Friday

Our insurance company denied our claim for covering damages to the house. They are covering damages to our personal belongings but water damage to the structure is apparently excluded. Therefore, the rental agency is now trying to file a homeowners claim for the damages but things are still feeling sticky to me. I have a very unsettled feeling about the whole thing. I wish that the rental agency would have filed a homeowners claim long before now, but so far they have not. I spoke with them today and it sound's like they are going to but they are making some unusual requests from us for copies of documents related to our policy. I am still asking that you pray for this situation... that it will work out without any more tension than has already been created due to the delay in repairs being made, etc. Pray that Howard and I make wise choices with how to proceed.
Changing the subject all together, I attended the memorial service yesterday for Silas and Joshua. It was a full house with many people in attendance. It was a hard scene to watch as the siblings and close friends, including the Cunningham brothers, were pallbearers for the caskets. Who would think that at 16 years old you would have to carry your friends in a casket? What a sobering moment for these young boys and families.

Song

Two posts in one day...I know.
I was just visiting my friends blog and I'm going to give a little plug here for it. It's called "Stepping Heavenward" and you can access it on my sidebar or visit www.prayingforkristin.com and it will redirect you to her blog. She has a post there today from a song by Barlow Girl. Great song, hop on over and check it out. If I was smart enough to figure it out I would post the video here, but I know just enough about computers to be dangerous.
Changing the subject completely and for a very important reason......tomorrow morning is the memorial service for the Emery brothers. An open invitation has been extended to the community where the boys lived with their family. Please pray that this service will reach those who attend. I'm not one that agrees that a brow beating message at a funeral should guilt someone into beginning a relationship with Jesus, but I think it's entirely possible that someone can come to Jesus from a painful event such as this. Please continue to keep this family in your prayers. While they rejoice that their children are in Heaven, it is no doubt a bittersweet day ahead for them.

Blood and Water

Well, the day has finally arrived. We moved into our house last night, finally. We had a great time staying with friends. Somewhat of a vacation from the reality of life to be honest, but we are back into our own routine and trying to unpack the mayhem the occurred over the course of the last few weeks. We are not having a good experience with the insurance company though and I covet your prayers about this matter. The actual homeowner apparently doesn't want to file a homeowners claim but wanted his own employees to do the work. Our renters insurance says they may not cover damages due to how our policy was written. (whatever that means) Then there is a sticky mess with the original carpet cleaner who let our furniture sit for a week and get water damaged from exposure to water too long. I hate stuff like this. I want to plug my ears and say "la la la" but I cant. I am trying not to get anxious about the whole ordeal. It's in God's hands and out of my control at this point. I've been told by many to let the insurance companies fight it out and not to worry about it, but it still leaves unsettling thoughts.
We should have some answers this week, hopefully.
I've thought about these last few weeks and have pondered the reason why God allowed blood and water to "pour" with my nose problem and the washing machine ordeal. Maybe I read too much into things, but I can't help but keep returning to a mental picture of the Cross. The blood and water that flowed from Jesus side when he was crucified. Why this modern day, practical blood and water lesson now? All I come up with at the moment is that in all things no matter how practical or everyday they are, I need to look to Him. The One who gave everything for me. His life for me. The One who who loves us no matter our painful thoughts and frustration. The One who I need to run to when my burden is heavy. The One who provides all things. The One who knows my days. The One who has it all in palm of His hand. The One who knows the outcome and the reason before I do.

Mandy

Emery Family Update

Last night at the basketball game I spoke with Mr. Cunningham who had been at the hospital earlier in the day with the Emery family. As I understand it, the doctors took Joshua off life support for a brief while to see if there was any brain activity and there was not. They decided to wait until all the family could arrive before shutting down all the machines permanently so some others could say goodbye. I do not know the timeline of that event. I can't imagine the grief this family must be feeling to have lost 2 of their 7 children in such a tragic way. But I also have this picture in my mind of Silas greeting Joshua in heaven, and how wonderful that must be. Please continue to pray for the Emery family. They were known by many in our community and no doubt are leaving a void on this earth. Please pray for the Cunningham family and their children who were friends of these boys.

Joshua

Yesterday while at work I took a 911 call about a car crash. Two brothers, one telephone pole. Silas, age 20 died. Joshua, age 17 is being kept alive by machines in a nearby hospital. After arriving home, Howard told me that these boys were close friends of some boys on his basketball team, Noah and Eli. Noah was called out of class yesterday to be told the news. The Emery family is in need of prayer as they grieve the loss of their son, Silas, and as they live through the upcoming days with Joshua in the hospital. An email update this morning from the school office said the following....

