Another Miracle and more of GOD's Tender Mercies

When Kathryn was born June 19, 1986, we were living in Royal Oak, Michigan. We had moved out of the apartment in Southfield, Michigan and had left all of our dear friends in the Southfield Ward. We began attending church in the Royal Oak Ward. As I mentioned in my previous post, I had suffered an auto accident while pregnant with Kathryn, my third child, second daughter. When Kathryn was born, she seemed perfect in every way. She was so very beautiful!

By this time, Gary was not happy working at the Dental Office in the mall, doing Dentistry. He was making an excellent income, but, he was not happy. The malpractice crisis hit, meaning that due to everyone under the sun deciding to get rich quick by suing every medical/dental professional---all those professionals had their premiums for malpractice insurance increased by 400% I am not even kidding! We could NOT afford the premiums and it was financial suicide to go without that type of insurance. So, that factor, along with Gary not being happy in the mall practice caused us to look at his career path and we jointly decided that Gary would be happier going back to school to do something else with his life. I just firmly believed that if Gary was happier, we all would be happier. So, supporting him in returning to school was not a difficult decision.

We did a lot of research to decide just what he would go back to school for, and eventually he decided that he would like to get his masters or maybe even his doctorate in Dentistry and use that to remain at the Dental School, teaching and doing research. He loved the academic atmosphere and this would allow him to remain in that setting. We did NOT know how we would finance his education totally. He applied for grants and scholarships and I planned on working as a nurse to provide an income for us. With three small children, this was not going to be easy, but I just knew it would be worth it.

As we prepared to move back to the Ann Arbor area, our Bishop in the Royal Oak Ward asked to meet with Gary and me. He told me that he wanted me to serve as the Young Women's President in the ward. He felt very strongly about it! We then explained that we were in the process of MOVING out of his ward within the next month; Gary was going back to school to obtain his masters degree at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. The bishop was adamant. He told me that he KNEW that I was supposed to be the new Young Women's President; he was sure he had received revelation! He told us that Gary should NOT go back to school and that we were to stay in the area! He was so positive, that it was a bit confusing. But, we had prayed about our decision and we knew that we were supposed to return to school. Everything was falling into place and we just had a peace about it. The bishop asked me---point blank---why would he feel so strongly about me becoming the new president if it was not revelation from God? I told him that perhaps he was just impressed with the way I had fulfilled my current calling in Relief Society and that was influencing his impressions.

It was a bit unsettling to have him be so sure that we were NOT to return to school. But, though we believe in sustaining and honoring our Bishop, well all of our Priesthood leaders, we just knew we were to be in Ann Arbor. So, we made the move. By September of 1986, we were living in the University of Michigan's Student housing. I had begun working for an agency that provided nurses to fill in at the hospital when they were short-staffed. The need for nurses was so great at this time, that I was able to set my own hours. I would work from 8 pm until 2 am, which is NOT the typical or traditional shift, but it allowed me to work while Gary was home so that no child care expenses were necessary. I did not work full time, but the hours I did work ended up being enough to make ends meet. And, we did not see any other way to get through school unless I did work.

So, when the Prophet, President Ezra Taft Benson gave his address just 5 months later, in February of 1987, it was a true leap of faith to follow his counsel. He was imploring mothers to return home and focus on raising their children. Of course, he stated that there were exceptions in which the mother had to work, but, he promised great blessings to those families that sacrificed the comforts that came from having two incomes ( not those for which it was a necessity--) and chose to have the mother remain in the home full time. Now, it could have been argued that it was a necessity that I work to keep Gary enrolled in school and our family fed! But, we decided that we would follow the prophet and allow the Lord to bless us for that leap of faith.

I am so very grateful that we did just that. It was such an amazing thing to witness the miracles of the Lord! Not only did we NOT miss the income, but, avenues were opened that we, I am sure, would never have been blessed with, had we relied upon ourselves! We relied upon the LORD and HE blessed us far more than we could have imagined! We had sufficient for our needs and the LORD preserved Kathryn's life! Gary was able to return to the Mall Dental practice on Saturdays only, and he made more than I could have ever made, working the nights that I had been working. Gary applied for grants and scholarships and was granted more than enough to cover all of his educational expenses. So, although when we made the decision to have me quit work, and at that time, we did not know how we would be able to afford to do so, from that moment on, we actually did far better economically than we had for the 5 months previous to our prophet's inspired counsel!

And, that is not all. In March, just a month after I had discontinued working, we had another miracle occur. Kathryn was now 9 months old. So, I decided to start her on cereal. For the next several weeks, Kathryn began to have horrible constipation. I took her into our pediatrician at least on four different occasions. By the end of the month, I was having to hold her little body over the toilet and actually push on her bottom to help her stool. Her stools would come out in a thin ribbon and caused her such pain, it was alarming. After doing everything that the doctor had advised and having nothing actually help, I remember going to my parent's home. Kathryn was lethargic and I was in tears. I told my mother that I just did not know how to help her. And, my mother took a look at Kathryn and said, "Kim, you have got to take her to the Emergency Room now!" Thankfully, I did as my mother directed. She went with me and watched over Bonnie, who was then 6 years old and Christopher who was 2 years old, as we waited for the doctor to come in to see Kathryn.

We had gone to the University of Michigan Hospital ER. And, it just so happened---(no, I do not believe for a moment that it was just happenstance!) that the physician on call for pediatrics was a Pediatric Surgeon! He took one look at Kathryn, he did a digital exam of her anus and told us that Kathryn needed to be admitted immediately. He then explained that Kathryn had a congenital deformity called Imperforate Anus. Being a nurse, I knew what that was. I said, "That is impossible, she has been stooling! And, you can see that she does have an anus!" But, he told me that it was just a dimple with a tear, that she did NOT have a true opening from her bowel and rectum to allow the stool to pass out of her body. The tear had allowed the soft stool she had from breast feeding, to pass out of her body, but, once I had introduced solid food, the tear was not large enough to allow that fecal material to pass. He told me that Kathryn was toxic and needed to have her stool evacuated and then she would need a surgical repair of the anus. Kathryn needed to have a true anus surgically made---the surgery was called a "cut-back anoplasty." It took three whole days to evacuate the built up stool throughout her tiny body. She had tubes in her nose, to help flush out the stool and they were doing enemas routinely. We had nearly lost her, because she was in toxic shock; that was why she was lethargic. And, I KNOW we would have lost her if we had NOT moved to Ann Arbor, where the Pediatric Surgeon was on staff.

There were just 5 Pediatric Surgeons serving all the Midwestern states, and all 5 were based in Ann Arbor at the U of M hospital. Though I had taken Kathryn into the Pediatrician on several occasions, we needed the expertise of a Pediatric Surgeon to diagnose and treat Kathryn. I was so very grateful that my mother had insisted I take her to the only hospital that had the only professionals that could help Kathryn. I was so grateful that we had returned to school and were in Ann Arbor when Kathryn had this urgent need! I now knew why we had a peace about our decision to return to school in Ann Arbor. And, I am grateful that I was a full-time Mom because my children did need me full-time!

As it turns out, the deformity was most likely caused by the accident I was involved in while pregnant with Kathryn. Thankfully, it was a deformity that could be surgically repaired with no lasting effects.

I testify that God lives! I KNOW HE does still speak to us through HIS living prophets that are once again on the earth! I also KNOW that we are ALWAYS blessed far beyond our ability to comprehend, when we choose to follow HIS prophets, and HIS counsel! HE will provide for us, even before we are aware we have a need! HE loves ALL of us! And, HE will be as involved in our lives as we allow HIM to be! I have NEVER regretted relying upon HIM.