In Memory

Yesterday we received the news that my grandpa had passed away. Even at the ripe old age of 92, it still came as quite a shock. He was my biggest blog follower, and for that I thought I'd write a little bit about him.

I have so many sweet memories of my grandpa, and the love he showed to his grandkids. As a little girl one of my favorite things about him was his old bank collection. He had several shelfs full of antique banks, that all did cool tricks. He would take us into his office and give us all pennies and let us chose which bank we wanted to put it in. We later found that he was keeping track of which ones were our favorites, and gave them to us when we were old enough to take care of them.

At Christmas my grandparents would give my parents money to buy gifts for the kids. We would open our Grandma and Grandpa presents the same night we'd decorate the Christmas tree. There were always SO many gifts from them - but the most exciting part of the night was when all the gifts were opened, Grandpa would say that he had forgotten something in his car. He would then return with a big box of unwrapped toys. They were ALWAYS the best presents. To this day my Grandpa still gets credit for giving the best gift ever. It was a black sled that had a steering wheel, brakes, and looked a bit like a snow mobile. I know that ALL of my siblings know what I am referring to...it was everyone's favorite.

My grandpa was the one that so generously paid for my tuition for Culver Summer Camps - a place that still holds some of my best memories.

When I graduated high school - my grandpa gave me a very generous gift, and pulled me aside to say, "Your dad is going to try to take this check from you, and tell you what to do with it - but this is YOUR money, and you can do whatever you want with it." I gave him a big hug, turned the corner, and found my dad - with his hand out in a "give it to me" fashion. He then said, "I know what your Grandpa said - now give me the check." I cowered and handed it over. I still love my grandpa for trying!

There are so many things I am going to miss about him: his smell, his e-cards, his RIDICULOUS amount of republican email forwards, his laugh, his love for ANYTHING sweet, the way he'd say "Mele Kalikimaka" instead of Merry Christmas - the list goes on and on. I love you so much Grandpa, and will be forever grateful for the example that you set for me and my family.