Mattie's Blog and his Fight Against Osteosarcoma

Thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive!

Dear Mattie Blog Readers,

It means a great deal to me that you take the time to write and to share your thoughts, feelings, and reflections on Mattie's battle and death. Your messages are very meaningful and help support me through very challenging times. I am 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 have stopped writing on September 9, 2010. However, like my journey with grief there is so much that 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 me, and most importantly thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive.

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

April 3, 2016

Sunday, April 3, 2016

Sunday, April 3, 2016

Tonight's picture was taken in April 2005, during Mattie's third birthday party. The theme of the party was "Blues Clues." Mattie loved the cartoon character Blues and enjoyed playing the game of finding three clues to guess what Blues was thinking! We created our own Blues Clues game at the party and I remember this being one of Mattie's happier parties. Mainly because he was older and understood the notion of people coming over and celebrating his day.

Quote of the day: Anything that’s human is mentionable, and anything that is mentionable can be more manageable. When we can talk about our feelings, they become less overwhelming, less upsetting, and less scary. The people we trust with that important talk can help us know that we are not alone. ~ Fred Rogers

Our balcony doesn't disappoint. Yesterday we saw a wedding from it and today we saw a Carnival Ship passing by!

The ship may not be that unusual to see, but what do you think about a baptism in the Ocean? That was a new one for me. Check out this teen between the two men. Watch what happens to him in the next photo.

The fellow was COMPLETELY dunked in the ocean! Mind you this morning was cool and very windy!!!

Hibiscus line the outdoor terrace at the hotel.

Peter and I drove to Boynton Beach today to have lunch with my friend, Nancy and her husband Marv. Nancy and I have known each other for many years, as we both were leaders in a national professional counseling organization. Nancy lives part of the year in Florida, and every April when we come here, we try to reconnect! Right outside the restaurant was this beautiful bougainvillea.

Peter snapped a photo of me with Nancy and Marv. One of their grandsons is planning to do fundraising for Mattie Miracle next year and Nancy's grand daughter, who is only 9, won a costume contest with her friends. As part of the prize she won $200, and plans to donate that to Mattie Miracle. Very special, appreciated, and meaningful.

Later this afternoon, the SUN finally came out. It was a welcomed sighting, so we went for a walk along the beach.

While walking I noticed things that looked like plastic. I can imagine litter on the beach, but EVERYWHERE. It made no sense. So I took a photo of this so I could do some research. Turns out that these clear and blue things that look like plastic are sail Jellyfish or otherwise known as vellela. Their sail when up helps to propel them over the surface of the sea.