The Large Icicle

One Sunday, not so long ago, while at the Lapeer Twp Hall for our worship service, some of the young people happened out side and found this gigantic icicle hanging from the gutters!
They finally decided to take it down and have their pictures taken with this unique specimen of our Maker's creative design!


Tim, Josh and Shawn...

...and Theresa with the nearly six foot tall icicle.

Whole Food Visits

The week that Charity was in Ann Arbor our family was very spoiled as we were able to visit our most favorite store - Whole Foods, whenever we wanted! With it being less than 10 minutes from the hospital I think we found ourselves frequenting that wonderful store maybe a few to many times and though having to drive 45 min. again isn't that bad, I think that more than a few of us are rather missing that luxury.
These following pictures are only a glimpse of the greatness of this huge place and if you have never set foot in one of these stores you have certainly missed a lot!

From a beautifully and artistically arranged produce section...


APPLES!






ORANGES!




PEARS!




AVOCADOS!







CARROTS!





GREENS!







... and Flowers...

...to isle after isle of neatly (and mostly Organic) arrayed teas, juices, crackers, chips and candies (and all sorts of 'healthy' stuff)

but most of all our favorite - the bulk isle!

There is so much more to be seen and had in this spectacular store (including the very tempting taste testers place throughout for the shoppers enjoyment!) but I could never tell about or photography it all, so you will just have to go check it out for yourself- oh and remember to take a full wallet cause thing can be a little pricey at times - just check out the exquisite dishes offered in this lunch display and you might just decide to eat before you go!

Anyways...I hope you have enjoyed this little taste of one of our family's most favorite places - the Whole Foods Market!


Oh! Did I mention that they make the best ever peppermint brownies?! =)

Snow Day - Shoveling - Annual Snow Fort

In the early morning hours of February 13 we were dumped with close to 8 inches of snow, a busy morning of shoveling jobs for our neighbors, helping people get their cars out of the snow ruts and carefully heading over to the hospital to see Charity.


Drifts were everywhere...

even hanging off of our gutters...

- ranging from 28 inches to 1/2 inch.


The crew headed out to cover our annual jobs of shoveling out our neighbors.


After all the hard work was done, the now tired and rosy cheeked gang came back in for breakfast.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Remember the past posts of our wintry season when we told and showed of our annual snow slide and forts? Well this year it all happened again, though it was short lived because of warm weather, and our slide was erected off the back deck (sorry I didn't get any pictures of it this year!) and though a little different from past years, our front yard quickly acquired a VERY LARGE mound right in the middle of it for all the passerby and interested house shopper to see! =)
This years goal was for bigger and better than ever! John really wanted to get it high enough to stand straight in but that never happened and so a huge cave came into existence with a support beam in the middle, front and back entrances and an additional room off the side. Though the shape was anything but attractive (at first I thought they were going to go for an igloo affect, but it turned out more like a volcano!) the creativeness it encouraged and pleasure it brought were all the worth while and though again short lived, it was at least yet another founded memory to keep for years to come!

Baby wasn't to sure about hanging out in the snow cave.

The creators and their master piece!
(l-r Faith, Josiah, John, Joshua, Christianna and Baby)

Another Backyard Visitor

On February 12 and a few days following this little stealthy hunter would pay a visit to our area of the woods trying to catch one of our many resident squirrels but unfortunately to no avail. However we greatly enjoyed being able catch yet another glimpse of one of God's amazing and beautiful creations!


At the first few visits of just hiding and peaking from behind the trees this little guy got rather bold and just hunkered down in this little hollow though rather in plain view to wait for any absent minded rodent to cross his path.


Though my digital zoom wasn't the best, this was the closest photo I was able to get.
See a resemblance between this pretty fox and our corgi/spitz Baby?!

The Frank and Poet Drain Adventure!

February 9th was the day that it all happened...We had a house showing, this adventure took place but never got posted, and Charity was found to have a very high fever which turned into a series of eventful and prayerful postings for the next month! Finally as things have settled down, Charity is doing better and our live's have returned to almost normal (whatever that is?!) we get back to the second happening of that very eventful day :
The Adventure at Frank and Poet Drain.

The day was bright yet overcast, the glittering blanket of snow helping to illuminate our world. The temperature was mild, and as was earlier stated, we had a showing for our house in the mid afternoon and so the gang (minus John and Charity) headed out of the house in several different directions ending up with a visit to the river down the street.
This "river" has had many a visit from members of the Sauve family on several occasions throughout the last few years as we have taken our dog Baby out for walks and found that she really enjoys water. Our small city of Riverview is a "Rural City". Bordered by the now subdivision-invaded farm land and decades old woodlands we are still surrounded by some of God's most beautiful creations. Down the road from us stands a piece of the past- an old farm house and collections of barns spaced out on a most likely once large but now small piece of land and running along the front of that property is Frank and Poet Drain. Yes, though not attractively named, this small river - as we call it- starts is track somewhere over in the Rural lands of Romulus and slipping through the lower wetlands ends it race flowing out into the Detroit river. Though for whatever reason it is here or how it came to be made, this small river has brought us great enjoyment and as this post is to show- a most unique opportunity of enjoyment was had on the afternoon of February 9th!

