Rock Your Look Photography

Rock Your Look Photography- Kim a family friend took our Christmas pictures again this year! I am in love with them! This is a sample of what she has for this year! I love them! If you message me I can provide you with the information to get in contact with her! Thank you Kim!

Happy 11th Birthday Kiera

Happy 11th Birthday Princess!

Santa's In Town

As you can see Santa stopped past the Payne Fire Department today! The girls had fun, and again I cant say enough to the Payne Fire Department! It was perfect this year! I hope to see it for years to come!

Update's

Just a short update: Gabby is doing great! We have had several appointments in the past couple weeks. Her eye pressures are the lowest they have been! (Happy dance) We have found another location to restart the process of getting her contacts. This will be located down in Columbus Ohio! I will post more information as we know. We also had a great Neuro Apt! With her seizures under control, we are pleased with how she is reacting to her Keppra now. She will be receiving botox in her calf muscles to help relax them. She has been able to turn her foot in her AFO's and learned to wiggle her foot out of them sometimes. After two week of the botox treatment being done, she will be casted off once a week for 4-6 weeks. Around week 3-5 she will be fitted for a new pair of AFO's and we hope this will help relax her muscles and allow her to wear the AFO's all the time again. While she is having her botox done her new dentist will also be stopping in to give her a good teeth cleaning. :D

I hope everyone had a safe Thanksgiving! We went to visit family and friends in PA. It was a great trip! And plan to return over Christmas. I hope for lots, LOTS of snow when I am there! I sure miss large amounts of snow. There has been no snow so far (other than a couple flakes here). I will post another update of Gabby around Christmas. We plan on going to see Santa on Saturday! Our local Fire department is having Santa stop to see the children! My kids are beyond excited! (other than Kiera, you know she is now to cool to sit on Santa's lap)

Hope everyone is having fun decoration their tree's and preparing for Christmas, but in the hustle and bustle lets not forget what CHRISTmas is all about!

Much love,
Maria

Merry Christmas from my "boy's"

Merry Christmas from my "boy's" Meeko & Storm.

Kirstynn got Student of the Week

                                                      

Kirstynn received student of the week! She is working very hard in school this year, and is getting super smart! Her reading level is above average and I can tell everywhere we go she is reading signs, papers, and her books! Her teacher said the following about her:  

Mrs. LaBounty/Mrs. Ritchhart selected Kirstynn because she is a very pleasant second grader. She is always kind to everyone. She always has a smile on her face and is a fun person to be around. Great Job,  Kirstynn. We are excited to have this chance to recognize achievements in and out of the classroom.

Great Job Princess! As always, You make me proud to be your mother. I am glad to hear you inner kindness is shinning through in school! Love you so much!

Wheelchair-Gabby-rocking it!

Gabby got her new wheelchair! And she LOVES it! It provides a great amount of support to her mid section, and as you can see she can sit in a normal sitting position. We hand picked each part of the wheelchair to conform to Gabby's needs. Tonight when John picked her up out of it she threw it a fit! We all got a good laugh over it. :D If you are searching for a new wheelchair and have any questions please feel free to ask! Happy Thanksgiving!  

Trick or Treat....

Fall Pictures-

Today was perfect for picture taking! It was 80,sunny,and light winds! Thank you to Kiera who helped me set up and seat everyone! Here are our fall Pictures! I love these! Such great smiles! Hope you all enjoy them! 

*Nursing*

I wanted to say sorry for the lack of post recently, I updated the blog last night with pictures from the past couple weeks. I found out 3 weeks ago we were approved to have a aid come in now for a slotted number of hours a week so I can start COLLEGE to obtain my LPN! You have read that right! I am now an enrolled student, and will be starting school this spring. I had a couple test I needed to pass so all my extra time (as if I have much) has been applied to working on these. I wont be posting much, as I know that I wont have any extra time...for the next 2 years...its appears. I know in the end it will all be worth it!  Once I get my PN (LPN) I will follow soon after with my RN. I will still post pictures from time to time and a small post about how things have been...

