The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Good: 

Now two weekends ago, we took a drive to see Joel's oldest brother and his new family of six! Of course, with that many little kids running around, the pictures are not so great but we had such a fun time being with them. Our kids played great, we made it to the pool, had a lot of time snuggling new, sweet babes, and enjoyed being together.

Joel and his brother even snuck in a race in Bettendorf (the Bix), so that was really fun for them too. 

The Bad:

Sadly, on Sunday morning, I woke up and got a call from my cousin and best friend Amanda that he dad was rapidly declining (he has been suffering from cancer this year), and that she was driving to say her final goodbyes. As family rushed there, he passed away at 7am and was quickly surrounded by his children, wife, brothers and sisters and nieces and nephews.

We left Iowa pretty immediately and went straight to their house with lunch and Leo in hand (the only two things that could maybe bring 5 minutes of a smile). Joel took Leo home and I spent the night with Amanda. 

That days following have been sad, horrific, sweet, tender, depressing, exhausting, encouraging, and probably everything in between.

My best friend lost a day, my aunt lost her husband, my dad his brother, and me and my sisters, our uncle. 

The loss will be felt for a long, long time but I'm so thankful that I live here now, was able to be with family this whole week, and can continue to be a distraction and support system for my family during this time. 

The Ugly: 

And because this always happens when it's not ideal timing, Leo and I came down with colds. Lots of missed naps, bad sleeping habits, and run down systems will do that to you.