Nella Cordelia is named after Dorothy Cordelia Cryderman, mother to four boys, grandmother to thirteen grandchildren, and great-grandmother to thirty, although she never had a chance to meet the last seven.
Today is Dorothy Cordelia’s birthday. She was a matriach, a virtuous woman, a strong and loving soul. She was my grandma.
If your first name is common and your last name defines you, then what lies in the middle is the mystery of who you are, the secret of what lies within.
I knew her middle name would be Cordelia before I knew her first name would be Nella. And it was so very meant to be.
Shortly after she was born, I talked to my grandma hoping that maybe somewhere she could hear me. I told her I was so happy my girl bore her name. I told her if she had anything to do with giving me this gift…then thank you. I told her I missed her and that I wished she was here so that I could watch her rock my girl, humming soft songs like she did to all the other grandkids.
For three years in college, I lived with my grandparents in a little blue house on Dorothy Lane in Spring Arbor, Michigan. It was a small town, vast with cornfields and deer-stocked woods–deer that felt compelled to ram themselves into the cars of just about every member of my family, thank you. I was an off-campus student at a small Christian college living with my grandparents and I was nervous, lonely and homesick like hell at first. I wasn’t sure how to act—if I was supposed to be home a certain time or have friends over or tell them where I was going when I left the house. There was old people furniture and orange linoleum floors in the kitchen, a doll with a big crocheted skirt that sat on top of toilet paper rolls on the counter in my bathroom and about a hundred ceramic knick-knacks for every square foot of space. It felt very un-college student, and I wasn’t sure if I would fit in.
Oh, but I did. We fit like a glove. And for three years, I became witness to the love, the art, the magic of Dorothy Cordelia.
Alzheimer’s stole a bit of that magic those last years, but it still dwelled deep within her.
And in October of 2005, on a cold rainy night in Michigan, Brett and I drove like mad in the darkness, windshield wipers screeching, from Detroit Metro Airport down I-94 to get to her. I remember my cell phone ringing, just ten minutes away…”Hurry,” my cousin said, “please hurry. I think she knows you’re coming.”
I made it. I made it in time to have a moment alone with her. To kiss her face and wash her cheeks with my tears. To brush her hair and tell her I would always remember the grandma I knew…the one who hummed in the kitchen and kept Fig Newtons in the cookie jar. The one who bathed all her grandkids in the Airstream trailer bathtub with Avon bubble bath–the pink bottle. The one who combed the “rats nests” out of our hair and tucked us in at night in the twin beds of their guest bedroom with the flowered wallpaper and whispered “There you be.” I told her I met someone and that he was wonderful and that we were going to get married. I told her that someday I would have babies and that I would tell them all about her.
She died the next day. And when we got the call, we did not fall to our knees or huddle in tears. We smiled. It was okay. That night, our family huddled in a private room at our favorite Italian restaurant. And we laughed. Told stories. Sipped wine. And cried. And those last days of gathering together with cousins and aunts and uncles to remember her…to make beauty of her memory…was nothing short of sheer poetry.
I think of my grandma all the time. And I believe my girl carries more of her than just her middle name. I think she has a piece of her heart.
Both my Lainey Love and Nella Cordelia have the faint pink speckles of a “stork bite” on the back of their scalps. And I tell them it’s where Grandma kissed them in heaven.
My grandma was a matriarch. She left big shoes to fill, but I’m working on it. I’ve learned to hum in my kitchen, keep my pantry stocked with Fig Newtons and tuck my girls in with a “There you be.”
And I’m so happy my girl carries her middle name. And on this, her birthday, we’re remembering our grandma.
And the giveaway winner for the Vintage Pearl gift certificate is Comment # 1735:
Jen: I can’t wait for the day Hayes decides she wants to take ballet or play softball or even join the wrestling team! It’s so wonderful to see a mommy pouring herself into her babies. Thank you for sharing!
Jen, please e-mail your contact info to: kellehamptonblog@comcast.net
Congratulations!
There you be.
What a sweet post, Thank you for sharing 🙂 I love Nella looking at the picture of her grandparents… so sweet!
I absolutely love following you through your blog, it’s like i’m there.
Happy Birthday to your grandma I’m sure she’s smiling down on you and your beautiful family =)
I miss my Granny too. I just couldn’t bring myself to name my baby girl Peggy. 🙂 Sometimes I call her Peg though because she’s just as spunky as my Granny. It’s been 6 years, and I still feel her with me sometimes.
My son has Spina Bifida, and when I was first adjusting to the shock, I really wished my Granny was there to give me some of her wise advice. I feel like she’s proud of me though, as I’m sure your Grandma is of you.
Tears streaming down my cheeks. I miss her so deeply. Thank you for this post. We are better people and better mamas because of her. I love you.
My, oh my. Kelle. My face and keyboard are soaked with tears. I lost my Nana on December 23, 2009. She was my everything. I too raced to the hospital b/c I KNEW she was calling me there. I got to her 15 minutes before she passed. I held her hand and sang to her as she left us. I miss her so much.
I had such a special bond with her. My youngest, my son, is now 17 nmonths old, so he was 9 or so months old when she passed and I so wish she was here to see him walk and talk and watch him grow. I miss her so much.
I love her so much.
Thank you Kelle for sharing and allowing me to share with you.
Nella definately has a deep, deep soul. I am sure that of your Grandmothers’.
You are so very talented in your photography AND your writing, I always enjoy visiting! What a sweet post 🙂
I totally love the picture of Nella looking at the picture of her great grandparents. How perfect!
May your grandmother always RIP.
Simply beautiful.
The greatest picture I have ever seen in my life is that of your little Nella holding her great-grandparents’ picture! What a beautiful story!
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Yes, a mother’s love is so deeply embedded in a child’s heart it never really leaves you. And my mom would be annoyingly proud of you, Kelle. She would shamelessly insist all her friends read every word, study every image and paruse every comment on your blog. Perhaps she does that in heaven–I understand everyone has an IPad there. Strangely, I sometimes see my mother’s contemplative gaze in Nella’s old soul eyes and mystically wonder, does she look through them–like some divine kaleidoscope where angels see the love she has awakened in us all? Happy Birthday mom…the gift I would give to you I know you would have me give to my own family, and so I will, by reflecting your stretched out heart and loving them even more. Good night. Sweet dreams…and there you be.
