Deal or No Deal . . .

Here's some pictures and details from our Christmas. My parents were in town with us, and apparently, they (especially my Dad) have gotten very hooked on the TV game show "Deal or No Deal", to the point where Dad records it any time it's on to watch when he's home. Mom gave Dad an electronic hand-held version so he could play anytime he wanted. He was pumped, and he and Mom promptly introduced my children to the game show! They played it with Nonny in the back seat of the car all the way to the Head family farm and back on Christmas Day (except for when Colby got in trouble for not playing right), and then they got to see the real show with Howie himself that night on TV. Tyler always wanted "No deal!" like Nonny and his Daddy, while Colby sided with his mother - "Deal!! Take the money!". It made me laugh to see them getting into a game show.

We had our family Christmas on Christmas Eve with Monica and Aric since they were at the farm with Aric's family this year. The boys couldn't wait for Aunt Moni and Uncle Aric to arrive so they could start opening presents!!! We sure did enjoy the homemade enchiladas for supper that night (a Sorrells' family tradition that I LOVE), and it was great to spend some family time together. Aric and Monica headed back to the farm that night, and we joined them for a family lunch on Christmas Day. It sure is nice to have such sweet family relationships with Aric's family. They are precious, and a blessing to everyone in our family. The boys (especially Colby) loved playing outside, chasing guinea birds, playing with Mally (sp?) the dog and filling up a plastic pool for the ducks to swim around in for a little bit.

One of Tyler's favorite gifts (from Aunt Moni) was a cooking set with recipe book and his very own Santa "chef" apron and hat. He loves to help in the kitchen, and was so excited to help with every meal once he unwrapped his gift!

Most of the pictures are "to be developed" - nice camera but slow turnaround in this digital age, but these are from Mom's camera, so thought I'd share!

Christmas and Challenges

I really did LOVE this Christmas season . . .we are still loving at our house. Tyler and Colby are still playing "Santa" on a daily basis, making sleighs, harnesses and rein deers out of anything they can find, and picking out their clothes according to what is the "reddest" so they can look the part. It's been a blast to watch their joy over every Christmas experience this season! They had a great time and Nana and Papa's house for Vaughn Family Christmas, fun Christmas parties and play times with friends at school, lots of time to watch all the Christmas classic movies, and a great time with our family and my parents, sister and her in-laws for Christmas Eve and Day. One of my favorite memories from this year was our Christmas Eve service at RHCC on Sunday morning. That place was overflowing with all the people - we got there 30 minutes early and sat pretty far back. The praise was amazing!!! My new favorite Christmas carol (or this year's most impactive and emotional for me) was "O Holy Night". I've always loved that one, but the line that keeps reverberating in my head was, "Fall on your knees . . ..Oh hear the angel voices!" The thought of what that night was like in the fields when all those angels appeared to the sleepy little shepherds who had no clue what was going on . . .but their only, and very appropriate response was to just fall down in worship and in humility. Rick, our preacher, was reminding us that scripture says that one day, ALL will fall down and recognize Jesus for who He is - the Lord and Savior of the world. Oh, how I really want that day to come quickly!!!! Selfishly, I've always wanted to be here on earth when He comes to claim us - I want to be a part of the humility of mankind taking a knee (or a face in the ground) for the King! Won't that just be amazing??

Those are my Christmas thoughts . ..I'm thankful that special song is still singing in my head, and I hope it continues for a long, long time.

As for the "challenges", I am 2 weeks into the treatment protocol that Dr. Stewart prescribed, and it has been very hard. They mentioned that "things would get worse before they got better". I just had no idea how impacted a sensory system could be by pulling out the viral activity from my nerves. My auditory system is driving me crazy, I'm having difficulty with fine motor planning (like with typing this post), my balance is swimming, and my vision fluctuates daily and sometimes during the day as my muscles tire. Ick. Plus, my emotions are pretty raw, which means I could tear up at the drop of a hat - not good for a house full of boys! God's grace is good, and I'm trying to stay positive and trudge on, but I sure am ready for complete healing. Feeling a little tired of seeing 2 of most things. Good news is that my right eye is dominant again, and my near sighted vision is better. I just really covet your prayers that the Lord will give me patience and perseverance as we keep working through this. My husband has been so sweet and sensitive to my "craziness", and the boys have tried so hard (at Donny's prompting) to not be too loud when Mommy's ears are "hurting". They pray for me and are just so precious.

