Annie's Song

Serenity Prayer "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.  Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardship as a pathway to peace; taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; trusting that You will make all things right if I surrender to Your will; so that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with You forever in the next. Amen."                      Reinhold Niebuhr   A wonderful photo of mom from Mother's Day 😊 Last week's post was a bit of a cliffhanger and I want to lead off with gratitude. I am grateful for everyone's prayers for Mom. She had a transfusion of platelets prior to surgery and then underwent colostomy surgery last Tuesday, June 13. While the surgery was successful, Ann's post-op recovery has been an uphill battle. Fortunately,...

  "The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit."      Psalm 34:18   This will be a pretty brief post. I just wanted to give everyone an update on Ann/Mom/Nanny. I realized the last post I asked for prayer for the MRI that was supposed to happen last Thursday, June 8. I have posted a few updates on Facebook but not everyone is on FB. A week ago today my Dad called the paramedics because Mom was not doing well at all. A MRI of her abdomen revealed a perforation in her colon and emergency surgery was performed Monday afternoon. Mom came through surgery well but her post-op recovery was very slow going. It has been a roller coaster this past week seeing incremental progress followed by concerning setbacks. Yesterday Dad was encouraged because Mom was eating broth and Italian ices. She was more alert and conversational than she had been in days. Then her heart rate became elevated (from 70 to 120) and her medical team couldn't ide...

  "A happy family is but an earlier heaven."  George Bernard Shaw Mother's Day The Teahouse on Los Rios ~ a belated birthday tea for Mom/Nanny Mom and Dad finally met their newest great-grand daughter, Kirra. The month of May has always been a celebratory time for our family because we have multiple birthdays, Mom and Dad's wedding anniversary, as well as Mother's Day. This year we were especially grateful to have Mom with us to mark another birthday ~ her 77th, Mom and Dad's 54th anniversary and Mother's Day too. 😊 Yippee skippee! I love the quote at the beginning of this post: "A happy family is but an earlier heaven." I'm glad Shaw didn't say, "A perfect family" since there aren't any of those on earth. We are definitely not perfect; but happy?... yes indeed! There are certain aspects that come to my mind when I reminisce about our get togethers. The first is the feasting. So.much.food! Second is the lively [aka loud] co...

  "Living a life of faith means never knowing where you are being led. But it does mean loving and knowing the One who is leading. It is literally a life of faith...a life of knowing Him who calls us to go." Oswald Chambers Mom and Dad at dinner on Tuesday evening. 😊 On the drive to church a couple Sunday mornings ago, I hit a stretch of road where the fog reduced visibility to maybe 20 feet or so. I don't encounter dense fog very often and it was  disconcerting, almost disorienting, because the fog obscured points of reference: street signs and intersections; traffic in front and behind. It occurred to me that fog is a fitting analogy to the journey my Mom, Dad and our family have been on these past ten months. We may not have been confronted with literal fog, and yet the path in front of us has most often been shrouded in mystery: Has GBM been arrested? What will the next month bring? Will there be finances to continue providing the caregiving Mom requires? I have men...

  "The fondest memories are made when gathered around the table." author unknown "A sweet friendship refreshes the soul."  Proverbs 27:9 Easter Sunday: Rhett, Ethan, Roge, Helen, Terrie, Michael, Mom, Dad, Toni, Allison, James, David, Georgia and Nina (+ Lilah looking bashful) 😊 I am convinced that our heavenly Father delights in family celebrations and special occasions. It is especially delightful when we gather in gratitude for His greatness (like on Easter 😃) and to enjoy simply being together over good food and lively conversation. Reflecting back on our family's time together this Easter I am filled with thankfulness for another Easter with mom, as well as feeling blessed that our family genuinely enjoys hanging out together. No weird uncles in our family ~ LOL. There was a lot of delicious food and laughter ~ with the majority of the family gathered in the  kitchen area [of course] noshing & chatting. These are two activities that give my mom great ...

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help the other up." Ecclesiastes 4:9,10 Mom and Dad on the Balboa Island Ferry My husband, Roger had many expressions but a few in particular stuck with me: "this, that and the other thing" was one of them, and "many hands make light work" was another. (I had never heard this expression prior to knowing Roger, but I have heard it a number of times since.) It seems like something a grandmother or mom might say when coaxing a reluctant child to help out with something. 😊 This expression comes to mind as I reflect on Saturday, March 25th and our family's first loosely termed 'Work Day' at mom and dad's house. A more fitting term would be 'Fun & Family Day'. My son, James kicked things off with giving mom (Nanny) a haircut. He also brought two batches of his ...

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. He says, "Be still, and know that I am God." Psalm 46:1,10a   I love this photo! It captures my mom's cute personality. (Easter egg hunt on Balboa Island circa 1988?)  I realize my last post was a bit of a cliffhanger in that I asked for prayer for mom's upcoming MRI (March 15th), which we hoped would be read "stat" aka immediately. Dad received a phone call Friday morning from Dr. Kim's surgical coordinator informing him that the MRI revealed progression of GBM and to make appointments with her chemo and radiation oncologists as soon as possible. 😢 Dad and mom weren't given any specifics about what the MRI revealed so it's been really difficult to wait several days to see mom's oncologists. Fortunately, dad was able to schedule appointments with both Dr. Fong (chemo) and Dr. Chou (radiation) today. I drove to Orange County to be with mom and dad and my brother, Michael a...