Thank you

I just wanted to post a simple thank you to all who have given to the Rebekah Grace Fund.

We like to keep this blog about Rebekah and the great things the Lord is doing in her life and ours. One of those is the Lord providing for our family and Rebekah's needs. It is such a blessing to know that when we are not sure how to take care of our obligations the Lord has a way already planned. His provision always comes at just the right moment when we need it most. We thank him for his loving care of us and for his working in hearts to lead you to help Rebekah and our family in his perfect timing.

D

Happy Birthday, Daddy!!

Daddy, I made a surprise for your birthday, and I'll give you a clue....it has something to do with the color blue!

Love,
Rebekah

September Prayer Requests

We thought we would share some updated requests and needs. We have two big ones around here. One being I still do not have a permanent job. While the Lord has been gracious to provide for our needs with my heart felt gifts and some hours here and there on odd jobs we are still praying for some thing more stable.

Our other big request as always is Rebekah and her care. We are specifically praying for wisdom on making the best choices for her care. As you know if you have been following along Rebekah is looking to have a G-tube installed very shortly. We are praying that this surgery will go smoothly and that there will not be a lot of recovery time. We are praying for funds to come in so that we will be able to make at least 2 trips to MUSC to have this procedure done. We will mostly likely have a 2 day trip for a clinical visit and then a 2nd trip up to a week long stay to actually have the surgery.

We are praying for 2 things to come out of this surgery. One that Rebekah's reflux will be stopped so she is more comfortable and able to eat right. Two to help her to move forward with the right growth and weight gain.

Also like last time with the open heart surgery we are praying for all the details of child care and strength for the rest of the family.

Of course along with prayer requests I will mention some praises too. I am thankfully for all the hours and help Grammy and Grampy have given to taking care of the boys. I am also thankful that the boys are so flexible and go where ever we need them too. Most of all we Praise the Lord for caring for our family and guiding us each step of the way.

D

Daddy's thoughts today

Just some thoughts today. While the big excitement is over for now and we seem to be settling in at home, thankfully altogether again, it has been dawning on me that we have just begun this great adventure. One phone call already to the cardiologist about Bekah's incision to make sure all is ok. Now watching her every move to make sure things are normal and debating when things are not normal. Wondering what warrants a call to the cardiologist and what doesn't. This is very different for us, and we are learning along the way that is for sure.

We so appreciate the prayers and support for our family. I thought I would mention a few more prayer requests that are on my mind as we settle into our new lives with this Little Lady. We certainly hope you will come along with us on this adventure and continue to pray and give your support to our family as we walk this road with Rebekah Grace.

1)Pray that Rebekah will continue to grow at the rate the doctors are targeting (about an ounce each day).

2)Pray that we can control her reflux so that it won't be a stumbling block to her growth

3)Pray that her heart will continue to be strong as it works double time right now.

4)Pray for preparations for her next surgery (funds to stay at MUSC, doctors, child care for the boys at home)

5)Pray that we can get both of the older boys in the same school to make the schedule easier.

6)Pray that the Lord will provide employment for me soon. I am still unemployed and the needs here are many.

7)Pray for strength for Nancy as she will be taking on more of the house and Rebekah's care when I return to work. (We are both short on sleep....)

8)Pray for the boys as Mom and Dad's time is stretched at the moment with taking care of Rebekah.

9)Again, as we have prayed from the beginning, pray that the Lord would be seen through our family, that we may be able to help someone else. I think most of all we want to be used by the Lord for His glory.

While we are so thankful for the prayers and support, and our wonderful doctors and nurses, we must give all praise to the Lord for He has brought us this far. No amount of skill or knowledge replaces the gracious hand of our Lord and Savior.

I guess that sums up what was on my mind today.

D

Continued prayer for our little lady

Rebekah has had a busy week so far. We met with the cardiologist here at home yesterday. Lots of info and I am sure my wife will post more when she has time. But the biggest concern at the moment is that Rebekah is having trouble with her feeds. She is so tired out that she has been sleeping 6 hours at night. While normally this is a good thing, for her it means she is missing a feed. She has very low endurance right now and just the short time during her echo yesterday exhausted her. We are going for a weight check tomorrow, and if we don't have some forward progress, they are going to get aggressive with her feeds. The first step will be to fortify her milk with even more calories than it is fortified with right now. After that, the doctors would try to hospitalize her in Greenville and feed her through an NG tube like she had in Charleston. They would try that for a week to see if she can gain a little weight without expending the calories to eat. Sometimes babies need just a little extra growth to get over the hump and begin to eat well on their own. If those two options still don't produce the growth that the doctors want to see, we have been told that Rebekah will probably have to go back to Charleston for a G-tube. We knew this might be a possibility, but were hoping it would not be necessary.

As far as Rebekah's heart, it is doing great. She is retaining very little fluid and her heart function is very good. Her lungs are also doing well right now.

We hope as you think of us and Rebekah that you would continue to pray for us. While we have gotten through the scary part and returned home for now, there are still many miles to go down the road. We ask you to continue to pray for Rebekah's growth, and our adjustment to a new kind of "normal" for our family. The boys are doing great and have been wonderfully helpful, but it is still a lot of adjusting for all of us to make the family run again. Also continue to pray for the Lord's gracious provision for all our needs financially and emotionally.

We have to give all the praise to the Lord. He has lifted us up and walked us through all of this adjustment and adventure. Through all of this He has given Nancy and I the most precious gifts, our children.

Once again thank you to all the family and friends who have prayed and given to help us.

D

Thanks to our Lord and Savior

Now that things have slowed down to a controlable crazy instead of wide open crazy some very much needed words that need saying.

Dear Lord,

Thank you Lord for our little girl. Thank you for a great delievery and for the grace and strength to face this new adventure in our lives. She is yours and we are so undeserving of your trust in us to raise her. May we always teach her and raise her in your word and will. All the praise for her and her safe arrival goes to you who is in perfect control of all things.

In Jesus name I pray