Winter Update

Hello everyone. Same story as last post... this is the first time I've logged into the Blog since my last post. Crazy!!!!

I think about it often, and get several requests from some of you to update it, however with all of our craziness called life I just run out of time for the Blog.

Anyways, things are going better here. I am finished with classes and passed by the grace of God. Cory has his finals this week, so say a prayer for him if you can. We shared with you all this past semester that he felt led to transfer into Dallas Baptist University and has really enjoyed his classes. However after much prayer he will be transferring back to WTAMU this next semester because the doors have not opened up for him to continue with DBU at this time. He is very sad to move away from a ministry degree, however is trusting God's plan and His timing.

Jordan and Jacie will be finishing up classes this Friday. I can hardly believe we are 1/2 way through our first year of home school !!! The curriculum isn't hard, even for Jordan, but the self discipline has been a HUGE struggle. There have been many day's when he would be frustrated saying " mom they expect me to know this or that already and I don't " or " I didn't learn this in school". The biggest issue was using calculators, we aren't allowed to use calculators and it's KILLING him. I even called our curriculum company and discussed these things with them. Sadly they confirmed that many first year parents in our situation call in with the same frustrations. I also spoke with some of our friends who teach in our district and they also confirmed what Jordan was saying. So the combination of not having some of the fundamental skill sets needed and the new self disciplined structure has made this a tough semester for us all. Light at the end of the tunnel is coming. Things are looking brighter, after 6 months Jordan is getting the hang of things, and we can see God's hand on him, once again His timing not ours. Not that he always likes it, but he is seeing how he can be successful at it.

The Basketball team has been his everything over the last semester. Back in August we had to make him participate with this team, he didn't want to play at all. However as the week's went by he has come to love the game in a new way and truly enjoy the company and friendships of his team mates. His talent has been noticed and the accountability of the team to respect each other, themselves and God is amazing. He has told us several times he has never played on a team like this in his life. That's big for him to even step back and look at a situation like that. We are loving watching him, every week 2 games and 2 practices. This past week the home school football coach was scouting at one of his games. Mr. Hall approached Cory and Jordan after the game and talked for quite a while. I asked Jordan what he thought and I could see the pride beaming from his grin it had to have been a confidence booster. So we'll see what happens next year. Several times in his frustration with classes he has said he wanted to go back to public school, but then would pause and say, " but I don't want to leave this team, I won't give it up " That to is very deep for him.

Were still in Plum Creek for now waiting on all the bank and paperwork of our buyers to go through. This past week has been crazy, our heater went out and our truck broke down. The heater has been out now for almost 14 day's AUGHHHHHH. Our friend is an AC contractor and is working us in so it's taking longer than usual. He thought it was fixed last week but then it went out again this week. We are learning how to actually dress for the season and realized our attire of shorts, no socks or shoes and short sleeves is not meant for December :~). Then last week on our way home from Jordan's BBall game our alternator went out on Mopac. God helped our car make it 20 miles from far north Austin all the way to south Austin (closer to home) we exited the HWY and coasted to a stop light. Our cell phones were almost out of battery and God allowed us to reach friends to come get us, 911 to help light up our dark car on the foggy night, and a tow truck ( who was a friend and towed us 30 miles for FREE!!!). Then a school buss stopped next to us and offered us a ride, the little ones and I rode in the buss across the 6 lane HWY to wait in a restaurant for our friends. I tell you what, our life has been jam packed with activity and not the fun kind. But I am so encouraged by it all, I know there will be much riches on the other side of this all.

Well, my fingers are tired so I'll stop for now. Love to everyone.
Jeter Crew

We are still alive

This is the first time I have logged into this blog since my last post, can you believe that??

So, I knew my new life was not going to be a walk in the park..... but I have had a few hurdles and surprises that I didn't plan for and am still getting my feet wet in finding a schedule that works for everyone.

