Capturing Josi

It's not always easy to get a good photograph of Josi that truly shows a glimpse into her unique personality, but yesterday my camera finally captured some of her best 'look's to date.  One of my favorites is in the header.  She actually gave me a sweet, relaxed smile--no easy thing I must say.

Pensive...taking it all in.

Her "Really Mom?!" look.  She's a teenager through and through.

Her, "Ok so what's next?" look.

I don't get too many smiles when I ask for one so this is her typical "Say Cheese" look. 

Ah, yes...the tenacious side of Josi.  Some call it stubborn. hahaha

And then through the lense I saw these next two shots.  A stunningly beautiful girl with so many promises and possibilities.  She is more like her peers than she is different.  She likes jewelry, painting her nails, wearing pretty dresses (and wearing her jean shorts and t-shirts the other 99% of the time). 

These shots reminded me to focus on Seeing The Up Side of Down and that there is way more typical about Josi than not. There is sweetness and compassion along with the quirky and the cantankerous. There is fun-loving and silliness along with her times of introversion and shyness.  There is independence and self-sufficiency along with her neediness.  In other words, she is just who God intended her to be.  It's all a matter of perspective which, by the grace of God, I can adjust to be more like His than the world's.

She's Baaaack!!!

So it's been almost 3 weeks since Nadia's tonsillectomy/tube surgery and I'd say that she is pretty much back to normal.  All sugar and spice...

....ok so perhaps there's a LOT more spice than sugar (at times) in this girl!

This is the "You have me in my high chair so why aren't you feeding me?" look.

"Ah yes...I see my banana and bowl of oatmeal...I'm all sugar again!"

"WAAAHHHH!  It's taking too long!!!"

(By the way, anything over .5 seconds from being put into the chair and having food in her mouth is too long for this one!)

                                                                     
 During her recovery period she only ate bananas, oatmeal, and yogurt so I was concerned that she'd swear off  of those once she felt better, but thankfully she hasn't missed a beat with her 'staple' foods.

Signing "eat"--her appetite is definitely back.

Doing a good job with feeding herself...

...except that it's way TOO SLOW for the "Feed Me Now" Spice Girl!

(Remember The Spice Girls? Can anyone name the original Spice Girls nicknames?)

She's drinking from her cup again too.  During her recovery she mostly drank from the syringe that I gave her the medicine in.

So overall, other than those pesky mood swings, Nadia is doing quite well.

We're even back to singing our songs again.

"The Mommy's on the bus say 'sh' 'sh' 'sh' all through the town."

"See Mommy?  I'm just as sweet as can be!"

(As she secretly ponders her next outburst.)

Thank you all for asking how she's doing and for your prayers during her recovery.  We couldn't have asked for a better post-op patient than this little cutie.  (I had to hide the sedation medicine because there are certain family members that still think that a little bit mixed into her drink everyday wouldn't be a bad thing to try.) Hmmmm...

Tribute to My Dad-Part 2

My Dad loved to go hunting and fishing.  He would go deer hunting every year and somehow always return without one. (I finally realized that going out into the snowy woods at 4am was like a vacation for him since he spent most of his time with 5 females!) He'd always laugh at me when I'd ask him if he "caught" one--silly girl that I was. haha

I did, however, improve my hunting verbage enough for him to take me along a few times when he went rabbit hunting.  I was so proud to accompany him  until I realized that what I was doing--running into the brush to scare out the game-- was what dogs are for. hmpf!  I cherish those memories all the same. :)

And when it came to fishing, well that's when my Dad got really brave.  He would actually take all 4 of us girls fishing at the same time!  I wish we had videos of my Dad scrambling between the four of us to untangle lines, get hooks out of our hair, put the icky worms on for us (ok, that actually never happened because he taught all of us to do that from the start), and take the fish off the hook for us (he did do that for us--what a guy!).  Needless to say, he definitely earned some Daddy points with those outings!

Once my Dad retired, he was able to spend more time fishing, and eventually he and some friends hired a fishing guide to take them to the best spots once or twice a year--fisherman's paradise!  My Dad never wasted an opportunity to talk about Jesus, so even on these fishing trips, he looked at his time with the fishing guide as a God-ordained moment.  This became even more evident when this post appeared on "The Fishing Guide's" blog the day after my Dad died. 

March 24, 2011

Guiding Has Created Great Friendships! I Lost One Today.


When I began my smallmouth bass guiding career in 1999, I was pursuing my dream to fish for a living. I bought my first jet boat and headed out on the water to learn how to fish. I had a web site built, started attending outdoor expos soon after and began developing an ever increasing clientele, many of which have become very close friends over the years.

I have gone on fishing trips with some. I have become business partners with one! I have had kids draw me pictures, and send me pictures of them with their "trophies". I've accompanied a few to medical centers with hooks dangling out of different areas of their bodies! I have even shared many personal beliefs and ideas with hundreds of conversations floating down one of our rivers in the boat or driving to and from the river in my truck. it never gets old!

