Hearing Her Voice

These two recordings of Emily's voice were recorded on Sonja's cell phone.  Sonja gave the phone to a friend and then -- months after Emily died -- we got an email from the friend with the two recordings attached.  HOW PRECIOUS!  We're so glad we didn't lose them.  They're only a few seconds each.  Click on the links below to hear them:
Emily Singing Jingle Bells
Emily says "I love you, too, Mommy"

A Christmas Memory

This picture was taken at Emily's school in Florida before we moved to Virginia.  She loved Christmas, the story of Jesus, and the traditions of Santa, lights, the tree -- and carols.  She loved to sing Christmas carols.

Our last Christmas with her was in the hospital less than a week before she met face-to-face the One whose birth we celebrated.  The whole family was there, and we decided that it would be as normal a Christmas as possible, so we read the story of Jesus' birth and sang carols, and -- as sick as she was -- she tried her best to sing along, even though she was feeble.  

Today, she's singing His praises out loud.  And on pitch.  (As much as we loved to hear Emily sing, she was usually far off pitch, but it was the most "joyful noise" we had ever heard.)

A Word from Sister Abbie on Emily's 17th Birthday

A WORD FROM SISTER ABBIE: "Today would be Emily's 17th birthday, if she was still alive. When I think of Emily, I think of a gift so precious, so undeserving, that I begin to realize why God would want her in heaven with Him instead of in this dark world. She had such a pure heart and passionate soul. She loved everyone to the fullest extent and clung to the people around her. I miss her each and every day. But somehow it feels like the pain of her not being here starts to come alive again on events like this one. Emily, I will see you again. And when I do, It will be the happiest day of my life. I miss you so much and cherish the time I spent with you. I love you ♥ Happy Birthday."
We planted a snowball bush in her memory today. It's not bloomed yet, so the picture below is of the lilac bush we planted last year for her 16th.

Annual Movie Night in Memory of Emily

Toy Hine, the children's ministry coordinator at our church (Thomas Road Baptist Church) just told us about an annual movie night she does in memory of Emily. It's for kids and adults with intellectual disabilities in the community. Emily loved movies, so this is very fitting! (Toy is her real name. How appropriate for someone who works with children's ministry!)

Death of a Child

I was asked to write an entry entitled "Death of a Child" for the Popular Encyclopedia of Christian Counseling (2011). Just researching and writing the piece was very healing for me. CLICK HERE to read the article.