Doug's Mom Susan is in Pittsburgh today getting chemo. We are praying that it goes well and that it is working very effectively.
Thanks to those of you who have been praying with us. I will keep you posted when I know more.
~Andrea
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Joanie's Surgery
As I mentioned before, my sister Joan fell and broke her ankle while we were on vacation. The doctor was trying to let it heal on it's own, but it started to rotate and he decided that surgery was necessary. The surgery was yesterday and they placed a plate and several screws into her ankle. It's going to be a long road to recovery, but Joanie is doing well. I spoke to her on the phone this morning and she sounded great. She should be discharged and sent home this afternoon. She will be living with my parents for a few weeks and then moving in with Cory's parents until Cory returns from Officer's Candidate School for the Coast Guard.
Here is a picture of Joan two days after she broke it:
Here is a picture of Joan two days after she broke it:
Love you Joanie!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
House Flipping
July - 2008
As most of you know, Doug is currently working with his Dad flipping houses. The project they are finishing up right now has been quite the undertaking. Thought I'd share a few pictures.
The Beginning: Jan 2008
The house was in ROUGH shape. The pictures don't do it justice. Close your eyes and imagine one of the worst smells you can think of. Then imagine stepping inside and having to follow Dana and Doug's footsteps EXACTLY or risk falling through the rotten floor. Imagine animal urine and feces visible on the floors. Imagine holes in the walls and collapsing ceilings, and general gross neglect everywhere. Okay...open your eyes and look at it again. That is what they started with. You could barely see the house from the road because of the overgrowth of trees. When Doug would come home everynight the clothes went STRAIGHT into the wash and he went straight to the shower, seriously afraid he might bring something home with him.
Early demolition phase -
Things were still pretty gross, but tree guys came in to remove a lot of the overgrowth, the roof was starting to take shape, and somewhere around when this picture was taken, the insides were finally completely gutted, which was the cause for MUCH celebration. It was a happy day in our home when Doug declared that the house was "fecal-free"!
Reconstruction phase:
Doug and his Dad working on window frames back in April or so.
At this point, all demolition was over and they were starting to build things again. You can see the roof is finished, windows are in, and they are making preparations to start siding soon.
I'm so proud of them. Dana is a miracle worker with "lost cause" houses, and Doug is really loving all that he is learning and doing. It has been awesome to see the transformation. And as often as they do this, I never cease to be amazed at the final product. The finished product is always an adorable "brand new" house with tons of love poured into it. How fun.
As most of you know, Doug is currently working with his Dad flipping houses. The project they are finishing up right now has been quite the undertaking. Thought I'd share a few pictures.
The Beginning: Jan 2008
The house was in ROUGH shape. The pictures don't do it justice. Close your eyes and imagine one of the worst smells you can think of. Then imagine stepping inside and having to follow Dana and Doug's footsteps EXACTLY or risk falling through the rotten floor. Imagine animal urine and feces visible on the floors. Imagine holes in the walls and collapsing ceilings, and general gross neglect everywhere. Okay...open your eyes and look at it again. That is what they started with. You could barely see the house from the road because of the overgrowth of trees. When Doug would come home everynight the clothes went STRAIGHT into the wash and he went straight to the shower, seriously afraid he might bring something home with him.
Early demolition phase -
Things were still pretty gross, but tree guys came in to remove a lot of the overgrowth, the roof was starting to take shape, and somewhere around when this picture was taken, the insides were finally completely gutted, which was the cause for MUCH celebration. It was a happy day in our home when Doug declared that the house was "fecal-free"!
Reconstruction phase:
Doug and his Dad working on window frames back in April or so.
At this point, all demolition was over and they were starting to build things again. You can see the roof is finished, windows are in, and they are making preparations to start siding soon.
Internal Phase:
The outside is looking more complete. Not "done" yet, but near it. The inside is another matter. At this phase, they are wiring, dry-walling, etc. This is the phase when things get more exciting every day. Stuff happens fast now and each day the insides look more "finished".
Most recent picture:
They are in the final stages now. The house should be finished in just a couple weeks. The inside walls are painted, the kitchen cupboards are in, the light fixtures are starting to be hung, and the carpet guy will lay carpet next week. The project is almost done!
Picture taken 7-28-08 @ 8:00pm
I'm so proud of them. Dana is a miracle worker with "lost cause" houses, and Doug is really loving all that he is learning and doing. It has been awesome to see the transformation. And as often as they do this, I never cease to be amazed at the final product. The finished product is always an adorable "brand new" house with tons of love poured into it. How fun.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Papa's Girl - Easter 2008
Easter 2008 -
I didn't get to post this earlier, but I wanted to put these pictures up.
