Be a Warrior! Help us Fight DIPG!
As a parent, we celebrate milestones. First time rolling over, walking, and words when very young. Then we enter into drivers licences, exams, and first kisses. A big milestone is the graduation of high school. We anticipate it, we grow nervous about it, we celebrate it. This past June, Valin completed high school….
Read MoreNo parent should have to think of their children associated with death. No parent should have to “visit” their child at the cemetery. No parent should have to wake up every day knowing there is one less sing-song good morning heard. Yet here we are. Here are thousands of parents throughout the world…
Read More8 years down this desolate road. The road of loss, and sadness. The road of pretending and hiding. The road walked by many, yet feeling alone on the path. The road we navigate at diagnosis. Although it has been 8 years, this day remains fresh in my mind. The dread. The fear….
Read MoreThis day comes every year, and every year I dread it. I cannot change it. I cannot erase it. I cannot accept it. It will always be with me, with us. Today is not an anniversary. It is not a day of laughter. It is not a day of happy memories. It is…
Read MoreHappy birthday baby boy. You should be 16 years old this year. I don’t even know what to say. Leading up to your birthday I felt broken. How can I not? The forever contemplation of what you would look like, how tall you would be, if you would be driving, who you were…
Read MoreMany parents go through PTSD after their child has been diagnosed with cancer, and definitely after their child has died. I have written about that in previous blogs. Many don’t fathom the extent of that trauma for parents. Speaking to people, some have questioned if there’s a trigger, or a single moment…
Read MoreAnother year Another year that will not know Madox and his energy Another year we will not create new memories with or of Madox Another year we will wonder who Madox would have been Another year of worry, that memories of the past will be forgotten Another year of hoping Valin always…
Read MoreHolidays are tough. Coupled with a birthday, and the day can come screeching to a halt. Glaring reminders of who is missing in our lives, and everything that was lost, leading up to those days. Halloween, Thanksgiving, my birthday, then Christmas. Will it ever get easy? Halloween has always been a…
Read MoreSeptember is always a tough month after losing Madox. Not only do we host our charity’s Superhero run every September, but it’s the start of a new school year. Another grade Madox will not enter. Another school he never experienced. Another everything. I always feel heavy leading up to the first day…
Read MoreAugust 8th. A day that will always be a black cloud for us. A day unlike any other. The day we had to kiss our son goodbye forever. Our hardest day had continued on from the previous few difficult days. Madox was struggling. Madox was dying. The reality was, there was…
Read MoreIf you didn’t know, May is Brain Tumour Awareness Month. Honestly, I never knew this before Madox’s diagnosis. I was blissfully ignorant about some important causes, until one was slapping me in the face. In the past few years, I’ve tried to bring awareness to this month. To try and honour children…
Read MoreLife changes after watching your child die. Things are more important. Things are less important. We see things differently. Some better, some worse. But we change. Sometimes we become hyper vigilant about things we normally would brush off or deal with in a calm controlled manner. I don’t think that will every…
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