Lake Placid...

From Vienna with love...

Yesterday we received a package in the mail from our teammate Lindsay, and our friend Whitney.  It was filled with goodies from Austria and notes of encouragement!  The kiddos were so excited, and can't wait to pack some of the treats in their lunches on Tuesday so they can show their friends here.

I also got a special treat...my comfy, over-sized sweatshirt that I have had since I was pregnant with Luke! Anyone who comes over to our house after 7pm, knows that this is usually what I have on! Everyone in our family makes fun of me when I wear it, but I love it!  I think the girls knew I needed a little taste of home :)  How sweet and thoughtful!

We are settling into a routine now, but the gravity of Neena's cancer still lingers like a heavy, dark cloud.  She grows weaker by the day, but continues to amaze us with her sweet spirit.

The stress has been tangibly felt...with tempers that have been short with one another, kiddos that are sometimes in tears after saying goodnight, and Brad even found himself in the ER earlier this week, struggling with chest pain.  Nothing serious was found, and now he is taking medicine for acid reflux, most likely brought on by...you guessed it...stress.  Often we find ourselves emotionally drained and physically tired as we watch Neena suffer.  Still, we are grateful for the ways we can serve her and spend time with our extended family.

So that is the latest on us.  We are waiting, trusting and hoping in Him to get us all through this trying time...

and a little love from Vienna doesn't hurt either :)

One good thing about a herniated disk...

is that your Dr. will write you an order for one of these fancy carts at Disney, and you don't have to wait in line for the rides...

Naples...

Before my mom started back to work again, we thought we would take a quick overnight trip to Naples.  We left Ft. Lauderdale right when tropical storm Bonnie decided to hit land, but we were determined to not let it ruin our fun.

It rained the entire drive to Naples, but once we arrived, the rain let up long enough for us to hit the beach and look for shells.  When the rain started in again, we headed to the movie theater to watch
Toy Story 3 (which is a great movie!)

When we came out of the movie, the skies had cleared and we headed back to the beach for more shell collecting and playing in the sand!

The next morning, the weather was gorgeous and the kiddos were in the pool by 8:30! Unfortunately, we had to check out by 12~ but we played on the beach until it was time to pack up the car again!

For lunch, we stopped at Tin City.

It was a very short trip, but it was really fun for me to spend some alone time with my mom and the kiddos, while Brad got to spend some alone time with Neena!

To see more photos, go HERE

Sun-kissed kiddos...

These are a few of our favorite foods...

When we come back to the States, you can bet that we catch up on some of our favorite foods! 

:: Our kiddos love IHOP!  Pancakes, pancakes and pancakes...need I say more?

:: Brad and I miss Cuban food from Las Vegas

:: We all love a good donut from Dandee Donuts

:: and a family fun restaurant with really good seafood is the Rustic Inn

Appointments...

Along with enjoying all of the fun things in Florida...

we have to catch up with our Dr. and dental visits.  We really miss our pediatrician and our dentist here in Hollywood!