That pain of misssng you is a beautiful reminder of the joy of loving You

Happy Birthday in heaven, sweet girl! 

We all miss you so much!  Knowing you're with our heavenly Father in heaven and that we'll see you one day is such a comfort, but we still long to hug you, hear your voice, talking, laughing and playing with you.

You were with us for such a short time, but for that time you made it heaven on earth for us!

Our love is with you forever!

Patty

There is no dancing or singing.
There is no princesses or dress up times.
There is no one sitting at the vanity getting ready to go.
There is no braiding hair or having friends over.
There is no Halleulah dancing.
There are no dance classes or gymnastics.
There is no one getting ready for the first day of school.
There is quiet, tooo much quiet.
There are no calls or visitors.
There is Death.
There is a mother and father without a daughter.
There is a brother without a sister.
There are tears, many, many tears.
There is unbearable pain.
There are shattered hearts.
There are those who travel this journey with us.
There are those who do not.
There are many, many prayers.
There are thoughts of Heaven.
There is HOPE in Jesus.
There is TRUSTING in God's plan instead of mine. 
There is JOY in the promise of salvation and getting to see Lydia again. 

To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion,

to give unto them beauty for ashes,

the oil of joy for mourning,

the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;

that they might be called trees of righteousness,

the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.

Isaiah 61:3

Two years...it often seems as if time stands still, especially on today's date.  But I refuse to let the memories of the 23rd take over all of the other wonderful memories of your life.  You are missed and loved beyond what we can imagine.  This week another Lydia made her way across the river Jordan and I have no doubt that you were on the other side to greet her.   You'll have so much fun with her, along with Owen and Mable, Millard and Mary, and little Faith, who went to Jesus 8 years ago.  I hope that the two of you are playing together while you wait for the rest of us to join you!  My trust is in the Lord and His word that this will happen.  Love you so much Lydia Grace!  Say hello to Lydia Catherine for me!

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5 
More and more tears, more and more sadness, more and more pain, more and more I pray to trust God for getting me through..... 
Mother's Day is a VERY HARD day to get through.  I miss my little girl being here to celebrate the DAY!  She was always ready to celebrate and gave so much of herself to me and to others.  This Day should be filled with fun and life but it is soooo hard to celebrate when your heart is numb to everything.  God always gets me through when I put my TRUST in him and focus on his will not mine.  Missing you ALWAYS!!! 

Surprises!  Princess games......pink crepe paper decorations....styling hair.....jumping out "SURPRISE!".......singing "Happy Birthday To You!"......dinner....chocolate birthday cake with BLUE icing!......Blue tongues and lips...LOTS of laughing!  You planned it all!  Sharing my last birthday with you.

I miss you on this birthday and every day!

Well, here it is, Easter Sunday.  Jesus' unbelievable promise of rising from the dead and leaving the tomb empty three days after his crucifixion has come to pass!  ALLELUIA!  And because of that, his promise of eternal life to all of us who believe will come true.

You sang about this promise, praised Him and lived out your life as Jesus wanted you to do.  Now you have been rewarded and are living YOUR eternal life in heaven with Jesus!!

My dear friend, Owen, just entered heaven's gates and I hope you may have been there with Mable to meet him!  I talked about you so much to him I'm sure he'll recognize you!

We miss you dearly, sweet girl, all of the time.  You're in our conversations, our thoughts and daily prayers.  How we miss seeing you in your Easter dress!  But our reward will be seeing you in your heavenly robe when we meet again, which will be very soon! 

Sing a song of resurrection, dear, sweet Lydia!  You are sooo loved!

Patty

Hope in seeing you again gets us through Christmas without YOU.

For I know the plans I have for you. declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. — Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV).


It is not the same and will never be the same without the JOY and the LIFE you brought to us. I know God has a plan but it is SOOOO hard because we can not see it.  The excitement of buying you presents, watching you open your things, your face and All the things you did are missed. I wish we could  play, get dressed up together, snuggle, dance, hug, kiss, make cookies, EVERYTHING!!!!!
Someday soon we will be together FOVEVER.
Merry Christmas in HEAVEN 

MISS YOU

Miss you when it's hot
Miss you when it's not

Miss you when I'm at the beach
Miss you when I see your mommy teach

Miss you when I'm out at the pool
Miss you when I drive by your school

Miss you and how you use to sing
Miss you and all the joy you would bring

Miss you and how you picked your nose
Miss you and how you would strike a pose

Miss you and how you'd tease pap
Miss you and our kuddles as we'd take a nap

Miss you and all your rides on my back
Miss you and all your fights with Zack

Miss you and how we'd tickle fight
Miss you and our pinky promises at night

Miss you I didn't get to say good bye
Miss you Lydia til the day I die

"......this is the night of our dear Savior's birth....."  As I write this, I think of you, Lydia, in heaven on this holy night.  But that is nothing new, because I think of you so much on any given day, at any given time.  It's difficult to think of celebrating without you, but I do celebrate our Lord's birthday.  Because without Him, I would not have the promise and the hope of seeing Him, and you, in heaven!  I picture you singing songs of praise and glory to Him, dancing before Him!  Sing Happy Birthday to Him, Lydia!  In your loudest voice!  Merry Christmas in heaven, dear sweet Lydia!.  Love you.  Patty  

