Dan Gould

Author: dgould77

  • Soccer, Parade, Carpets, and Blessings

    This morning was Josiah’s last soccer game for the season.  The boys had a great season winning more games than they lost, but no-one keeps score, yeah right!  Anyhow, today they lost in a big way.  I don’t even think the Hawks scored.  But all the boys seemed to have fun.  After the game the team met at McDonald’s to eat, play, and receive their trophy.  They don’t make trophies like they used to!!!  Joes trophy is awesome.

    From there we headed over to the Frisco Homecoming Parade.  This was Jackson’s first parade and the first one that Josiah remembers.  Both boys were wide-eyed as the parade started.  We had fun as a family just being able to relax and the weather was awesome!!!

    I finished all the carpets today also!  But the real surprise and blessing came at 3:45 today.  Words can’t really express our gratitude to the people of Grace and how God used them to bless us.  Today we were given a gift that will help cover some of the expenses we have accumulated because of all of Jackson’s medical needs.  We have been praying for these things here for a while now. God has been so faithful to us and He used people we know and people we don’t know to show us how big He is, and to remind us that we are not alone in this journey!  Thank you Jesus!!!

  • Friday Fun

    Sleeping in, and hanging-out as a family was all that was on the agenda!  With no real agenda we got off to a late start planning on going to Peter-Piper-Pizza and letting the boys play, especially Jackson!  That soon changed to Chick-Fil-A when Josiah decided that’s where he wanted to eat.  From there we went to see Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa for the matinee.  It was a great movie and I recommend it to people with or without Kids.  It was a great fun filled day, until we rented the carpet cleaner.  Yes that’s right, a Honey do.  My Friday evening was filled with cleaning carpet.  Just one more spot of carpet left then to the couches.  I personally don’t think the machine we rented is any different than the hoover carpet cleaner we have borrowed in the past.  They both seem to do the same type of job.

    Here are some pictures of the boys playing at Chick-fil-A, driving the shopping race car at Lowe’s, and the new way Jackson like to watch TV.

  • We are HOME!!!

    The last 24 hours have been hectic.  Seeing anyone have a seizure is never fun, let alone a young child and at that your own.  Jackson seems to be coming back to his normal self after having two seizures and meds trying to stop/stabilize him.  Yesterday he slept most of the day do to the fatigue a seizure brings to the body.  Today, we felt like we were trying to tame a wild animal.  Jackson wanted to walk but he was so topsy he couldn’t.  This made it very difficult to keep him happy.

    The good news, the doctor said it seems that Jackson’s metabolism is fast causing the seizure medicine he is on to go through his body faster.  So we were sent home with a high dosage 3 times a day.  The doctor also gave us some rectum Valium in-case Jackson did go into a seizure again that lasted longer than five minutes.  That kinda scares me, but I am sure in the moment adrenaline will kick in and allow us to do it!

    I have learned a lot about seizures over the last year, most of the learning’s happening in the last 48 hours.  Yesterday, one of the links under my post was another blog on seizures with some very helpful insight to what to do for someone seizing.  Here is a link to the blog, below is the article,

    Consider this a public service announcement. Seizures are something most people know very little about. And I’m finding that most people don’t have any interest to learn. The thing is, anyone can have a first unexpected seizure, and if it’s you, hope that someone around knows what to do.

    Not everyone having a seizure will froth at the mouth, or even shake or tremble. Some seizures involve just ‘zoning out’ for a short period (those ‘absence seizures’ don’t usually require any immediate medical attention). But most other seizures will involve either going limp and falling to the ground, or going rigid, or both. The body may also shake – either gently or more violently. So what do you do?

    • Calm down. Most seizures are not medical emergencies, and your calmness is the best thing for the situation.
    • Make sure there’s nothing sharp or hard near the person seizing. They should be in a rather comfortable place where they can’t fall (i.e., not the edge of the Grand Canyon, not a concrete sidewalk, no scissors or knifes nearby)
    • DO NOT put anything in their mouth. It is a myth that they could bite their tongue, swallow it, or anything like that. Do not attempt to rescue them from a myth.
    • If possible, it’s best for them to be on their side, especially if there are any indications that they might vomit.
    • Look for a clock and make a mental note of what time the seizure started. Also note what time it ends.
    • When the person stops seizing, they will be completely out of it for anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes, depending on a lot of variables. Do talk to them to judge their level of consciousness. Also note what time they ‘come back’ to themselves.
    • If it was a first seizure, the person will need immediate medical attention to rule out potential causes like chemical ingestion and the like. But if the person has had seizures before, they probably don’t need medical attention unless the seizure itself lasted more than 10 minutes, or they don’t ‘come back’ to themselves after 15-20 minutes.

