Merry Christmas 2013

Hello dear prayer warriors, sweet family and cherished friends!  We wanted to take a minute today to send a very Merry Christmas note!  Our family has been so very blessed by the outpouring of prayers and support over the past two years!  We are continually humbled by the grace that God lavishes over us through each and every one of you as you join us in this journey that God has lovingly and Sovereignly ordained for our precious girlie, Hope . . . and so each one of us too, as God continues His work in and though her story!!!  Thank you from the bottom of our hearts dear ones!

We had the special privilege to go to the Alberta Children's Hospital yesterday and take treats for the Unit 4 nurses and staff, as well as the ICU doctors and staff.  They were thrilled to see Hope and the progress from the last time they would have seen her. . . we were thrilled to share God's power and compassion to heal and His sustaining grace with each of them!  We also took some special items and treats to pass out to some children/families in the hospital over Christmas, remembering very well our Christmas in the hospital. God was so good to give us the opportunity to pray with three different families who were struggling through the shocking new circumstances in their child's health and wellness. Tears were shed and we were so blessed to share the comfort of God with them that we have also been comforted with!  What a great and good God to allow us this privilege to minister to these precious suffering people!  What a tremendous way to celebrate and remember how far God has brought Hope over the past two years. The girls were a special part of the visits as well and people loved to hear her story--well a brief version!  : )  Please join us in continuing to pray for these families of Aiden, Sam, and Alexa!  May the love of God to send His only son, Jesus Christ, to be our Saviour, be evident to them even through their disappointment and pain and at this time of year where we celebrate Christ's birth and coming to earth for God's great plan of salvation!!!

Dear ones, you are so very loved!!!  We love you indeed, but so much greater is the love of Christ for you!  He humbled Himself to come as a Servant to save us!!!  May this truth change your life forever and may you be so very blessed this Christmas as you celebrate the real meaning of Christmas. . . the birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ!!

Merry Christmas from Hope!!!  : )

December 14, 2013 . . . Our First Annual Celebration of Life Day!!!

Two years ago today. . . what a different place we were in!  We woke up to the most life altering circumstance we have yet experienced in our lives and family. . . Hope was unconscious and barely breathing.  Not long later, en route to the hospital, her heart stopped.  By the end of the day, she was on a heart and lung bypass machine, airlifted to Edmonton, and uncertain if she was going to live or die. . .

November 28th, 2013 -- All Done!!! God is so good!!!

Excited to share with you that Hope came through the MRI and the Baclofen pump refill procedure with gold stars!!!  Click on "Read More" to continue. . .

Prayer Request -- Hope's MRI and Overnight Hospital Stay Tomorrow!

Please keep Hope in prayer tomorrow, Thursday, as she goes in for her MRI of her spine under general anaesthetic. . . 

November 9, 2013 . . . Hope's Doctor Appt Update

Hello dear praying friends and family!  I was thinking of how best to update you on Hope, and thought I would break it up into the doctor side of things, which I will now share, and then later, the school side of things!  Each of these posts will include both praises to the Lord of her progress, as well as requests for you to lift up before our Heavenly Father, as you continue to pray for our precious Hope, her recovery, her sister (Gabi), her family, and that her story will always display and point to the power, goodness and far outshining glory of our awesome God!!!  : )

Chicago Trip Recap and Thank you!!!

We just wanted to give you a recap of our time in Chicago and offer some huge thanks to those who served our family so incredibly during this time.  I already shared with you God's immense travelling mercies on our way to Chicago.  Those continued on the way home as well, with the worst circumstance simply being our Trader Joe's cookie butter, one a treat for our family and the other a gift for Hope beloved educational assistant, being confiscated in security as not allowed on board!  : (  We were sad, but the phrase we've coined for such disappointing or frustrating circumstances was still indeed true. . . "it's not the end of the world!"  : )  But boy we wish we had thought of opening it and each having a quick spoonful to try before it hit the garbage can!  ; )  Lesson learned for next time. . . make sure you check peanut butter or peanut butter-like substances when flying!  : )

The Peacocks Have Landed in Chicago!!!

Hello dear praying friends!  I'm sorry that it's been so long in between our posts lately.  It has been a very busy season for us with our move and all that has been going on!  Let me just catch you up quickly on a few things, with more to follow when I get the opportunity!

Click on "Read More" to continue. . .

Filled with Immense Gratitude. . . thank you!!!

Hello dear prayer warriors!!!  I am sorry that it has been so long since I have been able to post anything.  It has been a very very full past few weeks, and I am eager to get the opportunity to start catching you up!  But I must first start by sharing our hearts after the amazing benefit dinner/auction that was held to raise funds for Hope's ongoing and future needs!

Click on "Read More" to continue. . .

The Benefit for Hope on Saturday night was a huge success! A very big thank you to each of you who donated items, purchased items and bought tickets for the evening. Thank you to those of you who have purchased puzzle pieces and made donations!

I am humbled and amazed at your generosity and how good God is in leading and directing all who were involved in any way with this event.

I was thinking on Friday before the benefit about how discouraged I was when we had to cancel it in June due to lack of response and how this time it was so well supported. God's ways are indeed best and His timing is perfect and it was once again a lesson to me on how I rush ahead of God and try to control things that are not mine to control.

Even today I am still receiving donations but as of this moment we have raised $40,953.52!!!!

God bless each of you!!

September 22 Photo Puzzle Update

189 puzzle pieces sold to date!

To purchase your puzzle pieces at $10/piece (Canadian tax receiptable), please click on the "Donate" button on the sidebar.

Please be sure to indicate that you are purchasing puzzle pieces and names to be placed on the pieces.

Hope Proclaims!

I am very excited to introduce a new section of Hope's blog entitled, Hope Proclaims!  We are so very thankful that God has been so good to give Hope back her voice.  And we would like to start giving her the opportunity to share her heart and what God is doing in her life with you, her beloved prayer warriors!!!

Here is a note from Trevor, Hope's awesome daddy, explaining why we chose the name "Hope Proclaims" for this new endeavour!

Click on "Read More" to continue. . .

First Week of School and Hope in Walker!!!

The girls started school this past week!  We were praying and hoping to step it up this year in Hope's schooling and try to start challenging her academically as she was able, as well as encourage her to interact with her peers more, without help from a supervising adult!  Well. . . 

Click on "Read more" to continue. . .

Photo Puzzle Update

132 pieces bought to date.  Here is a photo of the back of the puzzle:

and the front:

September 1, 2013. . . Happy Birthday Hope!!!

Hope had a great weekend celebrating her 11th birthday, last Sunday.  I picked a few pictures below to share with you of her celebrating fun!  Thank you so very much for all the sweet birthday notes, wishes and prayers that you sent to Hope!  She was so blessed by them all!!!  And it continues to be a huge encouragement to her of how many precious people God has laid on their hearts to pray for her!!!  You are loved, dear ones!!!

Click on "Read more" below to see the pictures. . .

August 22, 2013. . . Tent Trampoline Backyard Family Campout!!!

We had our first tent trampoline backyard family campout back on Aug 22nd, before it got too cold at night!  We had a great time, and thought you'd enjoy some of the pictures and videos of our precious family time together!   There are videos of Hope telling a "ghost" story and then praying before bed at the end.  Thought you'd enjoy hearing her voice!  Click on the "Read More" to continue. . .

September 6 Photo Puzzle Update

Wow, thank you to everyone who purchased puzzle pieces this week!  72 pieces sold to date... we are almost 1/10 completed!   To purchase your pieces, click on the Paypal button on the sidebar ($10/piece).

September 1 Photo Puzzle Update

28 pieces sold... only 972 to go!!

To purchase your pieces, click on the Paypal button on the sidebar.

August 31, 2013 Update after a Week of Doctor Appointments

Hello dear prayer warriors!!!  We had a busy week with THREE doctor appointments and one meeting with Bearspaw Christian School.  Hope has another doctor appointment next week, and few more in the weeks to follow.  Thought I would give a bit of an update after this first set. . .

Thank you Harvest Bible Fellowship and Amy Tatum for a wonderful article:

The God of Hope

The Lord is moving mountains in the lives of Heather and Trevor Peacock as He continues to miraculously intervene in the life of their daughter Hope.

Many of you have heard bits and pieces about Hope Peacock. “Oh, the little girl with the brain injury?” “Wait, the Canadian pastor’s daughter, right?” “I remember our church praying for her.”

But for Heather, Trevor, and Gabriella Peacock, the past 20 months have not become a distant memory. Their journey has been an all-consuming, life-altering, faith-changing experience requiring not just daily, but hourly dependence on our faithful God.

On December 14, 2011, life absolutely, unexpectedly changed for the Peacock family. Two days after a routine tonsillectomy, Heather went to wake up her vibrant, bright daughter Hope, nine-years-old at the time, and found her unresponsive and barely breathing. They called an ambulance and rushed her to the hospital. After an MRI and five days in the ICU, the doctors confirmed that for some unexplainable reason, Hope had suffered a severe anoxic brain injury resulting from respiratory and cardiac arrest. She had not received oxygen to her brain for a long period of time. Sixty to eighty percent of her brain was dead and every lobe had been damaged. Doctors gave little hope for her survival.

To view the rest of the article, please go to:

http://www.harvestbiblefellowship.org/10295/article/article_id/370136/The-God-of-Hope

Photo Puzzle Cornerstone

Thank you to the Contos family for their purchase of the photo puzzle cornerstone, as well as four more pieces.  The puzzle is now officially up and running.  

For more information on how you can help us complete this puzzle by purchasing your pieces at $10/piece, please see the sidebar:

** FUNDRAISING - Hope Peacock Photo Puzzle

Hope Peacock Photo Puzzle Fundraiser

July 12, 2013 -- Sitting Around!!!

Here is a picture and little video of one of the first times Hope showed off the newest ability she has regained. . . sitting!!!  She did it first in the middle of the night when she asked for a drink of water. . . when I let go of holding her, to grab the water bottle, she didn't fall over!  We tried it again the next day on the new trampoline and she was able to do it again for you on the video camera!  So now you can share in our excitement for the Lord's grace and continued healing!

Click on Read More to read the rest of the post and see the picture and video. . .

July 12, 2013 -- A Big Surprise. . . A "Peacock Nest!!!"

The girls were super surprised and excited to receive a new trampoline, generously donated by a loving family that has been praying for Hope for a long time!  This is one of those blessings where God's grace and love goes far beyond our simple needs and into lavish extras that are just plain fun!  How God delights in giving good gifts to His children!!!  And we praise Him and thank the compassionate family that chose to remain anonymous in their desire to see God receive all glory and praise!!!  We have some video of the fun discovery of the girls' surprise and their reactions and thanks!

Hope-ism July 7, 2013

The girls and I were on our way to church, driving the 20 mins that it takes to get there and reviewing their memory verse for Higher Ground Children's Ministry that morning.  Gabi had her verse down perfect and Hope was still struggling with it, and getting a little frustrated.  I encouraged her to remember that with her brain injury, this was a lot harder for her to do, but how awesome was it that God was slowly healing her and giving her the ability to not only speak it but memorize verses again!  I encouraged her that she could continue to ask The Lord for His help as He would delight to help her hide His Word in her heart, because that would honour and glorify Him.  I also mentioned that what He cared most about was not that she said every word perfect but that her heart understood the verse and knew what it meant.  So I set out then to talk them through the verse and discussing what each part meant as we went through it!  It was a great discussion!

Here is the verse. . .

July 30, 2013 -- God's Gracious Answers to Prayer!!!

Just wanted to give a quick update to my post from last night. . .

It should be no surprise that God did a mighty show of both His power to heal and His loving care to hear and answer the many prayers that were lifted up for Hope and our family today!  Thank you so very much, dear prayer warriors, for your many encouraging notes and the many prayers that were prayed over our precious girl and our family today!  It never ceases to amaze me as to the loving kindness of our great God through His answers to prayer (even the ones that are answered in a way different than I would choose in my foolish wisdom/understanding!), and through the many people that God has placed in our lives to support and encourage and truly "lift us up!" throughout this trial. . . from near to far, young to "more mature!". . . we are blessed by YOU!!!  and by our amazing GOD!!!

July 29, 2013 -- Quick Update and Prayer Request!!!

Hello dear praying friends and family!  It is with a heavy heart that I write this update tonight. . . I had planned to do a more lengthy update of the past month or so and some of the neat things that we've been so blessed to see God doing in Hope's life and continued slow recovery. . . but that will need to wait a bit longer. Hope had the worst day she has had, health-wise, for a long time.  Even as I write this, I am reminded how far God has brought our precious girlie as days like these used to be the norm!  We praise and thank Him for the fact that this is no longer the case, yet after the scare we had tonight, we are reminded that we are never far from needing to fall on our knees to beseech the King of Kings asking for His continued mercy, healing, wisdom and comfort all the while remaining in complete submission to Him and trust in Him!

July 2, 2013 -- "Steely" Determination!!!

We had our sweet little nephews staying with us.  So we took the kids to the local splash park and playground. It was very sweet to watch Gabi push Hope around in the jogger stroller that was given to us by the Woolsey family, and see Hope enjoy a bit of splash park fun. Her temperature regulation is still off as even in the 30+ degree weather (Celsius), she was freezing after just a couple minutes.  So she would come back to her daddy and I, get covered with a towel and warm up. . .

A Day at the Farm July 1, 2013

We went to my parent's farm to celebrate my mom's birthday.  Hope and Gabs were super excited to be able to ride the horse and snuggle the dogs there!  They have always loved animals!!!  Here are some pictures and a video from the day. . .

Snuggles with Daddy!!!

School's Out!!! June 21, 2013

This is an old post but I thought I'd still share it. . . 

School finished up towards the end of June.  Bearspaw Christian School held their annual elementary awards night, which we took both our girlies too.  It was a sweet night to thank our dear teachers that have poured into our children over these past months.  Here are a couple pictures and a video from that night. . .

Hope's Spelling Test

Hope and Gabi love to play school!  They always have!  So it's very fun to see them starting to be able to do that somewhat again with Hope's continued recovery by God's grace!

We have shared that Hope's memory has really started to return. Here in this video taken early June, she applies some memory but also shows the comprehension and new learning required to start spelling words again!  Isn't God's power and mercy so very great!!!  June marked some exciting advances in Hope's ability to start doing academic work at school. And although school is now out, we are hopeful and eager for what The Lord will continue to do in Hope this fall when school starts again and a plan to start some academic goals begins!

Hope you enjoy seeing answered prayers in this video. . . prayers for Hope and Gabi to continue to find more ways to interact and prayers for Hope's continued recovery!  All praise to the One who is able!!!  God is great and greatly to be praised!!! 

You are loved!!!

Video Link is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Henil7efrJA

Hope Loses a Tooth

"My mind was left behind!"  A Hope-ism for how to deal with pain!

To view Hope's comical commentary on losing a tooth, click on the following link. . . 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFav69xqeuI

Tea Party Fun

One of the things that Hope has recently remembered is the library area that is on the upper floor.  A couple weeks ago, she started asking for us to carry her up to the "pink rug!"  She always loved that area.  Last Monday, Gabi set up a tea party for them up there, to her big sister's delight!  It is hard for Hope to stay upright for long, sitting like that, due to the constant challenge of her scoliosis.  But here are a couple pictures of the girls thoroughly enjoying their little tea party together, before Hope fell over for the fifth time and so daddy took her back downstairs to her more comfortable recliner chair.  : )  I love that they still enjoy tea parties!!!

Hope-ism. . . June 18, 2013

We are daily blessed with the sweet and/or funny things that Hope entertains us by saying.  We are also often amazed at the depth of her understanding, especially when it comes to the things of The Lord.  Here is a conversation that Hope and I had today while driving on our way to school. . .

Hope Update--June 17, 2013

Hello dear praying friends and family!  It has been a bit since I've put on an update.  Although life stays very full, things move very slowly with Hope and so I often feel I don't have much new to tell you.  But after a couple weeks have gone by, or for sure after a month, we see the culmination of those little things into bigger areas of change, which is very encouraging for sure.  I'd love to share some of those things with you.  We've also had a couple discouraging days where Hope has had some setbacks. . . these are always hard to take in and hard to watch our girlie continue to experience the roller coaster of ups and downs throughout this long recovery journey, especially as she is increasingly aware of these setbacks.  To be honest, each setback feels like a punch in the stomach and makes you realize how little we are able to control and how utterly weak we are on our own strength.  It reminds us how much we yearn for the return of our Saviour and the joy and release of Heaven!  The stinging pain of these setbacks are not a place we enjoy being, for sure, but our gracious God uses these times to continue to grow our faith and trust in Him, and especially our dependence on Him to continue persevering for His glory and by His grace!  John 16:33 says, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world."  And 2 Corinthians 4:17 says, "Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all."  Praise God for the most awesome hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ!!!

