Family – Be That Person

March 19, 2024March 19, 2024 heathercphipps Family, Gratitude, Kindness, Optimism, Positivity, Uncategorized

7305 Extra Days

Today is the 20th anniversary of a day that didn’t change my life…but could’ve.

I was a teacher, and it was the last day of spring break. Kelsey had just turned nine, and Hunter was almost seven. The girls and I decided we’d spend our last vacation day going to the mall to Build a Bear. I can’t honestly remember what animals they made. Hunter would know. She remembers all of it.

As we were checking out, I had a sudden and painful feeling in my throat. I felt dizzy and nauseous. The girl checking us out offered me a mint. In hindsight her gesture of kindness has provided us plenty of laughs. “Like a mint was going to save your life.” How could she have known?

I have a connective tissue disorder called Marfan Syndrome. It causes parts of my body to weaken over time, the most significant of which is my aorta. And on that day I was having something called an aortic dissection. There was a tear between the layers of my aorta, but I did not know it at the time.

We paid, left Build a Bear, and headed to the food court where thankfully a friend of mine was eating. We call her my Guardian Angel. I knew something was wrong, but I was insistent that this could not possibly be an aortic dissection. She took over in that moment and drove my children and me to the hospital.

The story gets long and complicated from there. I’ve always believed I would write it all at some point. I’m less sure of that now. Suffice it to say that several hours later I finally had a CT Scan, was diagnosed, and was taken in to surgery. The surgery lasted five hours, but the recovery took months. Those five hours were so much harder for my family and friends than they were for me. I honestly only know the details of the next few days from the things people have told me.

So many people. A friend prayed over me before I went in to surgery. Friends and family spent time in the waiting room and countless hours sitting with me over the next days, weeks, and months. People cleaned our house and brought us food. One friend who lives out of town sent me a card and a package of some kind every day, every single day, for weeks. My students wrote letters, and one even recorded her piano music to soothe me. People are good beyond measure.

I also learned to be patient. I dissected a week before my Master’s Degree comps and a week before my first interview for an administrative job. Obviously neither of those thing happened then. But they did happen. Eventually. I have learned that for me things work out eventually, just not always in the way I envisioned or on the timeline I chose.

I also tell people that the most powerful lesson for me was to enjoy every day. Every single day is a gift. We say that, and it is true. Twenty years ago today I almost died, but I didn’t. I have had 7305 extra days to learn and love and laugh. I have had 7305 extra days to make mistakes, to fall down, and to get back up.

I have had 20 extra years to love my children and my husband and to meet my son-in-law and his precious, precious triplets.

Last week Bentley asked me about my scar. Maybe someday I’ll tell her the story.

For my birthday this year, I asked my family to go with me back to Build a Bear. It had, after all, been 20 years. It was a blast. And cathartic. And more emotional than my children and I could explain to the poor girl stitching Brooks’s dinosaur.

I guess I just want to say thank you to all of you who made that day, and the 7305 days that followed, a blessing.

February 7, 2021 heathercphipps Family, Gratitude, Grief, Happiness, Perseverence, Positivity, Uncategorized

Patience

There is this moment in the Lincoln Marathon (or half in my case) when you round the corner and can see Memorial Stadium. This feeling of relief washes over you. You’re almost there!

And then you climb 10th Street for what seems like forever. The size of the stadium is deceiving. You think you’re almost done, but you still have to finish mile 10…and 11…and 12…and 13.

Patience.

I have never been a patient person. When I have a task, I want it done immediately. When I have a phone message, I want it returned right away. When I have an idea, I want it to come to fruition instantly.

Honestly, it has served me well over the course of my lifetime. My house is usually clean. My office is usually tidy. I am efficient and effective in my work.

But the older I get, the more the big things in life seem to take patience.

My daughter is having triplets. My first grandchild will be grandchildren! Three of them. It is almost too hard to imagine.

The gender reveal was this weekend. She had known since Thursday (longer for 2 of them), but I had to wait until last night. It was a challenge.

Patience.

If the last year has taught us anything, it is that we cannot always control how long things take. Right now the virus is in control, and we can only mitigate its impact and be patient as the vaccine rolls out. This weekend though, my parents got their first vaccine. I can’t overstate the sense of relief I felt when my dad sent me the picture. I have been waiting for that moment for almost a year.

Now I want to hug them and go to dinner with them and sit next to them on a couch.

