HEARTFELT GRATITUDE...

today we received wonderful news!
news that i don't take for granted.

graham's heart murmur is gone or very faint!
his heart shows no areas of concern and is functioning great.

i'm not proud to say, yesterday i was a mess.
i chose to spend the day worrying.
then i found out he would be sedated for the ekg and ultrasound.
i couldn't stop crying.
i couldn't fall asleep last night.
i most definitely wasn't resting in the peace i should have been.
graham wasn't too jazzed about the looming procedures either.
but he did much better than i did.



there were many prayers said for graham's heart as well as our peace.
i was reminded yet again what a blessing it is to have others who pray for us.
and others who gently remind me i'm not in control,
and no matter the circumstances,
it is a blessing that someone much, much better is in control.

now that sweet baby boy is at home again.
thanks to the "benydryl-like" sedative he drank this morning,
he is sleeping the day away.

and yes, you do see correctly...
we have another full-fledge thumb sucker on our hands.
i love him. more than a little.

and i give thanks for every detail that makes him who he is.

LET THE PEACE OF CHRIST RULE IN YOUR HEARTS...

UPDATE:
witt's procedure is done and the results are good!
there are still many unknowns, and many obstacles for witt,
but there is also so much that could have been worse and we are rejoicing!
click below for the full update...
http://witt harris lupher.blogspot.com

today my nephew, witt, is having a procedure that will start sometime soon and last for three to four hours. the cardiologist will measure very precisely pressure levels involving the heart, lungs and the leaky valve. when it is finished the doctor will come out and give the results immediately. today is huge, not only because witt will have to be put under again but also because by the end of the procedure we will have a good idea of what shape his heart and lungs are in and be given some answers. please pray throughout the day for sweet witt, austan, and mel, and everything this day holds. of course God already knows these things that will be revealed, but we are anxious about knowing too, and striving to trust him and his peace fully in each situation. thank you for prayers!

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.
Colossians 3:15

UPDATE:
witt's procedure is done and the results are good!
there are still many unknowns, and many obstacles for witt,
but there is also so much that could have been worse and we are rejoicing!
click below for the full update...
http://witt harris lupher.blogspot.com

"YOU DO LIVE LONGER WITH BRAN, BUT YOU SPEND THE LAST FIFTEEN YEARS ON THE TOILET." -Alan King

in case anyone is still interested in a bran muffin recipe after that quote, may i please recommend this one. my friend martie made these for us after akm was born, and we have been enjoying her recipe quite often ever since. these muffins were the treat mel requested most while they were in the hospital with witt, so it seemed like the obvious recipe to turn to when making a snack for some other sweet families in the hospital. also, you can read all of their stories and updates by clicking on their links in the new section "prayer is the voice of faith."


BRAN MUFFINS
(makes 2 dozen)

INGREDIENTS
3 C unprocessed wheat bran
(this can be a little hard to find, but it is usually with the health foods or on the cereal aisle,
i typically just ask a store worker for help finding it)
1 C boiling water
1 C brown sugar
1/2 C butter
2 1/2 C flour
2 t baking soda
1 t salt
2 eggs, beaten
2 C buttermilk

DIRECTIONS
Mix 1 cup wheat bran with 1 cup boiling water. Stir and let water absorb into bran.
In separate bowl blend sugar and butter.
Measure and combine flour, baking soda, and salt.
Combine the moist bran with beaten eggs, remaining 2 cups of bran, buttermilk, blended sugar/butter mixture, and flour/soda/salt mixture.
Stir all until well blended.
Place in refrigerator for future use, or bake at once.
Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins.
Bake at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes.

SPRINGTIME...

happy SPRING to you!
our 3 family enjoyed the first day of the season
by eating a scrumptious dinner and delicious gelato,
on a fun patio that had great people-watching and beautiful weather.


as much fun as that was, it was still not the high of my day.
yesterday morning we were able to do something
that we have hoped to do for a long time.
we got to go on an outing with WITT and company!
we are so thankful that he is home from the hospital.
we continue to pray that God helps him grow and heal more each day.


yesterday's outing will always be a special reminder to me
of the way we welcomed the season of spring this year, after all
"no matter how long the winter, SPRING is sure to follow."
~proverb

PLEASE PRAY FOR HARPER...

a sweet baby girl was born yesterday, harper brown stamps. her mom and dad, kelly and scott, have prayed for her for so long and anticipated her arrival for years. she is now here but in very serious condition and the family is coveting your prayers. our family knows firsthand the comfort it is to know there are countless prayers for your sweet newborn. recently my sister-in-law mel, witt's mom, mentioned how special it is to come across a blog and see the "pray for baby witt" button. how powerful to get a glimpse of one of his prayer warriors! i know the stamps family is also so thankful for each person praying for harper at this time.

