Lego Names...

So, a very good friend of mine and fellow bereaved parent asked a simple task of her friends to help her celebrate her sons life. All she asked, was for everyone to write her son's name somewhere and send her a picture of it. I thought really hard of the different ways I could do this, I wanted it to be special, because her son is special and she is a very special friend. I finally decided I would use LEGOs to create his name...well after a few tries, I finally got it finished! Now to most this may not seem like a big deal, but to those of us that know the pain of losing a child - seeing their name can simply put a smile on our face. Once I posted it, I offered to make one for another friend and quickly finished and posted it. Her happiness over seeing her son's name made me think that maybe I could offer happiness to a few others. So....if you know someone, or you would like for me to create your child's name out of Legos, please let me know:)

For Gage

For Julius

Kassidy<3

Summertime....

                                                  I am very happy for the time to be at home with Russ. It is truly a blessing to be able to spend so much time with such a wonderful little boy. I am making the best out of this summer, because I had different plans and they just didn’t work out. This was going to be my first summer to not work a summer program and I was going to spend the entire summer with both of my boys. Unfortunately, that is not how things happened. I am not working so that is good, but I don’t have both of my boys – that is heartbreaking for me.

                I have been very fortunate to work on The Baby Dinosaur Project this past week and meet with several very supportive people! I am very hopeful that the room will be ready for use before school starts back. While meeting with some people, someone made the comment that I am so strong and brave. I have never viewed what I am doing as strong or brave – just simply trying to survive each day. I know the other mothers in my situation feel the same way. We are not strong or brave; we simple don’t know what else to do. I use the work for the BDP to help distract myself. While visiting the hospital in the past few days, there have been several families that have lost a baby. It’s so heartbreaking knowing exactly what that family is going through. I wish I could come up with some very wise words that would help them, but the truth is, there are no words that will ease their pain. I was able to take 8 more memory boxes to L&D yesterday. (Materials were donated by Tiffany Torres, Mary Pruitt, and Amanda Rosewarne & Amanda helped put all the boxes together) It feels good to be able to offer support to families.

                Tomorrow, Kevin and I will have been married for 5 years. I am so happy that I have been able to spend the past 9 years with such a wonderful person!!  We are leaving to go on a mini-vacation for the weekend and I am so excited to spend some much needed time together. We have had a very hard year and Kevin has been supportive through everything. I am lucky to have him. Happy Anniversary, baby!! I love you!!

                                              

                                  My Sweet Nicholas,

I miss you. I miss you more than I ever knew was possible. I think about you all the time and I wish you were here with us. Russ wishes you were here; he talks about you a lot. We love you so much and I just wish I had one more time to hold you. You are such an important part of my life and it just isn’t fair that I don’t have you.

          All of my love sweet angel,

                                          Mommy

                                                                                                                   

A few things I am looking forward to this summer:

                - spending time with Russ

                - Cooper’s 4^th birthday

                - Phil and Ruth coming to visit from Australia

                - going to the beach with family

                - putting my classroom back together

                - spending time at my mom’s with everyone

                - 4^th of July

It’s the distractions that keep me going…             

6 months...

It’s hard to believe that 6 months ago today; is the last time I held my beautiful Nicholas. 6 months ago today, I told him goodbye and placed him in his tiny casket. This is the first time I really have used the word casket when talking about Nicholas. Sometimes I think if I don’t use certain words or admit to certain things – then it is not real. Of course, I am always brought back to reality with the fact that it is true – Nicholas is in Heaven. Last week when talking to a friend, I told her that I was at peace with the fact that Nicholas was in Heaven. I am at peace with that, however, it doesn’t make my heart ache for him any less. It doesn’t make certain parts of my life feel as if something very important is missing. I think about how different life would be if he were here…in my mind, it would be perfect.

Each day has become somewhat easier, and I welcome that feeling. It doesn’t mean I want to forget or that the pain isn’t there, because it is. It just means that I am able to put on my brave face and deal the best I can. There are moments each day that I get choked-up on a memory and I think about how much I miss my baby. I miss everything about him and everything I don’t even know about him.

