Stillbirth. Help Break the Silence.

I was out running errands that Saturday morning when Sarah called me and asked me to come home.  She was a week beyond her due date and we were both anxious to welcome our first child into our lives.

Looking back, the drive to the hospital that June day in 2006 seemed to be a long one.  I honestly don't remember the conversation between Sarah & me. I do remember Sarah being tense.  But at the time, I figured it was just a "normal" nervousness.  I know now that it more was than that.

Within an hour of our arrival to the hospital, we were told our baby had died.

"The baby's heart stopped beating."

"I am so sorry."

What!?

No.

There must be a mistake.

Shock, disbelief, anger, grief, sorrow, more anger, followed by intense sorrow and depression-like feelings have been with Sarah and me since then.

Sometimes the feelings are overwhelming. Sometimes faint. But the feelings are always there.

We learned about stillbirth.  We found out it happens more than one would think.  BUT no one talks about it. NO ONE. It makes people uncomfortable.  People say some absurd things.  It hurts.

First Candle shared a video (link below) which I hope you will watch and share with your family friends.  I think it may help those who have not delivered a child sleeping (and those that have for that matter). 

Since Abigail, neither Sarah nor I have known anyone in our close circle of family and friends who have experienced stillbirth.  However, coincidentally enough, I received an email from my brother a day or two after I started to draft this post.  A friend of his, whom I had met on a couple of occasions, had lost his son to stillbirth.  His wife was in the hospital preparing for labor and their son died.

Please take a few minutes to click on the link below and watch the video.  And please also remember Abigail Ruth (June 4,2006), Robert and all the other children born sleeping.

http://gapps.org/index.php/advocacy/making_a_difference/break_the_silence_video/

Blizzard of 1978

If you live in the Northeastern part of the United States you are well aware that a storm described as possibly "epic" is churning over us as I write this.  And if you are over the age of 40 you may remember the historic storm of 1978 which occurred at about this time 35 years ago - February 6th and 7th, 1978 to be exact.

I was living in a section of Boston called West Roxbury at the time, and I am fortunate to have fond memories of the Blizzard of '78. We were without power for a few days and our street was not cleared for days as well.  But, unlike some others, none of us were left stranded on any of the impassable roads.  There were many people who were not as fortunate  - stranded during the hurricane force winds and freezing temperatures. Schools were closed for 2+ weeks and everyone was using sleds, toboggans and skis as their transportation!

The town I live in now is one of the towns which could see up to 30 inches of snow before Nemo leaves the area on Saturday.  That is a lot of snow!  There are a few differences between the Blizzard of '78 and Nemo, however.  The biggest difference is that everyone has known DAYS in advance of this storm.  Meteorologists were predicting 6 inches of snow before the Blizzard of '78 - it caught everyone by surprise!  Most people didn't have snow blowers back in 1978 either - we just used good 'ole muscle power!

My dad (God rest his soul) and mother got a few brief video clips from the Blizzard of '78.  In this clip are my two younger brothers Chris and Don, my dad, my mother and myself:

A gorilla, Gaston, a hippo and Duffy.

I think this may be my final post on our December Disney trip - it just seems "old" at this point.

This video clip includes some of the animals we saw at Animal Kingdom.  It was pretty cool to see an enormous hippo swim underwater (through a window).  The gorilla exhibit was also great - one of the gorillas was hanging out directly in front of the glass-enclosed viewing area!

When you watch the gorilla video clip, listen for the cast member (CM) saying "...you will have nightmares for the rest of your life!" Some kid went under the rope and climbed up on to the ledge of the window, which was a definite NO-NO.  And, despite more than a couple of stern warnings by the CM for the kid's parent(s) to get him out of there, the CM basically warned everyone that if the gorilla gets mad, ALL of us will be sorry and "have nightmares for the rest of our lives".  I believe him.  The kid's parents finally pulled him away from the window....

Also in this video is Gaston, albeit briefly.  He surprised us we were having a snack outside of Gaston's Tavern so I wasn't able to get it all on video.  He did comment on the fact that Anna was focused on sipping her lemonade though!

It Was Electric.

Another "must do" from our trip was to see the electric parade which runs down Main Street (only on specified nights).  Check. I will say it was well worth staking out a curbside spot two hours before the parade was to begin. Both the parade and the light show on Cinderella's castle parade were simply awesome.  Sarah and I have always said that Disney knows how to put on a show!

Here's some more clips from our trip.  Check it out - it has some cute clips of Allie and Emily holding hands with Tigger! Anna wearing sunglasses is pretty darn cute too!

One snowflake, three fairies. The girls meet Tink and Periwinkle.

This being our third trip to Disney, we had a good idea of what our "must do" and "definitely skip" items were going to be.

We knew we were definitely going to check-out the new Fantasyland (Belle's castle, etc.) and we also planned to spend AT LEAST 2 of our 6 days at Magic Kingdom.  We would also skip Hollywood Studios this trip (and maybe the next couple of trips as well).  We passed on going to Hollywood Studies because, in comparison to the other parks, there are few very attractions  for the girls.

Another must -do was to see Tinkerbell again since Allie missed seeing Tink last time.

I cannot believe I am even going to say this but...Tinkerbell has become a fave of mine. I guess I previously just couldn't get passed her high-pitched voice.  BUT, after seeing the character in person, seeing the girls' reactions to her, and catching some of Tinkerbell movies/shows, I like her! 

Here's Allie, Anna and Emily meeting Tinkerbell and Periwinkle: