HAPPY AND BLESSED THANKSGIVING

Witt and The Cross!

Thank You, Lord, for Witt but first and foremost thank You for the Cross! Thank You for the Cross of Christ that from it freely flows salvation, hope, mercy, grace and power. Without the Cross, life has no meaning and Witt most likely would not even be alive today to be placed at the foot of it! So today I am most grateful for the Cross and my Christ who put Himself on it and held Himself there. It is because of the Cross that I can truly give thanks in all things...in all circumstances. My prayer for each of us today is that we find ourselves at the foot of the cross thanking God for Who He is and what He has done. I pray that He opens our eyes to all that we should be thankful for. Thank You, Lord...thank You for Witt and what You have accomplished in and through his life. May we all (along with Witt) always find ourselves at the foot of the Cross...Glory!

The Foot of The Cross by Ray Boltz

They were watching from a distance

And they could not take their eyes from You

You were bleeding , they were weeping

Faithful sisters, they had followed You

They did not understand, they could not see

They were mourning their loss

As the sky turned black and the Earth turned red

At the foot of the Cross

He was standing near Your mother

They were so close, they could hear You sighing

All around them angry voices

Pierced the darkness and You were dying

But they would not leave, they lingered there

No matter the cost

They were saying and they were praying

At the foot of the Cross

Keep me near the Cross, near the Cross

May I never stray so far

that I cannot see what flowed down for me

At the foot of the Cross

Now I'm standing in Your presence

And I cannot take my eyes from You

You have risen, I'm forgiven

Precious Saviour, oh I worship You

No, I'm not looking back

I've heard Your voice and I'm staying here

I've made my choice, for now it's real

Now I kneel at the foot of the Cross

Keep me near the Cross, near the Cross

May I never stray so far

That I cannot see what flowed down for me

At the foot of the Cross

13 MONTHS OLD!

He is still all smiles!

Yesterday was Witt's 13th month birthday!! He also saw Dr. Macicek for a follow-up appointment from 2 weeks ago. Witt is still on the extra dose of lasix and hasn't needed any oxygen since that last little episode a couple of weeks ago. Witt also was seen by the pediatric surgeon's nurse about his stomach tube. About a week ago his tube was accidentally pulled all the way out by Mel's dogs chasing our cat! Melanie deflated the balloon on the end of the tube, stuck it back in and re-inflated the balloon to hold it in place. Witt's tube had already been leaking some so Melanie wanted it checked. Witt had been losing quite a bit of his feed at times. This was worrisome not just because of wanting him to get the calories but also because he is on the extra diuretic. The nurse ended up putting a slightly shorter tube in which seems to be making a difference. For now Witt is doing maybe even better than the doctors had expected. It is incredible that he is off oxygen and his heart has not changed! It feels like Thanksgiving everyday around here. Maybe that's just what God desires...give thanks in all things everyday!!!

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON

Two snappy dressers!

Witt seems to be feeling good. He is still on the extra dose of diuretic and hasn't required any oxygen! He does have a follow up appointment with cardiology(Dr. Macicek) this coming Monday. Yesterday Stephanie, the physical therapist, came by and worked with Witt. Both Melanie and Austan have been needing to make phone calls on Witt's behalf recently. Austan has been dealing with the insurance company about occupational therapy and now the rsv vaccination. Today, Dr. Lange's office called to say that insurance is not wanting to pay for the rsv shot which is incredibly expensive. It's crucial that Witt get this because a respiratory illness could be devastating for Witt! Melanie has been talking to the people at Early Childhood. She wants Witt to have everything possible that's available to help in his development. Please pray for favor as they make these calls! As Thanksgiving draws near, I find myself almost at a loss of where to start with all that I have to thank God for...tears of joy just seem to take over!

GOD AND GOLF...AMEN!

Even though Witt has sunglasses he's not

getting to golf today!

The picture below is the view I get every time I walk through my front door. Melanie and Austan's house is almost completely repaired from the hurricane damage a year ago but for now what used to be our dinning room/office is still Witt's nursery. Truly, all is well because Witt is loved by God and in Him Melanie and Austan take refuge!

One of the greatest examples of God's love has come through the Wee Dream Foundation that today is putting on the golf tournament and fundraiser dinner afterward. People from all over have poured their time and money into to this benefit for Witt and Elle. Mark(Austan's dad) put it perfectly in an email this morning:

As the George Strait song , "I Saw God Today" says, God has his fingerprints all over this foundation.

Amen, Mark! I believe in God and know that He exists but to get to see Him tangibly through the sacrifices and generosity of others is amazing! Not only are Austan, Melanie. Lee and Lisha being blessed with financial help but most importantly God is revealing Himself...Glory!!!

