Just how BIG is a HEART?

Last night, at 6:11 p.m. to be precise, we welcomed our newest granddaughter into our family!  Our daughter and son in law became parents to their third precious little girl.  Her name is Charlotte Ruth and she has a lot of dark hair just like her two big sisters.  I had the honor of being in the room as Charlotte came into this world, the same honor that I have had on the occasions of her two sisters' births.  It is difficult to put into words how much it means to me to be there when she was first seen,  to hear her first cries, to watch her mommy and daddy hold her in their arms.  As I was reviewing the day's events, I realized how full my heart was feeling.  When I became a mother for the first time, with Charlotte's mommy, I simply could not imagine that I could love any child as much as loved her.  My heart just opened up and she moved right in!  Next came the birth of our son, and like magic, the heart made more room.  Moving forward many years, I became a grandmother (or Mimi as I am called) for the first time and felt all of those wonderful, caring and loving feelings all over again.  I was certain that my heart was filled upto the brim.  I was wrong!  A few years later came another precious little granddaughter, then 9 months after that, a grandson and finally our Charlotte!  I now realize that my heart will always have room for more love...  Isn't that great?

Time Flies!

I seem to still be amazed at how time passes so quickly.  This year has been so busy with some of our children and grandchildren traveling out of state, and the others starting busy with jobs and family life in general.  We have celebrated many birthdays, anniversaries and even some just ordinary days.  We are so blessed to have our family so close and to be able to be a part of their lives.  We have had the extra priviledge of spending extra time with our grandson which has been such a wonderful treat.  All three of our grandchildren are so delightful and full of life and always ready to play and hug and just hang out with Mimi and Pop.  Speaking of grandchildren, we are looking forward to meeting the newest addition to our daughter and son in law's family.  If she is born according to her due date, we will meet her in mid October.  We have already made space in our hearts for this precious little girl and pray for her daily, as we pray for all of our family, friends and loved ones.  We thank God each day for the lessons and for the blessings that he bestows on us and our family.  Happy end of summer (and hopefully SOON 'end of HOT temps') and bring on fall!

Girl's Night Out

Last night my precious daughter took me out!  We picked up cheese dip and chips from Cactus Jack's and headed to the River Market.  We then found great seats in the outdoor amphitheater and spent the next couple of hours enjoying the outside, people watching and eating the cheese dip and chips.  She was well prepared with a jug of ice water to replinish our Tervis glasses that we brought from home already filled with lots of ice and water.  She also brought freshly popped popcorn and delicious candies to enjoy.  After the sun finally set (almost 8:45 p.m.) we sat back to enjoy the movie Steel Magnolias.  The movie was fun, the weather was perfect and the company divine.  This would not have been possible without the assistance of my wonderful husband who stayed home to take care of our two precious granddaughters.  I am so very blessed. 

Mother's Day

Sunday is Mother's Day.  Each year I find myself looking back on the lives of our wonderful children and in the last 6 years, our delightful grandchildren.  To say that I am blessed to be a Mother would be an understatement to say the least.  Somehow, in spite of my many inperfections, my husband and I have managed to raise two bright, loving, kind and wonderful children.  As we watch them with their children we are constantly amazed at their patience and seemingly endless supply of kindness and love.  It should go without saying that having grandchildren has made our lives so much fuller.  All it takes is a look from one of them or hearing them call our names, Mimi and Pop, and we are clay ready to be molded into whatever they need.  I thank God everyday for our children and grandchildren. 

Mother's Day also brings with it a bit of sadness and melancholy as I find myself missing my mother and grandmother.  They were such fine examples of what a mother should be and how I wish they could be here to see their grandchildren and great grandchildren.  I feel that they are looking down from heaven and they are smiling.

From one very blessed mother I would like to wish all of you mother's a very happy day!

Snake in the car?

I will begin this with the statement that 'I am not a fan of snakes'!  Some of you who read this might actually be fans and or are interested in them.  It bears repeating that I am not a fan of snakes!  We seem to have various ones 'visit' our back yard each year even though we have large dogs.  I have to shake my head when I tell someone that we had seen a snake and they inevitably ask 'What kind was it?'  My consistent answer is 'I don't know, I refuse to get down on their level, look into it's eyes and introduce myself and ask what kind it is!"  I share all of this as a preface to today's story.  I had to run an errand during my lunch time today and as I was turning my car onto a very busy road I happened to glance at the floor board in front of the front passenger seat.  Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted what I thought was a snake and it moved!  I did what any person in their right, albeit terrified mind, would do, I looked the other way and almost wrecked my car.  Thankfully I did not have nor cause a car accident.  I did think that I needed to confirm my suspicions because I would need to stop the car and abandon it at the very least.  When I looked again I found that what I saw was the charger cord to my cell phone and the reason that it had moved was because I was turning the car!  Duh!  When I shared with my husband what had happened he reminded me that my car was set pretty high off of the ground so it would have to be a pretty big snake to have gotten into my car.  I agreed which is why I almost wrecked my car!

Missing Maxx

Earlier this week, I shared that our dog, Maxx's health had taken a turn for the worse. I am sad to say that we lost Maxx this morning. I am comforted by the fact that we had so much time with Maxx and that he lived a wonderful life full of fun, love and hugs. Goodbye sweet Maxxie! You will always hold a big place in our hearts.

It's so hard to say goodbye...

