Butterfly Walk

It’s been raining for days. But today the sun peeked out from behind the clouds and produced a gloriously beautiful spring day. Tomorrow it will rain again, and for many more days this week. But this little handful of sunshine? Perfectly timed.

When we moved from the Big City, we joined a new playgroup via invitation of an old high school friend. As I began to learn the names of all the children, I kept hearing the name “Mary” but never saw her appear. I would later find our that just as we were making our move from the Big City, Mary and her family had just moved to the Big City. To Children’s Hospital, to be treated for a brain tumor.

I can’t even begin to imagine the journey Mary and her family have been through in the past few years. It sounds horrifying. But I won’t dwell on those details since today Mary will happily share the news of her recent visit to Children’s where she passed all her tests with flying colors.

Today we joined she and her family and many other survivors, friends, and families to for a walk to raise money for pediatric cancer research. Following the walk was a meticulously planned festival for the kids including bouncy slides, pony rides, face painting, arts and crafts, and the critter guy who let Neko hold his alligator and I got to help hold a 100-pound snake. (Take a deep breath, Kate D., it wasn’t bad.)

Thank you to John, Kim, and Mary for letting us be a part of this celebration. And at the end of the day, I couldn’t have been more thrilled to discover this picture of Mary’s LONG, CURLY HAIR blowing in the wind. Congratulations.