Yet Will I Praise Thee

For several months we have been cautiously watching a lump on Dick's scalp.  In 2003 and again in 2006, when lumps appeared on his scalp they turned out to be a recurrence of B-cell Lymphoma, which he's been fighting since 1996.   Finally in August Dick visited his oncologist, who scheduled a surgery to have it removed.  He was quite sure it was merely a cyst.  The surgeon agreed, even on the day of the surgery.  Of course it was sent for a pathology test.  We did not hear a thing about that test and were feeling completely unconcerned about it.  What a surprise two weeks later, when Dick returned to the surgeon to have his stitches removed, to find out that it was not a cyst, but indeed B-cell Lymphoma.  

I was here at home that Friday morning when Dick called with the news.  I was completely unprepared for it.  An unpleasant array of thoughts and emotions bombarded me.  "We can't get a break!!  I'm SICK of having bad news to tell our children!!  I'm so tired of trying to figure out a budget on our low incomes - how can we do it with days off for chemo and stupid chemo co-pays????  Is this the time they're going to find Lymphoma all through his body because we waited too long?  Will I have to watch him get sick and die?  GOD!!!!!!"  I cried, I screamed.  At some point I thought of a song we used to sing at Grace back in the late 80's - Yet Will I Praise Thee.  I found it in an old notebook, pulled it out, and did the only thing I know to do at times like this.  I DECIDED to praise Him even though everything in me was mad at Him.  (Psalm 50:23 says that when we offer a SACRIFICE of thanksgiving we honor Him and open the way for Him to show His salvation.) 

I have kept that sad-looking copy of the song on my piano since that day.  Many times I have sat down just to sing it once again.  We told our children our bad news AGAIN.  We asked for prayer at our churches up here as well as down home.  Dick's oncologist scheduled a PET scan to see if there was evidence of active Lymphoma elsewhere in his body.  

Wednesday morning was the PET scan.  He was told that they'd have the results in a day or two.  

Yesterday morning as I sat at the church office assembling bulletins, I once again pondered the impending news.  How would I react, I wondered?  

I remembered times past.  In 1996, when a surgeon came out to the waiting room to tell me that the growth they had removed from his hip was definitely cancer, I completely fell apart.  I felt that surely I would never stop crying.  I was entering a tunnel that I could not back out of.  After a few phone calls to our parents, our pastor, and my school, I experienced for the first time the AMAZING way that the prayers of others can truly carry us.  I will never forget it.  

In 2003, when we received the very disappointing news that the lumps on Dick's scalp were a recurrence of Lymphoma, I was ready for it.  A few months prior I had watched God work out a truly messy situation that had almost undone me.  At that time I had promised the Lord that the next time I was faced with something difficult I would trust and praise Him IN the situation, not just after He worked it out.  So I was ready for the bad news that time.  Here was my chance to do what I had promised the Lord I would do.  

There have been more cancer diagnoses and treatments, a shocking job loss for Dick, a huge move, and SO MANY opportunities to put this into practice since then.  You would think I would have it down pat by now, right??  Wrong!  I still battle with a heart of stone, a feeling of  "poor us", a need to scream.  So yesterday I sat and pondered how I would react this time.  I really wanted to be able to trust that we would get through yet another interruption in our lives.  But I was feeling very, very tired of always having bad news, always needing prayer for one thing after the next. 

And right then came a text message from Dick.  "No chemo needed.  Details later."  I immediately texted back, "CALL ME!"  He did.  Wow, wow, wow!!!  They told him that, in fact, the enlarged lymph nodes near his heart that they have been watching the past few years have DECREASED in size!!  There was no evidence of active Lymphoma anywhere else in his body.  No treatments needed.  They would see him in six months!  

I seriously didn't know what to do with myself!  I wanted to dance, to scream and cry for joy, to fall down before the Lord in Thanksgiving!  I had my Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir channel playing on Pandora.  How appropriate!!  One powerful praise song after the next!  I sat there assembling bulletins as I cried and cried from relief and thankfulness.  Like Lisa said, after getting bad news so many times before, you just kind of assume the worst.  So it was especially sweet to hear GOOD NEWS!  

