Prayers all around

Thanks, Mrs. Campbell. The prayer map is such a great idea (and, yes, a great geography lesson). Brayden sees it everyday and was loving seeing all the tabs he got to put all over the US (and New Zealand!) showing him how many people are praying for him. It was pretty emotional for mom writing out the tabs and going thru all the emails and picking up all the locations from those who have sent them in...so neat! What a physical representation for him to see each day of how many prayers are being sent up for him! And let me assure you, he placed each and every one of them!!!


Brayden wants everyone to know: "I'm doing really good. Thanks for asking. I'll see you guys soon once I get to feelin' better."
To Kyle - my favorite Star Wars character is Plo Koon. Just kidding! It's really Anakin - before the dark side.
To Lauren L. - About my DS games, now I have: Legos Star Wars, I have Super Mario Bros, Lego Batman, I have Phineas & Ferb, Trackmania, Super Collapse, Ultimate Band, Shaun White Snowboarding, Collapse Pharaoh, 7 Wonders, Sonic Rush, and Club House Games. WHEW!
To ACA 3rd graders - Hi! Thanks for praying for me. Hopefully you guys are enjoying school.

We've gotten some fun packages lately. Thank you for all the emails, cards, notes of encouragement. Thank you to Miss Dorothy for the cool Star Wars Legos. Have I said yet how stunned I am we have had no duplicates? Brayden opened them right away and is putting them together as we speak (um, type!). He loved the sticker book and was working on it earlier! That was so sweet and thoughtful of you to send to him. Thank you for the sweet card. To Kristin & Family - thank you for the awesome games for the car/travel! To Sara R. and Family - thank you for the gift card. It is so appreciated. To Robert & Marcia - you are part of our family and always have been. Your card brought me to tears and your gift was overwhelming. To Nini & Papa David - thanks for hooking Brayden up with some snacks (his words) and for the adorable scrapbook of Hershey. To Uncle Buddy & Aunt Vicki & Family - thank you for the card and the gift. So amazing...we feel so blessed. To the Malt-O-Meal ladies - your goodie box was amazing and we're loving it all! Brayden's put the games and DVD's to good use already and the snacks and yummy baked goods mom & dad are excited about too! The gas cards are such a blessing. I so hope I haven't left anyone out. I'm so worried I will. i try to keep things organized and remember/make notes of those we haven't thanked yet and I'm terrified I'll forget or overlook something. We appreciate everyone so much.

I think I forgot to mention the 500-mile round trip Little Rock will be each week for us. So everything is such a help and a blessing. We've both been working this week and trying to fit everything in and get in a routine. It's not been as easy as I'd hoped. We're seeing glimpses of normalcy creep in, like when we finally got to watch American Idol live again this week. It was our family routine before and we had gotten behind with the time at ACH so we were happy to get caught up and see who's left. Brayden says, "Go KRIS!" Okay, so we have been rooting for him since Day 1 being an Arkansas boy. He seems like such a genuine guy and so full of natural talent! Let's face it, though. This season is so much more talented than the previous ones, so it's been a fun one. I've gotta tell you the Quote of the Day. While hearing of the appearance of Kris in Conway (and knowing it's on our way to Little Rock) Brayden said, "Oh, we are SO going!" Yes, it now seems not so far away, but imagine mom's face when hearing him say this and thinking of the crowds of GERMS...I mean, people. No, we'll have to pass this time and watch on tv and keep rooting for him.

Thank you again for the prayers. If you didn't see your locale marked, please leave a comment and mom will happily get a tab ready for Brayden's next geography lesson!