Lauren's Life

"Never Once"

2011-08-31T16:41:00.002-05:00

Scars and Struggle along the way- but Never Once was I left alone on this deployment! God is faithful! By God's grace and power in me have I come through this deployment and year! What a great year to see God's might! I have been asked almost weekly, "How do you do this military life, Lauren, I couldn't do it?" I have the same response every time. "God always gives me the grace I need for everyday." God will give you the grace for everyday as well if you're following Him and letting his power work in you!
As challenging as this year has been, it's been a great year! We have a new, now almost 1 year old Baby Annie, and a new home! God has been faithful everyday! Below are the lyrics to the song by Matt Redman.

Verse 1
Standing on this mountaintop
Looking just how far we've come
Knowing that for every step
You were with us

Verse 2
Kneeling on this battle ground
Seeing just how much You've done
Knowing every victory
Is Your power in us

Pre-Chorus
Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Yes, our hearts can say

Chorus 1
Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Repeat Verse 2
Repeat Pre-Chorus

Chorus 2
Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Bridge
Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Never once did we ever walk alone
Carried by Your constant grace
Held within Your perfect peace
Never once, no, we never walk alone

Ending Chorus
Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Every step we are breathing in Your grace
Evermore we'll be breathing out Your praise
You are faithful, God, You are faithful
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Army Life!

2011-08-30T15:46:00.002-05:00

The Army way: Hurry up and Wait! We are so excited for Tracy to be coming home soon, less than 48 hours now! He cleared all of medical screenings and is cleared to return home! Yahooo!
He is excited about his PT test tomorrow! He hopes to break a 14 minute 2 mile! wow! That's fast! It turns out that when you live on a mountain, have no resources for intaking high caloric food, and the only activity is to exercise, then you can loose 20+ pounds in a year! I'm proud of you Tracy! Can't wait to see you and your handsome, skinny self!
We will be seeing him Thursday sometime! We still are not certain of the time! For now, I"m busy cleaning the house, getting things squared away for a trip to Austin/San Antonio, and getting ahead on Premier business stuff!
We look forward to seeing you soon! Look for a picture or FB status update for more info. I could update the blog, huh? ok, I"ll try to send a quick message here as well!
The girls are awake. Time for some play time!

Tracy update!

2011-08-24T18:37:00.000-05:00

Tracy made it to El Paso this afternoon! We're glad he's in TX! One day soon we'll actually be in the same time zone! We'll get to pick him up in Austin the mid part of next week! Addison is so excited to see her Dad and to see Shamu at Sea World too!

Lauren
Sent from my iPhone

Headed Home!

2011-08-20T22:11:00.001-05:00

Tracy is headed West! He departed from his base last week sometime and is headed further West at some point in the next little bit. (As I'm writing this I just got word that he is out of Afghanistan :)!!!) I know you are all anxious to see him and to at least hear that he is on US soil! When he arrives in the states then he will do his demobilization training near ElPaso for a few days. Then the girls and I will be driving to Austin to pick him up! Those are our plans for the next couple of weeks. I'm sure when he gets his cell phone turned on then he will be calling some of you, but he may just be flat exhausted from the traveling and sleeping on cots for a solid 2 weeks straight!
It has been a challenging year for both of us and we are both excited for him to get home! We look forward to seeing everyone at our house on Sept. 10th for a joint birthday party and Welcome-home party!
You can be praying for his safe travel and our reunion as it approaches in a few short days.
Thank you all for your love and support over these last 15 months!

My grocery store helper!

2011-08-09T12:13:00.001-05:00

M&M jar hijacked!

2011-08-08T09:30:00.001-05:00

Addison got the M&M jar off the counter! She and Annie were helping themselves to the candy! Kids are so funny! I've often wondered if we eat all the M&Ms if it will make their Daddy come home any faster? Maybe they were wondering the same thing!

M&M Jar

2011-08-06T12:51:00.001-05:00

It's almost empty! Daddy's almost home!

Standing!