Our home has been busten at the seams with activity since I last posted. Jordan has started basketball with the panther home school team out of San Marcos and really enjoys the team. Were looking forward to his first tourney in November. Cory has been training to become a C.A.S.A. volunteer as a court appointed special advocate to children placed in state custody while going through custody issues. Jaxson still wakes up and goes to bed everyday talking about these imaginary baseball, basketball, football etc. teams he is on. And princess Jacie has now turned the big "6".

We have received a contract on our home and are beginning to box things up. As we began to look for a new place to live, God once again is bringing us to a place we never thought we would be. Through several events we are being led to move to the Caldwell County area. We have some friends who have just purchased a large plantation home there and are restoring it to be used as part of their pastoral ministry. We will be staying with them for a season. We are being led to possibly purchase a older home and restor it however there are many details we are still seeking His clarity on.

School is going good. I'm not gonna lie, it's a BIG adjustment for Jordan and even for me and my classes. Jacie is the only one who seems to be Johnny on the spot, home school is all she has ever known. They are in their 9th week of classes and both doing well. Jacie is even doing some reading already, I'm so encouraged by her drive and excitement. She enjoys her school work so much and I love that. With my attention being spread so thin I haven't had the chance to work with Jax as much and he has lost some intrest in school work. But I did find some workbooks that have balls as the objects to learn from and that made all the difference. Now he is counting and sorting balls like crazy on his handouts.

I hope to add some pictures soon, and really hope to be more regular with posting. Hope everyone is having a wonderful fall and enjoying the rain.

Love to all
Us

Night out at the ball game

The kids counted down the day's for over two weeks. We were excited when the day came for us to see the Astros. Everyone enjoyed themselves, but no one more than Jaxson. He was in awe at the huge stadium. He loved every minute of it, his eyes were glued to the field the entire night.

Jordan's eyes were glued somewhere other than the field "wink wink" most of the night. Poor guy, dado and dad were ruthless with egging him on about the two cute girls sitting below us.

It was a great night!

Hello everyone

Life didn't give us much of a break as I transitioned from one job to the other. My last day at Grande it rained that evening and we moved a surprise birthday party for our friend Kristi over to our home. It was a great time with friends and she was so surprised, we also celebrated the news that she is Cancer free!!!

From there, the kids and I have had our schedule packed. Pool every day, crafts, books, princess play dates and most coveted time of the day....... fixing dinner.

We have had so much going on that sometimes Jax has a hard time making it to the bed before drifting in to never never land.

Rags to Riches

I often like to watch the HGTV show “Flip this House”. I think it’s amazing to watch a home that has been trashed, aged, and left with no hope restored into a beautiful place ready to welcome a family and begin a new life story. We are walking into a new season of our life and I bet we could could start our own reality show about flipping things inside out…. we like the name “Rags to Riches”.
Over the last 6 months both Cory and I have been led to begin changing our family environment. Our marriage has been restored to amazing heights, Jordan has begun to heal and grow in amazing ways, and now he is calling us to change our entire life routine as we know it today.

Friday will be my last day at Grande. I have had the blessing of working for a wonderful company for over 10 years. I have learned so much more than just telecomm over these last years. And now I am grinning from ear to ear as we step out in faith that the next season of life will hold as many and way more blessings for our family. We have been led to home school this year. And so all three kiddos will begin their new school year in a few weeks. Both Cory and I will continue our classes as well so our home will be oozing with knowledge :~)

We have struggled with the decision of my quitting for several months. I first heard we were to do this in May; however our financial situation was not able to support it. Over the last few months God has brought so many things into our path that made His will very clear for us. When He calls us to something we are to step out in faith… nothing else… He will provide our needs as long as we are doing His will and not ours. Matt 6:25-34. So were giving up the big house, maybe a car, what ever it takes to make this change. And you know what…. the joy we have already begun to have is unbelievable.
He has already begun to show us financially that He is in control. One of the verses he showed me through all of this was 1 Peter 1:17 “…live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear”. We know what were doing is out of the norm, you have NO idea how many people are looking at us with crazy eyes, even some have cautioned us or spoke words of discouragement about our actions. I have to say, it makes me feel great to see and hear all this stuff, because it means we are living different and that’s what he’s calling our family to do.
We love everyone and will try to post more often. Have a great last few weeks of summer!!!!

