2012 Forecast: Storm clouds clearing out. Bright sunshine moving in.

2012 did not begin quite as we expected. It started with storm clouds. It began with your Dad losing his job. A job he did very, very well. Grace- your Dad is a meteorologist. Not just a weather man or forecaster. He’s a scientist who uses his talents to break down complicated information about our weather into a presentation that most everyone can use and understand. No easy task.

The decision was not totally unexpected but the aftermath was still a shock. My true feelings about the decision are best left for another time. Suffice to say, I didn’t agree with it.

Now, our family is facing difficult decisions. Everything from selling our house to buying diapers to changing the everyday way we live our life.

It’s scary. I won’t lie. I think it’s a blessing that we don’t have to explain it to you now. You can just be the great joy in our days. The smiling, toddling, babbling baby who makes our hearts sing.

The night your Father found out, he came home to us. You stayed up late. We met him at the door. You made him smile. He held you in his arms and we knew it would be okay.

It will be okay. Not only do we have the joy that is you, we have the love and support of family and friends. The words of comfort. The way people have reached out. It has been tremendous. And not just family and friends but total strangers. Total strangers who email or message or come up to your Dad in a store to tell him how much they like him and even, how much he touched their lives.

And the storm clouds have started to clear. The sun is peaking out. One ray of sunshine... how much time we’ve gotten to spend with him. The day after we got the news, you finally decided to crawl. He would have missed it if life had gone in a different direction. He didn’t. Now, the two of you are spending some quality father-daughter time together. And his smile already seems wider. His steps a bit lighter.

Another ray of sunshine… the possibility of whatever lies ahead. A fresh start. A clean slate. However you want to put it. Your Dad has it. And whatever that next step is, we’ll be there- cheering him on, loving him, and picking him up if he falls. That’s what love is all about. It is most profoundly felt when it is tested. Well, consider it tested and we’ve come out on top.

This entry is made with much gratitude and love to all of you who have shown us your love and support. We hope to be able to repay it or pay it forward some day.