Monday, March 11, 2013

Remembering Isabella




After looking around, I’ve decided to setup a Facebook page for Isabella simply called “Remembering Isabella”.  Here, I’ll be posting pictures, videos, and stories about Isabella that will hopefully share what an incredible life she had.  As I was sitting with Nathaniel the other day, he said “I miss Isabella!”  I then realized that unfortunately, Nathaniel will probably not remember much about Isabella except through pictures and videos.  After all, how much do you remember from when you were five?

So “Remembering Isabella” will be setup to ensure that we never forget her.  Each picture and video that I post will include some back story that will hopefully add another dimension to an otherwise one-dimensional photo.  We’ll show the good times, the bad times, the fun times, and the sad times.  Facebook’s Timeline feature will lend itself nicely to displaying these events in Isabella’s life.  You’ll be able to see everything from her birth to her death and everything in between.

So this web site will remain.  I’ll rotate old posts randomly here at the top of the page, and post some stuff periodically, but the majority of new content will be done on Facebook.

I could have gone the more personalized way with a blog, but I am hoping for a more interactive experience with you, the reader.  I want you to “like” and comment on the posts and share them with your circle of friends.  I want the entire world to know that cancer doesn’t rob us of faceless kids – cancer robs us of kids who are so innocent and full of life.

I want the entire world to know Isabella.

Monday, February 25, 2013

Retiring Isabella’s Fight

So for a couple month’s, I’ve been trying to figure out what to do with this web site.  I’ve always wanted to keep it around as a reminder to chronicle everything that we went through, but I’ve also felt that it needs to take on a new direction now.  So I’ve decided to retire this “version” of the web site and move to a new design, which I haven’t picked yet. 

The screen saver that I have on all of our computers displays all of our pictures that we’ve taken over the years.  With each picture that displays, I’m brought back to the time that the picture was taken.  I thought it would be neat not just to share some of these pictures and videos with you, but to include some narrative of the picture to help frame a story around the picture.  Many of you only became aware of Isabella when she got sick, but prior to that, she was an extremely vibrant and bright girl.  Even after she got sick, she displayed an amazing resiliency and positive attitude that will continue to drive me until the day that I meet her again. 

I want to share those events with you so you can see that Isabella’s life wasn’t just chemotherapy and radiation and sickness.  I want to share those events with you so that we don’t forget Isabella and what a wonderful person she was.  I want to share with you those events so that we are all reminded that pediatric cancer is not just about cute bald kids and ribbons and bracelets – it’s about the innocent lives that are lost and wasted.  Sadly, there are still many thousands out there, fighting for their lives.

So I’m not sure yet when I’ll launch the new site (I literally just thought of this a few minutes ago).  The address for this site will continue to be the same.  And the “Isabella’s Fight” site won’t be disappearing – I’ll still make it available from the new site.  I don’t know whether the e-mail alerts will continue to work, but I’ll let you know if you have to sign up again.  I hope you continue to visit the site and I hope that I can make Isabella proud and give you all just a glimpse into what made her so special.

Here are some interesting site statistics:

Number of posts:  380 (including this one)

Number of pageviews:  138,012 (and counting)

First PostA Fun Weekend

Most Viewed PostGoodbye Isabella

Next Most Viewed PostSeptember 21, 2012

Comments:  689 (thanks to all for reading, even if you never commented!)

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone out there.  Below is a two year old video of Nathaniel giving Isabella a kiss after she gave him a Valentine's Day card.  Enjoy!


Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Baseball Season 2013

It’s hard to think about baseball season when Blizzard Nemo dropped two feet of snow on us, but the Major League’s pitchers and catchers reported to Spring Training camp this week.  And that means that my teams here in CT will be starting up practice soon too.

To honor Isabella, I’ll be doing a bunch of things for her on the field (besides trying not to hurt myself).  I’ll be changing my number to 11, which sorta looks like Isabella’s initials.  I’ll also be wearing purple (her favorite color) and gold (the color for pediatric cancer awareness) as much as I can with wristbands and ribbons and what not.

But probably the most dramatic look will be my new bat, courtesy of Mr. Pete Tucci of Tucci Lumber Co.  I previously wrote about his bats in a previous post.  Anyway, here are the bats.  Don’t they look great?

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Don’t forget to check out his website if you’re looking for a bat!

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Goodbye 2012, Welcome 2013

By any measure, 2012 was a pretty rough year all around.  It started out pretty hard with Isabella going through multiple rounds of chemotherapy, then just got worse as we watched her decline until she died.  Every time I think about her, it’s just unfathomable to think that her time here on Earth was just so short with a large chunk spent in sickness.  It’s just so unfair.

But as I sit here and reflect on the last year (last few years, actually), I’m reminded that we have to live life to the fullest at all times because you just never know how much time you have.  At the beginning of 2012, we didn’t know that it would be Isabella’s last.

So it’s not just my 2013 New Year’s resolution, but my permanent resolution is to savor every moment.  Enjoy life and laugh and have fun every day  like Isabella did.

Below are some pictures from some past New Years.  On behalf of our family, we wish you all a very happy and prosperous 2013.

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12/31/2011 – A giant New Years Eve banana split at Friendly’s.  Notice Isabella is in her pajamas!  Here’s a little secret, Isabella wasn’t actually eating the ice cream, but she had a little cup of oranges that she was eating!  But from the angle of the picture, it looks like she is digging into the sundae!

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12/31/2010 – We spent New Years Eve watching fireworks at First Night in Burlington, Vermont.

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12/31/2009 – For this New Years, Isabella had completed her rounds of chemotherapy and radiation so we decided to spend the holidays down in Orlando.  This picture was taken a few minutes before midnight at Downtown Disney.  Notice Isabella’s hair just growing back.  How cute!
12/31/2008 – I don’t have any pictures to post from this year, but I remember it pretty vividly.  Isabella had just started her intensive rounds of chemotherapy and Julianne, Isabella, and I spent New Years in the hospital.  That’s the closest we’ve been to Times Square at New Years.