We all know that life "has its bumps".  For Ella, that is a reality she lives with every single day.  We are so fortunate that so many people and several organizations have stepped forward to help our family.  We honestly wouldn't be where we are had it not been for the care, dedication, and pure kindness that has surrounded us.  Ella is six years old.  She LOVES to play with her brother and sister, with her friends, and with her neighbors.  Of course, kids being kids, they run and jump and play all over the yard and the neighborhood. Ella does everything she can to keep up with them...and does a great job of it! We have noticed that as she cruises around the front and back yard areas she is pretty good at changing her pathways, thereby not wearing muddy paths in either of those places . While this has always been the case, it is not so for the pathway she has forged allowing her to g o ba ck and forth between  the front and back yards ; t h e la...

They say, "Kids grow so quickly."  And that's true. They say, "Time flies." And it does. They say, "Life's not fair." And so be it. They say, "Kids are resilient." And they do live up to that. "Kids grow so quickly."   Ella turned 6 years old today (June 10, 2016).  We celebrated early in the morning since she couldn't stand to wait anymore.  The five of us (and Sasa) sat around the kitchen table and helped Ella open her presents from Ava, Henry, and Mommy/Daddy.  Her eyes lit up with each present while her faced beamed with delight.  Following the "opening of the presents" the "playing with the presents" ensued.  Voices of three children playing filled the house (literally).  A perfect start to Ella's birthday. "Time flies."   Six years ago today Ella came into the world.  She was a VBAC2 baby (Ava & Henry were both C-sections...Ella was natural). After a long labor a...

Most of you who know us, know that our dog, Sasa (a Vizsla ), is a very important member of our family. I bought her from a breeder when I lived downtown Chicago with my sister, Anne. Sasa will always be my first "baby"...she was with me when I dated Michael and then married him; she was with us through the births of our three incredible children; and she was with us when Ella was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy. She's still with us now. She's been with us through the ups and downs of life, and has remained the most amazingly loyal, loving and playful dog that I ever could have imagined owning. We always knew that we wanted to get another Vizsla puppy before Sasa's time with us ended. We wanted to have "overlap" time between the two dogs (and we've been told by many people, including Sasa's vet, that this would be beneficial not only for us, but also for Sasa and the new puppy). So o ur plan was to get a male Vizsla puppy...