Honduras updates

The easiest thing will be for me to log each entry on this one post by date.

8;15pm -HOME!!!!!!!

7/18 12pm- They have boarded the plan and are on their way home. YEAH!!!!!

7/17 5pm- Container is on truck and just left the port on to the high way. There is a curfew there so it will not make the 3 hour trip all the way to Israel's home. It will go as far as it can then stop for the night and continue on in the morning. Cory and Eric will not be able to assist in unloading it from the truck so be in prayer for Israel and the driver whom will be undertaking that task. Our boy's should be home tomorrow night.

7/17 10am- The guys have been at the port with the trucker since 8. Still not released. They have extended their flight and will plan to be home Sat night now. No regulations and seems the locals aren't governed by a set of moral or ethical standards.

7/16 4pm- Customs person has just returned?????? and tells them not today, but definitely on the truck by 8 am tomorrow.

7/16 2pm- Still waiting for customs. Seems there is no sense of urgency. Cory says there are no issues in the streets, and roads have not been shut down. They are at the port in Cortez i think.

7/16 12pm- Customs is checking the contense of the container. They are hoping for it to be released in a couple of hours.


7/15 11pm- The local Honduras news is reporting that Zelaeas supporters plan to block the roads tomorrow. Please pray.

7/15 6pm- The big group should be landing soon in Austin. Cory and Eric are still working on the container issues. Please pray for them, there are still complications and the red tape is getting very frustrating. We are being charged daily for the thing sitting in the port, however the custom officials won't release it yet. We found some pictures on facebook one of the local missionaries had posted so we added them to our blog slide show.

7/15 9am- Cory called, they are headed out to try the container again. He said they postponed the soccer games because all the gear was in the container. Even though the original plans did not happen God was miraculous and he is in awe of everything. There are lots of stories and pictures to share when he gets back.

7/14 12pm- Cory texted, they made it safely to the hotel.

7/14 8am- Eric just texted to say they were packed and headed back down the mountain to San Pedro. They will be staying in the hotel tonight.

7/13 7 pm- I think Cory's phone must be out of batteries. Eric texted tonight saying they will be leaving El plan early in the morning. they will head back down the mountain to San Pedro, stay in a hotel Tuesday night and the big group will head back to Austin at noon Wednesday. Cory and Eric are hoping to be able to work out the container release and finish up some other mission business before heading back Friday at noon.

7/12 6pm- Today they went up into the mountains riding donkey's traveling to surrounding villages. Cory said he was both excited and nervous of the donkey ride. Jordan thinks it's because he will be riding it going upward on a mountain and his fear of heights may kick in. :~)We heard that a small group hiked out again last night to preach/pray in a nearby village as well. God's hand protected them as they walked back to base camp in the dark.

7/11 10pm- Got word from Rebecca tonight, the team went to homes of surrounding the village praying and witnessing from 9-1pm today. They hung out at base camp for awhile after it began to rain. This evening they went to another church service.

7/10 10pm- Cory just texted they all went to a church service there in the village. Israel and Jonathan preached . He said they sang the songs in the native language and it was so awesome. They did go ahead with out the container. They hope it will be available before Cory and Eric leave next Friday, maybe they can at least help get it to Israel's house. He says the stars are just awesome, so clear and close. He sends love to everyone.

7/10 9am- Time has come to go to the mountain. The team was up and moving early this morning. They made it to Israel's house about 9 and had one hour to go before arriving in El Plan. Cory texted me about 10 saying they made it and it was absolutely beautiful. We think they went ahead without the container. No one knows why but the Lord, we are continuing to pray and know his Will is perfect and he opens and shuts doors for a reason. He is in control and the container will make it to El Plan when He is ready. They will set up camp in a school house hanging hammocks for beds so they won't be sleeping on the floor with the bugs :~).

