HaysDays

Bye, everybody... for now!! Wednesday is my last night on the air for awhile. I am taking some time off for maternity leave - and wanted to say "Thanks" to everyone who has emailed and called with words of encouragement for the birth of Baby Lily Rae. I know there were clothing concerns ("Stop wearing patterns!!") - but for the most part this pregnancy has been great (no morning sickness - yahoo!) and so have my friends here at work - and the viewers.

Jeff, Cecily, Emmy and I are SO excited to meet this little baby. She is already more than 6 pounds and I am now officially the heaviest I have EVER been in my life. It looks like I will have about 70 pounds to lose - so when I get back (and I WILL be back!), I hope you have diet tricks, low cal recipes, and exercise ideas to get this 41 year old mom back in shape!!  :)

In the meantime, keep us in your prayers - and I am sure Steve Eagar will come by the hospital when Baby Lily Rae arrives - so he can share pictures with you! Have a Happy and Safe summer - and I will see you soon!!

It looks like Emmy will have a little sister this June! We are having another little girl - Jeff and I are so thrilled!! The baby girl is healthy and right on track for growth -and due near the end of June. Thanks to everyone for the emails - and keep the new baby in your prayers!!  :)

PS - Good thing our dog is a boy - because Jeff will now have 3 daughters - Cecily is almost 15 - and Emmy 10 months. Hmmm.. does this mean we need to go for another to try for a boy??    :)

...well, she will be this summer! Jeff and I are Blessed - and are expecting a new little bundle of joy! We are thrilled!! And for those of you wondering - there will be 14 months between the children. (I have already gotten calls about that!). At 41 years old - to have a second child come into my life - is amazing! Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers - that we have another healthy baby!

Oh, we find out the sex in late January - I'll keep you posted. This is a picture of the Baby at 12 weeks.

 Here's one of Emmy at 6 months!

And here's Emmy and I duing a shoot for "Dallas Child" magazine. An article is coming out in the January issue. You can read the artcile on line at...  http://www.dallaschild.com/showarticle.asp?artid=230a>

The Hopkins Family - Roger, Jonna, 11-year old Thomas and 6-year old Grant - have one Christmas wish this year. All they want is to be together again. November 6th - all four almost lost their lives when their home in Joshua went up in flames after a series of explosions. They each had to be taken by CareFlite to Parkland's Burn Unit. Since then, outstanding medical care - and lots of prayers - have kept the family going.

But they still need your prayers - and your good will. They lost everything in the fire. Not much more than scorched earth was left behind. In Thursday night's "Whatever Happened To" - we bring you an update on the Hopkins Family - after receiving this email: "Would it be possible to do an update on this family? They are in need of donations to replacing everything they ownd and to rebuild their house... They need a lot of help and I was hoping your viewing audience could help. We at Bell Helicopter raised $3500, but that hardly makes a dent. "

After reading that email, I contacted Jonna Hopkins' sister. She told me the boys are out of the hospital and staying with their grandparents. They are in rehab and hope to go back to school next month. Their dad, Roger, got out of the hospital this week. He will stay in temporary housing near Parkland - because his wife is still there. Jonna is, however, being moved from Parkland's Acute Burn Unit to the Rehab Hospital. She no longer needs a feeding tube - and she can walk - carefully and slowly - on her own. So each member of the Hopkins family is doing so much better and that is great news!

Please keep the family in your prayers - and check out their website when you can. www.hopkinsrelief.com They are in need of donations - clothing, household items, furniture. You can find out how to contact them - and exactly what they need - on their website. Thank you! And just maybe, Thomas and Grant's Christmas wish will come true!