Our Story B.C. (before cancer)

Hi Friends,

Thank you so much for visiting and reading my story. I never dreamed I would one day be bringing you along my breast cancer journey, but I suppose no one ever does. Most of you reading will know a lot of this already, but just in case you didn't...

At 3.5 months old I was adopted from South Korea and have been a Minnesota native ever since. I graduated from the College of Saint Benedict in 2008 with a BA in Political Science and a minor in Spanish, and most importantly, a boatload of memories I will never forget (and a few that I might not remember...). In 2013, a work opportunity moved me to New York where I met Joe P., a New Jersey native who turned out to be my best friend and the husband of my dreams (and not just because he shares his fries and lets me have my way most of the time). We relocated back to Minnesota in May 2017 and married that fall.

In November of 2019, we suffered a miscarriage, followed by the loss of our 12 year old English bulldog Hurley. There were days we felt the sun would never shine on us again, but we held each other up and pressed on. A few months later, we were blessed with the news that we were expecting again, and in October 2020, we welcomed our greatest joy Sadie Florence into our family.

Someday I'll tell her how she saved us from one of the darkest times in our lives; about how the news of expecting her brought us back to life during a time when we couldn't see the light; about her incredible delivery and the inexplicable joy I felt when our nurse laid her on my chest for the first time.

And then I'll tell her how at just shy of 2 months old, she saved her mom's life. It was during my post-partum exam when my doctor first felt the lump. December 2020. That's when my breast cancer journey began.

Joe and I feel incredibly blessed already to have the love and support of so many. We're filled with hope that one day this chapter of our lives will be a distant memory and we'll be counting our blessings that we've had the privilege of growing old together.

Until then, thank you. Thank you for reading. Thank you for your kindness, your thoughts, your prayers, your good vibes.

Courtney