Golden Grandmas

Now that mom and grandma have left us, life is returning back to normal, even though we have not yet determined what that is. It was great having them here, they are feisty, up for anything, great cooks, great company and simply fun to be with. They filled our house with love and also filled it with the sweet aroma of fried bread, sourdough, brisket and much more. We ate well and we ate much. They even helped cook for youth group, life group and a church potluck. They made it much easier for us to transition through our first holiday away from the states, and again we ate well. They got hot often, but complained little. They reveled in the simple things, such as Fox News in english and Pops ice cream parlor.

wedding cruise

Dr. Doolittle making new friends

Grandma slept well, in the car, but not in her bed. Mom swam in the pool pretty much every day and seemed to thoroughly enjoy the exercise. Grandma flourished at the beach and on our adventures despite  burning her back to match the flesh of a spawning red salmon, and peeling much the same way. Mom was in her element packing for the beach, lunches, snacks, and making sure we never ran out of sun tea. She also made sure there was always some kind of fresh baked goods close at hand: Cinnamon rolls, bread, fried bread, cookies, cakes, it was all there.

Nana, Livy, Dorian walking Avellanas

Grandma never went anywhere without one of her cameras and took pictures of everywhere and everything. Then she would upload them to her Facebook page faster than Mark Zuckerberg ever dreamed possible. Yes, my 82-year-old grandma has a Facebook page and she owns that thing. Posting picture after picture, commenting on statuses and reading posts from her grandchildren and friends upload throughout the day. My kids discovered a fatal flaw in Facebook because of her, there is no great grandma relationship available. In the evenings, after helping in the kitchen she would check her Facebook, play solitaire and wait for us to let her watch Fox News. One thing is for certain, I never worked up enough courage to drive by a Pop’s ice cream shop without stopping, because I am too scared to know what would’ve happened if grandma could not get her mango ice cream cone.

The 70's gals ready to party

We miss them already and can’t wait until they return for another visit. And perhaps by then we will all be able to follow my grandma’s tweets as she travels the country searching for pretty flowers, monkeys, cows and critters worthy of an upload. And if Pop’s ever gets free wi-fi, I guarantee you will see about a dozen pictures of a double scoop mango ice cream cone being devoured on Facebook.

Here are a lot more pictures from their trip.