Life as a Lewis

Because of God's tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace. -Luke 1:78-79 You may have heard about the total solar eclipse on Monday (sarcasm because everyone  was talking about the eclipse). Clarksville happened to be in the viewing area for 100% totality, and it was pretty incredible. I honestly wasn't sure what to expect and might have wondered if it were completely over-hyped. Turns out, it lived up to all of the hype! We had plans to attend an eclipse party, but I wasn't feeling well and we decided to stay home and celebrate in a very low-key manner. Brian ran to Walmart at the last minute to grab essential eclipse food such as sun chips, candy bars candybars, and Sunkist soda. We watched coverage on TV, went outside 15 minutes before the eclipse and then spent the rest of the day relaxing when it was all over. I fully realize ...

But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn't really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. -2 Peter 3:8 1. I don't know if I've ever explained my work situation. I am the assistant to the CEO of a publishing company who also hosts and produces a large family ministry conference. It is an awesome job. A significant part of my job is to attend the administrative planning meetings and stay up to date on what is going on so that I can better serve the CEO. It is absolutely a privilege to see the planning, vision, and problem-solving that occurs behind the scenes. A privilege. During our weekly meeting Monday morning, they surprised me with donuts (cronuts to be exact) to celebrate my good scan news last week. After 6.5 years of ups and downs, we don't tend to celebrate much in the way of cancer these days, and it wa...

I've had several requests for what I've been reading lately so I thought I would just type up a quick list of what we've all been reading, watching, listening to over the summer. Reading: Dreamland Burning (5 stars) - loved this YA story that moves back and forth between current times and Jim Crowe days. The story is set in Tulsa and it was fun to see references to restaurants and hot spots I've been. Camden also read this one and loved it. The Turquoise Table: Finding Community and Connection in Your Own Front Yard (3 stars) - this was a visually beautiful book and I love the concept, but the content felt more like it could have been covered in a blog post as opposed to a book. The Hate U Give (4 stars) - loved the perspective this book gave. Without the language, it would have warranted 5 stars from me. Lonesome Dove (4 stars) - this was a re-read for me from back in my college days and it held up. Gritty and rough, but beautiful writing and a page turne...

The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is full of joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving. -Psalm 28:7 1. Biggest piece of news from this week came during my 11-hour Vanderbilt day - scan showed a 15% decrease, which is the biggest decrease I have ever experienced over the past 6.5 years of off and on treatment. So that was pretty awesome! I'll try to ignore the dark little voice inside my head that reminds me it took a solid 9 months to make it this far. Ultimately, it does not change our treatment plan and 15% isn't even enough to be considered an official response to the chemo, but we will take it! Mom kept me company. Unfortunately, the timing of the appointments did not allow for fun food, but we did walk for a quick latte. 2. Both kids decided to participate in the cross country track team this year. I had no intention of adding to our schedule for this part of the semester, but it's certainly an easy spor...

You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. -Isaiah 26:3 After such a long absence, there is nothing to do but pick up my laptop and start typing. I can't possibly fill in all the gaps, but here are 5 of the many things that happened in the past few weeks. 1. My parents finally made their move to Tennessee! It wasn't without a few hiccups, but they're here and getting settled. The first set of grandparents move Labor Day weekend with the second set of grandparents arriving soon after. With the exception of a brief period of time shortly after we were married, we've always lived apart from my family so it's quite a blessing to have them nearby. I stopped by for coffee with my mom after dropping the kids off at school this morning. That's pretty awesome! 2 Becky and the boys visited for nearly 2 weeks. Camden, William, and Xavier were inseparable as usual and they disappeared upstairs to play and talk for...

Our Pikes Peak and Garden of the Gods adventures Rory fainted in the giftshop at the top of Pike's Peak. This was so scary! They spent their souvenir money on some mining materials. Rory was feeling recovered enough at this point to participate in arguing with her brother. It was so bright and hot that not only could I not see any camera settings, but they could not keep their eyes open long enough for me to get pictures. They were also 100% over scenery at this point and just wanted to get into the hotel pool. Our trip out west this year was incredible. It was also exhausting and without a doubt had long-standing negative consequences regarding my health and Brian's summer work. But, I wouldn't trade it for anything. The trip with Camden and Rory, seeing our Utah family was well worth it. And I think it showed us that traveling is possible. It requires saving, time, p...