"Good morning --- Some of you may have heard about this, but anyway ---
We'd like to ask you to really be in prayer for the Emery family who attend Shan Creek Community Church (this is the church where Guy Shields is Pastor - Pastor Shields has two children here at NHCS and he is also on our school board). Two of the Emery boys were in an accident and the 20 yr old was killed, and his brother has been declared almost brain dead. The Cunninghams also attend this church and these boys were good friends with the Cunningham boys. The doctor who is dealing with the one who is close to brain dead said that he was also in that condition at one time and he "came back" to lead a normal life - as a doctor! Therefore he won't quickly "pull the plug". So, please pray for Bob & Susan, the parents, and for Josh, the one in the hospital. Only our great and loving God can get them through a time like this. Please also remember the Cunningham boys in your prayers."

Thank you for praying for this family and all who are affected by this tragic event. I will continue to post as I receive updates.

Mandy

Under Construction

Or should I say destruction? The contractors were at the house today and they pulled out all the rest of the carpet, padding, cabinets and some of the subfloor. Dust bowl comes to mind. Our insurance approved our claim and will pay for damages. A huge,huge answer to prayer. Our furniture needs repair and we will be compensated for it after depreciation is figured in. It won't be enough for replacement if necessary but we are still thankful for not having to cover all the expenses ourselves. And we have to keep remembering that it's just stuff. We can't take it with us when this life is over. We should start seeing some construction and installation soon, which will be exciting. Our spirits are better and it feels there is light at the end of the tunnel for the unpacking stage. If you remember from previous posts, it was Howard's basketball team that packed our whole house up and moved it in about 3 hours. Then things from my parents house were added on top and now more things from inside the house were moved out and added to the pile. So our garage is something comparable to a rock formation with multiple layers! We again have to shuffle things around tomorrow to accommodate the construction. It's like playing chess, right? Or maybe sardines.
Mandy

"Vacation"

To my five faithful blog followers, here is an update....

Our carpet is not dry. On Thursday we were told we could move into our house and that the carpet was dry. Not so much. We were at my parents and still helping them pack and arrived home around 11pm. Tucked the kids in bed and began to sort things out only to find many places in the house that were still wet and more belongings that were damaged. On Friday morning I called the rental agency who sent out a contractor. By 11am, all the rest of our furniture was out of the house and all the carpet pulled up. The carpet was mostly dry in fact, but the padding, walls, subfloor and baseboards were not. Seems there was a bit of a breakdown in communication between the carpet cleaner and the rental company. We were told it would be best not to be there, for obvious reasons.... tack strips exposed, musty damp air, and no furniture. So,all our belongings are once again in the garage. We grabbed a few things that day and headed to my parents to help them get all the rest of their house moved. Our dear, dear friends Mike and Naomi offered us a room in their home and we made a crash landing late Friday night into their home.
The boys think we are on vacation. They love Mike and Naomi's house and playing with their 4 kids. They get along great and are enjoying the one week long slumber party. Our dog thinks he is heaven; he now has a running partner in the form of another furry lab friend. Warren Sap and Clark Kent. They're quite the pair. There's lots of room to run and stomp through the woods and a bonus room that's been turned into a Wii marathon mania. Naomi felt she had to apologize for the low thread count sheets on our bed and the mismatched sheets on the beds she set up for the kids. She clearly doesn't realized how much we don't care about soft sheets at the moment and how grateful we are to them for giving us a place to go for a week or so. We will know more hopefully by Monday or Tuesday what a timeline looks like for getting back into the house we haven't lived in yet. At this point it's up to insurance companies and the rental agency to sort it out and really out of our hands.

I the midst of this I want to share some things and people I am thankful for....

1) Noami and Mike, who gave us a warm place to stay, then kept our kids so we could get much needed errands and tasks accomplished.

2) The warm fireplace that Mike keeps piling logs into.

3) That Mike's shirts fit me since I can't find any of my own clothes. (I'll get over it later).

4) Howard's coworkers at the school who have been so thoughtful and provided us with some extra cash to help with the added expenses this situation has given us.

5) My husband, who isn't mad at me for not staying home after putting clothes in the washing machine.

6) My dear friend Vicki, who showed up at my parents house with boxes and helped us pack up the kitchen.

