A hot mess and a pretty dress, etc.

Oh yes...this little diaper and wipe carrier is a would be tutorial turned hot mess. Its still cute and functional though. I thought it would be cute to make this to tote some baby necessities in and post a tute, but wow, it did not turn out quite as I had imagined. I do love the vintage sheets and vintage-inspired fabric.

The ruffles are a bit bigger than I had intended and the bias tape is a bit wonky, but overall, I'm pleased.

Then I did a ruffled band to dress up a wipes case. I saw the idea on Tatertots and Jello-sorry I'm too lazy{I mean its too late, gotta get up in less than 5 hours to get ready to get a baby :)} to link right now. I just made a casing for the elastic, sewed it up and put a crocheted flower on it. LOVE it!!

Finally, I wanted a dress for Violet to have her picture made in at the hospital. I was pretty certain that anything I could find would be way too big and I wanted something special to coordinate with that beautiful quilt that Jenny made. I just took a vintage pillow case, cut it down and made a dress. I used some vintage looking fabric from Joann's to make a ribbon. I am pleased with how it came out.

Today was Jackson's first day of second grade. I almost held it together. Almost. He was so excited!!

Now for the fun part of my day...I was on my way to my pre-op appointment. Cory came home from work early cause my appt. was right before Jackson would get out of school. So I took off on my way. Let me pre-face this story by saying we've had nothing but a bunch of car trouble this summer. First, my van decided not to crank one day. Then I was driving the Honda for a few weeks, which was fine, but on my way to a friend's house, it died on the side of the road. Then Cory started replacing parts on the van, troubleshooting. It ran, but no ac. Yucky hot!! It ran, but it had a shake and made a loudish noise. At any rate, it ran. So back to today. I'm in the van, on my way to my appointment. I start to smell a strange smell and the battery light comes on. I call Cory and by the time I decide I should pull over off the highway, its starts overheating and going dead. Thankfully, it wasn't hotter than blue blazes today. I wait a little over an hour for Cory, because he was feeding Fisher and Lilly, had to get them ready and go check Jackson out of school. Fun stuff let me tell you. We had the van towed to a shop and hopefully will hear something tomorrow. I'm so frustrated, because we have three vehicles, and only one is running currently. One I don't know how to drive. Not that I will be driving for two weeks anyhow, but only three children will fit in it and we are soon to have a fourth. If y'all have read this far, if you would just pray for us and this icky situation. Honestly, I am so sick of money stuff and car stuff and we just need to pray for God's direction at this point. I would really appreciate it.

Hopefully, we can share our newest blessing with all of you tomorrow. My mom is bringing her camera and laptop. Yay!!

Hope you all have a great week!!

Lilly Update {part 2}

Hello friends it's Jenny checking in, I am on the phone with Elise right now and she is dictating this post:

Lilly has been moved from ICU to a regular room on the diabetic ward. She is doing much better, coloring is great, able to stay awake for longer periods of time and EAT, she is even able to make mom and dad "jump"... She's coming around indeed... Elise and Cory will be in classes all day tomorrow {Saturday and part of Sunday} learning how to care for Lilly at home and in everyday life. There is a chance Lilly might be able to come home Sunday evening.

Thank you for Lifting Lilly in your prayers...

Grab a button...

Hey friends it's Jenny again....

Lilly is doing much better and even staying awake for longer periods of time... She has a long way to go... But God is definitely answering prayers... Cory and Elise are so thankful for all of the support...

Sweet MJ offered to make these WONDERFUL buttons for us to grab and use on our side bars... Please feel free to use them ... I couldn't decide {I loved them both} so you get two to choose from!

Thank You for your prayers~ Jenny

Lilly Update

Good Morning this is Jenny, with an update from Elise...

After being air-lifted to Scottish Rite Hospital Lilly was admitted into ICU with a blood sugar level of over 900. Cory and Elise were informed that Lilly's case of type 1 Diabetes is severe, through the night they were able to administer insulin intravenously, and as of 10:30 this morning Lilly's blood sugar is at 143. This is reason to praise, Lilly is regaining her coloring and Elise said her cheeks were getting their rosy glow back. Lilly will remain in ICU until all of her levels are stabilized, then be transferred to a regular room...