Because of the very low temperatures from previous days we were very excited to find out that Frank and Poet Drain was frozen- almost totally through- and so on this day we decided to go for a walk on the river!

Smooth and glistening with only a few spots still snow covered, we headed down (or rather up) stream slipping and sliding, hopping over low branches as we made our way along.

As you can see, the drain was quite frozen and had made a beautiful 'still life' waterfall that Christianna just had to get her picture taken with! =) Unfortunately the photographer was 'taking too long and walking too slow' so I wasn't able to get a clear closeup picture of the gorgeous ripples frozen in place.

Oh, did I mention that we had Baby with us too? She was really enjoying herself, not minding the slipperiness of the ice and was overall thrilled to finally be able to sniff out the other side of the river that she has never been able to get at before!

As I walked along keeping my eyes open for any photographic subjects, here are a couple unique images I was able to capture.

Frozen leaves amidst the once swirling and bubbling water.

A grand Great Blue Heron must have taken a stroll down this water way on a day when the ice was starting to thaw as these deep, clear footprints appeared in many places along the trail.

A bubbling air pocket with a hole on top provided a neat view of the still fast moving water below. The blurry object at the top of the picture is Joshua's fist as he tested the strength of this remarkable phenomenon - rock solid!


Along the river we traveled- the photographer lagging way behind with Christianna keeping her company- and around the bend we came to where the water went under the road through a large cement structured tunnel.

I had never been down this far before (some of the other kids had gone wading when the water was low in the summer) so it was pretty amazing to be able to walk under a road on top of water!! The picture is a little dark but it was the only ok photo that I was able to get of myself.


We finally came up to a point where the ice was getting a little too thin to walk on and this huge crack was waning open as the water was rushing by underneath.

We then started to make our way back down the glazed pathway and towards home.

On the way back along the river I had Josiah quickly pose for this picture and though I tried to get a whole group picture by setting the camera down on these rock slabs, the batteries were not able to hold up with the settings I had the camera on so the picture never happened. (though later I realized what I could have done to make it work but by that time everyone had quickly moved on).

We finally got back to the open area where the ice was so smooth I wished I had brought my ice skates (though I have never skated before), but everyone else was have the grandest of times just skating with their boots and shoes and the results are these following pictures!

Baby and Faith - having the time of their lives!

What an experience and what a day! Even though when we got home things seemed to turn disastrous, I don't think we will ever forget (with the help of these images) the great and enjoyable time God allowed us to have in being able to so closely encounter a beautiful part of His nature - to be able to walk down a river and see and experience things we would otherwise never been able to. So for even the small things in life that we can be blessed by, for this small event that took place in our lives we are very thankful - when we took a walk down Frank and Poet Drain! ~ Grace

... And the sun was shining on the water.
2 Kings 3:22

Nothing new...

Well we never heard back the results (though we were told that we would only hear if they were positive) so hopefully that's good news! However Charity is still battling a fever every night and therefore not getting her much needed rest, but today she is scheduled to go see the Lupus specialists and hopefully we will be able to find out if that has been one of the causes of a lot of the recent problems. We continue to pray and search for answers...


Due to the past month's happenings with Charity's illness I have not been able to post the many other things we previously and have recently done but I will hopefully be trying to catch up on the rest of our family's happenings throughout the next couple days, though I will still try to keep giving an update on Charity's health conditions as we continue to ask you to seek with us our Great Physicians healing.


For Christ's glory alone!

Grace

Update on Charity - Friday P.M.

Dad and Mom took Charity to Ann Arbor around 11:30 this morning and they were able to get right into the ER and get some blood cultures done. She also had some other tests done as every immediate check seemed to show that everything was OK, making everyone even more puzzled! Even through all this her fever was back down to normal (though she did take some Tylenol before leaving this morning) so that adds to the confusion.

God knows all this though and is in control. We continue to trust and try to learn more patience and understanding of the lessons He is teaching us through all this.

We await the results - tomorrow.

Continuing Prayer Request...

Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation,
continuing steadfastly in prayer;
Romans 12:12

• Please continue to keep Charity in prayer as yet another weekend is coming around and though she is home, we are continually in need of wisdom from the Lord as yet again her fever has started to go back up and the doctor said we need to take her back in to get some blood test done to try to determine the cause of all this.
  

