House for Sale!

I know it has been forever. I have so much to get caught up on but it just seems I don't have time or I am exhausted. So I will start by stating this...our house is for sale. About 18 months ago we thought we would try to sell our house and see what happened. We didn't have a plan but we just thought we would test the waters. Well after about 3 months on the market we decided to go ahead and stay put. It was perfect because I ended up going back to work and lots of changes and adjustments took place and it was truly better that we were here. God really guided us through that and protected us from a potential bad decision. He also provided us with a great opportunity to buy a lakehouse. So now we own two homes. Needless to say taking care of two homes is really hard. Two yards, two sets of bills, two places to clean is hard work. We love going to the lake whenever we feel like it and we have done some serious praying. We have decided to permenately move out to the lake. The lakehouse needs some work and some tlc but in all honesty we really want to raise our children on the lake. So we feel like it is just one step closer to meeting our goals. With all that said, our house was listed just a little over a week ago. We are really trusting God that he will provide the right buyer. We have done so much work to make our current house our home and we hope that someone else will want to make it their home. I believe God is going to bless this move and provide us with an opportunity to build beautiful family memories on the lake. Please join me in praying that God would put together this puzzle for us and send us a buyer at the right time. Please pray that we would be able to make all the adjustments when we move that would make it easy for all members of our family. Please just pray that God would be completely entwined in this process.

I don't have any pictures to post but I promise on upcoming posts with more updates I will post pictures! Hope to be back soon especially since we only have 10 more school days left.

Christmas 2010

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1,2,3...All together smile! OR CRY!

Our visit to Santa that I described in the previous post. Well here was the outcome. I can't help but laugh. My two girls are just polar opposites. Maddie has always loved Santa...I am sure next year we will have two smiles instead (at least I hope).

Potty training and a nativity scene

Christmas is almost here! I am so thrilled to be celebrating Christmas time with my family. The time off of work has been great. We have really relaxed and been pretty lazy. We have shared some dinner dates, light watching, and other festive activities with friends and family. I have done zero picture taking as of right now but I will pull it out for the big day. I think I needed the break from work more than I realized. It has been a gift in itself.

Maddie had the flu last week but she is all better and enjoying the holidays as well. We have been trying to keep reading books and doing some school type stuff occasionally but really we have just enjoyed dressing up, dancing, and Wii playing. It has been wonderful.

Mollie is doing great. We have decided to get committeed to potty training. We started Monday and she has done really well. She has had a few accidents here and there but I am so proud of her. She doesn't get the poop in the potty part yet so any suggestions at this point would be great. The rest of it is wonderful. We have totally focused on the positive and have been super patient. She amazes me. She can hold it for a long time though! I am talking hours on end. We ask her often to let us know if she needs to potty but she usually responds with a no. She comes running at us when she is ready so I guess she just likes to do it in her own way. I am proud of her.
On another note, Mollie will be going back to Children's Hospital on Dec. 31st We will meet with their infectious disease doctor to discuss options besides surgery. We will see if there is anything else we could do. The affected area actually looks terrible. There are three large bumps and two of them are turning purple and causing the skin to peel and appear irritated. The doctors told us they could probably rupture through the skin and drain by themselves. As gross as that will be it could have the end outcome of completely going away after draining. We will just have to find some type of way to keep her little fingers from messing with it. I have one picture where you can kind of see what it is doing but it isn't that great. It was taken with my phone.
She has acted pretty good and started to enjoy the holidays as well. I think her favorite part is the advent calendar. Every morning we open the window and she gets a piece of chocolate. She and Maddie have shared this tradition so sweetly. It has been fun.

I have so much to be thankful for. I can't wait to see the girls faces light up, tear into presents, and sing happy birthday to our savior. On of my favorite highlights this season is that fact that Maddie asked Santa for a Nativity Scene. I think he was even surprised. He told her that it caught his attention when she said that and then he asked her what it was all about and she gladly told him "Jesus' Birthday" I was so proud I even had tears in my eyes! God works in mysterious ways because I had bought a wooden nativity scene for her earlier in December and about two days after the purchase out of no where she told me she was going to ask for one from Santa.



Merry Christmas to all!

catching up...

We are home today sick...more poor Maddie has had a fever for the last three days. It seems to be some type of virus. She doesn't act like she feels bad but can't go to school when you have fever.

I am so excited about Christmas. I love this time of year and having kids makes it so much more fun. I enjoy seeing them light up when we put the tree up, look at gifts, talk about Santa, write letters to Santa, and so much more. We got a new tree this year. It was about time. When we first got married my parents gave us their old tree that was almost thirty years old. It has been fine to use over time but lets face it after 30 years it was time for a new one. We got a nine footer that was pre-lit. It was a Christmas present in itself. I went out and got some new ornaments too. I would like to get some more but we will just have to add some new ones each year till we get it just right. Don't worry though the old tree is still getting some use. We put it up out at the lakehouse. We wanted to decorate both houses since we will be spending time in both locations during Christmas.

Just like everyone else, we have been busy lately. It seems like birthday parties, Christmas parties, family gatherings, litter our calendar every week. Sometimes I wonder if life will slow down but if I am realistic it probably won't.

Enough talking here are some random pictures. I need to upload the camera to the computer but I just haven't done it in awhile.

Disney, Cat Scan, Revelation

So much has happened in the last month I hardly know where to begin. We had the opportunity to go to Florida over Halloween and go to Disney World for one day, which by the way was awesome! However, that is a whole other post in itself.

After we arrived back from or trip we received a phone call from our infectious disease doctor that he felt like we needed to go ahead and see the ENT again so that he could remove the lymph nodes. This was a surprise to us because we thought he wanted to wait a few more weeks to make that decision. Nonetheless we got into the ENT a few days later as a priority appointment. After a good examination and a lot of questions the dr. told us he felt it necessary to remove them. However, he was concerned that there could be permanent paralysis to her lower lip as a result of surgery. He therefore wanted us to get a cat scan done so that he would have enough information to prepare for the surgery. I was floored that this was even a risk but thankful that he wasn't just willing to cut her open. The dr. also said that he had two doctor friends at Children's hospital in Dallas that he was going to review her case with and seek their opinions as well. I loved that idea! So today we had the cat scan. Needless to say I have been pretty nervous about the whole thing because they would be using anesthsia so that she would be still and because she would have to have and IV. There were a few hiccups during the day and most of us ended up with throw up on us but I must admit it went really well. I know that sounds crazy, but God had His hand completely on us. My 2 year old laid in a hospital bed for an hour and a half with an IV in her hand. She cried a little but remained still for the majority of the time. She allowed BP cuffs, thermometers, poking, and even the removal of her IV without hardly putting up a fight. I was so proud of her and knew that God was rocking us in His lap during the entire day. We won't know the results for several days but next week we should find out when the surgery will be to remove these lymph nodes.

I can't end this update like this because I would be leaving out the most vital information. Over the last few months all of these health issues have been a heavy burden and a lot to deal with. After so many internal conversations, questions, and tears I still felt completely overwhelmed. As a parent you do anything in your power to take care of your children and seeing them suffer and go through so much is difficult to say the least. A little over a week ago before Mollie's ENT appointment our Sunday school class prayed over her. It was so emotional and so powerful to me. I felt God's presence and moving in my heart. That day was also the kick off to our revival. Being able to experience God in a different way was something I won't forget. I finally realized I was still trying to handle all of this myself. God was telling me I was placing my children first instead of putting him first. I am not saying that God was punishing me because I don't believe that is true but I am saying I realized I had lost sight of what I needed to be placing my love in first and making my first priority. It happened so easily and I am ashamed but I see that now. I laid my baby at Jesus feet and totally gave it to Him. I felt peace and reassurance right away and even though there are things that are scarey I know I have the Creator with me. He loves her more than I do and I find so much peace knowing that. I believe that he provides everything and that I don't have to endure this alone but that He will develop in me greater Faith and character, and my prayer is that Mollie herself will see that faith one day and love the Lord back. I have the opportunity to continue to be His light and reflection during this time. So all praise goes to God for the blessings he poured on us today and the ones he continues to rain down.

Wordy Update!

Being that it has been almost a month since my last blog, I thought I should go ahead and update. I am going to use the excuse that we have been really busy but honestly who isn't busy? Well, be prepared this may end up being a long post...

Trey: He is doing really good. Work has been busy and keeping him running all over the place. Don't think I am complaining because I am not. Busy-ness beats the alternative. He has been so helpful with school, doctor appointments, and all the other day to day stuff. He had a college alumni game back in September which is always something he looks forward to. Even though they didn't win they had fun trying to be young again! Haha! He has also been really involved with hunting this year. He has joined up with his brother to be on a deer lease, added feeders and cameras out on a friends land and made many a trips to multiple locations to check game cameras, ect. He hasn't shot any deer yet, especially since it is only bow season right now, but he has shot quite a few hogs. In East Texas hogs are really a problem and Trey takes pride in doing his "Civic duty" or so he refers to it as this and one by one riding the area of them. It is all fun and I myself enjoy hearing his stories and seeing him light up as he talks about it. In fact about a week ago, we got a sitter for the girls and headed out to a friend's land. We climbed up about 15 feet in a tree and sat in the dark for 2.5 hours waiting for the hogs to come in. It was quality time together and I enjoyed being outside in the woods as well.

Maddie: I must start with saying that she loves, loves, loves school. She has something to tell me everyday. She has started buying her lunch on occassion as well. She says her favorite part of the day is riding the bus over to my school which is less than 0.25 miles away. She has started bringing home books to read and she is doing really well. I am so proud of her. She even wants to do math workbook pages. I am so glad she has a love for school. They had a fundraiser recently and she was one of the top three sellers for the school. The top sellers got to ride in a limo to the local burger place in town for lunch. Then they had a dance contest, which she won for all the girls in the school. Finally they had a money wheel to spin. She won $10. Needless to say, she had an AWESOME day at school. Last week she also brought home her first report card. She did wonderful in everything and didn't have any negative marks. It made Mommy and Daddy so proud of her! She is also still doing gymnastics. She is doing so well. She is very agile and learns really quickly. She will be testing for level three pretty soon. Level 3 is when they start competing in gymnastics. I am not sure if I am ready for that but we are happy that she loves it so much. Last week, she even asked if she could start taking private lessons with a coach! This girl is dedicated! Everywhere we go she is cartwheeling all over the place. We are so lucky to have a her as a sweet daughter. She loves Jesus and is even telling other kids at school about him.




Mollie: Mollie is adjusting well to all the new things going on. She loves staying with Mrs. Shannon and playing at her house. I think she does pretty well or at least Mrs. Shannon makes me feel like she is doing ok! Mollie is definitely in the terrible two's. We didn't experience too much of that with Maddie but Mollie is making up for that. We are trying our best to stay consistant and take it one day at a time. Things get better and then she tests us again. At times it is very difficult but then she will cuddle up on our laps and just love on us like nothing else and all my worries fade away. She is starting to talk more. I think being with another 2 year old is helping her. Not all of her words are very clear but we are just happy to hear her starting to try! YEAH Mollie! The lack of communication is very trying and often makes the fits harder but God is carrying us through and we are working through it all. Mollie is also in gymnastics. Not every week is great but she is doing well and learning lots of things. She does like it and is really good at forward rolls. It is her favorite skill. Many times she runs past everything else, cuts in line, and rolls down the mat...getting in trouble the whole time. Trey and I just laugh all though I know her coaches are probably frustrated. It is just too cute how much she likes it. Every week she gets better and better. Last week we went back to the infectious disease doctor. She is right now on two incredibly strong antibiotics. They make her tee tee and poop orange as well as her tears. They are very hard on her liver too. Therefore, she has to have her blood taken every two weeks to ensure there is no damage being done to her liver. All of this has been difficult to swallow. They believe that it is still Non-tuberculosis mycobacterium but they aren't 100% sure without a biopsy. The doctor feels like as long as the lymph nodes being affected don't increase in size or change texture then we are making progress. We will be on this medicine for at least another month. The meds are the same things they treat patients with full blown tuberculosis so you can imagine how a little toddler body handles them. God is good though, because we could be dealing with lymphoma or something worse. We are praying that he will keep his hand of protection on her and help the doctors to discern and diagonose correctly. Mollie is my little angel. Even though her temper is strong it just shows me that she is a fighter. I am so proud of her because she has gone through so much at such a young age. I know that as she grows up she will know how to persever through trials great and small. It is strange how your heart can break and be inspired at the same time.



Me: Well, school is well underway and I think I am finally getting my feet under me. I have a great class and I feel a unique opportunity with the kids I have. I have had a few break downs as I too have had to adjust to going back to work but I don't think things could be going better. We have had some amazing friends help us through all of this. Even friends bring us dinner on the first day of school and invite us over when times are tough to make it a little easier. We are lucky to have people like the Prewitt's in our lives. They are the definition of "church" and friends. They minister to our family and our hearts all the time. I was so routinely working out before I went back to school and I haven't been able to go as much as I would like. I had lost 25 lbs before school started and even though I haven't been able to go to the gym as often as before I haven't gained it back. I was afraid I might. I think I underestimate how much exercise I actually get at school. I also participated in a Women's ministry event at our church. I was in charge of decorating a table for a dinner event with a guest speaker. My Mom came for the event and it was lots of fun. Right now I am looking forward to Halloween. We will be going to Florida to spend four days in Tampa to visit Trey's dad as well as go to Disney World for one day. It is a special treat. The last year we got to trick or treat in Maryland and this year we will do it in Florida. We might just have to make this a yearly tradition.




There you have it a major Carlile Crew update! I told you it would be long.