chicken pox and pneumonia

Ok, Uncle Paul has won the affections of Elizabeth Qian Jiake Lee Miller!! When she sees him, she takes off as fast as she can to jump into his arms. Last night, Uncle Paul brought Emily and Sam home. I told Elizabeth he was outside. She had huge carebear slippers on her feet. She took off for the door (it was open) and onto the porch. I caught her just as she was stepping off the front step. Her little feet were still running, midair, to get to her Uncle Paul. Needless to say, Uncle Paul is thrilled!

Here's our little buckeye fan. She's the first daddy's girls who loves watching football games with him. Boy is daddy happy! This outfit, believe it or not, was Erin's when she was the same age. I can't believe I have something left of the girls for Elizabeth to wear.



It was a sad day for me on Friday. A very precious man in my life went onto to be with Jesus. He passed into glory on September 12th. He was like a second father to me for a period of my life. He also was the doctor who delivered 3 of my precious babies. Here is Elizabeth just before we left for his funeral. Funerals are odd. They are a time of great sadness for those who are left behind, but for those that we know had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, they are a time of celebration. We celebrated the life of this man. He knew the Lord. His life reflected his love of our savior. Please pray for his family who will deeply miss his presence here on earth.



Well, Elizabeth wrestled through the chicken pox.. or at least we think she did. It wasn't a horrible case and she didn't have any high fevers. She probably had 40-60 spots on her, but average is 300-400. I wondered if she had them for sure, but the doctor said that he was pretty confident that is what they were. He saw them, so I will take his word. A week later, she ended up with pneumonia. A runny nose for a day and the next day she had pneumonia. Wow... it comes quick with her. This is her second episode. I wonder if she has some kind of lung problems. Time will only tell. This episode of pneumonia, we are pretty confident, is probably a secondary infection from the chicken pox. Until now, I wasn't aware that pneumonia could be brought on due to the pox. Learn something new everyday, I guess.

Other then the latest illnesses, we are doing well. We still are unsure of what direction God is leading us with the adoption. We've slowed down quite a bit and figure that maybe we jumped into it all too quickly. We are perfectly content with a long process. Funny how things change. We couldn't get Elizabeth quick enough. We have, though, completed just about everything to make us ready to submit our dossier. If we go to El Salvador, we need to have a pyschological exam done on both Mark and I, if we go to another country, we will need to redo our homestudy paperwork. I am at a standstill as to which direction to go.

As far as other news... well... my little girl is now driving. Wow. 15 1/2 years goes by quickly!!!! Yes, Emily is behind the wheel. She passed her permit test and is now allowed to drive with an adult in the car. She was very nervous and after forcing her to sit behind the wheel, she drove on Friday. She did excellent. She will be a very good driver! It is a scarey thing to have your baby driving for the first time. I thought I would be nervous about her skills.. ... but actually, I am nervous about everyone else. I am fearful of those who might be careless (as I have been before). A mom or dad looking back to help a baby in the car seat, a teen who might not be paying attention to the road but to his or her friend or the music on the radio. A drunk driver, a child who runs into the road unexpectedly, bad weather, someone who has fallen asleep at the wheel, someone whose tire falls off their van suddenly (memories), someone who is on their cell phone and takes their eyes off the road to dial, black ice, snow, an accident happening right in front of her, a blow-out, someone who runs a red light, someone who puts their breaks on suddenly.... you know.. all the unknowns!!! It's crazy when you take the time to think about it. Ok.. I decided to stop thinking about all the things that could happen and just enjoy this new stage of life. And boy will I enjoy the extra driver!!!!!!!!!!

Erin is still doing well in soccer. She has made 10 goals so far in the season. It is fun watching her play. The girls have all welcomed her onto the team. They are now 4-2-1. Jacobs team is doing fantastic. They have scored 11 goals in 2 games. He is a wonderful defender. He has really stepped up and become quite aggressive on the field. Sam's team has lost 2 games already. He is frustrated and not having a great time. We have struggled for several years with him and soccer. It just might be time for him to make a change. He is an excellent soccer player and could really do alot, but it just isn't going to happen on the team he is on. Despite the struggles and the lack of learning skills, God has worked and worked on his attitude and learning how to handle himself through trials. For those experiences, it has all been worth it. He has come a long way and I am thankful for it.

Mark is working hard on building a bridge for us to walk across in the back of our woods. He has done a great job. It has been all by hand and tons of sweat! I am so proud of what he has done. I love it. When it is accomplished completely, I will post a picture.

As for me, I am busy keeping track of our schedule.. all too often failing at that task. It is a joy to raise these wonderful kids... but oh how exhausting!