Happy Birthday My Little Peanut!

Eleven years ago today, our baby Samantha was born. She's the youngest of three and it's hard to believe that 11 years has gone by and almost 9 since Jeff died. Does anyone do what I do -- when it's a birthday, I mentally subtract their age from when Jeff died to see how many years he's "missed." Then I get all sappy and weepy and keep telling myself I know he sees all of them and how beautiful they are inside and out. I know other widows/widowers who do the same thing.

She's celebrating today with us and on Saturday with her friends. She invited five of her closest friends who are crazy over Webkinz for a Webkinz-themed party. That includes a new Webkinz doll for her of course (plus two video games she wanted and a brand new bowling ball since she didn't have a big party!) and Webkinz games and punch and cake. All-in-all a pretty simple party to do.

Next week, I have to stop back to the cemetery and add new flowers for the spring. I'm putting in pretty fake ones because I'm tired of replacing what became the animal's lunch. LOL.

Still working on two major book deadlines so my May is pretty shot, but I'm grateful the work is coming in. In the meantime, today is all about Samantha. I remember when she was little, she was VERY talkative. As a 2-year-old she would take any big word she could find and use it in a sentence just to use it. So she might come up to you and say, "I differentiate you." LOL No kidding. She had no idea what it meant, but if she used it she was proud of herself. After Jeff died, and the kids went back to school, it was just me and her for a few years. We went shopping, to the movies, playdates and just hung around. Blues Clues was a lifesaver for me those years. Funny how I actually miss hearing that in my house. Time flies....

Happy Birthday To Daddy's "Punkin" and My "Little Peanut!"

Love you!
Mommy

What on Earth Do You Do When Someone Dies? Win a copy

I was cleaning part of my office today and was looking at all the books I have on grief and bereavement. I liked this one. This book, What on Earth Do You Do When Someone Dies by Trevor Romain is on how children cope with grief. I have to admit that I'm not one to be at a loss for words. Even the night I told them that Jeff had died the words just came out (not easily, but they came out). Since then, I've been asked many, many questions about death and grief. They had questions about his body, the ground, heaven, the funeral (which I didn't take them too -- they were 6, 4 and 2 and that's not how I wanted them to remember Jeff. Instead their last day with him was in the hospital the day before and they played with him) and a bunch of other things.

For those of you who are at a loss for words, or are looking for an easy way to answer your child's questions, this is a great start. It has Trevor's versions of answers to:

* Why do people have to die?
* Am I going to die, too?
* Who can I talk to?
* What is it like to die?
* Is it my fault?
* Is it okay to have fun?
* How can I say goodbye?
* What happens now?

and more...

Read it together or turn to it when your child has a question. Either way, it's a small book jammed with a lot of information and.....

I'm giving my copy away.

Simply post a comment here -- tell me about your children, your loved one, or just say hi and tell me how you're doing and you'll be entered to win it. You have until April 9th to do so. Then I'll choose a name out of a hat and I'll contact you to let you know you won. If you feel comfortable doing so, put your email address in the comment (you can write it out like this lisawriter (at) msn (dot) com so spammers can't get it. I don't take any responsibility however. Just trying to make the process easier.

I hope everyone is doing well. Me? I'm doing well but have had a few dreams about Jeff recently. I'm glad, but it makes me a bit sad too. Two of my three children are now TALLER than I am! Both are looking into getting jobs and one is getting college brochures now! So I'm still cuddling my 10-year-old, who isn't too far behind (my chin sits on her head now without bending down). But she's still young enough to play with stuffed animals, Webkinz and Bratz dolls. She loves Dylan Sprouse (Disney fame) but isn't into boys yet. When we saw "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day" the (unexpected) man's butt shot elicited a huge "ewwwwww" out of her and her friends. Phew. I still have a little time left. I plan on enjoying it.