Zachary

I haven't had many photos of Zach for a while, and when I found that Jill had posted some on Facebook, I stole them. Yup, snagged those photos as fast as I could download them. I confessed my crime to her a couple of days later, and she assured me that it was quite alright for me to download them. Kinda took the fun out of it, making it legal and all. But nonetheless, I now have Zach photos.

I have been making scrapbook pages using these photos. Haven't had time lately to use them all, but here are the ones I have finished. I am not sure when some of these were taken, but I sure do like them.

Jill tells me that the look on Zach's face in this photo reflects his displeasure with his golf score.

These photos were taken in February, 2008, while on vacation in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Jill says that it was her Dad's idea for Zach and his cousin, Bennett, to swim with the dolphins. He had called her several times and asked her to look at the website to see if it was something the kids would enjoy. Zach wasn't too sure about the whole thing to begin with, but he ended up loving it. The boys didn't actually swim with the dolphins, but they learned how to make them jump, got pulled by the dolphins on a raft, and got a dolphin kiss. Looks like they were really having a good time.

http://www.4shared.com/file/89483000/aed37a2a/Zachary.html

So, Jill, be forewarned. You post Zach's photos on Facebook, I'm gonna get 'em.

Boston's New Glasses

Our Boston got her new glasses this week. Her Dad shared the pictures with me. She looks so nice in them, and I am really glad that she likes wearing them. Maddie was beginning to feel a little bit left out in the picture taking, so her Dad took some pictures of her wearing her sunglasses.

I am not surprised that one of my grandchildren needs help to see clearly. Weak eyes run in my family. All of my children got glasses at relatively young ages. My siblings and I all wear glasses. So did my parents. I would not be surprised if eventually all of my grandkids will need them.

When Boston's uncle Duane got his first glasses, he promptly lost them. I believe he might have lost the second pair as well. It wasn't until a few years ago that he told me that he lost those glasses by digging a hole in a flower bed and burying them. Kids can be pretty inventive when they don't want to do something, like wear glasses.

I remember when I got my first pair. I was in the third grade of elementary school. My teacher alerted my parents to the fact that I was having trouble reading what was written on the blackboard, so off to the eye doctor I went. I can still remember walking out of that office the day I got my new glasses to discover that trees weren't just a trunk with a big green blur at the top. There were individual leaves that made up the green part of the trees, and I could see each one. Flowers were not blobs of color, but had petals and were different one from another. I could read street signs and numbers on license plates on the cars. Amazing. I think that it was so much fun for me to be able to read a book without having to hold it inches from my nose to see the words, that I have never minded wearing glasses.

http://www.4shared.com/file/88318464/998e6f15/Bostons_New_Glasses.html

So enjoy your new specs, Boston. Not only are they a fashion statement, but there is a whole big, beautiful world out there, and you can see it all now.

Tooth Fairy

My phone rang one evening last week. Boston was calling to let Grandma know that she had lost another tooth. Her third one. It fell out at school and Grandpa Kreig had already given her a dollar, but she thought that the Tooth Fairy would come that night anyway. I assured her that Grandpa's dollar was a bonus, and that the Tooth Fairy wouldn't forget about her. She told me to be sure to check my email, as her Dad had taken a picture and he was going to send it to me. He did, and here it is.

Along with that picture were a few more that David thought I would enjoy. He was right.

The girls love to have their pictures taken. Bring out the camera and their faces light up and the smiles appear. The bonus of that for me is I get lots of pictures of smiling grandkids. I rarely have a bad day. But once in a while one sneaks up on me. At those times, all I need to do is scroll through my folder of smiling grandkid pictures, and my world is bright and happy again. Perfect.

I particularly love this picture of Staci reading to Jacob. How lucky he is to have parents who read to him. I hope they continue to do so and instill in him a love of reading. Many times I have lost the better part of a day engrossed in a good book. That is not time wasted. It is time spent with interesting people in interesting places doing interesting things, be they real, as in biographies, or fictional, like the mystery stories I enjoy. It is my hope that my grandkids will come to love reading about new people, places and adventures, as I do.

http://www.4shared.com/file/85081745/49a2bdcd/tooth_fairy.html

Warning! Cute Grandkid Photos Ahead

My email has brought some more cute grandkid photos from David. If the rest of you want your cute kid photos, or any other photos here, get busy. I can't post them if I don't have them.



David says that these photos represent a day in the life of his kids. It seems that first, the girls wanted to play "camping out." So they set up the tent indoors and pretended to be on a camping trip. Got the little one involved in the game as well.

