"But as for me, I will look to the LORD;
I will wait for the God of my salvation;
my God will hear me."
Micah 7:7
"And He is before all things,
and in Him all things hold together."
Colossians 1:17
Sweet friends,
It has been a while since I put personal thoughts out in the open. Being vulnerable is helping me stay real & true. I know people have quit reading blogs, but I have always said this was my way of doing baby books & if this helps the one person who reads it - then there you go. So here goes chronicling real life for my kids & my Christmas letter.
My kiddos . . .
Baylor is GREAT! Bay has found her "niche" in voice lessons & has knocked it out of the park. She is keeping a 4.5 so far in high school & started honors & AP classes already. She walked through those doors with her head held high & made friends & joined clubs & ROCKIN' it! She is practicing driving!! I cannot wait to have another driver in the house. (Seriously, you should see their schedules)
Only 3 1/2 more years with her in my nest & I am treasuring them. Luke 2:19 all the time!
WFM5 is AUsome! He is loving soccer travels & his new challenging team. He is still ROCKIN' middle school. He will definitely be a teenager in a few weeks - for sure! He has some great friends & just informed me he has 3 parties to go to this weekend - back in the minivan for me.
Whitty is making one basket after the other in basketball! Straight A's & video games & shooting hoops is ALL the time for him. He turned 11 & I love watching him coming into his own.
Lee-Lee is in KINDERGARTEN! He loves it so much & is learning to read, spell, add & subtract. When he isn't spelling, he is shooting hoops, climbing trees or terrorizing the cute girls down the street.
My MUCH-better half . . .
Marty is building, renovating, networking & taking meetings all day & night. It was sweet to watch him become a deacon in our church & to continue to serve. Between high school morning carpool, civic & church duties, coaching basketball & business - he is BUSY! He is a constant support & the kiddos love their Daddy!
Me . . . it is about to get real . . .
Lee-Lee is in KINDERGARTEN! He loves it so much & is learning to read, spell, add & subtract. When he isn't spelling, he is shooting hoops, climbing trees or terrorizing the cute girls down the street.
My MUCH-better half . . .
Marty is building, renovating, networking & taking meetings all day & night. It was sweet to watch him become a deacon in our church & to continue to serve. Between high school morning carpool, civic & church duties, coaching basketball & business - he is BUSY! He is a constant support & the kiddos love their Daddy!
Me . . . it is about to get real . . .
This year started out with this momma struggling - struggling HARD. I was sick ALL the time, as in 2 trips to the ER sick. I wasn't sleeping & my symptoms were not making any sense. Finally, one doctor asked Marty when the last time I slept all night was???? Turns out I was not truly sleeping, even when I thought I was. Turns out your body can "rest" without truly letting you sleep. Turns out lack of sleep causes a LONG list of symptoms. Turns out, anxiety can settle in you physically & cause random symptoms at random times. Long story short . . . I have been seeing doctors, counselors & psychiatrists to help me work through anxiety & the symptoms. I didn't feel anxious, but as I sat down & faced the facts & met with the doctors . . .God was so good to meet me where I was. He met this momma in the middle of the night, in the middle of the anxiety & helped me face these big life changes. As I started to sleep again & sit in counseling we had a tripped plan, me & Marty. The counselor encouraged me to go & get some rest & spend time as a couple. I was so refreshed as I sat & watched the waves & read His Word. Once again, God met me where I was - He pursued my heart in the stillness of these 3 days. He gave me rest for my body & heart. He gave me peace.
