A Toothy Accident

As if there wasn’t enough going on in our lives, we had another rather eventful day today. I was outside with the kids and Rayah and I were out on the deck and I went down onto the grass to get something. Rayah was right beside me, but it didn’t occur to me in the moment that she would want to follow me and before I knew it, she had stepped right off the edge and fell face-first down the couple steps. I quickly picked her up and she was screaming intensely, but with her clumsy nature, she has had many spills and a few bloody cuts from biting her lip or something, so I didn’t really expect it to be too bad.

As I looked in her mouth, I immediately saw that her whole mouth was a pool of blood, so I quickly whisked her inside to try and clean it out to see what the damage was. At first glance, I was horrified as it appeared that three of her teeth had been completely knocked out. I was worried that they were gone and she had possible swallowed them, but it wasn’t long before I saw that they were still there, but horribly bent down and now facing forwards instead of up!

It was rather gruesome and there was a lot of blood and I didn’t know what to do, so I immediately dialed 9-1-1 and they dispatched an ambulance, as I was at home with both kids and no vehicle. I then called friends who live nearby to come over to watch Justice and then called Joe at work to ask him to come home early. I had left Justice outside in the fenced-in backyard and was sitting in the window seat at the front of our house to watch for the ambulance as I tried to comfort Rayah, when I then noticed my son running around in my front yard with a big shovel!!  Arggg!  He had actually escaped our back yard just the other day, so we had switched the latch on the gate to try and prevent him from being able to get out – which apparently he had no trouble figuring out a way to open it!

So I quickly ushered him inside and sent him to his room and it wasn’t long before the emergency vehicles started rolling in. First there was a paramedic truck, then an ambulance and then a fire truck and then when something went wrong with the first ambulance, a second ambulance came on the scene – it was quite something! By this point, the bleeding had mostly stopped and Rayah had calmed down considerably, but when the house was rushed by some 8-10 unfamiliar men who all gathered around to stare and assess and poke and prode, she got pretty hysterical – lol. My friends arrived soon afterward and watched Justice for me and then I quickly gathered a few things in the diaper bag and Rayah and I loaded into the ambulance and headed to the Children’s Emergency. It wasn’t surprising that after all the commotion, Rayah soon passed out into a deep sleep.

At the Children’s Emergency, the doctors couldn’t do much for her and were unsuccessful in getting a hold of the on-call pediatric dentist, so after a couple attempts, I got through to our family dentist and we got an emergency appointment with them. Joe was at home with Justice, who was napping, so Rayah and I had to wait for a couple hours for Joe to come pick us up, which was a little challenging, because Rayah was surprisingly cheerful and happy and wanted to run around wreak havoc in the waiting room. When Joe finally arrived, we headed to our dentist who examined her briefly, but wasn’t comfortable performing any procedure on her, since he wasn’t as well equipped for dealing with young children. So he then referred us to a children’s dental office which was clear across town and we headed back in the direction we had just come from!

Before arriving at the children’s dental office, we had been warned by our dentist that Rayah would likely lose her three teeth and that they would extract them. To me, this was very sad news, even though I know they’re baby teeth and that she’ll get new ones in 5-6 years, I really was hoping that they would be able to save her teeth. When we saw the pediatric dentist, she told me the same thing, but after they strapped Rayah into a restraining blanket, she stuck her fingers in Rayah’s mouth and basically just pushed the bone that was holding her teeth back into place. Poor Rayah screamed her head off, but once it was over, she was soon back to her happy self. The dentist informed us that she heard a definite “clicking” noise when she pushed the bone back, which is good news, but that we will have to wait and see how the teeth do over the next few days and that there’s still a chance they will need to be extracted.

I am feeling hopeful and am praying that her teeth will be able to stay in, even though they are still rather crooked and not in line with her other teeth at this point. I was just so proud of my little girl today, who was so brave and such a trooper, considering the ordeal she went through! I am also so thankful for all the prayers that went up on her behalf and that her injuries weren’t any worse. To be honest, I’m still feeling a little on edge and a little emotionally sensitive and a little nervous about the days ahead, but I am just learning again my need to lean up on the strength of the Lord and to trust Him with all my fears.

