blessings in disguise

My mom gets to have her drain removed today. My dad has to give her blood thinning shots every night for a couple more weeks, but hopefully she will start feeling normal again. Because the surgeries were so close together, she didn't have a chance to recover before she was back in the OR. There are a lot of people on my street that are experiencing hard trials. I think that made it easier to go through all this with my mom. We were able to see that we were not being punished or picked on. We were simply handed a trial that we could handle and become stronger because of it. For months before my mom was diagnosed, I knew something big would happen in my family. I had been too blessed. I couldn't think of any major struggles I was experiencing, and I knew the Lord was preparing me. I still have a fear that something else is headed my way. I believe that trials are blessings in disguise, designed to make us stronger. My biggest trials lately have been watching people I care about go through hard things. I haven't had to do anything particularly awful my self in a long time. I'm trying really hard to push this fear away because I am certainly not asking for something bad to happen to me, I am just realizing that I am really blessed.

freebie friday :: printable banner

Today for freebie friday, I am sharing a printable banner in 4 different colors. Every letter comes in mint, peach, mustard, and gray. There are 2 letters to a page, so you only need to print the pages you need. If you use the banner and would like to share your project, email me a picture and I will post it.

gray banner | peach banner | mustard banner | mint banner

I stopped at the hospital on my way home. My mom is sore, but her doctor decided she could heal just as well at home. The drain is painful, but hopefully it can be removed soon. I used the valet at the hospital and when I got home, I realized they gave me back an extra key. My dad had to make the 20-minute drive again to return it, but fortunately the owner hadn't tried to retrieve the car before he got there.

back to the OR

Results from my mom's CT yesterday came back this morning. There is a pocket of infection that they will remove surgically on Thursday. What says "happy valentine's day" better than surgery? As much as I wish my mom didn't have to undergo surgery again, I realize that this is such a small setback. Things could be much worse. We continue to look for the blessings that have resulted from all this.  

I hope they call me on a mission

My mom had another CT scan today to see if fluid was continuing to build up. It is possible she will need to have drains placed later this week. Today was so incredibly busy, but I took a 10-minute break to eat lunch and START MY MISSION PAPERS! It has taken a few weeks to coordinate where I will submit them since my time is split between Bountiful and Provo. I am so excited to get them turned in and find out where in the world I will serve the Lord.

great news folks

Today started out pretty miserable. My mom was feeling even worse and wasn't eating/drinking more than the water needed to take medicine. We went to Target to try and distract her and I found an awesome new purse. It took hours of phone calls, but we finally got lab results. My mom had a "small hematoma." She went back to the hospital and had a hematoma the size of a baby drained. She is feeling 10 million times better. Her back is better and the pressure is gone. She is eating and even felt well enough to visit our neighbors at Primary Children's.

I almost forgot the best part of all. Pathology reports came back clean. There is no more cancer. My mom doesn't need chemo or radiation!

adios amigo

I headed back to Provo tonight. My mom isn't feeling super duper, so I'm heading back tomorrow after I take a midterm. Before I drove back, I stopped to say good bye to one of my good friends. Matt will be set apart as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints tomorrow and he will enter the Missionary Training Center on Wednesday. Because of the recent increase in the number of missionaries due to the age requirements, his date has been pushed back, and you can tell he is ready to be out there sharing the gospel. Matt will spend a few weeks in Provo training, 3 minutes from my apartment, before he leaves to serve the people of Mexico.