One of the most beautiful posts I’ve ever read. 🙂
beautiful
Beautiful post. Your grandma reminds me of my great grandma (nanny–we called her). I almost cried reading this! You and your stories are amazing! 🙂
So sweet. This makes me cry… my girl’s middle name is after my grandma who never got to meet her. Happy birthday to your grandma!
Ahhh, I read this post to my husband and we were both in tears, yes-him too. We are grandparents of 2 beautiful children and this is the grandma that I want to be. I want to be remembered just like this….such a beautiful thing !!!
Esther Dee
Oh how I love this post. We are nearing the end of my grandma’s time hear on earth and I have commited to take my boys to see her every week. To help her with things need to be done, and to get to know the woman who gave me my love for good writing, singing songs on the front porch swing at night, and who wrapped me in a snuggly laundry fresh towel after a bath. I’m so happy to hear of your sweet memories and that they’ll be carried on to your girls.
This post was so sweet. It reminded me of my grandma who died two years ago from cancer.
Congrats to the winner 🙂
You’ve helped me to remember many happy moments with my grandmother! THANK YOU!
Your words were beautiful…..such a sweet post !
I’m named after my great great grandmother – Callie. I love my name. It makes me proud. Reminds me of the legacy of my family. Nella will one day appreciate it as well.
How sweet is that photo of Nella holding the picture of her great grandparents!
Thanks for sharing your life stories with us all.
I am also named after my grandmother. I always disliked the name because it was odd and different. The older I get I have realized what an honor it was to have her name and it is growing on me. I never had the chance to meet her but I look forward to that day in Heaven.
My little sister, Laura, is named after our grandma 🙂 I love that last picture….beautiful
Beautiful… I too lost a grandmother to Alzheimer’s. Your post made me cry and remember how much I truly miss her.
Beautiful. Your words brought tears to my eyes.
Love the pic of her holding the picture of your grandparents! I just found your blog last week and absolutely love it.
Also, I grew up in MI as a FreMo and all my friends went to Spring Arbor. I rebelled and went south to Greenville. As small as SI is, I’m sure we know some people in common! Love when I get a little picture of how small the world really is!
Beautiful. Simply beautiful!
Jill B (Overland Park, KS)
Been meaning to say…congrats on the Blogluxe award! So exciting!
First, to Jen – Congrats! I checked out the site and hope to order a little something for me, one day. Kelle, it is so great that you do these giveaways! Oh, Kelle AND Poppa, I was so touched by your words. Kelle, I cried when I read about your grandma. Mothers, grandmas, oh we are so blessed by them. Like many, I never knew either one of my grandma’s. I envy your special closeness with your grandma; she sounds so extraordinary. I am now a grandma and have a very close relationship to my two “littles’ (another one on the way). Yes, little Nella, i can imagine that when you see her, you think of your grandma and see her in Nella. And maybe think about grandma, “There YOU be”. thanks, as always, Kelle, for your wonderful way with words and for thouching us and moving us so.
kelle, i love all of your stories but this one brought a tear to my eye. so sweet. xo-amy
Oh, and strangely, if my mother is resting…it is not heaven for her. She is happiest doing laundry, preparing meals for hungry children, sending cards for birthdays, holidays and for nothing at all, and working in her garden. So, no wishes for resting in peace or I am quite certain, she will haunt us all. She is still mothering somewhere very near.
Thank you for this post, i also lost my grandmother after a long battle with Alzheimer’s and sometimes I forget that i will someday have littles to share her memory with to keep her spirit alive
Kelle, I have fully flowing tears -How quickly you brought my own feelings to surface for my grandmother that passed away 8 years ago this month. I miss her dearly and can feel your love in your words. Thank you for the reminder about how wonderful these ladies were to have in our lives. May we always remember the small things that made them amazing and loving and cherished. Thank you for your heartfelt words. They have touched my soul.
My little Audrey is only 15 days younger than your Nella, so every time we look at your blog, I tell her about her friend Nella. And I too had a loving, amazing influence for a grandmother… she is the one who taught me how to love babies, how to rock them, how to sing to them… and she also passed away from Alzheimer’s. But until her last day, she knew how to hold and rock and love babies, even to the point of rocking and singing while she wasn’t holding one. I also remember those last moments I had with her… and telling her about the man that I loved and wanted to marry. My Audrey’s middle name is after one of her grandmothers, also. I know that she’s up in heaven holding, rocking, kissing, and singing to the rest of my children while they wait to come join me.
Thank you for writing this so I could be selfish and have my own moment of reflection on a woman I love so much.
Congrats Jen! Kelle, I feel like all of us who read your blog are winners because you share your gift of words and photos. I love the idea of remembering and sharing about those who are no longer physically with us on their birthdays.
I am amazed at your ability to inspire so many people Kelle. I’ve said it many times before and I’ll say it again. THANK YOU. Congrats on winning the Blogluxe awards.
– from Minnesota
Beautiful post, beautiful grandmother, beautiful daughter. Thanks for sharing, you made me cry… 🙁 🙂
Kelle: Thanks so much for this post. I lost my grandmother, the backbone of our family a little over 5 yrs ago to complications from Parkinson’s. We did not have any children at that time but were trying with no luck. I plead with my Nanny the day she passed that when she got to Heaven she was to demand my baby for me. If you would’ve known my Nanny, she was a hard one to say no to. Needless to say I got pregnant the month after she passed. My first daughter is named after her, Kathryn. Tears poured down my face while reading this. I miss her so much everyday. You are doing the perfect thing for your girls, showing her pictures, telling her stories; passing the legacy she left to you.
Beautiful!
Post almost made me cry. Both of my grandmothers are suffering from dementia. It hurts my heart knowing they will never be the same again. Thank you for sharing this, I know when my grandmothers pass, it will be ok and I can remember all the good, sweet times I had with them. I’m sure your grandma is looking down smiling at you.
-Kathleen Alfano
Kelle
Your words are really sweet!
Lorena from Mexico
Well, there you be, Miss Kelle. You made me cry once more. I just loved this post. I think I say that about every post but this one is my new favorite.
My grandma was Imogene Pearl and I held her hand as she took her last breath when I was only fourteen. She was one of most beautiful people I have ever known. She was crazy, and funny, and beautiful and always had some insane story like… “the time I danced a hole in my new birthday shoes that my daddy saved up all month for. A nickel was a lot in those days, girl” or how every one in town thought she was a “harlot” because she wore pants instead of a proper dress.
