Day 208

     Yesterday was a beautiful day!  We had a great celebration in honor of our sweet Katie.  Katie's Grandma and Grandpa Epps' came over for dinner and Katie's party.  One of Katie's presents was a Rapunzel wig - I will post the pictures some time this week - it is funny, she looked so cute, and she loved having hair again!  (The wig doesn't stay on long because the hair is two feet long and it is hot and itchy, but it is fun while it lasts).  It was a really nice day.
     Today however, Katie goes back to the clinic for more chemo.  Conner also starts swim lessons this morning, so Scott and I are having to divide this morning.  One of us will take Conner to swim and one will take Katie to the clinic.  We have been told the first week of swim lessons a bit traumatic... So one of us needs to be there with Conner.  I will probably go with Conner to swim, and then Scott's mom is going to watch him, while go meet up with Scott and Katie at the clinic.  I hate not being able to be there the whole time with Katie... But there is no way I couldn't be there for Conner too.  So, today is a divide and conquer day.
     President Dieter F. Uchtdorf has said: "The things we hope in sustain us during our daily walk.  They uphold us through trials, temptations, and sorrow.h  Everyone has experienced discouragement and difficulty.  Indeed, there are times when the darkness may seem unbearable.  It is in these times that the divine principles of the restored gospel we hope in can uphold us and carry us until, once again, we walk in the light.
     "We hope in Jesus the Christ, in the goodness of God, in the manifestations of the Holy Spirit, in the knowledge that prayers are heard and answered.  Because God has been faithful and kept His promises in the past, we can hope with confidence that God will keep His promises to us in the present and in the future.  In times of distress, we can hold tightly to the hope that things will 'work together for [our] good' (D&C 90:24) as we follow the counsel of God's prophets.  This type of hope in God, His goodness, and His power refreshes us with courage during difficult challenges and gives strength to those who feel threatened by enclosing walls of fear, doubt, and despair." ("The Infinite Power of Hope," Ensign, Nov. 2008, 23).