Let me tell you about.......Being thankful - 2015

Hello readers,

My brain is spinning with the notion that it is already December.  The year has been so busy with a plethora of activities so different from my life prior to retirement. 

I had a lot of milestones this year with our oldest grandchild turning 10, first one to reach double-digits; my high school graduation class celebrated 40 years; my husband finally joined me in the 50's (heehee); our oldest son turned 35; my father in-law turned 70; mother in-law turned 65; and our youngest son turned 21!

I feel that I have settled in nicely to my revised life purpose.  Notice that I did not use the word "routine"; this is because nothing I do is anything close to that description.  Although I have always admitted to being a control-freak, my variety of "busy things" has not bothered me in the slightest.  I am an atypical retiree doing atypical activities.  I am, and always have been, unique; at least I am consistent!  haha

It took some time at the beginning of the year for me and dad to get in sync with each other.  I have so much Rainer and Williams in me that I am too much like my father and his mother. Traits that I see as good, I also see in my cousin Cynthia Kay, and both of our father's. These traits, however, are ones that have been called "stubborn", "bull-headed", and other not-so-nice names but we are who we are.  Not too many people my age live with their parents and it really is a test to ones patience.  BUT, I would not trade it for anything. Getting to know my dad in ways that I never would have had the pleasure of in a typical situation has been a priceless and precious experience that I am ever so grateful for. 

We mostly just hang out.  I do chores and make sure that he is eating a proper breakfast and lunch and I hopefully provide him the conversation and interaction that he was not getting while I was at work.  We take rides, visit flea markets, the grocery store, and other errands.  We listen to music in the car and have good talks about life.  I do not have to worry about him trying to take care of my dogs or do his own laundry or shopping. I do a LOT of writing, unfortunately most of it is in my head, haha.  When someone invents the ability to transfer my thoughts from my head into MS Word I will be a famous author.  I do know that I did make the right decision to retire.

My gratitude for this phase of my life, in large part, has to go to my husband Steve.  If not for him my present situation would not have been possible, period.  Back in 2004 when we purchased a 3,800 sq ft. home we included the notion that my parents, both mom and dad, would have a suite of rooms and a bathroom.  In order to accomplish this task we had to finish a full basement into two bedrooms (one a guest room, the other for #six child), a study, and a family room to accommodate blended families when we gathered. The basement had a walkout door up to the backyard through a lovely study that I designed and Steve built.  Mom and dad had their suite upstairs, it was ideal.  Steve was amazing with the construction and we lived in that house for 10 years of our marriage.  

Mom eventually went into a nursing home where she passed away in early 2013; she never came back to that house.  Our last child grew up and was preparing to leave, so there was just the 3 of us left in a huge house.  

In late 2013 we moved to a smaller, more rural house with a bigger yard for the dogs.  Our new house had an unfinished basement (half of it anyway) so I once again imposed upon my husband to use his creative talents to finish the areas into a guest room and a western-themed bar.  It is fabulous and I wish you all could see the products of his hard work.  I am so lucky and thankful for his patience and understanding for the blending of our families over these past 18 years.  It has been a long and sometimes agonizing process but we have persevered.

Steve had no problem with my new retirement status.  His regular chore list, laundry, trash, yard work, and others, would all be done by the time he got home from work.  "You should have retired a long time ago" he jokes with me.  I happily keep busy doing what I can to keep the house running.  It amazes me what all it takes and I keep wondering how I ever worked and did any of this for the last 40 years!  I look forward to his regular texts during the day and find myself missing him when Monday rolls around.  My retirement has actually strengthened our marriage in many ways.  

Without Steve's ability to keep working a full time job and providing us with health insurance none of this would have been possible and for that I am more grateful than I can put into words.  We named our western bar "The S&P" and our team S&P is in a fantastic time of life.  We are enjoying each moment with more laughter than all previous years combined. We had camping adventures this summer, a few driving trips, and were fortunate to have kids and grand kids from Kansas visit us.

Dad is slowing down during this last quarter of the year.  My new job is full-time chauffeur for him; he decided to sell his car and stopped driving in October.  This was a brave and smart choice that he made and I am proud of him for his decision.  I am certain that he now feels more trapped in the house with me but he deals with it very well.  

Life is ironic how we seem to go in reverse as we get older.  I am, as an adult "child", now mothering my father in so many ways.  If I did not make his meals he would not eat right at all.  He has reverted to a "pre-driver's license" age where he relies on me to take him to destinations, doctor appointments, haircuts, and shopping.  He has accused me of nagging him but my gentle prompts (that he interprets as nagging) are for his own good just like a mother with a child.  It really is pretty funny.

