From Easter to Summer...

Ok, once again it has been a while since our last post.....please forgive us, and thanks for keeping up with us.  We are doing well and enjoying our summer.  Savannah is doing extremely well and is keeping me busy.  I wish I had half of the energy she has, it amazes me how she can just go, go, go.  She loves to read books, run and is climbing on everything in site.  In fact, just this past Saturday I went out to run some errands and left Patrick in charge, apparently I left a cup of water on the counter ledge which just so happens to have a couch beneath it...well Patrick left the room and a minute later heard a loud bang.  Patrick came back to find Savannah soaked...she had climbed up the couch and grabbed the cup (of course it was a full cup of water) and soaked herself and the couch.  Patrick's first reaction was to grab the camera- so now we have pictures to remember this incident.  At least the mess was cleaned up by the time I got home. 

So here is what we have been up to.  We had our annual March of Dimes, March for Babies event in April in memory of little Patrick (as well as to honor other little babies born pre-mature), our team name this year was "Lil' Patrick and Friends".  It was a big success, we had a bigger team this year so we set a team goal of $10,000- we raised $9,323!! We came in 3rd place again in the Family Team division (we came in 3rd place last year).  We were very happy with our efforts and look forward to doing it again next year.  Thank you to all that supported us!! This year we were asked by the March of Dimes to be an ambassador family, which means we are asked to speak at MOD events and participate in some of their other events throughout the year.  We shared our personal story at the annual "kick-off" luncheon to a crowd of 250 or so and although it was emotional we were honored to have the opportunity to share our story.  We will also be participating in a few more March of Dimes events toward the end of this year.

We purchased annual passes to Busch Gardens so we could bring Savannah to the new Sesame Street area for little kids and she absolutely loves it.  We have had the ability to go several times and each time Savannah leaves with a smile on her face.  They have great rides for the little ones as well as a water park-which is very refreshing given our HOT summer.  The last time we went Patrick's sister Rebecca and his mom went with us and we got to the park nice and early and Savannah got to meet Elmo and Big Bird- I thought she might be a little nervous about these big characters, but she loved them.  For Memorial Day week-end we went to the beach to visit my Aunt and Uncle at their amazing condo, I wasn't sure how Savannah would do with the beach and the water...but she loved it-except she didn't like getting sand on her hands.  At first I didn't put her jelly shoes on her but she let me know right away that she really wanted her shoes on....once her shoes were on she was very happy on the beach.  She was not afraid of the water at all, in fact she would run towards the waves as they came crashing in.  It was a great day. 

As most of you know, we bought a house back in January of 2009.  When we bought the house we didn't take much notice of the yard, well a year and a half later we noticed that 95% of the yard was WEEDS!! Our previous house had a beautiful yard (the sod was new when Patrick purchased the house) and together Patrick and I (along with my mom) updated the landscaping and it was beautiful and Patrick took such pride in maintaining it.  Back to our current house, our yard was anything but beautiful (in fact, I thought it looked like a house that would be in the foreclosure process-YUCK).  So, we took the plunge ($$) and had new sod put in as well as some new landscaping...Savannah now has a playarea in the backyard and Patrick is back to enjoying mowing and maintaining a nice yard....I think our neighbors are happy too.  We also expanded on where we planted the Magnolia for little Patrick and that now includes about 10 Hibiscus as well as another type of flower that attracts butterflies.  It is nice to walk outside and see anywhere from 3-5 butterflies flying around the Magnolia.  Patrick likes to say that Savannah has her play area and that the garden around the magnolia is Little Patrick's play area and the butterflies always remind us of Little Patrick.

Savannah's 2nd birthday is quickly approaching and that is definitely hard to believe.  The first two years have flown by and Savannah has made such amazing strides.  She has a vocabulary of about 40 words and knows the majority of her major body parts.  She continues to WOW us with how quickly she picks words and sounds up.  She may even be saying some full sentences in the next week or two.  We'll see.

Until next time.....Take Care and live life to the fullest....
Love,
April

8/7/10- The water incident.

Savannah's new play-area

May 30, 2010 @ the beach

Savannah's first Easter egg hunt & more

Well, it has been a while since we updated our blog so I will attempt to catch us up.

Our last post was Nov. 30th and that was little Patrick's first angel-versary. We spent the day together as a family and celebrated our little boy. We planted a beautiful magnolia tree (this is little Patrick's tree) and have plans to make that area of our yard more of a garden/oasis and maybe put an angel statue as well. Some people have asked if we buried little Patrick's ashes with the tree, we did not. We have his ashes in a beautiful urn placed on our mantle which happens to be Savannah's play room/family room.

