Hope this update finds you safe,
secure, well and blessed. Once again, we apologize for the delay in
updating you. This has been a very busy summer so far for us and there
is no sign of it letting up until after school starts.
Most of you know that the one year
anniversary of Erin Hope's homegoing is August 2nd. It seems as though
this has been a very quick, but also, a very long year for us...if that
makes sense. We are certain that this week will be very difficult for
us; much like most days but worse. This past Sunday, a year ago, was
when she went to Victory Junction Gang Camp (
www.victoryjunction.org ) where she fell ill on that Wednesday from
what turned out to be brain tumors and bleeding inside her head. This
required emergency brain surgery that evening. We thank God for the
fine medical team there at the camp that treated her. Less than two
weeks later, Erin Hope "changed neighborhoods" and was escorted by
angels into the presence of her Heavenly Father. We miss her so deeply
but wouldn't ask her to leave heaven and come back for anything! We ask
that you pray for us during this difficult week.
My mind has been on Erin Hope a lot
these past few weeks; more so than usual. Memories of her last days
with us flood my mind. Her favorite stuffed animal, Frisbee, still
sleeps with us. Some things that I miss about her are: Her laugh, her
smile, the way she would look at me when she was being mischievous, the
look on her face enjoying watching others have a good time, her
goodnight kisses, and yes, even her temper tantrums. One other thing I
miss is the way she smelled. Many times, I would kiss her bald, or
lightly hair covered head and smell her head. It wasn't perfumed or
anything like that, it was just her scent. I can still recall it. This
may sound a little crazy, but we still have all her knit caps that she
would wear in a hat box. Occasionally, I will open it up to smell the
ones she used most and I can smell her. The feeling is indescribable.
Erin Hope's dad has had some health
issues lately and we ask for your prayers for him. About a month ago,
he became increasingly weak and fatigued and was having fevers and
chills. Then he suddenly became pale and anemic and lost weight because
he couldn't eat well. The doctors thought that there may be something
bleeding or worse. He had a colonoscopy which showed diverticulitis and
inflammation. This next week, he will have an upper endoscopy to see if
there is any bleeding in his esophagus or stomach. He is feeling much
better now but is having to take iron supplements. He was out of work
for two weeks but is back to work now.
Hannah and Andrew are having a great
summer going to camps and going on field trips to fun
places. They have gone to the zoo, Carowinds, ranches, mining, and
other fun places. What a blessing they are to us!
We ask that you visit the guestbook
section and sign it. We also ask that you share your favorite memory of
her if you have one, or something that you really enjoy about the
website, or maybe how Erin Hope affected your life. It would be oh, so
comforting to us to hear from you.
As always, our prayer is that you have
received the free gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ. If you
have not, please visit the "free stuff" section from the main page of
this website and learn how you too can go to heaven and meet Erin Hope
there.
May God continually bless you as He
has so richly blessed us!
God is good...ALL the time!!!