Sunday, November 30, 2008

giving thanks

This Thanksgiving was spent 432 miles away in New Jersey. Drew and I had the chance to spend 4 days with his family. It was so nice to see all of them, especially the newest members of our family! Alden & Mercer are now 14 months old. We just saw them in August and it's amazing how much they are changing.



We discovered that they both love wearing hats.





I think the high point of baby hilarity was when they tried on their new snowsuits and boots that Grandma and Grandpa Wilkinson bought them for Christmas. For someone who is just learning to walk, Alden did a great job running in his snow boots. Between the hat, onesie, boots, and flopping PJs he looked like some kind of superhero zipping around. We're on the watch for superpowers.
Mercer was very proud of his new mittens!








Drew and I spent Thanksgiving Day with some of his extended family as well. It was wonderful to see many of his grandparents, aunts and uncles.

The holidays are fun, but between all of the cooking, visiting, and baby activities I need a vacation.

Friday, November 14, 2008

a miracle in our midst

For those of you who don't know the story, our little nephew, Mercer, suffered a stroke in utero and was born with severe brain damage. After his birth he experienced periods of apnea and seizures, which led to his being transported to a NICU. The doctors did several MRIs and, after seeing the damage that his brain sustained, gave the opinion that Mercer would likely have Cerebral Palsy as well as other developmental problems. His doctors thought that he would probably never walk and would certainly have trouble with his speech and basic motor skills.




Of course, we were all devastated and grieved with Jared and Raegan over this bleak future that had been laid out for their son. After we heard the news, we did the only thing that we could do and started praying. God is faithful and heard our prayers for this little boy.

The news kept getting worse for awhile, but then it started looking up.

Every time the doctors saw Mercer he looked a little better. Before long he was able to go off of the anti-seizure medication. Praise God!

After that he was able to eat at the same rate as his twin brother, Alden. Yea!

There were a team of therapists who came to work with him. They were constantly surprised and impressed with how well he was doing. Throughout all of these months we kept praying for God's healing in him -- we saw it happening!

Before we knew it he was sitting up, then crawling, and now walking!



Who ever thought that a toddler getting into everything would cause such joy?

Just last week, Mercer had his 1 year appointment with his Neurologist at Boston Children's Hospital. The doctor was blown away by how well Mercer is doing! He doesn't see any signs of CP and thinks that Mercer will lead a normal life.

Mercer is a miracle and his health is a testament to God's faithful grace and love for us.




Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Praise Him all creatures here below.
Praise Him above you heavenly hosts.
Praise Father, Son, & Holy Ghost.
Amen.

Monday, November 3, 2008

Wilkinson Family Photo

Here is a great photo of the Wilkinson family from our trip to Maine in August. I finally got a copy of it the other day! Drew and I will be heading out to New Jersey to spend Thanksgiving with them all this year. I can't believe Thanksgiving is only a few weeks away already!

On a completely different note: last week (October) it was freezing cold, snowing, and sleeting.

This week (November) it is going to be in the upper 60s, near 70ยบ with lots of sun.


Does something seem wrong with this?

I'm not one to complain about warm weather, but this is strange.
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