Part 2: The Wreck and the Aftermath

Today I went over to the dealership where we left my minivan with its possibly-going-flat front left tire.  I photographed the damage... $4,350 worth, as I mentioned in Part 1 of this story.

Front driver's side wheel - where we got shoved into the curb.

...and took a few pics at the scene of the accident:

Leftover debris on the side of the road - this was from the front of the car that hit us.

The curb on the wrong side of the road we had been turning onto
with marks from our impact.

Where we were when we got hit - just about to turn right here.  Those are the trees where we would have ended up if I hadn't found the stinkin' brake pedal.... We ended up over there next to them facing the wrong way on the left side of that road.  For anyone familiar with Greensboro, this is at Eagle Road and (almost) Bridford Parkway... over off of West Wendover.

One final pic: this is the dealership where I had been headed to get an oil change... in the parking lot of which sits my crippled minivan, awaiting the insurance adjuster.  This is a Hendrick dealership - there are hundreds of them around the country.  The fact that we bought our minivan from  a Hendrick-owned Nissan dealership in Kansas City last year meant a rolled-out red carpet for us at this Hendrick-owned Chevy dealership here in Greensboro.  Super thankful - these guys are great and incredibly helpful.
(Note the Carolina Blue sky... Nowhere like here.)
~~~

Today we have felt okay.  Isaac is acting normal - pretty sure he's fine.  We had a BLAST at the Greensboro children's museum today and I might not be able to resist posting pictures from our visit there at some point in the near future.

Jerusha and I have been a bit sore today.  Interesting fact: We hadn't been certain, though Jerusha was fairly sure she remembered correctly, that we had in fact turned and looked at each other briefly in shock when the initial impact occurred.  Today, the left side of my neck is sore (I would have turned to my right to look at her) and the right side of her neck is sore (she would have obviously turned her head left to look at me).  We laughed today about the location of our muscle soreness being proof of the fact that we did indeed make some kind of momentary stunned, terrified eye contact with each other before it occurred to me to put my foot on the brake. :)

A cool thing that happened that I don't want to forget:

When my dad and I finally got home from leaving my van at the dealership after the accident, it was time for Isaac to go down for his nap.  I changed his diaper and got him all snuggled up under his blankets... and then lay down next to him.  I wanted to give him a chance to process what had happened.  

Our conversation went something like this:

Mommy: "Isaac, remember when we were driving in our car and then BANG, that car crashed into our car?  And then we stopped really fast and you were crying?  That was scary, huh?"

Isaac: "Bang!  Crash!  Our car was breaking!  Really broken!"  He whimpered and snuggled closer to me.

Mommy: "I know buddy, that was scary... That car crashed into our car and our car IS broken... but Jesus kept us safe, Isaac!  Jesus kept Isaac safe, and Mommy safe, and Jerusha safe!  And the mechanics will fix our car so it will be all better."  (He's been learning about mechanics lately - he's fascinated by them.)

Isaac: "Crash!  Jesus kept safe!  Mechanics!  Tow trucks!"  No longer whimpering.

Mommy: "Yep, we're all safe, bud.  Isaac and Mommy and Jerusha - Jesus kept us all safe!  We can pray and tell Him thank you.... Thank you Jesus for keeping us safe!"

Isaac: "Isaac safe.  Thank You Jesus keeping us safe!"

I finished tucking him in and he rolled over...fell asleep in complete peace.  I loved it.  I loved that he got to process the emotions around the wreck with me.  I had been concerned for him because he'd been "whisked away" to go back to Gigi and Grandpa's house so quickly after it had happened and I hadn't had the opportunity to help him process.... but then I was so thankful that a couple of hours later he was able to talk with me about it, to remember it and feel it with his emotions and then to realize that Jesus took care of us and thank Him for that.  

What an incredible gift and responsibility God has given us as parents, eh?  This charge to shepherd and steward and guard our kiddos' hearts before Him?  There is nothing more challenging... or more fulfilling or exhilarating. 

To all of you who've prayed for us in the wake of the crash, thank you.  I've had a few moments of fear as I've been riding and/or driving in the last 24 hours, as this was by far the most intense wreck I've ever experienced.... but Jesus is faithful and His grace is more than enough.  Still, it's kind of hard not to be sitting at a stop sign or traffic light and be bracing myself to be hit again.  Interesting.  I didn't expect to experience this.  I'm sure it'll pass.

