Thank You Grandma!

“Thank you Grandma”

A thank you note to God

August 2012

Children’s children are a crown to the aged... (Proverbs 17:6)

On Thanksgiving Day, 2012 I tried to think of what I am especially thankful for. Oh it’s easy to think of the usual things like food, clothing, and a warm home in winter, the beauty of nature etc. but what should I be particularly thankful for this past year?

As we were finishing our Thanksgiving meal, my 11 year old grandson said to me; Thank you grandma! Those three words brought so much joy to my heart. It made me realize just how thankful I am for my precious grandchildren. My husband and I have four adult children and have been truly blessed with 15 grandchildren. Some of them live close to us; others far away, but we love them all equally. They are a wonderful part of us. I would like to thank God for each and every one of them by mentioning them by name.

Jeremy-Senior Pic

1.    Jeremy is the oldest – our first grandchild. He was born March 6, 1992. His family lived close to us when he was born so we bonded with him tightly. I cared for him while his mother finished school so he spent a lot of time with us. The special thing about Jeremy is his tender heart. Oh, now that he is a young adult he talks big sometimes and tries to be macho, but I can see through the facade. I look at him and see the face of that little boy of not so many years ago with silent tears bubbling up in his eyes at the slightest reprimand. I am proud of the young man he has become. God has blessed him scholastically and learning comes easily for him. He is in college at this time studying to be a mechanic and is doing well. We love you Jeremy! Thank you God for Jeremy!

Taryn with Grace

2.    Taryn was born March 25, 1994. She was a beautiful child and has become an even more beautiful young woman – inside and out. She loves children and is wonderful with her three youngest siblings. We don’t see her often, as her parents have separated and she lives with her dad, but she is always with us in our thoughts. We love you Taryn! Thank you God for Taryn!

Zack 17 yr.

3.    Zachary (Zack) was born September, 9, 1994. Jeremy and Zack are brothers. Zack is completely different in personality from his older brother. He is quieter by nature and has always been a very deep thinking child. Jeremy is a leader – Zack is more of a follower, but as he matures I am proud of the fact that he is his own person and is not afraid to speak his mind and choose his own path. He will be graduating from high school this spring (2013) and is seriously considering service to his country in one of the branches of the armed forces. His second career choice is to be a chef. I am proud of the young man he has become also. What has always amazed me about Jeremy and Zachary is that Jeremy looks like his dad, but has his mother’s personality and Zack looks like his mother but has his dad’s personality. We love you Zack! Thank you God for Zack!

Meg-the soccer star

4.    Megan was born August 22, 1996. Megan and Taryn are sisters. Megan has a beautiful smile. She is smart and loving. The special thing about Meg is her selflessness. In her elementary years she would go to extreme lengths to avoid hurting the feelings of others. As with Taryn, we don’t see her much these days, but she is a very talented soccer player. We used to lovingly call her “leggy Meggy” because of her tall slender frame. She also has beautiful curls which, of course she straightens. We love you Meg! Thank you God for Megan!

Sean

5.  Sean was born May 30, 1999 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He is the oldest of five children. Being the oldest of five has enabled him grow into a very responsible young man. I am proud of him as I watch him take charge of the younger children. They listen to him and respect him as the authority when he is in charge. He will be a wonderful loving father someday. We love you Sean! Thank you God for Sean!

Alexis

6.  Alexis was born July 9, 2000. She is our turn of the century grandchild. She and her mother lived with us for the first four years of her life and we bonded tightly. The special thing about Alexis is, like her cousin Jeremy, she is very tender hearted. She loves God and is not ashamed to let it show. She also loves animals, especially horses. Like her cousin Megan, she is a soccer star. She plays the goalie position on her traveling soccer team and pours her heart and soul into it. I have always considered her my kindred spirit because her personality is so much like my own. We love you Alexis! Thank you God for Alexis!

Kevin

7.  Kevin was born February 4, 2001. He and Sean are brothers which makes Kevin the second oldest child in their family. Kevin although he is “all boy” so to speak is a very loving child. He is not afraid to give love and needs lots of love and hugs in return. He has a mischievous nature and a mischievous grin which reminds me of our son, his dad.  We love you Kevin! Thank you God for Kevin!

Alycia

8.  Alycia was born February 14, 2001. She is our Valentine Day grandchild. She and Alexis are step-sisters. Alycia is a beautiful child and has a loving heart. She loves babies and likes to be the “little mother” to her younger brothers. She is a tiny little mite with a big personality. She does her own hair beautifully and has for several years now. She likes helping her mom and her step mom around the house and will be a great wife and mother someday. We love you Alycia! Thank you God for Alycia!

Jarrett

9.  Jarrett was born February 28, 2001. He is the younger half brother of Taryn and Megan. The special thing about Jarrett is his clown like personality. Although he is a quiet person he loves to laugh and act silly at times. He is a smaller replica of his dad in both personality and looks. Jarrett makes me proud because he is always glad to help out when asked and rarely if ever causes anyone problems. It was Jarrett who touched my heart this Thanksgiving day after dinner with the “Thank you Grandma” and inspired me to write this thank you note to God for our grandchildren. We love you Jarrett! Thank you God for Jarrett!

