its out there...

Its out there, its really out there... my Grandfather said so.

My Grandfather, Jack Funk, went to his heavenly home on Sunday night shortly before midnight. For the past 8 months he has battled pancreatic cancer, something we all prayed he would beat, but knew it was almost impossible.

Last Thursday Ava and I made a quick trip down to see my Grandfather, and I'm so glad we did. He desperately wanted to see Ava, and I would have done anything to make him happy. In his final days my Grandfather told us many things, and honestly, we believed maybe he was hallucinating...that is until it all began to click. He knew we wouldn't understand, but he told us anyway of the things he was seeing, and even at one point he believed he had died... and he may have, or God may have just come to him while he slept. Either way, my Grandfather saw Heaven. And even though he was weak, could barely speak, and definitely couldn't walk very far, he wanted to drive downtown and talk with people and tell them that Heaven is really out there!

I've always believed Heaven was out there somewhere, and that I'd never really know until my time came... but this past week, I got confirmation. I truly believe my Grandfather saw pieces of Heaven, and I can't explain the joy that fills my soul to know that some day I will be there too.

His obituary:

John F. "Jack" Funk, 75, of Philippi, went to his eternal home on April 5, 2009.

Jack was born in Jane Lew, a son of the late John and Kate Funk.

Surviving are his wife, Judi; one son, Fred Funk, and wife, Amy, of Bridgeport; two daughters, Linda Long and husband, J.D., of Philippi, and Susan Armstrong and husband, Orton, of Vienna; one brother, Jim Funk of Clarksburg; and one sister, Judy Mossburg and husband, Don, of Knoxville, Tenn. Jack was blessed with 10 grandchildren, Sarah Funk Berry Ann and husband, Nathan; Danielle, Jack and Andrew Funk; Amanda, Chelsea and Shelley Long, Erin and Morgan Armstrong and one great-grandchild, Ava Reese Berry Ann. He was preceded in death by one grandson, Chad Armstrong and sister-in-law, Dorothea Funk. Jack was very close to his family including his nieces and nephews and many cousins

Jack graduated from Jane Lew High School, Alderson-Broaddus College and West Virginia University. He served in the U.S. Army in San Francisco, Calif. He served as recreation director of Wicomico County in Salisbury, Md., for four years. He taught and coached at Alderson-Broaddus College for 32 years. He was a member of the Philippi Baptist Church where he served on many boards over the years. He was a member of the Philippi Kiwanis Club where he has served as president and vice president. Jack was active in many activities in town and was happiest when he was involved with the young people. His presence was always noted at athletic activities at the college and in town.

At his request he will be cremated and a memorial service will be held in Wilcox Chapel on the Alderson-Broaddus College campus at 2 p.m. on May 3, 2009.

In lieu of flowers, Jack would be happy for donations to be made to the Coach Jack Funk Battler Room in the Alderson-Broaddus Coliseum, which will offer academic support to athletes, the Jack Funk Scholarship at AldersonBroaddus College or to Mountain Hospice in Barbour County who made his journey home so much easier.

found...

I found a puppy today, and Nathan said we could keep her! Isn't she cute?

baby sale...

Just wanted to throw this out there, Old Navy is having a huge sale on baby clothes. Everything for babies is $5 (0-24mos). They have some pretty cute things out right now for Spring, so its a great time to stock up. Ava and I just went back today to get a few things for her new friend Hali, we got Ava quite a few things on Saturday. If you get a chance, run over to Old Navy and check it out, the sale only lasts until tomorrow (Thurs.) and its well worth the trip!

welcome baby Spanik...

Hali Anna Spanik is here!!!!!

She was born this morning via C-section at 10:02. She is 8lbs 9oz and 21" long. A happy, healthy baby GIRL!!! (I still can't believe it)

Congratulations Jon & Val

videos...

