Blessed, crazy week.

What a crazy week it has been! Wednesday my younger brother, Ivan, called Alex. He wanted to talk military. He just took his GED and ASVAB and was trying to figure out what branch he wants to join, and what job he would want. His scores on the ASVAB were high enough that he can probably have pretty much any job available. Crazy that my little brother is becoming a man.

Thursday morning I was talking to my oldest sister, Erin, and she told me that our dad was in the hospital. As we were talking, Heidi -who was the one who took Daddy to the ER- let us know that he had suffered from a minor stroke. The diagnosis at that point was that it will be a long road to recovery, but because he still had some muscle control it's more likely that he will fully recover.

Friday I talked to Ivan again and he shared that he and my other younger siblings had all heard about our dad. One of my little sisters had taken the news quite hard, but I was proud of Ivan when he also shared that he had given her a hug and let her cry and "snot on" his shirt.

 Saturday I called Heidi to get updates but she was at a birthday party, she said she would call me back, but that I should check facebook. So I did. As I scrolled through the news feed and saw my sisters' updates about Daddy, I also saw something else. My older brother is now engaged!! So I called him, and caught him at mealtime. But I passed on my congratulations. When I did talk to Heidi she told me that Saturday would probably be the hardest day for our dad, as the 3rd day after the stroke is when they expect the most brain swelling. They were hopeful though! My dad was in high spirits, and despite not having mobility in his right arm, was still able to get out of bed and around a bit with the help of a walker. She also said that he will probably be moving in with her and her hubby at least for a while. He was only near family when all this happened because he was in town to visit my older sisters.

Today was set up day for our county fair. Mom (Alex's mom) is the superintendent of the goat barn, and will be showing 11 or 12 goats this year. It was a long, stressful morning...and afternoon. But we got enough done to head home.
I checked facebook this evening and saw this status from my dad: "WE HAVE RIGHT ARM MOVEMENT !!!! PTL !!"
 How amazing is that? And what an encouragement! I know a lot of people have been praying for my dad and I ask that prayers would continue. And while I'm asking for prayer... this week my darling niece, Scarlette, who has already been through so much in her young life (you can read her story here) is having heart surgery, and I know she and her family could use your prayers too.

Today was also Mommy (my mom)'s birthday, so I called her and we chatted for a bit. I found out that Ivan is talking to a NAVY recruiter this week! When did we all grow up?

This whole week is fair and I'm sure to be busy but I will try to keep updates coming! What a crazy life we lead...