Happy birthday, baby!

/
Happy birthday, baby!

Happy birthday, baby!

My baby girl—Andrea—is 33 years old today!

Thankfully, considering Colorado’s current heat wave, a birthday cake isn't all that important at 33, and Andrea settled instead for a cookie. A cookie that, in fact, was one of those included in the recent Gramma in a Box package I received for review.

On Saturday, Andrea helped me review the July sample subscription box—meaning, she helped me decorate and create a trio of scrumptious sweets just as lucky grands would do were they on the receiving end of the subscription service—and was perfectly pleased with…

Read More

Flashback: 9 things I've kept 'for the grandkids'

/
Flashback: 9 things I've kept 'for the grandkids'

Dear readers: This Flashback feature originally appeared on Grandma's Briefs July 22, 2010. Thank you for reading this updated rerun!

My daughters have been grown and gone for quite some time now, but there are a few useful and/or enjoyable things from their childhood that I just can't throw away..

I'm pretty sure—or at least I'm bound and determined—that these items will one day come in handy, that they'll one day provide fun and frivolity for my grandkids.

9 THINGS I'VE KEPT 'FOR THE GRANDKIDS'

1. VHS tapes of children's movies and shows. Space Jam, Fluke, Casper and more. I can't see throwing away tapes I know kids love, but I sure don't plan on replacing them with DVDs or Blu-Ray discs (except for the…

Read More

If you give a grandma a gift

/
If you give a grandma a gift

Most kids know what happens if you give a mouse a cookie. Perhaps nearly as many know what happens if you give a pig a pancake. How many, though, know just what happens if you give a grandma a gift? In particular, if you give a long-distance grandma who's been oh-so lonesome for her grandsons the most heartfelt gift they've ever given?

My grandsons recently learned what happens if you give such a grandma such a gift. And trust me, it wasn't pretty.

Read More

Grandma challenge: How full can she fill forty-four hours?

/
Grandma challenge: How full can she fill forty-four hours?

My desert-dwelling grandsons and their parents visited my house last week—for forty-four hours. The family had taken a road trip to Vail for a wedding, and Jim and I were fortunate they fit in a stop at our place on their way back home.

I was thrilled to host them and was determined to squish as much into the visit as possible, unsure of when I'd see Brayden, Camden, and Declan (as well as Megan and Preston, too) again.

As all three boys have birthdays in June…

Read More

My next grandbaby is a ...

/
My next grandbaby is a ...

My next grandbaby is...!

Last Friday Brianna, Patrick, and James learned the gender of the baby scheduled to join the family in October. And the baby is...

Read More

Throwback Thursday: Sponge bombs for summer fun

/
Throwback Thursday: Sponge bombs for summer fun

This #TBT feature originally published on Grandma's Briefs April 14, 2015—when Brayden was two months away from 7 and Camden soon to turn 4. Thank you for reading my rerun!

Super simple, sloppy, summer fun!

WHAT YOU NEED

  • Basic rectangular household sponges in various colors (two per sponge bomb)

Read More

Brain drain... On lo mein, cracked pots, and other loves

/
Brain drain... On lo mein, cracked pots, and other loves

Wherein I ramble on...

Brianna is starting to show. And that's pretty darn awesome. She and Patrick find out next week if their first baby is a boy or a girl. I'm hoping for a girl... yet wonder if it's wrong to even consider hoping for one gender over another considering what they've gone through to get this far. Of course I'll be thrilled with another grandson but as this is likely my final grandchild, adding a girl to the grand group seems fitting. (Don't tell anyone, but I do think it's a girl.)

The life God intended. Conversations and situations

Read More

Who are these boys?

/
Who are these boys?

And how did they get so big?

The 2017-2018 school year officially ended for my grandsons Brayden and Camden yesterday.

I last saw my desert-dwelling grandsons in person last December, so the end-of-year photo Megan shared on social media of the accomplished kiddos—that I pilfered and pertied up with kudos—left me…

Read More

Like father, like son... and son... and son

/
Like father, like son... and son... and son

"A father is someone you look up to no matter how tall you are." ~ anonymous

My son-in-law Preston works out in the mornings before he goes to work. Last week my grandsons joined Dad in doing a few pushups—before school, before even changing out of their pajamas.

The photo Megan shared on social media…

Read More