Our Story
Our family started on August 17, 2002, when Dave and I were married on a beautiful, hot summer day. Our first daughter, Mckenna Luz (middle name after Dave's grandmother) was born on December 2, 2003. Two and a half years later, Selah Grace (who's name means, "stop and ponder grace") entered the world, on June 3, 2006. These two girls continue to bring their mommy and daddy such joy!
The year of 2008 was very full for us and changed our lives forever. I found out I was pregnant with our third child in late January, right as we were selling our home. In the midst of feeling quite sick, I packed up our house and we moved in with my mom, as we had not yet found a new home. The following two months were wonderful and ones I will never forget. It was a sweet time of making lots of memories with my mom and grandmother, who we called "Grammy" (she passed away in January 2009 and is very missed by us all). We finally did find a home and moved at the very last day of May, right as summer arrived. The following months, before my due date, were wonderfully full of getting settled, refinishing furniture and preparing for our little new one to arrive.
On September 26, we welcomed Alivia Sandra (middle name after my mom) into our lives. She was a delight from the very start. Looking very much like her sisters with her reddish blond hair, she very quickly became adored by us all. Mckenna and Selah could not get enough of her and asked constantly to hold her. The following 5 weeks after her arrival were a whirlwind, as is the case with the arrival of any newborn. When she was 4 weeks old, I made it a priority to take a number of pictures of her, as I realized I did not have many with the craziness of life. And on November 1, we had family pictures taken of all of us. What treasures these pictures are to me. They also testify of God's intimate knowledge of our lives and His care for us.
Little did we know that our lives were forever going to be altered, on the evening of November 2nd. It was a Sunday just like any other. I had not gotten much sleep the night before and Dave took the girls to church and told me to stay home with the baby. I very clearly remember the sweet time we had together that morning. When we both awoke I stroked her feet and and marveled at the amazing job the Lord had done creating her. She kicked her legs and moved her arms in the way only newborns do, that I absolutely love. The day progressed as usual, and in the evening, Dave put her up to bed for a nap. A few hours later, tragedy struck our house, when I discovered her lifeless body. It was a shock like non other I have ever experienced and forever has rocked our world.
The days following testify to the amazing grace, goodness and care of our Heavenly Father (to read posts from the initial days after her loss, start here) . He has indeed carried us and continues to sustain us, amidst the fierce trial that this has brought to our family. We miss our little girl more than words can express. We talk about her often and carry her close to our hearts. This blog, in a sense, has become our journey of walking the road of grief and how the Lord has enabled us to carry on in the midst of inexpressible pain.
In the midst of all this, the Lord richly blessed us with another little girl on December 18, 2009, Adelyn Alivia. What a gift she continues to be to us! Then on September 21, 2011, the Lord gave us Hailey Hope.
