Growing in God

Oh my goodness everyone! My Gastric Sleeve Surgery is TOMORROW, September 14 at 12:30pm! I am super nervous as there are some unknowns as to how I am going to feel and how recovery will be. But I am also super excited for the journey ahead and to live a healthier, happier, and better life. I know it won't be easy and it will be a lot of hard work, but I am ready for the lifestyle change and am determined to succeed! I serve a big God and I know he will guiding the surgeons hands and laying his healing hands on me as the all mighty healer! He will also be guiding me and holding me through this entire journey. Its crazy to think that I began this crazy journey back in May and now the day is already here! Let me tell you what has all happened in this journey. My very first appointment was a seminar. At this seminar, my surgeon, Dr. Schram, talked about the 3 different options for weight loss surgery and all the benefits, risks, and what they all entail. Then after the seminar was ov...

Remember when I said I was feeling hopeful in my last blog post? Well...lets just say those hopes have turned into some HUGE Praise God's!! First off, the really great big praise God thing is about my Mom, and she is officially in REMISSION! Yes, that means she is now CANCER FREE! So, at this point she will be going into the doctor every 3 months just to have her blood work and make sure everything is still going good. The reality is that there is a 60% chance of the cancer returning. But, as for now, she is cancer free and that is all we care about. And if it comes back, we will worry about it then and not worry about it now. And, obviously, we serve a really big God that she is already in remission before we even hit the one year mark, so I believe that God can also keep her in remission until she hits the 10 year mark and is considered a cure! So, basically, that is the big prayer is that the cancer never returns! Second, I GOT A JOB! Yes, that's right, I finally have go...

Well, hello everyone! Long time, no blog! Yeah, my bad. But there really has not been much for me to write about until now. You see, I have some updates to talk to you guys about and about some life changes and growth and that I have some high hopes on things. Just have lots to go over! So I will get started. First off, my mom is in the final stretches of her cancer treatment! Right now, she is currently undergoing chemotherapy and is in the middle of her 3rd round of chemo. After she is done with this next round they will be doing a cat scan of her chest and abdomen just to see what things look like and how if things are working like they are supposed to. And if the cat scan comes back looking clear my mom could be done with chemo, or maybe just have to have only 1 more round! And considering there was not anything visible when my mom had surgery, I am pretty hopeful that the cat scan will look clear and she will be done with chemo. So, definitely be praying a lot that the cat scan ...

It is Summer! Granted, the only difference in Summer from any other time of the year for me is the fact that my brother is out of school and the fact we actually have a few vacations planned. Also, the big thing with summer is the warmer weather and the fact I can go to the beach and things like that! So what are my plans for this summer? Well... First off, we do have a couple of family trips planned for the summer. Number one is we are going camping at a small local campground, and we actually will be doing that in a couple of days and will be gone just for like 4 days. The next vacation is we plan on going Up North to stay at a cottage on a small lake for a week, and we leave for that on June 27 and will be coming home on the 4th of July. The last family vacation we have planned is in August. And we are going to be going camping at Ludington State Park and plan on being gone just for a few days there. And we are all very excited for all of our vacations as they will be a nice escap...

Alright. Time for some serious updating on my life. And a big step I am about to take and embark on. This past Monday, May 11. I went for a physical with my Doctor. And I had her make a referral for me to see a Bariatric Surgeon. A what? A Surgeon that specializes in weight loss surgery. That's right. I am going to be beginning the process of having Gastric Bypass Surgery. For those of you who don't know, I have struggled with my weight for most of my life. I have seen Endocrinologists, Dietitians, Nutritionists, done different weight lost programs such as Weight Watchers, I did one called MPower, and another one called Weigh Down Workshop. I have tried many things. Some of them would be successful in the beginning and I would start off losing weight, and then at some point I would fall off the bandwagon and gain it back. And I have had my doctors recommend Gastric Bypass to me before, several times. But I didn't want to have surgery and would just ignore the suggestion. ...

Ok, right from the beginning of this post you might think I am nuts! I mean, how the heck is life always good? There is so much crap going on all the time. For example, riots in Baltimore, an Earth Quake in Nepal, Cancer, job issues, personal issues, the list is endless! But, here is the thing, in the middle of all the crap, there is so much beauty, and there is so much to be thankful for. A few nights ago I went for a walk to the beach with my mom. We happen to live really close to Lake Michigan, so we went to look at Lake Michigan for awhile. It was a beautiful night! It was cool, but the sun was shining, glistening over the water. And beams of light were shining through the clouds, creating beautiful colors in the sky. And the waves were gently rolling on the shore, creating that super soothing sound that people just love to listen to. And my mom and I were talking, and she said to me, "Yeah, this cancer thing sucks, but just look at what we are looking at right now. This is ...

Everyone has always told me how wonderful God's peace is. The thing is, I never fully understood it or fully felt it, until this past Wednesday, April 15. April 15, 2015 was the day of my mom's surgery for her cancer. Going into the day I had so many nerves and fears. I kept praying for God to take care of my mom, to work a miracle, and guide the doctors hands. When I sat in the waiting room, I first just kind of sat there nervously and kept fidgeting with things and moving around constantly. Then, I finally decided I needed to do something to get my mind off of my mom being in surgery. I pulled out my devotional book that I had brought along with me and began to read it. The first few pages had nice reminders and I continued to read, then I began to read verses and words and of wisdom that had to do with trusting God, relaxing in God's peace, and having faith in him. Suddenly, it hit me. I truly began to feel God's peace. I finished reading, closed my eyes and just b...