The elves have arrived just in time for Christmas!

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Worship

Worship is often thought of as the time spent singing before a service at church. It wasn't until I was in high school or college that I was taught that worship could take many forms. I was reminded of this by my amazing little girl when we were putting up the Christmas tree last week. As she hung an ornament on the tree she looked down at me from the chair she was standing on and stated, "This is the second time today that we get to worship Jesus, mom. First we went to church and now we are decorating this tree for him." It never ceases to amaze me that God can use a six year old child to speak to me so often. What a wonderful reminder to us all to slow down and think about what this season is truly about.

Encouragement

Pastor John's email this week was quite insightful. Tony forwarded it to a friend, but I decided to go a step farther and share it here. You never know...someone who reads my blog may need it as much as we did

Good morning (or afternoon or evening...)!Instead of running through a list of announcements for this week, I'll trust that you will read through the enews - www.hopefellowship.net/enews and that I'll see you in one of our services - I'm excited about this weekend!

There are times because of what I get to do in life that I become increasingly aware of the challenges that some of the people I get to pastor are currently facing. I can honestly say it is a joy to walk through these challenges with whomever and to try to provide guidance, comfort and hope for all of them.
So many are facing difficulty in marriage or have just gone through or are currently going through a divorce. Some are facing disease and asking God to bring healing to their bodies. A few have lost loved ones and are facing the pain that only those who have been through it know that it brings. Some are juggling schedules because they are a single parent and are wondering how they are going to financially make it one more day much less pay for Christmas. Many have lost their jobs or are facing cut-backs or pay decreases and seriously fear what the future might bring. Some face depression on a daily basis and wonder if they will ever "get healthy".
I could go on and on...
In years past as a young pastor (I'm still young...), I'd try to answer all the questions that arise when serious challenges face someone's life - pastors have all the answers you know... :-)
Over the years I've learned (in some cases the hard way) that I do not have all the answers and neither does anyone else.
In some Christian circles (or belief systems) there is the notion that a believer should never have to face much difficulty. That every Christian marriage will be healthy, every Christian should be healed, every Christian should be rich and so on... Although I pray for all these things to happen, sometimes they don't (and it ticks me off...)! :-)
However... (and however can be huge), God is not unaware of anything that happens in our lives. I believe with all my heart this passage from Paul in Romans chapter 8 - please take the time to read it all:

Romans 8:26-39 (NLT) 26 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don't know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. 27 And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God's own will. 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. 29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory. 31 What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? 32 Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won't he also give us everything else? 33 Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one-for God himself has given us right standing with himself. 34 Who then will condemn us? No one-for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God's right hand, pleading for us. 35 Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? 36 (As the Scriptures say, "For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.") 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. 38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow-not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below-indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

There is hope! God is at work! Be encouraged! Trust him! Trust him... There's still so much to be said - but little space. I love you and I pray for you. If you are facing a difficult time in your life, whatever you do - don't walk or run away from the Father, run to him!Love to all - I'll see you this weekend!
John

The Christmas Season

Thanksgiving with the Sdao's was nice and crazy! Poor Emma wasn't feeling too well, but we still mangaged to get some first thanksgiving shots of the girls. We missed Elyssa being there, but truthfully I don't see much of her when the Sdao's get together. She is way to busy playing wit Keirsten and the rest of the kiddos.

It is amazing how quickly Christmas is coming. I have never been more thankful that I am an early shopper than I am this year. It is so much easier on our families income to start buying months ahead of time. Of course, then I have to try and remember all the different places that I have stashed presents!!!
I have taken lots of family Christmas pictures for people, but I still haven't gotten pictures of MY girls. Hopefully this weekend. We did manage to go visit Santa at the mall. Lainy is definitely not a fan of sitting on Santa's lap. The picture says it all!

Moments

Sometimes, not very often, you see something that is so sweet you almost cry. Walking in and seeing my dad and Lainy sleeping on the couch was one of those times. She doesn't like men all that much, but she seemed to take to him right away. They played in the floor, walked all over the house, and snuggled on the couch. Dad, I know you are not a fan of big cities and traffic, but we sure do love having you hanging around the house!

