Happy New Year

It will be a good year. I'm very hopeful. I have to apologize for the lack of updates. I'm not much of a computer person so I don't update like I should. That could be one of my New Year's resolutions: update blog at least once a week.
The kids had a great Christmas break. Today is their first day back to school. The girls have a basketball game tonight. Elizabeth is really getting frustrated with herself and basketball. She just can't breathe well enough to keep up with her teammates and she thinks that her coach forgets that she has a problem. She says he seems to have lost his patience with her. In the beginning of the season he was very understanding of her breathing situation, but when a child looks perfectly normal on the outside it is easy to forget that she is actually struggling. I think I need to remind him.

BLESSINGS

My life has been full of blessings. Even with all of his medical struggles, my husband is such a positive person and an inspiration to others. He is one of my blessings and his suffering is also a blessing because through his suffering, he is still LIVING and LOVING and being good example to others. When the kids were little and would ask "why doesn't God answer my prayers to make Daddy better?" I would tell them that God was using Daddy as a tool to reach others and spread His word and show others what Faith is.
A couple years later my son asked "when is God going to be done using daddy as a tool?"
Elizabeth is also a pillar of strength and faith. She has watched her dad suffer, but she has suffered too. She says she just wants to be a regular kid and doesn't want anyone feeling sorry for her....cheer her on yes, but don't pity her.

Thankful

Thank you for your continued thoughts, prayers and support that we need in order to provide Elizabeth the best quality of life in improving her health. Because of your help, we were able to stop an interruption in health care by paying off one of the doctor bills.
Please keep Elizabeth and our family in your prayers and thank you again for your continued support.
God Bless, Tom

Halloween Memories

Halloween 1994

Run, Run....breathe

this is toward the end of running for 8 minutes at 9 miles per hour. She was having pain in the right side of her chest and said she just couldn't get enough air!

Back from Cincinnati!

The clinic at Cincinnati Children's Hospital knows what they are doing. They pushed Elizabeth to her limit and the test results will be given to Dr. Cotton by Tuesday.
We should hear from him by Friday.

It was so hard to watch Elizabeth stuggle. She wanted to stop because her chest was hurting and it was hard to breathe, but the tech pushed her to KEEP GOING! It had to be done in order to recreate what she feels while on the basketball court. She's quite a kid. We are proud of her.

Here are some pictures: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UR2B00LUv7w

Results.....

Well, the results are in and they are inconclusive, ugh. It showed some airway obstruction, but since Elizabeth never got to run on the treadmill as fast as she does on the basketball court they couldn't get information needed. The doctor at U of M actually said she was surprised that we had the test at UM instead of Cincinnati. She did her residency under Dr. Cotton in Cincy and she says Cincy Children's has better equipment and can reproduce the conditions on the basketball court for Elizabeth much better than UM can. So, now we have to travel to Cincinnati for the test. We were hoping not to have to spend the money on travel and lodging down there. She has an appointment next Friday, September 28. I'll keep you all posted.