THE HEART OF CHRISTMAS...

"you don't have to be an angel to sing harmony,
and you don't have to be a child to love the mystery.
and you don't have to be a wise man on bended knee.
the heart of this christmas is in you and me."

how very thankful i am that the heart of christmas does indeed live in my heart,
and that God sent Him to be born here on earth for us.
it is my 1st christmas as a mom and aunt and with that came a new outlook on the miracle of life.

during this christmas season, please continue to pray for my nephew witt and all the family.
witt is back in the icu right now with an infection.
just 1 week from now adelaide and witt will celebrate their 1st christmas.
the update on witt's blog says it best-
"They can't guarantee he will be home by Christmas, but I guarantee Christ will be with him!"

"COUSINS ARE FRIENDS THAT WILL LOVE YOU FOREVER." -Constance Richards

these girl cousins, carson and adelaide,
cannot wait for the day they get to meet their boy cousin, witt!

they have smiled at his pictures so many times.
they have hung out as close as possible in his hospital waiting room.
they have worn their matching outfits
(made by my mom, adelaide's grammy and carson's and witt's honorary grammy)
and anticipate the day witt can be next to them wearing his.

God continues to do MIGHTY things in and through witt's life!
we continue praying for sweet, sweet cousin witt.

"to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! amen."
-ephesians 3:20-21

THE POWER OF CHILDREN AND BABY JULIE...

one of the things that i have learned in these times is the power of children. i could talk all day trying to express the ways witt has blessed my life. i also have been reminded of that power through adelaide. mel and austan have always poured out love on her. i didn't know whether it would be hard for everyone to have adelaide around during this time but i was wrong in thinking that. every time we visit mel asks if adelaide is with us. she wants to hear exactly what she is doing and then comes out to hold her. the first night of witt's life as austan shared what he knew about witt all of us adults stood shocked not knowing what to do. i was holding adelaide while austan was talking. suddenly mid-sentence austan interrupted himself and said "look at that smile!" then stopped and smiled himself back at her. i have learned it is okay to smile even through the hard times. while we as adults are reserved and so cautious as to what the right emotions are the heart of a child cannot help but share smiles without inhibition. sometimes that is exactly what we need.



one way miss priss has continued to make us smile is her love for her baby doll. a few months ago evan started calling adelaide "baby julie" when she gets out of the bath. evidently the way i brush her wet hair to the side reminds him of julie andrews. it has become part of our bedtime tradition. he sings a few songs from the sound of music and refers to our daugther as "julie" until she goes to bed.

maybe these pictures will help you envision the way adelaide morphs into julie

soon after post-bath adelaide became "baby julie" her baby doll became "baby julie" too. now the doll is exclusively called by that name. sunday evening adelaide said her 3rd word. we had heard 1) "uh-oh" and 2) "hi!" already. now we have also heard 3) "hi jee!" directed to baby julie. anytime she sees her doll she repeats it again and again. this is yet another way a child is making us smile.

and here are a few pictures to show adelaide's love for baby julie (april, may, & october 2008)

THANK YOU FROM ALL OF WITT'S FAMILY...

a huge thank you to each of you that have left comments and sent love and prayers for witt and all of us! we have been blown away with the outpouring of support. "thanks" doesn't seem to say enough of what we are feeling but that is all i know how to say.

we have now set up a blog for baby witt (wittharrislupher.blogspot.com). many family members are posting updates and journaling about this precious time with witt on his site.

he has captured our hearts already. in this season of so many unknowns we know one thing for sure- we will never be the same! he has already taught us so much just in the past 5 days. for the most part i will be sharing my thoughts about the blessing of my nephew on his site. for example here are my thoughts on sweet cousins and the luphers.

if you want to add his "pray for baby witt" button please do! (for directions click here) we are so glad fabulous k thought to set that feature up so more and more people can learn his story and pray for him. if you would like to leave a comment on his site please do! they are shared with mel and austan daily and such an encouragement to all of us.

PRECIOUS WITT...

i don't understand it. we probably never will fully understand it. but i do know that i agree with karen's words below. this is a summary from karen about the news from the doctors:

we have received some very bad news on witt. he is believed to have edwards syndrome (trisomy 18) which brings with it a very short life span. the doctor said 1 month to 1 year. most likely witt will not come to his earthly home before he goes home to God the Father. melanie and austan are allowing God to carry them as they cope. please pray for them as they face medical decisions. God was and is and will be our hope...that will never change even though we don't understand. we are celebrating each day that we have with witt on this earth. God has called mel and austan to be parents in a way that most of us will never know. but God the Father...our Perfect Parent...will lead them.

GREETINGS FROM A PROUD NEW AUNT...

