Life Beyond The Chair

We have visited a few Churches since we have been in Austin. We have had fun visiting the different Churches in the area to try and find the right fit for our family. While we have not settled on a "home" Church yet, we have found a local Church that we really like. The kids have been attending youth group each Wednesday night and really seem to like it. When I picked the kids up from youth group this past Wednesday night, Phoebe handed me a crumpled up piece of paper as she got in the van. We were in a bit of a rush and so I just dropped it into my purse not even looking at it. As we drove away, I asked her if she needed the paper or was it just trash. She answered that it was something to throw out, but she did not get a chance to throw it away at youth group, so she just handed it to me. I did not think anything more about it.......until today. As I was cleaning out my purse, I found that piece of paper. I almost threw it away, remembering that Phoebe had said it was t

We see the term BFF everywhere. On t-shirts, jewelry, cars, texts, everywhere! Everyone knows what it means, but what does being a real BFF mean to you? Beyond junior high, I have not used this term many times. I have had close friends and some really good friends, but a BFF, I think that would have to be Stephen at this point, although each one of the kiddos might claim the title of mom's BFF.:) I do not like to use BFF, because it is so overused and thereby loses a lot of its true meaning. I do however, LOVE the word friend and I am Blessed beyond measure with some of the "best":) My friends are amazing. I am so Blessed by each and every one of you. I know that some of you have traveled this 10 year journey side by side with us and some have just joined us There never can be enough "Thank Yous" for the love a support that you have given to our family. To my dear friend Michelle, this 5 foot dynamo:). You are my hero! Thank you so much for setting up our

"At least Texas has a lot of rollerskating." That was Phoebe's answer to the question about what she was grateful for in Texas. This question is part of our daily devotional. Our time to remember that despite all the stress and uncertainty, we can find things to be grateful during this season of our life. We are so grateful for the huge and vibrant homeschool world here in Texas. We have met some of the nicest families and enjoy  park day and rollerskating each week with our new friends. This has been such a Blessing for us. A sense of"normal" in a situation that is anything but normal for the kids.

Hello from the  Hupe's ! We hope that you are all well and enjoying Spring. We are finally emerging from the Texas "chill" and having nicer weather. We do not want to complain too much about the cold weather, because in a few weeks when we are sweltering under that famous Texas sun, we will think of those cold days fondly.:) In the past, I have been overly optimistic(okay, in denial:)) and always assumed that things would go better than the doctors would tell us.(see? denial?:)). This has caused major upheaval in our life and we are trying to avoid that happening again. As much as we wished it were different, it is not. With this next surgery, the doctors have told us that there will be new paralysis and other functions that will be affected following this surgery. Therefore there is no way to anticipate how long or involved the recovery may be. Stephen and I firmly believe that the ONLY doctor we trust in this surgery is the one Dr McKinley has referred me to in

Dear Family and Friends: I figured the easiest way to keep everyone posted would be to set up a blog. This will serve 2 purposes. I can keep everyone up to date on all of our "goings on" and I can also keep a journal for myself. A record of any progress because so many times, I feel as though there is none. For those new to the journey, I will do a quick recap of our journey thus far. I will write it in parts as it is a long and very involved story. My story, from becoming paralyzed afterspinal anesthesia administered during the birth of our youngest child in 2004 caused a bleed on my spinal cord leading to Cauda Equina Syndrome. As a result of this injury, I have lost most of the use of both of my legs. I am left with some feeling and pain(yaaay).  A link to more about the syndrome here: Due to changes in the individual health care market in California and the loss of both of my doctors to retirement we find ourselves in Austin, Texas. Crazy I know. The reason we are her