Grandparents' Day

This Sunday is the official celebration of Grandparents' Day. Before you roll your eyes and say to yourself that this is just another fabrication of card companies to turn a buck, think about the contribution your own grandparents made to your life. Foremost is the fact that they provided you with parents. Then, if you were lucky, they gave you a wealth of experiences and stories that have become your family folklore.

My memories of my grandparents are something I cherish. Unfortunately my grandparents had all passed away before I was out of grade school but that doesn't mean I didn't have wonderful times with them.

I had my Grandpa Baker, my dad's dad. His mother had passed away long before my parents met. Grandpa Baker was always full of surprises. He was a free spirit who didn't have an official address and I don't think he ever looked at a calendar. He travelled around in his truck and lived in the camper on the back. I remember walking home from school and seeing that truck parked in front of our house. I would race home knowing Grandpa would be waiting. He was always promising to send us horned toads from Texas. Much to my mom's relief, he never did. Ever the Texas rancher's son, he loved the outdoors. To me, he was bigger than life. He was always happy and had the best sense of humor.

My Grandma Georgia was my mom's mom. Like my dad, she had lost her other parent before they met. Grandma lived in a huge house in Stockton and I think we saw her almost everyday. We spent lots of time at her house. She was legally blind and my mom would pick her up to take her for errands. Every Friday morning we picked Grandma up to go grocery shopping, helping her push her basket and put things in it. She always bought us a treat. Usually it was a package of Ghiredelli Flicks chocolates. I loved to listen to her tell stories of the old days and her house was a treasure trove of mysteries. She was deeply patriotic and I never spend 4th of July without thoughts of her.

I also had my father's maternal grandparents, Grandma and Grandpa Stanger. Their gift to me was the deep sense of belonging to a family. They loved their extended family and established a sense of the importance of family that has been passed down through many generations. They also were my link to my religion. My great grandparents were devout LDS. I remember when they lived in a little apartment in Stockton. We would go to visit and they always had a dish of these hideous little candies called Horehound Candy and another dish with lemon drops in them. Of course I would always have to try both!

One summer, after Grandma died, I remember taking Grandpa to a family reunion in Idaho. He was pretty old at the time. The rest of the family thought the trip would be too tough for him, but my dad insisted and took him. Grandpa Stanger told us stories all the way to American Falls about growing up. I will always remember that trip. And except for my dad, Grandpa was the tallest person I knew.

No post about grandparents is complete with out talking about my children's grandparents. From each of them I have learned how to be a grandma. From Poppa to be spontaneous and teach my grandchildren to love the beauties of this world. From Grannie to teach them that there is nothing more important than family. From Nana to love unconditionally and to always be there for my grandchildren and from Nanoo to work hard.

So here I am a grandmother, well, actually a Nana. The lessons and examples I learned from these dear people who touched my life fuel my relationship with my beautiful grandson, Andrew. When I look at him he just makes my heart full. And I am amazed at how much he adds to my life. I take picture after picture of him, wanting to document each smile for posterity. I am looking forward watching him (and any future grandchildren) grow. I hope I can create wonderful memories for him just as my grandparents did for me.

Happy Grandparents' Day to all of my friends who have achieved this wonderful state. What a lovely time of life. I hope you all can celebrate with a hug from some precious little person you love more than life itself.

"What children need most are the essentials that grandparents provide in abundance. They give unconditional love, kindness, patience, humor, comfort, lessons in life. And, most importantly, cookies." ~Rudolph Giuliani

"Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do. Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children. " ~Alex Haley

"One of the most powerful handclasps is that of a new grandbaby around the finger of a grandfather." ~Joy Hargrove

"The history of our grandparents is remembered not with rose petals but in the laughter and tears of their children and their children's children. It is into us that the lives of grandparents have gone. It is in us that their history becomes a future. " ~Charles and Ann Morse

Expanding Family

Our oldest child turned 27 yesterday. It put me in a reflective mood. When we were starting out as a family I don't think we put much thought in what our family would look like over a quarter of a century later. We didn't look at that little bald headed bundle of joy and think about who he would marry or that someday we would be grandparents. We were just overwhelmed with the thought that now we had to be responsible for someone so dependent on us.
We were lucky to have all four of our parents available to turn to when we had questions, were worried or needed a babysitter. We also had the first grandchild on either side of the family so there were lots of waiting arms eager to hold him. I had always thought family was important but suddenly they became even more so. My mother became the wisest woman I knew. My sisters became my closest friends. My dad was the best and thought the sun rose and set in Matthew. What is really interesting was that he had this feeling for every single one of the grandchildren that followed. You could ask any one of them and each would tell you that he or she was Poppa's favorite. He had a nickname for each of them and listened to all of their stories with interest.

My mom became Granny. Each of her grandchildren knew without a doubt that she loved them. She was always thinking of them. She bought little treats and trinkets for them to give them when they came to visit. She made bets with them on the World Series. She had them stay overnight for "New Years' Eve parties" and she baked them brownies for Christmas. She was also the go to person when they had earaches, tummy aches, fevers, and needed hugs.

And so here I am, a grandma.
I think being a grandparent is something that you evolve into. You are refined and retrofitted and remodeled along the way until suddenly there you are. I'm definitely not the apron wearing cookie baking type. My favorite cookie recipe is a bag of Oreos. I'm probably not the wise old sage type that can be turned to for soul searching wisdom. I'm also not one of those trend setting grandmas who will zip my grandchildren off to fancy restaurants to teach them the finer art of dining out.
So here I am starting out on this new pathway. I'm Nana. I like that. My children had a Nana. They loved her with all their hearts and she loved them. She cooked for them and drove them places and documented their lives with photos. That's one thing I've already started to emulate. I'm the picture taking grandma. I'm the historian.

Hey, that sounds like a super hero.... I am Nana the Historian. Boy, my grandchildren are going to think I'm cool.