HOME!!!!!

::Psalm 20.1-8::
May the LORD answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
May He send you help from the sanctuary
and grant you support from Zion.
May He remember all your sacrifices
and accept your burnt offerings.
Selah

May He give you the desire of your heart
and make all your plans succeed.
We will shout for joy when you are victorious
and will lift up our banners in the name of our God.
May the LORD grant all your requests.

Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed;
He answers him from His holy heaven
with the saving power of His right hand.
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
They are brought to their knees and fall,
but we rise up and stand firm.


June 14, 2007 will forever be remembered in our hearts. It is a day filled with a mix of emotion; a day where months of prayer were answered with a loving "yes". To say the day has been surreal would fail to do it justice. It marks the triumphant close of a chapter & wets the pen to scribe the next. On June 14th, Isaac came home!!! After 110 days at UNC Hospital, we packed our belongings & our beloved into the car, & as a family - all three - traveled home.


To think back on all our sweet boy has come through - so many nights where we thought we'd say "goodbye", times of unexplainable deterioration & recovery - and to see him now sleeping peacefully in his own bed, the experience is indescribable. Our miracle boy has been touched by God's mighty hand time & again. We could not have asked for more from the amazing team at UNC's PICU. Isaac & our family as a whole received tremendous care & compasssion from their staff, making each day more than just a visit with our son, but a time with friends as well. We were so touched by their send off, decorating Isaac's door with streamers & letters to us. It brought tears to our eyes to see the unit celebrating with such sincerity over our sweet boy. Thank you, PICU team, for all you've done for our family & for countless others across the state. We will certainly miss you all, though we're thrilled to not be seeing you for a little while. :)


Almighty God has brought us through quite a valley, faithful in every moment. How great is our God, who answers us when we call, who provides strength & peace when we have nothing left, & who turns our mourning into joyous dancing. Only God could take the sufferings of a newborn baby to unite so many people across the globe in prayer & draw us closer to Him. Only God could take such a road & fill it with new friends & new believers. Only God could have done the unexplainable things that have occured in our lives. To see where Isaac has come from & where he is now, we have nothing but humble, awestruck gratitude to Him who does immeasurably more than anything we could ask or think.


Our hearts overflow with gratitude to you all who have held our arms up through this journey. We long for the day when Isaac understands the floods of prayers offered on his behalf for so many months by those who had never met him, of those who fasted & spent sleepless nights beseeching God to intervene & spare his life. Countless times, we would pull up your words of encouragement in his hospital room & through them, find the refreshment needed to take the next step forward. We know not how to thank you enough!


Coming home is a huge transition for Isaac & our family as a whole. While stable, Isaac remains fragile & thus certain precautions are necessary to enable him to thrive at home. We know so many of you are eager to meet him & we will begin to slowly have visitors once he grows stronger. Until that time, we ask for no surprise visitors to our home. For those interested in how to help out with our homecoming, please contact Karen Dawkins as she is coordinating meals for us. (kadawkins@gmail.com)

Again, thank you all for your support & prayers. What a joy to have our sweet Isaac home at last!!!