• Please prayer for physical and spiritual strength for Charity to be able to go through what ever needs to be done to help her regain her strength and cleanse her body of what ever is afflicting her, if its another bacteria- to destroy it, or her Lupus- to suppress and gain control over it.

God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear...
Psalm 46:1-2

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace,
that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Hebrews 4:16

Our strength and our help...God's all sufficient grace

How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!
What more can He say than to you He hath said,
You, who unto Jesus for refuge have fled?

In every condition, in sickness, in health;
In poverty’s vale, or abounding in wealth;
At home and abroad, on the land, on the sea,
As thy days may demand, shall thy strength ever be.

Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid;
I’ll strengthen and help thee, and cause thee to stand
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.

When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of woe shall not thee overflow;
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.

Even down to old age all My people shall prove
My sovereign, eternal, unchangeable love;
And when hoary hairs shall their temples adorn,
Like lambs they shall still in My bosom be borne.

The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose,
I will not, I will not desert to its foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake.

Words by Rev. John Rippon, 1787

Take Two...Finally Home!

What a long day this has been, but by God's amazing grace Charity was finally released from UofM Hospital late this afternoon and is finally home!!!
We are all so exhausted so I will post more tomorrow.

We greatly appreciate all those who have commented and let us know that you have been praying for us! Our great and awesome God has truly heard and answered those prayer!

May His name be praised forever!

Grace

Update...or no Update?

... that is the question. Or actually the questions most recently have been, "What caused all this" and "when can Charity go home?" Yes, in one sense we do not want to be hasty and have to take her right back in again, but even right now though the doctors are still puzzled as to the cause of all that has been going on in Charity's body, some assumption have been made and by God's grace alone she is heading on a road of very slow and careful recovery! Through the many tests that she has gone through over the past month we have been told that she does not have many different things, but we still have not truly found out what did cause the many problems she has been struggling with except that the bacteria in her blood stream most likely caused the high fever and could have been the cause for her weakened heart. Even though the medical team kind of gave up on her legs, we (Mom and Grace mostly and a dear friend) have been working on them, massaging and trying to push the fluids back up into her system to give her heart a break and they are noticably a lot thinner than two weeks ago!
As we wait the Lord's leading and timing as to when Charity will be back home again, we continue to ask you to lift her up with us in prayer, to our Heavenly Father for strength and healing for this long road ahead of us.
We can not thank enough, all the dear people out there, our family and friends, and even people who have never met Charity, who have been praying for her! Though we know the Lord has been using many people to glorify Himself through this time in hearing the prayer of the saints, we would kind of like to know how many have been keeping up with these prayer posts and to how far or to where across the country prayers are being lifted on Charity's behalf. If all you blog watchers out there could post a comment and just let us know if you have been praying and where you are from we would greatly appreciate it!
To those of you who have commented and let us know you are praying, we thank you so very much for all your encouraging words and loving support!

...We continue to wait and prayer...

May God be glorified!

I trust in God's unfailing love
forever and ever.
I will praise you forever for what you have done;
in your name I will hope, for your name is good.
I will praise you in the presence of your saints.

Psalm 52:8-9

Results from the TEE scope test

"Negative" is a very beautiful word right now!

The results to the test that was done on Charity this morning showed that there is nothing wrong with her heart! No need for surgery, no more tests... Praise God from whom all blessing flow!!

He is your praise, and He is your God,
who has done for you these great and awesome things
which your eyes have seen.
Deuteronomy 10:21

Please continue to pray that God will give the doctors wisdom as to finding the cause of Charity's swollen legs as now a possibly damaged heart is not in the picture!

Update on Charity - Tuesday A.M.

Prayer with praise!

• Charity was scheduled to have the TEE test done today to get a better view of her hearts condition by sending a scope down her throat. She was told that she could not eat for 8 hours before the procedure but they told us last night that the set time wasn't until 2 p.m. and she could not swallow anything (even water!!!) from 12 p.m. to 2 in the afternoon. She was rather upset at this and discouraged but God was merciful and we just heard a little while ago, (10:45) that she is being taken right now to have this test done!!! Praise God!

• Please prayer that the procedure will go well. That she will not experience any discomfort and that this test will not be in vain and the result will show if there is really anything wrong with her heart or not and most of all that we will be able to know for certain what has caused her to retain so much fluid in her legs!

We serve an Almighty and merciful God!

Update on Charity - Sunday P.M.

As of this evening there are really no new updates beside the fact that Doctors are still puzzled as to the cause of her swollen legs because as of now they are saying that her heart looks OK (depending on who you talk to) and the supposedly new bacteria that was found on Friday is not there. There is a possibility that this is a Lupus flair and hopefully they will soon be able to accurately determine that but as of now we still covet your prayers as Charity cannot get much of her needed rest and discomfort from laying down a lot is really bothersome!

God is faithful and we continue to trust His unfailing love!

But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.