I have seen firsthand two choices we seem to have as life progresses: my paternal grandmother and my mother were both unaware of their dementia and the affect on others; my dad is very aware of any slight memory loss or change to his previous acuteness and it bothers him terribly.  He suffers from bad dreams and relives the past.  Mom had no memories other than song lyrics or names of old actors, her birthday and their anniversary. Dad does not sleep well or for very long at night; mom did not know the difference between day and night. After breakfast she would sometimes proclaim that it had been "a very long day"; dad's nights are long as he fights the nightmares of Rocketdyne and life and remembers them all too vividly. 

For now I judge my dad's clarity by the morning crossword puzzle in our paper.  He completes it with a swift hand and very rarely makes a mistake.  As long as these puzzles are coherent in a language that I can read and he contains his sense of humor when I tease him about a small boo-boo I deem him right on schedule for his 84 years of age.  He tells me "you, too, will get old some day".  My response to him is always "yes, but I will not have someone like me to take care of me when I do."  hahaha  

In October we started watching our new grandson Ellis two days a week.  He is a bright light and joy to the entire household.  Funny, fussy, and full of drool, this little guy is a blessing. We spend our Thursdays and Fridays making baby talk, trying to appease his needs, and just marveling over the hundreds of pictures I seem to keep taking of him.  It is rare for a child to have this much time with a great-grandparent and grandparents, I certainly never did.  Ellis gets to have time with me and Steve (grandma and Pa) and we both love every minute. The photos and visual memories that I will have of Ellis with my dad and Ellis with Pa are ones that I cannot accurately put into words but are ones that I feel immense gratitude to have.  

I think my annual end-of-year reflections are a product of being a December baby.  Since my birthday is three days after Christmas and three days before New Year's Eve the changing of my age is very closely tied to the wrap-up of a calendar year.  

In reflection, this year has provided for me in ways that I never dreamed possible.  Thank you Steve, dad, and my son Jason and his wife Mary for making my first year of retirement so special.  I feel very safe and satisfied in my life despite whatever turmoil is happening around the world.  I wish everyone could feel this much peace. 

As always, thank you for reading my blog!

Grandma P

Let me tell you about......September 2015 fun!

Oh my goodness, every September poses numerous challenges for me with the organization of birthday celebrations.  We have at least one or two birthdays each week in the month of September. Our dear friend Patsy starts off the month on the 1st; father in-law and dad are on the 10th and 11th, respectively; grandsons Amadeo and Luca are on the 15th and 20th; son Chris is on the 21st; husband is on the 26th; mother in-law is on the 30th.  There are a few others, aunt, niece, cousins and friends sprinkled in the mix every week also.

This year we had several birthday milestones, 35, 50, 65, and 70.  Five years ago I had a party here in Colorado to celebrate the September milestones of that year (do the math, subtract 5 from each of the previous numbers, lol) but many people from Kansas were unable to attend.  This year, since it was my husband Steve's 50th birthday, I decided to throw him a surprise party in Kansas at his mom and dad's house.  The location made it easier for a lot of family back there to attend as only we would need to travel.

I learned that my in-laws and family friends had plans to attend a shoot in eastern Kansas for that weekend. I used that as a means to get us back there for his "birthday weekend".  We decided to also attend the shoot, looking forward to great fun.  Unbeknownst to Steve, I had a hidden agenda.

I started planning his party in July, getting on people's calendars (harder than you may think with as large of a family as we have), and trying to keep it discreet.  My mother in-law is super accommodating when it comes to helping me plan and it was greatly appreciated due to the distance.

Steve's excitement for his birthday weekend was fun to watch since I knew he was only thinking it was going to be a fun Sporting Clays and fishing outing with me, his dad and mom, and two other friends.  Our drive to Kansas was uneventful, thank goodness!  We hauled our John Deere Gator with us to use during the shoot and my RANRGRL truck did well during the long drive from Colorado.

We arrived on Wednesday late evening and the party was planned for the next day.  Steve only thought that his kids and grandkids were coming by to see him on that day because we would be gone Friday through Sunday for the Sporting Clays event.

Thursday, September 24th 2015, party day at the Kansas McHone house!!! Steve's dad kept him occupied while his mom and I ran errands to pick up the cake and other last minute items for the party.   We stopped to pick up grandkids Braxton and Grady from daycare at their grandma Marina's house to surprise their Pa, Steve.  Those two boys were pretty excited to see Ava and me and Braxton was thrilled to see we were setting up a party for his Pa. I was really hoping to pull off the surprise with no hiccups.  The secret was almost exposed when son Wade texted Steve that morning "Happy Birthday Dad!"   HAHA  Steve's birthday was still two days away and Wade had a momentary brain lapse that confused his dad.  It was very funny.

