Home Sweet Home

leaving on a jet plane- thanks Elyse for the cute dress!

Last Friday,  Little Lu and I made our way back to Ohio for a family reunion, to see some friends, to celebrate my brother Phillip's 30th birthday, and to just have the feeling of home sweet home.  Such a safe, secure feeling to sleep in your own bed from growing up, to eat home cooked meals- and they are no joke in Ohio-(i've been living in sweats and a large dress...), to snuggle into the family room couch, to walk down memory lane and just relax.  No doctors appointments, no therapies, no feeling of needing to do housework, yard work, and life's little home-works..just the feeling of hanging out with the fam...so very nice.

at Dia getting ready to head hoooooome!

As I've gotten older and come back to Ohio, or maybe its having little lu, I most definitely appreciate and see our little town of New Philadelphia in a brighter light.  My grandparents lake and cabin, Marsh Lake, is sooooo beautiful and peaceful. I always knew "the lake" was great but I realized and loved it more than ever this trip.  The Tuscora Park where I once frolicked, rode the merry-go-round, played tennis, rode bikes, watched high school football, ran track, graduated,  amongst other kid stuff and more growing up , looked like a picture perfect place to do ALL of those things.   Before it was just my hometown park..nothing special,  just where I lived.  New Phila is and was a great place to raise a family and I'm happy to say it was my home.  It's really great to bring my daughter back here and share some of my life as a little girl with her.

Lu loves this chair my parents have!

Anna Hicks and Lu before the saturday reunion

zzzzzzzzz-my mom and lubird snoozin

Peaceful Marsh lake

fishing with my pa at the lake-i needed a lot of coaching-it had been a long time..

ah little lu!

Anna Sugarman is back!- getting her snuggle on with the lubird

Lu swinging at our city park-Tuscora

AND not only was this a trip down memory lane, but Little Lu and I hung out with two very special girls, Kristen and Isabella DeSantis, who live just a little over an hour away in Canfield, OH.  Isabella was born on September 26th, 2011, (5 months after Little Lu) and was also diagnosed with Pallister-Killian Syndrome.  Kristen and I connected on the pkskids website and decided we MUST get together.  Lu and I had the best time and as Kristen told her husband, "we could talk for 2 months straight and still never catch up on everything we want to talk about".   I can't say enough about how great it was, they are, and how I know we'll be forever friends.  Now I just have one more family to visit when I come home.  LOVED them!

Kristen DeSantis and her Isabella and us..

Thank you Marsh Family for a great reunion, thank you Isabella and Kristen for making the drive to see us, thank you Anna Hicks and Anna Sugarman for visiting too!  God bless these special girls in our lives.   We're only half-way through our trip...and I"m looking forward to more visiting, relaxing, sleeping in, and MORE 24 hours a day of seeing Lucia without her oxygen...the beauty of low altitude.  There's no place like home, sweet home! But we do miss you daddy, husband and our doggies too!

Our hearts are so sad for our friend, Megan Gilbert Gilles who lost her amazing father, Wayne Gilbert, last week.  The Gilberts are such a special, thoughtful, fun, and giving family..

megan and her dad at her wedding April 1st, 2011