Halloween Memories Through the Years

I have always loved holidays. Although my favorite is Christmas, Halloween is filled with many happy memories for me too.

In this photo, I spent hours creating my own Halloween bag, designed like a Coors beer can to complete my bum costume.

My younger siblings were wearing the best of Halloween costumes from back in the day, including Nancy in the gorilla costume we all wore that featured a moving mouth for easier eating of Halloween candy.

The only bad Halloween memory I have is the year my brother Mike was sick. My youngest brother Pat and I carried three bags with us to bring home candy for Mike. Instead, we were jumped by a group of boys and young men, who took our candy and our pride, leaving the clown costume my Mom had made for me that year dotted with my blood from a minor wound suffered when I didn't want to give up the candy.

The fun didn't end when I grew up. One of the best things about being a parent is reliving your childhood as you share in your kids' fun.

I always dressed up when the kids were younger and still do most of the time.

Whether handing out candy, helping with parties in their classes or trick-or-treating in the neighborhood, I was usually spotted in a witch's costume with some sort of spooky mask.

Jenny the clown was carrying a Care Bear I made for her in this photo, taken when I was a mother with only one child.

Carving pumpkins was part of the fun when the kids were younger too.

Before the days of pumpkin patches and corn mazes, pumpkins were carved at home. Usually we carved pumpkins a day or two before Halloween.

 
I made a lot of the kids' costumes when they were little, including Jack's first clown costume, which he wore trick-or-treating when he was just two weeks old.

We decorated our yard each year, a tradition that continues to this day.

Although my yard decor isn't quite as elaborate as it was when the kids were young, it's still fun to put out all of the Halloween decorations.

As a grandparent, it's been fun to have the grandkids help me decorate the yard for Halloween.

We usually have a Halloween party with lots of fun and spooky foods for all.

Trick-or-treat was the best part of Halloween for me when I was a kid.

Going from house to house and begging for candy - what could be better than that?!?!

When we lived at Ft. Leavenworth, there were a couple of houses where we had to do tricks to get our treats.

Cartwheels were always my trick of choice when I was called upon to perform for my candy.

Boys are different from girls when it comes to Halloween costumes.

My daughters usually wanted cute costumes with princesses, unicorns and other fun characters, although some years there were witch and ghoul costumes too.

My son and his friends always chose spooky costumes. At Sandusky Elementary School, one of the best parts of Halloween was the costume parade on the middle school track.

I've enjoyed reliving Halloween memories as I've enjoyed trick-or-treating and Halloween parties with my grandchildren through the years too.

Halloween is a great time to make family memories. Make some memories with your family this year for Halloween.

Until the next memory is made, I'll take what I can get when I can get it and do the best I can to face each day with a smile on my face, a prayer on my lips and a song in my heart.

Blogging Grandma Sandy, signing off for now.

Live Like You Are Dying

American country music singer Tim McCraw released the song, "Live Like You Were Dying" in June 2004. The song rose rapidly to the top spot on the country music charts.

The song tells the story of a man who is in his early 40s when his father is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness.

As the reality of the situation sinks in, the son takes away the message to live his life like he was dying, doing all of the things he wants to do like skydiving and mountain climbing.

Like the man in the song, McCraw's dad was given a short time to live after being diagnosed with a brain tumor. Tug McCraw died in January 2004, after being diagnosed in March 2003.

Not many of us live our lives like we are dying. Instead, we slog through our daily lives, marking the passing minutes, hours, days and years as we wait for moments in time including: the weekend, vacation, the holidays, the kids getting married, the house being paid off and retirement.

I tell people that I was blessed to grow up in a family where nobody died. I wasn't exposed to death much during my childhood.

My grandparents all lived long lives. I don't remember anyone on either of my parents' sides of the family dying until I was an adult.

As an adult, I've struggled with the concept of death, especially sudden death. Although I truly believe that eternal life with God awaits those who die, death is so final and cruel.

I've lost numerous friends and relatives to death as an adult. The pain of each loss was different, but each of the deaths left behind family members and friends struggling with their loss.

Over the past decade, several friends of my children have died, including best friends of my son and my younger daughter.

My son's best friend died instantly in a car accident in March 2007. My younger daughter's best friend died in January 2009, just a few months after being diagnosed with cancer.

