A year ago today . . .

What a fabulous day this was! Not too many people get to have their lives celebrated while they are alive. This is exactly what this day was. Jeff & Karin have planted seeds for years. Seeds of generosity, seeds of kindness, seeds of friendship. Karin would have done anything for me, as I would her.

I remember one time when I was pregnant with Jackson and about to pop. She called me early one morning and told me she was picking up my kids to take them to school for me. It was out of her way - 15 minutes in the wrong direction. I argued with her and told her no until she hung up on me (that's her, huh?). Five minutes later she was at my door.

I think of the Run as Jeff and Karin reaping the benefits of what they have sown over the years.

These are a few of my fav. pics from that day. That is a day none of us that were there will ever forget.

I am a little under the weather but hopefully you remembered it is PINK Day!

Her children will rise up and call her blessed . . .

You don't have to read this Blog to know what a great Mom Karin was. I remember when our girls were in Kindergarten and she used to lay with them and "scratch their backs and pat their butts" until they fell asleep. I always used to think of the amount of time that took everyday to do that. I remember asking her one day why she did that everyday and she told me, "Some day they won't let me." That some day never came but she sure did know something that I didn't.

I don't know if you have ever noticed but Mother's Day is EVERYWHERE! I was talking to Jeff Friday night and he noticed it as well. It is on TV, in every store (except maybe Midas), it is in school, church, on the radio and on the Internet. It really is everywhere. It will forever be hard day for Salina and Noah. No one can ever fill the void in their hearts that their mother has left. It grieves me deeply that no Mother's Day will ever be like it was before. Jeff and I talked a lot about somethings that he could do to make the day easier. But it will never be easy. I speak from experience, unfortunately.

Proverbs 31 10 - 31
10 An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels.
11The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain.
12She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.
13She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands.
14She is like the ships of the merchant; she brings her food from afar.
15She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens.
16She considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
17She dresses herself with strength and makes her arms strong.
18She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night.
19She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle.
20She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy.
21She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet.
22She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple.
23Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land.
24She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers sashes to the merchant.
25 Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come.
26She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
27She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:
29"Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all."
30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.
31Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

Karin may not be walking this Earth anymore, but her children can still say she is blessed. No, her life was not as long as we thought it should be, but she is still blessed. How much more blessed can you be than to be in Heaven? It doesn't get much better than that. Yes, her absence on Earth has created voids in our lives. But to be "absent from the body is to be present with the Lord". If you were at her grave site today, she was not there. She is with the Lord! I can only hope that she enjoyed her first Mother's Day with her grandmothers and my mother.

We are up to 25 on our dermatology count. I have enjoyed all the emails! Keep them coming.

I know this is not a very good picture but it is the only one around. A collector's item, of sorts, and I am not parting with it. ;) It is a long story how I got this (and I can't reveal my sources, to protect their identities :) ) but this is Karin's "Fall" Starbucks order. Enjoy her writing and the good laugh you can have visualizing her ordering.

I have to report that we are up to 22 on the dermatology count! Almost halfway there.

Please pray for Jeff. I talked with him for a long time last night and he is really struggling. Single parenting is not an easy task. I have done it for 10 days and by the time the ten days is up I have my 3 just about locked in closets while I sit outside in tears. Jeff has well exceeded the 10 day point. Parenting is exhausting to begin with but doing it by yourself from 6AM to 11PM has got to get old. Please pray that Jeff would have wisdom in parenting and the energy to carry on as a single dad. My heart is grieved by all that is on his plate and the exhaustion in his voice. There are so many things that Karin (and we as moms) just do and then when that stops you realize all the work that goes into just being a Mom. Sometimes my kids come in ask me trivial questions, "Can we go out for dinner?" "Can I watch TV?". Dumb stuff that I have the answer to but just get tired of making all the decisions so I say, "Go ask your father" just so someone else can do the thinking for a while. Jeff is at that point and there is no one else to ask. He has help from his family and Karin's family - lots of it - but they have their own lives as well. I could go on and on about this but I will spare you and just ask you to pray. God is bigger than single parenting. And THANK GOD, Salina and Noah have a father that loves them and is around. Not everyone is as fortunate. That is my Mrs. Sunshine spin on that.

We are up to 15 people who have notified me about going to have a skin check. Great!

Here is a cut and pasted email from Karin's Massage Therapist, Kim. Thanks for making us aware Kim! Let me know how your appointment goes. :)

"As a massage therapist, I see parts of people's bodies they can't see such as their backs, back of their legs etc. I am always willing to point out something that doesn't look right and encourage my client to make an appointment with their doctor. I was just reading a massage magazine tonight that had a great article on melanoma. A M.T. found a melanoma on the bottom of her husband's foot during a massage. She pointed out a couple of things that I either hadn't heard of or didn't register in my mind before. Her husband's melanoma site had been where a fire ant had bitten him 4 years prior. The area had suddenly changed and caught her eye during that massage. So areas of skin that may have been injured are also potential melanoma sites. She also stated to have a person have both a woman and a man check their skin for changes. Women are better at seeing pigment changes; men at shape and density. Also take precautionary pictures every three months. Dating and comparing them. A great informative article. I don't know if you have posted this website, www.skincancer.org/melanoma/index.php ."

Can I also just say how irritated I am that our Cluster Map has been archived??? I had no idea. I liked those big red dots. Sigh . . .

Hard to believe but this picture was taken a year ago today. What I would give to hang at Fentons with her today. . . That was such a fun night. Even though she was very sick and did not feel well she had me in stitches the whole way to Oakland. Remember, Jeff?