vain. I don't mind reading status updates of friends I am very close to. I also like reading updates from people who have a sense of humor. But mostly, it's just about details in life that we all experience. Does everyone really need to know when Kinsey is teething or when she started eating with a spoon? All my Facebook parent friends experience these times so it's nothing new to them. The friends I am close to know what's going on without my status update because I already talk to them almost daily. So what's the point?
It's just a weird phenomenon to me, and for some reason I still do it. Not much different than blogging, but I'm still doing that too. For all 2 of my readers...haha. I really don't know my purpose in all this social media. Is it actually some sort of addiction?
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