In the meantime... I'm meeting tomorrow morning with the insurance adjuster who will be checking out the damage to my car.  Praying that AllState quickly accepts liability for the accident and QUICKLY releases me to begin having repairs done...so that we can MAYBE get back to KC by the end of this week.  (The original plan was to leave NC this coming Thursday morning.  That is looking unlikely.)

We'll see.   All's well.  We're just thankful over here.

:)

Part 1: How Getting A North Carolina Oil Change Turned... Well... Interesting.

Isaac passionately loves to crash his cars, trucks, airplanes, helicopters... whatever... into each other.  Or into walls or tables or floors or any other hard surface you can imagine.

This morning (Monday, 3/18) he experienced his first real crash.

Let me say it now: we are all okay.

Isaac and I, along with our housemate Jerusha, are in North Carolina visiting my family.  Stan wasn't able to come because of his work schedule (sad!!) so Jerusha agreed to take some time off of work and wrangle this 17-and-a-half hour road trip with Isaac and me.  Yup, that's us.  The road trip wranglers.  We drove from Kansas City straight through to NC.  No, we won't be driving it straight on the way back.  Just for the record.  HOLY COW it was long.

The (grubby) Road Trip Wranglers: Cheesin' it up outside 
Cracker Barrel in Frankfort, KY.

So somewhere in the middle of Kentucky or West Virginia, my "oil change" light came on. Yes, I feel kinda dumb for not getting an oil change before we left town... but we decided to press on through and get the oil changed here in Greensboro.  So... this morning I was finally on my way to do that.  Isaac and Jerusha were in the car with me.

It was overcast and sprinkling outside.  We drove not even 5 minutes up the road from my parents' house and prepared to turn right to go toward the parking lot of the dealership... and....

SLAM!!!!!!!!!!!

The crash was deafening.  We were hit from behind and everything that happened next occurred in slow motion. 

I gasped, stunned.  I remember Jerusha crying out in shock. Jerusha says she remembers us looking wide-eyed at each other for a split second as our car careened forward, out of control.  Both of our heads snapped forward and a quick moment of severe pain shot through them, then subsided completely.  

My right foot moved in slow motion, searching.  I have to find the brake pedal or we'll end up in those trees... Have to stop the car...........

Finally found it and pressed down as hard and fast as I ever have.  We came to a quick stop, slamming hard into the curb on the wrong side of the road we'd been in the process of turning onto.  I remember being so thankful we hadn't jumped the curb and ended up in the trees.

The entire event happened within probably 3 seconds.  They were the longest 3 seconds of my life.

"Thank you Jesus that we're okay."  I think I said it out loud.

Isaac was screaming, crying, shocked and terrified.

I stumbled out of the car, opened his door, unbuckled him from his car seat with shaky hands.  Never have I been more profoundly thankful for a car seat.  Ever.

I pulled him out of the car and held and comforted him and he began to calm down.

I hope his little spine is okay....

The guy who hit me came over, asked if we were alright, told us he'd tried to stop but lost traction on the wet road.  I asked Jerusha to call 911 and let them know we needed a cop.  I called my parents, who arrived within 5 minutes.  We loaded Isaac's car seat into their car, and they took Isaac and Jerusha back to their house while I waited on the officer to fill out his crash report.

Nearly two hours later, my dad (who'd dropped the others off at home and then come back to meet me) and I arrived back at my parents' place.  Minus my un-driveable 2012 minivan. :( It's a little sad - I'm not gonna lie.  

Got an estimate from the body shop at the dealership where I had been planning to get an oil change:  $4,350 worth of damage.  

Entire rear body/underneath needs replaced.  Front driver's side tire/wheel/rim/possible suspension/steering damage... from slamming into the curb.

I am so thankful it wasn't my fault.  And that the other guy's insurance policy is legit so we won't have to pay a penny.  And again, that we're all okay.  

Years ago I lost traction on wet roads and rear-ended someone - so I felt bad for him.  And he was apologetic.  A good guy.  Just a bummer.

Definitely wondering if we'll wake up with sore necks/backs tomorrow from the insane whiplash moment we experienced.  Really praying Isaac's okay.  He seems to be - he's his normal wild, fun, dancing self. :)

