Stephen is getting married

Stephen is getting married on December 1st! We are looking forward to his wedding and having Arianne (pronounced Arion- French Canadian) and Jacob a permanent part of our family!

Unexpected Family Reunion

This week has been crazy, long, tiring, fun and unexpected! Dad went to the hospital in Columbia last Friday (two Friday's ago) because he has been having heart problems again. Mom and I drove down there Saturday to be with him. We ended up spending the night in the waiting room (something I don't recommend) and driving down to Charleston on Sunday. The doctors decided to send him down to Charleston for a heart catheter and possible surgery. Driving into Charleston was great. I could smell the marsh and salty sea air. It took me back to the "good ole days" of visiting Nick and Alisa when they lived down there. Once we got to the hospital dad was wheeled away for a heart catheter. The results were not what we hoped for, however in the long run dad would be better off. He had to have by-pass surgery. The blockage was too long for a stint and there was significant damage to one of the main arteries. They scheduled him for Friday morning and he had to stay in the hospital until the surgery. We were a little bumbed out but we knew that it was for the best. We drove back to Greenville for a couple of days to get things squared away and taken care of before the surgery. Thanks to my wonderful mother-in-law, I was able to help my mom during this time and didn't have to worry about my children. In the meantime, we made plans for our family to meet back down in Charleston to be with dad during this time. Nick drove from N.C., Nathan drove in from Tennessee, Heather flew out from Utah and of course Stephen, Scott and I were already here. This was the first time in over ten years that all six of us have all been together. It was so much fun to have our family together for dad. The surgery went well and dad recovered ahead of schedule. He is scheduled to come home today! We are so grateful for the doctors. The surgeon that performed the surgery was a 10th year resident. He was great. Because dad was in a V.A. hospital and we were next door to the medical university, there were mainly residents that took care of him most of the time. They were all great!