Little lady made herself a place to be cozy and watch tv from around the corner
Grew enough green beans for a family dinner's worth!
I got the soap in the background, but it smelled bad. And I'm all like "life is too short for bad smelling soap!" .... but then I'm yet too cheap to throw it out... :P
My cousin got married, so we did a quick weekend in Chicago. Got to see the Bean!
Speaking of beans...
One day I had a beautiful lush green flowering bean plant starting to climb up the trellis enterance into my garden, and then next morning...
Last night Doug set up a "fence" of fishing line. The idea is the deer bump into the line, but since they can't see anything, they get nervous and go away. It has worked in the past.
But this morning...
Several Zinnia heads and leaves were gone. Like 20 plants. So maybe still deer, or maybe rabbits. Who knows. But I was very very sad.
Nothing has made it into my garden actually, but I had these flowers all around the perimeter for beauty and to attract pollinators, so it has been very frustrating to see all your hard work just chewed away overnight.
The by far biggest sadness was the passing of my Grandpa Ken. He was my last Grandparent. I had the opportunity to live with him (and Grandma Marie) on/off/on about a decade while I was going to the University near their home. I had a busy social life at the time, and I'm sure part of it was just me being selfish, and I have a regret of not using more of my time to invest in actually spending quality time with them during that period.
Over this last decade of being married and having kids we were able to spend time with him, probably every year, after he moved up North (after my Grandma's fall, and worsening dementia took them to live with my doctor uncle). And these photos and video clips are of that time.
My grandpa was 103, my grandma has been gone for 6 years now, and I know he was feeling ready to go to heaven for a long time. Sometimes he would joke "your uncle won't let me die!" We are so blessed, as a family, to have had him around so long. It has been amazing to see the sacrificial love from my uncle and his wife for caring for them/him for so long, And I am thankful he passed peacefully, knowing he was going "on his journey" to heaven, and at his last breath his son was there reading the passage where Mary Magdalene came to find the tomb empty. Who could ask for a better passing. I am thankful. But he was very loved, and will be very missed.
I had the chance to facetime call him when I was at work last week. He couldn't hear me, but my uncle said "it's your granddaughter Anne Marie saying she loves you" and he answered out "and I love her!" and again I'm just so thankful that his last years have been happy and full of love and, for the most part, peace. When we were kids it seemed we were always in his way and he seemed grumpy, so it's been really wonderful to enjoy this other side of him as the lasting memory.
Oh the peace that comes from knowing that someday I will see him again.
Until then, Grandpa I love you.