Mother’s Day this year was difficult because of everything that day represents and the constant reminder that my baby is in Heaven. Of course, I am blessed to have Russ here with me and without him I am not sure what I would do. He is my joy and he is my life. He is getting so big and I am so proud to be his mommy.

I came across this blog the other day and I really enjoyed the honesty she used when writing this blog. I also feel like the song she wrote is exactly how a lot of us feel, but are unable to admit. I will warn you, she is brutally honest, but it is nice hearing it.

http://www.knockedupknockeddown.blogspot.com/

This is the song written by the blog owner, Knockedupknockeddown. I am only sharing this on here to share the honesty of bereaved parents – we don’t care what our children would have been – just that they are not here with us.

"For Sure"

You might have been a bratty toddler,

Screamin' and throwin' your food.

You might have been a horrible speller,

With bad punctuation too.

You might have been a high school drop-out,

thinking school was only a bore.

You might have turned into a druggie,

living dirty and jobless and poor.

But I don't care what you might have been...

I just wish I could've known for sure.

You might have been obsessive compulsive,

counting every step that you took.

You might have been a Bill O'Reilly fan,

reading every one of his books.

You might have had issues with anger,

getting pissed off and slammin' the door,

You might have been a kleptomaniac

stealin' money from my drawer.

But I don't care what you might have been...

I just wish I could've known for sure.

You might have been valedictorian,

president of your school.

You might have been a hottie like your dad,

making all the girlies drool.

You might have been a famous scientist,

discovering all kinds of cures,

You might have been idealistic,

Running off to join the Peace Corps.

But I don't care what you might have been

I'm tired of imaging what you might have been

I don't give a f*** what you might have been

I just wish I could've known for sure.

Written by Monica

I told you she was honest, but it’s the truth…I wish I could have known what Nicholas was going to be…

Kassie

My Baby…

Another day...

       I live my life now using distractions. I try to distract myself from the thoughts of sadness. I do not want Russ to think of his mommy as someone that is sad all the time. I am not sad all the time, but I do often feel choked on the memory of what my family was supposed to be. It was supposed to include a beautiful little boy named Nicholas. He is supposed to be here in my arms. It's hard to explain that even when I am happy and I am enjoying myself - a part of me is missing. My mind is often carried away by thoughts of Nicholas. I think about how much Kevin and I wanted that precious baby, how Russ was so excited at the thought of being a big brother and sharing his toys, how Nicholas was supposed to be the final piece of our family. I get angry/sad when I think about everything that my family has endured in the past months. I know we are not the first and we will not be the last to have to go through such a horrible life changing event. In fact, I get even more angry when I know others will feel the pain I do. It is not fair to have your child ripped from your life. It doesn't matter what age it happens. No parent ever deserves to feel the extreme pain of losing a child. It's not fair to the other children either. Russ does not deserve to not have a brother. Why did such a joyous event become such a horrible and painful tragedy? I know I will never get answers to this, but I can not help but ask. I can not help but wonder what I could have possibly done any different to get a different outcome?

Right now, everything is a painful reminder of what was supposed to be...

Update on The Baby Dinosaur Project: The Miss Hope of Huntsville Pageant will be on Sunday, May 22^nd at 1:00pm. The pageant will be at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville. Pageant will be for ages 0 months - 21 years. If you would like more information please download the form

Letters to my babies…

My sweet Russell,

You amaze me everyday. My happiest moments are spent with you. I love every part of you and the little boy you are becoming. I am so happy to call you my son and I want you to know that I am proud of you. I am so excited about our trip to the beach this summer. You have talked about it everyday and I can’t wait to play in the ocean with you!! It will be such a fun trip!!

All my love,
Mommy

Beautiful Nicholas,

I miss you sweet angel. I still long to hold you in my arms. I wish now that I would have held you longer and spent more time with you than I did. I know I can’t live in the past, but it is so hard. It is hard not to think about you and all the smiles I would have already shared with you. I hope you are being loved and rocked everyday by wonderful angels that love you.

