The Big Move

From Mindfulness Mama blog!

One of the greatest joys in my blogging world is "meeting" someone that has the ability to make another feel important and wonderful. I think that Jennifer Landis is one of those people.

In an email she sent me recently she said:

Hi Barbara!

I hope you are having a fabulous day! 

My name's Jen - Hi! It's nice to e-meet you. 

I wanted to let you know that a recent Googling about green bananas lead me to your lovely blog and your post - "Lessons Learned from Green Bananas."  It really made me smile! I'd never thought about life that way! Also - I prefer to eat my bananas when they are nice and spotty - but I understand that's not what you were implying in your post :)

Anywho, I was hoping to return the smile favor by letting you know how much I've been enjoying reading through your blog! You certainly appear to have retired in style. :)  My husband's grandparents have recently retired and just moved from Texas to our home in PA so they can be closer to family and their great-granddaughter - and I think they'd enjoy your blog, too, so I plan to let them know about it!

....I'd love to write something for you if you're interested....

Regardless, I plan to continue enjoying your blog. And I hope you have a lovely day. 

All the best, 

Jennifer E. Landis Healthy Living Blogger at Mindfulness Mama,

How could I turn such a beautiful proposal down? Here are her lovely words. Thank you Jennifer.

 The Big Move

My husband is a lucky man. In addition to getting to spend the rest of his life with me, at 29 he still has all four grandparents to shower our family with love. While, of course, I had Grandparents, I only grew up with a single living Grandmother who I loved dearly, and who passed soon after my 19th birthday. It’s for this reason that I am so thrilled, beyond blessed, and completely grateful that my husband’s family is such a delight and welcomed me into the family with open arms. They are beautiful, warm, nurturing, loving people who I am so very lucky to have in my life.  What’s even more exciting to me is how our little one gets to grow up with 5 grandparents and 4 great grandparents. She is a lucky little duckling.

My Mother-in-Law’s parents have a lovely story, having met in their youth on Staten Island where Frank built his own bicycles and Gloria loved to ride them. They spent the beginning of their marriage with family on Staten Island, moved to the suburbs of New Jersey when their children were in high school, and eventually settled in a small town in Texas outside of Dallas after the birth of their youngest grandchild there. Now that their grandchildren are grown and a new generation is in the works, they decided that they wanted to be a part of it.

With only three overnight stops and two replacement phone chargers, Frank and Gloria recently made the big move from Texas to Pennsylvania, where our family is. They knew they were outgrowing their space and have been weighing their options for quite some time now. First they considered a few Continuing Care Retirement Communities in the Dallas/Fort Worth area that they were familiar with, knew, and loved. They are still active in their community, and really want a life that reflects that. They admit that they will miss their friends and the easy winters in Texas, but they know that they made the right choice moving closer to the next generation of family.  

The joy that you feel as a parent watching your child interact with generations of family is an incredible one. It’s not that long ago that it wasn’t uncommon for children to never even meet their grandparents, let alone their great grandparents. I was one of those children for the most part. I was thrilled to discover that by 2030, more than 70 percent of 8-year-olds will likely have a living great-grandparent. I was less thrilled to think that in 2030 I will be 42 and my daughter will be 16. Yikes. Ultimately, though, if living a long and happy life with as much family surrounding you as possible is the dream - then that’s what Frank and Gloria are living right now. And if my husband and I turn out to be half the people that they are, I will consider it a win for us, for my daughter, and for our future grandchildren and great grandchildren.

By: Jennifer Landis – Mindfulness Mama