2011-08-05T09:35:00.000-05:00

Annie is 10.5 months now, next week she'll be 11 months! Tracy should be home a week or so prior to her birthday! We are ready for him to be home! We are having Annie's birthday party and Tracy's welcome home party at our house on Sept. 10th! You're invited so mark it on your calendar!

Sweet photos :)

2011-07-22T09:21:00.001-05:00

These pics are from September 2010!

Thank you Meredith! I love seeing Tracy with his girls!

Lauren

Sent from my iPhone

Begin forwarded message:

From: Meredith Lemmon <mglemmon@gmail.com>
Date: July 21, 2011 23:08:50 CDT
To: Lauren Gross Coe <Laurencoe06@gmail.com>
Subject: Sweet photos :)

Annie roll!

2011-07-08T08:40:00.000-05:00

She can scoot, crawling with her chest on the floor, and roll to get where she wants to go!

The House!

2011-06-07T17:44:00.001-05:00

I realized I never posted a picture of the front of the house!

Helping

2011-06-07T17:42:00.000-05:00

Addison wanted to help me spray the Windex. Then she asked for the paper towel to clean the door. She's getting so big!

New Swing

2011-05-24T17:38:00.000-05:00

I think she likes the new swings on Papa's play fort!

Nap time?

2011-05-18T12:42:00.001-05:00

Addison must be a lot like me. I can sleep almost anywhere. My mom tells me that when I was a kid I'd go get my blankie and tell her I was ready for night night. In college my friends made fun of me for going to bed early, before midnight. I've always liked my sleep.
For Addison, I guess this runner looked like her nap mat at preschool and she decided to nap there.
She's getting so big. She learned to put her Keens (shoes she's wearing in the pic) on all by herself. She's been telling me 'by myself' more frequently as of late. Mainly, she wants to put her pants on by herself and get out of the bath tub by herself.
I better run. I'm off to get my Aunt Cindy from the airport! So excited! A whole week of decorating and painting :)

Paint!

2011-05-13T16:38:00.000-05:00

Addison helping me paint her new room, princess purple!

House!

2011-05-02T13:01:00.000-05:00

Tracy and I are buying a house in McKinney. We close on the house this Friday. We will be moving in the next weekend, May 14th.
Tracy has only seen the house via photos and videos. I did draw him a floor plan so he could see the lay out.
I had a photo of the outside of the house on my phone, but it must have been deleted by my little Addison. :) I'll take another one soon and post it for you all to see!
The house is 4 bed, 2 bath 2100 sq ft. My friend Mindy and I talk about all of our distractions til our husbands come home in August. The house buying process has been a good distraction. Moving in and decorating will also be very good distractions.
Tracy is very excited about us buying this house and to be coming home in 120ish days!

Some have been asking about Tracy's reaction to Osama bin Laden's death. I haven't talked to him about it yet. Maybe he will be able to write you all in the next few days.

Lauren
Sent from my iPhone

Annie baby

2011-04-26T20:25:00.001-05:00

We also call her Annie banan-ie. Although I try not too b/c I find it annoying. It's kinda catchy and hard to stop saying.
She has a cold but she's doing well. She's been working hard; she grew 2 teeth last week. She's sitting up for long periods of time and becoming more interested on her toys.
She's tired. Gotta go put her to bed!
She is excited to see her Daddy in 18 weeks!

Yum!

2011-04-22T20:17:00.001-05:00

Yummy Icecream!

Ice Dream

2011-04-09T19:39:00.000-05:00

She loves ice cream!

Sleeping Annie

2011-04-07T23:53:00.000-05:00

While I was making dinner :), Annie fell asleep in the exer-saucer :( poor girl.

All Smiles!

2011-03-26T11:55:00.001-05:00

M&M jar

2011-03-25T11:14:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure why she's so sad looking. Maybe b/c I wouldn't give her any more M&M's. There are 312 M&M's left only 156 more days!
Also I want to wish Andrew a Happy 8th Birthday!

Trike!

2011-03-15T15:00:00.001-05:00

Andrew and Addison on the Trike!

6 Month Check up!

2011-03-10T11:19:00.000-06:00

Ice cream cone!