7) The many people who have stopped us just to hug us and let us know they are praying for us.

8) Monica who spent 3 hours at the laundromat with me.

9) My parents and sisters and grandparents who have helped all week with our kids and a place to stay for the first week. Any my grandma who made dinner for our whole family several times last week.

10) That my kids have been mostly healthy during the last few weeks.

11) My parents house is empty. It's all clean. New owners will move in tonight! Sad but good. Lots of memories in that home. My sister was married in the front yard. Howard and I lived with them there on two separate occasions. Many family gatherings were held there and lots of friendships strengthened there.

My nose is doing better. I saw the Dr. last week who gave me sudafed for my sinuses and some anxiety medicine to take the edge off. (thankful for those too) My stress level and tension have been a little high. Can't imagine why? I've made it through 2 days without crying! Progress! Pure progress!

That's if for now. I will update when I know more. We appreciate all who have kept us in prayer and have offered help. If I met you with a blank stare last week or silence on the phone, I just didn't know what we even needed or where to begin. Please understand and don't worry, I'm sure when I know which end is up again I will be looking for help putting my household back together. And if you spoke with Howard and his frustration came out in a quippy kind of way, I'll apologize on his behalf too.

Much love,
Mandy

First Grade Witnesses

In the midst of our mess I have to share something really cool with you. Grant's teacher was "Teacher of the Month" through a local radio station. Yesterday the radio station came out to Grant's 1st grade class and presented his teacher with the award. The broadcast was live on the air and during the course of the presentation Grant's class was able to recited their memory verse live to our entire community. Here is the verse they said:

2 Chronicles 7:14 If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Pouring

I sit tonight in a half empty living room that belongs to my parents until Friday. Howard sits next to me doing homework. Our backs against the wall, there is no furniture. Scattered around us are boxes half full or half empty,depending on how you look at them. The kids are upstairs trying to sleep. But who can these days with all that's happened in a matter of 3 days?

My little corner of the world has felt like the corner of a boxing ring, and I'm not so sure that I am winning, but I'm still fighting.

The home we have been living in belongs to my parents. Their own home just sold and they need to move into the house we are in. And fast. So I began my quick search for a rental house last week. On Thursday I found one, we hit the bank for a large sum of cash to secure the home, and signed papers at 5pm as the doors were closing. We got the keys and headed home to start packing. For the last several days I have been suffering from bloody noses, chest pain and shortness of breath. I presumed all were from the anxiety of trying to find a house in a quick like manner. On Monday I had one bloody nose and on Wednesday I had three. Now the title of my post is "pouring" for a reason. These nose bleeds were doing just that and lasting about 30 -45 min each time. On Thursday I went almost a whole day without one. After signing papers, I had it all planned out..... I would go to the new house, clean the whole thing and then go home and start packing. Friday I would start moving things over. Instead I spent 3 hours Thursday night trying to control 3 more nose bleeds. My mom came over and my sister drove me to the ER. After a pleasant 2 hours in the ER the doctor cauterized my nose and sent me home. $100 co-pay and a new deductible for the year.
On Friday I woke up, crawled in the bathtub and started to wash my face. Apparently the hot water wasn't what I needed. More pouring...and not from the bathtub. This was my ninth nosebleed in 4 days and I was not feeling that my legs would hold me up. I struggled to get out of the tub. Carter got me some napkins and I called my mom at work and she came over. She took Carter to the neighbor and me to ER for 5 hours of torture. The doctor was not so pleasant as the one the night before and he "packed" my nose twice while it continued to bleed without ceasing. "Packing" meant shoving a rigid sponge (similar to a tongue depressor) up my nose and then spraying Afrin into the sponge, only to pinch my nose with the rigid sponge inside in hopes that it would stop bleeding. This is where I should mention that the sponge was about 6-8 inches long when dry and 8-10 inches long when wet. My brain hurt. My eye hurt. My ear hurt. My head hurt. Another $100 copay and more to add to my deductible. When the doctor decided that packing wasn't working he called the ENT office in town and sent me in his direction. I'm not sure why this didn't happen 5 hours earlier? The ENT took out the packing and numbed my whole face. That was the best I had felt all day.He then cauterized my nose which he said would not have stopped with packing as it was "a gusher". The cost: Priceless. He sent me home with these instructions: No lifting, No straining, No bending over, No stress. For 3 days. Got it? Friday I was home around 5pm. I had plans to get all the utilities transferred to the new house and call the insurance company re: new car policies and a renters policy. Didn't happen. I was at the ER all day.
Saturday morning came and I had not packed anything, nor could I pack anything. My nose had more packing in one day than my house did. By 11 am my dad and 3 of his friends and Howard's 20 or so "blessings" showed up. His mother and his entire basketball team of high school boys were in my living room. They packed my whole house, loaded it into cars and one big moving truck and moved our entire house in about 3 hours. It wasn't the way I would have planned for it to go in a perfect world. But it was how it had to be done and they did a great job. I gave orders in my lightheaded state of mind. They lifted and carried like an army of ants. I showed up to my new house and things were EVERYWHERE. In a very loose order...boxes were all over the house. The boys bedrooms each had a bed and a dresser, they didn't match up, but who cares, it's all organizable later. By 3pm all the blessings were out the door for a basketball game and I was left with a house full of chaos. I didn't listen to anyone and I didn't sit down and rest on the couch. I wanted the washer and dryer hooked up. I wanted clean sheets to sleep on before Howard got home. So I called a friends husband and asked him to hook them up for me. He came over, we checked and double checked. Everything was a go.

