Our Life NEVER Ceases to Amaze Me!

Well... you would think that things at the Andrews/Melle household could slow down and go with the flow... even for a day! ha! ha! Well... last night our little Car Cruiser... little dare devil.... or as Uncle Bub calls her... Our Little Thrill Seeker... drove her car down our stairs! Talk about freaking out! We knew we needed to get a gate, but where she isn't walking or crawling and as far as the car and lion go... she has only been able to go forward and backward... she didn't know how to turn the wheel or turn... or so we thought. Nick brought up some laundry for us to fold and she was right there... seriously with in seconds... it was as though the house was falling in! It was so loud and scary! My first thought was that Preston had fallen down the stairs with a whole handful of stuff... we jumped up and there she was, lying on the landing and her car upside down! Nick seriously flew down the stairs and Preston and I were there in seconds! It was the scariest thing. So off the to doctor we flew! She was okay thank goodness! I can't even believe it! I felt like the worst mother! She was right there and literally a second later there she laid... at the bottom of the stairs! I felt so bad! I thought Nick was going to fall apart! She is doing well and back to her joyful, funny self! So we are really glad!

I went to the doctor today to find out what my lump was. Well, it's not a hernia! It's a blood clot. There are actually several of them. So it's kind of scary! I have to be real careful for about 3 weeks he said. No heavy lifting or exerting myself. He said if I'm really careful they should go away. If not, If I'm my stubborn self and do things instead of asking for help... they could break off and go to my lungs or heart! So I think I will be humbled and ask for help! It really scared me! He said there was so much bleeding from my surgery and that is what caused them! So the next few weeks are going to be a little stressful for me! I know I'll be okay because I will follow orders this time! ha! ha! When it's your life that is involved and you have little kids and a family... the stubbornness needs to go on the back burner.

Then, there is our Mr. Preston! How proud of him are we? Well, he tried out for the Jr. High baseball team this week and yesterday he made the first cut! There were 50 7th graders and they only kept 12. Preston was one of the 12, so we were so excited! Several of his other friends also made it so it was pretty cool! In fact, most of his new baseball team made the cut. Then today, he made the second cut! Yeah! ha! ha! They only kept about 7 7th graders. Some of his friends got cut today, but the others are still there too! He's very excited! So he has to go back again tomorrow! I think he has a very good chance! He does very well at baseball, so hopefully he makes it! If not, he got very far in the try outs and he should be proud! Go Preston! ha! ha! We are so proud of you for even going out there and trying! I'll let you all know how it goes! Hopefully we have some really good news! That would do so much for him and his confidence! I think he's already proud of him self for getting this far!

I am still keeping busy as ever being Mom, taking care of the family, playing with the kids and working on my new adventure.... doing Mortgage Loans! I'm so excited to be working with Angie. She has been a very good friend of mine for a very long time, so working with her and spending time has been great! Plus I get to do the loans from my home and spend my days with Avery and soon Preston once summer comes! It would be really nice if I could just do this full time and be home with my kids all the time! Hopefully soon! ha! ha!

I hope you all are doing well and everything in your life is going good! Love you guys! I'll get some updated photos of the kids soon! We went and got their photos taken at Sadie's Photography and they turned out so good! I'll get posted soon! You'll love them!

The Newest Member to our Family..... Chloe

Here is our little Chloe. Cute Little Chloe.She's already been out in the fields getting ready for the big day when she can go hunting with Dad and brother! ha! ha! Maybe Mom and sister too! She is so cute! Avery didn't know what to think of her at first... but now she loves her! That's her favorite word... dogie! When we go out to play with her or take her potty... the first thing she says is.. "Hi dogie!" and waives to her! It's so fun!

