We Know We Love You by Jennifer Kenemer

Written for Traisen Jace's 1 month birthday in Heaven by his aunt Jennifer Kenemer

We will never know
The color of your eyes
The sound of your voice
The beauty of your soul
But we know we love you.

We will never know
The toys you favored
The talents you mastered
The joys you experienced
But we know we love you.

We will never know
The friends you kept
The sense of humor you had
The heros you looked up to
But we know we love you.

We will never know
The size of your grown feet
The successes you had
The occupation you chose
But we know we love you.

We will never know
The one you chose to marry
The children you adored
The life that was lost
But we know we love you.

Dear Daddy by Jo Ann Taylor

DEAR DADDY

I know today is Fatherʼs Day

and you miss me really bad,

But if you could see what I see,

you wouldnʼt be so sad.

I have all kinds of playmates

and playgrounds everywhere!

With swings and slides and

balloon rides that whiz right

through the air!

We have ice cream, cake and candy,

milk and cookies and punch;

We never have to go to bed

and we choose what we want for lunch!

Thereʼs even a river where you and I could fish,

The waterʼs as clear as a day in spring;

And beautiful rainbows and fluffy white clouds

from which I can see everything!

So you see, daddy,

Even though Iʼm not with you,

Iʼm under my Fatherʼs care,

And when itʼs time for you to come,

youʼll find me waiting right here.

And Iʼll give you the biggest hug.

Gee, I can hardly wait.

And when no oneʼs looking,

weʼll even swing on Heavenʼs Gate!

Heart-beat by Amber Lambert McGrath

Heart-beat

We were so happy when we first found out about you,

Such wonderful news, we could hardly believe it was true.

Excitement and anticipation at when we would meet,

Our precious baby, so innocent and sweet.

To the doctors we went for a look,

Oh, the ultrasound pictures they took!

So much to do to get ready for you,

Like painting the nursery – would it be pink or blue?

With each minor problem, grew fear that something was wrong.

But "Baby's fine" and "Baby's okay", the doctors' kept singing their song.

That is, until that awful, frightful day,

When they told us you had gone away.

Inside of Mommy you were so perfectly still,

We could only assume that it was God's will.

As Mommy and Daddy sat at the hospital, so many tears they shed.

For a future with you in it, was no longer ahead.

Details of what had to be done, we were told.

As numbly, we realized, our baby, we would never hold.

As reality set in, Mommy grew sadder,

And though he tried to be tough, Daddy grew madder.

Your sister, who was more in tune than we thought,

Was grieving too, and comfort she sought.

Day after day our hearts continue to break.

We are not sure how much more we can take.

As we prepare to lay you to rest,

We cannot avoid the obviousness of our empty nest.

Through all the sadness and tears,

We promise to remember you over the years.

As we think of you going to Heaven above,

We stand here so filled with love.

Today, we envision your hair in ribbons and bows.

As we watch you go, hand in hand, with Jesus, Cassidy Rose.

I Call You Sister by Unknown

I Call You Sister
Your child, my child has died.
We have a kinship, you and I.
I call you sister.
When we meet we speak not with words, but with our hearts
I see in your face my reflection;
A reflection of my tears,
A reflection of my pain,
A reflection of my longing.
This sadness we share goes deeper than any word.
It touches our souls.
Hot as fire...cold as ice.
We know each other,
We have seen the same darkness,
We have felt the pain.
~I call you sister~
Come now, take my hand.
We will walk together into the light,
We will learn to accept the gifts of this darkness.
And we will move forward,
Gaining strength through our knowing...through our sharing.
Our light will become brighter,
We will find meaning in this emptiness.
We will see future in this longing.
We will weep together and grow.
Come, my sister, take my hand.