We have to wait until Wednesday morning for the other guy's insurance adjuster to come out and do their whole estimate thing....for AllState to accept liability for the accident and approve getting the damage fixed.  7 days worth of repairs need to be made on my car, according to the guy at the body shop.  IF we end up needing to get all the work done in North Carolina, that puts us arriving back home in KC probably a full WEEK later than we'd planned.  Eesh.  And that wouldn't be such a big deal except for the fact that my little guy is SERIOUSLY missing his daddy. :(  As am I!  

There's a chance we'll be able to only get my front left tire/wheel situation fixed here and then drive it back to KC and have the rest of the work done there.  Hoping and praying that that works out.

All of that said, I don't know that I have anything super profound to say tonight, except just that, despite all the inconvenience and hassle of this whole ordeal, I see the hand of God woven through all of it.  He's good and faithful, and He protects and provides and gives grace for every moment, every circumstance.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of the story within the next couple of days.

:)

Resting: For When Your Dreams Fall To The Ground and Die

Linking up today with Lisa-Jo's community.  Join us?

5 Minutes of writing on one word.  No backtracking.  No editing.  Just whatever comes out of your heart.  It's super fun to see how just one word can draw out the things that you're already processing inside.  Give it a try if you haven't before.

Today's prompt: 

REST

Ready to roll in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1...

I'm so thankful today that God is good.  That He's faithful.  That His plans for my life are perfect, so much better than my own.

If I had my way, my life would look so very different than it does.  In particular, let me just say that I did NOT expect to be 32 and be a mom of just one.  One awesome, wild, sweet ALL-BOY kiddo who I dearly love and for whom I am incredibly thankful. 

If you'd asked me 5 years ago, I'd have guessed we'd have 3 or so by now... maybe even 4.  I'd have told you we planned to have 8-10 kids, between biological and adopted.

I'd have told you how we were passionate about parenting and adoption, how we believed they were a huge part of our calling. 

We still believe that.

And yet my life has not played out how I planned. 

And I'm just thankful today that His ways are higher, His thoughts aren't mine, that His heart toward me is GOOD, is LOVE, and that He KNOWS the plans He has for me.  Jeremiah 29:11.... "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord.  Plans to prosper you and not to harm you.  Plans to give you hope and a future."

Knowing His heart like this... TRUSTing His heart like this... is what allows me to rest in Him... even on the days when my dreams must fall into the ground and die.  John 12:24

So I choose that today... I choose to rest.  To trust.  Because He's worthy of it.

STOP.

Five Minute Friday: No Such Thing As Ordinary

Hola my friends!  Linking up again today with Lisa-Jo's community for yet another FUN 5-Minute Friday!  I love these - it's so interesting to see what comes out given very little time to THINK about what to write on a given topic.  No editing either.  You can join in the fun by clicking here. Do it!

And the word for today is....

ORDINARY

GO.

Ordinary...  I was thinking earlier this morning about how today felt so very ordinary.  I think I actually, in my thoughts, used the word "mundane."  But "ordinary" is even more accurate, I think.  I showed, prepped for the day, got my 2-and-a-half-year-old lil' guy ready, and out the door we went on errands.  Not fun, exciting errands, either.  "Boring" ones.  Bought Isaac a new little toy car at Target and by the time we were walking out of the store he had gone from being excited about his new toy to bawling because he couldn't have a huge toy jeep that he, unfortunately, happened to see on our way out.  Urgh.  Plan to keep overtired child happy and occupied? BACKFIRED.

So on the drive home this familiar Holy Spirit whisper knocked on the door of my heart... again.  I hear this from Him SO often because I SO often need to be reminded!  "Dana, when you tune your heart in to my nearness, the mundane is no longer mundane.  I'm inviting you to experience Me NOW."

I said yes to Him.  Gone is the ordinary.  Enter: extraordinary.  Exciting.  Anticipation-filled wonder.  HE IS HERE.  His heart is to make Himself known to me.

Viewing life through these lenses, there is no such thing as ordinary.

Not any more.

STOP.

No editing, Dana.  No.  Don't do it!  Don't.... do...... it!!

;)