Patience.

Babies. Pandemics. Grief. Recovery. The older I get, the more I understand that the big things take time.

I have never been a patient person, but I’m working on it.

February 9, 2020 heathercphipps Birthdays, Blogging, Family, Gratitude, Uncategorized

Still So Much to Learn

When you blog, and your 50th birthday falls on the day you publish every week, there is some pressure to get it right. I’ve been turning it over in my mind for awhile, adding to a list of “50 things I’ve learned.”

Be kind.

Be curious.

Say yes.

Say you’re sorry when you are.

It’s okay to not be okay.

It is not okay to not try to get better.

Ask for help.

If you want people to remember your birthday, tell them it’s coming.

Floss.

Confidence is not about knowing you will always get it right. Confidence is about being comfortable knowing that sometimes you will fall down and being okay with that.

Worry makes no sense. It can’t change the past, and it doesn’t shape the future.

“Comparison is the thief of joy.” Envy of another person will eat you up.

I am enough.

You are enough.

But the more I wrote, the more I realized that I have learned none of this on my own. I have an amazing family who has been teaching me my whole life. I have friends and colleagues and mentors who are incredible models for me and who tell me when I’m wrong. I have gotten many, many things wrong.

But I keep learning.

So instead of working more on the list of things I’ve discovered, I am giving myself grace to acknowledge how much I still have to learn. I am young. There is time.

May 11, 2018May 13, 2018 heathercphipps Family, Gratitude, Happiness, Uncategorized

Mothers’ Day

My children graduated from college this month. Both of them. My older daughter with her Master’s in Speech, Language Pathology and my younger daughter with her Bachelor’s in Business. Both have jobs in their chosen field. Both are now, by every possible definition, adults. Man, I feel old.

Obviously such times bring with them a natural tendency to reminisce.

I’ve been thinking about all of the nights I sat beside their crib and then on the edge of their bed as we said prayers and listened to music. She’s a Dancer with Kelsey. Return to Pooh Corner with Hunter. I’ve been thinking about the times we would jump on my bed and blow bubbles in the tiny pool that lived on our deck. Did anyone else have a Bubble Duck? I’ve been thinking about sidewalk chalk and pictures at JC Penney and the zoo.

There was that phase when Kelsey would sneak food in the middle of the night and Hunter would climb out of her crib.

And also the time we let Kelsey fall down the stairs and the time we let Hunter wander off at her own birthday party. We were far from perfect parents. No one is.

I miss those perfect, messy, crying, yelling, laughing, sticky little girls. But I am overwhelmed by the human beings they have become.

Three years ago I was still relatively new to this blogging thing as Hunter started her college journey. I wrote A Letter to My Daughter during her first week of classes, and I talked about all the things I wished for her.

I hope you are creative and collaborative.

I hope you are willing to take risks.

I hope you persevere when things get hard because there will be times when things get hard.

Mostly though, I hope you enjoy your life.

They are both all of these things and more.

Their road to this moment was not easy. No one’s is. There were times when they were scared and sad and disappointed. There were times when they were broke and exhausted and overwhelmed.

But through it all they seemed to be enjoying the journey. They laughed and sang and made a lot of noise in the car. One baked. One read. Both danced in a way that you could only appreciate if you saw it. They were beautiful.

They are beautiful.

I have no wise words of wisdom this week other than perhaps to say enjoy the minutes and the days. They pass quickly. But I am comforted by the fact that with each passing year, they are even more fun. And I am getting a lot more sleep.

Yes, I am overwhelmed by the human beings they have become.

January 21, 2017January 22, 2017 heathercphipps Family, Gratitude, Positivity, Uncategorized

Be the Light

In the midst of a difficult day this week, I was reminded that simple acts of grace can be the difference between darkness and light. Our family buried a loved one this week, a remarkable mother and grandmother and great grandmother who baked cakes (our wedding cake for example) and told stories (the newborn triplets staying warm on the oven door for example) and wrote letters in a Minnesota/German accent that made us all smile. She lived a long, full life, but it was a sad day. In the midst of it all, I had some urgent things come up at work, things that could not wait. I was emotional. I was out of town. I wanted to be with my family. And I needed help.

And the help came. The help came in the form of colleagues who moved heaven and earth in my absence to get some things done. The help came in the form of texts from friends who offered comfort and reassurance. The help came in the form of time (short as it was) with an amazing family full of love and laughter. People were kind and compassionate and helpful.

