I have been told June 19, 2008

 

 

I have been told:

 

that my first word is “da-da”; 

 

that when I was a baby/toddler, I knew the sound of my dad’s car when he would return home from work and that I would crawl down the stairs (backwards) calling out loud, ”da-da” and meeting him at the door;

 

and that I used to wear my dad’s shirt as a child while he was away over-seas (in the Navy) just so that I can have his “scent” near me.

 

I guess you can say that I have always been “daddy’s little girl”.  My love for my dad is a reflection of the love and affection that he has given to me through the years. 

 

Yes, we had our difficult times and our share of misunderstandings, but we still love each other very much.

 

I love the fact that his face lights up with the thought of his children and grandchildren 

visiting and/or calling him.

 

My dad continues to show his love each time he visits my girl’s grave site and gives them flesh flowers weekly. I know that he would have loved and adored my children as much as me, maybe more. 

 

I will always be grateful to my dad, for his time and unconditional love.

 

 

This posting is a continuation of the previous post and was originally published and sent by email on June 13, 2008.

Honoring Dads June 19, 2008

Last week, I sent out a Father’s Day email and received an overwhelming positive response to my tribute to my dad and my husband.  Since some of you did not receive this email message, I am posting a copy of it on my blog (as requested by many). 

So here is it:

I wish to say Happy Father’s Day to all dads, papas, padres, appas and like-dads (in all languages) who find ways to bond with a child.  From changing diapers, bathing, and dressing to cuddling, playing games and participating in daily routines like reading bed time stories.  I appreciate my dad for everything that he has sacrificed and done for both me and my younger brother.  I am grateful that he is healthy and well so that we can still have our bonding time. 

 

I would also like to honor my husband, Paul.  Although our children are not here with us, I know deep in my heart that he would have been a great daddy to Alyssa, Kaitlyn and Shaun.  I say this not because I think he is a great man and a beautiful person, but because he has shown great love during the little time we had with them.  I shall share just one example: Kaitlyn’s first bath.

 

We were in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) when Kaitlyn received her first bath.  It was shortly after her heart had stopped beating and the nurse turned off all her monitors.  Our baby girl had spent 23 days in the NICU and did not get to go home with us. I cried not because of grief to have lost another child, but rather, for joy to watch my husband remove the lines, tapes and tubings out from our daughter and started giving her a ”bath” with a tiny cloth.  He was talking gently to her at the same time. I do not remember what he said exactly, but I will always vividly remember how peaceful they both looked. 

 

From that moment on, I am forever and deeply moved when I see a father bond with a child (no matter how small the act).  ”In this life, we cannot always do great things.  But we can do small things with great love.” -Mother Teresa (1910-1997).  Here’s to all dads and like-dads (near and far) who do small things with great love! 

 

 

Voyage to the Interior June 13, 2008

Sitting down to write your own story can be a daunting task. That’s why Heritage Makers has created our new Voyages to the Interior template collection. This set of templates was inspired by the words of author and essayist Christina Baldwin: “Journal writing is a voyage to the interior.”These templates come with writing instructions, suggestions and tips to help you generate ideas, organize your thoughts, and get them down on paper.

 

• “The Live I’ve Lived” (life story)
• “The Love I’ve Known” (love story)
• “A New Story Begins” (expecting a baby)
• “Our Family’s Roots” (past generations)
• “What It means to Be a [Jones]” (family book)
• “Before I Was Your Mother” (girl’s coming of age story)

 

 

Convert those boxes of pictures June 12, 2008

ScanParty Flyer

We all have them.  Those boxes of old photos buried in our closets, under the bed and/or in the garage. I know that you want to preserve those special memories.  Why else did you take and keep the pictures after all these years?  Heritage Makers is the solution.  

Heritage Makers has partnered with Kodak to bring you an all-new, cutting-edge scanning service.  Imagine scanning 500 printed pictures in approximately 30 minutes.  I didn’t believe it until until I tried it out for myself.  Wow…talk about saving time and taking away the daunting task of scanning old photos. 

I have scanned about 800 of my own personal pictures and love the fact that I now have them saved in a flash drive, where they will not fade or get lost.  I am now in the process of gathering more pictures, specially all my non-digital wedding photos so that I can create a wedding legacy book.  It will be a present to my husband and our parents for our 10 year anniversary.

Come join me in the excitment! Email me at arlyn@atributetoyou.com and schedule an in-home photo scanning session.  Presort your pictures into groups and don’t forget to bring an external USB flash drive.  Here are the prices (if you cannot view the attached ScanParty flyer): 

0-99 scans at $0.39/each

100-499 scans at $0.29/each

500+ scans at $0.19/each 

Feel free to share this information with your family and friends who might be interested in this service.