This is dedicated to the one I love.

Well it's official, Colin is dedicated!

This past Sunday, we all gathered at our community church to dedicate our little man. Colin was one of 5 babies in the service we attend to take part in the dedication ceremony which includes a promise and a prayer that is very, very special. As parents, we promise to encourage Colin to seek God, to be involved in the church and to walk with Him in his daily life. We also promise to be good stewards and lead by example in our daily home life.



After the service, we headed back to Clarence for lunch & cake and enjoyed a busy house full of family and friends once again. A beautiful cake was decorated by Grandma Hurton and it was great to talk, eat and enjoy all our wonderful friends and family.

We have had quite a few gatherings at our house over the past month which has made for a lot of cooking and cleaning but I wouldn't have it any other way. Part of the reason why we built this house the way we did was to ensure that it was a great place to entertain. That has definitely been realized with how open the main living area is. It will be even better once the back deck goes on over the course of the next couple months and we increase our living and entertaining space once again.

Like the title of this blog says, this is dedicated to the one I love. And one of the people I love, who is actually pretty close to the top of the list, is my Mom. As most of you know, she underwent surgery just after Christmas and was given hope that no further treatment would be necessary. Unfortunately, that is now not the case and she will need to undergo chemotherapy for the next 6 months. As much as I know it will all be fine and that this is simply a precaution they are taking to make sure she is healthy and cancer-free, I absolutely ache. Over the past year, I watched my parents lose 3 of their parents and although it was tough to lose the Grandparents that had been there every step of my life, I cannot imagine, nor will I let myself imagine, how hard it is to lose your own parents. My Mom is so incredibly important in my life and I would do anything to make everything all better and for her to not need any more treatment. The grown-up in me realizes how important chemo is and how if she didn't do it and things got worse, we would regret it. The little girl in me who sees her Mom as a strong and invincible woman does not want to deal with the fact that that picture may not be reality for the next 6 months or so. I guess stuff like this is truly what growing up is all about. Dealing with the tough, the unexpected, and the difficult with a level head, strong emotions, and a positive attitude. Most of the time I have little difficulty with this, however when it comes to my parents, I resort right back to the 5 year old girl who wants nothing more than to cuddle with Mom in the morning while she reads the paper. Back then my parents made sure I had nothing to worry about except being a kid and the realities of life were not a part of mine.


My Mom is an amazing wife, sister, aunt, friend, mother and most importantly these days, Grandma. Her 5 grandchildren LOVE her so much, which is so apparent each and every time they see her. Their eyes light up, they have a million things to tell her, and they cuddle up just like I did 25 years ago. I am so grateful to have her and even more grateful that she is such a strong fighter who has such a positive attitude going forward on this next stage of treatment. I am going to try my best to do the same, but also to allow her and my emotions time to vent and be released so at the end of all of this crap, life will be back to its normal healthy, fun self.