Thanks Ana! Funny you mention it, I just bought that book a few weeks ago! I have gone through it a bit, not fully ready to jump into it, but have read a chapter about a girl who lost her mother around the same age as me, to cancer. I totally identified with everything she said and it helped a lot to be able to relate to someone about the exact same things that I've been feeling.

Your words are so comforting, I do hope that she will be with me. Sometimes I do think that she is, I was the baby of the family and she was always so protective of me and when she was dying she was SO worried about me being ok after she was gone. I can't imagine she would be anywhere else... though I do hope she's enjoying being reunited with my grandfather, my cousin, and a dear friend of ours who passed far too young.

I have a similar story about a friend of mine. Her mom died before she had her children also and when she went for the ultrasound of her second child, her first child kept pointing to the door saying he saw grandma. He'd never met her, but had seen many pictures of her. When she told me that story I got chills. I do believe in it, I just need to feel it for myself I guess.

Thank you for saying that Ana that she WILL still be your children's grandmother. She is your blood, she will be their blood, she will be in your children and you will see that in them when the time comes to have your own. And when my dad passed away my niece was a very young and she told my brother and sister in law that grandpa was there or she would just say "hi grandpa" or my grandchildren would stare and watch or smile when they were babies as if somebody was there that we couldn't see but they did, it was eerie but yet it was peaceful. Even though my brother is a scaredy pants and it just freaked him out whenever his daughter did that, we all thought that it was awesome and would ask her when we were there if Grandpa was there too! He never was...darn it. He passed away before I got to the damn hospital cuz I was at work and had to stop and get my medication before I went for my blood pressure...we all thought he had a stroke...it was a heart attack. My brothers were there but only saw him come in from the ambulance and said he was sitting up awake when he was brought in. How things can happen so fast. Well you keep your head up and just remember the good times and let them make help you to smile!
I have to find my mom's card from her wake and type you the poem I picked out. I can't find it online right now.

My granddaughter used to have an imaginary friend when she was little. Her dad's mother passed away before she was born, and one day she saw a picture of her and said, "That's HER! That's MY FRIEND!!"
A friend of mine's dad passed away before she got her girls and they used to tell her that there was a man outside their window at night. They identified him the same way via a family photo.

They are with us.

I love these stories, thank you both! It does give me hope that one day I will feel her presence, and that she will still be a part of my children's lives when the time comes. I miss her so darn much.

Aimlee, Your post was the one that let me know how close my mother was to her last day. I went to her after I read your post and I was able to spend the last three days with her. she died on December 10, 2012 and followed the exact progression as your mom.

I am missing her and looking for signs as well. Thank you for posting. it has helped me not feel so all alone.

MEWS daughter