Forever Grateful

Here we are in lovely December.  The weeks have passed us by with all of our time being spent with family.  It has been bittersweet because dear Grandma B is missing.  A void is definitely felt.  I have felt kind of frozen as to what to post next.  There is not enough that can be said about our dear sweet mother Gae.  I would regret not putting down so many things that I am grateful for, although Thanksgiving has passed.

-I love that I really knew Gae.  We not only lived with them for a year, but she and Blake came to visit us whereever we were living be it Concord, New Hampshire, or New York City.  Adam was always very busy with school or work and so I had a lot of one on one time with his parents.  Boy am I lucky.  We had such a good time chatting, playing with the girls, exploring new places, and Gae especially loved cuddling colicky baby Olive early on.  She would send Adam and I out on a date, even though I was so worried Olive would cry the entire time.  Gae did not care, it was her love.


-I am grateful for all of the spontaneity, love, generosity, kindness, acceptance, fun, and charity that just oozed out of her.  You just felt it in the room when she was in it.  She welcomed everyone into her life with open, loving arms.  There was never an outsider or someone that felt unomfortable if she was around because she always reeled them in.  If anyone is ever confused about all that charity encompasses, come talk to me about Adam's mom.

-The precious memory of Caroline being able to attend her Kindergarten class a few times last December is so tender.  Adam and I went along separate times and we were the teacher's aide.  It was a blast and my jaw dropped several times that she could get 20 little 5 year olds to have all eyes on her and not make a peep.  Adam mentioned in his talk that she even took Caroline to get school lunch with her, which Caroline loved.

-I hope I can always be optomistic like her.  She was sick, really sick for a long time.  She was tired, and sore, and had burns from radiation.  Complaints were rare, truly I can't even remember any.  A lot of people didn't even know how sick she really was because instead of the focus being on her, she would turn it right around and ask others how they were. 
Even though she was dealing with wounds that were still trying to heal, she and Blake still came to New York just 4 short months ago.  We covered all there was to cover on Manhattan Island.  We walked miles and miles and fought the crowds to see the fireworks over the Hudson.  Ok, I better stop there, those memories are too tender.





-I am especially grateful that the Stake President said at her funeral that her legacy lives on through her children.  Adam and his sisters possess so many of Gae's incredible qualities that we are lucky to have.  We are also lucky to have all of the stories and good memories that were made that can be talked about over and over.  I have never felt stronger about the how blessed we are to have the plan of salvation and for the blessing of eternal families.  The comforter has helped everyone to keep moving forward without feeling a sting every inch of the way. 

There is so much more to be said, but it will have to come in pieces because I can no longer see the computer screen.  My eyes must be "sweating" as Caroline says whenever she catches me crying.