TRAVEL DAY
This was technically Luke's travel day. His last day before leaving to Provo for us. We tried to make the most of it. He and I got to go do endowments at the Bountiful Temple in the morning. Stopped for some Great Harvest as per tradition on the way down the hill. When we got home we began the big packing session! This was probably kind of a relief for Luke. I know it was for me too. We knew we had almost everything, we just wanted to see it all fitting in the suitcases and such. I did most of it again, unfortunately. I probably shouldn't do that, but Luke was pretty attentive. After going through his list, we only needed a few more things, so after he ate his Panda from Jeremy Giatras, we went to Walmart and finished off the list. We ran into another elder who is going to the MTC tomorrow as well. He is actually going on a mission to Peru. Different mission from Brad, but it was fun to talk to him. Luke loved being waved at a few times :). We finally found a watch that he likes. Got some Skittles, soap box, toothbrush box, shampoo, flossers, razors, all that good stuff and then came home to finish packing. I was so proud of how well everything fit in his suitcases. He just took the two big ones and his backpack and crossbody bag. We put all of his clothes in one and everything else in the other. It fit rather nicely. We never did weigh anything. Hopefully it isn't too heavy going to Texas. We had a nice time together getting it all situated and I think it felt good to Luke to have this done too. After packing and the kids got home, we learned that our Boondock's plans were thwarted- it was closed! So we hurried and came up with a new plan. We ended up at Bountiful Bowl instead! This was a really fun last hurrah with Luke! I feel like it went really well. The girls brought their boys so it was a full house. We played two games. It was fun to see everyone getting into this and watching Luke and Noah try out their curve balls every time. Sadie was a top scorer with her ramp and everyone seemed to enjoy the fries :). It was a fun outing. I am glad we made time for it. We grabbed some pizza on the way home and pigged out at almost 8:00 on that for a late dinner. Lots of hugs when the girls left. We had Luke lead our study discussion that night. We talked about faith being the opposite of control instead of doubt. He did great! I love his confidence when he's teaching! Very cool. I was able to fill his suitcase with sticky notes with lots of fun things on them :). This might just be annoying, I don't know, but it makes me happy to do it. Hopefully he is happy as well. Last night with Luke at home. Sadie burst into tears tonight at the thought of Luke leaving. Took me a while to figure out what was bothering her and when I calmed her enough to talk she said, "I just don't want Luke to go". Then later as I was getting her to sleep she said, "It's just hard every time my brothers go on missions" and "I miss Lukey already". 10-1-24
MTC DROP OFF
Well, this day actually came. I don't know why it had to come so fast, but it did! Maybe not for Luke until the last week or so, but here we are. Everyone was kind of in a funk all morning. I decided since it was late start for the older kids and short day for the younger ones, we'd just miss all of school that day! Easier. Yes, I've gotten soft on this. But it was a good morning. Getting all the last minute finishing touches, packing his backpack full of everything last minute since I didn't want to unleash the sticky notes here by opening up the suitcases. Luke seemed like he was in a good mood. Very solemn, everyone kind of was, but a good mood. We went and picked up Erika at school- she had Hope Squad. Then headed down to meet the girls at Chick-fil-a in Provo. This is a fun time, everyone is anxious, but happy and we all laugh and talk. It feels good. Then we headed over to the Provo City Center temple. Just seemed like a fun place to say our last goodbyes. We didn't do as much of that as we did walk around and talk. But as we were getting back into the car to go to the MTC, we remembered tha tthis was it! So there were some tears and big hugs. Luke didn't crack a tear, but I could see it in his face- this is a huge sacrifice for him. I'm so proud of him and the choices he is making. He's going to be so blessed. That's what makes it okay. So many tears from everyone else and a few times of "Tell everybody I'm on my way" from Brother Bear and we were at the MTC. It was kind of trafficky so that was weird, but we got in the parking lot, they let us all out to get a picture and hug some more, I loved that whoever suggested it got us to group hug and the cute Elder helping us got a picture! This was a tough moment. We piled back into the van and waved goodbye to my cute little Lukey. When I looked back at him as I got in the car all I could see was my little boy with the look of courage and strength and some anxiousness in his eyes. I have seen that face so many times. Luke is not a scared person. He does not flinch easily. He's very brave and has done so many things outside of his comfort zone. I have seen his testimony grow over these last 18 years and I know he is ready for this challenge. I know that he will be successful. I am excited to see how and who he touches and the miracles I know he will experience. But in that moment, I just wanted to go back and grab him and toss him back in our car and take him home with me. I have had so much fun with him these last few months and I have enjoyed just being in his company. He is a good conversationalist and so good at listening. I will miss that so much. I know he is where he needs to be. I really wouldn't have him anywhere else. We were able to calm Sadie enough to get her back in her seat and everyone else got into the car and had to quickly find a bathroom for Jack and then get the girls to their car and then we stopped at their place. But not without a lot of tears from the sibs. Poor Sadie just broke down. She is really going to miss him. She was having a hard time the night before as well. Just the thought was bringing her to tears, so you can imagine there was a lot of it on the way home. Poor Erika was comforting Sadie at first and then needed some of her own later. Lots of wet, puffy faces on that long, sad drive home. I did have some cool little promptings from the Spirit as we went through this day. First was when I was thinking how unfair it is that we focus so much on family so that our family is this strong friendship that now has to be ripped apart for these missions. It just seemed so counter-intuitive, but the Spirit reminded me that these missions is one of the reasons we need to have a strong family. And then when I was thinking about how hard it is and feels wrong to be apart for two years, Heavenly Father knows how we will feel at the end and He knows it will be worth it. Another thought, after thinking about how This is not my favorite part. Hopefully the good times will come. Now we pray for his MTC experience to be all that he needs it to be! Everyone kind of crashed when we got home. Didn't really get going until it was time for Youth Activities. 10-2-24
SADIE
Thursday morning, very early, when Sadie came to bed with Nate and I- she whispered to Nate that she misses Luke, but she is glad that he is going to teach people about Jesus. So sweet. Felt very much like she has had some angelic teachers helping her through this trial. She sure loves her brothers. She drew a cute picture of Luke and her playing spot it while we were at Charity and Kelly's place making birthday cards for Bradley. 10-3-24
LETTER FROM LUKE- Mtc day one
Hey guyyyyys. I didn't send an email last week because it was honestly really boring for the most part. I started and finished home mtc. That had to be like the longest week of my life, I was actually on a computer for almost 8 hours every day. I learned a ton and felt the spirit though so it's alright. I met my comp elder Roberts. He's really chill and I'm glad to be his comp for mtc.
