It's been an interesting week here at the Muirhead home.

This past weekend, we had some company for Thanksgiving.... And I cooked my first major holiday meal! But along with fun family times came drama.... Friday night, my parents were in a horrific car crash on the way here. My dad rear-ended a truck with a trailer carrying ATVS and their car was totaled. After seeing a picture of the car, I am so aware of how blessed my family is that they survived that accident, let alone walked away unscathed. My mom told me that she never felt the impact & the air-bags never touched her. I honestly believe that Mom & Dad had angels sitting right there on their laps... How else can you explain them surviving without injury? I'll tell you, we had more to be thankful for this year than we have in a long time. Thank you Jesus that you protected Mom and Dad and that you gave them the courage to get back into a vehicle the next morning so that we could celebrate your goodness together!

My little brother, Mark and his wife, Danielle came to see our home for the first time. I'm not sure how long it's been since we've seen them, maybe 6 months? Danielle is pregnant for the first time with little baby Gracie, another reason for thanksgiving! She's feeling great and looking absolutely amazing... And I felt a baby kick for the first time outside my own body... Miraculous. My kids absolutely fell in love with them... In fact, Sam saw a picture of Mark this morning and said to me, "Oh Mom! There's that funny guy! I love that guy!"

Mike and Christi came with their kids and, although they didn't stay here in our home (Mike has a brother, James, who lives in the Hat with his fam too,) we really had a blast. Our kids play so well together! Eli was asked at school to write down what he was thankful for and he wrote, "LOG," meaning Logan, & "MADEE," referring to his cousin Madison. So sweet! I really don't feel like I see my sis enough.... I have so much respect for her and admire her easy-going spirit and level-headed wisdom (Yes, Christi it's true! But Sheri, it's true for you too.... I love you both EQUALLY! LOL!)

Mom and Dad got to stay longer than the rest since they both had appointments here in town, so we got to love on them more than the rest. And again, I was thankful. I decided to keep Eli home from school on Tuesday so that he could spend extra time with Nana & Papa and I had moments that I regretted it! Mom and Dad both stepped in to help me with disciplining the boys and if they hadn't been here, I'd have been ready for the nut-house.... What a day!

Yesterday we had a very rough evening. Eli was running on the couch and tried to jump over the couch arm. He tripped, fell, and his arm hit the wooden dining room chair on the way to the floor. He broke his arm... The ulna was snapped and displaced and the radius was bowed as far as it can be without breaking! It's horrible watching your child go through pain like that, but he was either unbelievable brave and tough or in shock. As soon as we walked into the ER, they rushed us back to a room and got a splint on him. They x-rayed him (and the tech said that he did better than most adults!) The doc came in, showed us the x-ray and told us his plan of action. He decided on a conscious sedation, but then changed his mind and chose to knock him out since they'd need to pull on his arm until it was back in place... :( Yuck. He was quite funny actually.... The nurse told him that he'd be giving him some medicine to put him to sleep and he quickly informed Nurse Ryan that it would NOT put him out! Once he was asleep, they asked Trevor & I to get some coffee (apparently, a dad punched the doc once while he tried to set his son's arm) and by the time we got back, he was casted. He was hilarious coming out of his 'deep sleep'.... Asking the same silly questions over and over, telling the nurse "I told you that medicine wouldn't work!", noticing his cast for what he thought was the first time over and over. He said he could walk to x-ray for a re-shoot all by himself and then said, "Whoa, I'm feeling a little woobily!"He had all the nurses and doctors giggling when, while we walked out of the ER, he shouted, "Thank you, sir!" to the nurse and "Thank you, sir for fixing my arm. And for that shot!" to the doctor! He made up songs about the moon and, once we picked Sam up from Auntie Kirsty's house, lullabies to put him to sleep. He had a very rough night, waking up several times through the night crying in pain. We're staying on top of Tylenol and Advil now so he's feeling a bit better. Now, for those of you who think I'm a big cry baby, I have to tell you that the only time I cried at all (and even then it was just a few quiet tears) was while I was praying over him in the ER.... We're praising the Lord today for amazing (and FAST) care at the hospital. The nurses and doctors (we had 3 in the room while he was sleeping!), the x-ray techs, the porters & the RT were all amazing. They were kind and understanding, answered all of our questions respectfully, and got us out of there in 2 1/2 hours! And we're praising Him too for giving us 'family' in town when we needed them the most. Kirsty, you are such a blessing to me and to my family. When Mom and Dad moved away, I was so afraid of being alone with no support, but God saw fit to bring you back into our lives and you became like a sister to me. Thank you so much! We love you!

Okay, you're caught up now (I think! I'm on NO sleep baby!) Some pics for you....

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Purpose

Several months back, my family & I headed out to Red Deer to visit my Grandma Bartell. I'm sure that I've written about her before, but to remind you...

When I was in my last 5 or 6 months of high school, my Dad got a job here in Medicine Hat. Mom & Dad moved here and left me in the care of my Grandma & Grandpa Bartell. I loved the time I lived with them and think back on it often. I remember how Grandma would ask me in the mornings what I'd like her to bake that day and when I'd return from school, I'd find my request cooling beside her oven... I could ask for the easiest or most complicated of treats and she'd find the time to make them. I remember one day, I'd come home from school to find no treat for an after school snack.... She had all the ingredients for donuts lined up on the counter, fat heating on the stove, sugar topping mixed and ready... "I'm going to teach you to make donuts today, dear!" she'd told me. She always found time to do something or to say something or teach me something so that I'd know how she loved me. Grandpa and I would sit down to dinner with her and tell her over and over how delicious the food was. We'd often spend the evenings playing games together or just sitting in the same room; the two of them reading and me doing my homework.

There is so much more to my Grandma than delicious cooking and baking that I admire in her. I find myself wondering what I could do to become a more Godly woman, a more giving woman, a kinder woman... A woman more like my Grandma. Her life has had an enormous impact on my life.

So, we went for a visit, Eli, Sam, Trevor & myself. Grandma had been feeling rundown and tired, like she'd run out of purpose before she ran out of time, but she was also full of joy. She smiled and laughed and told us stories all weekend. At one point, Grandma told me about a woman who worked there who had been asking her questions about the Lord. "Well, Grandma, I know that you're frustrated because you want to go Home, but what if God wants to use you to influence her for His Glory?" I've reminded her of that several times since our visit, when she starts to feel lonely for Heaven.

Yesterday morning, Grandma was very sick. Her lips, hands and feet were beginning to turn blue and she wasn't breathing very well. She pulled out of it (as she often does) and told my Aunt Donna about it last night, "I thought I was dying!" Donna asked her how she felt when she realized that she wasn't going to die then, and Grandma said something about being discouraged, but then she added that yesterday afternoon, she had the opportunity to lead that woman to the Lord! PRAISE GOD!

I'm really overwhelmed by this. I've said to my hubby over and over, "I just don't understand why He won't let her go Home!?!" The only thing that has made Grandma's life worth anything to her is her love for Jesus... And now, because Jesus has let her live long past when she wanted to die, another soul has been added to the Book of Life. Isn't He amazing?

I guess God's shown His hand.... He has a purpose for every soul, even the very young and the very old. I truly believe that He doesn't allow us to come Home to Him until our purpose has been achieved. Maybe Grandma's purpose has been realized and now He'll let her go....