It was with AMAZING joy that our oldest daughter, Lacy, married her son's father after five, long years of ups and downs, backs and forths, and wow......... Shawn was never dishonest. He said from the get-go that he'd never get married. He never left. He became a great dad and eventually a steady partner. Imagine our surprise when you told us that you both had decided to make a "forever commitment"! Huh? What did that mean? Shawn LAUGHED!!! "We're getting married!!!", he laughed! We began making plans for a beautiful, small wedding on May 1st and a HUGE party on August 1st.
It was a beautiful day. The rain stopped just before the ceremony. Not too bright that pictures were perfect and then the SUN broke through just as we finished! We began coordinating for August, hiring a caterer, renting tents, tables and chairs, discussing decorations. Life was good.
On May 28th, our entire world came crashing (no pun intended) to a horrible, life-shattering end. Shawn was driving to work very early that morning... and never arrived. He died instantly, which was a blessing once we got a look at the car. All the plans came to a halt. Tears fell like waterfalls. Families that had, at times, been at odds came together in grief to hold and support each other. Although I knew the bottom would fall out eventually, Lacy amazed me at her strength. From having to tell her son that his daddy would not be coming home to dealing with the details at the funeral home. All we were allowed to see was Shawn's right hand. She studied it as if studying for a final exam. It was a gloomy day in Alma, WI when we went to deal with the aftermath. We went to the funeral home, had lunch at the local diner, placed a roadside memorial, went to the top of the cliffs to "play" and then went back to the funeral home to bring Shawn home. It was quite amazing that, when we walked outside again, with Shawn in Lacy's arms, the sun again broke through! It gave us all such warmth and joy to feel like Shawn was shining down on us, telling us that he was okay.
Which brings us to today. Scrapping has always brought me such joy. Throughout the last couple months, the last seven years of digi and the last 30 years of my life, scrapping has been my outlet, my release, my creative home. I have found it hard to scrap in the last month, except for a very few pages, out of necessity. But I do enjoy creating new "stuff". Here's my portion of the Pixel Scrapper July Blog Train. The theme was Summer Splash. Perfect for July and perfect for me. Bright colors, happy feelings. I hope you enjoy this kit as much as I enjoyed creating it for you.
Now, head on over to the PS Blog Train and collect the other portions. Be sure to leave some love along the way for those wonderful designers who have taken time out of their busy schedules to create for you (and me). When you're done perusing the offerings, cruise on over to the Coop's Custom Creations Facebook page to grab the QP over there. (if you do, you'll also have the opportunity to snag the QP from last month, that I never got posted...sorry)
Anyway. Have fun, always. Tell the people you love, that you LOVE THEM. Tomorrow is never promised. I'm reminded of the "poem".
Yesterday is History.
Tomorrow is a Mystery.
Today is a Gift.
That is why they call it the Present.
Love and Blessings!
