A Celebration of Life.

More than 800 friends, family & colleagues gathered in an Arkansas church this morning to celebrate A*nne P*ressly's life.

There's not a minute that goes by that those of us who knew her, even those who didn't know her, wonder why & who.

Why her?

Why so brutal?

Why so vicious?

Who did this to her?

And, why did God allow this to happen?

I believe that everything happens for a reason, but I can't find ANY reason for something as horrific as this. You can't tell me there's a logical reason for THIS.

I also believe that God has our lives planned out, from beginning to end, even before we are created. But, surely, God didn't plan for her life to end in THIS WAY, did He?

The other day, my friend, Mallory, told me that A*nne still had so much she wanted to do with her life; so much she wanted to accomplish; she had enough talent to get it all done, too.

I thought about what she said & about God planning out our entire lives before we're created & I realized that even though she was only here for 26 years, she DID live an ENTIRE lifetime.

She DID accomplish everything she wanted to do.

She worked her way up from a news intern, to a reporter, to a news anchor.

She got a part in the new movie, "W". (She played Anne Coulter).

She made friends everywhere she went.

She radiated with warmth, kindness, cheer & laughter.

She found the FUN in even the worst of times.

She was a "mom" to her 2 precious dogs.

She LOVED her life.

And, she LIVED her life.

Even though she's not physically here with us anymore, I have to believe that her spirit will live on in everyone whose life she touched.

I don't think her life is over...I believe it continues even in Heaven. But, she only feels love now...no more hurt or pain or sadness. She is whole & perfect again.

With that said, I am angry.

Angry at the person(s) who did this to her. You guys, when I think of the pure viciousness of the attack on A*nne, I want to throw up & then I want to scream as loud as I can: "WHHHHHY?".

She fought back...did you guys know that?

Her left hand was broken, along with just about every other bone in her face & upper body, which makes her doctors believe she hit her attacker.

She hit him (or her) hard enough to break her left hand.

We had hoped she was unconscious for most of the attack, but now we know, she probably wasn't. She probably felt everything he (or she) did to her.

Can you imagine what must have been going through her head?

How scared she must have been?

And, I'm angry that she never woke up in the hospital...because if she had, I just have this feeling she would have been able to tell us who hurt her.

She would have also been able to tell her parents she loved them one last time.

I know her attacker will be found & brought to justice. Because I don't think A*nne will rest until he (or she) is caught.

Until then, all we can do is celebrate.

Celebrate A*nne's life, the kind of person she was & the kind of people we are because we had the wonderful opportunity to know her & to love her.

My Weekend in Texas.

This past weekend, my sister, nephew, niece & I drove to Texas to visit my aunt, uncle & cousins. We had a great time together...as always. On Saturday, we drove to the Texas State Railroad for "A Day Out with Thomas". Enjoy the pictures!

Praying For Anne.

**Sadly, A*nne lost her fight tonight. She passed away shortly after 7:00pm at an Arkansas hospital. My heart is heavy right now. Please pray for her parents...that they are able to find peace & comfort in all of this.**

If news of the brutal beating of an A*rkansas TV anchor*woman hasn't made it to you yet, click here to read the latest.

A*nne P*ressly, co-anchor of the local ABC affiliate's morning show, was attacked in her home sometime Sunday night or early Monday morning. As I type this, she's still in critical condition.

While I don't work with A*nne, a bunch of us, from all the TV stations, hang out together frequently on the weekends...at parties or dinners...things like that.

A*nne is one of the sweetest people I know. Everybody loves her. In fact, a prayer group started for her on F*acebook has almost 8,000 members.

The details of her attack are gruesome. But, working in the news business, we hear so many different "reports" that this happened or that happened, it's hard to know what to believe.

What I do know is that she has a very long road of recovery ahead of her.

So, I'm asking you to say a little prayer for her & her recovery & also for doctors, that they give her the best care possible & for investigators, that they find the person who did this.

October 15th.

It's Wednesday.

The 15th.

Of October.

2008.

It's also Pregnancy & Infant Loss Remembrance Day.

And, my heart aches for those who have lost a baby, in any way at any stage in pregnancy, birth or infancy.

It's not fair.

At all.

Matt & I lost our first baby at 8 weeks on July 7th, 2006. One month & one day after we found out we were pregnant.

We lost our second baby on February 15th, 2008. One week & one day after we found out we were pregnant. Our due date was October 13th...2 days ago.

Not one second, minute, hour or day goes by that I don't think about my babies & wish with ALL MY HEART that they were still with us.

Would they have my eyes?

Would they have Matt's mouth?

Would we have two girls? Two boys? One boy & one girl?

It's not fair.

The pain never goes away...you just learn to live with it.

So, to anyone who has ever loved & lost, or is struggling with infertility, or simply cannot have children, you're in my thoughts & prayers.

My heart breaks for me & you.

It's About Time I Updated This Thing.

Ok, so...

My GI Doctor's Appointment:

I got good news & bad news from him.

The bad: He said the Crohn's will come back. Whether it comes back in 6 months or 1 year or even 10 years, nobody knows. He's thinking about putting me on medication to try & prolong another attack, but he hasn't decided for sure yet. Also, most Crohn's patients will have 2 to 3 surgeries their lifetime to remove diseased bowel. When I asked him if the Crohn's caused my 2 miscarriages, he said that's as good a guess as any. With Crohn's, your body doesn't always absorb all the "good" nutrients...so if I wasn't getting all of them, my babies weren't either.

