heartbreak, part of life, but....

 ...my mother in law here in Florida has passed away.  She was 94 and a half, and has been wanting this for a while now.  I kid you not, when I say she used to get up in the morning,  and say, Damn it, I'm still alive.  She would be half kidding, but she was slowing down, and wanted to remain independent.  She was able to do that until 93, when she fell and broke her hip.  She moved into the retirement home last June, and we visited her in June, July, and October...and in January when she was still at home.

Her niece Jenna was there with her in the hospice place, and we were able to call her before she passed, along with our kids...to just tell her we loved her.  We didn't realize, before she was placed in hospice, that she was still cognizant, thought it was too late...the message we got through family from the retirement home was that she was unresponsive, but when we found out she was still able to understand things and communicate through blinking, we decided to hightail it down here.  

It's super sad that we didn't make it to the hospice place before she died, but Jenna was with her, and was very thankful that we were on our way.  We were able to see Grandma after she passed, and say our goodbyes, then we brought Jenna out for some lunch/dinner, so she could talk and decompress a bit.  What a girl, she stayed with her Grandma the whole time, talking to her and comforting her.  We are all very thankful for that.

We bought one-way tickets down here, not knowing how things would go...then bought return tickets:  Emily is going home tomorrow morning, we're leaving Sunday morning...we bought them before she passed, because they sell fast, and the ones available to get down here were selling out, even as we tried to put our information in...so we took a gamble and bought return tickets...now we're here, and she's not.  

We knew it was coming, she was old, and every single one of us will be meeting our maker someday, but it's still incredibly sad.  Eleanor was so good to us.  

We found a hotel with a heated pool....

We found a beach, Honeymoon Island...

We found a Walmart...palm trees, but still the same Walmart...(Paul so kindly bought me a chair for the beach, he accidentally chose a kid's chair, when it rang up Emily noticed it...he ran back to get a bigger chair, and the lady who worked their patted my arm, and said, "Wishful thinking, eh?"  It was too funny.)

Some loveliness...life is a conundrum, sadness but so beautiful.  

Me...

Emily in the airport...she ordered me an iced Americano with cream, so they gave her whipped cream.  I don't drink sugary drinks, I was almost embarrassed to have this big fancy cup, ha.  (it wasn't sugary)

Florida...!

Healthy snacks in Walmart, apples and popcorn, but shh, some mint cookies too.

Grandma....she was a gem.

....with Suzanne a few years ago...

This was last January, Paul walking with his mama...

She got forgetful near the end, but I talked to her on the phone just last Friday, and she was FINE.  She told me the same story three times, but it was a solid, reasonable, and intelligent story.  Here it is, not word for word, but basically:

There's a blind lady who sits there at meal time, and doesn't eat unless someone helps her.  The staff is so busy, but they sit her with this other lady, who doesn't know her ass from her elbow.  It's not her fault she's retarded, but she can't help this blind lady, she can't even take care of herself, through no fault of her own, of course.  So I've made it my mission in life to help this blind lady.  I put the food on the spoon and put the spoon in her hand, and she is so thankful.  So it's my new mission in life, to make sure I sit with her.

She was fine on Friday, and gone the following Thursday.  She must have had another UTI, because she was septic...I have some questions and complaints about the care she didn't get, but that's not helpful right now.  She's at peace now, and I know God will bless her for her good heart...

So we're enjoying our time here, I think it's been so nice for Paul to be able to relax and process things a bit, he's so busy at home.  So it's an unexpected little vacation, with some tears and some happiness.  

Have a really good day, and hug your mamas or your grandmas or your spouses or your kids, or all of the above...and be thankful for your days here, God is good.