May 2011

This picture is from Easter Sunday. I have not had the chance to update as often as I would like to. Since January, I have been driving 3 days a week back and forth to Norwalk. I feel as if I am becoming a permanent part of our van. Norwalk is nearly an hour away from our home, but that is where Michael is getting "Brain Balance" therapy and we are seeing some remarkable results from it. The progress that we see in him makes every hour spent on I-95 worth it. However, it leaves me in a time crunch to get everything else done. His sessions have been extended until the end of July, so we will keep wearing tracks in the road from here to there!

Tim continues to receive good reports from the oncologist, for which we are grateful. He has had a few other health concerns lately, but over all he is doing well. He has to have a root canal done - he began the process two weeks ago, but will have 2 more appointments before it is completed. That was pretty painful for him and he is not looking forward to the next two appointments, but he knows it is needed. He also recently had a reaction to one of the medications he receives once a month from the oncologist to strengthen his bones. After the IV infusion, he began to feel lethargic and dehydrated. It took about 4 days for those side effects to subside. It was unusual for this to occur, since he has had this treatment every month for several months. Anyway, he is doing well now.

Our family has again had our share of an awful stomach bug that lasted about 5-6 days. The week before Easter, Tim and all of the kids were very sick. Mark ended up in the emergency room because he had become so dehydrated he could hardly move. We also had our associate pastor's three children staying with us that same week. Pastor Fitch and Julie had gone out of town with some of our teenagers and we had agreed to keep their children all week. (Yes, I'm a great friend!) One of their kids got sick along with all of ours, so it was a tough week for me. I felt like a modern day Florence Nightingale, taking care of the sick people all day and through the night. I was exhausted, but praise the Lord I didn't get sick!!! Whew!

Yesterday was Matthew's 18th birthday. Can you believe I have an 18 year old son? I'm way too young for that!!! Actually, he was born when I was 23, so I guess I'm not that young anymore! (You can do the math.) Matthew is at Shenandoah Boys Ranch in Tennessee and is doing really well. It was so good to talk to him and hear his voice yesterday. He sounded so good. It has been a very long road with him and earlier this year, we were pretty despondent over his future. While we still are taking things with him one day at a time, we are surely enjoying the good reports we continue to receive. Thank you to all of you who sent him a birthday card. He was thrilled to hear from so many of you!

This last Saturday, I had the privilege to share our testimony with a group of about 130 ladies at Central Baptist Church in Southington, CT. It was truly an honor to do so. As I prepared, I had the opportunity to once again reflect on God's love and care over us through our difficulties. While I am NOT to the point where I am thankful for all we have endured, I am thankful for the LESSONS God has taught us and the opportunites He has given us to share His love and grace with others. It was a blessing to spend time with the ladies at Central Baptist - thank you!

Thanks for following along! Many blessings to each of you!

~Stacie

Counting Our Blessings

It's Valentine's Day and I am sitting here considering God's love for us. Earlier today, I read 1 Chronicles 16:8 that says, "Give thanks unto the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people." We have so much to thank the Lord for, starting with His amazing love, so I'm counting some of my blessings today and "making them known:"

Blessing #1:

Tim is doing well. He is fighting a cold - it seems he gets more colds now than he did before, but other than that he is doing great. He went to the oncologist for his monthly check up today and all of his levels are in the normal range. We praise the Lord for his mercy in our lives.

Blessing #2:

In the past few weeks, I have had several people say to me that they check our blog on a regular basis. Everywhere we go, people approach us and ask how Tim is doing and tell us how they continue to pray for him. I originally started this blog to help our family and church family keep up with what was going on, but I really didn't think that many other people would read it. Honestly, we are humbled by the fact that so many people still continue to follow Tim's story and pray for us every day. Thank you for following along with us. It is a real encouragement to our hearts.

Blessing #3:
December and January were very challenging months for our family, due to some problems that we were dealing with regarding our oldest son, Matthew; but the Lord answered many prayers, and showed us how much He loves us during some very difficult days. Matthew is now at the Shenandoah Boys Academy in Tennessee - it is a miracle how the Lord worked it out for him to be there. We had so many needs over the last several weeks that were left unspoken to most people, but the Lord knew what we were facing and He is faithful. We are continually amazed at how He takes care of us and comes through for us in such a way that we can only say, "Blessed be the Lord!"

Blessing #4:
Michael started a new therapy for his Autism - we make 3 trips a week to Norwalk, which is about 45 minutes away. However, it typically takes at least an hour to an hour and a half to get home because of afternoon traffic. The drive can be brutal at times, (if you live around here, you completely understand that!), but we are so glad that Michael is getting some help and we look forward to seeing him make progress in the program. We are also amazed at how the Lord has provided the funds for this therapy. I'm glad we serve a God Who is bigger than our bills!

Blessing#5:
Grandma Zac came for a visit from Pennsylvania. She will be here most of February. It is really good to have her here. She and the kids love to play Skip-Bo and they love Grandma's back-rubs!

There are so many more blessings to count, but I'll stop for now. One of our favorite verses says, "O taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man that that trusteth in Him." (Psalm 34:8)

Have a "Lovely" Valentine's Day! :)

January, 2011

Well, we have had a crazy start to 2011! Some one in our family has been sick since December 22nd! I have either been sick myself or have been taking care of someone who is sick. Can we rewind and start 2011 over again? I have lost the first 2 weeks of January! We have had ear infections, bronchitis, strep throat, sinus infections and worst of all---the dreaded stomach bug! All of us got the stomach bug in the same week and it was a tough one! But, we think we are finally over it now. Today, everyone has been able to eat and no one has been sick, so we are making progress. Our church family has brought us a smorgasbord of soups over the last few day to help us. They are so good to us and they certainly know how to make some delicious soups! We are grateful that we are all feeling better now, and pray that we will stay healthy the rest of the winter.

Tim went to the oncologist yesterday, and everything looks good. His doctor is pleased with the results his blood work and the cancer is quiet, for which we are so grateful.

We are looking forward to the new year. We have several plans for our church as we continue to steadily grow. Since arriving in Branford in August, Pastor Fitch and Julie have been a tremendous addition to our church and a real encouragement to our family personally. We are blessed to have them here and look forward to what the Lord has for us this year.

Merry Christmas!

God has brought us through another year. The last few years have been a huge challenge to our family, but it has made us stronger and our walk with the Lord has been deepened. We are so grateful for how well Tim is feeling now --the doctors are just going to monitor him monthly to stay on top on anything that might develop or change.

The kids are doing well and keep us very busy. Matthew (17) has entered the Job Corps program in Massachusetts. He will be home for a 3 week vacation and then return to the program in January. He is studying the security/military track and seems to be adjusting well. Michael (13) is growing faster than we can keep up with! He will be starting a new therapy in January - he was recently diagnosed with Autism. We are very excited about this program and look forward to seeing him progress in the coming months. Mark (6) and McKayla (7) are two peas in a pod! They love school and are looking forward to being in both the school and church Christmas programs this year.

May you and your family have a wonderful Christmas celebrating the birth of our Savior. Thank you for your love, support and prayers for our family.

-Tim and Stacie

Test Results

One of my doctors called today with the test results that I have been waiting for. I struggle with any explanation because it is very complex and I do not fully understand it myself. Both of my doctors hesistate in saying that I am definitively in remission anymore, but the tests seem to show that my cancer is at least being held at bay. Overall my doctors are cautiously optimistic. I will take that as good news for now. They will continue to monitor me monthly. I feel good and God is in control. My cancer could become active at any time, so continue to keep me in prayer.


We hope that you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

-Tim