Superhero Princess

When Inside Out 2 came out this year, Hannah told us that she wanted to see it.  So, I watched Inside Out with her and the next day we went to see Inside Out 2 together. For those who have not seen it, it is the cute sequel to 2015 Disney Pixar coming of age movie about emotions. We saw it, and soon after that, Hannah was obsessed with Inside Out 2: particularly the character Anxiety.  All summer, she was drawing pictures of Anxiety.   A few weeks later, Hannah declared that we would be Inside Out 2 characters this Halloween.  She told us that Amanda would be Disgust (Dree would approximate Duh Guh Guh for disugusting) , and I would be Embarrassment.  Grandma Char would be Sadness and Grandpa Dan would be Fear.  So by the end of July, we had decided we would be decorating our trunk of our car at Trunk or Treat. Tonight, for the first time in 5 years, the Cismesias will participate in Trunk or Treat.  It was a tradition that Mandy and I started in ...

For the second straight year, we spent the second weekend of October in Zionsville, Indiana. Yesterday was my mom and dad's 44th wedding anniversary.  They, along with my sister spent the day with Hannah.  Hannah had a great day, she went to the zoo, got Chick-Fil-A, and pretty much had a Yes day with Grandma, Grandpa and Auntie. The reason we went to Zionsville for the second straight October is not just because Hannah loves hanging out with her Aunt Megan, but because of the Our Hearts are Home Conference for Bereaved parents.   Last year, we first attended the conference just two months after Audrey passed.  One year later, the first day of the conference felt much different than one year before.  A lot has changed in one year.  The initial shock that we were sitting in a year ago has subsided and our grief has transitioned.  This year, instead of just participating, Amanda is on the steering committee.  We both have poured sweat and blood...

Two weekends ago, we walked in the Epilepsy 5k.  It was a tradition we started last year roughly a month after Audrey passed.  We had a large party memorializing Audrey and in support of her cousin.  We broke into groups.  I stayed with Hannah who was in the middle of the pack.  As we were trying to keep a consistent pace, I asked Hannah if she wanted to listen to Disney Princess music as it was Audrey's favorite.  Last year, I played Disney Princess music in memory of Audrey, and I was running ahead of the group.  I broke down into tears as I was running last year.  So, immediately, I thought it wasn't my best idea.  But Hannah said "yes," so the playlist played.  And the first song was "Part of your world" from the the Little Mermaid. And I overthought it, like I do everything with Audrey.  Obviously, I immediately wanted to be with Audrey in her world.  Was that world a heaven that included princess castles and Disney Plus r...