JACK
Jack is having a really hard time these past few days. Last week he needed to be picked up early from school because of dizziness and stomach ache. Then Sunday he had to have Jaxx come grab his tray while he was passing the sacrament because he needed to go to the bathroom. This week, he has missed out on playing with friends, Young Mens, and now 3/4 of a day of school with these same symptoms. I'm not really sure what is going on. When I looked at him real closely today he seems to have lost some weight. With the frequent urination and the urgency of it, I'm a little concerned it could be diabetes. But I'm trying not to be too dramatic. Hopefully it's just a UTI. We will see I guess. I'm kind of waiting for something big. He has lost his appetite though and is weak and tired a lot. I hope we can get this figured out soon. 10-3-24
SEP DINNER- MOE'S
This dinner went pretty well. I got Nachos catered. I chose to have them deliver it because I knew things were going to be crazy that day. They were way later than they said they would be, so I sat and fretted during the time that I would have been picking it up. But they got here and set it all up in time. I think it went well. I heard a lot of good things. 10-3-24
PARENT/TEACHER CONFERENCES
Molly went first- Mrs. Johnson LOVES Molly. She only had good things to say about her and how good she is in class. She's doing so well in every area it was hard to think of something to work on. But she is going to work on typing, multiplication, fluency and cursive (although she's REALLY good at all of these). She is doing so well. We are so proud of her. She got to pick out a book at the book fair and then go to Dance! Thankfully Noah was willing to take her.
Sadie was next. Mrs. Piper had so many good things to say about Sadie as well. She loves how much Sadie loves to learn. She said she's doing great in all areas. She loves it when Sadie tells her things and whispers that she loves her. She is doing good with friends too. Fun stuff. Sadie also got to pick out a book at the book fair. 10-3-24
BRAD'S BIRTHDAY PACKAGE
I found a company that would get his birthday package there on the 8th or 9th! I had to jump on that- we even paid about $40 extra to have it there so early. We sent him some Lucky Charms, fruit snacks, a birthday sign, peanut butter... can't think of the rest. But I was a little nervous when I took the package- the El Inka company is somewhat sketchy location and seemed like it would take a miracle to get it there. But I prayed! 10-3-24
SCARECROW WALK FIELD TRIP WITH MOLLY
This field trip was tricky. I was a little late cuz I'd been talking with Nate too much. So we were not assigned a group. Then the whole field trip I was talking with my friend Stephanie Wolsey. This ended up being a huge miracle and blessing, since she knew all about Diabetes and was able to tell me that Jack's symptoms were similar to her daughter's when she was diagnosed. BUT I wish I had been able to spend more time with Molly and having fun with her. She was a little big off, not wanting to walk with her friends, not really wanting to be in pictures with anyone... it was tricky. Maybe we'll get a redo soon. 10-4-24
JACK--- TYPE 1 DIAGNOSIS
It's funny to see that the last thing I posted about was Thursday, the 3rd, when I was worried about Jack a little. On the 4th, I ended up forcing him to stick out school, we just had the one day and then we would have a whole weekend to relax. I was worried about him missing too much school. It didn't seem like his symptoms were serious enough to be anything contagious and I was just worried about him missing school. . I told him I would
check him out before KIT, but
that I wanted him to tough it out and then he could just relax all weekend and
get better. Jack went to school. I was scheduled to go on a field trip with
Molly that day and on this field trip was the younger sister of one of my really
good friends from High School. Her name is Stephanie Wolsey. We’ve
become school mom friends over the years and talk every once in a while when
we’re helping at the school. She and I quickly
became field trip buddies and were talking quite a bit. Kind of out of nowhere she informed me that
her sophomore daughter had been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes a couple of
years ago. My ears perked up and I asked
if I could pick her brain about some of Jack’s recent symptoms. I wanted her to tell me that he wasn’t sick
enough for it to be Diabetes, but instead she suggested that it sounded a lot
like what her daughter did before her diagnosis. She did confirm that it could also be a
virus, which I latched on to and tried to relax about the whole thing. She offered the use of her glucose tester and
suggested I bring him over to her house after school to test his blood
sugar. I was in denial and comfortable
thinking it was a virus. I really didn’t
think it was Diabetes and I definitely didn’t want anyone confirming that it
was. So I thanked her and said,
“Maybe”.
When I picked up Jack from school that day- he
looked gray. He did not look well at
all. I felt so bad that I had made him tough
the whole day out as he apparently had.
He got in the car and about died from an instant headache that set in
right as he got in the car. He was in a
lot of pain. I decided I should take him
to my friend’s house, but I thought I had to give him some food and wait a half
hour (as per Stephanie’s instructions), so I handed him a cereal bar to
eat. It was only a few minutes into
sitting on the couch at home that he threw up what little he had eaten of his
cereal bar. In my ignorance, I decided
this was good news and we no longer needed to check his blood- he just had a
stomach virus! I was relieved in a way
and texted my friend to tell her the good news.
Well, she had a different perspective and texted back, “I don’t care if
I get sick, I am coming over!” She got
my address and was here within minutes along with her husband. She was able to test his blood and right away
knew. I was of course still in a little
denial, but in the moment of her telling me to pack a bag for both Jack and I
for three days and go to Primary Children’s hospital, it did cause some
tears. Stephanie offered a hug, she
offered prayers and she told me that she would be there for us, we would get
through this and have so much support from her and others. It was more than I could handle
emotionally and I was trying to keep it together so I ran around the house
packing a bag for just ONE day because I was still in a little denial.