7/9 6pm- No container again today. Everyone is sharing that they are having great God discussions and group prayer. They will be headed for the mountains early in the morning. With or with out the container.

7/8 6pm - The rest of the team made it there about lunch time today. Seems to be more red tape regarding the container. It's there, but they can't get it out. Everyone will stay at the hotel tonight and hope to get the container in the morning.

7/6 10:pm- They had a great day. Got out of the hotel and went to a local market. They met a team of people from Tennessee who are building homes there on the outskirts of town. If our container doesn't come in tomorrow they plan to go out and help that team with their building. They ask us to continue to pray, pray, pray!! Also Cory had a cough that didn't sound very good, please lift that up as well.

7/6 12:pm- Container has not made it there yet, they have been told not until Wednesday. They are asking for prayer that it arrives early, tomorrow. Until it arrives they will be hold up in their hotel as there isn't much for them to do.

7/6 10:00am- Things are good. They are getting ready to start meeting their contacts for help with the container. Israel took them to meet some locals last night. They learned a lot about the political situation. Still no military concern . A few extra pa trolls on the street, and a small protest down town but nothing to be worried about.

7/5 4:30pm- All is "very fine". Media has hyped up the issues not at all alarming where they are in San Pedro Sula. Have checked into hotel, going to get pizza. Plan to work on connections and rent trucks for hauling container out of port Tuesday am.

7/5 12:00pm- Arrive in San Pedro Sula Honduras

Therefore go and make disciples of nations

Most of you already know that Cory felt led to travel with a mission trip this summer to Honduras. The time has come and we dropped he and a dear friend Eric at the airport this morning. We heard from them around noon, they have landed safely in Honduras and will call later with more.

Our church has a team of about 10 who have been praying and seeking God's will for this trip. Over the last several months there have been many great things come to pass that have given everyone involved a great peace that this is truly a trip with God's purpose.

A large container, like a rail road car size, was donated and trucked up to Kyle from Brownsville. in a matter of a few weeks the container was filled with supplies to build a church. Were not just talking about some wood, nails, and hammers.... but windows, front doors, cement mixers and such. There was also an enormous amount of toy's clothes, medicines, and school/household items loaded. Basically, God filled the whole thing up!!!

The container shipped out of Houston last week to Honduras. Cory and Eric are there 3 day's before and will stay 3 day's after the rest of the team. Today through Wednesday the two will be working with the local contact Israel. Eric shared a small bit of Israel's testimony on the way to the air port this morning. It was amazing. The three of them will be challenged to retrieve the container from the port and transport it to the top of a mountain into the city of El Plan.

Once the whole team is in place they will begin construction of a church building for the village. They also will be holding the second ever soccer tournament. Israel says people from villages miles away have said they will be traveling to play in the tournament. Eric said the mission trip this past March had people showing up for several hours after the games were finished very sad they had missed it.

Please lift Cory and the others up daily. Their safety, health, endurance, and testimony all are things to lift in prayer. God has chosen this special group of people to do this special task. Each one of their hearts so desires to show God's love and share his redeeming story with this village. Pray for the hearts of the villagers, that they will be open and receptive of Jesus and his saving grace.

I'll try to keep his updates posted on the blog, however because it's so expensive our daily updates may be short and sweet.

Jaxson Turns 3 !!

Our baby is growing up :-(

Jax turned three this week, the time has flown by. He is such a little man. We celebrated once with Mema and Dado on Daddy's birthday, July2, and then again with friends on the 4th. His baseball birthday cake was the best ice cream cake we've ever had. I'm sure the fact that it was 125 degrees outside while we ate it added to the wonderful cool taste.

He loved all of his gifts and has recruited everyone he can to play ball with him. I'm sitting here after church watching Jacie in her dress wearing both batters gloves playing catch. It's great, i love it!!

