Women of Faith conference ~ WOW!!

Jam-packed arena full of Christian women!


Women of Faith speakers on stage

Tonight I got home from attending the Women of Faith conference in Charlotte, NC with about 45 women from my church. This is such an amazing ministry! It was held at the Charlotte Coliseum and over 23,000 women were there worshiping Jesus together! It is a little bit of heaven on earth. The program consisted of 6 main speakers (Patsy Clairmont, Sheila Walsh, Thelma Wells, Nicole Johnson, Luci Swindoll, and Marilyn Meberg), guest speaker Beth Moore, and guest artist Sandi Patty. Each has been blessed with such awesome gifts, but I was a little partial to hearing Beth Moore in person. Through her Bible study "Believing God", I learned something very important about God which I believe is the reason Philip is here today. We need to come to that point in which we believe wholeheartedly that NOTHING is too big for God. Whether He does it or not is another issue. I started that study after Matthew and I had prayed for a baby for a year and three months. That truth made clear in my mind was that God was more than able to give us a child if He so chose. I gave the whole thing to Him and low and behold, I was pregnant two months later. Beth is the most godly woman I know of, and to hear her say today how insecure and fearful a person she is, gives me such wonder at what God can do with me if He has gifted her as He has. The key difference between her and me is that Beth said yes to God even when she was scared. We hold ourselves back from a multitude of blessings because we don't think we can do what He has in mind for us to do. She said something that really struck me: the calling God has for us will be beyond us. If we're going along in our Christian walks, working for God and not really seeing any need for supernatural help, we're not doing all God's called us to do. If you are reading this and ever have a chance to see Beth in person or to just attend one of her studies (usually on video), don't miss out!! Well, I didn't get to meet her as I had hoped (you can wait in line at the speaker's book tables for autographs) because she had to fly out immediately after speaking, but I did give a photo of Philip to one of the ladies working at her booth. Maybe the photo will make it back to Beth so she can see the miracle I received from believing God! I'm already looking forward to next year's WOF conference, but will be glad that my breastpump won't be tagging along. Who knows, maybe by next October Baby Brooks 2 will be along for the ride.

Minister of Happiness

I may have mentioned in a previous post that Philip has assumed a new role entitled by my mom and I as "Minister of Happiness". He just makes everyone smile from us ourselves to strangers we pass in the store. Now that Mom is having treatments each day, Philip is doing an especially good job in ministering to the other patients and nurses at radiation. Mom says Michael and Kara actually pout if they don't see their favorite "little man" each day. Michael and Kara (and several others) are so caring to Mom and are giving her the best care they can. I definitely don't mind sharing Philip with them a little each day especially if he brings a little happiness to them.


Philip's other weekly ministry is visiting Mrs. Cordie, a 91-year-old shut-in from our church and my dear friend. I began visiting her once a week to deliver a CD of our Sunday worship service over 2 years ago. We got to know each other and she has always been such a calming comfort in the midst of this rush, rush, rush world. She lives with her grown son, but has 2 other sons and 3 daughters nearby. She already has 3 sons in heaven along with her husband. She is such a godly woman, full of knowlegde and still smart as a tack. She listened as I shared with her during 2003 how Matthew and I were trying to have a baby. She was excited for me when I found out I was pregnant. We discussed our aches and pains as I was getting more and more pregnant and she was feeling the effects of aging. She has a hard time seeing, hearing and walking, but her spirit is STRONG! Being 90 at the time, I prayed she would "hang around" to meet Philip. God has kept her strong and these days she so enjoys seeing how much he's grown from week to week.

Philip's Stats

On Monday, Philip had his 9-month check-up. Overall, his pediatrician says he is a very healthy boy. The only negative thing is he is underweight. He only weighs 16 lbs. according to their scale which I was assured is completely accurate. This means he is in the 10th percentile for weight (90% of babies his age are bigger than him). He's also 10th for height, but 80th for head circumference. He's got lots of brains!! His ped. said this is normal for breastfed babies as you don't actually see how much they are eating. I feel like I may have been short-changing him recently as I was preparing bottles to leave with Matthew as I attend a Women of Faith Conference this weekend. Needless to say, he'll be well fed this weekend and should be ok from now on as we won't be apart for any extended amount of time in the next few months. Matthew and I joke that I'm cutting him off come January (it's the truth, but just a funny way to say it)!! Other nursing mom friends who have recently weaned their babies say it's such a sad time as you realize your little baby is actually not one any more. I know it will be sad for me too, but it will sure make it a lot easier to leave him for a weekend. Anyhow, I think my little man is getting so big (no matter what the charts say).