Since then, we have known several other young people who have died unexpectedly. This week, a wonderful, kind, talented and loving young man we've known for years died suddenly, leaving grieving family and friends to struggle with his loss.

The grief that accompanies death is always difficult, but somehow it seems worse when the person who dies is young.

Nearly all of the young people I've known who have died enjoyed many great experiences in their short lives. However, the unfairness of death still looms larger than life.

Parents aren't supposed to outlive their children. It goes against the unwritten rules of the universe and against our view of how life should operate.

Sometimes the death of a young person leaves family members and friends angry with a God who they feel cheated them out of a future with their loved one.

When a young person dies with much of their life left unlived, their goals unaccomplished, and their dreams unfulfilled, it seems unfair to most of us.

Maybe some of the unfairness we feel is based on our own unfulfilled dreams, goals we haven't accomplished, relationships that haven't worked out in our own lives.

The closing hymn at the memorial service Saturday was one of my favorites, a hymn I chose years ago to be used at my own funeral: "On Eagles Wings."

"And He will raise you up on eagle's wings,
Bear you on the breath of dawn,
Make you to shine like the sun,
And hold you in the palm of His hand." 

Like the lyrics of "Live Like You Were Dying," the lyrics of "On Eagles Wings" imparts a message about death. Although the messages are different, they are still similar.

One of the reasons I love this hymn is that it seems to be about triumph over death. But isn't living your life like you are dying also a triumph over death?

Mark Twain wrote, "The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time."

Maybe the answer to putting the fear of death behind is simple: to live like you are dying. Instead of marking time, embrace life and make memories along the journey.

Until the next memory is made, I'll take what I can get when I can get it and do the best I can to face each day with a smile on my face, a prayer on my lips and a song in my heart.

Writers and Runners: Because It's What We Do

On a dreary, rainy Saturday morning in Central Virginia, there are runners out doing what they do best.

Although it was sunny and clear for this year's Virginia 10 Miler, that's not always the case.

Runners run because it's what they do. Whether it's sunny or stormy, they lace up their running shoes and hit the road or trail.

Long runs mark their days off and rising with the roosters to get in an early morning run before work is the norm.

Writers are a lot like runners. Writers write because they have a story to tell, information to share and something to say. In short, we write because it's what we do.

Most of us follow the news closely and keep up with local activities and events.

Many of us work in cluttered areas with little scraps of paper floating around on the table and ideas for the next article floating around in our heads.

We are an inquisitive bunch, always asking questions about new things.

Most writers I know love to learn about stuff. Maybe that's one of the reasons they became writers.

I caught the writing bug in high school, thanks to a wonderful teacher who was known to us by her nickname, Pic.

Pic taught creative writing and challenged us to write every day. Although I got away from writing on a daily basis as an adult, I retained the writer's spirit.

Little did I know then that writing would become my hobby again later in life. Putting feelings and words down on paper is an honor.

This is a shout-out to all of the writers out there: the well-known and those whose writing is known only to themselves.

Keep up the writing and challenge yourself to succeed in your goals, just as runners do every day.

Blogging Grandma Sandy, signing off for now.

Field Tripping with the Next Generation

When my kids were growing up, one of the benefits of working night shift was my ability to participate in many school activities.

Among my favorites were school field trips. From the time my oldest child was in preschool until my youngest child graduated from high school, I was happy to serve as a chaperone for many field trips.

This past week, I was delighted when my schedule worked perfectly to accompany my daughter and my youngest grandchild on a preschool field trip to Johnson's Orchards.

Also known as "the apple porchard" by my granddaughter, Johnson's Orchards is a favorite school field trip destination.

On the day we went to Johnson's, there were quite a few field trip groups also touring the grounds.

Not much has changed about school field trips in a generation. The parents and grandparents are still more interested in what the guides have to say than the kids.

It's still impossible to get a group of kids to all smile or even all look the same direction at the same time for a group photo.

The kids still find excitement in things that aren't part of the field trip. At Johnson's Orchards, the little train next to the Johnny Appleseed statue was the first thing that drew the kids' attention.

Kids still hear what some, but not all, of what is said during the talking portions of the field trip. A comment about painting with apples is what drew my granddaughter's attention the most during part of the field trip.

