When you have a lot of kids (or any kids at all for
that matter, regardless of how many or few!), there are bound to be
unexpected emergencies. I am getting to the point where I realize
that I should always expect the unexpected, which seems like quite the
oxymoron! Life is full of twists and turns as it is, and catastrophes
seem to lie in wait! Whenever my husband leaves town, I am almost
guaranteed to wind up in the emergency room with one of my many little
(or big) blessings!The week after I returned from the Mom Heart conference towards the end of February was one of those weeks in our family. I was so blessed and refreshed from my weekend at the Mom Heart conference, listening to the wonderfully wise but very real Sally Clarkson and other lovely women. I am so glad I was able to attend, because the week afterwards was a week during which to put all the principles to practice! I wrote in my last post about the special greeting I received from my chicken-eating dog. Well, then Monday arrived along with some extra-awful attitudes on the part of my two oldest girls. It was one of those days we homeschooling mothers know well when we wonder if we should be homeschooling at all! I was ready to give up, but God gave me the strength to put a smile on my face and keep on. I took the children to a fun service project with Little Helping Hands, and the day got better. The girls even apologized for their bad attitudes earlier in the day! I felt exhausted by the end of the day, but better than I had in the morning. My wonderful husband had even set to work on putting together school and behavior charts to help keep everyone on track with school, chores and cheerful attitudes. Things were looking up!
The next day, Todd left for a three-day business trip, and the real fun began. It seems to me that whenever Todd is out of town, our chances of having to go to the emergency room seem to increase exponentially! We had a very crazy day on Tuesday, and I felt like I was driving all over Austin taking children hither and tither to various lessons and events. The next morning, Datiya woke up with what appeared to be bug bites all over her back and neck. She said her head itched as well, and her face looked flushed. Over the next couple of hours, the "bites" appeared to be spreading down her arms and torso. I decided it must be allergies and gave her some Benadryl, which seemed to help. A few hours later, I was nursing Hezekiah, and I noticed that he had something apparently wrapped around three of his tiny toes. It looked like a hair or thread. I tried to get it off, but instead of getting better it pulled tighter. The toes began to turn red and swell up. One toe was beginning to bleed along the place where the hair was wrapped so tightly! I decided I had no other choice than to take him to the doctor. We loaded everyone up in the van, leaving our dinner (which we were supposed to take to church) baking in the oven. (Thankfully, the oven was set to turn itself off after the cooking time)! I thought we would go, get things fixed up, then return home to get the food and head to church. WRONG! In an unexpected twist, our doctor was unable to remove the hair. He thought he would end up cutting into the skin and causing too much pain for our little guy. He sent us to Dell Children's Hospital!
Mercifully, a dear friend came through to help me with the children. She traded vehicles with me, and took the kids for what we believed was to be a couple of hours. It turned out to be all night!!! The doctors at the emergency room decided that they would need to put my sweet little baby under general anesthesia and perform minor surgery to remove the "hair tourniquet" (there is actually an official name for this!!)! We didn't get out of the hospital until 2am!! My sweet friend took the kids back to my house to get their things, and they spent the night at her house in safety and comfort! What a blessing to not have to worry about them! They were in good hands.
I was in good Hands as well--the LORD's hands! I was able to look at this "unexpected" situation with grace thanks to the Grace of God! I think even just a few years ago, my attitude might have been sour and grumpy after having to go through something like this. I might have complained that Todd was gone and I was having to deal with all of this by myself. I was so thankful to the Lord that I had attended that conference right before these events! I was able to focus on the Lord, on my children, and instead of stressing, I found myself going with the flow of the events--breathing in and out, and realizing that life is so full of these things, I may as well face them with the JOY of the LORD. I know that my plans are nothing and that the Lord directs my days. I can rest in that wonderful truth. NOTHING is unexpected for my God!
The evening of the emergency room visit, Datiya's hives worsened to the point where my friend thought she might have to take Datiya to the emergency room as well! We had to keep up the craziness with a visit to the allergist the next day. I brought the whole nursery school with me (including my neighbor's two little girls), and we were quite an entourage! Another day "interrupted." My plans are but nothing. God knows beforehand all that will take place.
We are fine now, and everyone seems to be better. I am still so aware of everything I heard and drank in at the conference, and it is helping me to face each day with a smile. I have decided that The next time Todd is out of town, however, I will keep the kids away from the things that might send us to the emergency room. Maybe we'll spend the whole time playing inside with play dough.... Or maybe I'll just brace myself and pray! With five little energetic boys, that is probably the best plan! Let's see what the next expected unexpected event might be! God won't be surprised!
"Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;
Your eyes have seen my unformed
substance;
And in Your book were all written
The days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them."
Psalm 139:15-16
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in bthe heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him."
Ephesians 1:3-4
