Lately, I've been going through some old family photos, and scanning them into the computer. It's been so much fun to look into familiar faces and step back in time. Being the baby of the family, there's a lot that I don't remember -- or not as well as my siblings remember things. So the pictures are a particular treasure to me.
That's me, at probably 3-years-old. I'm squinting into the camera, as I seem to have done a lot in these old photos! I remember those bushes in the yard, and riding that little trike around the patio a *lot*. And that jacket? It was my fave. Well, it might have been my only jacket, so that makes it the favorite, right?
Going through these pictures, I can extrapolate family trips, based on locations, groups of photos, and who is in the pictures. I must say too, that I haven't given my family very much credit for having family trips and outings. But I think we did more than what I remember happening.
For example, this next picture is me (again, probably 3-years-old), and I'm with my grandparents, on my mom's side. According to the label (Thank you, Mom, for writing on the backs of the photos!), we are at Pier 39 in San Francisco. I need to check dates, but I suspect that Grandpa and Grandma Davidson were either just returning from one of their missions to South America, or this trip was taken shortly after their return.
We lived close to San Francisco, so I love how my grandparents were dressed up formally for a simple day-trip into the City!
I see Grandpa looking at my child-self in this photo, and I remember feeling loved by him. This same man made a swing for me that hung from a wooden arbor in his back yard in Pocatello. I can remember swinging with great gusto when Grandpa pulled the car into the adjacent driveway. As he drew up next to me, he honked the horn and made me jump three inches from the wooden seat of that homemade swing!!
My dad's parents were also wonderful grandparents, and I have great memories of visiting their house in Pocatello. This is Grandma Duerden with me and my brother, Sterling, ... it looks like she was showing us some photographs.
That was one thing about Grandma Duerden: she would get right down on the floor with us.
Her hair hadn't gone completely white yet! I'm sure that I thought I was playing Chinese Checkers with Grandma, but it was really my sister, Karen, calling the moves for me. That would've been my only chance at a decent game! It was never a visit to Grandpa & Grandma Duerden's house, without playing Chinese Checkers on their homemade game board. I also have memories of re-organizing fruit magnets on the refrigerator, walking to the nearby A&W for root beer, and playing in the shade of the big apricot tree, wondering if "popcorn" ever really popped there.
With all of my grandparents gone, I have a great appreciation for the grandparent-grandchild relationship. Where am I going with this?
Well, at least once a week -- sometimes more often -- Emma really gets some one-on-one time with her grandparents. Since my parents are gone, it is really up to Todd's parents to fill that role in her life, and I have to say that they're doing a fabulous job of it.
Emma goes visiting as a change-of-pace from spending mornings with me at work. Most times, her visits include a tea party with Grandma (and anyone else they can rope into joining them). She also plays princesses, puzzles, dolls, and likes building big castles with the wooden blocks:
Castle styles vary, depending on which grandparent is the construction consultant:
I love that Todd's parents have always been interested and involved with all of their grandkids. I love that they take the time and get down on the floor, just like my grandma used to do. And I love the joy on Emma's face when she knows she's going to visit her grandparents.
A couple of amazing people, and I'm so grateful to have them in our lives!
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