Let me tell you about...my son Halton

     One of my goals for this writing adventure of mine was to spotlight my different children from time to time, so... today I thought I'd let you know a little about my son, Halton. For those of you who know me personally, you probably already know about the road that he has traveled to become the person he is today, but maybe you wouldn't mind reading this recap of the beginning of his life.

While I was pregnant with Halton, John went on his first of many youth mission trips. I went to my parents home in Amarillo with Emily and Loressa while he was gone and during that time I received a phone call that began the marathon that we have been running ever since. You see, that phone call said that they suspected something was wrong with Halton and that they thought it was Down's Syndrome. They told us to come in immediately for further tests. Of course, "Immediately" was impossible because we were out of town and, since I knew that we would keep and love Halton no matter what, it didn't really make a difference how long it took to get more tests done. When we finally made it back to take the other tests, I was well on my way to the acceptance and understanding that God was taking care of my family and so I had nothing to fear. After they had done some more extensive testing, the doctors decided that the earlier tests were wrong and that there was absolutely nothing wrong with him, but I think John and I both spent the rest of the pregnancy with the feeling that we had been given that wrong information in order to prepare us for something. That "something" was Spina Bifida.

     Because of being born with Spina Bifida, Halton has spent the last 19 years of his life in and out of hospitals having 19 different surgeries. He's had surgeries for big things and small things, from straightening his little toe, to bladder augmentation, to being in a body cast after a surgery to try to straighten out his pelvis, to staff infections, to wearing the Ilizarov in order to lengthen his shorter leg and, to his most recent, jaw surgery. Life in our family was often centered around his stays at the hospital and all of his doctor's appointments.  When he was just a little boy, we went to a wonderful church called First Baptist Church of Old Ocean where some sweet men helped us to get Halton into the Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. Because of Scottish Rite, Halton always got the best care possible. In order to help us with our many trips to Dallas to go to the hospital, the church started the "Halton Fund." I think that our lives would have looked a lot different if those sweet people from Old Ocean hadn't taken such good care of us and I will always be very appreciative. Looking back, those hospital and doctor visits marked our lives in a very positive way. We grew closer as a family because of those trips  and that has shaped our family immensely. What could have been looked at as a burden ended up being a beautiful blessing to our family.

     A lot of people already know that Halton's favorite super hero has always been Superman and when he was little he wore a blanket around his neck as a cape for several years. Yesterday, as Halton began his first day at work, some little girls told him that "Superman" wasn't real. In his attempt to convince them, he finally let it slip that he was indeed "Superman" and yet, they still didn't believe him, so he playfully argued with them. Finally, he said, "Go ahead, kick me, I'm invincible, I won't feel a thing." So he stuck out his leg (the one with the brace that is paralyzed below the knee) and let them kick him....That's my "Superman." When he told me the story, I thought... only you, Halton, could take what some would call a disability and make it into a super power.

      Halton has always been a joy to be around. He has never complained and just accepts all that he has been through as a part of the life God wanted him to have.I hate my kids growing up, but one thing is for sure, I love what God has done and is doing with Halton . He's going to make a wonderful husband and father someday, although I'm not sure if there will ever be a girl good enough for him in my eyes. (It's hard to imagine who could fill the position of Lois Lane to his Superman.)

     Halton is a gifted worship leader and songwriter. He and Loressa lead worship with our youth with their band, "More than a Memory" and they have begun to play at D-NOW's and retreats. If any of you have any need for a great worship band or know someone who does, please keep them in mind. Halton also writes songs filled with romance and has recorded his first CD and hopes to have it all finished really soon. You can look up Halton's music under Halton Peck on youtube or by looking up Treehouse Lane (Halton's band name) and you can find a little bit of MTAM's music on my youtube page (pampeck9) as well.  I'm going to try to post a video of one of his songs on here so you can get just a taste of it, but you know me...You might be better off just looking it up on youtube or on my Facebook page.

     I hope you have enjoyed this little excerpt about Halton's life. I know I enjoyed traveling down memory lane in order to write it:)  I pray God's blessings to you  and your families.