Tim & Vanessa Lorentzen Family!

July 12th - Well here goes a 2 week update for you!  Left late the 30th with Hollis, Jasper and Starlit for the Suzuki Institute at Brandon University in Brandon Manitoba.  Hollis was enrolled in the guitar teacher program and had to be there 4 days before the rest started so we all went early.  Hollis started on Thursday the 1st and went through the following Friday. Jasper & Starlit went Monday - Friday with master classes, group class and a technical class.  Starlit also was in beginning orchestra and Jasper was in a singing class and we all had choir!  So it was a busy time.  We camped at a nice campground in Brandon and had mostly rainy weather. We did a lot of biking in spite of all that and Jasper, Starlit and I did some site-seeing on Saturday and Sunday - will put some pictures up later.  We got back home at 1:30 AM on Saturday the 10th and it was good to be home! We were not around for any fireworks on the 4th but did enjoy them on the 1st up in Brandon. 

July 19th - Well, the kidney stone that was plaguing Vanessa is gone!  She had several more attacks this past week and on Thursday night we went in to emergency.  They sent her up to labor & delivery and they gave her a shot for the pain.  We went home around 3:30 and she was pain free for 3 hours.  At 6:30 the pain set in again so the doctor said she should see the kidney specialist and admitted her to the hospital.  The specialist decided to do a procedure at 2:00 to look for and hopefully eliminate the stone.  At around 3:45 he talked to me and said he had found and blasted (with a laser) a one centimeter (1/3 inch) stone that was stuck tighter than a cork a was going no where!  He showed me the pieces in a container that he was sending to the lab, they looked like little pieces of gravel!  Vanessa came through the procedure and they kept her overnight Friday night.  She is now relieved of that horrid pain but has a lot of aches from the whole ordeal so please pray for her.

July 26th - My parents came back down (OK so I missed a piece of news about David & kids and mom & dad being down for 2 days the week of the 11th - we had a good but short visit - went to the lake - weather was hot!) after being at a conference in Saskatchewan for the week and then George came out Thursday evening and on Friday we all (except Vanessa) went out to Medora to the musical.  It was a good time as usual.  We ate at the pitchfork fondue this time for a change and that was good (and different!).  Ross has joined the local gun club and participated in a shoot on Saturday and Sunday so Janice stayed at our place with Vanessa.  My parents left Sunday to head back north.  Vanessa is feeling better but still having water retention problems so continue to pray for her.  This Friday she sees the doctor to get this stent out that he put in to make sure the kidney would drain properly.  If all looks good he will not put another one in and that would be great!  Hot weather here, we have gone down to the river several evenings to just wade and cool off.  Sorry no pictures yet!  I know it is no excuse but I have been very busy at work and with all of the rest of this going on.