Dear Friends,

Since March of 2007, it seemed like I had been going though a very long valley in my life.  My health was so poor and at times the pain seemed to much to bare.  I would pray prayers that hit the ceiling fan and I began to let sadness and anger overtake me.  Then, this past fall we were visiting my husbands brother and family.  We went that Friday evening to hear a Christian Artist’s Family sing at the Taft Theater in Cincinnati.  God’s peace and presence were made so real to me that night.  I want to share the words to the song that touched me the most.

FEAR NOT TOMORROW”
by Carolyn Adkins

In this age of uncertainty
Questions come to my mind
What is waiting ahead for me
And the rest of mankind

Are you troubled o’er things to come
Is your future unsure
Are you dreading the coming dawn
A long day to endure

FEAR NOT TOMORROW
GOD IS ALREADY THERE
HE’S CHARTING THE COARSE YOU’LL TAKE
HE SEES EACH HIDDEN SNARE

HE’S WAITING TO GUIDE YOU
THROUGH EACH BURDEN AND CARE
FEAR NOT TOMORROW
GOD IS ALREADY THERE

MANY THINGS ABOUT TOMORROW
I DON’T SEEM TO UNDERSTAND
BUT I KNOW WHO HOLDS MY FUTURE
AND I KNOW WHO HOLDS MY HAND.

In the past weeks coming up to my transplant surgery,  I have had some great time with God.  My life has been the most unpredictable I’ve ever seen.  If something was to happen one way,  it general happens another.  Over time I realized I wasted far too much time trying to find answers and being angry instead of prayerful.

A few months ago our church walked through a tragic accident with a family in our church.  As the whole church was grieving that Sunday morning in hearing the loss of Sandra,  who was an incredible witness for Jesus in all of her life, our Sunday School teacher shared a quote that I will never forget.  This is the quote, “Nobody, (Sandra) ever gets to heaven one moment to late or one moment to early,  it is always to the Master’s design.”  Wow! Once again the assurance that my life is in His hands.

To end this is I would like to share my take on a statement made by my dear friend who justed walked through Cancer. For in all sincerity, it is my testimony as well.

o   There is nothing, no joy, no trouble, no testing, that can ever touch me until it has come past Christ to me. If it has come that far, it has come with great purpose, which at the time I may not understand, but lifting my eyes to Him, I receive its Blessing. No sorrow will ever disturb me, no circumstance will cause me to fret. I will rest is the joy of what my Lord is, the rest of certain VICTORY.

Thank-you so much for the hours that you work so hard for each one of us in need of a transplant. With yet another set-back I can say, I refuse to be downcast. I have had my cry, I have prayed and now I am ready to do anything I can to make it happen in October.

It is the desire of my heart to have my health restored to continue being the best wife, mother,friend and nurse that I can be.

Sincerely,
Bethany Eckert

I am having a wonderful week. I have been very busy.  Braedon is attending our churches VBS.  It has been wonderful. I have enjoyed organizing  the staff snacks and keeping the workers tummies full! God is so Good!

Bethany

More Soon!  Tom got me my own laptop! He has promised to teach me how to do pictures on this thing! I can hardly wait!

I went through each room in our home and made myself a list of all I wanted to do before the surgery, and got to work.

As things got checked off, I became more and more excited.  At last I was having my last appointments with each one of Doctors who needed to clear me for surgery.  Last Monday my lab work looked wonderful!  We were ready for surgery, then Friday, one of the Doctors decided to do one more CBC (complete Blood Count).  I somehow over the week had lost all of my WBC’s. (White Blood Cells) or immunity to anything.  The medication that I had worked so hard to adjust to was the cause they were quit sure, so now I have to start over with a new med and new surgery date of October 1st.   It was just to risky to proceed without making some changes.

I have to say that my first reaction to that phone call Tuesday this week, was to cry, and cry hard.  I felt so SAD.  However, one cannot cry forever.  I have dried my tears and moved on to prepare even harder for October.  I had started physical therapy for pre surgical strengthening twice a week.  I will continue this adding even one more day a week to total three days a week.  This alone has made such a difference in my poor old body.  I really feel so much stronger. It is unbelievable how with a little hard work the old worn out body can really turn around.

