Grandma Visits

I wish that I had a pic to upload, but blogger isn't cooperating with uploads tonite, so pics to follow. My mom is visiting us for a few days, and tonite Dave and I stepped out for a bit to meet with a friend. So Olivia and my mom got to have a "Grandma nite" together and when we returned home the house just felt alittle different. Grandma's are so special, and I can tell that when my mom is here Olivia knows that things are different. The nite before she arrived we told Olivia that Grandma would be visiting, and she ran to the guest room, pounded on the bed and yelled "GEEMA GEEMA GEEMA." She knows that the guest room is where "Geema" sleeps, and that Geema = Fun!

Tonite when we returned home I asked my mom how the bedtime routine went, and my mom says that Olivia and her ran around the house and laughed for over an hour. My mom would ask Olivia if she wanted to go up and have her bottle and Olivia answered "Nope." She never does this to Dave or I, and usually happily obliges to begin the bedtime routine. But not when Grandma's here, becuase Grandma means fun!:) Grandma reported that Olivia replied "Nope" each and everytime my mom asked her if she was ready for bed! hahah.

I too had a very special relationship with my Grandma. My brain and heart are chock full of beautiful childhood memories with Grandma Z, and I hope that Olivia has that with both of her grandparents. Watching her "Get the sillies" with my mom reminded me of days when Grandma Z would stay with us for a few days. Niki and I were off the hook silly when she was around, and the possibilities were endless. She played with us, and made us feel like we were the most special people in the world to her. She was always right on our level in any game that we were playing, and would participate in anything that we were doing. One time I was playing teacher and decided that I would take my class on a field trip to outer space. Grandma Z helped me write a letter home to the parents, and then we planned the whole trip. She made me feel as though it was really possible to take a large class of my pretend students to Outer Space. Most grown ups wouldn't play along, but she always played along and encouraged our dreams. Her voice is always inside my head, and encouraging me to go forth.

My mom always worries that Olivia won't know her as well as my in-laws. . I think that she is starting to see how special she is to Olivia. I believe when someone has pure Love for a child that it is always felt by the child, no matter how far away they live from each other. But I understand how hard it must be to live in a different city as a grandchild. I'm dreading the goodbye tomorrow afternoon as my mom usually cries at least halfway down the thruway. Olivia and her have a bond and I'm thankful for the bond. Its a beautiful thing to witness.