So, a few updates to share:

Hope continues to make small bits of progress that over time sure adds up and we are so very thankful for God's obvious faithful hand of healing over her. Boy it stretches our patience some days, but He is always accomplishing His good and perfect plan and we need to stay content and thankful!

Learning Heart Lessons

Learning Lessons

I have another Hope-ism that turned into a good heart lesson for me and I would love to share it with you for a couple reasons. . . first because I love to see God's truths go forth and I pray that it will encourage you as The Lord continues His faithful work in our lives, and secondly, because I love to give you a real picture of the weak and sinful self that I struggle with all for the purpose of showing how great our awesome God is to save, love and continue to sanctify a wretch like me!

Let me start with the story. . .

May 20, 2013 Hope-ism

This past Monday, Trevor was outside trying to start our lawnmower for the first time this year in order to mow the backyard. Hope was also outside in the backyard, sitting in her jogger stroller and enjoying some fresh air.  

The lawnmower would not start.  Trev, thinking perhaps some water had gotten in the line, kept starting it over and over, but it continually would just die a few seconds later.  After about 15 minutes of listening to Trevor try to start the lawn mower, over and over again, Hope said this to her daddy. . .

"Daddy, I've got three words for you!"

Laughing, Trevor asked, "Oh really?  What are they?"

And Hope answered, slowly and spaced out. . . 

"IT'S. . . NOT. . . WORKING!!!"

: )     : )     : )     : )     : )     : )     : )      : )

Smart girl!  We still have a lawn mower that is not working, even after grandpa's visit the next day!!!  : )   Ha ha!!!

A HOUSE FOR HOPE!!

We have created a new page that we will use to keep you up to date on the progress of our new house.  Go to A HOUSE FOR HOPE - UPDATES under the My Story sidebar.

Update on Hope

Hello dear ones!  I am finally getting a chance to send out an update on our Hopey Bear!  First, thank you sooo very much for such a outpouring of prayer and encouragement last week as our family went through one of the tougher weeks we've had for a while.  What a blessing the Lord has made EACH one of you in our lives!!!

Hope is doing much better this week and we are praising the Lord for His grace in this!  Last week was a good reminder of how far God has brought Hope as we continue this journey.  Hope started to eat last Friday and it was a massive relief to our hearts.  She started with eating very small amounts only, but by Monday afternoon, she was eating more average again.  She is definitely feeling better now and is back to surprising us daily with her little progressing achievements!  Her speech is right back on track.  Her memory is continuing to growingly impress us as she recalls details, stories and people from the past, as well as memorizes verses and even remembers things I forget!  I'm back to asking her to remind me to do things. . . it's GREAT!!!  Trevor did a little game of "Guess the Movie" from listening to songs from various kid's animated movies.  Hope and Gabs were neck and neck in the game, and we were amazed to see what she is starting to remember!

Hope finished her last day of outpatient therapy at the Children's Hospital this week.  It was a sad goodbye to some very special therapists, Logan and Fiona, that have poured their hearts into working with our Hopey.  Fiona has been the longest therapy relationship that Hope has had, and was the first therapist's name that Hope learned to say!  We love those dear girls and praise God for how He has used them in Hope's life.  Please keep each of them in prayer as they are both making transitions in their jobs as well.

Hope was able to attend the Grade 4-6 Activity Day at Cardel Place with her school this week!  It was a great adventure for her dad and I to assist her with rock climbing and finally getting back into the pool again.  Hope has had a fear of pools since last year.  Both activities were preceded with many tears and refusal to participate, but thanking the Lord for the intuition that He gives parents about their children. . . we got her to just "try it" and before you knew it, she was LOVING it and didn't want to stop!!!  I'll attach two photos. . . one of her rock climbing (harness and all!) and one of her in the pool with daddy!  She had a blast and was able to conquer some fear that only holds her back.  We thank the Lord for helping her to be brave and see what she can still do and look forward to having more options of activities for Hope to be able to particpate in!  Family pool time will be a great joy to little sister, Gabs, too!  : )

Another praise and new joy for Hope was the jogging stroller that was given to us by the Woolsey family.  We have been using it this week with the nicer weather and Hope is loving the opportunity to be outside again!  We went for an almost 2 hour walk together this week. . . she loved it!  And we have also put her in the back yard in the stroller with Gabs to have some play time outside!  Gabs is great with her and today they spent almost 6 hours outside playing. . . catching ladybugs, building forts, eating snacks, etc..  Hope was even bossing some of the neighbor kids to get down off the fence before they got hurt or broke it!  It was pretty humorous!!!  : )

Prayer Requests

Here are some of the things that you can be keeping in prayer as you continue to think of us:

*Please continue to pray for Hope's eyesight to be restored.  There is no change in this and we just humbly continue to bring this request before our able God, waiting on Him and trusting in Him no matter what He deems best for Hope's life!

*Please pray for all the new therapists that will be starting to treat Hope at Bearspaw Christian School.  Building rapport and relationship with these therapists is important for both Hope and our family as we continue forward.  Please also keep us in prayer, as a vast majority of her "therapy" is done at home in what we do with her.  Logan and Fiona have been great resources for us and we apply all that we learn from them in the things we do with Hope at home, both in play as well as in intentional "therapy" time with daddio!  We are also looking at getting some equipment to help Hope continue to progress as the Lord continues to heal her.  One is a walker that will be trialed next week. . . please pray that this walker will have the right attachments to suit Hope's needs as it is the only one covered by the AADL funding program.  If it doesn't work, we may need to look at purchasing one which would be a few thousand dollars.  We are also waiting on a standing frame which would allow Hope to be stood upright at home.

*Hope continues to have little seizures or almost seizures.  Her anti-seizure medication has been increased twice over the past couple weeks.  We will just continue to watch and monitor her for now.  She is starting to let us know when one is about to happen, and she has responded well with keeping calm and asking to go to a quiter cooler place to avoid going into a full seizure.  She is also able to communicate better how she is feeling during her seizures.  We are still waiting to hear back from all the blood work and tests that were done last week.

*Hope's intratheccal Baclofen pump was turned down last week.  It is getting closer and closer to the lowest possible dose or rate that can be infused.  We are praising the Lord for this miracle!  We'll see the neurosurgeon in July and are sure looking forward to showing him the amazing things that God is doing in healing Hope's broken body.  Please keep this process in prayer, as it is driven by Trev and I now. . . making the decisions when to decrease the pump.  And please pray that Hope will continue to have no issues with dystonia (too much tone or tightness in her muscles).  She still has some but nothing that is harmful, painful, or limits her functions.  Please pray that her motor control of her muscles would continue to improve, as well as the severe scoliosis in her back.

*Please keep Gabi in prayer to continue to grow in her ability to connect with her sister, and especially to practice other-centeredness in her play and interaction with her.  With all the beautiful weather, it is hard for Gabs to not want to just go outside and play and do the things that she is able to do, but Hope is now not.  It is so hard on Hope, who is very aware of the fact that Gabs is outside playing and doing things she cannot.  Hope will often say things like, "Gabs don't go outside or you'll break my heart!"  We are trying hard to find some balance in allowing Gabi to still be the healthy little girl that God has made her, but also considering the heartache of her big sister who remembers the past and knows what she now can no longer do.  So we are trying to make times for them to be outside together, time for Gabs to go out and do some of her past normal activities like riding a bike while someone else is entertaining Hope, and time where Gabi can practice other-centeredness and stay inside to be with her big sister and engage with her.

*For Trev and I, we would so appreciate your prayers for wisdom (always!), strength (daily!), and the Lord's leading in how we use our time.  There is always more things to be done than time available to do it and so we need His guidance in using our time wisely and for the purposes that God would have, always being flexible to what He may allow to change our plans. . . this happens quite often.

I think that's it for now.  As always, we are so thankful for your heart to lift our Hopey and our family up to the Lord in prayer.  What a compassionate God we serve that desires us to bring all our cares to Him, as He continues His faithful work in our lives.  His yoke is truly easy. . . not because life or circumstances are easy or because our strength never wanes. . . but rather because He is faithful and loving as we put our trust in Him and live lives dependent on Him.  Our God never EVER fails!!!  In a world where everything fails at some point or another, that is an AMAZING TRUTH!!!  May God hear our grateful hearts pour out praise to His worthy name today and forever more!!!  You are so very loved, dear ones!!!

