People say children are resilient and can handle anything. I disagree. I tend to think this is more of a hope during a crisis than a belief. But you my sweet girl are truly amazing. You have come out of too many of these and your star shines brighter than ever.
Although there are days you make me want to run outside and light my hair on fire, most days that fire just melts my heart. You are a brilliant and creative big sister with so much love to give. On my worst days you just know I need an extra hug. I could never tell you enough how truly proud of the person you are becoming. I hope you have a fabulous day.
I chose the above picture because I can just feel your joy of being at the beach without a care in the world, hearing you laugh and run through the sand. After our crazy turn of events this year this is the JOY I hope for you all the time.
Happy Birthday Punkin!!
Love you to the moon and back, to infinity and beyond, forever and ever.....
Mama
Usually by now I have something I really want to post about to celebrate Thanksgiving. As I have talked about before Thanksgiving is my favorite Holiday. It doesn't involve presents or any other requirement just show up to be thankful and celebrate family.
Phil and I are VERY LUCKY. We still have our parents and immediate family but we also have an amazing extended family too. Brothers that you would never know were just 1/2 brothers, sisters that would walk through fire for us, and people that have stumbled into our life that have no blood line whatsoever that we love like family. I don't think two people could be as lucky as Phil and I.
So today we Thank You ALL....to our parents for always being there, our siblings for never forgetting we are family and to those that came into our lives and made us better people for it....We thank you.
Something I never want to forget is to be Thankful for Dr. Alfred Kendrick. Without God's perfect timing and Dr. Kendrick's pediatric knowledge the picture below would not have Madelynn in it. He saved her life. We will forever be grateful he helped complete our family.
We hope everyone finds something to be truly THANKFUL for this year.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!
Thanksgiving 2012
TTFN~
Love,
The Addler's
Philip, Chelsea, Kaitlynn, Jackson and Madelynn
After the emotionally exhausting week, a break was almost required. Phil had an oppportunity to go fishing, for the weekend, so I sent him away. Even though I could have really used his help at home, I felt he needed the fishing trip to decompress and regroup.
While he was gone I worked on some arrangements for the LCK dinner and silent auction fundraiser. Some friends came over and we knocked them out. THANKS GIRLS!!!
Today we worked on the kids rooms and the ridiculous amounts of laundry. I still have about two loads left making the grand total about 20 loads. This includes everyones sheets, comforters, towels and all the clothes. I am so sick of matching socks.
We decided to take a break and go to the park. It was a B-E-A-Utiful day, sunny, warm and just what we needed. Just being outside for a little while not having a care in the world, who could ask for more.
While Jack and I were working on his room, my dad called. He was checking to make sure we were able to get out heat back on. It is working. Thank God. Overnights have been near freezing. I told him we might sneak out and go to the park. His response, "Don't forget to take your camera."
I didn't........
Days like today......being able to wear t-shirts, and leave your coat in the car in November is why I LOVE living in the south. If you look around the smallest remnats of Fall are on the almost bare trees. You would have never known the way the sun was beating down.
Four years ago today depending on when you are reading this was one of the worst days in my life.
At 8 am I was walking my daughter down to the surgery floor so she could be prepped for open heart surgery.
At 9:30 am I surrendered my daughter to the surgeon so the lengthy procedure could begin.
For the next 6-7 hours we waited and waited and waited some more for the surgeon to finally tell us he was done and what the results were.
Some time between 5 and 6pm we were finally able to see her. Something never in my wildest dreams was I prepared for. It took ever ounce of my being to stand there hoping and praying she would survive.
Today we had great plans to help Madelynn celebrate her "Heart" Birthday. I found this WONDERFUL children's book called Zip-Line. I would HIGHLY recommend this book to anyone who has a child that has had open-heart surgery. I was going to come into Madelynn's pre-school class, read the book and share heart cookies. Madelynn was sooooooo excited when she saw the book.
Due to the unfortunate circumstance with the death of Phil's brother we needed to travel to Indiana to say farewell. I have already spoken to Madelynn's teachers and we will be celebrating Madelynn's "Heart" Birthday with her classmates a week late. However, we as a family will be together which is what is most important.
I have shared with you some new pictures of Kaitlynn and Jackson for my upcoming picture project. I saved my pictures of Madelynn for today.
I am not going to lie that smile melts my heart EVERY time. We are so incredible blessed that Madelynn's result was not something different.
People ask me all the time, "Aren't you sad Madelynn will be going off to kindergarten next year." My response is always the same. "No, because there was a time I wasn't sure Madelynn would be able to attend kindergarten. Each day is a gift that at one time we never thought we would have."
