This One's for you Mom!

Happy Mother's Day!  Tyler and I were recently talking about family traditions, which happen to be one of my favorite things, and were laughing about how different ours were growing up!  One tradition I love is Mother's Day breakfasts.  My sisters and I would "scheme," along with the help of my dad, to get together all the ingredients we thought would make the perfect breakfast for mom.  Typically it involved pancakes, eggs, bacon, and all the basic breakfast yummies! We thought we were so tricky and we would get up a little early that Sunday morning, head straight to the kitchen, and whip up our creations.  Despite the kitchen being right next to our parents bedroom and the fact that three girls in a small kitchen is not exactly the most quiet thing, my mom was somehow always still asleep when breakfast was ready to be served to her in bed. Man were we good!  I hate that this year we won't be there to treat her to breakfast in bed, especially since now that we are older and actually know how to cook, she might actually enjoy it!

But even though we aren't together, I hope my mom knows just how special she is to me and to my sisters. I know managing a home with three girls couldn't have been easy. Just imagine the excellent referee she had to be!  But through all the hair pulling and fights over "borrowed" clothes, my mom helped make each of us into the women we are today (which Tyler says is something my mom should be proud of considering the awesome husband I managed to rope in.) But all joking aside, my mom was an extremely devoted mom. She sat through swim meets, cheerleading games (also know as football games-- but we all know who the real stars are), piano recitals, and so much more and she was always our biggest fan.  Looking back, I can now see many of the sacrifices she made for us as we grew up and I have a deep sense of gratitude, that words can't real descibe, for all of my mom's love, provision, and support.

Today's you're day Mom!  I love you!

And she is so pretty too!!

"Vacation" Update

It's day three for us at the hospital and we are getting more encouraging news everyday!  Your prayers have been such a blessing and over the past several days we have so clearly seen the faithfulness of the Lord.

To fill everyone in....

After my parents left us in Mississippi they headed to North Carolina to stay for a week or so in mountains. During Dad's time in Mississippi, he had begun to suffer from severe headaches. Not being used to Mississippi, he thought he might be allergic to the pollen or something else in the air. But the headaches stayed constant.

Nevertheless, this didn't stop Dad! While in North Carolina, my Mom and Dad went on several long hikes and after one in particular,  my Dad (whose pain tolerance is higher than anyone I know) finally said he thought he needed to head to the hospital. They hopped in the car, thinking they would return later that evening. However, as soon as the doctor saw him and took a CT scan, they decided he needed to be moved to another hospital where he could be treated by a neurologists. The ambulance transported my dad (during a tornado, might I add) to a hospital about two hours away and they immediately rushed him into surgery. It turns out that his brain had been hemorrhaging.... for awhile.

About two months prior, he had felt extremely sick, fainted, and fell and hit his head. When this happened, my mom was out of town and so my dad didn't want to "bother her" with the details of his fall. He stuck a butterfly band-aid on it and said he was just thankful that most of the blood had landed in the shower-- obviously that made the clean up easier (typical male?).

Not knowing exactly sure what this hospital visit would entail, my sister Amy and I hopped in the car first thing the next morning and my sister Megan hopped on a plane from Oregon so we could all be together. When we arrived at the hospital, we were able to see Dad for a few minutes. We got the chance to pray with him, but he was very tired from his surgery and didn't respond much at this time. During the surgery, the doctor had drilled several holes in his head. This helped to relieve the pressure causing the severe pain and it also gave them a way to remove a lot of the blood surrounding his brain. They also put in drains that would drain blood away from his brain over the next several days. We had to leave the hospital so he could get some rest but we got there early in the morning to speak with the doctor and ask several questions. Turns out, when my dad fell and hit his head he suffered from a sub dura hematoma on both sides of the frontal lobe of his brain.  We are so lucky that he finally went to the hospital because had he waited any longer the results could have been bleak.  The doctor prepared us for the worst, warning us that if the brain did not stop bleeding, they would have to perform a second more in-depth brain surgery and remove the bleeding portion. But today, the nurse took out the drains, which is a great sign that the bleeding has slowed and now we hope that the brain can begin to heal. We are so thankful to the Lord for His provision! 

Overall, the doctors seem to think that his recovery is going smoothly and that no additional surgery will be necessary. They have reinforced, however, the idea that he will need to take is slow which if you know my dad, you know this will probably be the most difficult part of the recovery!). Once he is discharged from the hospital, he will be released into the care of a neurologists in Florida where they will closely monitor him to be sure that the bleeding does not start up again. 

I cannot tell you how thankful my family and I are for your prayers.  I am sitting here writing this post and listening to my dad joke and laugh about his bald head and I couldn't be more thankful!  The Lord heard your prayers and He has answered.  What a faithful God we serve! Please continue to pray for his healing and for his safe travel home. 

More exciting new from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation!

Check out this new article from the CF Foundation! How exciting!

CF Foundation Announces Investment to Speed Development of Additional Drugs to Treat the Most Common CF Mutation

Time Flies....

Where have the weeks gone? March literally flew by for Tyler and I and now we are committed to a very serious count down to the end of tax season!

(No worries, I am not confused... taxes aren't due till April 18th this year.)

Believe me..... the whole Blount family will be pumped to have yet another tax season behind us! But a lot has happened over the past week or so, so let's catch up!

Tyler headed to Birmingham for his last long appointment a few weekends ago and is lucky that he has such great friends who will travel with him!  Here are just a select few of the pictures they took to document the trip:

They may look (and even act) like 8th graders...but I promise they aren't.  But I love Adam's sweet backpack for his business trip :)

It was on this trip that he was given his last dose of VX-770 and VX-809.  On his first day of testing, he did the regular routine of sweat tests, blood draws, and lung function tests.  His lung function had increased to 108%! It honestly left us speechless.  Now keep in mind that almost everything in the Blount household is a game, which means that it was only natural for us to bet on who would be right at the end of the trial. So when I heard these results, there may have been a victory dance on my end.  Because you see, Tyler's vote from the very beginning of the trial was that he was on the placebo and mine (naturally the opposite of his) was that he was on the actual pill. And while we won't actually know the real results for several months.... I think I am right and at this point I think Tyler thinks I am too!  It all changed for Tyler when he went into his second day of testing. Since he had been given his last dose of the medicine the day before, all of the same tests were run again but this time the results showed a huge difference... his lung function dropped to 100%.  While the drop in lung function might seem discouraging, it is also a bright light to us because it means the medicine worked. So it is at this point in our journey that we choose to focus on the hope and the potential that this medicine may have and we pray that the research and FDA approval process will be swift! The day after Tyler got back from Birmingham, this blessing ended up in my inbox.... Proverbs 31 Devotion. God is so timely. My favorite verse from it is:

 “Thus says the LORD who made you, who formed you from the womb and will help you: Fear not…I formed you; you are my servant; O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me.” 

Isaiah 44:2b, 21b

Speaking of timeliness, although this may have been the busiest month of our lives, I couldn't have thought of a better time to have a visit from my parents. I love and appreciate their support in all things and I just love to see them!  We spent the weekend going to the zoo, celebrating my nephew's birthday, and just hanging out. It was great and the pictures show how much fun we had!

Love his new "cheese!"

The Birthday Boy! What a special little guy!! And how cute is he???

Well that's all for now... except one little hint....

Hopefully this is our last (and honestly our first!) picture in front of our apartment. More details next time!

"Getting Nosey about CF"

This video is absolutely adorable!  And after I showed it to Tyler, it may or may not have encouraged him to talk in a British accent for the rest of the evening ... anyways, the video is actually quite accurate and an easy explanation of what Tyler deals with everyday (for those questioning minds out there!).

P.S. Be sure to turn off the music playing in the background :)

Playing Catch-Up

So much has happened since my last post and so I have a lot to share!  And since a picture is worth a thousand words, I thought I would share a bunch of those too (and hopefully they will fill in whatever I might leave out). After the wedding we went to last weekend, we packed up and headed to Birmingham for Tyler's Monday appointment. This appointment wasn't too long so we also got the chance to hang out a little (which is a luxury during tax season)!

Remember those kid games you play on long car rides?  Well I think Tyler wins for finding this truck! Also, things are much funnier when you always seem to be on a road trip!

Once we got to Birmingham we stopped for a yummy dinner! 

It was an early morning, but we made it!  Getting ready to do his lung function test-- which was 107%! They still can't quite believe it :)

More sweat chloride tests....

 Can you tell he hates wearing this around? But they make him when he leaves his room.
I personally think he is cute either way!

But apparently, a big breakfast is worth wearing the mask for!

So far, all of our appointments at UAB have been great! Tyler results look awesome to me, although we still don't know whether or not he is on the real thing or just a placebo. I cannot say enough times how incredible the staff is there! Well, after his appointment, we headed home and back to work on Tuesday. Oh, and we also had to geared up for another wedding weekend!

At the reception

Since Tyler had to be at the wedding early for pictures, Tyler's mom and I had a chance to go look at a few houses. Like I have said before, apartment living has.... let's just say... been ever so exciting. So every free chance we get to go look at a house, we go!  Tyler jokingly said to me as he walked out the door on his way to the wedding, "Go find our dream house."  And honestly, I think I did! Nothing is for sure yet, but here are a few pictures of the house!

The front of the house

The living room

 The kitchen

Formal Dining (currently a music room)

Bedroom #1

Bathroom #1

Bedroom #2 (currently a play room)

Long Hallway 

Bathroom #2

Bedroom #3 (Tyler's office)

Master Bedroom

Master Bath (there is another sink on the other side of the bathroom-- I am just not a great photographer!)

Tyler got the chance to check out the house before we left for this last Birmingham trip. I was so glad I got to go with Tyler again because this appointment was a LONG one!  On  Monday we were at the hospital from 7 a.m. until 9:00 p.m.! And for a guy like my husband, sitting this long in one very square room causes stir craziness! Since this post has been terribly long, I will sum up his appointment quickly: Tyler's lung function continues to get stronger and better (and now no one on the research team is denying it). And the other big highlight of the trip is that he starts his new pill this week the XX-770 (which I explained what we hope it will do in an earlier post).  We hope that his results continue to improve and that the drug can get FDA approval soon!! We have been so blessed by precious friends who continue to pray for an awesome overall outcome, for our safety as we travel, and for strength to get through the busy weeks. We love you all!

"For the Lord is good; His lovingkindess is everlasting and His faithfulness to all generations."

Psalms 100:5

It's Wedding Season!

This month will probably be the busiest month Tyler and I have ever experienced as a married couple.  With two weddings, a visit from my parents, a weekly trip to Birmingham, and tax season… there is just not a lot of free time. Luckily, Tyler knows how to make just about every situation into a good time.  This weekend was wedding #1. Everything was beautiful and we had a great time!  Here are a few pictures of the evening and a great video (you may have to turn off my Kari Jobe music to get the full effect) of one of our friends, who is quite the talented dancer…  David, I think you were that lady's best dance partner....ever.

At the reception. Tyler was pretty excited about the food!

The boys sporting their best poses. They always make taking pictures so difficult. So, I decided I would still post their nonsense!