Mattie Miracle Walk 2023 was a $131,249 success!

Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation Promotional Video

Thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive!

Dear Mattie Blog Readers,

It means a great deal to us that you take the time to write to us and to share your thoughts, feelings, and reflections on Mattie's battle and death. Your messages are very meaningful to us and help support us through very challenging times. To you we are forever grateful. As my readers know, I promised to write the blog for a year after Mattie's death, which would mean that I could technically stop writing on September 9, 2010. However, at the moment, I feel like our journey with grief still needs to be processed and fortunately I have a willing support network still committed to reading. Therefore, the blog continues on. If I should find the need to stop writing, I assure you I will give you advanced notice. In the mean time, thank you for reading, thank you for having the courage to share this journey with us, and most importantly thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive.


As Mattie would say, Ooga Booga (meaning, I LOVE YOU)! Vicki and Peter



The Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation celebrates its 7th anniversary!

The Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation was created in the honor of Mattie.

We are a 501(c)(3) Public Charity. We are dedicated to increasing childhood cancer awareness, education, advocacy, research and psychosocial support services to children, their families and medical personnel. Children and their families will be supported throughout the cancer treatment journey, to ensure access to quality psychosocial and mental health care, and to enable children to cope with cancer so they can lead happy and productive lives. Please visit the website at: www.mattiemiracle.com and take some time to explore the site.

We have only gotten this far because of people like yourself, who have supported us through thick and thin. So thank you for your continued support and caring, and remember:

.... Let's Make the Miracle Happen and Stomp Out Childhood Cancer!

A Remembrance Video of Mattie

July 9, 2014

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Tonight's picture was taken on April 16, 2002. Mattie was about two weeks old and being transported in his car seat into the car. As new parents we took the whole issue of movement very seriously, as you can see..... with the safety belt and all. Mind you, Mattie wasn't in the car yet in this photo. Somehow I had it in my mind that his body, which had no usable muscles at that age could project himself out of his seat and fall. I wasn't going to take any chances. Rather ironic, in a way. I was the mom who planned for all sorts of contingencies! Of course no matter how well one planned, nothing could have prepared me for July 23, 2008, the day Mattie was diagnosed with osteosarcoma.


Quote of the day: Nothing is ever really lost to us as long as we remember it. L.M. Montgomery



Today I had the opportunity to meet up with my friend Catherine to go shopping and out to lunch. This was a nice change of pace for both of us. I have spent an inordinate amount of time working and by a computer this summer. So human companionship and time conversing are gifts. Along my journey today, I found these three pieces. I am sure they just look like a plate, a small bowl, and a mug. But to me they actually mean much more than that. They symbolize memories! When I saw the blue plate, it naturally reminded me of Mattie. As my faithful readers know, Mattie's symbol in his first preschool classroom with Margaret was the Moon. Why? Well because Mattie's name began with the letter M and so does the word Moon. I suppose Margaret could have picked Mattie Mouse, Mattie Marshmallow, or Mattie Mountain. But she didn't. She picked Mattie Moon. Mattie also gravitated to the sun. He drew all of his pictures with a sun in it and all of his paintings also always had a sun in it! In fact in November of 2009 (after diagnosed with cancer), when Mattie met with his art teacher to create a special canvas, he produced the "Mr. Sun" painting which hangs in our dining room. A painting that is five feet wide and became the backdrop for the Foundation's logo. Therefore, when I saw this plate today, it just reminded me of Mattie. 

When I saw the small wheat bowl, it immediately reminded me of my maternal grandmother. She had a china pattern just like this. My parents still have many of these pieces at their home in California. When I was growing up, my grandmother lived with my parents, and I recall seeing this china often. We did not use it daily, only on certain occasions, but I remember it being special to her. My grandmother was a very loving, compassionate, and nurturing individual, who I feel greatly influenced the person I am today. 

As for the thistle mug, well this piece reminds me of my friend Margaret. Margaret and I loved to have tea together, but Margaret was not the tea bag kind of person. She would brew a real pot of tea, using loose tea! Which to me is a special treat! In any case, when I would visit Margaret at her home, she would serve me tea not in a mug but in a beautiful tea cup with a matching saucer. The pattern on the tea cup had a thistle on it. I always admired the thistle. In fact, we both loved the color purple and I always loved hearing how she inherited these thistle cups! I will miss my tea times with Margaret and chats over her thistle cups. So today when I saw this thistle mug, I immediately thought of Margaret. Now when I am home and having tea, I will think of our days together and I am saddened and at times frustrated and perplexed that all I have is just the memories. Just the memories of so many wonderful and meaningful people in my life who were taken far too soon.   

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