Thank You

**I started this entry in July...Summer Quarter has taken all my free moments !!!

First and foremost, we come to you with grateful hearts for the way you extended Love and support to us as we trusted the Lord to provide for Isaia's Speech Therapy camp. We were able to meet all the needs for camp, hotel,gas and food. We could not have done that without your support and the Lord's promptings. It was a little uncomfortable to ask and yet it was so humbling to know that we have such an amazing team behind us through so many ups and downs these past few years.
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you !!!

It has been nearly a month since we left for Speech Therapy Camp. It was an amazing experience and we are continuing to see the results each day. It was a very intense program. He had speech for 4 hours every afternoon. He worked with two incredible Dr's and a wonderful Grad student named Erin. We have learned so much about apraxia and ways to help Isaia work through his sounds. He gained so much confidence and met some great friends. We were given a phonics program to use at home that they used during camp. It has really been a bridge to open him to the word world!!
One of the most memorable comments he made to me was on the way to camp one day..he said"Mom, I really like my new friends here at camp because they all talk a little different, but no one laughs and says stuff like some kids do back home" I asked what he meant and he told me how lots of times, kids tell him he is talking a foreign language and laugh about it, he says it's ok but it's nice to not feel different. My mama heart was sad to hear that,but also grateful he was able to open up and share with me. I always fight back the concerns as he goes out with kids, wondering how difficult it will be for him to communicate and when he will reach his frustration and just shut down. Some days it's hard when he wants to say something and he tries and tries and we just don't get it. Camp Candoo gave him so much encouragement to keep trying, speak slow and also some new ways to make sounds more clear. We are so thankful we were able to experience this camp.

The week before camp was rushed with Graduation prep. Our first Homeschool grad,Aaron-AJ. I am very thankful for the other moms who really were the brain behind the ceremony. We have home-schooled since he was Kindergarten age, until this year when he went to Olympic College for Running Start. It has been a wonderful season,stretching and learning together as a family. We are so proud of the young man he has grown into. He is working through the summer and then headed off to Bible School in the fall for a gap year program, and then work on earning his pilots license.At this point he would like to be a missionary pilot one day, we will see where the Lord takes him :-)

We arrived home from camp as the older kids were returning from our church youth camp, the Friday of Fourth of July weekend. We spent the weekend at a slow pace. Just being back together again. The past three weeks had been a whirlwind.

On Tuesday after the 4th, I started school at Olympic College and so it has just not slowed down. I am taking a full load and realizing how stretched I can or can not be. Algebra 2 has brought me to a new level of studying,(and frustration) it has been 25 years since I did math on this level, but summer quarter has no mercy with 4 hour night classes and only 6 weeks to squeeze it in. SO, you just gotta do what you gotta do !!
 Kids are trying to help out around the house more and Katie has taken on much of the meal prep and planning which has been a great help to me. So thankful for her heart and love for cooking ! She is also babysitting a couple mornings a week which has been fun for her.

All this to say , I am working on Thank you notes,and with everything else they are a work in progress.

Jerry had a great eval at our last visit to the Spinal Cord Injury Unit at the VA. His walking continues to improve. He was fitted for some new types of orthotic -like products that are being made to help with his gait. I am working on a progress video I will share soon. ( when I find some extra time). He has came so far this past year, I am so proud of how hard he has worked. The road ahead is still long but the progress each day gives us hope and reminds us how far we have came.

Summer for Sarah is busy with swim team and swim meets. She is loving it and it keeps us on the go.She received a scholarship and will be attending a sailing camp in the Harbor this summer.She is pretty excited for that opportunity.

Just wanted to give an update on life here and let you all know how Blessed we are by each of you. Stay encouraged friends, seek Joy today.


Much Love to you all,
Tammy,Jerry,AJ, Katie, Sarah and Isaia

Posted with Blogsy

Here we are

Dear family and friends,

We hope this finds you all well. We want to Thank You for being so supportive of our family,especially this last year.

We went to see the Chief Neurologist for Jerry's 1 year follow up last week... He looked at Jerry sitting in his wheel chair and said he heard he was walking some. Jerry told him he is walking more and more at home. The Dr. Looked at his MRI and stated that looking at it, he was quite surprised to hear that ! Jerry told him the Lord is giving him his strength and can do mighty works. We trust there are bigger plans ahead.

We left there reminded of all that the Lord has done this past year and what a miracle it is to see him walking more and more. Praise the Lord.

This fall, Isaia, our 8 year old finally got a diagnosis for his extensive speech disorder. He has CAS- Childhood Apraxia of Speech. It is deeper than just articulation, more -motor skills and neurological-training his brain to help his muscles move the correct way. He works so hard at it. This past year we have not been able to put in his full time speech therapy;with all the time given to therapy for Dad. He has been at a point lately where he is beginning to shut down when he has to talk to grown ups or even kids his own age whom do not know him well. This little guy is filled with great thoughts and ideas and our biggest fear is that he would shutdown and not share his beautiful mind with others.

We learned of a special camp just for kids with CAS in Spokane. (This is a good 5-6 hour drive) It is offered through WSU/EWU Health Science centers-Camp Candoo.They accept 6 students through the age of 8. We sent a video and applied to the program and quickly received notice that Isaia was a perfect candidate and could take the last spot. We have been super excited for this opportunity for him. He will have one on one therapy and they have parent sessions to help us work with him more. Jerry and I are looking forward to this opportunity to learn new tools alongside of Isaia.
The camp is two weeks in length , running from June 20-30. We are working on lodging and waiting to hear back from insurance on how much they will cover.

This is the purpose of this note, we have tried to trust the Lord for every need this past year and He always meets us where we are and provides for things as they come up. As we seek the Lord in this , we have felt that we are to share this need with you .

Here is our basics these days: Jerry is now receiving Social Security Disability and his military retirement.We are beyond thankful for these funds. We are able to pay the mortgage, all our insurances, phone,power, tithes and medical bills,and that leaves about 400 a month left for gas and groceries and anything else. Gas seems to be a big expense with all the appointments we have for Jerry still, at least 2-3 a week. We are working on getting our mortgage redone, and Possibly selling the truck. I am planning to start Olympic College in July and depending on financial aid, might have a little funds for transportation. Many Things are pending in the next month or so.

Right now ,we are really stretched and honestly could use some financial support to get our little man to this program. The camp cost 900 dollars and we are hopeful the insurance will cover 50% at least. The gas and lodging (I have found a hotel for 70$ a night and still looking for other possibilities) to get there and back and leaving food for the older kids and packing food for us to take. I know the Lord saved that last spot for Isaia and I trust it all to come together.

We are hoping you can pray with us for the provisions to be met however the Lord declares. We have been trying to make this work but have come to a place where we feel like we need to share our needs. If you are able to help in any way we would be so appreciative and thankful.

Thank you for being vital in our family's life this year, We are so grateful for your Love and care of us.

All our love,Humbly
The Hollaway's
Jerry, Tammy, AJ, Katie, Sarah and Isaia

PO Box 637
Lakebay,WA. 98349

Isaia loves history, his favorite time periods are the Revolutionary War and World War II.

He spends a lot of time re-enacting battles with his soldiers, legos or even drawing out battles.

Posted with Blogsy

Spring brings many new things our way

May came in with a beautiful,sunshiny display. The temperatures are rising and it feels so nice to be dry and warm outside at the same time !

The warmer days of spring have been so good for Jerry. His thermometer in his body still doesn't quite work. Usually he is always cold, kinda like me. Usually he does not like the warmer weather, unlike me !

The cold seems to increase his spasms in his body, so having warm weather has been a blessing. It has encouraged him to get outside most days. Now, we just have to remind him to not overheat. His body doesnt't sweat, crazy nerves !!

He works in his shop and has been doing little projects around the house as well. He is walking more, I catch him wobbling to his shop when he doesn't want to use his cane. (Though he is getting so much better ) Seeking his independence !! I really need to find him a more personalized cane for his spry age. If you see something that would be fitting, let me know ;-)

He is still doing Physical and Occupational therapy two times a week. We have changed his days to Mon/Wed for the most part so he can come to the Y with us on Tues/Thurs eve. That keeps him pretty active with exercising 4 days a week and has helped keep him up and going most of the rest of the time as well. He is building up his strength on the bike and a few weeks ago he actually floated in the pool. Which seems like such a simple thing,but for some reason with his nerves his buoyancy has been off. Every new accomplishment is a huge victory ! I am so proud of him and how hard he has worked with therapy and not giving up. He still has lots of nerve weakness throughout his hands and lower body. We are hopeful that with time this will all return. Knowing that our timing is not God's timing is the key to all of this !

For those of you whom have not seen him in a while, he stopped shaving in Sept !! It was hard to hold a razor and I guess you could say he didn't trust me with the razor ??? I have a few pics....

 

In April we went back up to Seattle VA and he went through Driver's Rehab. He passed his cognitive and his drive test and is back behind the wheel, officially. He is mostly building up his endurance for it now. Between his meds and his back pain , those are the two things keeping him from any big excursions so far.He does the drive to Church now, and has been driving at least one way to therapy in Bremerton. It's been a lot easier budgeting gas for one vehicle anyways ;-)

Meanwhile, the rest of the family is staying busy and keeping Dad on the move.

In Feb, Jerry's daughter, Rhiannon, whom lives in Connecticut, gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. The first Grandbaby... Miss Lena. It is lovely seeing Rhi as a mama.

A.J. Is in his last quarter of Running Start- a dual credit program for High School. After beginning this Homeschool journey 13 years ago,he will be graduating in June.

Katie is staying busy with her studies as a sophomore, getting into some photography, and making her paper flower bouquets...and she helps out so much with meal prep when I'm on the road.

Sarah is usually tucked away in a book and is on swim team this past year and loving it.

Isaia has really hit a spot in his speech therapy that had us looking for new ideas. This winter he was diagnosed with CAS- Childhood Apraxia of Speech. This has opened a whole new world to us with working with him and seeking new ways to help him communicate better. If you know him, he has lots of grand things to share. Our biggest desire now is that he doesn't get frustrated and stop talking when he is not understood.We just received word that he has been accepted into a camp this summer at WSU in Spokane just for kids with Apraxia. We are still learning all the details but are very excited for this opportunity.

New seasons mean changes, and for me that means something new too. I am going to go back to school. We have talked about it for years and have decided this is a perfect time. Jerry is going to do more of the homeschooling and I will be working on my pre-reqs this fall for applying to Nursing School at Olympic College. I am really excited and looking forward to whatever is ahead.I am sad to step away from homeschooling the kids but looking forward to being able to help the family out in a new way.

Jerry goes back in to the neurosurgeon mid May to discuss his lower back. It has been so hard watching him struggle with this back pain for so long. Not sure what is the best thing for treating him but praying for wisdom as we seek more info.Please pray for comfort from the pain, He is tired of taking meds and would love relief.

Mostly we just want to share progress and continued thankfulness to all of you for coming alongside of us during this past year and a half . Your love and prayers mean so much to us.

Blessings~Tammy,Jerry and family

 

Posted with Blogsy

2016 ~ How it began

 

I finally have a load of words floating around in my head again...this is one of two blog post coming out just to update you all. We sure Love you all. Thanks for following along :-)

Here it is May and life keeps us going in so many directions. Mostly , moving forward. That's the goal, to finish each chapter well. Somedays , I have to remind myself over and over, that this story isn't over yet.

This winter brought us all through a season of discouragement. I will be honest with you and say that it was one of the hardest couple of months I have ever journeyed. We were blessed by many during the holiday season and reminded of how much the Lord loves us and has surrounded us with such amazing support.

January brought me through the unjoyfulness of kidney stones, to say that they were bothersome is an understatement. I spent weeks, 3 to be exact,comforted by heat packs and consuming enormous amounts of water and pain meds. It gave me a new perspective on Jerry's consistent back pain, which to this day seems to be a non-stop battle for him.

