Now what...

I have to start this post by saying, as most of you parents know, having kids is a crazy, fun, emotional, exhausting, and sometimes financial roller coaster ride that will leave you with great stories, deep wrinkles, sleepless nights, silvery gray hair, and most of all more love than you ever thought you could contain in one human heart. Before I get on with the rest of this thought, I have to tell you about Maddie.
When I got up on Wednesday morning at 6:30, she was out laying on the couch half asleep. This is very unusual for her since she normally wakes up around 8:30 am. When I found her I sat down next to her and snuggled her up on my lap and asked what was wrong and why she was up so early. She responded to me with "Mommy, Incredibles". Which means she wanted to watch The Incredibles. heeheehee. I had to laugh because it wasn't "mommy, hungry" or "mommy thirsty", she wanted to watch a movie at 6:30 in the morning. NO I didn't turn the movie on for her, instead I took her in to bed with me and she fell asleep. I thought this was kind of strange but not a big deal. Then later when I picked her up from school I noticed that her ear was draining. Uh-Oh... Maddie is on her 2nd set of tubes in her ears and I would hate to have to get a 3rd set for her. So... on Thursday morning I called and ENT (ear, nose and throat doc) and he saw her that afternoon. Come to find out, she has an infection in her right ear and the left ear tube is clogged! SERIOUSLY! What else could happen to us right now? So to tie the story together, the ear infection is why she was up so early on Wednesday morning. Luckily it's not contagious and she can still come to the hospital to visit Luke. Whew, another crisis averted, for the moment.

So now I want to finish my previous thought, since Luke has been here at Primary's our lives have been put on perma hold, Maddie doesn't remember who her mom is, Belle gets to spend most of her days in her crate, our house is always a mess, and the vegetable garden, I should say what vegetable garden, has been taken over by weeds along with the rest of our yard. Along with all of these unfortunate things we have been soooo blessed by some very amazing people, so many that I have lost track and I need to thank everyone. We are so grateful to the countless and delicious meals that our ward has so generously brought, it has taken a great burden off of my shoulders to know that there is good food at home when I can't be there to make it. To my wonderful sister and sister-in-law, Jenn and Lori, and all the ward members who have taken Maddie into their homes and helped make her feel loved, there aren't words to express our gratitude. A special thanks to Tori Hughes who comes to take care of our dog Belle every day after school, she loves Belle and I know Belle loves it when she comes over to play. To our neighbors, Shannon and Stan who keep track of the spare key for us, have mowed the lawn, cleaned the house, and arranged for the meals, we are so lucky to have such compassionate neighbors. Melissa Brisco with all the craziness of her life she has graciously arranged for Maddie's babysitters. My parents have been great to come and visit when they can and come to clean our house on their lunch break, which I know is a sacrifice for them. There are so many of you that I can't name everyone, and the best part is that everyone who has help has not been asked to help. By this I mean that you have all stepped up and offered before I even had a thought to ask. Amazing. It is really surprising to me how many people care about us and when in a crisis they are MORE willing to make sacrifices in their own lives to make sure that we are taken care of too. When I say we are truly blessed I don't want it to sound contrived and so I haven't used that phrase very often, but those are the first words that come to mind when I think about all of you. We will be forever grateful to all of you who have helped in ANY way.

I have saved the best for last, I need to thank my sweet husband who has been superman through this whole silly situation. His whole life has been turned upside down and he has handled it like a champ. He doesn't get to sleep in, he has to leave work early to pick up Maddie, he is patient with me when I am tired and cranky, he has had to do his own laundry, he does the dishes, and he does all of this so that I can be with Luke at the hospital. Where did I find such an amazing man and why he puts up with me, I will never know. He is the very definition of unconditional love. I am so lucky that I have someone like him beside me to hold me up when I'm weak and pick me up when I fall, and to put me to bed when I fall asleep on the couch. I love you babe!

So to conclude this novel, if I haven't thanked you for your service, compassion, prayers, thoughts and love, please know that I am speechless, I am overcome with gratitude, I love all of you and I am made stronger by you support. It is really difficult to keep a good attitude about this whole thing, but it is easier with all of you to help us. So, thanks again and again and again!