Final Farewell -- A blessing during tragic times

In April of 2007, I stumbled across an article in The Catholic Standard & Times regarding the founding of Final Farewell.  It was a pleasure to see that its founder was an old friend from my childhood, a fantastic and caring person with a heart of gold!

Having known Patricia (Trish) most of my life (we attended the same grade school and high school), it doesn't surprise me that she has worked diligently to establish a foundation that cares so much for grieving parents and their families.  Trish knows first hand how hard it is to overcome life's obstacles with hard work, dedication and love.  She and her group are truly dedicated to helping families in the darkest of all the hours in their lives, the death of a child.

I'm pleased that Final Farewell was born and that Trish and her team can help countless families get the help and support they need.  It is my prayer that they continue to grow and receive community (and financial) support for their most worthwhile cause.  To aid a parent and help with the arrangements for a  dignified and compassionate farewell to their child is one of the greatest gifts that anyone person can share.  Small gestures mean so much to a grieving parent.  

As I type this post, Final Farewell is seeking funds to give a family of four who perished in a Philadelphia house fire on January 13, 2011, a proper burial, including a memorial head stone.  Final Farewell's goal, via CrowdRise, is to provide this family with a gravestone marker so that they will be forever remembered.

I wish Final Farewell a huge success with this fundraiser and its  upcoming major fundraiser in April. This is a compassionate ministry that in these times of financial hardship is greatly needed and appreciated by the grieving families.

May God continue to bless Final Farewell and everyone involved in this MOST IMPORTANT mission to give comfort to the grieving.

If you would like to help  the family mentioned above, please click here. Any donation, no matter how small, is greatly appreciated. 


NOW FOR SOME OFFICIAL BUSINESS:
Please note that I  have received absolutely NO compensation  or favors of any sort in exchange for this post.  The opinions/comments in this post are expressly my own and I have no personal stake in the raising of funds for Final Farewell.

"Working Class" is Coming to CMT

What do you get when you combine a real-size gal, three lovable kids, two hot looking guys and a crotchety old man? A sitcom that left me smiling and looking forward to more!

CMT has produced its first scripted series for their network.  I was fortunate enough to be chosen to see a sneak preview of the first episode and I must say, for their first outing, CMT did a fantastic job!  Per their website,

"The new 12 episode, multi-camera series follows Carli Mitchell (Melissa Peterman), a single mom from a rough and tumble background, trying to give her three kids a better life by moving them to an upscale suburb. She quickly finds that making the transition to “the good life” is harder than she thought. She's unwittingly befriended by her cranky neighbor, Hank (Ed Asner), her only “career” prospect is a glorified deli job at the local grocery store, and the man she falls for not only already has a girlfriend – but he’s also her boss, Rob (Patrick Fabian). With her ladies-man brother, Nick (Steve Kazee), to help her out (when he’s not acting like one of the kids himself), Carli faces the challenges of parenting, dating, and making friends in her new community by doing more with less,staying true to herself and approaching each day with a touch of working class."

Carli is like many of us moms, working hard to keep their families afloat and give them a life better than she had.  One thing that impressed me about this program? Carli is a real size woman, not a skinny bean pole of a gal  that isn't representative of most of today's society.  And her character plays well off of her co-worker and neighbor, Hank (played by Ed Asner). Hank is a war veteran who has such a wit about him that it was a sheer pleasure to watch, waiting for his next great zinger.

The very best part of this sitcom is that I was able to preview this show in its entirety without having to shield it from my young boys. It was good clean humor, nothing overly provocative or sexually explicit. None of the humor attacked anyone, no crude butts of anyone's joke. A true family-oriented show. How refreshing!

Will I be back for more? You better believe it!! I'm looking forward to the double play next Friday night. :) See you Friday night at CMT - 8PM!

P.S. As a member of One2One Network, I was able to watch the sneak peek of "Working Class" in return for a review. I received no compensation in exchange for my review and it  is solely my personal opinion.

Project 365 - Chapter 2

Here it is, Sunday night again. Time to share my latest photo creations. 

I hope you enjoy seeing them as much as I loved taking them.

