The people in my life.

Recently, for many reasons, I have been thinking about the people in my life that really matter. The people that make my life what it is. The special family and friends that have made me the person that I am.

The first person that I think of is Martin, my awesome husband. He's everything to me. He's by far the smartest person that I know. When we first met, we only dated for a short little lit before I knew he was the guy. The thing that made me love him so much, so quickly, was his hair. No I'm kidding, though he does have amazing hair!! It was not his perfect skin (he's going to kill me..haha) and his non-accent. (he's Irish, but does not have an accent since he's been in Canada for over 20 years...but he says 'pram' instead of stroller and when he pronounces 'garage' you really don't know what he's talking about) It was not his sense of humour, though he tends to send me into coughing fits from laughing so hard. It was, his big fat brain. He just seemed SO smart. And soon enough I found out it was not just an illusion, he was in fact really bright, and very modest about his abilities. He's also a really good Tennis and Squash player, but that impressed me less, since I am not that good at either sport.

Martin amazed me in his confidence as an entrepreneur. He always lept into his projects and never doubted his abilities. How many times did I say....'Are you sure honey...what if it doesn't work out..what if???' But Marty always convinced me otherwise, and made it happen!! It was just awesome to watch, a true businessman at work. We did take many risks, but I would not have done it any other way. Martin always knew what he was doing, and I was always, and still am very attracted to that.

The best part about Marty though, by far, is he does not know how smart and talented he is!!! He is the most modest person I know, and that, is SEXY!!

(Left: Knox, Caroline, and Martin)

Needless to say, my love for him extends past the above. He is loving, and caring, and has learned SO much about what it is to be a CF husband in such a short period of time, it amazes me everyday. He has made me stronger, better, smarter, and thinks I'm just as pretty all dressed up, as I am with an IV pole by my bed. It's just beyond me how I got so lucky!!

The other people in my life that I just love so, so much are my mom, dad, and brother John. My mom is the rock of us all. She lets me do my thing, but when we need her, she is like a tornado of energy. My mom is a caregiver, a mother, a wife, a sister, a daughter, a cook, an engineer, my personal CF researcher, you name it. She also takes care of Marty when he needs some care giving. May be when times are tough, and I'm ill, and the world just crumbles around us, my mom remembers that as much as I need her help, Martin does too. And that's just awesome. She treats him like a son, and is always a positive energy on our marriage. I cannot imagine how she does it. My mom also has always encouraged us to have babies. She did not want me to carry, but has understood that our marriage needed babies. What a blessing the woman is!!

My dad, if he was not my dad, would be my best friend. We are SO alike, oh my. Scary. We share the exact same opinions about everything, we look alike, we act alike, it's pretty funny. He is a really good husband and I have always thought that all men should be as involved as he was and is. As a child, he bathed us, and did all the mommy and daddy things. He loves to iron, and is really good at it, and irons EVERYTHING..haha. He keeps the house super clean, and when I was a kid I remember him ironing after dinner when we were all watching TV, or chatting, more than any other memory. I think that's so funny!! I used to think that this was normal until I met other dads that never ever ironed or did house work in their lives. He is the best role model for Martin that I could ask for. He is caring and loving, and funny, and really really smart. I still think he knows everything, and I thought I was supposed to grow out of that when I was a kid. In many ways Marty and my dad are more and more alike each day. That is a compliment for both Martin and my dad.

My dad gets choked up when we talk about baby bean. He loves that grandbaby so much already, and just celebrates with Martin and I everyday. My mom and dad's love for both Martin and I, their acceptance of who we are and what we need, as well as their joy at us expecting this little one, is just beyond words.

I also have an older brother, John, who's a few years older than me. John and I are either really alike or really different, but this means that we argue a lot. May be not a lot, but enough that I can safely say sometimes he drives me nuts!!! If we keep politics, religion, and basically any other topic off limits, we are fine. Otherwise once we start, it always ends up way too heated. BUT.....John is the best person ever to have while in the hospital. He cares about me so much, I think he has changed many things in his life to make sure he can be there for me when I am sick. He is the one that has the night-shift at the hospital, ALWAYS. Martin has just realized this is the way that it is. John takes time off work, reschedules everything, to make sure that he will only leave when I am totally okay to be alone. Most times when I am in, I am alone most of the day and night, with visitors only in the evening. I am usually very well, just on IV's for tune-ups. But there have been those times when I was very sick. I do not sleep at all during those nights, so needless to say there have been some rough times. I think John has been through some hard times, seeing me so sick. But he's a champ. Always consistent, always my big brother. His dedication to me as a brother is commendable, though I like it more when we argue about politics, since it's then that I know he views me as simply his sis, not as his sick sis. All the bickering is put aside when I am sick, and we are back to being best buds. I value having him as my big brother, and hope that one day when I get my new lungs, him and I are going to be able to snowboard together and he can breathe easy too, knowing that I'm finally breathing ok.

(Above: Me, my cousin Mark beside me, my cousin John left sitting, my brother John right sitting)

Now my family is everything, as you can tell, but there are so many other really cool people in my life. Martin and I have some amazing friends. Some old, some new. I have good friends from High School, and my girls from University. I have friends from all over the world that have CF, or have had lung transplants, whom I keep in touch with via the Internet. Martin and I have a large group of friends from his high school days, that we feel in some way will always be a group, and that will grow old with us. We celebrated each others weddings, and now are having children together. Though we rarely get everyone in the same room at the same time (since we're talking about over 10 couples) when we do, it's always a good time, and something I hope will stay a constant in our lives for ever and ever.

(Christmas dinner, December 2008, with our friends, about a week ago!!)

My extended family is not very big, but I have to say that everyone has always been very supportive with regards to my CF, my life, my marriage, and now my pregnancy. We are the only ones in Toronto, so seeing everyone is difficult. Some live in Poland, some in Chicago, some in Paris. It's hard not to see everyone, but I know that they are always there when it counts, like our wedding day.

(Our wedding reception....all the good people in our lives)

I feel like my network of support and love goes much much further than what I have written above. There are so many people that I correspond with, like the people I have met through this blog. There are the people that have become my new friends over the years. There are the nurses at my CF ward that I have known for over 10 years now. There is my post office friend, whom I speak to about CF, our baby, our marriage, every time I stop in to mail something for our business (which is very often)....strange may be, but we have the best talks!!!! haha. There is the lady that does my hair, and my waxing, and....well...you get the idea. Many amazing people that have somehow shared in my life, and my story, and are now really excited about little baby Ritchie. I am a true believer that sharing with the people that you connect with in life is gold. Discarding those that are somehow a drag on your life a necessity.