25 Weeks and No One Is Pregnant- Josh's 25 Week Update

Please find this as funny as I do.  I giggled when writing 25 weeks realizing women that are pregnant refer to the number of weeks.

Thank you again to each of you who have walked these past 25 weeks with my family.  Josh was diagnosed with Bilateral Vestibular Failure with a Complete Loss of Vestibular Function.  A challenging diagnosis that will have lifelong effects.  Each day is different. Some days he is filled with energy and able to be upright most of the day and even do some fun things with our family. Other days are so very challenging where brain fog and head pressure detour him from doing just about anything. He tries daily to do something. Anything. Sometimes it is to clean the car out. Or go for a walk or bike ride.  Some days it is lunch out at a restaurant. Other days require 4 to 6 times of laying down to rest and a quiet house to just enable him to function.

He has struggled the last few days with extreme brain fog, noise sensitivity and lack of energy. So the days are quiet and we try to keep the noise at a bear minimum. He has a conference call for work this morning and then we are going to attempt to take Zach to lunch before heading to his back to school day at Chanhassen High.  (Lily started 6th grade yesterday at Cologne Academy. She loves Junior High!)

We are praying for Josh that he will be approved to work from home part time starting the 10th of September. He sees his Vestibular Rehab Specialist on the 9th. She wants to assess his progress and well being one more time before she signs off on his return.  We are concerned that he will do too much too fast, so part time from home is a good start.  Josh will now will working in Recruiting for Lunds & Byerly's. He will office generally at home, but technically he can office at any store, and will eventually go to corporate maybe one day a week.  We pray that Josh will slowly be able to work up to full time hours by the middle or end of October.

Praises to Report:
We were able to make it to the retreat center in Wisconsin for a fun filled day a few Saturday's ago.  This time was so good for our family.

We were also able to away for a few days last week with Josh's family. Lots of swimming and boat rides and golfing and playing games together. It was tough for Josh, but we were so glad that we were able to do this as a family, as we had to turn around in July when we attempted to go to the cabin. It was a fun time together.

Lily had a great start to her 6th grade year and junior high!

Zach is super excited to return to school next week!



Prayer Requests:
Please pray for peace and rest. Josh struggles with anxiety (very typical of BVF) and struggles with restlessness. Please pray that he enjoys each day, remains calm and collected in the evenings and that he sleeps well each night.

Please pray as Josh returns back to work hopefully on the 10th of September. Pray for his bosses and coworkers as they learn about Josh and all that he is capable of. Pray for understanding if things don't go as planned. And pray for discernment as Josh works through pain, discomfort, brain fog and all the struggles he faces daily.

Please pray for our kids. Zach (15) and Lily (11) are in the throes of returning to school. Please pray for a successful and learning filled year!

Please pray for me as I jump back into my fall work schedule on September 10th. I am teaching a Tuesday morning bible study and I am now in the full editing phase of two books. I hope to have them completed by the end of October and to move on to the next steps of publishing. With a full schedule this fall, like every mom, please pray for stamina and joy.  That I will not be overwhelmed, but able to approach each day with a positive attitude and rely not on my own strength.

Please pray for fun family times for our family!  We have had a lot of months of quiet and are starting to get back into the swing of things.  We love game and movie nights and family walks. Pray that these times are meaningful and affirming for our kids.


How can you help?
*Summer is almost over, but we are still in need of help with mowing our yard and weed whacking.

*We also need help only for a couple more weeks with pool cleaning and then eventual take down when it gets too cold to swim.

*My family consumes a ridiculous amount of red apples!  If you are swinging by the store or Costco, we would love some apples! Zach alone eats 3 to 6 a day.  And I am only able to make it there about once every two weeks. I thank you for helping us with this weird request. :)

Thank you friends. Thank you family. Thank you for your love, your prayers.