Merry Christmas!

Dear friends,

Once again, the new year is almost upon us and we can't believe how time has swept by so quickly.

This year has brought many ups and downs, but through it all, God has been faithful to us, most of all to
Lizzie, for whom this year has passed without any major emergencies, or the need for any surgery.

Our little one started pre-school in September and has shown great progress in her social and physical development.
Best of all we are pleased to report that she is communicating more clearly and uses words that often surprise us (perhaps because we have underestimated her abililities?), and as a parent its these little things that bring us great joy.

Sometimes as I observe her play and interact with her friends, I silently thank the Lord for allowing her to come as far as she has. All the while we are always aware that God is the one in control of every situation, and as we make plans for the future, we are constantly reminded that tomorrow it can all be easily taken away, according to His perfect will - so we should never take things for granted.




So as we approach the new year I am wondering what it will hold for us.
We continue to hold on to His promises for comfort and healing, and that the plans that He has for us will give us hope and a future. We try to instill in Lizzie a love for God and His Word, and to teach her that in every situation there is a reason to give Him thanks, and to pray unceasingly.

We are well aware of the complicated road that lies ahead and we have not given up our prayers for a miracle - there was a verse which spoke to me (Jn9:3)- about a blind man, and the reason for his affliction. Jesus answered that the true purpose of his disability was not because of punishment, nor was it because of anything anyone had done, but solely that the works of God would be manifest in him. Therefore we are submitting our daughter into His hands that whatever He has instore for her will be for His glory.




We give thanks that Lizzies eyes have been fine this past year - she is squinting less, vision is still normal, and her constipation is getting sorted out gradually.)

Lizzie getting her eyes checked

So as 2009 draws to a close (I am literally typing this on New Year's Eve to get in one last final post before 2010!) we want to remember those of you whom we have not seen for a while, those of you who were once close, those that prayed with us, who helped us in various ways, and those with which we have lost touch.




We just want to let you know that you are not forgotten, but we do remember you and think of you now and then with fondness and gratitude. You know who you are. We are sorry for not keeping in touch more often, but hope that in 2010 you and your families will be blessed, and that it will be a time for old ties will be renewed.

God Bless,

Elaine, Simon & Lizzie

Last week's rush to the A&E

Dear friends,

Thanks for all the prayers and concern after the scare we had last week.

Lizzie has been suffering the effects of chronic constipation - turned acute.

She was suddenly in a lot of pain - and kept pointing to her tummy and told me "Mummy, pain".

Within half an hour, she was screaming and crying non stop (completely out of character for her), and her blood pressure suddenly plummetted (due to the pain), and she was shivering and white as a sheet. We think the only thing keeping her from passing out from the pain, was that her screaming and crying kept her blood pressure up.

We hurried to NUH A&E (thankfully Simon and myself were at home at the time), and she was seen to pretty quickly. Thank God for the reassuring familiar faces of her doctors.

She had her system flushed out was able to be discharged after having some oxygen by mask, and a rest on the trolley bed. Lizzie was so exhausted she slept for 2 hours straight after reaching home.

We definitely learnt a lot from this experience (having been used to watching out for blueness, her turning white gave us a big fright).

We recently saw her paediatrician who also gave us reassuring and encouraging news - despite her constipation, her cognitive development seems to not be too far behind her peers (as we previously thought). Height and weight is also within the average range for her age. Praise the Lord!

We are in talks with her paediatric gastroenterologist on how to manage, and hopefully solve her long term severe constipation problem.

We just pray that it will not worsen, but she will be able to grow out of it, and recover completely, without anymore medication or hospital treatment.

Meanwhile all of this happened to coincide with her first weeks at preschool - and we are happy to report that she is crying less and less each day, and gaining confidence and lots of friends at school. We want to be able to let her 'fly' on her own, and hope that she will be able to settle in quickly and without any lingering fear or insecurity.