Today is a day of thankfulness and when I think of you, dear sweet friend, I am thankful for: the way you took my hand to guide me as I was stepping up on a curb or into the elevator at your church, showing me the way to the sanctuary.  Guiding me to the pew and where to sit.  Your laughter, so spontaneous and genuine.  When we would cuddle at my house watching movies....you telling me "don't be afraid, Patty, it's not too scary" when I pretended to be scared......."see, I told you so!"  Your words of reassurance.  I'm thankful for all of the Halloweens you came to my house in your costumes and the Christmases, too!  You were always so excited, not so much to see what you got from me, but for me to see what I got from you and your family!  You would almost BURST with anticipation!  But today, although I am sad that you're not here, I am thankful to know that you're in heaven with Jesus!  I am thankful of God's promises that we will see each other again.....sooner than we think!  Thank you for being my friend, dear, sweet Lydia!  Hugs and Kisses to you!  Patty

Happy Birthday in Heaven, 
I miss your excitment about your birthday!  I miss your birthday wish list. I miss planning you a birthday party with your friends.  I miss making you your favorite cake, chocolate, of course.  I miss you wanting to be a year older.  I miss you wanting to get dressed up and sitting at your vaniety putting make-up on and fixing your hair.  I know having a birthday in Heaven is the best place to have a birthday but I still WISH you were Here!  Can't wait to see you Soon.  Love YOU ALWAYS, Mommy 

Today's Halloween and in about 20 minutes it will be November 1st and your birthday.....How fun these two days were for you!  But you made every day fun, Lydia and I'm so glad to have been able to share some of them with you.  Miss you so much....but standing on the promises of God that one day when I cross the river Jordan that you and He will be standing on the other side to welcome me  home.  Happy Birthday in heaven, my sweet friend!  Lotsa hearts and love, Patty

One year ago my heart was shattered when you went to live with Jesus. Hope in Jesus and the prayers of so many have helped me get through the Sadness and Brokenness. I am clinging to Jesus's promise to see you again. I am ready for our family to be together soon. I miss you snuggling in my bed , reading books, coloring , making crafts, playing princesses, fixing your hair, and mostly having You around. I am ready to see you and pray it will be soon. I Miss you and Love you,Everyday

Thoughts of you on Mother's Day and everyday.  I missed by breakfast in bed for Mother's Day and all the surprises you gave as we celebrated. I miss holding you and calling you my Sweetie Petie.  I know you are celebrating in Heaven with Jesus which helps me get through my days without you here. I hope to come soon to celebtrate with you.  You were a VERY SPECIAL girl who added sooo much life to our home. Many people said how lucky you were to be in our family, but we were blessed having YOU!!  Miss you always.   LOVE, MOM
 

It's my birthday, and what do I think of today?  I think of last year at this time and you had a birthday party for me at your house...with you, me and your mom and dad.  You "hid" me in the living room, telling me not to go into the dining room until I was called.  Distracted me by playing Princess Game, dressing in princess jewelry, climbing in back of me on the couch to fix my very, very short hair!  Now that was tough but you persevered!  But then you asked the all important question to me, "Patty, what kind of flavor do you like, chocolate or blue?"  Uh oh.  Knowing that blue is not a flavor, i figured it must be important so I chose "blue".  You said, "Good choice Patty!"  Whoo!  You made mom and dad hide in the kitchen and dining room, then called me out.  How proud you were...and how proud I was of you!!!  Pink streamers hung, little pieces of pink crepe strewn down the center of the table.  Everyone jumped out and said "Surprise!"  and sang the Happy Birthday Song.  A great supper and then, the cake with blue frosting!!  We both laughed because of our blue tongues and lips!!!  I'd give anything to have you here for this birthday today, but I will impatiently wait until that glorious day when we can share together in heaven.  Love you, miss you and see you soon in heaven.  xoxoxo  Patty

We celebrate the gift of HOPE today on Easter.  Jesus died, was buried and rose again so that we may have eternal life in heaven. I am thankful for the HOPE to see Lydia again soon.  My heart is still shattered and trying each day to put the pieces together.  I miss Lydia's joy, her ability to bring life everywhere she went and having her beside me every day.  I can't wait to see her and hold her tight.  I know she is celebrating life in HEAVEN with JESUS.  

Happy Resurrection Day in heaven, Lydia!  Your sweet, sweet spirit is with the one who left that grave and made it possible for you to be there before Him!  That's exciting!  But we still miss you very, very much and selfishly wish you were here with us.  But those of us who believe in Christ's resurrection will be reunited with you, and with Him, one day!  And what a reunion that will be!  Until that day, we think of you all of the time with love.  xoxoxo  Patty

A "Heavenly Valentine's Day" to my buddy, Lydia Grace!  You're spending this day in heaven with the One who loves you mostest of all, Jesus!  It's hard to believe that anyone could love you more than your mommy and daddy, but you know it well now!  No one has more love for us than our heavenly Father!  Help us to let others know this love....

