Interview with Annie

I am going to be interviewing Annie about the accident she had 5 years ago today, she was 4 when it happened.

ME: Annie what do you remember?

A: I was looking for something to do and I found some rubber ants and I was showing everyone that was there. Everyone thought they were cool. I went in the kitchen and put them on Angelica's arm to try and scare her. She acted scared and I laughed. I was laughing and walking backwards and that is when I fell into the big tub of Mole. I started screaming really hard. I screamed so hard that Mada, ( our very old neighbor) came running inside to see what happened. She saw me naked and hanging upside down.   They carried me outside and started running cold water all over me. They put pajamas on me and ran me to my Daddy (who was about a half a mile down the road) and screamed what had happened. Then they drove to meet my mama and we sped off to the big city. We got to the hospital and they put cords on me and they hurt really bad, I asked them to take it off, but they couldn't. I don't remember what happened after that. The next thing I remember (which was a day later) was we all got on a plane and my family wasn't there. I said in Spanish, "Where is my family?" The man said, they are outside but they will come soon.

I don't remember much after that. I remember bits and pieces.

I remember:

Taking baths and screaming and crying during them. This is the only time I remember feeling pain.

Comfy couch house

The comfy couch and eating cheese cubes and watching movies.

When Keri Franz saw my hand and fainted! ;o) Haha!

Finding shells with Mama Say and Honey

Remember getting my favorite doll from Mama Say and Meredith, she is still my favorite, her name is Sarah.

I remember riding around in the wagon and people staring at me.

I remember leaving the comfy couch house and being very sad to go.

I didn't like wearing my body suit, but I got used to it.

 I liked getting Dora stickers every time I went to the hospital, but I did NOT like physical therapy.

I remember falling on my bottom into the Mole, but I really think that an angel's wing protected my bottom so that I could sit comfortably.

That is about all I remember.

ME: So Annie, now that you have gone through all of that, how do you feel about it all?

A: I think that it was a horrible accident that happened. But... then God used that to build a church. Now a lot of people are Christians and have heard about Jesus because of my accident.  Some people think it is amazing I am alive and that God healed me. He showed them that He can do miracles.

ME: Are you sad that it happened?

A: No, well sometimes.

ME: Why?

A: Because sometimes it still hurts and itches a lot. Sometimes I scratch it so much it will bleed. But I think  if you love Jesus more than your life, some pain is worth it. I like to sing this song in Spanish and it goes like this: Te amo mas que mi vida, Te amo mas que mi vida, Te amo mas que mi vida.

That means I love you more than my life, I love you more than my life, I love you more than my life.

There is more, but that is all I sing.

ME: Anything you want to tell people that are going through a tough time like you went through?

A: Don't worry, God will protect you and I know how you feel.

Love, Missy and Annie

This was a few hours after the accident and we were trying to figure out what our next step was going to be.

The next step was to have Annie flown to another larger city and put on a private jet. 

Jerod and Alex thought all of this was quite exciting! 

Annie wasn't as excited. 

She received excellent care and attention at Shriners Hospital in Galveston, TX.

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Her physical therapist made the biggest impression on Annie and she still remembers her today. 

 Annie was spoiled and loved all of her soft blankies. 

 Keri was a star and helped Annie get back to feeling better. 

Thank you all for your prayers for Annie during her time of need. She truly is our miracle and we thank God for His protection over her! Love you all, Missy and family

How we spent our month.

What have we been up to? Well, I have wanted to update this but it seems like every time I start to do that, I think, I will wait until we do.... But then we are doing something just about all the time so I never get to update it. Make sense? So here is what is happening in our life. 

We continue to collect shoes for our shoe ministry which is going so well. We use them to enter into homes of people that are generally not open to listen to Bible stories and with shoes in hand they are more open to listen. This may look like a lot, but when you are sharing with lots of people, they go fast. We have given out more than 100 pairs of shoes since we started this ministry. Thank you all! 

About 8 months ago Greg and Pastor Isai, started a men's group called Vallientes. 

This stemmed from the movie Courageous. These men get together once a month and share their struggles and their triumphs. It has been awesome to see them come together and fight to be better fathers and husbands. These men, alone planned a meal for all of the women in this church group. It was amazing!

Here they are preparing it, while the women were still coming. It was comical, but precious! 

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Here they were trying to figure out the best way to serve the women. 

I was impressed.

This man here, serving the food, is Pablo. He is a recovering alcoholic and 'fell off the wagon' about a month ago. He showed up at our house once he was sober and asked if he could go back to church. He said he was sorry and really wanted to change. We of course told him that the people in the church would welcome him with open arms. He has been the first one to every service since that day. He has started bringing his brother-in-law, mother and sister. So of course seeing him here, serving these women, was a blessing to us all.

They were expecting about 40 and there were more than 60 that came! 

Here is Pablo and his family. He brought his wife, mother and sister along as well. 

I just love this girl. She was telling Bible stories to her friends in the corner as the kids played. 

Fun game they all laughed their way through. They had to draw a picture of their mother on top of their head without peeking. 

This was the winner. 

Pastor Isai and his sweet family. Without them it would be impossible to reach as many villages as we do. Please pray for them. 

It was just Annie with me at this event. The boys attend youth during this time. 

Giving a big Mother's Day kiss to his grandma.

These kids from this church made cool gifts for their mamas. 

Then God blessed each one of the mamas with a flower to take home. Greg was so impressed that those plants only cost 80 cents each!

 

So sometimes, living here we have to improvise if we want something. If we want Chick-fil-a, I try to make it as close as possible, if we want a movie experience, we set up a projector, if we want a spa day...this is what we do. Annie has learned this skill very well and surprised me for Mother's Day with my own spa. Look close at all of her details. Strawberries, cheese and crackers, magazines, soft music, you name it, I had it. Now look below at the massage area. ;o)

She even rolled up the end sheets for me to put my head and watch Netflix while getting my massage! Too cute!

It was a very happy Mother's Day!

There are two things I am sure of... I was made for this job, and I was made to be a Mama!! I love both of those jobs!

As you can see here, we are getting worn smack out! 

This was a homemade water park in out backyard. They were cutting a water balloon over Greg's head. 

We never have water during this time of year, so when you get a tiny trickle, they get really happy! They decided after we had our water park, they would shower under the trickle! That my friends, is a Mexican shower! Thanks for all of your prayers! Missy