Gillespie Family

Well we have had more than one bad day the last little while. I'm hoping if I write this all out someday we can just laugh our heads off. Please know we are fine, we will get through this. Paul and I haven't committed ourselves yet. I refuse to think any of our trials will knock us flat. We have been on our knees more than a few times asking will these trials end, will our luck become good again.

Paul likes to think this all started this last fall when he was out scouting for game with our son Wyatt and his tire on his truck blew and he didn't have any tools to fix it. After walking many miles to get tools, Paul and his buddy Tom were driving back on a four wheeler and a cow crashed into them. In Paul's mind this one cow started this whole thing call "bad luck." As I think about our trials over this last couple months. I can see all the many blessings in most of our trials. like Paul and Tom not hitting their heads and getting severely injured. You know all of our trials have stories to them but we have had so many I think I should just list them.

*The whole family getting H1N1 while Paul was gone out of town working. Then Paul comes home and gets sick with the swine. Blessing it wasn't as bad as the news made it out to be. Blessing it was nice to have Paul home.

*Paul loses his only key to his moped at the park in ride. He has to get it rekeyed. Blessing he could do some of the work to fix it so it was a bit cheaper.

*Paul was guiding a hunt up in northern Utah. He got up on a one ton hay bale to look for deer, and he hears something weird looks down and sees a leg and a utter of a cow straight up in the air. A cow got stuck upside down under a one ton bale. Blessing he saved the cow's life, but he just hasn't had any luck with cows this year, you could say he is a little scared of them now.

*Paul is guiding a hunt up in northern Utah. His truck gets another slow leak in a tire. He drives all the way home on it. He has me go to three shops to fix it. Even though we just got new tires, we have to pay for a whole new one because he drove on it too long. Blessing he made it home and didn't have to go through four wheeler/cow story again.

*Paul's truck dies in northern Utah. Try to get it home was a trial. To get it fixed was a blessing. A brother of a friend of a friend fixed it for a third of the cost what the dealership was going to charge us.

*Gracie has to stay in the NICU for a whole week. She wasn't breathing on her own. The doctors couldn't tell us why her lungs weren't working, every test they did came back fine. Blessing Gracie was born with all of her fingers, toes and she is fine every other way. Blessing Grammy took the boys for a whole week. Blessing the bill was giant, and most of it was covered by the insurance that we paid a million dollars for each month. and the part they didn't get cover was paid by someone. Thank you whoever you are.

*Gracie is on oxygen for 6 weeks. Having to haul her oxygen tank around was a big pain. Blessing she was able to come home from the hospital. Blessing thank goodness for modern technology.

*Our refrigerator and freezer goes out and had to throw all of our food away. Blessing our neighbor gave us one of their refrigerators. Blessing more neighbors make us dinner.

*Gracie turns blue at Grammy's house in PC. Blessing Grandpa Gary had an extra oxygen tank. Blessing the ER was willing to give us a baby oxygen tube for free, these days they charge for an aspirin.

*I am in crazy pain because of gallbladder stones and drive myself to the hospital after 8 hours of pain at midnight on New Year's Day. Blessing it hasn't gone into my common duct to create even a worse situation. But I am afraid to eat chocolate in fear it will start a gallbladder attack. Blessing, hopefully I am losing some baby fat.

*Paul snow plows a car off the road and ruins his plow and truck, and totals the other car with a guy in it. Blessing he didn't kill any one or seriously hurt the other driver. Blessing that we have insurance that gave us just enough money back to get a new plow for his other truck. Pray for snow we need money.

*Our washer had a small leak in it. Paul tears it apart to find it and to order a new part. I need the washer to wash the boys cloths for Church. Paul rigs it back together but doesn't tighten a main hose. We then had a river in the kitchen. Blessing we can fix the washer and don't have to buy a new one. Blessing the floor got washed. Blessing we have Grandma Gillespie close by to use her washer.

*Paul is in crazy pain all night. I made Paul go to the doctor, and the doctor made Paul go to the hospital to get his appendix out. The insurance company makes us wait forever at the hospital before they can do the CT. Which makes Paul's surgery really late at night so he has to stay in the hospital over night. Blessing his appendix didn't rupture.

*Dean gets a double ear infection the same day Paul comes home from the hospital and has to go to the doctors three times and get four shots. because he is two and won't take his medicine. Blessing the shots. Blessing I have a sister that is willing to come down and babysit while I am in and out of hospitals and doctor offices for two straight days. At this point do I feel I am going a little crazy.

*I am getting my gallbladder out one week from Paul's appendix being removed. Blessing my sister can come and help us with the kids again. Blessing we have organs that can come out and don't have to be replaced. Blessing I am going to feel so much better and again with the baby fat hopefully disappearing.

Paul and I are really happy for the days that go by and nothing happens to us. Or when we can see the blessing come from some crazy trial. I know God loves the Gillespies but does he really need to test us that much to make us a stronger family. I have been telling everyone we really don't need anything but what we do need is some prayers and some positive energy or a bit of good luck. Hey like I said earlier we are going to laugh at this someday.

Main blessing: Adversities show us how happy we really are. WE ARE A REALLY HAPPY FAMILY!!!!!

With the help of my Mom, we went to temple square to see the Christmas lights. She encouraged us to go and she would watch Gracie so we didn't have to take her out in the cold. My Mom had this great plan for us to go up early, see the lights and go out to eat after. When she has these ideas she should have called temple square to tell them. We showed up at dark which is 5:30pm but the lights don't come on until 6pm. We had to wait out in the cold and in the dark. I made us stand by the red pine (my favorite) to see them all come on. You can't tell but Nick and Brittany came with us. I'm glad she came she had never been inside temple square to see the lights or the nativity. We ran through it really fast because Paul wasn't too thrilled about being there in the first place. After we all went for a burger and cheese fries. it was fun...