A Little Intermission from Jennifer

Hello All. I hope you don't mind but, I decided to take a little blog break to give a big kudos to my mom, Donna, for heading this HUGE project. I remember the day she called me and started the conversation with "I want to auction off a Christmas Tree for American Cancer Society, do you think people will stitch some ornaments for it?" and my response:"I'm sure a few will and you can always do pink, purple and teal balls as fillers." It's amazing to me now that we were worried about fillers. I have been in the background, but, I am proud to say I have been able to be a part of this journey. Starting with that first conversation, setting up the blog, having the mid-way meltdown "Will we have enough ornaments? Are we going to raise enough money to make a difference?". I have the same answer now as I did then, Every penny we raise will be a penny more they didn't have towards the ultimate goal, FINDING A CURE SO NO ONE EVER HAS TO DIE FROM CANCER AGAIN! Everyone who has been a part of this project, even just praying for it, has made a difference. YOU ALL ARE WONDERFUL AND MY MOTHER AND I LOVE YOU FOR IT! On October 16, 2009, I have the grand privilege of attending Relay for Life with my mother and watching the grand unveiling of the tree. Yes, there will be plenty of pictures! I know I will get misty eyed. As every single one of the 167 ornaments was stitched for a special person in mind. Whether living or already gone to a better place, that person fought, that person struggled, and that person has touched our hearts. And now, we get to do something to thank those people. We get to unveil a tree, auction it off, and give every cent towards making a difference. As much as I have loved this project, I think I can speak for my mom when I say that I hope one day we have no need for this project. We will have no cancer victims to stitch for! And my mother. My dear sweet mother. Who has a bigger heart than could ever fit in my chest. Who deals with and helps cancer patients everyday and not just in this project. Who watches them have surgery, get better, get worse, and pass away everyday. I would be curled up in a ball in the corner if I had to hear about children dying of cancer everyday but, she does it and still fights on. Her motto: "If they can fight this disease, I can fight for a cure." I wish every single one of you could meet her. Extraordinary doesn't even begin to describe her. So, thank you to everyone involved in this project, thank you to the stitchers, the prayers, (the spouses of the stitchers for putting up with all the stitching), and to the woman who had a little idea that will make a HUGE difference, the woman I am proud to call my mother. Mom, you are fabulous, you are completely cha-cha, and you are remarkable. We're in the home stretch and every dream you had about this project will be surpassed. I love you. Let's see this thing through because if they can fight, so can we.