Evey in Galilee

Our dear friends (Paxton's parents) were traveling throughout Jerusalem last month.  It must have been an amazing trip for them to trace our Savior's mortal life, and to remember Paxton, who is now reunited with our older brother and Savior.   While there, they visited the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount.  On a specific tree on the Mount this is what they saw:

Evey will probably never make a trip to Jerusalem during her mortality, but just knowing that her name is there on the Mount of Beatitudes is perfect.  Hopefully Nate and I will go find that same tree one day.  For now, because we know there's no such thing as coincidence, we feel grateful that Shannon and Dave captured this perfect picture for us.  Most importantly, thank you for still looking out for your lady, Paxton.  We love your parents and we miss you and can't wait to meet again.

Mosiah 10:9 - Yea, and are ^awilling to mourn with those that ^bmourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as ^cwitnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of the ^dfirst resurrection, that ye may have eternal life.

Best Laid Plans

Today I had lots of great plans.  Last night as I was trying to fall asleep, I planned out my Monday.  It went something like this.
-Wake up, get the kids off to school.
-Unpack more boxes.
-Go to the grocery store.
-Pick up Christmas Cards to mail.
-Go to the gym.
-Make an asian dinner I've been craving.
-Pick up Evey's prescriptions.
-Call over some Insurance bills.
-Cancel and reschedule Evey's overnight seizure study
-Eat said delicious asian dinner
-Have family night
-Put up Christmas decorations and let kids decorate their gingerbread cookies.

Instead, this is what really happened.
-After being up all night treating Evey's fever and stomach virus. We had a late morning start and finally got the kids out the door with much coercing (aka yelling)
-Took Evey to the doctor again after 10 days of a stomach virus and 4 days of fever(never mind the fact that we were in the ER over the weekend - sore subject).
-While getting home from the doctors visit and laying Evey down in her crib for a nap, her g-j tube got snagged on my purse and came out....again.  Seriously? (it's time to get her a belly band wrap)
- Waited for the boys to get home from school and we all drove up to the hospital to get it put back in for the umpteenth time. That's a couple hour ordeal.
- Ate corn dogs, cheetos, french fries, and gummy worms for dinner at the hospital cafeteria.
- Came straight home for bath and bed.
-Icing on the cake, I got a cold sore :(

    This probably happens to us twice a week.  Nate always says plans for us are a complete luxury and a pure miracle if they even happen.
     I guess I'm writing this to vent a little, but even as I'm writing I feel quite petty.  Look at all my first world problems.  Oh poor me, I didn't get to sit in my warm house and put up my nice christmas tree and cook my delicious dinner or go to the gym.  It's kind of embarrassing, but I suppose I'm posting this more as a reminder to myself. While we were eating dinner in the hospital cafeteria Eli exclaimed, "this is the best family dinner ever!"  I think Cheetos have that effect on most kids and lets be honest, most adults.
    Now, if I really take a hard look at my day, I can find some of those small miracles.  I remember that our favorite Aunt called and came over just in the knick of time to play with Zoey so Nate & I could run and get the last of the stuff from the house, that we didn't get over the weekend because of Evey's hospital stay.  There was an extremely nice southern gentlemen checking us in at the hospital who we love and tells the best stories.  The insurance lady I talked to while waiting for Evey's procedure was extra nice today and we talked about moving and hoarding and laughed about it.  Our favorite radiologist was on staff and made Evey's replacement much more pleasant.  And as Eli proclaimed so wisely, Cheetos do solve all problems.  Plans are overrated, good thing I've never really liked them anyway.  We are blessed.

Tender Mercies

   With Evey, I feel like I can easily recognize the big mercies the Lord sends our way.  However, I was reminded this week that sometimes the small tender mercies are the ones that deserve the most recognition.

