Monday, May 31, 2010

Grandchild Number 4

     I knew John D. and Sara were expecting, but I couldn't write about it in my blog because they weren't ready to announce it to everyone.  Well, now it is official. They are expecting a baby at the beginning of December.  So, by the end of 2010, I should have 4 grandchildren and Hallie and Aiden will have to share my attention with 2 cousins.
    Once again the circle of life continues.  Sara's family celebrated the funeral of her grandmother this past week. Her grandmother had alzheimer's disease and wasn't very cognizant, but she smiled on mother's day when Sara's mother told her that Sara was expecting a baby.  That was the last time she was seen smiling.
     We are praying for the 2 expectant mothers, Ruth, due in August, and Sara, due in December, that everything goes well with their pregnancies and they deliver healthy babies. So far, everything is going fine. I think all the great grandmothers in heaven are watching over the new grandchildren.
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Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Memories of My Mother

The older I get, the more I miss my mother. Now I am to the age she was for the last dozen or so years she was with us and I wish she was here to share this time with me.

When my mother was in her 50’s and 60’s, I was raising three kids, working as a substitute teacher, and hoping to find a find permanent job. It was also during that time that I began having symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, although I wasn’t diagnosed until after my mother passed. One neurologist had told me something was neurologically wrong, but when I went for other opinions, one university doctor said nothing was wrong with me and another one said my symptoms were caused by anxiety. Of course my mother had lots of suggestions on how to relax more and how to raise my kids.

My daughter was incredulous when I told her Grandma thought I wasn’t strict enough when she was growing up. She, of course, thought I was much too strict. Now I am the Grandma to her 2 children, ages 5 and 1 1/2. Her sister, who was a senior in high school when Grandma passed, is expecting her first baby in August. My son and his wife also have plans to start a family soon.

I no longer sleep through the night as easily as I did when I was younger. When I get up at 5 am, I remember how I used to admonish my mother for getting up so early when she was my age. I would tell her she should stay in bed until 7 and then she wouldn’t be so tired during the day. I don’t know how it got so hard to stay in bed in the morning, but I rarely stay in bed till 7 these days and yes, then I need a nap in the afternoon.

When my grandmother was in her 90’s and still living on her own, people would sometimes say I must have good genes and will live long. Well, my grandmother lived into her 90’s, but my mother only lived to 69. You never know how much time you have.

When my mother’s foot started dragging, she didn’t go to the doctor right away. I had a foot that dragged and the doctors had not been able to do anything for it. When she started having more problems, a friend of hers convinced her to go to the doctor. I had had lots of MRI’s that had all been normal, but my mother’s MRI was different. She had a brain tumor. It was January of 2000. By Labor Day, we would all have said our last goodbyes to her. It was hard to know what to say. If I could talk to her again, I would have a lot to tell her. I wish she could have been with us long enough to enjoy her great grandchildren like her mother did, but when my grandson was born on the anniversary of her passing, I knew her spirit is still with us. I know she is looking down from heaven and is happy that the circle of life goes on.




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Saturday, April 10, 2010

Grandchild Number 3

     When Ruth married someone she met at school and they bought a house in Norristown, I was very happy.  She was about the same distance away as I was from my parents when I lived in Derby.  I was looking forward to when she would start a family- I would be able to share her pregnancy with her and babysit frequently.  I remembered how nice it was for my children to have their grandparents nearby. Although we knew we might sell our home some day, we planned to live in our house in Collegeville at least until we retired at 65.
     What we hadn't planned for is that Sunoco would make John take an early retirement. We always knew it was a possibility, but he was helping the company make money and even earned a sales award in February 2009.  However, they made him take an early retirement in March when they had a massive lay off.  After a couple months of job searching, it was obvious that John would not find another job that paid as well as his old one and it was no longer practical to keep our large home that still had a mortgage.  Looking for a home in the Philadelphia area was very discouraging.  We finally started looking at homes in Florida and found a beautiful home for half of what it would cost in the Philadelphia area, and now have no mortgage payment.  I felt very bad for leaving Ruth behind in Pennsylvania, since she had stayed close to home. Now has lots of family ties in Pennsylvania where all her husband Jimmi's family lives.
     When we moved to Florida, John and I drove down in his mini-van. It would be too much for me to make the long drive to Florida in my car, so Ruth would bring my car for me and had a girl friend to go with her.  When Ruth arrived with my car one week after we had gotten here, she told us she had news for us.  She was pregnant!  I was very happy that she was pregnant and also very sad that now I lived so far away from her.  I had missed out on being with Marie when she was pregnant because I was in Pennsylvania and she was in Florida.  Now Ruth was pregnant and living in Pennsylvania while I was in Florida!
      The one good thing is that we have computers and cell phones that do all kinds of neat things.  On Monday I was at the beach with Hallie when I got a text message from Ruth, "It's a girl!"  The baby is not due until August, but she already knows it's a girl.  When I got home and opened my e-mail, there were pictures of her sonogram!


