Little ballerina Lizzie

Playing in her pajamas

Lizzie, Abi & Jonan

First day of preschool - with teacher Miss Sisi

Father & daughter

With Mummy @MRT station

We continue to commit her life, her wellbeing and her character into God's hands, and thank you for praying with us all these years. Everyone's prayers have not only touched us, but also have helped our little Lizzie become the bright cheerful girl that she has become today.

God Bless,

Elaine

Lizzie is a BIG girl!

Dearest friends

It has been a while since our last posting, and since then we have seen some big changes in our little one.

Firstly, to update you on the recent medical appointments -

Eye doctor review - we are told that she is ok for now, and that her eyes are not getting worse (in terms of her squint and her vision) and that everything still remains in normal range. Praise the Lord!

Cardiac review - recent scan of her heart shows that everything is still holding up well, and that her shunts are functioning correctly. The surgeon told us that the next operation (her open heart corrective surgery) will probably still be in 1-2 years time.

Lizzie having her echocardiography done

On a lighter note - this month Lizzie has learnt to ride her tricycle properly, and we'll probably have some pics on the next post :)

Grandma is trying to teach her some Mandarin - (as Mummy's spoken Chinese is non-existant, and Daddy has always found it painful) we hope she'll pick it up well!

Lizzie @home

Cheeky monkey @school

Lizzie likes to clean!

My purple drink "BOT-TLE"

Lizzie loves "Ting-Ting" the tortoise-next-door

Lizzie @Gymboree

HEE HEE HEE!

Lizzie does the splits!

I love playing with lego blocks

As always we continue to ask for your prayers and thank everyone for their continued support and friendship.

God Bless,

Elaine

Lizzie goes to the bird park

Dearest friends,

We recently brought Lizzie to see her paediatrician, and was advised to consult an eye specialist, as she is developing a bit of a squint, and the doctor suspected that she may be short sighted.

So we went to the childrens' eye specialist, and after the first lot of tests we were told she had very severe astigmatism and short sightedness, and that her squint would need surgery!  We were completely in shock. ANOTHER SURGERY?!?!

After more detailed testing, to our relief, the eye specialist told us that Lizzie indeed had astigmatism, but it was still within normal limits for her age, and as for her vision, she had long, not short sightedness, which was ALSO within normal limits.  Phew! Thank God.

However, she warned if her squint does not improve, or worsens, she may need to go ahead with surgery on her eyes to correct it.

We will have to return for a review in 3 months to see if things get better.

Please pray for Lizzie that she will have normal eyesight, and that she will not have to undergo anymore surgeries than is necessary.

I'll have what Mummy and Daddy are having....

Oh well, I'll settle for water again....

Its tough without a bendy straw....

Freeze! its Inspector Lizzie!

We recently brought Lizzie to Jurong Bird Park - she really enjoyed herself, pointing at all the birds and giving us a good workout (lugging around Lizzie's pram, Lizzie's bag, and Lizzie).

Liza-bird & Mummy

Liza-bird & Grandma checking out scary huge fish.

Father & daughter taking a quiet stroll 

Rainbow lorrikeets in a row

"The World's Most Dangerous Creature"

Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day.   Lizzie:  "Slurp!"

"I've got chocolate where?"

"Ah, nevermind..."

Thank you for blessing us with your prayers, and for encouraging us to continue this blog.  We continue to ask for your prayers for Lizzie, during this time, her condition is stable, but we recognise that she still has a long road ahead of her, and we want to remember to look towards God for guidance and direction every step of the way.

God Bless,

Elaine

Updated pictures of Lizzie in various activities!

Dear friends, thank you for your prayers and keep a watch over Lizzie's progress. Lizzie is well and by God's grace, is prospering in all sense of the word :D

Lizzie watching her DVD -->



<-- Lizzie relaxing with flowers in hand

Lizzie still watching DVD, with Mommy -->

<-- Lizzie posing at home

Lizzie playing in the tub -->

<-- Lizzie, before she snatched the camera

Singapore Idol Lizzie -->

<-- Japanese Geisha Lizzie