Mother's Day 2008

Shayla made Mother's Day special, as only a child could! In the morning she gave me the gift I knew was coming. (Having taught in the primary with her teacher for about 15 years, and having Christi with the same teacher, I was certain it was the lovely homemade construction paper flower bouquet those 3rd graders make every year and it was!)

What Shayla did not know was that Christi absolutely hated her gift to me that year so she hid it under her bed and made me something different when she was eight in 2005. I loved it and didn't understand why Christi didn't like it, but Christi said she messed up on it and it was terrible. Little did she know I got it out from under her bed and I myself hid it in a bathroom cupboard until about 4 months after her death. Ever since then, her bouquet of flowers has been sitting in my NYC cup in our bathroom. I knew it would eventually get faded and destroyed in our bathroom, but I was willing to have that happen to get to enjoy it for a bit. This morning I realized just how faded Christi's is and Shayla loved hearing the story about her sister.

(PICTURE: 2004 in my old kindergarten classroom after school) Christi got me good Sunday! There was no way I knew I could make it out to the cemetery on Mother's Day or her Birthday. Because of the incredible amount of work I have to do for my final classes right now, and the large amount of laundry I needed to catch up on (We recently had to put in a new well. Thankfully, our water problems are now over and I'm no longer showering at the YMCA in the mornings, but it was a long, crazy, expensive month!) we drove separate to Carey to take my mom (Nonee) and Joe out for lunch. (If you are close by, make a trip to "Moreno's" downtown. It was fabulous!!) I didn't know the way so I followed Shayne. He was then taking Shayla off to Crestline to visit with his mom (Nee Nee) and grandma while I headed back home to study. I said I would follow the TomTom (GPS) Shayne's mother bought us for Christmas and see how that sent me back home. About 15 minutes into my journey, I realized I was going to go right past the cemetery. How could I drive by and not stop? Never. I pulled in, chuckling to myself that Christi tricked me into coming to see her on Mother's Day, despite the cold rain and the fact I was muttering to myself, "I should be visiting my grandma's grave NOT my daughter's!! This is so wrong!"

Shayla & Nonee (Mother's Day 2008)There was another sweet, sweet surprise that really got to me too. In my van, I had flowers to put on my Grandmother's grave. Pushed into the ground on Christi's place were the same, exact flowers I bought for Grandma!! Wild, eh?! Christi & Grandma have matching flowers! I have no idea who was the sweet angel on earth who put them there, but thank you so much! (They were not there late Thursday afternoon.) Oh, I could hear Christi giggling and that is a wonderful thing because I sometimes worry that I will forget the sound of her giggle. And what a great giggle she had!!