I Finally Did It

Well... the last few weeks at our house hold have been pretty crazy! I went in for my surgery and things went okay! A little more complex than I and the doctor had hoped... but okay! I had my Hysterectomy. I have been dreading this for YEARS! Anyway, the Endometriosis had grown some of my organs together, so they had to cut them apart and lift the organs up and cut all the Endometriosis off. Then they had to cut two of the ligaments in my back to get to the Endometriosis that was clear down in my tailbone! Yeah! That hurt... and still seems to bother me when I sit too long! When I got out of surgery they had me on straight Morphine. Yeah, you would think that would be great... but for some reason it didn't touch the pain in my back. I couldn't lay on my back for pretty much the whole time in the hospital! Turning from side to side when I had that great big, long... scar across my whole belly... wasn't very pleasant! ha! ha! But we managed! I had to stay in the hospital a day longer than I had expected... but it was sure nice to get out! I really missed my kids! I was able to see Nick a lot because he spent most of his time up there with me. Thanks to my parents for keeping the kids. Avery didn't like being cooped up in the room very long and Preston was sick for two days. So my time with them was short! That was really hard too! I wanted Avery to spend the night with me because I hadn't been away from her like that ever, but there was no way I could have taken care of her by myself ! I was pretty out of it for a couple days! I took some time to try and recover before returning back to work, but I'm now back to the grind of everyday life! Still pretty sore, but doing okay! I have a lump on my left side that hurts pretty bad and I'm just not quite sure what it is. We are hoping it's not a hernia, and that I don't have to go back under the knife to get if fixed! Yikes! That would stink!

Avery is getting so big! She's finally said Mama! Yeah! It's about time! ha! ha! I came after, Dada, Bubba, Dog, Duck, Ca ca, Ca ca Bum... you name it! ha! ha! But finally, Mama! I love it! We got a new little Black Lab Puppy named Chloee and last night Avery started even saying Dogie and Dogie Ca ca! ha! ha! She went out with me to let her go potty! I can't believe she's starting to talk so well... even though she's still not crawling... or walking! ha! ha! She is scooting around on her bum and rolling all over! Uncle Bub and Grandma & Grandpa Taylor both gave her little toys she can ride a round the house on and boy does she ever! She gets on her Lion and Car and rides them ALL over! It's such a crack up to watch! We love her so much! She puts a smile on our faces and touches our hearts!

Preston is doing well in school! They just went on a ski day for Honors, so he was really excited! He is now getting ready to start baseball again! We are with another team this year so we will be able to have our weekends free to have lots of family time! Camping, Fishing, 4 Wheeling, you name it! Preston is still his little sister's best buddy. It's so funny! When ever he's around, she wants him and pretty much no one else! When we drop him off to school she waives goodbye and blows him kisses! Same when we pick him up! Then she doesn't want him out of her sight when we get home! What a good brother he is! He takes such good care of her! He wants to be with her just as much as she does him! I am so proud of the big brother he is to her and the young man he is becoming! I love him so much!

Nick is out of town this week and we all miss him so! He had to go to California for a few days for work... enjoying the warm weather... close to 80. Shorts and a tee shirt! He called us last night and sent pictures of the beach! I was jealous! Especially when he said, "Guess what I'm doing right now? I'm wading in the ocean!" Rude huh? ha! ha! Here it's raining and cold today and he's down in the warm weather rubbing it in! Thank goodness he comes home tomorrow! We miss our papa!

Thanks to all of you who were so concerned for me and my family. For the flowers, cards, visits, phone calls and emails! I really appreciate everything you all do for us!

Avery's 1st Birthday

I can't believe Avery is now 1! Holy Smokes! ha! ha! Where did this past year go? We had a great day on Friday. Nick and I took off work and Preston came home after a half day of school and we went fishing! Yep fishing! ha! ha! Don't worry, we didn't go ice fishing... but we thought about it! We just went over to our loyal Roy Fish Pond. We caught some fish and Avery fell asleep shortly after we got there! ha! ha! It must have been from all the excitement! Friday night we got dinner and had some great family time! Then Saturday came and it was the day for the Big Birthday Party! We decorated, got a really cute Tinker Bell Cake and Avery even got her own Chocolate Cake all for herself. We put on her Birthday Princess hat, opened presents and then headed for digging in to the cake! What a crack up that was! ha! ha! Avery wanted nothing to do with it! She didn't want to get dirty... so needless to say Daddy got to eat her cake! She got her hands a little dirty... and she wasn't a fan! ha! ha! Notice the Mountain Dew Angie gave her for her Birthday... she's hooked! She wouldn't let go of it most of the night! Grandma Ramona was in from South Dakota and her Birthday was on Sunday... so Avery got to share her birthday with her Grandma! What a fun weekend it was! We all took Grandma to church on Sunday for her birthday and she really enjoyed it! I hadn't ever been to a Catholic Church so it was a new experience for me too.. but it meant the world to Grandma so we were happy to make her day special! Avery got so many cute things and we want to thank all of you who were there to share in our special day! We are so grateful for everyone who helped make her 1st Birthday Special! Thank you!

