We came into 2014 with a few health concerns. Wanda was having some trouble with her neck, shoulders, etc. from the auto accident she was in last year. My mom wasn't 100% recovered from her colon cancer she had treated in 2013. Other than that, life was moving along. Daisy was getting really immersed into the Robotics team at Rose Hulman. She was named the driver for the robot they built and they even part of the winning team for our Regional event held here! They guaranteed a spot in the world championships in St. Louis! Martha was finishing up her Junior year in high school. Our Church was truly blessed with an incredible Pastor who helped us take one of the biggest steps in our church history by moving into another building! I thought 2014 was to be a truly remarkable year!
Then life came crashing down in truly horrendous fashion. In February, Mom's cancer came back. Treatments didn't promise much, but chemotherapy gave us hope we'd be able to have her another year or two. Wanda had shoulder surgery in April that the surgeon felt went successfully, but it's not been the recovery we thought it would be. In the same month, our house had some drainage problems that required someone to come out to fix. The month continued on with a serious health threat for me. After eating lunch mid-month, I had some severe pains in my stomach/left kidney area. I thought it was a kidney infection. The doctor started checking things out and I was recovering. The Robotics Championships came, and, along the way, I found out Mom was going to the hospital. The Robotics team had continued problems with their robot, but a lot of valuable experience was gained.
May continued to be worse for us. Mom's prognosis was grim and her life was ending. Waiting at the hospital during the final time, I got severely ill and had to come home, missing the time of Mom's passing. I had a cat scan at the hospital and they rushed me right over to the emergency room after reviewing my results. More testing was ordered and prognosis wasn't looking good. I then went to my mom's funeral service in the midst of it all. The doctor sent me for a MRI and was the most scared I'd ever been in my life. Wanda had to come in to help soothe me so they could finish the test.
June came along, with one more test to go. By this time, enough was known that it didn't seem to be cancer at this point, but surgery seemed inevitable. We're figuring some unknown part of my pancreas was going to be removed, at the very best possibility. My fellow employees and my boss committed to give me their sick time to get me through any time off I'd need from work. I had many praying for me. The test finished up and the surgeon came in to tell me the news. I was completely healed and my health problems seemed to stem from the blood pressure medicine I started taking! I know in my heart that it was actually a true miracle from God! The power of prayer should never been underestimated!
After suffering so much for half the year, God then gave us so many blessings! Daisy was named Team Captain on the Robotics team! Martha's Spell Bowl team made it to the State Finals! I won some gift cards to a home improvement store that helped in many ways, including equipment to keep our drains cleared, new steps for the back porch, and other things. Then, in February of next year, we won a trip to a dude ranch in Montana for Wanda and me that looks to be like so much fun and a nice, relaxing time for us! We've been blessed in so many other ways also, including having such a great church family who have done so much for us and my work family who are truly a pleasure to work with!
We're still facing some challenges. Wanda's having pain and suffering from the accident. We're struggling to find the right college for Martha next year. Something happened with the relationship I had with my family through the year and I fear for their salvation. All-in-all, though, we're really enjoying life together and looking forward to 2015!
Merry Christmas to everyone our there, from Kevin, Wanda, Martha, and Daisy, along with our cats Zippy (featured in yet another Christmas picture above), Angel, and Midnight! May God grant you the most joyous of holidays!
