Footnotes from a crazy trip

Where to even begin? Dan and I are here in sunny New Mexico! We flew in yesterday with the purpose of seeing the doctor who my mom saw a couple months ago. We wanted to be tested to make sure we weren't carrying any Lyme Disease bacteria, since both my parents tested positive. I know it sounds crazy, but this doctor has seen whole families carrying Lyme Disease. Apparently, the mainstream medical community's view and understanding of the disease is fairly limited.

So today, we were able to see him, and he did some testing. I could only hope and pray that he would find nothing... and thankfully, most of that prayer was answered. He did discover that I have something called mycoplasm (a bacterial parasite), some yeast overgrowth, bacteria, and unfortunately, a touch of the spirochetes that cause Lyme Disease, apparently a recent acquirement. Dan, on the other hand, had no spriochetes (yay) but a pretty overwhelming amount of mycoplasm. It was so yucky to see on the microscope! The good news is, the doctor has had success treating of all of this. I am hopeful that clearing this yuckiness out of my body and detoxing will relieve some of my excema syptoms that have been so NOT fun.

Anyway, that is a short update on what is up with us. Life has been so overwhelming at times. On the bright side, we get an entire day tomorrow to go site seeing and enjoy some vacation-ish stuff. Since it's hard to take vacations these days, we want to make the most of this time.

We would appreciate your prayers!

Keep me safe, O God, for in you I take refuge. I said to the LORD, "You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing." ...LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. I will praise the LORD, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I have set the LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure... Psalm 16

Stephanie

Invitation production line

Yesterday Dan and I got to hang out with our good friends Jon and Rachel (who are getting married May 30!), her sister Darcey, and my roommate from college, Bekah. We had a good reason to hang out: we had wedding invitations to crank out, 150 of them to be exact.


I think they turned out really pretty! Rachel's color choices are really unique: red, orangey-gold, gray, and black, and she found some beautiful patterned papers that pulled them all together nicely. She picked out several of them, so all of the invitations have varied papers on them wrapped around the middle.


I didn't know if could get them all done, but we did it, production-line style! Here we are with the finished product.

Stephanie

Misfit

Anyone remember the island of misfit toys from the classic Rudolph the Red nose Rain deer movie? (Which, by the way, I did not get to see this Christmas. It was not Christmas when I was a kid until I had watched this movie as well as Frosty the Snowman.)

I'm naming my post in honor of those toys. Last night Dan and I went clothes shopping because I had a Christmas present to return and therefore credit to use up at a store. It honestly was kind of funny because Dan walked away with two pairs of pants from the experience and I could find... nothing.

Here's my problem. I'm a misfit. I wander over to the Juniors department and see screen shirts, funny colored jeans, and oddly ruffled miniskirts. Don't get me wrong. There's some cute clothes in the Juniors department, but I've decided that since I'm 22, it's time to step it up.

So I head over to the misses' department. It doesn't go much better there. The clothes just don't seem to fit my body, and many of them are edging dangerously close to the middle-aged look.

What's a girl to do?

Head to Ross Dress for Less. That's my solution. Tucked in the endless racks of clothes, I can usually end up finding a cute shirt or two that doesn't scream "I'm 14."

Anyone else experienced this?

Hope you all had a blessed Christmas!

Stephanie

P.S. Cindy your family picture is adorable! I love it! Thanks for sending me one. :)

Snow Day

Hasn't this weather been kinda crazy? I've gone between loving the snow and hating the cold temperatures and the ice. Brrr!

Stephanie

Crafty

The name of my post reflects some stuff I've been doing lately, not a personality trait! I'm amazed almost 3 weeks have gone by since my post on me and Dan - anybody else feel like we're hurdling toward Christmas? I found a quote recently (for something at work actually), and I thought it was a great reminder I really needed:

Although our society has muddied the message of Christmas through consumerism, myths and empty traditions, we should not let these distract us from appreciating the real meaning of Christmas. Let us take advantage of this opportunity to remember Him, worship Him and faithfully witness of Him. - John MacArthur

On a completely different note, and on to why I named my post, Dan and I are excited to be in the wedding of our friends Jon and Rachel who are getting married next Memorial Day weekend (copy cats!) Rachel graciously allowed me the honor of helping with her wedding invitations, and since I really do love making cards, I had a good time with this.

Here's the winner (never mind the messed-up wording, it's a work in progress):

Her choice of colors and patterns was super fun, so I'm excited to help her put them together in January!

My other project recently was making a pair of Christmas stockings for me and Dan. Everywhere we went in the stores, all we could find were shiny, gaudy, flashy stockings, and we really do like country looking decorations - so we decided to make some (famous last words). Last Saturday at my parents house I spent a tedious four hours putting them together (sewing and me aren't close friends). But they turned out so cute! (I did find a hole in one today, oops, gotta fix that.)



Remembering Him this season,
Stephanie

Six months and counting

Today is November 24, and that means that officially Dan and I have been married for six months. I was told by a newly married friend that time goes fast when you're married, and wow, was she right. I'm afraid of waking up one day and finding that I'm forty! I think life is better right now than it has ever been, and I don't want to miss a minute of it. Married life is SO much better than dating!

I'm going to attempt to write a short tribute to the last six months. Since it's now 5:50 in the morning, I'm not sure whether it will turn out way too mushy or just plain ridiculous. Read at your own risk!

Favorite wedding day moment: It's a toss up, so I'll pick three. First, seeing him for the first time, me in my wedding dress, him looking oh-so-handsome in his tux. Second, saying my vows to Dan and seeing his reaction. Fun stuff. Third, our kiss after the vows. Dan pulled out all the stops and performed a swoop-your-woman-up-in-your-arms-and-smooth-her number, I think much to our pastor's amusement or horror, I'm not sure which. It was great.

