Goodbye

JillyBean and Aunt Evelyn playing checkers on Easter

Beanie Dad's Great Aunt Evelyn died last night. She had been fighting Lymphoma for quite some time. While we are going to miss her very much, we feel incredibly blessed that she is leaving us now. When we saw her at Christmas she looked horrible. She was losing her hair, she was so frail and used all of her energy to entertain company. She turned 90 in early January and we believed that we would get a call at any time that she had passed. Oddly enough, Evelyn got a clean bill of health from her doctor about the same time my dad died. It was amazing news. We saw her at Easter and she looked like her old self. Then last week she began to take a turn for the worse and slipped away last night with Daddy's grandmother and mom at her side. Although she was in horrible pain this past week, she had four wonderful months and I am happy that our last memory of her is of her strength and spunk.

Evelyn reminded me so much of my grandfather. Ever the perfectionist, she was a fighter. She loved life and loved her family and wanted nothing more than to spend just one more day on this Earth. My grandfather was the same and I so wish that they could have met. They would have become fast friends.

A group of my good friends have formed a Relay for Life team, which supports the American Cancer Society. The team name is Moms on a Mission. Check out their page and consider giving them a donation to help fight cancer. Or you can purchase a luminaria in honor of someone you love. We know that Evelyn's spirit will shine bright for eternity.