Love ya
TJ

Summer Stuff

Summer school has started for Cory and I so our posts have been a bit sparse. Our calendar has been full of VBS and other great Summer time activities. We have some great pictures to share, hopefully I can get them loaded tonight between my tests.

Jordan's yard business is still going strong. It's amazing how many homes would prefer let some youngsters mow their yard rather than do it themselves. It's great for the boy's, and Jordan is finding plenty of things to spend his money on. We took him to a skating road tour this weekend. It was a last minute surprise and he was in awe. 3 hours in the Katy Mills parking lot, they were beat red, but J says it was all worth it.

Jaxson was so funny yesterday at dinner. We all go around the table and give 2 things were thankful for as our prayer. When it was his turn he listed out " Mema & Dado, Granny & Papa... and golf game, and baseball game, & football game, & soccer game, & basketball game." we tried to cut him off a few times and he got frustrated with us, this boy LOVES any type of ball if you didn't already know that.

Jacie got a new dollhouse this weekend and is in heaven. She has already talked Jaxson into playing house with her. It all goes fine until he takes one of the dolls and starts smashing it into the wall over and over..... hahaha.... Mom had to step in and explain some stuff to him.. :o)

Hope everyone is having a great summer so far, check back in the next few day's for new Pictures.
Love to all!!!!!

This was my devotioal today!

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.
-- Acts 16:25
Thought:
Falsely imprisoned, Paul and Silas had been beaten "with many blows," placed in prison, and locked down in stocks. Under such horrible circumstances, they managed to praise God in hymns and pray to their Father in Heaven. Under this kind of pressure, their faith caught the attention of the other prisoners who listened to them. We need to be reminded that over the years of Christian witness, some of the most effective times of evangelism happened because Christians remained faithful and joyous people despite persecution and harassment. Nothing should limit our prayer and praise. God will use them to reach the hearts of those in the most difficult of places!
I recently had someone I love very much share with me how they had watched my marriage over the last 17 years walk itself out, and what it ment to them. I admire this person very much, and had no earthly idea they were aware of all the craziness that has been my life during these past years.

We have no idea why God allows us to walk through certain things on this earth. But we have to believe that it's to ultimately fulfill His will. He is bigger than any sickness, failing marriage, lack of confidence, loneliness, or family history we could ever hide behind. You just have NO IDEA who may be watching your actions as you walk through these earthly things.

I am sure that God has placed people in my life so that I could witness their joy over flowing, and their freedom in completely surrendering to Christ as they walked through some sort of trial. I give Him thanks for the blessing it has made in my walk, I pray I will make Him proud in my times of struggle.

Love ya
TJ

Jacie lost her first tooth :~)

Early last week Jacie told us her tooth was loose. We watched her work it back and forth all week long. Today at lunch she had Cory cut up her hamburger because it hurt to bite into it. We looked up a few minutes later because she squeaked..... and there it was in her hand.

Jaxson was in amazement. He had to inspect the situation several times. It was so cute.

She was totally excited ... and so were we!

BIC Lawn Care Services

Were so excited for Jordan. He and a friend, Gage, have started up a lawn mowing team. They have only been at it for a week, but have already earned a small fortune.

Please keep them in your prayers that God will help them find favor and prepare open harts ahead of them.

Memorial Day Weekend

What a wonderful weekend. We haven't been this many places all in one weekend in a long while. We headed to Madisonville Saturday morning and enjoyed the day celebrating Grand mom Whites 99th birthday. The kids enjoyed playing with cousins and roaming the back pasture. Cory saw a group of butterfly's and tried his hardest to create a home grown net out of the craw fish sack to catch one for Jacie. It wasn't very successful :~(. Jordan was his usual great crazy self, getting bit by donkeys and walking on top of the bridge. After that we went out to Aunt Pam and Uncle Jim's to swim a bit. Jax had a blast with Ann shooting everyone with the noodle water gun.