2011-02-28T18:51:00.001-06:00

Yum yum!

Story time

2011-02-27T14:20:00.000-06:00

Story time with Aunt Leslie!

Ice Cream Bowl!

2011-02-23T14:52:00.000-06:00

Happy Birthday Video!

2011-02-21T20:59:00.000-06:00

I'm trying this again!

Check out this video on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QU5wnqTI-ss&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Lauren
Sent from my Phone

You Tube

2011-02-20T10:07:00.002-06:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBD0Og6P1Pw

I haven't ventured very far into You Tube! But Thought I'd give it a try. I"m not sure if you have to have a you tube account to view the above link.

Backpack

2011-02-17T09:38:00.000-06:00

She insisted on carrying her backpack today. Usually I can talk her out of it and 'let Mommy help' but not today!

Another Birthday Party Pic!

2011-02-14T21:51:00.000-06:00

Thank you to whoever took this pic for me. If you're wondering where Annie is during the party, she was sleeping. :/

Birthday Party!

2011-02-12T12:20:00.000-06:00

Birthday Princess!

2011-02-12T00:04:00.000-06:00

Happy 2nd Birthday Addison! I love you and so does your Daddy. Annie loves you too, she just can't say it yet! You're a precious girl. I'm so glad you're my baby girl!
I took Addison on a special 'date' to Cherry Berry yogurt bar! We had fun! She enjoyed the yogurt and coloring on the tables :)

Snoozing!

2011-02-07T10:20:00.000-06:00

Annie Snoozed through the Superbowl last night! Hard to believe she'll be 5 months on Saturday!

Addison vs. Nutella

2011-02-03T09:27:00.000-06:00

On this 3rd icy day, schools are still closed at it's a blustery 16 degrees outside. Brr. I gave Addison her first taste of Nutella. From this picture it looks like she attacked the Nutella!

Running 1/2 marathon!

2011-02-01T13:08:00.000-06:00

Love that smile!

Tracy

2011-02-01T13:07:00.000-06:00

This is a picture taken at the half marathon Tracy participated in Sunday!
I'm so proud of you Tracy! Great Job!

4 4 4 4

2011-01-24T22:53:00.001-06:00

4 places I go: church, out with friends, take Addison to school, mail Tracy packages!

4 fav smells: my pippo, clean sheets, movie theater popcorn, clean babies!

4 people who will respond:
Merf, Megan, Dad,.....

4 TV shows: Megan on Fox news, Mickey Mouse, The Office, Big Bang Theory.

Lauren

Sent from my Phone

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First time in exersaucer!

2011-01-24T12:15:00.000-06:00

She's 4 months old and enjoying her first time in the exersaucer.

Swinging with Papa!

2011-01-22T17:39:00.000-06:00

$$$ Moolala! $$$

2011-01-21T15:31:00.003-06:00

http://share.moolala.com/r/B51TLYM

Do you like to save money? But don't you also like to make money? Well Moolala is a new company similar to Groupon or Living Social. They bring deals to you at reduced rate. Most companies use it as advertising but I'm fine with that b/c I get a good deal! For example, LivingSocial had a deal this week where you pay $10 for a $20 Amazon gift card. That's half off right and a great deal! Moolala is like that but even better b/c you can earn money. Here's how it works. It's a 5 tiered pyramid or paymatrix. If you're in my paymatrix then I earn 2% from the purchase price and you get a good deal. It's win. Win!
Now you're thinking that's only 20 cents on the Amazon deal described above. Yes! You're right. That's 20 cents you didn't have before. And if we work together we can have a large paymatrix. The trick is that you have to click the link above or you can't be in my pay matrix.
Ready, Set, Go!
Thanks and Happy Money Making and saving!

Annie's 4 month Check Up

2011-01-11T13:25:00.001-06:00

All is well. She is growing fast, 2 inches in 2 months!

Real Auburn Family

2011-01-10T08:46:00.001-06:00

My mom and her sisters made it on the Birmingham news!

http://www.abc3340.com/global/category.asp?c=189742&clipId=5454239&topVideoCatNo=189741&autoStart=true

They are in Scottsdale, AZ for the Auburn vs. Oregon National Championship Game tonight!

