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One
week from today, Valerie and I will be on a plane to Memphis for
her next round of follow-up appointments.
Five years ago today, Craig and I sat in a small MRI waiting room for much
longer than we expected. Our dear friend, Erich Richter walked by the glass
windows and Craig went out to say hello. Erich sat down and knew something was
going on since the nurse came out and told us that they were waiting for one of
the doctors to come down to look at the scan. About 30 minutes later, we were
taken back and shown a picture like this....
The
left scan lights up the largest cyst white while looking down on her head,
the right scan shows the tumor lit up white looking from the back of her
head. (I don't have any more of the first scan, because we sent
them out to other hospitals, but these are from 10/05, 9 months after 70% of
the tumor and all of the cyst was removed, and regrew).
Erich
then fought for us to be able to take our daughter home and not be admitted
to the hospital. I believe the Lord had Erich there, to show us from the
beginning that we did not have to sit back and take every word from the
doctors as something we had no choice about. Just one of many things that
helped us in choosing God's path in all of this rather than the world's.
Some people say "nothing could have prepared me for that day"....but
I am so blessed to say, my God prepared me for that day. He prepared me
through His Word which I was so deep in at the time. He prepared me so much
during that special time with Him. He prepared me through relationships we had
built over the previous years.
Count
it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of
your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that
you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. James 1:2-3
pictures
after surgery - she had an incision from ear to ear like a headband (which
the surgeon did without shaving any hair).
It wasn't always easy, and at times it seemed almost unbearable, but He
sent people to love us (people we knew and people to this day that I have
never met).
Weeping
may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning. Psalm 30:5
To
the dad and daughter who brought a white angel bear to the hospital - you have
no idea what your testimony meant to me, even receiving it second hand once I
came back to the hospital after some much needed time with my other three
girls. For a year I tried to find a way to contact you to thank you, but I
trust that your reward is waiting for you.
I have saved every card, every gift, every email, wrote every verse that the
Lord spoke to me on individual note cards (at the suggestion of my friend
Kerry) and was blessed by amother and daughter who
sent me an enormous stack of verses they wrote on note cards for
me.
Through all of this, my fleshy knowledge of what I thought I knew about faith,
healing, health, and life have been eternally changed, for the better (though
I still have lots to learn). I have learned to be careful about saying what we
won't do, for the Lord has led us to do many things we thought we would never
do. I believed five years ago, that the Lord wouldn't have wanted us to watch
poisons be pumped into our child's bloodstream or squirted into her mouth. I
believed He would never lead us to "microwave" her brain. I imagine
some people who read our updates will not understand - I too didn't
understand. I imagine some people reading our website will have some reason
they are thinking of why our child was diagnosed with a brain
tumor, and that's okay for I too thought I knew those things before
five years ago, and I thought that our lifestyle would protect my children
from things like brain tumors -
after all, we didn't give vaccines, we ate organic food, we didn't use
pesticides.
In October of 2005, we were told by one doctor that Valerie Grace most
likely had a couple of months to live and would not be seeing much longer. We
invited my Aunt Kathy to come and meet Valerie Grace
"My
faith does not rest in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God."
From January to March 2006, Valerie Grace went through three surgeries (going
into her brain, but nothing like the first one). She sailed through a shunt
surgery (getting home the same day) and a surgery for an ommaya reservoir
(getting in and out the same day). And some how, through a not yet two year
old, the Lord helped me get over my fear of hospitals.
From November 2005-March 2007, Valerie Grace
went through almost weekly chemotherapy. She became quite used to the routine.
She would get on the scale to be weighed, then walk right over to the wall and
back up (heels against the wall) to be measured. She looked forward to going.
In
2007, the Lord called us to Ecuador -
certainly throwing out all thoughts of practicality and comfort.
But
my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory.
Philippians 4:19
I
have been humbled to see how He has used her visual impairments to open doors
in ministering to people in Ecuador.
And
we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to
those who are the called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28
His
plans are so much bigger than we could ever imagine. Valerie Grace learned a
new language, loved on babies, and became like a daughter to the people we
were sent to serve with.
So
in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the
others. Romans 12:5
At
the end of 2008, Valerie went through two more months of IV chemo,
handling it amazingly well.
Then
six weeks (30 days) of being sedated for radiation treatments.
 Valerie
Grace just walked in as I am typing this, saw this photo and said "That
surely was the best day of my life"....this was taken the last week of
radiation - she was minutes away from having a tube hooked up to her chest,
propofol pumped into her veins to put her to sleep for about the 25th time in
less than two months so that her body would be perfectly still as the
radiation beams were targeting the tumor in her brain. She knew the routine
all too well, and here she is smiling, holding Brooke's favorite manatee that
she gave to Valerie Grace in the morning to help keep her company, with one of
the many incredible nurses at St Jude.
This life is full of hard things. I believe it is only through a relationship
with Jesus Christ that we can walk through something like this and
see the blessings that have come out of it. We are forever changed by these
past five years. I have been humbled by seeing what the Lord has done through
the life of Valerie Grace.Our Lord had that all worked out in ways we could
never have planned. I have been humbled to live on this side of a
brain tumor. I still have so much to learn, but living on this side of
things has helped me gain a new perspective on life, on the Lord - I cannot
imagine walking this journey without Him. It is so possible to live and enjoy
new life in Him despite circumstances. This place is not our home, but
abundant, eternal life is available to everyone now.
I
will greatly rejoice in the Lord. My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He
has clothed me with the garments of salvation. Isaiah 61:10.
Our
joy is not dependent on how comfortable life is, our joy is dependent on who
we are. We we repent, accept the free gift of salvation and are buried
through baptism and rise to live a new eternal life - we have every reason
to rejoice no matter what life throws at us.
Rejoice
in the Lord always. Again I say Rejoice! Let your gentleness be
known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in
everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests
be made known to God; and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding
will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Thank
you to each and every person who has visited us in the hospital, mailed
gifts and cards to our four girls, called, emailed, and especially for
your prayers. We are eternally grateful. For every short term mission team
member who has been "the puppy's owner" for a week, we thank
you. To every nurse, doctor, office staff member, and fellow parent who
made this walk easier, we thank you. To the elders, pastors, and members
of our home church, we thank you (you have no idea what that trip to our
home meant to us all between the first MRI and surgery). To our friends we
have meant since being in Ecuador, both Ecuadorian and American - we thank
you. To friends who didn't know what to say, but stepped out and just came
and hugged us and prayed - we thank you!
For
we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing
out. 1 Timothy6:7
Last week, Valerie Grace was not feeling
well. We posted that on Facebook, but not on
our website (mainly because I don't like to
worry my mom, and she is not on Facebook,
but does read our website - sorry mom :)
Valerie was complaining of lots of head
pain, some lower abdomenal pain, and knee
pain. She was crying, unable to sleep....no
fever, no runny nose - nothing but pain.
When we would give her motrin, she would
bounce back and fall asleep - then when it
wore off, the symptoms came back. Later her
teeth began chattering, like she was very
cold. She had brief moments of smiling and
wanting to play though and no vomitting.
With any of the other girls, I would have
set them up comfortably in their room and
encouraged them to rest, but having a child
with a brain tumor get sick is a different
ball game (ask any of the over 1000 members
of the pediatric brain tumor support group.
Thursday evening, Pastor Dan from Mars, PA
(who we met last year when he led a team to
Ecuador and has since become family to us)
had organized a prayer vigil for our family
and our ministry here in Ecuador. Jennifer
Prior from our home church helped organize
one at the same time in FL. My friend Amber
and I talked on the phone for about 1/2 an
hour earlier and I had shared more about
Valerie Grace. She said that she would be
sure to have focused prayer time on Valerie
Grace.
The Lord has taught us so much on this four
and a half year journey about who He is,
about seeking Him. Honestly though, I really
do not understand totally about prayer. I
don't know why sometimes we pray with
absolute faith to see a miracle (like we did
before Valerie's first surgery), and yet it
seems nothing changes. I don't understand
why after the prayer vigil Thursday evening,
suddenly, Valerie Grace was completely back
to her normal, chatty, happy self. But I do
know, that the Lord wants us to be praying -
not just asking for things (whether it be
material goods, safety, healing), but also
spending time in fellowship with Him,
worshiping Him, spending time listening, and
spending time praying for the needs of
others (just as so many of you prayed for
our family last Thursday evening and so many
times in the past).
I would ask you to please visit the
website of another little girl who was
just diagnosed with a brain tumor.
Her name is Kate. If you feel led,
please leave a message in their
guestbook - a verse, a note of
encouragement....but please, coming from
another mom who has been there, do not
leave messages about what type of
treatment or dietary changes they need
to be doing. It is so easy for someone
who has not walked a similar journey to
offer advice that seems right. Truly,
each of our journeys is different. The
path we each need to be on is the Lord's
path - not a path that any person deems
to be the best. Even if it seems like
the "Christian" thing to do, as we
learned, it is still following another
man's idea of what a "Christian" should
do.
Thank you to everyone who has prayed for
us, with us, and encouraged us to keep
on walking.
Love,
Celeste
Below are some photos of Valerie Grace
on Friday :) Obviously feeling better as
she walked home from Sacha Runa on a
sunny day, uphill.
 
I received an email yesterday from my friend
(3rd mom) Sue. She let me know that
Dereck passed away two days ago. Please
keep his family in your prayers as they
process all that has happened this past year
and pray that they choose to walk with the
Lord during this difficult time.
Love,
Celeste
Throughout our time in Ecuador,
we have served on to totally
opposite end  s
of the spectrum. For the first
year, we worked to help provide
an "American" life for the
children of Ecuador. We came to
work along side another ministry
which had that as its goal
(which at first sounded very
good). Being an American, I
think we tend to come into
things with ideas about how life
should be, how children should
be raised, and what things are
important. The Lord continues to
teach us, to open our eyes, to
help us see things in new ways.
Living in this part of Ecuador
is difficult. Many families are
made up of single parents or of
households where the dads are in
the military (living far off) or
working in the jungle for the
Italian oil company. Thankfully,
there are some Ecuadorian
programs to help these parents
(cash payments to single moms,
local day care centers,
goverment help with building new
homes). But, how would you feel
seeing a 10 year old care for a
house of children? I admit, when
I first came, that just didn't
seem right. I think we have this
idea in the US that childhood
should be fun - that it should
be full of entertainment and
should not involve much work or
responsibilty. We tend to think
that responsibility should come
gradually, too gradually. As
parents, we tend to want to keep
our children from facing any
trials in life, but so often
those trials shape who we are
and shape our faith as well.
Yesterday, as our team was
playing with the children and
youth in Sacha Runa, the family
so dear to my heart was there.
Their mom was up in Shell,
working hard to earn money to
help her family. The oldest
daughter was out playing in the
river while the baby and others
were playing beside the river.
They knew their limits, they
knew the area, and we later
found out they knew how to
navigate the long winding path
to their home in the jungle. I
went down and sat with the
younger children (not that they
needed me to do so). I called
the older sister over, I asked
if she was having a fun time
swimming with the team, and her
smile was so big. I told her
that I would keep an eye on her
sisters (to which she seemed a
bit confused). As I took tiny
rocks out of the babies hands,
the two year old beside me
corrected me and showed me that
I forgot to brush the remaining
sand off of her hands. This two
year old continued to display
for me all she had been trained
to do (clean her sisters hands,
wipe noses, and help her sister
know her limits).
