Charley Dae has arrived!!!

Crystal went into labor yesterday evening. She waited until her contractions were coming one right after another and then headed to the hospital around 10:30pm . Charley was born around 12:10am - she is 8 lbs 1 oz and 20 in long. I thought Grammie T was tricking me when she texted that the baby was a GIRL!!! I texted her back "for real???" I am still a little shocked that it is a girl. We were right, Liisa!!! We went to Atlanta today to meet our sweet new NIECE!

Kayaking!

The Hanley's are up here on vacation and we all went kayaking on the Broad River...we had a lot of fun, but us girls definitely decided that 5 miles is just a little too long of a trip! The water level is low, so we all spent a good amount of time "stuck" in the river bed or on rocks. There were a few small rapids, which were fun...Kalee would throw her hands in the air. Memories...

When we first got in the water Cierra told us to make sure we didn't leave her behind...ya, right - she led the way all day long!

Kalee and Rachie found small little clams - she has one in her hand!

There were some beautiful views!

Having fun while waiting on Baby Charley/ie!

Kalee and Aunt Crystal had all kinds of fun yesterday! They both played on the slip n slide, then did a little tummy art! Kalee said "that was too, too fun".

STILL waiting for baby Charley/ie!!!

Well, tomorrow is the 23rd, so maybe it is meant to be for all of Grammie T's grandkids to share the same birthdate. Crystal has a dr appt tomorrow morning, so we'll see what they say (I'm secretly...ok, not so secretly, wishing that the dr will tell her she should head to the hospital!!). We spent the weekend in Atlanta with Crystal, Kelly & Grammie T...Kalee is still there keeping an eye on Aunt Crystal! There is a restaurant (Scalinis) that is known for helping women go into labor within 48 hrs, IF they eat the Eggplant parmesan, so of course, we went there for dinner last night. No luck, yet, but Crystal still has 24 hrs left! The picture below is of our lunch at IHOP...we tried to go to Scalini's for lunch, but they are only open for dinner, so we had to get a snack to hold us over!

For Luv-Ann!

Here are the latest pics of the sunflowers...almost half of them have had the bloom eaten off by deer, but there are a few that are, hopefully, out of reach!

Andrew

Update 2: Andrew is home...News through the grapevine is that he arrived home around 4:30 and was doing good. Thank you Lord that he did not have to stay at the hospital!!!

No baby for Crystal, yet (it's 8:00 Thursday morning!). Teresa texted me a picture this am and she is looking a little less happy, but is patiently waiting...for now!

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Update: The procedure is done and Andrew did just fine! Also, Crystal's contractions have stopped...so maybe today isn't the day!!

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So, Andrew has to go under anesthesia to have the tube put back in...The procedure is scheduled around 1 pm...

Here is a picture of the 2 we are praying so much for today, together!

Please PRAY for our family today...

It looks like today will be the day for Crystal. She started having sporadic contractions around 3 am this morning, so we will see! We are praying for a quick and easy (relatively speaking) delivery.

Also, my nephew Andrew is on his way to the hospital as I type this. His G Tube (feeding tube that runs through his abdominal wall to his intestines) has come loose/out. Steve & Betsy have asked for prayer for their sweet boy. I don't have any detail, so not sure exactly what will have to be done.

What a rush of emotions...great joy for Crystal to immense concern for Steve, Betsy and Andrew. One thing I know, though, God's got all of them in his arms! Thanks for your prayers!

Baby on the Way!!!

Rich's sister, Crystal, is due June 29th, but she had a dr appt today and is already 4 cm dilated and almost 100% effaced! AND, she hasn't felt a contraction, yet! My mother-in-law is flying down tomorrow, as the dr said she expects Crystal to deliver sometime within the next week. Very exciting!!!

I can't wait to meet my new niece or nephew...Crystal and her husband, Kelly, decided to be surprised with the sex of the baby, which is torture to me! My sister-in-law, Liisa, and I are both are hoping for a girl, BUT will be perfectly happy if it is a boy (good thing, huh?) :)

We were also hoping that the baby might be born on the 23rd, because Kalee and her cousins Aaron and Andrew were all born on the 23rd day, just different months (January, May and December). Sure makes it easy to remember birthdates! But, looks like this baby might just come even sooner!

This picture was taken a few weeks ago - and she really does look like she has swallowed a basketball!

Oh, how our garden grows!

This is the first bloom on my tallest sunflower - can't wait until it blooms!

The tomato plants are growing like crazy...they have already picked a few.

This picture is of the 4 watermelon plants. We have 2 more, but we planted them a few weeks after these, in a different area.

Our first Watermelon! There are 5 or 6 growing, so far. We should have a total of 15 to 18 - yum, yum!

Love at first sight!

Kalee was so excited about holding Andrew. She kept her distance for most of our vacation, since Andrew is so fragile, but we made sure she was showered, hands washed AND Sanitized so she could spend a few minutes with him and actually be allowed to touch him! Getting to hold him was just an added bonus. So cute.

Remembering Grammie Dottie

Our trip to Florida was extended by a few days, due to the death of Rich's Grandma, Dottie. She had been battling lung cancer for the last couple years. She was so full of life, always moving, always busy, always giving, so it was hard to see her health decline. Even on her roughest days we could see her smile ~ we visited with her on Wednesday of last week and she opened her eyes for a few moments. She smiled when she saw Rich, but her eyes absolutely lit up when she saw Kalee. We are so thankful that she is now in heaven, having a party with Jesus, Grampie and Marie (words from Kalee). We had a wonderful Celebration of Life on Monday evening and enjoyed listening to stories, looking at pictures, singing (Grandma had requested that Rich sing a specific hymn with Steve accompanying him on the guitar - it was beautiful!) and visiting with our loved ones. We'll miss you Grammie Dottie!