Surgery update - July 30

I can't believe that I find myself once again posting a blog update from the family-access computer in a hospital hallway, but I am....This time, however, there is much less fear in the air.

Abby did have her surgery today. Everything went well; however, the "missing piece" (a plastic cupped disk about an inch in diameter) managed to elude the doctors for about two hours. It had migrated significantly from its original site in the abdomen and was hiding under a thin layer of fat (has to be thin on Abby!) near the pelvis. Anyway, because the doctors thought that Abby might be fairly sore (they had to make two small incisions and did quite a bit of poking around), they suggested that she remain here at the hospital overnight. We really appreciate the extra concern and capability of Dr. Maxson (her ICU trauma surgeon) in overseeing the surgery, and, boy, was he finally glad to fish out that elusive disk after two hours! (Some of us with a little more hiding area in our bellies thought that they would have never found it if we had been the patient...)

So, thanks for your prayers--pray now that healing will go quickly, and Abby will enjoy the rest of her summer!

Love,
-the Linams

Linam Family Update - July 29

I wanted to start with a prayer request. Abby will have a minor surgery tomorrow to remove a portion of her feeding tube that came detached and was left in her abdomen. The surgery will be at noon at the new Dell Children's Hospital in Austin. It is only expected to take about 30 minutes, and Abby will come home tomorrow, but it does involve general anesthesia. In addition, we are prayerful that the doctors will be able to remove the piece with a laparascope, rather than needing to make an incision into the abdomen. Thanks for praying with us...

Now, for the news update from last week....
Well, Abby spent the week down on the coast, and, though I don't have any pictures from her trip, you'll see in the photo from our trip this weekend that she looks relaxed and tan after spending several days there with good friends (and Taylor's very generous and patient mom). She had a great time!

Frank celebrated the success of his Little League All-Star team with a party with his teammates (in between flooding rain events in Wimberley) and received an award as the pitcher with the lowest earned run average. Gordon also received a gift of appreciation as the coach who kept all those stats...

This weekend's trip was to Fort Worth, where I had a Horned Lizard Conservation Society conference. For those of you who are native Texans, I'm talking about horny toads. For those of you that aren't, here is a picture of the fearsome, yet lovable, state reptile that all native Texans over the age of 40 have found memories of. It was a pretty busy weekend for me, but there were some fun events as well, such as a behind-the-scenes tour of the Fort Worth Zoo, a tour of the Fort Worth Nature Center (which my family loved so much that they visited twice...), and a visit to a friend and colleague's ranch. It was good to get away together and to not worry too much about the upcoming surgery (it was also good to get finished with my presentation and the stress of the preparations!).

Thanks again for reading and praying with us...
-the Linams

Linam Family Update - July 23

Well, the theme of this last week was rain, so that's why I decided to start out the blog with pictures of the newly-created streams and waterfalls here on our property. It's been an amazingly wet week, and we are thankful to see the sun today and that we did not suffer any damage or much inconvenience with the local flooding.



Otherwise, it was a fairly routine week around here--thank God! We just caught up on chores, kept a few appointments, did a little work and reading...nice and boring (as Abby would say). (Although she did enjoy volunteering with the horses and riders at AWARE on Thursday.) Sunday evening brought our highlight, as we attended a Round Rock Express AAA baseball game with the Vests and Taylor and Abby's friend Hannah. The Vests bought the tickets at the Taylor and Abby fundraiser back in the fall, so it was especially sweet to share the experience with them, even if the Express couldn't pull out a win over the Oklahoma Red Hawks.

And now, Abby has joined Hannah and Taylor with Taylor's mom for a few days down at the beach. We're all jealous back here in Wimberley, but we'll head to Fort Worth together this weekend as a family. I'll be busy at a conference, but we should find some time for some family fun!

Thanks for reading--hope you have a blessed week!
-the Linams

Linam Family Update - July 15

It was another busy week around here--well, we were around a lot of places actually.

As you can read below, the emotion-filled All-Stars season is over, but we're still trying to catch up on our sleep (and car maintenance--we had to buy new tires for the Honda after the tournament was over!!).

And you'll note that Abby had a wonderfully fun week--Taylor was over for several days, and the kids were pet-sitting, so two of her favorite things were happening!

