Our life is nothing short of an adventure...

Wind in our hair and screams of delight but also unpredictable turns and unknown outcomes. We are a family of six; Dave, Susie, Nate, Jake, Sam, and Bella.

God has been faithful in our marriage and through the birth and blessings of our boys.

God has been faithful during our adoption journey and united Bella with us in May of 2008. We were privileged to visit with Bella's birth mother; therefore, Bella's family in Guatemala will always be dear to our hearts.

On October 16, 2008, Bella was diagnosed with ALL Leukemia. We are now battling the disease with 2 years and 3 months of treatment. We believe God will continue to be faithful!

Our family is committed to living life to the fullest...even on the hard days. Thank you for checking in and journeying with us!


Sunday, February 1, 2009

Oodles of Noodles


Uh Oh! Dad caught me!


Interesting use of noodles, they make for nice finger nails.


It's so much fun to put these in Mom's boots



So our Bella girl has a fetish with noodles, particularly, Rigatoni noodles. Tonight we caught her in the pantry again....she is just so darn cute.

Tomorrow marks the last day of the third phase of chemo. Here's the part I love, they did not anticipate they would be able to give her this last dose....most kids do not get it because they have not tolerated the other 4 doses! Oh I just love how big our God is. There is nothing more powerful than His spoken word. So after tomorrow, we get a week off of chemo and then we go in to the last phase of chemo before maintenance. Were have almost 4 months in and only 1 yr and 11 months to go to completion. We are praying and believing God for a big celebration trip when this journey is completed. Maybe a Disney Cruise?

The boys are off to Beaver Creek Colorado with my Dad and two of my brothers this Saturday. They are overly excited and as happy as Dave and I are for them, our hearts are a little sad. This will be Sammy's first time on an airplane and the first time skiing and we will miss it. We have had so many wonderful firsts with our children, so I am thrilled for my Dad who gives so very much to all of us to have these firsts with one of his grandsons. I am also thrilled for my boys to get this one on one time with my Dad. When I was a child and even today, I was willing to go any where with my Dad, even if it was just the gas station for what us midwesterners call a "pop". There is nothing better than special time with a grandparent...and to add a major bonus, they get two of my brothers whom they adore. I'd say they are three blessed little boys and I cant wait to hear all their wonderful stories. One things I can promise them, there will be many laughs. My brother Tom is always asking at the end of the ski day "who wants to smell my neck warmer"? For those of you that dont know what that is, its a scarf that goes up over your mouth to keep your face warm. It tends to collect just a little saliva by the end of the ski day. I was never inline for that adventure.

Leaving you with a scripture verse that I cant get out of my head today "Ask, and it will be given to you, seek and you shall find, knock and the door will be opened to you". Matt 7:7 How has God used this scripture to expand and change your life? If you haven't thought about it, I challenge you to mediatate on it for awhile and see what answers the Holy Spirit gives you.

Blessings to All!

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Susie,
Here is the scripture that I have been thinking about all day!

"offer unto God thanksgiving, and pay thy vows unto the Most High: And call upon me in the day of trouble: I WILL deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me." Psalm 50:14-15

God's always looking for ways to bring Glory to His name! I just LOVE this scripture! Doesn't say, maybe or might, doesn't say probably or even most likely! HE said, "I WILL DELIVER THEE!" You just gotta LOVE our God!

Bella's just too cute with her noodles! Serenity got a hold of some raw elbow noodles the other day. She said, "Yummy! Mac n cheese." Then before I could stop her, she shoveled a few in her mouth. It only took a moment them to come flying back out. "Mommy, mac n cheese nassy!" :)

Blessings,
Dana

Sassy said...

Hey Susie,
I just recently found your blog and can I just say that your family is truly an inspiration! You have such incredible faith. This scripture (along with many others) has meant a lot to my family and I this past year. Last Jan. I became pregnant with our third child. Without going into great detail my pregnancy was a disaster and it was recommended that we terminate due to the fact that I was diagnosed with really low amniotic fluid along with other complications. We were told our baby had almost no chance of surviving. Then at 24 weeks my water completely broke and our daughter was delivered at 27 weeks. Despite all medical explanation she is perfect! We were truly witnesses to a miracle. Don't we serve such an awesome God? If you would like you can read the whole story on my blog. It really is incredible!

http://diaryofahappywhitewoman-sassy.blogspot.com/

God Bless!
Sassy

Alex and Sam said...

susie,
so glad toh ear that bella is tolerating her medication so well. I'm sure your boys will have a blast with their grandfather..

alex

Leah Maya Benjamin said...

That is really fantastic about Bella!!!! I am so happy for her and your family. Let me know if she needs a differnt bracelet, I know they arent' the greatest, but they are kids and they don't knwo much about quality yet and this is what I get when I shop at the craft store. Soon I will be able to give blood again, it must be 1 year after living in guatemala.

~ Lisa @ AbidingThere~ said...

I have been teaching my kids to talk to God outside of formal prayer and not be shy to ask him for what they need. Lately when we can't find something, we ask God out loud to please show us, and HE HAS!! Many times now, he reveals his faithfulness in these small, everyday life ways. I just love God! He's so nice!!!

Cheri said...

Beautiful poast, my friend! I just love you so much! I've known you only a year and just see you growing in Christ! Amazing!

Stacie said...

So happy to hear that Bella is doing great with her treatments. We pray for your beautiful little girl everyday!

Mama Bear said...

She is too adorable with those noodles!!! Nothing more special than those little moments and the times shared with family.
Blessings,

Colbert Family said...

Hi Susie :) Thank you so much for your comment and for putting our button on your blog. I will have my husband put your button on our blog when he gets home (he's better at that kind of stuff :) I just do the writing... he does the rest.
So happy to hear how well Bella did in the last phase! She's adorable... I can't believe how much hair she still has left. Abbey is just hanging on to a very little bit at this point. Enjoy your break and I will pray for the delayed intensification to go just as well.
I know your heart is breaking for Tuesday's family as mine is too. Isn't it so hard to think about what they have to walk through now. I can't imagine. We just need to keep our eyes up! Thank you for sharing the verse. It was so encouraging.
Keep us posted on delayed intensification.
Warmly,
Shelley

Barb said...

Yes...grandparents are wonderful and we love each one of our grandchildren to pieces!! I like singing the song with my grandkids Behold..Behold I stand at the dorr and knock, knock, knock...etc. they love doing the motions..hugs from the Harkema's

Cheri said...

Happy Nine Months Home Day!!!! love you!

Ashton said...

HOW CUTE!!! Bella is Ah-dorable!

The gFamily said...

I love the noodle fingers! Bella looks great! I am so glad she is handling the treatments so well! Praise the Lord!