Well, Braedon will be starting school very soon.  Our little guy is so grown up these days.  It will be good to have him in a strong routine again.  This summer has been so hot and humid that it has gotten a little long.

We have VBS at our church next week. I will be busy each morning feeding all the VBS staff breakfast.  I am excited about having a very busy week.  I really need to keep busy these days to keep my mind from thinking to much!

I will keep blogging. I really love reading all of your blogs. I apologize once again for not being real faithful to mine.  I will try to correct that quickly.

Bethany

Thankfully at this point I have made a full recovery and our little family is back into our normal routine once again.  I just wanted to say thank-you to all the friends and family who have reached out to us over the past weeks.  You have no idea how much your calls, letters, cards, and visits have ment. 

My transplant has been moved from June 2nd to August 6th.  We are going to cruise quietly through the summer and hopefully go right through the transplant without a hitch.  Or at least that is our plan! 

Again, I am so sorry that I have neglected posting.  I will try to be more regular, now that things have settled down.

Bethany

Tom and Braedon are doing good.  Braedon is getting so big. He is trying lots of big words and I have to say it is a joy to see him trying to grow up so fast.  He’s a charmer.

Well, I just had time for a quick note. I will write more soon.

Love,

Bethany

Thank you much for your prayers.

We had a wonderful Christmas time with my family.  We all got to Ken and Judy’s on the 24th around lunch time.  We visited and ate and ate. Then at 8:00pm we were all off to the Christmas Eve service.  I always like to go to a Candlelight service. Somehow it just makes Christ’s birth  vivid throughout Christmas and all the festivities.  Tom and myself both sorely missed the fabulous service we used to attend at First Presbyterian in Colorado Springs! There is none like it!  Then, back home to eat some more!

Christmas was very special.  Lots of Wii sports activity while we waited for G’pa and Deb to get there.  Bless them, they like drove all the way from Salem in the middle of the night, then turned around and drove home the very next day. At least they go to be there.  Then, the presents.  It was a big old mountain.  Each kid fared really well this year!  Like they don’t every year!  It was great.

Braedon got some Star Wars space ships and little action characters from Tom and me.  He is now so excited about S.W.  Tom took him to the library and rented the movies.  He has been having a really fun time with daddy watching these when daddy gets home from work each day this week.  I pop the popcorn and get the drinks then, I read my book.  I just like that better!

I came home all fired up to get my house in good order so I will be prepared for whatever may come about with my transplant and all in this New Year.  I took each room and top to bottom I have cleaned and straightened in depth.  I know it is hard to believe that I would have anything left to take to the Goodwill, but believe it or not I do!

Well, we will be off to our new friends, the Carpenters  house to welcome in the new year tonight.  Be sure and look up into the sky the moon is fabulous right now.

We maybe going to see David and Regina this weekend sometime. I have several goodie trays to make and some shopping to do so I’d better go for now.

Bethany

Bethany

Tomorrow is Braedon’s  5th birthday.  We are planning on stealing his little friend “Lukey” and taking the boys to a new “Bounce House” over in Clay Terrace.  Then, Chucky Cheese for lunch! What more could a five year old ask for? Well, a lot really!  We somehow have not quite made it out of the “ALL ABOUT ME” phase by moving onto five, but we have great hopes for the Big Six mark!

Thursday we are going to take Braedon back to the Children’s museum and explore the floors we missed last time we were there.  It is so big, it was just to much to cover it all in one day. He loves to go there and it will be especially fun to have daddy tagging along!

Friday, Tom and me are going to make a kitchen full of “puppy chow” to package up for all of our neighbors.  Its really not dog food,  just looks kinda like it,  and it tastes really good!  Saturday Braedon will make the deliveries and sing “We wish you a Merry Christmas”  to each one.  He loves to sing  and does a fabulous job staying right on pitch with his robust soprano voice.  That leads me to remember this cute story.   This past Saturday evening we had dinner out with Mitchell and Daniel Hilty, then went together to a concert a Butler University.  It was a great concert and during “GLORIA” or whatever that carol is called,  Braedon joined in very boisterously.  He actually sounded great and upon receiving evil glares from the grandma’s and grandpa’s sitting around us, for trying to quiet him down,  we let him finish the song!  He was congratulated at the end!  His little face beamed.

