January 26, 2013

The month of January

I have to say that I think January has to be my least favorite month of the year. 

Not because of the weather - winter is my second favorite season. Love the snow, wish I could be out playing in it.

Not because of the second semester of school-hard to get into the groove again. 

Not because I miss the holidays.

Because...
In the past 6 out of 8 years in January, due to illness, our family has met our insurance deductible.

This means that we have been so sick in the month of January for 6 of the past 8 years that the costs from our visits to the hospitals, doctors, etc. entirely meet our YEARLY deductible.

I don't like January for that reason.

One year our entire family (including my parents because we were living with them) dealt with the horrible stomach flu in December. We had to bring Cody who was one year old at the time, to the ER for severe dehydration because he couldn't keep anything down. They were not able to get an IV in his tiny veins and had to keep poking him. Miraculously after many hours he was able to hold down a small amount of apple juice.  That was horrible enough but then.....in JANUARY we ended up at Children's Hospital for Corbin. He came down with something strange that we couldn't identify (looked almost like Scarlett fever but he tested negative) and the doctor suspected Kawasaki's disease. RARE. GREAT. It was such an ordeal and very scary and unfortunately scarred Corbin for life for doctors and hospitals.  Good ole' JANUARY!  He didn't end up having Kawasaki's thank the good Lord. 

I will spare you details of other Januaries but have to tell you about this January...

So here we are now in my favorite month of the year in 2013 (insert sarcastic tone.)  Steve had neck surgery (that was planned though.) He had a collapsed disc in the C5/6 area and had to have a spinal fusion.  He is recovering from that but now thinks he has a fractured rib because of the procedure and is in pain from that. I started the year with the flu (right before his surgery), got better for two days (or so I thought) then woke up with severe swelling and itching on my ears and face.  I had just had an annual doctors appointment with a ton of blood tests for all my other health issues.  Didn't have results yet though.  Anyway, I didn't know what the swelling was from. It was VERY scary.  After some treatment it went down for a few days but then came back with a vengeance sending me to the ER because my eyes were almost swollen shut one morning when I woke up. I didn't not even resemble myself. No results at the ER. Frustrating. My other blood tests came back from my other doctor that I had Mononucleosis. Oh I am so happy. This is just what I needed. I also had an MRI for possible MS and thankfully that came back negative. We have been to the hospitals and doctors more this month than I hope to be the rest of the year. I continue to have terrible rashes and itchiness along with extreme fatigue, painful swollen lymph nodes and a lot of questions unanswered. Steve continues to heal but has some unanswered questions too.  I DON'T like JANUARY!  We both continue to have appointments through the rest of this wonderful month.


One day after his surgery.  He gets to wear that horribly uncomfortable contraption for 6-10 weeks all day everyday.  I will spare you a picture of me.  I don't want to scare off all two of my blog readers. I scare myself these days.

I am thankful that it is us going through this and not my kids though. It is so hard to sit in the hospital and watch them in pain or have to go through something so hard.

Pray for us if you think of it. We are in a tough spot at the start of this year.

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OK now that I am done with my rant.  Real quick, I did want to show you some beauty that we have here in January.  It has been a record breaking cold year here.  The other morning I woke up and apparently it was foggy overnight but really cold and lots of moisture.  Looking outside was magical. It looked like the trees turned into sparkly snowflakes.  The actual branches were all white.
Check out God's amazing creativity...






It absolutely boggles my mind that every snowflake is different.  Not one is alike!

Matthew 11:28-30
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Colossians 1:16-17
For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

~Blessings~

6 comments:

  1. Dear Jenn, you've definitely been put on my heart to pray for you the past weeks, and now I understand why. I'll keep on praying. I am blessed to hear how you keep on keeping on with worshipping God. love to you, Gina

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    1. Thank you Gina for you prayers. Prayer is powerful. I miss you!

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  2. Praying that God will give you all you need, friend. I am so sorry for all the medical issues and am praying that God will guard your hearts and minds from discouragement, and that miraculously, you will even find rest during this time. God loves you.

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    1. God has been good this month. It has been hard but we have seen His faithfulness. Thank you for your prayers because thoughts are a battle quite often. God loves you too!

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  3. Make that 3 readers ;) (and I'm sure there are more!). I was thinking about you today as I miss seeing your bright shiny face at church - no matter how briefly sometimes. Can I come help with housework or bring food or kidnap the boys to come play one afternoon? How can I help? Don't tell me you don't need any help...the Bible is very clear about not lying :-) . Praying for you to be comforted and encouraged.

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  4. Yay! Three readers. Whew. :-) I miss seeing you too. A playdate for the boys might be fun. For them to see different faces and places. Maybe on a good day (where I actually get out of the house) I can drop them off for a few hours? We are good though because my family has been so generous with help. I promise I am not lying!

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For any and all health advice/suggestions and/or posts on this blog, I do not assume any liability for you. The posts and comments on this blog are not meant to be a substitute for your own practicing physician's care in your life. These posts are based on my experience and research in my own healing journey and are placed here to encourage and help those ailing with their health. We are all individuals and there is not ONE pat answer or resolution that applies to everyone across the board.