I got Braxton's approval, haha

We kept the decorations pretty simple for the old guy, haha

Braxton will be four next February and he is at that great age of understanding things and getting engaged in things I am doing.  I recruited him to help me with some actions and paid him a quarter when he was done.  He was pretty cute with excitement.  I asked him where he learned to be such a good worker and he replied "my dad taught me".  Priceless, and good job Alex and Wade!





Little Grady will be two in December and he is a busy little guy.  We interrupted his nap at daycare because we picked them up.  All of the running around, playing, and laughing at great-grandma Ava's house wore him out before the party.  Pa was still gone with his dad so great-grandma Ava took the opportunity to get Grady to settle down and take a nap.  She got the job done and I was fortunate to capture pictures of this sleeping angel.  Steve and I do not get to see these grand kids often and I tend to take a LOT of pictures when we get together, can you blame me?

Look at this angel!

I stared at him a lot while he was asleep, such a sweet boy

All snuggled up in a blanket with his head propped on top of a fuzzy bear.  Grady took only five minutes to relax and drift off for this nap.  He was exhausted and slept through the activity that was abuzz around him.  His brother Braxton kept going over to try and wake him so we finally had to shoo him outside to hang out with Pa and great-grandpa Steve who had recently arrived.





Fortunately, daughter Lainie and grandson Jack arrived at that same time and they were able to keep Steve busy outside while the finishing touches were in progress in the house.
Braxton and Jack seemed happy to see each other and played a funny game of chase around the yard.  Steve and I miss seeing the interaction of the cousins due to the long distance of our households.  The Kansas afternoon weather was delightful and Pa had a great time watching his boys play.  I tried to get some good pictures of the moments and was pleased with what I did get.

 

I love these pictures of Braxton and Jack running around the yard chasing each other; it is fun to watch them play.

I adore this picture of Steve and Jack!!!

Meanwhile, inside the house, I am waiting with camera in hand for Steve to come inside and see his birthday party surprise.  People kept arriving, aunts, an uncle, a cousin, and the other kids but he stayed outside playing with the grand kids.  Who could blame him?

Each time the screen door would open I would grab my camera and poise myself to capture his face upon seeing the party setup.  I had to wait a very long time; it was amusing and frustrating.   I believe we finally had to call everyone in for dinner and he straggled on in with them.

Son Cody

Father in-law Steve Sr.

Daughter Lainie and Jack

Mother in-law Ava and Aunt Mary Ann

 Finally, Steve arrives at his surprise 50th birthday party!

He is giving me the "what did you do" look.....hahaha!

Time to gather 'round and party down with the McHone family, it was lots of fun!

Uncle Cody hanging Braxton upside down

Jack watching everyone as he eats

Wade feeding his little guy Grady

Sweet Grady

Jack, happy with his party hat!

Go Jack!

Oops, hat's falling off 

Last but not least, time for the birthday cake and celebratory candle lighting.  Braxton was right there next to Pa waiting to help him with the fun.  

This is a great picture!!  Happy 50th my love

The party was a success and I would like to thank my in-laws for letting us use their house for the venue.  I believe Steve was surprised and pleased with the kids and grand kids, and all other family members who came to help celebrate his 50th.

The actual "birthday weekend" festivities will have to wait for another blog.  It was three days of fun, food, and frustration.  Steve, his dad, and family friend Jim Holden shot around 400 Sporting Clays target over the three days; well, they shot "at" them anyway.  hahaha

As always, thanks for reading my blog.

Grandma P

Let me tell you about.......Summer 2015

Hello Readers,
I have been retired for 7.5 months already!  The summer is showing signs of easing into fall here in Colorado and I have noticed the panicked looks on parents and kid's faces as they shop for school supplies lately.  

I certainly do not miss the days of spending so much money on school supplies and clothes for our kids and I can only imagine how challenging it must be for a family of 2+ children to ensure that everyone is adequately prepared for a new school year.
I think about teachers at this time of year and all that they do in preparation for our children. As my Facebook friend list grows I note that several of my new contacts, old high school friends, are teachers and I admire them for that career path. 

I have several new blogs in progress but instead of publishing any I have spent the summer doing an inside project to assist in the completion of our last unfinished room in our basement.  Yay! 