Grace, freely given. Care, offered openly. Help, willingly extended. In the midst of a dark day, light.

I struggled a bit with what to write this week. What do I have to offer to the current discourse? I offer this. When I needed it, many people were there for me. Be there for others.

Be kind.

Be compassionate.

Be helpful.

Act.

It is both that simple and that complex.

In trying times, it is easy to paint things and people with a broad brush, to make black and white that which is clearly gray. It is easy to get caught up in the moment, to join the pack, to jump on the bandwagon, and to lose the bigger picture.

Who we are and what we do matters! How we treat each other matters! Our actions matter!

In the coming days, weeks, months and years, remember these things. Speak out for what you believe. Act in the best interest of all people. And for goodness sake, treat each other with kindness and grace.

Be the light.

September 10, 2016September 11, 2016 heathercphipps Family, Gratitude, Grief, Positivity, Uncategorized

It’s Okay to be Sad

My darling daughters,

Yesterday was a hard day. We lost our sweet Maggie, and just as we knew it would be, it was tough. She was a great dog. She was a best friend to both of you over the years, and she will most definitely, permanently define your understanding of the love between a child and a pet. You were lucky to have such an energetic, fun, forgiving dog.

Kelsey, I’ll never forget her ability to move ever-so-slowly throughout the night in such a way that by morning I would find you tucked in a little ball in the corner of your bed because she had completely taken it over. And you loved it. You never seemed to mind that she made your bed her bed. Your stuffed animals became her stuffed animals. Your pillows became her pillows. She was your Maggie, Shadow, Kimperton, and you loved her and she loved you so completely.

Hunter, you loved her and spoiled her in ways I’ve never seen anyone do with their dog. You taught her how to shop. She loved to ride in your car and get Starbucks and Dairy Queen with you. To find her sleeping at the foot of your bed was evidence that even after years of routine, she had made a new best friend.

And she loved to camp. So many nights spent trying not to step on her as she slept in the dark by the campfire. So many games of fetch spent racing her best friend into the lake to see who could get the stick first. It almost always resulted in the two of them swimming back together each holding one end of the stick in her mouth.

It was a sad day. And it’s okay to be sad.

I don’t know if I’ve really ever told you that it’s okay to be sad. You know that I believe more than anything that our attitude controls our lives. Positivity is our greatest strength. But it is possible to be positive and sad at the same time. Sometimes life is hard. Glennon Doyle Melton calls life “brutiful“, brutal and beautiful at the same time. She writes and speaks eloquently about embracing the hard parts, sitting in the sadness and the pain, and using the experience to define who you are and what can never be taken from you.

Maggie was taken from you. It is sad, and it is hard. But the memories of her, the unconditional love you learned from her, cannot be taken from you. Who you are because of your time with her cannot be taken from you.

Minutes after she passed, you both posted things on Facebook. I wasn’t sure I wanted you to put your raw pain out there as quickly as you did. But I am proud of you both for doing that. I am proud of the way you jumped in with both feet to spend a last day with her- playing with her, loving her, crying over her, sitting in the sadness and the pain. I am proud of the way you put your sadness out there for the world to see. I am inspired by the way you both said loudly “I am sad” and “Life is good” at the same time.

Your lives will not always be easy. Real, painful, difficult things will happen. It is absolutely okay be sad. And it is possible to be sad and to know at the same time that life is really, really, good.

June 12, 2016 heathercphipps Family, Gratitude, Parenting, Positivity, Uncategorized

An Abundant Life

There is nothing like a major life celebration to reveal the true abundance in your life. My daughter got married Friday. Her dress was stunning. The reception hall was beautiful. The food was delicious, and the dance was a blast. But if none of that had been true, it would still have been a success.

My daughter and son-in-law were surrounded by family and friends who laughed with them, cried with them, toasted them from the heart, and frankly suffered through outrageous heat to get some beautiful pictures that they’ll treasure forever.

There were memorials and moments of silence. There were hysterical stories about their childhoods, and person after person shared that they knew that they would marry each other…almost from the moment they met.

Their lives are abundant.

They are very young, still in college, and working many hours a week to make ends meet. They do their laundry at our house and drive cars that overheat and break down. They do not have a lot of money or expensive possessions, and they have some lean years ahead of them like most young married couples.

