I See What You Meme

It is 12:30 AM and I am still so wired I can't sleep. The book release party was a-MAZE-ing.  Where do I begin? Me...in book signing mode! First of all, Roger and my best friend Jamie conspired to surprise me and they succeeded!  Jamie is my oldest and one of my dearest friends .  She also happens to be the photographer who took the cover photo for Four Seasons for Charlotte .  When I told her about the date for the book release party, I realized that she probably wouldn't be able to attend.  She does, after all, live in Florida. For the last few weeks, she has been sending me messages of congratulations, telling me how sorry she was that she couldn't make it.  I promised to send her one of the first copies.  What I didn't know was that she was working with Roger to visit this weekend.  She showed up at the book signing and totally made my day.  Getting to spend the last few hours just chatting with an old friend: Priceless.  I ...

In between planning the Thumbs Up Ball and watching the Downton Abbey season finale , I somehow got a cold.  It's about time, I suppose.  I think it's been close to a year since I've had to miss a day of work because of illness.  With all the other germies that have been floating around in this relatively mild winter, I think I got off easy.  After spending almost three days either on my couch or in my bed, I've had plenty of time to reflect on the current state of things in my life.   Decor from the very festive Thumbs Up Ball The Thumbs Up Ball was a huge success for our foundation , thanks in no small part to the many sponsors and volunteers who shared their time and talents for our fundraiser.  We raised over $3000 with this event.   For that I am grateful .   The other big news of the week is that I was awarded the Eagle Rare Life Courage Award . I was nominated for this contest by my dear husband sometime back in spring 2011. ...

This has been a difficult week but it ended well. On Sunday, I heard the news that a child was missing in the woods north of our house.  Not much later, I learned that the child in question was Robert Wood, Jr. For those of you living outside the Richmond area, Robert is an 8-year old with autism. He is nonverbal and his skills are somewhat limited.  He wandered away from his father and brother during an outing at a local park on Sunday and they have been searching for him all week. I was nervous as a parent who could only imagine how challenging it would be to know your child was missing.   I was riddled with anxiety as someone who works regularly with children with autism.  I know that these kids can sometimes bolt and run, even when you are providing conscientious care.  Any time a child goes missing it is stressful but when that child cannot communicate effectively, the risk is that much greater.  I was also sad and scared because I know Robert. I k...