P.S. Your dog misses you, too!

For more pics and videos go to http://www.tntsdao.phanfare.com/

She's got the beat...

Feeding Frenzy

Lainy is truly starting to get a handle on eating real food, but boy is she messy! This little one loves to feed herself. Lucky for her, she also loves baths. :)

Crazy Hair Day

A while back, Elyssa had crazy hair day at school. We dressed her up like Pippy Longstocking and she looked SO cute. I have been so busy the last month that I never got any pictures posted, so.....

The adorable frames you see in all of these pictures finally met their end this week and she is having to wear her red pair all the time. I am hoping that I purchased the fix it plan. Guess I'll find out when I go to the mall this weekend. Elyssa was one very unhappy little girl when the "leg" (ear piece) broke off of her glasses.

Elaina's 9 month checkup!

For someone who doesn't eat much food, she is definitely healthy! She has started to slim up just a bit. Height, weight, and head have all rounded out at about the 75%. She had three shots, including her flu shot. Now the rest of the family just need to get theirs...yuck!

Here are her stats:

19 lbs 13oz

28" long

Her check up was on Friday. Mom and dad were in town to see the girls. We had a wonderful weekend. I will try and get some halloween pics up soon!

Baby Love

Elaina Beth LOVES baby dolls. Last week we walked into the American Doll store while mom was in town, since it was right by the hotel she was staying at for work. I knew Elyssa would be excited, but I never imagined how much Lainy would enjoy it. She took in everything, looking around at each new baby and squealing with delight. I wish I would have had a video camera. She has discovered Elyssa's doll and will work to get to it and then hold it and pat it. I decided to give her one of Elyssa's old baby dolls and she loves it, too. Miss B clings to it. Her daddy loved watching her snug the dolly up tight as he tried to pry it out of her hands. She definitly has a strong grip! Here is a quick shot I snapped of Elyssa holding Lainy holding the baby. Too sweet :)

State Fair of Texas

Do you ever wonder about the choices you make as a parent? Things you never would have considered before are now acceptable, simply because you crave that look of joy your child gets on that beautiful face! It sounds sweet, but in the end we stood in line for over an hour just so that Lys could get her face painted and be handed an inflatable balloon made into the shape of her choosing. Consindering that there were only about 5 families in front of us, I thought, why not? I sent her to wait in the face painting line and I stood in the balloon line and we would do whatever happened first. Who knew that Mr. Balloon man told a story as he expertly created each child's (and 2 adults') requests. It was definitely a sight to behold. He was great, but SO SLOW! By the time her face was painted, we were only 1 family away fron the treasured balloon. Tony caved and told her we could do that, too. (Did I mention how slow the balloon guy was and the fact that two adults in that last family in front of us requested he make THEM a balloon?) The trully sad part was that it was the last stop of the night, so we walked out of the vendor building and straight towards the car. The beautiful butterfly that graced Elyssa's face was only a car ride away from being washed down the drain... Lucky for us, the digital age made it possible for me to capture that butterfly and put it up on the web for all to see. :)

Other than that, we had a wonderful time at the fair. We saw real butterflies in each stage of their lifecycle. Visited a make believe farm. Watched a bagpipe band. Fed baby animals. Looked at the latest cars headed for the dealers. Ate a candied apple and a turkey leg. And even watched both girls pick a duck for a prize. It was a perfect way to spend a gorgeous afternoon!

It's been awhile!

Do you ever stop and wonder where a week (or month) has gone? There seems to be an "a-ha" moment nearly every day that I desperately want to blog, but just as quickly that moment passes and I continue with the daily grind...

That said, life is good right now. My photography business is growing exponentially, as are my girls! Parent teacher conferences were today and I am proud to say that Elyssa is doing wonderfully in school both academically and socially. Did I mention that her kindergarten teacher asked her and Abby (her best friend) to be flower girls in her wedding? They are SO excited! Lainy finally has a tooth peeking through her gums. I will try and get a picture of it soon. She is also grasping the concept of chewing and can pick up puffs and feed herself. It is a little sad, but her diet mostly consists of momma's milk, gerber puffs, and cheerios:)

At our house...