Danika LOVES her Papa. Doug and I got really, really sick with the flu Easter weekend, and since Danika was the only member of the family NOT sick, Doug's parents picked her up and kept her for the day. As soon as Dana walked in, she ran to him, cuddled up to him, and didn't want anything to do with her sick parents. She looked pretty cute in her little dress....unfortunately, she wasn't in the mood to pose for pictures, and we were both so sick we weren't in the mood to try. But these two are still pretty cute. :)
I also wanted to show off Danika in her cupcake sweater sitting in her favorite chair. Thanks, Emily!
I didn't get to post this earlier, but I wanted to put these pictures up.
Danika LOVES her Papa. Doug and I got really, really sick with the flu Easter weekend, and since Danika was the only member of the family NOT sick, Doug's parents picked her up and kept her for the day. As soon as Dana walked in, she ran to him, cuddled up to him, and didn't want anything to do with her sick parents. She looked pretty cute in her little dress....unfortunately, she wasn't in the mood to pose for pictures, and we were both so sick we weren't in the mood to try. But these two are still pretty cute. :)
I also wanted to show off Danika in her cupcake sweater sitting in her favorite chair. Thanks, Emily!
Father's Day Humor :)
Okay...just because I had so much fun sending this card, I wanted to share the joy. :)
This is the Father's Day card I sent to my Dad. I still laugh when I see it. :)
You know you think it is funny! :)
This is the Father's Day card I sent to my Dad. I still laugh when I see it. :)
You know you think it is funny! :)
New Truck, New Toys, and a Visit with Nana & Papa
April, 2008 - For those of you familiar with Doug's previous mode of transportation, you are probably aware it was a little....well.....special. :) The little brown truck we called "The Mudpuppy" was a 1989 Toyota pickup truck that we have had for 3 years or so. Doug has beat it around and it has been a good vehicle for us, but when inspection came up this last year, it was a little rough. So, we decided it was time for us to get Doug a decent vehicle. We knew we needed a truck for his job, and we knew we needed an extended cab so our little family can all fit in at the same time. We found a great used Toyota Tundra that was in our price range and met our needs. Its a great looking truck and Doug is thrilled to be driving it.
My Mom and Dad came up for a visit and to basically spoil our little girl. They accomplished thier mission. :)
They brought this great little toy with them that Danika loves. :)
Danika with Papa and Nana at church on Sunday.
After a few weeks with her new toy, Daddy got the great idea to tie a rope to it so he can pull her around the yard. Danika LOVES this new form of fun! Daddy thinks it's pretty fun, too.
My Mom and Dad came up for a visit and to basically spoil our little girl. They accomplished thier mission. :)They brought this great little toy with them that Danika loves. :)
Danika with Papa and Nana at church on Sunday.
After a few weeks with her new toy, Daddy got the great idea to tie a rope to it so he can pull her around the yard. Danika LOVES this new form of fun! Daddy thinks it's pretty fun, too.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Endicott Vacation- July 2008
Here are some pictures of Danika just cracking me up. She is obsessed with her baby doll now. She drags that poor doll with her everywhere she goes.
We were recently on vacation for a week with my parents in Madison-On-The-Lake, Ohio. It was a wonderful time...until my poor little sister fell and broke her ankle. Joanie did quite a number on her ankle and leg...several severe fractures. She is going to be out of commission for quite a while. But, it was still a wonderful time with family. And my Mom got lots of "Nana" time with her kiddos. :)
The Bierer Family - July 2008
The Hoffman Family - July 2008
We were recently on vacation for a week with my parents in Madison-On-The-Lake, Ohio. It was a wonderful time...until my poor little sister fell and broke her ankle. Joanie did quite a number on her ankle and leg...several severe fractures. She is going to be out of commission for quite a while. But, it was still a wonderful time with family. And my Mom got lots of "Nana" time with her kiddos. :)
The Bierer Family - July 2008
The Hoffman Family - July 2008
Helmet Head - March/April 2008
For those that don't know, my daughter is fearless. The same can not be said for her mother. :) I am the safety nazi in our family, and Doug often ridicules me for it. One of our latest safety adventures has turned into quite the humorous thing in our household. My fearless daughter is only a little over a year, but she constantly tries to keep up with the "big" kids at daycare. Since she keeps trying to ride the wheeled toys at daycare, I decided it was time to buy her a bike helmet. While I initially thought she was going to HATE it, it turns out the my hilarious little girl LOVES her bike helmet. The daycare workers have been putting it on her when she goes out to play, but she is thrilled to wear it the WHOLE time she is out there....whether she is near the bikes or not. She wears it to play in the sand box, to play in the play-house, to go down the slide...whatever. :) She just cracks me up. :) The daycare workers say that since she is so bold and reckless, it might just be a good thing to keep that helmet on her.
