Hopefully by now you’ve fallen into your school routine and finally have some sort of normalcy around the house. I know those last few weeks of summer had me counting the hours until school starts. I love my kids to death, but man, those last few days are nothing but constant fights over everything.
September also brings Grandparents Day, which is a little bittersweet for me these days.
I was lucky enough to know my great-grandparents, something I know not everyone gets the chance to do. My great-grandfather was 93 when he passed, and I was with him when he took his final breath. Many of our family traditions began with him, and one of his final comments to me is something I’ll never forget. When I told him I was engaged, his response was, “It’s about time!”
Literally lying in his bed, with hospice nurses there and the pastor about to read him his final rites, that is what he had to say to me. And honestly, it was perfect.
My children were lucky enough to meet two sets of their great-grandparents. They were too young to really remember them, but we have photos, and occasionally they’ll ask about them.
I’m also very blessed that my children have their grandparents in their lives. Sometimes they’re the first people they call with good news—or even bad news. They stalk them on Life360 just to see where they might be, especially if they’re out somewhere and forgot to bring them!
There’s something special about the bond between grandparents and grandchildren. I was always my Grandpa’s girl, while my sister was always Grandma’s. Now, my daughter is Papaw’s girl. She knows he is there anytime she needs him, and I hope she always knows how special that is.
So this Grandparents Day, take the pictures. Make the phone call. Ask the questions. Write down the stories—even the ones you’ve heard a hundred times. One day, those stories may be some of the things you treasure most.
Happy Grandparents Day to all the Mimis, Papas, Nanas, KKs, Grandmas, Grandpas, Papaws and every other name they answer to. And to the ones we’re missing a little extra this month, Happy Grandparents Day in heaven.
