My Boomerang Daughter is Boomeranging Out!

Things all work the way they are supposed to, like hammers on piano strings.

I said that there were big changes at Little House and the biggest one of all is that our eldest daughter who boomeranged home several years ago is taking flight. She was our Peter Pan that wasn't in a rush to grow up and guess what?  She has a grown up boyfriend who is a widower and comes complete with a family.  Talk about growing up fast now!!  She is quickly moving into the role of step-mother to three children, ages 8, 10 and 18.

This didn't fit my idea of how love was to find her, and yet, over time we are all adjusting to the changes and my neighbor and I are now seeing that she seems the perfect fit for this family. She is a very smart young woman, and though I brag, I was never so shocked to find out just how smart she is, as she truly didn't get it from me! She has been more than a challenge to raise, usually being a step ahead of me, and now I see that "what goes around, comes around" and have to sit back and smile as I see God's justice in all of this!

These children definitely need a mother in their life and she is ready to meet that challenge, albeit, more on some days than others!  Our relationship has moved into woman-to-woman relating, and I am suddenly appreciated for the mother that I have been to her.  I don't think anything is more rewarding than to see your values being re-lived out right in front of your very eyes. And for how many years did I wonder if they had fallen on deaf ears? Not only is there an increased love and appreciation between my daughter and I, but she is bringing new hearts into our family!  How blessed we are!

The tuning pegs on our piano, like us needing to get tuned for our new roles.

I am so grateful to friends that have encouraged me through this growth process. They have assured me that no matter if "genetically linked or not", God usually surprises us with the very sorts of children/ grandchildren that will push us into areas that are beyond our comfort zone.  Isn't that the truth!!??

While I am sad to have missed their days as babies, I am under no illusion that those days would have been easier, as colic ran in our family, or was it congenitally acquired Lyme? My oldest cried straight for three months and our second for six! We weren't so sure, at first, that these children weren't exchanged in the hospital and likewise we weren't sure we were meant to be step grandparents to these children. They definitely had/have some issues due to their mother taking ill and dying when they were so young, but truly my daughter is becoming a great step mother. They have taken to her like ducks take to water! She captured their hearts and now they are capturing ours! We are ready to love them no matter what, and we notice that, miraculously, they seem to be as accepting of us.

Making music takes contact and practice, not unlike new relationships.

This has not come without other changes that will have to be reported on later but suffice it to say that our house is beginning to breathe a sigh of relief as my daughter is packing up all that she has packed in here the past several years.  Her art supply collection as well as her own material collection and books will soon occupy space elsewhere, freeing up a couple of rooms and many a shelf in other parts of the house!  We are looking forward to creating a little den to act as TV and game room to the eight and ten year old boys and we plan for it to double as a guest room and then we will have another spare bedroom besides and hope that some of our friends will come and visit us here in beautiful Vermont.

Yes, this room will soon breathe a sigh of relief...too much in too little space!

My daughter and I are very close and we are enjoying each other more now than before. I have never seen her so happy and it spills over.  We are still canning, and sewing and creating together! It is interesting to see that her changes are begetting more changes as well...if you don't believe it, stay tuned for my new blog! It is coming to you soon!! We are embracing changes in our lives and seem to both be on a  roll, for more are in the works!

I think I fell in love with these little boys when my daughter took them, my other daughter and myself to see the new Disney movie, Inside Out!  The characters were right there in front of us on the screen, as well as sitting next to us. How quick they were to see themselves and see how Sadness is needed for Joy and mix Fear, Anger and Disgust into it all and how quickly our minds can become derailed!...Aren't we each a mixture of them all?  I had to let go of some pre-conceived notions about my future grandchildren and they were, in turn, still grieving the loss of their mother and past.  We are all moving forward and opening our hearts to new relationships, loves and joys. We are now wrapping our arms around these dear children and blessings are flowing both ways!

Their eighteen year old sister is "a sweet princess" as well as a headstrong young woman.  What isn't to love about her when she invites you to her prom march and comes to your house to try on her new ball gown and get your approval? My daughter is up to the challenges ahead with this child as well. Graduating from college eleven years ago, made it such that my daughter was able to help her apply for scholarships and encourage her to keep on learning!  This has been a real joy for my daughter as well as her future step-daughter!

These Lego characters,not unlike my little alien step-grandchildren!

The boys decided it would not be a good idea to send their faces into cyberspace, learning all that they have about safety and the internet, and though their sister is likely more than willing, I decided that that I didn't want to encourage followers for all the wrong reasons.  Suffice it to say the boys and teenage daughter are smarter and better looking than average! I did tell them about my intentions to write a blog about how special it is that they have come into our lives and they seem to be quite excited about having another set of grandparents to dote on them...of course it has nothing to do with the fact that I am keeping well supplied with ice-cream and candy bars...just a cheap trick I have learned from some other grandmothers I know.

Grandmother love-bribes, how sweet they can be!!

When my kids were growing up we had a used book, called Kevin's Grandma, where Kevin would "one-up" the other kid's stories about their grandmothers.  Instead of baking cookies, Kevin's grandma would take him to karate classes  and then out for Chinese food on her motorcycle...Well, I won't go that far, but I did take the front off our old upright piano to show them the inside of it so they could see how the little hammers hit the strings.  I wonder if that will put me in the category of being like Kevin's Grandma? I hope so...

Can I become a "cool" like Kevin's Grandma?...I hope so!