Here is a little collage of the day’s events with pictures from the ambulance ride, our wait at the hospital, and a couple of Rayah’s sweet rearranged smile. If you want to see the really gory pictures, I won’t include them in this post for anyone with a sensitive stomach, but if you’re really curious, you can click here to check them out!

Lastly, here’s a picture of our deck step where Rayah has now left her permanent mark.

Rayah: A Year & A Half

My little baby girl is a year and a half! So much has happened since she turned 1 and I haven’t recorded any of it on this blog – it’s just so hard to find the time. But, thankfully I have many little moments recorded in my iPhone app “Momento” and so I’m going to share a little about my sweet daughter over the last six months. To begin, here is a little collage to mark some new skills she developed, character traits we discovered or things we just love about her…

Video – Learning to walk

Some other new skills she developed are playing tag (otherwise known as “RUN, CHASE!” in our home), playing catch, praising the Lord (lifting her hands up in the air), dancing, waving, drinking from a straw, putting her finger up her nose, grinding her teeth (thankfully she isn’t doing this as much any more), singing, learning to pillow fight, learning to understand and follow commands (she seems to know what we are saying a lot more than we give her credit for), playing on play structures and going down slides, blowing kisses, walking on her tip toes, learning to point to her ears, eyes, mouth and nose.

Video – Blowing Kisses

She’s also been slowly developing in the communication arena with a few signs such as “please”, “thank you”, “Jesus”, “milk”, and “more”. Her few words are “mama”, “dada”, “baby”, “yeah”, “up”, “oh no”, “uh oh”, “woof”, “baa”, and “yummy”.

Video – Chatty Cathy

Some firsts for Rayah – first ponytail, first nasty sickness, first flu with puking & diarrhea, first time playing outside in the leaves in the fall and the snow in the winter and the puddles in the spring , first time out, first spanking on the bum, first hotdog at a weiner roast, first time eating an apple on her own.

Video – Messy eater & screaming

She thankfully seems to be growing out of her stage of “playing strange” and is much less anxious about mommy & daddy leaving her sight and warms up to new people much better. She still has her moments and mommy & daddy are still definitely her favorite people, but she has made great strides & we don’t have to be afraid about leaving her with a babysitter any more.

I also weaned her from her morning nap, which was rather funny for those first couple weeks, as she kept falling asleep everywhere…

Some other things about Rayah – she loves going outside & will bring us her rubber boots to let us know, she loves reading books, she’s very stubborn about feeding herself, after a couple months of pure frustration she is now an amazing napper and sleeper, she’s only a couple pounds lighter than Justice and has an amazing pot belly :), even with her lack of words, she is an amazing communicator with all her expressive sounds and actions, she has very specific desires that she is quite determined to let us know about, the way she jabbers when reading a book that sometimes sounds like she’s Japanese, she has an adorable waddle and is a little clumsy so she ends up falling a lot, she gives great hugs and pats us on the back as she snuggles in.

I love you Rayah!

DVD Review: A Bug Collection DVD Box Set (Vol. 1)

This is where it all began! The first three DVDs from the best-loved Max Lucado’s Hermie & Friends® series!!
Hermie, a Common Caterpillar—its all about being special.
Flo, the Lyin’ Fly—its all about telling the truth.
Webster, the Scaredy Spider—its all about being brave.

We own another DVD from the Hermie & Friends series, so I knew that Justice and I would likely enjoy the A Bug Collection DVD set with three more stories, and I was right! While my son Justice is just 3 years old, he is beginning to understand emotional and spiritual things in a greater way and these DVDs were a great way to introduce some important subjects.

He has dabbled with lying to us and we are trying to teach him about the difference between telling a lie and telling the truth, so the video about Flo, the Lyin’ Fly was a great story to help us with this important lesson!

And while my son sometimes seems fearless to the point that it scares me, the video about Webster, the Scaredy Spider is a great story about conquering our fears and trusting in God.

But I have to say that our favorite one was Hermie, a Common Caterpillar which teaches us about how God creates all of us unique and special in our own way. It seemed that this one impacted Justice the most as well, since afterwards he kept telling me that “God made me special”.

I would definitely recommend any of these videos from the Hermie & Friends series – they are well made with fun characters that the kids like and they teach valuable Biblical lessons.

