5k run

Today I walked/ran a 5k. It was to support a great cause, The Prayer Child Foundation. My sister Kelli was in charge of the run. I initially signed up to support my sister and the foundation, but then got really excited about it. As I reflect back over the last 10 years of my life, this was a very big accomplishment for me. About 10 years ago I had some major health problems that have changed my health for good. I had a series of episodes that happen, for 10 1/2 weeks I could not walk on my right leg, had limited use of my right arm and had bells palsy in my face. I made it through the first episode and tried my best to stay positive. I was back on the road to recovery and then it happened again and this one lasted for 6 1/2 weeks. It was getting close to the holidays and it was really hard for me to get around. I was thinking at this point that this might be my way of life. I stayed strong and through physical therapy and many days of fasting and lots of prayers in my behalf, I started to get better. The doctors did many, many, many tests on me and came up with several different diagnosis. My neurologist told me I would not be able to have anymore kids. Much to our surprise, I once again proved the doctors wrong and have had two more amazing children. I live with pain throughout the whole side of my body on a daily basis, and get extreme migraines on a weekly basis. Today made me so thankful for the health that I do have. 10 years ago, I would not have even thought of doing a 5k. I completed it and didn't even come in last. Lol. I have such great friends and family that support me, even if they think I am crazy for doing these things. I am so grateful for such love and support around me.

Here I am crossing the finish line. It rained pretty good the whole run and made it really muddy, but it was fun. YAHOO!!!!! I did it.

Father's and Sons

Frank and Andre decided to go on a Father's and Son's outing with our church. They went up to the Globe area. It rained pretty good the whole time and even started snowing on them today. They had a great time with each other. Here are some pictures from the campout.

Frank and Brooke go hiking

Frank decided to take Brooke for a hike, just the two of them. Brooke has been wanting to go really bad and so her dad took her. She didn't have the right kind of shoes, so before they went on their hike, they went to get Brooke some new hiking shoes. She was so excited. They had a really fun time and Brooke actually hiked the whole way up the mountain. Last time we all went Frank and I both had to hold her at times. She is getting so big. Here are some fun pictures of their hike.

Here she is hiking up the mountain

Here is one of the many deer they saw while hiking.

Brooke and her Dad having fun.

The rainbow they saw as they were leaving to come home.

Day at the zoo

My neighbor and friend, Sonja and her son went with us to the zoo today. We had a really good time. It was a beautiful day, not too hot. Here are some pictures of our fun adventure.

Here is Brooke and Cash riding on the camel. Brooke wasn't sure she wanted to ride it at first, even cried a little, but loved it in the end.

Here are all three kids having fun in the play area of the zoo. Brooke even ran into one of her friends from school.

Here are the girls are hanging with the Orangutan. They were having lots of fun.

Final fundraiser and bake sale for the Memorial Fund

I have had so much help and support for this bake sale, it is unbelievable. We have had so many food donations and they have all been wonderful. We sold green chile burros and they were a hit. They sold out in less than a half an hour (I think almost 4 dozen burros). My sister Kelli made the meat and when she found out they sold out she went and got more meat for us to cook and deliver for the pre-sold dinner rush. I had a surprise visit from some friends we hadn't seen in a long while. It was so great to see them (I wish I had more time to sit and visit). Their whole family came to support us (speachless). There were so many people that helped me today that I can't thank everyone enough for all they did to help us out. I had two great friends that helped me in the kitchen baking and serving people all day long. I had many great friends and family members that came to purchase and support us. Just even the honks and the waves as people passed by really meant alot. We are finally done raising money and Mom can be buried and rest in peace. Well I say that with hesitation because we still don't have a signed death certificate from the doctors. Maybe by Monday (hopefully).

This is the setup that Frank and Susan Eck did. Thank you Susan for the canopy, signs and yummy, yummy food. You are amazing.

Ma's Memorial Service..

Today has been an amazing day. We got to celebrate the life of our Mom (Victoria Raia) at a beautiful Memorial service. I am exhausted now that it is all over with, but we all held up pretty good today. Frank and I both spoke about his Mom's life and he did an amazing job of letting everyone know who she was. She was such a sweet lady. So kind and so giving. She never asked for things for herself (unless she was absolutely desperate). She gave to people and served people even when she didn't have anything to give. She was a great example to me and my family and we will miss having her around. The music and the speakers and the prayers were wonderful, everything just fit together like it was supposed to. We are so grateful for all of our family and friends and even our silent little angels that have helped us through all of this. Our ward did a wonderful luncheon for us after the services. It was excellent food and very nice that we could stay together as family and friends and talk. Thank you to the Val Vista Ward sisters.