Jerry was realizing that it had been a year since he stopped working. That in itself was discouraging,but then to see that physically his body was worse in functioning than Jan 2015 was defeating to him. A year later, his lower back injury is still bringing intense pain, but he also has the dealings of spinal cord injury to add to it. There are moments when you can see the "woe is me" and it can suck you into this dark place where life is simply a moment to moment struggle. We both know there is Hope. HOPE is the Light in those dark moments. Our HOPE is in the Lord. HE is omnipresent. He is steadfast. He is orchestrating every good and difficult part of our story. HE is waiting on us to call out to Him. Like any loving parent is. I am thankful for His arms that rescue us with Love and Grace overflowing.

I spiraled downward in Jan and Feb, myself. The weariness of the last year became heavy on me. The reality of what was ahead was not what I wanted. The dreams we have had and looked forward to all have to be changed, I was overloaded with responsibilities. I did not like the 'new normal'.

I was yearning for the normal I used to know. Wanting my hard working man to just walk in the door from a long day of work so I could be his biggest fan and welcome him home to a nice meal and restful evening. Those days are gone, for now. The winter in the NW, cold, wet, gray and gloomy had welcomed the mood of sedentary, unmotivated life in him. While I just felt lost to myself. I came to a place where I was tending to the needs of 5 people whom I love, trying to make school days productive, pouring out what little energy I still had in me. I felt like I didn't know who I was, Tammy. Not wife or mom, just me this girl from a map dot in Louisiana. Wondering what it was that I even liked anymore. What color made me happy or food do I like. But even feeling all these things, I felt guilty for even thinking about me !! Although, I just wanted to curl up in a dark corner and just be alone...let me tell you.. In a 700 sq ft house with 5 other people, THAT IS IMPOSSIBLE :).The weariness was so heavy but the Lord is strong and HE does prevail.

Those two months brought me to a new place of trusting the Lord and his plans. I had to fight to get my JOY back, to even desire to seek joy again. Yes, that's how I felt. But I didn't do it alone, friends stayed close, they let me have those hard moments but were ready with prayers as life preservers to pull me out as soon as I went too deep. I hope if you are struggling through a dark time you have friends who can be that lifeline between you and the Lord to carry you out. IF NOT, message me, call me..I will pray with you.

Jerry and I both had to get real, find TRUTH in the hard days that we were walking through. Not to be ashamed of things being hard, but to admit that it's not easy right now and we can sure use some encouragement and a helping hand to see the Light of the Lord shining through.

To be reminded of all the good and glorious things that have happened in the last year. Sometimes, it's just redirecting our eyes. It seems so easy but it's an action that takes willpower to fully achieve.

We both had a weekend where we were apart and trusting God to move our hearts back to a place where they could be filled up again and revived. My weekend consisted of a women's retreat. Surrounded closely by women whom were life speaking and loving. The speaker started the night off with this phrase "Your story isn't over..." And an activity that was about "Discovering who you are again". In those first hours of the weekend my heart began to beat again, knowing that this was all part of this great journey we are on and going through another difficult time is really okay; as it too, can bring glory to the Lord. He allows us to overcome and come out stronger on the other side of each and every circumstance. Great is thy Faithfulness.

Jerry, also, had a filling weekend. He was able to share His Story at a Men's breakfast. The Lord's plans laid out perfectly, and he shared the great things and the hard things. he was surrounded by men to lift and encourage him. We both came away from that time apart renewed and ready to move forward again. I am truly greatful for the experience, though I hope to not repeat that, Lord willing.

We covet your continued prayers as we move forward in our story each day. Thank you for being beside us on this journey.

We are blessed and so thankful for each of you.