We celebrated Christmas with the Emrich's, Kruck's & Chatterton's and did our normal mad dash to visit as many people as possible. Savannah just took in all the commotion. Chris, Laurie & Aidan came home for the holidays as well as Rebecca. Savannah did have a New Year's resolution this year "no more bottles in 2010 & beyond" so Savannah had her last bottle of milk New Year's eve night and that was that, no more bottles!! YEAH SAVANNAH ;)

After the Christmas holidays I started watching a little girl (at our house) 3 days a week. Her name is Carsyn and she is 2 months younger than Savannah. I have enjoyed watching Savannah & Carsyn's friendship blossom, at first they didn't seem to care about each other but now they have a great time playing and learning how to share. Now when they see each other their faces light up.

Savannah started walking at 15 months, around Feb. 10th. We have video of her walking, however for some reason the blog will not upload the video (the video is on Facebook for those of you on Facebook)....I will try to post some other videos later. Savannah is a "toe" walker, meaning she looks like she has on invisible high heels. It amazes me how she can walk on her toes, her little calves are developing fast. Of course, I asked her pediatrician about this toe-walking and he assured me she will grow out of it. She can walk flat footed and at times she does, but when she wants to really move she goes up on her toes and off she goes.

We just celebrated Easter, this was Savannah's 2nd Easter however last year she was so little. We woke up early so we could attend 7:30 A.M mass with Patrick's' parents. After mass we had breakfast with Patrick's parents at their house, yummy french toast. We then headed home so Savannah could nap and then headed to my Buddy's (my maternal grandfather) for our Easter celebration with my family (Patrick's parents also came over). At Buddy's we had a big gathering and that is where Savannah participated in her very first Easter egg hunt. It was so fun to see her walk around and pick up the eggs (plastic eggs), of course had to shake each one to make sure something was inside and then she would place or throw them in her basket. It was a beautiful day in Tampa and we enjoyed spending the day celebrating Jesus' resurrection and the wonderful family we have.

Here are some links to some of the pictures I have posted on Facebook:

Pictures from 11/9/09-1/7/10:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=51596&id=1300783496&l=51dea4370e

Savannah's first birthday party (part 2):
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=51610&id=1300783496&l=a656aff669

Pictures from 1/10/10-2/19/10:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=54622&id=1300783496&l=74e0911aa9

Pictures from 2/20/10-4/2/10:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=59004&id=1300783496&l=001d9ce589

Pictures from Easter:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=59575&id=1300783496&l=42b83563e8

Love,
April

Little Patrick's first Angel-versary

One year ago today God called little Patrick home. It's hard to believe that it has been a year already since his passing. My heart aches to have little Patrick in my arms and to hear his sweet voice. Parents should never have days like today to remember, but we do. Like all the other parents that have lost a child, we will get through it and one day we will know why these things happen.

Little Patrick was so many things in his short life, he was a: son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin and a great-grandson. He fought hard to come into this world and he touched so many people during his short journey here on Earth. He is now our guardian angel and is always with us. I know I will see him again one day and for me that day will be glorious.

This morning, Patrick, Savannah and I attended mass with Patrick's parents. Patrick and I will take Savannah to a park later this morning and then we will come home and plant the magnolia tree (along with my parents and Patrick's parents) we bought in memory of little Patrick.

Again, we thank everyone for all of the love, support and prayers that we have received during these difficult times.

Love to all,
April, Patrick and Savannah

Thankful

Yesterday we celebrated Thanksgiving (this was Savannah's first Thanksgiving AT HOME) with our family. We were able to celebrate the day with my family first and then we headed to Patrick's parents house for another celebration. All of Patrick's siblings came home for Thanksgiving this year, what a treat it was to have everyone together again. The last time we all were together was for little Patrick's memorial service last December.

As we reflect over the past year and all of the ups and downs, we still have so much to be thankful for. Here is an abbreviated list of what I am thankful for:

For a loving God.

The love and support that we have received and continue to receive.

That people still remember little Patrick and aren't afraid to talk about him.

A loving and supportive husband.

For a healthy and beautiful little girl.

That I am able to stay home with Savannah.

Dear friends.

Supportive and loving parents and in-laws.

Our extended family.

The food on our table.

Patrick's job.