But their lives are abundant…and so is mine.

One of my best friends married them. Another one sat next to me while the best man, and my daughter and my husband reduced me to tears with their toasts. Many of my friends drove miles, flew miles, and made arrangements to be there on a Friday afternoon to watch her say her vows, to hold me over and over as I cried tears of joy, and to dance with me as we celebrated.

We build a life relationship by relationship. And this week I was surrounded by the people in my life with whom I have forged those relationships. Those people, and their love, are the abundance in our lives. Not money. Not things. People. Never has that been more clear to me.

I was supported and encouraged every day of this past week by friends who reminded me to relax and to enjoy the experience. One of my favorite texts came Wednesday afternoon. “I have no idea what you are doing at this exact moment, but I am 100% sure that the correct advice is ‘Calm down!'”

Then I didn’t sleep well Thursday night, and on Friday morning I texted a friend that it “might be a rough day”. The response was perfect. “Power through and choose to make it a great day. Or cancel the whole thing. Those are your choices.” Pretty great to have people in your life who know you well enough to set you straight when you need a reminder…and who read you well enough to text you whenever you need someone to remind you to “Relax!”

The relationships in our lives are everything. Because of those relationships, my life is abundant. Focus your energy on people, not things.

The most wonderful thing about this experience for me has been to witness that same abundance in the life of my daughter and her husband. They are surrounded and supported by people who love them unconditionally. Their lives are truly abundant, and for that I am most truly grateful.

The delicious cake was just a bonus!

April 23, 2016April 24, 2016 heathercphipps Family, Gratitude, Optimism, Positivity, Uncategorized

A Letter to my Daughter…Enjoy!

Today marks the official beginning of the wedding festivities. This afternoon you will celebrate with people who have known you, in some cases, for your entire life. There will be food and gifts and games and likely some stories about when you were a little girl and how quickly you grew up. Your sister has worked so hard to make everything perfect. It will be great fun! Enjoy it.

Then in less than two weeks you will carry that banner in as you and the other SLP majors take your seats and celebrate commencement. There will be speeches and tassels and pictures and happy tears. There will likely again be stories about when you were a little girl and how quickly you grew up. Earning your degree is a major accomplishment. Enjoy it!

I don’t know if I did this well enough a year ago when your sister was graduating high school and having her senior dance recital and turning 18. I don’t know if I reminded her often enough to slow down and enjoy the experience. These times feel so busy, and I don’t know if I told her to take it all in and appreciate each and every moment. I want to be sure we all do that right now.

These milestones are significant. They should be cherished.

But I also want to say this before we get too far down this path. As hard as we have all tried to be sure that each of these events are perfect, they will not be. They will be far from perfect. Things will get missed. The way you envisioned this or that will not be exactly the way it actually happens. It will rain. Your hair may come undone. Your make-up may smear. You may, in fact, fall flat on your face at some point in all of this. Such is life.

The unexpected will happen.

But it will be those moments you remember most. It will be the surprises that stick with you decades later. So decide right now to enjoy those moments too. Laugh at yourself. Roll with things. Enjoy them for what they are, not for what you thought they’d be.

And finally, cry when you need to. There are people who should be with us for all of this who are not. There may be more loss in these next few weeks. Such is life. Let every emotion in and remember that you wouldn’t be sad if you hadn’t loved deeply.

I guess I just wanted to say that I am excited for you (and for me) as we start this journey. It will be fun and funny. It will be emotional and draining at times. And at the end of it, the two of you will be married. Nothing else that happens along the way matters more than that! Enjoy it!

April 2, 2016April 3, 2016 heathercphipps Balance, Family, Gratitude, Uncategorized

A Balanced Life

April is a busy month. And May is certainly not any slower. There are choir concerts and Honors Nights and track and baseball and soccer. There are the usual birthday parties and anniversaries. And of course there’s graduation.

Spring is a busy time. But so is summer…and fall…and winter. Our lives are busy. Between work and school and church and athletics, our families are running in many directions. It is easy to get overwhelmed and feel like we are not living a balanced life.

I have had many discussions over the years with my friends about finding balance in our lives, finding that work/life balance, focusing on body/mind/spirit balance, achieving whatever that perfect balance is that keeps us healthy and happy. Many of those conversations started with a well-meaning friend who was worried about my balance at a given time.

