Ear Drum---pum-pum-pa-pa-pum-pa-pa-pa-pum

Regan has been fussy the last few days. Brian and I worked to try and figure out why. Last night we both decided that it was her ear. So, at 9pm Brian and his step-dad Ray took Regan to Children's Hospital here in Kansas City. They diagnosed her with a burst ear drum. We do not really know when it burst usually that causes a release of pain instead of increased pain. She is now taking antibiotics for the infection and ear drops for pain. Today she is doing well and the ear drops seem to be helping her rest. So, healing is on its way. So, please pray for the antibiotics to not cause other problems. We praise God that he is always with us no matter what city that we are in, no matter what time of year it is.

Merry Christmas

We are in Oklahoma with my family. It is good to be with them. It has been a while since we have been here this long with Regan doing so well. We leave for KC tomorrow. We look forward to a few days with Brian's family.
Regan is doing fine. She has been a little fussy but much better. It seems all the gas has passed. The diarrhea has stopped but her BM's are still very loose. So we will work with Cybil when we get back to continue to get the feedings right for her. Please pray for her fussiness. We think it is her back hurting. Her spine curve is grown to 64% which is simply horrible.
Rylee is well. Brian and I got her a Karaoke machine. She loves it. She and Jacie (her cousin) are having a fun time singing Carrie Underwood songs. Since we are IN Oklahoma it makes the songs even more fun. She can hardly wait to get back to Lincoln to sing in it with Ashley, Danielle and Hannah.
Ryder is great. He is the only ten year old boy I know who loves to get cloths for Christmas. He also go some CD's and movies. This morning we gave him some Pirates which he is enjoying. My mom got him a shirt that says, "Those who think they know everything annoy those of us who do." So Ryder!
Brian and I are getting ready to celebrate our 12th anniversary in five days. We finished season five of 24 last night. Brian is happy and all is well with the world except Jack is now on a slow boat to China. I can't stand to see him all beat up. Anyway, I feel blessed to have Brian as my husband. I find it amazing that our love continues to grow stronger. I love him more than ever. I feel loved by him more than ever.
We know that with out the peace of Christ we are unable to have peace with anyone else. Jesus coming as a baby started the whole opportunity for peace.

Never know what a day can bring

Well you just never know what one morning might bring. Many of you know that Regan has been struggling with diarrhea for several weeks. Yesterday Brian changed one "blow out" at 4:30am then Julie changed two more before Regan was out the door for school at 9:30am. So, I called Regan's nutritionist, Cybil, and she suggested some "Benafiber." Come to find out not only does fiber help with constipation but also with diarrhea. This morning Regan started crying at about 7:30 this was an unusually cry. I thought it might be kidney stones but when I looked at her stomach I knew it had to be something gastro. Regan's old GI specialist moved to Chicago so we are considered "New Patients" with the new guy so we could work a new patient in today. We were afraid that Regan might have to be admitted in to St Johns to get her leveled back out. This was upsetting considering we are leaving tomorrow for OK and KS for Christmas. So Cybil called Dr Rogers who is our surgeon in on the case. So with Dr Rogers, Cybil and Leona (Dr Rogers nurse) on the case I knew all would be fine. Her Colan is full of air and they think she is lactose intolerant. For three weeks she has been on 2 additional TBS of powdered milk in her feedings. This is what caused the diarrhea and now the bloating. She is now laying on the sofa crying in between happy sounds when the gas is passed. For the next couple of days she will be off her normal food and on pedilite.

On my way to Springfield I knew several of my friends here in Lincoln were praying for Regan. I saw God's hand so many times this morning.

• The admissions lady at the hospital worked us in instead of making us wait because she hated to see Regan cry.
• The girl who drew Regan's blood was kind and did it through a finger prick instead of arm draw.
  
• In Cybil's love and compassion for our family and in her dedication to getting Regan taken care of.
• In Dr Rogers' love her his patients that flows from his love for God. He is straight forward, kind and compassionate.
  
• In Leona's attention to details..she walked over to a different department just to let me see the out come of Regan's labs and offered to help me to our van.
• In Mr Horn (a man from our church) who happened to be at St John's and helped Regan and I get to the the van because I had a lot to carry.
• In Jen's ( the receptionist at the Clinic) remembering details of our lives she makes it feel like home.
  
• In Dr Gabriel's (Regan's orthopedist) ordering of a pelvis xray to sooth Brian's mind.
  