My husband transformed the remaining east half of our basement from a room with no walls or floors into an extension of the already existing family room that came with the house.  We now have a really fun place to hang out if anyone ever comes to visit.  LOL, inside joke.
The transformation was not an easy feat, either.  My husband is amazing with his carpentry and electrical knowledge and his ability to pull it all together.  

My part was just getting the vision of what we wanted the room "to be".  The final decision was a western themed bar.  Dad and I set out with many trips to local and not-so-local flea markets and other stores to gather items for my "vision".  

Dad in front of a flea market, so fun!

 I am so pleased with how the room came together as we brought home items from many places.  The days spent with dad on this activity were priceless and fun as we looked through SO MANY booths and cast aside treasures from peoples lives.

Steve and I also had fun trips to shop for the room and found a lot of fun stuff.  The culmination of furniture, art, and antiques came together into a room that is amazingly comfortable and a fun place to hang out.  Of course, the fact that it is a bar complete with a kegerator is not so bad either. lol

During one flea market adventure Steve and I found an oil painting of a barn that ironically is located on the road up to our mountain property so we purchased it for a very low price.  It is really a nice painting and framed very rustically so it fits well with our decor.  There was a note included on the back of the painting that told us it was the "Batterson Barn" near Red Feather Lakes, CO.  This confirmed our suspicion that it was the same barn we pass every time we visit our property.  We recently discovered that the barn is included in the National Register of Historic Places and has a nice story attached to its existence.  Here is a link, it is a good read.  http://redfeatherhistoricalsociety.org/local-histories/historic-local-sites/batterson-ranch/#ranch

Original Barn

Oil painting of barn

It was a fun and exhausting project for us but we are very thrilled with the end results.

From the entryway

The bar area

South wall from entryway

North wall from entryway

Of course, I have also been busy with yard work, something alien to me since becoming an adult. I avoided yard work since my teenage years, weeding was used as a chore when we were in trouble and I never enjoyed working in the yard prior to retirement.  Now, I mow lawns, weed, and all kinds of yard work.  I recently was told by my son Jason "nice tan", first time I have ever heard that in my life!  Forty years of office life kept me very pale and now I have a what appears to be a tan but is mostly my freckles all starting to connect.  haha

We sold our rental house that was on the market for almost two years, phew! We had some camping weekends, so much fun!  We were not able to squeeze in as many as we hoped to but hopefully still have time to make a couple of more trips up. We celebrated the arrival of grandchild number eight in July, that will be a separate blog. 

The summer will be ending with visits from kids and grandkids from Kansas, a Colorado Rockies baseball game, and then lots of September birthday milestones this year.  

As always, thank you for reading my blog.  I love to write and even if a few of you read it makes it worthwhile for me.

grandma P

Let me tell you about....my grandchildren Part 3

Oh my goodness, this is Part 3 of stories about my grandchildren.  In case you have not caught onto the trend of the previous Parts 1 and 2, this story will be about my third grandchild, another beautiful little girl that they named Taziana.  

I wrote in an earlier blog of the loss of my dearest, favorite uncle, my dad's only sibling, my Uncle Bill.  He passed away on 02/10/2011.  Please go through my earlier blogs if you have not read that one, he was very dear to my heart.  

Anyway, Uncle Bill's birthday was October 25th and when we found out in early 2010 we were to have a granddaughter arrive in late October I was very excited and hoped she would arrive on his birthday.  On my Uncle Bill's birthday of 2010 (five days prior to her mom's birthday) my "little ladybug" Taziana joined our family and now Christopher and Anastasia were a family of five.  She had a head full of dark hair, in contrast to her two older sibling's who had light hair, but similar to me at birth, and such a sweet little angel face.

Newborn Taziana in hospital being held by mama

First time "big brother" Luca holding baby sister

Christopher and his new baby girl

"Big sister" Giada with her new little sister

I really like this picture of me with 3 week old Taziana

Dad looks very pleased with his new great-great granddaughter

 I never knew my great-grandparents and I think it is so special that my grandkids have my dad in their lives as well as other great-grandparents on their mom's side of the family.  

Dad holding Taziana

My affectionate nickname for Taziana, "my little ladybug", was derived from her very first Halloween photo that I received.  It was so precious and fitting that I have stuck with it since then.

Oh my goodness, such cuteness

Me with my little "lady bug" Christmas 2010

Christmas of 2010 was one where I was really missing my mom.  She was in the nursing home not too far from us but I really wished that she could have been with all of us in our home. Christopher and Anastasia always gave thought to giving mom pictures of the kids for Christmas and we would hang them on her board by her bed and chair.  Mom did not really get to know Taziana, sadly, but we would talk about her great-grandkids and then she would share those stories with her nurses.  