This is a difficult time at our house. Our dog, Maxx is nearing the end of his life. He is 12 and would be 13 towards the end of this year. In his life he has suffered through numerous skins afflictions as well as three surgeries for cancer. Recently he has begun to have trouble walking and falls a lot, especially on non carpeted floors. We took him in for his annual vet visit last Saturday and I thought that we might not leave with him. Our vet was very compassionate and told us that he would not say that it would be wrong to put him down. My husband was squatting down and holding Maxx and when the vet said that, tears began to run down my husband's face as well as mine and the vet's. We decided to take some medication with us that might relieve some of his discomfort and reassess at the end of this week. There has not been any improvement, actually he seems to be falling more and when he does, he just lays there and looks at me with his big brown eyes and waits for me to help him get up. Maxx is not 'just a dog' he is a member of our family and this is not an easy decision for either of us to make. I am praying that my husband will gather some peace about what needs to be done so that Maxx will not suffer. It is truly not easy to say goodbye to a member of our family.

Celebrating our Grandson!

Three years ago today our lives were blessed once again and our hearts expanded to add our first grandson to our family. From the beginning, we have been delighted by his smiles and laughs and watching him grow into such a bright and loving little boy. He is always ready with a smile, hug and a kiss and constantly seems to amaze us with his knowledge of letters, words, songs and life in general. Happy Birthday to our Jake!

Celebrating the Hubby!

We are going to surprise my husband, a few days early tomorrow night for his 60th birthday. Shhhhhh....It is a surprise! I find it difficult to put down in words what an amazing man that I have been married to 35 years this coming November. He is intelligent, kind, loving, hard working, and supportive. He almost always has a smile on his face. The exception is usually in conjunction with one of his beloved sports teams not winning! He loves to cook and is very creative. He is very handy and can fix almost anything that needs to be done. He enjoys yard work and has passed that along to our son as well. He is an amazing man and more amazing husband. He loves his family with all that he is worth and there is not anything that he wouldn't do to help anyone. He is just as handsome, if not more so, than when we first met in college. He can always make me laugh, even sometimes at myself. He was and still is a great father to our two grown children and would throw himself in front of the 'proverbial train' for his 3 grandchildren. It makes my heart full to watch him with the grandchildren who have figured out that their 'Pop' would do anything for them or with them and does not like to see them not have whatever their little hearts desire. I simply cannot imagine my life without him. My heart still skips a beat when I see him each morning and I cannot wait to get home to him at the end of everyday. Happy Birthday Pop!

Our little 'Puddle Bump'

Tomorrow our first and oldest granddaughter will turn 6 years old. It seems just like yesterday when I was privileged to be in the delivery room as our daughter gave birth to her first child. She was such a tiny little thing with the most dark hair that we had seen up to that time. Such a sweet little angelic face. The minute we met her we were in love, with a capital "L". Before she arrived, it did not seem possible to love another child as much as we love our son and daughter. We immediately became 'one of those people'. You probably have met them, they are the grandparents who think that their grandchildren are the most beautiful, wonderful and intelligent children on the earth. As she has grown, we have watched her bloom into such a caring and loving (and of course, beautiful, wonderful and intelligent) little girl. She has a smile that captures your heart and is the first one to help. She is being home schooled by her mother, (our wonderful daughter) and is so engaged in learning everything. When she was a little over 2 years of age, she became a big sister and she is such a loving and caring big sister as well. She always brightens our day and we are so blessed to have her call us 'Mimi and Pop'. Happy Birthday to our little 'Puddle Bump'.

Happy Birthday to our Sugar Bear!

On the 22nd of this month our family will be celebrating a wonderful blessing. On that day, some 32 years ago, our daughter was born. There were no words to describe the feelings that occurred when we heard her first cry, then saw her sweet little face (and all of that beautiful hair!). When I held her the first time, I truly thought that my heart would burst open with love. From that day on, it has been my pleasure to be a part of her life. She started to walk at 9 1/2 months and from that time on, we were right beside her as she learned and explored her world and ultimately the world beyond. She has grown into a beautiful, loving, kind and intelligent woman. She is the first one to ask 'how can I help' and is always ready with a smile. These days we have the pleasure to be a part of her life where she is a wife and a mother - to two wonderful little girls of her own. Happy Birthday to our Sugar Bear! We love you so very much!

Out with the old, and be choosy with the new!

The new year has brought the usual desire to clean around our house. I have been talking and thinking about clearing out 'stuff' for a few years now. I changed careers 3 years ago and this, along with getting 'older' myself, has led me to believe that I need to rid our home of stuff and things and belongings that we either do not need or do not want. I would rather that we make the choices now ourselves as opposed to continuing to accumulate and then leave everything up to our children to clean out some day. I made a grand pronouncement the other day that we should dedicate some time each weekend to a closet or a room and literally look at and touch everything that is in it. We then need to determine whether we really need it or not. If not, we need to sell, donate or trash it. This pronouncement, like many of the ones that I come up with, was not popular with my wonderful husband. He just smiled and said 'Uh, huh'. He did not fool me, I know that means 'I don't think so and I am hoping that she will either forget or move onto some other new project - soon!'. I started with my closet and drawers and filled a black garbage bag with items to donate. I am going to try very hard to work diligently to accomplish this project this year. Out with the old and be choosy with the new. That is my new motto. (at least until I move onto another project or forget like my husband is hoping)
Happy New Year!