Later, I asked the sister if she
could use help getting the
children home. I had been
wanting to know where they lived
for some time as I have seen all
of the girls passing my home for
months. I asked a few of the
team members if they would be
willing to c .JPG) ome
along and help. I still have
issues from my hernia surgery
and didn't think I could make
the walk while carrying the
younger toddler. The rains came
pouring down and the 4 year old
offered our team a cercropia
leaf to use as an umbrella. We
chose not to use it and she used
it as she ran at more than twice
our speed through the muddy,
rocky path with scattered
bridges along the way. The
oldest sister was going about 4
times our speed at times while
carrying the baby. After about
half a mile of this beautiful
trail, we ended up at thier
home. Their grandfather
graciously invited us in, but we
had to be back to get cleaned up
for dinner. We were all soaked
and tired (with muddy feet, some
with ant bites) by the time we
got back to the bridge in Sacha
Runa. Each day, these little
girls make this walk together
(stopping at our home on the way
up to play with the monkey). I
was so humbled, so touched by
this sweet family - and continue
to be as we spent time with them
again tonight at a community
dinner. The mom served our team
so sweetly, so joyfully.
In this culture, if you do not
know how to work hard you will
not thrive. It is so easy to be
tempted to give hand outs... .JPG) .but
yet, how much better to share
about God's love, while allowing
the people to continue to live
in such a way that is necessary
for future generations to thrive
here in Ecuador. The importance
of family is huge in this
culture. People sacrifice for
family members here, and now the
believers in Sacha Runa are
sacrificing also for others in
their community - helping their
own people in a way that does
not create dependance, but
rather in a way that
demonstrates sacrificial love.
They are encouraging those in
difficult situations not to
chose a path that may look
easier, but which will lead to
losing all important family
bonds that exist here. They are
encouraging and equiping people
with God's word, with His
promises.
I am so excited about what the
Lord is doing in and through
this small, jungle community. We
are responsible for the way we
raise our own children and also
we have been given a
responsibility through our
ministry involvement here in
Ecuador. I am so thankful for
the way the Lord continues to
open our eyes to how He would
have us serve and lessons that
He wants for us to learn
Love,
Celeste
Celeste and Marili
Rainbow over the church in Sacha Runa as we
prepared for dinner
Wonderful meal purchased and prepared by the
church body in Sacha Runa for their guests
Just three of the many sweet and special
girls who live in and around Sacha Runa
leave a message in our guestbook
If you have been following our last
couple of posts, you can see why I
titled this Joy.
This sweet lady laughed when I told her that
there was a way she could stand and get
around...
Today, she looked up while
standing.....and smiled
Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and
tell John the things you have seen and
heard: that the blind see, the lame walk,
the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the
dead are raised, the poor have the
gospel preached to them."
leave a message in our guestbook
Tomorrow morning, Craig will head over to
Sacha Runa to help transport the lady who
had her leg amputated to the mission
hospital to have her stitches taken out. We
will also hopefully be purchasing her some
crutches. Craig has also purchased wood to
build a better bridge to her house. Craig
ordered the wood to be cut to the right size
yesterday, then carried it to our house
today (some he hauled on his back weighed
way to much for him to do what he did with
them - but he is sort of stubborn that way
:). He will treat the wood this weekend, and
then the team will help carry the wood to
Sacha Runa and build the bridge next week.
The lady's husband will most likely be
carrying his wife on his back (much like
they carry babies here) to get her to the
road where Craig will have the car waiting.
We are praying that the river is low enough
to drive over tomorrow morning. Today was
nice and dry - lots of blue sky -but the
river was still a little high.
Natalie Joy said she had the 'best birthday
ever' and is now 7 years old. I can't
believe how quickly my girls are growing up.
We did get news today that Brooke's EEG
showed some abnormal activity and that they
believe she has a benign type of epilepsy
that normally goes away when she is in her
late teens. We have never seen her have
anything that would even look like a seizure
-but we had taken her in due to blackouts.
She is fine in Ecuador, but complains of the
problems when we go back to the US. Anyway,
no meds are needed.
Valerie Grace continues to do great, we are
still waiting to hear from St Judes about
whether or not they can fly us from our home
here for followup MRIs.
Courtney is doing well. We just put all four
girls back in the same bedroom - which we
all like better. It seems they get along
better when they all share the same room :)
That frees up space for a guest room. We
already received an email that cousin Steven
might be visiting in July!
Love,
Celeste
leave a message in our guestbook
I received a phone call this morning. I
really didn't listen carefully to
everything that was being said - I just
heard the words snake bite, cut leg, and
can you come visit. I called the
hospital just to find out what to do if
someone needed to be seen, and then
walked out to Sacha Runa. Today I walked
farther back than I had previously. I
wasn't able to look around at the houses
and such because the walk there was so
muddy and I was nearly certain that I
would be returning home with my backside
covered in slimy brown mud.
The final approach to the house where I
was to visit included a bridge made up
of two very long, very thin branches. I
was told to cross with my feet
parrallell to the river and walk
sideways. This would have worked even
better had the bottoms of my shoes not
been covered in that slippery mud.
I took off my shoes and stepped up into
the humble home. I walked into a back
room and saw an older lady sitting on a
mattress on the floor. I began to ask
questions and came to find out that she
was bitten by a snake some time back,
had her leg amputated all the way up
(which she proceded to show me without
the least bit of self consciousness). I
was asked if I would like to take a
picture of her leg. I thought it would
be good to have if she wanted to have me
ask one of the doctors a question. She
then fixed her hair so that she would
look 'more beautiful'. Her family then
pulled out tons of medications that the
hospital had given her - all unused in  cluding
some rather strong antibiotics. She
asked questions about why she would need
antibiotics and why she needed the bags
of hydrating fluid and why she needed
the pills to rid her body of parasites.
I explained to her what I knew, but
offered to take her to the hospital so
that the doctors there could more fully
answer her questions and take a look at
the large still stitched up area where
her body had been closed up after the
amputation. The area did not feel warm
and did not hurt to the touch and the
stitched area did not look infected. She
said that she would prefer to stay put
for two more weeks until it was time for
the stitches to come out. Then the whole
reality hit me - how was this sweet
grandmother going to walk to and from
her home. I cannot think of many
American women her age who could make
that walk even with two legs. All I
could do was silently pray and ask the
Lord to bless her with a deeper
understanding of His love. Maria and her
sister had been by the night before and
had prayed with her and spoken with her
in Quechua (she does not speak Spanish).
Tomorrow, I plan to head back over and
bring some fruits and vegetables that I
have washed.
Imagine your self having one leg, having
no clean water, no bathroom, being
separated from a road by a mile of muddy
paths and river crossings. Imagine then
what it would mean to have 'strangers'
come and give you their time and their
love....that is what the believers in
Sacha Runa are doing - they are reaching
out to those who cannot even leave their
homes, they are looking for ways to help
these people - not looking for anything
in return, just looking to share the
Lord's blessings and love with those
around them.
May you all take time today to thank the
Lord for all of the blessings in your
life and find a way to reach out to
someone in need....it might not be
comfortable at first - but it just might
turn out to bless you in ways that you
never imagined.
Love,
Celeste
No one in the church body knew how to put in
the electrical system for the church. Craig
spent yesterday and today putting in the
wires/outlets/switches and hooking it all up
to the main supply. Two men also had the
opportunity to look on and learn a new
skill. This is much better than the previous
exposed wires on the cement floor of the
church....it all makes sense now as to why
those who have lights in Sacha Runa just
would put the exposed wires together when
they wanted the lights on and pull them
apart to turn off the lights. Hopefully now,
these two men will share their new knowledge
with others :) - apparently putting in
outlets is very costly here in Ecuador when
you have someone else do it. The church also
has beautiful wooden doors now.
We are very excited to be able to continue
serving here in Ecuador. We are looking
forward to the two teams we have coming this
summer and also for the additional time we
will have to focus on building more
relationships with those in other
communities due to our lightened team
schedule this summer.
We are so excited that the church in Sacha
Runa has lights - but more than that - we
are looking forward to continuing to share
the message of true Light with more of the
beautiful people of Ecuador.
leave a message in our guestbook
The girls and I have really been
enjoying school time lately. The girls
even played a story on their own during
quiet time about the Stamp Act (which
helped me know that they really are
listening to what I read :)
After school time, we almost always have
girls from our street or from the street
where we used to live come over to
visit. Our girls love giving tours of
our "zoo" to local children. The
children find it to be a real treat too.
They love coming over and playing with
the girls and also spending time feeding
the animals and learning more about
them.
Valerie has especially had an easy time
of making friends. Today, she went to
one of the local schools and was quickly
surrounded by friends who have visited
our home and by their friends who had
heard stories about the little "gringita
Valeria"
leave a message in our guestbook
We stopped to eat in Moravia on our way
back home. The girls enjoyed the
beautiful view. If only they had had our
favorite mayonnaise, the meal would have
been perfect....
but the size of Natalie Joy's tilapia made up for it for
sure.
Valerie Grace wasted no time in making
friends with one of the men of the
restaurant  ...she
enjoyed talking to the men at the tables,
talking with the women in the kitchen and
then as we were about to leave, she decided
to join in on a game of cards.
The best part of Friday June 5th was yet
to come. I was reading
The Jesus Storybook Bible: Every Story
Whispers His Name
to the girls. Natalie Joy and Courtney
both broke down crying as I was reading.
I spent time talking with the girls and
praying with them. Natalie Joy made a
decision to accept Jesus as her Lord and
savior.
leave a message in our guestbook
We decided to drive to Banos on
Saturday. On the way there, we were
passed by many cars. We rounded a corner
and soon realized that our road trip
would not be happening. We could have
waited for the road to be cleared, but
our car doesn't always like to restart
after a while, so Craig just turned
around. We missed this by just a minute
(as there was only one car in front of
us when we got to this point). Below are
some photos of our trip back home (just
to give an idea of the general road
conditions between Banos and Mera.
We were so thankful for our safety and
that we were blocked on the "home" side
of the landslide.
leave a message in our guestbook
Maria owns a small house in Sacha Runa.
Each weekday, a preschool has met in her
home. Last Friday was Dia de la familia
in Ecuador. They had a party at the
local tourist pavilion. Valerie Grace
was invited and enjoyed the party,
balloons, and chicken cooked on the
fire.....and of course, the babies.
leave a message in our guestbook
While we were gone, Kelly and Emilia
came over to visit. They remembered when
Craig said we would be coming home and
made sure to have their mom bring them
by. They were so sweet and excited to
see us back in Ecuador. They were
concerned about swine flu though and
also questioned us.....funny that they
both had a runny nose as they questioned
us :)
We played outside a lot and then came in
to do some painting.
We are getting ready to ride our bikes
over to Kelly's house now.
Natalie Joy's painting turned out beautiful
- but the floor and curtains are also
covered with her artistic stamp
leave a message in our guestbook
We are back in Ecuador. We started our
journey down around 1am on Friday morning.
Craig's parents drove us down and waited
until we had our luggage packed. There is no
way I could have done this alone as Craig's
dad and Brooke had to haul my crates from
ticketing to a special place where they
would have to be screened due to their size.
Going through security is always the most
difficult part. Valerie needs to take on
plenty of water (which all has to be
screened individually). But we made it
through with minimal meltdowns.
We all slept some on the flight to Panama.
The breakfast wasn't that great, so the
girls didn't miss out on much. We filled out
our health screening and exited the plane in
Panama. On the plane with us were a group of
students (all wearing masks). I figured they
were all from Panama since that is where the
most people were masked up last time. The
girls and I found a perfect corner with
seats that did not have arm rails - so
Valerie and I took a 2 hour nap (Brooke
wasn't tired). We waited another half hour,
then boarded our plane for Quito. The
students boarded with us - all masked up
still. It was a bumpy flight, and the
landing in Quito is always interesting as
they speed up right before landing and we
can practically see what people are watching
on TV in the nearby homes as we land.
We filled out another health screening, but
no one took it when we exited the plane. We
went through immigration (and LOVED being
back in Ecuador where there are special
lines for women with children). A man came
up to me while I was at immigration and told
me he was going to help me with my bags and
to not lift any, but just wait for him to
come. I thought 'wow, how nice is that'. We
then realized why we still had our health
forms. A masked up doctor questioned each of
us (in Spanish). Then, one by one, we had to
have our photos taken by two women (also in
masks) - apparently, Ecuador is now very
afraid of swine flu.
