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Not to put a damper on the holiday mood. But I seriously think my family will be dealing with the loss of my father-in-law this Christmas.

I hear ya. To be honest, I'm dreading the holidays this year. Really not looking forward to them at all. I miss Mom terribly on a daily basis, but that is going to seriously mess me up, I'm afraid. Dad, too, and to an extent the younger ones. It will be somewhat easier once a year has passed, but as it is, the holidays and special occasions are even harder than the normal days.

Hold your family close Rosie. I lost my Dad when I was in college. I was 20. He was the youngest of nine in his family (7 lived to be adults, 2 died with the "Spanish" flu in the early 1900s).

My Aunt, always the "practical" one thought it would be easier if we just got together on Christmas Eve (a Sunday that year) at a community center and didn't get together as a family on Christmas Day. That would've left my mom, my brother and I all alone. I threw a fit. So my mom (feeling much the same) invited everyone to our house for Christmas dinner.

The Christmas Eve dinner was cold and harsh. But Christmas Day that year, at home, with all the family is still one of my warmest memories.

Twenty-four years later, I still miss my Dad. It's a little less painful every year. But the empty spot is still there.

It won't be easy. But hold each other close. Let the tears flow. It's okay.