The Mitchells: He Is Risen...He Is Risen Indeed

Sunday, March 23, 2008

He Is Risen...He Is Risen Indeed

Easter growing up was always about the resurrection of Christ and I want the same for our children. No Easter baskets or candy or egg hunts this year, but we did get to lavish them in Easter outfits. The pastor, Dr. Jeffress, made a very valid point...Christ didn't leave bones or flesh behind...he rose from the dead to pay the debt for all of our sins...isn't God's grace and mercy priceless?!

Clothes laid out the night before:

William all ready to go to church:

Easter breakfast:

Ready for Sunday School:

Happy parents:

2 comments:

Christi said...: It's comforting to see that we aren't the only parents that don't do baskets or hunts for Easter! Christ is risen indeed!!!; 8:45 AM
Chrystie said...: Andrea,

I am sooo with you on getting deep into the REAL reason for Easter. I love that Ella and William will know about their Savior and what He did for them, not just that the Easter Bunny loves him some chocolate! I also LOVE LOVE LOVE Ella's Easter dress---she's celebrating Jesus' ressurection in STYLE!! William is precious too, but there's always something extra special about little girls in white dresses!; 10:47 AM

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Ella's Story

Elizabeth "Ella" Hope Mitchell was born on May 10, 2006 at 3:45pm...by 5am the following morning the whole world turned upside down. The doctors came in to inform us that while Ella had been resting in the Newborn Nursery, she began to have irregular breathing and seizures. It was touch and go for the next 3 days. We were told several times that she probably would not make it alive through the ordeal. She had contracted Group Beta Strep which had resulted in meningitis. Due to the seizures and the infection we had no idea what the long-term effects would be. After Ella spent a long and trying month in the NICU we came home to see where the effects of her illness had left us all.

A few months later, almost a year, we had an official long-term diagnosis...Ella has Cerebral Palsy. She is a happy and loving child. She struggles with physical delays, cognitive delays and all sorts of things that have come and go.

2-eye surgeries to correct lazy eye
3-EEG's to check for siezures
5-MRI/MRV/MRA to check actual brain damage
3-CT scans for brain stuff
1-G-button/feeding tube surgically put in (and then Ella removed herself)
10 (approx)-Swallow Studies
1-Scoliosis Study
2-Kidney Reflux tests
2-Upper GI tests
1-24 hr reflux test
8-hearing tests
countless UTI tests
seemingly a million developmental tests
a hand splint
bath chair
adaptive stroller/wheelchair
stander
gait trainer
AFO's

ha, not to mention all of the therapist...currently: OT 2X/week, PT 3X/week (2 land, 1 horse), ST 3X/week (2 oral motor, 1 speech), develomental 1X/week, vision 2x/month, and we are about to start ACCDAT camp.

As of 4/8/2009.