After that, we were free to get our luggage.
I wasn't going to count on the man who
approached me in immigration to actually
help, so I went to the man with the carts
and requested two men and two carts. Brooke
then watched Valerie as I pointed to which
bags were ours (and again LOVED being back
in Ecuador). The men loaded all of the bags
on the carts and then unloaded them onto the
xray machines and loaded them back on the
carts again. The doors opened to the crowd
in the airport lobby and there was Craig! He
told me he had a big plan to sneak in and
get all of my luggage onto carts before we
came through, but he was caught by one of
the guards. He explained what he was trying
to do, and they said they would send in a
man to come and help me get my luggage
(hence the man who approached me in
immigration). We got in the van and I was
curious where my other two children were.
Craig said that was part of the surprise.
He told Vicente to drive to an address in
Quito (and I was praying that part of the
surprise was not staying somewhere in Quito
as I didn't take my altitude medicine). We
arrived at a beautiful home of some friends
of ours. Courtney and Natalie Joy were over
there playing with their children. All five
children were EXCELLENT at keeping the
surprise a secret. We get in the van and
drive to anothe  r
location. Everyone except the girls and I
went into a home and came out with a squirel
monkey. Our friends are moving to Shell in
two months and they wanted us to house sit a
monkey someone was giving them. Then, Craig
told me to go in the house because there was
a bird for me to look at. It was an Amazon
parrot that greeted me with many "hola" "cookito"
"corre corre papi". Apparently, the man who
had the animals is moving and was giving
them away for free. The bird got right on my
hand and was super friendly. While I was in
the house alone, Craig was out telling our
friend that I might not want the
bird....then I came out holding it. They
strapped the cage to the roof of the van and
we were off to Shell. I held the bird on my
lap for the 5 hour drive (thankfully Craig
brought a towel to put under the bird. The
monkey did escape once. It went all over the
van and even across the steering wheel as
Vicente was driving - thankfu  lly,
Vicente has a good sense of humor. Craig
managed to catch it and put it back in the
cage (and then he cable tied the cage doors
closed so we would not have a repeat once it
was dark). We made it home around 8pm,
unloaded people, luggage, and pets and went
to bed.
Craig had more surprises in store, but I
will write more about that later.
Love,
Celeste
The most active volcano we pass on the way
down....Courtney commented on all of those
little homes below (the picture turned out
to blurry to see them well, but below the
clouds it is full of houses).
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Tonight I met a friend. I met a young man
who I have been praying for this year. A
young man who moved here last summer to
attend
UF. A man who went in to the student
health center and was treated by my friend
Sue. A man who was told he had cancer only
months after coming to
Gainesville. I am not sure who I was
expecting to see, but I was not expecting to
see the
handsome, peaceful young man I saw.
Have you ever met someone for the first
time, and you felt like you know them? When
I saw
Dereck, I felt like I was seeing
someone I was destined to see.
Before Valerie Grace was diagnosed, I really
felt like I had so many answers to life, and
yet, I did not fully appreciate each day. As
we have walked this journey with Valerie
Grace, I am continually humbled as I realize
how precious people are - how one persons
touch or word can make a difference in your
day and in your life. Tonight - the Lord
used
Dereck to make a difference in my
life.
Dereck so sweetly asked me how I get
through things - what a blessing to be able
to share my experience with him. What a
blessing to share tears of understanding. I
honestly don't know what
Dereck has been through - but I can
relate to some of the feelings, the
questions. In this life we will all have
struggles - but with the Lord's help, we can
see clearly the eternal life available to
us. When Valerie was first diagnosed, we
would often hear stories of miraculous
healings....quite honestly, that was
never really encouraging to us (not to say
the
healings were not miraculous, but it
made us question why our experience wasn't
like that and left room for more questions).
It was the assurance that the Lord would be
with us, that He would uphold us no matter
what happened, it was the people the Lord
sent into our lives to comfort us that
brought us the most
encouragement. The Lord's love is
amazing and mysterious - through
relationship with Jesus, we have been able
to sing, we have been able to be carried
along - is every day easy? By no
means....but with Him, it is glorious in the
end.
Rejoice in
the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
Let your gentleness be known to all men. The
Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but
in everything by prayer and supplication,
with thanksgiving, let your requests be made
known to God; and the peace of God, which
surpasses all understanding, will guard your
hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:4-7
Dereck's birthday is on Sunday.
Dereck's family flew in to see him
for his birthday - they were planning to go
out and do some fun thing together. He is
sad that he is in the hospital - but I pray
that he will be able to have a fun day with
his family (whether in the hospital or not).
Spending time with
Dereck was another one of those
moments that have made this trip back really
special.
Dereck, you are loved, you are prayed
for, you are special in the eyes of the Lord
and in our eyes as well.
Love,
Celeste
These all
had faith, not having received the promises,
but having seen them a far off were assured
of them, embraced them and confessed that
they were strangers and pilgrims on the
earth. For those who say such things declare
plainly that they seek a homeland. And truly
if they had called to mind that country from
which they had come out, they would have had
the opportunity to return. But now they
desire a better, that is a heavenly country.
God is not ashamed to be called their God,
for He has prepared a city for them.
Hebrews 11:13-16
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For most of May, this is all Brooke,
Valerie and I have seen of Craig,
Natalie Joy and Courtney. It has
been wonderful to be able to connect
with them this way (for free :) but
oh, how we look forward to being
together as a family again. The trip
down - well, I am praying that we
will be filled with peace and joy in
the midst of that trip. We have
heard that there are people in
Orlando at 4am who will be able to
help us with our bags, which is
great because right now, our bags
weigh about twice what we weigh all
together.
This trip has been really special
though in many ways and I can see
the Lord's plan in having just us
three come back this trip. I was
able to have a special night here at
the house, just spending time
talking with the Lord while our
friends Ben and Sue had Brooke for
the night. The other highlight had
to be seeing Heidy and Elian at St
Judes. St Judes was strangely empty
that day (compared to when we were
there earlier in the year). They
were only in that waiting room a
short while - our paths just
"happened" to cross. There was so
much more I wanted to say to Heidy,
but didn't have time, so I wrote her
a letter. I felt that I should go
out to the lobby that I normally
don't go to, and there she was
again, waiting for a ride to their
home away from home.
 When
I look at all that the Lord has done
in Ecuador - there are so many
things that make me think "if it was
just for that reason - moving our
family to Ecuador was completely
worth it" - so many things that just
show what an amazing Lord we have.
Elian is just one of the many
stories that have shown us that we
serve a living God - the fact that
He orchestrated everything from
before we set foot in Ecuador, to
when we arrived, to the years that
have followed. We could not have
planned any of it. Our plan was
totally different - His plan is
glorious - what excitement - Lord,
live through us and use us.
Praying that this summer in Ecuador,
we will be filled with joy,
compassion, and love for the people
we are there to serve. We pray that
we are generous and not self
seeking. Praying that we cultivate
love within our family that will
then overflow onto the people we are
around.
We will have just two groups coming
this summer. A group from Manor
Church in PA will be coming in June
(they brought a group of 39 down
last year). The other will be from
First Assembly/Gainesville,FL in
August. Definitely a change from our
back to back groups last summer. We
are looking forward to building
relationships with those who come
and having time to spend together as
a family and with the people we know
and love in Ecuador.
Brooke is scheduled to have an EEG
tomorrow. This is just to rule out
more stuff from the 'blackouts' she
occationally complains about - only
expecting good news.
Love,
Celeste
This morning, Valerie enjoyed eating
breakfast at the Grizzly House where we
are staying. She opted for a container
of cream cheese to accompany her fruit
loop cereal. We then headed to the
cafeteria for bacon and sausage (it is
all about having lots of variety to
snack on :)
We were about an hour early for our
appointment, but we were able to spend
some time with Grandpa Tom (one of our
all time favorite volunteers here). That
was a special treat. We then went back
to hear about the MRI. The MRI showed a
slightly smaller tumor and they are no
longer concerned with the left side of
the brain because there are plenty of
decent size collateral vessels. Now,
they are looking more at the right side
(which wasn't an issue before) - I guess
because it might not have collateral
vessels already made.
We then went to occupational therapy. We
saw little Maria who is here with her
mom from Panama. Then another family
went up to them to talk. The mom looked
at me, and it was our landlord's
daughter with her son Elian Gonzalez. We
hugged, and cried and hugged some more.
Elian looked very good. They will be
here for over 12 more months - which was
the cause of some of the tears - she
misses Ecuador, her family, etc. It must
be so hard to be in another culture -
without family - on top of all of the
medical stuff. They are staying at the
Target house though, which is very nice.
He will be on chemo for another year and
will have a second surgery on the other
side of his neck in six months. It
sounds like the cancer spread to the
lymph nodes and that some had to be
removed, and the others will be removed
later. It was wonderful to see them, but
sad that we would not be staying here
longer. What an amazing way the Lord
orchestrated us to rent their house in
Ecuador so that we would get to know
them, and then they would be able to
talk with us and get information on
coming here for treatment.
Valerie then had her OT appointment and
the therapist commented on how much
improvement she sees in her.
Tomorrrow we will fly back to FL, then
will fly to Ecuador a week from today :)
Valerie loves St Judes so much, that she
asked to come to the MRI waiting room to
play for a while since we are leaving
tomorrow. (Which is why I have time to
write this update).
Love,
Celeste
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We are at St Judes now - waiting for the
MRI. Valerie Grace did great on the
plane - she slept on the first flight
and then flirted with two "boys" on the
second and talked constantly. When the
van driver picked us up, she got into
the van that had a cracked windshield
and engine light on and said "wow, your
van sure is fancy - it is way too fancy
for me". Then she said "thank you for
coming to pick us up" to the driver and
many other cute, sweet things. When we
were in the elevator at the hospital she
thanked me for bringing her here -
looked right up at my face and said
"thank you mommy for brining me here".
Too bad the camera crews weren't around,
because that would have been a great
commercial for St Judes :) Valerie is
currently still without food and water,
waiting to be sedated for the mri. My
mom is here with us.
We also were able to meet Susan and her
son Jordan (who has a tumor similar to
Valerie's). Jordan is a young adult now
and really charming. I feel like I know
Susan because we have written to each
other so much over the years - it was
nice to meet her (and to be able to hear
her deep New Orleans accent - now I know
what a true New Orleans accent sounds
like :)
Thank you for your prayers.
Love,
Celeste
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Valerie Grace had her eye appointment today.
She still lacks vision to the right, left,
above and below - but what she is seeing,
she is seeing 20/20. I think that the CT
showed good things - the report said that
the artery in question was completely
constricted and that the brain was being fed
by collateral vessels that her brain made on
it's own - amazing how the Lord made the
human body. There is not a "Brain Scans for
Dummies" book at the library though - so
this is just my educated (via the
internet) guess on what the report
really meant.
Tomorrow morning we leave for St
Judes. We will be there until
Saturday afternoon. I honestly have no clue
what to expect as far as the MRI there, all
I know is I have four of the most amazing
children - and that I often feel very
spoiled and blessed. When Valerie Grace was
first diagnosed, we really thought that if
we prayed the right way, if we had the
elders of the church come and
annoint her with oil....if we just
did things perfectly, then she would be
immediately healed - we expected it....that
was over 4 years ago. As we have continued
to walk down this journey, the thing the
Lord keeps impressing on me is to have love
- to be thankful and that the more time I
spend with Him, the less the stuff of life
really matters. I don't know why the Lord
has allowed us this time/healed Valerie in
many ways/not healed her in others...I have
lots of guesses and can see lots of fruit -
but I don't think my flesh, my thoughts, or
my words had anything to do with it. Maybe
others look at us and feel that we didn't
have our prayers answered, but I feel truly
blessed beyond measure. He is good.
Love,
Celeste
Rejoice in
the Lord always. I will say it again:
Rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all
men. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious
about anything, but in everything, by prayer
and petition, with thanksgiving, present
your requests to God. And the peace of God,
which transcends all understanding, will
guard your hearts and your minds in Christ
Jesus.
