Summer News

Time has a way of getting away from us sometimes. I've had good intentions about posting but when it comes to the end of the day I've been opting for time with Jeremy and the girls over more time on the computer. So to catch up let me just say that the highlight of our summer was our trip to Florida. Not all family reunions are as fun and pleasant as we'd like them to be but this trip and the time we spent with my family was simply wonderful. We stayed with my parents for 2 weeks and my sister, Rebecca, came down with her daughter, Marcella, for 5 days. My brother, Preston and his wife, Sonya live near my parents. There were wonderful meals, little excursions, a sewing lesson (I made a skirt!), swimming, and of course, the trip to Disney world that all helped to make this trip extra special but the people were what made it unforgettable.

Our time at Disney World was simply amazing. We spent one day at the Magic Kingdom and then one day at downtown Disney. I've been to Disney World many times, particularly when I was a teenager, but if you've never experienced Disney World with a little kid, you have yet to really experience Disney World. Seeing the girls experience Disney World was even more fun and entertaining that Disney itself. We had a wonderful time.

I need to go, but I wanted to share with so many of you that have been praying that the girl's case is closed. Mark plead guilty to aggravated sexual assault on July 20th and received 4 years of probation, can't have unsupervised internet access, can't be in a room with a child under the age of 10 without an adult present, not allowed to have any porn, has to move (can't live within 5 miles of our girls), was taken into custody for 30 days of observation to determine if he will receive inpatient or outpatient care for the sex offenders treatment program (we are hoping and praying for 6 months in custody at least), has to attend the Houston drug program (not that he was using but to "prevent" use), ordered to comply with private sex offenders registration (he wouldn't show up on an internet search but law enforcement would still have his records and it would show up on background checks for schools, churches, and hospitals), and 30 hours of community service. It's not what we wanted, we felt he needed more, certainly more consequences but more help too. We would like to be convinced that he's not a threat to anyone else but we simply are not. Next week will be the year anniversary of when we found out about the abuse, it's hard to believe it's taken this long to get to this point but we're glad it's done. For us, while we're grateful the process is over, it's hard to not to feel that he got off pretty easy for a first degree felony. Explaining to the girls that his sentence is... well, the same as theirs (no internet without mommy or daddy, not allowed in a room with kids without an adult, no porn-imagine that, therapy for a good long while, and community service should be a way of life for all people) is no easy task. We pray for Mark and his family, they were such good friends and we miss so much of what Mark's action stole from all of us. Continue to keep Mark and his family in your prayers as he begins to serve his sentence. We appreciate all of your prayers. Thank you.

Jessica