Wednesday, April 27, 2011

What I've learned ....

During the time after my father passed, I told my sister I could write a book on what NOT to say to someone who's parent has died. Thing is, I've been guilty of saying everything I heard, but when you hear it 1567 times, it just gets ... well, old.

- He's in a better place (yes, I know)
- He's not suffering anymore (yes, I know)
- Well, he's fought it for so long - you had so much time to prepare (yes ... but you are still NEVER prepared).

Our situation was so very different. Dad was given 8 weeks and he died 5 days later. Quite honestly, it was a very difficult death - the 2 days he was in hospice. His body was so used to fighting that it didn't know how NOT to fight. Seeing your Daddy, the man who would do anything for you, protect you, fight for you, encourage you, and love you -- seeing that man weighing 120something lbs (less than me and he was 6ft tall) and like clockwork, every 15 minutes, sit up and beg for help. It was heart wrenching and I honestly pray you never have to see your parent go through that and for those of you that have, I hate that we are part of that 'club'. I could go the REST of my life never seeing that again and I would give anything to erase that memory from my head, but that's life and it is what it is and it's changed me. I'm more tolerant, I guess.

I never really took things for granted, but now, if something is important to me, I make it a priority. For instance, I had a friend in town from Lousiana. The ONLY time we could get together was for breakfast on a day that I didn't have to be at work until 11:00. I got up at 5:30 in the morning and drove to meet her for breakfast because I love her and haven't seen her in 13 yrs. I don't know when I will see her again and it was important to me to see her, so it was WORTH it. We had a wonderful time and I was so thankful to be able to spend a few hours with her.

Another thing I learned is you will be SHOCKED who will be there for you and who will not be there for you. People that I would never have expected to do anything for me were doing more than I ever imagined .... and well, you know the rest. It's ok - people are busy. I get it.

I also learned that it's ok to LAUGH! OH MY GOODNESS, my brother, sister and I have bonded so incredibly more over this whole thing. When Dad was in the hospice, we made a pact "All for One, One for All" -- and if one went to Wendy's, we all went. The 3 of us didn't leave each other's side for nearly 4 days. It is something beautiful that has come out of something so devastating -- we were close before, but now we are just so. close. I can't explain it.

Now is the quiet. It's been a little over 8 weeks and last week was probably the worst so far. I miss my Dad. A lot. I was driving home Sat night and saw a shooting star and I said out loud "HEY DAD!" -- corny, I know, but I immediately thought of him.

Please don't think this post is sad -- it's really not. I'm not sad about my Dad's death. I'm sad he's gone, but I know he was in SO much pain, every day was difficult for him. I'm sad about the way he died and although I wish for just one more day with him, I wouldn't have him back for nothing -- to live another day in pain and suffering. On Easter Sunday, I celebrated knowing I would see my Dad again -- I know I have that promise.

You've made it this far and I appreciate you hanging in there! I promise not all my blog posts will be like this - actually I don't plan on blogging on my Dad's death again (for a while at least). I've got SO much to talk about, blog about, etc etc etc. Thanks for hanging in there with me!

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

New Digs

SO ... I knew the first thing I needed to do if I was jumping back into blogging was get a little facelift! I contacted my IRL friend, Danielle over at Just Dandy! I gave her free reign and wanted SIMPLE.....I think she did a GREAT job and love my clean, new look!!

Hop on over and visit Just Dandy ~ you'll love what you see!

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Here Comes the Sun....

What do you do when you spend the day at a gorgeous Florida beach, slather up with sunscreen - and STILL GET BURNED??! You rummage through your BFFs cabinets until you find something to take away the BURN!
Actually, first my kids came downstairs and I snatched them up because they smelled like a fresh peeled orange. OH my .... they smelled SO good (and I mean really, doesn't your child always smell good after a fresh bath ...) but anyway, I went on the search for whateveritwas they had gotten into and discovered this gem:
Seriously -- go now to your closest W@l-Mart and buy stock. This will be your summer lotion. I actually looked at Shawn in a panic and said 'WHAT IF THEY DON'T HAVE THIS IN GEORGIA?" because that would be my luck. Shawn, being the sweet person she is, offered to let me take her nearly brand new (almost now half empty because of me and my kids) bottle of lotion with me, just in case. I knew I had a few more days in Florida and was planning on making a stop at W@l-Mart anyway --- and this was on my LIST!
When I got there -- I tripped up on this lotion called Ever-Glow. It's a gradual self-tanner that SMELLS JUST LIKE THE ALOE LOTION!! AND IT WORKS!! I switched to this and would use the Aloe lotion and then layer the Ever Glow on top. Perfection.
and guess what?? $4 .... yes. $4 for each bottle of lotion.
I know, RIGHT??
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Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Taking a break....

No...not from blogging! The kids and I headed to Tampa on Saturday to have a mini vacation during Spring Break. Nothing extravagant, just hanging out with friends, swimming, beach and a surprise trip to Disney {thanks to our sweet friend, Kali, the kids were so surprised and we had a GREAT time}.

We arrived Saturday, with a 'um, we're 2 hrs away ...but I know you were expecting us much later, but I was excited and we're almost there!' phone call to my BFF Shawn. The kids swam and I tried not to fall asleep standing up.

Had a great dinner Monday night w/some of my best girls - but that is a post in itself.

Today is our last 'official' day here. We are spending the day hanging out poolside w/one of my dear friends. The weather appears to be gorgeous as I see the sun peeking through the blinds!
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