Still here

Well, we are still here. Still living. Still loving. Still waiting--on several things. First and foremost, on a job. Currently (and less significantly) I'm waiting on my food and coffee to settle so I can do a work out. I have been totally enjoying these rainy days. The whole family has used them to get caught up on rest with extended naptime hours--my personal favorite.

About two weeks ago exactly, I got a phone call that grandpa was in the hospital with chest pains. We were on Signal when I got the message. We headed back to Athens and then Andrea and I went on up to Morristown. The doctors in the ER found that grandpa's cardiac enzyme tests were normal indicating that he did not have a heart attack. However, later in the afternoon (pretty much as soon as I got there) the nurses came in with his latest blood work and told us that he did indeed have a heart attack. They scheduled a heart cath for the following morning. It was so scary. We stayed with grandma that night and I slept in grandpa's spot--just like old times. The next morning, we rose early and headed to the hospital. As soon as the elevator doors slid open on the second floor of the heart and lung center, we saw grandpa flying by in his hospital bed. What perfect timing. Truly divine. Grandma got to hold his hand and tell him she loved him before his procedure. We found seats in the waiting room and tried to keep the mood semi-light with laughter as best we could. Dr. Rama appeared to show us a diagram of grandpa's heart and the results of the procedure. Good news: his heart muscle was found to be super strong and healthy. Bad news: his main artery was blocked over 90% and the other two were 40% and 50%. A stint was put in the main artery successfully. Grandpa had a rough day after that in that he had to lay still for around 9 hours. After that, his recovery was truly graceful. He was released from the hospital on Thursday--only two days after his arrival. I was amazed.

The night before grandpa would come home, J was sick. The following day, I was sick. The next day, grandma was sick. And the next day, mom had it. The following week, Andrea was down with similar symptoms. It bypassed grandpa, thank goodness but still wasn't fun for the rest of us. Gladly, it was only a 12-hour virus.

We are back home and everyone is on the mend. It is exciting for us to watch God work in our lives. Though we are both out of work, the bills are being paid and work here and there is being provided. We have also been led to a church that we are very excited about getting involved in. I am cherishing the time we have together at home and the lax schedule. The praise be to God.

It has been pressed upon my heart lately to tell "my story" of salvation. It is coming soon. After all, a personal story is more effective than a hundred sermons.

Thanks for reading, dear friends.

Amanda & Family