Philippians
4:4-7
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We are back home from
Shands now. We went in and
Shands had Valerie Grace down for
sedation, but no CT scan. Last Thursday, the
problem was they had her down for CT, but no
sedation. Anyway, we asked for the OR to
make some phone calls and were able to get
down to CT, they sedated Valerie while she
sat on my lap, then drew her labs that we
needed for St
Judes (Yeah!), and after a short
wake, we were called up to OR recovery to
pick her up. Thank you to Jennifer, Jerry,
and Sara for sitting with me during the
pre and post wait times.
The lab sheet we had was missing a couple of
labs, but our Lord always seems to
orchestrate things in neat way - Hillary
from the brain tumor clinic just happened to
be on the 2 nd
floor while we were erroneously waiting up
there first thing this morning and hear
Valerie's voice and came over. She was able
to add the labs on the sheet for me.
Valerie Grace will have an eye appointment
tomorrow and then we will fly to Memphis on
Wednesday. Brooke will be staying in
Gainesville for some special one on
one time with Craig's parents.
Love,
Celeste
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Shands called tonight and we are now
supposed to be in there at 6am and on the
main floor.
Valerie Grace is asleep in bed and all
drawers, cups, and crevaces have been
cleaned of all of the snacks that she tends
to hoard around her room. So thankful we
will be going in early - praying they
actually see her early too. I went to Shands
Friday and picked up blood tubes and a lab
sheet so that hopefully (if they get her iv
started before 8am) we can have her labs
done tomorrow, rather than have her have to
have an iv in her arm overnight at St Judes
for an early morning lab draw. They want to
check for her hormone levels and some have
to be done first thing in the morning.
Love,
Celeste
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Tomorrow morning at 7am, Valerie Grace
and I will be at big Shands for her CT
scan. We are praying that everything
goes quickly and smoothly and that the
scan shows perfect blood flow to both
sides of Valerie's brain and that there
are no issues or problems with arteries,
cysts or tumor. Praying that the doctors
listen to me about what works well for
sedation and that I am open to hearing
from the Lord throughout this next week
with two sedations and multiple other
doctors visits and 4 airline flights.
Last night, the girls spent the night
with my parents who drove down from NC.
I went to church this morning and was
greated by so many sweet faces and
received many hugs. I made it through
without crying until I saw the Felders...they
both looked at me and spoke to me and I
could feel that their hearts loved our
little Valerie Grace as ours do. I think
sometimes, all of this medical stuff
becomes somewhat normal - but it is
moments like those and that of Pastor
Max talking to me about the miracles
seen in Valerie Grace - that remind me
that the Lord is so totally in this and
that His heart breaks and rejoices with
ours.
Craig and the girls are doing well in
Ecuador. It has worked out really well
finacially and all around to have thing
this way (I am hoping that I will still
be thinking that as we attempt to get
our 200lb+ of luggage down to Ecuador on
the 29th....if anyone would like to take
a trip to Ecuador with us on our flight,
this just might be the perfect time :)
Our marriage is doing fantastic, our
girls seem to be doing well - and
Valerie Grace is smiling more than ever
and eating her way through the day.
Thank you for your love for our family,
for support as we continue to reach out
to the children and families in Ecuador
and for your prayers for our precious
girls.
And thank you to Send Love Today for the
mountain of birthday cards that awaited
Valerie Grace upon our return to Florida
- she enjoyed opening each and every one
and has kept them all in one of the bags
that was mailed down with one of the
cards.
Love,
Celeste
The CT scan for tomorrow was canceled. I
think we were bumped due to more pressing
cases (which I understand because if Valerie
Grace was a pressing case, I would want her
bumping someone else). Anyway - Valerie
Grace, praise God, is symptom free, so we
will have the scan done Monday morning. Lord
willing. We have been trying to have this
done since last March - who knew scheduling
a CT with sedation would be so difficult.
One more week, we will be in the land of
fast finger scheduling where they always
seem to have time to get everyone in - St
Judes is seriously the master of organized
scheduling - they have a one stop shop that
does all of the working around so you just
go from place to place to place.
We are now scheduled for CT Monday morning
at 7am.
Today has had some really high points -
lunch with my friend Belinda at Shands along
with a listening ear and advice on thinking
through doing the scan without sedation
tomorrow or with on Monday - thank you
Belinda for helping me see things clearly. A
night with the team who came to Ecuador with
a surprise anniversary card and my all time
favorite cake (black forest) which was
suggested to the team by my very thoughtful
husband (if there was a point system, that
would have scored big :) (thanks Carrie's
mom). Plus Sue made a wonderful dinner. What
a treat to see everyone again. Valerie was
able to see her three boys from the team.
Brooke is spending the night with her
adoptive third grandma and Ben. They have
turtles, snakes, lizards (all of the
important kind of pets), and their house is
scattered with carvings and castings of
frogs, lizards and other creatures because
Ben is a very talented wood sculptor.
Craig's parents came by and had new tires
put on our van which was a huge blessing as
time has been short around here to take care
of those sort of things.
I miss Craig and the girls so much, but we
have also been very surrounded by wonderful
friends here which has been so helpful. The
Lord is continually teaching me, and it is
neat to see how many different ways He does
teach me and how many different people He
uses in my life. Truly, I am still amazed
how He uses the children in clinic at Shands
to speak silently to me. I see these
children come in, obviously with some major
medical problems, but so precious and loved
by their parents and the Lord and I am
reminded of the continued need for
education, evangelism, prayer, and love in
Ecuador so that parents will have that same
love there for their own children. Children
need love, and medically challenged or not -
and I am convicted and reminded of who I am
in Christ and the amazing love that is
available to be poured out on our own
children and then how that love can then
overflow to those around us.
We have been shown so much love this trip -
thank you to everyone who has reached out to
our family and offered your time to us - it
means a lot to have a hug and a hand to hold
- thank you for letting His love spill out
onto us.
Love,
Celeste
The picture below is of Brooke at about
10,000 feet above sea level. The clouds
rested on the ground of that mountain and it
reminded me of the Lord's love spilling out
- and four people watched that day, high up
on that mountain as Brooke exploded with joy
and danced on those hills.
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Later today ( I can't sleep) Valerie will go
into
Shands to see the neurosurgeon and
then
preop. When children are sedated for
CTs, it seems to be different than
with
MRIs and they have told us for that
reason, Valerie will have to go through the
OR to be sedated for the CT on Thursday
(hence the appointments today). We are
having this test done to check and see if
both sides of her brain are receiving the
same amount of blood flow. Her left main
artery feeding the brain is very narrowed,
but she has no symptoms. We hope that there
are enough collateral vessels already in
place to feed that side of her brain.
Today has been challenging and our calendar
for this short time is quickly filling up -
I am not sure why I even brought school
books here for the girls. I have spent the
past two days returning phone calls that
were on our answering machine (insurance
questions) and running around getting items
we need for Ecuador (I have 3 quite full
bags already packed to go back). Tonight
ended well though as I was able to go to
Family Group tonight and enjoy fellowship,
worship and prayer (in English!) Such a
wonderful group of believers - it is so neat
to see how each person has grown (since we
skip months between meetings :)
I have bugged Craig by calling about 10+
times today. It is a free call from where we
are in FL which is
convenient (for me :).
Tomorrow night, we get to meet and have
dinner with the group that came to Ecuador
and then Brooke will be having a sleepover
and spending Thursday with our friends while
Valerie and I are at the hospital.
Tomorrow is also our 14 th
wedding anniversary.
Love and thanks for your prayers,
Celeste
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We made it back to Florida
safely. The team was
extremely helpful in
carrying my bags and
carrying Valerie Grace. They
all sang happy birthday to
me when we left our house in
Ecuador. I was so exhausted,
and my patience was left in
Ecuador I think - the team
was such a huge help. I am
thinking next time we have
to return to the US for
medical stuff, we might stay
in Quito overnight rather
than do this all day trip
thing. It was close to 24
hours of travelling.
 This
is a photo the team took in
Panama - on their way to
Ecuador. The airline handed
out masks on the way off the
plane. (the team put them on
for the photo only :)
When we all went through
Panama a week later, no
masks were handed out, but
plenty were being worn by
other travellers. Valerie
kept asking why everyone was
wearing a mask. The
copa flight
attendants all wore masks
(making it very difficult to
understand their English and
Spanish).
We are glad to have made
it here safely, but we miss
Craig, Courtney and Natalie
Joy very much. The team was
wonderful - thank you again
to everyone who came and
everyone who played a part
in this team coming to
Ecuador and ministering
there.
Love,
Celeste
Below are more pictures
from the group's time in
Ecuador
   
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guestbook
The team is in Sacha Runa taking a hike with
Maria's dad now. Maria came by and Valerie
asked if she would take her to the park.
Maria didn't even look at me, but just said
okay - and off they went. Maria gets very
sad before we leave and wants to spend every
second she can with Valerie Grace. Maria
will be with Valerie all day until around
8pm tonight. Maria's mom started crying
after we ate there the other day. Maria told
me yesterday that she has been fighting back
tears because we are leaving.
Honestly, we don't really want to go back -
we love being back in Ecuador and don't want
to leave so soon. We will be gone for 3
weeks. Next week, Valerie will be at Shands
Wednesday and Thursday. The following week,
my mom, Valerie and I will head to St Judes
from the 20-23rd of May. Then on the 29th we
will fly back to Ecuador. Craig is staying
here with Natalie and Courtney.
So, at 6am tomorrow, we will be loading on a
bus with the team and making the drive up to
Quito. We fly to Panama at 4pm and then to
Florida - landing around midnight.
Our landlord's grandson Elian Gonsalez will
be having surgery on Thursday (for stage 4
melanoma). Our landlord talked to us last
night and said Elian's biological father is
interested in flying up there to see them.
She said that Elian and Heidy are very happy
at St Judes and have found it to be very
nice.
Please pray for Valerie Grace as she will be
sedated and have scans at Shands and St
Judes. We would also appreciate prayers for
Craig and the girls as they stay in Ecuador,
and for Elian as he has surgery.
Love,
Celeste
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Rick LaBouef, another missionary in town,
taught Craig to play a dice game when we
went over there for dinner one night. The
game has been a big hit with Craig and the
team. The team has also played with the
children in Sacha Runa, and today they are
out teaching English now. They plan to use
the dice game to teach English
numbers.....and of course, they had to
practice before heading out there today :)
This morning, Jen taught how to make muffins
and pizza in our house (I picked up some
great tips too). Jen works in a bakery in
the US and can make some amazing things.
While Jen was teaching us to bake, the rest
of the team was out in Sacha Runa finishing
up the painting.
This week, the team has been painting the
outside and inside of the church in Sacha
Runa. It is coming along very well. The
block soaked up the paint quite a bit. The
team has been painting in the mornings and
have done community outreach in the
afternoon (once the children start coming
home from school). This team raised a lot of
money and thanks to everyone who donated for
them to come down, we will be able to start
some new programs as well as possibly help
with a church project in another area. This
team also brought down a LOT of
English/Spanish dictionaries so that we will
have some great materials for restarting
English classes. Tomorrow, the team will be
teaching English in Sacha Runa in the
afternoon. They have been going strong from
sunrise to well after sunset and have been
such a blessing to us and everyone they have
met in Sacha Runa. We have a couple of
Spanish speakers too in the group which has
been great. Thank you again to everyone who
made this trip possible -for those who gave
up their time to come, for those who gave of
their money to provide, and those who prayed
and are praying - thank you!
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The children in Sacha Runa had a blast
yesterday - I think the team did too....
Playing duck, duck, goose...
These little boys below loved playing dice.
It is a game that Rick (another missionary
in Shell) taught Craig.
A friendly game of Ecuadorian volleyball
about to start. It is said that the
traditional height of the net is this high
because games are often set up in streets
and it needs to be high enough for cars to
drive under.
