On Sunday it felt as if the other bookend was placed on these last, long six months, and a new shelf was begun altogether. Annabelle's Circle has unlatched hands and let so many people in that the Circle seems as wide and as vast as the horizon itself, encircling so many of us with its joy and generosity, love and labors.

If you didn't know, Annabelle's shower had been pushed back a few weeks until after the delivery date. Given the news of the hour, a month ago no one was sure what that "shower" might entail, and at times we feared the worst. Friends and family kept praying though, and kept giving, kept hoping, kept showing up to work on the house when prayer wasn't enough.

And now to have that little girl home in her mother's arms, with all those in the Circle around her -it was a completely stunning and awesome moment. Words can't describe it, and words aren't enough. And though it is one amazing story to share, it's little Annabelle herself who is so rich and shares so much in this world with all those on the near side of the Circle, and the far.

She'll take the story from here, we suppose, but she still needs your love and prayers and support, your hopes and dreams and wishes for her, your clues to understanding all of life's complicated quantities, and your hands to hold in all of life's tender moments. She needs all these things -and more- and if you were there to meet her on Sunday you know one thing: she's worth it.

~
Sean Day put together this terrific video from the shower, which captures many of the high points of the celebration, and the joy and relief we all felt that day.

This is Matt's mom:


She flew in from Idaho the other day, walked into the Family Room and asked how she could help. I offered her what may be the worst job in the whole construction industry: sanding drywall. It's messy, miserable work, possibly unhealthy, and as you sweat from the labor, the dust curdles back into joint compound, filling your pores and clogging your eyes. She picked up a sanding block and went for it.

And this is Steve:


He drove over a hundred miles to do this the other day. He said he could afford gas for one trip, and instead of choosing the party that happens tomorrow, he decided to come down and sand drywall. The man is a sanding machine, stopping only to hand me tools or help out with something else.

The two of them worked tirelessly and unselfishly this hot August week, and for what? So Annabelle and her family could have nice smooth walls? People like this are a true inspiration. They make the pain of life worth bearing. If you live your life right, these folks show up to help carry the load, and without them we would crumble under the burden of it all.

Photograph by Ashley McNamara

Ashley McNamara has done it again with her amazing photography. Check out some more pictures of Annabelle here. Holly wants everyone to give Ashley some business and when you see her portfolio, you'll quickly realize she's worth every penny.

Extra!

Michele Clock has written an article on Annabelle and her parents that appeared in today's San Diego Union-Tribune. It's a nice companion piece and follow-up article to the one Alan Schnepf wrote on June 5th. Today's article is here.


That's one of Kristin Rachelle's photos there on the front page of the East County section!

(And, in case you missed it, the June 5th article is here.)

Note: You may purchase back issues of the newspaper up to 30 days after the publication date. Back issues are available at The San Diego Union-Tribune offices in Mission Valley, Chula Vista, and El Cajon. Or you may call (619) 293-1609 and arrange to have them mailed to you.

Though Annabelle is home, we've been given permission by the man himself to come over and keep moving on the Family Room this weekend. The Big Party is next Sunday, so it would be nice to get some things taken care of -make it look like we're not just spinning our wheels over there. Join us!

Recently it became apparent that a nursing rocker was in order for Annabelle and her mommy, after their return from the hospital. Holly picked it out, and some money was drawn from the Annabelle's Circle account for the purchase. Thanks to everyone for their ongoing support and contributions. (It's pretty nice!)

A few members of Annabelle's Circle were able to accomplish a number of things this past weekend -enough to get all the laborers out of the rest of the house and into the Family Room where we belong. The mother-daughter Cambone team took to the front door and got the final finish coat on the thing and it looks beautiful. I was able to get the mail slot installed and plug that ugly hole in the stucco on the front walk. Holly's brother was in town and took to the mudding like a pro -slapping it on every wall and ceiling in sight. There was some more patching and sanding and painting that got the dining room up to speed, as well as a few pieces of trim on the roofline and a couple sheets of drywall up. So, all in all, it was a weekend of solid accomplishment. Special thanks to Wendy for keeping the kids out of the fray on Sunday, while we all pressed on.