Kisses my handsome boy,
Mommy

Song/Quote for today:

Firework by Katy Perry

“Do you ever feel like a plastic bag
Drifting through the wind
Wanting to start again

Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin
Like a house of cards
One blow from caving in

Do you ever feel already buried deep
Six feet under scream
But no one seems to hear a thing

Do you know that there's still a chance for you
Cause there's a spark in you”
I am back to Katy Perry’s Firework - it is very comforting to me….

Update:)

     Where do I start? It has been awhile since I have written and I have really wanted to sit down and take a moment to update everyone on how things have been. This may be more like rambling - I just have a lot on my mind these days!

    Spring Break Update: I was off this past week for Spring Break so Kevin and I took Russ to South Carolina to visit my family and it was such a good trip. We went to the Greenville Zoo on our last day and it was so much fun. He wanted to run through the entire zoo - it was hard to keep up with him! On the way home from the trip, Russ said he wanted to go to Cooper's house. So the next day we went over to their house for a visit. I was so excited that Kevin spent extra time with us on Spring Break. While there, Kev got his truck stuck in their yard! It was such a mess!! We also took Nicholas' Easter decorations up to the cemetery. It looks really nice. Russ picked him out a rabbit, Sharron (grandma) got him a wreath, and I got him an Easter basket (shaped like a dinosaur of course!) and a wind chime. I am very happy with how it all turned out. I honestly never thought about having to put an Easter basket together to take to the cemetery. I don't know that it will ever really get any easier to do.

    Baby Dinosaur Project Update: We have had several meeting with the Huntsville Hospital Foundation about the room on the Labor and Delivery floor. A few weeks ago we got to see the room we will be using. It was so exciting to see that this dream will one day become a reality. The 1st Annual Miss Hope of Huntsville Pageant is scheduled for May 22nd at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville. We have been handing out flyers and I have linked them to this page if you know anyone that would like to participate.  (Forms) All proceeds will benefit the Baby Dinosaur Project at the Huntsville Hospital Foundation. I am very excited about the pageant and hope it is a great success!! Also, The Baby Dinosaur Project donated 10 memory boxes to the Labor and Delivery floor at Huntsville Hospital. We are hopeful to donate more very soon. If you would like to help, please let me know!

Thoughts:
   * Compassion is a word that pops into my head often these days. I am working harder on having compassion for others. I have always been sensitive to others feelings, but I don't know that I have truly been compassionate. The definition of compassion is deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it. I want to help relieve the suffering others have/will endure when it comes to losing a child. Not only am I working on being more compassionate, I am thankful for how compassionate so many others have been to me. I am so thankful for all the wonderful people I have in my life.

   *Empty arms...I have heard this expression so many times and I know exactly how it feels. I still ache to hold my sweet angel and rock him to sleep. I don’t know that those feelings will ever be gone and to be honest I don’t know if I truly ever want them to be gone. I try to imagine all the people in Heaven taking care of Nicholas and I am sure there is a long line of people waiting to hold him. That does make me happy to know he is being taken care of by some wonderful people.

   *Russ - He is the honest joy of my life. He is such an amazing and smart little boy. I am so blessed to have him. I thank God everyday for him. I am amazed at how much he is growing - he is getting SO tall!

Kassie<3

It has been awhile...