Here is a picture of our family! From left to right Jack (brother in law), Sandy (sister) Kristen, Andre, Megan, Me, Frank and Brooke and Shelby in front.

Here we are!!

This is a picture of all the beautiful flowers that were at the Memorial service and luncheon. Thank you Val Vista Ward.

Our final goodbyes

What a completely exhausting day this has been. We met Jack and Sandy at the Mortuary to say goodbye to Ma today. My friend Trudy came to stay with our daycare kids again, they love when she comes over. Thanks trudy!! I keep telling myself that I can't brake down and start crying now, I have too much to do for the Memorial service on Saturday. I held up pretty good and tried to be a great support for everyone else. It wasn't sad for me to see Ma today, maybe because I knew her spirit was gone and she just wasn't the same. It was sad to see Frank so upset and not be able to take the pain away from him. Everyone had a really hard time saying their final earthly goodbyes. Even though we know that we will see her again some day, it is still hard to let her go. We were so blessed to have her in our lives. It has been so hard for me to not feel like I need to rush off to see her or call to check on her. That really makes me sad. Below are some pictures that we took while we were there saying goodbye. I have cropped her out of the pictures, just didn't feel right about showing her.

Jack and Sandy

Sandy and Frank saying goodbye

All of us but Shelby. We felt like she was too young to be there.

The kids!!

The kids hands on the blanket that Grandma was covered up with.

A benefit bake sale for Grandma!!

My friend Susan called me last night and told me her and her daughter Sophie wanted to do something to help us raise money for Franks Mom's burial fund. Sophie wanted to know if Brooke would help her do a lemonade and goodie stand today. I was delighted at the idea and I new that Brooke would be so excited to help. So we planned to do it at 8:30 in the morning. To our sad surprise she passed away in the wee morning this morning. After such an emotional morning, I wasn't sure how we could go on with the bake sale. We cancelled it and all fell asleep. Brooke woke up and told her Dad that we had to do the sale for Grandma. So I called and talked to Sophie and she said she still wanted to do it. Yeah!! Susan, the amazing person she is, not only brought Sophie over but she brought baked goodies a canopy, signs etc. I got busy making goodies and the day was very successful. It was alot of hard work but worth every minute of it. We had many people that came by and donated goodies and bought the goodies. At the end of the sale, our next door neighbors and great friends came over and made a very generous donation and bought out all the rest of the goodies. Thank you Craig and Sonja. We have had many wonderful calls, facebook notes etc. We are truely blessed with the people we have around us in our life. We could not ask for better family and friends. We are so grateful for the plan of salvation and the knowledge that we will see Vicki and everyone else some day. Thanks again for the amazing but sad day that we had.

Rest in Peace MA!! We love you!!

Well, this morning was the morning of the dreaded call. Sandy called Frank and let him know that their Mom had passed away this morning. He woke me up after getting off the phone with her and let me know. It is such a bitter sweet moment. We are so glad for her that she is no longer suffering, but sad to let her go. Kristen and Megan came over and the two girls and Frank and I went to see her at the nursing home. I am glad we went to see her. It was nice to see her with such a peaceful look on her face. It was amazing to see her not suffering anymore, no more loud machines. Finally, no more pain!! It was really hard to leave her there, so we waited for the person from the mortuary to come and get her. When he arrived we asked him to give us a few more minutes with her. A half an hour later we were having a hard time pulling ourselves away from her. It has been a hard day physically and emotionally. We love you Ma.. We know we will see you again. What a grand reunion you must have had with all of your family. Your Mom and Dad, brother, son and family. They have been preparing for your return for some time. Rest in peace, you gave it a good fight and anyone that knows you is a better person for that.

Little Caesars Pizza kit fundraiser!!

We did a Little Caesars Pizza fundraiser for Ma's Memorial Fund. Our goal was to sell atleast 100 kits and we made it. We sold 100 kits and made $500.00. Yeah!! We are so grateful to have such great friends and family. Frank helped the guy unload the kits and Trudy and I delivered for a while and Andre came home from school and took over the delivery. Our ward has been so amazing by helping us out in any way we need it. We are so blessed.

