Family.

I have an amazing life, amazing friends, and above all an amazing family. I don't attest any of this to pure luck, it took a lot of work to build this life, and build these relationships, and it is constantly under construction as new paths are thrown our ways.

Since January 2013 it seems as though my emotions have been pulled in every direction imaginable, and only recently have I been able to actually sit and reflect on everything this year has brought. I can name very few, very defining moments in my life; the first time I enlisted, the birth of my daughter and then the birth of my first son, marrying my husband after the priest refused to do so, and the birth of Jeremy. None of these necessarily define me as a person, but they have all accumulated and reached what I can only describe as lava-like flows down a mountain to make me the person I am. The first time I enlisted defined that I was about to leave, really leave, my parents house. The birth of my daughter defined motherhood, I was going to be responsible to someone other than myself... man I was terrible at that! The birth of my first son defined that while bows and ribbons and barbies were fun, trucks and dirt could be just as awesome! Marrying my husband defined that while we are extensions of each other we are not one and the same. The birth of Jeremy defined strength that I always knew I had, but never had to apply in such a way all the time.

The hardest phone call I ever made was the one to my Mom. It was the first time I had to say to someone that Jeremy (at that point in time) may have Down syndrome. I had to explain the heart condition in detail, and his foot as well. But most importantly I had to confront the fact that my life was forever changed because I was now the parent of a child with "special needs." This, by the way, is a term I dislike... all children have special needs, some just have more dependent needs than others. We both cried, but I found out later she cried cause she thought he was going to die. I cried because I felt like my ability to make perfect babies was robbed of me. Little did I know I still made perfect babies, Jeremy was just perfect differently!

My Dad was (as always) very matter of fact. He can always rope in whatever situation has me crazy, and in his "just give me the facts" tone, make it okay. But in that one phone call they let me know that it didn't matter that Jeremy had Down syndrome, that he would require surgeries, therapies etc. for the long run because he was family and he would be loved no matter what. My sister gave me props on Mother's Day for being as strong as I am... those words will always remain with me whenever life gets hard... cause it will get hard again.

Family doesn't always come by way of blood either. My husband and I have quite a few people we consider family that were not raised in the same bloodlines as either of us. His best friend, and Jeremy's namesake Jer, Jer's wife Andrea, my friends: Angie, Tara, and Claudia are just a few - but they are the important ones. When the words "We need you..." and its followed with "to help," "to do a favor" are uttered, these are the people who go to great lengths to help. These are the people who cry with you, laugh with you, and are there through everything that you almost think you'd be lost without them. Jer and Andrea specifically are the kind of family who drive 11+ hours for Jeremy's heart surgery.

Then there is the family who drops what they are doing to just be there during a tough time. Joe's cousin Barb and her family falls into this category. During Jeremy's recovery from heart surgery they drove the few hours it took them just to meet him. While the visit was not long enough, or under the greatest of circumstances... it was nice just to know that we were all cared about so much.

My husband's parents have also shown an unyielding amount of support, just calling to say it will all be okay, that Jeremy was so lucky to be born to parents like us, and driving almost 5 hours to see him in the hospital after his surgery. My husband's Aunt Claran almost daily gets on Facebook to look at Jeremy's pictures, always has kind words to say, and then takes the time to forward the pictures to family that is not on Facebook.

These are the people that all really matter. These are the kind of people I want Jeremy to be surrounded with.

At the end of the day I know this: Jeremy is so loved and he is lucky. I hope his life is always known as one full of love and laughter, that he knows he can do anything he sets his heart and mind to, and that all of us will always be there to support him as he grows, learns, and attains his goals.