WITT HARRIS LUPHER has arrived!

after 2 long day in the hospital mel delivered baby boy witt tonight, october 23rd, at 6:15pm.

we rejoice that he is finally here and love him immensely already. we are praying fervently for him and specifically his health. right now he is getting help breathing and testing is being done on his lungs and for other things. each and every prayer is coveted for this precious child of God. we know He is faithful in all situations and we ask His comfort especially in the days ahead.


***here is some more info. from grandma karen...
Witt is in NICU. He is getting help breathing and will undergo numerous tests today (Friday). First, we could not do this without our God...He is our Life...the very air we breath!! I can't come up with the words to describe Austan and Melanie and the strength I see in them. Mel is anxious to go see Witt. Austan has been able to see Witt a couple of times and lights up when he talks about him. We have cried, laughed and prayed. I will send updates as we get them. It is one step at a time as Witt's life unfolds. This story is unfolding for us but not for God so we look to Him to direct us. Thank you to each one of you...thank you for your prayers, your emails, your calls. Thank you for standing in the gap for Witt and us!!!

THANK YOU FOR PRAYING AND THANK YOU GOD FOR OUR MORNING...

here's the little bob-a-doo still smiling in the waiting room even though she had not eaten for over 4 hours. it was hard watching her get her iv's and listening to her cry, but that part didn't last long at all and she slept through the MRI absolutely perfectly.





we were blessed with the nicest, most comforting nurses again. our main nurse pulled this awesome trick out of her bag while getting adelaide prepped. it was a ridiculous light-up toy that definitely kept her occupied. (please notice the teensy-tiny hospital gown, it really wasn't funny but it kept making me grin)




i woke up this morning with the worst scenarios of how today would go, but by the time we got there i was feeling God's peace and our morning was so much better than expected. now we are back at home with a sleepy baby as the last of her sedation wears off and so glad she is okay. we won't get the results back until next week but we are so thankful for a good morning. thank you for your kind words of encouragement and prayers!

PRAYERS APPRECIATED...

today is the day i have been ready to be over but not wanting to come at the same time. adelaide has to have another MRI. on her first one they only checked her lower spine. when we met with the doctor she said everything looked great on the lower half and there should be no need for surgery from what she could see with the dimple, etc. however, because adelaide has a birthmark right on the middle of her spine she wants to make sure that it is not an indicator of anything else and that nothing strange shows up on her upper spine either. the doctor said it is highly unlikely that anything will show up but she wants to check to be sure once and for all.
we will be the all morning while she gets it done. when i talked to the nurse yesterday she prepared me that this one will take awhile longer than the last one and it is highly unlikely that she will just sleep through it again so be prepared for sedation. i trust God's plan for everything that happens today but I keep asking Him to give us peace like only He can give and watch over our girl and comfort her as only He is able throughout the whole thing. thank you for your prayers as well.

INCREDIBLE ANSWERS TO OUR PRAYERS...

this is adelaide with her grandma karen who has a wonderful habit of writing specific verses on notecards that she is praying over you in different situations. today she shared this verse with adelaide and us-"yet you are He who brought me forth from the womb; you made me trust when upon my mother's breast. upon you i was cast from birth. you have been my God from my mother's womb."-psalm 22:9-10

and this is what things look like at our home right now while i blog.
we are back at home after the most amazing experience at the MRI! when we arrived they decided to try the procedure without any sedation (something we didn't even know was an option) and said if she would stay asleep during it on her own they wouldn't have to use anything else. she couldn't eat for hours before the whole thing so adelaide hadn't been fed since 9:30am and at 2:30pm we carry her in and she wakes up with the brightest eyes ever. she wasn't screaming mad like she usually is when hungry but she was totally awake and taking it all in with those beautiful big eyes. at this point we were thinking, "yeah right is she going to sleep through this on her own!" but God had other plans. we lay her down on the table and they start strapping her itty bitty body into the giant machine and placing sandbags around her to hold her in place and she closes her eyes and peacefully falls back asleep. it was the most humbling thing to watch happen before my eyes and i was filled with God's peace even in the midst of the sadness of seeing such a tiny being in a huge MRI tube. on top of that good news, our pediatrician already called with the results and the dimple is indeed closed at the base. they double checked her spinal column too and everything is perfect, we shouldn't ever have to have it tested again! in case you can't tell we are so, so thankful for the results and all of your prayers.