     This last week we headed down to Southern Utah to spend Thankgiving with my parents.  It was a long 4 hour ride in the car and Evey's first long road trip post spine surgery.  The kids all got a little antsy, seeing as how they've been spoiled with flying lately.  The second we got to my parents house and I laid Evey down to change her diaper, I noticed her g-j tube had been pulled out.  No bueno.  The problem with the tube being in her jejunum (intestine) is that it can only be replaced by an interventional radiologist in a radiology room which is only found in a big-time children's hospital, or big city hospital.  Southern Utah has neither, so I immediately cursed, cried, and then after the tears went away, we got on the phone to find out if we could go to Las Vegas to get it put back in, or if we had to drive all the way back up to Salt Lake City - 4 more hours on the road, while Evey went without any food, driving in the middle of the night.
     I was so bummed, I just wanted a Thanksgiving, especially because last Thanksgiving we were in the hospital recovering from her skull surgery.  After an hour or so on the phone we realized our best option was to turn around and drive back up to SLC.  We packed up the car and my parents offered to take the other 3 kids and meet us up at home the next day.  As we were driving away, I got a call from our radiologist back home that said he called and found a doctor in St. George that could put in Evey's g-j tube.  Four hours later, after an almost fight with an idiot ER doctor, and talking the radiologist through replacing her tube, we were on our way back to my parents' house for Thanksgiving.  My mind was scrambled eggs by the end of it all, and my parents wisely told me that they were praying for a tender mercy, and when we told them we could stay in St. George, they were immediately so thankful that the Lord gave us a tender mercy.  It was a tender mercy that I didn't even recognize because it still felt like such a fiasco.

     Two days later while still at my parents' house, Eli woke up at midnight coughing up a storm and couldn't catch his breath, while turning blue.  Thankfully we had Evey's steroids, gave him a few puffs, and ran him down to the ER.  Turned out to be pneumonia.  Three day Thanksgiving trip with only 2 trips to the local ER.  We are now infamous down at that small town hospital.

     Although small in the scheme of things, these are the tender mercies from the Lord.  Not having to leave abruptly and abandon our trip.  My dad letting me cry in his arms in pure frustration after seeing Evey's g-j tube pulled out, having extra medicine lying around to give to Eli when he needed it most.  And as always,  Nate and I continuing to be blessed with the energy we need, despite sleepless nights.  This thanksgiving, I was extremely grateful for my wise parents that reminded us of the small things that we are blessed with, even amongst the chaos.  Best thanksgiving in a long time, despite it all.  We are blessed.

Teen Supreme

    The more we talk with those around us, the general consensus continues to be that the world is getting more and more out of control.  Nothing is as it seems and there's craziness everywhere we turn.  As a Mom, trying to raise stand-up kids in this type of environment, can be intimidating, to say the least.  It can be down right scary and totally depressing and gloomy to think about tackling the daunting task of protecting your kids into today's society.  Nate and I know with the world becoming so polarized, with that bad, comes incredible good.

     A couple of years ago, Nate and I had the opportunity to teach 14-16 year olds in our church.  These teenagers were hands down, some of the most incredible kids we have ever met.  They were strong in their faith and clung tight to their values.  They weren't daunted or afraid at all of what the world was throwing at them.  Instead, they were brave and fearless and facing life without hesitation. It was a great year to bask in their light and example.  Now, they are all around the world, on missions, preaching the gospel and facing the world with that same bravery we saw years ago.  We knew after teaching them, that these next generations of youth would continue to prevail against society's standards and come out on top.

    Enter these 3 amazing girls.  There's an incredible program up at the University of Utah for siblings of special needs kids.  Every friday night, high school and college students volunteer their night to spend one-on-one time with these siblings.  Our kids got lined up with these 3 teenage girls from a local high school and it was love at first sight amongst all of them.  These girls give up every friday night to play with our kids, without pay or any recognition.  Our kids talk about them all week and can't wait to see them.  Every night as we drop the kids off, Nate and I always reminisce that we were the worst teenagers.  We would have never given up our friday nights to hang out with some kids, unpaid.  We love that those girls love our kids and we will be referencing them and their kindness for the rest of our lives.  I hope the rest of their lives are infinitely blessed for the simple service they have given our family every friday night.

   This my friends, is why we are all going to be okay.  The youth out there will make sure of it.  Sure the world can be pretty scary, but if we stop reading and listening to the news for a moment, take a breath, and look around, there's a lot of miracles and beautiful, kind deeds taking place all around us. We are blessed.