...a six year old had another visit from the tooth fairy. She left extra money since Elyssa pulled her tooth out herself. ...an eight month old decided to start pulling up on everything she can find. Elaina is also finally eating food (progresso soup puree, yogurt, and other not solid foods).

As always, you can view more of our crazy life at my phanfare site!
http://www.tntsdao.phanfare.com/

Thank you...

I just wanted to take a moment to thank everyone for there notes, thoughts, and prayers. We made it through yesterday...although it never seems to get easier.

"What big eyes you have!"

I just finished processing Elaina's 7 month pictures and...although I am her mom and somewhat (ok very) partial...I must say that her eyes are stunning. I guess some of a person's beauty, no matter the age, just gets lost in the day to day shuffle of life. You will see in the last picture that she was ready to quit being my photography subject and get back to being the snuggly daughter that I adore!

You can see more at www.tntsdao.phanfare.com since I took way more than necessary!

She's Moving!!!

Ok...at this point it is more of an army crawl (drag) then an actual hands and knees crawl, but she is definitely able to make her way from point A straight to point B. The pride on her daddy's face and the excitement of her big sister made this the highlight moment of my week! :)

Go baby go!

Elaina is going to be full fledge crawling any minute now. She can roll (obviously) and get nearly anywhere she wants. She can drag herself forward or push herself backward, but it takes a lot of effort and isn't very fast. Elyssa was SO excited when she saw her get up on her hands and knees all by herself. There has been a lot of rocking going on, but the little monkey always plops back down on her tummy to try to move. I will keep you posted and hopefully will have some great pictures and video to post soon!

On a side note, Elyssa has another loose tooth. She came running down the stairs last night to tell me. That sparkle in her eyes is great, although I think it comes mostly from the thought of getting more money from the tooth fairy!

Mother of the Year Award

Let's just say that it is definitely not going to me! Yesterday my sweet 7 month old daughter fell off the bed for the second (yes, second) time in her short life. How she made it from the center of the bed and over the surrounding mounds of blankets in that short period of time I still don't know. As I swooped her up and began comforting her, she threw up all the food that she had eaten just minutes before. I of course panicked and called my friend Dorothy (who happens to be a mother of 5). Lainy was already begining to calm down and before I had even told Dorothy about the incident, she was smiling at herself in the mirror. Dorothy was on her way home and close by, so she still stopped in. We checked her over and she was fine, but I was still pretty shaken up. Then this morning I was feeding her small bits of my breakfast and something she ate got stuck in her windpipe. She tried to puke it up, but it wasn't working and I was completely freaking out. I told Tony to do something and thankfully he stuck his finger down her throat and swiped out the food while I held her nearly upside down. Within minutes she was fine, but I was not. I could not get my legs to stop shaking! Moments like these just didn't seem to happen so often with Elyssa. Earlier this week Elaina was puking and pooping from some virus...so this whole week has been totally stress filled. I worried that she would choke on her throw-up or get dehydrated. That lasted for three days and then one day later....
Honestly, I just need more recovery time between tramatic events. :)

Kid Devotionals

A friend of mine was asking about the devotionals that I read to Elyssa. We have discovered some great ones over the years. Instead of just responding to her email, I decided to post a list...you never know who may be looking!

Here is an excerpt from our current reading:
(Although it is not quite the same without the pretty pages!)

Timothy, you are like a son to me. I am giving you a command that agrees with the prophecies that were given about you in the past. I tell you this so that you can follow those prophecies and fight the good fight of faith. Continue to have faith and do what you know is right. Some people have not done this. Their faith has been destroyed...
First, I tell you to pray for all people. Ask God for the things people need, and be thanful to him. You should pray for kings and for all who have authority. Pray for the leaders so that we can have quiet and peaceful lives - lives full of worship and respect for God. THis is good, and it pleases God our Savior.

I Timothy 1:18-19; 2:1-3

TEACHER TALK

It wasn't an accident. God gave you your teacher on purpose. He put you in that class so that he could teach you through your teacher. Whether you know it or not, your teacher is a big blessing from God.