This morning I looked on YouTube, and sure enough the song that blessed me so much on an early tape from Integrity, led by Kent Henry, was there!  I hope you have time to let it bless you.  This is the song I've been choosing to sing these past few weeks.  I'm so glad I did.  YET Will I Praise Thee!

Happy Birthday, Sammy!

I tried to do this post from my phone before I went to sleep last night, but Blogpress was acting up.  So here it is a day late.

Yesterday it was already a YEAR since Sammy entered the world!!  And he's been charming Sam and Jenn, their families, and all my Facebook and blog friends ever since!  Here are pictures from then and now.

Jenn says he's walking all around on his own now and is working on upping his speed, hahaha!  I can't WAIT to see him at his birthday party on Saturday.

I also got a Facebook page for Music@Home.  Go ahead and "like" it and feel free to share anything I've posted there with your homeschooling family and friends. 

Fun CRAZY weekend

This has been a fun, crazy several days.  Lori had to leave for a conference in San Antonio on Thursday and is just returning this evening, so of course we helped Anthony out with Austin.  But adding to the fun of that was the arrival of Jeremy from DC on Friday.  His friend Mike had to go home to  Pittsburgh for an event this weekend, so their friend Kim came along with Jeremy.  And on Saturday Jeremy's long-time friend Daryl from Lancaster County came up, so we had a houseful!  Oh! And how could I forget Molly, Jeremy's dog?  Just put Molly and Austin in the same room and there is no further reason to explain fun or crazy!  They have a definite love/hate relationship.  

The reason for Jeremy's trip was his car.  His trusty Honda that he bought in 2003.  It moved him from PA to Florida in 2004, where there is no required annual car inspection.  Then it moved him from Florida to DC in 2011, where he had a parking spot in the garage under his building, thus no need for a DC  license plate or a car inspection.  But all that is changing since he'll be moving to a house next weekend where he'll need a street parking permit, which requires a DC license plate, which requires a car inspection, which requires a trusted mechanic to do the work to get it ready for said inspection, which required a trip to dear old Dad!

Jeremy and Kim arrived late Friday morning.  We took his car to Bastian Tire, where Dick works, then we had fun shopping for groceries for the weekend.  

On Friday evening Anthony and Austin came here for our tilapia and sweet potato fries dinner, and that's when we realized the circus that ensues between Austin and Molly!  Later Anthony went out with Jeremy and Kim while I got Austin to sleep for the night and Grandpa chilled with Molly.  

Saturday morning Kim made her scrumptious breakfast casserole.  In the afternoon Daryl arrived.  We've known Daryl for a long time, ever since he and Jeremy both worked at Martin's Flooring in Lancaster County.  I even knew his parents names, but never put two and two together until Saturday.  Turns out I know half his relatives!  And his parents lived with my sister Janet and her husband when they were young married couples doing Voluntary Service in Lakeland, Florida!  We were just howling laughing as I made one association after another - the true Mennonite game!!

 
In the evening we took my curried sweet potato and chickpea stew to Anthony's house.  Afterward we had a "ball" playing with Austin in his big playroom.  He loves anything loud and rough, so we had a great game of bombardment going on.


On Sunday after church we went to Hoss's for lunch.  Good grief, that place was freezing cold with the AC blowing right on us.  And it was cool outside! (This picture is funny - it looks like the hubcaps of the cars are running ahead on their own!!)

And then it was time for the "kids" to leave, and this tired mom needed a nap!

Not everything was fun this weekend, unfortunately.  Dick was unable to finish Jeremy's car repairs due to wrong parts ordered, so we spent a good bit of time putting our heads together to figure out a plan.  He ended up taking Dick's pickup truck to DC, Dick will finish his car this week, then go down to DC next weekend and help him move.   Also, Jeremy had a zit just inside his nose that became inflamed, and then turned into an angry infection that caused his face to swell (as you can probably see on the picture.)  He had been planning to sing "You Raise Me Up" at Hourserville, but that was out of the question by Sunday morning.  Hopefully some other time he can bless Houserville (and his mama!) with his wonderful voice.  He called this morning from the doctor's office where he was given an antibiotic that will hopefully soon do its job.   We really did have a good time in spite of those issues.

