Well, 2021 escalated quickly, huh?
We don't know about you, but we could use some reminders that this week actually did have its share of beauty and good news.
A man in the battle for his life received some good news...
British musician Tom Parker, 32, reported that his latest MRI scan revealed a "significant reduction" in the size of his inoperable brain tumor.
The Wanted singer, who was diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma last fall, posted a picture with his family and thanked his Instagram followers for their "light and positivity."
"This journey is a rollercoaster that's for sure. Today is a f------ good day."
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... and another found love and shared the cute photos
After recently announcing he secretly married husband Mark Peacock in 2020, "Queer Eye" beauty guru Jonathan Van Ness, 33, shared some of their love story with fans this week on Instagram.
"Here’s some of my favorite moments together and here’s to making many more," Van Ness wrote. He thanked fans and friends for their kind words after the news of the wedding broke and added, "Thanks so much for your support and love for us!! Love y’all!!”
Brighter days and rainbow babies are coming...
After suffering a miscarriage late last summer, "Bringing Up Bates" star Josie Bates, 21, announced that she and husband Kelton Balka are expecting a rainbow baby in June.
"Our hearts are filled with gratitude, and we couldn’t feel more blessed and more in love with the thought of being parents again!" wrote Bates. The couple are also parents to daughter Willow, 17 months.
... and so are vaccines and weddings!
Two South Dakota healthcare workers are engaged after a surprise proposal at an unexpected moment: during a COVID-19 vaccination.
Registered nurse Eric Vander Lee, 26, thought he was just giving his boyfriend, paramedic Robbie Vargas-Cortes, 31, his scheduled vaccination. But when he rolled up his sleeve, Vander Lee found an engagement ring taped to Vargas-Cortes's arm.
“I saw tape, and I did not understand for like 30 seconds what was going on until finally it hit me,” Lee told NBC News. “It was just the happiest moment probably of my life.”
A group of home bakers are feeding their neighbors...
Community Loaves, a group of about 500 home bakers in Seattle, Washington, recently donated over 1,300 loaves to Hopelink, a local food bank.
Led by college administrator and avid baker Katherine Kehrli, the group developed a simple recipe for honey oat loaf bread using locally sourced flour, and each batch yields four loaves of bread.
"When I think of my childhood, my baba, my grandma used to make the best homemade bread," Matthew Campbell, the associate director of food programs at Hopelink, told Dylan Dreyer.
"That reminds me of this. You can see smiles through masks. You still can. You can see the eyes go up. (With) 600, 700 loaves of bread now, that's 600, 700 smiles."
... and if all else fails, we have this panda enjoying his meal
As some commenters noted, why is it that if our spouse chews like this, we want to climb the walls, but when a panda does it, it's somehow soothing?
Have a better week, everyone!
