Part 2 of the Quad Documentary/Looking Forward to the Promotion

Part 2 of the Quad Documentary "A Blessing Times Four" aired this week on TBN and other stations. It was a much happier event than the last one. We have so much to be thankful for and pray that we are an encouragement.

Samantha got a wonderful Christmas present from the neonatologist. She gets to come off her oxygen during the day! The babies have grown. Landon is 12. Izzy B is 12. Jackson is 11. Samantha is 10.



One of our favorite nurses is named Karen. She was a comfort when Sarah was hospitalized. She stopped me in the hall to see if I was lost. When I told her where I was headed, she spent a long time calming my fears about the NICU and invited me for a tour. Now she takes care of Samantha during her visits. God bless her!



Isabella and Jackson having some tummy time.



Callie loved all her Christmas presents, and we didn't lose any of the babies in the wrapping paper.



Isabella and her "boo-boo" are rarely separated. If they are, she steals Jackson's.



Look at Landon's eyes. Can you tell they're related? Everyone says Landon looks like Eric.



Homework or not--all ye who enter here must hold a baby. Or two. or three.



Uncle Doug has his hands full.







Samantha gets her bath, but is not too happy about it until she is all clean. Then she's ready to play!



Sarah doesn't get much sleep. She was having a hard time getting Isabella's pacifier in her mouth. It just wouldn't go in! She turned on the light and realized it was Jackson's hand that she was trying to put in Isabella's mouth. That reminds me of the time she was changing Landon and panicked because his "boy parts" were missing. She looked closely and discovered that she was actually changing Isabella. Ah, the joys of multiples.



They are never too big to hold. However, they may be too tired.



Samantha is the only one of the quads who still requires regular visits to the neonatologist. The other three don't have to go back until they are gestationally 6 months, which will be chronologically 8 months since they were born early.



Tom's basketball teams are playing hard and winning games. He barely has time to change diapers anymore!






Tony's family came in town and they all went to the Aquarium. Callie kept looking for Nemo.



Callie, the dogs and daddy having fun in the snow.



Tony has some help while he tries to get some Cincinnati Holiday Lighting work finished.







Remember the sonogram that showed Samantha sucking her thumb? She still does. We need to start researching easy ways to stop thumb sucking, especially since one of my former college students had not yet broken her habit.








Eric played well again. He led the team in scoring, steals and tied for blocks and second for total rebounds. Led the team in offensive rebounds. U of Alabama. Wow! Eric can put up points fast and turn a game around.During his last 33 minutes of play he's scored 34 points.Fun to watch. When I told Eric he played great, he gave God the credit, which made me cry.



Tom, Callie and I went with Eric to eat before he went back to school. Callie was upset that Eric wasn't in the car with us. She kept saying, "Eric's coming home!" I called him so she could talk to him. She said, "Hi Eric. I miss you." Afterward, we were sitting at a stoplight. I was feeling sad that he was leaving once again. Callie was watching me in the mirror from her car seat. She said, "Mamaw, is Eric your boy?"

"Yes," I replied.

"Don't worry. He's coming back. Okay?"



Eric made the Dean's List! Hooray! Will miracles ever cease?



I went to my doctor. She took me off one of my blood pressure medicines. Unbelievable! My stress level has gone way down since the quads came. My blood pressure was 113 over 68. Must be that prayer cover.



Devon hit black ice the other night, spun out, lost control of her Mustang, and hit a tree. The air bag, tree, and seat belt kept her from flipping, thank the Lord. She is very sore. Her left side hurts. So does her head and neck. She needs a new car. No Mustang this time.

When I saw Devon's car, I realized that God had really reached down and saved my little girl. I had been praying for her when it happened, which got me thinking. Christ is not only mighty to save us when we turn away from sin, but He is also able to make us change. He is able to give us new hearts and keep us pure until he carries us to Heaven. He is able to build faith in us. He is mighty to give us a new heart and make us who once hated living right to love doing so. The saved life is one miracle after the next from the mighty hand of God. He doesn't create a believer and then leave him to take care of himself. He strengthens us until we break free from every rope of sin and fly to Heaven. When we pray, we need to remember that Christ is mighty to save. If you don't believe me, take a look at that Mustang.



Not to be outdone, Eric had a wreck in my electric blue turbo diesel VW Beetle two days later on his way back to school. Two wrecks--two kids--two days means my low blood pressure is a real blessing. Anyway, he hit a deer which split in half, went 15 feet in the air, and landed back on my car. Eric is okay, thank the Lord. He was very worried about telling me, so he made Tom do it. If he had been in his car, the deer probably would have gone through the windshield It is a miracle that Eric is okay. My car is a different story. I love my car, but I love Eric more. It is a comfort to remember that whatever touches my life must pass through the hands of God first. I shouldn't complain when difficulties come my way, as if God is singling me out for trouble. Everything is used for good in my life. Maybe the aerodynamics of my car saved Eric's life. Maybe God will accomplish something through this accident that answers my prayers. Maybe I was holding on to my car too tightly, putting it above relationships. I am precious in God's sight, even when my plans (and my bug) end in disappointment.