Snow/love you daddy!

2011-01-09T18:26:00.000-06:00

Snow picture!

2011-01-09T17:18:00.000-06:00

Sisters!

2011-01-08T11:30:00.001-06:00

This is Annie's first time in the Bumbo. Addison wanted to be in the picture too!

Better smile!

2011-01-05T13:30:00.001-06:00

Annie smiles!

2011-01-05T13:28:00.000-06:00

First ponytail

2011-01-04T16:35:00.001-06:00

Addison's first ponytail. Oh my she is getting big!
Christmas vacation is officially over. Addison went back to school today and my grandparents flew home today, well to Birmingham.
Tracy wrote a while ago and he is almost to his final destination. His visit was really great. I'd say it was the best r&r but it's hard to brat the first one where he proposed :) gotta run. Addison is asking me to "stand up!" I think she wants to play.

Grandpappa!

2011-01-03T16:48:00.000-06:00

She's sitting with her GrandPapa! She loves her hat and coat! She fusses when I try to take it off.

Swing!

2011-01-03T16:10:00.000-06:00

Daddy had to go today! We're swinging to have some fun! At the airport I said, "Bye bye, Dada!" and "Love you Dada!"
Addison
Now she has a pink umbrella and is saying "cool dude!" I love my little girl!

Riding Horse!

2010-12-25T16:07:00.001-06:00

Annie's first Christmas!

2010-12-25T16:01:00.000-06:00

Baby Annie Elf

2010-12-23T15:44:00.001-06:00

Created with FACEinHOLE iPhone App available on iPhone App Store

Lauren

Sent from my Phone

Hiding

2010-12-20T20:47:00.000-06:00

She and her daddy love to play!

Tracy and Annie talking

2010-12-20T14:41:00.000-06:00

"Look, an airplane! "

2010-12-18T14:58:00.000-06:00

On the move

2010-12-15T15:19:00.000-06:00

It's 60 degrees outside but she wanted to wear her hat still!

Boots on the Ground

2010-12-12T23:47:00.000-06:00

'Boots on the ground, boots on the ground; can't wait 'til he gets his boots on the ground." -to the tune of 'Pants on the ground' by Lauren Coe

Lauren
Sent from my Phone

Blue Bell

2010-12-10T18:42:00.000-06:00

I left the ice cream upstairs on the lamp table while I went to get Addisons dinner. This is what I came back to. Awesome! She moved the tub and was digging in.

3 months!

2010-12-10T13:51:00.000-06:00

Happy 3 months Annie Odessa!

Olie and Annie

2010-12-09T20:25:00.000-06:00

M&M jar

2010-12-07T16:10:00.000-06:00

The ones outside the jar are counting down 'til around Christmas. The jar was full in September! 26% completed!
The DVD boxes behind the jar give you some perspective o how big the jar is. Oh, and there are 2 m&m's per day.

Happy Annie

2010-11-30T13:35:00.000-06:00

Aunt Ashley

2010-11-27T16:34:00.000-06:00

Aunt Ashley feeding Annie!

Christmas decorating!

2010-11-27T13:35:00.000-06:00

Olivia (6) helping Papa put the tree top on!

Tangled

2010-11-26T11:17:00.000-06:00

First movie! We are seeing Tangled with Mimi, Papa, Aunt Nancy, Aunt Muffin and 6 of her cousins!
So much fun and so many good Thanksgiving memories!
All this fun with only 3 hours of sleep! I love being a mom!

Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T13:43:00.000-06:00

Thankful for my little Annie baby!

Birthday Dessert!

2010-11-19T12:30:00.000-06:00

Thank you Meredith and Leslie for treating me to a great birthday dinner, movie, and dessert! And thanks to Mom for watching my girls!

Fun Lunch!

2010-11-19T12:27:00.000-06:00

Addison's idea of a fun lunch! Sorry Isaac, we'll wash the Mac n Cheese off of your trucks!

