Taking A Break

We haven't fallen off the face of the earth, in case anyone was wondering. Life has just been extremely busy, and difficult for the past couple of weeks. My Mother ended up having brain surgery week before last and is currently recovering in an excellent acute rehab facility. The surgery went well, however my family was dealt some painful news post surgery regarding my Mom's prognosis. Mom has an aggressive type of brain cancer and things don't look good. I'm not sure that I've really come to terms with the reality of this situation. My emotions are like a swinging pendulum right now...the joy of Georgea on one side and the painful thought of what is happening with my beloved Mother on the other. So, I'm taking a little break from the blog for now. I'm not sure for how long. Could be a few more weeks, could be months. I just don't feel up to it at the moment, with so many other things tugging at me.

I do have some sweet photos from our trip back to Maryland, when we traveled for my Mother's surgery. Friends, family members and my parents neighbors rallied around us in support and what a huge blessing that was, and still is. Georgea, in her sweet innocence, brought smiles to our faces when we just didn't think we had it in us. I'm thankful for my baby girl in a new way during this walk through the valley.

Georgea with her cousin Jordy

At the hospital with my Aunt Lillian, Mom's sister. It was so good to see her. Totally off her schedule, Georgea hung in there like a trooper & napped on Mama's chest in the Ergo carrier.

My rock. So thankful James could be there...I needed him and so did Georgea.

Carla, my lifelong friend. We've been friends for going on 35 years. Mom and I both melted into a pool of tears when Carla showed up. My family loves Carla & Mom still refers to her as her "other daughter." Mom was still asking for Carla the next day after her visit.

Happy girl, reminded us to smile.

My joy.

My beautiful friend Heidi brought a meal to us at my parents house. Heidi is just as beautiful inside as she is out......love her!

Clappity-clap, in a borrowed high chair. My sister & some friends pulled together lots of baby items for Georgea to help make our stay comfortable. We found out about my Mom's surgery & caught a flight the same day, so there wasn't much time to prepare.

James stayed at my parents house and hung with Georgea a couple of days so that she didn't have to go to the hospital every day. We learned that a hospital is not an ideal place for a baby due to all the germs floating around.

Three of the 5 Chiavacci kids...Lindsay, Luca & Georgi. They came by with their Mom (my good friend Kelly) 2 different days to help entertain Georgea while I was with my Mom at the hospital. This was a major gift.

Kelly is an awesome photographer & all of the photos from their visit are Kelly's handiwork. I'm so happy to have these sweet shots of my girl.

Georgea with her new friends.

Georgea & Luca.

Georgea with Kelly. Sweet snuggles.

And smiles.....

Georgea's first experience with bubbles. A mother of 5 clearly knows how to entertain!

She loved the bubbles.

A walk in the stroller that another of my sister's friends handed over on loan. Amazing how people cared for us in such a big way. I'm still in awe.

Sweet dreams my little angel.

Florida Sunshine

In the midst of a crazy week including me heading back to work and my Mom going into the hospital....I received the gift of some Florida SUNSHINE!! My three nieces, Caitlynn, Allison & Meghann are here! My brother-in-law, sister-in-law and our nieces are visiting us and touring Arizona this week. What a huge blessing! Diving back into work & having the girls here have both been amazing and much needed distractions from the worry of what is going on with my Mom right now.

Georgea loved her cousins immediately. They make her smile and giggle as the photos show quite clearly. What a gift to have this time with them!

Caitlynn, Meghann, Alli and John surrounding baby girl, who's being held by Daddy.

Georgea takes a close look at her cousin Cait

Let the giggles begin!

More giggles! Georgea's Uncle John was cracking her up.

Four beauties

Change

I'm not the most flexible person by nature. Those who know me well are probably laughing, as this may actually be an understatement. I have however learned over the years that flexibility is not only important but necessary. Necessary to function well at work, in relationships, necessary...period. And, I've become much more flexible with a lot of concerted effort toward this cause. Becoming a parent has forced the issue for me. This is another on the long list of ways that Georgea has had a positive impact on my life.

This week we are facing a lot of change in our household. I go back to work tomorrow, after a wonderful maternity leave, bonding with my baby girl. I am anxious & excited to get back to work. I do struggle though, as most working Moms do I suppose, with "leaving" my baby while I go off to enjoy my career. My Mom stayed at home and was such a wonderful Mother, and role model for me. I'm sure this is where some of my struggle comes in. How do you "do it all", "have it all?" What does that even mean? I know balancing this new life of ours will be a learning experience for all of us.

In addition to my return to work, we are faced with a family struggle that is not so positive. My Mom went into the hospital on Friday. She was having some unusual memory loss and ultimately my Dad ended up taking her to the ER. After some testing the Dr.'s discovered that my Mom has a mass on her brain. That's all we know right now. There will be additional tests run early this week and we are all so anxious to better understand the details of my Mother's condition and what is next. My Mom is one of the great loves of my life. This news...oh it just makes my heart so heavy. And living so far from "home" makes it really tough. Your prayers for my Mom's health and for my entire family are very much appreciated.

It's been such a busy time preparing to go back to work & then dealing with the news regarding my Mom's hospitalization that photo ops have been pushed to the side. James did manage to snap a few shots of our girl glaming it up in her white sunglasses yesterday afternoon though.

Our baby girl is changing too, right before our eyes. Georgea is growing taller, her beautiful hair is growing and actually lightening from spending time in the Arizona sun. She's smiling and "talking" more often, and filling our hearts to overflowing with frequent hugs, pats and sweet raspy laughter. Change is good.