We just returned a couple days ago from almost two weeks spent in Fort Collins with Jarod's family, following the death of his beloved mother Jennifer. The two weeks were crazy busy, with planning the funeral and internment for the first part, then dealing with Jennifer's house, belongings, dividing up stuff for the second part. I wouldn't say Chou-chou was real wild about caravaning all over the place every day, nor did he have the most balanced diet while we were there, but he was a champ through it all, and had a blast with his cousins Parker (3 yrs) and Leah (18 mos.). Leah and Chou-chou may as well be twins, with their same hair and coloring and almost identical size (though not weight! Leah's a good five pounds lighter). They were darn cute in the Target cart together, at the funeral in their Sunday best, and running all over Tatie Anna and Tonton Brandon's house. Chou-chou got rather bold with Leah (flirting, maybe?), as he thoroughly enjoyed stealing her lovey blanket and running away repeatedly, laughing. It was the way Chou-chou played with Parker, though, that was truly transforming for Chou-chou over the two weeks. Chou-chou looks up to big kids, and his cousin Parker was no exception. The two boys had fun doing all sorts of things together, and since Chou-chou wouldn't go to sleep in the basement by himself (where the three of us were sleeping), he and Parker consequently had lots of late night time together to play with toys and "talk". Speaking of talking, Chou-chou has had a verbal explosion!! I think maybe we have Parker to thank, or maybe just being around so many people for the two weeks, or maybe it was just his time... anyway, he'll pretty much repeat anything now ("Donald Duck" is my favorite) and has loads of two-word phrases. Jarod and I couldn't believe, on our long drive home to Portland, just how much Chou-chou seemed to mature during out trip. Chou-chou is still one of the shyest and most clingy guys around, though, so I have a feeling his newly acquired language will mainly be kept for Jarod and me for some time to come. Oh well, he is who he is!!
All in all, our trip was healing for everyone. The service was a beautiful tribute to Jennifer's life, and the boys put on a tearful but heartfelt show for everyone when they read one of their mom's favorite books, Love You Forever. A family favorite for many years, she also gave each married son a copy with a message on the day of their wedding. I've never seen so many flowers at a funeral, so many people at a funeral (over 300, the funeral home said it was their biggest ever), heard so many grieving sobs, and witnessed such an outpouring of love. Jennifer truly touched so many people, and her life was an inspiration to us all in many ways. I only wish I could say the grieving were over, but unfortunately the "messy" details following an unexpected death will be on the boys' minds and hearts for some time to come. I'm praying they will all experience God's peace and love as they deal in the days and months to come.
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