I wanted to put a picture of Erik up on his birthday. I thought we didn't have one with us here in Colorado and that they all were in storage in California. But I just found one. Happy birthday, Erik!
Monday, March 30, 2009
A special day to remember.
It was 34 years ago. It was Easter morning, shortly after midnight, that I took Linda to Parkview Hospital in Fort Wayne, IN. There were some snowflakes falling but the ground was too warm to have any accumulation.
Later that afternoon, our firstborn son, Erik James Koopman was born. His great-Grandmother Hanaman celebrated her birthday on the 30th of March. She was born on Easter, also. She had not celebrated her birthday on Easter until that year of 1975.
What a bundle of joy he was! As he grew, Erik loved to play Legos and Hot Wheels with his brother and friends, play on our friend Randy's drumset, and wear his specially made Superman cape. He loved to eat pizza, fried chicken, ice cream, and to walk around the then new Toys R Us store.
In January of 1979, we noticed that he was not feeling good, he was not as active or wanting to play as usual, and he was constantly having a fever and in some pain. We took him into the doctor because he seemed to not be shaking what we thought was the flu. His blood counts were off and it was determined he had Leukemia. The very next morning, we were on a flight to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, TN. There Erik courageously fought the disease with highly skilled doctors and nurses trained in the best treatment of childhood cancers in the world. Erik died February 18, 1981.
We miss he greatly. He taught us a lot about how to love every moment of life with your loved ones and to be ready to go and be with your Savior, Jesus Christ. He told many of us, family and friends, as we were getting ready to go to the airport to take him back to the hospital just before he died, "Meet you in the sky." He was referring to the fact that several of us were to get on planes and go home. But we all knew, that someday we will be joined together again in the presence of the Lord in heaven.
Celebrate his birthday and life with us. You can do this by having pizza, ice cream, or playing with Legos. (If you have a Superman cape, you can wear that if you want, no pressure.) But most of all, enjoy life with your loved ones.
Later that afternoon, our firstborn son, Erik James Koopman was born. His great-Grandmother Hanaman celebrated her birthday on the 30th of March. She was born on Easter, also. She had not celebrated her birthday on Easter until that year of 1975.
What a bundle of joy he was! As he grew, Erik loved to play Legos and Hot Wheels with his brother and friends, play on our friend Randy's drumset, and wear his specially made Superman cape. He loved to eat pizza, fried chicken, ice cream, and to walk around the then new Toys R Us store.
In January of 1979, we noticed that he was not feeling good, he was not as active or wanting to play as usual, and he was constantly having a fever and in some pain. We took him into the doctor because he seemed to not be shaking what we thought was the flu. His blood counts were off and it was determined he had Leukemia. The very next morning, we were on a flight to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, TN. There Erik courageously fought the disease with highly skilled doctors and nurses trained in the best treatment of childhood cancers in the world. Erik died February 18, 1981.
We miss he greatly. He taught us a lot about how to love every moment of life with your loved ones and to be ready to go and be with your Savior, Jesus Christ. He told many of us, family and friends, as we were getting ready to go to the airport to take him back to the hospital just before he died, "Meet you in the sky." He was referring to the fact that several of us were to get on planes and go home. But we all knew, that someday we will be joined together again in the presence of the Lord in heaven.
Celebrate his birthday and life with us. You can do this by having pizza, ice cream, or playing with Legos. (If you have a Superman cape, you can wear that if you want, no pressure.) But most of all, enjoy life with your loved ones.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
As you can see, this is all new to me. My first blog was written several weeks ago. I didn't do anything with it until today. There have been a couple of highlights of our family members that we missed noting this month.
* One highlight was Jared and Mary Lou's announcement that their little baby was going to be a girl. Both Linda and I are thrilled and we look forward to August to see this little bundle of joy.
* Another highlight was that Jared had a birthday. His 31st. We are so proud of him and his wonderful wife, Mary Lou.
* Aimee & Holly went to see Jared and Mary Lou to celebrate Jared's Birthday. And they are both looking forward to Graduation this Spring.
* One highlight was Jared and Mary Lou's announcement that their little baby was going to be a girl. Both Linda and I are thrilled and we look forward to August to see this little bundle of joy.
* Another highlight was that Jared had a birthday. His 31st. We are so proud of him and his wonderful wife, Mary Lou.
* Aimee & Holly went to see Jared and Mary Lou to celebrate Jared's Birthday. And they are both looking forward to Graduation this Spring.
Colorado blizzard days
Two days ago we had a blizzard. My work was canceled for the day but I was able to do computer work for the company at home. That was good. And since we got behind because the business closed, I was able to work several hours this Saturday and get a little overtime. Yeah.
It is much warmer today. The snow is melting and Linda hung some clothes to dry outside in the sun.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
This is new for me. I thought I would try it to let you all know what is happening in our family. This year will be another first for Linda and I. Last May of last year, our son Jared married Mary Lou in a beautiful wedding in Sunnyvale, CA. Now we look forward to this coming August, when our first grandchild will be born. That will be a lot of fun for Linda and I.
Linda and I continue to fix our house from the wear and tear of previous tenants. It has come a long way but more things still need to be done. We got our downstairs bathroom functional again and with the help of Linda's Dad, we redid our stairway. I just need to stain and finish them and they will look really nice.
Linda still is searching for employment since her seasonal Macy's job ended in January. I am still working at Kroll Government Services.
Well, I am going to stop right now and see what this blogging is all about. So thanks for taking the time and looking at this blog.
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