My Son

Michael Joseph Niemann III was born an old soul. From the beginning, my husband said he looked like an old man, haha. He liked his boy toys, and kid type fun. But, as he got older, he liked to know how things were made, where things came from, and why things were the way they were. He loved to watch the History Channel, Discovery Channel and others like it. He loved to clean and organize things too.

Early on, we knew that Michael was special. He had a debilitating disease, that there was no cure for. Rather than spend time at the doctor or in the hospitals, we lived life, and helped him live his. He was comfortable, happy and always fully in charge! He knew what he wanted, and always made it known. And in turn, we did what he wanted to do, and had fun doing it!

We went to Disneyland when all the kids were young, spent weekends at the beach, drove to the mountains, took the ferry to Catalina, traveled to Yosemite for our first family camping trip, spent time in San Fransisco, fed the seals in Morro Bay, and so much more. But, for Michael, the most fun was the adventure of getting there. He loved road trips! He loved the bumps, hills and curves.

And, when we weren't traveling or out having adventures, we spent family time at home. My favorite recent memories were weekends, last winter. We would light a fire in the fireplace, turn up the stereo, and have Family Game Night on the Wii. We would all take our turns doing our fitness tests, and would play bowling and our most favorite game - Just Dance.

Michael never felt sorry for himself, and never wanted sympathy or special treatment. He figured out ways to do anything he wanted to do, and was very determined to do things for himself. He would always tell me that he "has a good life".  He was never sad, or mad because of the life he had.

Though I wish we had more time, to do more things together, I would not go back and do things any different. His young life was short, but it was full and meaningful. I am very blessed to have had such a special son. He brought joy to our lives and had a heart so full of love.