No more BRACES!!!

YAY! Not the most beautiful picture of me but...

(P.S. The mess in the background is us getting ready to go to Texas, Mexico, and Florida!!!)

YAY!!!!

Today, I am very happy. Today... I got my braces OFF! I don't have any pictures yet, but I will soon. *sigh* It feels so good! My teeth feel really slimy though. :)

Update

Hey!
So Matthew is doing so much better. I saw him on Sunday and I could just tell by the way he was joking around and saying that his brother looked orange that he was feeling better. I think that he went home yesterday, too. God has been so good.

As for me, I'm fine. I go to the Orthopedic tomorrow. The only problem is... I'm sick... again... This time it is in my throat more than my nose, thankfully. But, I pretty much sound like a frog when I talk... So my mom will probably do most of the talking for me at the doctor tomorrow... :)

I've been making our Co-op's yearbook the last couple of days and I am having a lot of fun doing it... Shutterfly is so cool... :)

Matthew

Hey All,
So, I have a prayer request. Many of the dads and sons in our church went camping this weekend. Well, last night, one of the boys, Matthew, was bitten on the ankle by a copperhead snake. He was taken away on a helicopter to Children's Mercy Hospital. Currently, he is still there and is going to be staying there at least overnight. As of right now, he is not doing very good. So, if you could be praying for this young man and his family, I know that they would really appreciate it.

~Matthew,
It has been a joy growing up with you. It is amazing to see you continually growing in your walk with God. I hope that you get well soon and know that we are praying for you constantly. I love you, Brother!!!

Pictures

Finally here are the pictures of my leg. I had a better one but my computer wouldn't let me post it...

here is my massive bruise, which has just recently gotten bigger and has spread across my shin...

The top left is the place where they had the scope, the top right is where the first incision was and the bottom left is the second incision they had to make to get to the actual bone fragment. Oh, and the little purple mark is a smiley face that my surgeon drew on me...


I will have the pictures from the actual surgery soon.

Thank You, Thank you!

Hey All!

My surgery went really well. Thank you so much for your prayers and emails and comments. I can't tell you how grateful I am. I still can't believe that God gave me such amazing, wonderful, and encouraging friends to live my life with. My surgery ended up starting at about a quarter till 8. I was actually able to walk into the operating room, which was pretty cool. Most of the time they put you out first and then take you back. Anyways, I woke up at about 10:30. I think it's pretty funny how the second you open your eyes they are asking you questions. I got asked "On a scale of 0 to 10, how much pain are you in?" about five times in the first ten minutes. They even asked me what size shirt I wanted as a souvenir. I ended up getting a large because I wasn't awake enough to tell them what size I was! I got home at about 11:30. I had an ice pack wrapped around my knee for the first two days. I was able to take that off and so now all I have on it is a big Ace bandage. I get to take that off tomorrow. I am very curious to see how my knee looks. I have a HUGE bruise down the side of my calf so I can't imagine how bruised my knee is. The first day I was on intense pain medicine. For the next two days I was only on Advil and Tylenol. Now I am on no pain meds at all. That makes me very happy. God is so good!
Thanks again for your prayers! :)

Tomorrow...

Tomorrow is the day! I will be going in to surgery in the morning at 7:15. We have to be there at 6, though. And that means that we have to leave the house at 5:30... *ugh* Honestly though, I am looking forward to it. Just the fact that I will not be in pain from this bone fragment makes me very happy. God has given me the peace that passes all understanding. All of you have been so encouraging to me. Thank you so much.

I have had some songs on my mind for a little while that have seemed to be written for me... (The little Grooveshark thing will play the songs.)

Praise You In This Storm- Casting Crowns


I was sure by now
That You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say "Amen", and it's still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

I'll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I've cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry
You raised me up again
My strength is almost gone
How can I carry on
If I can't find You

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The Maker of Heaven and Earth



Voice Of Truth- Casting Crowns


Oh what I would do to have
The kind of faith it takes to climb out of this boat I'm in
Onto the crashing waves

To step out of my comfort zone
To the realm of the unknown where Jesus is
And He's holding out his hand

But the waves are calling out my name and they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times I've tried before and failed
The waves they keep on telling me
Time and time again. 'Boy, you'll never win!'
"You'll never win"

But the voice of truth tells me a different story
And the voice of truth says "Do not be afraid!"
And the voice of truth says "This is for My glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of strength it takes to stand before a giant
With just a Sling and a stone
Surrounded by the sound of a thousand warriors
Shaking in their armor
Wishing they'd have had the strength to stand

But the giant's calling out my name and he laughs at me
Reminding me of all the times I've tried before and failed
The giant keeps on telling me
Time and time again "boy, you'll never win!
"You'll never win"

But the stone was just the right size
To put the giant on the ground
And the waves they don't seem so high
From on top of them looking down
I will soar with the wings of eagles
When I stop and listen to the sound of Jesus
Singing over me

I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth


I Will Rise- Chris Tomlin


There's a peace I've come to know
Though my heart and flesh may fail
There's an anchor for my soul
I can say, "it is well"

Jesus has overcome
And the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead

I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles' wings
Before my God, fall on my knees
And rise
I will rise

There's a day that's drawing near
When this darkness breaks to light
And the shadows disappear
And my faith shall be my eyes

And I hear the voice of many angels sing, "worthy is the Lamb"
And I hear the cry of every longing heart, "worthy is the Lamb"

X-Rays

Okay, so my computer doesn't have a virus. Here are some pictures of an X-ray that I got today.
This is the original. If you look, you can see the bone fragment...

Here is a close up of the same picture. I have circled the fragment.


Some of you may not know, but I have JRA, Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis, and possibly Lupus. Also, recently a small bone fragment broke off and is now floating around in the joint space behind my left knee. Lately it has been hurting quite a bit.
Today at the doctor, I was telling them about how these past couple of months have been kind of hard because of my knee hurting so bad. So my doctor immediately said, "Well we need to take care of that then." Yep, I am going to be going into surgery. It will be either the 22nd or 24th of this month. It will take a bit for me to recover, but honestly, I am kind of excited about it. It will be nice not to be in constant pain. The doctor who will be doing the surgery is great. She said that she will take pictures during the surgery and give them to me. That will be pretty cool. I might even put them on here...