The word on the street is that Annabelle is coming home on Monday! This is good news, and since it's the last baby-free weekend at 2016 Dayton, several of us are heading down to do some work on the Family Room and some general house-cleaning. If you're interested in joining us today or tomorrow, give me a call or just show up! See you there.

Matt mentioned here a while back about those sporty "Go Annabelle" t-shirts that everyone is asking about, and I thought I'd mention it again. I've ordered a couple for my family and plan on wearing it in solidarity at the upcoming Linden Celebration.

Click here for the order form, if you're interested.

Wow.

Sean Day has been posting for Matt at The Dawg Run and has been generously helping with the regular updates on Annabelle and Holly's condition, as well as on Annabelle's surgeries. (Matt has been posting some as well.)

From Sean Day (via The Dawg Run) PM

Annabelle is here!

She was delivered successfully a short while ago. The doctors gave her a bit of oxygen and then she started breathing, crying, and swallowing on her own pretty quickly. She has also been waving her arms around. As expected, her legs were a bit deformed and there is an opening over her spine. The doctors covered the opening right away to keep it sterile and protected. Matt was able to hold her, and they set her down near Holly's head so she could give her a kiss. Annabelle was then taken to the neonatal area where friends have been able to peek in on Annabelle one at a time.

The removal of Holly's cysts also went well. She is in recovery and coming down off of anesthesia. Once she is able to sit up and be put in a wheelchair, she will be off to visit Annabelle. Matt and Holly will be meeting with the team of specialists tomorrow to go over the treatment plan. It sounds like little Annabelle has surprised them so far.

Welcome to the world, sweet Annabelle. Thank you all for your continued support and prayers.

From Sean Day (via The Dawg Run) AM

Always the over-achievers, the Lindens have decided to forgo the next week and a half of anticipation and are set to welcome Annabelle to the world today. Holly began having some mild contractions this morning at about 5:30. They called their doctor a little later in the morning and he said to come on into the hospital. They arrived there at about 8:30, and after being monitored for about an hour, they have scheduled the C-section for 1:00 today.

Matt will keep me posted by phone and may send along some pictures from his phone. I will keep you updated on their progress throughout the afternoon.

They appreciate all your thoughts, hopes and prayers today.

Update:

Holly will be headed into the OR at about 12:45 with surgery to begin around 1:00. The doctors will be removing a couple of cysts as well, so it is expected that everything will take between one and two hours. Matt will be able to be in the operating room for the delivery.

They are at the Mary Birch Hospital. For those that would like to be at the hospital with them, Matt said it would be best to meet in either the downstairs or 3rd floor waiting room

Photograph by Ashley McNamara

Matt wrote about it here, as well, and I received this email from Holly this morning:

I was wondering if I could make a request to give some sort of credit to Ashley McNamara and Kristin Rachelle (the photographers who did the photo shoot for us at no charge) and Angela Chodorow ( Jr. High friend of Matt's who set it up) on Annabelle's Circle. They were perfect strangers to us before Monday. If we had no photos to show for it, I would never forget that evening. We somehow just stepped away from the pain and difficulty, and simply walked on the beach, cuddled, and celebrated our love and our family. God truly provided a much needed evening of joy and blessing through the kindness of those three women. It didn't feel like a photo shoot at all, which I felt really strange about considering, and ended up so grateful for. I would never have set this up on my own, even if I could have paid for it. It was like the first date we've been on in... well I don't remember. It was magical. They are now a part of "The Circle" and I want to formally acknowledge their generous gift and kindness there... It just meant a lot to us, and always will.

Click here for Ashley McNamara's site, and here for Kristin Rachelle's site. Don't miss the photos of Matt & Holly, and some real talent on display.

If you are wondering why the progress has slowed recently, there are several reasons. I won't go into all of them, but I will mention that mid-July to mid-August had been fully scheduled for Hawkins Construction and family last spring, and so Marci and I have been unable to commit the bulk of this month to the Linden projects.

As well, the rearranging of project priorities contributed to shelving some of the project goals for the time being, while the house was made into useable living space again. Small tasks are being accomplished here and there, but as we move closer to Holly's due date, Holly, Matt, and Annabelle's well-being (and not the house) has become the priority. All Big Work Weekends have been postponed until after Labor Day, though a few small parties of people may be invited around to help with some things, as the Lindens see fit. (You may get a call from me!) Thanks to those of you who have phoned and emailed recently, offering their weekend time, and we hope you will honor the rain checks! If you have a specific date before Labor Day that you are available (or a specific item you would like to help with) please email me at sean4annabelle@mac.com.

