December 21

December 21. A day that forever changed my life and the lives of my 3 children. My husband and their father passed away early in the morning. Monday marks the one year anniversary of his passing. What a year this has been. We miss him so much every day. But I do have to say we have gotten to a point that we can frequently laugh at memories we have of him. For an early Christmas gift, I made each of the kids a photobook with pictures of them with their dad. They loved it. It was so healing to look through the thousands of pictures I’ve gathered over the years to whittle the number down to 59. It brought back so many amazing memories of Stefan. I got to relive so many moments. I loved it. He was such an involved dad. There were so many pictures of him wrestling with the boys, snuggling with all 3, helping them learn to ride their bikes, building projects together, playing in the snow, etc. It was so fun to hear the kids’ remarks on the pictures in the book. They each had such cute comments about the pictures. It’s astounding what they remember. I’m so glad they have these books.
So, on Monday, we will definitely be thinking about the man we lost. But we will also be thinking of the many ways in which he helped equip us to take care of ourselves. He was so good at instilling independence in the kids. That has helped so much in this last year. He was also so good at helping me be independent. Specifically, our last family vacation in Myrtle Beach, he was so insistent that I tell him how to get from the restaurant where we ate dinner to our condo. I remember him telling me that if anything ever happened and I came by myself, I would need to know how to get around. The very next week he was diagnosed with Stage 4 Colon Cancer.
We still miss him dearly. But we celebrate his amazing life as well.
I am so thankful that God gave us the time we had. I wish it had been longer, but I also realize that God’s timing is His own and is perfect.
So, if you don’t mind, as Monday comes, please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.