Abby update - December 20

We are home!!!! Halleluia!!!!

It has been an amazing day--full of some very sweet emotions. As we made about 20 trips carrying things from Abby's Warm Springs room down to the car, everyone who'd had a part in taking care of her or us there stopped by Room 427 to say good-bye. There were lots of hugs, photos, and bittersweet tears--she (and we) have been well-loved by so many very good people (in fact, Abby was telling everyone yesterday and today that she didn't want to go home--I think because she had grown so fond of everyone!). But the memory that will stay etched in my mind forever is seeing all of the nursing staff lined up by the nurses' station cheering Abby on as we walked down that hallway for the last time (as an inpatient, anyway). Many of those staff were there on the first day Abby arrived, lying on a guerney, unable to move, eat, walk, or speak, with eyes that could not follow you. And today she told them good-bye and waved as she made her exit. Maybe they see miracles like that a lot--but it touched my heart to see them applaud this miracle of ours...

The emotions kept flowing at the Ronald McDonald House where we said good-bye to our Honduran friends, Adriana and 13-year-old Dulcci. They and Dulcci's little sister have been in San Antonio (at the RMH) since February for Dulcci to receive cancer treatment. The doctors say the cancer in Dulcci's chest is not responding to treatment, but Adriana and Dulci are full of joy--believing that God is going to heal her. They always brighten my day (Adriana and I somehow manage to communicate in her limited English and my limited Spanish, while Dulcci's English is great!), often sharing their Honduran food, and today they were so happy to finally meet Abby. Please pray for Dulcci and her family--for her healing and that God will continue to use them to bring joy.

And then we had to take the long way home, with a few stops, so that we could view our next miracle of the day--our beautifully remodeled home! Okay, here's the full story, for those of you who have been wondering about my little inferences...We had been in ICU for about a week when Taylor Schaede's family called us. They had been going to our house to water plants, feed fish, etc., and arrived to find water running out the front door. A pipe leading to a toilet in our half-bath had burst, blowing a hole in the sheetrock in that room and flooding the floors in that room, the living room, the master bedroom, and the master bath. Normally this is the kind of news that would make me moan and groan, but somehow, when you're pleading with God to spare your child, carpet and sheetrock just don't seem to matter as much. In the end, however, you do want a sound home to come home to, and some very, very dear friends stepped in to coordinate a monumental effort involving subcontracting, many volunteers, and numerous gifts.

And thus, for the second time today, we found ourselves leading Abby into a group of smiling, cheering friends. It was like an episode of Extreme Makeover Home Edition, just with a Pod instead of a bus! And what a beautiful home we walked into--it was beautiful with colors, textures, and lighting, but mostly it was beautiful with love. I am sure that we will never know how many people had a part in restoring our home, but I want to say to each one of you reading this, that we love it, it is gorgeous, and, in this busy Christmas season, you have given us a great gift--not just the warm, beautiful rooms, but a sense of all-embracing care for us.

One slight worry was that Abby would be a little disoriented with the changes, but she officially said "Wow!" and that she "loves it." So, we enjoyed a dinner left in the fridge by a neighbor, relaxed in our living room playing cards together as a family, and then helped Abby upstairs to her still-familiar pink horse room, where she is now asleep in her own bed for the first time in 78 days. The next couple of days will bring visits from in-home therapists, who will help guide us through the next steps of her recovery, but, for now, we just rejoice in being home once more.

We'd like to host an open house sometime as a thank-you and a formal celebration of the blessings we've been given, but there's still a little work to be done, and we'll need a little time to get ourselves and Abby oriented to our new schedules, etc.; however, we'd be happy for you to stop in for a quick visit any time along the way. Just give us a call at 512-847-9480. Also, I'm rediscovering the limitations of dial-up internet access, so I'd like to suggest that you use my "regular" email address: lalinam@wimberley-tx.com. For now, I'll keep on blogging every day, but I'll let you know if we decide to go to a once/week post or some other plan eventually. I've been glad for the chance at the end of each day to reflect and share with you, but I've already got a feeling that life's going to be a little busier back at home! ;-)

And now, from 200 Hoots Holler...Good night and God bless!
Lee Ann, Gordon, Abby & Frank