We love and miss you so much....every single day.  Valentine kisses to heaven!

Patty

You spent your first Christmas in heaven, Lydia!  How exciting it must be to celebrate the King's birthday with Him!  I hope you sang "Happy Birthday" to Him!  Miss you so much but glad that I can talk with you in my prayers.  Keep smilin' and lovin' on us! 

Your first Thanksgiving in heaven, Lydia!  I'm so grateful that I got to know you here on earth.  I was talking with my friend, Owen....he's 101 years old and I think I talked with you about him.  His wife, Mabel, is in heaven, too.  Owen told me the other day that he thinks Mabel is up there holding you on her lap and reading to you, as she loves children.  I said, "no, I think it's the other way around.  I think Lydia is on Mabel's lap reading to HER!"  I'm thankful for being my friend.  Love you and, although I think of you a lot, I miss you.

Lydia Grace will forever be in my heart.  She was such a sweet and loving little girl who acted more like a teenager than a little girl.  She would see you and give you a hug or a high five (which I love getting from all the kids at church, sometimes it’s a quest to see who can hit my hand the hardest).  She touched everyone who knew her.  I remember the last night of VBS this year and Lydia and two of her friends, Alyssabeth and Danika, came to exchange their dollars for pennies.  I told each of them hi with their name.  Lydia wanted to know how I knew Alyssabeth’s name.  And Alyssabeth told her as well as I did that her mommy and I scrapbook together.  I think Lydia was amazed that I knew everyone’s name and couldn’t figure out how I knew this friend of hers. I often think about this and laugh.  It was always so comical with Lydia, like I said she always made you smile when you were down.  Sure do miss that cute little smile of hers.  She’s forever in my heart and always in my memories.  sure do miss this little one.  ((((hugs)))

"Jesus, I heard you had a big house, Where I could have a room of my own.  Jesus, I heard you had a big yard...Big enough to let a kid roam.  I heard you had clothes in your closet....just the right size that I wear.  And Jesus, I heard if I give you my heart, then you'd let me go there.

Jesus, I heard about meal time, When all of your children come to eat.  I heard you had a great big table, Where every kid could have her own seat.  Jesus, they said that there'd be plenty of good things in Heaven to share.  And Jesus, I'd just like to tell you...I sure would love to go there!

Jesus, I heard in  your big house, there's plenty of love to go 'round.  I heard there's always singing and laughter...To fill the place with happy sounds.

And I've been thinking that a friend who plans to give all that He's got...Before I even have met Him....Well, He sure must love me a lot!

And Jesus, I'd just like to tell you....Well, I sure do love you a lot!

Lydia and I had a special relationship with me and everyone else that she came into contact with. Lydia was my little sister. Even though we were never blood related I always felt close to her. I absoutley miss her like nuts. Everytime I was upset she'd somehow make me smile. Every time I was in a happy mood. She'd make it  just a little bit better. I will never ever forget our little thing together. Every time i'd see her I'd say "Hey, Pretty Girl!" She'd answer sometimes with different answers. Some of them were sassy, others were serious, and some of them were just full out funny. I promise Lydia that I'dteach her some ballet moves. I did teach her some, but I do wish I could have taught her more. Lydia has always made me so happy. I stilll look back at pictures and videos I have of her and it feels like she is still with us. THe braclets we got made me realize she still is here. I never ever will take this braclet off. "I pink promise" Forever my sister Lydia Grace, I love you. I hope you dance. 

A place where Jesus lives and waits for those who love him and come to him.  A place of joy and hope---- a place where all of God's children, young and old, will stay and be happy forever.  A place with lots fo rooms and space.  A place filled wtih gifts and laughter and LOVE, with smiles on every face.  A place with treasures from above with our favorite foods ,colors and special people we love. A place filled with whatever makes us happy, whatever make us glad.  A place with no cryilng, no pain, no lonliness, no sickness.  A place with the LIGHT of Jesus shining all the time.  A beautiful place wtih glassy streets of gold and layers of jewels all because of GOD's plan from his heart.  He sent Jesus to suffer and die and then God raised Him up from death and the grave for US. We are all invited to Jesus's home to live forever.  Say YES to his invitation and put your trust in Jesus by asking him to live in your heart.  I know Lydia said Yes to Jesus and we are comforted that Lydia is in Heaven with Jesus. Say this prayer to Jesus,
I want to go to Heaven,
I am sorry for my sin and I believe You died on the cross for me. 
Please wash my sin away.
I believe You died and rose again from the grave and are alive in Heaven today.
I invite You to come into my heart and save me,
I want to live for YOU!!!!

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only forgotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."
John 3:16
 

My Prayer And Wish For You Today:

“I Wish for you

Comfort on difficult days,

Smiles when sadness intrudes,

Rainbows to follow the clouds,

Laughter to kiss your lips,

Sunsets to warm your heart,

Gentle hugs when spirits sag,

Friendships to brighten your being,

Beauty for your eyes to see,

Confidence for when in doubt,

Faith so that you can believe,

Patience to accept the truth,

And love to complete your life.”