Thoughts on the Church

2010-11-17T12:55:00.000-06:00

Just a little lite reading while getting a pedicure.
"Even when we clearly understand how 'ekklesia' is used in the New Testament, we struggle to conceive of the 'church' apart from buildings and denominational titles" neither of which are mentioned in the Bible.
* "From the Ground Up" page 28.

More thoughts to come.

Lauren
Sent from my Phone

Bath Time!

2010-11-12T17:30:00.000-06:00

2months!

2010-11-11T19:03:00.000-06:00

She's 2 months old! And healthy!

More Root Beer!

2010-10-20T17:45:00.000-05:00

Root Beer!

2010-10-20T17:43:00.000-05:00

She loves root beer just like her Daddy. She also likes Diet Coke and she especially likes Sprite!
We are having a treat while we enjoy the Fall weather!

Annie!

2010-10-18T22:28:00.000-05:00

Horse ride!

2010-10-09T13:02:00.000-05:00

Helping with the Garage Sale!

2010-10-09T11:53:00.000-05:00

Addison holding Annie!

2010-10-08T17:26:00.000-05:00

Annie is 4 weeks old today!

Fall Fun Pic

2010-10-04T15:48:00.000-05:00

Addison and Annie update!

2010-10-04T13:30:00.003-05:00

There have been many changes in the last few weeks! The most important one is the addition of Annie Odessa Coe to our family. She is 3.5 weeks old now! She sleeps and eats often. She's starting to lift her head more and have longer periods of wakefulness! Most people ask how she sleeps at night. She only wakes up every 4 hours to eat and most of the time goes right back to sleep. Ocassionally she stays awake for an hour due to gas pain. Those nights have been few; I feel fortunate to have a good baby!
Addison update: She loves her baby sister. She is very attentive to her and does not like when Annie cries. She tries to put the passy in her mouth when she cries and likes to comfort her by patting her. Since Annie's birth, Addison has been mimicking me. She likes to wrap up her babies and hold them or place her babies in Annie's swing.
Addison also started preschool two days a week at FBC McKinney. She seems to enjoy it and her teachers say she is wonderful! She has gotten alot better at doing puzzles and coloring. However the increased interest in coloring has led to coloring on walls, windows, and furniture! Ha! not too funny really!
With Addison going to preschool it gives me time for doctors visits, spending time with friends and running errands. I have enjoyed preschool too!
Most of you know that I moved in with my parents and the Lemmons! The Lemmons have been a huge help with the new baby. They pick up the slack where I can't. It's difficult to nurse Annie and get things (lunch, a cup of milk, etc.) for Addison. We also take turns, them more than me, taking the kids to preschool!
We just enjoyed a wonderful visit from Aunt Cindy and Grandad Addison. We went to 3 soccer games and The Colony High School Football game! It was an eventful weekend and terriffic to spend time with them! Thanks for coming AC and grandad!

Baby Annie!

2010-09-27T12:56:00.000-05:00

Welfare

2010-06-19T11:15:00.002-05:00

Jeremiah writes to the Israelites who are in exile in Babylon. Prosper here, marry your children off, “seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare” (Jeremiah 29:7). If the city prospers then you will prosper.
Then I must ask myself, am I concerned about the welfare of my city? Or am I just concerned about my own welfare, my situation, my surroundings. Is my church concerned about the city or just the people within the walls? Are people just going to magically show up on our doorstep? Maybe. but probably not. What if we went out? What if the church helped people “go out” instead of just saying “go!” What can we do to reach our city? What can I do to reach my city? How can I help others “go!” How can I go?

I was surprised when I heard that Sodom and Gomorrah weren’t destroyed because of their sexual perversions. However, according to Ezekiel 16:49 “the guilt of Sodom was that the people had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy.” Is that us? Is that me? Do I live in abundance yet neglect the needy around me. If we are at war then why do I surround myself with elegance as if we aren’t at war (John Piper)? Can I “live more simply so others can simply live” (Gandhi)? Am I complacent? Am I too comfortable?

