Living in Freedom as a Woman

Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name. Psalm 100:4 thanks·giv·ing ( noun) -  the expression of gratitude, especially to God. thank ( verb) -   express gratitude to (someone), especially by saying “Thank you” Thanksgiving Day. Today is a special day for a number of reasons. Thanksgiving is defined as “the expression of gratitude to God” (Dictionary). Today most of us will gather with our loved ones. We will celebrate with a spread of traditional foods and watch football games; at least, that is what we have always done. I find comfort in just being with my family, in my parent’s home. All seems right with the world when we are all together. Although, we are sad Cory is working today. The life of a fireman. Today, as I sit around with my family, I find myself reflecting over the last few months. What a year. There is so much to be thankful for. The Lord has carried me and my family through some of the ...

“ He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.”   2 Corinthians 1:4 Attention all Team Holly members! I wanted to share with you an amazing opportunity the Lord has laid on my heart. I am so blessed to have been given the love and support that I have over the last few months. It truly is how I got through this journey to this point. I can never express how thankful I am. During this process, I have felt this heaviness for other women who are or who will be going through the same journey. For many reasons, the Lord has laid it on my heart to reach out to help these women. I want to give them hope when they may feel none at all.  I would like to make care bags to give to women who are diagnosed with ovarian cancer. This is a bag that will be filled with a list of items that I found helpful during my journey. The bags will be given to women at my doctor’s office...

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” Psalm 23:1-4 Walking through the valley As I sit here on the beach thinking over the last few months. The last time i was here was when I had just been diagnosed with cancer.  Fear marked my every move. I was paralyzed by thoughts racing through my mind of the unknown.  Thinking of all that I would have to endure over upcoming months. Would the treatment even work? Would my family be able to endure what was to Come?  I could not eat, I could barely do anything. Completely traumatized from the inside out.  As I continued to grasp for some sense of control, I felt the Lord whispering to me " just let go, trust me. I am making you n...

 " She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future. Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the   Lord   will be greatly praised. ”   P roverbs 31:25, 30 Several weeks ago, a dear friend of mine came to our house to take some family pictures. Honestly, when she first told me she wanted to do this for our family I wanted to say “no”. Why in the world would I want to take pictures? I do not want to remember how I look. I have always loved taking family pictures. Talk about wasted time and energy though. Finding the perfect family outfits, getting children dressed and hair fixed perfectly, a husband who hates having pictures made. Sounds glorious, huh? I am sure none of you have any idea what I am talking about. J Before cancer, my outward appearance was something I struggled with; definitely an idol. More like a bottomless pit of dissatisfaction with my looks and my weight; the defea...

It’s been a few weeks since my last post. I went for my first checkup with Dr. Oh on Monday, October 12 th . Everything went great. I had labs drawn and all were normal. I can officially say I am in remission at this time. My doctor told me the chances of the cancer coming back are very low but it’s something that I will remain under close follow-up over the next few years. I go back in December to get a scan and see him again. I am so thankful for Dr. Oh and his amazing staff. Here he is, along with Paige (his nurse) and Jennifer (his scheduler and fellow ovarian cancer survivor- Praise God!!)  Me & Dr. Oh  Me & Paige Me & Jennifer Last weekend, I should’ve gotten “Wife of the Year Award”. I surprised Cory with tickets to go to the Texas A&M vs Alabama game in College Station. He was so excited and we had a great time despite the loss. We were able to catch up with some great friends and enjoy a kid-free day together. This past wee...

Since my last post, I completed my chemotherapy treatment on September 29 th . What a great day. My counts were actually all high enough to get treatment. Cory was with me and my sweet Daddy joined us too. It was such a special day having him there.  I rang the bell proudly. Here’s the video … It’s been about a week and a half since I rang that bell. I have experienced so many emotions since that day. Much different than I expected. I anticipated being so happy; transitioning back to life pretty easily and getting back to reality and my routine activities. What my mind believes does not translate to the reality my body is feeling. That has been very tough for me. I had dinner tonight with my very dear friend Jodie. I was sharing with her how my week had gone, things I had done and things I had originally planned to start doing in the upcoming week. She looked at me like I had three heads. I actually had planned on starting back to Camp Gladiator on Monday. She couldn’t h...

Recalling our date night on Thursday, June 25 th , I remember everything seemed normal except for your Nascar laps around our kitchen area.   Our sitter had arrived and was wrestling with the kids. We went to dinner and came home. Later that night you complained about your stomach hurting.   I went to work the next day, got home the next morning, and we were headed to my brother’s birthday party for the day.   Well, Holly was not in a good place.   She asked me to come feel her abdominal area and stated, “to make sure I am not crazy”.   You laid down on the floor and placed my hand on the area you wanted me to feel and it was obvious at first touch.   I thought to myself, yeah that’s different and not normal.   I thought it might be a red flag if you feel something in your abdominal area that almost covers my entire palm of hand.   I don’t really remember what I said to you, but it wasn’t the most comforting words you have heard since you lost it...