(Dec 25, 2009)Sadly, we lost my beloved Grandma this weekend. Grandma was 91, and oh did she live a wonderful life! I was so blessed to be incredibly close with my Grandma. My parents were 21 when I was born, and I spent a lot of time over at my Grandma and PawPaw's house while my parents worked and had date nights. I spent many summers with them too when school was out. I have so many fond memories of doing things with them. Gardening, cooking, playing, we did it all.
I loved going with Grandma every week to get her hair done. Afterwards, we would always stop at Dairy Queen to get a blizzard. My Grandma had a HUGE sweet tooth, so of course I indulged her by agreeing to some ice cream! Everytime I went to Grandma's house (even if it was just for us to go eat dinner), there would be a small treat for me in "my drawer" of her dresser. Sometimes it was some stickers, or a yo-yo, or markers. I loved the anticipation of running back to the bedroom to see what she had gotten for me this time! She did the same thing for my brother years later. When she moved out of her house in Stone Mountain to come to Snellville, we found a huge bag of small toys and goodies that she had stashed away.
Even after Grandma lost a lot of her independence, I still loved visiting with her, and I will cherish all of our chats. Now that I have a child, I understand more this love that comes from grandparents. Nothing makes Landon's grandparents light up like seeing their grandson! I joke all the time that Mimi and Papa love Landon more than anyone else!
Landon is so blessed to have such a wonderful Grandma and Mimi. They already lavish him with the same love that Grandma gave me. Words cannot express how happy I am that he will have a close relationship with them. There's something about a Grandma's love...My grandma said to me recently that she always thought of me as her's, and yes, I was her's. She was my second Mom. Even though we were 60 years apart, I loved our bond. Was I the spoiled first grandchild? Probably. But I was definitely loved beyond my wildest dreams.
I can't wait until Landon is older and I can tell him all about his fantastic great-grandmother. I have so many stories to make him laugh and keep her memory alive. I can't wait for Landon to truly experience his grandparents' love for him. It's amazing, and I'm so blessed to have had it for so long!
Grandma, I will miss you so very much. Please hug Grandpa for me and enjoy all the ice cream you want!