This DVD set was provided to me by Booksneeze.com at no cost for my honest and unbiased review.

Book Review: Love Amid the Ashes by Mesu Andrews

An epic story of love and forgiveness, suffering and restoration

When her beloved grandfather Isaac dies, Dinah must follow his final command: travel to Job’s household to marry his son. After Job’s world comes crashing down, Dinah finds herself drawn to this great man brought low. What will she risk to fight for his survival?

Mesu Andrews weaves an emotional and stirring account of Job and Dinah. Love Amid the Ashes breathes life, romance, and passion into the classic biblical story of suffering and steadfast faith.

I was looking forward to reading a Biblical fiction account of Job in this book Love Amid the Ashes by Mesu Andrews, though I was immediately skeptical of the author’s choice to set Job in the time of Jacob and Esau. I had at one point been told in Bible school that Job likely lived before Abraham, so at first this was a hang up for me, but then at the end of the book, there is an Author’s Note where Andrews explains her research and her choice to put Job in this point on the timeline. If something like this might trip you up as well, I might recommend reading her Author’s Note first, as it was helpful to explain where she was coming from, but there is a plot spoiler, just to warn you.

All that aside, it was an excellent story and was fabulously written. The characters were well thought out and her creativity combined with extensive Biblical and historical research really helped bring the story of Job to life. She introduces many interesting elements and relational dynamics that I had never considered when reading Job’s story in the Bible that gave new meaning to his suffering and his relationship with God. Though it is nearly impossible to imagine enduring the type of pain that Job experienced, his story and his faith continues to be an inspiration and an encouragement to all of us as we faced our own trials. Weaving Job’s story together with Dinah’s adds another thread of redemption and love, as she was a woman with a shameful past who had experienced her own tragic loss. Though I may have ultimately chosen a different ending to this story, it was still very enjoyable and I would recommend it.

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

My 3-Year Old Son

Before losing our baby and our beloved sister in the last two months, we got to enjoy the great delight of celebrating our son Justice turning 3 years old. We had a wonderful day with friends and family and Justice was thrilled with everything – he was so excited to celebrate his birthday this year and for weeks he was talking about birthday cake and presents and begging us to sing the birthday song.

My heart fills with so much joy as I look at these pictures again (thanks mom!) – his face is so full of life and laughter and innocence and mischief all at the same time! Even though his defiant, challenging, strong-willed nature drives me crazy at times, his passion and zeal for life, his fearlessness, his creativity, his silliness, his intelligence, his affectionate heart – these things all cause me to fall more in love with him every day.

I love the way he dances with abandon, I love how he sings at the top of his lungs, I love how he wails on his drums with all his strength, I’m amazed at his athletic prowess as he dribbles, shoots, climbs, throws, hits, scores, I love watching him build and create, I laugh at his exaggerated facial expressions and funny sayings, I marvel at his incredible memory and ability to learn new things, and I especially love his love for me – his “tackle hugs”, his snuggles, his noseys, his bear hugs, his “I love you’s”.

Happy 3rd Birthday to my favorite son, Justice!

Ultimate Blog Party Giveaway Winner

The lucky winner of my Ultimate Blog Party giveaway of a $20 gift card of their choice to either iTunes, Amazon or Starbucks is comment #23 – my bloggy friend Barbie! Congratulations!

For Angie ~ Until we meet again…

Dear friends, family and readers,

It is with deep sadness and bittersweet joy that I share with you the news of losing my dear sister-in-law Angie to a tragic car accident this last Saturday, April 2nd at the age of 35. While our sorrow and grieving is painful, how grateful we are that we are not without hope and that we can rejoice with her, as she is now in heaven, experiencing the perfect and glorious love and beauty of Jesus and Father God. She no longer has to feel the ache of separation and longing for His presence, she no longer feels pain or sadness or bondage, but she is free to love and to be loved without any hindrances – what joy!!

~ “Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death,
so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope…” ~

Jacob, Angie, Chloe & Cliff – 2010

Yet for us who remain here, we feel our loss keenly and it is difficult to imagine life without her beautiful face, her loving arms, and her giving heart. Angie was an older sister to my husband Joe, and she had become my older sister too. As the oldest in my family, I treasured having older sisters through marriage, and Angie was one I called often with questions about motherhood, health concerns (she was a nurse), or just to chat. Though we knew each other for only 6 years and were sisters separated by distance, I loved and cherished her friendship.

