Thankful Thursday: 3 gifts that made me laugh

3 gifts that made me laugh 🙂

I don’t laugh out loud a lot … but that doesn’t mean I’m not happy.  There are a lot of things that make me happy, as well as a lot of things that I laugh about, to and with.

1. This little guy’s laugh is absolutely contagious, and it’s hard not to join him when he lets that little giggle out. It becomes a type of game with him, the more you laugh…the more he laughs.  A never-ending circle of pure joy! I’m so thankful that I am able to “hear” this wonderful sound of laughter. Like good medicine for a weary soul, he fills my heart to overflowing.

R laughing

2. This moment, this funny little plastic mustache…a moment of fun, and laughter.  A moment to cherish and realize that yes, I’m thankful that sometimes it’s just a simple little thing that can make me laugh, and make him happy too!

  A & his mustache

3. And this one, well you might have needed to be there to appreciate it…but it did make me laugh out loud!

My 5-year-old granddaughter took my phone and was the photographer for the evening. I couldn’t help but laugh when I saw some of the pictures that she took, this being one of my favorites. I’m so thankful for her, and her creativity, I’m just hoping her choice of subject matter to photograph will maybe improve as she gets older 🙂

A's 8th Birthday - photos by A

These are just a few of the many things that I am thankful for on this very Thankful Thursday!

Keep looking for those little things in life – the ones that make you smile, and maybe even make you laugh…out loud! 🙂

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.“~Proverbs 17:22

 

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They told me not to blink

When my kids were little, I would hear it all the time. “Don’t blink, they’ll be gone before you know it!

Well, I have to admit, there were probably some days when my kids were little that I did a few “extra blinks” in hopes to speed the growing up process just a wee bit.  It didn’t happen very often, but the diaper years, and the teen years were probably some of the most challenging for me.

And now…my kids are grown, married and have kids of their own.

My grandkids.

Ahh, what a delight they are to my life.  Two boys and one girl.

Three beautiful little lives!

But apparently some one keeps blinking, because these little ones are growing up way too fast!

It seems as though it was just a couple of months ago the littlest one was born, and yesterday he started pre-school. Really?  I was just there, helping my daughter try to figure this whole “new mom” thing out, and now…well, she’s taking him on like a pro!

photo credit: my daughter

photo credit: my daughter

The oldest one is 8 years old now. He delights in the fact that he can teach me how to play video games with him! He’s still a whole lot better at it than I am.  Guess I need to practice more.

showing off his B'day gifts

And then there is my granddaughter. Oh my, this little girl is like sugar and spice! At 5 years old she is wise beyond her years, loves life, and is eager to share it with the ones she loves. She simply melts my heart on a routine basis.

A at La Jolla

Pure joy, that’s what they are.  I could write until I have no more words, but you will never fully understand the joy of grandchildren, until you have experienced it yourself.

I hope if you haven’t already, someday you will get to experience this special kind of joy.

Now if I can just find that person who keeps blinking, and maybe get them to blink at half-speed.

I love watching them grow up, but maybe they could slow down just a little bit 🙂

A little something to make you smile

My 5-year-old granddaughter, is full of life, and likes to “do and say” funny things to make me smile.

Yesterday, she presented me with another one of her amazing jokes.

Are you ready for this?

Her: Why did the duck cross the playground?

Me: To play with the other ducks?

Her: No….to get to the other slide!  Get it?! 🙂

And then she starts laughing at herself, and I can’t help but laugh with her, because, well, she just makes me smile

And you must admit, this really was a pretty good one, now wasn’t it?

She then attempts to tell me another one, but by then she was being very silly, and it just wasn’t as successful, even to her!

In fact, it was so bad she couldn’t even bring herself to laugh at her own joke!

But that didn’t slow her down, she just moved on to some other form of silliness.

Ahhh,… the joy of the life and times of a 5-year-old. Savor the moments, each and every one of them.

“A laugh is a smile that bursts.” ~ Mary H. Waltdrip

Thankful Thursday: 3 gifts of family

3 gifts of family….

It’s really hard to narrow this one down to just 3, but I think I’ll just keep it to the 3 that I often refer to as my “heart melters.”

My grandkids…3 very special gifts of my family, and from my family!

1. Grandson #1 – The first time he said the word “Grandma”…I knew my life would never be the same from that moment on! He’s fascinating and smart, my treasure hunter, and my treasure! He holds a pretty special place in my heart, that’s for sure!

My first heart melt

My first heart melt

2. Granddaughter #1 – My one and only! I love her style! I love her smile! My heart skips a beat when she looks up at me with those big blue eyes and says to me, “I’ll love you forever, Grandma“. Forever and always…she’s my girl!

My little princess

My little princess

3. Grandson #2 – There’s Just one word for this little guy….delightfull! O.K., there are a few more…joyful, happy, cute, lovable, snuggable, just about perfect…one sweet little guy. Yep. He’s got me right where he’ll want me.

books from Grandma - photo by my daughter

My littlest heart melt…he captured my heart! – (photo by my daughter)

These are just a few of the many things that I am so very thankful for today.

What are you thankful for?

Will you join me in looking for these gifts and sharing them with others?

“Thankfulness is the beginning of gratitude. Gratitude is the completion of thankfulness. Thankfulness may consist merely of words. Gratitude is shown in acts.”
– Henri Frederic Amiel

I have a joke for you!

I’m sitting at the table with my 5-year-old granddaughter watching her paint a picture, when my mind takes a leave of absence, and I decide I’m going to tell her a joke!

Now for anyone who has ever told a kid a joke before, you know that you must be prepared for, well…failure.

So in my absent state of mind, I proceed to tell her the only joke I can remember the punch line for.

