Merry Chirstmas

Merry Christmas everyone. Hope you had a wonderful and safe holiday.

Mariska was pretty excited for Santa to come to our house this year. We got home really late Christmas eve so I told her I'd leave milk and cookies out so she could go to sleep. She woke up at 6:30am running into our room yelling "he came HE came!!" Her little face was priceless. She was delighted Santa left a note with the empty cookie plate. She loved her toy puppy and her Tangled dress, We hurried and opened all our gifts before heading out to church at 9!  Sam's big gift was an tablet, Mariska was her Udraw tablet for the Wii.  Mine *Melynda* was a sweet camera and Kamiah gave her little sing-a-ma-jig doll a ton of smiles. We all couldn't be happier.

Having little kids on Christmas morning is AWESOME!

We also got another huge Christmas gift. We Signed the counter offer on a house! Yet We'll be done with Apartment life by February!!! A yard for the girls to play and no more smoke coming into our bedroom windows.

 I was contacted a few months ago and asked if we would share Mariska's story in a book. Its been pretty neat to have a chance to do something like that for her to see. Its just a short 1000 words, I"ll post again when it comes out. =)  It was hard opening my self up and going back to all the days and months in the hospital, felt like it took Sam and I forever to really get it done. Every time I sat down to write I was hit by how much gratitude we have to our Heavenly Father for letting her stay with us.

We keep thinking about her donors family, We pray for them, to make the holidays a little less empty and to keep peace in their hearts.

Here's a few Pictures, We're going to turn the blog into a book soon. I've noticed the pages with tons and tons of pictures are my favorite so this one is going to be picture heavy. 

Christmas morning

missed a few, Mariska Christmas afternoon

Our Tree, don't think you can see it. We have a one red heart for Mariska's old and new heart

At my parents for a later Christmas

I can just see it... "she got what I wanted" ha good thing its just I'm hungry