Alphabet

I have been trying to capture Elise singing the alphabet on video. Whenever the video camera comes out, Elise stops doing anything. She is facinated with technology. I managed to capture the tail end of her singing. Enjoy!

Apple Works

Here are some pix from our trip to Apple Works with the Arnolds and Kleins.


The Slide - Elise liked it, Rebekah, not so much

On the train - Karis loves Elise, and Elise loves Karis!

Kids and Family Photos

My Faith - In Loving Memory of Nicki Baker

I knew Nicki from my church youth group - the Donut Shoppe. Nicki was beautiful, fun, talented, and spunky! I write this in her memory.

To write about my faith openly is scary for me. I am not an outspoken person about anything. Faith is such a sensitive subject. But, as I think about Nicki, I know this is one thing I can do in honor of her memory that really matters.


Nicki was a follower of Jesus Christ. The verses she listed on Facebook regarding religion are:

Matthew 25:35 - For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,


and


I Corinthians 2:2 - 2 - For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.


It is impossible to understand this tragedy. It is so terribly sad. Words cannot express.... However, I have hope. I have hope in the promise of Jesus Christ. My faith as a Christian isn't about Christian culture; it is not about politics; it is not about arrogance. It is about 'Jesus Christ and him crucified.'


As a follower of Christ, this is what I believe (all scripture from the Bible).



for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (Romans 3:23)
For the wages of sin is death, (Romans 6:23)

God made him who had no sin (Jesus) to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God. (I Corinthians 5:21)

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perrish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

...and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement,[i] through faith in his blood. (Romans 3:24)

I won't pretend that when terrible things happen, my faith isn't rocked. I don't have all the answers - I don't pretend to. But, I do know that I cannot imagine enduring tragedy like this without hope in Jesus Christ.



Nicki gave her life for her Maddie. She loved her daughter. This is just a glimpse of the love Jesus Christ has for us - to give his life and take on our sin for us.



Here is a description of what I hope for beyond this world and what God promises.



Revelation 21:3-4

4He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."



And so I must choose to say:

I Corinthians 15

55"Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?"[h] 56The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.


In Loving Memory of Nicki Baker

End of Summer

As the last few days of summer ensued, we tried to make the most of them. On Saturday, we took Elise to the Monroe County Fall Festival Parade. In my twenty years in Bloomington, I had never been (its in Ellettsville, which is a neighboring town), but it was a really nice and really long parade. There were a lot of spectators, but not so many people that you couldn't get a front row spot. Elise loved watching the floats, trucks, and kids go by, and especially loved the candy thrown at her.

Elise had another first this week - her first pedicure. I am actually surprised it took me all summer to do this. She is just getting to the point where if I ask her not to touch paint because it is wet, she listens, so it was good timing.

Here she is peering down at her toes.

Lastly, we used up the rest of the sponge paint, so we have a few cards for upcoming birthdays. It was a messy, but fun activity. Now, on to fall activities like berry and apple picking; hopefully we'll have a hike in the future, too! And you can wait in anticipation to see Elise in her Halloween costume!

Nicki - Update

Here is the update on Nicki - I think it is answer to prayer that she will be going to Methodist, where they are used to dealing with more extreme medical cases.

9/21 - 2:20 - The decision has been made not to do the surgery. The heart/lung specialist was not comfortable with it thinking that the risk was too great that Nicki's lungs would not re-inflate during the procedure. An ambulance is enroute from Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis where they do pediatric ECMO (see earlier update) and Nicki will undergo this treatment. The first concern is the ride up in the ambulance.

Pray for Nicki today at noon

My friend Nicki continues to fight for her life. It was four weeks ago today that she first went to her ob and complained of the harsh cough, which would turn out to be HELLP Syndrome. Despite all the odds stacked against her, Nicki continues to fight.

She had a time of alertness (despite being heavily sedated) yesterday after they put antibiotics, I believe, straight into her lungs in an attempt to help the holes in her lungs heal. Her mom brought Maddie in and put her near her face. Nicki twice turned her head to nuzzle Maddie. She also tried to talk (though she can't talk on the vent). I've read a bit about ARDS on the web - it seems that those who recover say they are aware, to some extent, about what it is going on - when people come/go, etc. I just feel convinced that Nicki knows she has a daughter who needs her.

Today, at noon, Nicki will have an operation that, to her family's knowledge, has never been done before. They will put some sort of glue on the outside of her lungs to help them reinflate and give her a chance to breathe withouth the vent (not right away but this should buy her some more time). The procedure has been done, but the way they are doing it, with some sort of lung bypass, has not been done.

The doctors have a number of times said that Nicki won't recover frm ARDS and that only a miracle will save her. She is still here. God hears the thousands of cries on her behalf and is responding. Please pray for Nicki at noon today. Ask God to protect her through the operation. Ask him to perform a miracle and save Nicki.

Love, Erin

Children's Museum

Elise has been chattering about Uncle Jon and Christi a lot these days, so we all headed to the Children's Museum this past Sunday. The last time we went was on Christmas Eve. It was such a better experience on a non-free day. Plus, Elise was able to understand and enjoy the exhibits a lot more at this age. The especially loved the dinosaurs. Future Indy Racer - Not if I can help it - too dangerous!

With Uncle Jon - She talks about him endlessly, but is very shy with him!

Learning science with Aunt Christi - someone needs to teach her - she likely will not learn it from Wes and me.

Nicki - Update

For those of you praying for Nicki, I wanted to provide an update. She has had a scary week - two collapsed lungs. However, the mood now seems optimistic - she is proving herself a fighter. They will begin trying to wean her from the ventilator today. They tried this once before - that caused her second lung to collapse.

Her mom is confident, by faith (rather than scientific proof) that the inflammation in Nicki's lung is healed and that she can begin to heal. Nicki has communicated with people, which is a really encouraging sign. She has opened her eyes and made hand gestures in response to people's questions.

Please continue to pray for a miracle for Nicki.

Please Pray

I'm asking for prayer for my friend, Nicki Baker. Nicki developed a very rare, pregnancy-related sydrome called HELLP. Complications from HELLP caused Acute Respitory Distress Syndrome. Her baby, Maddie, was delivered one month early by emergency c-section, and is perfectly healthy and adorable. Nicki, however, is in critical care and is fighting for her life. Please pray for a miracle healing of Nicki. Here are a couple of pictures of high school of Nicki and other members of our youth group - the beloved Donut Shoppe. Nicki is in the forefront of the first picture - we were doing a performance at a local Christian concert/event called Youthfest. The second picture is of the Donut Shoppe girls at a high school dance - Nicki is second from the right in the purple dress.

Elise's first tailgate

Elise attended her first (of many) IU tailgate last night. She had so much fun! She ate like a champ and was very excited about the Chick-fil-a cow mascot (though she was seeing it from a distant, so it wasn't too big and scary). She thought all the cheering was for the cow and would yell, "Yea cow!"

video

I wish we got more videos of Elise, but she is very difficult to capture. As soon as the camera turns on, she wants to see it from my view rather than being in front of the camera. Plus, her attention span is, well, short. You'll see.

Picnic

I feel very lucky to get to spend so much time with Elise. I truly never thought I'd enjoy being a mom as much as I do. The weather here has been beautiful, so Elise and I went on a picnic in the park. It is hard to take pictures of the two of us when it is just the two of us, but here are a few.

And this is just Elise being silly!