She asked numerous questions about painting with apples in a very excited voice as the tour guide tried to get kids to talk about what you could do with apples.

Like her mom before her, my granddaughter loved the farm animals. Some day, she may report that the animals were the best part of the trip to the apple orchard.

There's nothing like being a grandparent to take you back in time to the days when your kids were younger. I could almost hear the excited chatter of my own kids in the background as I listened to the group of preschoolers.

Field tripping with the next generation may even be more fun. Unlike some school field trips in my past, I wasn't assigned to the unruly group.

Fun memories are always waiting to be made in the land of grandparenting. The joy of being a grandparent is an adventure I don't want to miss.

Until the next memory is made, I'll take what I can get when I can get it and do the best I can to face each day with a smile on my face, a prayer on my lips and a song in my heart.

Blogging Grandma Sandy, signing off for now.

Just Call Me the Runner Wannabe - For Now

When you grow up sandwiched between brothers, it's best to just be a tomboy. One thing's for sure; it worked for me!

Running and jumping, climbing trees, riding bikes with no hands and spending days in the woods were what my life was about when I was a kid.

I found trouble and I made trouble if there wasn't any to find, but it was all good fun - well, mostly good.

I don't remember this photo being taken, but it's clear that either three of us were thinking about a way to get all four of us into trouble or we were already in trouble.

Despite my lack of girly girl skills, my younger sister was quite a girly girl. But she still thought I was funny when I did silly tomboy stuff like ride a bike no hands or hang upside down from the clothes pole.

Not much changed as I grew older. I wore skirts and dresses to school because it was required. I wore makeup in high school because I thought it made me look oh so cool.

I was never a girly girl except maybe for a while in my teens. I wasn't a girly Mom and I'm not a girly Grandma either.

Despite all of my tomboy ways, I never played team sports. There weren't many of them back then and I wasn't terribly coordinated. But I played a ton of backyard sports.

As a Mom, I did a lot of Dad things for several reasons. I enjoyed being outdoors and playing ball. My kids' Dad worked in the evenings and he really wasn't much into sports anyway.

Some would say I lived vicariously through my kids, but I'd have to disagree. I was just there to help, however help was needed, but I will admit that I had a blast doing it all. Along the way I coached a lot of teams and learned some of the things I didn't know about sports from the other dads.

I never really thought about running or about becoming a runner. I'd watched my son competing in cross country when he was in high school. It looked like fun, but wasn't necessarily something I wanted to do.

When I began writing online content, my focus was on family topics. Then came the day when they were looking for writers to cover other topics. One of those was topics was local outdoor recreation.

The tomboy in me jumped at the chance to write about outdoors stuff. At the time the assignment started, it was running season. What I didn't realize then is that it's always running season!

It didn't take long for me to get bitten by the running bug. I was immediately drawn to the camaraderie I saw within the Lynchburg running community.

More than that, I got drawn into the excitement the runners felt as they competed and finished the course. I walked my first 5K to support a friend.

A few weeks later, I covered my first Virginia 10 Miler as a writer. I made a promise to myself that I would be running in the next year's 5K and hopefully the 10 Miler.

As I do with most things, I jumped in with both feet. Like many new runners, I didn't spend enough time learning the basics and warming up.

Hello, plantar fasciitis! Did you know that if you Google "plantar fasciitis" you come up with 5,555,000 results in 20 seconds? It's true!

Sidelined, I worked on getting my bad foot better. Therapy and exercises helped and eventually I got back to brisk walking. I walked multiple 5Ks and hoped to notch it up a bit.

Then, BAM! I got hurt at work, straining my back in a nanosecond while doing nothing wrong. A very painful week off from work and multiple doctor visits followed.

My back isn't as bad as it was in July, but it's sure not where it was before the injury or where it needs to be. So people were quite surprised when I joined the local running club AND signed up for the Turkey Trot.

A girl's gotta have a dream, even if she's not a girly girl. This blogging Grandma's dream is that I will get better and I will eventually run.

But I'm definitely not planning on the running thing happening any time soon. I am hoping to walk the Turkey Trot, just as I did last year, assuming the doctor says it's okay.

