I have had to learn that God has a unique way for each of us to serve Him. I have two adult children with various disabilities. My second son Caleb was born prematurely and spent the first three and a half weeks of his life in intensive care. He was eventually diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum. Two years later, my daughter Alice was born and within eight months, we knew that she also had developmental delays. Early on, I had to learn to advocate for my children. While navigating many of Caleb’s medical issues, I learned to question doctors and… Read More
Children
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I have always liked the thought of kids giving a helping hand to other kids. When we decided to homeschool, I began to look for opportunities where we could serve as a family. People need help in many different ways, so we never lack a place to give a hand. What we started with our older son has now trickled down to our younger son. One of our favorite places to serve is The Ronald McDonald House. We go to bake cookies or some other treat that will then be shared with the guests. It is their home away from home… Read More
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From a very young age, music has played a big role in my life. At age 4, I took my first piano class training, as most kids do, in the classical genre. It wasn't until age 10 that I took my first keyboard class with the sole focus being how we use music to worship the Lord. It was there that I got to explore Jesus in music, which is what drew me in to my passion for music. I began to dive deeper and deeper into this concept of using worship to glorify the Lord. I learned how to… Read More
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I was 19 weeks into my difficult pregnancy when I was told by our local hospital that I would miscarry and there wasn't much they could do. I wanted to give our child every possible chance at life, so I started receiving blood transfusions. But at 23 weeks, I ran a high fever and began to hemorrhage. I was rushed two hours away to UAB hospital, the only hospital with a Level IV NICU in the state. I gave birth to our son, Cullen, but he weighed just 1.7 pounds and was considered a micro-preemie. The doctors only gave him a… Read More
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“God sees you. He loves you. God has a good plan for your life. Your life matters.” This message of love and hope is how I end every Breakfast Club. In a world where teenage depression, anxiety, and suicide are all too commonplace, I want these young adults to know regardless of how unloved and unworthy they feel, they are, in fact, very loved. That is why I helped start Breakfast Club at our local high school. I wanted to provide a safe place for all teenagers. Our mission is to feed bellies so that souls can be fed. This mission is… Read More
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Seeing children battling cancer has always tugged at my heart. Five years ago, I saw a story about a teenager who was battling leukemia. He was fighting for his life at Children’s Hospital, but he spent time going around to other rooms, encouraging kids in their battle. Wow. I was heartbroken when he passed away. I heard his family was struggling to pay his medical bills. A couple nights later, I saw a Kitchen Aid mixer on television and had this wild idea. My mother had a great pound cake recipe. What if I bought that mixer, made some pound cakes and… Read More