South Dakota in Review

My trip to South Dakota was bittersweet...visiting my ailing grandpa and blind grandma, then staying with my recently widowed grandma...good time together but difficult to see, as they have always been a constant strength to me. Staying out in WY with my widowed grandma was a treat, she always has something on the stove simmering or baking in the oven...and she no longer has a husband to dote on, so the doting went to us. A cute little house 10 miles from the nearest town, surrounded by hills sprinkled with oak and cottonwood trees is the best setting for relaxation. The view from her sliding glass door in the dining room opens up onto a deck, backyard and big fenced-in garden. Unfortunately, from her deck posts hangs her clothes line, and she is of the era where clothes are hung out, not dried in the dryer...looking out on my grandma's undergarments is not the best breakfast environment. One gets so accustomed to looking out while eating...watching her now tame chickadees dancing and eating their bird seed, watching deer graze in the meadow...white undergarments swaying in the wind was just too much that morning...

Emma has explored and learned more than I ever imagined and I hope she will keep these memories tucked away forever. Why are memories with grandparents so cherished? So embedded in our memories? I have snapshots of memories with my grandparents when I was young, and hope with all the pictures and video that has been taken, her memories of the South Dakota trip will live on (three grandmas and two grandpas along with four sets of aunts and uncles may be difficult to keep separated in the mind of a three year old). Cousins have been a highlight of her trip. At home, she enjoys her three boy cousins immensely, here, she had the full attention of three girl cousins. 'Big girls' that do hair and makeup, that wear rings and bracelets and necklaces. Oh, what glory. 'The girls' got in on it all too. You know, the ones that are always with Emma...Ariel, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. They “all” had fun talking, doing hair, putting on necklaces, taking silly pictures...girl stuff.

Ethan got his fair share of learning as well. He got acquainted with magazines, silk flower arrangements, TV remotes, framed pictures, plants, trash cans, “afghans”, and even some snow. I used to think my house was pretty normal. Kid proofing was something I didn't intentionally try to do. Once we lived in and visited other non-kid houses, I realized just how mistaken I was. The first couple days, I thought I would lose 10 pounds chasing him and moving him and blocking off areas that were 'off limits' to him. Fortunately, my family was very understanding and merciful (even when he pulled a decorative glass jewelry box off a shelf and broke it).

This trip made me realize how blessed I am to have the family that I do, that brought me up to help make me the woman I am today, the mom I am today. What a heritage I have to pass on to my own children!

Amy