Happy Birthday!

The month of December marks some very important dates for our family. Three of my kids' grandparents celebratre their births in this month: my mom (December 8), Matt's dad (December 20), and Matt's mom (December 27). These special days honor some of the most incredible people in our world, and we are very blessed that they are ours.

 

There's also the birthdays of loved ones who've passed. My most special beautiful, blue-eyed Grandmother, graced this world with her presence for the first time on December 29, 1924. I always loved having fun on her birthday; even as an adult, I'd convinced myself that we'd be celebrating it for as long as I was alive...that she'd just live forever. And, though the world that I could never imagine as a child is now a reality, I still like to remember her on her special day. She does live on in our hearts, after all.

Instead of gifts now, I like to think about those things that made her happy: playing Scrabble, home-cooked meals, making vegetable beef stew, telling stories about the past, jokes with her brother, letters, good books, hymns, cookies. More than anything, though, it was her family that made her world go 'round. Popa, her daughters, her grands...for us all she lived and breathed, and nothing pleased her more than knowing that we were happy, healthy, and successful.

I remember how excited she'd get when she'd learn that someone was finishing college, starting a career, getting married; any opportunity for growth was music to her ears. Not surprisingly, the news she loved the best was whenever she found out that her family was growing. I think that was the major measure of success for her - a big family. New babies put an extra sparkle in her already glittering eyes, made her smile grow a little fuller, helped her heart sing a little louder.

 

So, it is in her honor, today, that my news carries even more love. There's another one on the way, Grandma! Happy birthday!