I threw in a load of sheets.

Loaded up the car with two little boys and the dog.

Headed to the grocery store for milk, trash bags and dishwasher soap.

Went to Mc Donalds. 8:15 pm for Happy Meals.

Got to Albertsons, they were having a sale. Spent about an hour at the store.

Arrived home. 9:15 pm.

Opened the garage door.

Water.

Pouring.

Pouring....out...of...the... door...

Tears...

pouring... out... of... my... face.

The entire house was flooded. 2 inches of standing water in every room.

All the chaos..all the boxes. Soaked.

My shoes, my pants, my face. Soaked.

I called the rental agency 24 hour emergency number that was attached to the rental agreement on the dashboard of the car. I couldn't even speak. I just sobbed. He came over in 10 min and had a carpet cleaner there about 10 minutes after that.

300 gallons of water extracted in 2 hours.

Everything is wet. All the children's books. Some of my pictures. All the furniture. Most of the clothes. Some of the electronics. The carpet, the walls, the baseboards. The garage floor. Almost everything we own and the house we just rented. Guess who didn't have renters insurance effective on Friday? Me.

Guess who couldn't wait until Howard came home to put the sheets in the wash? Me.

Somehow in the moving of the washing machine the drain hose came loose from the bottom. It all appeared to be working when Jim and I checked it out. But it apparently wasn't and I wasn't home to catch it. Instead I was at a great sale at Albertsons trying to pinch a penny and get $15 back for spending $30. Guess who should have been home doing what she was told? Me.

Howard came home immediately after hearing the sobs on the phone. We moved as much as we could out to the garage. My sister came over and got our children and some clothes and took them to my parents house. Howard and I worked until almost midnight getting our precious things into the garage. It's just stuff. I have to remember it's just stuff. We can't take it with us when this life is over.

The repair cost: I have no idea. Lord have Mercy.

So, we can't be in our new house. All our stuff is scattered between three houses and a storage unit and we are in an empty living room at my parents house. At the new house the carpet is wet and the heat is cranked up to 90 degrees. The blowers are running and if things don't dry out soon all the carpet will have to be pulled up. My parents have to be out of their house on Friday and we are helping them pack and move. Today I spent 2 hours at the laundromat washing a car load of wet clothes, dirty clothes and my parents clothes. Oh, and I almost forgot. Sheets.....300 gallons of water wasn't enough of a rinse cycle for them! Monica came to help me at the laundromat. I told her not tell Jim what happened but she didn't listen and told him anyway. Guess who else doesn't listen? Monica. I hope and pray Jim doesn't feel bad. It certainly wasn't his fault. We both checked, it just came loose.

So here I sit. Again wondering why and pouring my thoughts out into a blog. Writing seems to be a stress reliever for me. I emailed a friend earlier who is always so encouraging and affirmed to him what I know to be true. God is still the same. He is the same today as He was on Thursday,and the days my children were born, and the day we got married, and the day I lost my job, and the day we were served lawsuit papers, and the day we bought our first house and the day we were told our baby would die, and the day we brought our baby home, and the day I got a new job, and Howard's first day as a teacher, and the day the new house flooded. He is still the same. No matter where I am or what hurt or chaos occurs.

He is still God.

He knows.

He is in control.

He will provide.

