the bravest girl in the world

This is my good friend Celeste. She moved out of state a few years ago (can’t believe it’s been that long already) not long after her husband passed away and is home visiting this weekend. She is one of my "playgroup girls"- we met at Gymboree when the oldest kids were 3 months old and have kept having playgroup and such since then. Now, it’s mostly the mommies who get together because school and afterschool stuff gets in the way of playgroups. Anyway, back to the point of the post…

Celeste lost her husband to cancer a few years ago. He was a great, great guy. A fabulous husband and father. And it was such a waste. So very sad. Celeste had a very, very difficult time for a long while after his passing, but man, that girl pulled it together like no one’s business. She moved to Georgia with her two young girls, bought a house, got a job, learned how to run a household, made a whole life down there….and with NO HELP from anyone. She had no family in that area. She just picked up and went. And now she is thriving! She looks fantastic and is really, truly happy. It’s such a wonderful thing to see. She has come so very far. So brave! Maureen got her a little statue that said "courage". And that my friend is the absolute truth!

She put together a little celebration of David’s life with his family and friends tonight (the anniversary of his passing). And it wasn’t sad or morbid. It’s for everyone to share their best David stories and remember the impact he had on their lives. I got to go to dinner with her and Maureen and then hung out at the party for just a little bit. So unfortuately I didn’t get to see a lot of the people who were going to be coming, but I did get to see some of her family- which is always nice!