Mr. Matthew "Cohen" Allred

Earlier this month, we had the honor of going to Post, Texas to watch Cohen in his end-of-school program. During the program, we watched in awe as Cohen and his classmates recited a few of the several memory verses they had learned, as well as a couple of songs. He did amazing!! You could tell that he was nervous, however, I honestly don't think that he missed a word! My favorite part of the program was when a story was told about Cohen. Cohen and his classmates were given some cards with numbers on them. They were told to identify the numbers and to place them in order. Not only did Cohen finish first, but his cards were placed very neatly as well. His teacher came by and prasied Cohen and asked him to give her five. Instead of giving the typical "high five," Cohen picked up the card with the "5" on it and gave it to his teacher! Way to go Cohen!!!

Strength

"Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it."
Proverbs 22:6



Myself with the strongest woman I know, Lucretia

I had an amazing day today. One of my dearest friends came to town and I was able to enjoy having lunch with her. Lucretia has taught me so many things and I will be forever grateful for our friendship. Lucretia has taught me some of the most important lessons in life. She has taught me how to love, to never give up, and how to be a friend.


Lucretia with Korbin and Kayleigh

Lucretia and I met at South Plains College when we were both enrolled in the Surgical Technology program. We instantly became friends. She has the purest heart and a contagious kind of happiness. Towards the end of our first semester, Lucretia found out that she was pregnant. From the beginning, I joked around with her saying that she was going to end up having twins. Much to my surprise, I was actually right! I will never forget the day she came to class with her ultrasound pictures of two little UFO looking figures. The program that we were in had a very strict absence policy. Lucretia did all that she could to continue the program. With the start of the second semester came the start of dreadful clinicals. She went as long as she could before having to drop out of school. One my way to class one day, I received a phone call that Lucretia was in the hospital because of complications with the babies. She was just over half way through her pregnancy. Then early on the morning of May 13th(2005) I got a wake up call that Lucretia had to have an emergency c-section. This was bitter sweet because this was also the morning of graduation and I so badly wanted to be able to walk across the stage with her. However, Lucretia became a mommy to the most beautiful son and daughter. Korbin and Kayleigh were born at just a little over a pound each. I feel in love with them the first time I saw them. They were both so tiny but each one had such an beauty to them. It is hard to explain. As you can imagine, both babies were faced with several complications. They both fought so hard! Early on the morning of August 16th(2005), I got the heartbreaking phone call that Kayleigh had been called back to her Heavenly Father. She fought so long and hard for someone so tiny. She will always be remembered.



Lucretia with our angel, Kayleigh

I learned so much from Lucretia's experience. Like I stated above, she taught me how to love. Madison was getting ready to turn 3 when all of this was going on. I knew that I loved Madison more than anything. However, Lucretia showed me a different kind of love. She was up at the hospital as often as she could be with her precious babies. With each medical report that came in she continued to be positive and to hope for the best. When she saw that Kayleigh was hurting she made the decision to take her off of the life support and send her to the one place where there is no pain. In a way, she gave her daughter new life. What an amazing way to show your child that you love them....


She taught me not to ever give up. Lucretia did have to drop out of the program the year I was in it. She also got back in the program as soon as Korbin was strong enough. Not only has she graduated from the program, but soon after graduation, she got her certification!! Just in case that wasn't enough, she is now in school and about to graduate with her LVN. She sets no limits for herself. Most people, including myself, would have given up if they had to endure what she did. She never let it put her down. She uses what she went through to push her to be all that she can be for Korbin. I know that Kayleigh is looking down on her mommy as proud as she can be.


Lucretia and Korbin(almost 3 now!)

Lucretia is the most amazing friend. She doesn't let anything get in the way of being there for someone in need. She can be struggling and still drop all that she is doing to be there for you at anytime. She is a rock!! I am truly blessed to have her in my life and to be able to call her a friend...


Lucretia and Allison




Note to Lucretia: Thank you so much for letting me share your story. I know that I didn't do it justice. You are so amazing and I am so proud of all that you do!!!

Meet The Allred Family

Matt and I were married on January 6, 2007. On that day, I married my best friend. Matt is the most amazing man and is the biggest support to our family. I have a daughter, Madison, who is 5 years old now. Matt has a son, Cohen, who is 3 years old. We just welcomed the newest addition to our family, Allison, on December 27th. Our days tend to be very busy but oh so worth it! I am truly the most blessed woman in the world!!

Meet the Allred Family:

Matt and Jamie Allred (Daddy and Mommy)



Matt is 32 now. He is currently working for AT&T. He does an amazing job and is one of the top representatives in the call center he works at! He comes home and starts working overtime as my husband and daddy. All of our kids look up to him as a positive person. I do as well! Our lives are so much better for having him in it. He is so amazing with Madison. I could not ask for a better man! He treats her the same as he does his biological children. He helps her with her Bible studies and loves her unconditionally! She loves him the same!!
I am 25 now. Due to complications during my pregnancy with Allison, I am currently a stay-at-home mom. I love being with Allison all of the time. I also love being able to go to Madison's school events. However, I miss my other job. I am a Cardiovascular Surgical Technologist. I am very passionate about my career. I also love knowing that when I am working, it takes some of the stress off of Matt. He never complains, I just don't like seeing him stretched so thin! I am looking back into working again. Sooner than later....

Madison (Our Gymnast)



Madison is getting ready to turn 6 in June! She is almost finished with her Kindergarten year. We are so proud of her! She is reading now and gets special notes sent home with her talking about how well she is doing and how she sets a great example for the other kids. This past weekend, Madison competed in the state Trampoline and Tumbling meet. She is ranked 6th in the state, out of 110, in double-mini and trampoline! She qualified for Regionals in Fort Worth. That meet will take place the middle of May. What makes us most proud of her is her love of God. She has been asking several questions about becoming a Christian. We are going through a workbook with her that helps explain what that decisions really means. She will be going back to North Carolina in June to be with her biological dad for about 6 weeks. She is excited about going. We will be missing one of the most amazing people in the world when she is gone!

Cohen (The Bible Scholar)



Cohen will be 4 in June. When people talk to Cohen, they are surprised by his age. Cohen is simply amazing! I have lost count of how many Bible verses he has memorized. He has so much love for life and his family. Everyone that comes in contact with Cohen is truly blessed by him. Cohen lives in Post, Texas with his mom and her family. We are able to see him every other weekend and some extended periods throughout the year. It is not nearly enough for us!! He is so missed when he is not with us. Our family is truly what holds us all together and we make the best of the times that we have everyone together. I am so blessed to be a part of Cohen's life. I really look forward to what the future holds for us all!

Allison (The Smallest Allred)



Allison is our newest addition. She made our family complete on December 27, 2007. She was born 4 weeks early. She is our miracle. I started having contractions when I was 21 weeks pregnant. I was in and out of the hospital. Towards the end of my pregnancy, I was having to go to the doctor 3 times a week. It was all worth it! God has blessed my family so much with all three of our kids. God never stops amazing me! Allison will be four months old in a few weeks. It amazes me how fast she has grown. She is such a good baby. She sleeps through the night, rolls over on occasion, and is so full of smiles for everyone. It is fun to watch her because she is still so small! Her newest trick is to do laps in her crib at night. She somehow manages to push herself along the edge of her crib. She is so strong for someone so tiny!!

You have now been introduced to the Allred Family. We are not a perfect family in any way. We are however, a Christian family that has so much love to give one another. Yes, we do have hard times, but together we make it through them. God has blessed us so much and continues to do so daily!