whoopsie-daisy (you wouldn't believe the rabbit hole I fell down when researching the correct spelling of this...)

Goodness! (Apparently, I say that a lot, because Jacob has adopted it into his fairly-extensive vocabulary.) How is it that suppertime around here can drag on for what seems to be hours as we wait for the eldest child to do more chewing and less talking, yet I can't tell you where the four months since I last posted have gone?!  What I can tell you, however, is that we've been thoroughly enjoying the weather - outside playdates, making great progress in the garden, and splashing in whatever body of water we can get our feet in.  We now have a four-yr.-old (what?!) and a nearly one-yr.-old (again - what?!).  Though some parts of life seem to be back to the old normal, we have certainly adapted to and become fairly content with a new normal.

An additional (and significant) piece of news is Bryant nearly lost a finger while protecting his family from a ferocious wild bear.

;)

That's what he refers to as the "fun" story, as opposed to the "real" version.   The truth is he actually lost a fight with a table saw that hadn't quite stopped turning while he was cleaning up after a project.  It was an accident in all senses of the word.  While it certainly could've been worse, it was still an emergency situation that ended up requiring reparative surgery and rehab therapy.

The injury occurred on Bryant's right index finger, and the surgery also affected his wrist.   During his recovery, he was instructed not to drive or lift, and at the beginning of it, he was not supposed to get that upper arm wet.  Needless to say, that put a wrench in our normal routine.

If you have ever cared for someone after surgery, you know how much there is to manage.  (I had not.)  If you know me at all, you know I'm pretty terrible at asking for help, so was prepared to figure it all out myself.  (I couldn't have.)  Thankfully, our village stepped in immediately...for real - I didn't even take him to the ER when it happened right at the supper/bath/bedtime crunch.  They went on to help in countless ways; to name a few:

• weedeating
• rides to appointments (including the initial ER trip)
• watching kiddos
• providing meals
• sending thoughtful notes, etc.
• coming over to help with baths and bedtime
• offering to mow the lawn
• lots of prayer and moral support

This help was not provided by just one person or one circle of friends.  Our neighbors, family members, church friends, and many others stepped in to help in our time of need, and we are so thankful.  

We are also incredibly thankful that Bryant was permitted to work from home while he was in the cast and not able to drive.  His job requires him to be on location for about 90% of the work he does, so we were definitely not expecting him to be able to work during this time.  His employer was very accommodating, though, and as a bonus, we got a couple extra hours with Bryant during the days, since he didn't have to commute, at all, and I was also able to sneak out for the occasional short errand during naptime.  Typing and moving a mouse with one non-dominant hand was no walk in the park, but he never complained.

Bryant's wounds have healed, he has regained nearly all the strength and range of motion he lost, and he is optimistic about his recovery.  It's amazing to us that all this happened in April - a little over three months ago.  It feels like forever ago, yet at the same time, only yesterday

I'll spare you the gory documentation, but for posterity's sake, here are a couple pictures of our patient at various stages in the recovery process:

I appreciated Bryant's intentionality and thoughtfulness during this time, as well as his willingness to be creative in finding ways to make things as normal as possible for the kids and I.  I know it was not easy to navigate caring for a wiggly baby and playing with an active toddler with one non-dominant hand, but he figured it out.  He also managed to make this delicious Mother's Day dinner (albeit with a little help):  

God's protection, provision, and peace were so evident to us in this situation.  It is not lost on us that the outcome of this accident could have been much more severe, people could have looked past our tricky circumstances, Bryant could have taken a pay cut for several weeks, there could have been complications with the surgery and/or recovery - the list goes on and on.  This is yet another of life's seemingly-major obstacles that is so alarming and consuming in the moment, yet in hindsight, becomes a small bump in the road.  No matter the size, we are glad to have this "bump" behind us.