Have you ever thought that you could be a blessing to your teacher, too? God's Word tells us we need to remember our leaders. We need to be thanful for them and pray for God to lead and protect them. When our teachers, parents, and leaders are following GOd, it makes it easier to follow their lead!

Today let your teacher know how much he or she means to you. At the right time, go to her desk, and ask her how she is doing. Then ask her if she has any prayer requests. Take a moment to pray for her needs right then.

If there isn't any time, you can pray at your seat or when you get home. At the end of the week, check back with her to see if her prayer requests have been answered. Even grown-ups need to know they are special!

from God's Little Princess Devotional Bible by Sheila Walsh



This is the first devotional I did with Elyssa. It is perfect for toddlers.



The format of this one is neat. Each night you read a letter written to them from God. The opposite page has a corresponding prayer. (You can see this at amazon.com)



I personally enjoyed this one a lot. I am planning on us reading it again as soon as we finish the one we are on. The back says, "The Jesus Storybook Bilble tells the Story beneath all the stories in the BIble. It takes the whole BIble to tell this Story. And at the center of teh Story, there is a baby, the Child upon whom everything would depend. From NOah to MOses to King David, every story whispers his name. Jesus is like the missing piece in a puzzle-the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together. Beautifully written and illustrated, The Jesus Storybook Bible invites children to discover for themselves that Jesus is at the center of GOd's great story of salvation-and at the center of their story, too."




and for boys...


This almost makes me wish I had a boy, too! It is God's Little Princess Devotional Bible that I have spoken of so often in this blog.


HAPPY READING!

1st Grade Already?

I can't believe that my baby girl has now begun her second year of school. It just doesn't seem possible. She and Abby are not in the same class this year, but both girls seem to be handling it well. They play at recess and after school...no tears shed. Truthfully, I think that Leigh Ann and I are more disappointed then the girls. :) I had hoped that we could share the room parent responsibilities. I'll just have to take my own advice to Lys and remind myself that it is an excellent opportunity to get to know more people!!!

SPOILED!!! We have all been told that spoiling is what Grandparents were made for and my mom makes sure that Elyssa gets in on LOTS of spoiling. Since she couldn't be here for Elyssa's first day of first grade, she sent her flowers. Glitter is always a huge hit with my daughter, so she was thrilled when she noticed that the flowers sparkled. They are so pretty that Elyssa wondered if they were even real! Too cute...

Happy Birthday Dad!

...wish you weren't so far away, but we are sending lots of love up to Oregon :)

Check Ups!

We doubled up today and had a 6 month AND a 6 year check up with Dr. Nail. Both girls got an A+. Elyssa did great (of course she didn't have to get any shots) and Lainy, although fiesty, did wonderful as well. She had three shots, but quickly calmed down. Truthfully I think she would rather have the shots than the oral roto vaccine! Dr. Nail was quite impressed with Elyssa's fitness level. He said she was in great shape...maybe she will be one of those lucky woman who don't have to work quite so hard to stay slim :)



STATS:



Elyssa
weight: 45.8 (50%)
height: 47.5" (75%-90%)
Elaina
weight: 17.6 (75%-90%)
head: 17"
height: 26.5" (75%-90%)

The doctor also said that Miss Elaina Beth needed to start sleeping through the night. I couldn't agree more...now if someone could just explain that to HER!
(I should give her a little credit. She slept through the night on Wednesday and then when she stirred at 4 this morning I went up to cover her back up. If I had been more awake I would have realized that she had turned around in the bed, instead I put the blanket on her face instead of her feet. This of course did not go over well. I know mommy of the year award....)

Happy Birthday Papa!

WE LOVE YOU!!!!

When I was a kid, my dad had this Indiana Jones hat that he always wore to work in the yard and this weekend I just happened to find another one. He still has his, and I doubt he wears it much, which is good, since it is nasty dirty! He is not the easiest to buy for, so I thought this would be a nice nostolgic gift. I'm not much good at mailing things, so Papa, until we see you in a week....here is your new hat modeled by two of your favorite subjects!