Later on they all went outdoors to play. Dad had bought a new play-toy, and the kids wanted to go for a ride. So they took some pictures, and off they went. David says they had lots of fun riding on the new snowmobile.

Boston made a snowman out in the yard, and it looks like she did a pretty good job of it. I hope she got her mittens back from him before her little fingers got too cold.

Boston called Grandma Kreig to tell her about her day. Get used to this pose, Mom and Dad. You will be seeing it a lot when she gets a bit older. My mother always told me that she thought the telephone receiver was just part of my face, for several years.

Back inside, Jacob was doing what Jacob does best - going places he shouldn't be going. The gate on the stairs to the basement keeps him somewhat corralled. I wonder how long it will take before he learns the secret to opening the gate.

http://www.4shared.com/file/83811804/d306da44/warning_-_cute_grandkid_photos.html

I love to get pictures. Although the ones of special occasions are great, the pictures of what my grandkids are doing on a daily basis are so much fun for me. I can't be there to join in, but I feel as though I am included when I see what they are up to. Thank you, kids, for sharing your day with me.

Love,

Grandma

Laughter

The older I get the more I find myself laughing at the absurdities of life. I have to laugh. If I took everything that comes my way seriously, I would be in sad shape. So I laugh.

Part of my job is using a blow dryer to dry the fur of the dogs I bathe. Those of you who have visited me at work know that there is a grooming table set up in the back room next to the bathtub. I find that kneeling next to the table is easier on my back than bending over to dry underbellies and legs, especially smaller dogs like Toy Poodles and Dachshunds. Getting down on my knees is not the problem. The getting back up can be interesting. The picture I get of myself hauling this old, overweight body back up to my feet is a silly picture. Now I could bemoan the fact that limbs do not work as well as they did 20 years ago. I could. Or I could rant about the fact that my figure has become pretty much barrel shaped as opposed to hourglass shaped. Could do that, too. But I laugh at myself. Silly old woman, thinking that a crane would come in really handy to get me upright again. That picture makes me laugh.

As I have looked through my collection of family photos, I have realized that humor has been a big part of my life. I found this picture of my Dad. He had taken his family on a vacation to the Black Hills. At one of the tourist trap places we stopped, he found this make-believe saloon. Now Dad wasn't a drinker. If he had any tendencies in that direction, Mother quickly squelched them. I have suspected over the years that he may have had a taste of something alcoholic when he went deer hunting and stayed with one of his brothers up north. Especially since my cousin Curt was famous for his homemade wine, and those visiting were offered "just a taste." Could never prove it, but the suspicion was there. That aside, I never saw my Dad drink anything stronger than coffee. So when he found this saloon, he couldn't resist the temptation to lean against the door, pretending to have had a few too many.

This picture has been in my parents photo collection for over 50 years. It is a rather unflattering photo of Mom's sister, Margaret. It has moved with my family from St. Paul, where it was taken, to Willmar, on to Funkley, Blackduck and finally to Kelliher, where I acquired it in a box of photos that Dad gave me. I once asked Dad about it, and here is what he told me.

It seems that Dad and my Mom's sisters loved to tease and joke with each other. Margaret, being Margaret, could not resist the temptation to tease Dad about something long since forgotten. And Dad, being Dad, could not let her teasing go by without adding a smart remark of his own. Then Margaret chose this method of showing what she thought of Dad's remark, and that is when Dad took her picture. And this is why we have a family heirloom photo of Aunt Margaret's Opinion. Dad added that he had kept the photo all of these years because it reminded him of the fun they had with their teasing and joking

There was never anything mean about their teasing and joking, as the second photo shows. This one was taken outside the nursing home in Blackduck where Mom was living at the time, and Margaret and Melfred had come for a visit. It is probably my favorite photo of Dad and Margaret.

I love this photo of my sister. This was taken in the first apartment my family lived in when we first moved to Willmar. Sunday mornings our family always attended church. This particular Sunday, Libby was full of spots from chicken pox. So Mother left Dad in charge of her while she took me to church.

Now those of you who remember my Dad know that this was a situation that was ripe for him to do something.....didn't know what.....just something. And this photo is the result of the "something" he came up with. Nobody knew what he had been up to, entertaining my sister that Sunday morning, until the pictures came back from the developer. The moral of the story, according to my Mother, was "Never leave Dad alone with time on his hands. He surely will find some mischief to get into."

It was long my Dad's habit to look for wildflowers when he was out and about, and to pick a few for my mother. She always acted like Dad was a hero for bringing her flowers. I believe he may have been pushing his luck on this one, though.