Eric called and invited us to meet him in Louisville for the day. We met at the Louisville Caverns, which was closed and creepy. Instead, we went to dinner at a steakhouse on the river and saw Yogi Bear in 3D. So much fun!



Devon stayed home because she was going flying. Literally. That child is going to be the death of me.

Notice the difference between Landon and Jackson.



Here is Jackson's happy face.

Tom's dad is battling cancer and is recovering from surgery. While he was in the hospital, the nurses were happy to have him as a patient. Everywhere he goes, people love him.

I have learned a lot from my father-in-law over my years of marriage to his son. When Sarah was first born, I stayed with my in laws for a few days while I recovered from the C-section. During that time, Bob held Sarah every chance he got. Although I wasn't surprised that he held Sarah so much, I was curious about the way he looked at her. He would cradle her in his arms and hold her out in front. Then he would study her. He stared at her eyes, her nose, her mouth. He would examine her fingers and her toes. It took me awhile to figure out why. Then one day he told me. "Look how tiny and perfect she is! It is amazing that God can make this little person with everything she needs." He was in awe of God's creation. I see him studying the quads with that same awe times four. Bob's wonder at new life reminds me do the same, to drink in the miracle of God's creation all around me every chance I get.

I've learned about friendship. Bob doesn't have casual friends the way most people do. He loves others whether they are deserving or not. He treats everyone as if he or she were his only friend. He appreciates each one of them for who they are. He listens and cares and helps and prays. One day, he offered Tom a glimpse into his thinking regarding others. He said, "When I look at someone, I picure him wearing a sign that says, 'Make me feel important. All people want to feel special, to know that someone cares.'" Bob has shown me a picture of God's unconditional love.

I've learned about perserverance. When Bob was little, he contracted polio. He was deathly sick, but he survived. He gave up months of his childhood to recooperate; he wasn't well enough to compete in the sports he loved. Instead of becoming sullen and bitter, he picked up music. He learned to sing and to play several different instruments. God used those talents to give Bob a ministry to serve many as a music director for years.

I've learned about faith. Cancer usually only shows up as one kind in a victim's lifetime. He is on his third unrelated kind. He doesn't complain. He carries on. Bob keeps loving and trusting God.




Bob likes to ride horses, so Devon and Eric bought their papaw a print of a man on a horse in a blizzard. He is carrying a stray calf and a lantern, trying to find his way. Stella took it to the hospital and propped it in the window. He was looking at it in the dim light when he saw Jesus carrying the man. There is a verse at the bottom of the print that says, "I will carry you and rescue you." (Isaiah 46:4) Stella and I can't see Jesus in the picture. Maybe you can. Either way, I believe that God is encouraging Bob in miraculous ways. I felt the Lord's presence in the hospital room while he slept, as if Jesus were standing watch while Bob regained his strength.

We don't know what the future holds, but we are praying for God to heal Tom's dad and give him many more years of ministry/life. For him, they are one in the same. Although our family members are fighting for life at both ends of the journey, the facts are the same. The Bible says that all of our days were numbered by God before we drew our first breath. He decides when we live. He decides when we die. Whether we are newborn or seventy, we are indestructable until our ministry is finished. When it is finished, we look forward to the promotion.

All of us who know and love him best will agree that we are better because of his presence in our lives. For more people than he will ever know, Bob is an example of courage and life-changing faith. I am one of those fortunate people.

Thanks for praying.

Every life has a choice
To rise up to fill the void
Every heart has a mission
And we are called to be human

Chorus:
We gotta do better than this cuz we only got
One chance to make a difference
We gotta do better than this cuz we only got
One life that we've been given
A little love, a little kindness
A little light in this time of darkness
It'll be what makes us different
It'll be what makes us human
I'm human, you're human, we are human

We are marked with His image
And we are scarred with indifference
Maybe now we should listen
Hear the cry of God's children

Chorus:
We gotta do better than this cuz we only got
One chance to make a difference
We gotta do better than this cuz we only got
One life that we've been given
A little love, a little kindess
A little light in this time of darkness
It'll be what makes the difference
It'll be what makes us human
I'm human, you're human, we are
We are human
I'm human, you're human, we are
We are human

Gotta do better than this cuz I only got
One chance to make a difference
Gotta do better than this cuz I'm only
Just one

I'm human, you're human, we are
We are human

It'll be what makes the difference
It'll be what makes us human

Love the Snow Reason # 1 / Love the Snow Reason # 2

Devon got a SNOW DAY!