Me: Knock, knock

Her: Who’s there

Me: Boo

Her: Boo who

Me: Boo who!! Why are you crying? 🙂

Her: That’s not funny grandma. 😦

Hmmm. I guess I won’t be telling that one again!

But before you leave disappointed with the bad joke as well….she let me know that she had a “good joke” for me!

Are you ready for this?

Her: So Grandma, what do you call a princess that takes all day long to clean her room?

Me: I don’t know. What do you call her?

Her: You call her “Slow White“! Get it Grandma? I changed “Snow” to “Slow” to make it funny!! (at which she begins to laugh uproariously!)

Me: Oh I get it! 🙂 That’s a good one! You are soooo funny!

Because that’s what Grandma’s do.  They laugh at their grandkids jokes.

All of them!

“Our chicken is brown!”

My granddaughter is 5 years old. She loves to talk, and she loves to help me in the kitchen.

She often wants to try and do things that are a little above her age, so I try to find things that her little hands can handle.

She is usually eager to give it a try…at least one time.

It’s the kind of stuff that if she HAD to do it, she probably wouldn’t want to do it. You know, like washing dishes and sweeping the floor.  Once in a while it’s fun, especially at Grandma’s house!

my helper

So, yesterday as I was getting everything ready to fix my “chicken in a pot“, I decided to see if she would want to give me a hand.

I told her I had a big job for her, and asked if she wanted to help!

“Oh yes, I can do it Grandma!”

First step was to get the ingredients ready, so I had her get the carrots and celery out of the refrigerator for me.

I asked her if she had ever peeled a carrot before.  No, but she sure did want to give it a try.

With multiple warnings from me about how careful she would need to be, she took on the task of peeling the carrot. She was very careful, talking me through it the whole entire time. She talked about how much she liked carrots, but doesn’t like celery. How that we are the same because we both like carrots, but different because I like celery and she doesn’t.

Listening carefully to my instruction, she completed the task and really did a great job!  Hmmm, I wonder, would she be willing to do it another time?

Non-stop talk, she was sharing her knowledge of the kitchen with me. One of which was the danger of the garbage disposal!  I was cautioned to be careful and not get my hands too close to it, because there are “sharp knives down there!”

Then I let her wash off the celery and the carrots, and as I chopped it all up, she put them all in the crock pot.

When I got out the chicken and started washing it off, with great dismay in her voice my granddaughter said… “what is that?”

“It’s a chicken!”

Oh.  My daddy makes really good chicken,… but our chicken doesn’t look like that, our chicken is brown!

Ahh….. yes, the rotisserie chicken from the store! Already cooked and ready to eat!

Not quite like Grandma’s chicken, but yes, it still tastes good!

I learned so much from this little girl during our time together! About our likes and dislikes, dangers in the kitchen, and most importantly the difference in our chicken!

I really look forward to making more kitchen memories her.

She certainly makes me smile 🙂

One is better than none

One of life’s valuable lessons seen through the eyes of a five-year old.

Sometimes, one thing is better than nothing at all.

I have the joy of taking care of my grand kids every Tuesday and Thursday this summer.  In an effort to keep them busy, and not totally bored, I’ve been taking them to the park for a few hours each time. My backyard is more of a garden than a playground, so it just makes for a happier grandma to take them to the park.

So the other day when we were getting ready to go, the request was made to go to the “Pirate Park”.  The “Pirate Park”? Where is that? Well, a quick text to Dad, and the mystery was solved! Thank goodness for text messaging.  It made this Grandma seem pretty smart!

So, off we went to discover a new and exciting park!

I got the drinks ready, but I forgot the snacks this time. Trust me, that won’t happen again! Last minute trips to the bathroom, shoes on, and we’re ready to go!

Everybody on the bus! (The nickname the kids have given to Grandpa’s car.)

Excitedly driving to our destination, with great anticipation of getting to play at the “Pirate Park”.  We drive up to the park, and the gate is closed.

It’s locked.  Closed for repairs.  Really? But this is the park we wanted to go to! Today!

A temporary moment of great disappointment is quickly adverted when my granddaughter says: “That’s o.k. Grandma, we can still go to another park, because one park is better than no park, even if it’s not the one that we wanted to go to“.

A valuable life lesson she is learning from her parents.

Even though we don’t get everything that we want, well..somethimes, one really is better than nothing at all.

No more naps!

My 4-year-old granddaughter is in preschool.  She will turn 5 in May! Hard to believe it, but she assured me, it’s true.

For most kids, 5 is that magic age.  The age that qualifies them for the long-awaited moment of going to Kindergarten.

And she is ready to go!

When I asked her why she was so excited about going to Kindergarten, her very emphatic reply was…

No more naps!

If she only knew how wonderful a nap really is!

Ashlee

Some day she will think differently about those naps, I’m quite sure of it.

But for today….Kindergarten can’t get here soon enough for this little girl!

An adventure awaits

Of this, I am quite sure!  I will have an adventure this week-end.

My grandkids are spending the week-end!  I have been looking forward with anticipation to this date for quite some time!

What I didn’t anticipate, was the pesky cough the week before they came. It’s still hanging around, but thankfully, my energy level is up from earlier this week.  It’s a good thing too, because these two little kids are going to use all the energy that I have tried to store up the last couple of days!

One boy, one girl, as different as night and day.  And I love them both so very much!

Recently someone told me that “grandchildren are one of life’s best kept secrets”.  I must agree with her. I am finding this “job” of being a Grandma to be one of the best careers ever!

Their smiles, their hugs, the sound of their voice, and their wonderful imaginations!  Oh the joy of seeing the world through their eyes!  I’m looking forward to hearing some good stories, and making new memories.Andrew & Ashlee

I know I will be one tired Grandma by the end of Sunday night, but it’s a “good tired”!  And a moment I will forever treasure.