Thank you for sharing part of your grandma’s story. It gave me a great smile. Here’s to Imogene Pearl and Dorthy Cordelia! Maybe they are up there together “cuttin loose” as Grandma Pearl would say.
In the words of my Grandma Peal…
Love you, love you,
Always, always,
Lo Mc
Oh now there you’ve gone and done it. Your writing shoots thru me like arrows. I can’t help but think of my Grandma that we miss so very much. She left us a year ago to go be with her husband, son and Jesus at the ripe wonderful age of 10 days shy of 101. Yes we had her for a very long time. I’m so thrilled that she was able to see me married, have a child, paint that little girls nails a “hooker” red and love every minute of it, sit in the recliner and rock her Great Granddaughter, the last for her to see born. I think the same way as you do about yours. Mine was the head of our illustrious clan as well. She set the tone, I’m hoping that one day I’ll fill her shoes and carry on the traditions that have been set aside for way too long now.
Love love love this post, thanks for sharing!
Grandma’s ROCK and now that I’m one I hope that one day my granddaughter Izzy will look back and think that I rocked as well.
Teri
crying & smiling at the same time… you express love in the most beautiful & unique ways & I “love” to read about it!!
xoxo
-s
I am so not one to cry but here I sit in a flood of tears. My grandmothers…I miss them. We had not fig newtons but rolls of necco waffers, tins of fire balls, glass jars of jelly beans and spice gum drops. And….when we came to visit they were always filled to the brim.
miss you both
Ah. Tears tonight. So sweet. Grandmas are so very, very precious. Love the shot of Nella looking at her photo.
The last picture is so wonderfully sweet.
Thank you so much for this post. I, too, lost a grandmom to Alzheimer’s way before her time. She and I were so close and I hated to see her slip away. My mom wanted me to bring my then 5 month son to meet her. I was worried my mom would be so disappointed when she didn’t acknowledge my little guy. But in a moment of amazing beauty my grandmom came alive…and stroked his arms and showed a kissing face. She only had eyes for him. It was truly one of the best moments of my life. She came alive for him…if only for 5 minutes. She knew he was important to her even if she didn’t know quite who he was…but she knew he was special.
Thank you for helping me relive that magical moment tonight.
Kelle,
Thank you for sharing… beautiful post. Grandmothers are special people. What a wonderful writer you are! How you move people to tears with your words.
What a gift u have!
Quite teary eyed right now–your post reminds me of my grandmas and things I always want to remember about them when they are no longer here..you are such a great writer!
I loved this post. I named my daughter after my grandmother. Her middle name was Louise. Her first born was named Natalie Louise. Though she went on to have 6 more children, her first only lived a short while.
When we discovered I was having a girl, Lou it was. Her name may be Natalee Louise, but she will always be Lou to us. I believe she carries a piece of my grandmother too. I love how generations later can carry on a small piece of your heart forever!
What a loving, heartfelt, and beautiful post, Kelle! Your Grandma sounds like a wonderful woman, who taught you a lot about life. What a great gift! I lost my Nana a year ago, and not a day goes by that I don’t think about her. She was an angel on earth, and now she is my angel is heaven. I am a lucky girl! 😉 Hugs to you!
~Deanna
I was on the verge of tears by the end of this entry. Your grandma reminds me of both of my grandmas – one who we lost 5 years ago and one that is still – thankfully- so very with us. And thinking of how I said good-bye, how difficult it was to say everything I wanted thinking it would be the last time I would get to talk to her. I couldn’t have been more wrong. I talk to her more now than ever. I utter words to her in the middle of a busy day at work. I stop by the church and sit by the memorial wall where her and my grandfather’s ashes are and talk to them like they haven’t missed a beat. And I drive past that church 100 times a day – ok not really, but almost, and I think of them, say hello and I love you to them as I sit waiting for the light to change green.
Today is my sister’s birthday too… I suppose people born on this day are simply passionate people, so incredibly full of life. My sister sounds the way you describe your grandmother.
I finished reading this blog entry with tears welling in my eyes but not spilling over. I clicked the comments – found Poppa’s and the tears rolled…
You both have a wonderful way with words that I am envious of!
I absolutely love the picture of Nella holding the picture of her great grandparents. So sweet!!
Continue Mama-ing in Peace, Dorothy Cordelia! Thank you for blessing this world with your familY!
wow. lot’s of tears over here. once again-a reminder to cherish all of our loved ones, and especially the memories of loved ones gone before us.
Kelle,
Reading this just kills me and brings tears to my eyes. I am the same ages as you and I just lost my mother 2 months ago. My little baby girl only had 4 months with her Naniee. If we could only have them forever. I am so angry that she is gone… I ask myself why…. Such a wonderful person… Someone who this world needs! I will never understand why.
I am not an eloquent writer as yourself but would love to tell you how much I enjoy your posts. This one touched my heart. As I sit hear tears are streaming down my face…. I can always count on you for a good cry and a few laughs. My grandmother passed away almost a year ago due to complications from Alzheimer’s. As I read your post my mind drifts back to the day that my oldest little was born. I had just gone to see my OB the day before I went into labor and had actually made a plan for a C section because my daughter was being stubborn. My grandmother called me up that night and insisted that I have the baby the next day, my grandmother’s birthday. I laughed it off. The Dr. didn’t seem too hopeful so why should I be? Well, Grandma’s have magical powers, Amber was born the next day at 8:30 pm. My Grandma was in the waiting room and when she came in she said I gave her the best birthday present ever. I cherish EVERY memory I have and am sorry everyday that my children will not know her the way that I have. Always in my heart and on my mind…..
Grandams are the greatest. I love your specific memories of her home, her way. I think about my grandmas all the time too…I really wish they could know my girls. I don’t know what exactly I believe when it comes to heaven and whatnot but I totally believe they witness what I’m doing. I ask them questions, imagine them smiling when I hug Margot with her feet dangling off the ground or when I nurse Ruby in the still of my home.
xo
Grandmas are so important. Your Grandma Cryderman sounds like the kind of women I would love to know, and aspire to be like. Maybe that is why I like your blog, because I think you’re doing a pretty good job of working on that matriach role – you’re shaping up ok!
Isn’t it wonderful, doesn’t it seem destined, that Nella of all descendants carries her name? I’ve noticed like others have that she has the eyes of a strong soul, and when you look at how much Nella has already acheived without even knowing it, well…
Your family is a very interesting one.
And as for There You Be, would you mind if I borrow that? It says it all rather well.
