Well it’s been about a month since I have last written. Things are going okay as of now. April and May were the hardest for me to deal with so far. I had a really rough time getting through the months but I have come out on the other side thanks to lots and lots of prayer. Tons of stuff has happened lately in our lives with Abigail. She went into a swimming pool at my girlfriend MaryAnne’s house on Memorial Day, at first she was okay with it but then she got a little splashed at and it was all over from there. She looked so cute in her little swimsuit and she probably has more swimsuits than I have clothes. She just got her first two teeth on May 28th on the bottom, they are so cute. She has now as of the beginning of this week started crawling and let me just remind you that my house is so not baby proofed. She gets all over the place and now the scary part comes. Abigail also went to her very first concert; we went to see Taylor Swift, I personally would have never of paid to take Abigail at such a young age to a concert but my girlfriend Jill invited us to go and it was a really great show she put on. We were in one of the suites so it’s much different than being in arena itself. . I contacted Andrea, Taylor’s mom, just to see if there would be anyway to see the both of them so she made sure there were meet and greets at will call waiting for us. It was again a first, not being at a concert with Laiken made me very sad. She loved Taylor so much and to see her without Laiken seemed so weird. She did though remember exactly who I was and seemed excited to see me and Abigail, I was a bit surprised that she would remember who I was. We had a nice time in spite of the sadness and of course Abigail was just the perfect little child that she always is at the concert. Abigail is still a really good baby and is a blessing to have.
I have worked a bit each week at In-N-Out and cheer has started once again, along with that I have my rhinestone stuff that I am doing so I am keeping myself super busy. Next week I’m going to start working on our Light the Night team for our August 22nd walk at Anaheim Stadium. Sometimes I think it’s great for me too but other time’s I think I need to slow it down a bit. Jim has been well, he’s going to start working days in the next week or so and that will be a change from the nights that he has been working. He loves to cook so hopefully we will be having some yummy home cooked meals from him. One of my girlfriends just got married last weekend and I was so sad that I could not go, she got married in Cabo but we just couldn’t afford to make the trip. Actually, a vacation period would be nice considering it’s been years since I have really vacationed. Susan, I still want to take you up on your offer to New York one of these days when we are in a better place financially. It would be great to go back to New York, that’s where we went for Laiken’s “Make a wish” at Christmas time in 2005. It was so beautiful and even though I pushed Laiken around in a stroller the whole time we made the best of it. The Ice skating was the best part of all, I’m glad I still have my memories.
This past week has been a bit rough on me emotionally and mentally. Everything seems to make me cry right now and it’s sometimes hard to deal with. I am hearing of lots of deaths with children who have battled cancer and some that have fallen out of remission. Nicole is one who has fallen out of remission and is now back at City of Hope going through more chemo and such. She had a bone marrow transplant about 2 ½ years ago (I think it was about then) and she just found out about 6 weeks ago that she will have to go through another one. It’s hard to see these kids go through this stuff. Nicole for example, it’s her senior year, senior prom, senior everything and she didn’t even get to experience the whole roll of being a senior all because of cancer. She’s thankfully got a ton of faith and knows that God is and will always take care of her. I pray for you all the time Nicole. I just wish we all could have one wish that we knew would come true because if so I would wish for cancer to be gone forever and ever. It just seems to be everywhere.
Today Jim and I went to the graduation for Ayala High School, Hillary who was one of Laiken’s babysitters graduated. It’s a very hard time for me seeing all these kids getting a diploma and knowing that Laiken will never experience it. Laiken would have been graduating from the 8th grade this year and going into high school next year. Wow I would have had a high school teenager – kind of crazy when I think about it. I have a hard time when thinking about all that Laiken missed out on in life.
Well I just wanted to check in with you all and let you know that we are making it through each day. Some are harder than others but one way or another I find my way out of bed each morning and try my best to start my day. I hope all is well with you and your families – stay safe, tell your loved ones that you love them each and every day and make sure to give lots of hugs along the way.
With so much love, Stacey
P.S. if you click on the picture of Abigail and Taylor you will be able to see a lot closer.
