Andrea's Blog

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2012 12:32 PM, CST
(This was posted to Caringbridge on February 29th, 2012)

Meet the new member of our family, “Bama Belle”. We call her Bama for short (or “the darn puppy” when she potties somewhere she isn’t supposed to). She has been a wonderful addition to our family, even though the humans in the house now find ourselves outnumbered by animals.

Bama is a “Coton” breed. She came from a wonderful friend of mine in Florida who is a breeder. She is just like a little toddler! I am too lenient, so potty training is not going well. She also likes to pee on Trey’s bed, which is not making him too happy. Ha! But Lucky absolutely LOVES Bama and is so good with her! It is so funny to watch him try to herd her in the front yard.

Between Bama, Mason’s Foundation, and Trey’s sports (hockey at the moment) I stay incredibly busy. This is certainly a GOOD thing, since having too much time on my hands is not good for me. I miss Mason more than words can express. I have started to dream of him more frequently, which is good most of the time...but sometimes I wake up with those awful feelings I felt each time he relapsed. It is the most awful feeling in the world.

Thanks to all of you in the area who were able to come out and give blood at the blood drive in Mason’s memory on Monday. We exceeded our goal....we got 60 units of blood and our goal was 50. Of the donors, 21 were first time donors, which was HUGE. I was able to visit with some friends that I hadn’t seen in awhile, which was really nice. All in all, it was a wonderful day and a great event!

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I wrote this down on a notebook I use....not sure where I got it. If anyone knows, please let me know. “On the other side of your greatest pain is your greatest ministry.” It works for everyone, doesn’t it? Andrea

God is all around us

I hope this picture means the same to you as it does to me. I am the photographer and is has not been touched up in any way. I took it 2 nights ago as I was waiting for our new puppy to do her business in the front yard. I immediately thought, "God is all around us if we will just open our eyes to see him." It was an amazing sight to see a cross in the sky!

Today marks the third anniversary of Mason's entry into heaven. I miss him no less today than I did the moment he left. What has changed is my level of acceptance in whatever God's plan for Mason's life was and whatever plan for my life he has. The peace that God gives the whole family is what allows us to get up in the morning and continue living. The deep understanding that ultimately, we as humans ARE NOT in control and that trust and faith in God is the only way to live with peace.

If you do not have peace in an area of your life, I believe it is because you have not truly handed the issue or area over to God. Complete submission is where peace comes from. I've been there. Trying to figure out the "why's" of what happened with Mason and our lives gets me nowhere. Complete submission means I accept and have faith in God and his reasons for not making things right for Mason here on earth. Faith in God gives me hope for a tomorrow on earth and ultimately a tomorrow in heaven!

Had I been able to see the future when Mason was born, I would not have given him away because of the pain that the leukemia would have caused me in the years to come. I am thankful for the time I had with him, and I still love him with all of my heart. See ya soon, Buddy!!

. . . without posting an update. It has been nearly 3 years since Mason went to heaven, but in some ways it seems like yesterday. There are certain memories that are burned into my mind, good and bad. And then occasionally, like this week, something will pop into my mind that I hadn't thought about in years. I could hear Mason's laugh in my head as he played with a website that told you if you had been "Naughty" or " Nice". Of course, Santa also said Mason and Trey were nice and their dad was always NAUGHTY. Trey and Mason would cackle with glee!!

Trey has had a good semester, but it has been hard and he has had to study alot. Between studying and hockey, he stays very busy with little downtime. And yes, he is still "dating" his girlfriend Taylor....but their busy schedules mean that dates are primarily watching TV at each others' homes, which is fine with me. He is a sophomore this year, and I'll admit that I can get down when I start thinking about what life will be like when he goes off to college. But I try to focus on the here and now and not the years to come, since we all know that none of us are promised a tomorrow anyway.

I still have people asking how Lucky the dog is doing. He is a definite "yard dog" and spends his day guarding the front yard from what he thinks are the awful cars that drive by. Our front yard now has a perfectly lined-up trench along the front where he runs. It reminds me of the path Mason and Trey made when they were younger with their 4-wheelers, so I don't mind.

God continues to bless the Mason Woods Charitable Foundation in many, many ways. We have no long-term goals but instead we have decided to just let "Jesus take the wheel". Through many, many material donations of everything imaginable, we have been able to bring smiles to pediatric cancer patients throughout Columbus and even other areas in the state. We are partnering with other organizations with similar desires to reach more and more children across the nation. In fact, we were even able to help some missions out overseas. It is amazing for us to watch problems be solved by people who just sort of "show up" (we know who sent them!). If you are on Facebook and want to follow the foundation more closely, just "Like" the Mason Woods Charitable Foundation.

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas! I know that Mason and all his friends in heaven will certainly have a glorious celebration!

"We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

I'm having a hard time getting online and updating Mason's caringbridge site. There is an reverance I feel when I come here now. This was his site, so I don't feel right putting a bunch of stuff about myself or the foundation here. I know it would be fine, but it is just something that I feel.

Mason's school class invited us to their end-of-year recital this past week and surprised us with a book that the kids put together of their thoughts and memories of Mason. Eddie and I cried our eyes out. I'm looking at the book little by little...it is too much for me to handle at one sitting. They also will have a flag flying for him in a memorial field of flags this memorial day AND they sang "You Lift Me Up" for him. What a night. Then to top it off, they gave a donation to Mason's Foundation. We were so touched....I can't even express how touched we were. I'm not a person that cries alot, but that night had me in tears from start to finish.

I've also continued to get to spend time with Mason's good friend McKenna (picture with Mason above). She was very special to Mason and she is very special to me....

I have some large projects going on with the Mason Woods Charitable Foundation. At some point, I hope to be able to update frequently on the foundation website, but for the time being, I'm trying to teach myself to use Facebook more often. So if you are on facebook, I am on there as well as the Mason Woods Charitable Foundation.

On a personal note, Eddie, Trey and I are doing ok. Trey is trying to finish up his school year on a positive note, so he is studying alot right now and still lifts for football. I stay very busy with the foundation and now with the yard. Eddie juggles his responsibilities like a pro...I'm not sure how he does it. We think about and talk about Mason every single day. He is still very much a part of our lives. When I was with McKenna this past week, I found myself trying to explain "faith" to her. And I realized that my answers to some of the questions about Mason's life come a little easier to me now. I don't understand why any of this happened and I have accepted that I won't on earth. Faith means that I can continue to live while not having those answers. Faith means that I can trust God in his decision not to step in and heal Mason on this earth. Faith means that I KNOW that he is in heaven and has no needs from me at this moment. Mason now understands what I cannot until I join him. My life on this earth will be a short one compared to the time I will have with Mason and with Jesus in heaven.

Thank you all for continuing to support us all. Andrea