Put it on our tab

      On the last day of Disneyland, Evey had her first grand mal seizure.  In the neurology world they are now called tonic clonic seizures, but I'll call it grand mal in this post and kick it old school.   There are many different types of seizures and Nate and I have been pretty sure she's been having other types of seizures, but this was the first grand mal we've seen.  Epilepsy is super common with her syndrome and since she manages to have everything that comes with the syndrome, we figured epilepsy was inevitable.  Because Nate and I have already seen some pretty scary things with Evey, we weren't too phased by it.  She vomited and turned blue right after, but we had her suction machine and steroids and it helped pull her out of it pretty quick.  It's amazing how nothing really shocks us anymore with Evey.  We've become pretty desensitized to all things medical and as crazy as it sounds, it was nice to finally witness an undeniable seizure, because now we are 100% she does have epilepsy and we can treat her accordingly with our neurologist.  Knowledge is power for us.
     Yesterday we had a few procedures done and a sedated hearing test called an ABR.  We knew she had some hearing loss, but we haven't been too worried about it because we assumed it was conductive, meaning it was caused by recurrent ear infections or malfunctioning tubes and that she'd eventually grow out of it.  Ends up, we were wrong.  She has moderate hearing loss in both ears and it's not conductive.  Our poor girl has been deaf for 18 months and we had no idea.  Although, in this house, maybe being deaf isn't such a bad thing.  So, pink, sparkly hearing aids are coming our way.  Add that to the pink wheelchair I ordered, and the pink glasses she'll be getting next month...I've probably gone too far.  After we die and Evey talks to me for the first time, I'm sure she's going to have some words with me about the pink.  I apologize Evey, but I just cannot resist.
    In all seriousness, this girl has a fighter spirit.  All of our therapists say all the time that they've never seen a child with so many physical issues that is so determined to progress.  She continues to melts hearts, ours included.
    A while back I wrote about Evey's boyfriend, Paxton passing away.  Our dear friends gave us Paxton's stander to use with Evey so she can learn to bear weight.  It's been surreal to see her in it, she loves it, which is incredibly unusual, because most kids have to build up a tolerance to being in it.  Evey must know it's her boyfriend's and that's why she wants to hang out in it all day. I always think of Pax when I see her in it.
     I know without a doubt, that families are forever.  Paxton's family will be reunited with him one day and I know when it's Evey's turn to go, we will be with her again too.  That's the peace that carries us through every new diagnosis, every new twist and turn in our mortal lives.  We are blessed.

  Mosiah 2:41 And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and ^ahappy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are ^bblessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out ^cfaithful to the end they are received into ^dheaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it.
 

Love or hate

Like seafood, chocolate, and snow, Disney happens to be one of those Love/Hate things.  Our family happens to fall on the love side.  We love all things Disney and so do our kids, conveniently.  We found a break between Evey's surgeries and thankfully she stayed healthy and we were able to spend a week down at Disneyland.  Our kids loved every part and so did Mom and Dad.  Most people think taking four young kids to Disneyland for 5 days is parental suicide.  What I try to explain to people is that our day to day lives are so crazy and so unpredictable that 5 days of Disney is utter perfection.  Nate and I were on cloud nine the whole time and the kids loved every minute.  We felt so blessed every day that we were there.  The only glitch in our near perfect week was that Evey had a seizure the very last day.  We'll address that the next post, but for now here's the Supreme Team's Disney review.

                                                              Our view from the hotel

The characters were all so sweet with Evey and she loved all of them so much.

The boys loved giving hugs to all of their favorite characters.

                          We had to take a beach day to break things up and it was perfect weather.

Zoey is obsessed with Cinderella.  We had to pry her off of her and she was loving every second of it.  Zoey will be the girl that's fighting all the boys on the playground, while wearing a princess dress.

                                              The kids mapping out their plan of attack.

                                                  Love these boys.  They look very related.

                   Each of the boys got to do the Jedi Training Academy.  Eli and Owen took it all very seriously.

                                                Yes, we were as happy as we looked.