Winter Berry Tree

January 10, 2011

Heart of Roses

January 11, 2011

Always Faithful

Snuggling while sick

January 12, 2011

Most delicious cake pops I've EVER tasted

 from Just 4 Cakes

January 13, 2011

Happiness is finding a cold Coca-Cola in your car when you thought you had none!

My afternoon pick me up

January 14, 2011

De-constructing Christmas 2010

January 15, 2011

An ice cold Mike's = Sunday evening delight

January 16, 2011

Photographs and Memories

Click, click, click, click.... that familiar sound is music to my ears. The sound of a camera shutter opening and closing quick enough to capture life and it's moments. 

While perusing Twitter (yes, I know, I know... that's where I find EVERY one of my new challeneges), I stumbled across mentions of #project365 or #365project. Curious, I asked Julie from Dutch Being Me what exactly was this Project365. Being the sweetie she is, she explained that it's a commitment to take and post a new photo every day for the entire year.  Hmmm, a challenge I can definitely take on since I LOVE to take photos of everything and everyone.  It would be a breeze. Hell, I already have 4 amazing subject living under my roof - two very precocious little boys, a curious cat and a precious puppy. And I live in an amazing town that has loads of photogenic locales.  Let the photo taking begin!!!

Ok, so I'm nine days late on posting pics. Nothing new for me as I always seem to be a day late and a dollar (or two) short.  I've modified my version of Project 365 just a bit to reflect my crazy life.  I  will take my photos daily, but post them every Sunday after the kiddos are fast asleep.

So without furter ado, I present to you Week One and a half of my Project 365...


January 1, 2011
Pure, perfect love



January 2, 2011

Buddy's gonna learn to play the guitar



January 3, 2011
And the lion shall lay down with the lamb




January 4, 2011
Poor Thomas kite... still stuck in the tree.  Even a tornado couldn't set you free!



January 5, 2011
Winters Amazing Beauty

  

January 6, 2011
Buds trying to hang on through the new fallen snow




January 7, 2011
If only I could get through this window... that squirrel would be dinner



 

January 8, 2011
Caution! This puppy is NOT a morning kind of dog!



  

January 9, 2011
Chrismtas removed from the All Seasons tree and
winter birds and berries added in



One Courageous Mama and One Very Precious Little Child

Tomorrow will be one of the shittiest days in the life of a great woman. It is the day her son will celebrate his 10th birthday.... in heaven.  No cake to enjoy, no candles to blow out, no gifts to open, no photos to record this life milestone.  And the worse, no hugs and kisses from Mom, Dad and his siblings.  It's a day in her life that I can truly relate to.

I buried my daughter nine years ago. And let me tell you, it effin' sucks! We are supposed to OUTLIVE our children... not BURY them! Every single holiday, birthday and life milestone has been stolen from us, never to be given back.  No New Year's celebrations, no Valentine's sent home from school, no Easter baskets to fill, no Mother's Day or Father's Day cards, no fireworks to enjoy together on the 4th of July, no first days of school, no Halloween costumes or trick or treating, no Thanksgiving feasts to share, and worst of all no Christmases filled with joy.  All stolen away in a moment's time.  Just a void where our child should be.

The anger, the rage, the pain...  they are never gone. We just try to hide them well enough to make others happy. And unless you have walked the proverbial mile in our moccasins, don't tell us that you understand. You do NOT and you NEVER will.

I still lay in bed at night begging God for my baby girl back.  If He "really" loved me, He'd grant my wish right? He'd take away the pain? He'd make me whole again?  NOPE, not a chance in hell.  And people wonder why I question my faith? Wouldn't you?

Holes exist in our hearts that will never be filled. And with each passing day that we don't obsess over our child makes our pain worse because we feel we are betraying our child. Yet we don't mention our child often because we don't want to make others uncomfortable. Each time we do this, we die a little inside. And that is just NOT effin' fair!


So if you are reading this post, please stop and say a prayer for Moms like Tanis and me, say a prayer for our children.  And by all means, ask us about our children because they were REAL and they DID exist!