Amazing tributes to my sweet niece. So glad she touched so many of you as dearly as she did. She was special to me in many ways, not the least of which was sharing half-birthdays. Best memory is when I babysat her for the first time - - I was 14, she was 6-ish months. I was clueless and terrified so I kept her in the windup swing. She vomited all over everything and I freaked. That was a special moment! We were especially close these past two years - - I went through treatment for tonsil cancer, she went through endless tests and treatment for what was finally diagnosed as pancreatic cancer. We knew what each other was going through and often joked about disrupted bodily functions. What will stay with me always is the strength and courage with which she faced her illness. Her will to stay alive and be with her husband, children, and canine children was ever present and deeply, deeply inspiring. She was a beautiful, creative, empowered, and always sassy woman who will be in our hearts forever.