Head CT & Adventures at the Science Center

After such a difficult couple of weeks, God has given us 3 days of just rest. And fun. (I have no doubt the deep rest I have been experiencing has been a direct answer to many of your prayers for us - thank you!)

On Monday, (thanks to my dear friends who hung out with the girls while I slept), this mama got in a good 2 and a half hour nap. Sleep helps so much!

On Tuesday, more naps all around and a visit from Mary & Rafael Blanco (aka "Abuelita & Abuelito") which is such a treat for all of us! Then a few of us took the girls to the local Adventure Science Center. Both girls thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Among Havyn's favorite activities there: the table covered in large Leggo blocks, and the earthquake exhibit (replete with grey blocks to construct buildings with and a big red button that would simulate an earthquake & knock them all down - Her earthquakes lasted a really long time) : ) Ava Gray just loved getting out & seeing all the people & getting loved on by her fam : )

Today, we took AG in to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital for her scheduled head CT. Being Ava Gray, she added a little spice to the day. (Love it when she does that!) It was supposed to be a head CT "with sedation." (They wanted her sedated so that she would be perfectly still while they ran the CT). Ava Gray had other plans. It was in her favor that she has a high tolerance for any sort of medicine. So despite them giving her the highest dose of sedative possible, and putting her in a darkened room, and her Ana rocking her in a blanket, she fought sleep with all her might and kicked and cooed and played until the nurses finally gave up. They bundled her up and took her into the room all awake and talkative & kicky....strapped her in real good, and by some miracle she stayed still just long enough (minutes, I tell you) for them to get the images they were after. Still, it set Ana & I to giggling when we kept seeing her tiny little foot waiving around in the air through all the layers of blankets and velcro she was under. That girl is amazing.


Oh, and in case I forgot to mention it, we find out the results of the CT on Monday. (As you can see in some of these pictures, AG's left eye is still not fully open, and the suture lines on her head are really uneven. Her surgeon ordered the CT to make sure everything is settling in the way it's supposed to, and that there is nothing worrisome going on). We'll keep you posted on that.


For now, here's some pics of the girls from the last few days:

Starting with AG getting ready to head out to the Adventure Science Center. I know I'm biased, but man-oh-man is she adorable!

 This is her, "I'm mad & it's not funny!" look. Unfortunately for her, it makes me giggle!

 Havster, on the other hand, loves to ham it up for the camera : ) 

 And our "post-adventure" pics back at home-sweet-home:

Each day brings something new with these two. Highlights from today included; Havyn's first solo slide at a nearby playground & the first time she signed "please" (several times throughout the day - so thankful for this one!) The other big & wonderful thing is that AG started really smiling again. Is there anything sweeter?

 One of Havster's favorite activites: scooping water out of her kiddie-pool and walking over to pour it on the little slide next to it. Back & forth. Back & forth. It goes on forever. Love it!

 And before I sign out, one last one of our little Ava Gray. Thanks for stopping in to visit us, friends. See ya soon! : ) 

If you utter what is precious....

Jeremiah 15:19  Therefore thus says the Lord:“If you return, I will restore you, and you shall stand before me. If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you shall be as my mouth. They shall turn to you, but you shall not turn to them.

Obscure verse. Not one I'd naturally turn to or latch onto. But one that was really...pointed out to me... by my Heavenly Father some time back. I've thought a lot about what it means to "utter what is precious" instead of what is worthless. I'm coming to realize a lot of the things I think are so important to get across to people are actually mighty worthless.

What is precious then? The words the Spirit whispers to me: through His Word, through times of quiet when my heart looks up to Him in expectancy, and (more often the case with me) in times of heartbreak and noise and chaos, when that same heart can barely choke out a "Jesus, help me!"

I can hardly ever tell before I speak whether or not something I'm about to say is truly precious. But sometimes I can tell afterwords. When it accompanies grace. A breakthrough that takes a burden off a persons shoulders. The sense that the Father is pleased. A lightness of heart that feels like a spring breeze in my spirit...

I wish I could say I experience that more often than I do. But the truth is, I need to repent of a lot of worthless words I've spoken over the past few weeks. Spoken out of exhaustion and self-preservation and pride. Words that take others down for my supposed benefit.

I so long to utter what is precious. I long to be unafraid if what is truly precious sounds silly, or childish, or too simple, or too...human.

Here's one "precious" moment: I was talking to a friend tonight and heard myself saying; "I love these girls more than any other person in the world." And as I said it, I realized how true it was. And how okay it was for it to be true. In the past I've felt hesitant about love. Afraid of loving too much. Or, more honestly, afraid that what I was calling love was really far from it. Even though a mothers love is FAR from the perfect love the Father has for me, it was meant to be a faint reflection. And when it mirrors the light of His love as it was meant to, it is....precious. Speaking of those two not-so-little gifts, here's some pics of them from a few weeks back....

 I'm so thankful that in the midst of being really exhausted right now, that I get to spend these days in the  presence of a Father who loves me more than I love these two precious souls. I know He is closer than I can feel. (Thankfully don't have to trust how I feel as mostly I've just felt utterly spent and a little bit like crying these past few weeks). Please continue to pray for little AvaGray. Her recovery from this last surgery has been longer and slower than the ones before it. Aching for her a lot (nothing urgent or serious at the moment, but just don't like to see this little one struggle), even as I stand on the bedrock of hope that is Jesus. For all of you praying for us (in Colombia, Peru, PNG, Australia, US & elsewhere), thank you. Your prayers for us are....precious.

Till next time!

Father's Day

I've heard it said that a picture is worth a thousand words. I don't always agree, but then there's pictures like these... If it looks like we had a lovely Father's Day, it's because we did have a lovely Father's Day. It was full of laughter and resting, watching soccer and watching babies play, apple pie and vanilla ice cream (Havyn tried the apple, Ava Gray ~ the vanilla ice cream and lo-OVED it), the hanging of a hammock, and just being together with family. (Oh, and Ava Gray's first night out with her Papi - to the  Grassy Knoll Movie Night showing of Sandlot!) I will treasure this one. Here's some pictures of our really neat-o day: