My Mom

Thank you so much for coming to Blaze's web site! We know there are hundreds, if not thousands, who prayed for Blaze and our family even before Blaze's birth and they continue to pray for him now. I am so grateful for each of those prayers. I truly believe we would not have our son alive and well today, had God not answered those prayers.

For those of you who don't know us, I'm originally from Nevada, MO, though I graduated high school from Marshfield, and went on to graduate from SBU in 1998. I then went to Bangkok, Thailand, and taught there two years, before returning to Nevada, where I taught Adult Education & Literacy. I now work at the MO Career Center in Branson. Tim & I met in December of 2003 and were married in October of 2004.

Blaze is an incredible blessing that we never expected to have. Medical issues in the past made it doubtful that we could have kids. It's still hard for me to believe this amazing little guy is ours! We've been quite a rollercoaster on this journey with him. Through it all we have felt God's peace on us, the support of our family and friends and incredibly encouragement from our church family. We could not have handled this so well, without all of you and your prayers.

During all of this we learned a lot, besides medical terminology. :-) Tim & I grew closer together and learned to lean on each other more. We learned that God not only knew of our situation, He acknowledged our pain and sent words and actions of encouragement to us through His people. We learned how to be humble receivers and continue to remain awed when donations come in. We discovered how tough we were when we had to be. We learned to lean on God and His strength, to trust Him — we're still learning this as we strive to walk by faith and not by sight.Through you all, we learned about generosity and how to be better "givers" ourselves. From visits to the hospitals, to baby showers, from gifts, to meals once we arrived at home, we have been so blessed in countless ways. All of Blaze's needs have been provided and that is amazing. Thank you!

Today, Blaze is doing even better than expected. We are awed and grateful, knowing he is a gift, and we celebrate God's goodness every day. Our home health nurse is no longer coming to our house, because he's doing so well. Blaze is thriving and doesn't look like a "heart baby" at all. He is truly a blessing we continue to marvel over.

We're realistic enough to know there will be tough times, and we look ahead towards his next surgeries, but we're confident that the Great Physician is in control and we can trust him with Blaze.

Thanks again for stopping by! We'll continue to keep you updated on changes and how Blaze is progressing.