School and basketball were canceled today, so we were snowed in with Callie and the quads. Cold weather always manages to create good family times. I often hear people complain about the cold weather, but I love the snow for two reasons. On snow days we eat homemade chicken and noodles, make snow ice cream, drink steaming hot chocolate, and break out the boots/gloves/sleds. Family togetherness is the first reason I love the snow.

Miss Isabella wants to play. She is happiest on her belly.

We are getting lots of Samantha smiles these days. My mom says that means she is a happy baby.

Landon follows us around the room with his eyes. He is quiet but content. He is getting a dimple like Eric's in his chin.

Jackson is very entertaining at 6 AM. He has the cutest crooked grin and a contagious belly laugh! Jackson has a dimple in his cheek and his chin.

Callie is having fun sledding with Daddy. She keeps reminding me that it's "six minutes to Christmas, Mamaw!"

Tom is getting pretty good at working on the IPad while entertaining two babies at the same time. Now if he will just learn to use his feet to jiggle the other two in baby seats at the same time, Sarah and I can have a break.

Callie and Tony Trimming Number Two Tree



We are looking forward to Christmas. Pictured above is Christmas Tree Number Two. Tree Number One is rogue. It tripped me, sent me flying, and I body slammed it flat on the ground. The impact hurt like crazy, but made the tree much easier to put back in the box. Sleep deprivation can be dangerous!



Snow brings a gentle hush over everything. Today, I went out to clean the snow off the cars, and I savoured the silence. After a big snow, I used to enjoy going out to the barn early in the morning to feed the horses. It would be so quiet, except for the rhythmic crunching of the horses chewing their sweet feed. Periodically they would shake their manes and snort in appreciation, sending bursts of steam through their nostrils into the frigid air. Horses make me calm. They don't worry about much except eating and running. I used to sit on a bale of hay to watch them. It helped me get a perspective about the time I waste worrying.

One snowy morning, I was tossing flakes of hay to the horses just as the sun was coming up. Rays of light filled the barn loft and hit an old rusty cage. Instantly, it was transformed. The inside of the barn began to sparkle as if it were filled with thousands of twinkling diamonds suspended in mid-air. I was intrigued, so I put down the hay and climbed up the homemade ladder to get a closer look. What I discovered amazed me.

Undisturbed for years, spiders had labored to fill that entire cage with intricate webbing. When the sun peaked in through the barn slats, it warmed the air, causing moisture to condense in tiny droplets all over the webs. The rays of light hit the drops turning them into sparkling prisms of light. It was a beautiful work of art, and the horses and I were the only ones to see it. I watched until the sun moved past the cage, leaving no evidence of the former display of light.

What kind of God takes the time to create such incredible beauty that is rarely--if ever--seen? Even in the quiet of the morning, a web-filled cage shouted of His glory. I walked out of the barn onto the blanket of fresh snow that was making everything clean and new, and remembered.

When I was seven, my widowed grandmother drove all the way to Michigan for a visit. She was on a mission. She came up in my room to tell me how Jesus had died on the cross so I could live with Him forever in Heaven. Together, we knelt by my bed while I asked Jesus to make my heart clean from sin for all the times--past, present and future--that I would fall short of God's plan. In little girl fashion, I pictured God sending a heavy Michigan snow to make my dirty heart perfectly clean.

I have never been the same. That is the second reason that I will always love the snow.

"Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow." Psalm 51:7b


Thanks for praying,

Merry Christmas!

Three Months/Along for the Ride

I haven't had much time or energy to blog lately. I went to bed last night at 4 am and Callie woke me up at 8:45 am, so forgive me if I ramble.

We must be doing something right, because the babies are getting bigger. They are three months old. Here is what they weigh:

Landon- 10 lbs. 4 ozs.
Jackson- 9 lbs. 1 oz.
Isabella- 10 lbs. 10 ozs.
Samantha- 8 lbs. 4 ozs.






They are awake more during the day, and it is hard to entertain them all. We use molded foam Bumbo seats that support them so they can sit up for a change.

They are starting to smile and coo at us. Landon is the most alert and awake. Isabella is the sleepiest.






Everyone but Samantha is taking more formula, which means we go through about 10 cans per week. They also moved up on the diaper size, going from preemie to newborn. Samantha and Jackson still fit in their preemie clothes, but the other two are in newborn.


Doctor visits keep us busy, sometimes two or three per week. We don't mind because we get out of the house. If we weren't so sleepy, we would probably find our departure preparations amusing. We try to time everything between the three hour feedings and diaper changes.

