One of Joel's many sayings is that "God gave men wives to to keep them humble." I always laugh at this! Thankfully for Joel, I take the job God gave me very seriously! :) I have a new saying as well! Mine is that God gave women children to keep her humble! Sometimes I begin to feel proud when I think about our children. I am proud of them of course, but sometimes I probably start to think too highly of my parenting skills when they do or say some things. Some examples might be when I recently asked Jacob what he wanted for his birthday and his reply was, "Probably money, since I should start saving for college." I probably thought, What a responsible boy we've raised! Or like when I recently looked over at Nolan in church to find him taking notes on the sermon, and later after reading them found them to be just about as good as mine are! I probably thought, What a smart and godly minded boy we are raising! Or like when Caleb comes up to me and says, "Mom, you are the loveliest and best mom in the world." I probably think, What a loveable child we are raising! Or, finally, when Gavin does something that doctors have told us he probably shouldn't be doing, due to his stroke. I probably think it has something to do with mine and Joel's care of him! No sooner do I have these thoughts when one of our children does something to put me in my place! World War III might break out between two of the brothers over a spiderman coloring book! Or, one of them does or says something that makes me wonder if they use their brain at all! Thankfully, our boys take their job at humbling me very seriously as well! I don't enjoy it at the moment of chaos, but I am thankful for these reminders of how we should humble ourselves before God. I am also thankful for the many reminders I've been given since having Gavin. I don't think I would have encountered or been told of so many life changing experiences of others, if not for God's gift of Gavin. Daily, it seems, since his birth I've been humbled by something I've learned or stories I have heard of others facing trials. For this I am thankful and for this I give praise!


Gavin continues to be free from seizures and may be able to go down on the amount of Phenobarb that he is getting for them again this week. I'm waiting to hear from the doctor about this. Gavin should be getting his glasses this week as well. He looked so cute in them when he was measured for them! He was not as impressed with them as Caleb was though! I'm sure it will take awhile for him to get used to wearing them. So, Gavin continues to do well for Gavin! For this I am humbled and for this I give praise!




"For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith." Romans 12:3


Love, Alicia and Family