Thanksgiving, Part 1

We arrived to my sister and brother-in-law's house on Wednesday around lunch time. I think by three o'clock that afternoon, my brother-in-law said to my sister, Rachel, "I don't think we're at all ready for this" - meaning the children. And - the kids were pretty well behaved! We turned their quiet, clean house into a loud, messy place in a matter of minutes.

We had a nice afternoon visiting with my grandmother and Adam and Rachel. We made cookies, played with play-doh, rested, took naps, went for walks, and fought monsters in the basement. It was a fun afternoon. That evening, we feasted on home-made lasagna, put the kids to bed and watched T.V. It was such a relaxing, fun day.

However, Judd got a phone call Wednesday afternoon that his aunt Pam was moved from ICU to hospice. She went into the ICU earlier in the week. If you have followed this blog, you may remember that she has been sick for some time, fighting cancer. (She was diagnosed 6 years ago with colon cancer.)

Thursday morning, my dad and I took the Charlotte to the little play ground in Rachel's neighborhood. It was unseasonably warm - high in the 60's on Thanksgiving. When I got back, Judd pulled me aside and told me that Pam had lost the battle - it was over.

Judd's family is incredibly close. Pam was Judd's only Aunt. She was just as close, or closer, to me as my own Aunts that I grew up with. Kids loved her. She was always quick to tease, and the kids caught on and loved it. Katie, Lilly, Charlotte, and Max are blessed to have been loved by her - she loved them like her own grandchildren. Pam was blessed with her first grandchild, Jack, at the end of October. I saw her hold him - something I will always remember.

Judd flew home, by himself, on Friday morning to be with his family. I wanted so badly to be with him, with his family, but knew that the kids would be better off in Pennsylvania sticking to our original plan. Charlotte doesn't understand - and when I tried to explain things to her Friday afternoon, she didn't really get it.

Pam was buried Saturday morning in Cordele, GA.

I'm not going to try to write here how much she will be missed. Anyone that knew her, knows how much, and I just won't do it justice. She was a very special lady and I know that my life is better having known her.

I believe in my last post that I promised pictures of cute boys in matching outfits, well, I want to deliver on that promise:



and because this one can't be outdone, here she is too: