From Us to You

 

Day of Silence

Prayers

From the words of a children's book...What a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.  The events that occurred today at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, CT is simply very tragic and unnerving.  I couldn't even bring myself to watch any TV, surf the web, or check updates on my phone until about 5 o'clock this evening because as an educator myself, I just can't imagine what school officials, students, parents, and members of this community have gone through today.  To be honest...it is a living nightmare and I just can't make sense of any of this.  As teachers, parents entrust us to care for their kids and today, there were 40 parents who once again sent their children to school thinking this would be another day of learning.  Tonight they will go to bed with any parent's worst nightmare sadly being a reality for them.  I know everyone has their opinion on how this could have been prevented, etc., but let us know forget that the lives a many were forever changed today by the acts on a single person.  I pray that these families and this community find peace and comfort from the Lord during this time of grief and that we as a nation, instead of pointing fingers or looking for answers, simply remember that tomorrow is not guaranteed and to rest in the everlasting promise of our Almighty King.  And don't forget to hug those you love a little tighter tonight.

Would I?

The holiday season completely brings on a new meaning once you have children.  This year is my 5th Christmas as a mother and boy are we having some fun.  Art, our elf from Santa, is definitely keeping us all on our toes and on our best behavior and we are having a great time making other Christmas memories as a family...making holiday decorations and treats, driving around to see the lights, watching holiday movies, and the list goes on. 

But amidst all the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, I can't help but wonder what it was like to be Mary.  Throughout my life, I have often wondered this and have greatly respected her giving birth to the King.  Would have responded in the manner Mary did when she learned she would be the mother of the world's Savior?  I can confidently say no.  A co-worker of mine, who just became a mother herself,  has also had this on her heart and she shared about this this morning at our weekly FCA meeting.  It is crazy to think that Mary was only 13, the age of many of our students, at the time of Jesus' birth and I think this really hit home with many of our kids.  I know that I for sure definitely don't have the obedience of Mary at the age of 31, let alone the age of 13.  I can't imagine having the knowledge of knowing one of my children was going to die, but she did, and lived a full life of glorifying God and being unselfish all the while--something I definitely struggle with. But I am so thankful she did.  I pray that we all remember the sacrifice not only Jesus made for all of us, but also the sacrifice of this earthly mother and the heartache she ultimately endured for us.

7 Wonderful Years...

...one home purchase, 2 kids, several vacations, many moments of laughter and tears later we are still going strong.  Happy 7th Anniversary, Justin!

Happy 730 Days to Our Little Guy

Happy 2nd Birthday, Beckham Glen!  You are the delight of our lives and we are blessed that God chose us to be your earthly parents.  Thanks for keeping us on your toes with your curious mind, making us laugh and sometimes even cry, and for teaching us how to see things through the eyes of spunky toddler boy.  We love you so much...here's to being two.

 Newborn

 

 One Year Old

 

Two Years Old



Fall Fun...Coffer Style

Just a bit of what we have been up to in pictures...

 

 

One Messed Up World

This is all I can think about with the recent events that have occurred in two different parts of our country.  The first involved a students from my school district.  I didn't have her in class, but I know some of her family and the circumstances of her disappearance and death are just sickening.  You can read more about this case and investigation here.There have been several tears shed in our community over the past week and once again we are reminded on who fragile life can be and that we can NEVER be too protective of our kiddos.

The other missing girl is a 10-year old from Colorado who was abducted on her way to school last Friday in the area where my sister and brother-in-law live.  Her backpack and water bottle were found right near my sister's old apartment and they are currently waiting for news as to whether a body found today in a park is hers.

These two events have left me doing A LOT of reflecting this week about the world we actually live in.  All I can do for these two girls and their families is pray, but that definitely doesn't take away the pain they are experiencing.  Yet at the same time it also leaves my reflecting on the omnipotence of our God and the hope we have in Him.  Would you also please for these two families? And also, please hold your babies a little tighter tonight.

Pray for Our Little Guy

It has been a rough 24 hours at the Coffer household.  We noticed over the weekend that Beckham had a bump on his upper leg, but it looked just like that, a bump, so we didn't think much of it.  He spent the day with my Mom on Monday and she said she noticed the bump, but didn't think anything of it either.  Just to note, B has very sensitve skin, so he frequently gets these bumps and also rashes so we figured the spot was the same thing.  Unfortunately, not so much.


Note: The following might be a bit graphic or TMI.
Fast forward to last night.  Justin went to soccer practice and the kids and I went to a volleyball game at my school.  Willard was playing Bolivar and one of our favorite people, Shelby, plays for Bolivar so we couldn't miss the game.  We all got home around the same time and shortly after we began to get Beckham ready for a bath.  That is when I gasped and noticed that the "bump" on his leg had a dark center and the area around it was as hard as a rock.  Justin pressed on the area and gunk began to ooze from the spot.  We cleaned the area, gave him his bath, put antibiotic cream on the area, and put him to bed.

This morning when I got him up, he was incredibly fussy, but the spot didn't look any worse.  However, within 20 minutes, Beckham was sobbing uncontrolably and wouldn't let us even touch his leg.  Cue major panic because it was already 6:15, which is too late for me to call into work and get a sub and Justin had a big project to work on.  We were trying to figure out what to do when I check on Makenna, who is getting ready, and she tells me she doesn't look good and she looks pale.  Oh the joys of parenthood.

We finally decide that Justin would take the kids in to the doctor and we would go from there.  I head off to work and within 5 minutes Makenna is better, but Beckham certainly is not.  To make a long story short, we learned that somehow, from somewhere Beckham got an abscess.  He is a beautiful picture of his leg.

He is currently on an antibiotic and we are monitoring him very closely for the next 48 hours (well now only 36).  If the antibiotic is working it will be evident by then.  If not, we have to take him back in to have it cultured to see what it is and at that point we are facing the possibility of inpatient surgery to drain and clear it.  In the meantime, Justin and I have the joy of soaking and draining the spot 3 times and day and this is honestly the hardest thing we have had to do as parents.  Beckham is in so much pain when we do this, but so much "stuff" comes out and it is amazing that his little body can hold so much infection in one little spot.  The good news is that when we drained it before we put him to bed tonight it appeared we may had gotten the core of the abscess out so hopefully he will be better in the morning.  Please pray that the antibiotics work and that he will quit hurting.  Also pray that it doesn't spread to any of the rest of us, which is a possibility.

Our God is Greater

This is a truth that Justin and I have known for most of our lives, but a situation we are currently in has just reminded us of this fact.  About a year ago, we began to feel that maybe the church we had been attending for about 6 years wasn't where God wanted us to be, but we weren't sure if it was simply our dissatisfaction of some things at our church prompting this feeling or if it was something else.  We began to pray about the situation and this past spring we both felt that God was leading us somewhere else.  After much prayer and some reservation on our part, we attended Freshwater Church in my hometown of Bolivar and it has seriously been on of the best decisions we have made in our marriage--or should I say we are thankful God had this plan for us.  Since we began attending this church in March we have been incredibly challenged not only in our own personal walks with Christ, but have also been burdened and gained huge hearts for the people around us and their need for the Gospel.  The church's mission statement is "Glorify God, Advance the Gospel" and we, individually, and as a family have taken this to a new level in our lives.  When we started attending Freshwater we had no clue whether it would become our "home" or not, but God has revealed that this is where he wants our family and he is doing INCREDIBLE things through this congregation that are so exciting. We are now seeing how God is and also praying that he will continue to use us to advance the Gospel.  God is Greater than all of our desires, wants, and dreams, and let me just say He never ceases to amaze us.  There is so much more to this story and I will be sure to share as it all unfolds.