After much reading, many conversations, and some serious soul searching over the years, I have arrived at my own understanding of balance. There is no such thing as balance, and I wouldn’t want it if it existed.

If I am going to be honest, I have imagined a life where I workout every morning, read the paper, and make a real breakfast before heading to work. Then I connect personally with all of my co-workers, clear all my emails, and check everything off my to do list. I leave work a few minutes early, check in with my parents and my siblings and take a few minutes to catch up on Facebook and Twitter. When I get home I take a quick look around the house to pick up any messes, go through the mail, stay on top of the bills, and play fetch with the dog. Then I cook a delicious meal and set the table for dinner. I clean up the kitchen, watch a few of my favorite shows on Netflix and login to do any evening emails and finish up my work from the day. I read for fun every night before bed, pray, meditate, stretch and do yoga before turning early and getting 8 hours of sleep.

My meals are healthy. My clothes ironed. Everyone gets their birthday cards on time, and I never forget an important event in a friend’s life.

Obviously I could go on and on, but I think you get the idea. Until there are 47 hours in a day and I become a much more perfect version of myself, it is unlikely even half of that ever becomes reality in a day.

And I am fine with that. For years I wasn’t fine with that. For years I thought if I read enough, reflected enough, or made enough to do lists that I would be able to find this perfect balance that would make my life complete.

Well guess what, my life is complete.

When I need to work more, I do. When I need to go away on a cruise for a week, I do. Are they balanced? Not even close. I think our lives are about finding the things that bring us joy and then doing them.

So release yourself from the guilt that comes with working late at school or leaving school early to go to a soccer game. Give yourself grace when you buy your contribution to the potluck or put your children in a store-bought Halloween costume. Some years you sew Pooh and Piglet costumes in the basement, and some years you buy a ladybug costume at the store. Your children will remember both years fondly, and they won’t love you any less because you bought their costume.

We each get to define what brings us joy. Likely what makes my life complete is different from what makes your life complete. Normal in my family is different from normal in my neighbor’s family. We establish our own routines and traditions. I am not advocating selfishness or wanton disregard for the needs of others; I am just suggesting that we stop beating ourselves up for not being balanced.

December 19, 2015December 20, 2015 heathercphipps Christmas, Family, Gratitude, Stress, Traditions, Uncategorized

Embrace the Moment

If you believe the songs on the radio, “it’s the most wonderful time of the year.” And while I truly do enjoy the season, it comes with its share of stress.

I am a planner. I appreciate a well-made list and feel like an organized life is to be embraced. Let’s face it, things just go better when there is a plan. Christmas is no exception. There are lists for cards and lists for gifts and lists with the details of the many celebrations.

Traditions are not just comforting because they remind us of seasons past; they are comforting because they provide a routine and a plan for the significant moments of our life. They help us know what to expect.

This is a time for traditions. Putting the star on top of the tree with your dad, opening a new pair of pajamas and wearing them while reading “Twas the Night Before Christmas” on the hearth, and snacking on your grandma’s party mix are hallmarks of the season. It wouldn’t be Christmas without them.

But it would.

Traditions are important. They provide a structure for our celebrations and our memories. They are the stories we tell and the things we look forward to each year. But traditions change.

Children grow up. People move. Extended families get bigger. These are good things, and we should enjoy them.

Embracing change is as important as valuing traditions. Every holiday, every day is a gift. We have to find the flexibility to enjoy them all. In fact, when I really think about it, most of my best memories were things that happened spontaneously or when the plans I made went horribly wrong.

Last weekend I had breakfast with some of my roommates from college. We were reminiscing about some of the holiday fun we had. There was the time I decided to try baking a pumpkin pie from a real pumpkin (not a good idea people- use the canned pumpkin). There was the message on our answering machine sung to tune of “Let It Snow”. And then there was our trip to see Santa at the mall. We spent hours getting ready, put curling ribbon in our hair, and took a million pictures. None of those things were planned. None of those things were traditions.

The year I dropped the pumpkin pie on the kitchen floor was awesome. The year of the blizzard when we spent Christmas Eve alone at home was intimate and exceptional. Every Christmas has been special, and this one will be too.

It should always be the most wonderful time of the year. We should create traditions with our children, but we should also teach them to embrace change, to enjoy the spontaneous moments, and to laugh when things go wrong.

from your friends at the local co. My wish for you is a week full of love and laughter, time with family and friends, and a focus on the real reason for the season!