Getting to Play Gramma...

Even when I was a little girl and people would ask that standard question, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" I would always say, "I want to be a mom." It seems no question ever had a clearer answer for me as a child. I really, really, really wanted to be a mom. Dreams of a little house in Louisiana with a white picket fence were in my mind as a teenager.

I married a great guy and did have my first child in Louisiana and did live in a little house next to Barksdale Air Force Base for a bit when she was born. It had a chain link fence in the back yard but no picket fence. It was close enough to be livin' the dream.

Years passed and I was blessed with three other pregnancies. This gave me three wonderful kids to raise here on earth and one that makes me want to live very well so I can be with him in the hereafter.

The real bonus and blessing to being a parent and enjoying all those years of raising my own kids is that I get to have occasion to have my grandmonsters around me.  This week was one of those times. I just love them no matter how brief the visit.

Andie needed help with someone watching Hayden and Bailey and getting them to bed on Tuesday evening. She had an evening meeting at the school and Michael was returning from a business trip later that evening. Andie asked some time back if I could do this and of course I said yes.

Tuesday Claude left for the Kentucky League of Cities Conference in Louisville. I left for LaGrange about the same time. We stopped in Frankfort for lunch together. Then I headed across the back way to get to the Marx home.

Hayden was up from his quiet time and pretending to sleep snuggled on Andie's lap when I got there. I just knocked on the door quietly and entered quietly so as not to wake up any potentially sleeping kids. I went to the kitchen and put down my soda and Hayden popped up quickly. It is a good thing I caught him pretend sleeping out of the corner of my eye because that little ruse didn't last very long.

Hayden is delightful right after quiet time. He is bursting with things to tell someone. His mind must be a whir all the time. We visited until a little after 5pm when I headed upstairs to wake up Miss Bailey.

She was happy to see her Gramma. We headed downstairs to play with Hayden.

Andie made a wonderful dinner for us. When we finished eating Hayden noticed the fleece Andie purchased and was showing me to make Bailey's Halloween costume. It took him about two seconds to process the fun this yardage of cloth could make in two little people's lives.

Pretty soon we were rearranging the chairs at the table, covering them with the fabric and making a tent to play in. For the rest of the evening Hayden and Bailey were completely engaged in playing in and fixing up this 'tent' home.

Hayden made sure there was a fire place in front of it. He emptied the plastic tub of wooden blocks and arranged them in the lid of a copy paper box. He also included the orange cones for a look of flames. The kids have several skeins of old yarn that he cut up and arranged in the flames.

My favorite picture of this playtime with the Mini-Marx's is this one:

Here are a few pictures of their fun:

Bailey did spend some time with the blocks. I was amazed at how tall she made her stake of blocks.

Andie headed off to her meeting. We got Hayden and Bailey dressed for bed. Then Hayden fixed the TV so we could watch one short show before bedtime. It is so very nice to have an A/V savvy grandson. Then upstairs to brush our teeth, read stories and tuck into beds.

Andie suggested I get Hayden's stories read first, then take what time I needed with Bailey. Hayden has to be up and out the door first the next morning so that extra bit of time can be useful. However, getting Bailey to understand that could have been tougher. Hayden got his teeth brushed and hurried into his room. Bailey brushed her teeth and when I took her to her room I carried my camera. She loves learning how to take pictures. I told her I needed to put Hayden down and she was to stay in her room and take pictures until I returned to read her bedtime stories. She was delighted. These are the only two pictures I found on my camera when I downloaded pictures. I thought there would be tons more but there were only these two taken by a future master photographer.

Soon our little ones were off to sleep. Well, they were at least quiet enough that Gramma thought they were asleep. Michael got home and snuck in to give them good-night kisses. Then Andie returned and the adults settled in for a bit before bedtime.

Wednesday morning was full of busyness. I got up to find Hayden and Bailey having breakfast and Hayden almost ready for school. He left with Michael.

I got Bailey's hair into braids for her school day.

Then Andie shuttled Miss Bailey out the door to pre-school. I remained to get ready for my day, load my car, then drive to the elementary school to meet Andie.

Andie and I left my car at the elementary school and headed to Joann's Fabrics. We were searching for the things to make Hayden a Peter Pan costume for Halloween and the notions needed to make Bailey a dinosaur costume for Halloween. We came to an understanding on the fabric for Hayden but didn't think we had the right size pattern for Hayden. I took my instructions and would stop at the Joann's in Frankfort to look for Hayden's fabric and pattern.

Then Andie took us through a Taco Bell drive-thru to pick up lunch. We were going to surprise Hayden by joining him for lunch in the cafeteria of his school.

We got there an he was in line to enter the cafeteria. He saw us and was waving for us to come to him. But we had to sign in and get our visitor's name tags first. Then we found him at his table in the cafeteria. He was one very happy little boy. I'm sure it was because we were there and not that wonderful Taco Bell meal we brought him!

I sat on one side of the table and Hayden and Andie sat on the other side. I was sitting next to a little boy that the cafeteria worker was calling Brian. I said 'hi' to Brian and he smiled and said 'hi' right back at me. Then he turned over his lunchbox and I saw his last name. It is not a common last name. I knew a baby several years back named Brian ____. Could this be that baby?

I leaned over to Brian and said, "Is your mommy named Angie?" He was so happy and gave me a resounding 'yes'. I told him I knew him and held him when he was just a baby. We were fast friends for the rest of lunchtime.

It is a very small world out there. Brian's mom was a missionary in the Montgomery Village Maryland Ward when we lived there. After we lived in Kentucky for a while, we had a young mother that was new in the Georgetown Kentucky Ward come up after Sacrament Meeting and ask us if we remembered her. Of course we remembered her from our Maryland days. She was now married and had two kids. Michaela was the oldest and Brian was her baby brother. This little family eventually moved to the Louisville area. They had another baby. Now, once again after several years, I was sitting next to Brian and he is in Hayden's kindergarten class. See, it is a very small world. Always be good because you never know who you will run into that connects with your past!!

After lunch with Hayden, Andie headed back to Bailey's pre-school to pick her up and then join their Mom's Club group at the park. I headed to Frankfort to finish getting the pattern, fabric and notions for Hayden's costume. Then I headed to Georgetown to sing with Papa. Then I took Papa to the Mexican restaurant for dinner. Then to Walmart to purchase cabbage and carrots to make cole slaw for tonight's Sadieville MusicFest. Then I went home and crashed with my allergies going full blown again.

It was great fun to visit with the Mini-Marx's. I just love being a Gramma!!