updates & i want to stay here.

Gloriana - with one of "those boys". Cannot wait to see this sweet smile again. 

I know so many of you are praying and seriously, seriously - we are indebted to you. When we hit a wall of discouragement, lack of progress, spiritual warfare, and even some medically backward steps yesterday - my sister set up a team to pray for Glory and us through the night, every hour. I want to hug each one of you, whenever you've prayed, whatever you've prayed for - but I want to tell you some actual miracles that have occurred just since this morning. 


- First of all, Glory slept seven hours straight. Even the night before her major seizure episode, Glory was up through the night - so they longest she'd slept, including sedation was about three hours since last Friday. SEVEN HOURS last night, including sleeping through nurses checking her vitals. This also means WE SLEPT, which is a huge boost to our quality of life.
- Secondly, Glory's mood has greatly improved today. She's still not herself, but her anger and agitation has HUGELY decreased and we're able to calm her much more easily now. She's realizing her "feeling yucky" is just that, and I think it's helping her cope instead of feeling so lost in her own physical/mental confusion. 
- Third, she let us call "those boys". Glory's two favorite people in the whole world are "those boys", her brothers, and they have been quite the sore spot on her heart since she woke up Sunday. Each time she remembered them or someone asked her about them, she became really agitated and violent - mostly because I think she missed them more than she could express and hated the thought of being away from them. This morning, she was able to talk about them without being agitated and even wanted to CALL THEM! I won't recount that conversation for you, since it left her parents a little weepy, but it was really beautiful for us to hear them talking and enjoying one another. 
- FOURTH and most exciting: She's starting to walk. Yesterday our doctor warned us that if we didn't see some major improvement in the walking area in 24 hours, we were going to have to go back to testing and start from square one. Last night, she couldn't stand up on her own and today she walked back and forth to the hospital play room TWICE holding my hand! 


and one more thing that's been running through my mind. 
I want to stay here. 
Not at this hospital, and not in the state of sickness, or brokenness over my baby - but in this absolute dependence on Jesus. I feel desperate for prayer and for people to pray and I don't feel even slightly ashamed to beg people to join me. I feel ok asking for help and receiving help and admitting my incapability to even really care for myself. I feel like my family is this sweet team that is all fighting and battling together, part of this larger army that is going to scare the heck out of our enemy. I want to stay in this place as a mom, not measuring my children by what they cost me or how they behave or what they produce - but by the intense and overwhelming love that their Father has for them. 
I would like to stay here. 


We're so thankful for your prayers, PLEASE keep them coming - for increased miraculous improvement and that we'd start to see our girl again. That she'd feel peace and comfort and joy that could only be heaven-given during this confusing time. We're really praying for a FULL restoration, not just back to how she was before Sunday or six weeks ago when we started see some changes in her, but to a new, healthier Glory that gives God all the glory. Nick and I are literally praying for her to be able to say, 
"I felt yucky and Jesus healed me."
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And while you're praying, lift up Rachael, Chris, and their three boys as the Lord usher's their twin girls into the world today. I'm claiming the sisters as my "nieces" since Rachael is such a sweet sister in the Lord to me.