That's all for now .. .I'd better get to work around here before Brady wakes up. Daddy is off today and took the big boys out for some manly activity like going to Home Depot or something! Happy New Year!

Nana and Papa's new and improved room

I forgot to download the bedroom pictures . . .oops! Here they are, R&K!

VFC - for Randy and Kelly

Donny has a good recap of our weekend events at Vaughn Family Christmas 2006 - I'm just adding some picture and "fluff" to his post! You can view his at smoothjohnny.blogspot.com.


R&K, here are some more pictures from VFC 2006. I thought you'd especially want to see the ones of your Mom and Dad's new bedroom!! Papa's bathroom was totally redone as well, but I actually had no visual reference to appreciate just how great the changes were in there . . .I had never been allowed in! Actually, I don't have a very good visual reference for the bedroom either, but from what I HAD been allowed to see before, this was an incredible transformation! They were both so proud of it, and had worked super hard. I bet there is not much going on at Cherry Blossom Lane today except some good relaxing!

We had a great weekend together - I really love spending tiem with our family. The girls are just so beautiful, sweet to their younger cousins, and just neat young women. It was good to be with Gary and Toni - sister-in-law's are sure a blessing to me. I especially had fun getting to so do some "shopping" Laura while Papa fixed someone's cracked windshield in need. . . nice "girl bonding" time. Thanks, Laura . .

Thanks, everyone, for making our time together so special and so full of memories. Colby came in this morning, and after talking a little about Nana and Papa's, and wishing we could be back there, he said with a sweet grin, "I sure like that Garyn". She has a special effect on her cousins, that's for sure!

Medical Report . .God is good!

I went with Tyler and Donny yesterday to Austin. Tyler sees a specialist there that we've been to for about 2 1/2 years now. Dr. Stewart has helped Tyler medically to treat his sensory system deficits, and has been just a fabulous blessing to Tyler (an dour family) as we've helped him out of the difficulties he's faced in development. This Dr. is an ENT that is also a neurology specialist, having performed neurosurgeries dealing with all the cranial nerves and areas affected by the nervous system. I called their office last week in hopes that it would be appopriate for me to just share with him the health concerns I've had with my vision and other past history. They called back quickly to inform me that a new patient slot had just opened up right next to Tyler's appointment, and offered it to me! I usually schedule appointments for Tyler 3-6 months out, so this was amazing, and definitely the hand of the Lord at work in my behalf.

So, my sweet Mom flew in Sunday night so she could help out with the little guys on Monday, and the 3 of us were off by 5:30a.m. to Austin on Monday! I went through an interesting battery of sensory system testing that is all measurable data . . some of it I was familiar with from Tyler's testing that he does every time, but some of it was "just for adults", and was interesting! From all the testing, Dr. Stewart can see that there is definitely some major inflammation going on in several areas! Not only is my vision affected, but my short term memory, distractability, design memory, auditory perceptual skills, vestibular (balance) system . . . I'm just a mess!! But the good news is that he has treatment protocols that he feels will not only decrease the inflammation, but he is thorooughly investigating the cause of all the difficulties. I'll be starting some anti-viral medication this week that should decrease any viral loads in my brain (we've all got them - mine's just too much), and I'll be doing a heavy metal test to see if my system isn't clearing metals - like ones we're exposed to every day. Tyler's system is impaired in this way, and this has been a big part of the treatment for him . . .looks like his apple may not have fallen too far from my tree!!! Yikes! Sorry, babe . . .

