Wow!

I don't honestly know what else to say.  The last couple of weeks have been crazy (in a very good way!)

So, the last time I posted about Hannah, her heart was broken.  Well, though I can't say she is happy about the status of Hawk Nelson, it did bring an amazing opportunity our way, let me explain.

Scott and I were very concerned about Hannah's reaction to the news of Jason leaving; it is hard to see your child so upset.  We encouraged her to pray, explaining that we cannot always understand God’s plans, but we need to trust Him and know that His plans are good.  I kept reinforcing to her Jason's statement that he had prayed on this decision for three years.  We talked about the power of prayer and, WOW, within two weeks of our daily prayers, God answered with an amazing opportunity.

Hannah came to us to share a tweet from Jason Dunn, Hawk Nelson's lead singer:

Are you interested in booking Lights Go Down? Contact me at lightsgodownmusic@gmail.com


So, being the supportive parents that we try to be, Scott contacted Jason.  The next thing we knew, we had scheduled Jason to come to Olean in April!  We are now terrified and trying to find venues for him to play, but we are trying to trust God that He will guide us in this process.

This is an amazing opportunity for the youth in our community and for the girls in my girls group, and I am thrilled to be able to give them this.  We do have one scheduled show at the Obi Community Church on April 20.  This will be specifically for the youth in our community, and we are expecting at least 200 kids to come out.  How exciting!!!

So, that is my big news that will be keeping me very busy in the weeks to come.  Please pray that we can make this a successful event!

We are off to New Jersey and Long Island this weekend for competitions. I am tired just thinking about it, but hopefully Hannah will have a lot of fun and success!

May God bless you all!  Nancy

Thank you, Jamie!

Wow, I am feeling really special today.  My dear friend Jamie (who had her transplant one year to the day before mine) awarded me a special badge.  


I gave your blog a cool award, you can see it and post your award badge on your blog by going to my blog. Nancy I think you are just an amazing woman and I LOVE keeping up with you~ 
http://jamiebug.blogspot.com/2012/02/liebster-award.html 

According to Jamie:

Liebster is a German word that literally translates to "favorite", "dearest" or "beloved". By one blogger giving it to another, they are essentially saying, your blog is a favorite of mine. I think it's great that I have been awarded this. I blog mostly to get things off my mind, it's like a journal to me. I find myself surprised people want to read it or find it interesting, but there is a few that do I guess.

The rules of the Liebster Blog Award are:

1) Acknowledge the blogger who gave the award by linking back to them

2) Give this award to 5 other bloggers (who have fewer than 200 readers), and let them know through a comment on their blog

3) Post the award on your blog

4) Best of all - bask in the glory, have fun and share the love!

I really hope that my blog helps others who are searching for hope, support, Faith and most importantly inspiration to keep on fighting and living life despite the trials we all face.

Jamie, you certainly do provide inspiration to many, including me, your story and faith got me through some of the toughest times both pre and post transplant!  Thank you, dear friend!

So, I guess it is my turn.  It is hard to choose only 5, but here goes:

1.   Jamiebug at  http://www.jamiebug.blogspot.com/ 

     Jamie, you are definitely at the top of the list, I hope it is okay to return the award.

2.  The Little Things in Life at  http://photos-by-em.blogspot.com/   

     Emily's photos are so uplifting and truly share the most wonderful "little things in life"!

3.  Seans Jeap at http://seansjeep.blogspot.com/

     Sean will be celebrating his one year transplant anniversary very soon.  I love Sean's attitude about life and the way he has handled living with CF!

4. My CF Transplant and Nursing Journey at http://cftransplantmiracle.blogspot.com/
    Katey is an inspiration!  She amazes me with everything she is working for and all that she has been through in her young life.  Keep fighting dear one!

