What a week.

Wow. This past week is sure going to be one I remember!

How bout a recap?

A week ago tonight, I was at the church decorating for my hubby’s surprise birthday party!!!  The next day, I went to the gym and did about a million and one things. That night, was his party and Dane got sick. Turned out, it was a stomach bug that was circulating around the church. No big deal. I don’t freak out over “sick”.

Saturday, Dane was still sick, just out a different end L and my father-in-law came up to celebrate his birthday. He and my husband share a birthday! We grilled out and enjoyed some family time.

Sunday morning, I woke sick as a dog. I was throwing up and had diarrhea (yeah! I know you were all dying for that info!). I ran a high fever all day and was feeling horrible. Brent took GREAT care of me, the boys, and the house. He knows I can’t stand a messy house and he kept up with the dishes, laundry, and meals all day. That afternoon, my parents came over to give Brent a hand so he could study. They ended up taking Dane home to spend the night so I could fully recuperate.

Monday morning, I woke up and felt GREAT!!!! I was still very weak (probably from NO food) and sort of light headed, but I felt like a new woman. Monday was my husband’s actual birthday. He took the day off of work and we hung out at the house. We left to go run some errands and pick up Dane in the late afternoon. While we were out, Brent got a phone call. I could tell it was very serious which always sends my heart in that “nervous” beat. I could feel myself get anxious as I patiently waited for him to tell me. I could read fear in his expression. He took a minute and said, “Freddy was in the bucket of the bucket truck and was hit by a train.” (Freddy is my father-in-law and works for GA Power) My heart stopped. Literally. Tears rushed to my eyes. I said, “Tell her we are headed there NOW!” We changed directions and the rest of the time they talked, I saw in my head what he said. HOW??? HOW on earth could Freddy still be alive? I called my mom to let her know they would be keeping Dane longer and then I called my Pastor’s wife to let her know we had an urgent prayer request. When he got off the phone, we talked…. we cried… we prayed….the whole way there. When we arrived at the hospital, we learned that GA Power refers to the bucket truck as the “bucket” and that Freddy had been driving the bucket truck when the train hit the bumper of it. It tail spun and then flipped over. PRAISE THE LORD he was not in the bucket!!!! I was so relieved. The train tracks where Freddy was hit, had no guard rails for oncoming trains and no flashing lights. It was also right in a curve. The engineer of the train told the police he was going 60+ MPH when he hit Freddy. We were at the hospital a long time (with a 1 year old who doesn’t want to sit in one place long). Freddy was put in ICU due to bleeding on his brain. He also had 3 broke ribs and was scratched up. We left after Brent saw him because Brent could tell he was coming down with the stomach bug. The whole way home, I thanked the Lord for His Hand in this situation. If Freddy had been going any slower….well, we all know…. This story would have a very different ending. We got home and got ready for bed. My mom and dad kept Dane another night. I didn’t sleep. I tossed and turned with thoughts of Freddy and Connie. I was wondering how this story would end and what we would be facing in the days and weeks to come. Brent was sick all night with the stomach bug. Lovely.

Tuesday, Brent was feeling somewhat better, just still very weak. I left both boys with my mom and went by myself to the hospital. I got to see Freddy and was overcome with emotion after seeing him. God was so good to spare him. The doctor’s expected a full recovery and I was so thankful. I came back home around 5 and we decided to get the boys and go back down there and spend the night at my in-law’s house. This would allow Brent a chance to see Freddy for the day and be about 20 minutes from work. In Ringgold, his commute is over an hour. Plus, it would allow me to be close for the next day and Brent and I could meet at the hospital and take turns seeing Freddy. Then, the boys and I could stay with Connie all day. We stopped by the hospital for the last visitation which was 8:30pm (ICU has very strict visiting hours. They are sporadic and only last 30 min at a time. Not even Connie -his wife- could come any other time or stay any longer). We got to the house and got in the bed.

