As the end of Christmas shopping season draws near, I have wondered to myself how many people like me have gifts yet to buy. Is it because you are procrastinating, waiting for the Christmas Eve specials or really struggling to find that perfect gift for a special person in your life? If the reason is the latter and if that special person has lost someone near and dear to them, may I offer an idea of a gift that doesn't need to cost much, but may be more valuable than all the

As I transition from writing on Jane's Caring Bridge site to writing in a blog, I feel a little lost and uncertain as to what to write. Many things have happened in the last year and especially since Jane's and my dad's death that I often feel empty. In a way, the Caring Bridge entries were easy to write. In the beginning, I was writing so that when Jane grew up she could read about things that I had imagined that she may have forgotten. At the end, when we knew Jane's death

When Jane died from Leukemia, I was feeling like she was one in a million. I felt alone and like no one would understand. I admit selfishly I felt like I was the only mom who has ever lost a child. Maybe, it's because by nature I am naive, maybe it's because no matter how hard I try to fight it I am a "glass is half full" woman, maybe it's because I am just growing up and seeing the world through my "big girl glasses". The list could go on and on. But, the truth of it is that