An early Christmas present for us-Range Hood installed

I have been so lucky to know some really generous people.  One of those is Russ Prewitt.  He is an amazing person-AND bagpiper!
He came over this week and worked very hard to help me get the range hood installed.  He finished today.  And then left to work 10 more hours at Alaska Airlines.   Very, very generous.
And as you see here- he does fine work.
We are getting closer to finishing this facelift in the kitchen.
Still don't have propane hooked up or windows trimmed out and painted-but we're making progress!
I am still stunned at how lovely and charming it turned out.
The boys said "Mom, it looks like you took all of your favorite things and just threw them together".
and that's a BAD thing????
That's exactly what I did. 
I dreamed up this Kitchen and dreamed about this kitchen for about 20 years. 
I hope the boys and I can enjoy many more years of family dinners here...
that includes you of course!

I took these pictures with my phone camera- so they're not the best, but you get the idea....  : )
Photo below is our Christmas tree with gifts beneath from Ozzie!!!!!!!  Thank you so much!

Nick's corner.
Kimberley and the boys....

One Year ago...

I can't believe it's been one year.  It hardly seems possible.  We miss Nick everyday and we always will.This day is too hard to even write about.




It's impossible to believe even after one whole year that Nick is gone and really never coming back.




We couldn't have survived this year without all of the love and support from our close friends and especially from the O'Connell family. 

 Thank you John and ozzie for coming to visit and for feeding us and cheering us and letting Nick know he was never alone in the journey.  And John for making Christmas happen last year with a tree and gifts for all.  We will never forget what you both did for our whole family, as well as your brother.

Thank you Jenny for making Thanksgiving bearable, by radiating your joy into our lives.

Thank you Peter and Adele for cooking and hugging and massages and gifts and advice and....everything!

Thanks Nancy and Vinny for sharing your time and for the winning pool cue!

Nick loved his friends and your visits did more than cheer him- they gave him the will to fight.  He didn't want to leave any of you.

Camp and the brothers- Nick loved nothing more.  This smile says it all.

Clan O'Connell-words can't express our love and gratitude for this great, great family.
Rare and beautiful love.

Today was endurable because of all the support we have.  I was thinking about this time last year every hour and remembering what we were doing every second of Nick's last day.  Remembering when Peter left, how scared I was. I called my friend and asked her to come.  Please come is all I could get out and she did.  Linda Mack was here with us for 24 hours.  She was amazing and we couldn't have made it through the day without her.  I still don't know how she kept us all going.  Hospice came, but they didn't stay.  They came and evaluated, ordered pain medication that was delivered at the door and then they were gone.  It was too much for us and just so frightening.  Thomas came and stayed as long as he could also.  What would we all do without friends and family? 

We love you very much and thanks for the outpouring of love today.

XOXO,

..short clip of Nick being a great Dad-fishing with the boys in Idaho in 2008

Kimberley and Matthew and Christian and Lucas O'Connell

Lucas

Lucas 2008 basketball season

We're excited about a new basketball season.  This video is from 2008. 

Of course we didn't make one for last year.  No one felt like it.  

This is going to be a great season for our cards we have a great team, and Lucas has learned to love making the assist as much as making the shot. 

Lucas needs to work on his confidence.  Nick always encouraged him.  As have just about every referee we've met.  I think they see the fight in the smallest kid on the team and how much he can do with sheer will power and focus.  But Lucas just sees in himself a small kid who can't dunk. (yet).

Of course he's not the smallest kid on the team this year!  : )

XOXO,
k.