And I? I don't listen well. I don't do what I'm told. I don't like to be still. I want everything to go a certain way. My way.

And I am not in control. I don't know everything. I can't provide it all. I need to learn to let things go.

I'm in a boxing ring and I'm still fighting but I'm not sure I'm winning. Down for the count.....1....2.....not giving up. Stuborn. Strongwilled. Driven. Broken. Call it what you want.

Mandy

Gingerbread, Holidays, Costa Rica Friends and Slugs

Look what we made today! Yes, I know it's January 3rd but it's a great example of how random our life has been since Christmas. The boys have been begging since before Christmas to make the gingerbread house great grandma bought for them and today I said "why not? It's 2 in the afternoon, I'm still in my p.j.'s and the house isn't getting any cleaner so go for it." This is the product of our imagination....with a little help from the kit directions. Here's a few photos of the boys too.

So, here is a recap of our Christmas and New Years and everything in between. On Christmas eve we spent the evening with Howard's family eating, eating and eating some more. We were not supposed to exchange any gifts this year but Howard's mom cheated a bit and made gifts for all of us. They were wonderful...the boys each got a work apron for tools and toys and Howard and I each received a scarf and I received a handbag. Cheryl is quite talented in her sewing and knitting skills.

We spent Christmas morning opening presents with our boys. I went off to work for a few hours and then we spent Christmas evening with my family opening more gifts and eating a traditional Mexican dinner. Tamales, rice, beans and corn. Sweet tamales and flautas for desert. Way too much food and way too tasty!

The day after Christmas our friends from Costa Rica; Priscilla, Marco, baby Sebastian and Mila (pri's mom) came to visit. We started the visit off by taking Marco to the ER for a toothache an hour after they arrived. When he learned the wait would be 5 hours he decided that was too long. I brought him back home where he suffered all night in pain. On Saturday my mom called our family dentist at home and he graciously met Marco at his office. A few shots of Novocaine, some antibiotics and some pain killers and a scheduled appointment for a root canal on Monday did the trick! He was able to get his pain under control and looked forward to Monday when he finally had his root canal. He lost 9 pounds while here for the week because he didn't want to eat with a sore tooth. On Saturday night we shared a traditional Christmas dinner of ham and all the fixings with our Costa Rica friends. We also exchanged gifts with them and they each shared their testimonies of how they became Christians. New Years Eve we went to church and then we built a campfire and roasted marshmallows. New Years Day we headed up the mountain to shoot a variety of guns. It was the first time Priscilla had shot a gun and probably the last too. She wasn't too fond of it even though it was her idea. New Years night we spent at my sister's house. She and her husband made pizza for the whole group. We prayed as one big family for the upcoming changes that are soon approaching for many of us and for safe travels for Mila, Pri, Marco and baby while they travel back home. They are great friends and we will miss them.

Now onto the most unpleasant part of the week....

Howard left for another basketball tournament yesterday and will return home later tonight. I thought it would be a great opportunity to load the cans and bottles up and take them to the store for recycling. I thought wrong. Those machine are enough to make the most patient of people go insane. The first store had a broken plastic bottle machine and it was freezing outside so we headed to the next store which has an indoor center. There was a line and after waiting 20 minutes for an open machine the boys were becoming impatient. They were crying, and I wanted to cry. The walls were sticky and at one point I saw Carter put his hand on the wall and then lick his hand. Grant, against his better 6 year old judgement, filled the sink with water and got his long sleeves wet. Then took his shirt off and dragged it across the bottle room floor! Where did these children come from? I raised my voice a little too much about some nasty disease they were sure to acquire after that and I think I scared the bearded lady next to me. Carter licked the shopping cart in defiance. My face turned an angry shade of red. After each machine subsequently broke, the bottle attendants fixing them and Jordan and I getting through the rest of the cans we were finally done! We unstuck our shoes from the bottle room floor, threw away the slugs that Grant found on our bags of cans, grabbed a few groceries and cashed in our $25 worth of can vouchers. NEVER TO DO AGAIN! I wasn't very nice to the checkout lady when she asked if I had found everything ok and I threatened to exchange the boys for new ones if they didn't walk to the car without licking one more thing. We got home and I sanitized every square inch of us! Today, the boys and I have been hanging out recovering from yesterday's traumatic bottle/can event. I started taking down Christmas decorations and the boys interrupted with a request to make the gingerbread house, which led me here to update the blog. Howard will be home soon and I can't wait. But for now, it's back to housework and un-decorating.