Oh, and Poppa, I just adore you. Can you come to Montana too?
Thank you for giving us a peek into the magical world of Cordelia.
You write such amazing entries. I love this one the most. Amazing. Sounds like you were lucky to have such a wonderful grandma in your life. I’m sure she’s smiling down at you and your babies 🙂
This made me cry. I miss my Grandmas both so much. I am glad God gave them to me when I was growing up.
The saddest thing about life is the loss of the ones we love.
Glad she is watching over you from heaven.
You put into words just how I felt about my grandmother’s passing. She died very suddenly though to cancer. We had that moment too, telling her I was going to marry the boy who was at the time my boyfriend, that I would have babies and miss her terribly. And while I rubbed her forehead with a damp cloth to cool her from her fever it was a hard, but good moment for us. I was her first grandchild, and that was very important for us to have that time.
I think of her everyday too. I think of how much she would have LOVED my little boy. I wish she was here to talk with to learn from her, but what I did I will cherish forever. Thank you again for always sharing your true heart with us.
SERIOUSLY!
As I lay in bed tonight 10:35 pm unable to sleep. I decided to get up to see if you have a new post up or not….
See I couldn’t sleep as my Grandmother passed away today…She is a wonderful lady who also unfortunitly had the last few years of her life taken away from alzheimers….Ironicly tonight my family gathered together in an italian restaurant to laugh about the good times…
One of the hardest parts is that she never got to meet my daughter and that makes me very sad, and I do miss the grandma that I remember so well, not the one who was taken by alzheimers but the loving, caring, crazy, old lady that she was.
Ok now I am absolutly crying my eyes out as well.
But, Kelle, I can not believe the simularities this post is to my life at this day that I really needed to hear something…anything…
I truely hope that you read this comment because your writing helps in SO many great ways!
Thank you
Your post read like poetry, painting the ins and outs of life. You are able to take the hard times and turn them into the best times. Your writings make me want to live life to the fullest and be a better person. I have tears in my eyes from reading this post. I loved my grandma. She was the best. She would give me baths with the TreSeme Horse Mane shampoo. When I smell that shampoo I think of her. She would bring out a bag of Legos for all the grandkids to play with. On Saturday mornings she would lay on the couch and I would lay in the crook of her knees, watching cartoons and then Soap Operas. I miss her and your post helped me remember some things that had been forgotten. Thank you.
I love that you share stories of your Grandmother with your girls. We lost my Father-in-law 2 -1/2 years ago and we talk about him all the time to our boys. We KNOW that he watches down on them with a smile just as I know your Grandmother does your girls. Your blog inspires me to ‘ENJOY EVERY SMALL THING’ that my boys do- life is too short not to!
We have our own SPECIAL ANGEL in our family too- Faith! She is my brother’s baby girl of 3 girls and she lights up my life! That sweet smile is enough to make the worst of days the BEST!!!
Thanks for sharing your ANGEL!
*And I would LOVE to have just a speckle of your ‘EYE’ for photography!
My mom died at night while my girls, then 4 and 7, were asleep at my sister’s house with my brother-in-law watching them. When I got home from the hospital, I looked in on them, but didn’t wake them to tell them the news. Morning would be soon enough for that.
The next morning, my youngest walked into the kitchen when she awoke and her first words were, ‘Last night I dreamed that Grandma came and kissed me goodbye.” And I know in my heart that she had.
Individuals who live their lives to nuture continue to do so after they’ve they’ve died. My absolute belief in this still gives me comfort four and half years later.
This post is true magic! My daughter Marin Belle is named after my grandma, Minnie Belle. I am named for her mother and my middle name is Bernice. We lost so much the day we lost her to her 15 year battle with breast cancer. I went into teaching because she was an amazing teacher. She passed away on my last day of student teaching. I got the call as 22 littles looked on with tears streaming down their faces.
She was an amazing woman and I chose to spend my college years going to U of M Flint so I could help care for her. Fix a meal here, clean a bathroom there, or just be available to hold her hand when the pain was too much for her to bear.
Now, I look at my beautiful daughter and know that my grandma will hold her one day, but until then she looks down from heaven, humming sweet hymns that I hear in my dreams.
Love you gramdmama! Thanks Kelle for the opportunity to remember her in a special way tonight. From Traverse City to you, sweet dreams to you and your littles!
Happy Birthday Dorothy! :o)
My Granny lived to 103.9. She still had her mind and was sharp as a tack with her memory. Though I was not close in distance I did inventory her brain every chance I got when I was with her.
Now…. I do not have a middle name! What happens to me? :o) I am the baby of 4 and the only one with no middle name, just Jennifer. My husband is #8 of 10 and the only one who got a middle name! AYE! 10 kids!
I cannot wait to be a grandma. I sure hope my only child will marry a wonderful man in 12 years and give me at least 3 grandkids! I will be the best grandma ever! Like the kind that buys days of the week panties! I missed out!
:o)
Jennifer
Thank you for sharing your Grandma with us… she sounds like an amazing woman. I lost my grandma Rosabelle to alzheimers as well. She came to me in a dream one night to say she was ready to go. Our family gathered the very next week & I know she could tell we were all there with her. She passed two days later. I feel so lucky to have known her in life & for all of the wonderful things she taught me. I will always be grateful for that chance to say goodbye.
Your grandma is with you every time you love on those girls. 🙂
You can bet your bottom dollar that I will christen my daughter after my grandmother as well. There is just no stopping a woman named Charlotte Mae. (And as for Spring Arbor, you can smile knowing that it is still full of accident prone deer–I just graduated from there in May.) Keep smiling, Kelle!
This was beautiful. Your grandma sounds amazing. 🙂
Thank you for sharing yet another beautiful story with us. This post made me cry!
This post brought tears to my eyes… My own grandmother passed away in 2008 and barely missed me getting pregnant with my son later that year. He resembles her a bit and I find myself wishing everyday that she were here to see him. It is so beautiful that your little Nella carries her name. 🙂
Oh, Kelle! Tears…so many emotions
(it’s my Grandpa Lavin’s b-day, too)! Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, beautiful! While I never got the chance to meet your grandma, I know she was one amazing and inspirational woman, from the stories I have heard you tell. Nella is so blessed to be able to share such a namesake with her great grandma. Kel, I know Dorothy is so proud of you, of who’ve you become (as I am sure she is proud of all her grandchildren).
