Lego Land with FHC

We got the chance to travel down to Winter Haven, FL with our Home School group FHC to visit Lego Land. The instructions were to be there at 9:30am and we could not go in until everyone was there. So no one wanted to be that one person who was late! So we were all there by 8:45am not knowing the parking lot did not open up until 9am. So there we were with our engines reeving ready to pay our $12 and let the fun begin. Finally at 9am they opened the flood gates and in we went parked and at our meeting place by 9:15am Sharp. 

              Just by the sight of the entrance the kids were in all, pointing out the people and the ones they had and ones they hoped to get.  You guessed it everything was made of Lego's. We had gotten some inside information about heading straight for the back when we arrived. So the kids held on tight, closed there eyes and we raced to the back of the park and sure enough it was empty! 

            The first ride we went on was Ford's Jr. Racing Cars. Jacob looked like he had been driving for years and well Emily looked like she had never drove before. She got off the ride and stated sadly "Mom I don't know how to drive" plenty of time I thought. 

        Next Jacob and David did a little roller coaster action which Emily was not happy about she wanted to go to but she was about 2 inches to short. 

So excited she is tall enough!

          We did find a roller coaster she was tall enough for the Dino Roller Coaster. Emily's first roller coaster but was she scared "no mommy". But her facial expression at the photo session after the ride told us the true story.

There was flying high rides, safaris, boat rides, water rides, dragon roller coasters, horse rides, double carousel rides and of course lots of Lego's to see. 

          We had made a deal that we were not going to buy any Lego's while there (we already own enough Lego's to build our own Darth Vader!).

 But daddy could not do it, to leave Lego land with no Lego's was just not happening. So Emily picked out her first set of Duplo's of course Cinderella and Jacob a Star Wars ship. Then for the whole ride home (except when they were sleeping) they asked "can I open it yet?" No, not till we get home. Five minutes go by "Can I open it now?". So of course when we arrived home at 7:30 pm they could care less about eating and went right to building Lego's. Ah it was a quite night though.

The trip was so fun and exciting one thing about the Couch family is we have traveled so much that we are used to doing it and do it like a well oiled machine. 

The day my life changed forever

         It's been four years now. So much has happened in those four years. Time has flown by but yet when I think of daddy the day stands still. My memories are still very fresh I can still remember very vivid moments of our times together. The earliest moment is of me in my red motorcycle helmet I was probably 3 or 4 holding on tight to the front of our four wheeler as daddy drove us around our property on Old Middleburg Road.

        Helping daddy get our two German Shepard's ready to deliver their puppies. I slightly remember daddies motorcycle accident mostly just the scars on his leg where he almost lost it. I remember mom and dad saving everything they had to build us a new house, I remember coming home from school and dad would have the boat ready to teach us to wake board and hydro slide, homework could wait it would always be there but little did we know daddy would not. I remember thinking it was cool for dad to pick us up from school in the police car.

               He was the dad who brought flowers to me at my dance recital, gave my mother a card at every little holiday or just because  , raced to my side when I got in my first car accident, trusted in me when no one else did.

       Walked me down the aisle at my wedding and was so nervous he carried a card in his pocket that said "her mother and I do" he didn't want to mess it up. Danced stiff as a board at my wedding not wanting the attention. Threw David and I an amazing reception that we will always remember. Drove us to the airport the day after our wedding to send us off.

          Cried with me when we had our first miscarriage,  waited for hours at the hospital  for his first grandson to be born after a full days work.  Would stop by on his way to work to see Jacob and was so excited to be the first to babysit.

     
         Then it happened a few symptoms, a cat scan, a pet scan and our world fell apart daddy had cancer. Bladder cancer not very common to be treated with Chemo and radiation. Then more symptoms a few months later now lung cancer, and in a few more months brain cancer. Within six months this poison had ripped through my fathers very healthy body and shredded it down to nothing, ate away at everything it could, there was nothing left but a good heart and a good man. Friends and Family surrounded us as my father signed his life away to God (or they called it hospice but signed that he was ready to die). Sent him home with no more hope. 48 hrs of visitors and people he had not seen in years. I regret that I could not spend every hour with him I struggled to keep it together for my 8 month old baby Jacob, sometimes feeling my arms collapse while holding him getting more and more bad news.

              I remember that Sunday morning like it was yesterday. February 3, 2008 the phone rings in the early hours, mom says we never discussed if you want to be here when dad passes but the time is coming. I felt like our car had wings, my husband was determined to get me to my father and my father was determined to wait for me. Not 15 minutes after that phone call we were there. I climbed in bed with him his breathing was labored, his hands cold, and his eyes so big and beautiful. We had made it he had waited for me. I remember my mom, my brother and David. I told him I loved him and I was sorry this was happening and within five minutes of us arriving he went to be with God. Within 15 minutes our family and JSO family was there the people who had held our hand through everything who took shifts at the hospital keeping daddy company. They arranged everything, made the phone calls, made the apts, made sure we had food, even bought us toilet paper! Parked outside of the house and never left we went to bed and they were there and we woke and they were there delivering us breakfast. We took a week to plan his funeral and little did I know his JSO family was going to make it a time to honor him and help us.
          I can not write about the funeral I have to post pictures it was amazing from the flag at half staff at the police station to the fire trucks displaying the American flag across Kingsley Ave., the people lining the road saluting dad as his casket made its way to the church, the gun salute, the motorcycle escort. Thank you to all who made those things happen you are an incredible family and definitely unforgettable.

Flag over Kingsley Ave