Jake The Crazy Man

Poor little Jake got stitches last week. The crazy kid was climbing on an unstable chair and fell. He had to get 14 stitches! The poor kid! Carrie and I went to visit him last week which was tons of fun. He is so active and in to everything. I can't believe he's only an hour away and I've only seen him a handful of times (he lives with Stu's Brother and sister in law while Stu finishes his residency). It's always so great to be around him, and his little smile makes me so happy. I told Matt when I got home that he looks 100% like his dad! I see little Stu running around. Joan swears she sees a little Joyce in him, but I guess I'm not around him enough to make that observation. I've thought so many times I hope he doesn't think we're this crazy family that goes to all his soccer games, football games, school performances, etc. We all love to be around him so much, and he brings so much joy to our family. What a miracle this little guy is.

As Mother's Day came and went, I thought of how sad Joyce only got one Mother's Day with Jake. It was a hard day for a lot of us I think. I wondered if I even called her last year to wish her a Happy Mother's Day. It's odd to see this gap between our lives together and apart become wider. My mom mentioned on Sunday she feels that as time passes by, she longs to hear more of Joyce. She loves when we talk about her, or when anyone talks about her. I totally have to agree. It really brings more comfort to talk about her and her life as time goes on. I can't even begin to convey what a wonderful sister she was. As I was taking these pictures of Jake and his stitches, he was being so darn cute. He would giggle and smile and run away from the camera as fast as he could. He was jumping on the trampoline and having a grand old time. It made me miss her so much. I know she would have been laughing with him with a huge smile on her face as well. I could just picture Joyce saying something like "you crazy kid, get over here!"

We all have this New Year's Resolution to "Remember" Joyce. It's so easy to continue on with our daily activities and forget the influence she had in our life.
This post is one that possibly belongs on a "private" blog, so perhaps I should head that route. I need to do better at posting more about Joyce, because my memory sucks and the more time that goes by the more I'll forget. I feel like I'd let loose if I knew exactly who was reading this!

Does anyone from high school remember the surprise party Joyce & Joan threw me for my 18th birthday? How cute was that!? I was reading in my journal the other day that Joyce & Joan sent me balloons in 1st period that I had to carry around all day. We had Carrie's wedding the next day, and I was concerned my birthday would be forgotten. Joyce and Joan did everything possible to make sure it was a memorable one. What a fun party! If I was as talented as Mary, I'd scan some of the pictures in from that momentous occasion!



This is a picture of Parker, Andy and Jake (Carrie trying to hold them up and make them happy!). Carrie, Joyce, Joan and I were all pregnant at the same time, so we have kids all within a few months of each other. We'll save that post for another day! What a fun experience!