February 2006 Unanswered Prayer...

Hello! Well, we are all doing well here. Erik has decided that he wants to lift both legs and make attempts to take steps! Praise God! Over the past few weeks we have been reminded of how amazing God truly is! We realize that God has done as He said He would which is to hear our prayers while doing His will. We have so many times asked God to make Erik like other kids with his conditions/challenges by letting him display typical symptoms and behaviors. He has only once let Erik clearly display "typical" symptoms. Although at the time we did not understand why God did not answer our prayer, we now know. Our time spent with therapists and doctors over the past few weeks has been eye-opening. So many times we have been told that children who have been through what Erik has been through "typically" are not progressing as well as he has. There is that word again - typical. We have been told that "typically" he would not be able to try to communicate, support his weight, make eye contact, make sounds, etc. Yet he is. Our response to God about this it simply, "THANK YOU". We thank God for not answering our request the way we wanted it to be answered. It is funny too how many people use the exact word, "typical". God is clearly and directly letting us know that He heard our request yet answered it His own way. Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we move through many changes and stages in our lives as a family. God bless, Erik's Family

February 1, 2006 Latest News

Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 11:12 pm Post subject: 2/1 Latest News Hello Everyone! Hope everyone who receives this email is doing well. We are all doing okay here. Margot, Brigitte and Nick are all doing well. Nick is just getting over the chicken pox. He had the vaccine but still had a mild case of them. The girls are "tracked out" of school and the weather has been nice here so they have been spending alot of time outside and down by the creek. This means Mom has been spending alot of time washing "play clothes"! Erik is doing great. He doesn't talk yet - well he does say "oh" and "hi" appropriately these days. He is awake most of the day and makes lots of sounds throughout the day. His favorite thing to do is stiffen his legs so we place him in a standing position. He can stay upright with us holding him for a minute or so and just looks so happy doing it! This is a big step because he could not do this at all in October! His head control is much better but he is still wobbly and not able to hold it up alone for a long time. If we hold him in a sitting position, he will keep it steady and even turn it to look to the side some. All of his therapists are coming to the house now and they say he is making remarkable progress. He just loves therapy. He does not complain and is very motivated during his sessions. The local school system came on Monday to talk about offering school services in the home. They are going to offer 1 hour per week to start with and then have 1 additional OT and PT therapy session per month. Erik just isn't able to successfully be in a classroom setting. He cannot defend himself and he still has the broviac too. He is progressing so well that we want to keep things going in the right direction! The 12 hours per day nursing has been wonderful. Keep us in your prayers. Pray for Erik to continue to get stronger and more responsive, and pray for our family to remain strong through our faith over the coming months. God bless, Erik's Family //--> TeressaGuest Posted: Tue Feb 21, 2006 4:37 am Post subject: Praying for your family Hello Everyone, Was thinking about the family when I was looking at the family picture. You know I guess we were truly meant to meet one another because we have gone through some of the same problems. Darrell (Poochie) was laid off his job in August and is still looking for a job. When you have worked on a job for so long; it's hard to find a new job that can even come close to matching up to your old job. I'm glad to hear that Erik is making progress. Quintez stood last week for the first time since April. He is doing well ( Thank God). I will be sure to continue to keep the family in my prayers. Don't give up God will definately supply your every need. He's supplying our needs and he will do the same for you. Take Care, Love Teressa