If I Could Write a Letter to Heaven by Cortney Dawson

If I could write a letter to heaven
and send it up to you
I would drop everything I am doing
to show how much I miss you
The letter would not be very long
in fact only a few sentence that need to be said
because I would only write what’s in my heart
none of the questions in my head
Questions like why did you leave
why did this happen to you
why didn’t I get to say goodbye
or why were our days together so few
No, if I could write a letter to heaven
and send it up to you
this is exactly what I would write
and exactly would I would do...
" to my dear child who left too soon
I want you to know I miss you oh so much
I can’t wait to see your smile
I can’t wait to feel your touch
I am surviving down here
I look for more strength in any way
I think about you all the time
every minute of every day
but the most important thing
the one thing I really need to say
is that I love you to heaven and back
in my heart you will always stay"
I would place a kiss upon the page
and fold it up real tight
I would place it the mailbox
and send you one every night
So, if I could write a letter to heaven
and send it up to you
that is what I would say
with every word so true
It’s short and sweet
but straight from my heart
the very place that you will always be
until we are no longer apart.

Written by Cortney Dawson

I'll Need You Most by Adrienne Kimbrell

When I hold my baby and say good-bye,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

When my milk comes in and there is no baby,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

When my arms ache but there is no baby to hold,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

When I feel a flutter where the baby used to be,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

When the food, flowers, cards and plants stop coming,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

When the visitors stop coming to the house and the phone is silent,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

When the sun goes down and the silence sets in,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

When my baby’s monthly and yearly birthdays are here,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

When special occasions, anniversaries or Holidays arrive,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

As the years go by and I continue to long for and miss my child,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

When it feels as if I’m the only one who remembers,

that’s when I’ll need you most.

So Fragile by Jennifer Kenemer

So Fragile

Life … so fragile.

Loss … so sudden.

Heart … so broken

In the wake of such a loss,

we’re haunted by things we

don’t, and may never understand.

Yet the solace we seek may not

come from answers, so we

look for comfort in the

belief of love’s everlasting connection.

May that love lift you,

hold you close and

give you peace.

by Jennifer Kenemer, Avery’s “Aunt Jen”

Thoughts on Becoming a Mother

Thoughts on Becoming a Mother

There are women that become mothers without effort,

without thought, without patience or loss

and though they are good mothers and love their children,

I know that I will be better.

I will be better not because of genetics, or money or that I have read more books,

but because I have struggled and toiled for this child.

I have longed and waited.

I have cried and prayed.

I have endured and planned over and over again.

Like most things in life, the people who truly have appreciation

are those who have struggled to attain their dreams.

I will notice everything about my child.

I will take time to watch my child sleep, explore and discover. 

I will marvel at this miracle every day for the rest of my life.

I will be happy when I wake in the middle of the night to the sound of my child, knowing that I can comfort, hold and feed him

and that I am not waking to take another temperature, pop another pill,

take another shot or cry tears of a broken dream.

My dream will be crying for me.

I will be a better mother for all that I have endured. 

I am a better wife, a better aunt, a better daughter, neighbor, friend and sister

because I have known pain.

So now, when others hurt around me,

I do not run from their pain in order to save myself discomfort. 

I see it, mourn it and join them in theirs.

I listen.

And even though I cannot make it better, I can make it less lonely. 

I have learned the immense power of another hand holding tight to mine,

of other eyes that moisten as they learn to accept the harsh truth

and when life is beyond hard. 

I have learned compassion that only comes with walking in those shoes.

I have learned to appreciate life.

Yes, I will be a wonderful mother.

Author Unknown

These are my footprints

These are my footprints
so perfect and so small.
These tiny footprints,
Never touched the ground at all.
Not one tiny footprint,
For now I have my wings.
These tiny footprints were meant,
For other things.
You will hear my tiny footprints,
In the patter of the rain.
Gentle drops like angel's tears,
Of joy and not from pain.
You will see my tiny footprints,
In each butterflies' lazy dance.
I'll let you know I'm with you
if you just give me a chance.
You will see my tiny footprints
in the rustle of the leaves.
I will whisper names into the wind
and call each one that grieves.
Most of all, these tiny footprints
Are found on mummy's heart.
'Cause even though I'm gone now
we'll NEVER truly part