• In Julie's (Regan's helper) ability to put her arm around me while I cry and feel no need to say anything. I admire her.
• In Brian's love for Regan and I. It is amazing how text messaging can draw two people together.
  

I wore my bracelet today from my friend Stacy Woods. She is a friend from VVCC days. She gave it to me as a reminder of God's faithfulness. I was already in the van but came back int he house to slip in on. I thought I needed to "tie it around my wrist" today.
It says "LO I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS." Jesus... the Emmanuel... "God with Us." He was and is with us. He presence resounds through his people caring for his little one.

15 Minutes

So I am wondering...what would you do if you had an extra 15 minutes. I subscribe to my favorite magazine "Real Simple" it is a simple pleasure in my life. They pose a question every month and people answer it. I am wondering what many of you would say? Did you know "Take me Out to the Ball Game" was written in fifteen minutes. So if you want post your activity for your extra 15 minutes.
If I had an an extra fifteen minutes today I would sit and stare at my Christmas tree. I love it. Actually this morning I got to do that. This morning was wonderful because I was reading the prayers for today from the "Divine Hours" and watching the tree blink. Brian was reclined on the sofa grading papers. The background music to lovely scene was Rylee and Regan playing together in Regan's bed. They make the sweetest sounds when they play.
Now that we are done with the pressing responsibilities Brian ((who finished his grading today) and I are indulging in one of our favorite things...season five of our favorite TV show "24". We are like little kids watching the Disney Channel. We are even comforted by the intro music. In Brian's words "Now that is sick." When we watched season 4 last Christmas a couple times we would get back out of bed at midnight just to watch "one more."
have Garrett and Kate Regan is still struggling with the breathing issue. Continue to pray for that. Ryder and RyleeMaupin spending the night. So they are in their rooms playing. Thanks for taking to to keep up with us.

SWEET!

Last night was the last official gathering for my SFG (small group of students that I met with each week for spiritual formation). I have been with for three years. We had a party for them here at our home last night. We invited several (25 or so) of their friends to come over to hang out. They arrived at 7:30 and the last group left at midnight. Great fun! It is very hard to let these three go because Megan is going to Guinea, Shannon will move to Joplin, MO for a few months and then move to a small African country no one knows about and Amanda is here in Lincoln for a while but will graduate in May. Amanda and I will continue to met together this spring. We have a tradition of reading the Divine Hours together. It always hits us right where we are. Last night's reading said this "Watch over our welfare on this perilous journey, shade us from the burning heat of the day, and keep our lives free from evil unity the end." AMEN!
This is the second SFG that has grown up on me while I am here in Lincoln. It is painful! I believe this to be true; This pain is good. Wouldn't it be sad if they were leaving me and I felt nothing. Or if I was happy. The pain is part of what makes the relationship sweet. It is only because I experience Christ when we are together that makes this moment painful. The lose of these girls is huge but even greater is the joy that our relationship brings me. Thank you Jesus that you not only dwelt among us but you knew we needed to dwell among others too! We should praise God for that!

Regan's breathing is labored. I checked her stats out on her breathing monitor this morning to try and bring some relief to her daddy's worries about her. She is stating at 97% which is awesome for her. Once again, she is amazing. Will you praise our heavenly Father for that too! I actually think Brian's breathing is worst than Regan's. Ryder and Rylee have early dismissal today. So I am hoping to get the house cleaned so we can have some together time.

Free

I am free. My professor for my preaching class told me I didn't need to hand in my last sermon because "You have done excellent work all semester." I only had about an hours work left on it but any break is big. So after I said thank you to God and my professor I was reminded of something I have said over and over in the past few day (besides Come Lord Jesus Come). I had some level of peace about not getting the sermon done because I couldn't figure out when else I could have done it. I made choices to sometimes give up family time for the library and other times the library for the family. I think God taught me today that when you try to worship through each activity in your life God is honored. I don't at all expect this to happen ever again but the work paid off.

Ice pack for Jesus!