** Note from me, I would really like to be able to bless the family with special love, my mind is swirling with ideas, would anyone be interested in making a care package for them. I am thinking of small handmade items, children's diabetic books, and cookbooks, etc. we can send their way. If you have any ideas or would like to help email me at jennygilley (at) hotmail (dot) com

You can also reach me at my blog. I will posting ideas and details as they come to me.

Please pray for Lilly

My little girl just got taken by ambulance to the ER. She has lost a lot of weight lately and just Monday was throwing up a lot. Took her to the doctor Tuesday and they didn't address the weight loss{she weighs 30 pounds-so does Fisher, who isn't yet 2}, drinking and peeing a lot, just made her an appointment for this Friday for her 5 year well check as well as possibly running tests. She hasn't eaten since Monday and has gotten very lethargic and not super responsive in the past couple hours. Then she was leaning up against the wall to walk to the bathroom. The paramedics came and got her and Cory is riding with her to the hospital. I spoke with him a few minutes ago and so far her blood sugar is really high, diabetic high. This is somewhat what we were thinking since she's lost so much weight, and yet drinking tons of water and pottying a lot.
If y'all would just pray for Lilly, the doctors seeing her, and us we would appreciate it.

***Spoke with Cory, he said the paramedics pricked Lilly's finger and used a little test meter thing and her blood sugar was over 400. Also they got her oxygen levels up to 99%. They were in the mid nineties. I'll keep y'all posted.
***Update...Lilly's blood sugar is over 500. I am sure she will have/has type 1 diabetes. Read this article. Exactly like Lilly's symptoms. If her stupid pediatrician had tested her the other day when I brought it up, we would not be here right this very moment. A day earlier, but a day earlier would have been better.
***As of 9:40, Lilly is still lethargic, they are going to be giving her insulin and air-lifting her to Scottish Rite, a children's hospital.
***Just spoke with Cory, Lilly is at Scottish Rite in ICU. She will probably be there for 3 days to a week and a half. On the way, in the plane, her blood sugar spiked to as high as 700 or more{the chopper's meter topped out at 700}. The insulin should stabilize Lilly and she will be on insulin and given an iv{which she wasn't happy about}. So long as Lilly doesn't try to pull the iv out and doesn't freak out, she will be able to stay awake, otherwise, she may be given sedatives and a tube down her throat. I am praying that doesn't happen.
***It is now 11:33 and I just got off the phone with Cory. He said that the doctor said Lilly is going to be okay. The doctor says that she has Type 1 diabetes{which my Mom is NOT accepting, that Lilly was healed at the cross 2000 years ago} and we have a lot of learning and dealing. Lilly will be in the ICU for at least one more day and in the hospital up to 3 or so days. She will have to have insulin shots five times a day for a long time. A diet overhaul is coming. Lots of changes. Apparently, Lilly is one of the younger children to have Type 1, as it is more commonly found around puberty.

Could y'all please pray??

First...for my Daddy. He had a hernia, among other health problems that he had worked on. Lately, he has been experiencing pain where it was. He called me last night and said the doctor said his small intestine is enlarged and if his pain is excruciating then he needs to get to the hospital immediately, because it would be like that it would burst and he could die.
I would like for y'all to pray first for his salvation{I am pretty sure he isn't a believer}, and for his health. He is going to the ER this morning. He just turned 61 this past August and hasn't treated himself well over the years. He does love his grandkids and they love him.

Second...my brother-in-law, Jordan. This is Cory's younger brother. He was in a car accident back earlier in the year. It messed him up around his shoulder/neck/arm. His doctors found a growth{I believe} in his neck that they believe may be cancer. He was supposed to have surgery on his neck for his injuries caused by the accident, but tomorrow is going to have the growth cut out. I am praying for the steady hands of the doctors, as this is near major stuff that control his bodily movement, and of course, either that the cancer isn't there or is taken care of. I know I don't normally ask for prayer, but these things are kind of major.
Thank you so much!!

***Jordan's surgery went as well as can be expected. We will know in about a week about what they removed. Jordan is in pain, but we are hopeful that he will recover just fine.
***My Dad{stubborn old man!!} woke up feeling fine the next day, but nauseous, so he didn't go to see the doctor. I told him he felt better because all my friends were praying for him. He sounded pleasantly surprised and said thank you. I did notice Thursday night that he would wince in pain and grab his side so I don't think he is all good, hence the reason I called him stubborn. :)

Thank you all for praying. It really means a lot!!