Life Happens

I’ve been pretty absent the past three weeks. Life took ahold of me and blogging didn’t seem right. It was a weird and sad three weeks.

Just a few weeks ago my husband’s brother-in-law lost his life to cancer at the age of 49. I never had the pleasure of meeting Larry and I’m kicking myself for it now. Sitting at his funeral in Memphis on Martin Luther King Jr Day, I got to see the impact he had on hundreds of people. The church was packed to the brim; people were even standing outside in the cold to hear the sweet words of his son Beau and the stories the preacher told. It was amazing to see the presence he left on so many people. Chris and I both made a point to live a life like Larry – be great parents to your children, treat everyone with respect and put your faith in God knowing His plans may not be fair but they are His plans for you.

Exactly a two weeks later, Chris lost his grandad, Lafayette Downing. We believe he was ready to go, but it was still a shock to us all. I got to get to know Grandad pretty well this past summer. Chris and I would sit at Granny and Grandad’s house for 5 or more hours at a time just talking. We really enjoyed sitting and listening to the stories he told. He’d get to chuckling about our nephew Dylan and the stories he would tell about The grand kids. He was a great man. A man that worked with his hands and taught his kids, grand kids and great grandchildren the importance of family and a strong presence in the church.

Tough three weeks. Two lives lost. Two road trips that took 24-36 hours each time but all worth it when we got to spend time with family. Time to spend the most time you can with your family members still around. The most important thing is to try to live your life and leave impact on other people like they both did.

We woke up this morning to a a fresh, beautiful land of snow. It was like Grandad wanted us to stop crying and enjoy the beautiful things that God gives us.

Rockin’ a Canadian tuxedo in the snow today as we head back to Texas. My kikilarue scarf is perfect for this weather. (C/O Shanna and Kiki La Rue!)