Christmas Tree for Grandma....

Last night Brooke and I went to Big Lots and picked out a Christmas tree for Grandma Raia. We found the perfect tree and some beautiful ornaments. Brooke and I were talking about all the good times we have had, making Christmas ornaments with Grandma. Anyone that knows Vicki at all knows that she has made Christmas ornaments for years. She has made hundreds all year and if you helped her or just knew her, you were on the receiving end of the ornaments. She would not only give them to her friends and family, but she would make one for each of the doctor's office employee's, the whole fire department (if they had helped her), dentist office etc. She always remembered everyone. She was so amazing at making people feel special. This last year she wasn't able to make them anymore and that was a hard thing for her to accept. Brooke went over in July and they made some snowmen ornaments, these were her last ornaments made. Brooke and I had a great time remembering the fun, crafty side of Grandma. So tonight we met Jack and Sandy at the group home and Brooke decorated the Christmas tree. Ma was somewhat alert and when we walked in, Sandy told her Brooke was there and she said "Oh, my sweet, sweet Brooke". That made Brooke feel so special. While Brooke was decorating the tree, Grandma wanted to see it. So we held it up for her to see and then Brooke finished decorating it. When it was finished we showed her again and she was so happy. We know she won't be able to enjoy it for long, but we hope it makes her day a little brighter. We thought Ma had gone to sleep and Sandy and Jack and I were talking amongst ourselves and she pipes in with a funny. She never ceases to amaze me. It is sad to see her suffer.

A benefit garage sale for Frank's Mom

We have been raising money for Frank's mom, for her burial fund. Today we finished the second day of our big garage sale. I wish I had pictures, I wasn't smart enough to take them though. Ugh!! I sent out a quick email to all the wonderful sister's in my ward asking if anyone was wanting to get rid of extra stuff, if they would donate it for our garage sale. The reply that I got was tremendous. We got so many donations, it was wonderful. We had the garage sale Friday and today and raised over $600.00. Between people donating their items and the cash donations, we have raised over $1500.00. It will take $7500.00 to bury Frank's Mom, so we are getting there. : ) We found out today that she has a small policy for $1000.00 and it is transferable to the mortuary we have pick to use. Now that brings our total to $2500.00. YEAH!! Every penny helps. We have a funeral service this Monday for a sweet, sweet 19 month old baby that passed away in our ward. The viewing is Sunday night. Her family is amazing and we love them so much. It has been a really sad couple of months. Next week about Wednesday I will be starting the Little Caesars Pizza kit fundraiser we will be doing next. We have been so blessed with such great friends and family around us. Our family has gotten so much closer from these experiences.

Because Halloween was on Sunday this year we didn't do much on Halloween itself. Frank and I went to see Mom again and today wasn't so good for her either. We took the little girls to Kristen's work to show her them dressed up. After she got off work she came over and Frank, Kristen and I took Brooke and Shelby trick or treating at a few houses.

Kristen and Shelby

Brooke doing some trick or treating

Halloween 2010, night before

Halloween this year has been hard to get into, with Mom being so sick. She has really good days and really bad days. We dressed the kids up really early and drove the 40 minutes to see her and show her the little girls outfits. We got to the hospice hospital and today was a really bad day. We couldn't even get her to wake up to look at the girls. They were really sad. Brooke spent many hours coloring pictures and drawing her own pictures to decorate Grandma's room. She loves Brookes pictures. Well, we stayed for a while and hoped she would wake up, but she didn't. So we were then off to the Halloween festivities.

Frank, Shelby and Brooke outside of the hospital, playing in the grass.

The girls resting after running around. Don't they look cute.

Frank and the girls passing out candy at our ward trunk or treat. This was a great way to take our minds off everything going on for a little while.

Brooke's school Monster Mash

This is our first year going to the school Monster Mash. Brooke came home today from school and told us we had to go. We didn't even know what this was. It turns out that it was a dance. Frank and I took the two little girls and our friend Trudy and her two boys came too. As you can see in the pictures below, we had a blast. It was fun to see Frank have some fun with the girls. The music was so loud and it was a flashback to the 80's.

The school sign!!

Frank and Shelby dancing..

Brooke and Shelby dancing together. They had a blast.

All of us together

Our Final Goodbye. Rest in Peace..

