Saying goodbye is hard.

I consider myself a very lucky person.  I still have 3 living grandparents I have been able to know all of my great grandparents on some level, even if it was not for a long time.  With saying that I am very sad to have to lay my last living grand parent to rest.  Last night my great grandmother passed away, like I said I am very lucky to have had her in my life until my mid 20's.  The picture above is Michael and I at Christmas this year with her, I am going to miss that.  Unfortunately I don't know much about my great grandmother, but I do know that she was a caring woman, she raised 7 children, owned cafe, and was a politicians wife.  My great grandfather was the Justice of the Peace for Kyle for many years.  I know that my great grandma holt was the "kissing bandit" because she would like to give everyone kisses when they came around.  I warned Michael about it when we first starting dating, and he lovingly always gave her several kisses when we were around her.  Also I know that she very much enjoyed the company of Michael's grandmother that we brought around to family gatherings.  They were close in age and would sit together and gaggle like little school girls.  If makes me happy knowing that I was able to give her a friend to talk to even for a short time, I am going to be sad when I have to tell Michael's grandmother.

Last night on the way to the hospital to see my family Michael was recounting a memory that he has of Great Grandma Holt and I think he needs to be shared.  He said at either this Christmas or her birthday he walked in to give her a hug and kiss and she kissed him on one cheek, well he jokingly told her to even it out and kiss him on the other cheek.  Of course Grandma agreed after all she loved her kisses.  Later on that evening when we were leaving Michael went back to tell Grandma bye and she kissed him on the cheek, well he teased her again that she needed to even it out.  Grandma told him he was greedy and Michael said she had to help him out he would be walking lopsided if she didn't kiss him on the other cheek, well Grandma gave him another kiss (we all know that she would).  Laughingly Michael told her he bet he could get another one, and sure enough the "Kissing Bandit" puckered up and gave Michael a big kiss on his cheek.  So my husband got 5 kisses from Grandma that night, I think it might be a record who knows.  I laughed and told Michael between Grandma Holt's kisses and Ashlyn telling me Michael was going to marry her I'm a lucky woman that he even married me.  I mean I had some hard competition.  I am going to miss walking in to wherever Grandma was and the first thing that you do is go and give her a kiss.  Those small moments are something that I am going to cherish, and feel so lucky to have had for as long as I did.

It was very strange last night going to the hospital, I kept telling myself I was going to go in and give Grandma a hug and kiss and everything was going to be okay, but sadly that was not the case.  However I was and we are all very lucky to have such a large family and last night I think how we all were is how Grandma would have wanted it.  The family that was able to all went over to her house and we just sat and talked and laughed, and cried.  I believe that is how Grandma wants us to be she wants us to mourn the loss of such a loving woman, but remember all the sweet memories that we have with her, and to share that as a family and to laugh together and love together.

I am very sad to have lost my great grandmother but I know that she lived a fullfilled life and I know that we are so very lucky to have had her with us as long as we did.  I am sure that she is enjoying being with her husband and other family and friends again.  I'm sad that my future children will not have gotten to know their Great Great Grandmother, but I am also fortunate that we have such a young family that they will get to know their Great great aunts and uncles, their great aunts and uncles, their massive amounts of cousins, their great grandparents and their grandparents.  Thank you Great Grandma Holt for the memories, we love you and will miss you.