Playing Pirate

Benjamin recently had a check up on his eyes.  After 2 corrective surgeries the alignment isn't quite where the doctor wants it to be.  I was waiting for those dreadful words that I have heard so many times..."he'll need to have surgery..." but praise God they didn't come!  At least for now.  Instead, we were sent home with a box of patches.  I typically would have groaned at this...one more thing to do, but if it has a chance at preventing surgery, we are on board.

For 2 hours every day, Benjamin has to wear a patch over his left eye to encourage the right eye to work harder and get stronger.  Yesterday was the trial run.  To my surprise, he was completely compliant (course bribing him with a movie and fruit snacks probably helped.)  When the 2 hours was up, I went to take it off and he wanted to keep it on to show Papa when he came home from work!

We are praying that God will use this to strengthen that right eye and when we go back in 3 months that the problem is corrected and no surgery needed.

There Once was a Little House...

Over 9 years ago, there was a single, 25 year old girl that needed a project and somewhere to plant roots (both literally and figuratively.)  She found a house that needed some help.  It was a humble house, built in the '30s with a strange layout, one tiny bathroom, lots of quirks, and yet lots of charm.  It was painted a drab gray-blue and had 14 holes in the walls ranging from the size of a quarter to over a foot in diameter.  It had been vacant for over a year and needed quite a bit of TLC.  Soon the place came to life with patched wholes, new paint, and flowers in the yard.

That little house would come to witness many things...a wedding proposal, the first home of a newly wed couple, the surprise of a baby on the way, the bigger surprise when baby came early, welcoming him home after months in the hospital, a college graduation, a second baby brought home right on time.

As the family changed, so did the house.  A wall and a garage were added, large bushes came down and a fence and sandbox went up.  Year after year, a garden was tended. It's rich, loamy soil produced abundant food, and jars of home-canned food lined the cupboards.

Now the girl is 34 and her family is growing again.  Sadly, it is time to say goodbye to the little old house which holds so many memories.  She will never forget the living room that witnessed a first kiss, the same place where she danced with her baby, newly freed from the oxygen tank.  The place where she would spend many, many nights feeding a hungry baby or soothing a sick child, and cheering over each milestone passed.

Thank you little house, for being my home for these 9 wonderful years.  Thank you for keeping my family warm, dry, safe, and allowing me to be transformed alongside of you.