I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me.

Psalm 13:5-6

Update on Charity - 2:30pm

• After many long hours of sitting and waiting (a very long time) to get into a private room, mom just let us know that they have finally situated her in a room on the 7th floor, section "B" room 124. Praise God for this small bit of progress! Still a long way to go to figure out what the diagnosis is but He is faithful and all we can do is wait on His will.

Please keep praying...

Update on Charity - Saturday A.M.

"Do not be afraid.
Stand still and see the salvation of the LORD,
which He will accomplish for you today."
Exodus 14:13

Dear Family, Friends and loved ones,

Once again we would covet your prayers for Charity and the situation with her health. I know many of you rejoiced with us when she was able to come home on Monday, but since then, she really has not improved at all. The home care nurses that came to help out with her antibiotics, were quite concerned with her over-all appearance, and specifically with her swollen legs and shallow, rapid breathing, and fast heart-rate. They both said that she needed to go back to the hospital to get those symptoms checked out. She also was put on two new antibiotics after they found that she had a different bacteria in her blood.
We finally decided that it would be better to take her to U of M in Ann Arbor where we knew she would receive for specific care regarding her Lupus and we were referred to a very good cardiologist there. Mom and Dad drove her out there last night (around 8:30pm) and they ended up staying there all night. The hospital staff are trying to get her a private room, because they are worried about her bacteria.

• Please pray that they will very quickly be able to get Charity into a room, so that she will be more comfortable and will be able to get some much needed rest.
  

• Also that she would be seen by the Doctors soon, and that they would be able to give her some clear diagnosis, and began to get her heart rate and swelling under control. As of 10:00 am this morning, only the regular E.R. doctor had been in to see her. (although U of M is a good hospital, it is also a very busy hospital!)
  

• Please also keep Mom and Dad in your prayers. That they would stay alert, and that God would give them strength during this exhausting time.
  

"The LORD will fight for you,
and you shall hold your peace and remain at rest."
Exodus 14:14

Pray Without Ceasing

"Thus saith the Lord God; I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them." -Ezekiel 26:37

Prayer is the forerunner of mercy. Turn to sacred history, and you will find that scarcely ever did a great mercy come to this world unheralded by supplication. You have found this true in your own personal experience. God has given you many an unsolicited favour, but still great prayer has always been the prelude of great mercy with you. When you first found peace through the blood of the cross, you had been praying much, and earnestly interceding with God that He would remove your doubts, and deliver you from your distresses. Your assurance was the result of prayer. When at any time you have had high and rapturous joys, you have been obliged to look upon them as answers to your prayers. When you have had great deliverances out of sore troubles, and mighty helps in great dangers, you have been able to say, "I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears." Prayer is always the preface to blessing. It goes before the blessings as the blessing's shadow. When the sunlight of God's mercies rises upon our necessities, it casts the shadow of prayer far down upon the plain. Or, to use another illustration, when God piles up a hill of mercies, He Himself shines behind them, and He casts on our spirits the shadow of prayer, so that we may rest certain, if we are much in prayer, our pleadings are the shadows of mercy. Prayer is thus connected with the blessing to show us the value of it. If we had the blessings without asking for them, we should think them common things; but prayer makes our mercies more precious than diamonds. The things we ask for are precious, but we do not realize their preciousness until we have sought for them earnestly.

"Prayer makes the darken'd cloud withdraw;
Prayer climbs the ladder Jacob saw;
Gives exercise to faith and love;
Brings every blessing from above."

from Spergeon's Morning and Evening

Backyard Visitors

Below are images that I was able to capture the other day of some of our regular visitors to our back(and front) yard. Enjoy!!






Can you see him? Though they usually are not very shy, on this particular day Mr. Wren did not want his photograph taken and all I could get of him was this image of him peeking around the feeder.


Throughout all the years we have been at this house we have been blessed on several occasions by being able to catch a glimpse of some rare and striking visitors that are attracted to our backyard feeders. This particular one, though not all together rare has chosen to show himself only a few times a year and at this time, about a week ago has seemed to like our "winter wonderland" and has stopped by a couple time since. I am disappointed though, that I have not been able to get a good picture of him yet so the above image is all there is to show of the exquisitely handsome Yellow Shafted Flicker.


No, he is not screaming. Instead this beautiful specimen of God's creation, a Sharp-Shinned Hawk is actually just finishing up a big yawn while sitting in our front cherry tree the other day.
God's amazing creativeness in the designs of all His creation proclaim one thing - His Glory!

To see more amazing (and much better captured then mine) images of birds, visit www.kanonphoto.com where the photographs of a local photographer recently relocated from Sweden are displayed. We heard about this gifted photographer from our newspaper after he had the very special opportunity to capture on film a truly rare visitor to Michigan's Southeastern soil - a Snowy Owl!