Aging is an art

This weekend I had the privilege to spend time with my grandparents.  I hadn't been able to get back there in 18 months and the minute I pulled in their driveway  I remembered why I shouldn't let so much time go between visits.  My grams and gramps(sans walker) were waiting for me and my Elaina just like they did when I was a child, looking out the door.  A tear came to my eye realizing how fast time ages you when you are in your 80's and your health starts to get the best of you.  Gramps shed a tear when he saw Elaina and I. I gave him a great big hug to say I'm so glad I got to see you again.  Now grams hasn't changed much but I can see by the way she carries herself that her aches and pains have gotten a little worse not that she would ever really complain. I enjoyed my chats with her and listening to her frustrations as well:(

We started off the night with Beef Tenderloin filets that I picked up from Costco(my favorite store).  Gramps has to watch his sodium content and can't have potassium so grams soaked are potatoes for 4 hours so that the potassium would bleed out of it.  I slow grilled the filets and made a salad for grams, Elaina, and I. Gramps gets to just have ice berg lettuce since he can't have Vitamin K as well. Talk about a labor of love that my grams gives to my gramps.  She has to watch everything that goes into gramps mouth and she doesn't typically eat anything that he can't have.  The exception being the yummy salad with all the fixings i made that night.  I bought all of my vegetables from Whole Foods(my other favorite store) except the Butter lettuce(Costco).

The next day I took grams for a little get of the house outing since she doesn't like to drive. We ran to Cedar Rapids to Wal Mart to get her laundry detergent for the whole winter and some other things for dinner. We were only gone for about an hour and 15 so that gramps wouldn't worry.  On Sunday morning we got up and went to church. To this day she loves to show off her family and how proud she is of them.  I love to watch grams pray. She has prayed the same since I was a little girl, those hands make me smile just thinking about them. They tell a story that I only wish I knew more about.

Aging truly is an art..after watching my grams take care of my gramps while dealing with her own aches and pain. As a mother, I realize it takes a village to raise my children but as a grandchild I realized it also takes a village to make sure your grands don't get lost in the business of living.  It is our responsibility to help by checking in once in awhile and taking the load off by sending care packages, visiting and getting them out of the house, and just being present in their lives.  If you have aging parents and grandparents take time to check in.  It will benefit you as much as it benefits them and it also is a very important teaching tool in raising empathetic children.

Have a blessed day and make time for a phone call or a letter, sooner than later!