Our neighbors.

Our home.

Of course this list could go on and on, but I hope everyone knows how thankful we are.

The next couple of days will be very emotional for us as these were the last days we had little Patrick on Earth with us. Please keep us and little Patrick in your thoughts and prayers over the next few days. Monday November 30th will be little Patrick's one year angel-versary, so if you feel inclined to release a balloon or light a candle on this day please do so in memory of our brave little boy.



Love to you all,

April

The big O-N-E!!

Well, it happened, Savannah turned the big O-N-E on Friday November 6th and her party was the next day. On Friday we drove out to the beach....this was Savannah's first time at the beach, we wanted to get her toes in the water and the sand. After the beach we had some lunch and then drove back home to get ready for the big party. Of course, little Patrick was on our mind all day as well, we sure do miss him and he is always in our thoughts.

On Saturday, we had a big celebration at our house with our family and some friends. We bought a cute little birthday outfit for Savannah and of course she was as cute as could be. When it was "smash cake" time, we all sung "Happy Birthday" and then put the cake in front of her....and she wanted nothing to do with it. I tried to show her how to run her fingers through it and taste it, but she was not having anything to do with that cake. It was a beautiful day for a party and everyone seemed to have a good time.

Savannah went to see Dr. Yee for her one year check-up and she received the following stats:
Weight: 20lbs 8oz (she is in the 37th percentile for her weight)
Height: 28.25" (she is in the 23rd percentile for her height)
Head circumference: 19" (she is in the 99th percentile for her head circumference)
Not too bad for a little girl that was born 9 weeks early and weighed 2lbs 11oz and measured 15.25 inches long.

We appreciate all the love and support that we have received over the past year. We are grateful to have such a good support system of family and friends and are blessed beyond words. GOD is good!!

Links to pictures are below.

Love to all,
April

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=43347&id=1300783496&l=96a30f785e

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=43349&id=1300783496&l=794a79d305

...and some pictures..

Click on the links to view the recent pictures....

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=41506&id=1300783496&l=99c0a29fa1

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=41527&id=1300783496&l=408c8a3fb2

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=42671&id=1300783496&l=b8e169fcf1

Savannah's first Halloween, and other items too.

Well, Halloween just passed and Savannah was a pumpkin. Ever since I can remember, I have called Savannah "my little munchkin, my little pumpkin" so it seemed fitting to have her dressed up as a pumpkin for Halloween. It especially made sense when I found the costume at a consignment shop for $5.50. :)) We had a little get together at our house and enjoyed seeing Savannah and her cousins dressed up and to see the other little ones that were out trick or treating. Savannah was not afraid of any of the costumes, even the one my cousin-in-law (who is 36 mind you) wore, you will see the huge monster in the pictures I post. My dad carried Savannah around the neighborhood with the bigger kids as they trick or treated and apparently she loved being out and about, she did not fuss nor was she scared over the array of costumes...such a big girl.

The past few weeks have been spectacular, Savannah has changed so much just in a few weeks. I will try to recap some of these changes for you.

She started clapping, which is adorable and every chance we get we ask her to clap...she is so proud of herself. In fact, she started clapping on Patrick's birthday which was fitting.

As of today I felt a tooth or two coming in on the bottom and I believe I see a couple coming in on the top...this will explain some of her fussy moments recently. I can't even begin to imagine how it must feel to cut teeth.

Savannah also started pulling herself up (on everything I must add) and she is so confident of her strength and ability that she even lets go which in turn has caused her to take a couple of spills and she even got her first bruise. Of course, I try to stay behind her as much as possible so I can catch her when she falls.

As you know, November 6th will be Savannah's first birthday and we are in party planning mode at the moment. We are having a party on Saturday the 7th and to celebrate the actual day of her birthday we are driving out to the beach, which will be Savannah's first time at the beach. We cannot believe it has been a year since our babies were born....it feels like yesterday that I was still in the hospital....time sure does fly.

This past year has been a roller coaster of emotions for us, but we are so blessed to have Savannah and celebrate everyday that we have with her. I am sure the next few weeks will be very emotional for us, but we will rely on eachother and God to get us through these challenging time. We miss little Patrick terribly but know that we will see him again one day. It is difficult to explain how one feels when they lose a child, but it is so important to us that we (and you) remember little Patrick because his life was so meaningful and to not remember would break my heart.

If you could keep us in your prayers over the next few weeks, we would greatly appreciate it.

Love,
April