For now, the best way you can help Matt and Holly is to be available with a listening ear, an encouraging thought, and prayer.

Holly is scheduled to go in for delivery of Annabelle on Monday, August 18th, and is expected to stay at the hospital for at least a few days.

Just a quick note...

After the 4th, we pressed on this past weekend, trying to take care of anything in the house that would make the place more "homey". (Sorry, no pictures. Too busy working.) We finished up on the baseboards and door casings and did a good amount of patching and painting on the walls and trim. The place is looking swell, and all the rooms are back -up and running with furniture and most of the tools and construction materials moved out. The Lindens wanted the place to themselves on Sunday, but I returned today to do some work on the front garden wall -cleaning it up a bit with a coat of stucco and some cap blocks. It could use some paint, which we will get to some day soon.

The neighbor, Mike, has been helping out on sprinkler maintenance. These things can be a challenge to get just right, and it's been great to see him wandering over from time to time, attaching a new head and adjusting this and that. The new sod has taken root through this hot weather, though there are a few dry patches, and the garden boxes are at odds with the dog's digging fetish, so I would say that that puts the Linden Landscape up to speed with the rest of us in the suburbs!

Keep these guys in your prayers. Annabelle's Circle has let Matt & Holly know that all the remaining gifts of money are at their disposal to cover any bills in this challenging period, while Matt transitions into a new job. We want to make sure that their medical insurance payments are kept up, so that has become the absolute top priority.

We did it. We actually returned some livable space to Matt and Holly this past weekend. The last few coats of polyurethane were slapped on the last couple bedroom floors and we went for it with the baseboards and crown moldings. Much of the weekend was spent painting the wood trim and touching it all up. We were so inspired that we even painted the guest bedroom a nice grinch-who-stole-christmas green! It was lovely. It really was.

As we moved the trundle bed out of the living room and pushed the furniture back into its rightful place, there was a collective sigh, and perhaps a tear, as the house was able to take its first full, deep breath in weeks. The lot of us felt that things finally seemed to be coming along. The "we can take it from here" feeling was on the tip of Matt's tongue, but he knew better to let us come back for more -that Family Room has about the same square footage as the rest of the house! So we will we back. Oh yes. We will be back.

I'll be there on Saturday and Sunday this weekend to make sure those floors are finished and to get moving on the baseboards. If all goes well, we should be able to get all the baseboards painted and installed -along with the baseshoes and some other moldings- in all the rooms of the house except for the Family Room. They will need to be painted before they're cut and nailed in, so any assistance would be terrific! If we have enough people, we should be able to get some sweet assembly-line action going on the painting/trimming/nailing/patching/sanding/caulking/touch-up thing.

See you there! (I'll be arriving with materials around 10:30AM.)

I thought I'd post a before-and-after shot here of the front door to show how things are really changing around 2016 Dayton. When you get thick into a job, as we have been for nearly a month now, it's easy to forget the "before" part of things. It's the petty sanding and patching that is interminable, and makes you feel like nothing's being accomplished. We did decide to tackle a lot early on and all at once, so things inevitably take a turn for the slow sooner or later, but we're coming around the bend!

This past weekend the last of the hardwood floors were sanded and stained (along with a number of other minor projects) and next week we'll move on to a Big Baseboard Bash, where it will be all baseboards and all casings and moldings all weekend! If we can make it through that, nearly all the rooms will be finished -with the serious exception of the Family Room. Headway is being made there too, I might add, as most of the drywall is now up on the ceiling.

SDG&E also came out for an inspection last week and appears ready to move on the electrical upgrade -as soon as I can get the time to meet with an electrician and the building inspector. We may pause on this for a bit, while we get caught up on the floors and trim work (it's a challenge to live in a house where all the furniture and belongings are upturned) but we're really getting there!

Special thanks to Kristy and Kelly, Deron and Kevin, Ryan and Wendy, and all those who've come this far and refuse to give up!