Update and request for help...

It was recently brought to my attention that I have fallen WAY behind on my blogging since my hubby returned from Iraq. In my defense, we DID have 15 very long months to make up for. Still, I have neglected my poor blog and must fill the world in on life in general around here.

(If I remember correctly we were supposed to have a colony on the moon by now, right?)

We moved to Fort Gordon at the end of October and at the beginning of November our R&R baby Drayden Tobias was born. He weighed in at a whopping 7 pounds 11 ounces and has been a very healthy boy!

My Beautiful Daughter Samantha is still in Texas with Grandma and Grandpa. Grandpa is still fighting Cancer and Samantha helps him remember exactly WHY he has been fighting so hard for the past three years. They inspire each other and Samantha has been doing quite well with Grandpa to cheer her on but unfortunately, she is getting bigger every day.

Samantha is very social and loves to be around people. She loves going to church on Sundays and Wednesday nights and she loves going to the drive in movies with Grandma. When she was still small enough for me to handle on my own she loved going shopping with me. She goes to therapy once a week and makes the 20 hour round trip to see her doctors in Houston once every three to six months. It is SO hard to get her anywhere because she does not have a wheelchair accessible vehicle. Anyone who has ever researched the price of wheelchair vans will tell you that they are insanely expensive. They average between $20,000 and $60,000.

My parents were recently given the opportunity to buy a used wheelchair van for the astonishingly low price of $4,500. None of us can afford it but we also know the chances of ever running across a deal this good again are slim to none. It is an older model van but it has lower mileage than the vehicle they have now and the wheelchair lift is in perfect working order. So if anyone reading this would like to help Samantha with a BIG quality of life issue AND help her stay with her family for MUCH longer (instead of having to go into a "home" because we can't get her out of the house), please click the donate button on the sidebar to your right and give whatever you can.

I promise to keep everyone updated on our fundraising progress and (I hope) post photos of Samantha with the van once we find a way to buy it. For now I will post a video of Samantha at therapy so you can all see how big she is getting. Thank you in advance for any help you can give my beautiful girl!