Grandchildren – Page 7 – Valerie's Voice

Socks and Such

Last week I was able to attend a gym session for toddlers with my 20-month-old granddaughter. It was a delight to see her playing in the room full of appropriate gym gear. There was organized time with an instructor, along with casual playtime. During the guided activities moms (and some grandmas) and children sat around in a circle on the floor entirely covered in gym mats. Of course we had to take off our shoes off to walk into the room.

My mended socks with even more holes. Tossed out.

I do have a drawer full of wonderful socks. I also received two new pairs this Christmas, so why did I put on my old SmartWool socks that… just last week… I mended the toe? (There were a couple other holes in the back that I didn’t bother with.) I am not sure why – when I dressed that morning, for spending time with my granddaughter, I figured I’d have slippers on and she would not see the holes in my socks! I did not know we would be going to the gym. Well, needless to say I was a little embarrassed when we all had to take off our shoes to go into the gym room. Hopefully the young moms did not notice. I will never know. But I did throw those socks away!

And the day continued…

That afternoon, when I got home, I was working on my computer and accepted a download that I shouldn’t have, which caused a few problems that have since been corrected. That was not fun…but that was not all…

I made a great home-made pizza for dinner, and while taking it out of the oven it flipped over, and all the ingredients, including pizza sauce, spilled to the bottom of the oven and on the oven door. What a mess! We turned the oven off, closed the door, found leftovers in the frig (and cleaned the oven a couple days later!)

At that point, I settled in for a cup of tea and an early bedtime. It was fun to spend time with my granddaughter that day, but it was time to put the day to rest…thankfully each day begins anew.

I found some fun quotes on Pinterest….

Every day is a new beginning. Take a deep breathe, smile, and start again.

Every day is a chance to start over.

Amen!

Como Zoo

It had been awhile since I visited the Como Park Zoo. I don’t remember the last time. We took our boys there when they were young, and I remember we had a winter picnic there one year. I have been back to the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory since then, but the date escapes me.

Growing up in NE Minneapolis, going to the Como Zoo was a popular place for field trips at my elementary school. I remember the cages were too small for the animals. Thankfully, they have changed that. I also remember a very large, and very old, tortoise roaming the grounds. According to Como Zoo history posted online, Toby, a Galapagos tortoise, came to live at Como Zoo in 1958. Small children were allowed to ride on Toby’s back. Toby is the tortoise I remember. In 1974 Toby was moved to the Honolulu Zoo, where he still lives today!

Monkey’s are always fun to see at the zoo.

Two other cute “monkeys” – Ezra and Zoey

Last week, before Christmas, we took our grandchildren to visit the Como Zoo. It is a nice size, not too big, and it is free. We went to see the monkeys first – a request from our granddaughter. We continued to walk around looking at the other animals including reindeer…how appropriate to see reindeer this time of year. It is fun to see the animals through the eyes of a child…

The beautiful poinsettia display in the conservatory.

We took time at the end of our visit to go into the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory. I particularly wanted to see the sunken garden room which was decked out with red poinsettias, white paper whites, and purple lavender…it was warm, smelled good, and was beautiful to look at.

Lovely to see fresh flowers in the sunken garden.

We all enjoyed wandering through the warm displays of plants in the conservatory. It is a special place, especially this time of year when the weather outside is frightful…

I’m thankful for St. Paul Parks and Recreation Department who maintains the Como Zoo …I will not wait so long to visit it again.

Orchids…always colorful… always spark joy.

Merry Christmas

…The children in each different place will see the baby Jesus’ face

Like theirs, but bright with heavenly grace

And filled with holy light. O lay aside each earthly thing

And with thy heart as offering, Come worship now the infant King

‘Tis love that’s born tonight….

Some Children See Him – Traditional – A. Burt, W. Hudson

This nativity set was a gift from my mother. She brought it back for me from her trip to Israel, years ago. It is made of Olive wood. The grand-kids wanted to add felt characters from a play nativity set I gave them.

A Cute Pink Elephant

When my grandson came upstairs the other day he was carrying a pink elephant he found in our bassinet filled with stuffed animals. It made me smile. This pink stuffed elephant always makes me smile. It holds very fond memories of a special young man who lived in Cherkasy, Ukraine. His name was Sasha.

