Before I move on to beginning of school posts, I must finish out the summer. We had one picture-worthy event from this summer that I haven't mentioned yet. There was Dress Like a Cow day for Chic-fil-a in July and we did it for free food! I thought that we'd just be given a basic chicken sandwich, but when we got there, we were pleasantly surprised that we were able to choose anything from the menu. It was awesome. We went with the Kasallis family, so the girls weren't too embarrassed to be the only ones dressed like cows. We actually saw a lot of people dressed as cows, so it was fun.
We even got to meet the chic-fil-a cow. They commented on our "zebra" impersonating a cow, but they still let her get her free meal. The girls even got to take pictures with the cow signs.
It was a fun break to the rest of our busy summer schedule.
I really like taking pictures of my girls randomly; so one Sunday in July, we had extra time before we had to leave for church, so we did a quick photo shoot. I love having pretty pictures of my beautiful girls.
We also took a couple turns watching the Kasallis's dog, Roscoe. He's our buddy and when they moved from one neighborhood over to two houses down from us, Roscoe had a hard time adjusting. The Kasallis's went out of town, so two days in a row, Roscoe got out of their new backyard and walked to their old house. Tyler had to go get him both times. We kept an eye on him after that and even took a family walk with him once. I think a dog in our family may be in the future. I'm trying to hold off as long as possible though (I don't need another family member to clean up after), but the girls, and Tyler, really love dogs.
My parents stopped by our house twice during the summer before they left for China. They retired at the end of the last school year and are now teaching English in a Chinese university in Jinan, China. We are so excited for them to have this adventure, but it was hard saying goodbye. They stopped by the end of July on their trip around the US to see all the family one last time.
The very last weekend before school started, we ended up driving to Wichita Falls for a long weekend. It happened to be over Tyler's birthday, so after celebrating a day early with friends, we drove out to Wichita Falls to be there before his actual birthday. That way he didn't have to spend his birthday driving in the car all day. We went to Wichita Falls to participate in a baby shower for Matt and Taylor, my nephew and his wife. It was also going to be the last family get together before my parents left for China the following week. For Tyler's birthday, he got to go fishing (although he didn't catch any fish) and he and I went out for lunch which was fun. While fishing the girls ran around the lake and I took some pictures. They had an awesome y-shaped tree that was perfect for pictures.
Here are the girls with Rebecca on one of the bridges by the lake. We also took them across the street to a playground while the older kid stayed with Tyler and Paul to fish. My parents met us at the park and I had to get a picture of Grandma and Grandpa pushing the girls on the swings.
Next, we have Scott and Nevla and John and McKaye.
I had to include this first picture because I can't look at it without seeing Tessa's evil-eye pose and laughing. So funny! I liked the lighting in front of the cabin, so I had them take more family pictures of us here. The girls were done by this point, so to get them to smile and have fun (and not suck their fingers or thumbs), we all made hearts with our hands.
Here's the good family picture that McKaye took for us on her high quality camera. I love it!
Here's the whole family. I thought it turned out so cute. I love my family so much!
This is where I found out the lighting was so great here. This picture with Nevla and Chloe and my girls is one of my all time favorite pictures ever. They all look so beautiful with perfect, happy smiles.
I made Tyler take some pictures with just me and I finally got him to smile for one after a few silly faces. It didn't help that kids kept trying to photo bomb us from the window behind us. I still got a good one. Happy Birthday Tyler!
We took the girls down the parking lot to a playground, but we only stayed long enough to get hot and sweaty and messy and sticky after they talked Grandpa into buying them ice cream popsicles from the ice cream truck. Their favorite part was hopping into the back of Chloe's car to get a ride back up the parking lot to the cabin.
The baby shower went great. There were lots of people and a ton of yummy food. Matt and Taylor got so many cute things for baby Tye. I crocheted him a blanket using their nursery colors - orange, turquoise and gray. The rest of the weekend was spent hanging out, playing games, and helping Grandpa and Grandma with their final packing. We took a quick trip to Braum's at one point to get some yummy ice cream. I couldn't resist taking a picture because we took up an entire corner of their seating area. The girl cousins had a blast playing together in the hotel room. I took a quick picture before they fell asleep while they watched tv together.
After we drove back home to El Paso and after the girls started school, Grandpa and Grandma drove to El paso too to leave us my mom's car and to fly out of El Paso on their way to China. We enjoyed those last few days while they got their final bags packed and got ready to leave. Grandpa took some time to play with Taryn and her new playdoh one day while the older girls were at school. We're going to miss them so much. I drove them to the airport early Saturday morning on August 29th. I drove them in my mom's car and after saying our goodbyes with a few tears, I drove away. The hardest part and what I will remember the most about that time was the moment I drove away when the car indicated "phone disconnected" because I was too far away from my mom for the car to pick up her phone anymore. That's when I really started crying. We love them so much and are so proud of them. They'll do so great in China and I know they'll have such an awesome adventure!
I wish this is where I could finish this post, but there's more, and unfortunately it's sad. On September 14th, Taylor had her baby, four weeks early. Baby Tye had some breathing and heart problems and after some testing was diagnosed with Edward's Syndrome, which is like Downs Syndrome but with a lot more extensive medical problems. He was on machines for the first three days to help him breath, but after three and a half days, he passed away. We were so distraught when we heard.
They had the funeral the following Monday, one week after he was born. We drove all day Sunday and stayed at Paul and Melody's in Wichita Falls with all my brothers. We got to skype with Grandma and Grandpa in China that night. It was great to see them and talk to them with all the family together, but it was sad too because they couldn't be there in person with us. Monday morning, we drove up to Oklahoma where they had the graveside service. It was so sad, but good too. The stories they shared and the love they felt for this baby after only having him for three days was so touching. They played songs that put their feelings into words and they had everyone sing Families Can Be Together Forever. The tiny casket was so small and watching Matt and his father-in-law fill the hole in with dirt after placing the casket down in was so heartbreaking. I just kept thinking no father should have to be burying his baby. I still cry just thinking about it.
My girls had a hard time too, but we're glad that they were with us. They love Matt and Taylor too. We had some good conversations about church and heaven and where Baby Tye is now. Matt and Taylor were so strong. They talked about how much they had learned from Tye in their short time with him and how they know he's perfect now. They also plan to go to the temple soon so they can be sealed together and then have Tye sealed to them. Even when I hugged Matt, he kept telling me not to cry. I was just so glad that we could all be there to support them. After the luncheon, right before we left to drive home, Matt had all the boys in my family stand in the circle to give him a blessing. Paul gave the blessing, but I was touched like I always am to see Tyler in the circle with my three brothers. It's like I'm able to be a part of it through Tyler. It makes me so happy every time he stands in a circle for blessings in my family. I'm so thankful for Heavenly Father's plan and to know that we know Tye is in the celestial kingdom and he came to earth for his body, and that was all he needed and now he's perfect and with Heavenly Father again. I love my family and I love the gospel.
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