After Sunday afternoon naps were finished Dick and I took Austin to our favorite playground.  But, oh MY!  If was 55 degrees and breezy!  Boohoohoo!  That's how I feel about saying goodby to summer!

I know there's a mama trying to get back from San Antonio today who is REALLY missing her noisy boy!

The Musical Keyboard DVD

At last!!  The third DVD in my Music@Home series is available!  The Musical Keyboard is a thorough introduction to the keyboard and how it "matches" with the musical staff.  All three videos are geared to younger elementary students, but students of any age who have never learned these basics would benefit from them.  

If you are a homeschool family, or you know someone who is, please check out my recently updated Music@Home website.  Help me spread the word!

Destiny's birthday weekend

Destiny's 12th birthday was on Friday.  We weren't able to celebrate it with her that day, but on Saturday morning we drove to Reading to watch her cheer at a football game.  It was a perfect day - bright and sunny, but not too hot. 

After the game we drove to the Castle Roller Rink in Lancaster.  J'von's mother dropped him off there, and they had so much fun together.  What made it especially fun for me was that it was free!  They said it would be $14 for the two kids and their skates.  Then Destiny said,  "My birthday was yesterday."  And they decided to waive the charge!  

From there we took them to Friendly's for dinner and dessert.  Another fun time.  They just love being together. 

We spent the night at Grandma Mary's.  All of us were exhausted from our big day and went to bed by 10:00.  
This morning we finally were able to go to church at Grace Community Fellowship, our home church.  We had not been there since April!  There was not nearly enough time to talk with all the people that I really wanted to.  Destiny had another game this afternoon, so we had a schedule to keep.

Back at Grandma Mary's for lunch, I told Destiny to let me take a picture of her before she changed out of her "church clothes."  What a beautiful 12-year-old!

 

My sister Mary Ellen was also there for lunch, and a DELICIOUS lunch it was.   And take a look, Witmers - that is some of Mary Ellen's wonderful partially thawed applesauce in the foreground of the picture.  Yum!!

 

We had to eat quickly, pack up, and head back to Reading for the game.  It was another gorgeous day.

After the game we took Destiny to another birthday celebration, this time at Frank's biological mom's house.   Here's Destiny with her grandma Maria.  You can see where Destiny gets her height!

We said our goodbyes to her and headed for home.   It was a really good weekend, but OUCH!  Those gas prices hurt!!

An evening with Dick and Nancy; cute grandchildren pics

We had such a fun evening with my brother Dick and his wife Nancy.  They are camping in this area and came for dinner. 

This was their first time here at our house.  It was also their first chance to get away from home in a long while.  Nancy's brother Earl recently died after a long battle with brain cancer.  Dick and Nancy were the most faithful family members anyone could ever want at a time like that.  Every evening for months they would head to her brother's place around 9 pm and spend several hours with him and his wife.  They would read scriptures he asked for, sing songs, pray, help take care of many details.  In fact, they watched first hand as he gradually went from, "Don't quote any Bible verses" to "Please sing the songs we sang at church growing up."  They describe this summer as hard, intense, but sacred.  Worth every hour they spent with him. 

On a completely different note, I want to share some great photos of some of our grandchildren.  First of all, one that Lisa posted of Sophie with her best friend Maggie - at age 3 and age 7.  Is this delightful or what??

And Frank and Lauren's little Jada is three weeks old already!!  What a beautiful little doll!  I do hope we get a chance to see her before she's too much bigger.  Our schedules and distance make it very hard to get together. 

On Saturday Sam and Jenn took Sammy for his one-year-old pictures.  Here's some cute shots of him with a little red car!  What a ham!

