Grandma Jean

A couple weeks ago my grandma had a stroke. As of right now she's in a rehab facility doing her therapy and trying to get better. It's not easy for a person her age, but she's a tough cookie. If you think of her, please, please, please pray for her healing!

During these last few weeks my mind has been flooded with memories of my grandma. I can't help but look back at the impact she has had on my life over the past 23 years. I think I have as many memories with my grandma as I do my mom and dad. My dad lived with her from the time I was 4 years old until I was 21. So as you can imagine I was able to spend a lot of time with her.

I love my grandma's history. She's lived through a lot and has a lot of wisdom to bestow. Grandma Jean was 1 out of 14 kids. She grew up on a farm in Nebraska. Every Summer my grandma would take her grandkids out to Nebraska for the annual family reunion. It was a huge deal. We had lots of cousins and aunts and uncles and it was so much fun getting to spend an entire weekend at the lake getting to know them. I've been so incredibly blessed to get to know my extended family and my family history. It's something most people don't get to experience first hand. It was one of my grandma's goals in life to make sure her grandchildren knew each other, I think she did a beautiful job of accomplishing that goal.

When I was in the 4th grade my grandma told me she was going to move 4 hours north to Casper, Wy. I remember sitting on my bed crying because I didn't want her to move. I was fortunate because it wasn't until 2 years ago that she actually did make the move. However, now that she's going through all of this it's hard to be away from her.

This was the day after I got engaged, Aug. 2006

The last time I saw my grandma, Aug. 2010