One of those good friends, Glenn Paul, passed away yesterday. Glenn was known to needle me when I'd get frustrated, whether it be him getting snagged in a tree for the 33rd time of the day, or me hitting a rock with the boat, which I did on his last trip with me last year on the Delaware.

Glenn and his good fishing buddy, Bill Blankenbiller, were 2 of my longest tenured clients. They fished all 3 rivers with me, having some interesting memories from each. On our first trip, on the Susquehanna, my oil gage on my boat signaled I was out of oil I never heard the end of my lack of preparedness that day! Another fond memory I have of Glenn is that on their 75 bass day on the Susky years ago, he got his tube jig snagged. I popped the snag off and a bass slammed it instantly! I handed the rod back to him with the fish on. He looked perplexed. Same thing happened an hour later. He really looked perplexed! The third snag, I popped it off and a bass ate it again! I handed the rod to him. He yelled, "You"re doing that on purpose!" I tell that story a lot to this day.


Bill thought of the "fishing guide" on a sad day. I mean, losing his best fishing buddy......It's an honor. These guys I guide from year to year are not just clients, they're friends, part of my past. Glenn and I had some interesting conversations about Jesus, God and the Bible. There are a few angels being entertained today, I'm sure of it! Glenn, just take it easy on them, they already know what's in Romans 7! I'll miss him.

Good Fishin!
Blaine
http://www.backwoodsanglertv.com/

Tribute to My Dad-Part 1

In order to break through my "writer's block" at trying to compose a tribute worthy of the 77yrs. my Dad lived here on this earth, I've decided that I need to break things down into shorter posts...otherwise I'll just keep procrastinating and never put it all together.

So, I'd like to begin with a composition my youngest son wrote back in December for a writing assignment.  He had to interview someone in the family, ask them specific questions, and then compose a short biography about that person...He chose my Dad. 

I think this will give you a little glimpse into how my Dad was perceived by his grandchildren.  We also had this read at his memorial service.

 Here is "Grandpop" with some of his grandchildren

(This was taken last year when Nadia had only been on U.S. soil for 3 days)

12-13-10

The Biography

My grandfather, Glenn Paul, is almost 77 yrs. old and has lived all of his life in Pennsylvania. He was

raised by wonderful Christian parents and had some funny and scary encounters as a kid. One of them

was when he and his friends were stealing tomatoes from a farmer’s field and the farmer shot at them.

He was so scared he peed in his pants.


Some of the things that changed his life were the Great Depression and when he fought in the

Korean War. When he came back from the war his parents had given his car to his brother which didn’t

make him mad but he had to buy another car even though money was scarce.


His love for music made my grandfather one of the best trumpet players I know. He also sings in a

barber shop quartet at his church. He honors God with his musical talents.


He was helped by God when he didn’t know which path to take and God showed him the right path.

Something that helped him in his life is that he loves to listen to people so that he could understand

more things. God has blessed him with my Nonna, 4 wonderful daughters and 10 wonderful

grandchildren. His advice for my life is that I should take my time and chose a God honoring solution for

everything.


I enjoy my grandfather because he is so loving and funny. I like when he tells us stories about when

he fought in the war and when he had funny experiences in his life. He even showed us videos of when

he fought in the war. I’m glad that he is my grandfather. He is the best one in the world.

Still Hanging In There

It seems there is someone else who is enjoying the 'kinder, gentler' Nadia.

These two aren't usually couch buddies, but it seems A.J. is willing to make an exception since Nadia isn't trying to pull his tail or grab his fur.

Nadia is still improving but it sure is slow going.  She is even falling asleep on her therapists!

For A.J., however, sleeping on the couch 8hrs. of the day is pretty typical.

(Hey, barking at squirrels, people, dogs, and falling leaves is pretty tiring!)

Although it's been a little 'easier' with such a docile toddler, I'm looking forward to little Miss Spunky-Pants   getting her groove back soon!



Post-Op Update

We are praising God here at the Ferguson Household!  Nadia's recovery has been amazing. No, she's not eating cheeseburgers and pizza, but the fact that she's willing to eat or drink anything at all is an answer to prayer.

The medicine she is on is pretty strong so she looks like this a lot.

And tends to do this once in awhile.  

Two of my other children, who shall remain nameless, say they like this 'calmer' version of Nadia.

Needless to say, I'm throwing out the medicine before they can get it refilled for her. hahaha

She's even had moments where she wants to go outside and play and swing so we take those moments when we can, knowing that the fussiness over taking medicine and drinking/eating will be back.

Hey, we've even seen a few glimmers of a smile!!!  We're thrilled!!!

She was even feeling well enough yesterday to go watch her big brother play in the big end-of-year tournament.  

Allen has been playing soccer for over 10yrs. now and I still love watching him from the sidelines.

His team tied in this game and then won the next, so they will advance to the next level of the tournament the following weekend.  Way to go guys!!!

Thank you again for your continued prayers for Nadia's recovery.  I'm especially loving how much she wants to be cuddled and held during her fussy and tired moments.  She's such a love.