wishing

In the last week, I don't think many hours have gone by that I haven't thought of the Nielson family. Many of you already know that Stephanie and Christian were critically injured in a plane crash just one week ago. You can read more about and keep updated with their progress at http://blog.cjanerun.com/ . I remember meeting Stephanie for the first time (I think) in the Clark home with Lisa when I was out visiting her. I remember her as a young dark-haired beauty that chatted with us in their kitchen. I have "re-met" her a few times since then. The last time I think was as we swam at their Grandma's pool with the kids a few years ago when I was visiting again with Lisa.

Since then, I have come to really "know" her as Nienie through her blog (click here), like many of you. What a zest for life. Sometimes I would think, "can it really be THAT great?", after seeing post after post of crafts and smiling kids and love like crazy, I think I've come to the conclusion, that YES, that's how it is. That's how she chooses it to be. I'm sure she's had her fair share of screaming kids, breakdown, and mommy meltdowns, but she was able to find the great part of her day to focus on and to remember. In the last week, as I think of their sweet family, I have tried, like many of you, to find that zest for life that she had. I try to find the "perfect" in my own day and remember that as I lay down to sleep. I try to squeeze my children a little tighter, love my husband more, appreciate my life more, and most of all, thank my Savior more each day for the sacrifice He gave in our behalf.

When I heard the idea of a balloon launch in their behalf, I knew I wanted to take part in it. Tonight we were getting together with some gals from church to celebrate a couple of birthdays, so Christy said she would bring along some balloons that we could set off with our wishes in Stephanie and Christians behalf. We shared their story with these wonderful women and had everyone write a wish for them. As we talked of this sweet family, I watched as each of these women, as mothers, ached for Stephanie, and ached for her husband and children. Instantly I could tell that they were touched by her story.



I had talked with my children about doing our own balloon launch. I had briefly told the girls about what had happened and about the Nielsons tradition. On a funny note, when I initially told Molly about sending a wish up on a balloon, she got all excited and said, "Oh, I'm going to wish for a dog!!". I quickly explained that this was not about her. . .it was about them. As I talked with her more seriously about their situation and how it made me feel, I hoped she understood. I didn't realize until tonight that she completely did. I took a quick glance at her little note she wrote down, without any prompting from me. It said,


"Heavenly Father knows you and loves you." I couldn't have said it better myself.

Our wishes are on their way. Nienie's blog

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