God is good. Always.

As some of you know, we have had some very dark days in the last couple of months.  Dave's cancer came back (they said it would) and he started chemo again in December.  His second treatment at the beginning of the year, knocked him to the ground, literally.  He has been fighting to regain his ability to fight infection (12 days in the hospital in January) and feel like a halfway normal person again.  Many, many days he fought fevers and nausea, with only enough energy to change positions from the bed to the couch to the chair.  He hasn't been this skinny since high school.

The good news is that things are improving.  He goes to Longmont every day to get a shot to boost his immune system and slowly, very slowly, his white counts are coming up and they are taking him off of some of the many drugs he has been on.  He is feeling more like his old self, although with a lot less strength and stamina.  He has a long way to go and we don't know how long that will take, but we are encouraged for movement in a positive direction.

Through all this, we have carried each other over the rough spots with encouragement, humor and a deeper understanding of what it means to be committed for a life time.  Being the caregiver can be hard, not the physical effort as much as the emotional toll it takes when you can't do enough for the one you love.  God in his infinite wisdom, put a book in my path that has made all the difference.  It is called, "One Thousand Gifts", by Ann Voskamp.  I highly recommend it.  I am on my second reading and I come away with a new truth every time I open it.  "One Thousand Gifts" is a celebration of grace and a recognition of the power of gratitude.

This experience has also shown me that I can go through anything as long as I count it all as grace.  There is joy right where I am at, even in the dark times.  God is good. Always.

Empty Nest Thoughts

Well, it has happened again, our nest is empty and we have gone from having a full house to having three spare bedrooms (and they are clean!).

Our youngest two have somewhat reluctantly moved to Estes Park to a nice condo overlooking the lake and the surrounding mountains.  I say reluctantly, but really they are excited to be on their own again.  It was just hard to come to that decision. When they moved back to save money and work for Mom and continue their education, they were not very happy, but then home cooked meals appeared every night, internet was free and no one asked for rent the first of every month and it grew on them.  They had also developed into adults who were easier to get along with and enjoyable to be around.  But all good things must come to an end and now they are cash poor and independently happy.  If that makes sense.

And what of the two parents left behind and home alone?  We are just fine and taking the opportunity to reinvent ourselves a little. I don't know why having your children (even adult children) around changes the dynamics of your relationship, but it does. Anyway, I'm using this particular post to toast our new stage of life.  Cheers!

The new place (up the stairs)

 

On Being a Grandparent

What I Learned About Being a Nana

• It can be exhausting and you wonder how you ever had four children at the same time.
• You get to walk in the house at the end of the day and be greeted with big smiles from people who are genuinely glad to see you (both daughter and grandson)
• You want to buy everything that money can buy to make your grandson's life easier, but you better pace yourself because he might not be the only grandchild (and the Visa bill will come after he's gone and his smiling face won't be around to make it better)
• That as much fun as it is having a little one around, you are kinda set in your ways and like your house to be somewhat neat and tidy.
• You are NOT ready to be a full time Mom again to grandchildren and you are very happy that your children can handle parenthood on their own.
• That you now have someone else to worry and pray about, but you also have someone else to love and be loved by.
• That it is truly a gift and blessing to have the opportunity to be a parent and a grandparent.

Compassion Visit

Visiting Eduin's home

Well,  better late than never.  It seems my mind has been very scattered lately (lately?) and I kept meaning to post pics and a description of my visit to the Compassion project in Ulloa, outside of Tegucigalpa, Honduras and then I would forget.  So...I guess it is now or never.

 As most of you know, when I went down to Honduras to visit our first grandson in late January I had plans to hook up and visit with the two Compassion children we sponsor there.  I had already met Eduin on the last trip and was excited to meet Evelyn our recently sponsored new girl.

Within days of arriving I contacted the Compassion office in Tegucigalpa to firm up our plans.  We had already decided that it would be best to leave Anna, baby Guillermo and my Mom at home because the day had the possibility of being long and hot.  As we were heading out that morning, Guillermo received a call from the office telling us that Evelyn had to leave town suddenly to go to her grandmother's funeral and we would not be able to see her.  How disappointing.

After regrouping, Guillermo and I drove to the outskirts of the city until we hit a bumpy dirt road leading to the suburb of Ulloa, where we turned down a side street and bumped along until we pulled up in front of a nondescript  store front.  It wasn't long before people started coming out of the wood work, including a large assortment of curious children, one of which was Eduin.  After getting a shy hug from him and greeting the others, we walked around the neighborhood, checking in at the project, visited Evelyn's mother and eventually ending up at Eduin's house.  We got reacquainted with his family and met his little sister who had been born since we were last there.

We spent the rest of the day opening presents, playing frisbee, cramming three kids and four adults in a small pickup and going to the mall to eat lunch and hang out.  Below are some pictures from our day.

Eduin & the Project Leader

Part of the classroom

Evelyn's Mother & Family

Eduin's Family

Playing Frisbee

Smiling Eduin

Helping sister slide

Nana Time

We had a great visit to Honduras.  I can't begin to tell you how special it was to hold that sweet little bundle of joy and to see our first born and her husband as parents.  I have joined the ranks of grandparents who think they have the most wonderful grandchildren who ever set foot on this planet. I mean it when I say it was a privilege to do things like change diapers, walk the floor with a fussy baby (until my back ached), wash dishes in cold water and get up several times in the night to keep Anna company while she nursed Guillermo David.

Memories of young motherhood long ago came flooding back, but also the perspective that comes with age.  You can't wait until they start sleeping through the night or get out of diapers, but in the blink of an eye they are graduating from high school and striking out on their own.  My advice is to enjoy every minute, every season that life has to offer. 

Guillermo David Jimenez Strom

Adoring Parents

Our sweet nieto (grandson)

The parents, the grandparents & the great grandparents

Food, Dishes, etc.

Here I am in the kitchen, making the big meal of the day. We are having crepes (I know, not very Honduran).  The evening meal may just be something like scrambles eggs and beans on a tortilla, nachos or leftovers. 

This is the dish washing soap.  You dip the wet sponge in the hard cake and scrub your dishes, then rinse with water (cold in this case).  There is only hot water available in the shower.  It does take a little getting used to doing dishes in cold water, but everything gets sparkling clean and no one gets sick, so apparently it is fine.

 

Instead of jars or cans, a lot of grocery items come packed like this in a foil pouch.  They eat red beans here and they are very tasty, especially when they are cooked with the Honduran cheese below and eaten with tortilla chips.

It is kind of like mozzarella, but saltier.

Milk comes like this on the shelf.  It makes it handy to stock up, since you don't have to refrigerate it and the taste doesn't seem much different than what we use in the states.

 

We made it!

We got in around 12:30pm Honduras time on Sunday.  After we got through customs without any incidence, Guillermo was waiting on the other side ready to take us up the hill to 9km Hatillo. Anna and Guillermo David were waiting for us in the bedroom.  It was a joy to hold him and smell his sweet baby smell.  Also there to greet us were Guillermo's parents and sister, full of hugs, kisses and "mucho gustos".  So welcoming!

Luckily, we saw this video last time we came so we knew what to expect.  Toncontin is the 2nd most dangerous airport in the world.