1 Peter 5:10-11

¹⁰ And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. ¹¹ To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.

Boy. What a crazy 1.5 weeks we have had! I am so excited to finally let you in on a little secret we've been keeping since this weekend. But first, here are some things God has been teaching us:

The first big blessing came through a friend who suggested we meet up with their friends for dinner. Their friends (Mr. & Mrs. R) happened to be in Chicago for work and happily agreed to let us treat them to pizza in exchange for a few hours of their time and wisdom. Mr. R was injured years ago and happens to be right at the same level as Derek. As we watched this power couple talk about their life over the last 25 years, we couldn't help but feel incredibly encouraged. They make living look fun and paralysis look easy. We were able to ask all our questions and just loved the chance to meet with a couple who has "been there and done that."

A few days later, I was able to meet up and spend a little one on one time with Mrs. R. I am telling you all, this woman is amazing. One thing she touched on was the fact that just because our husbands can't walk here on earth does not mean that God has not restored them (see verse above).  I have been reminded daily that walking is walking and although Derek cannot, this does not mean he is broken. Is it inconvenient? Yes. Is it frustrating? Absolutely. But who of us actually feel unbroken anyway? I am looking forward to seeing God work through our family and watching my husband dominate this new lifestyle. In a strange way, I am really thankful we are going through this challenge now instead of 30 years from now. I believe we will live more fully, love a little more deeply, and take life a little less seriously.

Along with meeting new friends, God has really switched things up on us this last week and we are so excited that we will actually be moving back to Indy the first week in October *insert me squealing with you*. Crazy, right?

Last week, we were both getting very frustrated with the apartment search and struggling to find a place that would fit our needs. We really needed a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment with a roll in shower...within walking distance of Derek's work. We need the extra bedroom because Derek will be occasionally working from home and when guests come over, we will need to floor space for Derek to be able to get around in the morning. We also need an extra bathroom to have space for his shower chair, etc. A roll in shower is a game changer and will keep him from having to transfer literally 5 times in order to get ready for work. I was having a very hard time finding anything that met all our needs.

So, with that in mind, we received an email last week from a friend who offered to help us find an apartment. I was relieved! And boom, within 24 hours, we had our dream apartment lined up and we received our lease yesterday. It is AMAZING how God has just been providing for us right when we start to get a little nervous. The people that we have come in contact with have been nothing short of incredible.

The original plan was to stay here in Chicago for at least another 6 weeks to participate in their outpatient program.  Last week, we learned that we could be accepted into Indy's outpatient program and insurance would work with us to get the hours we need. After weighing the pro's and con's, we have decided to move back to Indy and get settled into our new environment as opposed to waiting until winter sets in! We are just so excited (and a little nervous) but mainly just super excited. It sounds as though our release date will be the end of September or first week in October.

We also did Derek's wheel chair evaluation yesterday and his official chair should be ordered by the end of the week. The session was a lot of questions, measuring, and trying out different seats, backs of chairs, and checking out rims. It is amazing what goes into a chair! He will hopefully have his real chair by Christmas but until then, he will continue to use a loaner chair.

And in closing and a slight side note, our amazing friends over at Mud Love have designed the most adorable mugs and bracelets that do quite a good job of representing both Derek and I. Aka, they designed a little goat wearing Derek's glasses. I am IN LOVE and we are so appreciative of so many people coming behind us to help move us forward. So, if you like quirky mugs, please check out their design here: https://www.mudlove.com/products/lavenders?variant=22552829892

P.S. I just listened to Derek try to cancel his dentist appointment in Indy. It was pretty funny. He should be getting new teeth around February and HOPEFULLY the neck "Scarf" collar comes off this week!!

Also (I know, I already have a PS.), thank you SO much to everyone who supported the Instagram auction that happened on Monday and Tuesday. We cannot get over how generous people are. We appreciate you all!

Ok. I am actually done.

With Love,

The Lavenders