My final award goes to a baby blog, one that has just begun, but that deserves tons of support:

5.  Raise a Little Heaven at http://raisealittleheaven.blogspot.com/
     Dan and Bonnie Biro are starting a new adventure.  They have decided that, rather than have children of their own, they will adopt.  To me, that is such a self-less, God inspired thing to do.  I plan on supporting them all of the way!

Post-Transplant Hospital Tips

Hello!  I have heard from several people recently who are going to be supporting someone during and after transplant.  Thank you all for trusting me to guide you, it is a true honor.

One of the questions I received I felt was good to share because it might be helpful for several of you:

 I was hoping that you could give me some tips and ideas of ways I can help my friend's stay at the hospital be more comfortable during her recovery. What did you wish you had? How did you fight boredom? What was something that someone did that made a difference? Anything will help!

This was my response:

After transplant, she will have a lot of difficulty focusing and seeing, so reading or playing on a computer will not be possible. Her attention span will also be shortened, so she will not be up for doing things for any length of time. I didn't even watch television the entire time I was there, I was too ancy. Here are the top things I would recommend: 


 1. An MP3 player with her favorite music and a special relaxing playlist for at night or when the pain is intense. 


 2. Books on tape, if she has some favorite authors, audible has great audio books, she can listen for short spurts (my mom read to me from a book I had started before my transplant and it helped me to relax.) 


3. Right after transplant, she will not be able to speak to you or the nurses. I had a white board with markers, that was great because I could write down what I needed. 


 4. Once she is out of ICU, you will want to make her room feel cozy. I had my own pillow, and a dear friend gave me a beautiful blanket to wrap up in. I am always cold in the hospital, so it was nice to have a cozy blanket on my bed. 


 5. Fresh pj bottoms to change into daily, underpants, and fuzzy socks made me feel fresh each day. It is also important to have some slip on shoes (like crocs) or slippers by the bed so she doesn't have to walk around in bare feet. warm zip up hoodies or sweatshirts are also nice. 


 6. Lotions are a must. Having your hands or feet massaged with lotion is an amazingly decadent thing and can make a person feel so much better! Also, the yummy smelling hand sanitizer for by her bed is a great idea. 


 7. I am not sure how old your daughter is, but my daughter's school made a huge sign with all of their signatures and messages to hang on my wall, that was really special. Some of Hannah's friends also made me a pillowcase with fabric markers that had sweet messages all over it. Those are the really special things!

To my transplant friends out there, if you have other ideas, please let me know so I can share them.  Thanks!

Broken Hearted

Yesterday and today have probably been the hardest days in Hannah's young life.  Now, to an adult, the pain and sorrow she is experiencing may seem silly, but to Hannah, she feels like her world is falling apart.  What am I talking about?  This announcement that was made last night:

We want to officially announce that Jason Dunn will be leaving Hawk Nelson at the beginning of May to pursue his solo career.

If you have followed my blog at all, you know that my Hannah has had a true love affair with the band Hawk Nelson.  Though it has only been a year since she first saw them in concert, her love for them has been strong and pure.  This truly is her first heart break.

As a parent, there is nothing worse than seeing your child in pain.  I know it will pass, but right now, it is tough.  Part of me feels like perhaps I should not have encouraged her love so much, but then I look back at how this band has helped her to grow and has introduced her to the amazing world of Christian music, and I cannot regret.  Before Hawk, she didn't know Hello Kelly, Relient K, Manic Drive, Disciple, Family Force 5, or any of the other amazing Christian artists she is discovering.


Life is not easy. We have all experienced a broken heart at one time or another, it isn't something I was going to be able to protect her from, but you all know I would have if I could have.


For now, I will pray for her to find peace with the decisions that have been made, decisions that are totally beyond her control.  I pray for Jason, that he can be happy in his new solo career, but especially for other members of Hawk Nelson, Daniel, Jonathan, and Justin as they look into the future and make new, hopefully bigger, plans for themselves.  They are all amazing men who have a true love of God and others!  Thank you, Hawk Nelson!