Hannah’s Journey

Today is the “first” of many new firsts for our family. Hannah would have been Sweet 16 today. I’m not sure how the day will go, but we miss her so much. I know that her first birthday in heaven will be wonderful. This morning when I went to my car to go visit her, in the garden next to where I park my car, a bulb that she had planted with Bill in the spring a year ago had bloomed overnight. It stopped me in my tracks and I stared at it for the longest time. It was purple which was her favorite color. It’s comforting to know that each year around her birthday, these bulbs will bloom. She always liked to garden with Bill.

We took the boys on a short trip to Virginia Beach last week. It was the first time in 5½ years that Bill and I had gone on a vacation together with the family. We always split up so that one of us was close to the hospital and one was with the boys. We had a wonderful time and the boys even went parasailing. They tried to talk me into going, but there was no way I was letting my feet leave the boat. Nathan and Austin finished the summer at Happiness is Camping and came home on July 31. Nathan leaves for school this Thursday and Colin leaves next Thursday. I make sure I remind Austin daily how many days left until he starts school too. One of my little joys in life, listening to him groan.

I go back to work on August 26. I think for me it will be a good thing. I found that I had a lot of time on my hands this summer and being with the kids at school always makes me happy. That doesn’t mean I won’t be thrilled when the first snow day comes along. Bill has been traveling with his job this summer and keeping busy with work.

Thank you for continuing to check up on us. We’re not sure how long we will keep the site going, but for now, I am not ready to lose this link to Hannah. Enjoy your last few weeks of summer.