I'm the luckiest Granddaughter!

This will be a long post, so just beware. I really want to record some things before it is too late.

On my mom’s side, I am the youngest grandchild of the greatest grandparents in the world. Their names are Marlo and Leona…cute old people names huh?! Anyways, they are 85 and 82 years old. They live on a farm, which they currently only have sheep, cats, and pigeons.

5 years ago these are some things I would have said about them.--They are there for everything for all 12 of us grandkids. They are there for birthday parties, dance recitals, graduations, baby showers, etc., you name it, and they are there. Along with that, they always know what each one of us grandkids is doing. Me being the youngest, I think they are slightly more involved in my life than any of my other cousins. They don’t want anyone to fuss over their care, they are very self sufficient. My grandma is a wonderful cook. She makes the best cinnamon rolls, banana bread, and homemade chicken and noodles ever. In fact, when my brother was on his mission, the other elders would patiently wait for the monthly package from good ol’ Grandma “B” because it always had her goodies in it. She is also wonderful at quilting and embroidering… We all have numerous quilts that I cherish so much. I have several sets of pillowcases that are so beautiful. When we are little, some of my most vivid memories are camping with them. We would always have wild peppermint tea. I could never find the plants, but they always could. We would play cards and eat her goodies and have so much fun. They always have a beautiful garden and flowers. My grandma is always out there with her cute little terry cloth visor working away. They are so cute about reading books. They love the gushy Mormon novels, and my Grandma sits and reads to my grandpa, and then they excitedly pass on the books to us. Along with that, whenever I slept over as a little girl, I got the best stories ever. My grandpa LOVES to watch T.V. His favorites are all old westerns, the news, Judge Judy, and Dr. Phil…hehe. They call me usually every day, sometimes much too early in the morning I might add! My grandpa does not feel complete unless he has an animal of some sort to take care of. They save every single scrap of food to give to the animals. Speaking of saving things, they save EVERYTHING. They both lived through the depression, and were never wealthy. She even saves her cups from McDonald’s because she can “wash and reuse it.” Gross, but anyway-it is just how they are. Their life has been filled with tragedy. They had 2 sons and 3 daughters. They lost their son Chris when he was in his 20’s. He had just returned from the Vietnam War and passed away in a car accident shortly after returning back to the US. 4 years ago, they lost their oldest son, Craig. He died of unknown causes; I think it was a heart attack. I was the one who went with my mom and aunt to tell them the news. We awoke them at 3 in the morning. I will never ever in my life forget the anguished cries that I heard of a mother learning that she had lost a child. I think that is why I fear losing one of my kids so badly. All 3 of their daughters have been in and out of the church, and that has caused them a lot of grief, but they remain strong in their faith despite their kids. They are so faithful with scriptures, and before things have gone downhill the past little while, they were in the temple several times a week. Whenever we visit, no matter how long we have been there, when we leave, they always plead for us to “stay a little while longer.”

All of those things I just wrote about are in the past. 2 years ago my grandpa had a double knee replacement. Then my grandma turned downhill and was in ICU for several weeks, and the outlook was not good. They have not recovered fully, and are now more frail than ever. It is so painful to watch. What is hard is that they need help, but like I said before, they don’t like people to fuss over them. My grandma doesn’t cook anymore like she used to. Her eyes have gone very bad- so now quilts, embroidering, and reading her scriptures and books to my grandpa are out of the question. They sold their camper; it was too hard to get it ready and to be in the mountains. The garden and flower beds are no longer perfect. They are still there, but she struggles so hard to keep them up. My grandpa can’t have as many farm animals. He has fell several times while taking care of them. Just a few months ago I went over and he was so upset because his best ewe had died while giving birth. He had heard her cries, but it was in the middle of the night and the middle of the winter and he was simply too tired to make it to her in time. They still call often, and try to make it to all the activities they can. What hinders that joy is that my grandma is in the early stages of Alzheimer’s. I will sometimes get the same phone call and story 3 times a day. She called my mom the other day and said, “Happy memorial day, will you take me to put flowers on my son’s graves?” My mom had to remind her that it was not Memorial Day, but she got so confused and upset, not believing my mom that it really wasn’t Memorial Day for another whole week.

I am so grateful in every way that I have had them in my life. My grandma is closer to me than my own mom sometimes. I am so glad that my kids have gotten the chance to know and love them. Even though they are not as active as when I was little, their love for the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren has never faltered. I love them so much. To them, I just want to plead, “Just stay a little longer,” just like they always do to us. I know that the time is not far away that they will be gone. I just have to focus on the joy they will have to reunite with their 2 sons and all their other family that has gone on before them.

p.s., that picture was a couple months ago. I always try to snap a picture of them with my kids, because I never want my kids to forget them.

Have a great day!