October 2

When we said goodbye to Nathaniel at the hospital, Nate and I knew that we hated the idea of waiting too long to have his funeral. We wanted to know where he was and not worry about him as he traveled through the hospital and funeral services system. He died from omphalocele (actually, a variation of that disease), and I couldn't imagine knowingly putting his little body through any more.

So we set the funeral date for Tuesday, October 2, 2007, 12 noon.

The weather broke just enough for us to have a graveside service; I absolutely did not want to have the service inside. I wanted to spend time with him where he'd remain.

Nate and I were able to be alone with Nathaniel until the service started, which was wonderful. We needed that extra time to prepare ourselves for what followed. Everyone was sent to the outdoor tent that was set up, and Nate and I followed along behind the funeral home director. Nate carried Nathaniel and I held on to some flowers. The service was quick and memorable. Jeff led the services for us, which was wonderful.

There were so many friendly faces there with us!