Oh Dear...How can I hope to establish any faithful readers if I cannot maintain a regular blog? So sorry for my absence .... I am turning over a new blog leaf...I will write more regularly!
Spoiler Alert!!! Much of my writing on this blog will be the ramblings/reflections of my not so exciting life as a mom, grandma, community activist, political junkie, whatever....nothing too earth shattering on most days. However, last Sunday my world definitely got shaken up...in a good way. I will resist the temptation to write about that now. I had this post just about finished before that unexpected turn of events and besides that, today is my late grandmother's birthday, so I will post this Mothers Day item before I write about my family's big surprise! (Okay so I am later than planned....my grandmother's birthday was on May 16th.)
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| My mother with me...her first Mother's Day, 1954 |
Well, it is a special Mothers Day for me this year because it is our daughter's first Mother's Day. Our little grandson is almost 8 months old. The whole journey has brought back so many memories and feelings that have been long buried. Quite simply... we had forgotten, both the joys and challenges of babies. We delight in everything that he does...his smiles, his sounds, his new ability to turn over, his joy in kicking his legs. What a life...to have so many adoring adults around you to record and celebrate your accomplishments!
And then there are the challenges. We had forgotten what an exhausting job this is...the 24/7 aspect of it all....the cleaning, feeding, caring, walking, laundry, rocking, reading, singing, carrying, worrying....all of it rewarded with his smiles.
It has been a joy, such a privilege, to be a part of this new life. Seeing our daughter and her husband as parents and our sons as uncles...what a great job they are all doing in their new roles. The biggest change has been for our daughter, as she has been at home with him. We are so proud of her as she showers him with loving care and attention. He is a lucky boy.
I too am lucky. I still have my mother. Yesterday she and my Dad stopped by at our place and dropped off a lovely hanging flower basket. Every year on Mothers Day weekend they give each of their 4 daughters flowers. It is just one of so many special, caring traditions that they have maintained over the years. I can never list all the ways that my mother has cared for me..the list would be endless. She has always been so attentive to the needs of her 4 daughters and 2 sons. When we were young she would wake us up on school days, telling us that breakfast was almost ready, that our school uniforms were ready and our blouses ironed. She made our lunches, laced up our skates, tucked our snow pants into our boots, and typed my university essays. She often picked us up from school, especially if the weather was rainy. On one particularly nasty day she set her own personal best with 17 kids in our station wagon!
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Your truly, at 8 months, in the home we shared with my grandmother It is such a cliche but of course, we really learn most by example and not by words. If I have any notion of what it means to be a caring person, that comes from the constant, loving example of my parents. My mother had her own mother as a wonderful model of love in action. My grandmother, a widow, raised her three children and then helped out as much as she could with all the grandchildren. I lived the first 5 years of my life at her home. In the photo here, (from Christmas of 1959?) you'll see Nanny, standing on the right, probably serving us all...her three children and their families. She was very much loved by all of us. |
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