I'm sitting by my Dad's bedside enjoying the lively sounds of Benny Goodman. Dad's physical condition has not been so great these last few months. My siblings who live near Dad have been sharing in his daily care. We have also hired an aid to be with him throughout the nights. This evening I'm taking my turn and am grateful for this time I can spend with him. Dad is resting now. I'm going to take these quiet moments to write this post.

This has been an unusually eventful summer and much of it has been a hard and emotional journey. Yet, like the Canaanite woman in today's gospel (Matthew 15:21-28), we need to persevere in our faith so that we may one day hear Jesus' voice as he joyously exclaims, "Great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.”

One of these momentous events was the birth of this sweet bundle of sunshine, my granddaughter, Mya Guadalupe! (Remember in my last post I mentioned we were praying to Our Lady of Guadalupe!) Like Mary Poppins, this little one is "practically perfect in everyway"... with one small glitch. It was in May that we first discovered Mya's condition. The tiny baby our daughter Sarah was carrying had developed Gastroschisis, a condition in which the abdomen wall does not completely form, allowing part of the baby's intestines to develope outside the body. The good news: the condition is fixable, but it would mean 6-8 weeks in the hospital. After a summer of bi-weekly doctor visits, Sarah gave birth to little Mya Guadalupe on August 1st. Mya arrived 4 weeks early, the day of her parents 5th wedding anniversary! The reinserting of the intestines was a gradual process, but by the morning of August 5th the surgeons were able to stitch her up. We are now waiting for those tiny intestines to heal and begin working as God intended!

As you can see, Mya is beautiful. I am happy to report that she has been co-operating well with the healing process! We are all anxious for her homecoming and look forward to holding her without a multitude of wires and tubes!

Our Lady of Guadalupe, thank you for your constant prayers and protection!

Peace and Joy!

Nancy

P.S.Would you please send up some prayers for our Dad? Thanks!

Persevering in Faith