An overview of 2008

Well, here we are at the end of December already! How did that happen? :)
I never got around to sending out Christmas cards this year, I apologize to you all, so I will try to make it up to you with this entry.
I will give a brief note about the biggest happenings of each month and I hope to keep it moving, a lot has happened to our little family this year. Hold on tight, it is going to be a bumpy ride.
Jan. - My sister moved to Virginia, she works for Liberty University, in the Law Library and is still there working hard on her Master's degree.
- I had lasik surgery. Great decision with amazing results. Near perfect vision in both eyes!!
- Superbowl Sunday, my back went out.
Feb - Back problem diagnosed. Treatment begins.
Mar - Noah turns 3!!!!!!!!! He had a Thomas the Train party and God sent him a special gift of extra snow. Due to the near blizzard condition's we ended his party with a trip to a local sledding hot spot in our neighborhood. Big fun.
- Back treatment's continue.
Apr - Finish back treatments. Still in pain, concerned, but the doctor said it was most likely arthritis.
May - Collin turned 2!! He had a farmer/ tractor party. We were able to play outside in shorts during his party. What a difference 2 months make. Aaron and I realize we no longer have a baby.
- Back pain continues, no end in sight.
June - Kind of calm. We enjoyed a lot of family fun!
July - Virginia Baby! We went to visit Jenny! The trip was amazing. We went to a minor league baseball game, waded in the creek behind Jenny's house, went to an amazing 4th of July celebration. Most importantly, we spent time with Jenny!
- We went camping with my parents. A dream come true for the boys.
Aug - Aaron turned 30! We had a huge birthday party for both he and his aunt who turned 50 on the same day. It was kind of a mix between, Aaron Dell "this is your life" and a family reunion. It was fun, but very busy.
- Even though we spent the end of the month celebrating Aaron's life, we spent the middle of the month thanking God for saving my life. On the 13th, the doctor's finally diagnosed the cause of the pain I was experiencing. I had a birth defect that nearly ended my life. The did an emergency surgery on my right urerter to hold me over until the next surgery could happen. We were cut to the quick this month and we rejoice that God is not done with me yet!
Sept - The worst month of my life! I had surgery on the 16th. The pain was unbearable, but God sustained me.
- Early in the month we had a hurricane. Crazy winds and terrible power outages!
- My sister came out to help with the boys! My mom took an entire week off of work to take care of me! Aaron took an entire week off of work too. People came out of the woodwork to help our family get through this difficult time. We had a ton of meals made and brought to us and so much help with the boys. I am forever thankful for all of the love and support.
Oct - Aaron and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary.
- Healing continued, slowly.
Nov - I turned 30. I had the best birthday of my life. I think it may have something to do with the fact that I had almost died a few months prior, but it also has a lot to do with the people I love the most surrounding me and showing me their love.
- Collin started speaking a lot more. (Now he won't stop!)
Dec- I finally start to feel better and I can do much more.
- We did not overbook our calender this year, so we had a lot of time to enjoy the season! The kids really learned a lot more about Christmas, Noah especially. This was a beautiful Christmas for us.
When I look back over the past 12 months I am in awe of how good God is to us. Aaron is still heading up the single mom's oil change ministry at our church and God is making that ministry grow leaps and bounds. We hosted 4 oil change events this year and we were able to share God's love with many women. I have loved watching Aaron grow through this ministry and I love watching him draw nearer to God. Throughout all of the pain I experienced this year, Aaron was a rock for me. He kept helping me refocus on God and kept the house running. It always amazing me how the house runs when I am not in control! :) Speaking of my control issues, ;), God is really working in me too. I am trying to give Him the control in my life, but it is a daily struggle for me.
As of mid-December, I am the nursery coordinator at our church. The job is BIG, to say the least. To give you an idea, the woman who formerly held this position told me that she thinks that 3 people could easily share the work. I am still getting my feet wet, but I think I have averaged between 15 - 20 hours a week. I think it may slow down after the hectic holiday church schedule, but we'll see. I do love the challenge of the job and it is really nice to use my brain for something other than conversing with 2 and 3 year olds and working 100 piece puzzles.
In closing, I want to assure you that God is good, His love endures forever and He will NEVER leave us or forsake us!