I just didn't have it in me to write yesterday. But I really wanted to thank you all for your love and prayers and all your support. My mom went home to be with the Lord last Monday. At the time, I was so so happy for her! But a week later, with no more funeral plans to keep me busy, I'm feeling the weight of my loss.

That loss is tempered by some wonderful memories, particularly of the last week. The most beautiful thing happened – God moved all four of us kids to be there together with Mom during the last week of her life. Two of the four families drove all night. I was blessed with a great friend buying me a plane ticket the week before. For seven days, we laughed together, tried really hard not to cry together, ate together, and told innumerable stories about each other. It was one of the most wonderful weeks of my life.

It was probably one of the most wonderful weeks of Mom's life, too. She was so gracious about the fact that her kids had gone off to create lives for themselves wherever their dreams took them. But on May 7, for the first time since my wedding day twenty-two years ago, Mom had all four of her kids together in the same room. Better than that, she had all four of us for a whole week!

I'm sure I'll be writing more about these last few weeks over time. There were wonderful stories that I'll want to remember forever. I'd love to hear your stories about your mom or dad, too, if you want to comment now or later. It's the perfect time of year for reflection, right between Mother's Day and Father's Day. They may be Hallmark holidays, but I was grateful to have a whole week of celebrating Mom before she left. It was pretty perfect.