As promised, here are a few videos of Miss Ava. In the first two videos she is playing with her new lollipop drum that she got at Kindermusik. I don't think you'll have any problem telling that she loves her new toy. Its also pretty obvious she'd rather use the stick as a microphone and eat the drum.... it is a lollipop after all.

I will do anything to make Ava laugh, as is apparent in the following video. Ava seems to think Nathan is funnier though, and he can get her to laugh in seconds where it takes me a bit longer. But I found one thing a couple weeks ago that did the trick.

We're finally at the end of our colds, and Ava only has a slight runny nose, but that could also be from her teeth. We think she is starting to get her top teeth in, as she has been drooling like crazy again, chewing everything in sight, and tugging at her ears. (no fevers to indicate an ear infection and the dr. said her ears look great). We'll try to update again soon, and hopefully we'll have news about Jon, Val, & their new little baby.

And on a side note CONGRATULATIONS to Ashley and Patrick McBride on the birth of their son Benjamin. If you get a second, check out their blog (link to the left) and see some adorable pictures of their little man.

just a little more...

On a regular basis, I don't buy Pampers, they are a little too pricey for us, and Luvs seem to work quite well. But for the first month or two I did buy Pampers and I loved them. Since then, Pampers and Unicef have joined together to raise awareness about maternal and newborn tetanus. These types of things tug at my heart and make me want to help out, but I just haven't done it. That is until today.

Ava is ready to move up into a bigger diaper size, and it was time to buy new diapers anyway, so I added diapers to our grocery list and headed to Walmart. In the back of my mind was the thought of buying Pampers, but I fully intended on buying a pack of Luvs. But to my surprise (not really, Walmart often runs out of Luvs and I have to go to Target), there were no small packs of Luvs size 3. There were bigger packs, but I really didn't have room to get the bigger box today. So as I stood there and refused to buy the generic diapers (please don't judge!) I saw the Pampers, and there at the top of the package was the unicef banner with all the brightly colored babies.

Yeah, I spent just a little bit more on a pack of diapers, and yeah, I probably didn't get nearly as many as I normally would in a pack, but I feel like I've helped out in a way. I know its just one tetanus shot, but if there is one other Mom out there who decides to buy Pampers this time, thats two tetanus shots, and so on. I like to think we can make a difference, even if its a one time thing, or a every once and a while thing. Just think, by spending "just a little more," and we're talking maybe $2 or $3 here, we can help save a life!

If you'd like more information about the Pampers & UNICEF campaign visit: http://www.pampers.com/en_US/unicef/

A new look & updates...

So I thought it was time for an update, especially since Ava is now 6 months old and just had her 6 month check up.

Our little girl is growing up fast and her stats are the proof. Ava is now 17lbs -11oz (70%) and 27" long (90%). In the doctor's words, she is perfect...and I'm not making that up! No matter what anyone else says, we think she is perfect too.

After we got home from our appointment Ava came down with a cold... too bad she couldn't have had it while we were there, it would have saved me a phone call. Anyway, a little sniffle has turned into a waterfall of a runny nose and a resulting cough. The poor thing is miserable. She is taking naps every few hours, and last night she slept for 13 hours.

This is how we spent our morning:

propped up on the boppy so she could breath easier and wouldn't get choked on drainage. I spoke with a nurse at our Pediatrician's office and she said we were doing all the right things (humidifier, nose suction, vaseline, etc.) and that they are seeing this cold last about 2 weeks...2 WEEKS! What torture, more for Ava than us. Although I desperately hate it when I have to suction her nose because she screams uncontrollably. Even the cats have started coming over to her and meowing when I do that and she cries. They must feel bad for her.

Hopefully Ava will be back to her normal smiling self soon. I have a video to post, but it needs to be edited for time, blogger has a hard time uploading anything longer than 20 seconds. So I'll get on that and try to have it up soon. In the meantime, here are two pictures of our happy girl in "healthy" times.

also as you can see, we joined in with everyone else and changed the look of our blog...what do you think? New year, new look