I went on three mission trips to the city of Cherkasy, Ukraine and I met Sasha on the first one in 2004 (and again in 2005). I, and four others, went with a couple that had been taking mission trips to the Ukraine since 1991– sometimes as medical missionaries (he is a doctor, she is a nurse). On this trip, in 2004, they were organizing an English Language Camp, using Bible stories for curriculum.

The English Language Camp was well attended with middle and high school age students. The kids were eager to learn English from a native speaker. We spent the week in large group activities: learning songs, hearing testimonies and playing games, while spending time in small groups on English lessons. There were seven leaders, and we each had our own small group of students, and our own interpreter. Sasha was in my small group.

At the end of the week we had a celebration before traveling back to America. It was a festive event, but emotional too. We had all grown attached to our students, and to our host families (we had been placed in homes of church families and grew attached to them also).

Prior to the celebration we had packed our suitcases because we were going to leave early the next morning. At the end of the evening, when it was time to say good bye, Sasha came up to me and handed me this cute pink stuffed elephant as a going away present. It was such a sweet gesture. He was a precious young man, and we had made a special connection.

Since my suitcases were packed and there was no more room in my bags, I somehow tied the pink elephant to my carry-on…I really wanted to bring it home with me. So there it was, a cute pink elephant hanging from my bag as I walked through airports, and rode on airplanes, all the way home.

This cute pink elephant found its way into my home, and now it has found a way into my grandson’s arms and I am happy.

Poster Child

When my son and his family knew their arrival date to Minnesota, from Mozambique, he asked us to set up dentist appointments for the family – if possible before the end of the year. So I did, but the only times available were 36 hours after they landed. They were still dealing with a significant time change, travel wearies from over 30 hours of travel time, and jet lag. On the way to the dentist office, Ezra age 2 ½, fell into a deep sleep.

Once we arrived at the office, Zoey who is 4 years old, went first. She did just fine for Dr. Brust, and enjoyed picking out a new tooth brush.

Next, it was Ezra’s turn. We could not wake him up, no matter how hard we tried. So, Dr.Brust just checked Ezra’s teeth while he was sleeping.

Dr. Brust said maybe he could use this photo for an advertising poster – to show how relaxed his clients are in his dentist’s office.

Dr. Brust checking Ezra’s teeth while Ezra is sleeping.

Ezra slept through a couple other events, but is well on his way to adjusting to the new time zone.

Arrived!

Our son and his lovely wife and their two adorable children have arrived safely in Minnesota. They are here for the long term…Andrea left her childhood town in Mozambique, Africa. They are beginning a new chapter in their lives, here in the USA. We have prepared a space for them in our home for their transition period. We are so excited this day has finally come. We are grateful.

I’m in a happy place…reading to the grandchildren.

Northfield’s 20th Annual Winter Walk

We attended the 20^th annual Winter Walk in Northfield last night. The downtown is festive: all lit up with white lights and Christmas decorations, different groups of carolers singing, and stores offering sweet treats.

One of the decorated trees downtown Northfield. Photo taken right before sunset.

We received a special invitation to stop in at a business in town, which is where we always start our walk, after tasting some wonderful morsels.

Beautiful and creative special invitation for a Winter Walk event.

Next we visited Content bookstore, then checked out two new stores downtown before heading to the old Model Train exhibits, set up in our library at the end of Division Street.

We strolled back towards Bridge Square, along the closed-off street, full of cheerful folks meandering, a horse-drawn carriage, fire pits, and different music groups. We stopped at a couple other favorite stores: The Rare Pair and an antique store. They were packed with people. Depending on the weather the stores can get very crowded. It was chilly and the stores were full.

Bridge Square during Winter Walk, Northfield.

When we first arrived downtown we caught the beginning of a parade. This is a first for Northfield’s Winter Walk. For me it was too chilly to stand out to watch it go by, but we did see a couple of the entries while walking to our first stop. I enjoyed seeing the tractor decorated in Christmas lights, then we dashed inside.

The lighted tractor to begin the parade at Northfield’s Winter Walk.

Last weekend we planned to go to Faribault’s Winterfest Parade of Lights, including fireworks, but it got postponed due to weather. How ironic, the Winterfest, postponed by winter weather. HA.