Doug speaking
This was an exciting weekend for us. As I have mentioned before, we go to McLane Church in Edinboro and we love it there. Every July they do a sermon series called "Sermons from the Seats". For this series they ask "regular" people from the church to speak and share thier story. Doug was asked to be one of these speakers this year. So, that meant that last weekend Doug spoke at the other McLane Church sites, and this weekend Doug spoke at McLane's main campus in Edinboro for all three services. He did a GREAT job! I was so proud of him. It was a great opportunity for him to share what God has been doing in our lives over the last year to 2 years. I will post a link to the web site where you can hear Doug's message if you are interested when it becomes available.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Random Danika
Okay...so since I've been so behind, I think I need to post some older Danika pictures that have been taken during the 3 months I've been a blogging reject.
Check them out:
First up, my daughter has a unique physique. :) Her belly is enormous...and her little scrawny legs, butt, and arms are almost non-existent. It makse for a funny little profile. The daycare workers started calling her sizeable spare tire the "Bierer Belly" as a joke. One of our good friends, Courtney, heard about that and said it was too cute not to turn into a t-shirt. So...here is our little Bierer Bellied kiddo in her specialty t-shirt. :)
And last but not least, I would like to take a moment to whine about how much I got ripped off. My daughter doesn't look like me. She looks just like her Dad. All that work, and she doesn't even look like me? :) People who barely know us will stop and comment about how much she looks like Doug. So, just for those that are wondering what he looked like as a baby...let me remove any doubt. Check out these pictures of Doug at a similar age...
This is Danika on the left and Doug on the right.
Again, Danika on the left, Doug on the right.
Check them out:
First up, my daughter has a unique physique. :) Her belly is enormous...and her little scrawny legs, butt, and arms are almost non-existent. It makse for a funny little profile. The daycare workers started calling her sizeable spare tire the "Bierer Belly" as a joke. One of our good friends, Courtney, heard about that and said it was too cute not to turn into a t-shirt. So...here is our little Bierer Bellied kiddo in her specialty t-shirt. :)
My daughter is also obsessed with chairs her size. ANY kind of chair her size...so we have lots of them. 
And last but not least, I would like to take a moment to whine about how much I got ripped off. My daughter doesn't look like me. She looks just like her Dad. All that work, and she doesn't even look like me? :) People who barely know us will stop and comment about how much she looks like Doug. So, just for those that are wondering what he looked like as a baby...let me remove any doubt. Check out these pictures of Doug at a similar age...
This is Danika on the left and Doug on the right.
Again, Danika on the left, Doug on the right.
Yet again, I say....I got SO ripped off. :)
And if you want to know what she is going to look like at 50 and 70, let me tell you. Just look at Susan and Grandma Andrews, because that is exactly who Doug looks like. :) In the middle is a picture of Grandma Berniece when she was 7 months old. The ones on either side are Danika. I think there is a family resemblance, don't you?
Danika: 18 months old!
My baby is already a year and a half old! Here are some recent pictures I snapped of her while playing in the yard this month. Hope you enjoy!
She loves to wave "Bye, Bye" and "Hello"
Doug told her to smile...this is what we got. :)
If you ask her a question, she gets realy excited.
How can you punish this little face? That is what Doug says all the time. This is the look that melts Daddy's heart.
She loves to wave "Bye, Bye" and "Hello"
Doug told her to smile...this is what we got. :)
If you ask her a question, she gets realy excited.
How can you punish this little face? That is what Doug says all the time. This is the look that melts Daddy's heart.
Monday, July 21, 2008
I'm 30! Yikes! (May 9, 2008)
So, my 30th birthday was May 9, 2008. I was a little freaked out about turning the big 3-0! I was not really looking forward to it. But, my husband and wonderful friend conspired to make it a good one. ;)
On May 8th, Doug called from work and told me he wanted to eat out. I thought that was wierd because we were going out for my birthday the next night, but I never argue with an invitation to eat out.
When we arrived at the restaurant, Doug said we should eat at a corner table. I didn't have my glasses on, but I told him we couldn't sit at that table...there was already a girl there. Doug looked at me in total amusement and said, "Look at the table again." When I did, I realized that the "girl" already sitting at the table was my dear friend Kara all the way from Dallas Texas! I was so shocked I started crying right on the spot! Kara stayed all weekend and celebrated with us. It was great.