Worst wedding moment: There's not much to work with here, but I'll say our rehearsal. It was a zoo and made me think that our wedding might turn out to be a freak show (it wasn't.) We were both frustrated because everyone had opinions about everything, and we were even told we couldn't run (walk briskly?) back down the aisle when we were pronounced husband and wife. We did anyway once we were married. :)

Best married traditions: Mugs of hot cocoa on Saturday mornings. Yum. The off-to-work kisses in the morning and the honey-I'm-home kisses at night. Friday night dates, which sometimes are as simple as going to work out together or watching a movie at home and eating popcorn. The point is being together, not how fancy the date is.

What we're most thankful for in the past six months: Our church. Honestly, I don't know what we would have done without Cornerstone. We've met so many awesome people and have wholeheartedly enjoyed getting plugged in there. God is so good.

Most annoying habits discovered: When you've dated for 3 1/2 years, we had hoped there wouldn't be too many surprises in store as far as this goes. I did discover pretty early on that Dan apparently took pains to remove each and every sock from his foot inside out and left them that way to go through the wash. Solution: he realized his socks were never clean going through the washer like that, and mended his ways. Dan discovered fairly early on that I had the charming habit of squeezing the toothpaste from the top instead of the bottom (I know, classically annoying, huh?) Solution: separate toothpaste tubes. I guess also qualify for more annoying habits, mainly rolling onto his side of the bed at night and pushing him to the very edge, and stealing all the covers.

Worst married moment: It's probably every Tuesday, when we get up at 5 a.m. to get Dan to work by 6 a.m. We just don't talk while we're getting ready. My body is always very clever and helpful on Monday nights and makes sure I sleep the worst on these nights. So making a sandwich in the morning becomes a colossal challenge (although I think Dan tried to put a box of cereal in the refrigerator one morning, so I suppose I'm not alone). I have to be honest and say there have been no dramatic fights. Sure, we have our moments when we get frustrated with each other, but I can't come up with any real winners to share here. We'd like to keep it that way.

Most dramatic married moment: Okay, I'll share something that's rather personal on here. Last month there were a couple weeks where it seemed like a very good possibility that I might be pregnant. It feels silly to share that on a blog, but I share it because I have never been more thankful for my husband or more proud of what the Lord is doing in his life. He showed far more maturity and wisdom and faith than I did in responding to that new thought, and he was a rock for me. And no, it turns out we are NOT expecting, but I think the Lord never wastes an experience on our lives and never fails to use them to show us something new about ourselves.

Thanks, Dan, for a great past six months. I know that despite whatever challenges they may bring, the next six months, and the future beyond, will be a joy and a blessing simply because we are together.

Stephanie

Hope for the first time in a long time

Well, it seems that the Lord is up to some pretty awesome stuff in my family's lives these days. As most of you who read this probably know, for about the past four years, my mom has been fighting what we thought was MS. My dad and I have watched it slowly drain her of her strength, her energy, and really her ability to enjoy life like she used to. The mom of my childhood was always super involved, visiting my sister, volunteering at my school, cooking yummy meals, helping with my dad's business. Now unable to drive and hardly able to walk, her life has been very different.

I had really gotten to the point where I had accepted that this was the way the Lord was working in her life, and knew there was a very good possibility she would never get better. She had been pursuing treatment from a naturaopath, but it seemed to the rest of us that the doctor didn't know exactly what he was dealing with and her "treatments" really weren't helping her get any better.

But two weeks ago... a break through. My mom met some people at her doctor's office who packed up for New Mexico to get a second opinion. They had heard of a doctor there who specialized in treating Lyme Disease, which is often misdiagnosed as MS. Through their eyes, my mom got to learn about him and what he does. Apparently he himself was cured from Lyme Disease, and he has helped many, many people.

Modern medicine sees Lyme as a bacteria that is treated with antibiotics, but this stuff really is nasty. Once it's in your body, it has no intention of leaving, and from what I understand, antibiotics kill a lot of it, but not all of it. This doctor's treatment is different. While he acknowledges it's a bacteria, he treats it more as the virulent parasite it is.

So in the matter of a few days, my parents packed their bags and hopped on a plane for New Mexico. I was cautiously hopeful. But on Friday I got a call that the doctor had tested her blood using a special microscope, and yes, she was positive for Lyme Disease. She also had a lot of other nasties since her body is so compromised.

I can't even tell you how amazing it was to have a solid diagnosis. Basically this stuff has been eating my mom's nutrition and her muscles. So on Monday, she began a 7-day IV treatment that makes the Lyme expose itself and then kills it. She will have to go back in 2 months to be tested, but 90% of the doctor's patients are better after the first treatment.

His advice? Go home and REST and EAT. My mom has been doing a very strict diet designed for the food allergies and MS she supposedly had. What a joy it was to talk to her on the phone and hear that she was eating steak, breakfast sandwiches, hamburgers and fish! Finally she gets to live again!

The slightly troubling news is that Lyme is more contagious than many people realize (most people think you can ONLY get it by a tick bite.) My dad does show positive for having it, so he will be treated as well. Thankfully his immune system is strong enough that it has not affected him.

In all of this, I am grateful to the Lord beyond words. While I know that my mom's recovery could be very, very slow, I also know that this news has rekindled hope in my family. I am thankful that our God is the Lord of suffering AND the Lord of healing. He meets each one of us where we are at and sustains for us the journey. Praise the Lord!

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name.
Psalm 147:3-4

Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits- who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion.
Psalm 103:2-4

Stephanie