The Winners but the Biggest Winner - Me

Tonight I've finally got the winners of my Scent of Lilacs Celebration Giveaway. It wasn't easy, let me tell you. I pick the winners by random numbers. Each e-mail I get goes into a special folder and the sender gets numbered according to when I receive the e-mail. Well, imagine my extreme distress this a.m. when I click on that folder and it shows a number as to how many e-mails are stored there, but then instead of the messages coming up this little box comes up that says the folder is empty. All the other mail folders work fine. Messages pop right up. Panic time!! I thought I might have to wade through all my sent e-mails to try to figure out which of you had entered the contest. But then I tried my iPhone and wonder of wonders the messages came up in the folder on it. Not sure how or why that happened or why they don't show up on my desk computer or my laptop, but do on the phone, but I'm just glad they did. I'm going to tell you who won. Really, I promise I am! But first let's enjoy two more grandmother stories. 

Donna shares a wonderful story of how sometimes the Lord blesses us in the midst of troubling times when the last thing we're expecting are blessings. Here's her story -

 I have many stories I could tell of my grandmothers, but my greatest grandmother blessings I actually received as an adult.  Following a stroke (her granny's stroke), I helped my dad and my aunt care for my granny by staying 2-3 nights a week with her.  I would work all day in a classroom, drive a morning & afternoon bus route, then go to my granny's house, cook supper, and then do whatever granny needed, which most nights had to do with quilting. She couldn't cut fabric anymore, nor use her sewing machine, but she could still hand piece and quilt. So many times I would be so tired and not want to set up a new quilt top in the frames or cut out quilt squares & place in ziplock baggies so she wouldn't get confused. I didn't realize it at the time, but while I did these things for her, she was bestowing on me the blessings of knowing the stories of her life. She gave me the desire to write and share similar hardships, trials, faith, & love with others. Later at her bedside as she was going to sit at the feet of Jesus, I realized that she became an integral part of the woman I had become. 

Next Rosemary shares how an object can keep memories alive for us.  

"I would like to share a little story about my grandmother. Us kids 

 would go over to visit and she would give us slices of fresh homemade Portuguese bread, with butter on it and serve us little tea cups with tea in it. We would sit with her in her favorite chair which was in the kitchen. She had a large black iron stove that had the metal round tops that would come off. You must be able to picture the stove I am talking about; anyway, we would be warm and cozy. That same chair we sat on with her, my mom sat in it and would watch out the window to see if the bus was stopping to see if my dad was coming to visit, he was a sailor and stationed in Boston Massachusetts - 1951 ...  yep !!!  well, I sat with my grandmother in that chair, and I fed and rocked my granddaughter in that same chair, reupholstered, in 2003 and I still have that chair in my sitting room!!!  I love that chair and its memories!!!!

And I have loved the memories and stories of your grandmothers. I read every one of them, often with a smile and sometimes with a nod of the head that yes, I have felt some of the same things you felt. You have all been such a blessing to me that I am, without a doubt, the biggest winner tonight. Thank you! 

But there are a few of you who are also winners. Drum roll, please! The 1st place winner of the lilac Grandmother's Bible is Sharma D. of KY. The two 2nd place winners are Diane K. (not sure which state yet) and Rita W. of CA. They will get a grab bag book by a Christian author and their choice of one of my books. And Tawnya P. of  WI won't be able to say "I never win" any longer. She wins the lilac candle and her choice of one of my books. I've sent all of you winners e-mails and I'm waiting to hear back from you which books you are choosing as your prizes.

Now what memories should I ask you to share with me on my next Celebration giveaway? 

Memory is a way of holding onto the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose.  ~From the television show The Wonder Years 

Grandmothers Say the Funniest Things

All right, what funny things did your grandmother say? I know there's probably something. Some odd turn of phrase or perhaps mispronunciation, something that still makes you smile when you remember. Jackie called her grandmother's wise little saying "grandma-isms." So here are a few of those grandma-isms I gleaned out of your e-mails and comments.

Susan said her grandmother would load down the table with food and then say, "If there's something you want that's not here, just tell me and we'll hunt it up!"

LuAnn's grandmother-in-law said this to LuAnn's husband because he had waited so long to bring his family to visit her. "I oughtta throw you across the yard." 

Sandi says her grandmother was ready with "that'll do" whenever they were "acting up." I heard that one some when I was a kid and know I said it a few times myself. My mom was also fond of "cut the comedy." Her father told her the same thing and she said she got in a lot of trouble once when she told him she would if he'd let her have the scissors. I knew better than to ask for the scissors.

Teresa says her grandmother's favorite saying was that she "loved us all the same." And that she meant it even if she did have 50 grandchildren to love the same. She'd stand at the door and kiss every child who came through the door. 