The good: Now that we know that Crohn's could have caused my miscarriages, we know there are things we can do to prevent it from happening with baby #3. And, on a scale of 1 to 10...1 being mild Crohn's & 10 being aggressive Crohn's, my doctor guesses mine is a 2 or 3.

I guess all in all, I was pleased with what he had to tell me. I mean I don't want the Crohn's to come back, obviously, but it's really out of my control. I just have to take care of my body, learn what foods are good & what foods are bad (as far as digestion goes) & when something doesn't feel right, I will go to the doctor. If I start having pain again, I can't ignore it for 3 months like I did earlier this summer.

My doctor told me that NOW is the time to get pregnant because I'm not having any symptoms of Crohn's. And, he sees no reason that I can't have a healthy baby. Very good news there.

My dentist appointment:

It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. Thank goodness. He cleaned out all the bad stuff in my tooth & filled it with some kind of fluoride. He didn't do a crown prep because he wasn't sure if I needed a crown or a root canal. The fluoride should spread all around my tooth over the next week or so & if I feel ANY sensitivity to heat, then chances are I need a root canal. But, if I can eat or drink anything (hot or cold) without any pain, then a crown is what I need.

I'm supposed to call him in 2 weeks to give him an update & then he'll decide what to do. So far, knock on wood, I haven't felt any sensitivity to anything. Let's hope it stays that way.

I did get 2 shots in the roof of my mouth & I sort of felt the needle, even though I had the "happy gas". And, for the time ever, I actually had a hard time coming down off the gas. I think they may have given me a little too much. My appointment was at 10am & my head didn't feel 100% clear until about 2 or 3pm that afternoon. That's never happened before.

So, anyway, Tooth Saga 08 continues...

Matt's 32nd birthday:

My wonderful husband turned 32 on Thursday (October 9th).

We celebrated with a pizza (his favorite food), a homemade birthday cake from yours truly & then he opened his presents from me. (We'll celebrate with both our families next weekend).

He says he doesn't like getting older, but I think he gets better with age. I mean, he's great anyway, so I guess he just keeps getting greater (is that a word?).

PLUS, I'LL ALWAYS BE 2 YEARS YOUNGER THAN HIM. (Sorry, honey, I had to say it).

Opening presents.

A new shirt from American Eagle.

Something good must have been on TV.

Yay! A new Cubs shirt. This one goes with his Cubbie Bear hat.

And, a new Cubs fleece.

Maisy & me bringing in his cake.

Cake decorating is NOT my best skill.

Smile.

Maisy's Halloween "costume":

When I ordered Matt's shirt & fleece off the Cubs website, I found this cute Cubs t-shirt for Maisy. AND, SHE HATES IT! (The shirt, not the Cubs).

Too bad, though.

She's going to wear it on Halloween night, while we're handing out candy to all the neighborhood kids.

I like this picture.

She's kinda being good here.

She's getting a little angry...

a little more angry...

WAY MORE ANGRY....as she barks to express her displeasure for her new attire.

So, we took it off of her...

and, then she was okay! Just look at that face! Love it!

Lots To Write About, But No Time To Write.

Wow, guys.

I have a lot to catch up on...

1. My appointment with my new GI doctor
2. My appointment with the dentist
3. Matt's birthday (which was yesterday)
4. Maisy's "halloween" costume

I will try to catch you up this weekend, so be sure to check back....maybe even as early as tonight!

If Only I Had Gotten That Cavity Filled.

Back in May, I went to the dentist for my bi-annual teeth cleaning.

He noticed that a filling on one of my back teeth was coming out, resulting in a small cavity. He said I would need to come back & he would replace the old filling with new filling.

Apparently, our dentist is the most popular dentist in the world because the FIRST available appointment they had was SEPTEMBER 4th.

More than 3 months away.

However, a few days later, the receptionist called me back & said an appointment had opened up for August 13th & it was mine if I wanted it. So, I said okay.

But, that day we had some huge breaking news at work & I totally forgot about my appointment...until a week later.

This was also the same time when I was having all kinds of tests done to figure out what was causing all my stomach pain. And, you all know how that ended up.

Because of my surgery on August 27th & my recovery time, calling the dentist to get a new appointment was the furthest thing from my mind.

Until...

PART OF MY TOOTH FELL OFF.

That happened about 2 weeks ago. Luckily, my dentist was able to take 5 minutes of his busy schedule to temporarily fix my tooth.

And, that's when he told me I would need a crown.

WHAT?

Except that I couldn't get an appointment until the end of October.

Seriously.

So, I called the dentist that my mom & sister use & got an appointment for this Monday.

But, people, I am scared to death that it's going to hurt. BAD.

You'd think that will all I've been through lately, a little crown wouldn't be a big deal, but it is & I want to cry everytime I think about it.

I know that they're going to numb me up & all that, so chances are I won't feel much...however, I will hear that drill & I HATE THAT SOUND. Maybe I can ask for earplugs.

So, who here has ever had a crown put on their tooth? Did it hurt? How was your pain level afterwards? Please be totally honest...don't sugarcoat it. I want to know what to expect.

For now, though, I have to go watch the Florida vs. Arkansas football game. GO HOGS!