Grandma DePauw's Funeral

March 10-11, 2016:
Marc's last Grandparent died last spring.  His Grandma DePauw was an amazing lady!  I loved that I got a chance to get to know her.  She has always treated me like one of her own grandchildren.  She couldn't see for the last few years of her life but it did that could not stop her light from shining.  She was so cheerful, welcoming, and full of joy.  Her laugh was a familiar sound.  Marc is one of 19 grandchildren so we had a fun time visiting with his cousins (and ALL the great grandkids!)  It was such time of celebrating her life...  

The kids got to skip school and since we didn't have to leave until noon, we had pancakes for breakfast.

Visitation

Pizza Ranch stayed open late for the crazy DePauw clan to have a family dinner after the visitation... I think Carver was a little tired.

Gorgeous Spring Weather to celebrate this beautiful woman!

 

Elizabeth

June 27:  During our trip to Virginia I got a phone call from a good friend with some devastating news... my friend Elizabeth died.  Elizabeth moved in across the street from me when we were in 4th grade.  I remember my mom telling me that I should go ask her if she wanted to play/ride bikes... so I did.  We were pretty much inseparable for the next 8 years.  She is a part of nearly all of my memories from Jr. High & High School.  Some memories I have with this girl:

• Lots of bike rides & walks around town (and once walking to Augusta!)
• She was SO loud!  And Crazy! And spent so much time laughing
• Many trips to the Bowen Dairy Barn and lots of lazy summer days at the pool
• Sleepovers with lots of singing, dancing, and prank phone calls
• LaMoine Christian Camp and CIY
• Homecomings, Proms, and lots of scheming about the Boys we liked
• Volleyball, Basketball, Cheerleading, Band/Chorus, Drama
• Getting into trouble together
• SOOOOO many nicknames for each other
• Fighting (and making up)
• This girl did not like chocolate but she would eat Reeses PB cups by picking off the outside chocolate layer and enjoying the pb center.  She also liked to make chocolate chip cookies with no chocolate chips. 
• We wrote poems, songs and stories together.  In middle school we spent lots of lunch recess time working on our "book".
• Lots of trips to the mall--doing crazy things and laughing until we couldn't stand up
• She had a laugh that was instantly recognizable and her smile could fill up a room
• No one could talk her into doing something she didn't want to do; however, she was very persuasive. 

Elizabeth was my first best friend.  She taught me how to not take myself too seriously, not worry about what other people think, and how to really enjoy life.  She left behind a husband and 2 amazing girls, adoring friends, and parents/siblings who miss her so much.  Her life ended too soon but I know her memory is treasured by many.  So many things in my life lead to memories of this vivacious, LOUD, outgoing lady who I loved dearly.

Meeting other HS friends--Bethany & Jennifer for her memorial service

My friend Lorree

Great Grandma Gorsch

October 26-27:  This year we said good-bye to a very special lady!  I'm so glad our kids got to know and enjoy spending some time with their Great-Grandma Lu.  Marc's grandma Gorsch was the poster child for feisty!  She always made us laugh and made us feel special.  We traveled to Iowa for two days to celebrate her life with a visitation and funeral service.  The kids had fun spending time with their Grandparents, Aunt NeeNee, and Uncle Nathan. They loved swimming and spending the night in a hotel.  

Gorsch Family Dinner at Pagliai's Pizza

We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather...

Celebrating Life

The first weekend in June was bittersweet, but filled with so much joy.  I said good-bye to my Grandma Henry.  We also celebrated sweet Liam's first birthday.  The weekend was truly a celebration of life... one life well lived and another full of promise...

 My Grandpa and Grandma Henry left an amazing family legacy.  It doesn't happen nearly enough but I love spending time with my dad's family.  LOTS of cousins and now LOTS of great-grandkids running around.

 Marc was able to take Friday off and we headed to Mt. Sterling for Grandma's visitation.  I was more overwhelmed then I thought I would be at the visitation.  Telling her good-bye brought back lots of good memories.  It was also a fun time of visiting with friends and family.  I enjoyed seeing lots of pictures of Grandma growing up.  One of my cousins said later, "She lived so much life before we ever knew her!"

The funeral was Saturday morning.  My uncle John co-officiated with one of Grandma's pastors.  Most of the boy cousins said something also... a story about Grandma, good memories (and funny ones), and my brother Jordan read a poem that my dad wrote (a surprising talent of his!)  It was fun to celebrate Grandma in this way...

 This is the whole crew... most of us anyway:  5 boys (with 5 wives), 16 grandkids (11 with spouses), and a whopping 22 great-grandkids!  Our crew totals 58.  It was amazing to hear about how my grandparents made God a priority in their in home and equally amazing to see how that has been passed from generation to generation.

 After the funeral and burial we headed to the Cassidy farm to celebrate Liam's first birthday.  He had a farm themed party.  There kids had so much fun playing outside all day long.

 They loved petting some of the animals in the barn... goats, chickens, and bunnies.  They also enjoyed rides around the farm in the jeep, playing on the swingset, and being outside all afternoon!