PRAYING THE DAY AWAY...

adelaide has an appt. for an MRI today. she has a deep dimple at the top of her bottom that they can't see the base of. She is having the MRI to determine if the hole is open all the way to the spinal column and if it is we will have to meet with a neurosurgeon about the possibility of having surgery to close it. the drs. aren't too concerned about permanent development delays or anything and her spinal column looks good so that is comforting (she already had an ultrasound last week that confirmed the spinal column looks good, but the results were from the ultrasound were inconclusive about whether the base was closed or not). we are praying for the dimple to be closed and for the results from the MRI to be clear. i am especially asking for prayers for her while she is sedated during the MRI because that is very overwhelming to me. i am already experiencing what others warned me about- that all the worrying when she was in me, wouldn't even compare to what i would feel for the rest of her life!i am so thankful to trust in a God that i know is holding her in the palm of His hands even when i cannot. i am thankful that His plans for her are perfect and already exceed anything i can imagine. i am holding onto these things especially right now while we wait for the results from today's appt. thank y'all so much for covering baby adelaide and us in your prayers too.

GLOW BABY GLOW...

last night we sadly had to return to the hospital. adelaide had very slight jaundice when we left the hospital the first time but not enough for concern. by yesterday though her level had gone up significantly. while we were very sad to take her back to the hospital, we are so thankful that her pediatrician caught it right away. the light treatment was done through glowing blankets that helped her heal. she looked remarkably like the 80's classic toy- the glo worm while she was tightly wrapped up with her glowing blankets.

this picture does not do justice to how much she resembled a glo worm but if you look closely you can see a little of the blue light coming from her back. we are very thankful God healed her so quickly and that we are already back at home again. we are also thankful for my mom's cheerful encouragement while we were there. she even thought of the perfect song to sing to her granddaughter while she was being treated by the glow.

and a special thanks to grandma bobbie and grandpa curt for reminding my mom of the rest of lyrics she couldn't remember...

GLOW WORM
Words & Music by Lilla Cayley Robinson & Paul Lincke
Recorded by The Mills Brothers, 1952

Shine little glow-worm, glimmer, glimmer.
Shine little glow-worm, glimmer, glimmer.
Lead us lest too far we wander.
Love's sweet voice is calling yonder.
Shine little glow-worm, glimmer, glimmer.
Hey, there don't get dimmer, dimmer.
Light the path below, above.
And lead us on to love!

PRAYERS FROM THE HEART, FOR THE HEART...

of tiffani.

i cannot stop thinking about my sweet friend tiffani.

tomorrow she is having open heart surgery to replace a valve.

(for her full story click here)

she is a woman of faith who has put her trust in God.
i know she is so thankful for all the prayers she can get,
especially tomorrow and through these next few months of healing.

you can pray specifically for:
God's peace over Tiffani throughout
strength and peace for her husband, Tim, and family
that her old valve has not fused to her breastbone
perfect surgery and God's wisdom for the doctors
smooth recovery
that this valve will last years and years

may God's unfailing love be her comfort (psalm 119:76)
and surround her with His mighty healing hands and peace.

UPDATE-
11/29/07 8:21pm
tiffani is out of surgery and in recovery.
PRAISE GOD!

YOU'VE GOTTA HAVE FAITH, FAITH, FAITH...

baby in
the belly

24 weeks

(6 months)

i can't name anything else in my life that has been such a life lesson of my faith.
i have so many wonders and so much curiosity, about this baby growing inside me.
some days i go about my normal routine with hardly any holdups.
then other days, like today, i spend countless hours thinking about the baby and praying for more and more faith that God is in control of this tiny being.
it is an incredibly humbling experience.
i know God created this amazing plan in the first place, and i trust his plan whole heartedly.
but as someone who likes to do all i can to take care of things myself, sometimes i need to be reminded that i am not ultimately in control.

verse for today... John 14:1
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me!"

thank you God for watching over evan and me daily,
and i especially thank you for watching over baby mc!

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY...

we had a great 4th of july (more to come on that soon...)
but, i am most excited for the phillip's family on their 4th of july!
in march jaymie and korey's twins came early. so many prayers have been said for this family as we have waited to see what each day holds. we know God has a plan so much better than we can understand and it has been amazing to see the way the phillips' have trusted Him with their precious babies.
sweet jayde is already in her forever Home with Jesus. yesterday jaymie and korey were able to bring kanyon home to their house for the first time! it was his 100th day of life and a huge step of independence for them... their first day to hold him and celebrate his life outside of the hospital.
i can't even begin to imagine the feelings and emotions of this homecoming! praise God for such a special day!

PSALM 15

i want...
"my walk to be blameless and do what is righteous,
speak truth from the heart and let no lies be on my tongue,
do my neighbor no wrong and cast no insults on others.
despise vile things but honor those who fear the Lord.
keep my promises even when it hurts,
lend money without interest and not accept bribes against the innocent."
because...
"he who does these things will never be shaken."

i am not "there" on any of these things, but what a good list or reminders of how to lead a Godly life. it's a lot easier said than done but i can't think of anything more important to work on daily.