Home from the Hospital

We finally got out of the hospital this afternoon! And it is very good to be back home for the whole family! It was hard being apart like that, on each one of us, even Trev and Gabs at home (a reminder of the painful past). Hopey did not sleep very well last night. She is not well today again. She still has not eaten (it's been two days now of eating nothing). She is having temperature regulation problems and is very warm to touch with red flushed cheeks . . . all the while she is complaining of "freezing!" She does not show a temp though, but acting like a fever. She had some seizure type activity again last evening.

Hope's Songs - "Have Patience"

Hope singing Have Patience. . . a little song from her childhood that she still remembers very well! It is a powerful testimony of God's grace in returning both her ability to talk and sing, as well as her memory of past songs!!!

We hope you enjoy the sweet gift and love of music that God has given our sweet Hopey! She played piano and guitar before this brain injury and sang almost non-stop! So this precious "music" to our ears!!! And this is one of many songs that Hope is singing again! Praise the Lord!!! : )

A Van for Hope

Hello dear prayer warriors! Thought I would also share with you 5 little mini videos that are from last May 2012. We filmed these little clips before and after Hope's first ride in the new wheelchair accessible van. They were taken the weekend before Hope was discharged from a 5 month hospital stay! They are the best way that we can show Hope's thanks to each of you who played a part in her receiving a wheelchair accessible van. . . both through donations, as well as most importantly through the power of prayer! It is precious to see the limited ability she had to communicate back then and yet her excitement over the van and how God was providing for her through the love and generosity of so many people. It is also a great reminder of how far God has brought our sweet Hope. . . she could barely get sound out of her mouth back then, and now she is able to talk to us. . . our God is both merciful and powerful!!! We hope you enjoy these precious little videos, knowing as you watch them, that YOU are very loved!!!

Polar Snow Dip

Get ready. . . Set. . . Go!!! Hopey's first polar snow dip this year! She asked to do it and loved it! Great way to kick off the first day of her "spring" break! : )

HOPE UPDATE

Hope is loving her time at Bearspaw Christian School! Praise God for His hand over this transition and her continued healing and recovery! She is still part time, and that is going well for her so she can have a little more sleep in the mornings. We'll look at increasing her time there slowly after spring break. We are so thankful for how she is blossoming and flourishing in this wonderful school environment

My Favorite Hope-ism

I have a few things I'll try to share tonight! Let's start with my favorite Hope-ism for this week:

After returning home from school, I asked Hope how her afternoon at school was. This was her reply:

      "It was delightful! I had a very happy day of life!"

I am determined to use that most wonderful response the next time someone asks me how my day was!!! : ) Love it!!! Love her!!! Love LOVE the awesome God who has His gracious hand over her!!! : )

HOPE UPDATE and a Hope-ism

Hello dear praying friends and family! Hopey began another unwell bout this past Friday and it lasted through today, so a bit longer than the last few bouts. She was "off and on" all day, but seemed to end on a good note, so praying that tomorrow will mark a new day of talking and feeling better as well as normal eating and drinking!

Just for Fun Post

Me again. . . hee hee. . . this is going to be a "just for fun" post. I'm going to start trying to remember some of the fun things that Hope is starting to say and share them with you now and then. . . just for fun!!! Cause we have a LOT of laughs in this house with a witty daddy and a Hopey that takes after him and seems to have very much retained that wonderful quality! So here is my fun Hope-ism to share this week!

Bestest Buddies

I love this picture! Hope and Gabs sleep together every night in Hope's hospital bed! It is such a great representation of the bestest buddies they have always been! Gabi was invited to a sleepover the other day and came to me with tears in her eyes and whispered, "But Mom, I cannot sleep without my Hope!" We had the sleep over at our house instead! We thank The Lord for the sweet way these sisters still love on each other!!! : )

HOPE UPDATE

Okay here is another quick post on Hope's current condition and response to last weekend's prayer request. . . 

Thank you sooooo much for praying with us last Sunday for Hope to exit the "unwell bout" that she was in and start eating/drinking again! God gracious hand brought her out of it later that afternoon, when she started to eat/drink, communicate and such again! We were so thankful to avoid another long stretch such as the 9 day one the week before! Hope did pretty good eating and drinking the rest of the week. . . however, she went back into another "unwell bout" yesterday morning. She has not eaten or drank anything for 48 hours now and again looks physically unwell. She is very quiet and non-communicative again as well, and as hard as I worked today to try to ask her different questions about what she's feeling during these times, she just does not or cannot seem to answer me.