DVD finished; visit from Jeremy; service in the park

We seemed to have whirlwind week, I guess because Monday was a holiday, and then there were only four days left.  

Anthony and I finally got all the editing finished and the DVDs ordered for my 3rd Music@Home video.  My shoulder surgery and recovery as well as some very ambitious new projects Anthony has been working on in his own recording business have slowed our progress on this one.  Hopefully by next week I can finally say it's available.  

We had our first practice after a summer break with the Fillmore choir.  It was fun to back at Judy's house again with the gang.

On Friday I found out that Jeremy, his dog Molly, and his friend Mike were coming up from DC for the weekend.  So Friday evening Dick and I were cleaning and doing yard work.

Saturday morning I had a sweet time at our monthly women's prayer breakfast, and by noon our DCers arrived.  I made my cream of tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch, and then we all just chilled for the afternoon.  It was raining outside and just perfect weather for napping.  Jeremy's work schedule with Regency Furniture is absolutely insane, so when he comes here he's not looking for adventure and activity.  He's looking for Mom's comfy sofa from Regency Furniture.  (-:

Anthony and Lori picked up take-out from Cozy Thai in State College and brought it here.  I took this pic with my cell phone, which seems to be taking increasingly blurry pictures.  I need to update one of these days.  Trust me, the food was amazing, and we had a good time.

Later, after Anthony and Lori left, we watched a movie, We Bought a Zoo.  It was really a sweet, sometimes funny, sometimes sad movie.  I loved it.  

After church today we met Anthony, Lori, and Austin at the Waffle Shop, which Mike had never been to.  This is the way you eat chocolate chip pancakes:  you pick them up in your hand and eat the chocolate chips out of them!

Ready to dig in!

  
The DCers left around 3:00.  

This evening at 6:00 the Fillmore church  had a service of healing and remembrance in the park right near our community.  The local Salvation Army captain spoke about his experience at Ground Zero a few weeks after 9/11.  I doubt there was a dry eye.  I wished I could go somewhere and sob.  We had prayer for healing and also communion.  It was a beautiful service and a lovely setting.  And quite a nip in the air!

Our Labor Day fun

On Sunday we left right from church for Reading.  We found out on the way there that Destiny's cheering squad would be cheering at a game at 3:00.  It wasn't exactly in our plans, but I was eager to see her cheer, so we adjusted our plans a little bit.  It really was fun to watch her.

  

Here's one of her favorite cheers - ATTACK.

When the game was over we went to a family reunion at my Uncle Earl and Aunt Irene's - later than I had hoped, but most people were still there and we had a wonderful time.  Uncle Earl is one of my mother's brothers.  The three (out of ten) siblings who are still living were there as well as a number of cousins.  I had never been to Earl and Irene's home, but had often heard how beautiful a setting it was.  I LOVED it!

We spent the night and this morning at Dick's parents.  It was great to have time to just hang out, relax, and have fun with them.  Dad was burning some brush.  He LOVES his woods.

Destiny and Grandma Arlene were having an animated conversation.

 

We met up with Sam, Jenn, and Sammy at the Pizza Hut in Lititz.  Sammy has started taking steps by himself this week and has also learned to wave hi and bye-bye.  We need to see that boy every week to keep up with him!

Then we went to see Grandma Mary.  Dick and I both took naps while we were there.  When I woke up I wondered what Destiny was doing and found her having a grand time with Grandma's toys!  I guess you're never too old!

Of course, you know what Grandma Mary was doing - just getting "a little something" for us to eat!  

Here's a quilt she's working on.

This close-up view shows the difference her hand stitches make - the bottom row has already been stitched, but the upper row has not.  Lots of patience required!

After we ate her delicious meal we said our goodbyes and headed to Reading to take Destiny home.  This was a very cloudy, dreary, humid day, and we drove through a lot of dark, heavy clouds, but not too much rain on our way home to State College.  

And here it is Monday evening already!  It seems so much like it's a Sunday evening.  I just hope I can keep my days straight this week.