Been gone too long

Wow, time flies when you don't have internet access! UGH!

Christmas has come and past...
My Mom & Dad were here so we got to share the Holidays with them ~ what a treat! I rarely get to see my family, so it's always a blessing when we're able to be together. We even got to celebrate our 10th Anniversary with them! YEAAAA!!!

And, as we're all well aware since it's the last week in February, we've entered into 2008. I have a motto for 2008 ~ "Good to Great in 2008!" So far I have to say our family and our lives are living up to that motto. It's such a great feeling. Seriously. It seemed like there was never going to be a light at the end of the tunnel as far as relationships and health issues and the stress of life was going. Something happened when we turned that calendar page, though, and I am so very thankful for God's amazing grace in our lives. I know it's Him...He's doing a good work in us (all of us), and we can do nothing but thank Him for His unending grace and mercy.

Something new we're doing is that Scott and I are going through Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University together. Although we've been virtually debt free since we moved from California it is so good to be in a class that is taking the stress of our financial decisions off the "you want to control me" and "you just want to believe money grows on trees" arguments and puts it square on the shoulders of God's Word and sound financial teaching. The other good thing is that I'm seeing it start to give Scott a peace about how well he has provided for our family. Once again, I am so thankful for the work God is doing in our home.

There's so much that is so much the same, but continually changing ~the boys are growing like weeds (so typical, eh?), and each day I'm more and more excited to see who they're becoming. Yesterday I was going to go on a bike ride with Caleb and Micah was going to ride his scooter so we were getting ready to go and finishing up our conversation with Mama & Papa T and all of the sudden Micah is on the ground truly crying. Calmly I bring him into the bathroom to clean up his finger only to find out that he has sliced it open pretty seriously. (When you can see the puffy little white fatty tissues....it's time to get some professional help.) So we head to the urgent care and he gets 2 stitches in his little pinky. Now, Micah is the kind of kid who does not like to do something that isn't his decision to do. So, when the Dr told him what he was going to do Micah tended to freak out a bit...until they completely numbed his finger and THEN he couldn't take his eyes off the Dr stitching him up. It was amazing. he was such a trooper! And Caleb was so good about understanding that our bike ride would be postponed to another day. (I think getting a new Wii game helped)

so that's what's up with us...what's up with you?

Okay, I think this guy is hilarious! Enjoy...a little Michael Jr. for ya:

Pete's e-mail that I forgot to attach

OOPS!! Sorry! Sometimes I get to writing and when I finish it's a couple of hours later and I've forgotten to attach something at the end, or I'm such a hurry to finally get to bed (I usually write at night) that I'll not take the time to check and double-check the links. Thus, when I wrote about Pete the other night I forgot to copy his e-mail at the end....here it is now....
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Hi everyone, here is the latest report on my colon cancer:

They have expedited all of the tests and procedures to priority one
Next week I will start radiation, to reduce this 2" tumor

*I will have a CT Scan to see what tissue this two year old tumor has spread to
*The Oncologist will decide if Chemo is required before surgery
*I will have the surgery to remove this un-wanted guest from my body
*All of this will probably happen with-in a month
*Please continue to pray for Cathy and I as sometimes our emotions get over whelmed. *We are going to hit this situation head on and move with our lives. We look at this as a bump in the road and besides, the Lord is in charge and I have a terrific family and friends that support me.

I will attempt to keep you informed, but I do not, please understand.

Pete and Cathy

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THank you for your prayers everyone! We are truly appreciative of them all!!

Update on my Father-in-Law

Hi there ~ an update on my Father-in-Law…I apologize, first, if this seems to be a change from the last update I wrote about him. What seemed to be a “typical” fight against Colon Cancer that includes treatment and such actually seems now to be a bit more serious than I was lead to believe.

Pete will be going through Radiation and Chemotherapy starting next week. From what Scott has told me, he will have 6 weeks of treatment, followed by surgery, and then approximately 6 weeks of recovery. Although the Doctors are acting calmly in the face of the storm that continues to surprise us all, I am seeing that they are not messing around or procrastinating in any way, shape or form in the treatment of this cancer. I’ll be including Pete’s e-mail update from a few days ago at the end of this e-mail, and in it you will see that it’s been around for approximately 2 years. You can guess that it may be a bit farther along than we had originally thought.

I would ask for prayers in a number of different areas:
1) Prayer for healing in Pete’s body. He was also diagnosed with skin cancer earlier in the year, but thought he had kicked the cancer “thing” through the surgery he had in that area. As early as August they had found another spot and were watching it….

2) Prayer for all the changes this has brought about in Pete & Cathy’s lives. Pete took an early retirement just last January, and already they’ve enjoyed living the dream they had of traveling once he retired. Please pray that their faith would remain strong, and that in the midst of it all they would see, feel and know God’s Hands are carrying them through. Pray especially that they would each be able to surrender their anger, their fear and their doubts to Him…and that they would in turn be strengthened in their faith in the midst of it all. Pray that satan’s lies would be garbled in their ears and that the truth of God’s ever-present, never-failing love would be shouted into their hearts and minds.

3) I guess, really, pray that (#2) for the entire family. What I love about being a Foskett is that I entered a family unit much like the one I grew up in that is close and loves each other dearly. Please pray for Jileen & Steve and their daughters, Peyton & Sydney ~ they live in Apple Valley nearby Pete & Cathy and are the ones really feeling the brunt of the care and stress of the situation. Jileen also was diagnosed with Thyroid cancer earlier in the year ~ she will be having her second full-body scan November 12th to make sure it hasn’t come back. Please pray for wisdom as she proceeds with her own treatment. When she has a body-scan done she has to go completely off her thyroid medication. You can imagine the stress of taking care of two very active, amazing little girls is hard enough at times like these ~ she is blessed to be able to rely on Cathy & Pete’s help to care for her and her family as she goes through these times. Now that help will be pulled back quite a bit, I imagine. Please pray that God would work a miracle in her body during this time ~ that He would give her energy to care for her family and energy left over to feel healthy and strong even without her medication. Pray, too, for wisdom as she makes decisions on how to proceed.

