SUMMERTIME FUN

ARRIVING AT GRANDMOMMY'S HOUSE

(Travis and Sophie)

Want to stay youthful and fit? Try keeping up with young grandchildren! I don't know if it's the exercise of tending to two small children, ages 8 and 4 (Kelly reminds me she's "almost five" - at least she will be in November!), or if it's just the "busyness" of keeping up with them and their needs that occupies the mind and leaves you no time to think about your aches and pains, but the last four days I felt like I was in a time warp. I remember so well the years of having young ones at home in the summertime. But we didn't have the Disney Channel or a computer to play games on. Those two things made it easier for this grandmother.

At one time I would have lifted four-year-old Kelly and placed her in the grocery shopping cart. This time I had to admit to her that Grandmommy couldn't pick her up! "That's okay" she said, "I can walk". She and big brother Travis helped me pick out groceries. I taught Travis how to smell the cantaloupes to pick a ripe one, and he learned quickly. Our only snag was at the checkout counter. If I were a young mother today, I think I would give the store managers so much grief that they would be forced to remove all the candy and junk that every little kid begs for while moms or grandmothers are trying to check out! I would even go so far as to get up a petition. Of course, my grandchildren were little angels and took "no" for an answer without any argument! Of my own three children, I had one who, at the word "no", would hold her breath and fall in the floor -- even in the grocery store. Back then a pop on the butt would not land a mother in jail!

We had fun at the park, where we fed the ducks and Travis told me the names of the turtles we saw. The snapping turtles as well as the "painted" turtles. That reminded me of the baby turtles that were sold in the Five and Dime stores when I was a kid (not the same kind that we saw in the park). Those were captured and designs actually painted on their little shells. (Animal rights activists put a stop to that, as the paint somehow killed the little turtles -- maybe smothered them? They also discovered salmonella was carried by these cute little pets.) Only once did I spend some of my allowance and bring one home. It mysteriously got out of the bowl we put it in and disappeared. My mother was not one to cater to pets, although she did allow us to have a Cocker Spaniel. We would also manage to coax some stray cat to hang around. I remember one we had when I was in high school that sensed my mother's dislike. Therefore, every time she would be in the back yard hanging out the laundry, this cat would wind its way in and out around her legs. Rubbing and purring the whole time. When Mother had enough or would nearly trip, she would kick at the cat who would promptly grab hold of her leg with all four paws and dig its claws in. It's a wonder my mother didn't kill that cat. But maybe she did...

A picnic lunch, lots of climbing around at the playground, more looking at the ducks, turtles, and fish, then everyone was tired and ready to go home. Another day we went to the airport and saw the vintage World War II airplanes pictured in the slideshow at the top of the page. For $125 a person, they will take you for a twenty minute ride. Needless to say, we stayed grounded.

It was a fun, busy few days. Sophie, seventeen years old and nearly deaf and blind, did not let that deter her. She managed to topple the trash over one day and Travis had to retrieve the remains of a corn dog that Kelly couldn't finish. Sophie dragged it under the table, hoping no one would notice that she was chowing down. And then... and then... besides waking me up at 6:30 one morning to be let outdoors, Sophie's sense of smell led her to her great adventure:
My mother would be turning over in her grave (if she had one) over this picture. I used a lot of disinfectant this past week!!

Recently, Travis and his dad, Matthew celebrated birthdays. Travis got the ultimate little boy gift, and we all enjoyed his Daddy's birthday cake when he and mom, Amy came to take Travis and Kelly home to Austin.



I was pleasantly tired last night after everyone was gone. Then the house became too quiet -- and I missed those little ones!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There’s a commercial on television that brings me such delight that I wish I had a way of saving it! The dad is going to drive the family SUV, which has a third seat all the way in the back. His little girl is getting into the car and going to the rear seat, which is obviously hers. Since they appear to be the only ones going on this trip, Dad tells her to move up towards the front and sit in her brother's seat. She does so, and the moment when she looks around from this forward view, with the sun roof open above her, her eyes widen and she gets this ecstatic look on her face. “Ohhhh, wowww…” she says. You can feel her joy and amazement. (What a great little actress.)

This is how we might react if we allow ourselves to view the world through someone else’s eyes. Sit in their car seat for a change… walk in their moccasins for a while. Our own viewpoint can become pretty narrow at times, and we truly need to see through fresh eyes... Maybe through the eyes of our own children or grandchildren? Ohhhhh, wowwwww...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for all the good things happening in the Gulf.. It appears they have finally stopped the oil leak. Those of us praying for the end of this disaster and the restoration of the lives of those affected will continue until it is over. There will be good that comes from this. Changes in the way the oil companies operate will have to be made. The damage done will last for years.

A little note from The Christian Science Monitor July 9th of some more good being done to save the wildlife :

(Denise Rowell, USFWS.)

"Researchers and biologists place sand around sea turtle eggs they placed in a cooler after harvesting them from the sand in Cape San Blas, Fla., on Friday. US Fish and Wildlife and other authorities are relocating thousands of sea turtle eggs to a warehouse on the East coast of Florida in an effort to save them from the oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill."

Peace and love,

Marilyn