Shelby throwing a boy up in the air (the
rest of the time, they were hanging off
of him)
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Valerie Grace, Celeste, Mara, Shelby,
Michael, Stephanie, Ben, Megan, Jen, and
Marilyn
Maria's mom and sister preparing maytos
Magdelena tending to the cooking fire -
look how close she gets to the
flames...as we left after eating, she
cracked a joke and said - you all ate
everything - you are going to be very
very fat. You should have left me more
food. Her daughters all roared with
laughter after she said this.
Tilapia fresh from Magdelena's pond
 Gusanos
- Palm grubs - fresh from Sacha
Runa...not bad - I think all of us
ladies ate them.
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Our team arrived safely last night. The
girls and I drove over to meet them and made
it all the way to the guesthouse gate before
stalling out. Craig and the team were just 7
minutes away and helped Brooke and I push.
Today, the team painted about all of the
exterior of the church. Another missionary
who has been helping with the Woaranis came
and helped us with the church. In the
afternoon, they finished up some painting,
then played volleyball and soccer with some
boys from Sacha Runa.
The girls have REALLY enjoyed the team being
here. Teams are one of their favorite parts
about Ecuador I think. Valerie Grace loves
her boys and Brooke seems to have really
taken to Ben G. She asked if he would sit
beside her the first night.
Maria is doing much better. She came by
today and I told her about my symptoms all
weekend. Seems like we had the same thing.
She is 100% and this afternoon I am feeling
about 80%. Strange thing is - none of our
older children got it. Valerie Grace is a
total ball of energy - back to her normal no
napping and constant talking (which is
making me feel very happy).
We would appreciate your prayers for the
team to have a positive impact on the people
of Sacha Runa and for all of us to grow in
our relationships with each other and the
Lord during these next few days. We are SO
greatful they are here and they have been
such an encouragement to us.
Love,
Celeste
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Thank you for your prayers for Valerie
Grace. She is no longer sleeping often and
has been off of zofran (the anti-nausea
medicine) all day and has been eating well,
and calling out "mom" in her normal loud
voice.
Craig will leave Shell at 7am tomorrow
morning on the public bus to meet the team
in Quito around 1:30pm. Earlier this week,
there was a landslide that blocked the road
before Banos for 6+ hours. We would
appreciate prayers for a clear road, good
driver, and safe trip.
Love,
Celeste
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Elian
Gonzalez
is
our
Ecuadrian
landlady's
grandson. He
and
his
mom
Heidy
will be
travelling
to
TN
to be
seen
at
St
Judes Hospital. He has
been
diagnosed
with
cancer
on
his
head.
Please
keep
them
in
your
prayers as
they
travel
and
adjust
to
the
new
environment.
Please
pray
that
the
doctors
have
wisdom
on
how
to
best
treat
Elian
and
that
they
will
make
Spanish
speaking
friends
while
there.
Valerie,
my
mom,
and I
will be
traveling
to
St
Judes
on
the 20 th
of
May
and
hopefully
will be
able
to
visit
with
them
while
we are
there.
Love,
Celeste
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message
in
our
guestbook
Valerie Grace didn't sleep as sound last
night (which is more normal for her :)
She woke up much more chipper than she has
been and seems to have her appetite back.
She has been on zofran for the past day and
a half. We found out yesterday that the
local mission school has a vomiting virus
going around. Maria came by this morning and
seems to have mumps (with vomiting) - so
maybe Valerie got a mild case of something
like that. Anyway, she seems to be better.
Thank you for your prayers.
We would appreciate your prayers for Maria
to feel better - she looks like a chipmunk
and feels pretty rotten.
Love,
Celeste
Valerie Grace has not been feeling well.
She threw up last night and again this
morning. She complained of her stomach
hurting which makes me think it is a
parasite or virus rather than a tumor
issue. Today, we plan to give her (and
everyone else) an antiparasite
medication just to flush out any
critters that might be hanging around.
Craig and I both felt quite icky last
week - we took the medicine earlier and
felt better within 24 hours - we have
been eating salads left and right here
and I guess will have to give our
stomachs more time to adjust to Ecuador
before eating all of the things we enjoy
so much. We would appreciate your 
prayers for Valerie Grace to feel
better. In
the picture to the left, you can see
Becky (the new puppy) sleeping back to
back with Valerie Grace.
Yesterday was so full of cute things.
Craig took his morning walk to Sacha
Runa. On the way back up, a little girl
ran up and tugged on his shirt. He
looked down and she handed him her bread
(her breakfast). They continued to walk
up the hill to Shell and Craig asked her
and her friend to wait for a minute. He
came in our house and got two banana
chocolate chip muffins for the two girls
to have for breakfast. They were
delighted.
After school let out, a different and
larger group of young girls got stuck in
the downpour on their way home. These
were girls that I didn't know (Sacha
Runa is FULL of children). I asked them
if they needed anything and they said
they were just waiting out the rain
under our awning before going home. I
asked if they would like some umbrellas
so that they could get home. Their faces
lit up and I brought out one umbrella -
it wasn't quite enough to cover everyone
so I brought out another and let them
know they were gifts. They were so
tickled and thankful. As I looked down
the street, I could see a Diego umbrella
and a black umbrella bouncing down the
hill with 12 little legs beneith.
For our good news - we sold our van, we
were able to get our immigration cards
first day we tried and we are all doing
very well. I will miss spending my
birthday, mothers day, and our 14th
anniversary with Craig, Courtney, and
Natalie - but I am so thankful that we
are all in a really good place right now
spiritually, emotionally, and in our
care for each other.
Love,
Celeste
This Sunday, we will have our first team of
2009 coming to Ecuador to serve with us. It
will be the smallest team we have had - 7
people but they are from our home church and
4 have been here before. One of our desires
has been to reach out to the older youth of
Sacha Runa. Craig and I are getting a little
older these days, so we have been a little
short on ideas for that sort of thing. This
team is primarily college aged young adults.
They have been emailing us with wonderful
ideas - lots of fun things to do with the
youth. They have also collected and will
also be lugging down around 500lbs + of
clothing, books and outreach items for the
community.
We would appreciate your prayers for a safe
and uneventful trip down for them all.
Love,
Celeste
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This year has continued to prove to be a
challenging one. I feel that I have been
stretched to almost breaking in many areas
of my life. And through each stretch, I have
discovered a new level of humility and at
the same time realized how much I really
don't know - I have struggled to understand
what exactly success looks like in our
ministry here.
A few weeks ago, at church in Sacha
Runa, the pastor questioned everyone. He
asked what things can make our lives
more difficult. People guessed Satan,
they guessed the things of this world
(which were two of the three he was
looking for)....but no one could guess
the main thing that he was trying to
fish out of them. I sat there, silent,
waiting for them to say the obvious -the
thing that I struggle with most. No one
did. So many of my worries, my
frustrations, so much of my sadness has
come from myself, my flesh. It is those
dreams that so many of us have - those
desires for everything to be neat and
pretty. Why is it that I so often think
that if my situation changed, that
suddenly life would be okay.
In our own lives, we have so much to be
thankful for. Valerie Grace, although
sleeping more than usual, is full of
life and love. All of our girls
absolutely love being in Ecuador - right
now, Brooke is giving a tour of her zoo
to the children from the near by store
and the boys who play on our street.
Craig loves being here, despite the
difficulties he has had lately (mainly
with having time consumed with repairing
and pushing our vehicle while trying to
purchase paint for the church - rather
than being out with the people he
loves). When we first came to Ecuador -
we could see success and share that
success with photos of bridges and
buildings. I like to see visual success
- I like to be able to have something
physical to show to those who faithfully
support our ministry.
Craig and I walked to the post office in
Puyo today between our long morning
being stuck in Puyo with police telling
us to move our immovable vehicle and
large trucks honking at us to move our
vehicle up the hill on which it died. We
received a letter from our home church.
The letter stated that our funding we
receive from our home church for our
ministry was being reduced by 20%. I
felt so discouraged.
I tried to take a bus home from Puyo,
but the bus was packed and about 2 more
bus loads of people were waiting in the
hot sun. I had no choice but to splurge
for a $4 taxi in order to get home to
the girls in time. As I sat in the back
of that taxi as it passed large trucks
and sped down the winding roads, I
prayed. I prayed and thought about how
much I want people to see what we are
doing - I want them to see the love we
have for these people - I want them to
love us. The Lord spoke so clearly to
me. He doesn't care about buildings or
bridges....and I saw the faces of the
five little girls who's mom was going to
drop off her children at the orphanage.
She was prepared to drop them off and
see the gate close and have her little
girls cry and not understand what was
happening. She wanted to make an easy
choice for her. It sounded good. But
through the church that we helped
established and through our ministry
help, this mom is now working, her
children are going to school each day
and receiving a good education, and they
come to church for worship, for
teaching, and for fellowship. A
community once concerned for self is now
discipling those in their community and
helping meet physical needs. Children
who were playing in the street after
school, are now enjoying a time of
fellowship with our children in the
safety of our yard. The Lord spoke to my
heart clearly - Success is not measured
in things we can see, but rather in the
hearts of those we are here to serve. As
I sit here and listen, I hear the girls
yelling "venga, venga" (come, come).
Jesus is calling us to tell the people
of Ecuador to come, come and be loved.
That is success!
Love,
Celeste
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Below is Maria with Valerie Grace
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One of our goals since coming back to
Ecuador has been to sell the van we have. We
have been trying to sell it since last
summer, and have had two people very
interested, but they have been unable to
come up with the money to purchase it. We
now think we have a buyer coming this
weekend. Craig has been working this week
fixing the problems with the van. The
battery kept dying and we thought it was the
power locks. Sure enough, Craig took it to a
mechanic in Puyo who specializes in
electrical issues. They spent all day, took
the doors totally apart, tried to fix the
switch, then ended up totally replacing
it......total cost....under $25! And all the
locks work perfectly now and the battery is
no longer being drained. Craig hit a ditch
earlier and blew out a tire and bent the
rims - all of that was fixed too. Today, he
renewed the registration and SOAT to make
things easier on the new owners - so it is
running great and ready to be sold. The
buyers also bought the house we used to
rent. We really like them and hope the van
meets their needs.
We have a few other paperwork items to
complete (hopefully before I go back, as one
is our 'green card' sort of thing and they
don't like us going through immigration with
expired ones). But we will see if the
computers are working in Puyo when we go in
:)
This past Sunday, I shared my testimony at
church in Sacha Runa. Then, the church
members all wanted to hear everyone's
testimony. It was really great to hear more
about everyone and their relationship with
Christ. Some people weren't ready to share,
but were very interested in hearing everyone
elses. We were getting ready to pray and
sing before we left and a mom of 5 girls
(who I have really had a heart for since
hearing of their story, but met for the
first time Sunday) wanted to ask a question.
She explained how she went to a church in
Shell, but the pastor told her she was only
allowed 3 pardons, and because her children
all have different fathers, then she could
not be accepted. My heart was breaking for
what this sweet woman thought and the fact
that she had the courage to come to church
and to speak up so humbly amazed me. The
pastor answered her questions and then she
walked back to Shell with Maria and I. She
then went to Maria's house where they spent
some time talking. She has been working, her
girls are in school now, and the girls were
so full of genuine smiles. Please pray that
she comes to understand what Christ did for
her and that she can accept the fact that He
loves her.
There is another missionary (from South
America) who has been coming and helping in
Sacha Runa for church services. We had
brought down the movie Fireproof. Maria took
it home and watched it with her husband and
it brought him to tears. The other
missionary asked if he could they show it
using a projector that MAF had. Since Maria
had just watched it with her husband, she
was very excited about the idea. Last night,
they had movie night in Sacha Runa. Craig
said it was a great turn out, but was a
little disappointed that more husbands
didn't come (it was mostly women and
children) - but we are currently working
with our good friends in the states to raise
funds for a projector so that we can have a
regular movie night. Maria thinks that once
more people know, and if they limit it to
couples, that more people will come. There
is so much drinking in Sacha Runa - so many
problems - and yet this community of
believers is growing, seeking, and sharing
His love. It is a joy to come along side
them in some small way and help equip them
to serve their own people.