Out of the Closet [Gulp!]: Letting You in on My Secret Project

Well... [Deeeeep breath, Dana...]  

Here I go:

I'm writing a book.

There.  I said it.   

Whew.

It's been in the works for a few months now.  And I've found it to be an incredibly intimidating, vulnerable thing to say: "I'm writing a book."

Intimidating because - WOW - the scope of a project like this is just incredibly massive!  Figuring out what exactly you're trying to say and what bits of info should be grouped with what OTHER bits of info and what order all the pieces should go in... breaking it all up into chapters with subheadings and good GRIEF it's a lot of work!!  And THEN you've actually gotta WRITE it!

And... vulnerable because by saying "I'm writing a book,"  you're actually (usually, if you're a believer) saying "The Lord's put something inside of me that I believe would be beneficial to a large number of people and I feel confident in my ability to put it all together and articulate truths and engage people's hearts...and I feel like the Holy Spirit will use my story and my writing to touch and change people's hearts."  And what a CRAZY thing to say!  It takes such CONFIDENCE and TRUE humility and I SO still struggle with the false version!

[Side note: True humility = ACCURATELY viewing yourself, your gifts and abilities. Agreeing with God's perspective on yourself.  False humility = not viewing yourself accurately, diminishing what God's put inside of you, magnifying your own weaknesses over God's ability to use you, to be glorified through you.]

And then there's the whole fear of man factor, the "What will so-and-so think if I tell them I feel called to do this?" factor... combined with the voice of the enemy whispering, "Who do you think you are?  You can't pull this off... and what good are your words anyway, to anyone?"

Man.  Sometimes all of it put together feels insurmountable.

I had NEVER DREAMED I'd write a book.  I had never had the desire to do so.  In fact, I'd specifically had the desire NOT to do so.  Haha. :)  Funny how God switches things like that around in our hearts.

Sometime this past fall I started to feel these... nudges... these tugs on my heart... and all these puzzle pieces of different truths that the Lord has burned in my heart through my various life experiences, they all started falling together in my heart, the different trickles of revelation and freedom all merging together as one river that actually made sense, all together... and I was stunned.  And I don't know if people will think I'm crazy for saying I really feel like God has called me to do this in this season... but I really do.  I think He has.

And in early December, I started writing.

I'm so thankful for Stan's support in this.  Some days I think he's more excited about it than I am.  I'm thankful too for the handful of close friends who have encouraged and supported me in this in varying ways.

But I've continued to really limit those who I've let in on this thing... mostly out of fear, I think.  I kept thinking, "Well, I'll wait till I get an agent and a publisher and THEN I'll tell people on a bigger scale."  And recently, I've felt the Lord asking me, "Where's the risk in that?  Where's the letting-people-in-on-your-process-with-ME?"

So, here I am... letting you in.  Telling you that really, there are days when I doubt my ability to do this.  But then I remember, "Oh yeah, I CAN'T do this.  It's His strength in my weak places... He's the one who fills in my gaps.  Right."  And I keep moving forward, keep putting one foot in front of the other, leaning into Him.

I have my book proposal 95% finished, down to the chapter-by-chapter summary with paragraph descriptions of the content of each chapter.  (That's the part I was most intimidated by.) I've written 6 chapters, 5 of which still need significant editing and adjusting.  I'm mostly stopping on the writing of chapters for now, getting my proposal up to par and working on the couple of "sample chapters" that will be attached to it when I submit it to agents for consideration.  That's pretty much the status of the project.

And...to be honest yet again...even though I have moments of doubting that I can pull it off... I'm also super excited about it. :)  And I'd love your prayer partnership as I am in this season of writing and editing and about to step into querying agents... and, in my heart, really being tested and having to surrender at new levels to the Lord on the things I'm writing about.  Wow... and that is a whole 'nother blog post right there.  Maybe one of these days. :)

Blessings and love to all of you, my friends....  Forgive the bit of extra silence around here in this season.  Now you know the reason why! :)

image credit: supremacyandsurvival.blogspot.com