Matthew with one-week-old Philip


Matthew with 9-month-old Philip

Here are some of his latest accomplishments:
*Says "Dada" (I look him square in the face and say "Say Mama"; he looks back at me so excitedly and says proudly "Dada!")
*Cruises along the edge of the couch or coffee table
*Loves Gerber fruit puffs and biter biscuits (inspired by Cousin Hannah)

*Has developed quite a temper (stiffens into a sharp backbend when being put in his carseat or umbrella stroller when tired)
*Sleeps on tummy at night (we put him down on his back, but we find him on his tummy in the morning)

More changes for Mom

Today Mom had radiation for the first time in five days. Her treatments were canceled Thursday, Friday and Monday to allow her body some time to rest. Her diarrhea is clearing up after almost two weeks. Her doctor prescribed this chalky powder which she mixes with water. She said while drinking it you feel it coat your throat like a thick paste. You then have to drink another big cup of water to wash it all down. The paste absorbs a lot of the water in your digestive track which prevents diarrhea and allows your body to retain the nutrients from the small amount of food she's eating. Because she was having such pains after eating a few weeks ago, she is still just eating child-size meals. We keep reminding her that she needs to keep well fed to maintain her strength. It's just all wearing on her physically and mentally.
As for the changes, her treatments are being extended again. Tomorrow and Friday, she has radiation as well as all five days next week (Oct. 31-Nov.4) and part of the following week. Her chemo doctor decided to push her chemo week back to Nov. 14-18 so it would be after she finishes radiation. Right now her surgery is still scheduled for Dec. 20, but she is thinking of asking to push it to the week after Christmas so she can enjoy Christmas with our family without the pains of recovery.
That's it for now. Please pray for Mom's body to be strong through these awful treatments and for her to eat enough to maintain her strength.

Photos of Us

For those of you reading my blog who haven't seen me in years and have never met Matthew or Andrea, Mike's wife, I thought I would post our family photos. Mom has mailed my blog address to many of her longtime friends as a way to keep up with what is going on. Hope you find my blog informative as well as enjoyable to read! I joke with Mom that Philip has his own ministry at only 9 months of age; he's a Minister of Happiness. It makes me thank the Lord so much for him in that by you looking at his photos, you can be blessed also. I also thank you so much for your continued prayers for my mom.




Philip, Matthew & Kim





Mike & Andrea

Correction to Mom's Schedule

Mom has radiation each day this week (Oct. 24-28). Next week, she has chemo and radiation each day (Oct. 31-Nov. 4). Finally, the two last radiation treatments to make up for the canceled ones will be on Nov. 7-8. The end is coming closer each day!

Changes in Mom's treatment

Philip beside the fountain at the Gibbs Cancer Center


Mom has been doing ok with her treatments. She has such a positive atttitude while at the hospital and has made friends with all the nurses there. However, her body had a bad reaction to the radiation. Her small intestines have been affected causing diarrhea for 6 days. The doctor tried on medicine, but then decided on Wednesday that she needed a break from the radiation. Her treatments on yesterday and today were cancelled. This means she has radiation each day for the next two weeks, chemo and radiation the third week, and then two additional radiation treatments the following week. However, the end is still in sight! Please pray Mom will rest this weekend and feel stronger on Monday to begin treatments again. She is now eating the BRAT diet: bananas, rice, applesauce and toast! Yum! But not really when that's all she can eat all day! At least she is not having any pains like last week.

Mom's paintings

Just a few weeks before Mom knew she had cancer, she cut her days at the daycare from Monday-Friday to Monday-Wednesday. She was going to start painting murals for people in their homes. She is really talented and we've told her over and over that she would be great at it. Here's the sample I have in my house. She was so excited to be expecting her first grandchild last year that she wanted to paint him a mural. Now little Philip can sit on the bed and look at it while we put his pajamas on each night. Hopefully, next spring more kids can have murals in their rooms too!

Look at that hair!! Philip has hair made for the mohawk!

Tub Troubles

Philip's favorite thing in the world is to stand on his feet. This has created a problem at bathtime. Recently at the end of his bath, I have pulled him to his feet in the tub and let him stand and touch the faucet. Well tonight, he was determined to skip the bath process and go right to standing up. I stripped him down and sat him down in the tub as always. From the moment I began wiping his face with the washcloth, he was pulling on my arms trying to get his feet under him. I said, "We have to sit, baby, and get clean." "No, Mommy!" would have been his answer if he could speak. I put one hand on his back and the other grabbed his ankles (gently, of course) to sit him down. That little body stiffened up as straight as he could be!! Finally I was just laying him flat into the water with my arm behind his head trying to wash his body. I got him to sit long enough to suds up his hair because he couldn't get hold of my hands. Crazy little man. :) Guess it's time to read Dr. James Dobson's "Bringing Up Boys" and "Dare to Discipline." A friend told me it's never too early!