So today we share our joy of Madelynn with you. We encourage you to celebrate your children. There are so many families with children with congenital heart defects (chd) that don't live as long as Madelynn or do not have the wonderful prognosis she has. We are very lucky and truly appreciate the gift beyond measure.
Thursday I received a call from both Phil's mom and brother, Jon, that Jason one of Phil's other brothers had died in a terrible, tragic work accident. According to a news story he slipped and fell 3 stories, from an attic area where he was working on the property.
I immediately called Phil because no one could reach him. It truly was one of the most difficult things I have ever done. Phil is having difficulty accepting things right now. We came to Indiana so Phil can mourn with his family and celebrate Jason's life.
In honoring Jason's life we have done things, we believe, Jason would have wanted. Saturday Night we gathered at Jason and Franka's house and watched the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame take on the Oklahoma Sooners in Oklahoma. Being a Fighting Irish fan was in their blood. Jason's brothers and son's came together, but it was very clear there was something missing. Without a doubt, there was a void that no one will ever be able to fill.
Whether it be the empty chair no one wanted to sit in, or the missing tone in the choir of laughter when all the brothers are together the emptiness was deafening. In a few hours droves of people will come to pay their respects to Jason and his family. My heart aches for not only my husband as he he tries to process this senseless accident but for all of those left behind in this tragedy.
I managed to find a few pictures from when Jason was very young and all the wedding photos I took back in 2009 when Jason married Franka. The school pictures were very sweet as they were of days long past. As I looked through the wedding photos, it was the happiest I had ever seen Jason and the smiles were genuine. It was very clear he had finally found true happiness with Franka.
My only hope is that eventually those hurting from this horrible turn of events find some type of peace in Jason's passing. It is not going to be an easy road, but again I can hope wounds are healed and harmony can be found.
While working on my picture project I took these pictures of Jackson. He loves 'BOB', our tree in the backyard. Every time he steps out back I find him on a swing hanging from the tree or in the tree. One of the best investments we have ever made.
Jackson had a rough adjustment to second grade. However after I talked to his teacher she was very impressed how well he was now adjusting. Today he brought me his most recent Math and Spelling Test both had a grade of 100%.
For the last two to three weeks he has been complaining that his legs hurt. I thought maybe it was due to soccer and building those leg muscles. Then the other day he passed Kaitlynn and he looked taller than she. So for fun I had Phil measure Jackson. He has grown almost an inch in about 60 days. To me that seems like alot.
I like all the pictures but the last one is my favorite and the one that most exudes his personality.
I have posted photos of the Living Room even though I had not finish hanging the last of my prints. The Dining Room is finished but I have a photo project I have been working on and will not post Dining Room photos until I finish it. However, I thought I would share some of the potential photos. These are a few of Kaitlynn.
She has been doing very well. Her first report card that has real grades instead of N, P, S's was pretty good. She only gets graded for Language Arts, Math, Social Studies and Science receiving all B's and a C respectively. I was really bummed because she was just points away from A's and B's to make the Honor Roll. Hoping we have given her something to work for. She is still taking her Global Kids class (like an AIG prep class) and loves it.
She will finish the soccer season this Saturday; she has been fun to watch. Basketball season doesn't start until January (yes, she asked to play basketball) but she will have Brownies to keep her busy. I will have to post a picture of her with her vest on.
Look closely this is the GOD AWFUL acoustic (popcorn) ceiling.
This is my new B-E-A-U-tiful smooth painted ceiling.
Sunday, September 16th as Phil's sister was driving out of our neighborhood, I was taking everything out of the living room. For the next two weeks, we scraped and sanded the ceiling to prepare it to paint. We painted the ceiling and walls. I painted inside the windows while Phil framed in the windows. We mounted stone on the wall. We found a sawmill, picked out a cedar tree, had it planed down and sealed it. We washed the floors and baseboards. Finally, we moved the furniture back in Wednesday September 26th. Just in time to pick Phil's step-mom up from the airport Friday.
I LOVE this mantle, solid cedar, 8ft long, pure beauty.
This stone wall was almost the death of me. I love it but would not do it ourselves again.
This dresser/buffet will be repainted in the months to come to match the living room.
There is art missing from the wall behind the sofa. It will be mounted in the coming weeks.
It will be so much better when my prints are back on the wall.
I LOVE the framed windows. This was a last minute addition.
