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WELCOME TO LIFE
IN GRIFFINLAND
Our journey with Williams Syndrome & Congenital Heart Disease
One mom's honest perspective and a family's journey through the waters of CHD and a rare genetic disorder.
A place of support, encouragement, and comfort for all those traveling similar roads with medically complex children.
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The Hardest Part: Choosing Grace
I am often asked what the hardest parts of sharing a life with Grief are. The courageous people go on to ask how best to show up for...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Jul 15 min read
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A letter to those grieving through Christmas:
Quite a few of you have reached out sharing your hurt and struggle as Christmas draws near. For some of you, it's your first Christmas...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Dec 24, 20246 min read
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Unraveling
It's been eight months without Griffin here. It's not new anymore to the rest of the world, but for my heart it might as well be...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Aug 18, 20246 min read
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Take the picture…
Take the pictures…lots and lots and lots of them. Memories are strange things, and the human brain - maybe all brains - have this skill...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Mar 5, 20244 min read
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There’s Purpose In the Pain (Reflections a year later while navigating grief)
This month is going to be hard. One year ago this month was the start of our whole lives changing forever; the month that marks a year of...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Mar 2, 20244 min read
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The Chronicles of Griffin (Part 1)
Griffin was born on March 14th, 2021 (Pi Day for the non-nerds and dislikers of pie). He was 4 days overdue and despite everyone's best...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Dec 19, 20237 min read
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Letter To Heaven (1)
Dear Griffin, My heart, my soul, my beloved, my sunshine... We've been home for 3 full days now, and it's still not home. I'm not sure it...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Dec 14, 20232 min read
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The Many-Faced Monster
It's not at all what I thought it would be, this monster we wrap up so tidily under the simple guise we named Grief. I can wax poetic...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Dec 5, 20233 min read
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Bring Me To The Desert
It's cold and wet here now, the beginnings of winter. I look out Griffin's window at the grays, blues, and small flashes of reds and...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Nov 30, 20232 min read
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Things We Find In The Mud
As I watch Griffin battle between wanting to sleep and wanting to be awake and playing; reaching for me in between soft cries that...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Nov 27, 20233 min read
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The letter I never wanted to write to you…
My dearest, most perfect, soulful little boy - my one and only Griffin, How do I count the ways I love you? How do I tell you enough how...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Nov 19, 20234 min read
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Hurt Hearts
I didn't know before Griffin my heart could ache like this. That it could withstand months and months of near-constant supreme highs and...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Sep 15, 20233 min read
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Stand Beside Her
Happy Independence Day to all our fellow Americans! 🇺🇸🎆🎇 Confession: it took a lot for me to post that. I’m not very happy today, in...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Jul 4, 20233 min read
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Waiting Rooms
I'm sitting in one of the waiting rooms while they attempt to close Griffin's chest after having it open for 14 days, despite his lungs...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Jun 13, 20232 min read
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Defiantly Choosing Joy
We are on day 5 of ECMO and all the usual rollercoaster of emotions, ups and downs, hopes and then subsequent uncertainties. We've been...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Jun 5, 20233 min read
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Dear Griffin
It's the night before your surgery to finally repair your heart. When I woke up this morning I didn't expect this, though, in hindsight...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
May 30, 20232 min read
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An unfiltered and honest response
People ask me all the time, "How are you doing?" I never know how to truly answer that. Do you really want to know, and how much time...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
May 28, 20236 min read
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The Weight of Motherhood
A lot has happened since my last post... I have said many, many things I never thought I would: "Griffin has gone into cardiac arrest."...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Apr 14, 20232 min read
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2022: Our Year in Review
Charles Dickens's first paragraph in A Tale of Two Cities is what keeps running through my mind as I try to summarize the past year for...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Dec 31, 20227 min read
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A Fond Farewell
I haven't had the words, hence my absence on here. Between our surprise baby coming 3 months too early, Griffin being admitted emergently...
Jess @ Life in Griffinland
Dec 20, 20224 min read
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