As I drove back to normal life I knew I was healing my heart. I knew God was there . . . 2 days later I sat in the ER holding Lee-Lee as he was in pain & doctors started looking for answers. I knew God was in that room as doctors & nurses came in & out of the room. I was at peace as they asked for permission to do a brain scan on the 5 year old. 20 minute later . . . "Mrs. Martin, there is not a tumor, but we did find an infection next to your son's brain stem. You will be here for a few days. We are admitting your son upstairs." God's sovereignty gave me a peace as we met with over 20 doctors. God's sovereignty ruled in my heart as His people surrounded our family as we prayed over our baby. People traveled to lay hands on our son, people sent pastors to our room to pray over Lee-Lee as he laid in bed awaiting surgery. Surgery postponed . . . fever rose & fell . . . surgery was postponed & then we knew we were out of the woods. Meds made him sick, but they were working! We were allowed to move about the hospital. 5 days later we headed home! We stayed on STRONG meds & were declared in "perfect health" 2 weeks later. I cried as we left the hospital that day & looked up at the windows of our old rooms . . . some parents weren't leaving with their babies in "perfect health," some were not leaving at all.
God had gone with us through the dark days of January, February & March. He had stayed with our family as we took turns in the hospital. He was there in scary nights of hospitals & middle of the night medicines. He gave peace to our hearts & our children's hearts. We watched His people surround us in love & prayers. As I sat in the stillness of our late nights I was reminded to "know that I am God." I claimed it! "You are God & we are your children!" I am sure the nurses thought I was crazy, but truth is truth.
This is a long letter, but chronicling these days & lessons are good for my soul & our family to remember. We grew in the good & the bad. We grew in our knowledge & fear of the Lord. We grew closer as a family & couple. We were forced to call out & He showed us where He always was, had been & will be.
To our people that shared in the good & scary - thank you will never be enough. To my sweet neighbors who rally around us in everyday life - thank you will never be enough. To my sweet Bible studies that turn me to Christ - thank you will never be enough. To our families - thank you will never be enough. To my MUCH-better half, you are a servant of Christ everyday to many people - thank you will never be enough.
As I drove back to normal life I knew I was healing my heart. I knew God was there . . . 2 days later I sat in the ER holding Lee-Lee as he was in pain & doctors started looking for answers. I knew God was in that room as doctors & nurses came in & out of the room. I was at peace as they asked for permission to do a brain scan on the 5 year old. 20 minute later . . . "Mrs. Martin, there is not a tumor, but we did find an infection next to your son's brain stem. You will be here for a few days. We are admitting your son upstairs." God's sovereignty gave me a peace as we met with over 20 doctors. God's sovereignty ruled in my heart as His people surrounded our family as we prayed over our baby. People traveled to lay hands on our son, people sent pastors to our room to pray over Lee-Lee as he laid in bed awaiting surgery. Surgery postponed . . . fever rose & fell . . . surgery was postponed & then we knew we were out of the woods. Meds made him sick, but they were working! We were allowed to move about the hospital. 5 days later we headed home! We stayed on STRONG meds & were declared in "perfect health" 2 weeks later. I cried as we left the hospital that day & looked up at the windows of our old rooms . . . some parents weren't leaving with their babies in "perfect health," some were not leaving at all.
God had gone with us through the dark days of January, February & March. He had stayed with our family as we took turns in the hospital. He was there in scary nights of hospitals & middle of the night medicines. He gave peace to our hearts & our children's hearts. We watched His people surround us in love & prayers. As I sat in the stillness of our late nights I was reminded to "know that I am God." I claimed it! "You are God & we are your children!" I am sure the nurses thought I was crazy, but truth is truth.
This is a long letter, but chronicling these days & lessons are good for my soul & our family to remember. We grew in the good & the bad. We grew in our knowledge & fear of the Lord. We grew closer as a family & couple. We were forced to call out & He showed us where He always was, had been & will be.
To our people that shared in the good & scary - thank you will never be enough. To my sweet neighbors who rally around us in everyday life - thank you will never be enough. To my sweet Bible studies that turn me to Christ - thank you will never be enough. To our families - thank you will never be enough. To my MUCH-better half, you are a servant of Christ everyday to many people - thank you will never be enough.
"Mary kept all these things to herself, holding them dear, deep within herself."
Luke 2:19
Merry Christmas!
Love, Jocelyn
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