This family tree is one of my favorite things after
the mantle and stone wall of course.
This living room update was long over due. There are not enough words to tell you how much I love it. Everyday when I come home I feel like we scrapped all old ugliness away. I was so pleased with the finished product, the Monday we took Phil's step-mom back to the airport I jumped on the dining room. We still have to frame in the dining room window and I have a photo display to finish. Once these are done I will share dining room photos too.
Phil was very burned out once the dining room was finished. We decided to take a break and start again after Christmas.
Throughout this process I have learned several things. Most days Phil and I work very well together. I laughed and joked and smiled more. I won't lie a few of those days I was very stressed and overwhelmed. What I learned about myself was to step back, regroup and work on what I was good at. Every time I did that I suddenly turned around and more and more or the room was coming together.
If you ask the kids what they remember.....eating meals on the floor in the hallway and living room, helping mommy wash the floor and baseboards and living in the upstairs of the house for two weeks.
For all the memories we created, I hope the new rooms create many more.....
Matriarch - A highly respected women who is a mother.
Last week I headed to a funeral home to pay my respects to a woman who lived and breathed the true definition of a matriarch. She was a mother of four and grandmother of 11(I think).
When I pulled into the parking lot I was amazed the only place to park was patches of grass on the side. I was greeted by her husband and he had a smile on his face. Then it was like I suddenly fell into a time warp, slide show and photos everywhere. You literally watched her children and grandchildren grow up in photos; her whole life right there in front off you.
As I talked to friends and family, she had spent her last days suffering and was ready to meet the Lord at the front gate. Before she went she spent time planning her funeral. She wanted everything to be just right. She didn't wanted those that loved and knew her to be grieving she was gone; she wanted them celebrating how she lived. She and her eldest son shared the joy of music. The next day he would be singing a final farewell to his mother. Just the thought of every ounce of love that will pour out of that song makes me cry.
The woman and her husband were married 52 years. Thinking about the more than half a century she ran the house, reared the children and stood by her husband in every hill and valley they travelled, how do you go on. To be together that long is one of the truest forms of respect. I know that a part of him died that faithful day with her.
A long time family friend told me that the the son she shared the joy of music with, could not get it right with his father. They seemed to argue and not connect on so many levels. As she fought her battle to live with an ugly disease, the father and son finally made their way back to each other. Even in her death she found a way to bring them together. So much so the father walks into the family business, the son helps run, and says (no matter who is around), "Good Morning Son, I love you." It took an amazing woman to remind her strong willed, set in his ways husband no matter what tell your children you love them.
When I left the funeral home, I was just shaking my head. As a mother of three, one day I will be that person. To hold this position in a family are pretty big shoes to fill and not everyone is cut out for it and can do it well. Will my husband think as highly of me as this husband thought of his wife? Will my children trust and respect me, the way this family did? When my family celebrates my life will they really celebrate it or just be glad I am gone?
The whole evening just made me think about my life and what I want my children to learn and take away from it. What things do I want them to carry with them to their children. Sometimes we get so buried in day to day life we forget all the little things we do make a difference. The things we think are irrelevant will be the one silly little fact our child remembers.
To all the mother's out there, one day you will hold this highest position. It won't matter the position you hold if you don't earn it along the way. Thank you Mrs. Anne for the reminder that every minute of every hour of everyday we are striving to teach our children the very best in life is what we make of it as we live it.
During the last week I have been running, running, running.......and I am exhausted.
To start Madelynn finally started school. She was very nervous. To start 90% of her friends she has gone to this school with for the last two years are not in her class this you. She is one of the youngest children in the class. I believe she is also nervous because for the last two years she has had the same teachers and this year she has new teachers. Unfortunately, the day after she met her teachers the week before one of them left. So she started the school year off with a teacher she had never met.
Madelynn was very excited about the classroom and all the fun things to do. This year she has and art center, nature center with a fish tank, kitchen and family care area. She would have been happy to taking care of the babies all day. I was thrilled to see all the things that will challenge her this year. I believe that over the next few weeks she will get acclimated and do very well. Sadly, I discovered she needs help learning how to use scissors. Since she cut her own hair last year I assumed this was not an issue. However cutting hair and paper are two different things. guess we will have to practice.
Today was the first GAME Day of the season for Kaitlynn and Jackson. Let me just say when I left for the field this morning it was grey and foggy. However, I came home with face, arms and feet that resembled a roasted tomato. I have flip flop stripes across the tops of my feet, farmers stripe across my bicep and my face looks like I tried a new raspberry makeup.
