Katie Graduating High School

Well, it is hard to believe, but the time has come that our daughter, Katie, is graduating from high school. It doesn’t seem that long ago, as we were renovating the church auditorium – fastening down the last few church pews to finish – that on the next Sunday morning, Sandra would give birth to our second child, a little girl we named Katelyn Nicole.

So many events have filled the time between that Sunday in 1996 and the Spring of 2014 – many great times, many fun times, many happy times, and a few hard times. I’m thankful that Katie has some great memories of big events as well as small ones.  Small things like the foam disc wars our family would have with those battery-operated shooters, the rubber band fights in the living room, running cars down the basement steps on the home-made ramps or the hot wheel tracks. She had just as much interest and just as much fun as her big brother, Michael. Of course none of us will ever forget the good times we had with Buddy, our Black Lab. 

And none of our family members will ever forget the development of a star softball pitcher or the lightening serve of a volleyball.

It was exciting to see an 8^th grader pitch a 45 mph “drop ball” (equivalent to 60 mph in baseball) on the varsity team to help bring home the regional trophy...

then do it again the following year, only as a 9^th grader, bringing the heat with a 55 mph pitch (80 mph in baseball).

  Our elation was equally matched with sadness for her high school career to be cut short due to having MDI (multi-directional instability) – a fancy name for a loose shoulder.  With hopes of diminishing the pain, she chose to try surgery. Unfortunately, the surgery didn’t help. A surgery that paled in comparison to what she experienced through her journey and God-given victory over a brain tumor at the age of 10 (http://www.katiehealth.blogspot.com). Thankfully, she doesn’t remember most of the details surrounding that event. However, she does know that the Lord worked a mighty miracle in her body and she gives Him the glory for that victory.

Now she has come to the end of this segment in her life’s journey, with the eagerness as well as the excitement of the unknown details of the segment to come. I pray that as she enters this portion of her life that she keeps in mind: #1-She is loved eternally by her Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and that He has a perfect plan for her life. I pray that she will love Him with all her heart and soul and mind, and that she will serve Him with her whole heart her entire life. #2-The love her mom and dad have for her is second only to the love God has for her, and we are here for her to give her continued love, support, encouragement, and Biblical counsel.  We look forward to sharing in the joy of God’s future blessings. #3-Her big brother, setting aside the entire “big brother” nuance, loves her and will always be willing to step into the role of “body guard” and/or confidant. #4-We owe Katie much thanks for being a fantastic big sister to God’s extra gift to our family, Abbie.

And yes, Michael has been an awesome big brother. We know those two wanted another dog, but we have to admit, this was another one of those times that the Lord exceeded – WAY EXCEEDED our expectations! And the Lord used Katie’s experience with being a BIG help with Abbie to turn her to a desire to care for children. As soon as Katie graduates, she will begin working as a full time Nanny; caring for the children of a very nice family. I know she will do well.

Of course, Katie will continue to live here at home for as long as the Lord wills. In fact, her mother and I will be fine with her living at home until the Lord brings her to the place where she gets married.  Of course that will happen after her and her fiancé receive a few years of pre-marital counseling. (JK) Well, after the Lord reveals who that fiancé is, then a courting period, then the pre-marital counseling (really it only lasts a few months). In the mean time, she will continue to serve the Lord here in our church family at FRMBC through music and singing, as well as prayerfully developing other gifts and abilities the Lord has blessed her with.

Katie – we love you and we are so thankful for the young lady you have become. Keep growing in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Our prayer and desire for you is found in two Scripture passages:

Proverbs 3:5-6 ⁵ Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. ⁶ In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Romans 12:1-2 ¹ I beseech you therefore, brethren [Katie], by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies [body] a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. ² And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.  (bold = my emphasis)

We love you Katie, and we are very proud of you!

Abbie at home

Welcome Abigail Renee

Update from the Hugans

Well, it has been a few months since I've posted on this blog, so I will try to summarize it all in this post.

In October we celebrated Sandra's birthday on October 9th. I'm so thankful for her! (More on that later.) Then, we began going through a series of doctor appointments due to Katie’s shoulder pain. It turned out that she had injured her shoulder due to over-pitching during last year's softball season. Over the past several weeks Katie has gone through physical therapy, and is in the process of a return-to-throw rehabilitation. We are hoping that her shoulder will become stronger and that she will be pain-free.

November is always one of our favorite months. November 10th was our 21st wedding anniversary. I am so thankful for the godly wife that the Lord gave me. She is truly my “true north”. The Lord has been so good to us over these 21 years, and I look forward to many more years of serving Him with her.

Michael's 18th birthday was on November 15th. It has been an amazing experience, and a great blessing to have raised Michael thus far. As we pray for the Lord’s direction and purpose for Michael, we are seeing the Lord bless him in many ways, day after day. He just recently finished his first semester at the University of Michigan, in Dearborn. Meanwhile, he has a good job working for a very stable company. His is remaining very active in church ministry; especially in the music ministry. He is also a great help in many aspects of the church, many of which are behind-the-scenes. I am thankful to the Lord for his willingness to not only serve in areas that are noticeable to others, but also in ways that only he, I, and the Lord know about. I am looking forward to seeing how the Lord develops him and guides him in the direction of his God-given destiny.

December was, as always, an enjoyable month, despite the busyness of the season. We were able to spend some family time during the holidays with my parents and Sandra's mom, and we are still currently enjoying time with the kids during the holiday break. Although Michael is off of school, he is working every day through the week; he really likes that - especially the paycheck!

That should get us up to date for now. Hope everyone has a happy new year!

The Hugans - November 2011

Happy Birthday Katie!

Today is Katie's 15th Birthday.