I got up early this morning to work on my last sermon for "Preparing to Preach." I have to hand it in tomorrow. I am beginning to lose the joy of the study so I need a break. I hope I can get done. Brian is sick again. He was down all day yesterday. Regan's breathing is bad. She is just coughing all the time. The treatments do help.
In my study I a revisiting my favorite book of the bible "Joshua." One he is a warrior...all girls love a guy how fights battles for the kingdom. I have a picture in my mind of what he looks like but I can't say...Brian might get jealous. Second he loves God. God says and he does. ....all girls love a guy who obeys the King. Thirdly I love that God makes no sense sometimes. In chapter 5 we find the Israelites have crossed the Jordan armed for battle, the enemy lands are "melting with fear". Yet instead of God striking while the iron is hot he has Joshua circumcise them and they eat the Passover. So we have the strong army of God laying around with ice packs between their legs for four days while eating horseradish.
God is not concerned about our weakness. As a matter of fact he would rather us be weak and obedient. So here I find myself. Thinking...Lord I'm weak...Regan's weak...Brian is weak. Aren't we all weak. We don't have ice packs in between our legs but we might as well. So, I find the Lord here this morning confirming an obedient life. I feel him saying:
"take off your snow boots girl.....for this is holy ground."

P.S. I can't turn in the "ice bags" illustration in my sermon so I guess I will let it lie here. Thanks for listening.

Tickled to be Pickled!

It is a crazy time of year. Going so many places....where are we going? Doing so many things...what are we really doing? Modern convince doesn't often seem convenient. The refrain for today's Divine Hours is:
"The Lord loves those who hate evil; he preserves the lives of the saints and delivers them from the hand of the wicked."
Aren't we glad we are preserved by God. According to Dictionary.com the word preserve as a verb can mean "to keep alive, to make lasting, to keep safe, to keep up, to resist decomposition, to maintain and reserve for later use" Amen! During all this craziness of going when we feel like there is not enough time in the day, hours in the night, or strength to make it through..we have this promise.
HE RESISTS THE SAINTS DECOMPOSITION
HE KEEPS UP THE SAINTS
HE RESERVES THE SAINTS FOR LATER USE
HE KEEPS US ALIVE
I don't know about you but I am glad to be pickled! Praise God Regan's seizures have slowed down and has barley had any in the past few days. Ryder had his band concert Tuesday Night and his band tour on Wednesday. He is first chair trombone. God has given him a gift. Rylee is feeling better and they both have their church music performances on Sunday. Brian is wrapping up another semester. Pray for his strength. I am trying to finish up with my two classes only two assignments left. I just keep singing "Come Lord Jesus Come!" Then I can write the best sermon ever because I will know all truth! All together now, "Come Lord Jesus Come!"

Lights Please!

We were among the 2.4 million people to lose power this past weekend. We lost it Thursday around 1am and it came back on Saturday around lunch. We stayed the night in one of our smaller boys dorms at LCC. They were very hospitable but since we bring basically a hospital with us we are glad to be home.
We had a boys room and a girls room plus Moby. Rylee threw up six times. At one point she said, "I want to go home, my stomach really hurts, this must be what it is like to feel homesick." She had a vicious case. She is better now we think it was just twelve hour stomach flu. Thanksfully none of the rest of us got it.
Regan's seizures are back. They are really ugly. She had four in the night in the dorm. So, between Rylee and Regan I got up 10 times between midnight at 7. You do the math..it is not pretty.
All of this reminds us to have a light you have to have a power source. It doesn't matter what kind of light it is it needs a spark to get it started. We are glad to be connected to our source, Jesus.

...no big D

we didn't get to go to the Reunion because of the ice covering the exact bath of our drive. Very sad...So we soothed ourselves with First Walk. I also wanted to let everyone know that Regan hasn't had a seizure in two days! She did however redevelop the sore on her back. So, that is really disappointing.

I feel like a woman

The lights are low, the dryer is running and all feels right with the world. Regan is asleep on the sofa. She has a little snore...oh so sweet. Moby is of course asleep at my feet under the desk....he breathes so funny when he sleeps. I went to have the oil changed today and wanted to have the drivers side brake light replaced because it is burned out but they oil place couldn't do it. So, I did it myself! I got out the instruction book. Found out what type of light it needed and Regan and I went to O'Riley's and bought it. We came home and changed it ourselves. I had Shania Twain's song "Man I feel Like a Woman" running through my head.
Today makes me thankful for my mom. She is really independent. She could DO anything. I asked her last night on the phone if she ever went to bed with stuff undone. She couldn't really think of a time. WHAT? She had four kids and work fulltime. She works harder than anyone I know and she never complains about it. She taught me to shut up and get it done...in Jesus Name of course. (And people wonder why I am so independent!) More and more I want to be like her... mostly because she is like Jesus....God shines through her brightly.

