{avas journey}

some of you already know all about ava but for those of you who dont…  here is her story.

kelly is one of my oldest friends.  actually, she was the first friend i made when i moved back to sydney from new zealand (i lived in nz for my teenage years).  we have been friends for over 15 years now!  her family has had a really terrible time these last few months…  her sweet little baby girl, ava, has leukaemia.  she turned 2 years old last month and she is 8 months into a 2 year treatment plan.  she is so small to be so sick and it breaks my heart just thinking about it!

i think she is the most amazing little thing, wise beyond her years…  she is so fearless and brave…  look at her precious little face, so couragous and ready to take on the world…  so spirited.  i never think for one minute she wont be ok.  i just know she is going to recover and live a long and healthy life!

so i am documenting her journey as a special gift to her mum…  i stay with them once a month and take photos at the house or the hospital. just capture whatever is going on.  when she gets better and she is old enough to understand, she will have an album to look back and see how far she has come.  a book all about her and how strong she is!  i am going to call the book avas journey.

one day in november, kel and i were driving and we saw this magical place with golden sunshine and butterflies and blossoming flowers.  it was like something out of a fairy tale so we stopped and stayed for a while and ava explored.  we call it the secret garden because it took us by surprise and i never knew it existed!  how happy and peaceful does ava look…

i will share more photos soon

now you know about ava there is a part 2 to my story!  danny (my husband for anybody who doesnt know) has been growing his hair for months now and a beard so he can take part in the worlds greatest shave so we can raise some money for families like kelly and avas!

here are photos of him taken a couple of weeks ago.  its 7pm on the beach across the road from our house – how amazing is that sunset!  as you can see, hes looking a little shabby but kinda cute in a rugged way…  i guess your wondering how he looks now, a few weeks later?  think tom hanks in the movie with the basketball or as mum has nicknamed him – robinson crusoe…  mum cant look at him without laughing so im sure your getting the drift!

he is so excited that the big day is fast approaching and honestly…  so am i!  we only have to bare it one more day and then he can take himself to the hairdresses for a free haircut!  he will have that warm fuzzy feeling that comes from knowing you did something pretty great and i will be super happy to look at his lovely face again…  i kind of cant see him under all that hair!

rowe x

p.s.  danny said i should have mentioned that he is actually wearing his pyjamas in those photos…  that singlet top has peter alexander pyjama bottoms to go with it…  it is just a singlet top but oh how i giggled when he said that!  i wonder if he was serious about me telling people… mmm!

*now for the shameless plug…  i would never normally ask for donations but ava cant ask, so here i am, asking for her.

if anyone wants to donate just a few dollars, $2 or $3, anything…  its going to a great cause.  that would be so amazing and greatly appreciated!