A Christmas we will never forget!!!!

This Christmas was one that we will never forget.  As I write this post I am ever so thankful for the Lord's hand on our lives.  A few days before Christmas I began preparing everything for our trip to Arizona and California.  Our intention was to leave on Christmas night and drive straight through to Flagstaff, arriving on the night of December 26th.  Our kids were excited to see grandparents, aunts and uncles, along with their cousins.  We were also set to visit Disney Land for a day.


Stepping back several weeks, Jeff had been exceedingly tired.  He would come home from work and lay down and be asleep in seconds.  At first we attributed it to jet lag, the busyness at work along with the stresses of teaching people his job, starting a new job and the fact that our newly adopted daughter was not sleeping well.   Fast forward back to the week before Christmas, Jeff developed what we thought to be his annual broncitis cough, so I schedule a doctor's appointment on December 22 for him.  The doctor found his symptoms to be typical of his annual illness and prescribed medications accordingly.  The next few nights he coughed A LOT and we thought GREAT, THE MEDS ARE WORKING.

Christmas Eve we opted to not go to Christmas Eve service so that Jeff could rest up.  My parents and Johnny (our exchange student that lived with my parents a few years ago that is now in college in the USA) came for dinner.  When we went to bed that night we both still thought that the meds would do their job quickly and he would feel better in the morning. 

Before bed we set out milk and cookies for Santa.  Alexander also left a note for Santa. 

 Jeff was up through the night throwing up what we thought to be mucus.  At 5:30, while Jeff was getting sick 3 of the 4 kids were wide awake, so we all got up and opened presents! 

 For Santa had surely been here... and ate all of the cookies and drank all of the milk and took the note that Alexander left for him!!!

 The kids were excited!!!

 Samuel loved everything and might have like unwrapping more than what was inside the gifts!

 Alexander enjoyed getting several new cars from the Cars 2 movie!

Zachary had a toss up of favorites.  Was it his new ties..... 

or his new DS?  He loved them both... just in different ways!

Myah seems to like her new doll... but she is also fond of her new panda.

Daddy was trying to be excited!  He felt really bad!

While Jeff was opening gifts he became very sick and than went to bed.  After awhile the kids noticed that I still had unopened gifts, so they wanted me to open mine.

Since we got up at 5:30, the kids had plenty of time to play with their new toys before getting ready for church.  Of course Jeff stayed home in bed!  After church Jeff was not up to going to my parents house, so the kids and I went ahead.

We opened stockings...

 Tried on big brothers tie.....

and attempted to pose for a few pictures

and than were going to eat breakfast for lunch.  I called Jeff to see how he was feeling and he was not answering.  Dad, Johnny and I went to check on him and decided it was time for him to go to the ER.  Jeff and I headed to Menorah Medical Center where he was diagnosed with acute renal failure and congestive heart failure.  That doesn't even mention the fact that his other organs were not doing their job.  The Kidney doctor chose to have him go to a different hospital so that he could undergo a kidney biopsy the next day.  After 4 nights in the hospital, many blood tests, major medications and an eager to get home attitude, Jeff was released on December 29th.  After all the results were in... the initial cause was strep (which Jeff didn't even know he had). 

Now that we look back on nearly a month ago, we are thankful that Jeff is much better and that God spared his life.  So, it wasn't the best Christmas we have ever had... but certainly one we won't forget.