Brown Eyes

     I talk about the small, significant, moments a lot in this blog.  I don't want to be overly cheesy and I know people assume I have those really, ugly, hard breakdowns, where I find myself crying in the closet, and I do.  We all have those in one form or another.  That's the beauty of this mortality.  I just don't talk about them much, if it all, because if I dwell on those, I'd probably be too busy spiraling into a deep, dark place that I'd miss the moments and messages that the Lord is trying to sending me to help me move forward.
    On that note, we have had quite a week in the Supreme Team house.  I came down with a nasty flu, aches, fever and all things glorious that come with experimenting in not getting a flu shot.  A day after the fever began, I noticed Evey was acting lethargic and wasn't rolling around as much.  I assumed she was getting sick and thought here we go.  Her fever never came and Nate finally noticed her arm kept getting stuck when she did attempt to roll over.  Finally on Saturday morning, after poking and prodding her arm, we realized it was broken.  Off to downtown Primary Children's Hospital we went.  Mind you, I still had a full-blown fever and probably looked like a drug addict and death wrapped in one.  Which, come to think about it, I should be grateful they didn't call child protective services on me.  A drugged looking lady bringing in her baby, saying her arm is broken, but yet we don't know how it happened...hmmmm.  Thankfully, the nurse knew Evey from previous visits and we were in the clear from a CPS incident.
     So yes, our Evey broke her arm which opened up a whole new bag of worms.  She could have osteogenesis imperfecta, (aka brittle bone disease), doesn't that sound like a harry potter spell....osteogenesis imperfecta!  The cool disease, where bones brake for no reason.  For now, because the tests to discover it are imperfect(ironic?), our Orthopedist tells us we'll definitely know within a year, between her ribs breaking from her spinal rods and any other breaks that could happen along the way.  Awesome!  A lot to swallow, and more importantly a lot of doctors to see and appointments to make.  Busy, busy, busy.  And this flu bug has decided to take it's sweet time leaving my system.  Note to self: no more experimenting with the whole flu shot conspiracy theory.
    Today, after no sleep from the sickies, I had to get up and take our Evey to the physical therapist because we are in the process of ordering her a wheel chair and some other cool medical equipment.  I pulled up to the building miserable, and got Zoey out and went around to get Evey out of her chair, begrudgingly.  A van pulled up next to me and I noticed a grandma and grandpa get out, pull a wheelchair out of their van and go to get a young 5 year old looking boy out of his seat.
      I mainly stopped to check out the wheelchair, because we've been trying to figure out what kind we want, but I managed to glance at the boy.  This 5 year old boy had machines everywhere, he was on a vent with a tracheostomy and was so medically complicated.  His brown eyes immediately locked into mine.  I stopped and tried to muster whatever smile I could at him.  He just stared at me and didn't flinch.  Immediately this boy's spirit spoke directly to me.  I heard it as clear as day and it said, "Don't you dare feel sorry for yourself." It was the most perfect, gentle, scolding and the boy kept his big, brown eyes on mine, until I heard that clear message.  Again, "don't you dare feel sorry for yourself."  The grandparents swept him away and I was left dumbfounded in the parking lot.  There it was, the simple message I needed to hear, from the eyes of a perfect spirit.  I'm so grateful today for that perfect little boy that communicated to me through the spirit, the inspired message that the Lord needed me to hear.  It was just the gentle reminder I needed today and yesterday and always.  I am blessed.

One step forward...

     I've learned with Evey when she takes a step forward, there will always be a rebound that sets us back. She's learned to take a few bites, which I so eagerly posted, because it was so exciting.  However, now she is vomiting again and we've stopped bites all together to do some studies of her esophagus and stomach to see what's going on.  We also need to re-botox her neck because her torticolis is back and we need to get a good luck at her hearing with an abr. I imagine we'll have those procedures done within a few weeks.  Sometimes these set backs really do a number on my glass half-full personality.  But then, I go to sleep, wake up in the morning and it's a new day to be optimistic about.
     The good news is with the boys in school we have all sorts of time with physical, occupational and speech therapy.  Evey is now pushing up again on all fours for a couple of seconds. She'll definitely learn to crawl before she learns to sit up.  She's just as determined as ever and now when anyone new walks in the house she gets up on all fours to show off her new skills.  It's so cute and we definitely know she's part of the family with her show-off skills.  Can't wait to see what this lady has in store for us and what the future holds for her.   She will accomplish anything she puts her mind to, because that's how strong her will power is (again, another hereditary trait).  And with that hair, nothing will stop her. Keep on keeping on, Evey lady.

When did this happen?

