Gratitude

Wow, y'all.  Just wow.

I'm overwhelmed.  Thank you all so much for all of your kind words.  The encouragement that has poured out from everywhere is just so ... well ... overwhelming.

Since I let loose yesterday and spilled out our whole family drama, I have received responses on here and on FB from so many people.  I've had friends write to me to tell me their own stories from childhood, or share their own struggles with their families.  I've had comments on my bravery for sharing, I've had love and support shown to me from every angle.

You know what I haven't had?  Anything negative.  At all.  And honestly?  While all of the support has been fantastic, even more fantastic is that no one has stepped up and chastised me or put me down.  That was my biggest fear.  I have discovered that I really do have the most phenomenal support system out there.

Love you all.  Thank you for your love, your prayers, your awesomeness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Things with Red the last couple of days continue to spiral out of control.  Tuesday night, we contacted DCF (child protective services) for assistance.  They came out and did an evaluation, and then told us there was nothing they could do to help.  The investigator said he would "staff our case" on Wednesday morning, and would call us.  It is now Thursday noon and I still haven't heard anything.

My biggest frustration is that there just doesn't seem to be an answer.  Most of the advice that was given to me yesterday was to pray for him (which please know that we do ... perpetually and without ceasing) and to try and speak to him about his actions - that what he is doing is hurting his relationship with God.

Red was baptized on his birthday last year.  He absolutely believes that God sent Christ as his Savior and has relinquished his heart.

But.

Red does not (currently) have the ability to CARE that his actions have consequences.  He knows that an action has a reaction - whether positive or negative.  When he reads a book to Sir Smiley, he gets praise.  When he pushes the Fluffyheaded Diva around, he gets admonished.  BUT.  Neither positive or negative words have an effect on him.  He simply performs actions that he chooses to perform and has no regard for how others might feel about those actions.

Think about every moronic news story you've heard about Paris Hilton or Britney Spears or or Dennis Rodman or Lindsey Lohan.  It seemed that no matter what they did, they had this "above you all nothing matters because I have paparazzi" attitude.  That's what Red displays ... but, without the flashing cameras.

Several of you asked me to provide a list of specific prayers that you can assist me with, and I am happy to provide that.  But I want to give a disclaimer here:  All of you know that I am a Christian, but I know that not all of you are.  And, are you ready for this?  That is OK.  While I love prayer, I also accept happy thoughts, good vibes, loving juju, and whatever else you have to offer.  A very dear friend always says she'll pray to "God, Buddha, Allah, and Oprah" ... which, I'll be honest, cracks me up every single time.  Oprah ... bwahaha.  I know that there are some of you that will be offended, but please don't be.  I love all of my friends, despite religion, race, creed, gender, etc.  And at the end of the day, all of you have come here for one reason - to support my family.  Stand in solidarity for me - regardless of your background.

Did that sound a little arrogant there at the end?  Hrm... whatever, you got my point.

So, with all of that being said, some specific prayer requests:

~  Pray that we are able to maintain positive communication with Red

~  Pray that Red is able to hear that we do love him, and that we are only trying to help him

~ Pray that DCF gets their collective heads out of the sand and starts to find real workable solutions for our family

~  Pray protection for Princess, Fluffy, and SirSmiley, that they are able to get through this entire ordeal with as little damage as possible

~  Pray for my father's health

~  Pray for wisdom and guidance for me and for Hubby, that we are able to keep our family moving in the right direction

Thank you all again, you will never know how much you all mean to me - to us.

xo