Bonding over Hot Chocolate

This is the time of year that I really think a lot of Kyla. I think of her during the summer as well, but the thoughts are different. The summer brought and still brings heartache, sorrow, and turmoil. It was a time of year that changed our lives, a change that we will never recover from. The winter, however, hands me memories of Kyla when she was energetic, full of spunk but most of all she was healthy. Kyla would come home from school, Bree would take her afternoon nap, Kora would watch a movie, and Kyla and I would sit at the table with hot chocolate and talk about our day. She would tell me what happened at school, I would tell her how Bree puked all over her new outfit. We would laugh, we would sit there for an hour or more at a time... however long it would take for both of us to have two cups. Everyone feels closer to family during the winter, it's enevitable. You stay inside, start a fire, read a book to your children, make cookies, and cuddle on the couch while watching your favorite movie. I miss Kyla and will always ache waiting until I see her again.

Lisa Ramage, Bret, and I are starting the planning of our next benefit and silent auction. We are deciding on the date...I can tell you it will be in April. We are also talking about where to hold it, and it feels like we are coming closer to making a final decision. We are trying to contact people, schedule times, and are entertaining new ideas. The money raised from the first benefit was enough to adopt two family wishes. We will be recieving information about where they went, why they are needing to make a wish and how they are doing now. As soon as we get that information we will post it so you can get to know them as well. But in the mean time, we would like to share this message and photo that we recieved today from the Executive Director at Make-A-Wish.

"To the McCullough Family. As summer ends, I wanted to share a personal thank you with your family for your amazing gererosity and support for other children's wishes. Thanks to you, we were able to grant a record number of wishes this summer. As we strive to reach even more children this coming year, please know how much we appreciate your support."



Each of you are a part of this...the granting of these children's wishes was only possible because of you and your willingness to support The Kyla McCullough Gift Fund. It's amazing what we can accomplish if we just get together and offer what we can. Thank you for going on this journey with us.