Lima Beans?!!

http://www.storylineonline.net/

A few months ago we read the book A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon. It is about a little girl who loves lima beans, but won't eat them because none of the kids at her school like them and she is too afraid of what they will think. Since then, Elyssa has wanted to taste lima beans. I don't personally like them, so I have never cooked them at home. Well...Saturday we were eating at Cracker Barral and guess what the vegetable of the day was??? That's right, lima beans! She immediately wanted to order them, but I was still not convinced this was a good idea. I asked the waitress if she would mind bringing her a small sample before we ordered them. To my surprise, Elyssa loved them. Can you believe this? How did a kid who refused to eat anything but corn, greenbeans, and an occasional carrot end up with a little girl who likes just about every vegetable she tries? I am SO thankful that she is such a good eater. (On a side note, Elaina seemed to like them, too, but any real food is better than baby food!)

Daily Life

It seems like I never have time to get everything done and yet, for as busy as we are, we don't really do much. Sure wish someone could explain that phenomenon! There have been quite a few things happen since I last sat down with some free writing time.
Elyssa:
As you can see from the pictures, Elyssa now has glasses. She was mortified by the thought of wearing glasses at first, but her attitude has really turned around. She looks adorable, which is a good thing, since it looks like her eyes are headed the way of mine....downhill! Last week she went on vacation to Niagra Falls with my mom and dad. They had a great time! http://www.tntsdao.phanfare.com PICTURES!
Elaina:
I can't believe how big and strong this little one is becoming. She strains to sit up when you put her in her carseat. She looks a bit like a weeble, but she can sit up by herself. I am enjoying this last bit of peace before she becomes mobile! She LOVES to talk and squeal. When she is frustrated she really tells you about it, I can only imagine what it will sound like when she is able to put real words with it! Food definitely interests her, but she prefers vanilla pudding to green peas... She is still a momma's girl, but yesterday she actually cried when Elyssa handed her to me. I handed her back and she went back to being content...Lainy just wanted her sister! Too sweet!!!
Tony:
After some stressful months of job changes, he finally landed right up the street (literally about 6 minutes away) as the Service Manager of a Chrysler Buick GMC dealership. The job comes with its share of challenges, but they are easier to handle without an hour commute each way. :) We can stop by when we are out and he can even come home for lunch.

I discovered that I am not really much of a camper, even when there is a motorhome involved, when we camped near Houston for his dad's birthday. It was nice seeing the family. There are some cute pictures of Elaina and her cousin Emma (they are only two weeks apart) that I will try to post soon.

I couldn't resist testing out my new camera on my beautiful girls. The fields of wild sunflowers made a perfect backdrop!

A Child's Mind

I have decided that one of the reasons God has given us children is to help build up our ego on those rough days. They may not always know just what to say, but somehow what they do say can be just what you need to bring a smile to your day.
A few nights ago Elyssa and I were talking after reading her devotional for the night. It had an old hymn as part of the reading, so I taught it to her so we could sing it together. The week had been hard on her, but she couldn't seem to put what she was feeling into words when I would ask her what was wrong, so as the following conversation progressed, I thought we were heading towards a break through that would allow me a glimse into her deepest thoughts.

Elyssa: Mom?
Me: Yes.
Elyssa: Can I tell you something? I mean...it may seem kinda wierd.
Me: You can tell me anything, even if it's wierd.
Elyssa: Well, I don't know...
Me: What is it?
Elyssa: You know that show American Idol?
Me: Yes.
Elyssa: If you went on it, I think you would win.
Me: (Trying my hardest not to laugh) Thank you honey, you are very sweet.

OK - not the deep thoughts I was hoping for, but how incredibly sweet. The world may be rough and you may think you are being a less than wonderful mom, but your child still thinks you hung the moon. I realize that these days of innocence will not last for long, so I lock these moments in my memory, something to treasure for a lifetime.