On the way to the hospital I was trying to stay calm and kind of hoped I could pray the high blood sugar away. He was at a 388 when we left our house. I decided give Jack a little intro to Diabetes, just in case. Trying to not let my emotions come through. I don't know why, but Diabetes was one of those things in my head that I just could not accept. I knew it was a hard one. I did not feel like I am in any place to be caring for someone with Type 1. We just had a stroke in our family three months ago, how could we really be doing another hospital stay and another huge ordeal. It was a lot for my little brain and I was in SO MUCH DENIAL, for reals. But I was also not a dummy. I knew he had all the symptoms for at least a week, maybe more. I felt bad Jack was feeling so sick. I felt bad I'd let it get like that. I just had so many emotions. We got in, they brought him a wheel chair- talk about deja vu. They wanted him to wait to pee even though he needed to go pretty badly. When we walked into the hospital I could tell Jack's breathing was really labored. I felt so bad. He actually seemed somewhat relieved when we got in the room and I think he was happy to know that things were going to get better. They did a quick finger prick while we were at the triage desk and said, "We can't say 100% sure that it's Type 1, but 99.9% sure!" Ugh. This was a lot. I decided to hold back the tears. I texted Nate that we weren't 100% sure, but almost and then it was only like 20 minutes later the doctor confirmed it. I texted Nate. Held back some more tears as we talked and got Jack more comfortable with some anti-nausea. They did a few IV's- more than he needed and took WAY longer than it should have and a lot more pain than he deserved. They got some blood samples, hooked him up to the heart monitor and some fluids. They did a few more tests and a lot more poking and prodding. The poor guy was a pin cushion by the end of the hour. Eventually they moved him up to Endocrinology on the 2nd floor. He was in the room by the nurse's station which means he was high risk. Sometimes I hate that I know that. Jack was so good through all of this. He was really tough and took each thing in stride. I only saw him cry a handful of times. One of them being when he learned that Diabetes is a lifelong thing. I can't even imagine. Over the next three days Jack and I learned a lot about Diabetes and how to give injections and counting carbs and eating sugar. It was SO MUCH!! I was grateful for all the experience I have had with lancets, needles, even counting carbs from my Keto days, it was all pretty familiar. I am grateful I understand the body the way I do. I could see fulfillment from my Patriarchal Blessing in these moments. We tried to make the most of our time together. Jack wasn't in the mood for conference, so he mostly watched Phineas and Ferb. I was able to watch about a whole session all together in between education classes and Jack's doses. It wasn't the most relaxing hospital stay I've ever had :). It was nice that Charity and Kelly came to see him and brought him some legos early on. Then Nate and the rest of the kids came by on Sunday. It was rough. Jack was so tough, did so many new things like peeing in a bottle. I was really wishing I'd actually packed a bag for three days- would have been nice. I left a few times for meals, but we spent most of the time together. One fo the highlights of his stay (I guess it's just a memorable part, not really a highlight) was when the power went off! It was off for a while with a lot of things working from the generators, but then eventually the generators turned off too! It was pitch black in the hospital! There were little ones crying and nurses and techs wandering the halls using their phone flashlights. They all maintained their cool which I thought was awesome and so typical of that profession. It wasn't off for too long, but long enough. Jack and I had taken a little walk at the beginning because we were wanting to get him out and about. It was nuts. But the power came back on and all was well. On Saturday, I decided it was okay to email Brad and Luke and get their missionary prayers working for Jack. They didn't respond, but I felt like it was the right thing to let them know. Poor Luke had only been in the MTC for four days before hearing about Jack's diagnosis. We got to talk to Brad while we were at the hospital and he was able to send some really sweet messages to Jack about challenges and being strong through it all. Such a cool big brother. Jack really seemed to appreciate all the love and messages from everyone. He even got a few gifts, mostly legos- some from Will while he was at the hospital. Jack was so patient. He put up with gross food, SO MANY POKES!! and me. We had a few classes where they were basically testing and grading us with the carb counting, which was interesting, but we passed and Jack was able to go home Sunday evening! So that was huge. We were so grateful for all the love and texts from everyone. Richelle bringing dinner from Chick-fil-a again. We were very well taken care of. When we got home Grandma and Simon stopped by along with the Taylors. Everyone gave Jack more legos and lots of love. It was nice to see him getting some positive attention and support. 10-4-24--10-6-24
WHILE I WAS GONE
There were a lot of things on Saturday that Nate had to carry out on his own. The last soccer games and they were the games we signed up for treats- Molly had wanted to do cake balls of all things so Nate helped her with that and got oranges for Erika's. I was SO SAD I had to miss the games!! Sadie also had a birthday party that day. Crazy day to be gone. It's always a reminder of how blessed we are with Nate's job that he can (fairly easily) get work off and just carry the whole load at home. I don't have to scramble to get babysitters. And who are we kidding- he does my job better than I do, so everything happened and was great. 10-5-24
LETTER FROM BRAD- BLESSINGS AND 20 YRS OLD
Today I turn 20 which is pretty wild I've already made it 2 birthday here on the mish...
This week I had priesthood blessings on my mind a lot. I also had the restoration on my mind a lot. But priesthood blessings have always been a weird subject for me. I always was a little scared to ask for one because I knew I was going to get majorly chastised from God. Wasn't ever sure what it was but I knew there would be something haha so I always had a little bit of fear. Now that I'm on the mission I have been able to give a few priesthood blessings to those in need. Even out here I've been fearful to give blessings because what if my spanish doesn't sound good? Or what if I say something weird in the blessing? What if the blessing isn't what they expected?... etc. I also always felt as if a priesthood blessing was supposed to be like a Patriarchal blessing or revelation that I recieve about them, that they didn't know and would recieve this revelation through the blessing or something like that. But really we have the priesthood that the Apostles had when Christ was on the earth. We have the same authority that they had. We should never have fear or shame of having access to God's power. This weekend I've given like 5 blessings and I have never understood God's power of the priesthood so well until now. We literally have this opportunity to actually bless people with specific blessings in priesthood blessings. With access to this power (as long as its in correlation with the spirit and God's will) we can bless people with specific and direct blessings from their Heavenly Father. That's the power we have to as covenant keepers and desciples of Christ. We have direct access to give and receive blessings from our Heavenly Father through the voice of his servants. Go ask for a priesthood blessing right now and see the power of God work in your life.