And I can't laugh at others in my family without laughing at myself. While going through my boxes of photos looking for one that Jill asked me for, I found these. If I ever begin to have a swelled head over anything, these old school photos would bring me right back down to earth in a heartbeat. When I receive school photos of my grandchildren, they are usually beautiful. The photographer obviously takes the time to pose each child, using backgrounds and props to enhance each photo. We, on the other hand, were stood against a blank screen or wall, sort of like a mug shot without the ruler to tell how tall a person was and the card with numbers held across the chest. The photo was snapped, the child whisked away and the next one in line took his or her place for their mug shot. I'm guessing that my parents weren't happy that they had to fork over cash for these.

The last photo of me was taken in 1954, on the steps of the old Lincoln Elementary School in Willmar. It was used in a Father's Day gift project for Brownie Scouts. I love the fashion statement. Way back then, when dinosaurs roamed the earth at will, girls weren't allowed to wear jeans or slacks to school. The rule was skirts or dresses only. So our mothers, ever practical, made us wear pants under our dresses to keep our legs warm - in this case, homemade corduroy pants. I guess it was OK, though. As a little girl, my knees were forever skinned up from play, and the pants covered the ever present scabs.

http://www.4shared.com/file/83418968/87e2d42f/laughter.html

I am glad that my children have inherited the humor gene. I would hate to think that they would go through life without laughter. Every now and then one of them will call, telling me about the latest antics of their kids, or something funny that happened. When Jeri was in Middle School, she would call me nearly every day and tell me the joke of the day. My favorite was "Little Bunny Foo Foo," but that is a story for another time. Duane has asked me to email him mornings on my days off, letting him know that I am alive and well. I love his replies, as he usually says something silly to make me laugh. That's a great way to start a day. David calls regularly and nearly always has something to tell me about what his crew of kids has been up to. At those times, I have been known to outright giggle. And when I talk with Jill, she nearly always has something to tell me about what Zach has said or done that brings a smile to my face, if not a good old belly laugh. I love it.

I have dealt with people over the years who have lost, if they ever had it, the capacity for laughter. They tend to be grumpy old men or women, whose faces would surely crack if they ever smiled. How these people make it through this crazy, silly life, is beyond me. I realize that there are situations that need to be taken seriously, and that is as it should be. But the rest of the time, when life throws something at a person where they can either laugh or cry, I believe I will choose laughter. It really is the best medicine of all.

Happy 1st Birthday, Jacob

Last Sunday our family celebrated another milestone. Our Jacob is one year old.

How fast this past year has flown by. Seems like just the day before yesterday that I was holding this little baby in my arms, and now he is a whole year older. He spends his time walking, discovering new things, smiling a lot and getting into mischief, just as he is supposed to do. The mischief part is his job. He does that for me. I love it when his father calls me and tells me something new that Jacob has gotten into. Takes me back to hauling his father out of many things that he wasn't supposed to get into, either.

Again the family gathered and it was such a nice day. David made lasagna for all (pretty good, too), and we ate and enjoyed each other's company. Some I hadn't seen for quite some time, and it was good to visit and get caught up on the news.

Boston and Maddie, who are taking dance classes now, wanted to show off their new found talents. So some grandparents went to their room for a short recital. How fun to watch them leap and twirl. The exuberance of children their ages is wonderful. I hope they never lose that zest for life.

We went to the family room for the birthday present opening. Jacob did a fine job of ripping wrapping paper and trying out new toys. He had some help from his sisters, and it looked like he was enjoying every minute of it. I think he really likes this birthday present thing. Probably will want to do it again next year.

There was birthday cake waiting in the kitchen, and it was such fun to watch Jacob's reaction. He was sitting in his highchair when his mother approached him with his own cake with one candle on the top. Jacob's face lit up like someone had turned on the switch to a powerful light. His eyes fairly sparkled. As he hasn't quite got the blowing out the candle thing down just yet, the girls helped him with that part, and then he dug into his cake. Both hands. Smearing frosting. Having a grand time.

http://www.4shared.com/file/82162226/234475be/Jacobs_1st_birthday.html

The rest of us enjoyed cake, eaten with forks (why we adults aren't allowed to have as much fun with cake as Jacob did, I just don't know), ice cream and coffee. We talked of many things and the conversation was good.

As I sat at the table, I thought of how lucky Jacob is to have three grandmothers, one grandfather and one great-grandmother, all of whom love him so very much. I also thought of his two grandpas who weren't here to enjoy the party. But perhaps they were. I can't imagine that either would want to miss it. I like to believe that both were watching from Heaven and enjoying the party as much as the rest of us.

