A Tree of Memories

Dec 052011
 

It seems that I’m not the only one taking a trip down memory lane when I look at the decorations on our Christmas tree.

My cousins Dee and Julie were playing a different kind of “Where’s Waldo”, only this time it was to find our Grandma’s handiwork.

Each Christmas, Grandma L would give everyone a Christmas ornament as a present.  These were created with her own two hands, and every year it was something unique.

Sometimes it would be crocheted with yarn…

or starched and dazzling with glitter.

She would find the most amazing patterns and materials to use.

Who would had thought that over 30 years later, these small keepsakes would still look this good.  Maybe it was all the love that she put into them when they were created.

Many years have gone by since Grandma L passed away, but her memory lives on in numerous Christmas trees across the country.

What special keepsake do you have on your tree?  Send me a picture and the story behind it and I’ll have a special Christmas post to share them all!

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You Will Also Channel Your Mother

Nov 302011
 

Since Nichole has 2 daughters, she is faced with the same rules that I had when raising 2 daughters:  you must remember and recite the Mommy Mantra.

Now if you have children, you know (or soon will know) that this is a requirement of every Mom because there is one constant when raising children:  they will fight.

Not only will they fight, they will pick on each other.

They will also tease one another in ways that only siblings can.

And above all else, they will test your patience.

And to top that off, when they are done fighting and testing your patience and you feel that you are at your wit’s end, they will come up to you, look up at you with those beautiful eyes and say, “Mommy, I love you.”

And your heart will melt.

And you will pull them close, hug them and kiss them and all will be right with the world.

For exactly 2 seconds.

And it will start all over again, and not end until… well, quite possibly never.

It is at those moments when you are required to recite your Mantra:  “I love my kids, I love my kids, I love my kids.”

It’s in the Mommy Handbook, between the chapters on How to Heal a Booboo and Checking for Monsters Under the Bed:  Five Steps to Sweet Dreams.

But believe me, you won’t have to earmark that page, you’ll have it memorized pretty quick.

A Day Late

Nov 252011
 

I always let my kids dictate when holidays will be celebrated.  Because they have families of their own, rarely do these types of days fall on the actually holiday day.

And that’s OK with me.  That just means I get to spend more relaxing time with them, and they are not all hustle and bustle to get to other places.  I always hated to be at 3 different places at once when I was younger… pleasing everyone except myself.  I said goodbye to that crap years ago.

Why did I just get a picture of Maxine in my head?

I had today’s post already done yesterday afternoon.  It was beautiful.  Gorgeous, even.  I had pictures, witty commentary.

But as you know, even the best laid plans can go kablooey at the last minute.  And did they ever around 10 pm last night with a text from oldest saying they couldn’t make it.  Hey, I understand, things come up that are unavoidable.  Sh*t happens.  We move on.

While it will only be Nichole and the girls joining us, I am still going to be cooking the big spread that I had planned.

I sure hope their hungry, because I have enough food to feed an army!

 

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Firepower

Nov 142011
 

Rick’s always wondering what to do with the grandkids when they come over, and this time it was our Grandson Brayden who paid us a visit.

So being the good Grandpa he is, he thought it would be a good idea to take him to the gun club, you know, to urge that testosterone level up just a notch by shooting things.

But first, there has to be a gun safety lesson given by his step-dad, who has some great experience with this kind of thing.

And they started off small with a BB gun.

Yep, this boy was one happy camper.

Look at that stance and concentration.  He was a natural.

After some practice with that, it was time to go right for the power.

The Glock, which is owned by Erik.

Here’s where the reality of what a gun is comes about, and the safety lesson started all over again.

This machine was meant to kill, and Erik wanted to make sure that Brayden knew that, and how to prevent anyone from getting hurt (and no bullets were in the gun at the time, so I know I was breathing better because of that fact).

It was important for Brayden to know how to hold the gun and keep his finger off the trigger.

Stance was also really important so that it didn’t come back and slam him in the face when it fired.

When they went to the gun club, they found out that it was “sight-in day,” so they couldn’t do their target there.

That didn’t deter them.  They just found another spot, set up the target and let the bullets fly.

But instead of the BB gun, Brayden got to use Rick’s .22.

And the Glock.

Well, I’d say he did pretty good!

I can already see a bond being formed, can’t you?

29 And Holding

Oct 032011
 

Happy Birthday, Christine!

(Circa 2004)

Wow, where did the time go?

It seems like just yesterday I was teaching you to ride a bike, and then kissing your knee when you scraped it against the stone wall that lined the sidewalk.

No, it was just yesterday when I saw you board the bus for your first day of Kindergarten.

Wait a minute, it was just yesterday that I watched you graduate from High School.

Maybe its all those yesterdays combined that bring back some wonderful memories and remind me of the beautiful woman you’ve grown up to be.

Happy birthday, sweetheart, I love you very much!

 

 

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