365 days...

Me, Karin, Lori, Jessica and Stefanie at my Birthday Dinner with my new "bear friend" courtesy of the girls and the restaurant game room!! (I got a ring too!!)

Lori and Jessica helping me celebrate!...well actually, we all were!!

Jessica and Karin on the tram with me at the Cleveland Zoo.

It's amazing what a difference 365 days can make. One year ago today, I was starting to celebrate my "milestone" with my best girls! Stefanie, Jessica, Lori and Karin made my 50th birthday wish come true by sharing the evening with me at an Aurora winery after a really fun Birthday dinner, and then on the following day, indulging my childhood memories with a trip to The Cleveland Zoo and The Rainforest. As a child, our family made yearly trips to the zoo and although Stefanie & Jessica made their way to the Rainforest during a school field trip after it opened, this was my first visit into the realms of the Amazon after years of trying to con them into going with me! It was such a memorable weekend, made even more precious now, knowing that it can never again be repeated as such.

This year, the weekend began with a visit to my daughter's grave for a moment of thanks for all that she has brought into my life. And "my girls" are once again doing all that they can to help me transition into another year. I am so grateful for all of the love and support that I have surrounding me by so many, although grief and despair still seem to have me loosely within their grasp. I am assured that with time the pain that this emptiness has created will ease...again, I believe, as we learn to live our "new normal".

So I say thank you to all of my friends...for being you, and for helping me. And as the page of this chapter turns and the beginning of the next is written, say a prayer for Jessica, for me...and for all of us.

And to those who know, close your eyes as you "listen" to Louie sing "What a Wonderful World" and eat some cake!!! (sorry--not provided!!)