Scott's Grandmother

Scott's grandmother surrendered to her battle with cancer on Friday evening. She was in the hospital in Dallas for a few days and they put her on a morphine pump to make her as comfortable as possible. She left this world very peacefully, sleeping her way into the arms of her Savior. We truly praise God that he allowed us to know that she had truly become a believer, which happened somewhere within the last three months or so. The Lord is sweet and He is just as much God whether we were convinced that she believed or not, but he let us witness it as well. I confess that I put limits on God in that I had all but lost hope that he would change her heart. O ye of little faith! A friend reminded me of the parable of the two men who worked, one all day and one part of the day, yet they received the same wages. I was reminded once again that He is much greater than I can wrap my mind around and He will do things in His own time, regardless of my unbelief!
Scott is doing ok. He is much better than he would've been had he not had his previous conversation with her. His grandmother was much more than just a typical grandparent. She was more of a parent to him, so this loss is heartbreaking. She did so much for our family and loved our children dearly. She didn't have a chance to meet Davis in person, but was able to see pictures and video of his birth and Scott being able to deliver him. It makes me sad that she didn't get to see him though. We are comforted to know that she has been made whole again and will never know pain again either. We look forward to seeing her when we all return Home!

Papa and his new best buddy!

Silly cousins!!

Aunt Dana getting her baby Davis fix!

My three little ducklings!

We had a great Easter. We went to church and then spent the remainder of the day at Mimi and Papa's house. It was a day filled with yummy food, an annual easter egg hunt (money eggs included!), countless rides on Papa's golf cart, and great time to play and love on one another since it's hard to catch up otherwise because we don't live super close. All in all it was a relaxing day and we truly rejoiced in the ressurection of our Savior!

New stats for Davis

These are a few new pics of Davis. He is already 5 weeks old today! I can't believe how fast it's going. I really want to enjoy this sweet sweet time with him. He is now 8lbs. 13 oz. and 21 in. long. Pretty good growing from 7lbs and 20 in.! We love him dearly and the girls are doing very well with him. He's a little sleepy in these pictures, because normally his eyes are a little bigger than this. He slept from 11pm to 7am the other night. Yeah!!! It was kinda a fluke, but He's been averaging about 5-6 hours a night, so maybe we're not too far off!

My (Scott's) Grandmother

I wanted to share this story about my third parent...my grandmother. As some of you know, my Grandmother was put in the hospital this past Saturday on the verge of dying. She has cancer and has battled it for the last few years. It's been a long journey and she has overcome a great deal of things in the process. However, this past weekend took a turn for the worse and my aunt told us on Saturday if you want to see her alive, you need to come down here. I made quick arrangements but she was actually doing much better when we arrived. She will be flying out to Dallas tomorrow on air ambulance and will be taken care of by my mom and brother in a nursing facility. The best part of this trip was my grandmother and I got some really great one on one time together where we talked about her eternal destiny. Over the past year she has really gotten involved with watching, reading, and giving to Billy Graham's ministries which I guess has been my answered prayer for someone to share with her frequently. Well Sunday night, we began to talk and I told her I wanted her to understand that salvation is of the Lord and through Him alone. As we talked about grace and I relived many conversation from the past, I saw something different. For the first time in all my conversations, we weren't defensive or argumentative and she revealed what I saw as a heart that is different. She talked about repentance of her sins and her need for redemption things that she had nerve spoken of before. She said, "I know that the good Lord has died and paid for my sins and that's how I am going to get to heaven." For me it was the first sign of the longest prayer I have ever petitioned. I continue to trust God's working in her life even as it comes to an end. The next day we sat and watched the Gaither music hour (which I do not enjoy for the most part) and she began to say to me. "Scott, you know sometimes I have called you fanatical and a little to religious. But I know no you were just doing what the Good Lord has called you to do. He wants you to share the good news with others and that's all you were doing." I almost fell out. This is the same woman who said I was crazy for going over seas to Kazakhstan and though Beach project was a waste of time. I don't believe that my grandmother has found Jesus, but it's clear He has found her and is changing her heart!!! So for all of you over the last 13 years who have prayed for me, my family and my grandmother...thanks. Scott Parks

Sensitivity

I went to pick Paige up from school yesterday, and her teacher pulled me aside to tell me something Paige had done that she'd forgotten to mention. As many of you know, Paige attends a preschool that has 6 autistic children and 6 neurotypical children to each class. Well, Paige was playing dress-up with a friend of hers who is also neurotypical. The teacher was sitting with one of the autistic girls, who is non-verbal, working with her across the room. Paige walked over to the teacher with a dress in her hand and said "Mrs. Holly, don't you think this little girl would want to play dress-up too?" Her teacher said that she and the other teacher all but burst into tears and said "Yes, Paige, I think she would LOVE it!". She said they ended up dressing up the whole class and taking pictures and had a really good time.
I love how tender and sensitive her heart is. We want to nurture the strengths and weaknesses God has graced our children with. We know that they are very different and very special all in the same. Sometimes Paige is a little oversensitive and we have to just work with her thru that, but her sensitivity and compassion is also what prompts her to seek out others. I was a little leary about her going to this particular school, but I like the fact that it helps us and her, as we teach her to not discriminate against others differences, whether it's speech, race, education..etc. The Lord has given me much grace as I parent these little ones throughout the day, and for that I am thankful. He glorifies Himself thru my children in situations like this, because it shows me that there is nothing in and of myself that could shape her heart the way He does!

A new Milestone...

The pictures above are of my silly girls being "boppy heads"! They crack me up!

Well, today marks a new milestone for me. I went to pick Paige up from school and knew that Annalee had no more diapers at home. I haven't really brought Davis out anywhere considering he was a little premature and the flu has been so terrible this season. However, I had to make a quick run to Target to get a pack of diapers. In the back of my mind for the last few days, I knew that I also needed to pick up some dishwashing detergent while I was there as well. So, we get to Target for my first outing by myself with all 3 children. We had a few things that were not in our favor though. First, the temperature felt like it dropped 15 degrees from the time I picked Paige up to the time we got to Target. Second, The cart I got was less than cooperative when it came to steering it. I have a knack for picking the worst cart in the bunch! Third, it was 3:15 and I needed to get in and get out and get home because I had to feed Davis at 4:00. So, we I get everyone out and in their proper place in the cart, we run in and get the diapers, check out, get everyone back in the van and buckled in. Everthing went beautifully. The girls behaved and Davis slept soundly. I get in the driver's seat, crank the car, and realize...I forgot the dishwashing detergent! Oh well!!!!!!

Little Sweetpea!

Three weeks Old...we can't believe that our littlest one is three weeks old already. Even more, we can't believe that we have 3 children. Parks party of 5 your life is now ready!!!