The fits and crying that I mentioned last time, they happened. After praising God for His sufficiency, I totally crashed and burned. Not that God wasn't still sufficient. But I think I began to think I had something to do with the victories God had won. So He allowed me to see just how weak I really am! But since I realized my weakness, I can now depend on His strength!

We have had even more challenging times with Paul's parents. A few days after his mom's surgery, his dad became ill. Paul thought he could deal with it at home, but a wonderful physician friend said that he really should be in the hospital - which is a VERY DIFFICULT place for a person with dementia to be. He has pneumonia and has been in the hospital for over a week now. A VERY LONG WEEK!!! Because of the dementia, someone has to stay with Paul's dad 24/7. Because three of Paul's siblings have chronic health problems and his younger brother had the flu, Paul has stayed with his dad every night but three since his mom was admitted to the hospital. And some of those nights Paul's dad did not sleep. (So Paul didn't sleep either!) He's weary. We're weary. We're hoping that Paul's dad can go home tomorrow. (We were really hoping for today, but the doctors said maybe tomorrow.) When Paul's dad gets home, one of his brothers plans on staying with him most nights. I hope that goes as planned, because I don't think our family can continue with this schedule for weeks on end!

On a good note, Paul's mom is out of ICU! However, she does have some water in her lungs and had to have a blood transfusion earlier this week. We really don't know a whole lot about her condition. The only way to learn anything is to see the doctor during his rounds (which are at different times every day!). And even then we're likely to get only vague information! There's got to be a better way for doctors and patients/patient's families to communicate!

I need to remind myself to cherish the times of peace and normalcy. Because, as we've seen this month, trouble can invade suddenly and turn our lives upside down.