Bereaved and Blessed

Our First Pregnancy Loss (20 Years Later)

December 1, 2024

20 years ago today, on December 1, 2004, we experienced our first miscarriage. I was about seven weeks pregnant, with an estimated due date (EDD) of July 20, 2005. Sean was 13 months old when I tested positive with a home pregnancy test on November 10, 2004. We were trying and I was anxious to […]

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Today You Are 21

October 2, 2024

Today you’ve reached a significant milestone in a young adult’s life, your young adult life. Today you are 21 years old. I had a bit of trouble falling asleep last night and as I was trying to settle down, I reflected on how I was actually awake most of the night before you were born. […]

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Today You Are Fifteen

September 17, 2024

‘Cause when you’re fifteen… Can you believe it? Today you are fifteen! I was going to borrow/reuse some of the post I wrote for your older sibling Sean on their 15th Birthday six years ago, using lyrics from the awesome song 100 Years by Five for Fighting, as I felt they fit/apply to you at […]

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My London Semester Journal II: Sunday, March 31, 1996

August 27, 2024

Sunday, 3-31-96 4:00 PM On the Way Home from Our Road Trip (somewhere in Scotland or England) 9:00 AM E-Town Back in the “Black Sheep”… That’s what we’ve named our rental car this weekend! We are on our way home after a fabulous weekend which truly exceeded my (& I believe all of our) expectations! Ruth […]

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Transportation Bonding

June 30, 2024

One of the many cute and quirky things my parents did regularly in their golden years was something they referred to as “transportation bonding.” It typically consisted of my dad driving my mom somewhere that only she needed to go. However, they used it as an opportunity to spend quality time together during the ride […]

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Mom, O’Keefe & NYC

June 13, 2024

For my 48th birthday last year, in March 2023, my mom contributed to my getting an Art Institute of Chicago membership, something I’ve done and really enjoyed off and on over the years. I got it as part of a deal that lasted 15 months, so it doesn’t expire until the end of this month. […]