Merry Christmas Angel

It's been a few months since I've written, they say time flies when you're having fun and we've been having lots and lots of fun! In October we went to "The Gathering" at Uncle Russell's house. Every year in October Great Helen's brothers and sisters and their children and grandchildren get together for a great fall day of good food and fun.

We were extra excited this year because you were along. We're reminded when we are together that some have went to be with Jesus and it's kind of strange without them but at the same time it is such a blessing to see all of the little faces that are part of our family now because of them. As I grow older I find that God's plan for us makes perfect sense. I treasure the days that I spent with my Grandma Burkhart and remember so clearly the touch of her skin and the smell of her powder. Now I look at you and my cousins grandchildren knowing that because of her love and hard work our family remains strong. The memories and traditions that my brother and I and our cousin's shared will be recreated over and over again. It was a cool fall day with no rain this year as we gathered around tables getting ready to eat. Uncle Robert asked Mandy to say the prayer this year, it's all part of teaching and growing and making way for new life while preserving the things that we cherish. I believe that Grandpa Gordon and Grandma along with Uncle Howard and Aunt Rosie, Uncle Wilbert and cousin Barb's husband Steve were all sitting at a table in heaven watching us. And I bet Aunt Rosie said you look like me when I was a baby.





Halloween is always fun, I still dress up for work and decided to put my costume on again when you came over to pass out candy.

Your Mommy and Daddy took you to the Zoo and we went to Aunt Annies work for the car show. You went to a few of the neighbor's houses trick or treating, they thought you were the cutest little monster ever and so did I. When I was a kid my cousins and I would go trick or treating all week long in the country. Now you need to be more careful honey, not just with Halloween but all of the time. Plus there is a flu that people are getting called the H1N1 virus and it is very contagious so it's a good year to stay in and watch Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin on tv. Next year when you are a little bigger we will go more places.


Next came Thanksgiving and even though you can't have the turkey and mashed potatoes yet you did have some baby food and was at the table with the rest of us. You were at the top of the list of things to be thankful for this year. There is always something to be thankful for Liddy, not just on Thanksgiving Day but all through the year. Make sure that you count your blessings and say thanks for them everyday. Some days it's harder than others but I promise you can always find things to be thankful for. Start with God's greatest gift to us, the baby Jesus. Which brings us to Christmas!

It's the most wonderful time of the year, the time that we celebrate the birth of Jesus. I love the songs, the smells, the snow, the giving, the pretty decorations and I love you! You turned 6 months old on December 8th, you can almost sit up all by yourself. You have no problem rolling over, you love to giggle when we get your belly and scare you and you are the best at blowing rasberries. Still no teeth but it won't be long. Maybe Santa Claus will bring you a tooth! You have sit on Santa's lap two times already and he knows that you have been a very good girl. The first time that you saw him you grabbed his big white beard with your tiny little hand and pulled it.

He thought it was funny and laughed outloud and so did your Mommy and Daddy. You've been watching your Praise Baby dvd's alot so maybe he will bring you some more of those and I told him that you wanted a jack-in-the-box too.

We will come to your house on Christmas Eve to celebrate the Polish tradition that your Mommy has taught us. She will have the food prepared and we will sit around the table leaving an empty chair in case someone stops by that needs a meal. The wafers from Poland will be in the middle of the table and after we eat we will break them and share them with each other as we tell one another what a wonderful year it has been and wish each other blessings for next year, 2010. And you will be there with us and I will kiss you at least a hundred times because you are my precious little Grandaughter and you are such an important part of my life now and will be for the years to come. I will write to you again. Maybe not next month or the month after because we will be busy making memories. There is so much to do and so many things I want to teach you and share with you. I pray that God will continue to watch over you and help you to grow stronger each day. I will always be with you Liddy no matter what. Stay close to your Mommy and Daddy and obey them, be loving and thoughtful to people, live your life for God and always remember........ Grandma Loves You!

Handy Dandy Hands

You sure are a busy girl Liddy. This past Sunday (September 20th) was your baptism. You looked beautiful in your Christening gown that your Uncle Blue bought for you and sent from Poland. He is your God Father and Andrea is your God Mother. During the baptism you decided to sing the crying song almost the entire time. Your Mommy had warned the Pastor that you might decide to do that so he wasn't suprised. He went right ahead and held you and walked around with you a little bit after he sprinkled you and for a minute I think you forgot what you were singing and was quiet. We took some pictures and then after church went to your house to eat lunch.



Everyone was pretty tired because for the two days before that we were helping your Daddy move the big pole barn from the neighbors yard to your back yard. That was such a big big day. Your Grandpa Tonner and his friend Don came down with a big semi truck early in the morning. Grandpa Arnie, Grandpa Jarek and our neighbor John all came to help. The weather was perfect and I still can't believe that they moved that building in one piece!



So here it is the last full week of September, today is the first day of fall. Your Grandma Marzena and Grandpa Jarek have been here visiting but their vacation here will be over and they will be leaving to go back to Poland this Sunday. I know that you will miss them, we all will but time goes so fast that before you know it they will be here again or you will take a big big trip to visit them. .........

I had started this letter last week so now as I'm finishing it they are already home safe and sound. I stopped by your house yesterday on the way home to see you and got to help give you a bath! You sure are soft and slippery when you're wet. Normally you don't get your bath until later in the evening but you had a tummy ache and your Mommy said that sometimes the warm water makes you feel better. I'm pretty sure that she was right because after your bath you were much happier and was trying to tell me a story.


It's almost October and that means time for Halloween. We'll talk about decorations and trick or treat later but I just want you to know that I will go get that pink and purple monster costume that I was telling you about. The weather is getting very chilly already so I think that one will be good because it is warm and fluffy. Oh and your next doctor's appointment is just a few weeks away. This one will be better than the last one was because you won't have to have all of those shots plus I think you will find out that you can start eating cereal. You've been chewing on your toys and really wishing that they were cookies lately, probably because your teeth are starting to bother you. Growing can be a really big job for such a little girl and even though you are so smart you still have lots of things to learn. You've started looking at your hands like you don't know what they are or where they come from but they sure are fun little things. Those precious little hands will hold bottles and baby dolls, play patty cake, color and bake and do lots and lots of things. My Mommy's hands have done all of those things too. They have held me me when I was soft and slippery in the bath tub, picked me up when I fell off of the bicycle and skinned my knee, cooked meals and carried a Bible to church every Sunday. Here's a picture of you holding my Mommy's hand. You see, hands get even more precious as time goes by, it's probably from God holding them every day.


Grandma loves you!

Some things are worth crying for....

It almost seems wrong to write to you about such a tragic day that happened eight years ago today. You are so little and innocent and I want to protect you from all of the evil in the world but I know that's not possible. It is important though that you know how blessed you are to live in America. It is important for you to know that people give their lives every day for our freedom. It is important for you to know that this is the anniversary of the attack on the Twin Towers in New York City and that on that sad day our country was in shock, people died, family's lost loved ones and the security and freedom that we have enjoyed and taken for granted was threatened. We all remember where we were on the morning of 9/11 and we will never forget that day. We will never forget.

I was working in the building that your Daddy works in now. People started hearing things on the radio, we hurried to find a tv to turn on, we began calling our families. It was unimaginable, hard to process, I thought for a moment that it could be the end of time on earth. You'll read about it in history books I'm sure. You'll see pictures and read about how the events unfolded.

I don't know if your generation will feel the pain in your heart that I felt that day and still feel today as I think about it. But please know baby that the United States of America is a land blessed by God and worth defending and honoring. Learn the pledge of allegiance and put your hand on your heart when you say it. And sing My Country 'tis of thee loud and clear. In New York harbor stands a lady with her hand stretched to the sky holding a torch, she is our Statue of Liberty and she is magnificent. Our flag flying in the breeze is one of the most beautiful things in the world. It truly does stand for freedom that we will not allow to be taken away. The Star Spangled banner is our National Anthem and I'm not embarrased to admit that I cry when I hear it and sing it. Some things are worth crying for.



















