They Did It....

My husband and lovely child made it on YouTube. We work for a Not For Profit company that works with Special Needs Children & their Families.

Below is the video we submitted to NBC for America Cheers.

Centered

I'm so excited to be feeling so much better after the past couple of weeks to a month. I went to my monthly class today and feel so centered. I so don't want to miss another class. I feel so much better and positive about the month ahead. Yes, I missed the last two months because of my wedding anniversary and traveling but I love how I feel when these classes are complete. Three hours a month makes me feel warm inside even when the work being done is hard at times.

I'm taking my cake for 11 years this Tuesday and feel really good about it. I'm making a Gluten free cake for myself too. I'll be having dinner with a friend I've gotten closer to this past year and hope to get closer to as time goes on.

Oh the gifts in my life. My aunt will be missed, I'm not perfect, and life happens and can be good at times and awful at other times but there's always a lesson and I'm grateful to be present and who I am today to go through it all (:

Endings & New Beginnings

Yesterday at 10:15AM my aunt Francine past away. She had died 10 minutes before I got to the hospital. I beat myself up at first for making stops but you know, I was there everyday almost all day with her. Nightly I would tell her I love her and let her know it was OK to move on. I saw there was no reason to beat myself up over something I had no control over. It was her destiny to move on when she did.

My aunt is at peace now. She was a neat lady. Before her Parkinson's started she would have these beautiful gardens. She loved animals and loved her old T.V. shows. I remember as a child having to watch The Sound of Music and The Towering Inferno so many times because those were two movies she'd watch over and over again.

It's sad, yes, but my mother and I took care of all the arrangements yesterday and we are going to do a family memorial once we receive her ashes in a couple of weeks.

Today is a new day and a day I can live to the fullest. It's the start of a new month and a new year for me as well. I'm grateful that I am the person I am today and that I was able to be there and accountable for my family when they needed me most. I used to be the person you wouldn't call or rely on for anything.

I've included a picture of Francine from my wedding before her Parkinson's finally took over. As I close, my sappy moment for you is to remember to cherish the ones you love, always.