G&G

Last week my grandparents ("G&G" as we like to refer to them) came down from Minnesota to spend some time with Mom, Chandra and me. One of the major reasons for their trip was to come for my mom's birthday. Her birthday was earlier this month, but my she's been celebrating the entire month, which you're allowed to do when you turn in the big 6-0!! It was great to see Grandma and Grandpa again. They usually visit us twice a year, but now that they're getting older, I don't know how much longer these semi-annual visits will be able to continue, especially with them living so far away. SO, I tried to make the most of our time together.

We enjoyed watching the presidential debate and the Cardinals baseball playoff games together. Grandpa liked my TV and remarked how much better he could see things on my TV since it's a bigger screen than what he's used to (that, and the HD reception). :) 

On Thursday G&G, Mom, Chandra and I went out to lunch at Ruby Tuesday to celebrate my mom's birthday. It wasn't busy at all and there was plenty of room for me and my big caboose (a.k.a., my wheelchair!). The food was really good and we all had a nice time. Our waitress asked if we were celebrating anything special, and my mom said, "my birthday!!" Mom told our waitress that she'd been celebrating her birthday all month long. The waitress brought out a huge piece of cheesecake with a bunch of spoons. The cheesecake was amazing;! Sao creamy and smooth and very rich! We kept passing the plate around the table until it was gone.

Here are some pictures. (It was an extremely windy day, and we got mighty windblown going in and out of the restaurant, so excuse our messy hair!) 

I'm so grateful to be blessed with such wonderful grandparents. I'm especially close to my grandpa. He's a great man and I think the world of him. Every time my grandparents leave to go home I can't help but wonder if it'll be the last time I see Grandpa. He's 90 and still in excellent shape for someone his age, but he's started slowing down. He went grocery shopping with my mom when he was here and when he was helping my mom with the groceries he told her that he could no longer carry two gallons of milk in one shopping bag anymore, because it's too much for one arm to handle. That's a big decline from a man who was still doing 100 push-ups every day just a few years ago. (Here's a picture of Grandpa… isn't he cute?!)

Grandpa told my mom that he feels like he's slowed down since our family reunion celebrating his 90^th birthday six months ago, and he asked her if she thinks he's declined since then. I've noticed that he sleeps more often these days. As my mom says, "if you live long enough, you get old." That's the unfortunate truth of the matter! Mom also said that even though she's old, she's still not ready to say goodbye to her dad. I know how she feels because I'll feel the exact same way about her in 32 years when I'm 60!

As I think about death/dying and losing loved ones, I'm so grateful for my knowledge that there's life after death and we'll see our loved ones again. It would be a much sadder without this knowledge.

This is an orchid that my grandpa bought at the grocery store while he was here. I absolutely LOVE orchids, so my mom said we could keep it in my room. My mom certainly has green thumbs, so I hope she can keep it alive!