~ “For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God
will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him…” ~

 
Angie with newborn daughter Chloe and son Jacob during a visit to their home in B.C. in 2006

She was a woman who loved God and loved people – fulfilling the two greatest commandments! She was a treasured daughter, a beloved sister, an incredible wife and mother, an amazing auntie, and dear friend. I wish I had the words to express what she meant to so many people, but I don’t even know a tiny fraction of the people she has loved and impacted with her life. I am simply thankful that I was one of those people and that I got to be on the receiving end of her love for a short time. From the first moment I met her, she made me feel accepted and embraced into their family and like I was immediately her sister. I wish I could share the unique and hilarious story of my first memory of her from my wedding, but I’m afraid it contains slightly inappropriate content. However, through that experience, she made me feel loved and cared for and I’ll never forget it!

~ “According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive,
who are left until the coming of the Lord,
will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep…” ~

With Joe’s family at our wedding in 2005 – their son Jacob was our ringbearer

It is still hard to believe and accept that she is truly gone, yet we are eternally grateful that God allowed us to share several days with her just the weekend before her passing. Joe and I and our kids had all traveled to Alberta for his dad’s birthday and almost his entire family was able to be there to celebrate together. We hadn’t thought we would be able to go, but the Lord provided a way for us to spend four wonderful days with Joe’s parents, siblings, nieces & nephews. What an incredible gift that her last days were with her family, simply enjoying & loving each other!

~ “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud shout,
with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God,
and the dead in Christ will rise first…” ~

Angie, Joe & Rayah when she visited us in Winnipeg in May 2010

 
Auntie Angie with Rayah during her visit to Winnipeg in May 2010

Auntie Angie and Justice during her visit to Winnipeg in May 2010

After their visit, Angie and her husband Cliff, and their two kids, Jacob (8) and Chloe (5), were driving back to their home in British Columbia, when they encountered bad road conditions and were involved in a terrible collision with a large truck and another car. Though Angie is now in heaven, she leaves behind a family who’s pain and loss is unimaginable.

~ “After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them
in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever…” ~

 
Recent family pictures taken by Angie’s niece Taylor

Cliff has extensive, but non-life threatening injuries that are being treated in Calgary, Alberta. Jacob has two broken legs and Chloe has a broken ankle and possibly some vision issues and they are also receiving care in Calgary. They are being surrounded and supported by family as they recover and as they attempt to heal physically and emotionally. Please keep them in your prayers, as well as the rest of Joe’s family who are mourning their loss while seeking to help the children deal with their loss at the same time.

~ “Therefore encourage one another with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 ~

Family picture from 2008

If you are a friend or relative of the family and wish to be kept up-to-date on Cliff and the kids’ medical conditions, Cliff’s family has a website where you can read the latest and pray accordingly. If you wish to leave words of love, memories, prayers, pictures, etc. for Angie and her family, there is a Facebook Page for “Remembering Angela Wiebe“.

Thank you for your prayers! Though we are grieving, it is grief with hope, knowing that we will see Angie again and that we will be together with the Lord forever! In the midst of trial, trouble, and the storms of this life, He is always faithful, always good and He sustains us with His love.

Ultimate Blog Party 2011

Well, I had so much fun last year participating in the Ultimate Blog Party hosted by 5 Minutes For Mom, that I knew I definitely wanted to join in again this year! It was really great to meet some new bloggers and have new visitors to my blog, so I’m excited about who I’ll meet this time around!

This year, I made my first attempt at creating & editing a video, so you can watch me as I give you a small glimpse into my life or read the list of things about me below with some links to some other blog posts on my site that you can check out. (The video is just under 10 minutes, so I apologize that it’s so long! If you don’t have time to watch it – I totally understand!)