Ruth later made this comment on FaceBook:

Ruth E. Thomas
Ruth E. Thomas
She has her arms up on either side of her face. I thought she looked like the painting The Scream by Edvard Munch.
 
I am glad that modern technology allows me to stay in touch with Ruth and I have my air miles ready to get a plane ticket to Philadelphia as soon as she goes into labor.
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Friday, April 9, 2010

Florida Rainstorm

I was at the playground with Hallie and Aiden today. Suddenly, I noticed everyone running from the playground. Thirty seconds later, rain was pouring down. I guess people who have lived in Florida longer than I have are better at recognizing an approaching storm.

Most of the parents of young children ran for their cars, but I opted for running to the picnic shelter, since I would have been drenched by the time I struggled with folding up the stroller.

There were a couple of other children there with the adults who had brought them to the playground, but mostly the shelter was occupied by teens who are on spring break this week. They were going to just wait out the storm and then continue hanging out with their friends. When there was a clap of thunder and a flash of lightening, I thought Hallie and Aiden would be afraid. However, Hallie was excited to be in the picnic shelter with so many people, especially the teens.  "Where do squirrels go when it rains?" Hallie asked. Aiden was in the stroller which I had faced in towards the center of the shelter so he wouldn't get wet, but now he was trying to climb out.  I took him out of the stroller and set him on my lap so he could see the rain.  He pointed to the rain and talked excitedly in his baby gibberish.

After about 10 or 15 minutes, the rain started letting up and the sun started coming back out.  Hallie wanted to go back to the playground, but I said we had to go home since Mommy would be home from work soon.

When we got to the car I saw that I had parked in the low end of the parking lot. The water around my car was ankle deep.  So, I took off my sandals, waded in the water, and carried Aiden first, and then Hallie, to the car. I was hoping Aiden would follow directions like his sister, and get in his car seat by himself.  I had had to put him in from the opposite side of the car. However, he seized the opportunity to get in his favorite part of the car- the driver's seat.  He sat smiling with his hands on the steering wheel, until I picked him up and put him in his car seat. Then he pouted and complained with his whining cry. I finally got the stroller folded up and in the car and drove Hallie & Aiden home to their mother.
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Sunday, April 4, 2010

Remembering Easter 1987

     In 1987, my sister Cindi was getting married on the Saturday after Easter. We had plans for a 2 week vacation to Florida.  My parents had moved from western NY after the steel industry died and there was no work for my father. They had decided Georgia was a state with jobs available and had gone there in their camper.  Now my mother had suggested we come to Stone Mountain in Georgia on our way to Florida, and go to the Easter sunrise service there. (This was in the day when flying to Florida would not even had been considered- of course we would be driving with our 3 children.)
     So, besides John and I and our 3 kids, Sue and Gordon and their 3 kids, and my grandmother, were all camping in our tents in Stone Mountain, Georgia. I was not really happy about getting up at 5 am (or was it 4 am) to walk up the mountain and it was very cold.  Why didn't my mother tell me it would be so cold?  I had brought summer clothes. It would go up to 80' later in the day, but now it was only 50' .  "Fifty degrees is not cold," my mother said.
     I recently asked some of the other participants to tell me their memories. (Thanks to FaceBook  for an easy way to reach everyone.)

Easter Sunrise at Stone Mountain

Between Marie Giorgis Ely, Ruth E. Thomas, Liz Gephardt, Suzanne Gephardt, Miriam Capellan, Benjamin Gephardt, Peter Gephardt, John D. Giorgis and You

Peter Gephardt:
I have vague, hazy memories, of that early trek. Much like a forced march.
Liz Gephardt
I loved climbing the mountain in the dark and waiting for the sun. I remember eating too much kielbasa before the hike and feeling like I might not make it to the top!
Miriam Capellan
I'll never forget... that was my first communion! And a beautiful morning all around
Benjamin Gephardt:
My memories are similar to Pete's. I remember feeling really resentful.
Suzanne: Gephardt : Stone Mountain Sunrise was a great memory for me, but I do chuckle at all moans from those younger, when GRAM DID IT!

John D. Giorgis April 2 at 9:27am Reply
I really enjoyed it. I remember constantly getting ahead of everyone else and people calling to me to not get too far ahead! I also remember being scared to stand too close to the edge of the mountain.
Marie Giorgis Ely:
I remember climbing up the mountain very early in the morning!

When I saw all the other people walking up the mountain, I was happy to be a part of it. After we came down the mountain, we got dressed up in our Easter clothes to go to a Catholic Church, and Miriam made her First Communion, which she had been preparing for that year in her parish.  It was a beautiful Easter Sunday!  I wish my mother was still here to share the memory with us.
(Sorry that I could not copy everyone's comments directly from FaceBook.) 


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