22 days

                    In 22 days I will go from having hair halfway down my back to being bald. I have been told I am crazy, insane, amazing, weird and a variety of other questions/comments  have been thrown at me as to the why I am shaving my head.  I have been asked why not just donate it to Locks for Love, which by the way I am doing as well. The answers to all of this started out simple and easy in my mind, they have become a little more complex but the root of they why is still the same.

Childhood cancer SUCKS. It has always sucked, but when it touches your life, your family, suddenly the reality of it becomes much more apparent, much more tangible.  This little boy is the reason I will go from long hair to no hair in 22 days.

At the beginning of March 2012 my best friend's life was turned upside down. Her family became the "1 every 3 minutes" that heard the words none of us ever want to hear, your son has cancer. Since then it has been a whirlwind of doctors appointments, treatments, hospitals and tests. Through all of it M has stayed happy and charming. In fact during the "off" treatment times you might not even know he was sick if you didn't know. His parents are rock stars and his big brother is awesome! 

I am far away, the other side of the country, so I don't get to be there to be a daily support. I call and check in but it is not the same. So when my school signed up to do St Baldrick's for the 3rd year, I knew it was something I could do to "help". I wanted to do something to make a difference and show this little boy what a hero he is to me.  I am not sure that at 2 he will understand the symbolism behind why I am shaving, but he will know someone else is now bald like him! 

Hair is a simple price to pay if it helps find a cure!

If you feel moved please donate to my head shaving :)

http://www.stbaldricks.org/participants/mypage/579066/2013

Thirty Days of Thankful- Day 25

Day 25

Today I am thankful long time friendships that last the test of time and distance. I want to specifically thank these five friends for the gift of their friendship:

Katie- We have been friends since 1989. Hard to believe it has been that long. We have been by each others side through so many things and I am not sure that since you graduated high school we have lived in the same state for more than a year. We don't talk as often as we should, but I know that you are always there for me..believing in me and encouraging me to try whatever new thing I have dared to dream up! Thank you for being my sister!

Christie- We have been friends since the end of junior high/beginning of high school. We have been through lots together. You supported me through difficult family times and tough decisions. You have laughed with me and I am sure at me and certainly made me laugh. Time and distance have caused us to drift and yet as I sat this Thanksgiving thinking of the blessings in my life you were on the top of the list. I regret that we have not seen each other in years and don't talk like we should. Hope I can see you soon and that you can meet little man. Thank you for the family you have been to me and the friendship we have had for many years.

This picture is old but it is the last one I have of all of us together!

Jenny & Stuart- I can't begin to imagine my life without the two of you. Stuart you made teaching at Lawrence an adventure everyday. It was fun to watch you grow as a teacher. Mostly I have loved watching you grow in love and family with Jenny and your boys. Jenny you have been invaluable to me as a moral support. I miss you both terribly and hope to see you guys soon. Thank you for the gift of your friendship and support over these years.

Cherish- We have been friends since I started teaching at Lawrence. I have watched your kids grow and you have watched me grow a family. It always brings a smile to my face to remember the evenings chatting with you and Zara on IM, making her laugh with the funny sounds my IM made. You have been such a blessing in my life. I miss you terribly and wish we lived closer. I keep praying one day you will call and say you have bought a plane ticket and are coming to visit! Thank you for making me a part of your family long ago and letting me continue to be a part of it.

Debbie- I am not sure how I would have made it to where I am today without your support. You spent many a late night chatting with me when sleep would not come. You have loved me when I couldn't figure out how to love myself. You have believed in me and helped me remember how to believe in myself. The beauty in you shines from the inside out. I am so grateful for your friendship. I have loved watching you grow and cheering you on the last few years. I hope you know how much I believe in you and miss you. Thank you for the beauty of our friendship.

These are five women (and a man) that have been such great friends to me over the time. They are all out west and have never stopped being a support, a source of laughter and friendship to me as I started my adventure on the east coast. I love you all and miss you all tons.

Thirty Days of Thankful- Day 24

Day 24- Thanksgiving Day

Today is Thanksgiving..my favorite holiday I think. I woke up this morning with a cute little boy sleeping in the bed next to me and breathed a prayer of thanksgiving that I get to be his mom. This was the beginning of many short prayers of thanks I would give today.

- I am thankful for my family, the whole crazy mixed up group. We don't live close to each other and by some family standards we are not close, I can go months without speaking to my sibling(s) but we are there for each other. Through kids, marriages, divorces, unemployment and blended family gatherings we keep smiling and supporting.

- I am thankful for my past friendships. Today I took the time to be thankful for the friends that have passed through my life. I recognize the value of those friendships, things I learned from them and the growth that came from them. So today I am thankful for the people that entered my life for a short or long time, but are not active in my life today.

- I am thankful for the friends that are currently in my life. They are spread across the globe, some I talk to/see everyday and some I only rarely get to see/talk to. But these friendships are the ones that I rely on everyday. I know that no matter how dark my darkest day is they are there for me, they hold my hand in those moments. And they dance with me in the glow of sunshine when life is good. No matter time of day, or personal situation, they are there for me. And I hope they realize I am there for them to.

So as this Thanksgiving day comes to a close I say another prayer thanking God for the blessings of family and friends in my life. I miss those that are no longer with me, rejoice in the gifts I received from them and try to remember to cherish the ones I have with me now.

Thirty days of Thankful- Day 17

Day 17

Today I am thankful for life lessons from little man and his BF. We didn't head to Disney today, as little man woke with a bad cough and needed a breathing treatment, so we hung around the resort, played at the kids play place and just had fun. When new kids came in they were just instantly friends. There is no questions between little kids, they are just all always friends. Some where in childhood we lose that and start becoming "picky" about who we call friend. It was fun to just watch the innocence of children as another child on the playground simply meant another friend :) So today I am thankful for the reminder to just be "friends" unless I am given a real reason not to be!

Thirty Days of Thankful- Day 2

Day 2

Today I am thankful for this little boy!

He is my little man's best friend. The son of a wonderful friend. He and little man are "brudders" They love each other, they argue, they laugh, they play, they are just plain silly. But when I am with the two of them, the world is just right. Their laughter is the cure for any bad day. Today I am thankful my child has this best friend.