Thank You and We Love You

This week has been the longest/hardest week we have ever had. We left Seattle last Friday to go to Wenatchee for Eric's brothers mission "farewell". We headed to Spokane on Monday afternoon so we could spend Christmas with my family. We got in around 6:30pm. My family was all there, and it was so fun to see them. Sara, my sister, had flown home to Spokane early, so she was extra excited to see our family again. She held Andrew, fed him, let him touch whatever he wanted (ornaments, lights, decorations), and then laid him down in bed at about 7:30. We played games, hung out, and all went to bed. I got up the next morning and fed Jared. Just as I finished feeding him, Sara ran down the stairs yelling for someone to go get Andrew (she didn't want to yell "Andrew is dead"). She had gone to get him out of bed, and when she felt him, she could tell he had passed away. We ran upstairs, I called 911, but he had been gone for a while. The EMT's called it SIDS. We were in a state of shock.

We said a lot of prayers, family prayers, couple prayers, personal prayers. The day before we had decided to go to the temple, so Eric and I decided to stick with our plan and go. The session was supposed to start at 11:15, and we walked into the temple at 11:19. The Brother who checked our recommends told us the next session would be at 12:30, but as he was telling us that, a man stepped up and said they would hold the session for us if we'd hurry. I had thought my Mom had called to tell them to hold the session for us and told them what had happened. We made it, and cried through most of the session. I appreciated more where we were and the covenants that we have made. After the session, I waited for Eric and his brother Brian (who came to Spokane with us and leaves for his mission to Uruguay on Wednesday) in the foyer. As they came out, the Temple President came out and asked us if we'd like to meet with him in his office. He ended up giving us amazing blessings with awesome promises and they provided a lot of comfort. I am so grateful for the priesthood and its power.

We miss Andrew so much. We miss his smile, his Spirit, his laugh, holding him, kissing him and so much more. We miss watching Andrew interact with his siblings. He had such a special and unique relationship with each one of his siblings. He already knew how to be soft with Jared and he would give him a "kiss" on the head and then give us a cheesy smile. Life is weird with only four kids. It doesn't feel right, but we are so much more grateful for the four we still have with us.

We will never be the same. We are grateful for the gospel and the knowledge that it blesses us with that we will see Andrew again and be able to raise him. We are so thankful for the 14 months that we had Andrew in our home. He changed us. We now have a physical investment that gives us major incentive to live our lives so we can be with Andrew again.

The kids are doing good. Aubree has a lot of questions and misses him a lot. Tanner and Travis both talk about Andrew being in heaven with Heavenly Father.

We have been blown away by the amount of love and support that people have shown to us. We appreciate it more than you know. We have been blessed with tons of food, cards, people calling and stopping by, flowers, and tons of hugs. We wish we could personally tell everyone thank you, but there are so many people who have reached out to us. Please know that we sincerely and deeply appreciate your kind words, thoughts, prayers, and gifts. Eric went to get me some flowers at the store and the lady asked what the occasion was. After he told her, she said she would give him a deal. He picked out a beautiful bouquet of roses and she gave them to him, no charge.

When we have been having a hard time, we just read through the comments that have been left and we are comforted by your love, prayers, and support. My favorite things are the people who have seen him and know him and tell me things they love about him, like his lips, smile, and eyes.

Eric's family ended up coming to my parents house to celebrate Christmas together. Our families are so wonderful. They have blessed us with so much love and so much support. Andrew's funeral is going to be on Tuesday in Wenatchee.

I can sit and look at pictures and video of Andrew all day. This is my favorite video. Tanner has him laughing so hard that he is crying.