We are leaving today for Brian's college reunion in Dallas. We are glad for the trip to the land of plenty. Please pray for our safety because of the weather. We love the car. We love traveling around...we don't visit exotic place ...but we visit awesome places because we visit people, people we love.

and he came to testify to the light

We put up our Christmas Tree yesterday. That is such a huge project. It is funny how already there are "man" jobs and "girl" jobs. Brian and Ryder put the lights on while Rylee and I got supper ready. Rylee made her powerful brownies...yummy! One big issue surrounding our tree each year is who's year it is to put on the star. We have an every other year rotation. They have to get the scrapbook out to see who did it last year. This year is Rylee's year. She wasn't really interested in any other part of decorating except that. There must be something about the lights and the star that have a deep place in our hearts.
John the baptist came to testify to the light....the LIGHT...Jesus. Our prayer for this Christmas is that we would testify to his light. We ask God to direct conversations about light to open up opportunity to testify to His Light. The Light of the World. If you have time today take time to read John 1 and then let all the lights of this season shine in and through you. As we put up our ornaments we thought of many of you who have given them to us through the years or have been a part of ministries that these ornaments represent. They testify to His light in you.
Regan's seizures are horrible right now. They are extremely convulsive. It is painful for her and for us as well. Please pray for her. Also, we are traveling this week to Dallas for Brian's 10 year college reunion. We are very excited to catch up with some great friends the Stephenson's. What a blessing it is to Brian to have Clint in his life all these years.
We look forward to hearing from you.

Thanksgiving Joy!

I continue to enjoyreading the Divine Hours as part of my prayer and meditation each day. I am consistently amazed at how it speaks to me right where I am since it was written and formated so so long ago. The refrain for today is "Those who sowed with tears will reap with songs of joy. Those who go out weeping , carrying the seed, will come again with joy, shouldering their sheaves. (Ps 126:6-7) Boy, is that a great image that reveals truth to us as we read. Holidays are a tricky time for many people, and I would include myself in this category. With the season comes hope because of what Christ has and is doing for us. It also bring remembering and pondering what is to come. Many of you will remember some of the not so great Thanksgiving and Christmas season Regan has been through. Especially 2003 when we thought we were loosing her because of liver failure. Then last year at Thanksgiving when she was so ill and recovering form hip removal surgery. We also know that when Regan is made new with Christ will also carry saddness for for those of us left here in this veiled reality. So, it reminds us that every moment counts.
So, I am thankful that we have this verse to be an anchor. I think of the image of a woman on her knees literally sowing seeds of God's word into the ground as she weeps...then reaping joy. Only God makes something like that happen. Only the seed of Christ can use tears to bring nutrients for sheaves of joy! Now that is something to be thankful for!
We thank God for you....for his faithfulness made tangible by your love and prayer.....now that is better than "punkin" pie.

the weekends go so fast........

Thank you all so much for praying for the radio interview. It went great as far as we are concerned. We were able to really tell Regan's story and how God has used St Johns to bless our family. The woman in charge to the telethon said she would send us a CD so we will load it on the blog so you can all hear it. We were actually interviewed by another lady while we were there. She would like to feature our family in the St Johns quarterly magazine. We agreed. I have been saying for years that when I talk about the hospital I sound like a stupid commercial but it is just truth.
I had to go the the prompt care on Saturday morning because I woke up feeling horrible. I have strep again. This is the second time this month. But when I got in the car to make the drive to Springfield they were replaying our interview. So, I called Brian and he and the kids listened to it.
So, since I was sick with strep I did not get to go with Brian and the kids to Indy for the National Missionary Convention. Brian did his workshop and it went great. He thought everybody was clicking with him. The kids had fun, Rylee even ran his power point for him! On Saturday night they while they were in Indy they went to Chili's to eat and spent two hours bowling. They had a great time and I am glad they got to have fun even though Regan and I had to stay home.
Please pray for me as I get over this strep we are sure that Brian has it again and suspicious about Rylee so he is calling the doctor in the morning. Please pray that we can get rid of it this time.
Also, please pray for Regan's brace. She developed a small sore on her back. It is almost all better but it has taken a week for it to get there. We need to be using the brace so please pray that when we start back she will be able to tolerate it.
Lastly, please pray for our friends the Maupin's they are moving to Lincoln after serving the Lord in Mexico City for the past five years. They have two children that are the ages of Ryder and Regan. Pray for them as they transition back to life in the United States...okay actually rural IL...Mexico City and Lincoln share very few similarities. Thanks!
I appreciate all of you who post comments, so keep it up! It comforts me to know you are checking in on us and I love hearing about you.

