Abby's & Megan's Memorial Tattoos

Abby's tattoo is the one with the stars. Megan's was designed by her friend Ilana.

Emily's Bird/Squirrel Feeder

This squirrel is eating from the feeder Emily made at school.

This sign we ran across in San Diego reminded us of Emily because "Little Miss Sunshine" was one of her nicknames at school.

Memorial Tattoos

During July 4th week, we made our first family trip back to Florida since Emily's passing there December 30. While there, we got memorial tattoos. Sonja's is on her left foot where she can look at it often when she reclines to read. The butterfly reminds her that Emily now has a transformed body. Sam's is on his shoulder.

Even Thalia Misses Emily!

Emily loved her two cats. This cat, Thalia, gave birth to our other cat, Sugar. Emily often liked to give the genealogy by telling people, "Thalia Mommy -- Sugar Baby." Also in the pic is a Down syndrome doll given to Emily by the faculty of Warner Christian Academy. It was the only doll that she would ever play with regularly. In the background is a Blockbuster promotional display for the movie Shrek. That was one of her favorites. Mitch and Sam got the display for Emily in Orlando while she was in intensive care.

Jiggy & Josey (Emily's Neighborhood Buddies)

These twin neighborhood labs were loyal friends to Emily, escorting her to and from her bus stop every school day. Our neighbors told us that, while Emily was in the hospital those last seven weeks, these dogs stayed on our deck and porch. When we returned home, they were there to greet us. They miss Emily, too.

Tree-Planting Ceremony at Forest Middle School

Emily's class planted a tree on campus in her memory. A plaque was placed at the base of the tree with a nickname on it that one of her teachers had given her.

One of the last projects Emily worked on in school was a bird feeder. We recently hung it on a tree outside our door and are enjoying watching the birds as they grab the seeds.

Emily was so proud of the Teddy Bear she made at a friend's birthday party! Now we enjoy hugging the bear and remembering how special her hugs were to us.

"I luh you merry, merry much!"

This is the tribute stone for Emily's grave. It says, "I luh you merry, merry much," because that is how Emily said, "I love you." During the years before Emily started verbalizing, Sonja prayed that Emily would someday be able to say "I love you" back to us. When that prayer was answered, it brought much joy to our whole family. (The picture on the stone has spaghetti sauce around her mouth. We like that because she almost always had it there!!!)