Yesterday my wife and I went to the mountains for a few hours since we really haven’t been able to yet this summer. When we saw how low the water was in the creeks and one of our favorite places - Davidson River - we regretted that we couldn’t bring them drought relief by going camping! We saw some of our favorite places, and I was reminded of something I’d run across recently in my archives….

Traveling through New England a motorist stopped for gas in a tiny village. “What’s this place called?” he asked the station attendant.

“All depends,” the native drawled. “Do you mean by them that has to live in this moth-eaten, dust-covered dump, or by them that’s merely enjoying its quaint and picturesque rustic charms for a short spell.”

***
Of course, one sight beautiful to all grandparents is grandchildren. We received some recent pictures of our grandson Drew, so I’m sharing several with y’all.

A couple of weekends ago he enjoyed a DSO (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) concert at Metro Beach.

After getting his next round of shots, he had a low-grade fever for several days. A cool cloth on his fevered brow seemed to help.

Drew *loves to lie on his tummy on the boppy.

quotation…

“The trouble with shepherds is that they’re sheep too.” - Ted Allston

=^..^= =^..^=
Rob

If you never go off on a tangent, you are doomed to going in circles.

Becka and Nora left this morning a little after 4:00 and arrived safely in Michigan in time for dinner this evening. On the way they stopped in Findlay, Ohio, to have lunch and a short visit with Becka’s aunts. I called a little while ago and got to hear our grandson cry on the phone - I attribute it to his sadness that I didn’t accompany them, but it could be that Becka pinched him too. We may fire up the webcams later this evening if things settle down up there. My next blog post should have a fresh picture or two.

Since Becka is getting to enjoy grandmothering in person again and since we’re between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, I thought I’d share a list of quotations about grandparents that I received the other day. When I noticed that five of the quotations are attributed to Gene Perret, I did a search to see who he is. He’s been a comedy writer for over thirty years for such comedians as Phyllis Diller, Bob Hope, Carol Burnett, Bill Cosby, and many others. Some of the others quoted are unknown to me, and I didn’t take the time to track down info about them.

Quotations about grandparents…

Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting. - Author Unknown

What a bargain grandchildren are! I give them my loose change, and they give me a million dollars’ worth of pleasure. - Gene Perret

Grandmothers are just “antique” little girls. - Author Unknown

Perfect love sometimes does not come until the first grandchild. - Welsh Proverb

A grandmother is a babysitter who watches the kids instead of the television. - Author Unknown

Never have children, only grandchildren. - Gore Vidal

Becoming a grandmother is wonderful. One moment you’re just a mother. The next you are all-wise and prehistoric. - Pam Brown

Grandchildren don’t stay young forever, which is good because grandfathers have only so many horsey rides in them. - Gene Perret

When grandparents enter the door, discipline flies out the window. - Ogden Nash

Grandma always made you feel she had been waiting to see just you all day and now the day was complete. - Marcy DeMaree

Grandmas never run out of hugs or cookies. - Author unknown

Grandmas hold our tiny hands for just a little while, but our hearts forever. - Author Unknown

If I had known how wonderful it would be to have grandchildren, I’d have had them first. - Lois Wyse

My grandkids believe I’m the oldest thing in the world. And after two or three hours with them, I believe it, too. - Gene Perret

If becoming a grandmother was only a matter of choice, I should advise every one of you straight away to become one. There is no fun for old people like it! - Hannah Whithall Smith

It’s such a grand thing to be a mother of a mother - that’s why the world calls her grandmother. - Author Unknown

Grandchildren are God’s way of compensating us for growing old. - Mary H. Waldrip

You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother. - Proverb

An hour with your grandchildren can make you feel young again. Anything longer than that, and you start to age quickly. - Gene Perret

The best baby-sitters, of course, are the baby’s grandparents. You feel completely comfortable entrusting your baby to them for long periods, which is why most grandparents flee to Florida. - Dave Barry

I wish I had the energy that my grandchildren have - if only for self-defense. - Gene Perret

Grandmother-grandchild relationships are simple. Grandmas are short on criticism and long on love. - Author Unknown

Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do. Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children. - Alex Haley

Grandmother - a wonderful mother with lots of practice. - Author Unknown

A grandparent is old on the outside but young on the inside. - Author Unknown

One of the most powerful handclasps is that of a new grandbaby around the finger of a grandfather. - Joy Hargrove

