Aha Moments with the Savior

Alexis Donielle Dover I was recently asked to share my story about our own loss in 1986.  In preparing my written version, it dawned on me that this blog would be a perfect place to put it out there.  I am amazed at how fast time has passed since experiencing this gut wrenching event. I also marvel how God has put back together all the pieces.  I can honestly say that His grace is enough, His mercies are new each morning, and He brings beauty out of the ashes. My story began over 31 years ago! We gave birth to our first child, a girl, on February 8, 1986.  She was declared healthy, passing all hospital tests.  We stayed the usual couple of days and were sent home. I noticed about 3 weeks later, while trying to feed her, that she was not eating particularly well one afternoon. It was a cold, dreary Sunday and I remember trying to feed her and she would continually  fall asleep.  My husband was in the other room watching sports on TV.  I handed her to him for a bit and h

Many of you may wonder what these three "h" words have in common?  For me, so very much. On August 20th I left a piece of my heart at a dorm called " Heritage ."  The significance being that dropping off our youngest at college would forever change our family structure as we've known it for almost 30 years!  It was the start of an empty nest.  One we anticipated and even relished. We came home to an empty room, no teenager vehicle in the driveway, and no messes around the house. How did we really feel about it then? And then, before we even had a chance to fully process the impact, along came another "h," that being Hurricane Harvey ! Within a week, we are bracing for what could be a hurricane of the century.   My husband had to rush to help our other son prepare his house for evacuation.  Working with plywood, nails, hammers, and a drill in good working order were the events of the afternoon.  Several hours later, they were on the road inl

My last post regarding sending off a child to school was in 2013. Our youngest child's first day of high school. As I reread that post I find myself at another new beginning:  that same child's first days in college as an entering freshman! As many often ask, "where has the time gone?"  I watch my married daughter who is raising our first grandson.  He is now 18 months old and a handful!  Talking to her when she is tired, worn out, or just looking for a few minutes peace reminds me that I too was once in her shoes.  Four times over!  I remember thinking then that I would NEVER get a chance to be alone. And now, here we are, newly empty nesters and we have all the alone time in the world!  As I said before, "where has the time gone?"  We worked hard all summer long to get him ready for this next stage in life.  But we feel we forgot something or more than one thing!  It was hard leaving him knowing we may not have covered all the bases.  On the long drive