Wednesday morning was a crazy morning. I wanted to be at the hospital for the first visitation (9:30am). Brent was coming from work and we were going to take turns keeping the boys in the waiting room so we could each see Freddy (no one under the age of 12 is allowed back). I did get a call from Connie that Freddy was doing very well. Praise the Lord. When I got to the hospital, Brent was waiting for me in the parking lot. He came to me and said, “I have bad news.” Instantly, I thought Freddy had taken a turn for the worse. He said, “I just got a call. There is a meeting in Atlanta at 2pm and they are laying off a bunch of people.” I just looked at him. I didn’t know what to say and I wanted to be strong for him. He said he figured he would be getting laid off. Rumor was, they were only keeping 2. “Ok. We will deal with this. Whatever comes our way, the Lord will provide. Brent, it’s not our job to understand God, it’s our job to trust Him.” I knew it was true.  We went into the hospital and saw Freddy. He looked so good!!! I hung out with Connie all day. We ate lunch, lounged in the waiting room, and talked about Brent’s job (also his Uncle’s job—Connie’s brother—they work together for the same company). We agreed that if he got laid off, God would provide and we would continue to trust Him. Freddy and Connie even took the time to hold prayer for Brent and his uncle during the 1:30 visitation. We got told that bleeding in his brain had stopped and he would be moved out of ICU today. YAY!!!! Dane was REALLY wanting to see Papa Fred. We rejoiced with this new news. 3pm rolled around and with it came the phone call. Brent said, “I got laid off.” I was shocked. I guess (in my optimistic mind) I NEVER dreamed he would really get laid off. I sat there, willing the tears not to come. I looked up at Connie and nodded my head. She closed her eyes. I said, “It’s ok. We’re gonna be ok” as much for him as for me. We hung up after a few minutes of chit chat. I knew deep down we would be ok. I wasn’t lying when I said that, but the devil tried to bring fear into me. He reminded me that we had just moved…. Into an expensive house with…. Oh no… BILLS! How would we ever make it?????? I listened to the devil for a little while and then my Lord reminded me, “You are mine and I am taking care of you. I have been preparing you for this.” It was then that I realized, yes. The Lord had been preparing us for this. In the last month, without trying to one.single.time., I had gotten 3 new houses to clean. These houses came out of nowhere. I was shocked to get them and to get them so close together. At the time (when I started getting requests for estimates) I wondered, “Hmmmm. Can we not afford this house??? I mean, it seems obvious that we can on paper, but the Lord must think we can’t.” Little did I know, the Lord was preparing us for when Brent got laid off. It was his way of giving me peace and comfort when that time came. To remind me that He is watching out for us and He will provide for us. Yes, things will be changing for us. “Tight” will take on a new meaning. LOL.  But, I trust the Lord through this time. I truly do. I KNOW He will take care of us.

Then today, dad tells me he saw a lady we used to go to church with. She tells him she heard I clean houses and she has a friend who will probably be calling me. I could have cried. THANK YOU LORD!!!! I trust Him completely for this new chapter in life. I know His will is always best, even if it might be hard for a time. He uses trails and hardships to make us more like Him. I have to remind myself of that when the doubt and fear slip back in.

As for Freddy, he is progressing wonderfully. He has already moved to inpatient rehab (which originally he wasn’t expected to do this quickly). He will be here for quite a while. Freddy (and Connie!) still has a long road ahead of him. We are trusting God here too. We know He has a plan in all of this. We know He can and He will work this out for His good. We give Him all the praise and glory for the miracles that have taken place with Freddy this far. We are excited about what lays ahead for Freddy as we continue to see God work through this difficult time.

I want to end with a big THANK YOU!!!!! SOOOOOOO many of you have prayed, text, called, emailed, and checked on us during this time. You have no idea how much it means to me… to us. Your love and more importantly, your prayers, have given us strength and allowed us to move forward each day. We love you, dear friends.

Good night!