BRADLEY'S 20th BIRTHDAY
His day came and went! We had sung to him the night before and I did get to text him a little bit the day of, but so weird that my baby isn't here for me to spoil on his birthday again! I miss him so much! I am so proud of him, but I miss him so much!! He is doing so many good things and growing in ways I had not thought he needed. I really couldn't be more proud. But I did feel sad I didn't get to see him on his special day. Then the annoying thing- the next weekend, when we were talking, we found out that he didn't even know about the package until like the 11th! So much for getting it there early!! Whatever. 10-7-24
504
We were able to meet with the Assistant Principal and discuss a 504 plan for Jack. Basically just making it so he can have his phone on him and checking it and taking care of any other blood glucose needs. It was nice to have so much support from him and Mrs. Vandyke. Felt mostly good to talk and get things situated for Jack. He doesn't love all the attention. 10-7-24
DEXCOM G7
I finally talked Jack into doing the CGM so that we could stop pricking his poor fingers every time we wanted to know his blood glucose. It only took me like an hour and a half to figure out all the apps and how to connect to it and his new phone (Noah's old phone cuz he got Luke's). It was kind of a joke how hard this all was, but we did it!! We punched that little sensor in with pleasure and can now keep track of his blood glucose 24/7. Which turns out to be a little exhausting. We are grateful for it though. Makes keeping Jack's numbers in check much easier. We are getting really good at the injections and carb counting. 10-7-24
WORK
Thankfully, Kneaders put a pause on their orders so Tanner wasn't too bummed that I couldn't come in. It was kind of a win/win when he said I could take the Thursday shift off as well. Things were just not quite in order with Jack. He was having a hard time getting to school in the mornings, staying at school and with the lunch dose and having to come home a few times with that. It was just nice I was able to focus on Jack. 10-8-24
RELIEF SOCIETY NIGHT
We had a really chill activity this Tuesday. Lots of refreshments for the 10 of us as we played board games. It was pretty fun. We played a few rounds of Code Names and talked a lot. It was nice to have a break from the insulin, but I didn't stop checking Jack's numbers. It was nice of people to come ask how I was. Amber Williams gave me the biggest hug. That was nice. There weren't too many others who knew about it all, so that was kind of nice also. But fun night. 10-8-24
MEET WITH THE SCHOOL NURSE
This was one of the most pointless things we've done with Jack's diagnosis. But we did it. We met with the nurse. She proceeded to tell us all the things we had already learned at the hospital. She informed me that I am not required to give Jack his doses and that was when she lost all my respect. I am planning on going to the school to give him his lunch dose each day and she thinks she needs to talk us out of that for some reason. She "trained" the office ladies on how to give him injections, which I think is just hilarious. I'd train Erika and have her do it before I'd have them. But I was perfectly fine doing it. She was weird. Nothing real important came of this visit. 10-9-24
LETTER FROM LUKE
What's up guys. This week was really good, hope you all had a great conference weekend.
CHRISTLIKE COMPASSION- SACRAMENT MEETING TALK
Compassion is the feeling of sorrow or pity for another
person's suffering, along with a desire to help relieve it. It's a social
feeling that can motivate people to help others in physical, mental, or
emotional ways.
I also learned that the word "compassion" comes
from the Latin word compati, which means "to suffer with".
The words “mourn with those that mourn” came into my mind.
We can see the perfect example of compassion by Christ
himself in 3rd Nephi.
Jesus Christ had just spent the day ministering in the land of Bountiful,
teaching His gospel, letting the people see and feel the marks in His
resurrected body, and testifying that He was the promised Savior.
And I want to read this from 3 Nephi chapter 17 it says:
1 Behold, now it came to pass that
when Jesus had spoken these words he looked round about again on the multitude,
and he said unto them: Behold, my time is at hand. [It
was time for Him to go]
2 I perceive that ye
are weak, that ye cannot understand all my
words which I am commanded of the Father to speak unto you at this time.
3 Therefore, go ye unto your homes,
and ponder upon the
things which I have said, and ask of the Father, in my name, that ye may
understand, and prepare your minds
for the morrow, and I come unto
you again.
4 But now I go unto the
Father, and also to show myself unto
the lost tribes of Israel, for they are not lost unto the
Father, for he knoweth whither he hath taken them.
5 And it came to pass that when
Jesus had thus spoken, he cast his eyes round about again on the multitude, and
beheld they were in tears, and did look
steadfastly upon him as if they would ask him to tarry a little longer with
them. [I love knowing that all they did was “looked steadfastly on
Christ” and He KNEW they needed Him]
6 And he said unto them: Behold, my
bowels are filled with compassion towards
you.
7 Have ye any that are sick among you?
Bring them hither. Have ye any that are lame, or blind, or halt, or maimed,
or leprous, or that are
withered, or that are deaf, or that are afflicted in any manner? Bring them
hither and I will heal them, for I
have compassion upon you; my bowels are filled with mercy.
8 For
I perceive that
ye desire that I should show unto you what I have done unto your brethren at
Jerusalem, for I see that your faith is sufficient that I
should heal you.
Then the multitude came forth and Christ proceeded to heal
them.
I really love this part of the Book of Mormon. Christ showed compassion in this moment. He was about to go and do something, thought
about it, noticed that these people were desperate for Him to stay and put off
doing that thing and showed compassion.
How could we not feel The Savior’s love for these
people. This is the kind of compassion
we need to be showing to those around us and in our homes.