Then we headed to Houston to visit with Mema and Dado for a bit. Their new house is beautiful. Jacie and Jax enjoyed the long awaited "bubble bath swimming tub". They had been out there a few times and seen the huge tub before the house was finished. The anticipation had built up more than we knew. Jordan and Jacie slept in the new house while Jax tagged along with Cory and I in the trailer. Jordan said he thought it would be warmer in the house, since Mema kept it ice cold in the trailer, but no dice. We found him curled in the fetal position the next morning near frozen.... LOL..... we love you Mema :~). The kids went over to the park early the next morning and enjoyed some play time in the cool morning .

Last we dropped by the soccer fields in Spring, where Sydney was playing in a tournament. We were there for about 5 minutes when it began to POUR down rain. We were all soaked and ran for shelter. After enjoying dinner with everyone, we headed for home.

What a great weekend.

Take me out to the ball game

We went to a Round Rock Express baseball game

last weekend. Jaxson was mesmerized.

Cory knew one of the players from the other team,

OK city Redbirds. Jaxson was bug-eyed when he

saw his dad talking to one of the players.

He wanted to go out on the field so bad but we

weren't able to stay that long. Maybe next time.

Just hanging out

Last weekend was one of those great hang around the house weekends. Jordan and Gage took advantage of the great weather and skated more than should be humanly possible. The Dr. released Jordan back to full activity and we think he must have been making up for lost time.

Dado helped Jordan make this skating box and the boys are really putting it to the test. I'm amazed at how they can control the skate board so well. They even got the idea to try and make more of them and sell them on Craig's list.

Spring Classes Finished :~)))))

It's official, our spring classes are finished and all classes were passed. My phobia of taking "real true" finals is now over. They weren't as bad as I thought. And it makes it even better if you keep up with your daily grades so the final doesn't make or break the whole class.

Im trying to pick up on some of Cory's tricks, he is just crazy! I could have studied hours for an assignment and he walks in, looks at it for 30 minutes then makes a much better grade than I. It's just not fair :~(.

So we have a month off and then on to Summer 1 classes.

Thanks for all your prayers!!!!

Im prayen for Kristi Berry

So, my roommate for family camp had shown me her swollen arm and we talked about the Dr. apointment she was set up for that next week. So on Wednesday her Dr. sent her over to the ER, and after a whole day of tests in the ER she has been diagnosed with lymphoma.

This lady is unbelievable, happy, joy full, funny, bubbly, and absolutely strong in her belief of our God in heaven. Her life journey has already been colored with trials and now it looks like there will be more to come. She has set her mind to walking through this season of her life to do what ever will God has for her, in total submittion to his plan.

They have 4 children ranging from Sr. in HS to a Kindergartner. Please pray for their family with us. We have set up a face book group for her.

I think you can view this link with out being a member of FB.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=182138355290&ref=mf

Family Camp '09

Our church hosts a weekend camp for the entire family once a year. The boy's all bunk in one set of cabins and the girls in another. We live in true "summer camp" style for 3 day's eating in the cafeteria, attending scheduled activities, and enjoying free time on the camp grounds.This year was so much fun, each year their is a theme. 1st year it was 2 cowboy's, 2nd year it was superheros defending God's word. And this year it was super agents. We all dressed up in our shirts and glasses and went on spy missions throughout the weekend.

Cory and Jordan both competed in the chubby bunny contest to see who could stuff their mouths with the most marsh mellows and still say "chubby bunny", and Jordan took 3rd place. So many more fun games and fun times spent with families.

The guest speaker was Tom Tombs, he did all sorts of tricks and illusions it was great. The youth stayed up into the wee hours of the morning playing capture the flag across the whole camp ground. So needless to say, Cory and some of the other dads were walking zombies the next day. But it was all so worth it!!

Easter weekend was awesome! Mema and Dadao came up to visit and we all went to our neighborhood egg hunt. It never fails, the weather started out ok but after a few hours we were all freezing. It didn't seem to ruin the fun so that was good. Jordan was in a silly mood as you can tell by all the great face shots we got of him... this would not happen on a normal day.