On a side note, with the funds from "Giving For Gabby" we were able to handicap our van, build a ramp out front, and purchase a second car to help prevent so many miles being places on the van. They also got her IPAD, tons of apps to go on it, and are going to order her switch.We cant say thanks enough to everyone who has helped along the way. The other girls also got a room makeover, that will include new paint, wall deco they have already purchased and in Kiera's room will be a complete redo as we will be removing all the paneling up there. It has been an answered prayer!

*Gabby was sick, and we spent last Thursday night in the ER. She has it in her lungs again. Lots of chest PT, Cough Assist, Nebulizer medication and a very strong antibiotic she is now on the mend. :) Its good to have a Gabby back! Its the moments where she is not doing so good that always scare us. Thank you to all that pray for her in her time of need and on a daily basis! It means more than words can say!

Thank you to all who follow us on our daily live!

~Maria

Pumpkin Carving!

Soccer 2012

 Soccer 2012- this is the girls second year playing and I can tell how much they have improved since last year! They are rocking it! Keep up the good work girls!

~Kiera~ Student of the week!

I know,I know...How do I raise these smart kids! I have to say Kiera is by far the most driven child I have! She reads, and reads and reads, and studies, and studies, and studies! Keep up the great work Kiera! You make me proud!  Her teacher wrote the following about her :

Mrs. Stouffer selected Kiera because she is a hard worker and is always doing things to improve her work. She has been asking more questions in class and checking her work over carefully. Kiera is always will to contribute to class discussions and is usually the first to be ready when it is time to begin learning. She is always willing to help whenever it is needed. she is a true pleasure to have in class. We are excited to have this chance to recognize achievements in and out of the classroom!

Ronald McDonald House- Akron, Ohio



"The Giving Doll"- Each part of Gabby's doll was made by one person "Such as the hair, eyes, clothing,sewing" and around her neck it says "My name is Megan, I was made to GIVE you faith, love, hope, joy and comfort during this special time." ♥ They were so Kind they also got one out for each of the girls! So now they all have "The Giving Doll" and each one matches the child it was given to. ♥ You can find :The Giving Doll" on facebook! Look them up and see what they are all about! They also accept donation, and helping hands in making these doll's. Consider making a difference and help make a child's day! 



I am always wanting to give back, and I have found a way to give back to the Ronald McDonald house in Akron. We often stay there if Gabby is going to have a surgery or multiple appointments in multiple days.  Its a home away from home for so many family's. They provide meals, snack  foods, presents to the kids, and a warm hug. During "Giving for Gabby" we asked the town of Payne to collect pop tabs for us. I am so happy that we could make such a large donation of pop tabs! With each trip we make I will make a stop past the house to make a donation. They are always accepting travel sized items, pop tabs and food. If you have a donation please feel free to drop it off at Carol's Main Street Makeovers, or drop it past my house. :) I also have a Giving for Gabby option off to the right of my page. If you would like to donate money, please state so under the donation , and what you would like it to be used for-food, travel sized items, ect.... I will make sure every time we go we take pictures. Thanks again to everyone who helped!

Happy 6th Birthday Jazmyne

 Happy 6th Birthday Princess Jazmyne! This year as a family we decided not to have "birthday party's" at our house anymore and instead are letting the kids pick a "special place" they want to celebrate. Jazmyne chose Put Put, and Go Cart ridding! She was aloud to bring one friend and if you know Jazmyne you know she had to bring Adelae! It was fun to watch 3 kids play for the first time! Lots of large swings,odd angled putters, and flying balls but they had a blast. We all doubled up and rode in Go Carts as well. After Jazmyne chose Pizza Hut buffet to eat...and it was yummy! We returned home to a spa night, then movies and popcorn! Talk about a great day! We had Jazmyne's God Mother (Aunt Carol) over for lunch, and Jazmyne was also treated to be able to have her attend a lunch at school and recess with her on her "real" Birthday! (Thank you Aunt Carol, That made her day!) As a new tradition to us doing this we are also taking the kids to the store and letting them pick out their own present from now on. As you can see Jazmyne chose a new purple/silver/pink bike! Happy Birthday Princess! love you so much(and please stop growing up so fast its breaking mommy's heart!)

Meet Storm!

