Memories of Grandpa

As you know Grandpa Milt passed away on December 4th. I know I posted a short post and didn't elaborate. Many things were going on and I was too emotional to post much.

On Sunday while Lee was still in town we decided to share memories of Grandpa Milt while we sat around the table eating pizza. I was reminded of this from my brother's new family blog and thought it would be fun to share some of the memories that we discussed.

Lee and I have vivid memories of Grandpa Milt's, "Say the Secret Password" game where he would grab a hold of you while you passed him and held on to you and not let go until you said the secret password. Now if you knew Grandpa Milt you'd know that his brain was far more intelligent then the average bear and the secret password was not so easy. He went easy on us the first few times and let us in on what that special word was. Care to guess? You can't because you'd never think of it. It was Rumplestilskin. Not sure why it was that word but it's the one he thought was the most obscure and one we might not remember. And sure enough we wouldn't until the game was played more often and then we never forgot.

Lee remembered the time Grandpa Milt came to visit them in Spokane and entertained Grace by putting her pink bunny on his head. He always seemed to enjoy Grace and was greatly entertained by her and she him. It doesn't seem like an amazing thing but this was when his mind was going and any interaction with children was something to cherish.

Mom remembers the day she brought me to visit the Grandparents for the first time and wanted to show me off and Grandpa was more concerned about his dog. If you don't know his dog Nicki was a special dog to them and the last one they ever owned.

I remember the time they meet Lee for the first time. We had just moved to our new home in Lake Forest Park so the grandparents didn't know how to get there. We made arrangements for them to meet us at the little mall off of Lake City Way. Unfortunately, their car wasn't working and they couldn't turn it off. Mom piled Lee and I in the bug and headed down to meet them. Lee slept all the way. He's always been a good sleeper. I remember the grandparents jumping out of the car to look in on Lee through the window while their car was still running. They were so excited to meet their new grandson!

I remember hearing stories of Mom "pruning" Grandpa Milt's trees because she was mad at him for not fixing the riding lawn mower. Guess she had to jump start it . . . . I kind of don't blame her. And to her credit, I guess they were too close together anyway so now they look perfect.

Dad remembers the first day he picked Mom up for a date and meet Grandpa Milt for the first time. He answered the door and said, "What do you want?!" in is Grandpa Milt way.

I remember when they played at our wedding. Grandpa Milt played the violin and Grandma Ruthie accompanied him on the piano. This was about the time we realized that his memory wasn't as good as it once was. We also should have made it more clear to them the order of service. But we didn't and they ended up playing Cannon in D too soon and it went on for ever and ever. Then they started to play the wedding march when the bridesmaids were coming down the isle. And lastly, as Dad and I got to the front of the church they cut off on one loud screeching note at the same time we came to a stop. Despite all those little things that didn't go as planned, I am still thankful that they were able to be a part of our wedding. I will always cherish those wedding day memories.

Lee and I also had nicknames. Lee was Joe and I was Hey You.

When Katelyn was about a year old we were living with my parents to save up for a house of our own. For about 3 months out of the year Grandpa Milt and Grandma Ruthie would come and live with the parents to escape the Wisconsin winters and see us. The house was full of grandparents and Katelyn LOVED it. She and Great-Grandpa Milt had a special relationship and he loved to sing songs to her. He would sing this one song and dance her around the house all the while she would bob up and down in his arms at just the right times he taught her to bob. Sadly Katelyn told me the day he died that she wished she could have known him better. Oh girl, you once did :-)

When they moved out here after we discovered they could no longer care for themselves he was not the same Grandpa I knew. He was also not the nicest when it came to children. It wasn't his fault but the fault of his disease. Children were loud and made him nervous. But I do remember a time at Easter when Emily climbed up on the couch and sat with him and showed him her Easter basket. He took the time to talk to her and let her show him her Easter basket spoils. I wish he knew her the way he had known Katelyn.


I wish I could remember the rest of the memories we shared but these are only a few. We are sad that he is no longer with us but know that he is in a better place where he is no longer suffering and is probably happy to be whole again.