Although it wasn’t surprising, it still hurts none-the-less. My mother-in-law has passed away.

She lived well and she loved hard. She suffered through her cancer with dignity and strength. She died well.

Many wonderful things were said about her by her family that I agree with whole heartedly. I’ve told many people that she was an excellent mother-in-law. And it’s true. In-law relationships are often spoken of with disdain, but Vangie broke that stereotype in the way that she treated all of the spouses that her children chose. She often gloried in the fact that God provided the perfect mate to each of her children. Though we certainly didn’t eye to eye on every aspect, she treated me with respect and respected what I felt God was leading us to do.

As the days were looking more and more sure that she was going to pass, JK went ahead to try and be by her side and by her siblings’ sides in the hospital room. After a very rough 40 hours of traveling, missed flights and sleepless days, she and Eloise made it back. We’re grateful that she got to be with her mom for the last 2 days of her life.

I and the 3 older children followed only a few days later. Our travel was smooth all the way. But that didn’t mean that there weren’t some tired children. I was quite literally dragging Lucas through the airport as we went through immigration and awaited our luggage.

The funeral was really amazing. I’m so happy that my children got to be a part of healthy funeral and be a part of the celebration of the life of their grandma. I’m also proud to be a part of the family. Jacquelyn’s siblings and extended family are amazing. They handled the death of their mother, grandmother, aunt, sister and friend with grace, giving honor to our Father. Looking back, it seems odd that we even Facebook Lived the funeral. I was a bit worried that this would be insensitive when I suggested it. But the celebration that took place made it obvious that this was exactly the right thing to do. This type of hope and joy in the home going of one of His children should be shared.

Here’s the Facebook Live (via Youtube):

Here’s the slideshow we showed at the funeral service:

Below are some photos taken by Jacquelyn’s cousin, Steve. These are just the ones that have our family in them. He took a bunch more.