It’s amazing how grandparents seem so young once you become one. - Author Unknown

If your baby is “beautiful and perfect, never cries or fusses, sleeps on schedule and burps on demand, an angel all the time,” you’re the grandma. - Teresa Bloomingdale

Grandparents are similar to a piece of string - handy to have around and easily wrapped around the fingers of their grandchildren. - Author Unknown

What is it about grandparents that is so lovely? I’d like to say that grandparents are God’s gifts to children. And if they can but see, hear and feel what these people have to give, they can mature at a fast rate. - Bill Cosby

Grandchildren don’t make a man feel old; it’s the knowledge that he’s married to a grandmother. - G. Norman Collie

quotation…

“We used to play spin the bottle when I was a kid. A girl would spin the bottle and if it pointed to you when it stopped, the girl could either kiss you or give you a dime. By the time I was 14, I owned my own home.” - Gene Perret

=^..^= =^..^=
Rob

If illegal aliens really wanted to take American jobs, wouldn’t they be moving to Asia instead?

We are thoroughly enjoying our week with Jim, Megan, and Drew. The last time we saw him in person, he was still hooked up to all kinds of things in the NICU. Now he’s a strong, constantly wiggling, newborn-size baby boy. He goes to the doctor’s office today for a well-baby check up and to get four shots. We hope to hear that he’s grown a lot since his last check up. Below is a picture of Drew with Megan holding up to him the smallest of his preemie clothes - something he fit into just a couple of weeks ago. He’s already into newborn diapers and the largest of his preemie outfits are beginning to be too small.

Now that he’s big enough to use the baby bathtub, he is actually enjoying his bathtime….

We went to Ohio a few days ago to see my mom. She really enjoyed meeting her newest great-grandchild. Below is a four generation picture from that visit. As of right now, I was the only one in the picture whose eyes aren’t blue.

Yesterday Megan took us to a store we’d never been to before - IKEA - and within five minutes Becka commented, “Well, I’ve found my new favorite store.” As I said, this has been a great week for us!

It’s been fun to watch our oldest child parenting this week. We are quickly reminded of how much time and work goes into caring for a newborn. It brought to mind this final Mother’s Day post for this year. All you moms out there enjoy your special day this Sunday. All you kids out there, spoil your mom!

The Cost of Love

A little boy came up to his mother in the kitchen one evening while she was fixing dinner and handed her a piece of paper. After his mom dried her hands on her apron, she read what he had written.

For cutting the grass: $5.00
For cleaning up my room this week: $1.00
For going to the store for you: $.50
Baby-sitting my kid brother while you went shopping: $.25
Taking out the garbage: $1.00
For getting a good report card: $5.00
For cleaning up and raking the yard: $2.00

Total owed: $14.75

As the mother looked at her son, he could see that she was thinking. She picked up the pen and turned over the paper he’d written on. She wrote:

For the nine months I carried you while you were growing inside me: No Charge.
For all the nights that I’ve sat up with you, doctored you, and prayed for you: No Charge.
For all the trying times, and all the tears that you’ve caused through the years: No Charge.
For all the time that I’ve pondered what I knew was ahead in life for you: No Charge.
For the toys, food, clothes, and even wiping your nose: No Charge, Son.

When you add it up, the cost of my love is: No Charge.

When the boy finished reading what his mother had written, there were big tears in his eyes, and he looked straight up at his mother and said, “Mom, I sure do love you.”

And then he took the pen and on his side of the “bill” wrote in great big letters, “PAID IN FULL “.

=^..^= =^..^=
Rob

Children will soon forget your presents; they will always remember your presence.

This is a super-fast update for those who are checking in periodically. Megan was able to go home last evening (Tuesday) without having to have the blood transfusion they thought they might have to give her. She slept well, being back home. Drew has been moved to the “phase two” room and is making steady progress. There has been much improvement since last Friday, and we thank the Lord so much for His strong work in Megan and Drew’s behalf!

I’ll post more news once Nora and I get to the other end of I-75 and recuperate. If traffic and all the factors cooperate, we hope to arrive at about 4 a.m. I have no pictures to add at this time - the camera’s up there with Grandma. But I promise to post more pix once I’m up there.

We cannot adequately thank everyone for their prayers, encouragement, and thoughtfulness!

This grandpa’s heart is so full!

=^..^= =^..^=
Rob

He who laughs, lasts.

