A Pot of Butterfly Wings

Near the end of my most recent visit with my grandkids, the temperature dropped to 27*. My daughter brought a big pot of geraniums into the sun room for the night. The next morning, as I had my cup of chai latte, I noticed my youngest grandson carrying a small scrap of something red clutched in his fist. When I asked him what he had, he replied, "Butterfly!". He is just two years old, so I was surprised at his perception and wondered at his experience with butterflies. I cannot think of anything that so rightly describes that velvety petal. I think everyone should have a pot of butterfly wings on their windowsill.

New York

I visit my grandbabies every chance I get. They recently moved back to the North Country, upstate New York. Fall Break gave me the opportunity to visit them in their new home. I love upstate New York, and on my recent visit it presented itself in all its resplendent glory of Fall. I was enchanted with the falling leaves, fluttering in the golden sunshine on a gust of wind. I tried to capture it on a video with my phone-with no success. I was also enchanted with my two-year-old grandson. He speaks in 2 or 3 word sentences and makes himself well understood. What tickled me the most was his response when he is told "no": "OH MAN!" I laugh just thinking about him. Whenever I return home from one of my visits with my loved ones, I regret not having done all the things I intended to do with them while I was there. Then that leads me to a sadness that I don't live closer so that I can be a regular part of their lives. I dream of living just around the corner so they can walk over to see me anytime, and I would always have cookies ready for them...

Rainbows

Recently, I lost my little Yorkshire Terrier, Alvin. He was tiny, weighing only 3 lbs. He was over 13 years old and had been slowly declining. He didn't have any teeth any longer, no hearing or sight. I suspect he was also getting senile. He would scrabble around in the night, getting in the shower, or under the bed, and stuck in unimaginable places. I would have to get up in the middle of the night, rescue him, and put him back to bed. Then he didn't seem to like his own bed any longer. He would sleep in the other dogs beds, forcing them to sleep in his. His last night with us he was in a panic, breathing hard and running fast. I couldn't get him to settle down. I think he had a stroke. He passed away the next afternoon in my arms. He is buried in the backyard under the mesquite trees. He never complained. My cousin comforted me with these words, "That's why they can love so freely." It is monsoon season, with thunderstorms every afternoon or evening. I was hoping to see a rainbow for Alvin. A day later as we were shopping in town, my friend called to say that there was a huge rainbow that looked like it was right above my house. I ran out of the store and there it was, not only the one huge one, but a smaller, fainter one next to it. My husband and I both cried. Rainbows are said to be God's promise. Alvin's rainbow was a sign to me that he was at peace. I think grandchildren are like rainbows. They brighten our lives, and bring us joy. They are a promise that life continues through them. We will not be forgotten. They carry a part of us in them.

Favorite Books

We all have favorite books. Some we read over and over again. My son loved the Arthur books and read them so much he could recite them from memory. Our school hosts a Books R Fun book fair frequently. Books are my weakness. I always end up spending $50 or more every time we have the book fair. Being an avid reader myself, I'm always looking for good books to share with my grandkids. They all know they can count on getting new books from their Gubba. I found a lovely book called, "Tea for Ruby" by Sarah Ferguson. Ruby is a precocious little girl that receives an invitation to tea with the Queen. She is so ecstatic, she runs to tell everyone. In her enthusiasm, she bumps and tousles people and receives a scolding each time. As she dresses for the occasion, her mother reminds her to use her manners. The ending in the book surprises you with the real identity of the Queen. Ruby is a little lady and remembers her manners while having tea with the Queen. My granddaughter, Makenzie loves this book. It has become a tradition to read this book during every visit. I always call and build her anticipation by planning the things we will do together when we visit. Our tea Party is the highlight, with cookies we bake together. I always call her Ruby, and you guessed it, I am the Queen.

Reality Check

Returning home, we had just a few days to unpack, do laundry, and pack our bags for our next trip. We were off again for 4 days. I had a conference at the beautiful Loew's Ventana Canyon Resort. A few days after returning from the conference, our daughter called. I could hear the little ones playing in the background. She called Donnie over and asked if he wanted to talk to Gubba. He got on the line and said in a sad voice, "Pawpaw". He was already missing his Papa. My husband is quiet, and although loving with the grandkids, I am the one that plays with them. That was my reality check; I come in second to his Papa.

A Grand Entrance

As soon as school was out for the summer, we headed to New Mexico to visit our grandkids. All day long, my granddaughter asks, "When will they be here?" along with a slew of other questions. The trip takes us about 8 hours, and I think of them the whole time--except while I'm sleeping. When we arrived, there they all were standing at the open door waiting for us. After hugging and kissing everyone, I realized my little granddaughter was no where in sight. "There she is! Go get her!" my husband pointed to a pillar by the house. I took off running across the sidewalk on my 3" high sandals. Cutting through the grass, my foot slipped off the side of the sandal, and I knew I was going down. With nothing to grab onto, I fell face first into the grass, scaring my grandkids half to death. I lay there a minute, breathless, assessing any injuries. I rolled over to a circle of concerned faces staring down at me. The hilarity of it all hit me then and I lay there laughing to cover the pain. Needless to say, I spent the rest of the visit moving carefully around with a fractured rib, gulping Ibuprofen.

Growing Older, Staying Young

Since my last post, we've welcomed a newcomer to our family. He is now 18 months old, and I am experiencing my 14th year of grandparenting. My 57th birthday is fast approaching and is partially responsible for my lapse in keeping up with this blog. As my husband retires this month, we both are experiencing a paradigm in our roles, dreams, and views of life in our golden years. One of those realizations is that the young growing years are the most important for us to stay connected with our grandkids. While they are young, they look forward to our visits, and we enjoy watching them play and frolic around us. With the age span of our grandkids, we've already seen how quickly they grow. Soon enough the teenage years take them off on their own path of exploration, leaving us sitting alone in our rocking chairs. We are determined to keep each other moving, healthy, and young at heart. We will continue to enjoy our grandkids, as long as they have time for us old folks.