Words cannot express our thankfulness for our little girl, turned beautiful young lady. The Lord has blessed in so many ways in regard to Katie. As I look at pictures from the past, it is evident why years ago I began to call her my "Sunshine".
With all the experiences that have come in her life, the Lord has blessed her beyond description. We're so happy for her for how the Lord has and is continuing to work in her life. We are so proud of her!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUNSHINE!!!

Goodbye To Our Beloved Buddy

In late August we took Buddy to the vet because he kept having ear troubles. When the doctor checked him out, he found some of the lymph nodes swollen. The doctor prescribed some antibiotics. Well, over the next couple of weeks, the nodes kept getting bigger. We took Buddy to another vet on the 6th of September and they did a test that came back positive for lymphoma. We were given a different antibiotic, but it didn't help. Over the the next two and a half weeks we watched Buddy get worse. We were slowly coming to the realization that Buddy wouldn't be with us much longer.

September, 2010

During the last two weeks of Buddy's life our family spent some great quality time with him. Michael and Katie each took their final turns at having Buddy sleep in their rooms. For nine years and nine months Michael and Katie took weekly turns with Buddy sleeping in their rooms on his floor bed. Sometimes they would sleep on the floor with him. Needless to say the kids, as well and Sandra and I became very close to Buddy.
With Michael / 2006

With Katie / 2004

2002

I made sure to get some pictures of Buddy doing some of the fun things he's always done; some of them he had stopped doing because they took too much energy out of him. He wasn't too interested in playing ball much anymore. He used to be great at playing catch; sometimes with his U of M football, and other times with a tennis ball we would hit out in the yard to him. He was awesome at jumping up and catching those balls! He truly was our own "Air Bud", and he loved playing that role. A few times I played "dot" with him (from the laser level we keep in the cupboard). Any time we would get out the "dot" he went crazy; he loved trying to catch that little red dot. It was so fun watching him play that game! All the games we would play with him added so much enjoyment, for him and for us!

Now that he didn't feel good enough to play because of the discomfort (he never displayed that he was in any pain), we got to where we would just take him outside for a walk around the church property. He loved to go outside and walk the perimeter of the property. As a puppy we trained him where the boundaries of the property were, and he was very good at staying within them. Every once in a while a squirrel or a rabbit would get his attention and sometimes we would have to go out and call him to keep him from chasing them too far - I'm gonna miss that... "Buddy, come home!"

(I'll add more memories over time)

This past Saturday, September 24th was going to be a busy day with our youth ministry Fall Festival in the morning and the church Fall Cookout at night. Earlier in the week Sandra and I contemplated how to work the timing out with relieving Buddy of the pain and suffering he undoubtedly was going through. We talked to the kids and decided, with our busy schedule, that Saturday was going to be the best day. I won't even try to describe the pain the four of us were experiencing, especially beginning in the early morning hours on Saturday. The short version (the long version being too painful to describe): we took Buddy to the vet and spent some very quality time (mainly for us) with him. The doctor and his assistant were very gracious and kind. They gave us all the time we needed. As he lay on my lap, we each gave very heart-felt hugs to our dear Buddy and said goodbye to, in our minds, the best dog on the planet.

We are all very, very sad that we had to let Buddy go. We will always hold the memories, some of which I plan to put on a blog about Buddy. Even though the conversations keep coming up about whether or not there is another dog in our family's future, all four of us unanimously agree - we will never find another Buddy.

We thank the Lord for the wonderful 9 years, 9 months He allowed Buddy to be a part of our lives. As Christians we know there is no "doggy heaven" and that Buddy is no more, but we do believe that the joy that Buddy brought into our family was truly a gift from the Lord to season our time here on this earth as we serve Him and look forward to being forever in His presence in Heaven. Still, there is the pain of the loss of a good friend, a great friend - certainly our favorite four-legged friend.

Another Good Year In Softball!

Katie and the Inter-City Varsity Girls Softball team had another "banner" year. And by that I mean they actually won the regional championship - for the second consecutive year!

Michael's Senior Pictures

20th Wedding Anniversary

This past week Sandra and I went away for a couple of days to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. It really is hard to imagine how 20 years could have gone by so fast! What is even harder to imagine is that 20 years from now I will be really old! OK, maybe not that old; 65 is looking younger every year!
There are far too many things to point out how the Lord has blessed us since that wonderful day on November 10th, 1990. I remember moment by moment all that took place that day; what a joyful day indeed! Ask Sandra to tell you the story about how her dress wouldn't let her get out of the limousine. Of course, if you are a member of FRMBC, you've heard that story, probably on more than one occasion.
Twenty years later, our lives are filled with manifold blessings from the Lord. It's hard to believe that Michael is almost 17 years old, and Katie is a beautiful 14-year-old teenager.
The Lord has truly blessed us with two wonderful children! Along with the challenges that come with raising teens, we are watching the Lord work in the lives of our children as they're growing ever so close to their adult years. Though it comes with challenges, it is a great experience as we help them in their journey to discover the Lord's destiny for their lives of service to Him.
Sandra and I are so thankful that the Lord has given us these 20 years. By God's grace, we have strived to live our lives in such a way as to allow the Lord to use us for His glory. We have enjoyed serving Him in youth ministry, in music ministry, and over the past 16 years in ministering to the wonderful people at Flat Rock Missionary Baptist Church.
We are looking forward to the future as we continue to serve Him and His people and we are looking forward to seeing how He will use Michael and Katie in the years to come.
I also look forward to spending many more years, Lord willing, with the love of my life, my dear wife, Sandra! I look forward to growing old together with her, although, she reminds me that I will be there far sooner than she will. That's okay though; that means I can use that as an excuse for my dry wit and sense of humor. I'm gonna love that!