Sunday is a great time the whole church will be celebrating our pastors and blessing them for Christmas.

Monday  will be getting a few last gifts.

Tuesday night I will fix a special super, then we will have our personal family Christmas.

Wednesday my brother Drew and his family come to our house.  We will have dinner together, then enjoy an evening around the fireplace.  Off to bed early so we can all get up and start off for Ken’s house Thursday morning.  Judy is fixing a big lunch that day that we don’t want to miss out on.   Ken is smoking a whole deer haunch in his smoker. I am supposing that it will taste like deer “ham”!  Sounds funny doesn’t it?

My parents, both my brother’s and families, Aunt Debbie and Grandpa Thomas and Tom, Braedon and myself will all be there.

We will get to stay until Saturday evening or Sunday afternoon not for sure yet. So,  there’s the holiday scoop on us.  Oh yes sometime during all of that, I have to type and send our Christmas letter. I can tell you right now that it will probably be a New Year Letter this year!

Transplant update is as stands:  They are working to figure a way to make my “B” cells stop attacking my donor angel Mary’s. In the meantime, we will be entered into the National Donor Swap Program after the first of the year.  This is where out of a national donor bank, if there is a match for me and Mary would be a match for their recipient, then all four of us would go into surgery at once!  This is said to be a good way to get a perfect match. We have committed this whole thing daily to God for over two years now and we are simply taking each day as it comes and hoping and praying that God’s will be done.  I would love to be able to live a long healthy life with my family and friends around me, but God knows best where I need to be, and I accept that with all my heart.  So, we leave it once again in His hands.

My transplant physician is making one last plea for any potential donors that I may have available to me before delving into the Donor Swap Program.  Should any one who reads my blog is interested in this you simply have to call the Transplant office at IUPUI, and ask the receptionist to transfer you to Tracy Perry.  The number is as follows 317-274-4370.   You then tell her that you are a potential donor for Bethany Eckert. She will then give further instructions. I have tried to stay away from asking such things on my blog, but my physician has asked me to just ask once, then we’ll proceed.

May you have a Merry Christmas!  God has so richly blessed each and everyone of us!

Love,

Bethany

In the middle of it all, I have spoken with my support team down at IUPUI  a lot this week. I just got home from giving a whole bunch more blood this morning.  In very unscientific terms,  my “B” cells are being swallowed up by her”B” cells.  The delay at this point is because they are diligently trying to find a fix for that problem.  In the mean time they want to go ahead and start testing some of my other donors as well. Then they can take the absolute best match should there be a better one.  Well, that’s my story for today.

I hope you are getting snow like us! Isn’t is fun to have winter again.  I need to go do some more Christmas baking so bye for now, and God Bless You!

Bethany

Transplant:  Have not heard a word this week, but have one more day this week as a possibility to hear something! The wait is long, some days almost unbearable, but overall resting in the promise that God has each mi nut detail planned out  and will not be surprised whatever that phone call brings.  “Fear not Tomorrow, God is already there” continues to inspire me to live life to the fullest while I wait.  I praise God for the love of my husband who willingly continues to support me through each dialysis treatment. Never once complaining when that alarm goes off at 3:45am. He is precious to me and I could never do it all by myself.  Please continue to pray and I will hopefully have some kind of a praise report soon.

Braedon Story:  The other morning it was cold outside and we had an appointment to hurry off to. Scurrying around the house and rushing my little man, he soon became a little irritated and started up with a attitude.  So since we were already late, I took him into the living room and sat down on the sofa to have one of those infamous chats about being nice even when we don’t feel like it.  He sat with big eyes looking sincerely into mine, when all of a sudden he took a deep breath and said “Wow, that  attitude of mine, sometimes  sometimes it does the silliest things!”  Honestly, I started laughing so hard I had tears pouring down my face.  So, our day was off again on a much happier note.  Thank-you God for little boys!

Love,

Bethany