Let the next countdown begin.  In the next three weeks, I’ll have two milestones.  The first one will occur this week when I go in for my second round of IUI.  The second one will be on April 29 when I test to see if it worked.  Last time, I got really caught up in the message boards and where everyone else was in their journey to have a family.  This time, I’m going to shake things up.  I’m going to create my own experiences.  After thinking about this particular countdown, it dawned on me that we count down a lot: holidays, vacations, important events, and life changing moments.

As I’ve been thinking about the different count downs in my life, one particular New Year’s Eve comes to mind.  I don’t remember the year…somewhere in the mid to late 80’s.  The whole family would gather at Grandma and Grandpa’s house on South Warren to ring in the New Year.  It was the best!  A lost tradition is going out at the stroke of midnight to bang on pans with wooden spoons.  During one of those celebrations, I vividly remember sitting on the stairs with my brother.  He and I were gathered around the radio to listen to Casey Kasem’s Year End Countdown of the top 100 songs of the year.  While I don’t remember the song of the year, I remember the laughter, warmth, and closeness that my brother and I still have to this day.

In the moment, it might not seem like a big deal.  Decades later, I realized it was! I love you, big brother!

Hugs, C