An unexpected road trip

My grandmother has faced many health issues over the past several years. About a month ago when I saw her at our big family reunion, we had the chance to visit. She told me that she had a stack of pictures to give me. Pictures of visits we made to the farm they used to have when I was a little girl. This was a real farm too, let me tell you! I have some amazing memories of San Augustine, Texas and hot Summer days playing in the cow pastures with my cousins. The fresh blackberries we picked for the homemade cobbler and the fresh eggs my Papa would fry me for breakfast that came from their chickens on their farm. I love fried eggs to this day! When she told me about the pictures, I got very excited! I couldn't wait to show my husband the pictures of the farm. He would love the farm and he has heard so much about it that he is jealous in a big way. He tells me all the time how much he wished they still had that farm. I wasn't sure how I would get the pictures or when. My grandmother lives in Beaumont and that's a six hour drive! But tomorrow me and the kids will load up the S.U.V with my Mom and drive to Beaumont. My Grandmother, also known as Grannymaw, isn't doing so great. A few days ago we thought she had a heart attack but Doctors think it's something else to do with her stomach. She had a 5 bypass heart surgery several years ago and hasn't been the same since. We take this trip in hopes of spending good, quality time with her. My Mom and I will try to find out how she's really feeling. She doesn't always tell Pops the truth!

At the family reunion almost a month ago, she also shared with me that she was extremely proud of the mother and wife I had become. She raved on my kid's good behavior (thank you Lord that someone notices) and how smart Josiah is for his age. She told me that my husband is the best husband and Daddy she's seen. She praised my cooking and told me that I have turned out to be a beautiful woman. That was nice to hear from her. She's not a woman of a lot of words. She doesn't pass out compliments and she doesn't usually get very sentimental but on that day, she did. At that moment I felt like she was a little worried about how much longer she may be here. My Grannymaw loves the Lord and she serves Him with all of her strength, so I know that her life with Jesus will be so much better than it is here. Even so, it's still hard to think about. I know when that times comes, it will be hard on my Mom too. Grannymaw is scheduled to go on a cruise to Alaska in September with four of her five brothers and their families. Since I have been on a cruise twice, I told her about the food on a cruise, the ice cream that Pops will love and the way you are treated like royalty. I shared with her how much we love cruises and how I know she will love it too. But as we talked she told me a couple of times that she hoped she would get to go. She explained to me that they had purchased insurance for the trip in the even they would not be able to make it. I didn't know what to say so I said this. "Grannymaw, you can't live in fear. Quit saying IF you go on the cruise. Say WHEN you go on the cruise!" Instantly she began to say WHEN instead of IF. I pray that she will get to see Alaska, it will be a dream come true for her.

So thankfully we have a dvd player with dual screens for the car ride and plenty of kid movies to pop in for the six hour drive. The kids have never been in a car that long and I don't think my mom has ever traveled with a pregnant woman that gets sick a lot and has to use the bathroom constantly! But this is what memories are made of, right? I look forward to the time with my Mom and all the singing we will do. She will sing melody and I of course will sing the harmony! That's what we do! We plan to come back on Monday and that already seems kind of long. I have never been away from Jeremy more than one night in five years! I make fun of my Mom all the time because she never wants to leave my Poppy and now I am being just like her. I guess that's a good thing though. We don't like to be away from our men! Some men go home at night when their wives are in the hospital to have the baby, not Jeremy! He stays, I like it that way and he would not have it any other way.

An unexpected road trip for sure, but time away with my family that I know will be well worth the trip. It's a must, we have to go see Grannymaw! She needs us and we need her.