Our daughter Nora and I are both taking two personal days at the end of this week to go to Detroit. It will be very nice to have company on the way up. As of now, we plan to leave at about 5:00 Wednesday afternoon and drive straight through. Ugh! That will give us most of the day Thursday up there. Aunt Nora can hardly wait to get her hands on her little nephew and she’s not starting this trip as tired as Grampa is! Then Sunday morning bright and early, Becka, Nora, and I will leave to come back home. Our son Mark would love to be going with us, but he can’t get away right now. He’ll be holding down the fort here at home. He and Katie hope they can go up for a few days later this spring.

I normally don’t just take time off like this during a semester, but I’m so pleased that things have worked out so that I am able to with our current situation. I found something in my files that seemed like an appropriate thing to post at this time. Some of the excuses in the list are not just lame, but also downright bizarre!

Excuses for not going to work…

I can’t come in to work today because I’ll be stalking my previous boss, who fired me for not showing up for work. OK?

I have a rare case of 48-hour projectile leprosy, but I know we have that deadline to meet, so….

I am stuck in the blood pressure machine down here at the Food Giant.

Yes, I seem to have contracted some attention-deficit disorder and, hey, how about them Braves, huh? So, I won’t be able to, yes, could I help you? No, no, I’ll be sticking with Sprint, but … now why did I call you?

I just found out that I was switched at birth. Legally, I shouldn’t come to work knowing my employee records may now contain false information.

The psychiatrist said it was an excellent session. He even gave me this jaw restraint so I won’t bite things when I’m startled.

The dog ate my car keys. We’re going to hitchhike to the vet.

I can’t come to work today because the EPA has determined that my house is completely surrounded by wetlands and I have to arrange for helicopter transportation.

I am converting my calendar from Julian to Gregorian.

I am extremely sensitive to a rise in the interest rates.

I refuse to travel to my job until there is a commuter tax. I insist on paying my fair share.

I’ve used up all my sick days, so I’m calling in dead!

I set half the clocks in my house ahead an hour and the other half back an hour Saturday and spent 18 hours in some kind of space-time continuum loop, reliving Sunday (right up until the explosion). I was able to exit the loop only by reversing the polarity of the power source in the house while simultaneously rapping my dog on the snout with a rolled up Times. Accordingly, I will be in late, or early.

I lost my American Express card and I can’t leave home without it.

***
personal updates…

Thanks for the many comments to the blog and the personal emails. We appreciate so much the kind expressions of love and concern. What a great bunch of family and friends we have been blessed with!

Many thanks to those who prayed for me as I drove back to Greenville yesterday. Before leaving Detroit, I just *had* to stop by the hospital to see Megan and Drew one last time. Leaving the hospital to begin my trip home was one of the hardest things to do - I just wanted to stay there! I haven’t cried like that in quite a while! After that low spot in life, my trip back was actually phenomenal! The weather was perfect for driving and admiring the beautiful scenery. I stopped after about an hour and half to have a cup of coffee with my mom and my sister near where they each live in Ohio. It was nice to be able to see them, though it was for far too short a time, and to share some pictures and stories with them. All three of us are now grandparents! Yet another bond!

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to some of my favorite CD’s as I drove along, singing along in praise to the Lord. It was a wonderful time with my Father. It’s not often that one can have that much quiet time to spend with Him. When I arrived at home, I was exhausted physically and emotionally, but my spirit was refreshed.

It was very nice to have our cell phone along and to be able to call and hear from some family and friends as I rolled along. I must confess that I amused myself by mentally setting up some really bizarre situations. I thought to myself that I ought to turn on my blinker and roll along for miles and miles with it blinking. And one time when I stopped for gas, I thought about leaving the little door over the gas cap open when I took off, just to let the other motorists know there was a little old grandpa in my car. But then, there was something about doing those things on purpose that would have kinda taken the fun out of it!

Megan is doing a lot better and will probably be able to go home tomorrow (Tuesday). Drew is doing well and seems to be stable. Megan and Jim hope that he will move soon into the “phase two” room. Their visits there would not be as restricted as they are in his current NICU room. Both yesterday and today, there was a period of a couple of hours where they and the other parents could not go see their preemies because of an emergency situation with another baby in the room.

quotation…

“Every temptation depends on misrepresenting the truth.” - Dr. Drew Conley

=^..^= =^..^=
Rob

Some dream of success, while others wake up and work hard for it.