Walking is not on the verboten list, at least not at this moment. As for joining the running club, it makes me feel less like a moocher when I attend events and meetings.

I'm glad to be part of such a great group of people. So, yes, that's me posing with those runners on a recent early morning in front of Riverside Runners, my favorite running store.

Included in the photo are two world-famous runners, Kathrine Switzer and Roger Robinson, who I met on the morning of the photo.

As they all jogged off down the Avenue, I got into my car and drove to work. I'm no fool and my back's not healed enough to run, not even at a slow jogging pace.

But stay tuned, the story's not over yet. Time heals all wounds, or so they say.

For now, I'll have to live vicariously, writing about the mudders and 5Ks, half marathons and fulls, triathlons and fun runs that other people are running.

But one of these days, when my back's all better, you may see my smiling face in the middle of a pack of runners on the way to the finish line.

Until then I'll take what I can get when I can get it and do the best I can to face each day with a smile on my face, a prayer on my lips and a song in my heart.

Blogging Grandma Sandy, signing off for now.

Welcome to Wednesday, My New Saturday

As many of you in the working world celebrate "Hump Day" on Wednesdays, I am celebrating Wednesday, my new Saturday.

Since the mail processing facility where I worked closed in February, I have worked a variety of hours, mostly with split days off.

For now, Wednesday is my new Saturday. Starting next week, that will probably change to Tuesday, but nothing at the Post Office or in life is set in stone.

It's always good to remember that nothing in life is set in stone. As humans, we become accustomed to things happening on certain timetables, but we sometimes forget we are not in control of the universe.

I consider myself an amateur writer. Although I love writing, I'm still learning and often get deeply engaged in what I'm doing. With the columns I write on Examiner.com, freelance writing I do on various websites and editing the Lynchburg Macaroni Kid newsletter and website, I stay pretty busy during my non-work hours.

I recently moved my writing area from a dark corner in the living room to the bright family room, where sunlight streaks through all of the windows from morning until night. I love the sunny location, even when there's a little glare on my computer screen.

As I sat deeply engaged in adding events to the Lynchburg Macaroni Kid newsletter this morning, I glanced out the window and saw this absolutely gorgeous morning sky. Wow! I grabbed my camera and headed outside to get a better look and, of course, to take a couple of photos.

We often overlook the beauty that's right under our noses, at least I know I do. The simple moments in life are what we remember when we look back. Taking a few minutes away from the task at hand to just be present in the moment is a good thing.

As you get ready for work, I am preparing for an errand day. There's a lot to do, but there will also be time to just enjoy the day. Here are some of the simple pleasures I can enjoy on Wednesday, my new Saturday.

• Lingering over an extra cup of coffee
• A visit to Lynchburg Community Market for Green Market Wednesdays
• Lunch with a grandchild at school or a friend at a local restaurant
• A visit to Accents Flags, The Fresh Market, Givens Books or another local store
• A walk on the Blackwater Creek Bikeway
• An unhurried drive to wherever I want
• An afternoon 'date' with one or more of my kids or grandkids
• Dinner at a reasonable hour

I'm sure there will be errands to run and I already have a long to-do list, but I'll be sure to take the time to make memories too. After all, isn't that what life is all about?

Enjoy your Wednesday. I know I'll enjoy mine! Tomorrow will be another busy work day.

Until then I'll take what I can get when I can get it and do the best I can to face each day with a smile on my face, a prayer on my lips and a song in my heart.

Blogging Grandma Sandy, signing off for now.

A Tribute to Grandparenting: Yesteryear and Today

I feel so blessed that photography was one of my Dad's hobbies when I was a child. If not, this photo of me and my younger brother, Mike, with our maternal grandparents and great-grandmother would not exist.

As an Army family, we lived far away from both sets of our grandparents and saw them rarely. When we visited Wisconsin, where they all lived, there were happy family gatherings and time spent with cousins and with our grandparents.

During one period of time, we lived in Wisconsin for a while. I don't remember a lot from those days but have a photo taken of me and my Grandpa on the stairs of our house.

This photo brings back happy memories of my grandpa, whose love for his grandchildren was obvious to all. By career, Grandpa Kraus was a high school principal and I'm sure his love was equally felt by the students he mentored.