A Picnic

Elyssa is all about cake at birthday parties, and last year she declared that Mia had to have cake at her birthday;thus the tradition of the cemetary birthday picnic began. Elyssa and I picked out flowers. It took a while but we finally decided on two pink ones (since Mia would be two) surrounded by a dozen white. The only hitch of the day came when I was at Kroger trying to pick up balloons. All I needed was one mylar and two basic pink balloons. Well...the poor kid trying to inflate them had absolutely NO idea what he was doing. He tried getting help and the helper was at a loss, too. Finally about 15 minutes later, he managed to get a balloon started. The girl was putting the strings on and commented that the pink ones weren't the same size. At this point, Tony has called and is home, I am standing with a cart of groceries, a six year old who struggles when staying in one place to long, holding a baby who is ready to go home. I assure her it is not a problem, hoping they can finish up asap. Finally the mylar balloon is done and the guy hands them to me and tells me there will be no charge for the two pink balloons. After 20 minutes of waiting, I would certainly hope not!

So I am already flustered by the day and the delay only adds to the stress. We make it out to the cemetary and ...(drum roll)... not even a full minute has passed before one of her two pink balloons pop. I could have been really upset at this point, but decided it was better to laugh it off and be content with letting one balloon go instead of two. Silly the things we let cause us stress!
I was excited that we actually managed to get the candle lit with a quite a bit of hard work on Tony's part. As soon as we pulled the lid I snapped a quick photo before the wind blew it out. I know it is completely irrational, but I have come to appreciate the wind on our picnics. It allows me to imagine Mia herself blowing out her birthday candle.

For those of you reading this blog and wondering what happened to Mia, I'll take a moment to fill you in. She was born on July 7th, 2006 right on time and without any complications. We were home less than 24 hours later. She was the sweetest and best behaved baby you can imagine. By 4 weeks, she was sleeping through the night upstairs in her crib. I would put her to bed at 9 and she would sleep until about 5:30. On Monday, September 11, we went for her two month check-up. She had a bit of a cold, but other than that she received an A+. The next morning she woke up as usual. I went up and fed her. Most days she went right back to sleep, but that morning she spit up and I had to change her clothes. I spent about an hour holding her and talking to her before putting her back down. I mentally noted how beautiful she was becoming now that her hair was finally starting to grow in. At 9:00, the two pre-schoolers I kept showed up. Mia had been awake for a few hours, had her breathing treatment, and was ready for her morning nap. I put her in bed and took the kids to the playroom to begin our lessons. Around 9:30 Mia cried out and my life changed forever. I picked her up and immediately knew that something was wrong. As I rushed down the stairs her body tightened up and began to turn a pale blue. I immediately dialed 911 and carried her to my neighbors house. She had the phone, I was doing CPR, and the three 4 year olds stood watching this take place. By the time the ambulence arrived I was a wreck. The EMT took her from my arms and carried her to the ambulence. I stood there on the street watching as he cut off her clothes and began working on her. They would not let me in, so I sat down on the curb and began making phone calls. Everyone tried to be encouraging, but in my heart I believe I already knew how the day was going to end. They hadn't seen what I had seen. The white fluid that came out of her while I was doing CPR could not have been a good sign. I believe she was already on her way to heaven, being held in Jesus' arms...taken so she would not have to go through the pain of the rest of that horrible day. She was careflighted from our local hospital to Children's Medical Center. Upon my arrival (Tony flew with her), I was taken to a private waiting room. The doctor did not pull any punches. He said that her heart was enlarged and the outlook was not good at all. I spent the rest of the day watching her as they worked. It was awful, but I couldn't bear to leave her side. Viral Myocharditis was the cause. It has something to do with the body turning on itself instead of attacking the virus. I still don't understand much about it, but from what I can tell, even the doctors don't know much and definitley don't know why. We were told that there was nothing that could have been done to prevent it. Mia continued to digress throughout the day and finally we made the life altering decision to let her go. There was nothing else to be done. All the wires were unhooked and I sat a chair, holding my baby girl as she died in my arms. I will never forget the doctor leaning over and whispering in my ear that she was gone. We were surrounded by a room full of our closest friends and family, but at that moment it was just her and me. Everything else from that point forward is still mostly a blur...