Resting in Christ

I was thinking yesterday how much my relationship for Brian teaches me about my relationship with Christ. MOST of the time I am at rest with Brian because he just loves me. I don't have to work for it, worry about it going away, be afraid of what this level of vulnerability might bring...I can rest in it...I can enjoy the peace that it bring. I was just praising God for giving me this relationship with Brian when I thought do I rest this way in Christ? Do I feel I am working to earn his love, am I afraid it might go away, am I worried about what this level of vulnerability brings? I am sad to admit that sometimes I am not at rest. Yet, Christ has called all of us to a rest in Him. He brought the Israelites into that rest in the Promise Land. They ate food they didn't plant, they lived in houses they didn't build, they one battles that the Lord fought.....rest. I pray you have rest in Christ today.
Friday Brian, Regan and I are are going to be be interviewed by a secular station about why we love our hospital. They are raising support for the Children's Miracle Network which funds many programs and clinics at St John's. Please pray that our testimony will be strong ...that people will see how God has blessed us through St Johns. Praise to God not to Children's Miracle Network. Please pray people will hear HIS rest in our story.

Toby-Mac Rocks!

Well the concert was great! Ryder loved seeing Toby-Mac in concert. Brian videoed Ryder singing or rather "rocking" along is so weird. When you can't understand the words but your kid knows each one you know he is really growing up. Just the other day he told me to turn to radio station because the song was to mature for Rylee and he didn't want to hear it. Come to find out it was "Get your sexy on" by Justin Timberlake. What happened to sweet NSync and "I want you back."
Ryder also made a 100% on his math homework on Friday after making an A on his Math test on Thursday. He said, "The incentive on losing all my books was appropriate motivation." Ryder is a straight A student except for math. So, I told him if he brought home another F or D on a paper he would have to hand over his books until we had a full week of A's and B's in math. It is good to see he and Brian having such a great time.

Wednesday, November 8, 2006

Thanks to all your responses both on the blog and via email. Regan has a doctor appointment on Friday. We will be doing xrays with her in her new brace. She is up to sleeping in it eight hours each night. She seems to be handing it great! We credit this to the grace of God so thanks for your prayers regarding this transition. Please pray for this appointment to go well. They will place sensors between her the brace and then take the xray. These sensors will measure the pressure from the sensors. We really want God to use this brace to help Regan's spine. Her curve is very severe and it on the brink of causing other problems if we can not stop it from continuing. I have added a link (if it works) to this email that you can go on to see her brace. She has the "Providence Systems" model. Regan's is purple, of course.

Rylee is going to Cheer Clinic over the next few days. She is loving that. Ryder and Brian are looking forward to seeing Toby-Mac in concert on Friday and an IL Football game on Saturday. It should be a great weekend.

Chantell's Welcome November 6

Thanks for taking the time to keep up with us. Time is a value to me so I will try to keep it short. We named our blogg "Route 5" because we want to remind ourselves and you in the process that we are on a journey.
I looked up "route" and found these meanings. When route is used as a noun it is "a course, way, a road for passage or travel." The New Testament Christians refereed to themselves as people of "the way." The five of us are people have chosen Christ as the road or course to travel. We too identify ourselves as people of "the Way." After all Jesus is The Way, The Truth and The Light.
When "route" is used as a verb it is "to send or forward by a particular route." So, this is the way that we want to send or forward what is going on with the five of us. After all we are not simply five on this route but God has but you on the route with us. Often many of you email me about how Regan has been on your mind and in your prayers and you wonder what is going on. Hopefully this will be an easy way for us to update you. Please fill free to respond to the updates. It encourages us to hear what God is doing with you.
The last few weeks have been difficult for Regan. She was having many long (15min or longer) and strong seizures. We went on a new med to help them. It did! But then she had an allergic reaction to it and developed a severe rash. So, now we are off the meds and getting over the rash. The doctors think this could take up to two weeks. Please pray for the seizures to NOT come back.
Rylee, Brian and I have all had strep throat. Ryder was also sick for several days. Could you also pray for our strength.
We thank you for praying.....we thank you for hanging in there with us we know this route is unpredictable and often has twists and bends that you don't expect.

Welcome!

Welcome to our Blog! This will be much easier for us to keep updated than our family website. Please check in as often as you think to!