Today was the day that we went to the Mortuary to say our final goodbye's to Frank's Dad. It was good to see him again but sad that this was the last time we would see him on earth. We were there for about an hour and a half and it was really, really sad. We have all had a really hard day today, but I think it has been the hardest on Frank. The kids had a really hard time letting him go, it is heart breaking to see them so sad. What a wonderful reunion he must have had with his son, mother, father, brothers and sisters that have gone before him. Below is the obituary that I submitted to http://www.obituariesforangels.com/:

Anthony Frank Raia Sr.
Nov. 1, 1926 to Oct. 21. 2010

Our beloved father and grandfather. He is survived by Sandy Harmsen (daughter), Frank Raia (son) and Tawna Edgmon, Kristen Raia, Megan Raia, Andre Raia, Brooke Raia and Shelby Raia his grandchildren. He also had two great grandchildren. You are loved and will be missed. Dad was a WWII veteran and will be buried in the VA Cemetery in Phoenix, Arizona. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio and moved to Arizona and lived there for 38 years. Rest in peace.

Rest in Peace Tony, until we meet again!!

Grandma and the kids..

Here is Kristen and Grandma Raia. She was having a good day today. She remembered who the kids were after they told her. She replied "Oh my grandkids"! :) She had lots of visitors today. Sandy and Tawna, Frank and I and our three oldest kids were there to spend time with her. We love her so much.

Here is Andre with Grandma Raia. As you can see, she is happy to take a picture. Monday they will be moving her from Trillium in Mesa to the Hospice facility in Scottsdale. We will see how that goes and how she likes it. We have decided that we will do comfort care with her, which means that they will do the things for her that she wants. She hasn't been eating or drinking much for three months and now she is off the IV, so the ball is in her court. I hope that she decides on her own to get better, we need her around for a lot longer.

Shock of the century

Well, we have had a really shocking day today. I got a call today about 11:30 am from Frank telling me that his Dad was in full cardiac arrest and was being taken to Banner Baywood Hospital. By the time I pick up the kids from school at 12:30 the police had called me on my cell phone telling me to get my family to the emergency room. With that phone call, I knew right away that he was gone. I got the kids home, my friend Trudy came to watch the kids for me and we rushed to the hospital. The doctors informed us there that he had passed away and that he had died instantly. That was a relief, that he didn't have to suffer. They were never able to resesitate him. We knew he was sick with an infection, but nothing we thought he would die from. We had been so focused on and worried about Frank's Mom that we had no clue this was coming. Frank's sister Sandy and her husband Jack, along with Frank, Kristen, Megan, Andre and I got to spend a couple of hours with him in the emergency room after he passed. It was really sad, but great to see him. We knew we would be able to see him again at the Mortuary, so this was not our final goodbye. It makes me so sad to see Frank so upset. He is our Rock, I wish I knew how to take some of the pain away.

Here is a picture of the kids holding Grandpa's hand. This was very touching

Here is the rainbow that we saw when we left the hospital. He was letting us know he was ok. :)

A Visit with Frank's Mom.

Today wasn't a very good day for Ma. She was really tired when we went in to see her. She didn't really eat or drink much today. Not enough to sustain life. Tomorrow is a new day, we will see how she does. Here is a picture of Frank and his Mom. He sure does love her.

Here I am with Ma. We even got her to smile a little bit. We love to visit her and I think she likes us to visit her too. Frank got to feed her dinner last night and that made them both very happy. We took her a kids meal from Sonic, with a diet coke (her favorite). She drank it and said "Umm, that is good"! What a treat it is to make her happy.

Brooke's 7th birthday

Brooke had a Princess pamper party this year. She had 8 little girls over and they watched the Barbie and the Mermaid Tale movie and then enjoyed pizza and cake. The gift bags that the girls took home were filled with bath stuff, fingernail polish, lip gloss and princess stuff. It was all planned at the last second and we pulled it off. Thank goodness Brooke has such great friends. Here are a few pictures of her party.

Here are the girls watching the movie waiting for all the girls to get there.

The cake that Megan (big sissy) made for Brooke. She loved it.

The girls enjoying their pizza and great friendship.

Brooke opening her presents. They all had a blast. 

On our way to Utah!!

