Dear Grandma,
It's been a long time since you've been able to carry on a conversation with me because your mind had left you without memories of what your life once was. The good thing is that I still remember. I remember going out to the cottage on the weekends when I was little. I remember the green Coleman water container that we drank out of, the sodas stocked in the fridge in the shed, the two seater outhouse with fly paper hanging in the corners, eating layered cake you brought from the bakery, watching you stand on the hill in front of the pier because walking on the pier made you dizzy, all the balls of yarn that you used to make everything you can imagine out of plastic canvas, telling stories about everyday events ear-marked by the color of your jacket at the time or the price of bread or gas, cactus plants on the window sill in the dining room, the spiral notebooks you would write prices in or figure out a math problem in, playing cards and rolling dice, cinnamon apples at thanksgiving, and eating McDonald's for lunch because it was right next door.
As I list all these things I am realizing that these things still go on around me every day. My boys are obsessed about cactus plants, Jackson can never have enough small spiral notebooks to write numbers or facts in, Gavin can remember details about events that happened 6 months ago when no one else can and Brenden all ready has a thing for McDonald's orange HiC drink. It never ceases to amaze me how God carries family traits into the next generation and I am so thankful that my boys picked up such fun traits from you.
It was sad to see you the last time and have you not remember me or other family members because your memory was what you were always known for. I know that you didn't have to suffer long the day God called you home and that helps ease the years of living unaware of what your memory had turned into. I pray that writing this down helps to not forget who you were and where we all get our little quirks from. I've missed you for a long time all ready.
Love you always!
I always laugh when it's time to carve pumpkins for Halloween at our house. I have boys. Boys like to play with weird things like sticks and mud pies, sand and dirt. However, in our house when it is time to play with the inners of a pumpkin they freak and squirm, complain that it's slimy and gross. I usually end up taking the inners out myself most years but this year I was down to only 2 out of 3. You guess who was brave enough to do by their self.
Brenden couldn't wait to have a Party. He had been patiently waiting through Jackson's birthday and Mom's birthday and Dad's birthday and Gavin's Birthday and he kept asking when was his party. Finally, October 14 came and he could have his party. He was very specific in what he wanted on his cake and at his party. He wanted balloons for decorations and balloons on his cake. They couldn't be any color either. Their had to be a red one, blue one, green one and a yellow one. Lots of people too. So we invited the kids from the 'hood and got all his requests in line. Mac and Cheese, Hotdogs and chips with juice boxes to drink rounded out the festivities and Brenden had a blast. Even his best girl, Kiana, came to wish him a happy birthday.
I have never been to a football game in a stadium. Either had anyone else in our family for that matter. Gavin had been asking to go to a Hawkeye football game for 2 years but tickets are not always that easy or cheap to come by. So I put it off for as long as I could and then I asked about tickets on Facebook and low and behold a friend at work had won tickets that they couldn't use. Hand them over. We will take them off your hands so they don't go to waste. 
