This past weekend we traveled up to Springfield, Missouri for the big kids to run in the National Homeschool Running Invitational. We had a good running weekend, but our short trip was overshadowed by other life events that were happening which I'll share all about.
The running meet was on the morning of Saturday, October 24th, but I want to start this post back on Friday, October 16th. After a normal day, we enjoyed a backyard fire and roasted marshmallows in the beautiful autumn weather. 
Around 8:00pm, I received a phone call from my friend, Kendall, and immediately thought how odd it was for her to call on a Friday evening. When I answered, she shared with me that our friend, Amy, had been taken to the hospital in Branson (where she and her husband Matt had been for a little fall break trip) earlier that day with symptoms related to her pregnancy and was currently being transported to a better hospital in Springfield. At the time, Amy was only 23 weeks and 5 days along, so we were extremely alarmed and concerned for her. Kendall had only briefly spoken to Matt, and we didn't have many details at that time.
After a series of scary events, Briar June was born in the evening on Monday, October 19th at 24 weeks. She was super tiny but as healthy as could be expected. Amy had severe pre-eclampsia that was causing her body to shut down. The doctor told Matt that they either take Briar or prepare to lose both Amy and Briar. It was a very grave situation, and we were hurting for our dear friend and everything she was going through. Due to COVID restrictions, NO ONE was able to visit Matt and Amy at the hospital . . . not even their parents. They felt SO far away, and our hearts just ached for them. At the same time, we were hopeful and rejoicing that Briar was alive and doing well.
Fast forward to Friday, October 23rd. Our plan was to leave early that morning to drive to Springfield for the running meet, but spend Friday morning in Mansfield, MO at the Laura Ingalls Wilder house. At 3:00pm on Friday afternoon, the big kids were scheduled to meet with their team to run the course and have one last practice before competition on Saturday morning.
We ended up leaving our house almost a full hour later than we had planned (which is not normal for us at all!), then made a stop for coffee before leaving town. While we were sitting in a drive-thru waiting for our coffee, Amy texted me asking if we would be able to go by her house in Tulsa, pick up a few things for her, and drop them off at the hospital in Springfield. I had told Amy earlier in the week that I would be more than happy to bring her whatever she needed, so of course I was happy to do that for her. She thought we weren't planning to leave town until that evening (which is why she didn't text until that morning), but it all worked out fine in the end. This is one time that us running late put us exactly where we needed to be!
I told the kids that our plans had changed, and we were going to help Amy instead of visit the Wilder House. They were so great about it, and everyone agreed that we'd rather help Amy than have our own fun! So, instead of heading toward Springfield, we went in the opposite direction toward Owasso first, then Tulsa.
Our reason for going to Owasso was two-fold. First, I had spent the past few days collecting funds from several of Amy's closest friends to put together a gift basket for her and Matt. I felt like they needed something from their people while they were in the hospital, and I needed to go shopping for all the gift basket items. After we finished the shopping, the second thing we needed to do was go by Amy's school to pick up some paperwork and her laptop for her.
Once we finished our business in Owasso, we drove to Matt and Amy's house in Tulsa. Amy's parents were there and had packed a bag of stuff for Amy. I went into the house by myself, and it was a hard visit to make. Amy's parents (who I've known for nearly two decades) were understandably emotional and worried about Amy, Matt, and Briar. The house looked like Amy and Matt had left it to take a fun trip, fully expecting to return in a few days. Yet, everything changed. Here it was over a week later, and they had no idea how much longer they'd be in Springfield.
I was very emotional once I got back in our van and we began the trip toward Springfield. Briar was a baby we had all waited SO long for, and we just wanted to keep her with us more than we could say.
Because of our detour through Owasso and Tulsa, we had to stop for lunch on the way to Springfield. It was almost time for us to meet with the team at the running course by the time we got into town, so we headed there and let the kids play for a bit. The trees were incredibly beautiful and so vibrant . . . it truly took my breath away!
Brooke and Brecklyn
This picture doesn't come close to doing the scenery justice!
The running course wound around these gorgeous trees and was just breathtaking!
Once practice concluded, I got in contact with Matt to deliver the stuff they needed from home, as well as the gift basket. The basket was full of all kinds of goodies and tons of gift cards. I took this photo to send to all the people that contributed toward the basket.
We weren't able to go into the hospital, but Matt met us in the parking lot. He was in high spirits, although he looked completely exhausted. They had found out that Briar had a brain bleed, but she was holding her own despite this. Visiting with Matt was simultaneously so good and so painful for my heart. It felt really unfair to not be able to see or hug Amy, and I hated that she was so isolated. We weren't able to visit with Matt for long because he was on his way to get Amy food (and because he only had shorts and t-shirts and it was FREEZING outside), but I was so grateful that we were able to see him for a bit.
I had a hard time composing myself after driving away from the hospital, so I distracted myself with a bit of shopping at Kohl's and a dinner at IHOP. It had been a LONG and emotional day, but the kids were being so great. It brought comfort and joy to my momma heart to see how they were happy to give up the fun part of their trip to help a friend in need. After dinner, we settled into our hotel room for the night.
We had to be back at the running course a little before 8:00am on Saturday, so we were up bright and early that morning. We had breakfast at the hotel, then joined our team for a warm-up. It was a cold, cold morning, but the kids were great sports about it!
Brooke and Brecklyn
The Owasso Falcons, 2020
Elementary girls ran first, and Brianna had a solid start.
She ran her mile in 9 minutes and 37 seconds, and placed in the top ten for her age group. That means she earned her first cross country running medal!
Bren also had a good start and a solid run.
He set a new PR, running his mile in eight minutes and ten seconds. He also placed in the top ten for his age group and earned a medal!
What a great season it's been!
Brianna and Brenson were thrilled to go home with a medal. I love that they were able to see their hard pay off!
We left the meet just before noon to go find some lunch, but before we did I wanted a few family photos.
Love my crew!
We grabbed lunch at a local pizza joint, then started toward Oklahoma. We decided to not take the turnpike home (since we've driven that way so many times) and moseyed our way through small towns instead. We even made a few stops at junk stores . . . totally not my thing, but others in the family enjoy it!
Yesterday (Sunday, October 25th), I got the devastating news that precious baby Briar passed away. Amy's sister, Brandy, called to tell me. We were driving to evening church services at the time, so I had to fight to stay composed. After Brandy called, I had the horrible task of calling both Kendall and Angie to tell them. Later that evening - once I could really feel the news a bit more - I broke down. I can't put into words how crushed I am for Matt and Amy. I hate, hate, hate this for them so much! Life can just be so hard and so very unfair. I feel like I've cried all day today in grief for my friend and grief that has been brought up in myself. My heart is just shattered for them. Through it all, though, I know that God is good. He is loving. He grieves with us, and He hurts with us. He is faithful, and we can rejoice that Briar is safe with Him forever. And, I also know that our arms will forever ache without her.
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