In December of 2019 my grandmother passed away. My family really wanted me to give a eulogy, I said no but thought about what I would say to a bunch of people about my grandma. I'll never forget the look on my aunt's face when I said my grandma was eccentric. She said, "that's the perfect word to describe mom." I grew up around the corner from my grandparents. I spent almost every Sunday dinner eating at their house with my extended family. I moved my family into that exact house and lived next door to my grandma for 11 years. I was blessed to have a real relationship with my grandparents, just like I'm giving my kids the same gift now. Like I said, my grandma was eccentric. She was a tree hugger long before it was cool. She kept everything - you never know when you may need it. She was always teaching us things. When I think about my childhood and the memories with her, they are almost all outside. My grandma taught me how to ride a bike. We went mushroom hunting as a family - everyone - cousins, aunts, uncles and grandma. My cousins and I would go sledding on the road in front of our house and it was my grandma who was with us. She took us kids to every cemetery in Coles County. When I walk through the woods and can name all the wildflowers, birds, and trees - those things were taught by her.
 |
| This is my grandma with her grandkids. This was a trip to our creek. Jeremiah drug this wagon out of the barn a couple of years ago and is determined to make it usable again. |
I have always said I wanted to be the kind of grandma mine was. The kind that takes adventures and isn't afraid of messes. When I was thinking about how best to honor her, I kept coming back to that. Why wait until I'm a grandma? Can't I be that person to my kids? While I was pondering that I ran across this book:
You can read about it here - No Such Thing as Bad Weather
It was lifechanging. Now I'm trying to spend as much time outside as possible. I want my kids to have the memories of me when I am gone like I have of my grandma. That's how it started, but here is what I learned.
My kids have never had a problem being outside. It doesn't matter what season it is; my kids are outdoors for a good part of the day. I'm the one that is a fair-weather outdoorsman. If it's cold, I really have a problem. I hate being cold. Once I decided to give it a try it wasn't so bad. You really learn to dress for the weather. I also learned that fresh air really is good for you! I feel so much better mentally after a brisk walk in the sun. Moving and challenging yourself is good for you! My boys get a good laugh every time I try to jump a creek or climb across a tree. I'm a lot more cautious than I was as a child, but I still act like a kid. Asher always reminds our other friends, moms a country kid at heart.
For those of you that always think I'm crazy when you hear me saying I've been outside in freezing temperature, now you know why.
No comments:
Post a Comment