Meet the newest member of our family Storm. He is a rescue dog~! He is very spunky, funny, loving dog! Meeko has grown to love him to! Thank you to his foster family (he has come a long way since they got him)

He looks as if he has a smile on his face :)

Downloading Pictures

To my readers: All of my pictures are property of "The Roddy Family Blog- Dream Different" You do not have my permission to download any of them. I have a counter on my blog that states each download and the IP downloading it. Please stop downloading my property. I know exactly the operating system you use the computer that it is being used on, the IP address, The City and State, time and date of each download (this is done to protect my children) So I can see when and who is downloading my pictures. I will ask again in all kindness to please refrain from downloading any pictures. If by chance you would like to download a picture there is a "contact me" button on my page. Please feel free to state why and what photo you would like to download.  You must have my permission to do so. Thanks again to all my readers who do understand this statement.
Thanks Again
Maria

Happy Labor Day

Just wanted to wish my Grandma Hart a Happy Birthday! Glad we could spend it with you. Happy Labor day to all our family and friends! We spent our weekend with family and friends.! I will upload more tomorrow after our "Surprise" trip for our girls!

The joys of being a step parent....

Oh the joys of being a "step" mom. I first want to start off by saying. I have two "step" children.

Dillon 13 years old

Dillon and Kiera. I am an honest person so I will tell you Dillon don't live with us. He has not for almost a year (He returned back to Stacy's after the first nine weeks last year) He also lived with his mom for about months back in 2011. I would never not want to imply to anyone that he does. He comes to visit us for 4 weeks out of the summer, and some school year visits. He wanted to live with his mom and step dad. We always tell him we have an open door and he is welcome back at anytime. We don't ever pressure him, or make him feel bad for wanting to live there. We also don't question why he wants to live there. It was his choice, Of course I want all my family together....but I would NEVER put him in that position where we put him down or made him feel bad for living there.

Kiera 10 yrs old

With that said Kiera lives with us. I have helped raise/raised Kiera since she was 3. John and I meet i back in 2005. She made the choice to live with us, now she did live with her mom for about 5 months in 2011. Her mom would not let her come with us to Ohio,( Stacy's choice even though she saw the pain it caused Kiera -The judge wanted to wait until the school year had ended before the move) I know how much it hurt her, and that is why we let Dillon go back. I did not want him to have the hurt that Kiera had to go though. It was not fair to her. The same way it was not fair to Dillon to have to be here. John and I always try to put the kids feelings first. It is their lives we are talking about. :)

Its a choice to become a step parent. It not only means you are going to "marry" the husband but also marry his kids, and his ex and her new family as well. (At least for 18 years) The situation also gets more sticky when you have a step parent being a primary parent for the child. You have one Biological parent who will always feel betrayed or upset over the step parent getting to spend more time having a better relationship with the child. But in reality that step parent is with that child everyday all day. Helping do the role of the "mother or father" How the other parent handles the situation is always hard.

