Never Underestimate the Power of the Nie

I am always talking about NieNie and her family and spreading their story to anyone who will listen. This complete stranger and her amazing family have totally changed and captivated me and many others. I am so thankful to them for their honesty and willingness to be so open with so many strangers about so many very personal things.

Latest update?

It looks like Nie's latest skin graft is taking. Thanks for any prayers and positivity you may have sent the Nielson's way. Keep it coming <3

Your Personal Year In Review

Usually I reflect and make resolutions on my birthday instead of at the end of the calendar year, BUT this is an amazing year-end list! Melissa at birds.eye.view posted this listy quiz of sorts By Ariane de Bonvoisin and found on HuffPo. As Melissa says, it’s one you do yourself!

* What was the best thing that happened to me this year?

My husband and I moved into a two-family turned two condos with all the original 1920's charms and we have made it a home.

* What did I do this year that I’m really proud of?

I have always wanted to volunteer. Finally, instead of just searching for opportunities, I took action. Volunteering is more challenging and also more rewarding than I ever imagined.

I began blogging regularly and putting myself and my writing out there in just a small way. Facing that fear is something I am proud of.

Started focusing on my mental health and am taking steps to improve it.

* Who did I really help?

I like to think I have helped my fellow volunteers and the families I have begun to know at Perkins School for the Blind.

Volunteering/Interning at Teen Voices Magazine, I hope I have helped the young women I have been working with to grow and change for the better.

By sending words of encouragement, contributing to Threads of Love, and spreading their story to everyone I can, I have tried to help the Nielson Family in my own small way.

I have tried to help my friends and family by always being here to listen, emote, and love.

I have tried to help my husband by getting up every morning to make his lunch and send him off to work with a hug and words of encouragement, by thanking him every night for working so hard to take care of our little family and for all of the support he gives to me no matter what, by participating in events that his employer puts on (volunteering at charity run, making apple pie, going to the Holiday Party), by fully understanding and encouraging all of the work travel he needs to do, by keeping the house running so he can leave his stress at work and fully relax when he is at home, and by just loving him.

* Who do I need to thank and acknowledge for having been there for me?

All of the people who I have helped have in turn helped me.

The other volunteers at Perkins have been friendly and encouraging. The families at Perkins have shown me what true courage and love really are. The child I worked one-on-one with at Perkins helped me to be patient, adapt, see the world in new ways, and pay attention to and acknowledge even the smallest accomplishments.

The young women at Teen Voices have helped to recognize that "normal" varies from person to person. They have helped me to be a better leader and listener. They have helped me to see my own possibilities by exhibiting theirs.

The Nielson and Clark families have helped me to grow in faith, to cherish every moment, to be grateful every day, to find the positive in every situation, to begin to figure out what I want my family to be like should my husband and I be blessed with children, to show my love to my husband every day in every way... Just so many lessons from NieNie, CJane, AliceKind, Lizzy Writes, and Christian.

My friends and family have helped me by being there to listen, emote, and love.

My husband has helped me by supporting our family, giving me the freedom to pursue all of my pursuits to the fullest, letting me be me, loving me just the way I am... Just being the incredible man he is... The yin to my yang.

* What are the top three lessons I learned?

It is more than o.k. to seek help when you need it.

We are all the same, even in our differences.

Our strength lies in our weaknesses.

* What increased my happiness and joy this year?

Making friends with complete strangers through blogging and volunteering.

Finding time for writing in one way or another nearly every day.

An "at home" vacation with my husband during which we went to Nascar in New Hampshire, the Science Museum, wandered around Boston, and went to the Brockton Fair, among other adventures.

Spending time in Maine with my oldest sister and her family.

* What’s something I got through that was really tough?

It has been an overall easy year aside from the following two somewhat difficult happenings:

The family dog dying unexpectedly was difficult.

My grandfather passed away.

* What did I avoid that I must pay more attention to in 2009?

Conflict. I need to work on speaking my mind especially when I have anxiety built up around doing so due to fear of rejection, fear of being the recipient of anger, and fear of disappointment and/or disappointing.

* What character trait did I develop most this year?

Open-mindedness. I feel I have been more receptive to the views of others and to recognizing things in and about myself that I never have before. My mind just feels much more open to possibility and alternatives.