First, we pack enough blankets, bottles, diapers, wipes and spare clothes to last. Second, we bring the car seats inside. Third, we warm up the car. Fourth, Samantha needs her oximeter alarm and portable oxygen tanks. (We bring a spare tank in case we get delayed.) Fifth, we need snow suits for all. Sixth, we need four clean pacifiers and straps to attach them. Finally, we are ready to strap the quads in their seats. While we are making trips to the car, it is hard to keep anyone happy. By the time we load up, Sarah and I are worn out. To make it worse, Sarah's quadruple pregnancy was very hard on her feet. She has been in a lot of pain since she delivered the babies.




All appointments except for the eye doctor involve undressing the babies and dressing them back again, while keeping an eye on Callie. She keeps us entertained while we work.

"Look Mamaw! I'm makin' vegetable soup."

"What are you putting in your soup?" I murmur distractedly.

"Ummm...Yucky stuff. And crackers!"

We had our regular visit to Good Sam. We were excited when the neonatologist turned down Samantha's oxygen. Later that day, however, Samantha ate only half of her bottles and cried most of the night. We turned her oxygen back up and called the pediatrician. A blood test showed that Samantha's white cell count was up, so the doctor sent us to Children's right away. With her history, he wanted to rule out meningitis. We were very worried. It brought back so many bad memories.

My mom, family and church all began to pray for Samantha. I was especially touched by the prayers and encouragement from my extended family members in Florida because my fifteen-year-old cousin Britton had just passed away from a brain tumor. In spite of their unbearable grief and the agony of funeral planning, they stopped to ask God to heal little Sammy Jo. Their faith is immovable.



Britton Ballard (1995-2010)



At Children's, Samantha's blood was drawn and she had to be catheterized to rule out a urinary tract infection. Before the tests began, I gave the nurse the third degree to make sure he had experience with small babies. He assured me that he has worked on babies Samantha's size and smaller. He gave me the "honor" of holding Samantha down while he worked. It turned out that he was very good and the procedures went smoothly.

I was supposed to return to the doctor's office to wait for the results in case antibiotic shots were necessary. Before I made it back, the doctor called with good news: no meningitis and no UTI, so it was probably viral. She started to feel better almost as soon as we got home and had a good night.

Two days later, we loaded up the quads for the next doctor appointment. Samantha and Jackson had another eye exam. Prematurity and oxygen can cause premature infants to have damaged or lost sight. (Musician Stevie Wonder lost his sight to retiniopathy of prematurity shortly after his premature birth.) The quads are at risk, so they have regular check ups. We like the eye doctor and nurses, but we dread the exams. They are such an ordeal! Once we arrive and get settled in a room, the nurse comes to put the first of two sets of drops in their eyes. Then we have to sit for half an hour to wait for their eyes to dilate. Keeping four babies and a three-year-old quiet during that time makes 30 minutes seem like an eternity. Somehow, we always manage to bump into feeding time, which adds to the challenge of keeping everyone happy.

The exam itself is uncomfortable, even though the nurse gives numbing drops. The doctor has a spring-loaded prong thingee that holds their eyelids open while he examines their eyes with a very bright light. Obviously, the quads resist the procedure. For some reason, the eye medicine makes them very crabby for a couple of days. The doctor doesn't know if the medicine irritates their eyes, or if dilated pupils irritates the babies. Either way, it's rough for 48 hours.

The appointment before last revealed that Isabella's and Landon's eyes had finally matured. Jackson's and Samantha's were still at risk, with Samantha's worse than Jackson's. This time Jackson went first. His eyes were mature, so he was released until next summer. Hooray!

Samantha was next. We held our breath while she was examined, hoping she had at least improved a little and had not hemorrhaged. She is the most at risk due to her trio of eye-affecting problems: prematurity, septic shock and extended oxygen use.

The nurse wrapped Samantha's arms tightly in a blanket and held her down while the doctor went to work. Samantha's crying made the oximeter go off, which made us even more nervous. The exam seemed to take a long time.

"She's finished," announced the doctor as he switched on the light. "I don't need to see her again until she is one year old. Her eyes are mature!"

Sarah and I stared at each other, totally speechless. We asked him to repeat himself, not sure we'd heard correctly. We had.

As we pushed the strollers out to the car, I wondered when God had actually healed Samantha's eyes. It could have been a gradual process that happened since the last appointment. But I doubt it. I choose to believe that there were so many prayers going up for Samantha's illness that God let them spill over onto her eyes, too. Apparently, He has plans for Miss Sammy Jo. I'm just glad to be along for the ride.

Thanks for praying.

"I love the Lord because he hears my voice
and my prayer for mercy.
Because he bends down to listen,
I will pray as long as I have breath!"
Psalm 116:1-2