In Loving Memory

February 23rd will never be forgotten. First off, it is the day that we buried my dad in 2003. Second of all, it is the day my mother-n-law passed away. I was sitting down at my scrappy desk when the phone call came, it was  a little after 6:00, my husband's brother, telling me that their mom isn't going to make it through the night. My husband was sleeping and I had to wake him up to tell him. I had a few moments at my desk, pulled myself together and woke him up. The next couple of hours were a little bit of blur, rambling, discussing things, Dan getting ready to go to the hospital. He left around 8:00, we just told Danny that he had to go into work early. Dan called me a little after 9:00, he couldn't speak and I knew. He missed seeing his mom by 10 minutes, then the what ifs began. We decided to keep Danny home from school on Friday and we would tell him together. We both pulled ourselves together the best that we could and told Danny that his Granny had passed. This is the first close death Danny has ever experienced. Danny did wonderfully on Sunday and Monday. He had his moments as all of us did. He wrote his Granny the most beautiful letter and laid it on top of her. When he said his final goodbyes, he held her hand as he wept. WOW! What a kid, something that I could never do.
My mother-n-law had 8 children, her oldest son, Buddy, passed away when he was young. She raised 7 kids. 5 boys and 2 girls. Not an easy task from some of the stories I've heard over the years. I met Renee in 1993. The year that Dan and I started dating. Her and her husband had moved to Florida and would stay in our driveway in their camper during the summer. Those summers were enjoyable. I enjoyed sitting outside talking to her and Bud. Renee and I would sit at the picnic table long after dark and just chat, the two of us, the guys would give up and go inside.
The only thing in life she ever wanted to be was a wife and a mom. She excelled at both. Renee had a love for life like no one I have ever known. Nothing gave her more pleasure than to see all of her kids and grand kids together. She loved her children, but loved her grandchildren even more.
Never keep words unspoken. I did. Renee was a fantastic mother-n-law, never interfered. At times the normal mother-n-law things would come up, but they never were a big deal. Renee would always thank me. She thanked me for filling a hole in her son's heart, for making a difference in his life. She thanked me for Danny. Her beautiful grandson. But you see, I never got to thank her. As I said my last goodbye, I thanked her for my guys. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't have them. And they are my world.
Danny will improve over time. The nights are hard for him. I printed this picture for him and he has it above his pillow. He turns on a little battery operated tea light candle and keeps it in front of the photo.

Last night I felt out of sorts. Trying to get back to the every day schedule. Reflecting back on moments in my memory bank. One of the challenges at Crafting By Designs was to create a project by refurbishing items. Years ago, Renee gave me her sewing box. I cringed, I can't sew. Sewing a button puts me over the edge. I went downstairs and opened her sewing box. I looked at everything. I chose a few items and went to work. I cut the base from a piece of heavy, heavy card stock. I have about 100 sheets that I've been saving. I then covered with a piece of paper from a sewing pattern that she had saved. The buttons came from her little button container and I cut apart the packaging of a Talon Zipper. The zipper only cost .10 cents at the time! I cut the Talon label from the packaging.The lace came from her envelope of odds & ends pieces.  The flowers, pearls and fiber are from my own stash. I know if my mother-n-law were here, she would have loved it.