Grandkids Christmas 2010

Baby Taziana was so adorable and her dark hair and blue eyes (that are now hazel) were almost mesmerizing. I really started thinking that I saw a lot of myself in comparing my baby pictures to hers.

For her one year birthday party in October of 2012 her mom baked her a special cake.  My daughter in-law Anastasia is amazing with her cake creations, she is very talented that way and has made one for each of their children.  Her Winnie the Pooh cake was great and it was fun to watch Taziana take it apart!

 

Over the next year our little Taziana really developed a funny personality.  She took on the role of "third child" with a royal attitude and let us all know we were in for a lifetime of fun and surprises around every corner.  Funny, moody, determined, and feisty, Taziana is a delightful handful who I cannot help but compare to myself!

Me at age 3

Love her smile, does it look familiar?

Taziana has added a great balance to the family with her funny and stubborn personality. This dark-haired little girl and her siblings are a trio of unexpected blessings for me as a grandma.  I always wanted to be a mom and being a grandma is a bonus that I wish everyone could experience.  These little beings, extensions of your own child, and sometimes extensions of yourself or other family members, are intriguing and confusing and loving and amazing as they develop their personalities.The impact of this little girl on her family has been outstanding to observe as she continues to morph into a little girl ready for school.  Her independence is fun,yet frustrating at times as she asserts herself into the family dynamics.
 

 

Taziana decided to follow in her sister Giada's footsteps, no pun intended, and try dance lessons.  I did not make it to all of her programs but the one I did see was so very precious and memorable.  She feigned shyness but then opened up to delight the audience and bring laughter to all of us.  Her interpretation of the dance to the song "I want a hippopotamus for Christmas" is one I shall never forget.  

 

Whether it be dancing with her sister, camping with her family, or playing with friends, Taziana exudes a cheerfulness hard to ignore.  Even when she is bossy and grumpy I cannot help but inwardly smile at the wonderful little girl who has blessed our lives.

In November of 2012 Taziana gave her family quite the scare when she fell off the back of their couch and broke her arm.  Similar to me, she is the first one of their kids to have a broken bone; mine was a broken ankle at the age of ten.  She braved it like a "big girl" and her arm healed perfectly after some time in a cast.

Sporting her first (hope last) cast

My "Little ladybug"

Christmas of 2013 was celebrated at our house on my birthday which is three days after the actual holiday.  We had the basement all decorated and had a good pot luck spread for thirteen of us.  It was great fun.  We ate dinner prior to opening presents and I remember how tough that was as a kid.  The anticipation of seeing presents sitting there, wanting to open them, and having to finish your dinner before getting to tear them open. Taziana was cute to watch as she tried to muster up interest in food but even more fun to watch open her presents.

Really not interested in eating dinner

She loved her kitchen!

Barbie's from the movie Tangled

I was fortunate to be able to retire from my present job after a 30-plus year career in the aerospace industry and over 40 years of total working.  I spend my days with my dad and dogs, do chores like a real "housewife", and I have also had the pleasure of babysitting grandkids several times recently.  Getting to know their personalities at this age is priceless. 

Taziana and I have played Barbies, put together puzzles, and snuggled on the couch watching movies.  She has brushed my hair (ouchy!), asked me amusing questions, and played outside at their swing set and sand box.  One day she was pretending to make me a cake with a bucket and sand.  She was very organized as she piled sand into the bucket, packed it with a shovel, and pretended to really construct a cake.  She even determined that the little playhouse was the "oven" for her to use when the cake was ready to bake.  Great imagination!  As she was putting together the cake for me I asked her (in fun) to please not put in any strawberries. She inquired "do you not like strawberries?"  I then pretended to cry "pleeeeease do not put in strawberries, pleeeeease...."  She put the bucket down and said to me "calm down, you're fine, take a breath and chill out".  Oh my goodness, that was so very funny!!!!!!  

I look forward to growing older, it's not so bad.  The moments I have and memories I am building with my family are ones I never imagined but would not trade for anything.  The last couple of times I have left their house, Taziana has waited for me to reach the driveway and then call out to me with an urgency, "grandma wait!"  To see her running after me for a last hug or kiss and have her jump into my arms is something I hope everyone will someday experience.  That pure love at that moment in time is indescribable and heartwarming.

I love my "little ladybug" and all of her quirky moods and hope that someday she will read this blog and know what fun we had together.  

love to you always,

Grandma P