After the egg hunt we piled into the truck and went to Sea World. Sesame street was there and the kids were in awe. We have enjoyed seeing all the great shows, and every night Jax remembers to be thank full for getting to see them. We are bummed that the kids aren't able to hug the characters, Jacie has been real upset a few times about that.

Aunt Pam .... we got a picture of Zoe for you!!!!! :~)

We went through the Clydesdale barn this time and all of the horses had their back sides to us. Jordan thought this was hilarious and told me to take his picture standing by one. Well, just as I snapped the picture the horse started to poop! I didn't realize just how many people were watching us until the hole barn erupted in laughter. It was the funniest thing I've ever seen.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter.

God will provide.....

Have you ever stoped to think how many times we just take things for granted? I mean really, little things that "just show up, or drop from out of nowhere"... and fall perfectly into place.

I don't believe in "plain ole luck". Everything is apart of a greater plan, I may not be able to see it in advance but if I'm watching (in tune with what God's word says and what he is doing in my life) He shows himself all around every day.

This morning I forgot my lunch at the house so I called Cory to have him put it back in the fridge. I told him I was out of cash and had no stashed food at the office and so it looked like I would be fasting today. He giggled, and said to me......." Don't worry, God will provide". Now I had no doubt someone would have a stashed microwaveable mac N cheese I could bum off of but God took it to another level.

One of our sister department members just poked their head into my office and let me know that they had BBQ brisket, potato salad, beans and the whole 9 yards down in the break room for me to come get myself some.

God provides......even the little things.

Update on J

Thank you all for praying and checking in on Jordan over the last few weeks. He is doing much better, Kevin his PT is very upbeat about how much progress Jordan has made.

J is on top of his stretches, and even takes some of them as a personal challenge to master before his next visit to Kevin.

We have about 4 more straight weeks of PT, then they will begin to ween him off slowly.

Again, thank you for all your support.

NEED PRAYER PLEASE

Jordan's lower back has been hurting him for a few months now. Over this last month the pain has gotten worse. We have been through our family Dr. and yesterday visited an orthopedic specialist. They have determined that he has Spondylolysis( I pasted in the definition below). With physical therapy for the next weeks and no physical activity they hope to reduce the pain and begin to help healing. If this doesn't work, he will be put in a back brace for several months, and then the last straw, after over 18 months of treatment, will be looking into surgery.

We are praying that he will be restored to normal health quickly, that Jordan will understand the seriousness of this injury and follow Dr. orders diligently. Also that God will make himself known to J in a personal way through this whole thing.

Thank you so much in advance for your thoughts and prayers. We love youall.

Cory & Tanya



Spondylolysis Injury Explained
A stress fracture, medically known as Spondylolysis, is the most common overuse injury of the lower back in sport. This condition is classified as either a bone stress reaction or a stress fracture of the lower back. It is especially common in growing adolescents and symptoms are often related to the 'growth spurt'. Cricket fast bowlers appear to be particularly susceptible to Spondylolysis, with a reported prevalence of 55% in some teams.
At the base of the back there are five lumbar vertebrae. The most common site for Spondylolysis is the bottom-most lumbar vertebra, called L5, where the mobile lumbar spine meets the fixed pelvis. This is because this vertebra is subject to most stress during sports.


Spondylolysis Signs & Symptoms
This condition is most common in adolescents and is quite rare beyond this age group. Spondylolysis is characterised by an ache in the lower back which is exacerbated by sporting activities and eased by rest. Typically, it is sore when the patient bends backwards, particularly if standing on one leg. If Spondylolysis is suspected, a GP may decide to refer the patient for a scan to confirm the diagnosis.

Family Christian day @ SeaWorld

We started a thing called "The Bead Jar" where the kids earn beads for good behaviour. When the jar is filled up the family gets a treat. So when they filled up their first time, we got Sea World tickets. Our friends Jaclyn and Leon did the same thing with their kids Nichole and Isaac.