    Do you ever have those moments, that thrust you into the swift reality that you are officially a parent?  Some days, I still feel like I'm the irresponsible teenager that is trying her hardest to push the boundaries and figure out what life is all about.  I've had "holey moley, you're a parent moments" more and more lately, with the start of school and hospital stays.  However, I had one today that I didn't see coming.
    Have I ever told you how much I love our Eli bear?  He happens to be so hilarious and is turning into quite the handsome, charmer.  He's now going to full day pre-K which he is excelling at and is loving every minute of school time.  Today, while I was running errands I got a call from the school asking me to bring another pair of pants and undies for Eli to school.  Now that's a "you're a parent" wake up call.  Apparently, Eli got so excited on the playground that he didn't quite want to leave play time early to go to the potty, so he had a pee your pants episode. Can't really blame him for that.
    I walked into the School office and saw Eli sitting in a chair with his lunch box on his lap, with the saddest sullen look all over his face.  The second he saw me, he immediatley lost it and started to cry.  It was one of the most tender things I've witnessed in a long time.  He hugged me long and tight, and I convinced the sobbing bear to go to the bathroom so we could change his pants.  The whole time in the bathroom, he was crying, while saying, "I just want to go home, can I go home?"  Every part of me wanted to scoop the humiliated bear up and take him home for the rest of the day.  But alas,  I knew this was a pinnacle parenting moment that required me to do the hard thing.  I knew I had to make him stay to face his friends even after wetting his pants.  As we were walking back into the hall, I kept telling him over and over, that Mommy pees her pants all the time and it's no big deal.  His teacher and a few other female teachers overheard me telling him that and they all agreed that they pee their pants too, which all of us childbearing women know is definitely true.  An immediate look of relief came over Eli's face after hearing he was not alone in the peeing pants department, and with that he put on a smile and was eagerly on his way back to class.
    I walked out of the school today, laughing to myself about this parenting thing that randomly sneaks up on you when you least expect it.  Thank you Adam Sandler for reminding me, "You ain't cool unless you pee your pants" and thanks bear for giving me the privilege of being your mama.

Gratitude

     It has been 2 weeks from Evey's veptr surgery.  I've waited this long to update, because if I would have tried to write any sooner, it would have been a whining blog post.  I hate whining/complaining, so I try to avoid it all costs, and if on the rare occasion it happens, it mostly falls on Nate's poor ears, in the privacy of our own home.

     In the last 2 weeks; the boys started full day school (our autistic Owen started a main-stream private school), Evey has been up every night as we're working on pain management and we celebrated my big 3-2 b-day at the hospital.

     I'm finally seeing the light today, so I decided to turn this into a gratitude post.  It's much needed, and I must admit, I haven't been the most grateful person these last few weeks in the midst of sleep deprivation and worrying about the boys in their new school.  So here it goes, my grateful list:

I am grateful for the two doctors that invented the veptr procedure and essentially are giving us some more time with our daughter here in mortality.

     I am grateful for a school taking a chance on our Owen and Eli and giving them an incredible opportunity to learn and grow.

I am grateful for temples, and the perspective and escape that it provides us from the chaos of daily life.

 I am grateful for a new bladder that again allows me to do stupid things like this at the ripe old age of 32.   With age, obviously doesn't come wisdom.  (you know those kids are thinking, why is that old lady taking up our turn on the trampoline?) 

I am grateful for 4 amazingly strong, fearless kids.  They'll try anything and are so brave.  I couldn't have asked for 4 more amazing kids.

I am grateful to be a mom.  It's the most surprisingly, perfect gift that I could have ever received.  And it is an indescribably beautiful gift, that I am eternally grateful for.

I am so grateful for this guy.  He is my partner and bestie through it all.  He loves and takes care of all of us without hesitation.  He works endlessly to make sure we all have what we need and then comes home and loves on us and makes us all laugh until we cry.  People always comment on how strong, "special needs moms" are.  I'll tell you this much, I am nothing without him. He is my rock that gives me strength and provides me the support I need to be strong.  It's the "special needs dads" that do the dirty work behind the scenes, and don't get the credit.  So yes baby-bubba,  I still choose you!

As always, I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father.  He provides the comfort when we need it, he forgives me when my head has been stuck in the sand for a couple of weeks, and he gives me little nudges when I've forgotten to be grateful for a while. 