    There you have it, folks. It’s really not that hard. The basics are – nothing in the mouth, stay calm. I hope that if my son should have another seizure, and it happens when he’s not with me, that someone around will know what to do. You could be that person – if not to my son, then to someone else.

    We are thankful for the prayers and visits.  It really allowed us to see how loved we are and how the power of prayer provides strength. One of our small group leaders came by and brought gifts for Jackson and Josiah.  Joe loves the nerf dart gun and Jackson slept with his singing sea horse all the way home.  Here are some pics from our 4th Hospital visit in 2 1/2 months!  Just got a call today that we have a sleep study in two weeks.  I am hoping that will be the end of a very long medical nightmare and Jackson can return to the healthy boy he was before all this came upon us.

  • Seizures, Prayer, and Questions

    “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.” 1 Peter 5:7

    I need this verse to be real in my life today.  Today has been a roller coaster of emotion.  Just yesterday in one of my meetings I thanked some of our staff for their prayers, patients, and grace that they have shown our family over the last two months.  If you are a reader of the blog you know that the last two months have been filled with ER visits and stress.  Over the last two months Jackson has visited the the ER 4 different times and today, he was taken by ambulance.

    As I was spending time with God this morning Stephanie yells from me from our room.  I run in there and Jackson is having a full blown seizure.  I call 911 thinking it would be the fastest way to get care.  In the back of my head I am thinking he will stop seizing at anytime, but he doesn’t.  When the EMT’s arrive Jackson is still seizing, they tried to stabilize him but couldn’t get him stabilized.  They take him to the closest hospital to get the medical attention he needs.

    Once there he stabilizes for a little while but then has another seizure.  This caused the doctor and vurse to rule out a febrile seizure.  The type of seizure that comes on when you temperature goes from point a to point b really fast.  Jackson has had this type of seizure before.  It is really scary for those watching but they say it doesn’t do any damage to the child.  So, we don’t know exactly what we are facing now.  Jackson seizure today had to last at least 15-20 minutes, unless time stood still, I don’t think that is an exaggeration.  The good news is that the CT Scan and Chest X-Ray came back good.  They say he has a red ear so that is a sign of an ear infection (I hope that isn’t an indication or start of a new problem).  Our neurologist wanted us to be transferred to a hospital he has jurisdiction over so they moved us to Medical Center of Plano, where we have been all afternoon as Jackson sleeps off the meds and the affects of the seizure.  We still haven’t talked to our neurologist so we are taking that to mean maybe it’s not that bad.

    So we sit and wait for answers.  Thanks to all that have prayed with us and for us today.  We do believe God is still in control.  Please continue to pray for us.

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  • John 18:1-24

    “So the soldiers, their commanding officer, and the Temple guards arrested Jesus and tied him up. 13 First they took him to Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest at that time.[d] 14 Caiaphas was the one who had told the other Jewish leaders, ‘It’s better that one man should die for the people.’” v.12-14

    Both Caiaphas and Annas cared more about their political ambition than about their responsibility to lead the people of God.  Though Religious leaders, they had become evil.  As the nation’s spiritual leaders, they should have been sensitive to God’s revelation.  They should have known that Jesus was the Messiah about whom the Scriptures spoke, and they should have pointed the people to him.  But when deceitful men and women pursue evil, they want to elliminate all opposition.  Instead of honestly evaluating Jesus’ claims based on their knowledge of Scripture, these religious leaders sought to further their own selfish ambitions and were even willing to gill God’s Son, if that’s what it took to do it.

    As leaders we have to be careful that we are following Christ and not our own personal agenda, or the agendas of others.  The Pharisees missed it, and it began to be more about them than about God and His word.  It was more about rules than a relationship.  The enemy would love to distract and cause us to focus on the wrong things.  Even following Christ 99% of the time sounds good, but over the coarse of time, that 1%, if not addressed will cause you to be further from Christ than you thought you were.  That’s typically what happens leaving you asking the question, “How did I get here!”