I also want to say a few things to so many of you who are so special in our lives. I know some of you know, but Monday I am going in for my big surgery that I have been putting off for so many years. It's now not an option and it has to be done. I'm very scared but I'm trying to have faith that everything will be okay! ha! ha! I'm grateful for all of you who are helping me stay positive and also for Nick for his great support of me and all my emotions. When something comes into your life that is serious and could maybe change your life and those around you.. you really realize how much you love all of those special friends and family who have made your life so wonderful! I just want all of you to know just how much you really do mean to me! There are so many of you who have given me so much support and love through out my whole life... You and your friendships have helped make me the person I am today! I look up to so many of you and am so grateful for everything you do for me, my kids and my family! Please don't ever forget how much you mean to me! You really do! I don't think you can ever say that enough! When this is all over, I hope to look back and laugh at how emotionally out of control I feel! ha! ha! To realize all this crying all the time... was over rated! ha! ha! I just wanted you to know how I feel before I went into this trial I'm about to face! I don't want to have taken any of you for granted and I knew it would help me to feel better letting you all know how special you really are to me!
I love you guys so much!

A Busy Few Weeks

Well, time has flown by again and we can't seem to find where it went! :) Preston is busy playing basketball and enjoying spending time with his buddies! He is still doing fabulous in school! The school year is half over now... time really needs to slow down a bit! He did really well again this quarter getting a 3.7. We are all really proud of him!

Avery gave us a bit of a scare this past couple weeks. She started out having an ear infection and she ended up being allergic to the antibiotic and the doctor sent us over to the ER. It was pretty scary! We were lucky to be able to bring her home though with just added doctor visits. She was getting to dehydrated from throwing up so much from the allergy, her temperature was around 102.3 for about 5 days and we couldn't get it to break... then the fact she wouldn't eat or drink... so we had to feed her through a syringe to try and get fluids in her. They had to give her a little IV and take her blood... Plus the shot they gave her, the doctor said that it hurt worse than a Penicillin shot. So her little legs were pretty sour for a while. It was so sad! It made me cry having to watch all of that! She still isn't eating very good, but at least she's not getting sick and her fever is gone! So we are on the mends!

We hope all our family and friends are doing well! We love you all so much! Don't ever forget that!

January 11, 2008- 10 Year Anniversary of Air Med Crash- My Brother Shayne

Hi Everyone! Today is a bitter sweet day for me and my family. Today marks the 10 Year Anniversary of my brother Shayne's Death. I can't believe it has been 10 years... looking in the papers today makes it all seem like it just happened all over again. There is a big article in the Standard Examiner and also in the Deseret News. There will also be coverage on Channel 5 News today about the Air Med Crew who was killed. It's an honor to know Shayne was a hero to so many people... yet it's also so hard to know he's gone and not coming back! I miss him so much! My thoughts are with Tami and the kids.. and my parents today. I am so proud of how the kids are turning out! I love them so much! They are such good kids! I know for those of you who didn't know Shayne, might not understand what an amazing person he was and still is. Hopefully if you see the articles and see the news you'll understand what an impact he made on so many people's lives. I love and miss him so much! He truly is and always will be my Hero!
Don't ever forget to tell those you love and care about how much they mean to you. You never know what instance they will be taken from you!

A View of the Past Year

This past year has been exciting and also rewarding..... Last year Preston and I did a tree for the Festival of Trees in Honor of my Brother Shayne who was killed in an Air Med Helicopter at Snowbird while trying to save an injured skiers life.... what a great time we had doing this and remembering our brother and uncle... our tree's name was, "Hero's Never Die"! Because as most of you know... Shayne was my hero and the person I wanted to be like when I grew up! He will always live in our hearts FOREVER! We did it in the Old Baseball theme.. because Preston Loves Baseball and also because... Babe Ruth said... Hero's Never Die!

Preston was also very honored to get an award from our "Blankets for Baghdad" project he and I did. We were on 3 news channels and with the help of people from all over Utah and some other parts of the country... we were able to send over 1,000 blankets to Baghdad to Orphanages, Children's Hospitals and some villages... He was awarded several awards from doing this with his mom. He received the Good Deed award from a local dentist and also the Good Turn for America Award from the Boy Scouts of America. To get this award you had to be nominated and also accepted. They only gave out 6 of these awards throughout the whole Nation! What a great honor this was! We are so proud of Preston and all of the great things he does!

