Hello everyone,

Again I find it has been a couple of weeks since we updated. There is so much going on with the girls by the time we get to sit and rest in the evening, that is what we want to do, rest. Our Thanksgiving was pretty nice. As with everything this time of year it is hard not to dwell on where we were last year. Last Thanksgiving was really the last time we had Daniel with us. Susan and I have had a lot of trouble getting into the Christmas spirit this year. We got the lights up on the outside of the house. Mostly because Joshua insisted. But we have not done anything with the inside. Most years Susan gets the house all decorated up the weekend after Thanksgiving. We have not got the first decoration out of the attic yet and I am pretty sure that they will stay up there. We are going to be at my parents for Christmas morning so we are not getting a tree either. It is hard to describe how we are feeling but we are both there. Even the girls seem to have a little of the melancholy going into this Christmas. We can feel the 29th coming slowly at us. Neither of us know how that day is going to go. We made lots plans on Daniels birthday. We pulled the girls out of school and spent the day at the zoo and just being together. It was still pretty soon after his passing and we just wanted to keep ourselves cheered up. This feels different. It is so hard to believe it has been a year. It feels like it has been forever since I last held him yet the pain is still as fresh as it ever was. I know I have said this before but it is still true. The hurt does not lessen, you just learn to live with it easier. It is always there under the surface ready to pop up at a moments notice. Anyways, we are not sure what to expect about how we are going to be, how is it going to feel now that it has been a year since Daniel went to heaven. Why would this day be any different than every other day since. Maybe it won't. The specificity of the date just seems to slap you in the face that much harder.

Anyways, a lot of rambling tonight. We will try and update again before Christmas. Have a great holiday season!

Go hug your kids,

David