Our first visit was Saturday. The day couldn't have been more perfect. We found out that the park was holding a concert with three awesome bands (Needtobreath, Third Day, Revive) , Veggie Tales were there, and Shamu was performing a special show set to christian music called Praise wave.

We enjoyed every bit of it. Jordan met a friend of his there and they headed for the roller coasters while the rest of us took off for Shamu's first show. None of the kids wanted to get wet during the first Shamu show, but during the second one , at night, everyone decided they wanted to get wet. We took a picture of them, sitting down in the splash zone seats by themselves.

The concert was awesome. It was so cool to see so many people praising God in a public amusement park. Mike just kept looking around saying "look at this.... just look at this".

The kids absolutley had a blast. I think watching the live band has given our "Birthday Band" new aspirations....... hahaha
Love yall.

1st Trip to the Dentist :~)

Jacie had her first Dentist visit this past month. She did GREAT!!! Boy have times changed. We have a new dentist office in town and it has all sort's of cutting edge stuff. There was even a TV screen where they showed us what they were doing in her mouth. Then when they got ready to start cleaning her teeth, they put on a Barbie movie for her to watch throughout the procedure. WOW~ I sure wish they had this set up back when I was a kid.

Chop-stix???

If given a choice our kids seem to choose crab legs and sushi over Mc Donalds any day. So we often have Sunday lunch at Kobe Beef. The chief puts on a show while he cooks our food, and everyone is entertained until it's time to eat.

Well, this Sunday Jaxson was insistent on using his chop sticks by himself. They are real nice and have some wrapped with rubber bands making it easier for the kids to use. The whole table, including the other people from the other side, got a kick out of watching him. He was so proud of himself each time a piece of food actually made it to his mouth.

Ball Game Fun

Jacie and I went with some friends to the Dell Diamond for a afternoon ball game. Jacie really enjoyed having all of me to herself, since we didn't bring the boys.

We decided to go more often and bring the whole gang. So more pictures to come at the ball game.

Scrappen Test

I am trying out digital scrapbooking, and had a thought. So, this is a test post to see if my uploaded scrap pages will show up if I past them in these bloggs.

TJ

We found some of the lost pictures I mentioned earlier. We put some of them together and made a few movies. One is us hanging out on Christmas day, the other is hanging with friends on New Years Eve.

Love yall.

Jordan's New Room

We painted Jordan's room while he was gone for the week . He really was surprised and loved it.

Happy Birth Day Band

Granny & Papa

Here is our newly formed Birthday Band. Hope you enjoy this as much as we enjoyed making it. Love you and Happy Birthday.

Back to the world of technology!!

Hey everyone....

I think we're back on line for good now. We had a whole house of sickness during the holiday's and then all of our computers crashed at once. Mine just got back from the shop for the 3rd time and Cory's is still being worked on. Man we had no idea how dependant we were on the Mobille technology.

Since we last posted, here's what's been going on.

Our church performed an outdoor program "A Night In Bethlehem". Cory and I were Zachariah and Elizabeth and I was with child. That was the fastest pregenancy I have ever had. Cory told me I over-acted, but I think it was just so real with all the moaning and acting uncomfortable that it brought back bad memories for him. I actually had several people who hadn't seen us in a while ask if we were truly expecting.

Christmas was great, other than having some very sick kiddos. We enjoyed seeing all our family and friends. We had some friends over for New Year's and enjoyed our first ever Wii tournament. It was a blast and the kids had such a good time....Jacie is really good at baseball.

School started for J and he moved into a few new classes. It's hard to believe he is on the down hill of his Freshman year.

Cory and I started WTAMU. These classes are on a traditional schedule, diffrent from South University's year around summer school schedule. We have one class together and during class introductions Cory put a HUGE target on our backs by telling the class that his goal was to make a better grade than I, for bragging rights.

We posted some Christmas pictures on the side view and hope to get some more soon.



Love all of you all.


TJ