A month without her after a lifetime with her

It's been roughly a month since my sweet mom went to be with Jesus. With each passing day, some things get harder while some seem to get a tad bit easier. And then all at once I am completely overcome with grief at the mere mention of her name. Grief is such a strange emotion. It feels selfish in a sense. I mean I fully believe that my Mom is healed and whole, walking with Jesus, the only One she loved more than her family. But I can't help but want her here with us at the very same time. This past weekend we celebrated our first holiday without my mom and it seemed so fitting that it was Easter. You see, my mom believed fully in the redeeming, life giving, power of the cross of Jesus and the everlasting life that is promised through Jesus resurrection. The fact that she is now experiencing that everlasting life with her Savior, that is grounds for a celebration! So, for my precious daughter's first Easter and my first without my precious Mom, I dressed Hannah in one of the beautiful dresses my mom had hand sewn for me when I was her age and we posed for this picture in the garden at my church where we celebrated my mom's life and homecoming just a month prior. So, when I look at this picture, I see my mom, there with us in the garden, whole and healed, standing proud next to her daughter, with her hand resting on her precious granddaughter. That's how I choose to remember this day. I think that's how she would want me to remember it because she was there with us in the garden. I know she was.

Profound loss coupled with a fresh perspective

Well, I guess I took a bit of a blogging break to say the least, a two year one to be exact. Our family has grown by another two feet and welcomed our first daughter! We have experienced tremendous joy and are so grateful to the Lord for the addition of this precious life! However, we have also experienced incredible grief in this season. My mother passed away a little shy of a month ago. I have never in my life experienced such a profound loss. My mom was my very best friend. The first one that I wanted to call if something exciting happened, or the kids did something funny, or if I needed advice on how to approach a parenting situation with grace. She was the best at that. Parenting with grace. I am praying I can continue her legacy in that regard. She was also the kindest and most creative person I've ever known. I sure miss her. So, you can expect our blog to take a different tone, at least for now. Thank you for your patience as I use it as a means to process my grief and remember my mother. Here she is with her first granddaughter.

I will treasure this picture always. My daughter brought her so much joy. All her grandchildren did. I will choose to remember her this way and long for Heaven where we will all see her again. Because I know that the only One she loved more than all of us, was her Savior who she has now met face to face. What a beautiful sight that must be.