Would You Like A Gift Receipt?
One of the more fun things of having a baby in the family (besides of course, having a baby in the family) is that I get to buy toys again! I am the world's worst at passing up anything that plays music, lights up and means you get to craft something. I still think my adult kids would love Aqua Doodle and Etch A Sketch for Christmas! But toys for babies now come in sounds, lights and classical music! Who knew? So on a recent trip to Target more diapers, I had to stop by and look at baby toys again. There's always something new. It's like they know I am coming and make up new and better fun musical toys for me to play with! Like this: The Fisher Price playmat with piano music!
I totally 'geeked' out when my daughter got this at her baby shower! In fact, I was so excited about hers I went out and bought one of my own. Now the thing was it wasn't exactly cheap and I was so embarrassed to admit I wanted to buy a musical toy for me, I mean, for the grandbaby to use when she visited our home, that I bought it; with Christmas money I had received, not out of our household budget. But the truth was I bought it for me to play with and listen to. I don't know why I worry about my husband thinking I'm crazy doing this, he has wisely never uttered a word about my penchant for musical toys, electronic games or craft items. So last night when we both went to Target, he just smiled and ignored all the new things I was discovering and explaining away as I put them in the cart, baby spoons, diapers,& a donut tower, teething ring and a new hand musical toy that lit up and played full length classical music! We got to the checkout lane and deposited not just a couple of baby items on the belt. As the cashier scanned and placed all of them in the bags she looked up and asked, "Would you like a gift receipt for the baby items?" I looked at my husband who said absolutely NOTHING and looked back at her and smiled saying, "Nope!"
You Can Never Be Embarrassed By Your Grandma
It's a rule, it just doesn't happen. Nobody gets embarrassed by their grandma. No really. Everyone knows that grandmas get by with acting whatever way they want. They all enjoy the rule that no matter what they say or do they cannot embarrass you. They can sing out loud in front of your friends. They can pinch your cheek in public. They can point out what your friend is wearing isn't appropriate, right there in front of your friend and never suffer the consequences from it. They can wear whatever they want and not worry about it. It's a grandma rule. Now that I am a grandma I am going to relish this rule. Gone are the days when I had to shut up my humming while standing in line at the grocery. I will now wear my graying long hair in braids down my back if I so choose. I will wear jackets, scarves, biker sunglasses, long tissue skirts, whatever! I am grandma, I will never be embarrassed again! I'll write books and tell people to buy them! I'll sing John Denver tunes while sitting on the riverfront! Nothing will stop me now!
Those Were The Days
; Remember rotary dialing phones? ...cricket...cricket... What? You don't remember dialing phones? They were even toys for kids. The cute little Fisher Price "memorabilia" phone was recently at Target. Your child pulls it along and the eyes go up and down and you can 'dial' a number which makes a clacking brrrrrr-ring sound? Good grief. Target also had Colorforms in the memorabilia section. What is this memorabilia thing? Why don't they just still have pull along rotary phone toys and Colorforms, Playdough, Polly Pocket and real wood Lincoln Logs? Maybe it's sad that adults my age keep going back to the old things of our childhood. But those toys were really fun! And adults my mom's age really didn't have toys as such not like our generation did so there isn't as much to buy other than Red Ryder BB Guns, the all metal Radio Flyer red wagon, and roller skates! I want to see banana seat one speed bikes come back with the tall handle bars, or the glass balls that would literally put your eye out if they exploded which they did on a frequent basis. Real wooden Tinker Toys!
I May Be A Grandma But...
I know nowadays it's all the vogue thing to be a grandmother and not show it. Whether it's dying your hair, pouffing your lips, de-wrinkling, plastic surgery or whatever being a untouched, slightly overweight woman in your 40's, 50's or 60's is 'just not how you appear. Well...sista...I got news for you! Live out Loud! Be yourself! You are beautiful and you earned every gray hair, single line, wrinkle, and slightly pudgy inch of yourself! Why should we change how we look? Are you staying active? That counts more than anything. Being able to run around the yard with your grandkids, play on the floor, throw a pass, hit a badminton bird and swim with your kiddos is what it's all about.No amount of dyed hair, cream additives, or enhanced ounce of you will help you get up and get outside. Exercise! Stretch! Get up and move it!
My Grandma's A Ninja
I have so got to find this book! I am a martial artist and of course all we do is joke about being ninjas. In fact when my hubs and I were just married, pre-kids, we would go out late at night to a local city park and play what we called, "Ninja." It was really a hide and seek game but at night in a deserted park, it was pretty creepy. We played with a group of friends who were equally weird like us and thought it was fun. Grandmas get the short end of exciting. Usually you don't find your grandmother to be 'exciting. Usually what counts is if she's a good cook. Well, I can cook but not up to grandmotherly standards and I love eating cookies and am not so good at making them. But my granddaughter and I teach martial arts class together. Yes she is six months old but that doesn't stop her from helping out! She sits in my arms and kicks and punches with the rest of the class. We correct the students' positions, and form and help them learn the right way to fall! She and I do a fair amount of 'watching' class as my hubs, my son and daughter actually do the teaching, but my granddaughter is learning! And hopefully some day she'll be calling me "Grandma Ninja!"
It is never Christmas unless my family and I sit down to watch Garfield Christmas. It's never on network or cable anymore but we have the DVD's so we can watch whenever we're all together. I love Grandma in the special even though I feel bad for Jon's mom who has to put up with Grandma sneaking around adding spice to her gravy. Jon's Grandma rides a motorcycle and races around town dressed up in her leathers. She does karate and is always on call to provide Thanksgiving meals. But I think it's the way Grandma misses Grandpa especially at Christmas time that really endears her to me. So for all the bike riding Grandma's out there who know how to cook and loves cats...here's to you!
When A Little Hand Finds Yours...
That Moment...
That moment when you walk into a room and your granddaughter sees you and jumps for joy, stretching out her arms and making happy sounds...that moment is one of the best moments of your life. While you know other family and friends love having you around, there is something about someone new who doesn't yet know all your faults and failings, who hasn't seen you mad or upset, who just seeing your face gets her so wholeheartedly excited that it makes you laugh with joy! What beauty it is to be the recipient of such joy!
Toy Shopping
I am so weird, I love shopping for toys. Now of course I have the perfect excuse... a grandbaby. But even before somehow I could come up with an excuse for toy shopping. I don't like regular shopping for clothes, shoes, other stuff, but tell me you want a toy? I am all over it. The only trouble is they truly don't make toys like they used to. I am looking for a plain little red wagon. They don't come plain any more! They have safety belts, helmets, tall sides and seat backs. When I was a kid half the fun of wagon riding was going fast, turning quickly and falling out! Even the See and Says are different and not nearly as fun. They are smaller, don't have a pull string, but a pull down handle instead and read letters and have songs instead of a million animal sounds! It is really hard to just find a toy bench with those wooden pegs and a hammer to hammer into the holes. Or a top. Remember the top that had the toy train inside and you pushed up and down on the handle to make it go around and around? I made up a Memory Card game the other day and my daughter and I played it! We even taught her 18 month old how to play. That was the best fun ever! Toys don't need a bunch of batteries and bells and whistles (literally) on them to be fun! Just something simple and your creativity goes off exploring! Of course just give me a good old box of crayons and a coloring book and I am set for life!
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