Sad to report...

I am sad to report that Randy Pausch passed early this morning after his battle with pancreatic cancer. Many of you know from reading my blog, how inspired I am by the man and also how terribly close this hits to home. Just the fact that he lived almost 2 years after being diagnosed is amazing. If you still haven't had the chance to watch his Last Lecture, I urge you to do so by following the link. Help us find a cure at PanCan.

Remembering a special person...

Today will mark 3 years since my mother-in-law and beloved "grammy"
(to LJ, LK, ZoZo , Carly Bug, and Coop) passed. This rose bush was a memorial gift given to us upon her passing. These roses just bloomed 2 days ago. I thought the timing was interesting. We think of her all the time, but on this day Hubby and I usually don't comment on what "day" it is. Even though it is a really difficult day to remember and brings back so many sad details, she was such an awesome woman that a blog post is much deserved.

Here is my hope for a future conversation between myslef, LJ, and LK....
LJ and LK: "Mom, what happened to Grammy"
Mom: "She had pancreatic cancer"
LJ and LK: "I wish we could have met her"
Mom: "I wish you could have also.."
LJ and LK: "I sure am glad that they found a cure for cancer so we don't lose more people that we love"

Pancreatic cancer is one of the top 5 deadliest cancers in the U.S. The reason being that usually the cancer has spread before it is detected. In 2008, new cases of pancreatic cancer are at 37,680. Deaths from pancreatic cancer in 2008 are at 34,290. To learn more about pancreatic cancer or to donate to help find a cure, please visit PanCan

Some of you may remember my post about Randy Pausch and his Last Lecture. Well, his blog is located here. I keep checking up on him, knowing exactly how grim his future is. I pray that he lives to enjoy Father's Day on Sunday as he has three children under the age of 6. Here is a blog post from a colleague of Randy. I am sorry if I am going on and on about this man....but I really haven't been so inspired in quite some time. Also, pancreatic cancer is what our favorite dirty dancer,Patrick Swayze, was diagnosed with earlier this year. I hear he was spotted at a Lakers game in May and seems to be doing okay.

Sweet Baby Cooper

As promised...here is a pic of our 6-week old nephew, Cooper. We were so thrilled to meet him for the first time on our vacation. I kept telling K' (my sister-in-law) what a great baby he is...especially with all the craziness that was going on in the house when we were there. She is a very avid babywearer. He does great in the sling. It takes her maybe 2 minutes to get it on, baby inside and comfy. I tried using them when LJ and LK were little, yet I always needed her help getting the darn thing on! She has a friend that makes them and she just sent K' a new one which I love! Check out the link if you're interested!

On a side note...I am not sure how many of you were able to catch the The Last Lecture (A love story for your life) last night on ABC. This is truly an inspiring story. I ended up bawling throughout the whole show, as did my sister-in-law. As many of you know, my mother-in-law passed away 3 years ago to Pancreatic Cancer. This disease is something that really hits me hard. If you missed it, you can catch the lecture online.What a great attitude Randy Pausch has...so inspiring.