First Day of School

Dear Stephen,

The day Jennifer has been dreading for so long is finally here! Thankfully it went really well.

~Before I woke her up. She was supposed to be in her own bed, being wakened by her own alarm clock, but as you can see, they haven't changed and she ended up in our bed.~

~Not at all happy with me and sure I'm making a terrible mistake~

~Still not a happy camper~

~Slightly smiling but only because she was promised money....definitely your daughter~

~Thawing out slightly~

~Awwww, there's our happy kid! She did awesome once she got there and into the school. Not one tear. Didn't even care I left!~

~She's going to be okay...she was even more happy when she realized she gets to sit beside a girl she met last week~

~This is how I left her. She'll do great because she's got her Daddy's brains and charming personality...I was going to say my charming personality but I know you would have argued that you were the one with the better personality. I definitely couldn't put my brains because, after all, I did score 5 points less than you on the IQ test. ;-) You never would let me forget that!~

Missing and loving you so much,

Shandra

Brooklynn's Surgery

Dear Stephen,

When you told me you were scheduled for criminal court on the original date of Brooklynn's surgery, April 22, I was so upset that you wouldn't be there when your little girl went into surgery. You told me you would see what you could do about rescheduling it but you didn't think you could change it. I just couldn't imagine going through that without having you there with me. Well, I did it. Didn't want to, but I did.

Everything went as smooth as possible. She kept saying, "I want to go HOME! I want to go HOME!" before they sedated her and in the recovery room. It was so cute and heartbreaking at the same time.

I kept thinking if you were there you would be in the bed with her, holding her so close.

You would have been so amused. The nurse came in awhile after her surgery and was telling me she could have clear liquids, popsicles, etc. Brooklynn commented in the background, "I want a popsicle!" The nurse kept on talking and Brooklynn said very forcefully, "I'll tell you! I want a popsicle RIGHT NOW!!!" The nurse stopped mid sentence and went and got her one.

She is doing great now. She was very ornery yesterday which is a good sign. Today she is very active and playing.

Love you bunches!!
Shandra

~Our baby waiting to be taken back to her room~

~Not at all happy with the situation~

~Playing Memory with Grammy and Mama while waiting 1 1/2 hrs before they took her to surgery. Poor kid went 15 hrs without any food and was such a trooper.~

~Feeling pretty relaxed after drinking some "happy juice"~

~Happy to see her big sister~

~So busy~

~Falling asleep while playing with Grammy's ears~

~Our sweet angel...we did good, Babe!~

Thursday

Hey, Babe!
Today we went and met Jennifer's teacher. She was able to meet two girls that will be in her class too. I asked her afterwards if she felt better about going to school on Monday and she said, "Kind of," which is a good sign. :-)

Mom & Dad, Kenton & Vince and Papa & Mama came down tonight for Brooklynn's surgery tomorrow. Brooklynn seems to be okay with it. She told me she just doesn't want any needles. I told her I would tell them that. :-) I'm feeling really bad you won't be here tomorrow. I need you. So does Brooklynn. I loved watching you with the girls when they were sick. Your arms would swallow them up and you would have such a peaceful, protective look on your face.

Tonight we went to orientation at Jennifer's school. It went good and I think we will really like it there. It made me feel bad though sitting there realizing you should be there with me like most of the other wives' husbands.

All yours,
Shandra

Crazy Man

I got on the scales this morning (thankfully it was a positive experience!) and remembered the April Fool's trick you played on me a couple years ago. Setting the scale 5 lbs heavy so your wife who is diligently trying to lose weight almost has a complete meltdown was NOT cool at the time but hilarious after I found out what you did! You always kept me laughing...I miss your amazing humor.

Wednesday

Dear Stephen,
Last night we went back down and walked/rode bikes along the river and took Denise and Franchesca. We went from Millvale clear down to the convention center...6 miles total! Serves me right for taking a cop with me! Jennifer did awesome again even though she took a couple tumbles and ended up with quite a few scratches. Scot taught her how to get up on her bike by herself so now she doesn't need me to hold the bike.

I remembered while I was walking that we walked along the same path to go see the fireworks for Pittsburgh's 200th Anniversary fireworks last year. You didn't want to come because you were tired but you came anyway because you knew I really wanted you to be with me. You were always doing that. Making sure I was happy even if it inconvenienced you.

So many couples seem to live parallel lives. Our lives were completely entwined so there is really nothing I do that I don't have memories of doing with you. It's a blessing and a curse. Seems like I can't completely enjoy myself because you aren't there enjoying it with me.

Today I went to a meeting downtown to discuss details for the Pittsburgh Police Officer Stephen Mayhle/KPMG Memorial Scholarship for IUP. I am so excited about it! Can you believe you are going to have a scholarship in your name?! Such an awesome man! Course you already knew that, right? ;-)

Loving you so much it hurts,
Shandra

Tuesday

Dear Stephen,
Last night we went with Muirs down to ride bikes/walk along the river. Wish you could have seen Jennifer. She and Scot rode bikes and they rode down to the Convention center from Millvale. She was such a trooper. Absolutely loved it. It was her first time at being able to just get on and ride a straight shot. She almost ran over a little dog Scot said, but hey, it could have been worse, right? I kept telling her you would be so proud of how awesome she was doing. She loves it when I say that.
Brooklynn started out riding her scooter but that didn't last too long. Such a drama queen.
Wish you could have been there. Everyone is taking such good care of us though.

Love you so much!
Shandra

First time for everything...

Dear Stephen,

So many people tell me that you can see what is going on down here. Not sure if that's true or not. I always loved showing you pictures I had taken of our girls because for the most part, you didn't comment. But then you would see one you liked and your eyes would light up. I knew I had done good. So I just wanted to create a spot where I could come and show you what's going on since you can't be here with us.

We have had a crazy 4.5 months with so many ups and downs. Allot of downs but that just makes me appreciate the ups a little more. You would be so proud of your city and how everyone has pulled together to help us out. But even more than that, your city is proud of you!

The girls and I miss you like crazy. So much I want to talk to you about. It's been so hard on me to go from talking to you almost constantly to not being able to talk at all.

You did an amazing job at making sure we were going to be OK before you left us. I'm so incredibly proud to have been your wife and to have had the privilege of watching you show such strength and determination to accomplish your goals in life. You were my hero before April 4, 2009 ever happened. I love you no more now than I did on April 3 when you walked out of our house for the last time.

Our girls were at my Dad and Mom's for the weekend. They brought them to church tonight and they were so happy to be coming home. The girls were running around, chasing each other after church. So happy. We were almost home and Brooklynn told me that sometimes she forgets what you look like. Broke my heart. I told her that was OK and that when she did, she should go into the living room and look on the wall at the big picture of you or come ask me to show her a picture of you. I will never let them forget what a perfect Daddy they had and how much you adored them. Thank you for them...the best gifts you could ever give me.



Well, I need to go to bed.

Love you more than words could say,

Shandra