Happy Birthday, Jacob.

Love, Grandma

Inez

This Sunday past I had the privilege of spending time with a woman who has been an important part of my life for over 50 years. She is the Grandmother of my children, and Great-grandma to my grandchildren.

I first met Inez when my family moved to the farm when I was nine years old. Our house had once been part of the Eddy farm, and Dad had purchased it from an Eddy relative who had lived there. I became friends with her daughter Joan, and spent time playing at her house as a child. She always, over the course of those 50 odd years, made me feel welcome.

I remember from those years on the farm, what a hard working woman she was - and still is. She always was busy, raising her five children, keeping a neat and clean house, feeding the men in her life who worked the land, often during spring planting time and fall harvest, making their meals and carrying them out to the fields so they didn't have to take the time to come to the house to eat.

She kept a huge vegetable garden that was located between our house and hers, and I often, during the summer, would see her out hoeing or pulling weeds. In the fall, she canned the vegetables, made jams and jellies and pickles to feed her family over the long Minnesota winters.

Her youngest daughter was born while the family still lived on the farm. I remember walking in the kitchen door of her house just days before the birth of Jeanine, to see to my amazement, Inez up on a step ladder, washing the kitchen ceiling. Preceding the births of my children, all I wanted to do was lay in bed like a lump, and this picture of her on that ladder so close to her time to deliver, has remained with me ever since.

When I married her oldest son in 1964, she became like a mother to me. There was never a time that I couldn't stop by her house and feel welcome. She has always been interested in what her grandchildren are doing, and always kept a jar of her wonderful chocolate chip cookies ready for visits from them. She would laugh when the kids would go, even as toddlers, right to the cupboard where she kept her cookie jar and say, "Cookie, Grandma."

Even when her son and I parted ways, she remained an important part of my life. Whenever I see her, even after all of these years, I am always greeted with a hug. When Mike and I were living in Arizona for a short time, we went to see her at an RV park where she and Henry, after he retired, would spend their winters. After Henry died, she and her friend Sylvia would make the trip there to spend the winters away from the snow and cold. On that occasion, I was greeted with the same love and hugs that I have enjoyed all these years. She treated Mike with the same affection, and he thought the world of her.

She started taking Senior bus trips all over the country. Whenever I would see her at a family gathering, she would tell me about her latest trip. It just tickled me to see her doing something that brought her so much enjoyment, especially after working so hard all of her life.

The kids tell me that she still lives alone in her house in Willmar...the one where she and Henry moved at his retirement from the farm. She keeps her own house, mows her own lawn, and takes care of herself at age 92. David told me that he had stopped several times to see her when his job took him through Willmar, but he rarely would find her at home. She goes out every day, having a schedule that would make me tired...seeing friends and keeping active.

http://www.4shared.com/file/82045209/ad86b2d1/Inez.html

On Sunday we talked of times past. I reminded her of a cocker spaniel the family had when I was a kid, named Taffy. Taffy had a litter of puppies, and Henry kept one of them. This pup had a habit of getting excited when he would see me, shaking his behind back and forth, looking like a Hula dancer. Henry had given him a name that I have long since forgotten, but I called the pup "Hula." One day Henry told me to stop calling the dog "Hula," as the pup wouldn't respond to his real name. He acted mad about it, but the twinkle in his eye gave him away. Inez laughed at the memory, and said she thought that the name I chose was a good one.

We talked of memories from life on the farm, of good neighbors who had passed on and those who were still in the area. We talked of Grandchildren and Great-grandchildren, and how busy they all are. She wanted to know all about my brother and sister, and what they all were doing now.

We even talked of lutefisk. She still makes it at Christmas time, although she says there are only a few who will eat it. She enjoyed it during the holidays, but always made another meat dish for the rest of us. Years ago, when she told me that she has one kettle that is used for nothing but lutefisk, I decided then and there that I was not brave enough to eat something that needed it's own cooking kettle. She still laughs at me for my cowardice. I will, however, given the opportunity, dive into a dish of her baked creamed corn that she made as well each holiday season, or sit up and beg for one of her chocolate chip cookies.

Inez is an amazing woman. She has lost her husband to cancer, as she has her oldest daughter. Her oldest son died a little over a year ago. And after all of this heartache, she remained more concerned about how I am coping with my loss than her own.

When it was time to leave after Jacob's birthday party, we seemed to postpone our parting as long as possible. It was with happiness at seeing her again mixed with regret that we see each other so seldom, that I gave her a final hug and told her how much I love her, and she responded in kind.

I am forever grateful that Inez has been a part of my life for so many years. I am blessed.