As a church member, as a youth leader, as a wife and mother, as a Christian, how can I organize my life so that my life makes a difference in the Kingdom of God? How can I use my time and energy to engage the poor and needy for the glory of God? What can I do? Who can I be? Lord, by your grace and mercy guide my feet with purpose and my heart with a passion for the welfare of McKinney/Dallas.

Embrace or Repress

2010-06-14T10:58:00.002-05:00

Well it's been an interesting week to say the least. If life wasn't surprising then it would be boring. Who likes boring? In light of the events of this week I've found myself reflecting on my feelings; it's helped that Addison has been away at her Nana and Granpaw's house. It seems in life that you can either repress/ignore your emotions or embrace them. A couple of examples come to mind: with playing soccer I never embraced my feelings of anxiety or excitement. I tried to repress them which never worked very well. Repressing them led to more anxiety. By not dealing with them I had to deal with their side effects. It's in embracing these feelings that separates good athletes from the great ones.
Also, last night after the youth bible study Warren (an elder) spoke about the tension he felt in his heart as a result of hearing John Piper's video. He said we can either embrace the truth, though it may be a hard teaching, or we can run from it. I've often found that true in my spiritual walk. God reveals himself and I can choose to step closer, which often seems scary, or I can step away. I'm not sure if I've ever chosen to step away, but by not stepping forward I've "stepped away."
So it goes with this difficult situation. I can try to repress my feelings but that seems to create a fog of sadness. I don't want to live in a fog. It's hard to describe this fog, everything feels heavy and distant. I've tried this go-round to address my feelings rather than repressing them. What's wrong with feeling sad? It's only in naming my feelings and taking them to God that I can embrace them and live an abundant life.

The last 6 weeks

2010-06-08T17:27:00.000-05:00

Or has it been 2 months since I've written? Well, we were looking to
buy a house and we decided that was not the best decision right now.
So all that time "wasted" looking at houses will be wisdom for our
next home buying experience. For now, we've settled into our 2
bedroom, 1000 sq. ft. apartment in McKinney. Everything fits nicely
for now. When we add baby #2 it shall be a bit more tight but
manageable.
We have not decided on a name yet. It didn't seem this difficult when
we named Addison. We'll decide shortly; what's the rush? Hopefully we
have 14 more weeks.
Since I wrote last, Addison is walking very well. She loves to read
books. If I am sitting down she takes that as her invitation to bring
me a book to read. Her newest thing is trying to feed herself with a
spoon. She does really well and can sometimes get food on the spoon.
It takes longer to feed her but she has to grow up somehow. At her 15
month checkup she was 24lbs. In the 60th percentile. I can't remember
her height but she was in the 74th percentile.
Also, on the homefront Tracy got a job with CBeyond. He will sell
broadband and phone service to businesses. It starts this Monday. I
also am taking 12 youth to a camp this Monday while Nana and Granpaw
take care of Addison.
That's all for now!

Baby Girl #2!

2010-04-22T09:20:00.003-05:00

It has been a while since I've written.
Since then, Tracy's facial pain is feeling much better. The MRI came back as normal. We got a copy of it too and enjoyed looking at his brain. Most days he has no pain at all even without medicine.
My family all had a stomach bug, yuck! First Ewan got it then, William, Violet and Olivia. The next day Lance and Aaron both got it and then me and Meredith got it! yucky-t-yuckerson!
Addison took a few steps all by herself on Monday night! She's getting so big and doing very well with her baby sign language. She also likes to give Zerberts, some people call them raspberrys, instead of kisses now. Most mornings my mom enjoys holding her while she puts her makeup on and drys her hair. Addison just sits in moms lap the whole time and carefully observes. Mom thinks she's going to be a makeup artist someday! Ha!
We started looking for a house to buy since renting an apartment in McKinney is pretty expensive. We found one we like, now to see if we can get it before the tax credit expires. Although mom says she's sad that we will be moving out, I think she'll be happy b/c we will be less than 3 miles away.
Tracy started a job as an Auto Rescue guy who drives to people's cars in he area and jumps them off or fixes flats. He just started and seems to enjoy it so far. He also has enrolled for classes to start working on his MBA! This is something he's wanted to do for a while now and we've talked about since he finished his undergrad. It didn't seem practical or possible before, but now seems to be the right time!
I started working part-time at Parkway again. It's the church I worked at before I moved to Fort Worth. It's going to be an exciting summer, busy with youth activities!
A lot of exciting things are happening around here. There's hardly a dull moment anymore.

Lastly, we found out Monday that the new addition to our family will be a baby girl! We don't have a name picked out yet. We haven't even discussed it yet. I hope the video downloaded so you can see her yawning!

Easter weekend Fun!

2010-04-03T15:42:00.000-05:00

Tracy's situation

2010-03-24T14:22:00.002-05:00

The short answer is that the ENT said Tracy has trigeminal neuralgia (facial nerve pain).
The longer story is: About the first of March Tracy started experiencing pain in his sinuses, jaw and teeth. The pain became so severe that we went to the ER on Saturday, March 13th. The doc said he had sinusitis and gave him Amoxicilian and Vicadin. Six days later he was still in pain so we returned to the ER. This doctor decided he needed a head CT scan to determine if he had a sinus infection. At this point that would have been the simple answer, but no such luck. They found no sinus infection and prescribed a different pain med., Ultram, and suggested we see an ENT. At this point he's been in pain three weeks and we are frustrated because we don't know the cause. Monday morning he was feeling fine but by Monday night he was in severe pain again. We went to the ENT this morning hoping for some answers. After describing his pain, sharp pain like someone drilling in his jaw and teeth on the left side of his face, his face is tender to the touch, and pain in his ear, the doctor said you have trigeminal neuralgia (like we knew what that was). He said it is fairly rare and has the most debilitating pain of the problems that he sees. Tracy was relieved by this, at least he wasn't crazy. The doctor prescribed 4 things: a steroid, a pain med specifically for nerves, a stronger form of Vicadin, and an MRI. We hope to have the MRI by the end of the week to determine if any blood vessels are compressed. If so then we'll proceed from there. For now he's taking his meds and resting, while it isn't hurting.
For me the situation is heart wrenching. I just sit by watching as he shrieks in pain. We are glad that the ENT pin pointed the problem, or so we hope. He continues on the nerve pain meds for 2 weeks. We are hopeful that this will relieve his pain more so than the Vicadin does. I'm just ready for everyone to be healthy again! Your thoughts and prayers are appreciated. We hope the worst is behind us and that healing is ahead for Tracy.

Make Lemons!

2010-03-08T12:28:00.001-06:00

Addison Turns Toddler!

2010-02-18T10:54:00.002-06:00

It's hard to believe that our baby girl just turned one. I've seen other kids grow up, but there is something special about watching my own daughter grow up. I never realized, or gave it much thought, as to how much a baby changes in their first year. I don't change that much in a year. I might put on or loose a few pounds, get a new hairstyle or get some new clothes, but nothing like the changes from infant to toddler. When we brought her home from the hospital all she did was cry, eat, and want to be held. Now she can feed herself, crawl everywhere (even up and down stairs), and she only wants to be held when she's tired.
Yesterday, I fed her chicken nuggets for dinner. I cut them in quarters and set them on her tray for her to feed herself. Her Cheerio cup happened to be on her tray too. I could hear her throwing her nuggets on the ground, her way to say she's finished eating. I go over and think, "you did a pretty good job eating; you only threw 2 pieces on the ground." When I started cleaning her up I realized that she had stuffed over half her nuggets in her Cheerios cup. Silly girl! It's been an exciting year watching our baby grow up.
We all had fun at her party, you can see 2 pics below. Thank you to Aunt Cindy and Granddad for coming over and my sisters for being here too! Thank you all for loving us and our daughter!

Happy Birthday!

2010-02-16T16:33:00.001-06:00

2010-02-16T16:32:00.001-06:00

Trying again

2010-01-30T18:42:00.001-06:00

Relaxing

2010-01-30T11:42:00.001-06:00

This is Addison lounging on the couch last night!