 Patty used to spend the night with her grandma and no matter the temp outside she would load the bed with quilts. Patty says, "She would have so many of those heavy quilts on the bed I couldn't move! When I thought she was asleep I would wiggle out from under those quilts (not only were they heavy, I was burning up. Summer is way to hot for quilts!) get cooled off and comfortable and then I would hear grandma say "poor little thing is going to get cold" and all those quilts would cover me up! 


It's a fact that grandparents are determined to not let their grandkids catch a chill. My father-in-law used to build up the fire until we'd be roasting and thinking it might be good to go sit on the front porch in the middle of January. But he made sure the "babies" didn't get cold.

My aunt who was like a grandmother to me said "bum" for bomb. Every time I heard her I had to think twice about what she meant. She also liked to say "You'll never notice it on a galloping horse" whenever a seam in something I was sewing wasn't perfect. And when we took sponge baths at her house, she'd tell us to wash as far down as possible and then as far up as possible and then wash possible. 

My other grandmother was famous for saying "Go to sleep. You'll feel better in the morning" whenever any of her children complained with any kind of ache or pain. I've been known to say the same and more often than not, it turned out to be true. One of my other favorite sayings for my kids was "If you don't like, don't eat it." I don't say that to the grandkids as much. I just ask if they'd like a little candy instead. :) My kids have plenty of my oddities to grin about, but if they get to grinning too much, I'll just tell them to cut the comedy and dare them to ask for the scissors.
  
I want to thank all of you for sharing your grandmothers with me. Some shared about loved ones who acted the grandmother role for them. Others of you shared how you never knew your grandparents but that you were making the most of being grandmothers yourself. I always enjoy my giveaways more when the stories come in with the entries. You didn't have to share a grandmother story to enter, but I'm glad a lot of you wanted to walk down memory lane and remember your grandmothers. I also hope you've enjoyed the stories I was able to share forward.

Monday I'll be drawing for the winner of the lilac Grandmother's Bible, so there are still a few days to throw your name in my hat if you haven't already entered. The picture up top is the Bible open to one of the devotionals "The Art of Grandparenting." I'm quite confident that many of you have that art figured out.

Thanks for reading and I'd love to hear something your grandmother said that maybe made you smile.

A Jewel of a Grandmother

"The history of our grandparents is remembered not with rose petals but in the laughter and tears of their children and their children's children. It is into us that the lives of grandparents have gone. It is in us that their history becomes a future." ~Charles and Ann Morse

One more week to enter my Scent of Lilacs Celebration Giveaway, so if you haven't entered yet, you still have time. Just send me an e-mail form my website or leave a comment here with a way to contact you should you be one of the winners. And tell me about your grandmothers if you want. 

I have had such a great time reading about the grandmothers who have blessed your lives and about the blessing you hope to be to your own grandchildren. I hope you're not tired of grandmother stories, because I have a wonderful story to share tonight. In Scent of Lilacs, there's an older character named Aunt Love who is anything but a loving grandmother figure. She's crochety and beginning to lose her memory. She drives Jocie crazy, but there are things Jocie doesn't know about Aunt Love.

That can be so very true about all our grandparents and great aunts and uncles. We don't know their whole stories. I'm not sure we can ever know anybody's whole story no matter how many of those stories they've shared with us. That's true with the story BH shares about her grandmother who experienced some hard times through no fault of her own, but her family loved her and helped her through her troubles. It wasn't until much later that BH knew more about her grandmother's story, but she always cherished the one visit she had with her when she was a child. A visit that it turned out her grandmother cherished just as much. Here's her story.

Never really having grandparents in my life, as my maternal grandparents had passed on in my early age leaving me, an only child, with only my paternal grandmother who lived in another state. My father was her only child.

A very reserved and quiet lady who never really talked much, she lived in the family home which was 150 yrs. old with my aunt and uncle who lovingly watched over her. She loved collecting costume jewelry and would sometimes take the necklaces and bracelets she received apart and restring them into new and unique pieces.

One Christmas my parents decided to take the long trip to Iowa and visit everyone. There were no young cousins or children around so I spent a lot of time with my dolly sitting on the couch with my grandmother watching her restring all her beautiful baubles. She amazed me with her smooth graceful hands and fingers and the way she made each one look so beautiful, never saying a word, just smiling with seeing what she had just created.

After a couple days of sitting and watching her, she asked me if I would like to make something. Of course I was thrilled but scared I might break her precious jewels. She slowly guided me on how to hold the needle without sticking myself and how to slide each gem and pearl into its rightful place.

That first necklace was full of many colors and I felt so proud of how beautiful it had turned out. In making it, I would look up at her and she would smile, never saying a word, but I knew she was pleased and that made me very proud of my new learned craft. The second necklace I made she told me I could have and take home. The first necklace I liked the best but she said she wanted to keep it. I wasn’t sure why and didn’t question her reason, just feeling happy that I could wear one and take it home with me.

Our stay was short and we never visited again until I was grown & married with our daughters. My girls loved our visits each summer back to Iowa and watching our Grammy restring her jewels.

