strength...

:( Penguins are out of the playoff run and we are certainly disappointed; however, no one matches the sadness in which my dad is displaying. After several explicit phrases and heavily cursing Fleury's name, I think he feels a little better, haha :)

I did want to mention though, that my mom is doing AWESOME today. We had a very active day and she hasn't taken that beautiful smile off her face (even with the Penguins taking the loss).

To be completely honest, I never thought of my mom as the parent who taught me strength. For some reason, perhaps because we are conditioned to think that we should look to our dad's for physical strength, I always thought my dad made me strong. But I suppose that is dependent upon your definition of strength (i.e. physical/mental/emotional). And while my dad is CERTAINLY exemplifying strength in every sense of the word, my mom has taken me completely by surprise. Considering all of the surgeries, chemo and emotional stress she has already endured, she still looks gorgeous. She is still smiling. She is still so happy. My mom is freaking strong. And even though she is not aloud to lift more than 5lbs, she is carrying far more...

Okay, enough sappy stuff :)
Besides, I have to go make sure Dad doesn't throw the television out of the living room window, thanks a lot, Fleury. Just kidding!!!

normalcy

We love the Pittsburgh Penguins. Game days in the Chase household (especially Stanley Cup Playoff game days) are comparable to Christmas Day.

Tonight the Pens face elimination in Game 7 versus the Canadiens. So in preparation, my mom, Grandma and I went to Walmart to purchase some pre-game snacks...
Every year the Pens make it into the playoffs, Andrew and Zach invite their friends over and we have a plethora of artery-clogging snacks in an effort to will the Pens to another victory. The smorgasbord of food has several main-stays including: meat-lovers pizza (ew, not my choice!), Doritos, Helluva Good Chip Dip, and Twizlers. Yes, we are aware that this is a strange combination but it did help propel the Pens to a Stanley Cup Championship last season!!! haha!!

Anyways, while a lot of things are changing around here, there is one thing that has remained the same: our love for the Pittsburgh Penguins! Heck, our dog's name is Sidney!

Of course, my mom, who is rather exhausted come 7pm will be seated in her "game-day" seat in the living room cheering on one of her favorite teams! Naturally, my Dad will be in his assigned "game-day" seat wearing his "lucky" t-shirt anxiously awaiting the 7pm draw... Zach and Andrew will be participating in their own shoot out in the drive way, where the refine their hockey skills before, between, and after each Period. It feels good to have a little bit of our normal routine back :)
GO PENGUINS!

Dynamic Dad

Okay, today I want to credit my Dad. For those of you who know him (and even those who do not) he is a wonderful guy. And I must say that while he is certainly not the most existential folder of laundry, he gets the job done—and I mean that whole-heartedly as a compliment.

He is the first one up every morning. He takes care of the dishes, the laundry and making Mom her morning cup of tea. He has been by Mom’s side through the entire process so far and not so much as batted an eyelash about all of the time and energy he is spending to keep up with everything and everyone. He is teaching full-time, coaching by evening, and still keeping up with the house and Mom!

It is through this experience I have realized just how much my parents love one another. My Dad is so selfless: cooking dinners, grocery shopping, cleaning the house, and even carrying my Mom’s purse to and from chemo-treatments! And I must digress, seeing my father— the epitome of masculinity— carrying my Mom’s purple Dolce & Gabbana hand bag, paired with her “gotta-look-twice-to-know-it-is-not-Vera-Bradley” aqua blue, paisley, over the shoulder bag, is a rather comical sight… all the while, Dad is wearing his Arnold Schwartzanger sun glasses and carrying his 25 lbs. collection of keys.

If there is one thing I have learned thus far, love is giving. And my Dad is one of the most giving men I know. While he may not have the innate quality of keeping up a house-hold, he certainly has the compassion, love and patience to do so and he has been absolutely amazing! He is a great support system to have, with his positive attitude and energy! With him by Mom’s side, there is no questioning she will be dynamic through out the chemo-treatments and surely she will kick cancer’s ass!

Perhaps my next blog will be about my Dad’s grocery shopping… just kidding, Dad!
<3