My Mom's parents lived in the same house for all of our lives and I have many happy memories from our visits. We played cards on the porch, played in the back yard and listened when we could to the stories the adults told.

There was always a wonderful smell in the air at their house. As an adult, I think it was probably from cookies baking. As a child, I identified the scent as 'Grandma's house.'

When we visited Wisconsin, we also visited my paternal grandparents, who lived on a lake. I don't have any photos of me with my Dad's parents but do have one photo of me running to the boats at the lake. I'm sure this photo was also taken by my Dad. Kids did their own thing in those days. The adults talked while the kids played. Everyone gathered together to eat meals.

I wish we had lived closer to our grandparents so that I would have known them better. But, we kept in touch with them by writing letters.

During my years in Girl Scouts, I had to learn more about how my grandparents grew up. I wrote letters to Grandma and Grandpa Kraus and to my mom's grandmother.

Each sent me a letter in return, telling about what life was like when they were growing up. Grandpa Kraus' letter spoke about how good kids had it "these days" compared to when he was a child.

As a young adult, I continued to write to my grandparents and was blessed that they were able to stay in touch. Sadly, my last visit to my grandparents was when I was a teen. I don't have a good photo of me with either of my grandparents from that visit, but I'm sure that my Dad does. I do have a photo I took of my Grandma with my younger brothers and some of the boy cousins. Grandma was so short that she looked more like a playmate than a grandmother. I also have a photo of my Grandpa with two of my cousins from that visit and many other photos I took with my own camera.

 

After I married and moved away from home, my vacations were spent going to visit my parents, much as my parents' vacations had been spent visiting their parents.

On visits back home, it was hard to get photos of my Mom with her grandchildren because she hated having her photo taken. I have many photos taken of Dad with my kids and all of their grandchildren. There is still always a baby or toddler around and they all seem to be drawn to Dad. My children were blessed to have their other set of grandparents living nearby so they were able to see them often.

 

As in many big families, the older grandkids were blessed with the 'best' grandparents. My parents were very actively involved with the grandchildren who lived the closest. With almost 20 years separating my parents' oldest and youngest children, the younger grandchildren are almost like great-grandchildren to them. Some of the younger grandchildren are the same ages as my parents' great-grandchildren.

Unlike my parents and grandparents, I'm blessed that all of my grandchildren live nearby. Like my parents, I'm an active grandma. I don't often share photos of my grandchildren because I'm very protective of their privacy; however, I will share these photos of me with each of them as babies.

When my first grandson was born, I cried tears of joy. I was in the room for his birth and was overwhelmed with emotion. I was blessed to spend a lot of time with my older grandson because his parents worked overlapping schedules. As he got a little older, every Wednesday was marked on our calendar as "Grandma House Day" and I have many happy memories of time spent together with him.

By the time his younger cousins were born, I was an old hand at being a Grandma. Because my son-in-law was deployed when my younger grandson was born, my daughter and grandson lived with us for a period of time. I loved coming home at the end of the day to a baby in the house. First words and first steps are among the joys of living with a little one. Being Grandma instead of Mom to my grandson meant that I could do the fun grandma things and not all of the work things that moms do.

Later, after my granddaughter was born, the entire family lived with us for a few months when they were between homes. They now live just a few blocks away so we see them often. Playing Candy Land and Fish, helping them ride bikes in the driveway and baking cookies are among the fun activities we enjoy together. Being a working grandma wasn't in my plans but it's the hand life dealt me so I deal with it. We see all of the grandkids as often as we can and love them immensely. Although Kenny isn't their biological grandpa, you'd never guess it from the way they interact. The two younger grandkids come running for 'Pa' and are very excited when he's here and not on the road.

I have taken thousands of photos of my grandchildren and spent countless days sharing time together and making happy memories. Life is good when you're a grandparent and I'm truly blessed. 

On this special day known as Grandparents Day, I owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude to our family's grandparents who came before me and showed the way to be loving grandparents. To my grandparents and parents, thanks so much for the examples you set. 

I also owe a huge debt of gratitude to my daughters and sons-in-law for allowing me to have such a huge role in their children's lives. Happy Grandparents Day to all grandparents everywhere. May you always enjoy the love and joy of the grandchildren in your lives.