Braska Bear

We're getting things put away in our new house.  I've found alot of neat places to play and bunches of things to throw around and make messes with.  This is my new play corner in the living room.   I've got drawers with toys in them and lots of room to practice my steps with my walking toy.  I can't do it by myself yet, but we're working on it alot.  I like taking steps, but I just need lots of help still so I don't fall. I'll try to have more new pictures of my stuff soon.  We've been busy trying to put everything where it should go.  I better go help some more. Oh, by the way, about yesterday's riddle.... Mommy and I went with Auntie Rachel to get her really pretty dress ordered for her wedding.  It's a secret though, so I can't show you the whole thing.  I thought it was SO fun to touch!!  I'm gonna have a pretty dress too, but I might still grow before May!

We still don't have internet at home, but I'm borrowing Auntie Rachel's computer really quick. I have pictures of all our house and moving stuff to show you, but I can't put those up yet. Hopefully soon! For now, can you guess what I did or where I went today from this picture??

I came home to a new house on Saturday when Grammy brought me back. We're trying to get things put away, and we don't have internet at the new house yet. So we'll have to wait to put up more stories for now. Mommy's been sick too, so we're trying to take naps and rest some. While you're waiting for new stories, go a little ways down the right side of the page here to where it says Blog Archive and pick a month to check out. You might have missed something, you know! We can still get comments from those, so tell us if you find one you like! See you soon!

In memory of Angel Gabi going home to heaven one year ago, her mommy has asked that we remember her today with her trademark...piggy tails! Since Braska is with Grammy this week, I couldn't take a new picture, so I'll put up some of her recent piggies pictures. Micah, Jason, Gracie, and Baby Kinsley, thanks for sharing Gabi with us all for her precious little time here. God bless your family!

Please hang with me for 30 seconds, all you Reader skimmers. Many of you may have seen postings about the American Express program of Members Project. Now in its second year, Members Project is your chance to join a community that's passionate about making a positive change in the world. Show your support and vote on which projects get $2.5 million in American Express funding. The possibilities are endless. The decision is yours. The coolest part is you DO NOT have to be an AmEx member to nominate a group!!! I just did it myself, and I'm not a member. You all know, if you've been around long, that a fave cause/organization of mine is Reece's Rainbow . I've asked for donations that I've matched. Now I'm not asking for money at all. They are one of the projects to be nominated. This is a neat situation where only nominating (voting online) for a group or cause puts it that much closer to a huge grant that can make a BIG difference. Do you know what an aweso...

While Mommy's been working some on the new house, I have been playing in my Pack N Play so I don't get all dirty on the messy floors. There's alot of messes at the house since there are guys taking out walls and building stuff and working on lots of things. The carpet is really icky, so Mommy doesn't let me play much on it even though I wanna get down and look around. She did let me get down for a few minutes the other day, but we had to put a blanket down first. I was happy to stretch out a little!

(I put up some other new stories, so make sure you go down and look at those too!) Let me show you around my new house a little. We just got it to be ours today! We don't get to live there til next week since a bunch of people are coming to make some messes and redo some things. Mommy will talk about it more in her stories . Here's my fireplace. (Mommy says its going away tomorrow, but I wanted to show you anyway.) Here's Baby Pepino's room. ( Mommy note: The green looks a little brighter in this pic than it really is .) Here's my new bathtub for splashing fun! It even has little things that will make splashies for me! Here's the kitchen, and my favorite new spot where I can knock on the big black door! Here's the best room!! My new room! (Mommy note: The blue is not quite this bright, and it's tone-on-tone stripe.) And check out the fun cubby holes in my new closet! Tonight we went to a meeting with my friend Jack and some other ladies. I was so tired...

Last Saturday, we went to Grammy's house again, but this time it was all of us. Like ALL of us. Mommy's side of the family was all there except for a few cousins that live far away. There were alot of people and it was pretty fun. There were some funny old movies from when Mommy was 17 and she had big hair. But there was some other people with big hair too. Everyone looked a little bit silly, I thought, but we all laughed. Grammy fed me a little yogurt. My second button wasn't working good, so we thought I might eat something, but I only took a few bites. We don't know what was wrong with my button, but it's working now. Just didn't work that day. Silly button! Later everyone went outside and played some games. Grammy and Papa have a really really big yard, so there was room to throw things. I don't know where they got shoes from horses though. Auntie Rachel got a very pretty ring from Mr. Patrick last weekend, and they decided to get married in May. Every...

I've been having trouble finding time to get on the computer and show you pictures. So I've got a bunch to catch up on. I'll do some here, then I'll have more tomorrow. There's been alot going on! A couple weeks ago Mommy and I went to Grammy's house for a quick visit and a baby shower. (There wasn't even a baby yet, and there was no water, so I didn't understand.) While we were there, Grammy put me on the bouncy horse, and it was kind of fun. Daddy said he wanted to see a ponytail in my hair instead of just the little piggies. So we tried it one day. It was cute, and it made me look like a big girl, Mommy said, but it didn't want to stay in when I was rolling around on the floor. I have squishy letters for my bath time that stick to the walls. But my favorite thing to do is chew on them. And lots of them at one time! They also stick to me! Here's my newest word. You have to listen quick and carefully because it's a secret. Daddy ...

It's been pretty hot around our house, so we have been going places that have cold air. Our new house needs a fridge, so we went shopping for one last week. I tried them out by seeing if the air inside was chilly enough. This one was the winner. I told Daddy all about it and he said if I like it we'll get it. I like shopping! Daddy said we picked it for a different reason. He's silly.

Emma 's doing great! Tubes are coming out, the vent is out, and she seems to be putting aside all those "high-risk" worries. Thank you for praying. I know many of us have posted for her, and it is encouraging to her parents, I'm sure. There's recovery to go, of course, so keep it up! Also, please be remembering little Maddy in your prayers too. She's a princess with DS who also had heart surgery recently and has had some scares and some bumps to overcome, but she's finally in a step-down room, and that's awesome!!! She has tons of wonderful family around her, and I'm sure that doesn't hurt at all! Her CaringBridge page is here if you want to go say hello. Last, and in no way least, Miss Kennedy has had a rough week with another hospital stay. This girl has beat the odds so many times, it's just crazy! She's such a tough one, and I'm convinced her mom, Renee, is made of super tough mom material as well. They go to Phil...

On Monday morning, our very special friend Emma will be having open heart surgery to repair the same issue as Braska had repaired at 3 months old. It's called AV canal defect, and it's plain amazing that Emma's lived to age 5 with this problem unrepaired til now. Emma is extra special to us because she caught our attention last year when she was still Daria, in the Ukraine waiting to be adopted. We donated as a family to her several times, wanting to help her find her family. And she couldn't have done any better!!! Mike and Meredith are truly wonderful people, loving parents, and do an amazing job at trusting God through every circumstance. This is a high-risk surgery for her, but we trust her physicians and all involved are ready and capable. Her parents have done everything in their power to make sure she's ready. People all over the country, and probably many others, are praying for her to have a successful repair and a quick and complication-free surgery. Pleas...