Then.... February came and I along with my great husband and son made it through the past 9 months and were able to bring a baby I wasn't supposed to have into our lives and family! Little Miss Avery RaeAnn was born February 15th. She caused her mother a bit of trouble during the long 9 months... but she was well worth it! She has blessed our lives so much! She is literally a little miracle!

The next several months were full of Football, Baseball, Basketball and even a trip to Cooperstown, New York with Preston and his Cyclones Baseball team to play baseball and visit the Baseball Hall of Fame and tour New York City with Avery and I along with my Mom. What a great time we had! We were gone for 11 days and enjoyed almost every minute of it! Preston even made friends with the little man who runs the elevator and he let Preston run the elevator to the upper floors of the Empire State Building! We were able to visit all the sites in the city and spend a week watching baseball games all week long! The boys were also inducted into the Youth Baseball Hall of Fame! How cool is that? The boys had trading pins that they were able to share with all the other teams so he was able to get pins from boys from every state in the U.S. It's a once in a life time dream for these boys!

Preston also started Jr. High at Rocky Mountain Jr. High! This was really hard for me.. knowing he is getting so grown up! I want him to stay little! ha! ha! I tell him all the time to stop growing! Instead.. he's as tall as I am now! Not that that is hard to accomplish! ha! ha! He's loving school and doing very well! He made the High Honor Roll last quarter and is on his way there again this quarter! He's very dedicated to his school work. It makes me so proud to be his mom, knowing I have such a great young man as my son! What a great example he is going to be to his sister!

Avery loves the pool... we went swimming all the time last summer and you'd think she was a little fish! She also was able to spend some time with Nick's brother George who came to visit this summer and she was able to get an Indian Blessing. When she turns 3 she will be able to get her Indian (Sioux) name from Uncle George so she can keep her Indian Heritage going. She enjoyed her first ride on the boat, camping at our Fikstad Family Reunion, traveling to her brother's baseball tournaments, her first plane ride, traveling on the New York Subway... walking through Queens, Visiting Time Square, the Statue of Liberty... Ground Zero, a Horse and Buggy ride through Central park and even a trip to a New York Yankees Game!

The Holiday's came and we were lucky to have Nick's Mom ... Grandma Ramona come visit us and be with us for Halloween! She got to see Avery in her cute little Caterpillar costume and share in her first experience of Trick or Treating. We love Grandma so much and can't wait for her to come back and visit for Avery's 1st Birthday and have a birthday party for her also! What a great memory for Avery to be able to share her 1st Birthday party with her Grandma Ramona! What a great memory for Grandma too! (Sorry.. I couldn't get these to turn. Hope you can see them okay!)

Christmas time was a great time for family and friends and also our annual Sub for Santa Project Preston and I do every year! We were very busy from October till days before Christmas finding families... making an ornament tree.. buying, wrapping and delivering for 35 kids! Thank you all so much for all of your support and help! We couldn't do this many kids without you! It is such a great reward for us and knowing we helped make those kids and families Holiday's a great one!

Our first Christmas with Avery was a crack up! She loved the paper more than anything! Nick got to enjoy a quiet night in the bed alone while I slept out in the front room with Preston and Avery for our annual Christmas Eve Slumber Party waiting for Santa to come! Watching Preston and Avery open presents and see the excitement on their faces really made us realize what great kids we have. We put the wrapping paper in a sack after we opened each one... little Miss Avery discovered this and got her little hands on it and took out all the wrapping paper... crunching it with her cute little hands and covering herself totally up with paper! She just makes us laugh! We were sad to see Preston leave for Mexico for a week.. but we knew he'd have fun! We're just glad he's back home with us now! He sure missed his little sister! I think she quite missed him too! She loves her brother! I know this is long.. but I'll attach some photos to go with the story! It was a great day to spend with my Parents and Nick's brother... Uncle Bub and my Aunt Julie. Avery was sick on Christmas so most of our family came to us! We love them so much and appreciate all they do for us! (The Christmas Photos are on their way.)

Always remember we love you guys so much and are very grateful we have you in our lives! I hope your New Year will bring you all the happiness you deserve! I think we are ALL due for a great 2008! Don't you! :)