 And of course there was so much yummy food!  Liam loved his chocolate cow cake!

 Love this sweet boy and his sweet smile...

 A fun-filled, emotion-filled day!  We were exhausted for sure when we made it home at 11:15 Saturday night!

Thankful for the Red Stain on my Couch

This week I received a phone call that stopped me in my tracks. A dear friend of our family called to tell me that the 5 month old infant that she cared for died (from SIDS) while in her home. My heart broke for her and was even more broken for a mom that was grieving the loss of her first born son. I immediately began to think of all the moments this mom will never get... first steps, hearing his sweet voice say "Mama", first day of school. I couldn't even begin to comprehend what she was experiencing. The smell of her sweet baby... gone. The giggles and coos that should be filling her home... gone.

A few days ago Sadie and I attended the funeral of this sweet boy. A little boy we had held and played with. Sadie was in love with him the first time she met him. It's so hard to understand God's plan when looking at a casket so small and seeing a mom and dad completely broken. I was once again faced with the fact that my children are not mine-they are His. He made them and He holds them in His hands. He has numbered their days. It is not my job to protect them-it is my job to surrender them completely to His protection.

As I think back on the first few hours after receiving this news I can remember so many questions filling my mind... questions that may never be answered this side of Heaven. We were in our new house getting some work done when I received the call. Our house was chaotic (to put it nicely). The kids were enjoying playing with Macey's new easel. I thought I was watching them but apparently I was more consumed with my painting because Macey made it out of the room with a red marker. She decided to color on our couch. Before we left to go back to our temporary house (where we were still stayingat the time) I thought I should try to clean the couch. As I was scrubbing the red marker from our couch I was so overcome with thankfulness for my three healthy kids who were playing in our new home... thankful that my youngest was able to color on my couch with a red marker... thankful that red marker stain was my biggest worry... thankful that I was reminded people matter more than things.

Saying Good-Bye to our Best Friend

We lost in our puppy Wrigley the first week of September. He was hit by a car right in front of our rental property. He ran out the door when we were going out to play. I found him minutes later trying to limp back to our house. I scooped him up and could tell right away that his back legs were broken. I frantically called Marc and mentally started trying to figure out how to get him to a vet. He was so peaceful in my arms--he never yelped or whined, just laid with me. After a few minutes had passed I realized that we weren't going to make it to the vet so I just held him. The kids were playing in the sandbox and I didn't want them to be upset so I was trying not to let them see me crying. Sadie eventually came over and sat with me. We held him together while he died.

I wanted to blog about this when it happened but I knew I needed to remember this cute puppy with lots of pictures. I didn't have a way to get any of my older pictures onto my blog without internet so I waited.

To say it was a hard day is an understatement. It hit me much harder than I ever anticipated. Part of having a dog is understanding that at some point you will probably say good-bye to him/her. I didn't think it would be this soon. I was never a dog person but after seeing my parents get a cute little dog I thought maybe I could do it. I'm still not a dog person, but Wrigley stole my heart. I loved that little fur ball so much... and it's a good thing because he made LOTS of messes and provided plenty of mischief.

Wrigley was our first "kid". We got him 2 weeks after finding out I was pregnant with Sadie. He was our introduction to parenthood. We loved going on walks with him, taking him hiking, and snuggling on the couch with him. Each time our family grew, he blended right into the mix. He was the perfect dog for a family with small children. He loved them and they loved him.

Our Wrigley:

Sadie took this last picture the week before we moved... I regret that I didn't take more pictures of him with the kids, but taking a picture of three small children is hard enough without adding a dog to the mix.

We burried Wrigley under a big pine tree at Mr. John's house (with permission of course). We burried him in the evening with Marc. We wrapped him in his favorite towel and included one of his favorite toys. Each of the kids took a turn throwing in a small dog biscuit as they said good-bye. We each told him one of our favorite things about him... Sadie & Kinnick loved giving him treats and running around playing with him. Marc loved how excited he would always get to see us. I loved what a great playmate he was for each of our kids and how I never had to clean the dining room floor after meals because he always took care of it. When we finished burrying him we took the kids to Dairy Queen for icecream. As we were driving home Sadie said "Mom, I prayed that Jesus will take good care of Wrigley until we get to Heaven. Just remember that after awhile you won't feel sad anymore and you'll just remember what a good puppy he was." (...a paraphrase of what I had told her earlier in the day.)

The following weeks were hard. Kinnick asked "When will Wrigely come back to life?" and Macey would occasionaly point to the tree where he was burried and say "ReeRee". Sadie asked me, "Is it okay if sometimes you feel sad inside but you're not crying?" She also told me many times how much she missed him... she stills does occasionally. I didn't blame myself for what happened but my heart was broken because I felt that it was my job to protect him.

I still miss him, but it is easier. Will we get another dog? Probably some day... but not today. We have enough on our plate. I love how much my kids love dogs--especially Macey. I hope that they will always remember Wrigley.