I was thinking maybe we could take these verses apart and
look for the specific parts of compassion Christ demonstrated.
The first thing that stands out to me is that He first spent
time with the people. He taught them and
ministered to them, letting them feel the prints of His hands and feet one by
one. We can follow this example by
spending time with people. Really striving
to get to know and understand their situations.
The next thing is He allowed the people to be who they
are. They were “weak” and were not
understanding all that He had taught, so he allowed them the time to ponder to
understand. We can practice noticing the
circumstances of others by asking ourselves questions like, “What might be hard
in that person’s life right now?” “How would I feel if I were in that person’s
place?” Also allowing people time to
process what is happening to them or letting them know you are aware and they
have the time they need, and that you will be there for them.
The next thing Christ did was “cast His eyes round about”-
He looked at them. Probably not just
through His physical eyes.
We need to look at people, look at the situations they are
in, cast our eyes round about and recognize what is going on. In most cases, this is going to force us to
stop looking at our to do list, or our own problems. Christ had a list of things- important
things- He needed to get done, but He still took time to look around and see
their need. Seeing with not just our
physical eyes.
In that moment, He was inspired to stay- He felt COMPASSION
for them. He immediately knew what to
do- was able to offer that healing that they were so anxious for. HE MADE TIME FOR THEM.
I have so many examples in my own life of people who felt
and showed compassion toward me and my familiy.
A loaf of homemade bread from my visiting teacher after
hearing about a hard day.
Texts and phone calls from people we barely know, asking how
Noah was after his stroke.
Back when I was in high school, my young women leaders would
bring me the treat and a message after every activity/lesson when I was dealing
with problems at home and becoming less active.
Constant concern for Kelly’s weird health issues and
suggestions for solutions- so many of which were answers to prayers.
Ministering sisters who have become my good friends and just
know when they are needed.
Just this past week we experienced the perfect example of
compassion. With my 12 year old, Jack’s
permission, I would like to share that story.
About two weeks ago, Jack started having some strange
symptoms, I’ll spare him the embarrassment of describing them all, but it was
obvious he was not feeling well, just not super obvious what the cause
was. I was in a little bit of denial
knowing what it COULD be, but I was also waiting for some more drastic
symptoms. I had to keep checking him out
throughout the week and I honestly thought he was just faking to get out of
school, because the symptoms weren’t super consistent. So by Friday I made him stick it out. I told him I would check him out before KIT
(the extra studying time at the end of the day), but that I wanted him to tough
it out and then he could just relax all weekend and get better. The great thing about this example is we see
what not to do as well- my shining example of how to NOT show compassion. Jack went to school. I was scheduled to go on a field trip with
Molly Friday and on this field trip was the younger sister of one of my really
good friends from High School. Her name is Stephanie Wolsey. We’ve
become school mom friends over the years and talk every once in a while when
we’re helping at the school. She and I quickly
became field trip buddies and were talking quite a bit. Kind of out of nowhere she informed me that
her sophomore daughter had been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes a couple of
years ago. My ears perked up and I asked
if I could pick her brain about some of Jack’s recent symptoms. I wanted her to tell me that he wasn’t sick
enough for it to be Diabetes, but instead she suggested that it sounded a lot
like what her daughter did before her diagnosis. She did confirm that it could also be a
virus, which I latched on to and tried to relax about the whole thing. She offered the use of her glucose tester and
suggested I bring him over to her house after school to test his blood
sugar. I was in denial and comfortable
thinking it was a virus. I really didn’t
think it was Diabetes and I definitely didn’t want anyone confirming that it
was. So I thanked her and said, “Maybe”.
When I picked up Jack from school that day- he looked gray. He did not look well at all. I felt so bad that I had made him tough the
whole day out as he apparently had. He
got in the car and about died from an instant headache that set in right as he
got in the car. He was in a lot of
pain. I decided I should take him to my
friend’s house, but I thought had to give him some food and wait an half hour
(as per Stephanie’s instructions), so I handed him a cereal bar to eat. It was only a few minutes into sitting on the
couch at home that he threw up what little he had eaten of his cereal bar. In my ignorance, I decided this was good news
and we no longer needed to check his blood- he just had a stomach virus! I was relieved in a way and texted my friend
to tell her the good news. Well, she had
a different perspective and texted back, “I don’t care if I get sick, I am
coming over!” She got my address and was
here within minutes along with her husband.
She was able to test his blood and right away knew. I was of course still in a little denial, but
in the moment of her telling me to pack a bag for both Jack and I for three
days and go to Primary Children’s hospital, it did cause some tears. Stephanie offered a hug, she offered prayers
and she told me that she would be there for us, we would get through this and
have so much support from her and others.
She was extremely compassionate in that moment. It was more than I could handle emotionally
and I was trying to keep it together so I ran around the house packing a bag
for just ONE day because I was still in a little denial.
Stephanie had listened. She had allowed
me to be me- in denial through most of it- spouting things like viruses and
stuff. She came- who knows what else she
had going on at 2:30 on a Friday afternoon- she came without hesitation. She was there for me even though we barely
know each other and offered so much.
I’ll admit I didn’t believe her, I wasn’t wanting to believe
Jack had diabetes, and I wasn’t the most receptive to everything she was
offering in that moment, but I have since called her several times for help
along with my other guardian angel, Richelle.
So don’t give up when offering compassion. We’ve had so many people reach out, offering
hugs and support- this disease has an amazing community.
We made it to the hospital just as Jack was going into
Ketoacidosis, they kept saying they were glad I brought him when I did. I knew that it wasn’t me and I might have
brought him too late without intervention.
I felt so bad that it had gotten that bad for Jack, but I think I felt a
lot like the people of Bountiful who looked steadfastly on the Savior and
longed for Him to stay, because he compassionately stayed with me through those
three days in the hospital. Hours of
education on Jack’s future care and hours of studying the mountain of
information on his new lifestyle. He
stayed with me even when I felt I didn’t deserve it.