Thank you, all of you who have so willingly helped and supported Witt and Elle not just financially but especially with your unwavering prayers!!!

WITT AND ELLE ON CHANNEL TWO AT 5!

Tonight @ 5 on Channel 2 news, don't miss Witt and Elle!

Here is the link:

http://www.click2houston.com/video/21600132/index.html

OFF OXYGEN!

Witt is off oxygen! Not sure exactly how God accomplished it...maybe it was the extra diuretic but he's definitely better. Dr. Macicek wants to see him again in a couple of weeks which will be right before Thanksgiving. Glory!

STILL ON A LITTLE OXYGEN

Witt is still on a little oxygen. He hasn't gotten any worse but has still needed a little bit. Please pray that the extra diuretic will solve the issue. Dr. Macicek wants Melanie to call again this afternoon to decide what course to take. Obviously, we want to follow the course that God Himself has laid out. Pray that God makes that clear to Dr. Macicek! Witt doesn't appear to feel bad at all. He's been "talking" and laughing over the past couple of days more than ever. However, this picture shows the scowl that I got when I held my phone up to take a picture!

REALLY, ANOTHER PICTURE?!!!!!

Austan and Melanie just left to join Lee and Lisha(Austan's brother and sister-in-law) for an interview. A local TV station is filming an interview about Witt, Elle and the Wee Dream Foundation! The fundraiser is this coming Monday so they are filming at the golf course. I will post more details about the interview and when it airs. I am still blown away by the interest and support of everyone for Witt, Elle and the fundraiser. I am asking Christ to be at the center of this event and to bless each of you!

UNPLANNED TRIP TO TEXAS CHILDREN'S!

Witt had an unplanned visit to Texas Children's and Dr. Macicek! Witt's oxygen saturation has been staying a little lower the last few days. He had to go back on oxygen last night. The good news right now is that there is no change in his lung x-ray and the echo on the heart looked unchanged too! Dr. Macicek said that it's hard to know right this second if this is the beginning of something or not. He doubled Witt's lasix(diuretic) dose and hopefully that will help enough to get Witt back off oxygen. The next couple of days are pretty critical. If Witt continues to need more oxygen he most likely will need to go back into the hospital to figure out what's going on. However...all in all today was a good day! The tests that were done came back as good as could be expected. Please join us in praying that Witt's diuretics just needed tweaked a little and that he will be back off oxygen soon! You can tell from these videos that Witt seems to feel just fine!

PRAY FOR WITT'S OXYGEN SATURATION!

Please pray for Witt's oxygen saturation! It's seems to have dropped a little and is staying down in the upper 80's to mid 90's. Witt hasn't really been on oxygen since a few days after he got home from the hospital this last time. Melanie did put him on oxygen to sleep with tonight. She plans on calling the cardiologists on Monday. Witt isn't scheduled to go in for another month but Melanie is hoping they will see him sooner. Witt has had a lot of drainage and his stomach seems to be a little upset both of which could be lowering his osat level. Please pray for peace and continued strength for Melanie. I marvel at the mother she is to Witt. It has got to be hard especially now with Witt not allowed to be around anyone but you wouldn't know it from watching her. There are many days when she doesn't leave the house and most days its just a quick run to the grocery store while I watch Witt. Tonight, Melanie said she was worried about Witt and those are words she does not use lightly. Please Lord...once again be her Peace and Strength and be the very air that Witt breathes!

Lots of people ask what "the Girls"(Mel's two miniature dachshunds) think of Witt. They actually get along quite well. Zsa Zsa just thinks Witt is a good nap buddy. Don't worry...Mel doesn't let the dogs stay that close!

TICKLED!

I have a feeling Witt will love rides at an amusement park. He sure gets tickled when you move him all around!

Please pray for Witt's lungs to stay healthy! He has a ton of drainage. Last night Mel put him back on oxygen for a while because his oxygen saturation was staying a little low.

Witt is a constant reminder to me of who God is...He is Merciful, He is Full of Grace and most assuredly He is Mighty. Maybe the greatest gift God has given me through Witt is His peace. It's a peace that is in no way tied to actions or circumstance and it certainly makes no human sense. It's a peace that I think every human being is searching for but will only be found through Christ!

BIRTHDAY PARTY!

All of Witt's family got together to celebrate Witt's birthday. Witt didn't get to be there but he did get a birthday cake from his grandmother Vickie which of course we got to eat!

And Witt received lots of great gifts! I still have a hard time reconciling two thoughts...that Witt is already a year old and that he actually hasn't been with us forever! What a year...what a God!