I'll also be doing some blood tests to check for hormome levels, candida, lots and lots of stuff in my system. It gets real complicated and hard to explain, and I hope I've communicated at least the basics in an intelligible manner. Some of you know that based on the results of my MRI, my primary physician had suggested that I may have Multiple Sclerosis. Dr. Stewart is not concerned with that suggestion at the moment. His take on my MRI is that there is inflammation of the nerves . . .yes, it might be a sign of MS type activity, but that does not diagnose MS. Inflammation of nerves happens to most people at some time or another. The important thing in his opinion is to first treat the symptoms (i.e. get the inflammation down, decrease the viral load, regain the vision), then determine the cause of the inflammation and FIX IT!

We were greatly encouraged by the visit and really feel the Lord's hand at work with our family right now. Dr. Stewart is a Christian man, and it was neat to marvel with him at the way the Lord designed our bodies - especially the mystery of our brain's. He asked if I had people praying for me - I told him he had no idea how many! I have had such a peace throughout all the wondering, testing, wondering some more . . .only from the Lord, and only because of your prayers. Thank you, and please keep praying for healing and revelation for me!

Tyler's testing and check up went well also. He is starting on a new antiviral (one of the same ones I'll be taking), and Dr. S feels we will see a "completely perfect" sensory system by our next visit! Praise God! He's really made so much progress, and we are so very thankful. Sorry for the length, but I really just needed to document this one as much for me as for anyone else!

Thank you God, for sisters

When I was young (maybe 9 until age 18) I really was not all that pleased that I had a sister in my life. She bothered me, got in my way, and knew just the right ways to get under my skin. Something happened around age 18, though - maturity, seperate bathrooms, who knows - but very quickly my sister became my very best friend. I'm just constantly amazed at how the Lord gives us relationships that are "just right" for us. He even crafts his children within family units to belong to parents who are "just right" for them, and gives the children of those parents personalities and characters who are "just right" for each other. Because of the way I love my sister and am so passionate about our friendship, I watch my 3 boys with high expectations, hopes and prayers for their relationships together. What would I do without Monica in my life? Take away the fact that there would be no "Super Aunt Moni" around for my kiddos, my phone friend, my gotta-see-you-at-least-once-a-week friend, my griping partner, my source of constant giggles, and my biggest fan would be gone. What a sad life that would be! So, just so you know, I'm thankful for sisters. I'm especially thankful that I have the best one in the world. Love you, sister! And no, this is not kissing up to you because I want something . . .I just love ya!

Princess Party Pics and my update!

For my eager sister-in-law, here are some shots of the Princess party! I especially love the one of little Brady man with his crown . . .so very cute. When Donny saw it, even though he was there for the party, he still declared, "What's that on my son's head???". Made me giggle.

As for an update on my health, some very good news is that the MRI came back negative for any tumors, stroke, aneurysm (still have no clue how to spell that one) - PRAISE GOD!!! There still are some concerns that I need to see a neurologist for to figure out, so keep praying "for my head" for lack of a better more formal way to describe it! My vision has improved but is still not good and pretty frustrating to deal with (especially when trying to look at this little computer keyboard . . .).

Hope everyone is enjoying the rush of the Christmas season. I love it, but am always amazed at hoe very busy things get so very fast - just out of the blue all of a sudden!!! Donny and Colby are out on a special mission right now to get our Family Christmas Tree, and Tyler and I are supposed to be clearing the "perfect place" for it in the living room - oops. Better get back to my assignment!!!

Me and my Patch

The past week has been a challenge for me. It's been a good week, but a hard week physically with illness and scary health concerns. I woke up last Friday morning in Midland real early to go shopping with Donny, and when we got to the first store, I noticed my eyes were having a hard time focusing. I thought I had my contacts in the wrong eyes or something, so was eager to get home and switch them. Hard to shop when you can't focus on the aisles you are walking down or all the fun shopping items in front of you! It wasn't my contacts, and the problem persisted. By Sunday I was ready to get home and get to a Dr. for some answers. Everyone was booked on Monday, but on Tuesday my primary care Dr. examined me and could tell that my right eye was the "problem" child! It wasn't tracking to the left or down very well (Donny says I look like a freak when I shift my eyes to the left!). The Dr. said the problem could be related to some sinus issues I'd been having all the week prior, which was still bugging me. He also said he wanted to rule out big things like diabetes, tumors, and aneurism. Those are scary words to hear, especially sitting in a little office looking down at your almost 9 month old little baby. He encouraged me to not leave there fearing the worst - to let him be the one to bear that burden. He prescribed an MRI and referred me to a neurologist. Yikes!!!! The difficulty with my sinus stuff persisted, as did my vision difficulty, and by Thursday, I called him back and asked nicely for a prescription for antibiotics, decongestants . .. something to help the stuff that I felt really was the root cause of my vision. His office was closed on Wednesday, so the authorization for the MRI didn't come until Thursday morning. I got it scheduled for this am very early, and it went very "smooth", as my nice technician said. In the meantime, I've felt better wearing a nice little pirate's patch that I found in our dress up box, or just closing my right eye so I only see one of everything! Colby loved it that I wanted to be a pirate, but he was a little jealous and wanted a patch to wear as well. Sweet Aunt Moni to the rescue - she brought us lunch on Wednesday and had a pirate patch and cool sword with her from her fun toy wall at work! What a great aunt! So, Colby and I enjoyed being pirates together on Wednesday and Thursday! The great news is that I really think the meds are working . . .my vision seems a little better today, and I'm feeling better physically as well. God is so good. And not just because I'm feeling better. He's good even if I have a massive tumor growing in my head that might threaten my life. He's good because His plans are good, and He is faithful to His promises. He's good because He is the creator and sustainer of my life. He's good because His love is all that I need. He's just good for so many reasons, and I've been pondering that a lot this week in the midst of some not so great thoughts. I'll post results of the MRI when we get them early next week, hopefully.

For Toni - my Princess Party

Ok, Toni - I keep meaning to post about my birthday, and keep not making it a priority to do. I don't have my pictures with me here in Midland, but I could at least tell the story and share pics later, right? The day before my birthday, Colby, Tyler and I were discussing my "big" day, and they asked me what kind of cake I wanted. Colby assumed I would want a Batman or Superman cake, and Tyler agreed. I told them, "Guys, you need to know that most girls don't love Super heroes as much as you do - girls like Mommy like princess things!" They both said, "Oh . ..I see." The next morning, Aunt Monica called to wish me a happy birthday, and Tyler said he really needed to talk to her. I gave him the phone, and he told Monica, "Hey, Aunt Moni - you need to buy my mommy a princess cake for her birthday!" (Delegating tasks at such an early age). So, when I got home from work that night, I was greeted by my sweet boys helping Aunt Moni put the finishing touches on a princess birthday cake, complete with a tiara on top, a Disney princess tablecloth, napkins, plates, and little paper crowns for all the guests to wear (including Donny and all the boys, and Papa!). It was a Princess party like I don't think I remember ever having, and it was sure fun!! And my boys learned a little bit about the difference between boys and girls, which was a nice lesson. It was a fun birthday. Maybe pictures to come!

My littlest ones . .

These are my two littlest boys . . they are the best of playmates while big brother is at Kindergarten. Colby and Brady are forming a fun relationship that I've had fun watching the past few months. Colby loves to play with Brady, do dances for him to make him laugh, and just hang out with his little immobile (for now) brother on the floor! Brady just loves watching every move Colby makes -possibly dreaming of the coming days that he can pounce on him and ride him like a horsey!!! Brady just always has that look in his eyes that he really wants to be tackling his big brothers . . .watch out, Vaughn brothers!!! Are you proud of my first time to post a picture?? Donny taught me how last night!

The first time . . .

This is my first time to blog on my very own blog!! I have been a blog reader for a long time now, and have loved being able to sneak peeks into people's lives and thoughts, as well as see cute pictures of their kids, their families, their activities. Blog world has just been fun. So, I thought, maybe I should have my own blog as well - do I have time to blog myself - NO! But wouldn't it be fun to look back on and see what the Lord has been doing in our lives with it documented sometimes?? Yes! So, I'm joining my sweet hubby, my sister, my friends and lots of family members in the world of BLOGS. Maybe soon I can figure out how to post pictures and other fun things!!