* What new people did I meet that are now in my life?

I met Lyle and Angela who live in the condo above us. They are friendly, interesting, and very giving people. Couldn't ask for better neighbors! We definitely lucked out :-)

I met my fellow volunteers and the families at Perkins and the young women and staff at Teen Voices magazine.

I met my postcard buddy, Melissa, who I am so happy to be getting to know. Maybe a visit to San Francisco is in the cards for me in 2009 <3

There are still memories to be made in 2008, but I am looking forward to 2009 and whatever is coming my way as I, a self proclaimed work in progress, evolve.

Newest Nie News

Thanksgiving is coming up in a few days. I am so Thankful that Nie is recovering near her family in Utah and the Nielson children have been reunited with their father, Christian.

Read the most recent article here.

Find family members' blogs at cjane, Alice Kind, and Lizzy Writes.

See how the quilts I mentioned contributing to are coming along at Threads of Love.

Remarkable recovering. Remarkable people. Remarkable family and friends. Remarkable blog community.

Remarkably Grateful. Remarkably Thankful.

Please continue to keep the Nielson's and their family and friends in your thoughts and prayers as Stephanie and Christian soldier on through the recovery process.

Thank you!

Nie News

CJane has posted links to new news articles about Stephanie and Christian's progress and the Mindy Gledhill concert, the entire proceeds of which went directly to the Nielson's.

I have mentioned Threads of Love, an effort for the Nielson Family to which I donated. I am happy to report that more than enough fabric has been collected to complete quilts for the children and possibly Stephanie and Christian as well.

If you would like to contribute to the fundraising efforts and other efforts put forth on the Nielson's behalf, see the sidebar on CJane's blog and/or visit the Nie Recovery website.

Please continue to keep CJane, AliceKind, Lizzy Writes, Christian, Stephanie, the children, the Clark's, the Nielson's and all of their friends in your thoughts and prayers. So far, it seems to be working <3

WedNieNie'sDay - #1

When I was writing a Grateful post in the spirit of Nie every night it was easy to make a quick list. Now that my NieNie post comes once a week, the list would be far too long. So, the format needs to change. I am giving it a try this week (bolding the general followed by enumerations), but if you have any ideas as to how I might best format my WedNieNie'sDay posts, please make a comment and I'll take your ideas into consideration.

This week I am Grateful for:

Being Busy. This week has been a whirlwind of classes, homework, housework, nannying, and visiting with friends and family. Some view being busy as a burden, just an endless parade of places to be and things to do so one can cross those items off the "To Do" List. In one word, drudgery, I guess. I am learning to view being busy as something to be grateful for. In the past I have become crazed when busy because I was saying yes to just about everything and everyone, somehow finding a way to fit everyone in, meet the needs of everyone. Recently I have realized that in meeting the needs of others I was neglecting myself and that by taking on so much I was not able to fully enjoy, or give my all, to any of the activities or people I was spending time with. My "New Busy" is a good busy because it is more balanced and everything I am doing and everyone I am spending time with brings me joy and contributes to my personal growth, makes me a better person so that I can go out and further spread that joy and have more of myself to give.

Classes. Going to class is like an instant recharge for me. No matter how my day has gone or what is on my mind, when I get to class my energy is high and my brain is fully engaged. I get excited and I voice my ideas and talk with my hands (I am Italian) and I am continually pleasantly surprised by my capacity to learn and to expand. I am also fascinated by my professors and classmates and what they have to say. So, to be in a space where I can learn and grow with and thanks to fascinating people is a gift.

Homework. If my high school self could hear me now she would think I was a freak. "Grateful for homework?" I can almost hear her say as she wrinkles her nose in disbelief. Yes, high school self, I am grateful for homework. I love looking up math terms and realizing how much a part of EVERYTHING math really is. I love reading packets of poetry and then, of my own accord, looking up the poet's biographical information just because. I love staring at a blank page, emptying my mind, and watching my hand move rapidly across the paper as the words flow and a poem is born. Yes, high school self, I really am grateful for homework.