Last but not least he never ever abandons our little family.  

We are blessed.

Waiting

While Evey's in the hospital I thought I'd post new pictures my sis-in-law took of the kids (thanks Kim). Evey is doing amazingly well and is alert and happy even with all the drugs in her system. Prayers are being answered. 

 

                               

This one of the kids is so telling of all their personalities. I love candid shoots because you really see who everyone is. Eli is hamming it up for the camera. Evey is letting the siblings know play time is over.  Owen's trying to console Evey to make her feel better. And Zoey is giving the camera stink eye...just because she can. This pic is the perfect explanation of the fearsome foursome. These little people are so cool and always keep us on our toes. We are so grateful for these kiddos, they have giant spirits(and personalities) and I'm blessed to be able to hang out with them all day. 

Insta-Family

It was no less than 2 years ago, that Nate and I were openly mocking facebook, blogging, and most other forms of social media.  Yes, Nate and I eat our words quite frequently in life.  That's what we get for always having an opinion on everything. 

We finally started the social media game when Nate started his own business last year and shortly after, Evey was born and social media has turned into one of the greatest blessings in our lives.  We found a facebook group for 17q21.31 microdeletion syndrome (aka Kooelen-de Vries Syndrome) right after we received Evey's diagnosis at 2 months old.  Since then, it has been a huge blessing to have friends all over the world that can help us understand what to expect in the future and what we can do now to help improve Eves Knees life.

Long story longer, the group has started "informal" gatherings once a year, with whatever brave parent that decides to volunteer their time and home city for the yearly meeting.  This year Evey and I had the opportunity to attend a gathering in Indianapolis, Indiana with 31 other "kool" kids and their families. To say it was a life-changing experience, would be an understatement.  It was incredible to see Evey's buddies that all have similar features, some could have been her twins, and they all just molded together.  My favorite part of it all was the instant bond with the parents of these kiddos. It was so fun to meet parents that we've been talking with online for a year and to finally be able to hug and meet their kids.  They felt like they have been family all along.

Last but not least, Dr. Koolen, "the man, the myth, the legend", flew in from the Netherlands just to be at the gathering.  He let all the parents ask any questions and gave us all a genetics 101 class.  I have met a couple geneticists in this last year and never have I met a more warm, personable, truly humble, man.  He took the time with each parent and played with the kids like they were his own.  As silly as it sounds, out of all the syndromes, I'm sure glad Evey was blessed to be a "kool" kid.  These parents and families are so chosen and it's an honor to belong to this amazing group of people.  Can't wait for all the gatherings each year and to watch the group grow for years to come. 
I love our new insta-family.

Amateur summer

This summer has been my first legit summer with kids out of school.  Needless to say, I did zero planning and thought that things would be there normal organized chaos. Yeah...not so much. Hence the word amateur in the blog title. I have entered into a total fog this summer, that started with Evey's hospital stay at the beginning of July and it hasn't left me. The following is a list of things that prove I've lost my mind...

-I lose my phone in our house at least 2x a day and have to call the phone from my iPad to find it. 

-I left my target credit card at target and didn't realize it until a week later when I was checking out at target. On a side note - target cuts up cards that are not claimed within 24 hours....awesome. 

- I dropped my phone at the zoo and thankfully some worker found it at closing. 

-I've successfully left my wallet at both red robin and California pizza kitchen and not realized it for days.

However, there is a silver lining in me losing my mind. It's the beautiful thing that our kids are excelling and doing amazing in spite of the chaos.

   I take them hiking and everyone's blown away at their friendliness and endurance climbing big mountains. 

We take them on spontaneous hotel trips and they behave like champions and have no issues within sharing a bed. 

Owen and Eli have taught themselves to swim. Owen did because he was ready and Eli did it because he accidentally jumped in the big pool without his life jacket. Ends up Eli can swim if his life depended on it. 

My favorite part about our kids is that they look out for one another. Yes, they can fight full on MMA style at any given moment; but if anyone messes with one or the other, they will gang up and take that person out. It's so fabulous to watch. 

I know these 4 amazing little people are so loved by The Lord and that he will always look out for them regardless of the chaos that life throws at them. 

Now, if anyone has seen my mind, will you please contact me and return it as soon as possible.  Thanks!