Highlight of the summer had to be taking a road trip to Nevada to see Thomas for a week. He went to a bomb building school for a month and got to build bombs for the Top Gun class that was training there. We actually got to drive by the bomb range on our way to the middle of no where and got to see a couple of the bombs he build explode. Pretty awesome experience I have to say. And the road trip out there was just breath taking. Got see Eastern Washington and Eastern Oregon and my mind was just blown away by the beauty. And I learned that i hate driving in the state of Oregon. 55 mph speed limit in the middle of nowhere for 6 hours in the dessert just is to much for me. No cell service, dust storms, and slow speed limit equals for a very frustrating drive. Even through all of that it was still a pretty awesome trip. Over all distance down and back was about 1,700 miles. Can check that off my bucket list now. :-) And we got to go to Lake Tahoe! I looovvvveed it. Such an amazing place. Will for sure be going back there.
Thomas through all of this was just trying to learn life on a carrier. It was a challenge and just is an eye opening experience. Meeting the world head on and God has made him victorious. Both started this summer working out consistently and both reached our goals for the summer. I finally managed to loose all the fatty weight I gained while he was on deployment and finally able to run for about 20 minutes with out stopping. :-) And Thomas just got stronger and more handsome. Both of us just feeling so much more alive and healthier.
Both accomplished awesome milestones. Thomas was promoted to Second class Petty Officer and I was able to successfully complete Cell Biology with an A- in the class. We both just feel so incredibly blessed and thankful. An amazing reminder of all that God is continuing to do in our life.
I think the hardest part of the year for me came from a doctor's appointment. I had just been physically having some issues and finally broke down and went to the doctor. I am not a huge fan of going to the doctor. Doctor said it looked like I had Endometriosis and it was up to me to pursue lap surgery to see if that was it for sure or now. Took me two months to research and decided to go through with the surgery. After an extremely extremly painful time of the month I decided I needed to know for sure and just how bad it was. Endometriosis isn't a form of cancer or anything just has to do with the endometrio tissue that is on the inside of my uterus has found its way some how on the outside and can cause extreme cramping and pain and fertility issues. And there is no known cause or cure it just is what it is. So on November 12th I went in for my very first surgery ever. And thanking my God so much for Karen Quick and Amy Quick. They made that day and experience not so scary and were there to help me heal. Being away from family and having my husband gone made me just uneasy but these sweet women came in and just filled my heart with God's comfort. Surgery was a success and the only symptom from the general anesthesia was crazy muscle spams as I first woke up and slight nausea. Praise the Lord for that :-)
Going into the surgery I prayed hard for definitive answers. I wanted it to be there or not be there. Nothing iffy. And God did answer that prayer with a very for sure answer. The results was dispersed endometriosis. Meaning not only did I have it but it was everywhere and in advanced state. They found cysts of a large size and buck shot style look on both sides of my uterus on the tendons that connect to it, in the pelvic region and on top of my bladder. If that isn't an answer I don't know what is. And from what they took pictures of and what I understand the scar tissue caused a tear as well.
So what in the heck does that all mean? Means for the rest of my life I will be battling something that is just eating at my body and causing extreme pain and discomfort. It means I am predisposed for fertility issues such as ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, not being able to get pregnant at all and could be in menopause by age 30 since I have a more advanced form of endometriosis at such a young age. Still trying to process this chunk.
So what am I doing about it all? Well through lots of research I have turned down medicine options. To many horrible side effects and being in a fake menopause for 3-6 months and then off of it for the rest for my life in hopes that the pain would go away and not come back for a while just didn't seem worth it to me. I have to be able to live and function and be married and I don't believe I can do that on the hormone medicine options. I have come across a certain diet, herbal tea and progesterone cream. So that is the path I am going to follow. So that means no processed sugars, no dairy, no red meats, no gluten products. Which has been a struggle for me. This emotionally has been really really hard for me to swallow. I want to honor God with how I treat my body. I have always tried to eat healthy and have been physically active my whole life. I don't smoke or drink excessively or do drugs. I treat my body well yet at this very moment something is attacking my body and causing me pain and making my emotions and hormones go all over the place. God has given me a love for children yet that seems like already another mountain to climb. And it makes my heart sad but at the same time He has showed me that there are so many children He needs me to love. It is a daily battle for me to remember God and all that He can do in this situation in my life. I pray God just takes this away but I also know that this is something that I might have to battle through for the rest of my life. Anything is possible with God. He is no limited by man made statistics or men's thoughts and medicine. I think for the first time in my life I truly feel the brokenness of this world. I am a broken woman. But what my heart hopes in is not in the ability to have children or in a pain free life but in a life full of God. I have hope. Hope in the promises I see in the broken people in the bible God uses to move mountains. I may be small and broken but I am mighty. Not because of anything with in my own power but in God's mighty power I will be victorious. And I know God has a son out there for me and his name will be Matthew. Thomas and I both agree on that name. :-) Matthew means gift from God. And truly the children that will become a part of family one day will be such an amazing gift from God.
I am thankful for my husband. He has be so supportive and even switched his diet to match mine. Being married is the most challenging but most amazing thing ever. We are both still learning what a marriage is and trying to honor God with our marriage. Both of us seeking after God and his direction in where we go from here. November 2014 Thomas will be done with the Navy. For now we are just taking each day as it comes. Getting ready for the next deployment and all that entails. I just keep gong with school one class at a time in hopes of one day becoming a nurse. For now I am taking classes, cleaning houses as work, babysitting every now and then, helping at church and trying to keep up with my cats and my husband. :-) Life is never boring in the Childress house, but I wouldn't have it any other way.
Romans 5:1-5
"Therefore, since we have been justified(A) through faith,(B) we[a] have peace(C) with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,(D) 2 through whom we have gained access(E) by faith into this grace in which we now stand.(F) And we[b] boast in the hope(G) of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we[c] also glory in our sufferings,(H) because we know that suffering produces perseverance;(I) 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope(J) does not put us to shame, because God’s love(K) has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit,(L) who has been given to us"
HOPE
