untitled accumulations

for those of you who follow this exclusively for Davis updates
let's celebrate those stats first
he is 31.9 weeks seizure-free!
since his seizures began, that's a record for longest without
and the duration from birth til 1st seizure was 35.4 weeks
so we are in sight of achieving longest duration in his life seizure-free
there have been no seizures in 2013!
amazing!

now on to other updates/reflections

if you follow me on facebook
you know i'm temporarily a full-time stay-at-home-mom
(PLUS still working 50% from home!)
while my husband is on a mission trip for 2.5 weeks
this change of pace/routine gives me more time
with our boys, to reflect, off the "grid"
i've been logging notes daily
nuggets of observations i want to treasure/remember

today, Sunday, June 23, Sabbath
the song In Christ Alone touched me anew today
in every single phrase today
every. single. phrase.

In Christ alone my hope is found

He is my light, my strength, my song

This Cornerstone, this solid ground

Firm through the fiercest drought and storm

What heights of love, what depths of peace

When fears are stilled, when strivings cease

My Comforter, my All in All

Here in the love of Christ I stand

In Christ alone, who took on flesh

Fullness of God in helpless babe

This gift of love and righteousness

Scorned by the ones He came to save

‘Til on that cross as Jesus died

The wrath of God was satisfied

For every sin on Him was laid

Here in the death of Christ I live

There in the ground His body lay

Light of the world by darkness slain

Then bursting forth in glorious Day

Up from the grave He rose again

And as He stands in victory

Sins curse has lost its grip on me

For I am His and He is mine

Bought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death

This is the power of Christ in me

From life’s first cry to final breath

Jesus commands my destiny

No power of hell, no scheme of man

Can ever pluck me from His hand

‘Til He returns or calls me home

Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand

I find my strength, I find my hope, I find my help

in Christ Alone

When fear assails, when darkness falls, I find my peace

in Christ Alone

I give my life, I give my all, I sing my song

to Christ Alone

The King of Kings, the Lord of all, All heaven sings

to Christ Alone

at the conclusion, the sky literally crashed with thunder

i was nearly ready to melt into a puddle
as i try and wrap my human head around the awesomeness of God
not simplistic coincidence; pure divine providence
today's message focused on Sabbath
6 days you are to work. hmmm.
but there is a 7 day cycle ordained since creation
the 4th commandment the only one in place prior to sin
7th day is for ceasing, resting, embracing, feasting - each intentionally
reserving time for keeping love/relationships alive!
with God
with people
--> what is the state of your soul?
need the 7th day for the soul to catch up
with your body and mind that just runs and runs and runs
there is more to health than just not being sick!
is disease the result of dis-ease?
that was a new connection/reflection for me

Davis got new red sanuks this week
his 1-1 helper at church, Garrett, had red shoes too today!
and Garrett had been in Baja with Lance & Mason last week
no coincidence
so cool how God weaves stories and circumstances together
we couldn't have planned all that!

Avery's baseball team just took 3rd place in state tourney!
yesterday Avery had 2 doubles each with 2 RBIs and 1 triple

now working my way back through 1st week at home...

Saturday
Carver happy to have his neighbor friend Danny back home
Davis enjoys playing with the tiger on kinectimals (xbox)
Lance called and we got to catch up for 40 minutes
i enjoyed a night out with adults to Rib Shack & Peace Tree Brewery
Carver convinced grandma & papa to play millionaire monopoly
grandma doesn't agree/like the rules :)

Friday
picked up Avery after a week at Lakeview camp in Eldora
i enjoyed the 3+ hours of dialogue with my co-pilot mom
ate fresh cherries the whole way home :)
i'm an audible processor...
heard myself say

experiencing/sharing grace on a human level
gives hope and a glimpse
at comprehending and grasping
how wide and deep and long God's amazing eternal grace is
for each of us!

a phrase i use often: "not a chair!"
referring to the boys sitting on the counter [frequently]
played cards with Carver most of the afternoon, evening, night
of course with the help of Davis :)
ratfink, golf, crazy 8s, nertz, garbage, match - a game we made up for Davis

Thursday
after Carver's swim team practice
we picked up hot cakes from "Old McDonalds" as Davis calls it
packaged up and delivered 4 large garbage bags of clothes
to donate to Share What You Wear at another local church
Davis was belligerent much of the day
Carver kept my chin up throughout the challenges
visited my sisters acreage for a brief diversion
swimming, holding puppies, eating icees
at the end of the day Davis unprompted
says to me, "i forgive you" [aka "i'm sorry"]
"and to make you happy i did the laundry"
temporary freak-out, what does that mean from a 5yo?
yes, he had emptied dryer into basket
dumped it on the bed (as is normal practice)
transferred wash into dryer
and started the dryer
wowza
i keep hoping he'll remember this remorseful feeling
and prevent some of the future belligerence...
sprigs & sprouts delivered our basket of fresh produce
a non-profit CSA with proceeds going to Baja missions!
buy fresh, buy local, AND impact the world
my day ended with a discovery
that Davis had a snack of pistachios
in my bed - 100 shells were left behind as evidence

Wednesday
bike ride - pulling Davis on the trailing tag-a-long behind me
that's an insane workout
our town is not flat
and our neighborhood suddenly seems mountainous!
but i did manage to pedal up the last hill without walking
Carver cheering me on all the way
proud accomplishment
[but i didn't walk well the next several days :)]
realized i'd put my hair up in a bun every day
my favorite fit flops broke
and loving the opportunity to play cards midday
Carver & i taught Davis: go fish and war [aka ROAR!!!]

Tuesday
when i'm home more
i get this urge to rearrange furniture
so we cleaned and shoved a few things around
that evening i took an anti-anxiety pill
and we ventured out of town
to climb the 100ft Cordova tower
facing my fears
i do not like to travel any distance without another adult
and i hate heights
survived both
and rewarded ourselves with BBQ sandwiches
from the infamous Jersey Freeze
Davis still wanted to visit a park
the one he chose was way too crowded
for this introverted mom [ps i'm reading the book 'Quiet']
so we found a vacant destination
now known as "grandma's blue park" [aka pcgs playground]
and behind that is the property
which is "The Lord's Prairie and Woodland"
initiated as a memorial from my Daddy John

the first few days after Lance & Mason's departure
definitely not like days in the office
when i went to bed with 2 bandaids on
1 from a rose thorn i had to dig out
the other from serrating my finger on the tinfoil box
when i reached in the drawer
we played Sorry!, while listening to Go Fish, and eating apples
Carver won Sorry!
Davis said, "we all won!"
too which i replied, "but carver won 1st!"
and Davis assured us that "we are all winners!"
at least he's not a sore lose
Avery went to state baseball tryouts, and was selected for the team
which he has declined because it conflicts with Lakeview camp
proud of him for making the team
even more proud of him for choosing Bible camp over sports!
I'm thankful i live near family
and for my cousins that invited A&C to go fishing
at my uncle's ponds
i've bought a cheap inflatable pool
for the 3rd consecutive year
so you'll find me on the driveway watching Davis jumping in and out
as i soak up some sun :)
i find myself spontaneously singing
"creature report" and "henry hugglemonster" TV songs
bugs love me. i hate them.
i'm getting acquainted with life outside the office!

and i'll try to increase my blogging frequency
thereby reducing the volume of material per post

thanks for hanging with me
if you made it to the end :)
-tvz