Enough about me.....Kaitlynn and Jackson did great on the field today. Jackson's game was up first and he wowed the crowd. The first play of the game he was passed the ball at mid-field without taking a step he used those powerful legs and scored. I and most of the parents watching were stunned. His team won 7-2 and Jackson scored 4 times. He did really well.
Right after Jackson's game we moved fields and settled in for Kaitlynn's game. Kaitlynn's team did not fair as well they lost 9-7. Kaitlynn scored twice and did very well acclimating to her teammates and being one of the smallest players on the team. Even though they lost many of the parents, from the other team, and the official walked over and complimented how well they played. I think it was a good learning experience for the team. Kaitlynn was not disappointed they lost because her coach pulled her aside and told her how great she did. If nothing else I hope this is a great confidence builder for her as the season goes on.
Over all it was a Good week and Great Soccer Day. But my favorite pictures of the week are.......
The end of Summer is here. Like most parents, I am a little sad it is coming to a close. I have truly enjoyed my children this summer and everything it entailed.
It started out with one child mastering her bike, one child brave enough to just take off and ride, and one child finally having long enough legs to ride the big wheel (you would have thought she won the lottery), Vacation Bible School, Family Weekend and three weeks of Camp Gabe took us through the end of July.
Camp Gabe is where the kids really thrived this summer. Kaitlynn was enrolled in the Fine Arts Camp. She came home each week with some amazing art work. Not to mentioned she loved the freedom to just create. Jackson on the other hand spent three weeks in Sports Camp. My favorite part about Jackson in Sports Camp, someone finally wore him down. He LOVED it, but he was beyond exhausted.....best he slept all summer.
Madelynn was in three weeks of "Mini" Camp. Half her pre-school class was enrolled, she loved it. My favorite part about "Mini" Camp was the first day when Madelynn crawled out of bed she pulled her Minnie Mouse T-shirt out the drawer. She looked at me and said, "I have to wear my Minnie shirt for "Mini" Camp." Never a dull moment.
The rest of the summer was spent sitting under trees as the breeze blew by, sneaking off to Brewsters's for after dinner ice cream, magic tricks and wild animals at the library and swimming as much as possible. It also included lots of tests and doctor visits. All three had their annual physicals. except for Madelynn's weight the doctor was very please with all three. We also left the pediatric cardiologist with a great report. We have to wait until next year to find out more about Madelynn's nerve damage in her diaphragm but all is well for now.
I'm not going to lie I LOVE when school is in session. It is nice to know if I leave for work and the house is clean, when I come home it will still be clean. My children are routine people. If they know the plan they depend on it. Ask those who come to visit and the plan is disrupted.
This year marks big changes for Kaitlynn. She will earn real grades instead of satisfactory or unsatisfactory. She will participate in End of Grade (EOG) testing. If she does not pass this testing she does not pass the grade. Each student Must pass both the class and the EOG. I have not talked to her about this yet, it is on the agenda for the week.
Jackson will still be on the satisfactory/unsatisfatory program but his teacher will have a challange. Lucky for us she knows all the tricks, has been teching for 25 years, and been at the school since it opened in 1998. Jackson was very excited when he heard she would be his teacher. I hope this was an answered prayer.
Madelynn starts school this week. She was very sad when we drove Kaitlynn and Jackson to school and she could not go. She cannot wait for school to start.
Enjoy the photos from the first day of school through the first day of school.
I remember panicking because I could not find Phil's ring......
I remember sitting up in front of all of our friends and family and my knees shaking I was so nervous.....
I remember when the ceremony was over walking in the park holding his hand and feeling the summer breeze flow though my veil......
I remember laughing in the limo with my sister and my best friend, so happy we shared this moment together......
13 years ago today I became Mrs. Philip Addler.
This journey has not been an easy one. We have been challenged beyond anything I could have possibly fathomed. As a result of these deep valley paths we have trudged, the light is so much brighter on the other side. We have three beautiful, amazing miracles to show for it. We have our health and our home. We are two very lucky people to be surrounded by so much joy.
I know most of you have seen these before but here are some pictures from the Happy Day!!
Yesterday I asked Phil if he wanted to go out to dinner tomorrow. His response was, "WHY?". I walked away and said, "Never mind". I was really upset...He then says, "Chelsea, I was kidding I would never forget what tomorrow is." One of the things I love the most is he has never lost his sense of humor and always makes sure I never lose mine. Thank you Pilbert!! I love you to infinity and beyond, to the moon and back, forever and ever.
