I've just returned from a visit to my hometown in Minnesota, where for 10 days I was able to kick back and do nothing more than spend some much needed time with family and friends. The end of summer in Minnesota comes with long days at the State Fair eating cheese curds (the greatest food on the planet!) and clapping along to the local amateur talent contest, witnessing a cow giving birth (Oh, yes!), a Saturday at a 'backwoods' lake cabin, and salsa dancing into the wee hours of the morning. Exactly what this now converted NYC girl needed.

But this trip had an even greater significance. My grandmother, one of my very best friends, has spent the last few months conquering 20+ hours per week in and out of the hospital in her fight against cancer. Always one to light up a room with her fun-loving personality and mischievous smile, her spirit is brighter and her hopes higher than ever before, telling everyone she meets, "I'm still praying for a miracle."

Seizing the opportunity to capture all the cheer this incredible woman brings to everyone around her, I asked friend and photographer Jenny Bedard to capture my grandmother's charm in action. And she did just that... and so much more. With a whirlwind of a visit, I didn't have a chance to look at the photos until I was on my flight back to NYC one week later. So there I was, sandwiched between a stranger and a window, somewhere high above small town USA, with tears flooding down my cheeks as I flipped through image after image of joy and love. So much Love! Instantly these photos became the most valuable cargo in my luggage.

My inspiration, my confidant, my joy, my grandmother.

Photo by friend and photographer *the incredible* Jenny Bedard Photography