Bailey

10.            Bailey was born November 8, 2002. She is the sister of Sean and Kevin and is the oldest of our precious and only set of twin granddaughters. She and her sister were born 5 weeks early and things were shaky for a bit, but both are strong and beautiful little girls now. Bailey is a girly girl. She loves pretty dresses and little girl things. She is also a soccer player although I’m not sure what position she plays. She and her sister are growing up fast. It makes me sad that we don’t see them often. We love you Bailey! Thank you God for Bailey!

Caitlyn

11.            Caitlyn who is Bailey’s twin was also born November 8, 2002. Caitlyn was the “little” twin. It was not known until she was almost two that she couldn’t see well and between the ages of two and three it was discovered that she couldn’t hear well either. She has since received a cochlear implant in one ear and given up her little “coke bottle” glasses for contacts. I am proud of her stamina. Life is a struggle for her at times, but she doesn’t give up. The implant has made it easier for her to learn and she does well in school. Because of Caitlyn’s hearing problem the whole family has learned how to sign which is a priceless gift. We love you Caitlyn! Thank you God for Caitlyn!

Grace

12.            Grace was born May 31, 2003. She is Jarrett’s little sister and Taryn and Megan’s half sister. Grace is a sweetheart. There is no other way to describe her. She lives in her little sister McKenna’s shadow which leads her to rebel and act out at times but we don’t see that often. She is my childhood look alike - almost the exact replica of my childhood pictures. Grace is a perfect name for her because she reminds me of “God’s Grace”.  She has a similar personality to me also in that she loves her baby dolls just like I always have. My spare bedroom is filled with dolls and if ever she comes over to visit and I don’t see her I know I can find her playing with the dolls. We love you Grace! Thank you God for Grace!

Torree

13.            Torree was born August 8, 2004. She is the little sister of Sean, Kevin, Bailey and Caitlyn. I am proud of her because she is smart as a whip. At age 3 she was doing 100 piece puzzles by herself and before she started kindergarten she was reading the hymns from our hymnal in church. I have always called her my little “Tortellini”. She is beautiful and loving and a deep thinker. She is very observant and not much gets past her. Because of her sister’s hearing problem she has been signing since she was a baby. We love you Torree! Thank you God for Torree!

McKenna

14.            McKenna was born February 27, 2005. She is the little sister of Jarrett and Grace and half sister to Megan and Taryn. McKenna is a strong personality yet at times she can be shy and insecure. She needs lots of hugs and kisses and she loves to sing just like her grandma. She started kindergarten a little behind, but soon caught up and passed up many of her classmates. I love to hear her silly little giggle. She does tend to overshadow her older sister Grace, but they are great friends and will always be seen as a pair. We love you McKenna! Thank you God for McKenna!

Logan

15.            Logan was born August 2, 2007. He is the little half brother of Alycia and Alexis. He is our youngest grandchild and more than likely he will always be the youngest, however one never knows. Our plans are not always God’s plans. As a baby he loved to cuddle and rub his face in your neck and he has always been bonded tightly with his mama. Logan is a loving little boy, but at the same time, he is all rough and tumble boy. He loves to box and wrestle and play boy video games, and he loves the super heroes – Batman, Spiderman, Captain America, Ironman etc. We love you Logan! Thank you God for Logan!

So that is my list of precious blessings sent by God. Each child is unique and special in his/her own way. We are so blessed and we thank God that they are all healthy and strong. Most importantly we are thankful that they all love God and have been baptized into His family of believers. As they grow I pray that they will treasure their faith and continue to honor God with their lives. It brings to mind the words of Paul in his letter to Timothy; I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. (2 Timothy 1: 5)

I love God and every night when our children were little I prayed for them before I went to sleep. I asked God to keep them in the true faith, and to give my husband and me the wisdom to teach them to grow into good Christian young men and women. He answered yes to my prayers. I now pray that like Timothy, our grandchildren will continue in the faith they received at their baptisms and follow the example of their parents and grandparents in the faith until they reach eternity in heaven.

Gloria Dei! (All glory to God!)

By Kristeen
 

November 25, 2012

On November 23, 2012 I posted “Thank you Grandma” to my blog. It is a thank you note to God to show my appreciation and thanks to Him for my precious grandchildren. On Sunday November 25, 2012 I was awarded the honor of being one of three “Featured” bloggers for the day. Thank you to the staff at Bloggers for choosing my blog. I am honored that you deemed it good enough to be in the spotlight.

I trust and believe that God is with me at all times. He is the source of all gifts and blessings in this life. Every so often He allows His faithful followers to see Him at work in their lives in order to encourage them in their service to Him. I honestly feel that the “Featured Blogger” award is God’s way of acknowledging to me that He received my note of thanks to Him. I believe it is His way of saying; ‘I got your thank you note. You’re welcome Christine’. My writing ability is not of my own merit. It is a gift from God.

THANK YOU DEAREST HEAVENLY FATHER FOR THE WRITING ABILITY YOU HAVE GIFTED TO ME. I ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WITHOUT YOUR HELP I WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO DO IT. HELP ME ALWAYS TO USE THIS GIFT FOR YOUR GLORY. AMEN