Our girls are doing well - Valerie has been
napping more than usual today, but it was
hot and we spent the day outside and went
swimming for a bit. She has also had hiccups
again, but not vomiting. I have really
gotten back to that place of peace once
again and feel very comfortable and peaceful
and know that she is totally in the Lord's
hands. None of us knows what tomorrow may
hold. Natalie Joy enjoyed showing me how she
can swim today - it was one of the cutest
things I have seen - her body was totally
straight and she just moved sort of like a
shark. Courtney is enjoying the monkey and
Brooke is in love with the new puppy (we all
are). Craig has been very busy - but I think
he enjoys the fact that he is able to get
things done which would have been very
difficult when we first came down. He knows
more how the Ecuadorian system works :)
Ecuador has been extremely colorful lately
with all of the political signs, flags, and
t-shirts. It has also been very loud with
all of the trucks playing political jingles
and shouting on megaphones. One super loud
political rally lasted until 2am. Elections
are this Sunday.
Thank you for your prayers.
Love,
Celeste
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Craig called me around 4pm letting me know
he and the girls were stuck past Puyo and
the car wouldn't start. He ended up calling
a cab, and eventually the three road back in
the cab of the mechanics truck, and after a
wait in Puyo for the battery to charge up,
they drove home. While trying to start the
car, this spider monkey jumped through the
window into the passengers seat, tore open
the bag of snacks and made quite a mess
while eating them. Another monkey got in and
took a 6 month old bag of cookies and ate
them. That certainly helped keep everyone
happy during a difficult situation. Thank
you for your prayers - they made it home
safe with lots of stories to tell :)
Love,
Celeste
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Courtney doing dishes
Brooke making balloon animals for her
neighborhood friends. Before we left, the
girls didn't have many friends who lived by
our house. They have since made friends with
a sweet group of girls. They come over every
afternoon now. Today (due to the balloons)
we had several young boys come by also.
Brooke ran out of balloons with one boy
left. If anyone wants to mail something
special to Brooke, she would love some more
balloons for making balloon animals.
The younger girls wanted
to come sit with Natalie Joy and see her new
kitten.
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Today was my first time going to church in
Sacha Runa since we arrived back in Ecuador.
A small part of me did not look forward to
going - it is really stepping out of my
comfort zone as the church here is not one
where you just go and sit and listen (as you
will read later) and I spent the last 5
months speaking English and being very
unchallenged in the areas that Ecuador
challenges me (we were certainly challenged
in other areas though). My Spanish is so
terrible now. We arrived there at 2pm
thinking there was going to be a Baptism
today - come to find out, it was last
Sunday. I think I have forgotten all verb
tenses all together. So much so, that
instead of being able to confidently say 'I
forgot a lot of my Spanish' I just say 'all
of my Spanish is back in the United States'.
Notice that one requires that I conjugate a
verb into past tense. I think I just became
more self conscious while in the US and
forgot how to laugh at myself as much as I
did before we left. Before, my Spanish was
bad too, but I didn't mind failing quite as
much. After today (which was a great day) I
think I am getting past the fear of failing
again:)
Anyway, back to our day, since no one was at
the river or at church, we decided to go to
Maria's mom's house to visit. Well, nothing
like another language barrier to challenge
me. We communicated some, but Maria's mom
quickly went to Maria's sisters house with
us so that we could have a translator (she
spoke Quechua to her daughter who spoke
Spanish to me). I found it really
interesting that the one word Maria's mom
told me in Spanish - tres - was one of the
handful of words I know in Quechua. So we
hung out at Georgina's house until it was
time for church. The afternoon service is a
time when a visiting pastor comes to teach
the people who have been in the church since
it was in Alcibar's home. The pastor has an
interesting sense of humor which is great
for keeping the youth interested (and he has
us all laughing throughout the 2-3 hour
teaching time).
There have been some big problems with the
youth since we left. What I love about this
small church is how everyone participates
and how the visiting pastor is so honest and
really bluntly, but in love, brings up
personal issues. He spoke directly to one of
the young girls about an issue she had in
the past (he had talked to her privately
prior) and really applied the teaching to
her. Her response was not to shrink back or
be embarrassed, but to ask more questions.
He spoke directly to everyone there and I
believe challenged us all. There is a real
boldness and love that is really refreshing
- and seems so perfect for what is needed at
this small church and this community that is
struggling to fight off the temptations of
the world.
I try not to speak up too much in church,
but am always asked questions - which is
nice - it's always nice to be included. The
pastor knows some English and enjoys using
his English (and sometimes Quechua) to help
everyone understand the point and bring some
more laughs. There are some Spanish words
that the people at church don't seem to
fully understand, and the pastor is so
patient in finding different ways to explain
words. I am so glad that I went - every time
I go, I come away wondering why I wasn't so
excited to go back. I think it is that
little fear the enemy puts in our heads
making us think that we will fail in some
way. As soon as I enter the houses or church
in Sacha Runa, all of that fear washes away
and I just see the Love the Lord has for
these precious people.
I was asked to share my testimony today, but
will be doing that next week (since I need
some time to prepare and be able to
conjugate those verbs - there will be lots
of past tense verbs :)
Mondays are usually fun, as Maria and I
spend time talking about the service the day
before. I am hoping to get some help with my
verbs from her this week. Maybe we will put
it all in Quechua :)
Love,
Celeste
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Although Brooke says her favorite school
subject is science, and Courtney says
her favorite is math....I think they
both really enjoy art time. I suppose
they do not consider art to be part of
"school time".
Maria told us that Kelly (a sweet girl who
lives near our old "barn" house in Shell)
came by our new rental home while we were in
the US. We were so sad that we had missed
her. But yesterday, Kelly and her sister
Amelia came by to visit the girls. Our whole
family adores Kelly and Amelia. They are
both such sweet girls. Kelly's mom is very
protective of her girls and would never let
them walk to where we live now, as it is too
far. However, she has driven the girls by
our new house three times now. They plan to
stop by again this weekend. Brooke and
Courtney are holding their new baby rabbits
(who were being sold at the food market
Sunday).
Thumper is the one bunny who survived all
the others. He is HUGE now.
Brooke found 3 baby guinnea pigs in our yard
a couple of days ago. They enjoyed showing
them to Kelly and Amelia. I am never quite
sure what Ecuadorians think about our girls
cuddling animals that they look at and think
"que rico" (how delicious).
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Technology is a really great thing
sometimes. We h  ave
been so very blessed to be able to stay
intouch with our friends and family since
being back in Ecuador. Our girls have
enjoyed seeing the shark scare Granny Suzy,
having grandma and poppop read them a story
and we were all so blessed to be called by
our wonderful friends in Mars,PA during
youth group night. Best of all - Skype is
free.
Being back in Ecuador has been so wonderful.
I think as we were here for a while, we
became sort of near sighted. Now that we
have been away, we came back and have been
able to see things with fresh eyes and
without being desensitized to a lot. While
it breaks our hearts to hear of some of the
things that have been going on in Sacha
Runa, it also reconfirms that the Lord has
us right where He wants us for now. It never
ceases to amaze me how the Lord 
works, how He can orchestrate things in such
a way that seem confusing while we are in
the middle of it sometimes, but when we come
out of it, we see how His hand was in every
little detail. While in Florida, we were
asked to retell the story of how we started
to work with the people of Sacha Runa. It
was the first time I have told the story
from beginning to present (not end, because
I don't believe it has ended :). As I was
telling it, my amazement grew as I saw all
of the little pieces fitting together. The
Lord has a plan, and I feel so blessed to be
a very tiny part of it. His love is amazing.
Love,
Celeste
(Mom, sorry for posting the picture - it was
too great not to put on here :) Love you!
The three oldest girls went to the river
today. Their friends from Sacha Runa
were playing in the river too. The girls
had a good time until Natalie Joy became
stuck on the other side and refused to
climb up the hill. The girls from Sacha
Runa put leaves in the water to show her
how fast the river was, but Natalie Joy
thought that the hill would prove more
difficult. Courtney ended up helping
Natalie cross the river. Natalie Joy was
too heavy for Courtney and essentially
Courtney held her breath while Natalie
Joy held on to her neck and they made it
across. It was much more chaotic than
that though - Courtney saved the day.
Afterwards, they caught a few insects
for their monkey and then we came back
home. Natalie Joy said she didn't have
fun as we were leaving, but just now
said she wants to go back again soon -
just not on the other side of the river.
Brooke, Courtney and Valerie went with Maria
to Sacha Runa today. After visiting, Brooke
and Courtney jumped at the chance to help
clean trash out of the river in front of the
church.
Ecuador looks super clean in these pictures.
What I didn't get a photo of was the road
that had caved in a bit on the edge of the
mountain about 20 minutes from home. The men
were mixing cement and stuff to help
reinforce it (I guess). There were also a
few boulders in the road, but all in all, a
very clear and clean road all the way down.
Brooke sat in the front seat - so no photos
of her.
We arrived in Quito last night around 8pm.
We were so happy to see our friend's face
after walking through a sea of people
wanting to give us a ride to various places.
We drove to the guesthouse in Quito to spend
the night. What a blessing we had to wake up
to a nice breakfast and good conversation
with a friend I made while here in October.
We start our decent down the Andes in just
15 minutes. When we stepped foot outside the
airport last night to all of the sounds and
smells of Ecuador - Brooke said "this feels
so much more like home than FL" - everyone
is happy to be back.
Love,
Celeste
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Our favorite "keepsake" from St Judes. A
blanket signed by the nurses and doctors who
cared for Valerie Grace during radiation
treatment. Each person there was now was so
special to us and especially to Valerie
Grace.
Here are pictures from Valerie's
birthday. She wanted to go to GKTW - it
is a park for children who have serious
illnesses. The people sang happy
birthday to her and brought her a cake,
she rode the merry-go-round with "Ms
Mary" the bunny and enjoyed being
pampered in the new spa there.
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Today is Valerie Grace's 5th Birthday!!!
Brooke has been preparing for this day with
the other girls since we got back to
Florida. Brooke has spent all of her money
on presents for Valerie and the other girls
picked out some of the things that Valerie
liked of theirs and wrapped them for
Valerie. They also made a truckload of
balloon animals (a giraffe taller than me, a
white duck with orange beak and feet and
much much more). These girls are very
talented at making balloon animals.
We celebrated this morning just as Valerie
wanted with bacon and a valentines make your
own cookie kit we found on clearance in
Memphis.
I am really amazed - amazed that Valerie
Grace is 5 years old, independant, happy,
and healthy. Each day is a blessing.
Love,
Celeste
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The girls enjoyed a fun weekend of
swimming and running on the treadmills
at the hotel my parents stayed in while
visiting FL
Brooke and Courtney went to the UF Family
Fishing day with my dad on Saturday morning.
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Last week, we were treated to a fun day
at Seth's house (the son of a couple in
our family group who had been praying
for Valerie Grace before we had met each
other). Valerie Grace loved eating lunch
with Seth, riding Maggy the pony,
playing on the swings, and playing with
Seth.
Well, with each new day comes a deeper level
of peace and now - real excitement with
being done with medical stuff for now.
Brooke's MRI went great and was clean (thank
you Lord!) and she didn't need an IV (it
never ceases to amaze me how the Lord
answers Brooke's prayers so quickly - like
for no needle to be needed).
Today, the three oldest girls went to see
the dentist here. He is so wonderful to us
and so amazingly generous in helping take
care of our girls teeth. The girls were all
cavity free still and it looks like no one
will need braces. I went to a new surgeon
who attends our church and was able to have
someone listen to my concerns (I have
chronic pain on my right side). He told us
of the possible causes and the options
available - so maybe we will come to FL for
a few weeks next December for me to get that
looked at more.
