Happy Birthday, Mama!

Project 365 * 4
Day 433

     We celebrated my mom's birthday today! It's always super fun to have a big birthday celebration. We had lots of fun. We laughed a lot. We played with our four very rambunctious kids. We had homemade pizza. And a chocolate birthday cake with vanilla ice cream. It was a good day. We've always loved birthdays around here. But I don't think it's the actual birthday party that we love so much. It's the person that we are celebrating that makes the day so special.

     Thankful for special days set aside to celebrate the people we love. Thankful for birthday parties. Thankful for homemade pizza and chocolate cake. And ice cream. Seriously, ice cream is the best. I would swim in ice cream if I could. Thankful for my incredible mama. She makes everything good. Being with her makes me feel at home. I would be lost without her. Love her so much.

52 People I Love

     My grandparents came over to celebrate my mom's birthday today, and because he is so sweet, and kind, and loving, I've decided to write about my grandfather, Poppy, this week. He is my grandfather not by blood, but by marriage. A fact that no one in my family cares about at all. When I think about the fact that we are not blood relatives, I think of this quote by Friedrich von Schiller: "It is not the flesh and blood, but the heart which makes us fathers and sons." It is the heart which makes us grandfather and granddaughter. My Poppy taught me about the great outdoors. He taught me about planting things. He taught me about trees. I'll never forget taking a taste of a not yet ripe persimmon off one of his persimmon trees. The strangest feeling my tongue has ever felt. Like all the moisture left my mouth immediately and was replaced with a non-sticky, but at the same time sticky, dry sensation. Strangest thing ever. He spent time taking care of his trees and his plants. I loved that about him. I loved the hats and overalls he would wear to garden in. Vegetables and fruits grown by my grandfather remain among the best vegetables and fruits I have ever tasted. I have so loved being my grandfather's granddaughter. I loved my days spent at my grandparent's house. And weeks spent at their house. Christmases. Easters. Snow days. Hot days. I absolutely love that my kids have a relationship with Poppy, too. They are always so excited to see Gamie and Poppy, and it makes my heart happy that my kids have great-grandparents.
 
     Thankful for Poppy. Thankful for his sweet, kind heart. Thankful for all the good memories I have of him. Thankful that he showed me all about plants and trees at such a young age. Maybe that is why trees are one of my favorite things today. I love trees. When I see a tree that I really love, I actually feel the urge to hug it. That's how much I love them. Thankful for all the times he has made me laugh. Thankful that he loves me, and our family, and my children so much. Thankful that it doesn't take flesh and blood to make two people family. So thankful for my Poppy. I am blessed to call him my grandfather.