Which brings us to the second part of my topic which is
MERCY. I didn’t quite see the connection
between compassion and mercy until I googled the definition. Mercy means compassion or forgiveness shown
toward someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm.
In the verses I read earlier Christ says, “My bowels are
filled with mercy.”
I had to ask why bowels?
One of the meanings of bowels is “the deepest inner parts or areas of
something”.
So Christ was feeling mercy in His deepest most inner
parts. Not surprising. Christ personifies mercy. He exists--- his very life and death are---
so that we can experience His mercy. On
a regular basis. No stipulations- He WANTS
to show us mercy.
The term “Bowels” can also be used to describe intestines or
the intestinal tract. The intestines
absorb nutrients from the food we eat to be distributed to the whole body. If your bowels are filled with mercy, your
whole body can eventually be filled with mercy.
The more we show mercy, the better we will be at showing and feeling
it.
I cannot imagine the frustration my Savior, Jack, or my
friend Stephanie felt from my ignorance, lack of compassion and denial. But they chose to show mercy. I know that Christ knows me. He knew that I thought Type 1 Diabetes was
too hard for me to take on right now. I know that Christ knew I was weak. He knew I needed help. He knew I was not going to take Jack to the
hospital in time so He put Stephanie in my day.
I know that Christ put Stephanie and me in the same place that morning
and prompted her with what to talk about and helped her to persist through my
ignorance. He has poured on the mercy.
When we can show others brotherly love, compassion and
mercy, we are acting in Christ’s way. We
are His hands and able to do His work.
It brings us not only closer to those we serve and love, but closer to
our Savior. We can become more like Him.
I’m so grateful for the mercy Christ shows me on a regular
basis. The blessing to repent and be
forgiven carries me. I want to be able
to show the same mercy and compassion to those in my life who need it.
I’d like to bear my testimony…
VISIT FROM THE TYPE 1 FRIENDS
Along with saving Jack's life, Stephanie wanted to bring her daughter over to talk with Jack and show him her pump and talk Diabetes and Friday while I was pulling out of the school parking lot I met Sherrie Burt who has two sons with Type 1, so she brought her boys as well. It was pretty neat to have them all over! I was really grateful Jack could have so much support! They were so fun to talk to and they brought him a huge lego set! So much fun! We have been so lucky that Heavenly Father dropped these new friends into our lives. I only wish Nate had been here for it. 10-13-24
BRAD'S PHONE CALL
We got to go to the family meeting this week and Brad called toward the end. We got to talk to him on the way home. This call was a lot of fun. Becky got to be there for the first part of it as we were giving her a ride home. It was fun to hear what he's up to now that Elder Manwaring is gone. He has two native trainees right now. Kinda crazy. But it was fun. I only wish it was easier to hear him in the car. 10-13-24
LETTER FROM BRAD- BAPTISM
Hey guys good morning what is upppp. This week was super fun. Thanks for all the birthday wishes last week. Appreciate ittt.
10-14-24LUKE FLIES TO TEXAS
This was Luke's big day! We knew his flight number so Nate sent him a little message that we love him and that his mom said he left his teddy bear at home. He was able to text us when he got there and called me before he went to bed. It was pretty fun to hear from him, although he sounded so tired! When we talked he didn't know his comps name or where he was from :). He was pretty sure he was in his apartment. Kinda funny. It was nice to know he got there safely. 10-15-24
FIRST DAY BACK AT WORK
Felt kinda good to be back at work. I was able to go do Jack's dose and get there on time. Super nice. 10-15-24
FALL BREAK!
We had a really nice Fall Break this year! Lots of fun. Thursday we spent a lot of the morning going through the toy room. Molly and Sadie had to pick the toys they wanted to move into their room and we are packing up and getting rid of the rest to make room for the new weight room. They did really well and I was surprised at how little they wanted to keep. I think I'm the sentimental one. After that we met up with Grandpa at Carl's Jr for some lunch. This was fun and we stopped at Costco on the way home. Unfortunately, we had over dosed Jack's insulin so he was getting low when we got there and nothing really seemed to bring him back up. He got pretty dizzy so I walked him out to the car to rest. It was a little crazy, but we made it work and his numbers came back up. That night we had the Wolsey's over for dinner. Nate smoked some pulled pork and we made some mac and cheese and a salad. They brought a really delicious cake! It was so fun. I was really happy with how this night went. Everyone was chatting and having so much fun together. We have a few things in common like Alex, the dad, served his mission in Peru. It was a good opportunity to get to know them and I think I laughed harder than I have in a long time that night! So much fun. 10-17-24
Friday was a little less exciting. We bummed around a lot in the morning and then Jack, Nate and I got to go for his education class. This wasn't too bad. I think we had worked ourselves up for something pretty horrible, but it was okay. We were the only ones there so we didn't have to talk about anything we didn't want to. We got to have lunch while we were in the class and it ended pretty early. It was informative. Basically, we are all very anxious for Jack to get a pump. I need to call the insurance company. But it was good. Once we got home it was time for our Halloween Party! 10-18-24
Saturday was supposed to be our Lagoon day! We were so excited to finally be using our Get Out Lagoon Passes that we'd missed out on all summer. On our way there, I decided to pull up my Get Out Pass app and when I did I learned that our passes do not work on Saturdays!!! UGH!!! I was so sad! The kids were so sad!! I mean, they actually handled things SO WELL and were good sports about my screw up. I felt awful. We quickly came up with a new plan and turned around, ran home to get some grippy socks and headed up to Ogden for some Fly High fun. Everyone was happy there. It was good we only did 1 hour, they were tired and injured by the time our hour was up. Molly hyper extended her knee. We had fun though. It was cute to see everyone getting along and having fun together. Noah and Erika on the basketball one, slam dunking. Good times. After that we wanted to find a place we hadn't eaten before, or at least the kids hadn't, so we took them to Biscuit and Hogs. We had loved it when we went. Well, oddly enough, as we walked up, we saw Five Guys and for a second thought maybe we wanted to go there, but decided on the other one, which a few seconds later revealed on the door that they were permanently closed!! So we had to scratch that and go with Five Guys. It was nice that we'd already considered this idea. It was so yummy! We came home and played with friends and played a few rounds of Code Names and had a movie night. It was so fun to have Nate home this whole weekend. 10-19-24
Sunday was pretty normal, minus that Nate had work off- so that was nice. We got to talk to Brad and then watched Escape From Germany as a Sunday movie night. 10-20-24
