Family

Earlier this summer I had a phone call from my youngest son.  He reminded me that my brother, sister and I all had landmark birthdays this year.  We would be 50, 60 and 65 years old, respectively.  And he thought that this should be celebrated.  It had been a very long time since we had all been together.  Life and distance between homes seem to get in the way.  Jobs, children's activities and other obligations make it difficult for all of us to be in the same place at the same time.  My children were determined to overcome these obstacles so they set a date and made plans.

We all met a little over a week ago at David and Staci's home.  I was amazed to see how our family has grown from we three siblings to the crowd that was there!

The grandkids made good use of the pool and managed to splash the grandparents as often as possible.  They swam and ran and played and enjoyed getting to know one another.  They are such fun to be with and watch.

We sat and talked and remembered and compared notes and got caught up on what we had all been doing.  Everyone contributed to the evening meal and if anyone went away hungry, it was their own fault as there was food enough for an army.

The day wouldn't have been complete without our children insisting that we have a picture taken, so we gave in and let them.  I'm glad that they did.  It is nice to look at it and remember such a fun day.

As I think back, it is hard for me to believe that so many years have passed since we were children.  And yet, here we are, with a whole boat load of grandchildren between us.  As a family, we have been blessed.  Thank you, my children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews and my brother and sister, for making this a truly memorable day.

Garden Update

David emailed me some more pictures of his garden this past week.  It seems that although we have been complaining about the heat, his plants love it.  So much so that the radishes were becoming overgrown with other plants and had to be pulled.

He said that the wind had sort of flattened some of the tomatoes, but they are doing well in their new tomato cages.  I still have dibs on some cherry tomatoes!

The corn along side the back of the house - that same corn that I said would never grow in that spot - has made a liar out of me.  I'm thinking that if you listen really closely, you can probably hear it grow - it has grown that fast.  It hasn't set on ears yet, but I expect at the rate it is growing, it will soon.

And then there is the gratuitous cute grandkid picture!  Can't leave that one out.

I think the kids are enjoying the garden as much as their dad is.  And I am glad to see David's family growing some of their own food.  It is so much better than store-bought.  I hope his garden gives them as much pleasure and mine did for so many years.

Gardens

Last evening David called and told me to check my email.  He had sent me pictures of his gardening efforts.  I think they look pretty darned good.

He has sweet corn growing along side the fence in back of his house.  When he planted corn there last year, I laughed at him because I thought the corn would never amount to anything in that location.  I wound up eating some crow, as he had enough to use in canning salsa, as many meals of corn on the cob as his family wanted and he even had enough to freeze.

This spring he put in this raised bed garden in his back yard.  I am impressed at how well everything is growing.  He has a couple of different kinds of tomatoes, some potatoes, onions, peppers and strawberries along with some other things that I can't remember.  I have dibs on some cherry tomatoes.  There is very little on this earth better tasting than homegrown tomatoes.

There are some YouTube channels that I follow, having to do with food preservation and gardening.  One of these has videos by a lady in Virginia, who posts a wealth of information.  One of her videos is about her raised bed garden.  (See her video Here.)  I had not heard about this trend until David told me what he was doing.  Since then I have found that this seems to be a growing trend.  When David told me about all of the plants he has in his garden, he remarked that maybe he had crammed too much in the space, but it seems that this isn't a problem.  He was able to get much more in that space than if everything was planted in rows.  Makes sense to me.

I wonder why more people don't have back yard gardens any more.  I have seen only one vegetable garden in my neighborhood.  With rising prices at the grocery stores, it seems to me that growing your own produce is a really good idea.  I remember as a young girl, looking across all of the back yards in my block, there was not one yard that didn't have a garden.  The only problem with having a garden is that it spoils a person.  Store-bought vegetables just never taste as good as those that are home grown.

And if you don't have a back yard garden, you miss the opportunity of having great memories in later years.  Like sitting in the middle of the tomato patch with your Dad, salt shaker in hand, eating tomatoes off the vine until you just couldn't eat any more.  Memories like that!

Proud Grandma

As you know, I have two granddaughters who dance.

Both Boston and Maddie are in competition dance this year.  And both did very well at their dance competitions the past two weekends.  Both girls won trophys and Boston won an award for being an "Outstanding Dancer."  Boston said before that competition that she really wanted to win that award.  When the girl puts her mind to something, it gets done.  Congratulations, Boston and Maddie.  You done good!

The things that these two young girls accomplish never ceases to amaze me.  I guess it shouldn't.  They love what they do.  They work hard at it.  They have the support of their parents.  But yet it boggles my mind that they should be able to do what they do, and do it so well.  Yep, this is Grandma bragging on them.  And they have earned the right to have me brag.

David said that he gets choked up every time he watches his daughters dance on stage.  He says the other parents have found out and give him a bit of a bad time about it.  But I can understand how this can happen.  Last week David stopped by and downloaded some photos and video of the kids.  The video was of Boston dancing at her first competition of the year.  I gotta admit that I teared up a bit watching her.  To see your child, or in my case, your grandchild, up on a stage, dancing her little heart out and doing such a fine job of it, just brings tears of happiness and pride to one's eyes.

And how can you possibly watch this one dance, knowing how shy she was about being in front of an audience just a couple of years ago, and not feel the emotions of pride and happiness at her accomplishment.

I am so very proud of you both, Boston and Maddie.
Love, Grandma

Well Trained

My dogs are at my bedside the instant my feet touch the floor in the morning.  The bounce about like they have springs attached to their feet.  They twirl in circles.  Apparently, twirling in circles helps them get what they want.

I grope my way to the bathroom, where the dancing continues.  Up and down and around they go.  Worthy of any trained circus dog.  Any pictures that I have tried to take of this morning dance have been nothing more than brown fuzzy blurs.

I stagger into the kitchen, followed by the Yorkie Dance Team.  Before I get the coffee on, which is the most important part of my day, I grab the jar that holds their treats.  As I unscrew the top, the dancing and whirling escalates.  You would think that a ham bone for each was awaiting them.  But the treats are small.  Smaller than a quarter.

By now, they are standing on their hind legs in anticipation of goodies in their near future.  I give each of them a treat.  Jessie runs as fast as her short little legs will carry her back to my bedroom and hides behind my bed to eat her treat.  And Lily is off and running in the opposite direction to hide behind the coffee table in the living room.  They don't share well.

By the time I get the lid back on the jar and start my morning coffee, both are back in their beds, where they sleep until the middle of the morning.

I, on the other hand, am still struggling to get my eyes open all the way.

They have me very well trained.

Dad and the Monsters

When I was a little girl I was afraid of the dark.
Monsters lived under my bed.
They hid in my closet.
I would lay in my bed, perfectly still, making sure that
my fingers and my toes didn't stray off the edge of the mattress.
If they did, the monster under the bed would grab them.
When the monsters were at their biggest and meanest,
Dad would come into my room.
He would sit in the rocking chair.
And he would quietly sit and rock until I fell asleep.
The monsters never got me.
Dad was there.

Ode to Spring

"Spring has sprung,
The grass has riz,
I wonder where
The flowers is."

Recited by my Dad every spring as far back as I can remember.  Usually performed as though he were a little boy who was standing in the front of an old country school room reciting his lessons, and always with a silly little smile on his face.

Isn't it funny, the little things that you remember......and miss.