Lauren

Sent from my Phone

Begin forwarded message:

From: Tracy Coe <gross_schatzi@yahoo.com>
Date: January 29, 2010 19:16:40 CST
To: "laurencoe06@gmail.com" <laurencoe06@gmail.com>

Sent from my iPhone

Video Games!

2010-01-23T12:28:00.000-06:00

New Year! Big News!

2010-01-12T21:01:00.002-06:00

We're pregnant again with our second child, well mostly me, hahah!Addison and this baby will be 19 months apart. It's a little closer than I'd like but we could have worse problems.
We had a great Christmas with all of our family. The snow on Christmas Day was great. The kids opened their Santa gifts then we went out and played in the snow for a bit before opening more presents. Now, that's a tradition I could get use to. We enjoyed our time in Nach and New Caney. Tracy and I dressed up as VJ day, the sailor and nurse kissing for "The Big Event" New Years party. My other favorite costumes were Marcela's "Octomom" and Jackie's "Tropical Depression."
Having a child during the holidays made them much more special. I got all excited again about Santa and opening presents like I did as a kid. I guess I was excited for Addison and excited to be with my baby girl and hubby for the holidays. That all seems like old news!
Recently, we are getting settled in here at my parents house, enjoying seeing old friends, and finding all new doctors that accept Tricare (OB/Gyn, Pediatrician, optometrist, and ENT). Phew that's a lot of different doctors. Excuse me if my next several posts are just doctor updates. I go to the Optometrist on Monday and then the OB/Gyn on Wednesday, Addison goes to the ENT on the 27th and for her 12 month check up on her birthday! Speaking of her birthday, we are having a party at my parents house on Saturday the 13th. Sorry Meredith, you get to share your birthday with my daughter this year! More details to come about the party.
I hope everyone is having a fabulous New Year!

Merry Christmas and driving into the New Year!

2009-12-23T22:18:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas to all!
We are enjoying our time in McKinney so far! Today is Lance's 37th
birthday! Happy birthday Lance! Tomorrow we are spending the day
together delivering gifts to a "Scotty's gift" family and going to a
worship service together.
I am looking forward to sharing this Christmas with Addison. We bought
her gifts today and a baby's first Christmas ornament. Christmas has a
whole new excitement when it's shared with children. I hope everyone
has a joyous Christmas. Also, it might snow tomorrow! That's crazy
since it was 70 degrees today. Merry Christmas!
>

Our big girl!

2009-12-16T10:01:00.001-06:00

New Pic

2009-12-14T19:14:00.001-06:00

Faith

2009-12-14T18:08:00.003-06:00

First, I just wanted to write about Addison's eating habits. She is my little southern girl. She likes Chili, Chicken and Dumplings, Beef Stew, Red Beans and Rice, cornbread, fried Turkey, and Dressing. She'll eat just about anything I put in front of her! I haven't given her sweet tea or Pecan pie but I"m sure she'll love these Southern staples as well.

On a more serious note the last week has been very up and down, twisty and turn-y. Tracy pulled/strained the stabilizer muscle in his quad (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quad_muscle). More technically Wikipedia tells me that it's his Sartorius muscle. Basically you need this muscle for everything, standing, walking, running, push ups etc. Due to his injury he got dropped from the training and is now home until further notice. We are waiting until the first of the year to make any job decisions (mostly b/c we are waiting to hear from people). I like to call it intentional procrastination, i.e. planning on doing something later not just waiting because we're lazy. So here we are waiting and trusting God for a job, for direction.
Ever since our flight to see Tracy I've thought about Addison's child like faith. She just trusted me to take her on her first plane ride and lug her across the country. She wasn't scared or worried. She knew she had her Mom and that's all that mattered. She knows that I'll take care of her and provide for her. I wonder why I don't have that much faith in God sometimes. We loose jobs, we get jobs, we move here or stay there. He has it all planned out. He knows what's best for me, for my family and for His Kingdom. We wait, we patiently plan, but all that really matters is that we have God and He provides for us every step of this journey.