Roads?! Where we're going there are no roads!

i really just started all of this to tell everyone about my family. we are a pretty extraordinary unit. i feel like a jerk for talking us up so much but its the truth. Example: my parents are divorced and still live together. this was a decision made long before my mothers diagnosis. they divorced when i was 10. lived apart for 7 years. my father lived with a girlfriend during that time and when things went bad for him and he needed a place to stay, my mom let him stay with us. they weren't going to reconcile or  re-marry or anything. and none of us would have it any other way.
when my father moved back in with us, he did so knowing he wanted to be closer to my brothers and myself and if living with his ex-wife was the way to do that he was prepared to do so. and my mother, being as patient and kind as she is was happy to have him there, knowing full well that we would be happy to have him.  yes, they still live together today and yes they are still separated/divorced and are perfectly happy with it.. its a strange dynamic but its taught all of us how to be a much more cohesive unit. if my parents can put aside their differences and live together for their children and their family as a whole, it teaches us, their children, how to make sacrifices for each other and for our family. and i couldn't be happier.

i think this a huge part of what's gotten us through my moms diagnosis and what keeps us going day to day.
when my mother couldn't work anymore my dad took up paying the bills. when i have to work, my younger brother takes care of my mom. and when we are all frustrated and tired and stressed, my mom is there doing her best to keep her head in the game, offering to cook for us or cleaning up the house and utilizing one of her best talents, making us laugh. in spite of everything, her feeling so sick and tired and confused she still does her best to keep us going with a smile. its always motivation enough, even on my hardest days, to get up and carry on.


i guess now i feel a little less like a jerk for talking the fam up with all of that explained. i should have just began and ended this with: I'm so grateful to have the family i do. I'm so grateful for the people we've made each other and the sacrifices we've made to get there. and that it is my hope that with this log, we can extend our best to you and yours.