        I have choked on food before, choked on a drink, even choked on my own words before. But I had never choked on a memory or simple everyday task until I lost Nicholas. Now, it seems there is something, some trigger that does not seem important, but then it triggers a memory and my heart breaks again, as if I am reliving November 4, 2010 all over again. It is not one thing in particular that brings on the thoughts, it can be anything. I can be driving down the road and I see a cloud in the sky and my heart breaks because I will never share a moment of looking in the sky with Nicholas. Sometimes something as simple as brushing my teeth brings on the heartbreak, I know I will never teach Nicholas to brush his teeth, soothe him when he starts cutting teeth, or see the excitement he has when he loses his first tooth. Now, most people would say remembering all the things I can’t do with him and the things I will miss is living in the past and not letting myself move on. To this, I ask “How do you move on?” I do not sit and ask for these things to come to my mind, I simply am trying to live everyday to the best of my ability and the thoughts wonder into my mind. Just as any mother thinks of their child each and every day, I too think of Nicholas. I am not sad every day, but I do miss everything I had planned for my sweet son. He was going to be something great, mommy’s pride and joy, daddy’s hunting buddy, and his big brother’s best friend. Again, I say I am not sad all the time, but a part of me will forever be broken. A part of me will always long for what I thought was the final part of my perfect family.  I put my brave face on everyday and I try to make sure everyone knows I will be okay. I do not want others to feel I am sad all the time, because I am thankful I have a loving husband, a beautiful son on Earth, and a perfect angel in Heaven. I am learning to deal with each moment and take each day individually. I am still grieving and I am still working on my new normal. Although I don’t even know what that truly means. I know it will get easier and I know the triggers will not always occupy my thoughts. Thinking of that even scares me, because it feels I am getting even further away from my Nicholas. Although I know each day really does bring me closer to being with him in Heaven.

Letters to my babies…

Nicholas,

        I will forever love you, Nicholas and you will forever be our Baby Dinosaur. Every dinosaur I see makes me think of you. I hope you are having a good night in Heaven. I wish I able to kiss you good night. Mommy will always think of you and I will hold you again one day. All my love sweet, sweet angel…

Russ,

        I am so proud of you! You are becoming such a big boy. I am amazed at how much you have changed in such a short amount of time. I love having conversations with you about tractors and trucks. You have such a good imagination. You make me so happy and I am so thankful to have such an amazing little boy! All my love, Mommy

Thankful

I am thankful for my mom. I am proud to say she is my mother. She has always been there for me and never given up on me. I am lucky to have such a caring and loving mom.

Quote

There's no tragedy in life like the death of a child. Things never get back to the way they were. - Dwight D. Eisenhower

Kassidy

The Pumpkin...

I have never spoken of this to anyone in fear that it would not last, but I have decided to share my story of the pumpkin. While I was on bed rest, my mom took Russ to Tate Farms. I was really sad that I was unable to take him, but knew it was best for Nicholas for me not to go. I also thought that there would be many more trips with Kevin and our two boys to the pumpkin patch. I asked Russ to get us a pumpkin to carve and he said he would. He had such a fun time and he even got a pumpkin for his daddy, his mommy, and his baby Dinosaur. (He is such a thoughtful little boy.) All the pumpkins were perfect and we were able to carve his and sit the others out in the house. Sadly, my pumpkin was the first to go, then Kevin’s, and followed by Russ’. The only pumpkin that seemed to be lasting was the one Russ bought for Nicholas. I was excited and thought that the pumpkin would make it for Nicholas’ arrival and I would take a picture of him with his pumpkin. Unfortunately, I was never able to bring Nicholas home and show him his pumpkin. I didn’t even come home for weeks. When we finally did come back home, I was surprised to see the tiny pumpkin still sitting on the counter, but there it was…still perfect. I couldn’t believe it. It had been 3 months since Russ had picked it out and there it sat. It has now been over 4 months since Russ brought it home and it is still on the counter. It is still just as perfect as it was the first day it came here. I think it is still waiting for Nicholas to come home. Either way, it gives me comfort to see it each day. I love thinking about my sweet Russ picking out the perfect pumpkin for his baby brother. How innocent and kind his little soul is. It breaks my heart that this is the outcome for the pumpkin. In a way, I feel like the pumpkin. I was picked to be Nicholas’ mommy and I too am still waiting. I know my wait will be much longer. The reason I never talk about the pumpkin is because I am terrified it too will have to leave. I know this probably sounds silly to most, but if you have ever lost someone so important to you, you will understand.

Thankful

I am thankful for the pumpkin, the little hands that picked it out, and the sweet angel it was chosen for.

Quote

“Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.” – Elizabeth Stone

This is so true. My heart is always with Russ on Earth and with Nicholas in Heaven.

Kassie