Prayer Request

Trev and I will be trying to contact the Barrow Institute in Phoenix this week to look into whether they may be able to shed any further light on these "unwell bouts" that Hope has so often. Please pray for us as we do this and that The Lord will lead and direct and grant wisdom to those we talk to on how best to proceed and if this will be an avenue worth pursuing.

Thank you dear ones for your continued prayers! You are so very loved and appreciated by the Peacock flock! : )

HOPE UPDATE continued

Hello dear praying friends and family! I have a few posts I'm going to try to do tonight! Let me start with one addition to the last LONG update that I forgot to mention. . . Hope's progressing and severe scoliosis! Please keep this in prayer as well!

HOPE UPDATE

Hello dear praying friends and family! I am going to try to give a overall update on our Hope that I have been trying to get to for a while. : ) It is long as there is always lots going on with Hope, up and down, so here goes:

HOPE UPDATE

We are praising The Lord for the last 24 hours! Hope started to eat yesterday late afternoon and has been doing much better since! Eating, drinking, taking meds, generally happy, talking more and interactive with us. We are SO thankful to The Lord for His merciful Hand over us and Hope's life! And we are so thankful for a gracious God that delights to answer the prayers of His precious children! I always think of the mothers in third word countries that will watch their children starve to death from lack of food, when I'm watching Hope during these hunger strikes. I then thank The Lord that at least we have food to offer her.

HOPE UPDATE

Hello dear praying friends and family! I had grand hopes of getting an overview of where things are at with some recent pictures. . . that will have to wait a little longer as our Hopey is still sick and we are concerned. I would rather get a quick update out so you can be praying for her current needs.

Let me give you, first, a couple really awesome praises as we never want to be lax in giving God the praise He is due and sharing it with you, so you can praise Him too!

A little girl time while daddy is working on his sermon for tomorrow. Having a little tea party with Gabi! You can tell Hopey doesn't feel good but she did have a couple bites of the yummy Valentines cookie from Sweet Nonie and drank her strawberry milk "tea." Thankful for moments that God allows these two precious little girls, sisters and best buddies, to interact and share in fun together! While I was upstairs getting their snack tea party ready, Gabi told me that Hope asked her if she could play with her hair. Gabi out her head on her tummy and let her play with her hair. So sweet. How I love these little gifts that God has blessed us with!!! (Can you tell that I just found out how to put pictures from my phone on Facebook. Hee hee!)

We're Home - HOPE UPDATE

We made it!!! We're home. And although we still have a sick little girlie, she is enjoying the comforts of home such as a snuggle with little sissy in her beanbag chair. Thank you SO much for all your prayers! Even though Hope was sick and not feeling great yesterday, her fever backed off for the day and she was a great trooper on all the flights and transfers and layover! Her fever is going back up again today and so we know that God's hand of mercy was over her long day of travelling.

HOPE UPDATE

Hello dear praying friends! I have been wanting to send an update for quite some time but this month has been very very full for us in many respects. I have much to update you on and praise God for seeing us through a difficult month for our family. Prayerfully I'll have the chance to write a more thorough update soon, as well as start a blog site for those who are not on Facebook. But we do have a current request for prayer for Hope that I will just quickly share. . . we are currently travelling with her as we just finished attending the Harvest Pastor's and. Wives Conference in Orlando, Florida. She has had some health concerns since being down here, but today it got worse when she started running a high fever and has a bad cough. She is not feeling well and insomnia has set in again. She has been having other concerns as well such as not drinking/eating and refusing her important seizure medication. We have tomorrow to get packed up and ready to travel home and then spend all day Friday travelling home. She had a seizure on the plane on our way down and now with being so sick, we are concerned about her and the extra stress on her if still sick on Friday. Would you please pray that Hope will recover quickly from this virus bug and be much better before Friday morning travels? Gabi had a fever and was very sick on the weekend here but thankfully it only lasted 2 days. . . praying the same for Hope!!! It is 3 am here and Hope is still awake lying in bed. . . I am waiting to make sure she is able to finally go to sleep ok. Thank you dear prayer warriors! We are very thankful for you!!! You are so loved!!!