We got home from Payson about 11 or 11:30 pm last night and at 6:00 am this morning we are heading to Utah. Andre, his friend Rick, Brooke, Shelby and I are making the journey to surprise my sister and her husband. We are on our way, having a great trip. We prayed as a family before leaving that we would get there safely. I am driving, Andre is my passenger keeping me awake. Brooke, Shelby and Rick are in the back watching Wubbzy (sorry Rick). We are doing good, no problems what-so-ever. We get to Page and stop at the Burger King on the hill to eat lunch. We have a great lunch and go out to leave, get in the suburban and it won't shift into gear. We try for over a half an hour to get it out of this parking spot. We have tried everything by now. Well almost everything. Andre mentions that our prayer this morning didn't really work because we haven't made it to Utah safely. I tell him that it is a good idea for us to pray again. After some hesitation he offers a prayer that we could get out of the parking spot we were in. He finishes praying and I turn on the truck and put it in gear, shut up, it shifts into gear. We all look at each other with amazement and quickly pull out of the parking spot. We make it down on the highway again and it shifts out of gear again. I get out of the truck run up to Checker Auto Parts and they give me the name of a mechanic that is open on the holiday. I call him and he tells me his tow truck is out of commision and I will have to call someone else to tow me to his shop, just up the hill. I think he could tell I was stressed out beyond belief, I told him I would just try to make it up the hill to his shop. We made it half way up the hill and couldn't go any further. I call Frank and am shaking and crying I am so upset. This angel of a man and his wife pull up behind me and it is the mechanic. He tells me that when he didn't hear back from me he got worried and decided to come looking for us. His wife came in her own vehicle to drive us to the shop and the rental car place and make sure we were all safe. His wife was 8 1/2 months pregnant. Well the diagnosis for the Suburban isn't a pretty sight, the transmission is gone. Needless to say we had to leave it behind to get fixed and rent a car to get the rest of the way to Utah. As we got our rental car and headed back to the shop to load our stuff from the truck, one of the workers at the shop was standing outside smoking. As I walk into the shop he says, "wow lady, you are really lucky that you made it to Page without braking down. If you were on either side of Page you would have been in trouble trying to get help." This stopped me in my tracks. It took a man I didn't even know to remind me how lucky we really were. We could have broken down the night before on the way home from Payson. We were traveling so late and there isn't really anywhere to pull off, if we had. We could have broken down really far from help. How blessed we were to make it to Page. Then he says " You must be living your life right. you had someone looking out for you today". Wow, these are the small miracles that we take for granted on a daily basis. Everything that happened that day, happened for a reason. Exactly the way it was supposed to happen.  There were angels that entered in our lives that day, that changed me as a person. Even though the experience was scary, being by myself with the kids, we were blessed beyond belief. Well, at this point we are way behind on our trip and are not going to make it to dinner to surprise anyone. We make it the Sandy about 8:00pm (Utah time). My niece gets my sister and her husband to go get a yogurt after dinner and we were still able to meet them there and surprise them. I don't think surprised is the word. They had no idea.. I love doing that.

We love the Payson fireworks!!

Grandpa and Brooke just hanging out.

We had a great time watching the fireworks with my Mom and Dad. Shelby cried when they fireworks let off the big boom. She is not fond of loud things. We sat in the back of the truck and watched them. Megan and Andre sat on top of the suburban and had a great view. After the fireworks we headed back to Gilbert because in the morning we are heading to Utah to surprise Aunt Jodie and Uncle Sam.. Yahoo

Megan and Andre with the best seat.

The greatest Mom and Dad on earth. I am glad we get to spend time with them.

Shelby is sad. She hates the noise.

Hiking up in Payson

Frank and Megan goofing around..

So we left this morning for Payson, to stay with my Mom and Dad and celebrate the 4th of July. We love going up to stay with my parents. It was Frank, Megan, Andre, Brooke, Shelby and I that went up. After we got there and got settled in we decided to go looking around and hiking. We found a really neat spot with this creek that is not far from a small waterfall. We had fun playing in the water, but it was so cold it hurt to put your feet in. Megan was really brave and crossed the whole creek. Brooke played for a while and I whimped out pretty fast. It was a very fun day.
Shelby fell asleep, so Andre decided to stay with Grandma and Grandpa to watch her.

This water was flippin cold. It hurt to have your feet in it.

Brooke and big sissy, Megan.

Megan giving the thumbs up, that the water is nice. (she was lying)

Brooke playing in the creek!!