This weekend was also one of our highlights of the year. Frank and Abby took Amigo and Arby to the State 4-H Dog Show in Hutto. It was touching in many ways, and both kids and dogs did really well. Frank and Amigo took 3rd place in Rally (a fun-type of obedience class) and 8th place in costume (they were Amazon warriors). We felt like this would be the last time we'd ask Amigo to "perform" (his arthritis bothers him more and more each year), so I was glad that he and Frank had a successful time together. Our other team, Abby and Arby, took 1st place in sporting dog conformation, 2nd place in obedience, and 9th place in showmanship. The most poignant moment for us, however, was when Abby and Arby did their freestyle drill routine--a fast-paced choreography of running, jumping, heeling, and embracing set to Tobymac's "Made to Love." They only placed 7th, but it truly felt as if the whole crowd somehow shared the emotion that we all felt at seeing the two of them out there together, celebrating love and life.

We continued the celebration today, with a wonderful church service this morning and a walk down to the river this evening. And now, we are looking forward to a quieter week in Wimberley, our hometown, out here on the edge of the Hill Country...

May you celebrate yours...
-the Linams

how (hello)

Hey Abby's blog viewers! It's me, Abby, and my best friend Taylor (Vest). She's staying at my house all week!(till Friday at least).

What a day. We went swimming 3 times, went to the Library, and we are about to watch one of our favorite movie " She's the Man". We made a commitment to watch ONCE a day, if possible. Hopefully we wont go overboard and watch it 10 times in 4 days. It never gets old, no matter how many time you watch it.

Well, today was a simple day, nothing big. I had a small tumble on my bike, I was goin to fast, but nothing way over the top serious, didn't break any bones or anything like that, Thank the Lord!

O.k., we are pretty tired right now, swimming can exhaust you. Now, we must retire to bed to watch "She's the Man". See ya!

Abby & Taylor

Now, I guess it's over...

and even Yogi Berra would have to agree....

Our Wimberley All-Stars just finally ran out of steam tonight in the final match against Fredericksburg. Though we held the lead for awhile, Fredericksburg played nearly flawlessly to pull out the win 13-6. Some of our kids weren't feeling well and showed a lot of courage to fight to the very end, and all of them seemed somewhat weary after the long tournament. It's been a fun ride, but we'll just have to wish Fredericksburg well in carrying the District Championship into the next round (and look forward to some earlier bedtimes for ourselves!).

(Will someone stop me if they see me driving west on FM 473 tomorrow afternoon about 4 p.m.? After nine trips to Kerrville in 11 days I'm afraid the auto-pilot will take over...)

Now, to bed...
-a weary baseball Mom

Wimberley 21, Fredericksburg 14

What do you call it when you keep doing something over and over, despite the fact that it’s wearing down your body, all because it brings a huge rush? An addiction you say? Okay, I think we’ve got a Little League addiction going on here.

It’s midnight again, but we are all still on a high after watching the Wimberley All-Stars come from behind to defeat Fredericksburg, 21-14. Don’t let the score fool you—we were very worried up until the last inning, when Wimberley scored 14 runs to overcome a 7 run deficit. It was some very exciting baseball. Frank lost his 0.00 ERA, as some runs scored on him, but he put in a little over an inning pitching and helped Wimberley be in a position to come back.

So, none of us are sad that we have to make “one more trip” to Kerrville to face Fredericksburg on Tuesday evening. With the game count at 1-1, the winner of this match-up will claim the district championship and the “privilege” to keep pursuing this addiction…

Thanks for pulling for us!

-the Linams

Linam Family Update – July 9

Let's see--last week we practiced baseball, we drove to baseball games, we drove home when baseball games got rained out, we drove back for more baseball games, we watched baseball games, Frank played baseball games, we drove home from baseball games, we calculated baseball statistics, and we celebrated that the Wimberley All-Stars ARE IN THE DISTRICT FINALS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That's right, last night the boys beat Blanco 8-1 to earn the right to play Fredericksburg again in the finals. We didn't play well against Fredericksburg the first time, but Wimberley has played so well in the last several games that I think it will be a new game tonight. Keep us in your prayers--we have to beat them twice to win district, but, if these boys' stamina for driving to Kerrville and playing six days in a row can hold out, I think we've got a good chance!

We actually did do a few things besides baseball last week (though I'm not sure how...). Abby attended a horsemanship class at AWARE each morning. She rode an Appaloosa named "Happee," and that describes her attitude at spending each day with horses. She was also a good supporter for her brother and his team.

We also enjoyed visiting with family and friends. Dedicated grandparents made the trek to Kerrville to share the Little League excitement, and we enjoyed "crashing" with the kids' cousins, Kim and Karen, in Boerne one day as we waited for yet another game. Our good friend Jessie was home from Denver--we enjoyed a July 4th barbecue with her family, and Frank and Abby enjoyed some "Jessie time" again. Lots of "old" friends have joined us at church lately as well, with much joy at seeing Abby there.