That parade has been rescheduled for December 14^th so hopefully it will be “warm” enough to bring our newly arrived grand-children from Africa to see it. “O, what fun…”

For Zoey

Zoey, our 4-year-old granddaughter, is moving from Africa to the USA soon, with her family. Her mom says she is excited to see snow in Minnesota. Here are a few photos from our recent snowstorm…for Zoey… and Ezra, her 2 1/2-year-old brother. We cannot wait to see you!

I’m always taking pictures of the cardinals in our yard.

The red cardinal on a fresh layer of snow.

The snow covered trees in our front yard.

Snow-covered evergreen boughs out on our deck.

Looking out at the snow from our kitchen window, through a green-glass star.

I have a fun story about an African snowman. Our daughter-in-love is a native of Mozambique, and we knew she had never experienced snow but was curious about snow. Before we left Minnesota, on one visit to Mozambique, I dug through my Christmas boxes and found a packet of “Real Fake Snow” (when water is added to this white powder an instant reaction is a white-snow like mixture). I tucked the packet into my suitcase. One evening, after a very hot day in Mozambique, we opened the packet and mixed up the “real fake snow”. It was fun to watch a snowman being built, in Africa!

Our son looking on with joy as his wife makes her first snowman.

Thanksgiving Revisited

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. It all began Wednesday night at our annual Thanksgiving service at Emmaus Church. We gather for praise and worship along with our traditional “circling around the sanctuary, holding hands and speaking our thanks in prayer together.” Then we head downstairs to the fellowship hall for a pie social! Folks bring pies to share, and everyone eats one or two pieces as they visit.

The next morning Gary and I helped at Northfield’s community meal. Laura Baker Services Association (housing, educational and support services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities) provides a traditional Thanksgiving meal to anyone in the community. No need to sign up, just show up for a delicious meal. This was their 19^th year of arranging this wonderful event. They baked 22 turkeys, and made potatoes, stuffing, gravy, corn, salad, cranberries and pie! Last year we ate dinner at LBSA – this year we volunteered to serve. It was fun.

After we left LBSA we joined a family from church, who had invited us to come for dinner when they found out…at the pie social Wednesday eve…that we would not be with our family Thanksgiving Day. It was a beautiful thing, sitting around the table with old friends and new, sharing a meal together. We were blessed by their kindness, and by being at their family celebration.

The blessings continued as we joined our son and his wife and 1 ½ year old daughter at their home the next day, for another feast. My brother and his wife, their daughter and son, daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren came also. One grandchild is a baby boy…nine days old. The other is a three year old boy. The two “older” toddlers had fun playing together and exuded a lot of energy.

After our tradition of reading children’s stories, and eating dessert, the others said good-bye, so only our immediate family was left. In the living room, soon before we were going to depart, there was one more blessing. My daughter-in-love explained our granddaughter, Aria, “sets the stage often.” Aria points to the sound bar to have the music start (mom turns it on), then points to the gas fireplace to have it turned on (mom flips the switch), and then Aria starts dancing. What a joy to watch.

It was a special time…this blessed thanksgiving…and our hearts are full.

Now we’re moving into the Christmas season as I start to decorate the house, in anticipation of our other two grandchildren (along with mom and dad) coming over from Africa and living with us for a while. I hope their eyes light up when they see our Christmas tree full of colored lights. We’re so excited.

It Doesn’t Get Easier

Our son, Tim, who lives in Mozambique, managed to arrange a visit to Minnesota after a business meeting he attended in Washington DC. It was a great surprise to learn about this visit. We hadn’t seen him since October of last year.

We had three wonderful days together and nice family time along with our older son, Michael, and his family. We did miss having Tim’s family with us though.

It’s difficult to see your children once a year – and then not all of his family – our daughter-in-love and two grandchildren. Technology helps some these days…we hope our grandchildren recognize us after seeing us on Skype when we see them in person some day…but it’s hard.

So when we took Tim to the airport once again I was sad to say good-bye. After many years you’d think it might get easier, but it does not.

I do cherish the times we have together and hopefully we will get to see the whole family very soon.

Here is a photo our adorable grandchildren who live in Mozambique.