Three Trips and a Funeral

No I haven't dropped off the face of the earth, or fallen into a deep hole, life has been a little crazy lately.  To get caught up, let's return to where I left off...

I was reeling from my pathetic 2 pound weight gain.  Well, life just tanked from there.  I got really sick with a lovely kidney infection and because of the pain and the lack of spouse, I totally fell off the wagon.  The good news is that I still have only gained the 2 pounds and if I get my rear end in gear I can still make my original goal of 15 pounds by my birthday on the 22nd.  Now that's motivation!

Once I regained my health and my spouse, it was time to get ready for a visit from my parents.  Something that is a rare thing in these parts.  This meant a total house overhaul and a very confused husband.  I think poor Mike came home from his trip and wondered what alien life form had replaced his wife, and boy are they cranky.  It was only when I was almost finished that he finally realized why my darker and rather OCD personality traits were rearing there ugly heads.  Bless his little heart, the boy just didn't know what hit him.  Luckily, I married a smart man who knows how to defuse a live bomb and can do it rather well.  

In the meantime while my parents were getting ready for their trip out to Sin City my Grandmother's health took and unexpected dip.  My Father headed up to Portland to assess the situation and to spend time with his Mother.  This meant that their Vegas trip was once again put in an indefinite holding pattern.  After a few days my Grandmother's situation had seemed to stabilize and thus the Vegas trip was back on. They arrived on Sunday and unfortunately my Grandmother passed away early Tuesday morning.  We swung into funeral preparation mode, my Father being the primary planning person for the event.  I will spare you all the gory details, but needless to say, death is a very complicated thing.  Off to Grand Junction, Colorado we went.  Mike and the girls stayed home, and thanks to some wonderful friends who helped, they managed to hold down the fort with Mom gone.  

Now, I have been rather lucky in my life and death has not been a major part of it, thank goodness.  This meant that I was a novice with the whole funeral thing, and rather unaware of the emotions that come with the event.  Being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints I am blessed to have an eternal perspective on life.  I believe that we were spirits who lived with our Father in Heaven before we came to earth.  I believe that we came to earth to gain a body and to be tested.  I believe that when we die our spirit then returns to live with our Father in Heaven again.  I also believe that when a older person who has lived a rich full life passes away it is not a time to morn, rather a time to celebrate.  

My Grandmother was a spunky lady.  A woman who cherished family.  Not a perfect person, but one who loved to serve and care for others.  She loved taking care of all the "little old ladies." I don't think she ever thought of herself in that category however, just one who could serve and take care of them. I greatly admired her for her strength.  When I went through challenging times in my life, I looked to her example of how to be strong and weather the storm.  She was a woman who appreciated the humor in life, and was quite humorous in the way she lived life.  Who knew that peanut butter can remove gum from dentures?  I was sad and also inspired that she spent most of her life on her own.  I am grateful for my companion, but I learned from her that life can be just as full on your own.  I could go on and on but the bottom line is that I loved and admired my Grandmother for her compassion, her love of family (past, present, and future) and her strength and tenacity, and her love of life.  Love ya Gram!