Hollywild, part 2

If you are wondering where part 1 is, skip this post and read the one below first. You'll understand. Anyway...

Philip's new "friends"...

Philip meets a little goat.


Philip meets a cow.

Matthew heard there would be a tiny lion cub on show in the amphitheatre. We couldn't miss that even though Philip was getting a little tired and only caught moments of the show amidst looking around and reaching for Mommy to hold him, reaching for Daddy to hold him, reaching for Mommy, etc.




Well, it was a long, but fun afternoon. Philip was asleep in his stroller as we were approaching the park exit, but luckily he woke up for one more special photo. Matthew assured me that Philip wouldn't fall off. I let go of him for the one second it took to snap the photo and scooped him up to safety!!

Our day at Hollywild Animal Park

Thanks to Matthew's cousin Joy, we had a free family pass to Hollywild Animal Park. It's called Hollywild because there are some retired animal "stars" from Hollywood movies and tv shows/commercials who live there plus lots of other animals. It was a really beautiful day and not too hot. Matthew and I were in shorts (nice for mid-October) while Philip had on jeans. He didn't get hot just rolling around in his stroller. The first think we wanted to do was the Safari ride; the brochure said it was a must-see! They've just hollowed out old school buses and installed a long double-sided bench which faces the windows. There was a bucket of old bread which we fed the animals.



Philip enjoys the safari!


Look at all those animals, Philip!


Matthew gives the bull what he wants!


There goes the other bus! Each bus is painted like an animal!


Well, hello zebra!

After the safari ride, we continued on through the park. There were lions, tigers and bears! (Sorry, it was even in the brochure.) We obviously couldn't get that close to those big guys, but Philip did make some new "friends".
(For some reason, this things not letting me add any more photos. Maybe there's a limit. Just jump up to the next post for the rest of the story!)

Mom's Surgery

Mom and Dad met with Mom's surgeon, Dr. Dunn (a godly Christian man!) yesterday. He told them that after Mom's next three weeks of treatment, he wants her to wait six weeks until having surgery to allow the swelling inside her body to go down. The swelling is caused by the radiation as it irritates the tissues in her lower abdomen. The surgery will go much smoother without swollen tissues. Saying all this, Dr. Dunn gave Mom some possible dates in December and she and Dad decided on December 20 as her surgery date. God has been in every detail of Mom's situation and again He worked another blessing into it for all of us. My mom's parents, my grandparents in Albany, GA, told her they would be coming up a day or two before her surgery and staying 1-2 weeks. With her surgery scheduled for Dec. 20, it means they'll be here for Christmas! What a blessing. Mom has been told if everything goes well she'll be in the hospital for 5 days after surgery. This means she'll come home on Christmas or the day after. What a wonderful Christmas present to know (hopefully) the worst is behind. Plus, it will be so special for my grandparents to celebrate our little Philip's first Christmas, their one-and-only great-grandchild!!

Mom's Hard Week

This is the second week of my mom's cancer treatments. Thankfully, she only has radiation each day this week, but unfortunately she is now feeling the after-effects of the chemo from last week. It seems like the treatments have stripped her digestive tract of the healthy digestive bacteria. This means when she eats food, her body is not able to digest it correctly and creates large amounts of excess gas which gets trapped inside and causes her a good deal of pain. She thought she might need to go to the ER on Monday night because it was so bad. Luckily, the hospital dietician recommended that she buy Pancreatic Enzymes from a health food store and eat six small bland meals a day. The enzymes have helped a good bit yesterday and today, but Mom said if she can only eat chicken broth and rice for the next month, she'll do it to keep those pains away. Please pray for the Lord to give her renewed strength each day and night. I keep reminding her that she only needs to get through each day. I pray her prayer would be, "The LORD gives strength to His people; the LORD blesses His people with peace." Psalm 29:11

Visiting Uncle Mike

	Philip with Uncle Mike and his dog Sam
	Standing at Uncle Mike's window

Last Friday, Matthew, Ruth Ann, Philip and I drove to Charlotte through a torrential downpour trying to make sure Ruth Ann caught her flight to Ft. Myers, FL for our niece Hannah's first birthday. After leaving her safely and on time at the airport, we continued on toward my brother Mike's house in Rock Hill. It was a nice chance to visit Mike and his wife Andrea plus I was to attend the Auxiliary (wives of Gideons) Faith Fund Luncheon at the Rock Hill Holiday Inn. Both the visit and the luncheon were very enjoyable. It's great seeing my little brother doing so good in life... wonderful marriage, great home and job, attending a little country church, and really a grown-up!! I look forward to watching Philip play with Mike and Andrea's children a few years down the road. In the meantime, he has his "brothers" Griffin and Samson to play with! People ask if having ferrets and a baby is difficult. My answer is that is hasn't been so far. When we first brought Philip home, we had three ferrets, Merlin, Griffin and Samson. They weren't a problem because they stayed in their cage 90% of the time. Sadly, we lost Merlin on Sept. 5 to tumors. It was a sad day, but I was glad Philip was too small to know the difference. These days Samson and Griffin run through the house a little each day, usually after Philip has gone to bed. I do let them out during the day, but now Philip is old enough that he is probably more of a threat to them than they are to him. I still watch very carefully if they are together as Philip grabs a tuft of fur and pulls if he gets his baby hands on them. They've never bit anyone, but Philip won't be the first if I can help it!!

Philip and his ferret brothers

What a week!

Mom's first week of treatment is almost over! She's done alright, but unfortunately, this is something which continues to build up in the form of fatigue and other side effects. Philip and I accompanied her Monday - Wednesday. He was such a good baby, but by Wednesday, he was one tuckered out little boy. While Mom was receiving her radation that day, I pushed him in his stroller around the fountain in the relaxation garden. Round and round we went and after a few laps, he was enjoying a peaceful nap lulled to sleep by the fountain and motion of his stroller. Wish I had had my camera. Mom is beginning to feel very tired after leaving the center each day, and is having a hard time adjusting to the idea of putting life on hold for the next few months. Anyone who's had something like this or even mono, knows that when your body requires you to slow down, you start feeling like you'll be sick forever. Mom, look how fast Philip grew to 8 months old. You'll be able to chase him around before you know it! Today starts a busy weekend for Matthew's side of the family. He and I are driving his mom to Charlotte to fly to Florida this evening. Our little niece Hannah is turning 1 on Sunday, and Ruth Ann is flying down for all the festivities!! I so wish I could go too, but I trust Lori to update us with a weekend's worth of blog posts after the excitement dies down next week. Thankfully, we'll all be together for Christmas. Can't wait to take a photo of Philip and Hannah standing beside each other this time around!! This is how Philip manages to stand these days.

Hunt for the Baby Tooth!!

I just love this photo of Philip. It's his "extreme close-up"! I was trying to get a photo of his barely-there first baby tooth. He moved and this is what we ended up with. Makes me think of some of those random pieces of modern art which really don't make sense and shouldn't be worth as much as they are. His little feet in the background is what makes it so funny to me. Maybe it made you laugh, maybe not. Maybe being his mom makes me think every photo is great!

Our Day with Nana

Mom and Philip inside Gibbs Cancer Center just before leaving


Today was my mom's first day of chemo and radiation. Thank the Lord, everything went pretty well. Philip and I picked up Mom at 2:30 giving us time to get to the Gibbs Cancer Center by 3:00. A nurse drew some blood as they have to keep track of her blood cell count during the treatment. First was the chemo treatment. Philip and I went in with Mom. The nurse said children are not usually allowed back but "he doesn't look like he'll start running around." The nurse did a good job of inserting the IV catherer in Mom's arm, but I know she appreciated being able to look at me and Philip during the process. She said she didn't want to move her arm and I reassured her it would be ok as I had one of those in my arm for 8 HOURS the night I had Philip!! And I obviously wasn't sitting still during those hours. :) Philip and I decided to go for a stroll around the Center as he got fussy for a minute. After changing his diaper in my trunk, we came back inside to meet the nurse directing Mom down to the radiation area. We had to wait about 10 minutes during which time we talked with a really nice woman also waiting to have radiation. Meeting others battling cancer is actually really comforting as it reminds me that Mom is not all alone in this thing. She was soon called back for radiation which took a little longer today than normal as she had to have extra x-rays. Finally at 5:30, we were headed out to my car. It was a long afternoon, but Philip was such a good baby by smiling at the other patients. He was asleep probably by the time we were pulling out of the parking lot. In the photo you can see Mom was happy and relieved the day was over while Philip was just tired! Four more days like today this week followed by three weeks of only radiation each day. The fifth week will be a repeat of this first week, chemo and radiation. We'll just take it one day at a time.