If you really need a prayer partner please leave a comment, I would be honored to pray for you in whatever is going on in your life ~ Tammy

 

Posted with Blogsy

Reflecting with Gratitude

*** I started the following blog entry in Nov, I am finally finishing it and updating another post very soon ;-)

The days seem to fly by and I think about updating everyone and then another day passes. We are at 7 months post surgery. I have so many thoughts about where we are on this journey.
Here is the latest on Jerry's progress

Jerry is upright most days walking with a cane. Many times, even leaving it hanging on the dresser while he bobbles around the property. He gets around in our house well enough. What an amazing miracle to think back to 7 months ago when he couldn't move most of his body !! He walked 800 ft in therapy this week !! He makes it out to his shop and finds himself occupied with little projects and just a place to be, think and pray. I love the moments I walk in and see him sitting at the end of his workbench ,soaking up time with the Lord. Then there are days I walk in and  he is sound asleep in his chair. He tries to fight off the sleepiness from the medications,though they usually win if he slows down. I have learned in the past few months not to hover over him and let him be. It's not easy, I have fears, I fear he falls or he tries to cut some wood and something goes wrong with his hand control and he injures himself. Or he climbs up a ladder and his legs don't work the way he wants them too.!!   I send the kids out at different times to "check on Daddy". I want him to have that independence but, I Don't want to go backwards... That is my fear, one wrong fall or injury and he has to go back in to the spinal unit and we have a setback. I have trusted God this far , yet, this is a daily struggle I have to surrender over and over.

The cold weather is another obstacle with his spinal injury. His thermometer doesn't work right and he is always cold. The tremors - actually called clonus, that he has dealt with for years, gets pretty bad, especially when he is cold.  They cause him to shake uncontrollably for a few seconds to a minute. We seem to have the heat on higher than normal this year, just to accommodate his thermometer. Definitely thinking about a wood stove for next winter.

Our hearts are overwhelmed at all the ways we have been carried through this year. We know that the Lord has provided for us in such a multitude of ways through so many of your hands.  Thank you for being part of God's story for Us, this past year.  Jerry only did one horse in 2015 = 50$. This fall he was able to get on Disability. I write this to remind myself and whomever reads this (especially our kids) that the storm may come and it might seem impossible to go one more day, but when you have nothing but the Hope of Jesus to hold onto, He will not let you go.

It has not always been easy this past year to see how things were going to work out.  It still isn't always easy , yet, I do know that our needs have always been met and I have Trusted the Lord to provide in all ways.  The monetary gifts took away the worries of how to make ends meet, allowed for us to function in some kind of normalcy, allowed us to put gas in the car to get from one point to the next, sometimes even the only possible way we would have seen the kids was through those gifts when we were apart.  Keeping the mortgage paid, the utilities and the groceries. The meals that have been provided over the past year have always been such a blessing, especially when I was not able to be "mom at home". The numerous ways our fridge and freezer and pantry have never went empty, even when there were days when I wasn't sure when we would get groceries next, there always seemed to be an answer the next day. A reliable vehicle, a roof for the shop, an electric recliner, a camper for company this summer, a family get away, adventures for the kids..... the Blessings list is longer than all of this and We are beyond grateful for all the ways you have helped us this year
.
Some of the most impacting Blessings, though, were the words spoken to us, the phone calls, the text messages, the cards with words of Love and encouragement. The Prayers that really lifted us up and carried us.  So many times , it felt like it was going to be too hard to do the 'next thing' and then a word of encouragement and love came through in some form and that was just what Jerry or I needed most at that moment to keep going. Your Time is valuable, and when you take a moment to spend time on someone else it becomes even more valuable. It might seem insignificant, or even bothersome, yet you were prompted in some way ,in your heart to take time, your precious time, and share a moment with someone else.  That gift of time has been the greatest Blessing...I know for me there were times this past year when I felt so unsure of how to respond or what I needed to do next.  I was alone, the kids were home, Jerry was in a hospital bed and I was left to make decisions and try to make sure things were in order or kids were all fine and I would receive the gift of time from someone in some way, and that was the reminder that "No, I am not alone". We have a circle of friends that reach far and wide and the Lord chose each of you to be a part in our story and we are so thankful for each of you .

2015 has ended and I can say it has been one of the hardest years of our life, but it was also one of the Grandest years, as well.  Our journey has a long ways to go and I hope you will continue to be a part of it.  Much Love to you all ~ Tammy and family

Here is a video of a song that has become my anthem this past year, May it encourage you .

Posted with Blogsy