WE'RE HOME

What an adventure this has been! I'm going to share the latest update and then I have to go back and share about our last day in Ethiopia.

As noted in the last post, Keziah started to run a fever and her face swelled up on the right side, gland area. She was absolutely fine all morning, I put her down for a nap and when I woke her up for a feeding, she was warm and her face was definately swollen. I immediately called my dear Pediatrician (I love Dr. Sevilla) and he told me to get her to ER right away. He was concerned the swelling could block her airway. So off we went to the ER. As Jerry and I were driving down the road, he said "Can you believe we are doing this again, babies on the way to the hospital?" We were both amazed that while we were facing a serious situation, we both felt such peace and calmness. After traveling this journey with the LORD for the past several months, I have come to a place of really understanding that God is in total control of everything in my life. I even said, "If God is going to take her home, I know He still has a plan in all of this." We prayed He would not of course, but we were both very much at peace as we walked this latest adventure.

Well, Keziah and I are home today. She has an infection in the right side of her face, the gland, that they can not specifically diagnose. The doctor said it could be a virus, bacteria etc., that she could have gotten during our travels. She could have gotten it from Ellie,(her sore throat) the other kids that have a cold and cough, or it could be an allergic reaction to something, or who knows what. They are all at a loss. They did several blood tests and so far nothing confirmed or conclusive. After having the IV antibiotics in her system for two days now,the fever has gone and the swelling is going down. He wanted to keep her in the hospital another day, which would have brought us home today instead of yesterday afternoon. But, when I explained that my husband was home with four children under age 4 that were all sick with coughs and colds, he said, "Compassion has won me over, you may go home today". So, he wrote two RX's and said to keep Keziah on close watch. We have to give her antibiotics 6 times a day. If she has fever again or swells up to get back to hospital right away. He said the swelling could block her airway so don't delay. She is still swollen and it feels like a rock is in her neck. He said it could still swell up and we may need to have it surgically drained if it does not go away. Time will tell but, so far, so good, she is back to her smiling precious self, eating good and sleeping a lot.

So, there we were at 12:00 noon, packed up and waiting for Jerry to pick us up. He had to pack up all the kids in the van, but of course first get them all ready, feed them, run a few errands etc. At approx. 1:30 my son Jonathan called and said "Mom, we we won't be there to pick you up for a while longer. We were on our way there and we just got in a car accident. All the traffic in front of us came to a stop so I had to stop suddenly and the truck behind me didn't. He plowed into us, I saw him coming and reared to the right. He pushed us off the road and thankfully not into the cars in front of us. Don't worry though, we are all OK. Ruby(our poodle/baby)who usually goes everywhere with us, was thrown to the front of the van but she seems to be OK. Everyone else was in seat belts and are all OK. The babies were crying, the boys were very excited and worried but no one was hurt bad except for Papa having been jerked a bit and having a sore neck. The back of the van is dented pretty bad but the doors still open."

So, there I sat for the next two hours, holding Keziah and talking with the LORD. "OK, so, why is all of this happening? Thank you Lord that everyone is not hurt and they are not coming here in an ambulance! But, what do you have for us in this, what are you teaching and why are you allowing all of this to happen?" Here is what I got. "Do you still love me? Do you still trust me Eileen, even when things are not going smoothly?" "OH, YES LORD!!! I LOVE YOU MORE THAN EVER!!"I have learned that so many times we have the mountain top experiences and everything is going so well and then bam!!!! Things take another turn. There are many prosperity preachers out there that teach false doctrine saying if we do things right everything will always be great and we won't have problems or difficulties. Well, the truth is, everything is great even "WHEN" difficulties or tragedies come. They will always come, but the difference is, if we really love and trust the LORD we can walk through them with JOY and PEACE! The gifts of the spirit that only come when we have the assurance of Salvation through Jesus Christ. I sat with Keziah rejoicing in the LORD as I waited to see my family in our dented up van. When they arrived, the doors opened and there were the precious faces of the blessings the Lord has given me. They were all so excited to see Keziah and me. Josiah yelled out "MAMA, SELAM" and reached out with both arms to kiss and hug us as did everyone else. He was so excited to see us and it was obvious, he is one of us already!

I am amazed at how well they have adjusted and bonded with us. The twins are absolutely precious. They are so helpful and are really loving on them. They are sharing, showing Josiah the ropes and they keep kissing and hugging the twinettes. Josiah likes to put his arms around them and hold hands with them. They are getting along better than I ever dreamed. All of our prepping, talking and hanging his pictures everywhere really helped. We had his picture hung over each of their beds so they saw him every morning and night as we prayed for him. I would have them say good morning and goodnight to him as preparation for him someday living in their room. It really paid off. They seem to be so comfortable with him and really excited that he is finally home.

So, on top of my house being an absolute diaster with luggage everywhere because we haven't had time to unpack and organize everything, I discovered today that my washing machine has decided not to spin after the rinse cycle!!! I only have about 20 loads of laundry to do and I need a broken washing machine like hole in the head! I literally had to laugh out loud. The Lord really has a sense of humor to allow this one! I was overcome with joy as I immediately thought about how I used to react to situations like this. The "old me" would have gotten all upset, started yelling and feeling that aweful pain in my gut. But today, I picked up the phone, called Sears repair and said, "Sure, Wednesday will be fine for the serviceman to arrive". Thank God I can go downstairs to Mom's house and use her machine in the meantime. Just another day in the life of the crazy Mestas house!

I do want to take this opportunity to also thank all of my wonderful "sisters in Christ," dear dear friends, who have been bringing meals since our arrival home. I can't tell you what a blessing this has been especially with all of chaos going on here. My family is being abundantly blessed with yummy food and desserts. I've been told this is going on for at least three weeks. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!

And finally, Melissa is now sick with the cold and cough. She is five months pregnant and feeling really yucky. So please pray for her. In spite of this, she baked a special yummy cake and we celebrated Randy's 25th Birthday today. We are blessed beyond all measure to have our RANDY VADEN! HE too has been unbelieveably helpful with all of the littles and the chaos. He brought me lunch at the hospital and then later brought me a backpack with my personal supplies for staying at the hospital. He is truly a blessing and joy in our lives! I couldn't ask for a better son-in-law. Thank you LORD for your blessings in my life!