Merry Christmas!

Grandma Lou

My Grandma Lou passed away overnight, in the very early hours of this morning.  She was 93, and except for a stroke that came out of left field, she was healthy and living life to its fullest.  She was still very active in her community, participating in water aerobics, attending various events, eating out with her friends.  She will be so missed on Signal Mountain, and especially in our family.

   When "Dawson's Creek" became my television obsession in the late '90s, I started calling Grandma Lou "Grams", like Jen did on the show.  She loved the name and it stuck.

 I had the opportunity to say goodbye to Grams on speaker phone last night.  I told her that, of all the great memories I have with her, my favorite is the fact that, as an adult, she became my friend.  She supported me and always had my back.

Grams was an incredibly strong woman who asserted herself as the matriarch of the family.  She was opinionated, open-minded, and funny.  She had a story for everything (some of which we heard many times over the years).

 I'm so glad that my girls got to know their Grandma Lou.  They use her place mats to eat on, and the sweater she made for me when I was young has now been worn by both girls, too.  Every night, they sleep with the blankets she weaved for them.  I'm so glad to have those pieces of her in our house.

 She would always ask for "just half a beer in a glass" because she said couldn't drink that much.  Yet we all knew that, before long, she'd be back for the second half.  Never failed, and always made us laugh.

 There were a few years in my life, a long time ago, that felt almost defined by significant loss. This isn't new territory for me, but it's sure hitting hard.  As much as I knew she wouldn't be, I guess I just thought she would always be around.

 The girls have been asking a lot of questions, and I'm trying to navigate through answering them.  Emma asked if Grandma Lou was like a robot without batteries, and then asked if her heart is her battery.  Not sure where that came from, but I thought it was an interesting connection.

 Then they asked to look at pictures of Grandma Lou ... so we started looking through those taken in most recent years.

Grams saw a lot in her lifetime. She grew up near Purdue, went to college, was an Alpha Chi Omega, and had many stories to tell about her high-society social life over the years.  I think everyone who met her loved her.

 There was rarely something we'd all be doing that she wouldn't jump in on (eating a suitcase of White Castle burgers included).

 Although we lived far apart, Grams always seemed to be there.  Just last weekend, she called to wish Sara a happy birthday as we were on our way out to dinner to celebrate.  Sara was the last person to receive a birthday card from her, with $17 for 2017 (she'd made a note in the card that next year, Sara would get $18).  Grams still had plans.

 She was such an important and stable part of our family.  I am grateful to have had her in my life for nearly 37 years.

 I've kept this email she sent me a couple of years ago after a terrible Cyclones football game.  It makes laugh.  I've also kept the last voicemail she left me, and I'm glad I did.  Like all the others, it starts with, "Hi, Katie, this is your Grandma..." and ends with, "I love you."

We will love you and miss you forever, Grams.  Cheers ... to you for a beautiful life, well-lived, and to those of us who had the great fortune of being part of your journey.

Nine & Feelin' Fine

 

 Sara is NINE today ... last year in single digits!  She shows more and more signs everyday of entering tween-dom.  Sara loves 3rd grade and says her favorite subject is science.  She's still really good at math, too, and she loves to read.  This past year, she has gone from allowing us to read chapter books with her once in a while to wanting to read on her own all the time.  She always have at least two or three books going at once.  We are also so proud that she is a shameless Cyclones fan!

 Sara enjoys being involved in Brownies, and soon will be in her first play, "Peter Pan."  She is Michael in the play, and has been busy practicing her 15 lines.  We're excited to see her on stage!  Of course Sara also loves her phone (which, to her dismay, is closely monitored by her parents).  Sara still loves to draw and do projects, and can spend lots of time just quietly creating.  She has recently shown an interest in learning to play the piano.

We celebrated over the weekend at Benihana, her request, and had a great time enjoying the show and the delicious food.  Sara ordered hibachi shrimp and fried rice, and then rainbow sherbert for dessert.  She left with a fully belly and a big smile on her face!

We are so proud of our smart, funny, helpful, kind, opinionated, greatest-ever 9-year-old!