Shands was unable to schedule the CT for
Valerie Grace - which is fine with me
because our schedule packed with doctors
appointments is now in the past and that
feels really good. I really believe that the
Lord knows of our exhaustion with all of
this.
In less than 48 hours,
Valerie
Grace will be five years old!!
Over 4 years ago, we weren't sure if she
would be here to turn 5 - and here she is -
happy, talkative, and full of personality.
There have been so many miracles over the
years and we know that the Lord's hand has
been in her life. Sometimes miracles don't
come in the way we expect them to come, but
I believe that if we are looking to the Lord
instead of having our sight set on the
miracle we expect - then we will see the
miracles that He has for us. I look back at
some many things over the past 18 months
with the ministry in Ecuador and our lives
and I see the Lord's hand all in it - His
ways are so good and His plans much bigger
than our own.
We have felt very loved by our friends and
family over the years and especially these
past few months. Thank you for showering us
with love, prayers, and support.
Next week, Lord willing, we will be in
Ecuador!
Love,
Celeste
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Doctor Valerie checking out Snowball the
cat
Valerie Grace and Michelle. I started writing to
Michelle's mom online over 2 or 3 years ago.
They then started coming to Shands where we
were finally able to meet. Michelle speaks
Mandarin Chinese primarily - so she and
Valerie exchange smiles.
Valerie Grace and Dr Smith
Valerie Grace and Michelle R.
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We have had a busy time back in Florida.
Lots of doctors visits. We took Valerie
Grace to see the neurosurgeon here. We are
so glad that we did so. Dr Pincus knows us
well and he felt that the artery issue was
not as big of a deal as it was made out to
be in Memphis. We all agreed that it was
made into a big deal most likely by my own
questioning of the subject. We are trying to
get Valerie in for a CT test that will show
more information than the one done at St
Judes.
Today, three of the girls went in to have
their eyes checked. Courtney's weak eye
still needs some improvement, Valerie's eye
look the same, but still with limited visual
field. Brooke's eyes looked great. Brooke
has been complaining about some visual
issues. She will be going in for an MRI
tomorrow (Tuesday morning) at 7:30am. They
will be doing it without sedation but with
an IV for contrast. Brooke is very afraid of
needles. Please pray that she is able to do
it comfortably, that the doctors and nurses
are sensitive to her needs, and that the MRI
comes back clean.
Tomorrow Valerie Grace will also go into see
Dr Smith. Wednesday the girls see the
dentist and I go in to see another surgeon
about the surgery I had before we moved to
Ecuador.
Thinking back to five years ago when we
didn't even get vaccines for our children or
take them in to see the doctor for anything
other than a well child check up - this
really seems like long lesson - too long at
times.
Honestly, these past months have been some
of the most difficult months of our lives.
We have hit lows that I didn't think
possible, and yet had some really great
highs in there as well. Throughout this all,
I have never doubted the Lord's love for us
- but have really struggled with our
marriage and just life in general. We went
to our church Family Group the first Tuesday
we were back in Florida. What a blessing to
be a room like that with people who really
love each other and minister to one another
in such tender ways. These past few days, we
have felt real hope that we haven't felt in
quite some time. My eternal hope has been
there, but the daily living here really was
becoming heavy.
If everything goes well, we have tickets to
go back to Ecuador in a week.
We would greatly appreciate your prayers
this week for our family - for peace, for
health and healing - for continued renewed
excitement and love for each other and those
around us.
Love,
Celeste
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Valerie and I had an enjoyable time
flying back to Florida. We had a little
bump in Charlotte that had us wait for a
pil  ot,
board a plane, then get off, then wait,
then board another plane - but by the
time we were on the final plane, Valerie
fell asleep before we even took off
(which made for a very easy flight).
Craig's parents picked us up and we
stayed at their house the first night.
Valerie was all into playing and stayed
up until 2am playing with toys. We all
went out to Chinese buffet Sunday for
lunch, then we Valerie and I drove Bob
and Sara's van to our house. We were so
touched to walk into a clean home
stocked with our favorite foods, a mowed
lawn, flowers, candy, and tshirts. Thank
you Sue, Bob, Patrick, Sara, and
Jennifer - we really feel loved.
I was able to realize fully just how
much the Lord blessed me with peace
about being in Memphis the last 4-5
weeks we were there. As soon as we went
outside the airport in Gainesville and
were greeted by that wonderful
 warm
air and green trees and plants - it was
like the Lord saying 'welcome back'. The
people in Memphis were wonderful, and
the dry air did wonders for my normally
frizzy hair - but oh how wonderful
Florida is. It was such a good
illustration as to why Ponce de Leon
named this special place Florida.
(Though I heard this winter was pretty
cold even here). Craig and the girls
left Memphis around 6am Sunday morning
and drove for 12 hours and arrived in Fl
around 7pm. We will never forget our
time in Memphis and it was certainly
made extra special by being able to
visit with Grandmother in Collierville
(a memory I will not soon forget). We
are also so thankful to
Habitat for Hope. Without their
help, we could not have been able to all
come to Memphis and stay together as a
family. St Judes was wonderful as well.
The doctors, nurses, staff, volunteers
and families were what made it so
special.
The girls enjoyed playing 
outside today in their bathing suits and
spraying water on each other. Valerie
Grace enjoyed swinging. Craig and I were
just enjoying the sunshine. Valerie has
to wear a hat outside now because her
scalp is more sensitive now.
We will be here two weeks and then we
will be heading back down to Ecuador. I
am honestly a little apprehensive about
going back. Our financial situation with
support is not very bright right now
(thank you to those who have finicially
supported us with monthly and one time
gifts - we even have one new monthly
supporter which has been a huge
blessing...it is just an area that the
Lord is teaching me to wait on and have
faith that He will continue to take care
of things) and now that I know more
about Valerie's artery issue, the
altitude concerns me (another area for
me to just rest in)...but Dr Kun has
assured us that since it is an old
problem with her artery, that it
shouldn't be an issue since we have
slept in Quito other times. Anyway, we
would appreciate your prayers for wisdom
and peace. Maria is very excited about
us coming back and many of the other
missionaries in Shell have emailed us to
let us know that they are looking
forward to us coming back (that really
helps - so thank you!). My cell phone
rang the morning before we flew out of
Memphis. It was Jaime! I never would
have thought that Jaime would call our
cell phone in the US. It was nice to
hear another voice from Ecuador and I
think Craig enjoyed speaking Spanish
again. We really feel the Lord wants us
to go back to Ecuador at the end of the
month - and I believe once I am back I
will feel great (sort of like not
wanting to leave St Judes, and then
getting back to Florida and being SO
happy to be back 'home').
Thank you for your continued prayers for
our family.
Love,
Celeste
Brooke doing math outside with Happy the
cat. Happy goes to live with our
neighbor while we are not here, but as
soon as we come to Florida, Happy comes
back over. He is always well fed and
this time had left a few remnants of
some unlucky birds on the back porch.
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We woke up early and went in for surgery. I
guess everyone else wanted to sleep in,
because when we got up to the surgery suite,
the doors were locked. The girls had fun
playing while we waited for them to open up.
Valerie went in well and chose to get gas
rather than have her port accessed again. I
suited up and went back with her, but she
was not very happy about the gas when it
came time to receive it - but she went to
sleep and I went to the waiting room with
Courtney.
The dentist came in and answered by many
questions and explained things to me a bit
more. I was very concerned about her having
to have teeth pulled. He then prayed for
Valerie with me and then left to do his
work. They removed Valerie's port and she
had her dental work done. I have no
explanation for why Valerie Grace's teeth
and hair being all in place is such a big
deal to me - here I was praying for her
teeth. When the dentist came back in to tell
us that she only needed a few white
fillings, I almost cried. A lady was in the
room with her family and asked why our
daughter is at St Judes. I told her it was
for a brain tumor, and told her that it must
seem weird that I am worried about teeth.
There was this solemn but sweet look that
came across her face and she said she
understood. Her grandchild was in for a
tumor on the leg - but that was only a small
piece of all this sweet family had been
through over the past few years.
It is difficult at times - we hear parents
talking about how they don't want their
children to have radiation exposure from CT
scans (been there, thought that) - this
sweet lady understood - no words needed to
be said, she just bowed her head and
silently prayed for our Valerie Grace. That
was part of the really special thing about
St Judes - we were in the radiation oncology
room M-F, sitting and talking with other
families who weren't worried about radiation
exposure from CT scans, but were hoping and
praying that the intense focused radiation
to their child's brain would help shrink the
tumors.
I have walked down the hallways of St Judes
too many times to count, and almost
everytime, I have spent that time praying -
praying for the children who are here, for
the children who are done with treatment and
for the doctors and staff who will treat
those who will walk through those doors for
the first time over the next years.
Valerie Grace is feeling well, eating soup
and a waffle and watching a movie. She had a
bit of a bloody nose from the tube that they
put up her nose for an airway. Her lips are
also a bit puffy, but she is happy.
Valerie and I fly to Gainesville tomorrow
afternoon. Please keep Craig and the girls
in your prayers. They will be making the
long drive to Gainesville on Sunday (12
hours if they don't stop).
Love,
Celeste
www.thewelchfamily.org
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Valerie Grace will go in at 6:30am
for surgery tomorrow morning. Please
pray that everything goes well and
for no infections. She is trying to
decide how she wants to be sedated
(she really doesn't enjoy having
gas, but with gas she wouldn't have
to have her port accessed (which she
also doesn't enjoy). She says she
will decide in the morning.
They will be removing her port and
also doing dental work. She should
be done by lunch time.
Today we said the rest of our
goodbyes and received the wonderful
blanket that all of the nurses who
worked with Valerie during radiation
had signed. It is so beautiful and
so special. We also said goodbye to
Craig's grandmother Hinton. I held
back crying for most of the day.
Hopefully this will be the last
medical thing that she has until we
come back in late May for a check
up.
We receive many sweet emails from
Maria in Ecuador - that really helps
make saying goodbye here a little
easier. She says her mom is looking
forward to seeing Valerie again. She
was so sad to see her leave and very
afraid of our American medicine and
treatment.
Love,
Celeste
 
First, you play doctor and explore all
of that equipment hanging on the walls.
Then, mom has to pull out the camera and
take silly pictures
Happy Face
Sad Face
Silly Face
extra happy face
Kissy Face
Sleepy Face
When all else fails....go fishing
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I am so proud of Valerie Grace. She has been
sedated every Monday through Friday for
radiation. Yesterday, she had an hour long
Visual Perseption testing right after
sedation and treatment and she was so
cooperative and sweet and completed
everything with such a sweet attitude (she
even cracked a few jokes during the
testing).
Today was her final day of radiation
treatment. The nurses have been signing a
blanket for her and one of her doctors even
signed it in Spanish. We are so thankful for
all of the kindness that has been shown to
our family and especially to our Valerie
Grace.
Valerie Grace saw one of her favorite nurses
in the waiting room and ran up to give her a
hug.
Valerie Grace being silly in the sedation
room - "last day in the Dora room"
Valerie Grace skipping to the van after
radiation
I am so proud of my special little girl.
Love,
Celeste
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Yesterday we went to church in
Collierville with Craig's grandmother.
It was so nice to meet many people who
have been praying for our family and who
have sent us sweet cards. Afterwards,
she took us out to Burger King for
Courtney's birthday (she will be 9 on
Wednesday). Then we went over to
Grandmother's house to visit. Courtney
had a nice bag of birthday gifts waiting
from one of Grandmother's friends (yummy
chex mix and sour dough bread) and
Valerie Grace had a beautiful knitted
purple bunny lovey. Thank you!
Craig and the big girls cleared a fallen
tree from the path to her neighbor's
house.
Then Valerie and Grandmother went to visit
the neighbors
Here is Sid and Brooke with Sid and Peggy's
sweet dog. Peggy and Sid have been wonderful
about keeping Grandmother updated the emails
that we send out about Valerie Grace. What a
fun day we all had.
