I Corinthians 13 for Mothers (by Jim Fowler)

If I live in a house of spotless beauty with everything in its place, but have not love, I am a housekeeper, not a homemaker.

If I have time for waxing, polishing, and decorative achievements, but have not love, my children learn cleanliness, not godliness.

If I scream at my children for every infraction, and fault them for every mess they make, but have not love, my children become people-pleasers, not obedient children.

Love leaves the dust in search of a child’s laugh.
Love smiles at the tiny fingerprints on a newly cleaned window.
Love wipes away the tears before it wipes up the spilled milk.
Love picks up the child before it picks up the toys.
Love accepts the fact that I am the ever-present “mommy,” the taxi-driver to every childhood event, the counsellor when my children fail or are hurt.
Love crawls with the baby, walks with the toddler, and runs with the child, then stands aside to let the youth walk into adulthood.

Before I became a mother I took glory in my house of perfection. Now I glory in God’s perfection of my child.

All the projections I had for my house and my children have faded away into insignificance, And what remain are the memories of my kids. Now there abides in my home scratches on most of the furniture, dishes with missing place settings, and bedroom walls full of stickers, posters and markings, But the greatest of all is the Love that permeates my relationships with my children.

America's Got Talent

I know what you are thinking....."You must be so proud" Darn tootin' right!!!!!

The Vest

Nicholas has had a lot of problems with pneumonia lately. Some say it is due to him not being healed yet from surgery but either way Stephen and I wanted to do something to help him clear his lungs. Along comes....(drum roll here)....THE VEST. Nicholas has a great cough and clears his lungs but still has those nasty germs that like to hang out in his lungs and cause all of us problems. The Vest is this contraption that wraps around his chest. Then is fills up with air making a tight fit kind if like a blood pressure cuff. Then....it SHAKES! It jiggles his body so that the "junk" gets out of his lungs and he coughs it up.
I was so excited when it showed up today. Below is the first test try with him. He has no clue what is about to happen.
Ahhhh...this is kind of nice...like a massage.

The video shows his response after it had been on for a while. The lady is our CNA that comes a few hours a day. You know, the one I DID NOT WANT and fought not to have but is now a member of our family :) She is having her baby girl tomorrow so please keep her in your prayers.

In the video you will also hear us laughing hysterically! Nicholas went from relaxed and happy to not quite sure what was going on.

The VEST did work. It came out his nose, out his lungs and out his fanny (yuck) Please keep him in your prayers as we are worn out from the constant illness with him. It is hard on Nicholas and hard on the rest of us. Pray this works and that the Lord will put His healing hand on our little man...thank you.

And the Heavens will rejoice....

I wrote that a little over a year ago when Megan accepted Christ. Now I get to write it again. Last night Brandon asked Jesus into his heart. We had the honor as a family to pray together.

Brandon, mommy and daddy love you so much. Last night was a night we will never forget. You love to pray. You love to talk to God anxiously waiting to hear his reply. We love that B. We love watching you on your journey. We are so excited to see what the Lord has planned for you and pray as parents that we can help guide you on this journey. Brandon, always keep the Lord the first priority in your life. Trust in Him and have faith in Him. And the Heavens will rejoice!

A special kind of love

Nicholas coloring

Nicholas' vision therapist has started to introduce crayons to Nicholas. She is working on Nicholas being able to grasp items and see what he can do when holding them. Below is a short video of Nicholas in his stander, holding a crayon while his therapists helps him to color. He really loved it and actually visually focused on the light and colors. She uses a light box to help bring out the colors for Nicholas.

Fun, Food, Friends and......FLYING!

A friend of ours recently bought and learned how to fly a Ultralight Trike. Steve, being the adrenaline junky, has begged Todd to take him up. I, on the other hand, being the land lover was hesitant about the "plane thingy"
So Saturday Todd invited us and other friends over to the airport for a picnic, flying time and birthday celebration (it was Cheryl's birthday) On the drive over there, Steve and Megan were rushing me to "hurry up". Little Stephen and I (Stephen is a land lover like his mommy) were still pondering if we would do the Trike.
We get there and I see the Trike. NO WAY! No way was I going to go up in that!!! Below is a picture of it. Megan posing...She couldn't wait to go flying.

Cheryl got the honor of smashing a cupcake in Anna's face. Happy Birthday Cheryl!!!

Megan got smashed as well :)

Anna, the other dare devil, going up with Todd.

Brandon and Steve flying up on the other plane.

There's my daughter. No fear Megan getting buckled up to fly.

There goes Chris.

Anna and Megan going up on the other plane....alone! These two girls have more courage (not so sure that courage is the right word) than I will EVER have (they get it from the daddies!)

Alright....yes, that would be me! I came up with every excuse in the book as to why I should NOT go up. None of them worked. People...I don't even do roller coasters anymore due to the fear of the coaster flying off the rails! But Todd was the pilot and I trusted him so what better time to do it than now. A once in a life time opportunity.

I had a BLAST!!! It was the coolest experience ever. I can't describe how beautiful it was to be up there. Megan's first comment to me after she got down was "Mommy it was BEAUTIFUL up there...WOW" That is from an eight year old.

The video below shows Todd and I taking off. Glad for the video because I missed that due to my eyes being squeezed shut! At the end, Steve forgot to push the stop button so you hear Megan's shock and laughter when she found out that I really went up.

Thank you Todd and Cheryl for giving us that day, that gift. We had the best time ever and will never forget it. Oh...and yes, I am ready to do it again!!!! Bring it on baby!

Superman comes home!

That is Nicholas' new nickname. Superman. Fitting isn't it? Dave, one of his respiratory therapists came up with that one. Whenever he came to do chest PT, Nicholas got excited and his arms shot straight out (like he was flying) We always said it looked like he was riding a motorcycle but not Dave. He said Nicholas was Superman (or boy)

The picture below was right after surgery when he was in recovery. Not on oxygen (yet anyway) His heart rate was at 59. His normal level is 110. I freaked out! They said it was that way during the whole surgery. They were a bit concerned. I on the other hand was a lot concerned. All I kept remembering was when he coded. 59 is NOT a good heart rate.
It got better the next day so it must have been the combination of meds.


Nicholas' new scar. It starts at the bottom of his heart scar and down to his belly button.

My little hero.

On the second day, he had a hard time getting comfortable so he would wiggle his way sideways. Standing on the side of the crib this was my view of him. Easy kissing access! Sweet little face!

No worries...we were standing right there the whole time he slept so he didn't scoot off. Doesn't he look so tall?!?! He was sound asleep here.

On the way home he fell right to sleep.

Megan and Brandon got to tour the helicopter.

Thank you all for the prayers and support. We are so glad this surgery is done! He still has a few weeks of recovery but at least we are home. Praising Him....The Richardson's.