Mommy Ever After » great grandparents

Go Fish.

mommyeverafter — Sun, 16 Nov 2014 12:11:00 +0000

I have been writing on this site for almost four and a half years now,
chronicling my life,
current events,
trends,
ups and downs,
as a way to both keep a diary for myself,
and, more recently, to help others.
I write about a lot of things on here. I write the things that some people are scared to say. I write about what hurts.
I write so many words…
But there are some things that are too big for words.
This weekend my Grandparents, Mommom and Poppop, came to visit my kids. Here how it went:
I spoke to Mommom at 10am
“I am just going to put the baby down for a nap in a half an hour. I will call you as soon as he wakes up and you can come over.”
“Okay, great. We are dying to see the kiddies.”
An hour later…
Call from Mommom.
A half an hour after that…
Call from Mommom.
Finally, when the baby woke, I called her back.
“I told you I would call you as soon as he woke up! I would never forget to call you back!”
“I know, but I was just so excited to see them I couldn’t wait.”
And that’s how it goes. Mommom lives by her own rules, but she also sets the bar so high that it is almost hard to describe.
When my Grandparents arrived not 10 minutes later they came with a bag. Inside the bag was the following:
Green Italian Leaf cookies for me.
Alphabet noodles for the kids.
Homemade soup.
Pill bottles filled with beans that had been glued shut for my danger loving son. (Along with remotes, iPhones, knives and toilets, the baby also loves pill bottles. Not any surprise.)
A packet of cards for “Go Fish”.
It was a care package at it’s finest, because it really did show care. Because she listens when I’m on the phone with her and I shout to my son “No no no! Put down mommy’s medicine bottle!” (Just for the record, all of my medicines are kept in a box with a secure clip and closed with child safety lids. He’s just a crafty little devil.)
And do you remember that day last week when my daughter fell ill? Mommom remembered when I said I liked those green leaf cookies from the local deli when she ran in for Matzoh Ball Soup.
And she’s excited that my daughter is beginning to read, hence the letters noodles.
And she is teaching her how to play a favorite card game, just like she taught me when I was her age.
I remember so vividly being on the front porch at our beach house. We would sit, the cool ocean breeze filling our noses with salt air, and drink Lipton instant iced tea and play “Go Fish” and “War” over and over and over again. Then, she would make me a turkey and cheese sandwich on a kaiser roll and we would switch to the back deck and play some more.
Watching my daughter and my grandmother playing this game together today rendered me speechless.
My children are so fortunate to have great-grandparents, who are not just great-grandparents by name, but they are also great.
So Mommom, since I know you read this, even though you don’t have any clue what a blog is:
You may annoy me by telling me what to do,
or call incessantly, even when I tell you that I will call you,
but you also love us with every ounce of your being, and for that I am so grateful.
You are the one to drop groceries at our front door “just because”; you are the one who I can call 24 hours a day if I need you;
And you are the one who every single person whom you meet declares to be “just fabulous”, as you are chic as can be, and are on a first name basis with the people at Saks, Neimans and Mr. Louboutin (A friend texted me from the department store to say that she was serendipitously shoe shopping with my grandmother and heard her saying, “Yeah, I like the ones with the red bottoms.”)
So if life were a simple card game, and I needed a card for the most loving grandmother, then I have fished my wish.
I love you.

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I overheard my grandparents/A Haiku

mommyeverafter — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 13:42:28 +0000

They grabbed hands, saying,
“This is so worth living for.”
Then I lost my breath.

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An excerpt

mommyeverafter — Sat, 28 May 2011 01:43:55 +0000

from last summer:
Today was a typical day at the beach.

You know, it was hot.

We read.

We relaxed.

And braced for a tornado.

What?

You mean you’re not used to doing that at 4pm on a Sunday?

Yeah, neither are we.

When the news broke of the Tornado Warning,

my Poppop kicked into high gear.

I was otherwise occupied,

you know,

pumping,

so, when I answered his call downstairs,

I found him in a pitch black family room,

the shades all drawn,

the electronics all turned off,

and the family being herded down the stairs into the lower level den.

We were twister-ready.

But, there was still milk needing to be pumped.

I was not, however, allowed to stay upstairs to do my pumping in privacy,

you know, with the tornado and all,

so I ended up standing in the downstairs bathroom,

pump in hand,

as the thunder roared around us.

My grandparents, husband, baby and two dogs all huddled on the couches,

waiting for the storm to pass.

I listened, from my perch in the powder room,

as they gave the baby kisses,

sang her songs,

made her giggle,

and told her how much they loved her.

And as I stood there, watching them from a distance,

my heart filled up with incredible love for the people in that room.

I peaked out and saw my baby sitting on my Poppop’s knees,

as he cooed with her,

telling her how pretty she looked,

which, of course, made her smile and beam.

Smart girl.

My heart swelled,

as I felt so grateful that my grandparents were able to share this special moment with my daughter;

a little moment,

so precious,

and pure,

and wrapped up,

in the coziness of a family room,

a sanctuary

in the storm.

“Listen, you guys,” I called from the bathroom.

“You need to take really good care of yourselves, because I fully expect you to be at her Bat Mitzvah.”

“It’s funny,” my Poppop replied. “Just as you said that, I was sitting here thinking, boy do I wish I could be here to see her grow up.”

And then I cried.

They didn’t know it,

but I stood,

in the bathroom,

with the breast pump,

in the raging thunderstorm,

with tears streaming down my cheeks.

I hope,

with all of my heart,

that my grandparents do get to see my daughter grow up,

and turn from a little baby

into a little lady.

But, no matter where the years take us,

I know that we have shared some amazing things together already.

We’ve shared family dinners,

and walks on the boardwalk,

shopping sprees,

and sing-alongs.

And, just today,

we’ve shared a small,

quiet

room,

during a storm.
And now, on this less stormy, but no less love-filled summer evening,
as I’m once again under the same roof as these people whom I hold so dear,
I can’t help but to feel grateful,
that my cherished grandparents are getting to see their little baby
turn into a big girl.
Today, as she greeted them by name;
as she scooted up and down the street on her little ride-on train;
as she stuffed her face with spaghetti and meatballs;
as she held our hands and took steps across the sand;
I realized that this year has taken us to a most wonderful place.
As has this weekend.
There is no place like the beach.
There is no place like home.

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