Tuesday, June 26, 2012

A Special Celebration

Tonight we are celebrating Jay's parents 40th wedding anniversary.  We are going out to dinner and have a couple of surprises planned.  Sorry...I can't spill the beans here yet because my in-laws read my blog and I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise!(Plus, my sister-in-laws would kill me!  I will definitely fill you in tomorrow, though:)

What a special milestone 40 years is in the world we live in today!  Jay's parents not only still love each other...they also like each other.

It has been a tough year for my in-laws.  Jay had gotten really sick last summer and scared all of us.  Then, a month later, Jay's sister, Jackie, started going into pre-term labor.  After two stressful weeks on bed rest the doctors could not prevent my niece, Mya, from coming into the world 14 weeks early.  Mya spent 4 difficult months in the NICU and, praise God, is doing great.  In the early fall, Jay's dad was diagnosed with prostate surgery and had surgery in late November.  As I posted recently, he has begun further treatment.  Thankfully, the prognosis is extremely positive.  But the emotional roller coaster was tough on everyone, especially my mother-in-law.

Celebrating this special occasion amidst all the recent health crises makes the moment even more special.  

My in-laws have worked hard all their lives to provide for their family.  They are both teachers.  My mother-in-law has been retired for almost 10 years but my father-in-law still teaches at the Catholic high school my sons attend.  He retired from teaching at the public high school because of the stress of dealing with tough, inner city kids.  But he missed teaching, and was hired at the position he still holds.  He loves it there...and the kids all love him.  He has won teacher of the year and this year the seniors dedicated the year book to him.  He is a great math teacher(which I personally appreciate because he tutors all our kids when they need it!  Good thing, too, because math was never my strong suit!  Thankfully, most of my kids have gotten his "math genes"!)

My mother-in-law is extremely crafty and always takes the extra time to put special touches on whatever she does for all of us.  She is a great cook.   The family favorite dessert she makes is her chocolate cake.  Everyone requests this cake for special occasions.  Andrew has already told her he wants her chocolate cake when he gets married one day!

Usually, my sister-in law, Julie, will make the cake when it's a party for her mom.  Unfortunately, Julie had the work the overnight shift at the hospital so she wasn't going to be able to make "mom's cake".  So, Sarah and I are attempting to do it justice.  So much pressure!  It won't be as good as mom's, but it was made with love.  Sarah is decorating it right now...she inherited my mother-in-law's "craft gene"(again, not my strong suit!)

I hope that we will all be able to help them celebrate this milestone in a way that makes them feel special and appreciated after all they have done for all of us!


Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad! 


To read about the actual party, follow this link:)
http://normalchaosforamultitaskmom.blogspot.com/2012/06/more-on-special-celebration.html





2 comments:

Unknown said...

It sounds like you have a lovely family! Hope they had a nice anniversary!!

Robin said...

I hope it was a wonderful party. It sounds like there is a lot of love in your family. How blessed you are.

Stopping by from SITS. Have a great weekend.