Monday we weren't quite sure what we wanted to do! Everyone was fine playing with friends for a lot of the morning. We then decided to go to Carls Jr. Fortunately for some of us who weren't in the mood, they were out of chicken stars so Panda Express it was. Jack had invited Liam and Will. I felt bad that there was no play place for all the littles, so we stopped at Bountiful park on the way home and everyone had fun running around there. It was cute when Noah said, "I guess I need to invent an obstacle course for them" and timed Jack and his friends on the course. That was fun. We came home, vegged a little, tried to think of some fun things to do. A few of the kids took off with friends and then we rounded a lot of them up and went off to Texas Roadhouse for some dinner. Poor Jack was down to the last drop of glucose and was not feeling great, not hungry. It was a bummer. He didn't feel like eating anything but fries. Luckily things got better as the dinner went on. We also got surprised with the balloon guy! He made Molly an owl and Noah a monkey and then after some more thinking, he made Sadie a unicorn (she as still recovering from her last balloon popping and wasn't wanting to have that happen again). We topped it off with Crispy Cones- a new place Nate had heard of. It was time for study time and bed when we got home. Such a fun weekend though! I loved it. Just the right mix of fun and relaxing. 10-21-24
HALLOWEEN PARTY
When we got home from Jack's education class we got started on all the food for the party. Zuppa Toscana, 7 layer spider web dip, Molly finished her cake ball pumpkins, skulls and scary lips. We did some ghost chocolate milk cups and set up some of the games. This party was a lot of fun. Uncle Steve showed up right on time! We were pleasantly surprised that he came. Then Charity and Hunter and Kelly and Devan showed up. We had a full house, but it was so much fun! We ate first. Kelly brought a barfing pumpkin with guac coming out and some ghost white chocolate covered strawberries. Steve brought the whole little debbie aisle and the chip aisle :). We played the eyeball toss game next. This was fun, but we all missed having Luke get it in the little cauldron. Nobody did this year. Lots of fun betting and stuff though. Then we moved down to the family room for the donut eating game. This was a lot of fun too. I think I laughed harder than I have in a long time here. Steve was unhinged!! It was so funny when he dove over Devan to get his lost piece of donut. Kinda funny. Everyone had a good time. We said goodbye to Steve. Then Charity got out the game she brought- digging through the gross pumpkin guts to get prizes and candy- so fun! This was a fun new addition. Then it was time for the "candy bar game". Nate went overboard again and bought all the big stuff. Then handed me a wad of cash to put in the boxes and packages. This was a fun one. Everyone did so well at letting things be stolen and not getting too worked up. It was fun to see what everyone went for. We hid a fifty, a few twenties, fives and tens. Everyone ended up with a little big of money and lots of treats. Molly got the $50! After that everyone was pretty tired, started getting a little scratchy, so we turned on the Jazz game :). This didn't really help since the Jazz were stinking it up, but it worked for a few minutes. I was surprised at how long everyone stayed- I think we turned on Cars2 once we knew the Jazz were done. It was a fun night with everyone. I love that they all made it a priority and made it so fun! 10-18-24
PHONE CALL WITH BRAD
With Nate home we had one more phone going here, connected to the facetime call with Brad. This was a fun call. Lots of conversation about how Brad was feeling a little discouraged and was wanting to have a better week, so he was kind of trying to pump himself up. We were all offering our two cents on the matter. Charity was reminding him to not be so hard on himself. Hunter was reminding him to still have fun. Kelly talked about joy and seeking for joy. Nate and I brought it all the way around with letting himself feel motivated to do better. You can always do better and sometimes the Lord lets us feel discouraged so that we are motivated to work harder. We'll see how his week goes! I think he's doing so good. It's fun to hear all that he is doing. 10-20-24
LETTER FROM LUKE- THSM
What's uppppp. this week was crazy it was my first week in Houston! i also havent had a pday in a fat minute so sorry for the long email.
Hey guys whats up? This week was pretty hard haha. Still was awesome and still was able to see the Lords hand in every part but it was a lil roughness.
He explained it very well because for the first time in a minute I was in legit tears. That day I hope never comes. I love this work more than anything. P-DAYS
Luke had his first P-day in a long time on Monday! We got to text with him all morning. I got to text with him and voice message Brad a lot of the day. Then at about 3:45 Luke called! This was a really fun phone call, hearing all about his trip to Houston. The flight and the meetings that followed. He had a cockroach in his shower. He got to go spend a bunch of time at the Minute Maid Stadium. He sounds really positive and anxious to get going with the work. We loved hearing about the fat dog and Mama Odie. Good stuff. 10-21-24
BACK TO SCHOOL AND WORK FOR ALL OF US
Jack taught himself how to do his own injections over the weekend and was able to do his own lunch dose today. This is huge. He's doing so good. I'm so proud of him and all that he has taken on and his positive attitude. He's totally got this!! Everyone made it back to school! Sadie said it was a dream come true because she dreamt about going to school. Erika forgot it was an A day and I was back at work, organizing the labels for some reason. I wish I was getting more practice bagging. But it's all good. We're back in the swing. 10-22-24
RECEIVING CLERK TRAINING
This was weird. Not gonna lie. Way different than I'd expected. Well, the first part anyway. They spent a half hour telling us how to handle grumpy voters. Kinda strange. I felt pretty good about everything else they taught us. 10-23-24
MAYNES FAMILY HALLOWEEN PARTY
I guess it wasn't really a party, more of a hangout, but it was a lot of fun. We went to Witch Fest at Gardner Village and had some yummy dinner. This was kind of a rough night for Jack, but we made it through. It was fun that Charity and Hunter joined us. We were missing Nate, Kelly, Brad and Luke. But we enjoyed talking with everyone for a bit and then heading over to the kids thing- Ricochet Canyon. Where I spent way too much on tickets to do things and then there was nothing to use them on. Kinda of funny. Luckily they gave me my money back. Oddly enough, we had passes with our Get Out passes to do all the things we didn't end up doing. Not that we would have, just funny that we had the passes for it too. We had fun. 10-26-24
HAUNTED FOREST- MAUGHANS
We made it over to the haunted forest after the Maynes thing. Lots of fun this year. Jack, Will and Liam ran around scaring everyone. Molly and Sadie and I visited for a bit and then Erika, Kate and their friend group all ended up in our backyard and house and we got pizza and treats. Pretty fun! I just wish Erika would invite them all over more often :). 10-26-24
EMAIL FROM BRAD- STRIPLIN WARRIOS
LONG EMAIL SORRY. This week was crazyyy. So much wild stuff is happening here. All of a sudden the violence and danger shot up this week. But it's kind of exciting sometimes not gonna lie. I've also learned a whole lot about my purpose here on the mission.
Second week in the field has been awesome. I feel like I'm finally getting into it and can actually do stuff, you know? I'll put a link to my Google photos at the bottom. Anyways it's been lit, here's some of my highlights.
This ended up being a ton of fun this year! We had Charity and Hunter and Kelly with us which is always extra fun. Everyone got into it and had fun carving. It's fun to see how far some kids have come with this- including Nate- he really outdid himself this year. It was cute to see everyone helping Sadie- she didn't really feel the need to do much of it herself. But she did pick a cute design. Love these traditions. 10-28-24
This year the parade kind of snuck up on me for some reason. No biggie though. Sure was a different experience standing there with no littles to get excited about all the costumes with. One of those times where it hits me we're in this stage of life now. It was okay. I stood and talked with Walker Green's mom, Brecken Cook, and Jaylen Haupt. It was fun to see everyone and I loved that the neighborhood kids would purposely wave to me or say hi. I couldn't believe that I'd left my phone in the car- I NEVER do that anymore- as Sadie's class was coming by I made the discovery and about died- I'm already that mom! But it was okay. She gave me a big hug and was so happy to see me- maybe it was better I didn't have a phone in front of my face. But she was so happy and seemed so grown up all of a sudden. Molly too! She was playing it cool this year, not as outwardly excited to see me, but I know deep down- maybe way deep down- she was beaming at the thought of her mom standing there waving to her and her friend as they walked around the playground field :). She's very cool, ya know. But this was fun. Just a new different. Then it was time to hurry and get some candy for Molly's class party and race back to the school. 10-31-24
I missed the messages about this party because they were sent on the Class Dojo app, but once I finally got on board, all the stations had been decided, so I was forced to just join another mom. It was fine because the one I ended up with really needed some help with her "Potion making" station. Which I have to say is probably one of the coolest stations I've ever seen for a class party! SO fun!! So cool! I was also in charge of bringing the candy for Zooey's mom's station which was musical chairs. We had a fun time. Molly was adorable the whole time and I think she had some fun as well. 10-31-24
We finally got Erika in for the tiredness she has been experiencing far too long. It's been over a year. I hate to admit it. He is running her blood, hopefully we get some answers. Some easy ones. 10-31-24
Our numbers have been dwindling for a while, so I'm gonna try not to talk about it too much. We had a pretty chill afternoon and then ate our mummy dogs during the getting ready rush. Sadie chose to be Elsa this year. She went through several ideas, the longest lasting idea, the one that was changed at the very last minute was a swan which I thought was interesting, but also would have been kind of cold so we welcomed the Princess idea. She found the perfect dress on Amazon. It came with all the necessary accessories which was super fun. She enjoyed trick-or-treating this year and did all the walking on her own! It was so nice not to have to have a wagon or stroller! I'm not sure I felt this as much as I thought I would though. Maybe because I still ended up carrying stuff. Sadie seemed pretty happy the whole night. Didn't get grumpy til it was time to go home- or maybe that's why it was time to go home. She and Molly both were content with what they had though. Molly was determined to be a ninja and took some convincing to just wear the homemade purple ninja costume we had, but then the shirt was missing (of course), so we had to get a new black shirt and make a new one. She loved it though! It was a little bit of a disappointment when Milo showed up in a really fancy ninja costume and people weren't sure what Molly was, but she toughed it out. She seemed fine with it when it came time to getting candy as well. She looked amazing and then Nate went and got his special stick and that just topped the outfit off! So cool. She loved Trick-or-Treating this year. I think she was a little torn between wanting to run ahead with Jack or hanging back and helping with Sadie. She was a sweet big sister that night, really fun for Sadie. She did all her walking, didn't seem to get tired. Next year she wants to invite some friends. Jack had some fun ideas this season where he and Will and Liam would match or themed, but in the end, he just wore the black no face mask with his black hoodie and black pants. Pretty cool if you ask me. They came trick-or-treating with us, but ran ahead and were out of sight most of the night. Once we got to Thaxton's he had a hard time deciding whether to eat some scones or not. It was a weird one, new T1D and all. But he toughed it out. He chose not to eat anything and seemed to be just fine. When he got home we did dose him up and he was able to eat a bunch of candy. They all had fun trading candy and watching a movie when we got home. Erika deliberated for a long time about which animal onesie to get. All her friends had chosen that theme. She landed on a cow, which I thought was super funny. But her costume came and it wa sSO soft and so cuddly. I think she liked it. She looked awesome. She was so fun to come trick-or-treating with us for a bit before heading off to a party. It sounded like she had a good time that night as well as the night before at the pre-Halloween party. I'm not even sure where Noah ended up that night. He wasn't dressed up. Didn't get in any pictures. He's just too grown up I guess. Gotta get used to that idea. But it was a fun night. It was great that Nate was with us all evening. Another successful Halloween in the books. 10-31-24
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