Christmas 2008
We hope that this year was good to everyone and that you have a lot to be thankful for. This year was a really tough year for our family right from the start but we are still blessed for the things that God has granted us with and continue to praise him for his great gift in Jesus.
January started out good as our cousin Mouna Slebi was here visiting from Bethlehem. But one night in mid January, Kamal and I were in our bedroom watching a movie and we heard a scream. The kids were in the other room watching their movie and Austin was crying really hard. When we got there, his ear was bleeding and we couldn’t figure out what happened. We rushed him to the emergency room at Dell Children Hospital and his learned that his tympanic membrane was ruptured. Later on, we found out that Danny had poked his ear with a sucker stick. It was an awful experience but it healed. He is doing so much better and has no hearing loss or damage as a result.
February was great and passed quickly. In March, my cousin Angie Damiani and her husband Matthew came to visit. It was really fun and we had a girl’s night out Arbonne party while she was here. We only had 4 women attend but it was really fun and we talked and laughed so much. In late March, we took a small trip as a family with our neighborhood playgroup (The Funatics) to Wonder World in San Marcos and had a great time. Then, we stopped at Cabela’s and wow, what a store! It was a great family outing day.
In April, we enjoyed Easter and along with that, Easter Egg Hunting for the kids. May came and we got a Wii. Danny loves it so much (as do his parents). On May 31st, we found out that we were expecting baby #3 due on December 16th, 2008. We were surprised to say the least but excited for the coming arrival. Besides Kamal, I let my sister, Loralei and mom be the first to hear about the pregnancy.
June came and we celebrated both Kamal’s 41st birthday and Austin’s 3rd birthday. Kamal’s party was just our family but Austin’s party had a lot of family and friends, including my mom. It was really great. However, June 9th, I was laid off from my job with no prior notice. I was in shock for a while afterwards.
On July 17th, I miscarried twins. It was a horrible experience. I was close to having a blood transfusion because I miscarried them at home and lost a lot of blood. But praise God, right before the D&C, my blood levels came back and they didn’t have to do the transfusion. About two days after the miscarriage, Kamal’s health started deteriorating. In August, he was constantly in the hospital and it took such a toll on the family. One time, we were at Najib and Margo’s for dinner and he couldn’t breathe. We called 911 and the ambulance came and took him to the hospital. Of course, I followed in the car and on the way, Danny was saying “We need to hurry Mommy, he’s going to die!” and it absolutely broke my heart.
In September, Danny started Pre-K. He was so excited and especially exited when he found out that he gets to ride the bus! We celebrated his 5th birthday on the 13th with his family and friends, including my mom, dad and Carol. Danny was thrilled to have so many people he loved there. He also got to have a party at school with his friends there. Danny was born 13 days too late for Kindergarten but we have that to look forward to next year and now, Danny and Austin will only be one year apart in school, as Austin will start Pre-K next fall.
October was extremely busy with tons of carnivals, birthday parties and playdates with our playgroups, The Funatics and Rockin’ Mommas. Halloween was really fun as we took the kids to the mall to trick or treat and then around our neighborhood. November 2nd, I participated in the Susan G. Komen “Race for the Cure” 5K walk with Team Rockin’ Mommas, which was awesome and so much fun! November 18th, I celebrated my 33rd birthday and we had a very nice Thanksgiving with Margo, Najib, Raed and Rajaa.
December is here and we are back at the mall selling Olivewood from The Holy Land. On Dec. 3rd, my good friend from college, Michelle from Reno, NV came to visit with her husband Joe and daughter Maddie. The kids had such a blast playing together and it was great to see Michelle and Joe. Dad and Carol came for lunch on Dec. 7th and we exchanged our gifts for Christmas. The kids have had many playdates and parties to attend and now I’m so behind on everything! But we enjoy having so many friends here and are truly blessed. Especially after the miscarriage when everyone was bringing our family dinner for 3 weeks. I was in awe of the love and support.
If you would like to check out what we do throughout the year, please visit my blog at www.LachellesBlog.blogspot.com.
We wish everyone a Merry Christmas, we love and cherish each of you, and pray for a very prosperous New Year for Everyone!
Love,
The Saieh Family ● Kamal, Lachelle, Danny and Austin
My college and long time friend, Michelle, her husband Joe and their daughter Maddie came to visit us since they were in the area from Reno, NV. We love seeing them and the kids just adore playing with Maddie. Danny and Maddie hit it off really well, even though Maddie is only 2 months older than Austin. All three of them played on the playset and had a blast! 
We had a great time putting up the Christmas tree this year. I got it up earlier than I usually do because Danny was so excited and kept asking me when we were going to do it. This started the day after Thanksgiving. So finally, on December 1st, Kamal dragged the tree out of storage and Danny, Austin and I put it together. Then, on December 2nd, I dragged out the indoor decorations and we got to work decorating the tree. Danny and Austin only put about two decorations on the tree before deciding that they were done. It took me about 4 hours, on and off, but I love the way our tree turned out.
November 6 - We had a horse playdate at my house with our neighborhood group. The kids made a horse craft, rode Austin's bouncy horse, watched the movie Spirit, and played outside on the swing set. It was a fun day.
November 8 - The kids decided to pretend they were the Super Mario Bros. Danny is Mario and Austin is Luigi. They dressed themselves, came to me and told me who they were. I thought it was so cute I had to get a picture or two.
November 13 - We made handprint turkeys at Crisda's house and the kids had a wonderful time. The craft was awesome! Such a great idea for a keepsake. Here are Danny and Austin's Thanksgiving placemat:
November 15 - Happy Birthday Uncle Darrell and Donetta! We went to the mall and the kids got a couple of pirate masks, hooks and hats. The giant Christmas Tree was up so we took some shots with it as well.
November 18 - Happy 33rd Birthday ME! Austin and I walked to school to pick up Danny and then walked to our friends Donetta and Anna's house for a viewing of Wall-E. The kids adored the movie and were quoting lines for weeks afterward. Here are a few shots from that:
