Quick update:

The tests came back; negative for Rheumatoid Arthritis but no word on what it might be.  I go back for a follow-up appointment on Wednesday and I hope to get some more information and maybe an idea about why my hands would hurt when I hardly use them to do the things that usually cause such problems.  I don't put pen to paper very often and I spend only about 5-6 hours on the computer a week.   So, we'll see.  She did prescribe some high-powered aspirin for RA sufferers.

Giosué went in for his follow-up appointment with the Ear, Nose & Throat doctor who put the tubes in his ears last Wednesday, and, you won't believe it....he had an ear infection. ! But, the tubes seem to have done their job and his ear drained properly and we were able to pull through it without screaming in the middle of the night or antibiotics. Definitely a step in the right direction.  Though, when I explained to the doctor that he seems to have bad allergies and often has a runny nose, he suggested considering children's Claritin if it continues since the runny nose leads to congestion and then an ear infection.  Daily medication before the kid is even 3? Good grief.

And, now for some new photos!

Giosué's favorite 'gift' from his birthday; it lasted about 4 weeks before I finally got tired of tripping over it and threw it away. Am I terrible or what?

Giosué's big boy bed!

Isaac; is he sticking his tongue out at me?

My new best friend...and just my size too!

Can I get a massage?                                          Giosué mistakenly believes he

My neck is killing me!                                          has Russian ancestors.

One of Giosué's favorite books...Thomas!

We drove down to Belton to meet up with Shaina who was in Texas for a wedding; Isaac was a little wary of his new 'friend' who tried to steal his nose and squealed until he cried. It'd be okay with me if he felt that way about girls until he was 20 or so.=)

So good to see you Shaina!

My MOPS (mothers of preschoolers) had a walk to raise money for our group next year and we were able to see a helicopter and fire truck up close at the event:

Future fire fighter?

Sorry to be redundant, but I've another request for prayer.

I have been experiencing soreness and stiffness in my hands upon waking in the mornings since about the middle of my pregnancy with Isaac (about 9 months or so now.)  My midwife suggested it might be hormones so I dealt with it (it was only slightly annoying, not really painful and it didn't last long.)  But, Isaac is nearly 6 months old now; so I went to see the doctor this morning.  I described my symptoms and she had several other questions: numbness? etc.  Many of you will remember that I sometimes experience numbness in my fingers when it is cold out and my extremeties turn deathly pale; this occurred much more often prior to Giosué's birth.  I told the doctor all this and that sometimes I would experience excrutiating pain if my hands were both cold and wet and they would go from pale to bright red.  She felt all these descriptions fell neatly into the symptoms for Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA).  So, we are having some lab work done on blood samples and x-rays she took today to find out what is going on.

The good news is that RA is now treatable (stoppable, in the doctor's words) where before there was little they could do about it and it is certainly less scary than some other possiblities because of this. Please pray that whatever they find that it be something.  That may sound odd, but I know something is not right and I would rather it be indentified and move toward treatment than still be in the dark and not be able to do anything to keep the situation from getting worse or developing into something else.

Thank you all for your faithfulness in lifting us up.  I am constantly reminded, I am sure as a result of your prayers for us, that our 'trials' are light in comparison to so many people around us.  I find myself fearful for the well-being of my son because he is undergoing a 15 minute procedure and my mother tells me of an acquaintance whose 4 month old just had his second heart surgery!  I wake up with stiff hands, but it goes away within a minute of exercising; this is not the case for people I hold dear like Hannah and Donna. I find these light afflictions of mine a constant reminder to pray from those in much greater anguish and pain.  How great is His mercy, and much more so that it is new every morning!

After 13 ear infections, we're hopefully about to find some relief.  Giosué is scheduled for a typanostomy Thursday morning.  This is the technical term for the procedure that will put a small tube in each ear to help drainage in the ear and should help prevent many ear infections in the future. 

Giosué will have to be put under general anesthesia so we would appreciate your prayers, even now, but especially early Thursday morning that he would not have any adverse reactions to the anesthesia and that the surgery will be successful and helpful.  Thank you!

Also, we have finally closed on a house; some of you were aware that we were in the process of doing this since January.  We are planning to do a good bit of remodeling on the interior of this new house by June 1 and move into it and rent out our current home to a few HPU students.  I plan to post before/after pictures of the inside once it is done, but here is what the house looks like from the outside:

It is a three bedroom, 1 3/4 bath house.  The square footage is currently a little smaller than our home now, but we will be expanding the kitchen and adding a laundry and pantry area which will increase the living space significantly.  It also has a two car garage which is very nice considering the hail damage our car experienced two years ago.  Moving Day...here we come!!