What’s been lovely about your week? Leave a comment.
A favorite post about one of the best days ever for this Fantastic Friday. Hope you enjoy the memory as much as I enjoyed that lovely day!
Yesterday morning, I was tapping away at my computer when the doorbell rang. Surprised, I headed for the kitchen and spied the Hy-Vee floral delivery truck. “That’s weird,” I thought. “Who would send flowers to me?”
The friendly Hy-Vee delivery man waited at the door. “Does Jolene Philo live here?” he asked.
“That’s me.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Special day for you, is it?”
I thought a minute – no birthday, no anniversary, no windfall on Wall Street – before it hit me. “Well, my first book is being released today.”
“Congratulations!” He held up a finger. “I’ll be back in a minute.” And he was, carrying a huge balloon bouquet up our rather long sidewalk.
I went partway to meet him. “Thank you so much.”
Then, as I grabbed the bouquet and turned toward the house, he held up a finger. “We’re not done yet,” he said.
Surprised, I hurried into the house, set down the bouquet and ran outside in time to meet him halfway down the sidewalk and grab the second bouquet. “Thank you so much.”
He held up a finger. “We’re not done yet,” he said and headed for the truck.
By the time we were done yet, the two of us had met our exercise quota for the day, and he’d delivered five very large balloon bouquets from Mom, my sister’s family, my brother’s family, and my Le Mars relatives. The kitchen was full to bursting, and having seen the Pixar movie Up not to long ago, I was a little bit worried. (How come my son didn’t have “house uprooted by helium balloons” on his worry list Sunday night?)
But I was more flabbergasted than worried. See, I don’t come from a gifty family. Now, we’re darn good at birthday cakes, because birthday cakes are dessert and our family is exceptionally gifted at consuming desserts. And over the years, we’ve gotten better at saying “I love you,” sending birthday cards, and the occasional hug. On the other hand, no one will ever engrave “Our beloved celebrated special events with hoopla and flair” on our tombstones.
So I stood in the kitchen for a long time staring at the balloons and wondering what on earth possessed them to spend money so frivolously and where on earth I will put the bouquets this weekend when the rellies – Mom, sister, nephew, brother’s family, uncle and aunt, cousins and their families and my kids – arrive for our Labor Day Reunion weekend.
And then, gone giddy with the scent of latex, Mylar, and slowly leaking helium, I lost my head and did a little happy dance. What else can a girl do when her family says, “We love you?”
In the past 2 weeks, the Man of Steel and I enjoyed the company of our two youngest grandbabies, ages 5 months and 8 months. They taught us several important lessons, which we want to pass along to you. Next week I’ll be back with what our almost 3-year-old grandchild taught us, too.
10. Grandparents who want to buy a brand new car can rationalize the purchase because of the LATCH child seat feature. It’s all about keeping the little ones safe.
9. Getting things into the mouth is the most important thing.
8. Cloth diapers are a good choice.
7. The outdoors is an amazing classroom.
6. Every moment is a teachable moment.
5. Intergenerational relationships are a precious treasure worth cultivating.
4. Bouncing up and down on Grammy’s legs must be done even when it leaves bruises. On Grammy. Not the baby.
3. When babies fuss, hand them back.
2. Each smile from a grandbaby is a reason for celebration and great joy.
1. Saying good-bye to a grandbaby is like attending the funeral of a loved one. The next time you meet, the baby will be a whole, new person.
What have you learned from your grandbabies? Leave a comment.
Home again
after ten days
with a new grandson
and his parents.
Ten days
of cleaning and cooking,
of shopping and laundry,
and folding diapers just so.
Ten days
of walking the dog,
of reassuring new parents,
and watching them grow confident in their new roles.
Ten days
of snuggling a baby,
of smelling his sweetness,
and marveling at his perfection.
Ten days
of rocking and singing,
of his breath warm against my chest,
and his downy hair tickling my neck.
Ten days
of counting blessings,
of falling in love with 8 pounds, 2 ounces,
and feeling his weight burrow deep into my heart.
Home again
after ten days,
with half of me content to be back,
and the other counting ten toes and ten fingers
two eyes, two ears,
a stub nose and rosebud mouth
in my dreams.
10. iPhones are smarter than people over the age of 50.
9. Using iCloud to keep a fleet of Apple devices in sync isn’t nearly as satisfying as eating apple crisp.
8. Scrolling through the list of iPhone ringtone options is similar to strolling through the cereal aisle at the grocery store. Both involve way too many choices.
7. Do not assume that apps available on your old iPad are also available for a new iPhone.
6. The pedometer feature can become addicting.
5. The earbuds that come with a new iPhone are excellent.
4. If you buy an iPhone around Thanksgiving, it’s wise to buy an iPhone case immediately instead of adding it to your Christmas list.
3. If you don’t buy a case immediately and if no one gives you one for Christmas, your iPhone might break when you drop it on the floor and cost much more to replace than a case does.
2. On the other hand, the retro rotary dial phone case you buy using the Etsy gift certificate you mom gave you for Christmas is really, really cool.
1. If you drop your iPhone on the floor and your very thoughtful spouse takes pity on you and calls the phone company to find the cheapest way to get a new phone and then goes to the store to buy it and tells you to quit being so hard on yourself because everybody does stupid things now and then and it’s okay, you can make that very thoughtful spouse’s day by giving him the excellent set of earbuds that come with the new phone.