Now speaking of crying we might as well talk about our little problem. I will take the blame because I was sick for 8 days and couldn't hold you or be very close to you. Of course I didn't want you to get my germs. Yesterday when I felt much better I was really excited to see you so your Daddy brought you over to play. Well, you know I was a little suprised to find out that instead of being happy to see me your cute little face puckered up and you just couldn't help but cry. I'm sorry but you're adorable when you cry. Even so I didn't want you sad so I tried absolutely everything to cheer you up but nothing was working. You were as mad as an old wet hen. Your Daddy took you home and we decided to try again today. Well, it was better but we still have a little ways to go and we will work on it again tomorrow. I'm pretty sure that you don't mean anything by it, maybe you are just frustrated that I didn't play with you for over a week. I wasn't very happy about that either. If that's it and your just mad and making your point I completely understand. It's like I said earlier honey, some things are worth crying for.

Grandma Loves You with all of her Heart...

What do ya get?

You really spoiled me this past weekend Liddy, we had hours of fun together. Great Helen and your Grandpa Tonner came to visit, it makes me happy that my Mommy can watch you grow. So not only did we get to have playtime on Saturday but you also came over to my house on Sunday for Grandpa Golden's birthday dinner. His birthday is actually today but Sunday's are good days to get together.

Did you notice the people working in your back yard? Your Daddy is putting a big pole barn behind the house. You might as well know that there will never be a dull moment with your Daddy around. He will always be buying or selling or building or fixing something. He's so much like your Grandpa Tonner. They love to work on scooters and snowmobiles or anything else they can get their hands on. You just never know what to expect. Your Mommy and Daddy saw a big racoon in the trash cans outside of your house so this weekend your Daddy sat a live trap that Grandpa Tonner brought him to catch it and take it away. Your Daddy called me at 1:00 in the morning Saturday to tell me the trap went off but guess what he caught? Not a racoon but a skunk! Well of course I didn't know what to tell him but your Grandpa Tonner knew exactly what to do. They put a cover over the cage and took the skunk for a ride in the country and left him loose. Now that's just the kind of thing I'm talking about Liddy, you never know what kind of mess them two will get you into. Well that story got us all talking about other things they had done and we had a good laugh about it. Remind your Daddy when you get older to tell you about the time that he helped Grandpa Tonner dehorn the calves. I know you are way too little now but trust me one day it will be funny to you. Great Helen had brought some pictures along of when your Daddy was a kid standing in a hole in the yard. Best they can remember is that he wanted to dig a hole so Grandpa Tonner dug a hole and filled it with water and left him play in the mud. I'll post a picture, I really don't think it needs anymore explanation. Twenty years later, things haven't changed much, if it's not holes and mud it's cages and skunks. So what do ya get when you cross a Tonner boy and his Father? Well it's a lifetime of fun that will teach you to love, laugh and live life to it's fullest. Wear your helmet on those scooters honey.

Love and Great Big Hugs, Grandma

A Month of Sundays

Hi Liddy, I'm sorry I haven't written for almost a whole month! There has been so much going on that I hardly know where to begin. The month of July started out with us all going camping, it was your first trip to Indian Lakes. Your Grandma Marzena and Great Helen had fun fishing and I think you really liked looking up at the trees, well at least until it started raining and then it poured for two days. I promise that we will go camping alot and you will have your very own fishing pole.

The next Sunday was your very first time in Sunday School. I took you with me to Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church. We sat in the back row and we visited the nursery and took your picture with the teacher. I've been going to that church off and on for several years but I've never talked to as many people there as I did that Sunday. They all wanted to see you and tell me how pretty and cute you are. The new Catholic Church by our house opened up that same day, I know that your Mommy wants to take you there soon. It doesn't matter which church you go to honey, they are all God's houses and it makes him happy when we go and sing songs to him.