4) Pray also for Jeff & Alison. They live in Southern California too, but are a bit farther away. Alison has had some health issues of her own this past Summer, and continues to heal her own body. Jeff is in a place of having to make some decisions regarding his employment, and the stress of their own situations is great already…Please pray that they would seek God’s face and know His peace in every situation. Pray that God would continue to heal Alison, and that there would be a joy and a peace that emphasizes their love for Christ in all things.

5) Pray for us as a family. We are planning a vacation over Thanksgiving to Southern California. We’re looking very forward to being able to not only see Scott’s side of the family, but my parents are planning on meeting us out there as well. Mom & Dad are concerned over the visit being an additional strain on Pete & Cathy, but we are all seeing it as a wonderful opportunity to spend some time together as a complete family over an appropriate holiday to do so. Please pray that South Dakota and the areas between there and Southern California wouldn’t get too much snow until Mom & Dad are able to make it BACK home again as they have decided to drive out. Pray, too, for peace in the journey for them ~ I’m realizing I, personally, really need it to work out that they are able to make it.

5a) It dawned on me tonight as Scott & I were praying on the phone that when we arrive in Southern California Pete will be in the middle of his treatments. Knowing the impact Radiation and Chemotherapy have on a body I am concerned for how the boys will react seeing their Papa looking very different from when they saw him just last month. Please pray for wisdom in how Scott & I can prepare them for what they’ll see without scaring them too much about the battle Pete is fighting. We realize cancer, illness and disease can’t be hidden, but when we don’t see each other very often, the initial impact of the change will be great….please pray for wisdom and words.

6) Finally, I ask most of all that you would pray that above all else God would be glorified in each and every word, thought and deed that is a part of this time of our lives. Scott and I have seen Him do amazing things in our own home over the last year ~ pray that we would all continue to SEEK and to SEE His hand in all things. In Isaiah 53 we read of Jesus Christ ~ the One who “took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows…” Please pray that we could rest in the beauty of knowing He not only heals, but He loves us with an unending love that never lets go. Pray for acceptance of His plan knowing we can trust His hand.

Thank you so much for praying ~ I cannot express how much it means to be able to share these requests knowing prayers will be going up all over the world. God bless you all ~ and thank you again.

Trayc

I LOVE THE ROCKIES!!!!!

Alrighty, then! Way to go, Colorado Rockies!!! I am SO STOKED!! I can't even tell you how happy I am right now! My team has won the LEAGUE!!!! They're headed to the WORLD SERIES, BABY!!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was giving Scott a bad time on the phone (he's in Arizona!) about being a Dodgers fan. I told him that he didn't get to experience this euphoria all us Rockies fans are experiencing right now because the Dodgers have been around for so long. There is no way he could have ever experienced the joy of a first-time League win...let alone a sweep!! For some reason he just groaned. HAHAHAHA!!

Seriously, though? I am so stinkin' happy! I lived in Colorado their Inaugural year, and every year Scott gives me a bad time about my "choice of teams." (Notice his hasn't been much better lately?) But this year? Not THIS year, Sweet-ums! Who's going to play in the World Series? The Dodgers? The Los Angeles-we missed it by this much-Dodgers?

(Dodger cry-baby blanket)

I think NOT! It's the ROCKIES!!! The We're-this-close-to-Heaven-Colorado-Rockies!!!

By the way ~ if you watched the game, did you see the sign right at the end? It said, "Is this heaven? No, it's Colorado!" I'm on the phone with Scott watching the last of the game with him and we see that sign and I burst out laughing and he says, "There's your sign, honey." From day one I have raved about Colorado. I loved living there, and would move back in a heartbeat, but there are no paper mills there. So...Scott has had a saying that he shares with many people whenever I start going on and on about Colorado (much like I'm doing now). He says, "Yeah, Trayc's going to get to Heaven one day and she's going to be walking with Moses and the guys, and she's going to say...'God? It's nice, but it's just not Colorado.'" What can I say?



So...as homage to my soul's home-state, I'll share some of the reasons I love Colorado:

10) Whitewater rafting doesn't get much better than going through the Royal Gorge
9) Air Force Academy Football Games! (teaching at an all-girls school this was a TREAT!)
8) How many military bases are there in Colorado? Let me count them...1, 2, 3...more! (I was single when I lived there! I can put that on here!)
7) So many beautiful places to see and experience the awesome beauty of our Creator
6) Colorado Springs ~ Garden of the Gods, Focus on the Family, Old Town, etc, etc, etc
5) Denver ~ Opera, Coors Field, that funky Mexican Restaurant that's pink on the outside, and my introduction to Macaroni Grill! (love it still!)and, of course, the Traildust Steakhouse in Englewood
4) Dew Drop Inn in Pueblo (best pizza EVER!!!!)
3) Celestial Seasonings in Boulder
2) The most AMAZING Blue skies you will EVER see!

1) Royal Gorge and Rocky Mountains ~ I lived at the base of the Sangre de Cristo mountains ~ I miss waking up and looking out my window at the mountains 2 miles away.

So those were just a few...and I know there are WAY more! I miss my days in Colorado and wouldn't trade the memories for the world! Songs bring me back there...Cotton Eyed Joe brings me back to Crocodile Rocks every time...and I can still hear "my girls" laughing and singing whenever I hear songs from "Sister Act" or "Annie."

As you can see, the Rockies winning the League Series is a big deal to me ~ thanks for letting me blog about my soul's home-state.