I love you a bushel and a peck...

On this day ten years ago my grandmother "Nana" went to be with the Lord. I miss her so much, but I'm so thankful for all the great memories I have of her.

Growing up, I lived in Florida. Every year at Christmas time we would make the dreaded 10 hour drive from Orlando to Cullman. I despised the drive, but I sure did love seeing my cousins and grandmother. My grandfather died before I was born, but I hear he was fantastic! We always stayed at Nana's house. And she would always be waiting at the door for us to pull in the driveway. She'd come out with arms open wide! As soon as you got inside you'd smell something baking. Oh, if I think real hard, I can still smell her house. Uuuummmm!! We had so much fun at Nana's. I remember all the talks me, mom, and Nana had in her huge yellow bathroom. Her tub was sunken in the floor and I loved it. She always put a plastic bag over her head to take her shirt off so she didn't get makeup on it. And whenever you walked in her house and called out for her she would respond "woo hoo". Usually my cousin Bethany would spend the night with us and there were countless times we would all lay in the bed late at night and play Patty Wood. So, I'd have to really search my memory bank to remember how to play, but I know it made for hours of enjoyment. My grandmother had a "formal" living room. You know, the kind of room where all the breakables lived. The room you were NOT supposed to play in. The family room had been added on sometime after the house was originally built. Therefore, the formal living room had a window in it that used to look outside. It now opened into the addition. That window made the best "drive thru window" when Bethany and I would play waitress. Her entire house converted into Cracker Barrel Restaurant on many occasions and her Reader's Digest magazines served as the perfect menu's. There was never a dull moment at Nana's house. Every morning she would make homemade biscuits and I got to help. She even let me eat some of the raw dough. YUMMY!!! We ate like kings and queens when we were there. The kind of meals you had to unbutton your pants when you were done. Nana had a big red storage building behind her house. Magical tea parties and hours and hours of playing house happened in there. We never got to close to the fence though. Next door to my grandmother lived a very very big black dog named bear. And to a small girl he seemed as big as a bear!

Not long after we moved back to Cullman my Nana got sick. She had Alzheimer's. What a terrible terrible disease for the loved ones who are no longer remembered as well as for the person who can't remember them. We moved her out of her house and into my aunts house. We all worked shifts taking care of her. We did that until the day she went home to be with Jesus. I'm thankful that she is no longer suffering and her memory is sharper than ever, but I'm sad for me. I'm sad she never got to meet my husband, or come to my wedding, and I'm sad she will never meet my children. She would have loved each and every one of her grandchildren!!! And they would love her too!!! Nana had a song she would always sing us. It went like this. "I love you a bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck Nana pana Nana pana Nana pana". Taylor may never meet her, but I promise she will know about her and she will know that song!!

I love you and miss you so much Nana pana!