And speaking of happy you sure are starting to smile alot! Certain things like your Mommy and Daddy talking to you make you smile everytime but once in awhile I get a special smile all to myself and it is sweeter than all of the chocolate pudding and marshmallows in the whole world!

I love to take you for walks in your stroller, sing 3 blind mice, kiss your little cheeks and rock you to sleep. Your little hands and legs are getting stronger and you love to stretch and grunt. Grandma's birthday was this past Sunday, August 2nd. Now I'm 49 years old, next year I'll be half way to one hundred! Great Helen, Leon, Uncle Russell, Aunt Becky, Mandy, Katie, Gabby, Kevin and Matthew all came to town and stayed for a few days. We had lots of fun at your house swimming and playing in the yard and we had lots of good food. Then on Monday we all went to the zoo for the whole day. It was fun but you were getting kind of sick of it around 2:00. I didn't blame you it was nice out but kind of windy and you''re really not too happy about wearing hats anymore.

That catches us up to August little Angel, I'll try not to wait so long to write again. I'm so excited about all of the things that we will be able to do together. For now we'll keep working on smiles, and soon we'll graduate to giggles.

Oh and PS..Ann moved into her own apartment a few weeks ago and so far she really loves it. I know you'll miss her at the house but we can go visit her anytime. She lives right beside Walmart so there is no reason that we can't stop and buy toys every time that we go there :)

Grandma Loves You!

EIEIO

You are so much fun! It was a rainy Saturday and we were all pretty lazy but I finally made it over to see you this evening. When I got there you were sleeping so I held you for awhile and talked to your Mommy. Once you woke up and we did a diaper change you and I and Kiley went outside. You love it outside. We talked about the sky and trees and birds. Your Grandma Marzena taught us the polish word for birds, ptak ( I don't know if that's the way you spell it). Then you were getting hungry so we went inside and Mommy gave us a bottle of magic milk. You get so excited and get to drinking so fast that sometimes you choke and get a little mad at me when you have to stop and burp. I just kiss you and get it back to you as soon as I can, you're just like the little birdies outside that have their mouths open wanting food to grow.

So then we changed your diaper and outfit and believe it or not you have outgrown one of your sleepers! Mommy said she thinks you weigh about 9 lbs. 4 oz. already. Then it was playtime and you really were having a great time on your playmat. We did nursery rhyme bear, mouse rattle, orange monkey and played with the new baby doll that Grandpa Golden bought for you. While Mommy was going through your closet seeing if you had outgrown any other clothes we sang Old McDonald had a Farm. It was hard for me to leave you tonight, it was our best playtime yet. I'll come and see you tomorrow and we can pick up where we left off. We have lots of animals left to go through so sleep good tonight little angel so you'll be ready to play again.

And on his farm we had great fun, e i e i o.

Grandma Loves You!

Just call my name....

Hope you had a great time at Grandma's house tonight Lidia. I picked you up on my way home from work and we were able to sing and play for hours while your Mommy, Daddy and Grandma Marzena went fishing.

You probably heard Grandpa and I talking about the news. There was a memorial today for a very famous person named Michael Jackson and it was on the news tonight. He died last week, he was 50 years old. I remember him singing with his brothers in a group called the Jackson 5 when I was a kid. I'm sure you will still be singing some of his songs when you are a teenager, he was a very talented person.

Our world isn't as safe or simple as it was when Grandma was growing up. Things change everyday and all we can do is to keep loving each other and try our best to do the right thing so your generation will have the same freedom and opportunities that we've had for years. You have a whole lifetime ahead of you Liddy and I pray that it will be a lifetime of joy and laughter.


You have a family that is strong and that will always be there for you to love and support you.


Remember though that if for any reason you're having trouble smiling that beautiful smile and need a hug or someone to talk to......



"Just call my name and I'll be there"