Friday, September 8, 2006, 10:07 a.m., D.S.T., Nashville, Tennessee~

Dear Journal~

Hi! It's me, Louisiana, journaling again! :)

He's here! He's here!! Our little Israeli Miracle child, Gabriel Abrahiam, is sade and sound within the confines of our happy home (and family), and oh, my Lord, he is so beautiful!! Gabriel has a headful of dark, wavy brown hair, huge, luminous dark eyes, and a sturdy little body. He is everything we could have ever hoped for!! :)

Little Gabriel arrived yesterday afternoon, along with his "escort", Amina Perlman, who is acting as his "guardian" until he is settled in. Amina speaks both English and Hebrew; she will act as his "translator", so we can understand what he is saying to us. (Gabriel speaks very little in the way of English; he primarily speaks Hebrew.) Understandably, Gabriel is scared, but once he gets to know us (and his new surroundings) better, his fears should lessen, and he should start to fit in to our family.

We have already fallen head over heels in love with him! :)

In addition to our new son's arrival from Israel, we have been doing some last-minute shopping for our upcoming cruise to Alaska, which starts in only two days! (We leave immediately after the second morning services at our church on Sunday.) From the Nashville airport (once we get checked in, that is!), we fly to San Fransisco, California, and after we spend a night there, we go to our ship, the Carnival Spirit, where we will board and chug our way northward to the westernmost fringes of Canada and, ultimately, Alaska, where we will be for two glorious weeks! :) We canNOT wait!! This is going to be so much fun!! :)

Even Gabriel is going with us to Alaska (as is Amina). I don't know what he (or she, for that matter!) will think, but I do know that he (or she!) will probably have the best time of their lives! Kids and adventure seem to go hand in hand, and a family cruise to Alaska is one of the best possible ways to welcome a new child into our family! :)

I have some sad news to report: Rebekkah Rachel Cohen is ill again. It seems that she has developed another infection. She has pressure sores from the constant rubbing of her prosthetic limbs on tneder stumps, and she has an infection as a direct result of this. She is now grounded from using her prosthetic legs until the sores/infection heals; she has to either stay in bed or in her wheelchair. I pray she doesn't end up in the hospital again...

I told Rebekkah's mom (Naomi) about Johnny being allergic to poison ivy (Johnny is covered in bumps, not to mention, Calamine lotion; he is still miserable, but he is starting to feel a little better!), and she was sorry to learn of Johnny's troubles. I was sorry to hear about Rebekkah Rachel; I will have to send her something extra special from our trip to Alaska, to help her take her mind off things...

Ronee' is singing at church on Saturday (and again on Sunday), as part of the city's tribute to the fifth anniversary of September 11, 2001; it will have been five years on Monday since America was attacked by foreign terrorists, killing nearly 3,000 of her citizens. Ronee' will be singing "God Bless America" and "America The Beautiful". Ronee' was originally scheduled to have sung on Monday the 11th, but we start our Alaskan cruise that day; she will have to perform earlier than what was originally planned.

I hope we get through that day in one piece--it is a hard day for all Americans, and we will never forget the horror we felt as we watched the events unfold and the helplessness we felt as a nation when we realized what was taking place. I know it is hard for me: I have friends who either died or were injured, and so the pain for me is all too real!

Now we are at war, and things are no longer the same. Because of hate, twin towers no longer stretch gracefully into the NYC skyline, and the Pentagon isn't as safe as it was originally thought. Because of hate, people now live in fear, and we wonder if we will be attacked again. It is a scary world we live in nowadays, but God will bring us through these trying times!

Well, I have to go: Gabriel has fallen to the ground; he is seizing. This is the second seizure he has had since coming here. I will have to see if I can get him into the doctor's today, to see if he can give us a medication to try to control the seizures! I will write in here again sometime soon! Take care and God bless!

~Love, your friend, Louie May. :)