the times, they are a-changing

well, asher is stable now. it has been over 5 months since his last admission, and even last month when he had that little "hiccup" he came out of it quickly and on one less med (leaving only aspirin!). so, yeah, he's stable now. kinda weird, no?

not that i'm complaining.

anyway, since asher is doing better now, i knew that it was time for some things to change around here. namely,

i can get a job.

so last week, i began sending out my resume. and on wednesday this week, i went out around town, handing out resumes and applying for jobs. i wasn't picky. so out i went.

the first place i went to, i asked if they were hiring, and lo and behold, they were! in fact, the woman asked me right then and there if i could come in for an interview the next morning.

that's right, folks, the first place i went to invited me back for an interview.

so i went for the interview the next morning. my first interview in about 9 years. and guess what!

i got the job!!!

so i went for my first day today. i'll admit, it was a bit weird. and i'm exhausted. but it was good. and i enjoyed it. yes, at the end of my shift i was very ready to go home. i haven't had an actual job since my contract with the Canada Games ended in august 2001, so this whole working thing will take some getting used to. but i'll manage with all that.

as for the kids... yeah, it's going to be an adjustment. for all of us. the hours at my new job aren't great, so there will be a lot of child care involved, but we'll get used to it, we'll adjust, and we'll get through. and we'll be ok. blithe prayed last night,

God, please bless mommy in her new job. please be with her and help her, and don't let them make her work too hard, because i don't want her to work too hard. please be with her on this journey. and please be with me and bram and asher on this journey, too.

yes, those are her words. we're all excited about this new turn in our journey, even though it's scary. but blithe knows... God is going through this with us, and we're not dealing with it on our own. so we'll be ok. i told the kids last night, "we'll get through. we'll adjust, and we'll do what we have to do." and bram agreed just as loudly, shrill-ly and enthusiastically as you would expect. asher just kept playing with chicky and elmo-y (who is not, in fact, the Elmo, but rather a yellow bunny). blithe said from her room, "yup! because that's what the heywood family does, right, mommy?"


anyway, i thought i would update you on the goings-on over here, even though they have nothing to do with asher's health. but it's all part of our journey as a family. if you wouldn't mind, please pray for us in this new part of our journey. it's unfamiliar territory we're treading here, so any prayers, good vibes, crossed crossables would be much appreciated.


and since you're praying/vibing/crossing...


don't forget to keep praying for shawna and her family. they need it.


also, little ella in australia, who had a stroke the other night. she is still in the hospital. and not only is it a hard time for her, it is really hard on her mom, shannon. she is heartbroken. please continue to pray for ella, shannon, and dad neil.