1. My name is Jacquie and I am a Christian work-at-home-mom who is expectantly awaiting the return of Jesus to the earth! I am married to my amazing husband Joe and we celebrated our 6th anniversary this last January. You can read about how we met & got married here.
2. I have a very active, mischievous and rambunctious 3 year old son named Justice who adds much drama to life – I love him to pieces, even though he drives me a little crazy at times! Here’s his birth story.
3. I have a beautiful, sweet and sensitive 1 1 /2 year old daughter named Rayah who loves to dance and drape clothing around her shoulders and who is learning how to be a troublemaker from her big brother. She is pudgy and extremely squishable and you can read her birth story here.
4. About 3 weeks ago, I had my first (and hopefully last) miscarriage. It is obviously still fresh and I am still processing all my emotions about it, but Jesus has been faithful to carry me through as I am grieving and healing. Though I was only 5 1/2 weeks along in my pregnancy, it was still a difficult loss. We decided that our baby was a girl and we gave her a name that was made up by our son – Ezana. I guess she just couldn’t wait to go be with Jesus in heaven, so I can’t say I blame her, though I do miss the opportunity to get to hold her and know her in this life.
5. I live in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and we have had an especially cold and long winter this year, so we are just now starting to finally see some signs of spring! Though the weather has its downfalls, since we’re nearly at the exact centre of Canada, I am thankful that I don’t need to worry about earthquakes or tsunamis where I live. We have a lovely home near a small river with some beautiful trails in the forest, so I’m looking forward to enjoying them again as the weather warms up!
6. If you watch the video above, you’ll see that we’re a family that loves music! Though we can often be out-of-touch with what’s current in the music scene, we love to create our own music and our home is often filled with singing, dancing, drumming, guitar and/or piano playing, etc.
7. Since my maternity leave ended last October, it has been interesting trying to balance the roles of part-time computer programmer and full-time mommy to two busy toddlers! I’m definitely thankful for my iPhone that has helped me stay organized, but I find it is a challenge trying to give your best to two different jobs at the same time. However, I’m very thankful for the flexibility my job provides me and that I am able to stay home with my kids!
8. I have been blogging on and off for over 6 years and I really enjoy it, but I find it so hard to find the time to blog as often as I would like. I don’t know how some of you moms do it when you are have way more on your plate than I do! I find myself blogging mostly about my kids and various product reviews, but my real passion is to blog about Jesus and how amazing He is, so this is something that I hope to do more.
9. Though I am an incredibly amateur photographer and I seem to only be taking pictures with my iPhone lately, I do love it and I’m doing a 365 photography project this year, which you can view here. I’m kind of like my mother and am a little bit obsessed with capturing every moment on camera so I can remember and relive it forever – perhaps this is because I have such a terrible memory?
10. I think prayer is the greatest way we can impact our world, so I love being part of Sanctuary House of Prayer, where we get to intercede to God for Him to come and transform our hearts & our city with His love and power. I participate as a worship leader on piano and as an intercessor and we also host a weekly prayer meeting in our home.
11. I love Starbucks Cinnamon Dolcé lattes and Chai Tea lattes, McDonald’s fries, cottage cheese rolls, sweet potato fries, hot spinach & artichokes with cheese dip, Barq’s rootbeer, and milk!
12. I am passionate about seeing God bring justice to the earth – life for unborn babies, adoption for the orphan, freedom for those caught in human trafficking, provision to the poor, protection to the persecuted, healing for the sick, peace for the war-torn, etc. etc.
13. Here are a few random favorite posts: The Oil of His Name, Love Letters #867, My Favorite Cookies, The Fear of Pain, I Love My Fist, Our Mission Statement, Maternity Photo Shoot, and Rayah at 4 months.

So, now that you know a little bit about me, feel free to browse around, leave a comment and introduce yourself!

I would also love to offer a prize to everyone who’s reading! If you win, I will give you a choice of a $20 gift card for either Starbucks, the iTunes store, or Amazon. To enter the draw, simply leave a comment below and I will do a draw after the Ultimate Blog Party is over, on April 9th at 9:00 am Central Time. Make sure to include your email or twitter handle so that I have a way to contact you if you are the winner! To earn extra entries, you can leave an additional comment for doing any of the following:

• Subscribe to my blog
• Follow me on Networked Blogs
• Follow me on Google Friend Connect
• Follow me on twitter
• Tweet about this blog post
• Visit my 365 Photography Blog and come back here to tell me which is your favorite photo.

For all the places to find me on the world wide web, visit my profile at http://about.me/echoinghim