Avery says "Bye Bye to Baby Bed..."

The time has come that we say goodbye to the crib... 

I knew there would be some emotion involved as we turned the page to a the next chapter in our lives...

      
• Ch.1 Marriage / Job / Moving to Fl / Buying a House / More school / Motorcycles!
• Ch. 2 Life with a new baby!
• Ch. 3 Life as a family of 4!
• Ch. 4 NO MORE LITTLE BABIES... I have 2 big girls now!!!

I way underestimated the feeling of not having a little baby that needs a crib!  I so enjoyed every moment of rocking my girls to sleep, nursing and holding them tight, looking at them sleeping so peacefully in their beautiful nursery...

 Children are truly a gift from God, and a blessing beyond all imagination!  

I pray that he gives us, as parents, the wisdom, guidance, and patience to be Godly examples and raise our girls to know, love, and obey Him!

Avery's Big Girl Room...

Avery is 2yrs and 2months, the same age Ali was when she transitioned 

into her big girl bed and passed the crib to Avery.  

Ali's Room

Ali is almost 4 1/2 years old now and such a good big sister!

 

We are excited to pass the crib down to Dru & Kristin 

who are expecting their little girl to arrive in late Jan 2014!

Cici & Pop Pop to Florida...

We had a fun visit with CiCi & Pop Pop when they came down to visit us at our house in Florida!

Love you & Thanks for all your help!!!

We're going to have a new little niece!!!

Dru and Kristin are expecting a baby GIRL Jan 28, 2014!!!

They told us back in July when they were visiting but we had to keep a secret because it was early in the pregnancy... so difficult b/c we are so excited and happy for them!  We just found out on Sept 11th that it will be a girl!  

They are entering a new phase of their life, and I pray that God will guide them as he has us...  Dru and Kristin are all smiles and they will be great parents to this precious little miracle.   Every day is a gift -- Cherish Every Moment!  

Heaven's newest puppy, Hailey...

A new puppy enters heaven tonight...

We will miss you sweet Hailey!

~ Nov 1, 2002 - July 23, 2013 ~

You are a great dog, and a member of our family.  You are part of our lives, and you will never be forgotten.  You went on nearly every trip and adventure with us from the boat, to the beach, to W'boro, and the mountains.  You were always so sweet and gentle with Ali & Avery from Day1.  You were their very best friend!!!

We miss you beyond what words can express, but we know you are in a good place.  

As we walked outside to say goodnight, there was one star in the cloudy sky, and we knew that was Hailey letting us know she made it home safely.  

There is a feeling of emptiness that fills the house - a void that will not be easily masked.

We love you Hailey Anderson Myers!

Hailey Update...

Today's appointment with the Vet resulted in a less than desirable change of plans...  

The pre-op X-rays indicate a rapidly progressing cancer has moved into her lungs.  We are seeing dramatic change since the last chest x-ray taken in mid June one month exactly.  It would remove discomfort to do surgery but is this right for her?…probably not. 
Lungs - 30% has fluffy white appearance – in June is clear.  There is one nodule and 40% lungs affected; one more well defined 2.2 CM mass.  
The Dr said that we should not have any regrets or reservations, as we have made calibrated decisions in choosing the best options for Hailey.  We could have done the surgery 1 month ago and her lungs would still be a problem. 

This past weekend was a long one, as we anxiously awaited surgery as a relief for Hailey to remove her discomfort.  She is very weak, not able to walk, has nearly 0 appetite even with a buffet of options - She has been on pain meds, but is whimpering and crying more now - She is not comfortable.  I never imagined this day.

Tonight will likely be our last night with her.  Please keep our family, especially the girls, in your prayers.  We will miss her greatly.  She has been such a special part of our lives for close to 11 years.  

Hailey needs your prayers!

As many of you know, Hailey is our 1st child.  She was born in November of 2002 and came to live with us in December.  She helped us acclimate to a new chapter in our lives -- getting married, moving to Florida, starting new jobs, and the list goes on...

Recently, Hailey has been battling an issue with her back right leg.  It started back in late April with just a limp, then not using the leg, then swelling in her little toe, then her foot, now into her knee.  To make a long story short, the doctor's believe it is a type of cancer.  We only have 2 options, and doing nothing is not one of them...

After a series of vet visits, x-rays, labs, etc., we have scheduled an appointment on Monday to go in and do some finalpre-op x-rays and blood work to verify the bad cells have not spread, then to remove her leg.  Our best case scenario is that this allows Hailey to regain some strength and energy, and she can enjoy more time with us and the girls, without being so uncomfortable.  

Just pray for us to have the wisdom to make the right calls, and for he doctors doing the surgery, and for Hailey to know we are doing everything we can to make her feel better.

 She still loves going for a "Walk" and being outside... now, she perks up to go on a wagon ride around the circle with the family.

~We ALL love our Hailey girl~

Our Little Mermaids...

Last time my Mama came to visit, she brought us a sign that said... 

"Swimmers Beware, 

Mermaids in the water"

Ali & Avery love the water and are quite good swimmers...  I love it!  

 Avery just finished her refresher session w/ ISR instructor Brianna Craycroft.  She is getting really comfortable with her swim-float-swim sequence and hand targets (only swim to an adult if they hold their hand out).  

Ali did a brief refresher and started with stroke development.  She learned the back stroke, front stroke, elementary back stroke, and the breath stroke.  She loves swimming and practicing her new skills.  She's also been experimenting with diving down for rings and touching the bottom -- tonight, Ali touched the bottom in the deep end (with a little help getting down)...

They love their slide too! 

 Sweet Mermaid Sisters!

Summer 2013 Family Pictures

Avery @ 2 yrs

 Ali @ 4 yrs

Sweet Sisters...

 these were the first ones they took... Avery's not so sure what's going on!

My girls!!!

"...one more time"  ~Avery

PARIS -- Our 10 yr Anniversary Trip!

June 3rd - June 10th 2013

We made it to Paris despite rush hour traffic from the airport to our hotel...

The sites were stunning and the weather was perfect - 

warm & sunny, quite like home!

One disclaimer... our hotel was very centrally located (near the Eiffel Tower), so as you will soon see, there are lots of cool pictures from various points in our exploration of the famous 1000 ft steel structure!

making the climb!

 view from the top...

 just having fun...

 view at dusk (10:30pm) from across the bridge...

 the view from our hotel balcony...  and the final sparkle before it goes dark for the night!Notre Dame

celebrating nearly 1,000 years since the start of construction!  

this took >175 years to complete...

the original crown of thorns from Jesus' crucifixion

 beautiful stained glass in all the cathedrals...

 the love lock bridge...  

We added our lock celebrating our 10 year wedding anniversary ;)

climbing the towers @ Notre Dame & check out the view!

"Point Zero" = the center of France

 Sainte Chapel - originally built to house the crown of thorns

 The Louvre

 The views from the river...

 We climbed the Arc Du Triumph...

 Versailles - Chateau and Gardens

 the street markets of Rue Clare

 Ecole de Militaire

Sacré Cœur

the open markets of Montmartre

lookin up...

We had an awesome trip... one that we will look back on and remember for a lifetime.

Thanks to Nana for coming down to watch the girls, and for keeping them so happy and safe!  

I did quite a bit of exploring on my own with my Rick Steves guide book while Eddie was working, then we took a couple days over the weekend to explore together and hit the highlights of my adventures!  Paris is a beautiful city, but it is a big city... and I was glad to return to my small town life with my girls~