caring for mama

Finding G-d Again

I’ll be honest. It can be hard to see G-d at the hospital. Particularly in the Oncology Department (aka cancer), and especially when you’re dealing with an incredibly RARE brain cancer. But watching the sun rise over the Grand Canal on Yom Kippur morning after a mostly sleepless night spent […]

Where’s Mama Jude?

Ok, Venetophiles out there… where in Venezia is Mama Jude enjoying a coffee in this picture? Hint: We were taking a walk when I turned around and snapped this shot of Mama Jude by a gate next to a famous restaurant. Post in the comments where you think we are!

The Best Travel Tips

In just two weeks time, Mama Jude and I will depart on our very special trip (plus Abby and More Diane round out our traveling party) to Venice, Italy; and friends and loved ones have been sending great advice. I thought I’d share some of the best travel tips. Please […]

The Traveling Party

Meet More Diane In just a few weeks time, I will be traveling to Venice, Italy with My Amazing Mama, who’s fighting a rare terminal brain cancer, along with our sweet, healing service dog Abby. Given that Mama’s condition requires full-time caregiving, traveling abroad alone was a daunting goal. We […]

Finding the Perfect Venetian Home

A small canal in Venice (credit: Mama Jude) Due to our circumstances (I’m a FT caregiver for my amazing Mama fighting terminal brain cancer), finding the perfect Venetian home had to be Step 1 in our traveling process for Mama’s Last Wish Trip to Venice, Italy. We knew it would […]

Premature Isolation of a Young Caregiver

Mama Jude and Me (20-something years ago) I turned 30 this past April, something I find myself embarrassingly admitting lately. It’s what I find most isolating about being a young caregiver ― the young part. It seems most everyone else I meet caring for a parent is about 20 years […]

My Amazing, Memorable Mama

Mama and Me My Mama is just adorable. She glows with an inner excitement for life, even amid debilitating cancer treatments. I realize I’m biased as her daughter, but in truth she’s always been “cool” (though very strict when I was a kid). She’s done so many things and lived […]

Mama’s Last Wish

The 3 of Us (taken just weeks before Mama’s diagnosis last year) A year ago, my sweet mama had brain surgery. It was one of the scariest days of my life, to come that near to losing my only close family and my lifelong best friend. I am still struggling […]

Natural Remedies Ease Cancer Symptoms

First, here’s my disclaimer: I’m no doctor and I am in no way professing to cure any cancer. I am a caregiver and a writer. My mama is battling brain cancer and we’ve found some natural remedies for the symptoms of her cancer and treatments. All of these items can […]