Sometimes the hurriedness of this summer's schedule almost makes us forget that we once worried about all that the future would hold for our family. What a blessing that God has allowed us to return to the joy of family times spent together. We were reminded of that last night, as we were eating dinner with some of the parents from the baseball team. Another team mom sat down across from me and Abby. She told us that she had just found out that Abby was the young Wimberley girl in the accident, and, that even though we'd never met before this summer, she has spent the last year praying for Abby, reading the blog, etc. God's healing work in Abby continues to bring joy to many people, and we are very glad--for those that prayed and for the joy they have now...

Have a great week!
-the Linams

Saturday All-Stars Update

7-7-07: Wimberley 7, Kerrville 1

We're still in it! (Frank says, "of course..."). Wimberley played great in the field tonight! Frank pitched four innings and still maintains a play-off ERA of 0.00. Tomorrow we meet Blanco (which is located 25 miles from Wimberley--wonder why we all have to drive 90 miles to play each other?...that's Little League for you!)

Keep these great boys in your prayers at 6 p.m.!

Baseball Update

Thursday night: Wimberley 13, Hill Country 6

Well, the Wimberley All-Stars are still clawing their way back out of the loser's bracket. It's a tough go--with games scheduled every night in Kerrville, we're getting very weary of the drive. But some moments are inspiring. On Thursday night the team fell behind Hill Country 1-5, again following some fielding and throwing errors. But they didn't give up, and some of the youngest members of the team started a scoring rally over two innings that put Wimberley up 13-6 at the end. Frank came in as relief pitcher again--he's definitely got a very important niche on the team and much more calm aplomb than his mother in the stands...

The next game was to have been Friday night, but it was rained out by the Central Texas monsoons after we reached the fields. It's back to Kerrville tonight for a match-up against the hometown team, the Kerrville All-Stars.

All-Stars Boxscores - July 2

Well, you can't be flawless every night, and one error-filled inning last night in Kerrville handed the Wimberley Texan All-Stars their first loss, 9-2, to Fredericksburg. Frank came in as relief pitcher for one inning, and good defense behind him helped him go "three-up, three-down," but Wimberley couldn't put the offense together that they needed to climb out of the hole.

So, it's into the loser's bracket, with the next game on Thursday evening. We could meet Fredericksburg again if we make it to the finals, so we'll hope we get the chance to show them a better game...

-Some sleepy Linams

Linam Family Update - July 1

hi! (Abby's contribution tonight...)

I can't believe it...It's Sunday evening, the sun is still up, it's not raining, and all four human Linams and two canine Linams are home at 200 Hoots Holler! I can't remember the last time that happened...

Abby and Frank spent the week working out, getting ready for this weekend's activities. Frank continued his two-a-day baseball practices, while Abby participated in a conditioning camp at Wimberley High School. The speed, agility, and strength workouts the coaches put the kids through were pretty demanding, but Abby never wavered. She said that she was proud that she could do all the things (even lift the same weights as some of the boys!), and I was proud of her attitude. Like she said, she's ready to be the regular old Abby...

And now the weekend update: The Wimberley Minors All-Stars are still undefeated! They never gave Lago Vista a chance, winning their second game 22-6. Frank was ineligible to pitch, but got a single and a nice bunt. They play their next game on Monday at 8 p.m., again in Kerrville. We expect some competition there, as they will be meeting another team who has two wins in the play-offs. I'll post a score for you, so those who are interested won't have to wait until next weekend! (We could win it all by then!)

Meanwhile, in College Station, Abby and Arby were looking good on the agility courses. They ran eight events this weekend and received three firsts and two seconds in the junior handlers division. They were only fast enough to "qualify" (earn points toward an agility title) on one run (Arby developed some strange tunnel aversion this weekend, and Abby would have to spend several seconds trying to talk him into going into each one), but nearly all their runs were clean, meaning they made no mistakes. I can't tell you what a blessing that was. Agility is therapy in itself (don't tell Abby!)--it requires speed, agility (naturally), and, most significantly, a lot of cognitive effort, keeping a confusing course in your memory at high speed--so just being there, putting together all those successful runs, was a very huge blessing. And, of course, Abby and I were glad to get to spend some time with our dear friend, Ruth.

And now, off to another week, with more blessings of just being there and more--Abby will be going to a horseback-riding camp every morning and preparing Arby for the State 4-H Dog Show in the afternoons, while Frank will be eating, sleeping, and breathing baseball, I'm sure...

May you have a blessed week!
Love,
-the Linams