Housework. "HOUSEWORK?" I can hear the collective blogger world exclaim. Well, yes. Why? Well, because in a time of economic uncertainty I have a house to care for. As foreclosures abound and banks collapse and the governmental bodies struggle to agree on a solution, I have a house to care for.

Visiting Pre-School. There has been a change in my nannying schedule which means I will be taking one of my charges to and picking him up from pre-school starting this coming Monday. So, this past Friday I got to go visit pre-school to meet the teachers and learn the dropoff-pickup routine. Visiting pre-school brought back such wonderful memories of my days with Ms. Lois and ... I want to say Ms. Jan(?).

A Girls Night. On Friday I went out for dinner and a movie with my friends Tanya and Nicole. It was nice to slow down, have intelligent conversation mixed with a little teasing and goofing around, see a movie that the men in our lives would never agree to go see, and then go home to find the man I love waiting to greet me affectionately.

Grammy's 87th Birthday Party. Grammy has Alzheimer's disease, but she is still alive and aware and sometimes willing and able to speak. We have a very large family and everyone wanted a chance to sit with and talk to Grammy. I spent my few minutes holding her hand, telling her how beautiful she looked, letting her know how happy I was to be celebrating her on her birthday, and kissing her cheek which is still so soft and smooth. My father, her son, was sitting on her other side and she gazed lovingly at him the whole time we were sitting with her. I talked to her anyway believing that though she was not looking at me the words were sinking in somehow. I'm grateful for the moments I was able to share with her and hope that I will be blessed with a long life like her and surrounded by family no matter the state of my health as I age.

Sangria at the Sports Bar. I am a teetotaler when it comes to alcohol, but every once in awhile, once or twice a year, I have been known to allow myself one glass of Sangria. Sangria is citrus'y', fruit juice'y', and refreshing. I first had it at a Girl's Night my friend Jennie hosted. We squeezed the lemons and limes, sliced the fruit, poured in the wine and chilled it. She has since moved away and, sadly, we have lost touch, but when I sip Sangria once or twice a year I think of her. The sports bar my husband and his buddies go to is owned by a Portuguese man named Tony. I found this out on Sunday while we were sitting around the bar watching football. Portuguese Tony makes a mean Sangria. So good that maybe I will make it a point to visit again a year from now.


Catalogs arriving in the mail. When my husband and I bought our condo (bottom floor of a two-family turned condo) this past spring the catalogs came rolling in. I have spent the past few months calling the numbers on the backs of the catalogs to take us off the mailing lists. The environmentalist in me is soothed by the knowledge that she is doing her small part to save trees. I have a confession to make Environmentalist-Part-of-Me, the Dreamer-who-loves-the-little-things-in-life part of me can't seem to cancel the Anthropologie catalog or the Crate and Barrel catalog. The pictures are so pretty and the things in the pictures are so pretty and it is so nice to get mail that does not remind me that I am an adult with responsibilities and bills to pay. I love sitting down with my two catalogs and cutting out my favorite things, the things that make me most happy, that inspire me so I can put them in my Things That Make Me Happy binder or tack them to my inspiration board. Simple Pleasures.

CJane, Lizzy Writes, and AliceKind. NieNie's sister and Christian's sisters' blogs never fail to inspire me. Their courage, strength, faith, love, sense of family, and way they live their lives in general never fail to amaze me. Thank you, Ladies, for the example you set and for being so open with the blogging community about such personal events going on in your life and your feelings surrounding those events. I, a complete stranger, am more grateful to you than you will ever know.

Threads of Love. Candice found me through CJane and commented on my blog to let me know about this project she is doing for NieNie, Christian, and their children. A beautiful act of love. I am heading to my favorite fabric store when I go into Boston on Friday and sending a package to Candice over the weekend. Candice, thank you for further confirmation that there is so much good in people.

Fall. Foliage, cool air, warm sun, enormous moon, pumpkins, gourds, beets, parsnips, sweet potatoes, hayrides, apple picking, cozy sweaters, knee-high boots, scarves, apple cider are all part of Fall in New England. When seasons change I feel closer to, more in tune with the earth, more aware of and grateful for its bounty.

I could go on and on. I have so much to be grateful for.

Prayers and positivity to Nie and Christian & family.

Good night, sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite <3