One of Mom's favorite things is to have all of her kids go to church with her. Now, 2 out of 4 kids live in Indiana and attend their church. This summer, Becky and her family will be home and will stay for a year, so, 3 of 4 kids will be attending their church. Since I work of our church, Sunday is a work day and it is hard for me to miss. I do try at least once/year to make that happen. Hopefully, this summer, I will be able to come back home Sunday mornings a few times to spend time with my family. Mom always wanted to "fill a pew" with her family. Well, when we are all there, we take at LEAST 2 rows! I think her goal has been met.
Yesterday I was so happy to be able to go back to Indiana to visit Mom. We went to our church as a family, I did what I needed to do for the morning to accomplish my responsibilites, stopped at the house for a quick lunch and down the road we went. My husband was going to a friend's house to watch the NASCAR race and my kid's went to Jeannie's house since mom is to not be around children right now. It is so nice to be able to go there just as me, an adult daughter and not to worry about my kids. I can focus 100% on what needs to be done for her and their home. Mom said she was feeling good and it showed in actions around the house. Dad thought I could help her finish a project she had started...organizing the cd's. She wanted them grouped, Classical, Christmas, Jazz, Christian, show tunes and Gospel. We put tabs between them so they were clearly seperate. I quickly put them back under the TV stand before she thought to ask me to put them in ABC order too! We are all so very different as to how and what we choose to organize!
We then sat down and went through wig catalogs. She put tabs on wigs, hats, scarves and "bangs only" she thought she would like to try. If anyone has any suggestions or experience in this department, please let us know. She still has her hair, but we aren't sure how long it is going to stay. I think this is pretty hard on her.
Mom has really been missing church, so yesterday, Dad recorded it for her. We watched it together. Jeannie happened to be singing on the praise team, so she really enjoyed seeing her up there too. It was pretty cool and I shared that not only did both their church and our church sing the song, "How Great is our God," both lesson talked on Paul and Corinthians. Very neat. Someone from their church shared about "impossible sitations." I hoped that mom was listening closely then and feels that, "nothing is impossible with God." Nothing.
In this song, "How Great is Our God," it compares God to many things: a king, light, timeless, Father,Son,Spirt, Lion and Lamb. It also encouages us to call on those around us, "sing with me." Not "listen to me" or "you should be singing...," but "sing with me." With.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZFN8TBfgNU
One word toward the end of this song is "heart." My heart will sing, how great is our God. Not my brain (to think), not my lips (to speak) , not my hands (as if to serve), but my HEART ~ what we love with. God's greatest gift to us, His Love. There was NO greater love ever in all time than the gift of His Son, Jesus. Heart - what pumps the blood though your body to keep you alive - and it was His blood that was sacrificed for each of us. "My heart will sing, how great is our God." I love how it then transitions into "How Great Thou Art." "Then sings my "SOUL!" Again, not the brain, lips, hands or anything else...my SOUL- the deep insides of my being- my soul.
HOLY NUMBERS BATMAN!!! 8.0 was mom's white blood cell count. (It has to be over 3.0) Her last reading was 1.8, so with the injections to boost the count and lots and lots of prayer, today, Mom is receiving her chemo. How Great is our God!
1 Cor 1:4-6
I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way - in all your speaking - and in all your knowledge - because of our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you.
We thank you for all your prayers for our family.
thank you molly for being steadfast AS A REPORTER OF GOD'S GREAT LOVE!
ReplyDeleteI say thank you too Molly. Good idea about putting the CD's back quickly. :)
ReplyDeleteIt was must be a Koontz girl sister thing about filling a pew. I've hear your Aunt (who happens to be my mom :))say almost those exact words! Continuing to pray/think about you all and wish we were CLOSER
Hi Molly.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your posting. Glad to hear that the injections are working and that her WBC is up. Back when I had chemo, the injections weren't given until chemo had started; I think your mom getting them before is much better.
Here is my experience in the "wig department". It is better to get a wig before much hair loss as close color and style is easier to match. I am in nearby Westmoreland county so I got my wig at J.C. Penney's in Greensburg. They have a private room where you can try on wigs. Also, the staff was the best! Now, this was 16 years ago, so things may have changed. Also, there are "wig only" stores around. I'm sure your mom will find something that will work for her. For both myself and a friend who had hair loss from chemo, our experience was that if you get a good wig that matches your current style, some folks won't even know that you are wearing a wig...truly! I did get a "bangs only" but it didn't work for me. Also, when not wearing my wig, a soft cotton hat (think T-shirt material) was what I liked.
Thank you again for taking the time to post. It is a blessing to read this blog!
Mary Ann K.