  • 2 down more to go

    Josiah is two weeks into memorizing verses.  He now knows these two verses,

    “Jesus Christ is the same the other day, today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8

    “Jesus said, “I am the way the truth and the Life, No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

    This weeks verse,

    Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit with in me.” Psalm 51:10

    Life Lesson – Kids have a great memory!  As i work with him on this it is creating an opportunity for him to learn and for me to develope a habit of memorizing scripture also.  It has been so fun!  If you have kids, give it a try.  It will bless you and prepare them!

  • Mark 14:26-52

    “They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, ‘Sit here while I go and pray.’ 33 He took Peter, James, and John with him, and he became deeply troubled and distressed. 34 He told them, ‘My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.’

    35 He went on a little farther and fell to the ground. He prayed that, if it were possible, the awful hour awaiting him might pass him by. 36 “Abba, Father,”[h] he cried out, ‘everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.’

    37 Then he returned and found the disciples asleep. He said to Peter, ‘Simon, are you asleep? Couldn’t you watch with me even one hour? 38 Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak.’

    39 Then Jesus left them again and prayed the same prayer as before. 40 When he returned to them again, he found them sleeping, for they couldn’t keep their eyes open. And they didn’t know what to say.

    41 When he returned to them the third time, he said, ‘Go ahead and sleep. Have your rest. But no—the time has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Up, let’s be going. Look, my betrayer is here!’” v.32-41

    I can’t imagine how Jesus felt knowing that he was soon going to be betrayed and taken away to be beat, spat upon, mocked, rejected by those he loved and poured his life into, and ultimately crucified.  As He prayed, He prayed that there could be another way, but regardless, He wanted the Fathers will to be done, not His.  As His disciples slept Jesus prayed.  They didn’t quite get the urgency of the moment, or have the strength the stay awake.  I am sure this added to the hurt that Jesus was feeling knowing what was about to happen.  I thought these notes today were good and really spoke to my heart:


    You may not face execution for your faith, but you will probably face many problems that wear you down.  You deal with irritating people whom you must love and serve; you face the burden of unfinished tasks or lack of obvious results; you cope with helpers who let you down of fail to comprehend.  Remember that in times of great stress, you are vulnerable to temptation, even if you have a willing spirit.  Jesus explained how to resist this from happening:

    1. Keep Watch – stay awake and be morally vigilant
    2. Pray to God – this is how to maintain your vigilance
    3. Seek support of friends and loved ones – this is how you build up your resistance and help others; when one is weak, others are strong.
    4. Focus on the purpose God has given you – This is how you do Gods will not your own.

    Father help me to listen to the Spirit, when my body is weak!

  • John 17

    “‘Now I am coming to you. I told them many things while I was with them in this world so they would be filled with my joy. 14 I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. 15 I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. 16 They do not belong to this world any more than I do. 17 Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. 18 Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world. 19 And I give myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by your truth.’” v.13-19

    In John chapter 17, we see Jesus praying for Himself, His Disciples, and Future Followers.  His overall message is that we would become ONE just as He and the Father are ONE.  In this he prays that His Followers would know the truth of His word, and be in the world but not of the world.  The only way this can happen is when we get serious about knowing God and we allow The Holy Spirit to reveal Truth to us.

    How do we get this truth?  Great question!  You can gain some of it by attending Church, but the best way to get to know God and His teachings is to spend time with Him on a daily basis.  When you do this, God will reveal himself in new ways.  Think of it like a conversation.  You speak to God through prayer, and he speaks to you through His Word.  Carve out time in your day to connect with God and you will see your relationship with Him grow stronger and deeper.

  • Halloween 08

    What a day!!  Josiah has been dressed as Spider-man all day.  He even wore it to the mall.  We had a great day today.  Played at the play area at Willow Bend Mall, played soccer in Old Navy and didn’t get kicked out, ate at Steak-n-Shake, and then went trick-or-treating in our neighborhood. The boys have enough candy to last throughout the year.  Here are some pics, enjoy!

  • Trick-or-Treat

    Josiah is excited about going trick or treating tonight!  He has never been and we will see how it goes.  He can decide if he wants to be a Ninja, Batman, Mr. Incredible, or Spider-man.  Lucky for us, he has all of these costumes because we collect them throughout the year.  Really today is no different than any other day at the Gould house; Josiah is always running around in some costume.  Last night when I got home from Worship practice he was Buzz Lightyear!  Should be a fun night, I’ll post pictures later!

    What are you or your kids dressing up for as Halloween?