Valerie having a piggy back ride on Craig
When we got home last night, Valerie made
this. I think this is the first time Valerie
has written something on her own (being her
own idea and no one there to help her).
Valerie has a late sedation time today. I think she is
scheduled to start radiation around noon -
just two more treatments to go!
Love,
Celeste
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On Wednesday, I was able to go back and
watch Valerie being set up for radiation
treatment and sit back with the highly
trained folks who monitor everything while
she is back there. It was really impressive
to see how much time went into setting her
up and getting her head into just the right
position before the mask was put on her face
and attached to the table. It really helped
me understand why she needed to be sedated
for every treatment. I am not sure how any
of the children do it without sedation, and
yet, each day, I see little 6 year old
Isabel come out of the radiation treatment
area just smiling after doing it without
sedation - amazing. The two people who help
each day with the radiation were so
professional and really did a great job of
explaining everything to me. The nurses and
radiation staff are so gentle with Valerie -
even when she is asleep. I cannot imagine
having gone through all of this treatment
without the compassionate nurses and doctors
that we have had.
We have begun to say our goodbyes to people at St
Judes. The volunteers in the playroom
rotate, so this was the last week that we
will see a few of them. The volunteers
really help make things enjoyable for the
girls. Today, Grandpa Tom helped the girls
open another
play dough restaurant. They made
menus, a sign, and lots of
play dough food. Parents came in to
place their orders. It was really sweet.
Ms Crystal (one of Valerie's favorite nurses) came in to play
play dough for a minute with her
before treatment.
For our appointment with Dr
Kun today, Ms Amy (the child life
specialist) let Valerie go and pick out a
movie and even hauled in paints and wooden
animals for the girls to paint while they
waited.
Just two more radiation treatments to go! Or
as Valerie says "two more days in the Dora
room". Valerie and I will be flying back to
Florida next Saturday. The Friday before we
leave, she will have surgery to remove her
port and dental work to fix her teeth. She
has a filling that fell out and some other
cavities. I would like to blame her teeth
problems on the chemo, but we (I) have been
really bad about allowing her to eat food in
bed (anything to add on the pounds). We have
been much better about brushing and were
given fluoride to use. Hopefully this dental
work will be the last that she needs.
Craig and the other girls will be driving
back to Florida. On the 30 th,
we will drive to Miami and then fly to
Ecuador. We will spend the night in Quito
and then make the drive five hour drive to
our house.
Love,
Celeste
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Just 5 more treatments to go! Valerie is
not feeling that well though. She again
has a lot of clear nasal discharge and
sleepy looking eyes and a cough. The
nurses here say it might be the weather.
Valerie is
usually so healthy. She woke up a
little slow from sedation today, like
yesterday, but within an hour, she was
ready to go make her own pizza at the
cafeteria (minus her favorite topping -
mushrooms - which they didn't have).
Then we went to occupational therapy.
She has had so much improvement after
just a few times of going. She uses both
her left and right hands about equally
to cut straight lines (she is now doing
this better than the other girls :) and
to draw with. It is very impressive to
watch.
Valerie also had a vision appointment
here. The doctor feels that she is
seeing light and motion out of her left
eye (yeah). Her right eye is seeing
20/20 still, but the visual field is
somewhat like if you cover your left eye
and put your right hand vertically on
the right hand side of your right eye
(like a semi circle field). This
explains why she will often get knocked
off balance if someone bumps her even
slightly on the right side and why she
goes down the hallway looking back and
forth (I normally tell her to look where
she is going - but that is how she looks
where she is going). I am SO thankful
that our girls are really careful around
her. I never noticed before coming here
how they really leave a space between
themselves and Valerie when walking by
or running around. They are so sweet.
They spent an hour yesterday trying to
get Valerie to take her baby
aspirin - finally Craig had to
put it in some
ramen noodles - but the girls
really tried hard (without our asking).
If Valerie cries from bumping anything,
the girls will run over and see if she
is okay - if she feels left out, Brooke
will stop playing with the other girls
and play with Valerie (which leads to
Courtney and Natalie joining in their
fun). The girls have all taken turns
sleeping with Valerie Grace too.
Brooke has been spending her allowance
money buying gifts for the other
patients at St
Judes. (we just started giving a
tiny allowance to the girls in January
to wise spending). Brooke just lights up
when a child smiles after receiving a
gift. The girls have all grown so much
since coming here. Going to St
Judes has been good for each of
them, and I am honestly a little sad
that time is coming to a close soon. It
has really been special.
Love,
Celeste
For our
light affliction, which is but for a
moment, is working for us far more
exceedingly and eternal weight of glory,
while we do not look at the things which
are seen but at the things which are not
seen. For the things which are seen are
temporary, but the things which
are not seen are eternal.
2
Corinthians 4:17-18
 Today
we went in for another day of radiation (day
seven of the count down). It was a later
start than normal, but St Judes does a good
job of having plenty to keep children
entertained. Today, we painted glasses for
an auction they will have to raise money for
the hospital. The girls had fun and we
painted 2 glasses each. We then headed down
to play with playdough in the radiation
playroom (and added 3 more cans of playdough
to our growing collection).
As we went in the elevator to go up to check
our mail, we were truly blessed to meet
(briefly) a young couple. The young man had
one leg and had recently had some sort of
head surgery. He was all smiles though. I
asked how his day was going and he said it
was going very well, much better than
yesterday. I told him that improvement is
good. He said that yesterday, they had given
him 2 months, but today they told him he had
another year (to live). He and the young
girl were just beaming - beaming that they
had 10 more months. I am not sure that I
have seen such joy on a stranger's face
since coming here. It
 was
one of those special moments the Lord gave
me that I will not soon forget. A reminder
to rejoice in all circumstances.
We would like to ask for prayers for our
landlord in Ecuador and her family. Her
husband died in an MAF plane crash many
years back. On Brooke's birthday (this past
Saturday), her daughter's boyfriend was
flying her daughter's plane when it crashed.
The boyfriend died in the crash. We had read
on facebook that the MAF pilots were looking
for a missing plane. Please keep this
special family in your prayers.
Love,
Celeste
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall
into various trials, knowing that the
testing of your faith produces patience. But
let patience have its perfect work, that you
may be perfect and complete, lacking
nothing. James 1:2-3
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Brooke had a nice birthday. Craig made her a
cake. We had no flour, so he floured the pan
with some
Swiss Miss hot chocolate mix (which
we had lots of :)
Brooke and I then headed to the Pink Palace
to see an
Imax movie about the Living Seas. We
looked around the museum for a while first.
It was quite a nice museum, but as we walked
through an
exhibit that had old medical
equipment, there was a perfect skull of a
young child on display. I couldn't move as I
looked at this little child's skull that had
been donated to UT for dental school
students - here it was being
gawked at by hundreds of people every
week. I felt like I was going to throw up,
and my heart sank. This was a mother's
child. Someone gave birth to this child who
died most likely between 3-5 years old.
Brooke and I walked around a bit more, tried
to get a bite to eat and for some reason the
Lord placed us in a really bad situation at
the eatery, that gave me the extra push to
go and talk with someone about both issues.
Anyway, the Lord led me to talk with the
manager (with total calm and love), who then
had another manager talk to us, who then
came by and found us in the
imax movie and gave us 4 free
imax and 4 free
planetarium tickets. They asked for
my contact information and also had us fill
out a written statement. Praying that they
will remove that little child's skull from
their museum. I kept thinking of all of the
St
Judes families who walk through there
since the Pink Palace offers free admission
to St
Judes families.
We sat down and really enjoyed the movie and
were treated to a winter wonderland of snow
as we walked out of the Pink Palace (and
several inches of snow on the road and our
van :) Brooke and I kept hearing a lady yell
"don't hit the lady - don't hit the lady" as
we were walking out of the doors of the pink
palace. Well - I was the "lady" she was
talking about - and she was talking to her
son who proceeded to throw a snow ball at
Brooke and I. Despite this little boys
horrible character - he had pretty good aim
and managed to hit us both. Brooke found it
funny. I amused myself as I thought of a few
things that might have given this little boy
a story to look back on :) - and we walked
on to the van.
The girls enjoyed playing in the snow over
the weekend. Valerie was up to her knees in
snow.
Tomorrow starts another week of radiation
treatments for Valerie Grace. Her sedation
times are very late each day compared to
last week. Tomorrow, she will be without
food until after 1:30pm. She is doing really
well with going without food and has a
really good attitude about it.
Next week, we plan to visit Craig's
grandmother's church in
Collierville (thank you to everyone
who has sent cards to the girls). We have
kept every card that has been sent.
Wednesday, I will go back to see the doctor
about my throat. We are praying that it has
begun to heal.
Love,
Celeste
Tomorrow our Brooke will be 11 years
old. Brooke was a little bummed at first
as she wanted to have her birthday in
Ecuador (she was in the US last year
too), but we hope that it will be
special for her here. Thank you to the
school in Collierville who sent so many
wonderful birthday cards to Brooke as
well as everyone else who sent birthday
cards. Brooke hopes to visit the class
that mailed her the birthday cards
before we leave.
Valerie has 7 more radiation treatments
now - just 7 left! She hadn't been
weighed in 2 weeks, but to our surprise,
when she was weighed today her weight
was up (I am thinking the two scales
might be different though as there are
two assesment areas and she always
weighs more at one and less at the
other). She also had early sedation days
this week, so that might be why her
weight is up. Next week she has some
later sedation times (no eating until
after 1pm).
Valerie has lost a patch of hair - right
in the front center (not sure how to
cover that up). She also seems to have
some visual changes as she has fallen
over things for the past two days. This
morning she fell on a chair and ended up
cutting her chin before radiation.
We are doing well though - Valerie still
has lots of energy and is keeping her
weight up by drinking heavy whipping
cream and eating cream cheese and butter
by the spoonful. She isn't a big eater,
so we try to pack as much fat in as we
can. Last night she drank a lot of water
after having her medicine for her
diabetes insipidus. She woke up at 2am
very cranky, hungry and unable to sleep.
She was asking for pretzels (which
always seems to happen when she has had
too much medication along with too much
water), but she couldn't eat because of
needing to be sedated this morning, so I
gave her a small bowl of salt. She ate
it and about 5 minutes later fell asleep
nicely and slept until a carried her to
the car this morning for treatment. By
the time we arrived at St Judes, she was
wide awake and ready to play.
We are expecting to be back in Ecuador
on March 30th. This will give us 2 weeks
in Florida before heading back. We will
be able to have Valerie's vision checked
there and see her doctors ast Shands
before going back.
Thank you so much for your prayers and
support.
Love,
Celeste
Over the weekend, we visited Great
Grandmother in Collierville. She treated
us to lunch at Burger King. We all had a
really special time together. Today,
Valerie Grace had the pleasure of her
favorite nurse and another boy (Chance).
She said "Thank you Chance" when he was
taking off her bandaid.
Natalie Joy received a WordGirl costume
in the mail from Grandma - she hasn't
taken it off since it arrived today :)
Craig arrived back safely last night and
my mom is flying out tonight. Valerie is
2/3 of the way through treatment!
On a very strange note - the resident
doctor who saw Valerie today lives in
Mars,PA. The same Mars PA that our good
friends are from.
At the bottom is a photo of the front of
the St Judes cafeteria.
Love,
Celeste
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It is 1 am, and today Natalie Joy has
been throwing up - Valerie Grace has
just finished another 5 days of
radiation - we have a lot of (what seem
to be) uncertainties....and yet, I
really can't express how overwhelmed I
am by the goodness of our Lord right
now. It has just amazed me this week how
the Lord has shown up in such big ways
during the few quiet moments I have had.
He has sort of ta |
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Last week, Valerie Grace was not feeling
well. We posted that on Facebook, but not on
our website (mainly because I don't like to
worry my mom, and she is not on Facebook,
but does read our website - sorry mom :)
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