When she passed on, my aunt gave me her old cedar jewelry box full of many pieces of jewelry. I noticed a couple pieces we had sent her for her birthday and Christmas that she had never taken apart to restring. Plus, there was that first little necklace I had made that Christmas. When I mentioned that to my aunt, she said the ones we'd given her were her very favorite pieces that she wore to church each Sunday. That really touched my heart to think she cherished those the most and had also kept that little necklace I had made while sitting next to her on the couch that Christmas.

To this day I can still see my Grammy sitting on that couch, restringing her beautiful treasures with that smile on her face and feeling grateful she and I had that short time to get to know one another and share her beloved hobby.

Thank you for letting me share a very fond and loving memory of my grandmother~

And thank all of you for sharing your grandmother stories with me. I couldn't share them all forward, but I hope you've enjoyed the ones I have shared. If your grandparents are still living and able to share their stories, I hope you will take time to enjoy the treasure of their memories.


Grandmothers Matter

A garden of Love grows in a Grandmother's heart. ~ Unknown

Grandmothers do matter. That they matter a lot has certainly been clear from all the wonderful grandmother stories I'm receiving. Even those of you who didn't really have a chance to know your grandmothers, realize you missed out on something special and now you're making up for your loss by being wonderful grandmothers to your own grandchildren. 

The lilac Grandmother's Bible would be so perfect for many of you. It's a big print edition and truly a lovely Bible. And I did find a lilac scented candle to give to the winner of the "never win anything" contest. If you haven't entered yet, you still have time. Just shoot me an e-mail from my website or leave a comment here with a way to get in touch should you win. Four prizes total, counting the runner-up prizes. Get the full details on my events page on my website. Just remember to tell me you never win if you never win!

Also have a few blog visits going with chances to win a copy of Scent of Lilacs. Check out my guest posts. "Dark Valley Roads and Bright Mountain Trails" on A Fictional Life  or "Heart of Hollyhill" on Giveaway Lady.

Now on to a grandmother story. First Margie tells us about her remarkable grandmother.

I was born in the home of my maternal grandmother in 1950. One of my aunts and a cousin’s wife acted as midwives….more than likely delivered me before the doctor could make it the 10 or so miles to her house…since there was no telephone, someone had to be dispatched to fetch him! I spent my first 5 years living in Grandmama’s house with my Dad, Mom, older sister, and 2 younger brothers. How I loved my Grandmama! She was widowed shortly after the end of WWII, finished raising their 10 children on her own, never had a job outside the home, and never learned to drive a car. As a tribute to her, all of her children grew up to become productive members of society. There were 6 boys and 4 girls. At least 4 of the boys served in WWII and all the girls learned to cook, sew, can, and quilt. I have wonderful memories of Sunday gatherings at Grandmama’s when all the children and their children would come. That old house overflowed with people, laughter, and love!! My Grandmama was always the heart of our family and we still have a reunion every May in her honor. She was a redhead and she was strong-willed, tough, and independent…and she followed her heart! Her parents had arranged for her to marry a wealthy member of their close-knit community, but just days before their wedding, she eloped with the man who, though many years her senior, was the love of her life. She bore him 12 children and all but 2 survived. She was a woman with an indomitable spirit who taught me many life lessons sitting on her front porch. She’s been gone home to glory for over 30 years and I still miss her so much. There’s going to be a lot of catching up to do when I get home.

 
This comment I got today from Robin. It's short, but it says so much about grandmothers and something I've heard over and over from so many of you - how your grandmothers were faithful Christian examples to you.

"My grandmother was a very strong influence in my life & brought me to the Lord. She has been gone for 35 years now, I still miss talking with her." 

 

That comment made me remember my husband's mother. She loved the grandkids calling her Mama Chris. She was an example of Christian faithfulness to her children and grandchildren. She moved on up to heaven several years back, but we have many wonderful stories to remember her by. She had dementia and ended up in a nursing home after having her leg amputated due to diabetes. But the Lord blessed her with peace of mind in her forgetfulness and she was never agitated or unhappy the way my mother often is. In ways, it was a blessing that she didn't remember because she had long had a horror of having her legs amputated because of diabetic complications. She never seemed to realize her legs were gone. Another blessing. Before she had to go in the nursing home, she went with me to a lot of Darrell's singings. By then, she was already forgetting what she'd said and tended to say the same things when she saw certain things along the road. I rarely go through where a hill has been blasted away to make a straight road without remembering how she would say, with a hint of awe, "We'd have never known all these rocks were under the ground if it weren't for these roads." Other times she'd look at all the cars on the road and say, "I don't know how the gas holds out." But my favorite was when we'd get to church and it would be raining and I would have forgotten the umbrella. She'd smile and say, "It's okay. We're Baptists. We're not afraid of the water." She was a wonderful mother and mother-in-law who loved her grandchildren and loved to laugh. 

 
If nothing is going well, call your grandmother. -Italian Proverb

Thanks for reading. What fun things did your grandmothers say?