Pappy's Ticker

Pappy gave us all QUITE a scare earlier this week! It seems as though he had been having a few episodes of "chest discomfort" over the course of a few days and finally decided he'd better go see the doctor. So on Monday he saw his family doc who immediately referred him to a cardiologist. First thing Tuesday morning, he saw the cardiologist and was told to go straight to the hospital to be admitted. Uh oh. If that wasn't a "wake up call", I don't know what is! He spent the night at the hospital on Tuesday and on Wednesday morning, he had a "heart catheter" procedure to diagnose the problem once and for all. He knew going in that the treatment options were either a stent to open a possible blocked passageway OR open heart surgery. Gee, can you guess which one we were praying for?! When the doctor came to find my mom and me after the procedure, he said, "It's a GOOD DAY!" so we knew the outcome must be positive. Unfortunately, they found a major artery that was 99% blocked. Fortunately, they were able to insert a stent, which completely resolved the problem.

Whew!!! Quite a stressful few days, to say the least. We are so relieved and thankful to have Pappy back at home once again. I know there were lots of prayers going up for Pappy, and we so appreciate that. God is good!

Now, our goal is to keep Pappy HEALTHY and OUT OF THE HOSPITAL for the rest of the year. He was just in the hospital for surgery to remove his gall bladder (also very sudden and unexpected) in May. He isn't really liking the 'every other month plan', so hopefully he can go back to his trusty 'once every 60 years plan' instead. LOL! :o)

Fun Times . . . Great Friends

We had a wonderful day this past Friday as we spent some quality time with very dear friends. Nick, Carly, and I headed about 60 miles south of here to Mt. Zion to visit the Schmidt family and see their new home. Fortunately for us, we enjoyed a 'mini China travel group reunion' as a couple of Carly's orphanage sisters were also there for the day (Anna Schmidt, Kailee Martin and Myah Wright)! Karli Blevins (who was adopted from a different province a few months after we adopted Carly) also joined in the fun. Some pictures of our beautiful China girls:




Playing in the hammock:

Popsicle time by the playhouse:

Playing princess dress up:

Many thanks to Jen for opening her home to all of us for the day! I don't think it will ever be the same again. I say that only half joking because midway through the day, Jen sent Robin and me (is she brave or what?!) to Hobby Lobby to shop for "things" to decorate her kitchen and family room with. Now let me tell you -- THAT was fun! I have found that I do *love* to spend other people's money! LOL! Anyway, we made quite a haul in the 80% off aisle, came home, kicked Jen out of the house, and Robin and I went to work to add our "special touch" to her beautiful new kitchen. Thankfully she liked what we did to it, so it was a win/win all the way around!

What a great way to spend the day! I rounded my clan up around 8pm and we headed back home with two VERY tired, but very happy kiddos in tow. I continue to marvel at the strong natural bond these girls seem to have -- it truly is like they are kindred spirits in so many ways. Carly just absolutely beams when she gets to spend time with her "China friends". And what is also heartwarming are the wonderful friendships that have formed (parents AND siblings) all as a result of our girls.

Here's to Fun Times and Great Friends! Cheers!

Family Photo Shoot - Marco Style!

Great results last night at our annual "family photo shoot"! Here's a sampling of some of the shots we got (many thanks to our niece, Jen, for serving as photographer for the evening!):

Family Vacation 2009 - Continued

Some pics from our time in Marco:

Rainbow over the Gulf:

Playing in the sun and surf:

Our niece, Jen, joined us this past Sunday:

Pool time:

Sunset shot:

Sea turtle nests on the beach. There are more than we've ever seen before, although we're told it is not a "record setting year".

Family Vacation 2009

We departed Bloomington a week ago (Wednesday, June 24) headed for Disneyworld. 17 hours by car and we make the drive straight through. So many people have asked me in the last couple of weeks how in the world we travel that far by car with 3 kids and manage to keep everyone happy/content. Well, here's the answer: 6 laptops, 2 Blackberries, 4 cell phones, 4 IPods, 3 Nintendo DS's, 2 PSPs, 1 portable DVD player and 1 XBox. Not to mention the fact that we also have an entertainment system (including a DVD player) in the van. WOW. Is it any wonder I couldn't get ANYONE in the car to engage in a meaningful conversation? LOL. We arrived at the Polynesian resort around 7am on June 25, checked in (but couldn't get into our rooms yet), changed into our swimsuits, and headed straight to Blizzard Beach for the day. We got into our rooms later that afternoon, showered, rested a bit, and then headed to Hollywood Studios (formerly MGM Studios) to hit a couple of our favorite attractions (Rock-n-Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, and The Little Mermaid show) that evening. We spent Friday, Saturday, and Sunday touring the rest of the parks and making sure everyone got on all of the rides they wanted to go on as many times as possible. :o) The weather cooperated very nicely -- we only had showers the first evening and temps in the upper 80's / low 90's the rest of the time. A few clouds here and there helped keep the temperatures and humidity tolerable. All in all, a GREAT little trip -- we had a wonderful time and are so thankful we were able to squeeze it into our budget at the last minute. We were too busy to take too many pictures, but here are a few for you to enjoy.

Waiting outside the front gates of the Magic Kingdom:

Dumbo with Oma:

The Teacups:

The Carousel:

On Monday morning, we checked out of our hotel and hit the road for Marco Island. Hooray!!! Relaxation at last!!! Honestly, I don't know how people can do Disney for a week and then go right back to work ... I need about a week to recuperate after all the physical activity associated with Disneyworld! LOL. Thankfully, here we are -- once again, enjoying one of our most favorite places in the world to be. We'll be here for the next week and a half, so we're all looking forward to lots of beach time, shelling, and swimming in the next 10 days. More pictures to come - check back soon!

Happy Summer!