๐—Ÿ๐—œ๐—ง๐—ง๐—Ÿ๐—˜ ๐—›๐—˜๐—Ÿ๐—Ÿ๐—ข๐—ฆ ๐Ÿ‘‹๐Ÿผย 

When your child dies before you, itโ€™s what you live forโ€ฆ the โ€˜little hellosโ€™ that take you by surprise; the โ€˜little hellosโ€™ that keep you going for the next hour, the next day, the next year without them… Itโ€™s the โ€˜little helloโ€™ from the red cardinal that swoops down in front of your car. Itโ€™sContinue reading “๐—Ÿ๐—œ๐—ง๐—ง๐—Ÿ๐—˜ ๐—›๐—˜๐—Ÿ๐—Ÿ๐—ข๐—ฆ ๐Ÿ‘‹๐Ÿผย “

CHD is weird.

“You wanna know something, Mom? Everything that is weird today is Theodore magic!” -๐— ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ž๐—ฒ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ฎย ๐—ก๐—ฒ๐—น๐˜€๐—ผ๐—ปย ๐—ผ๐—ปย ๐Ÿด/๐Ÿฏ๐Ÿฌ/๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฏย  (๐—ง๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ผ๐—ฑ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ฒโ€™๐˜€ย ๐Ÿฐ๐˜๐—ตย ๐—•๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฑ๐—ฎ๐˜†) My little 8-year-old was certainly on to something, as we were walking the beach back in August; she made a very basic point that carries a whole lot of punch.ย ย โ€˜๐˜ž๐˜ฆ๐˜ช๐˜ณ๐˜ฅโ€™โ€ฆ Itโ€™s such an innocent way to put it.ย  CHD isContinue reading “CHD is weird.”

ย ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฏย ๐——๐—”๐—ฌ๐—ฆย ๐—ข๐—™ย ๐—Ÿ๐—œ๐—™๐—˜ย ๐Ÿ–ค

Oh, Oliverโ€ฆ Iโ€™ll admit, itโ€™s one weird milestone I never fathomed โ€˜recognizingโ€™โ€ฆ Itโ€™s a day I did not celebrate with your sister; I suppose I never had a reason toโ€ฆ Itโ€™s a day I took for granted; after all, she was so easy to โ€œkeep aliveโ€. Itโ€™s a day I only began to pinpoint afterContinue reading ”ย ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฏย ๐——๐—”๐—ฌ๐—ฆย ๐—ข๐—™ย ๐—Ÿ๐—œ๐—™๐—˜ย ๐Ÿ–ค”

๐—›๐—ฎ๐—ฝ๐—ฝ๐˜†ย ๐Ÿฐ๐˜๐—ตย ๐—•๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฑ๐—ฎ๐˜†ย 

๐—ง๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ผ๐—ฑ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ  August 30, 2023 Here I am again at the waterโ€™s edge.  I find myself chasing the coast line to feel closer to you. You seem bigger here; maybe because I feel so minuscule compared to the enormous crashing waves at my feet. The fierce waters roar, yet somehow their tonic pulse is calming to myContinue reading “๐—›๐—ฎ๐—ฝ๐—ฝ๐˜†ย ๐Ÿฐ๐˜๐—ตย ๐—•๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฑ๐—ฎ๐˜†ย “

You Better Not Pout, You Better Not Cry… ๐ŸŽ…๐Ÿผ

โ€œYou better not pout, you better not cry, you better not shoutโ€ฆโ€ ย โ€ฆ scratch that, because actually, sometimes itโ€™s okay! Youโ€™d be wearing your 3T Christmas Tree Sweater that matches perfectly with MacKenna and Arthur.  I imagine you in a brand new phase of โ€˜fascination with Santaโ€™, showing your little brother that heโ€™s really notContinue reading “You Better Not Pout, You Better Not Cry… ๐ŸŽ…๐Ÿผ”

Theodore’s 3rd Birthday in Heaven๐ŸŽˆ

August 30, 2019 It was the day that you, my breathtakingly beautiful baby, redefined the meaning of my entire life. It was a day that your perfect self entered our world through so many imperfect adversities. And still, somehow, Mama finds it more difficult to manage the raw emotion surrounding the day that you enteredContinue reading “Theodore’s 3rd Birthday in Heaven๐ŸŽˆ”

Seeing The Unseen

๐—ฆ๐—ฒ๐—ฒ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ดย ๐—ง๐—ต๐—ฒย ๐—จ๐—ป๐˜€๐—ฒ๐—ฒ๐—ป Itโ€™s such a blessing and a curse.  The hard truth is when I look at a picture of my children, I instantly see the one that is missing.  It is my broken heart that sometimes has the 20/20 vision, while my regular eyesight takes a backseat. I see the unseen. I see the empty spaceContinue reading “Seeing The Unseen”

๐—ง๐—ต๐—ฒย ๐—™๐—น๐—ฎ๐˜ย ๐—Ÿ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฒ

๐Ÿฐ/๐Ÿต/๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฌ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฌ ๐—ง๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—™๐—น๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐—Ÿ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฒ I saw the flat line.  It was a flat line that told me your heart was finally too tired to produce another beat.  An illuminated flat line had the ability to call the attention of dozens of people within seconds; my own eyes being the first and the last to acknowledge the magnitude of itsContinue reading “๐—ง๐—ต๐—ฒย ๐—™๐—น๐—ฎ๐˜ย ๐—Ÿ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฒ”

โž‘ย ๐— ๐—ข๐—ก๐—ง๐—›๐—ฆ!

โซธย ๐•‹๐• ๐•กย ๐•‹๐•–๐•Ÿย ๐•‹๐•š๐••๐•“๐•š๐•ฅ๐•คย โซท โž™ 17 pounds 5 ounces โž™ 27.5 inches long โž™ only sits still for Mickey Mouse Clubhouse โž™ rather nibble on own feet vs. dinner  โž™ โ€œMr. Crazy Squawky Pantsโ€ โž™ hits fists on mouth to make funny sounds โž™ huge fan of peanut butter  โž™ loves when Mama sings โ€˜Open-Shut Themโ€™ โž™ย highly offended if binky is offeredย ย  โž™ย obsessed with banana puffsContinue reading “โž‘ย ๐— ๐—ข๐—ก๐—ง๐—›๐—ฆ!”

โ€˜223 Reminiscent Daysโ€™ with โ€œmy boy(s)โ€…

Today, you outlive your brother.  Which means: 223 days of loving you… 223 days of studying your eyes; I fixate on the faint gold ring around your dark pupil and how it dissolves into a large mass of deep crystal blue.  223 days of kissing your head; I lean in with pursed lips, simultaneously inhalingContinue reading “โ€˜223 Reminiscent Daysโ€™ with โ€œmy boy(s)โ€…”