 I can say from personal experience that I am hated by bio mom. She is more worried about spending her  time putting me down, when her daughter is there that she is only creating a larger wedge between them. She is forgetting that my step daughter wants to live here. That she does love me and her family here, that we have a very strong bond. So every time she puts me down has something negative to say, or makes comments about her wanting to live here and put pressure on her to keep lies, she is not hurting me or my husband she is hurting my step daughter. Its very hard for her.I can also say my husband and I miss Dillon very much, but like him and I talked about he does not hold any anger toward step dad "Nate" for his helping of the raising of his son. John quotes " Nate is a good guy, who treats Kiera & Dillon good, that is all that matters to me" The relationship between my husband and his ex is not so good. After everything that has happened with the situation in 2008, all the court battles, there is just allot of anger at times. I personally don't care to deal with it. When I found out that I was having a disabled daughter I no longer focused any of my energy into a hopeless situation. I don't answer the phone when she calls, I give it to my step daughter. I sometimes do a transfer of the kids(Its 3 hours there and three hours back), but try not to have to. I don't like having to be in that situation. The last time I did it, we meet up at Children's hospital in Akron. (Gabby my disabled daughter had apts all day long) I had Kiera come with me as it was just a pick up of Dillon. Kiera had asked me if she could come and see if her mom could come an hour early so she could spend some time with them. I would never in a million years say no to Kiera.(with wanting to spend time with them) So I said yes, and with that I sat in my van  over an hour while they hung out. Its very hard for me. I personally don't like Stacy. I feel anyone that is willing to put another person down to a child has a lot to learn in life. I try and not even let the woman's name fall out of my mouth ever! And if it does, its to ask the kids "how is the pa family" because I don't want the kids to feel as if I don't care for the other half of their family. I have made many mistake's being a step mom, I will be the first to admit it.I have not always been the bigger person....there have been times where I have said the wrong thing or put bio mom down.I regret it, I know that is what caused the wedge between Dillon and I. It was a rough situation back in 2008, Cys was involved, the kids were removed from moms house due to failure of several drug test. The court hearings started, and my husband became full and sole. So that meant I became a full and sole time mom. It was hardest for me because during this year and a half span there was a lot of let down, and pain she caused the children. I became very bitter with the situation. we were primarily raising the kids (with a weekend visit twice a month to moms) ...then in 2010 we made the choice to move, (Jobs were few in PA) At that point it was the first time since 2008 that mom had a lawyer, and it prevented us from moving them with us. So against our wishes and what was best for the kids (Again my opinion) they had to stay there. Stacy and Nate were living with Nates parents, so we knew they would be safe, but I was at a loss. there was no court order in place other than we could not move them out of the state. So we got to see them very little....over the next 5 months. She did everything in her power to keep them away from us. It was very upsetting,(for the first time since 2006 we were not primary parents of the kids) we could go back to pa and take them from her, but could not leave the state with them.

On Easter 2010 the judge put out a 7(I think) page order that gave john the permission to bring them to Ohio. :) We thought it would picture perfect again. But the damage was done. The judge had wrote in the order where the children had wanted to live. Kiera wanted to live with us, and with that said.... Kiera's relationship changed for ever with her mom. We had to pick up the pieces, from what had been done. It hurt Kiera so much that her mom could turn on her so fast. Prior to the order mom was nice, for the 4 months.... Then that day it all changed. We knew Dillon wanted to live there, so it was no surprise to use, Nor did we make him feel guilty for making that choice.. We did however make him move here, against his wishes as the court order had said. He lived here for the first 6 weeks of school, and we soon came to realise we were causing him just as much pain as Stacy did to Kiera. He was not happy here, he wanted to live there. So John signed the paper work and back Dillon went. It does not mean we don't want him here, it just means we had to be the bigger parents, and do what was in the best interest  for Dillon. It was hard to let him go...but I see now it was what he had wanted and makes him happy. Since my daughter was born, I will and no matter what remove myself from the situation. I try and always be the bigger parent, such as asking Stacy what size of stuff Dillon wears, or what he wants for his birthday, but she always refuses to answer any text. Again, I would hate to get him something he would not want, but if she would rather that be the situation then that is on her shoulders. We are considering putting kiera back into therapy twice a month. I think at this point she is very hurt over some of the choices mom makes, and kiera's inability to be able to control them or stand up to her for fear of how she will get treated. So she just sits there and gets hurt over and over. So where do we go from here?

I am not sure, but day by day. I will keep standing behind kiera, always give her an open ear, and most of all love her and listen to her. I am the step mom that is her mom. I raise her, and pray that i am doing things right. As for Dillon, I will always love him, miss him, and love spending time with him while he is here. I don't talk to him over the phone or skype with him more for fear of if he says or I say something that could upset his mom I know her attitude will be to start trashing me right away. I know how hard this had to be for him. He intern says not so nice things about me, to her. I know he is in a horrible situation, but i have to believe in the end he knows I love him, that his dad loves him. We never did any of the court stuff to hurt him, to protect him till his mom could get better. I know I made mistakes, several, I know...I wish I could change them but I cant. So i hope and pray that the wedge that i had created between Dillon and I will someday change, I also hope that Stacy sees that she is making the same mistake i did and I pray that she stops before she creates that wedge between her and her daughter. Its already started...the words have already been said. It's how she moves forward from this point that will determine what their relationship will be in the future.

A step parent is more than just a parent: They made the choice to love when they did not have to.

~Maria