Gratefully,

Kensy

Favorites of the day:

hospitality - both giving and receiving

These two.  Jacob has been so excited, lately, to get to sit next to Lydia in shopping carts, and without a thought, immediately puts his arm around her. ♥
Remember that time I was worried about how I'd feel about having two kiddos and about how Jacob would feel about a sibling?  Many of you told me how wonderful it would be, and while I believed you then, I understand you, now.  It's just priceless.

Our matching swimsuits!

Our Village

When I was in the 5th(?) grade, I was asked to accompany the school choir on a song called, "If It Takes a Village."  (This is the closest I could come to finding a recording...that's not a home video somewhere at my parents' house, that is.☺)  As a result, every time I hear the phrase "It takes a village," whether it pertains to child-rearing, ministry, whatever, I sing it in my head.

The last several weeks have been...hard.  I'm not sure that adjective encapsulates everything that we've been dealing with, but it is as good a descriptor as any.  It's seemed that as soon as we put out one fire, another one starts (not literally, thankfully, though the way things have been going, it would not have surprised me to see some actual, unexpected flames).

I'm an optimist, as you've probably gathered, and my husband is a constant helper and fixer, so we were able to keep our chins up and take on each new trial as it came.  The trials just kept coming, though, and it became harder and harder to maintain a clear mind and a positive outlook.  With the help of the Lord and our village, however, we've come out mostly unscathed and are (fingers crossed) regaining some sense of normalcy around here.

The people in our "village" did not ask for acknowledgment, and in fact, I know one in particular would cringe at the thought of being publicly recognized for kind deeds done.  As I look back on the hard things these last several weeks have brought, though, I can't not remember and acknowledge the things people have done to make our life easier in the midst of it all.  They've seen needs and met them without being asked.  They've voluntarily cared for us in ways we can never begin to repay.  They've come alongside us physically, emotionally, financially, and spiritually in such tangible and practical ways, and I'm simply in awe of the generosity, kindness, and love we've been shown.

Our "village" has truly been the hands and feet of Christ to us, recently.  They always have been, of course, but I think I have possibly taken it for granted, or maybe just not always recognized it so clearly when life wasn't so "hard."  I'd like to take this opportunity, however, to acknowledge some of the specific ways we have been blessed by others in the recent past.  Our "village" is made up of both family and friends, and some of them were part of multiple deeds listed here.  Please know this is not a comprehensive list, by any means.

Lately, people in our "village" have been known to:

• invite us over for leftover cupcakes, because they knew how sad we were to miss the party.
• clean our house while they're there to let the dog out.
• make serious headway on our basement remodeling project while we were away for the weekend.
• sit with me while I make and accept the hardest decision.
• babysit our kiddo for free while I was away making that decision.
• watch our kiddo during piano lessons because plans changed last-minute.
• ask us to come swim because they enjoy watching our baby play in the water as much as we do.
• offer to come for a visit the week before we throw a birthday party, so they can help.
• put away leftovers after a party without being asked.
• bring me a sweet commemorative gift in honor of our kitty.
• invite us to stay at their house till our AC is fixed immediately upon telling them it broke (several people did this, and we actually took one of them up on it).
• cook meals for us while we're staying at their house.
• give input and genuinely care about our son's mysterious rash (it turned out to be nothing serious).
• give us Freon for our AC.
• bring their special tools to help fix our AC.

We're safe, healthy, cool (praise the Lord), and grateful.  If you did something on this list for us, thank you.  You know who you are, and if I haven't said it enough already, you've blessed us beyond measure.  If you feel I'm leaving something/someone out, please, please let me know.  It would be impossible to list everything anyone has ever done for us, but like I said, the large and small things people have done for us, lately, just added up so quickly, I couldn't help but share.

Gratefully,
Kensy

P.S. Immediately prior to posting this, my computer died (because it wasn't plugged in, though I thought it was) - wouldn't that have been the cherry on top of all this?  Ha.

Favorites of the day:

the splash park

garden-fresh cherry tomatoes

the fact that our baby boy loves to read to himself