Big-Hearted Holidays–The Farnsworth Family

She was very creative. I was amazed that she always sewed dresses for her little girls, and often something for herself that would match them.

But I don’t think it was until after she moved away. That I realized all of her creative pursuits. We kept in touch through blogs and Facebook. She seemed to have so much energy, taking care of four young children and accomplishing so many projects. I had no idea at the time, that her body was so taxed.

She painted paintings, decorated cakes, painted and redecorated rooms (by herself, while her husband was out of town), and wrote some of her philosophies about life on a blog she called Ashleigh’s Impressions.

One of the things that amazed me the most about Ashleigh was the way she embraced motherhood. I remember when she was pregnant with twins (and we all thought she was crazy) how excited she was! She wanted a large family and didn’t want to waste time getting it. She considered each child a tremendous blessing. I think hers was the only baby shower I attended where the mom-to-be never showed up. She was already at the hospital getting ready to have the twins.

I think maybe my favorite thing about Ashleigh, was her attitude. Her blog is titled “Cheer Central.” And if you read her last couple of posts, when she had to be miserable, undergoing unsuccessful chemotherapy, she doesn’t deny that life is tough, but instead choses to focus on the good things, like how wonderful her husband is for buying her a new vacuum. In all of the emails, or updates leading up to her death, I never detected a tone of “why me?” or “life isn’t fair!” She approached each challenge in a matter-of-fact, practical sort of way, as a small obstacle to overcome in the big picture of her life.

I know her family has been comforted that this was the Lord’s will for her. I am comforted that although Ashleigh’s days were short, that she was someone who really “lived” and took advantage of each day given her. But I find it somewhat difficult to feel comforted when I think of those sweet children she leaves behind and the incredible responsibility their dad faces on his own now.

My first plan was to get Ashleigh’s blog published into a book for her family to have access to. Her personality is so clear in her blog–I hear her voice as I read it. Before I was able to move on that, I found that a generous cousin, had the same idea, and already presented Jeff with a hard-bound book, over 200 pages long. I would still love to be able to get at least one more copy of the book made, so that it can be preserved, and the kids can have access to it, to remember who their mom is. Other ideas I’ve had are to get gift certificates to kid-friendly restaurants/activities in their area. I imagine it has to be difficult for Jeff to adjust to providing for and caring for the kids. It makes me sad that kids won’t be getting homemade Christmas dresses/outfits from their mom this year. If anyone wants to donate something along those lines, please send me an email at kendrascreations {at} gmail {dot} com. You can contribute any monetary amount, through Paypal, by clicking on the button on my sidebar that says, “The Farnsworth Family.” I’m sure Ashleigh made the holidays magical for her family, and I’d love for them to be able to have some of that holiday joy, even though their mom can’t be with them this time. Thank you for any help you are able to give!

To get to know Ashleigh better, you can read her blog:

Or watch this video shown at her funeral:

For more info on my Big-Hearted Holidays Project, read this.