This old gal...
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Took a trip last month…to celebrate a birthday...and sneak in the passing of the memorabilia baton... while at it….

We blabbed...we munched...we toured...we unpacked…uhhhh….welcomed...memorabilia...which was delighted to escape the boring confines of this old gal's...stuffy garage...

We took embarrassing photos...orchestrated by a zealous mother...

We found the only copy of my 36th...and final...school photo….in sticker form…stuck to a box in her closet…

But mostly we celebrated…the amazing woman she’s become...her newfound independence...the job she loves...the NEW job she will excel at...the fact that she is making a difference...in the world...

The sun has come out…today…tomorrow…and the next day…
Bet your bottom dollar…this old girl…is proud of you...

And those sisters of hers...agree...

When this husband of mine…..

Slipped that ring on his bride's finger…the Fairy Grandmother waved her magic wand and amidst glitter and fairy dust…POOF!!!….this old gal...became a grandma...
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The Not-So-Evil Step kind…..and not too long after… that Fairy Grandmother waved her magic wand once again and …. POOF!!!….one of us became….a Not-So-Evil-Step…GREAT Grandma...

Now...in the World of R….where we have time and aren’t always old people tired…Grandpa and his bride... are having a ball…enjoying the magic of youth through these beautiful kids’ lives…

Whether it’s a dairy farm...the pumpkin patch...a wrestling meet...an orchestra concert or a visit in the backyard...Grandpa and I smile when that magic coach takes off…

Because if there’s one thing more enchanting than being retired…

It’s being a grandparent...even a Not-So-Evil Step kind…

And this husband of mine...agrees...

This old gal….

Went in search of the aluminum foil...was drawn to these DG cling wraps...lying on top...hoping to be chosen as tribute…

These lone cling wrap buddies...have been part of the family...for more than 10 years...yes...you heard it…TEN years…

But these two eager volunteers...are always passed over…for one...the Press and Seal is considered superior for clinging... for another… these little guys...tell a story…

A story of giggling high school girls...buying boxes of cling wrap...hiding them in a duffel...trying to wrap a boy’s car...failing...stashing the evidence until found a year later...when packing for college...

That cling wrap...lying in that drawer…is a magic mirror to the past...a mirror that shows snippets of a crazy life...when the kids were young...when rest didn’t exist..but every day...was a grand adventure...

A day when there was noise...chaos...nonstop chatter...a day when the simplest thing...as a box of DG cling wrap...was exciting…

So stay there….cling wrap buddies…make this mama smile when she opens that drawer… and continue to wrap a nostalgic heart...in those beautiful treasured memories...

And those daughters of mine...agree...

This old gal...

was blessed with a Godwink...you know...one of those coincidences that deep in your heart...you know is more than just happenstance...
 
As teacher me closed the teaching book...that youngest daughter of mine...began her story in middle school FCS…..that’s Home Ec in Old People Speak…but we shall never call it that...it has evolved...

That  first year of teaching...feels like yesterday…..teacher me was clueless…faking it…eaten alive…

So sometimes…when this mama hears doubt in her sweet FCS teacher’s bravado….she wants to beam herself over Scottie and sit in a corner of the room….send her mom vibes like…you got this…stay strong…it gets easier…your kids are lucky to have you...
 
Then a text pops up...that  goes like this…

Mom! Today your friend Susan from college subbed in my building! She stopped to ask me where a room was and recognized me! She said, “I know you!!! Your mom is….

Haven’t seen or talked to Susan for 36 years...had no idea she lived that close...but somehow here was an old gal's past connecting with her baby girl's future...

Just a little whisper...telling my girl that part of your mom…even if it is just a friend from days gone by….is here...and that...was enough...
 
How that friend knew this girl belonged to me...is a mystery….maybe she’s seen pictures…or recognized her name…or maybe she thought she’d gone back in time and was looking at the 1984 version of the girl she knew from Dancer Hall…..cuz…you know….those cursed genetics...

And this daughter of mine...agrees...

This husband and I...

Made a trek to his hometown...to eat lunch at Diamond Dave’s...
 
Didn't really go for the food...but more to connect with a long lost friend...who just happens to own the place...

The irony that Diamond Dave’s and the Family Restaurant...share the same parking area...was not lost on this old gal….but the bottomless cup of coffee...was not in the cards...
 
This husband of mine...became royalty...as we crossed the DD threshold...there were shouts of joy...hand shaking...back slapping...and laughter galore...

My king was treated to the teeny tiny taco plate...only reserved for special guests...

Said good-bye...bellies full...hearts warm… because if there is anything...that can beat that bottomless cup of coffee…hot…and not too bitter….

It’s feeling valued...appreciated…loved…

Today we found that...at Diamond Dave’s...
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And this husband of mine….agrees.

This husband of mine….

No matter where the road takes us…is always in search of the elusive FaMiLY ReStAuRAnT.

This old gal gets it...she grew up with the family restaurant...that grandma of mine would only eat at the family restaurant and we only ate out with that grandma of mine...

You know the place…breakfast all day…weekly meatloaf special…the bottomless cup of coffee…always hot…not too bitter…served with a smile...

It's not hard to  know what he’s looking for...the clone of the family restaurant…actually called FAMILY RESTAURANT....located in his hometown...food…5 stars….coffee…two thumbs up...

It's impossible to tell you...How…Many…Times...this old gal has Googled...family restaurant...my Mr.'s utter shock and disbelief...always the same as our own version of a Laurel and Hardy bit begins…Billy’s BBQ…Ping’s Mandarin…Chip’s Chicken…Fast Foooood…goes the list...

He Ughs...he sighs...his lovely bride consoling with...honey...the family restaurant is just not cool any more...it's about as trendy as the 1980’s windsuit...

Then we ponder...and we compromise….until our next adventure...when the search begins all over again...

But there’s this thing… these young, hip influencers call Grandmacore… where it’s now super cool to embrace grandma-like things and maybe….just maybe…that might include the family restaurant...

Because….as that grandma of mine would say…it’s all about the bottomless cup of coffee…hot…not too bitter…and served with a smile...

​And that husband of mine...so totally...agrees...

This husband of mine…..

Was sitting at the kitchen table...having coffee...when his blubbering bride came home...
 
What's wrong...came the concerned query...him taking in the puffy eyes and blotchy nose...

I'm just saaaaad...wailed his wife...I can't believe it's my last day of school...forever...
He didn't miss a beat...is THAT all...was the reply...I thought someone got hurt...and chuckling that old man chuckle...went back to his coveted after work coffee...

The end of a glorious career...for teacher me...was imminent...my Mr.'s...only three months away...yet our views of this day...could not have been...more different...

To this old gal…it was an end...an end to that childhood dream of being a teacher...an end to daily hugs and untied shoes and runny noses...an end to watching kids grow in confidence and skill...

An end to being needed...an end to making a difference...
 
But to him…it is a beginning...time to relax...time to explore...time to have fun...

A new perspective...the other side of the coin...

And sometimes…this husband of mine is right…it wouldn’t hurt this old gal to relax...explore...and have fun…..

And this husband of mine….agrees.