That Spot in the Road

The daffodils have started coming up around the cross and stone. They were planted in the fall of 2007 by Randy Frueh, so this is the second year they have come up. The yellow blooms brighten that tragic patch of grass as they are full of symbolism. Daffodils have meanings of hope, faith, honesty, truth, and forgiveness. They are vigilant in returning each spring. With their return, they remind everyone that their beauty is capable of following on the shirttails of even the harshest winters or tribulations.
Sorry if they are hard to see, I still can't bring myself to get out of the vehicle, so the pictures were taken from my car.

~ To answer the question in the comment, Marc trimmed the grass around the area into the heart shape for the last 2 years. I think we have it trained now because this is how it looked yesterday with no trimming yet. ~

Two Years Passed

As this day begins to draw to a close, the pain in my heart still has not lessened. But how could it when I just kissed and tucked 2 girls into bed instead of 3. How could it when we had to visit our middle child at a cemetery and kiss her pictures. How could this pain lessen when I would still do anything to trade places with my Abrielle.
When I awoke this morning, it was like a weight was on my chest and the tension in my neck was so tight I could hardly turn it. It felt like it was a chore to even get out of bed. I was glad to have Becci here because I knew Marc was feeling it too. It was as if there was an elephant in the room and no one wanted to acknowledge it. I choked down the tears until Elly came out with Abby's stocking hat and gloves. They were on our cedar chest from Christmas pictures 2 years ago and I just couldn't bring myself to put them away. That's when they started flowing. Later I spent some time in Abby's room, which I still can only bring myself to do maybe 3-4 times a year. I looked at pictures until they became unbearable and had worn myself out from too many tears. Beth came out later along with my parents, which was a nice distraction for all of us. This also gave Marc and I the chance to go see Abby just the two of us. On days like this when we take Mady, she's the one acting like the grown-up and consoling us. While the comforting is nice, I would rather she grieve too.
Some friends came by later, which was such a nice surprise. They knew better than to call first because they know me too well and I would have told them we were fine. We welcomed the company.
As we carried Elly upstairs to bed with her Pinky, she started squirming to get down. Marc put her down and she ran to get her other crocheted afghan that we have always called Greenie. I said, "You need Greenie too?" She grabbed it and said "Abby Blankie". This was the first time we have heard her call it that. In fact, she had never been too concerned if she had it to sleep with or not, just Pinky mattered. I do enjoy the messages from Heaven we get.
Thanks for all your prayers, comforting words, and support as we still mourn the loss of our precious Abrielle.

A Message to My Abby

My heart has been growing heavier as that fateful day draws closer, so today I am going to speak to my Abby...

It has been 2 years since your brown eyes danced with life, but there are some things I want you to know~
You will always be my middle child, the filling in our family sandwich
You will always be Mady's little sister, her playmate and her shadow
You will always be Elly's big sister, even though you never got to hold her
You will always be my bravest, strongest, most adventurous girl
You will always be my Mommy's Girl
You will always be a Granddaughter, a Niece, a Cousin, and a Friend
You will always live so strong in our hearts that it will seem like it was just yesterday that you left
You will always hold a special place in my soul that can never be filled
You will always be the one to help me keep my faith, because without it, I won't see you again
You will always bring tears to my eyes at the very thought of you. I will not let those tears dry because it is in that pain and grief that you live the strongest
You will always be our Abrielle, no matter what. Just because time passes, nothing can take that away. You are not gone, of that I am sure. You have just gotten a head start to that beautiful gathering place we will all join you at.
I love you Abbers and miss you every day~
Hugs and Kisses ~
Mommy

Little Miss Abrielle

Just sharing another happy memory...

Our little Abrielle loved to wear dress and hats, they were just fun for her. Needless to say, as you can tell by the picture, she definitely got her wear out of them. This one is a bit short, but it sure didn't matter to her. We always thought it was funny that she liked to wear dresses because she was far from lady-like. I always said she could easily have been a boy.

New Years Challenge Donations

Wow!! The New Year's Challenge brought in 85 boxes of ziplocs, 4 stuffed animals, and $60 in donations. Thanks Betty Ann Dean for organizing this and thanks to all that participated.

Our ER Visit

When we started the Foundation, we did so with the intentions of helping other children and never really thought that one of our girls would need to receive a stuffed animal. Yesterday, Elly had to be taken to the ER for dehydration. She had been vomiting for 2 days, unable to keep anything down. She had been refusing liquids yesterday and had become limp. We could not get her fever to come down and she had only had 2 wet diapers all day. Finally after a phone call to a friend, we took her in to the ER. There they tried forcing fluids like we had been, only to have them come back up. At first when we were asked if Elly wanted a stuffed animal, we said no, save them for the other kids, but then we changed our minds. We decided our little girl was not exempt from the comfort the animal would give, so they brought her out a teddy bear. We were glad they did too. She had to have blood drawn and an in and out cath to get a urine sample. After everything was tested, she was given a shot to stop the vomiting and we were sent home to force fluids. We are keeping our fingers crossed that this will do the trick and we can avoid an IV (the doctor on duty doesn't like doing IVs on little ones). She seems to be doing better today, no vomiting yet, and she has finally started drinking.

Elly has kept a hold of that teddy bear she received all morning too. We are very appreciative of the work of everyone that has helped with the Foundation for bringing some comfort to our little girl.

A Story of Success

I am going to direct everyone to another blog so you can read for yourself one little boy's experience in the hospital and the animal he received.
http://micciaswonderfulworld.blogspot.com/2009/02/sams-hospital-gig.html

This is what the Foundation is all about..."Making Life Brighter for Area Kids"