Since it was a "surprise" visit, Kara got to go to work with me on Friday and we had a great time eating at my FAVORITE restaurant for lunch, and then all three of us went out to dinner and line dancing on Friday night. :) Kara and I had a blast dancing...Doug patiently counted down the minutes until we allowed him to leave. :)
Saturday, Kara and I planned her July wedding in 3 hours. I am not kidding...we were awesome. :) We went to a bridal store here in Erie and she did tons of research online, and we managed to get all the big stuff squared away in one afternoon. It was awesome.
Saturday night we celebrated my birthday with my parents & sister.
Sunday was Mother's Day. Our Church decided to have Baby Dedication that day, so we invited our family to come to the service and then to come back to our house for lunch. The service was great, but Danika was the most unruly, loud, wiggly, and attention seeking child up there. It was really hard not to laugh out loud, except half the time I was so embarrassed I didn't know what to do. For the most part, I guess it was pretty funny now that I am looking back. But it was quite a handful up on the stage!
For those that aren't familiar with "Baby Dedication" it is a ceremony where the parents of a young child formally declare thier desire to raise this child in a home that loves and worships God and to love and instruct this child about Jesus Christ. It is an opportunity for the church as a whole to pray for the family and to declare thier commitment to be a resource to the family and to assist as a community the commitment made by these parents. Doug and I got to be a part of this, declaring that we have received this incredible gift from God and we want to dedicate her back to Him. It was an awesome thing to be a part of.
On May 8th, Doug called from work and told me he wanted to eat out. I thought that was wierd because we were going out for my birthday the next night, but I never argue with an invitation to eat out.
When we arrived at the restaurant, Doug said we should eat at a corner table. I didn't have my glasses on, but I told him we couldn't sit at that table...there was already a girl there. Doug looked at me in total amusement and said, "Look at the table again." When I did, I realized that the "girl" already sitting at the table was my dear friend Kara all the way from Dallas Texas! I was so shocked I started crying right on the spot! Kara stayed all weekend and celebrated with us. It was great.
Since it was a "surprise" visit, Kara got to go to work with me on Friday and we had a great time eating at my FAVORITE restaurant for lunch, and then all three of us went out to dinner and line dancing on Friday night. :) Kara and I had a blast dancing...Doug patiently counted down the minutes until we allowed him to leave. :)
Saturday, Kara and I planned her July wedding in 3 hours. I am not kidding...we were awesome. :) We went to a bridal store here in Erie and she did tons of research online, and we managed to get all the big stuff squared away in one afternoon. It was awesome.
Saturday night we celebrated my birthday with my parents & sister.
Sunday was Mother's Day. Our Church decided to have Baby Dedication that day, so we invited our family to come to the service and then to come back to our house for lunch. The service was great, but Danika was the most unruly, loud, wiggly, and attention seeking child up there. It was really hard not to laugh out loud, except half the time I was so embarrassed I didn't know what to do. For the most part, I guess it was pretty funny now that I am looking back. But it was quite a handful up on the stage!
For those that aren't familiar with "Baby Dedication" it is a ceremony where the parents of a young child formally declare thier desire to raise this child in a home that loves and worships God and to love and instruct this child about Jesus Christ. It is an opportunity for the church as a whole to pray for the family and to declare thier commitment to be a resource to the family and to assist as a community the commitment made by these parents. Doug and I got to be a part of this, declaring that we have received this incredible gift from God and we want to dedicate her back to Him. It was an awesome thing to be a part of.
After church, our family came back to our house. We celebrated the Mom's...and my incredible amazing husband was not done with surprises yet. For Mother's Day, he beat all previous gifts with a special gift that was truly from the heart and very thoughtful. :) I have Celiac Disease and can't eat anything with gluten (wheat, barley, rye), so I normally miss out on desserts. I don't mind most of the time, but there are moments when I really miss certain foods. Doug knows this, and for my Mother's Day gift, he conspired with a wonderful woman we know who is an AMAZING cook, and he had her make me a cocunut cream pie- GLUTEN FREE! :) It was AMAZING! I can't tell you how awesome that wasy and how much it meant to me. That is something that money can't buy...it was just the best treat to end a wonderful weekend.
It was one really busy weekend, but it was GREAT. No doubt about it...30 was my best birthday so far!
I'm so behind.
Well...as you all have figured out by now, I fell behind on my blogging.
I am going to work my way towards catching up. Please forgive me as I get up to speed again... ;)
love,
andrea
I am going to work my way towards catching up. Please forgive me as I get up to speed again... ;)
love,
andrea
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