Those of us closest to grandma know she is addicted. We have grown up in the shadow of this stronghold in her life. All of her children, grandchildren and now great-grandchildren are aware of the 7:00pm hour and what it does to her. We have only made the mistake once, if ever, of calling at that time.
Her obsession….’The Wheel of Fortune.’
This picture is of my husband Paul and Grandma playing a round of the game while family looked on. Grandma wanted to prove that at 87yrs old, she is still top dog. Paul went along with the fun and sat staring at her, while whispering loudly (remember she is pretty deaf), “I am getting into your head Mary!” The rest of us were rolling with laughter, when after one round, the clue was ‘Showbiz’ and the answer was supposed to be ‘Outtakes and Deleted Scenes’, my grandma blurted out, “Cattles and Deleted Smenes!” (Yes, that word was ‘Smenes’ pronounced ‘Smeanies’)
(My aunt taking pictures of Grandma with a few of her ‘great-granz’ as she calls them.)
My brother-in-law Eric and my sister Jennifer orchestrated this family event. You see since my mom died, seven years ago, we have really not been back to celebrate holidays with our extended family. Most contact with our cousins, aunts and uncles lives has been through our Grandma, via the telephone. On the drive in yesterday morning, I realized just how emotional it is for me to come back for a holiday visit. I cried quite a bit on the way in. Wondering to myself, “What the heck is wrong with me? Where are all these tears coming from?” All the while knowing what it was. Every thought in my head was of my mom and the holiday memories I had experienced for the first 33 years of my life. They were ALL at my grandma’s house. After we all got there, my grandma said to me over and over, “This is the best day of my life. I wish it would never end.” 
(This is a picture of us cousins. The cousins that weren’t able to be there…well, someone thought to grab 20yr old pictures of them so they could be included in the photo too!)
Going back to grandma’s yesterday was such a blessing. There was such joy. We laughed SO MUCH!!! The only sadness in the day was that my youngest sister and my mom’s youngest sister couldn’t make it with their families. I was so grateful that Eric and Jen pulled us all together. I pray our future holds many more opportunities to hang out at my addicted grandma’s house, as a family.
“Behold I am making all things new…” Rev.21:5
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