Friday, December 2, 2011

Friday, December 2, 2011

Tonight's picture was taken in August of 2008, right outside Mattie's hospital room. Linda, Mattie's childlife specialist, set up a painting station right in the PICU hallway. I am posting this because I wanted you to see what Mattie decided to paint during his first hospital admission. He painted the sun, which was bold and yellow, and then next to it something that looked like the earth. It is no wonder that the sun became an important symbol to represent the Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation.

Quote of the day: We grow by love.... others are our nutriment. ~ William Ellery Channing


Today we celebrated Mary's (Ann's mother) birthday. I met Mary in December of 2008, at a birthday party Ann hosted for her at her house. When I met Mary, her son had already died from cancer, and Mattie was five months into his battle. I distinctly recall going over to introduce myself to Mary. At first my name did not ring a bell, but then I told her that I was Mattie's mom. I did not need to say anymore, she immediately put two and two together and grabbed a hold of my hand and started talking to me. In fact, whatever she said to me that day got me crying and it took a while for me to regroup that afternoon. That was our first introduction to each other, an introduction that seemed to bond us together. We are naturally differently people and generations lie between us, and yet having a son who died from cancer cuts through any differences.

Pictured from left to right: Vicki, Mary, and Shayla (Mary's caregiver)

We first took Mary out to get her hair done. Mary has her hair cut by the same lady, Theresa, each time. When Theresa found out that it was Mary's birthday, she started dancing. It brought a smile to all our faces. Which brings me to tonight's quote. We do grow by love. Even simple acts of kindness and love, as shown by Theresa today!

At lunch, I took a picture of Ann with her mom. As I told Mary today, this is her fourth birthday that I have celebrated with her, and yet it seems like we have known each other much longer.










As the day evolved, so did my mood. I do not feel like elaborating on it. So instead I wanted to end with the answers to the genius test I posted last night. I know some of you emailed me between yesterday and today about this test and some of you really got me laughing!

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Genius Test (mind you this is the kid version)

Directions: Find the words that fit. Example: 16= O in a P.
You need to figure out what the "O" and the "P" stand for. In this case the answer is 16 Ounces in a Pound.

1) 26 = L of the A (Letters of the Alphabet)
2) 7 = D of the W (Days of the Week)
3) 31 = F at B R (Flavors at Baskin Robbins)
4) 101 = D (Dalmations)
5) 52 = C in a D (Cards in a Deck)
6) 7 = W of the W (Wonders of the World)
7) 88 = P K (Piano Keys)
8) 13 = S on the A F (Stripes on the American Flag)
9) 365 = D in a Y (Days in a Year)
10) 18 = H on a GC (Holes on a Golf Course)
11) 90 = D in a R A (Degrees in a Right Angle)
12) 200 = D for P G in M (Dollars for Passing Go in Monopoly)
13) 50 = S in the U (States in the Union)
14) 3 = B M (S H T R) (Blind Mice, See How They Run)
15) 4 = Q in a G (Quarts in a Gallon)
16) 24 = H in a D (Hours in a Day)
17) 4 = W on a C (Wheels on a Car)
18) 1 = H on a U (Horn on a Unicorn)
19) 60 = S in a M (Seconds in a Minute)
20) 9 = P on a B B T (Players on a BaseBall Team)
21) 40 = D and N of the GF (Days and Nights of the Great Flood)
22) 28 = D in F (Days in February)
23) 64 = S on a C B (Squares on a Checker Board)

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