Are you a Bird lover?

Last night I went to my big brother Dan's house for a little birthday celebration! :-)
It was an extremely nice evening, especially since my other brother Ron was in town from Pennsylvania and my nephew Steve was in from St. Cloud, Mn!! There's something about a close family....I am blessed that's for sure!

My brother Dan surprised me with this.....

It is truly the most beautiful coffee cup I have ever seen! It's kinda 3-d as some of the items on the mug are raised. This pic does no justice really. Yep, my bro knows I love Coffee and Cardinals remind me of my dear Mother who passed away Jan 24th, 2002. He sure knows how to pick em.

Ever since my Mom passed away I have learned to appreciate even more the beauty of the Cardinal.
As I walk through my Father's upstairs everywhere I look I can't help but think of Mom. The decorative plates, the pictures, the figurines of porcelain Cardinals charm every nook. Just as she left them. Untouched.
I have found myself many times stopping in my tracks to look at a Cardinal item in a store though I rarely buy. It may sound weird, but I feel comforted when I gaze at them. I almost feel the warmth of her.......

I feel so blessed to have had her in my life even though it was not long enough by far. You see my Mom was taken suddenly at age 69....she got up from the dinner table and walked into the kitchen and dropped dead. Yep......shocker! I'll never forget that horrifying phone call. My Dad chose not to do an autopsy, but the Coroner said she most likely either had a massive heart attack or an aneurysm that burst. She concluded that she felt my Mom was dead before she hit the ground. So sad......no time to say goodbye or tell her once again I love her. But one thing I am thankful for is that she didn't have to linger and suffer with an illness. Even though sudden death was hard to take, I know in my heart I could not have survived THAT very well.

I miss her every single day...I wish I could have her back for even 5 minutes to feel her touch, to hear her voice and to kiss those soft lips one more time. *Sigh*

Man, I sure didn't intend for this post to be such a downer but it just started coming. For those of you that still have your Mother in your life.....CHERISH the moments as someday all you'll have left is the memories.
But memories can warm your heart on the coldest of days, and it's something NOBODY can ever take away from you.

Ta Ta for now......