P.S. I LOVE the ‘kisses’ from Grandma that BOTH your girls have! xoxo
~ Steph
I have been quietly reading your blog since a friend shared Nella’s birth story with me so many months ago, but I haven’t commented before now.
I’m sitting here with tears streaming down my face right now. I have lost 1 – and am losing another – grandparent to Alzheimer’s. My sweet Nana, my mom’s mom, is slipping away from us. Her eyes usually seem to focus somewhere just beyond the folks around her, and this summer, she looked at me once and I don’t think she knew who I was. I don’t take it personally, but it’s still a devastating blow in the progression of the disease.
This week my big kids are having a grandparent vacation with my parents, and today they went to visit Nana. She doesn’t really know whose children they are, but she still lights up to watch them play.
Nana always gets confused when my parents get ready to leave: “Do I need to fix something for dinner? Are we going back to my house now?” But tonight Mama told me that for the very first time since Nana began plummeting downhill 10 years ago, she asked, “Do I need to go pick up Bob from somewhere?” Bob, my grand-daddy, the love of her life, who’s been gone from us these 20 years. And when Mama told me that, I just fell apart, because I know that her disease has snatched her a little farther away from us. But at the same time, it’s peaceful, because she can once again live in a world of her own, where the love of her life is just in the next room.
Thanks for sharing about your sweet grandmother. I wrote a post once about my Nana and it was so cathartic to get the words out. Your post was so sweet and touching, and personal for me too. Thank you for your beautiful words!
There’s nothing like a grandmother. I’m sure yours is looking down at you smiling so proud! Beautiful blog 🙂
oh and the fact that I believe that people/God in the cycle of life do wait to pass for the appripriate time…My mom had to rush onto a flight to get to AZ as she heard that my grandma didn’t have much time left….I so wish that I would have been able to afford to go too, but my grandma waited until all of her children had a chance to have thier last time with her…crazy
I wish i had a bond with my granparents like this. I was 19 when my last grandparent passed and I don’t think I was ever old enough to appriciate their wisdom. My husband has a grandfather still with us. I love that 96 year old gem with all my heart, and all I do is pray my babies will remember even a glimps of him when they are grown. He has loved life with all his heart and I know now that if we have one more baby boy that baby will have part of his name. It is so wonderful you had the opportunity to be loved and to love your grandmother.
**OH, and to “Laugavitz”..I read your comment and how your grandma died today. So very sorry to hear of your loss. Wishing you peace and comfort. Just wanted to pop in and say that, for I feel that we are a sort of little community here, family. Take care.
I have tears streaming down my face. Family is everything. I still have both my grandmas and grandfathers, although in recent weeks I know our time spent together in this world is fleeting.
Thanks for helping me to remember to treasure them as much as I can for as long as I can.
Beautiful! I am in tears. Happy Birthday Dorothy Cordelia! My girls have the stork bite too. On the top /back of their heads and where their skulls meet their neck.
I am lucky to still have both of my grandmothers. My grandfather passed away last year and that was hard.
Thanks for this post.
asIfrolicThroughLife.blogspot.com
What a beautiful memory! Makes me miss my grandma even more! Love the way you express yourself!!
While reading this post I quickly felt that nagging knot in the back of my throat and then a paragraph later it moved to my eyes welling up and spilling over happy/sad tears. You’re sweet description of the 3 years you lived with them along with when you made it to see her and talk to her was what caused the real tears to flow. Ugh. From the crocheted doll on top of the toilet paper to the ‘rats nests’, Fig Newtons and pink Avon bubble bath was exactly my Great Grandma AND Grandma. It feels good to be reminded that the apple really doesn’t fall far from the tree.
I’m sure you’ll tuck that sweet little story into one of your baby books! 😉 Thanks for sharing it here!
I think of my grandmother too every day wish that she could have known my children.
On a side note, I live near Spring Arbor and go to SAFM and know that the Cryderman family is an absolutely wonderful family. I never knew that you were related. Very cool.
What a beautiful tribute. Tonight I too have been thinking of my grandma Lyle. She was the rock of our family from my father’s side. She was sassy and ground breaking in her day, and my Dad said that the day she died, her spirit relocated into my 11 year old soul.
And tonight I pulled out a letter that she wrote to me decades ago, sharing her fudge recipe with me; knowing that one day, I would be the one to carry on the legacy. And I made it with my 2 nieces, and we struggled to follow her instructions and came out with 3 wonderful logs of fudge. And tasting it took me back to my childhood of receiving boxes of partially crushed cookies and half-melted fudge; those moments to say “I love you” when we couldn’t be there with her in Oregon.
And she was strong and fun and an inspiration. And left such an impression that both my brother and me named our girls with Lyle as their middle names within the same year. The middle is the mystery, but it is also the sweet surprise in the middle of an Oreo cookie. Her name is a legacy of love to be carried on for another generation. And I look forward to sharing stories about Lyle with my daughter.
Have a wonderful night!
Jennifer from Annapolis
Kelle, what a gorgeous post. I lost my 91-year old grandpa this past June and though I was sad that his time on earth had come to an end, i was so very grateful for all of the time spent with him and the many memories that I have. Like you, I feel grateful for my grandparents and the mark they left on my life.
Blessings to you and yours.
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Kel tears streamed down my face as I read this. I have a boy and I often think”If he could just know my grandpa he would be so blessed” but that time passed 22 years ago and even thought my memories of him are few I drink up the stories my mom and gradndma have told over the years and I think “One day my sweet baby Tennyson, one day you will meet him”…Love your girls Kel!
beautiful! so beautiful!!!
kelle, this wonderful tribute to your grandma was great. i read, tearfully, and thought of my grandpa in the same great way you remember your grandma.
i so wish he could have known my children. called them “banana” and just been his funny wonderful self with them.
i’m so glad you were able to say goodbye and spend some time with her before her passing. i didn’t get that with my grandpa and i so wish i had.
your nella is amazing-name and all.
thank you for sharing your story.
Teary eyed again. Thank heaven for grandmas! I miss my sweet grandma so very much. She had a very special bond with my Morgan. She passed away when Morgan was one year old. She loved her so very much and understood what a gift she was from the moment she was born. Just thinking of my cute grandma makes me tear up all over again. Thanks for helping us all remember the memories that we all hold so dear.
firstly.. i really love your blog. I am married but have no children and I can’t wait till that day comes for us. Secondly your post brought me to tears. I lost my grandmother this past april. She was amazing. she would bake us all chocolate chip cookies… and remind us to have a ” happy face in the morning” when tucking us in at her house. i miss her so much. Happy Birthday to your grandma.
Oh, Kelle. Today is a special birthday for me too…my great-aunt Nancy, sister to my wonderful Nana. My middle name…what lies between…is their maiden name. And it is my dearest possession.
It will be Nella’s too.
That post was a killer. Thank you for your words, your appreciation for life, and for sharing it all. Everyone can relate. Tears streaming still….
Rachel
Kelle,
I have been following for a while now, but this post about your grandmother stirred my soul, and prompted me to write. My own special girl, Kate, has my grandmother’s middle name. My “Nanny” was a wonderful, loving, creative free spirit who taught me so much about how to live life and “bloom where you are planted”. Oh how I miss her and wish that she could see the legacy she left in my children.
What a beautiful story. It actually brought tears to my eyes. I am fortunate enough to still have all my grandparents here, although there have been moments where it came very close. Last year two of my grandparents battled cancer and survived! I’ve promised them that I will make them great-grandparents.
My name is Lainey, and I am named after my Oma. She hums in the kitchen, she smiles every time my Opa walks into the room, and calls him hubby….and sometimes scolds him and calls him “Walfred” which makes us grandkids giggle because she sounds so loving and not at all upset! I feel so blessed to have a piece of her in me. What a beautiful connection Nella Cordelia will have with her great grandma, something to treasure.
What a wonderful grandma memory. Thanks for sharing it.
Nella is beautiful. I love watching her grow.
Susan
Your post today immediately had me think of my Memère, she was spunky lady. I had a very special bond with her and miss her everyday. The thought that I will someday have the only great grandchildren she will never hold breaks my heart. Thank you for sharing this beautiful memory with us all.
Love from Canada! Crystal
Oh wow. The photo of Nella holding the photo rocked me to the core. My grandfather just passed at 92 years of age. I was very very close to him and miss him deeply every single day. I spent 4 days with him as he was passing, and it was one of the hardest things I have ever done. You are so fortunate to have children as bonded to their grandparents as you were to yours (and so am I!).
Lovely post!
This post was so powerful. It meant a lot to me, as I also have a grandmother like this, also no longer with us.
You put it so beautifully.
I am always left wanting to say so much back to you in response to all you pour out, but I always find so many have already said precisely what I felt and thought. I also have a lovely, beautiful matriarchal grandmother who is gone home to heaven, a grandma who used the pink rippled bottle of bubble bath from Avon, too. I too had eyes brimming with tears and felt the pull of my heartstrings while reading this post and agree you put it so beautifully.
My other grandma is still here, and Alzheimer’s has also taken much of her. She always had the Barbie doll in the crocheted dress filled out by the roll of toilet paper her legs were stuffed in. When I was a little girl I loved those Barbies. Today is my daughter’s 8th birthday. I made her a cake from scratch – with fresh berries and whipped cream and let her stay up late painting with her new painting kit and drinking tea together while her 3 brothers sleep.
Thank you again, for sharing and offering such encouragement and love. It’s powerful.
the way this blog evokes emotion from me is what keeps me coming back again and again. (after i get some kleenex first, of course.) 🙂
Beautiful photos, beautiful children and beautifully moving story!
Grandmothers are so very special. I don’t know where I’d be today if I’d grown up without mine.
Wishing you a day of love, peace, and joy as you remember your grandma.
It’s awkward when you have an uncanny connection with someone who has no idea who you are. I know it is impossible for you to read all the comments left but maybe you might just see this one. You see…I am travelling your same path just 8 months ahead. I love this post because my daughter Ella Freda is named after her great grandmother too. Just one more connection that makes me smile. I wrote a tribute to my grandma this past february when she turned eighty. http://kristadawne.blogspot.com/2010/02/dear-freda.html
It’s awkward when you have an uncanny connection with someone who has no idea who you are. I know it is impossible for you to read all the comments left but maybe you might just see this one. You see…I am travelling your same path just 8 months ahead. I love this post because my daughter Ella Freda is named after her great grandmother too. Just one more connection that makes me smile. I wrote a tribute to my grandma this past february when she turned eighty. http://kristadawne.blogspot.com/2010/02/dear-freda.html
WOW your grandma sounds just like mine, doll with crocheted skirt over the extra toliet paper- PLEASE tell me yours had a poem attached that went something like this “if you are in distress, just lift my dress” that is the only part of the poem I remember but I always laughed! I am so glad you got there that night to say your goodbyes! I remember being beside my grandfathers bed while he took his last breath, it is a moment that will forever be in my heart, I know all my grandparents are in a special place just like your grandmother. God Bless!!
Dear Perfectly Posted,
There once was a grandmother so grand…
A treasure amongst grands of the land.
From the cookies in stock
To the hours of talk
The heart-song she left was quite grand.
Love,
Still Missing My Great Grand-mother in NE
P.S. My children’s names are Felicity Blythe (happy twice)
Latham Wilder (English heritage and literary nod)
and Prosper Zane (Ps. 1: 1-3 and a taste of the West)… I adore them each for their meanings and their defining power… What’s in a name? A whole LOT!!!
Sheesh – you make me cry nearly every single time! Today you have me thinking of my own dear Grandma. She was so beautiful, and kind, and taught all of us kids to do for others. She was a hard worker, and generous to a fault. My daughter is named for her, and it makes me so glad. Thanks for giving me a moment with your grandma, and mine. Blessings, Megan
what a sweet thing to teach your girls at a young ages, about a special woman you made the dinamic woman/mother you are.
Blessings!
I had no idea that when I put my nightly moisterizer on my face 10 minutes ago that it would all be washed away with tears already! Man!.. that was a beautiful post in memory of such a great and strong woman. I wish that I could have known her.
God bless you Kelle.. I just love who you are.
Now.. I gotta go reapply my face lotion. =)
Just beautiful!
i love name stories. this is a beautiful one.
my name really is love(lyn), but all my friends call me love. i adore that lainey’s middle name is love. maybe that will be our fifth girl’s middle name someday. [not sure why we didn’t w/ the first 4!]
you are a joy. nella’s precious smile and sweet eyes get me EVERY TIME. love her.
Simply beautiful. Thank you for sharing this.
My little one has her grandmother’s middle name. Sadly my mother-in-law was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer the month before my daughter’s birth and passed away 6 short week afterwards. When we told her that my daughter’s middle name was going to be Darlene she was so very happy. She was relieved to know that she would always have that special connection her first grandchild, India Darlene.
that last picture is amazing. it tugged at my heart 🙂
What a great post. Isn’t it amazing how grandmothers are forever etched into our memories? Youth really is wasted on the young. What I would give to have my lively grandmothers alive again, but amazing memory keeps us going. Thanks for this, Kelle, and the last picture is just amazing.
So I’ve been reading your blog for awhile, but don’t often comment…but this post drew me out. Thank you. Those words were so beautiful, and made me stop and think of both of my beautiful grandma’s. One who is still with me, and one who is not. What a blessing those grandma’s are. Also, that picture of your beautiful little Nella holding that photo is just beautiful. I have to say that you look an awful lot like your grandma too. I can’t usually see those kinds of things, but I totally do. So thanks for sharing this. It was just perfect tonight..besides the fact that I ended up in tears..but hey, it felt good!
Jen
I love that last picture of Nella looking at her namesake – it’s beautiful!
Absolutely, positively gorgeous. Makes me think of my own grandmother, who I miss every day.
What a nice tribute to your grandmother. I, too, know my babes middle names long before their first. It’s easy to commit to something that has some serious meaning behind it!!
okay, so once again, I am crying. I too lived with my grandma, Gramae. We lived in a house with her and my Dada my whole life. Soon after I graduated college, my first job blew up in my face and I was forced to move home. It killed me to move in with my parents AND grandparents on our farm. All of my friends lived in the city and here I was, stuck in the sticks taking my Gramae to hair appointments and watching network TV with her. Then, one weekend while I was in Detriot for a girls’ weekend, my mom called and told me Gramae had a stroke. I rushed to the hospital and was with her every minute. I fed her the last meal she ate, lemon jello! And after she passed I thanked God that I had those 5 months with her. My third child, my Lainey’s middle name is Mae, after this woman who molded and shaped me and who’s opinion, still to this day, I crave. I often wish she could see my kids, and I know she can, but I would just like to see her again. Thank you Kelle for giving me the chance to take a moment and remember where I came from and who I want to emulate. You made my week!
aw, kell. there you be. i wish i could have heard her say that. what wonderful people who are woven into every facet of your beautiful life.
there you be.
i think dorothy cordelia is sitting on a rocking chair with my grandma, nella mae. they are knitting an afghan together, have become best friends and laugh at us crazy kids trying to get it right.
they know we will. we have us some nella magic. we do.
love you, bells.
h
I remember my Grandma often as you remember yours. Mine too had her mind stolen by Alzheimer’s, but it didn’t steal her essence.
My Grandmother’s name was Nell, and we are currently expecting a baby. If our baby is a girl we will be naming her Nella, in honour of my Grandma.
There is something very special about Grandmas. Mine passed away in December 2005 and I still think about her often. She never met any of my babies but I know that she would love them.
I LOVE this post Kelle. You are so blessed to have had that time with your Grandparents. I think so many of us foresake the presence of our Grandparents in our lives. I know for me I loved my Nana so much and spent a lot of time with her as a kid. But I realized after she died, that I didnt know much about her outside of her being a Nana. I longed to ask her about her youth. Where did she live, grow up? Go to school? What was her career before she was my Nana? I am sad that I cant have that conversation with her and I have vowed to make sure my grandbabies (in like 2040) will KNOW more about me and have wonderful stories to pass on.
PS: LOVE the photo of Nella holding her namesakes photo.
PSS: I believe strongly in middle names being special too. So my husband and I created two names for our daughters. Ella’s middle name is Dalynn (she is named after her two Grandmas Darlene and Linda) and Ryen (aka Bunny)’s middle name is Lorissa (named after my Twin sister Lori and my older sister Lisa).
Much love. XO
Happy Birthday Gramma Cryderman! I’m sure she’s having a fabulous celebration! Your sweets are adorable, as always. I hope you have a lovely weekend!
This was so beautiful xx
one of your sweetest posts ever….
I am a first time commenter but a lifetime reader.. or till when ever you decide not to blog anymore.. This post really connected thank you.. I write this with warm salty tears streaming down my cheeks.. My gramma was my mother I lived with her from the time I was little.. When she passed away I was 5 months pregnant with my little girl who also carries my gramma’s name as her middle name.. Thank you so much for touching so many of us ..
Barbara.
Kelle, you have no idea how much this post touched me. Thank you for sharing your story. It makes me think of my own grammas and grampas that I thank God for everyday. Those doily dolls are what make gramma’s house gramma’s house. I am in tears. Beautiful!
I lost my Grandma a few months ago. I miss her, and will always cherish my memories of her. She had the most amazing, beautiful hands. All covered in sun spots, rough, ridged finger nails, soft skinned on top and cracked finger tips from working in the dirt. I share he middle name, and have always felt a kinship to her through it. Now my daughter shares her name as well. Nella is blessed to share your sweet Grandmother’s name, as well as her legacy.
You honored your Grandma today, Kelle. And I know Nella will honor her by the life she leads. What a legacy.
So funny – I always talk about the “rats nests” in my 3 girl’s heads of hair. I share something with your beloved Dorothy Cordelia too. And I’m glad.
This whole post, the whole story, makes my heart so happy I’m in tears right now. My littlest girl, Leone, is named for her grandma, my husband’s mother, who passed while I was pregnant with her–and I swear sometimes, when I’m watching her play, Mary Leone, her sweet, mellow grandmother, helped to shape exactly who she’d be when she joined us.
Naming her for my mother-in-law was so important to me, there was no other option. No other way, no other name–she was going to be Leone and that was just that. And it suits her beautifully–she is our quiet little lion girl and no other name would do for her. Thank you so much for posting this–I’m so glad to hear I’m not the only one who finds names to be so important, so special.
P.S. My oldest’s name is Cordelia, so every time I see Nella’s full name, it makes me smile.
I always love your posts, but especially this.
I just get it. All of it. Does that even make sense?
My Grandma Lettie was mother to 7, grandmother and great-grandmother to more than 100. And yet, my siblings and I felt she was all ours. She cared for us while my parents put themselves through school and worked to support the five of us. When I was a single mom with my first teaching job she took care of my son every day till he started school. He went to senior center lunches with her (where his name was on the rolls) and worked with her at the food pantry. When I’d get home, sometimes she’d surprise me with fried hamburger and ice cold cokes.
How sad that everyone can’t have a piece of this.
“There you be.” Love this too…it’s sticking with me.
My mother died two days before my daughter was born, my firstborn. My mother was to our family as it seems your grandmother was to yours. She held us all together, not just her children, but my cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents – everyone. She made everything feel right, she made life work and shine and sing. She made my heart smile.
My daughter’s middle name is in honor of my mother, and I too think my daughter bears more of my mother than just the name. I look for my mother in her eyes so often. I want to see pieces of her there because if I do, I know my daughter has gotten the best pieces of me, because the best of me came from my mom.
I like to think my mother left us and sent my daughter down to us from heaven two days later, after getting to spend that day in between with her granddaughter. I hope their souls got to meet and share a special love.
My mother’s birthday is five days from now. It will be the first one she hasn’t been here for and I’m sure it will hurt. But I’ll look in my daughter’s eyes… and I’ll smile.
Thank you for sharing your story.
http://georgia365.blogspot.com/
It threw me for a loop today to read your blog. The fact that you went to school in Spring Arbor, MI; at a small christian college (where several of my family members attended), I have family that grew up and continue to live in Spring Arbor, and some that moved there after they started their own families.
It just felt crazy, and made me feel close to home (because I no longer live in Michigan) when you talked about it. I can remember going to camp at Spring Arbor University in high school, and visiting my cousins there. Yes, that town is small….but homey indeed. Blessings
Happy Birthday, Dorothy Cordelia!
Judging by your granddaughter, I imagine that you lived your life very well indeed.
Grandmothers are special gifts from heaven and I miss mine so much after finishing this post. I’m not a mother yet but know that my first daughter will be my grandmother’s namesake. With 10 kids, 22 grandkids and 6 great grandkids, my grandma was happiest nourishing and loving and spoiling littles… I am sure she is caring and loving my future littles in heaven and that makes my heart ache less.
Thank you Kelle. And happy birthday to Grandma Cryderman. She did one heck of a job raising a granddaughter like you.
“What we have once enjoyed we can never lose. All that we love deeply becomes a part of us.” ~ Helen Keller
Your post highlighted for me this great quote that I just learned today.
Just look at the way your tapestry’s threads weave together. Truly incredible. Thanks for helping me to remember my own dear grandma, Pauline.
She was a kick! An independent, cigarette smoking, bridge playing ace that could knit or crochet like nobody’s business. I miss her and the willow tree-lined lagoon she lived near…thanks! ~Beth
What a sweet post, and I love the picure where your daughter holds the picture, so adorable.
Mirella
http://mirelschulte.blogspot.com/
Tonight, not for the first time, I read your blog and cried. I lost my own grandmother in March of 08. It was sudden, it was unexpected, and I wish beyond all wishes that I’d gotten one last moment with her. I didn’t, but I still speak to her all the time. I think of her often and I wish that her body hadn’t of failed her.
Thank you for sharing your grandmother with us. Thank you for helping me to remember mine.
I love love LOVE her name! This post had me in tears – beautiful, and I´m certain your grandmother is very, very proud of you from where she is
Kelle,
It was lovely to read about your grandma Dorothy Cordelia.I was so moved by your words.
I love hearing the reasons why people choose certain names for their children and I think that it is so beautiful that Nella shares the same middle name as your much loved grandma.x
leggerti e’ poesia pura !!!!sei bravissima!la tua nonna sara’ tanto fiera di te!si sente dalle tue parole che era una donna fantastica e meraviglisa.Parlero’ di te nel mio blog!Spero non ti dispiaccia!!!! buon compleanno nonna Cordelia!!!
Kelle, as with all the other commenters …. so beautiful! Miss my 2 nannas dearly! By the way simply love to read all of poppies sweet words! Your dad rocks!
Happy Birthday to your grandmother! I am sure she is smiling down on you and is so very proud! My grandmother is older and isn’t in very good health. However, I am comforted by the fact that she has had the chance to meet my daughter twice now. I am hopeful that she will have the chance to see her again soon. I know my daughter won’t remember her but I will remember and will be able to tell her all about her in the years to come. Thank you for sharing your story!
Jen
What a lovely tribute to your grandmother. I adored my grandparents & wish that my own son could have met them before they passed away. Will definitely be telling my son all about the wonderful Grandpa & Grammy that he never knew.
What a beautiful message to your Grandma. My daughter bears my Grandma’s middle name as well. I am 35 and still have all 4 of my Grandparents. I currently live in a far off land and miss them terribly, but I talk to them on the phone every chance I get. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you for sharing your story. Not many people get the chance to really know their Grandparents. You are a lucky soul.
Beautiful, Happy birthday Dorothy.
My elder daughter has my mother’s name as her middle name and my younger daughter has my sister’s name as her middle name. I love how they have the names connect has all together.
How adorable is Nella’s hair!
oh kelle! much love to you and your beautiful family on a day of remembering your sweet gran.your posts have a way of touching the heart and soul of everyone who reads them. we’re sending some sweet thoughts and love your way…
I always enjoy your blog, but I found this post particularly touching. Both of my grandmothers mean the world to me (I’m lucky enough to still have them both in this world), and my first-born daughter is named after them both: Anna Loree was chosen from Anna Beth and Ivy Loree. Both of them are extraordinary in different ways, and I hope that knowing these beautiful women and where our family comes from helps my Anna know just how special she is and where she can draw strength, love, creativity, and ingenuity from anytime she needs it.
I lived with my grandma from 7th-12th grade, off and on through college, and for about a year and half after college and I can’t imagine life without her. It will be a hard day when that comes. Grandmas are so very special.
This is SO beautifully written. Thank you for sharing your heart!
What a beautful post – Well done, brought a tear to my eye, I am sure she is looking down at you and your littles just a smiling! Love the pic of Nella holding the pics of her grandparents – Again, your posts alway tug at my heart! My Mom is losing her battle with Alzheimers currently, I miss so much of her that the disease has taken –
August 12th is my birthday too!!!
It’s great to have such nice memories of your Grandma.
Our second daughter bears my Gram’s name as well. I spent many years living with mine and she is gone now too.
Sadly I did not get there in time.
She is always with me though. Always.
(tears). so beautiful. you do write so beautifully. I’m glad my friendship with Jules S brought me to your work and your blog. I might be in Naples in October and would to meet you! xo
Sweet.
I love your way of bringing life to all of your stories.
Sobbing; my grandmother is a matriarch too and I love mine so, so much. thanks for sharing and always knowing which pieces of my heart to speak to.
What a beautiful post!! To have matriarchs in families that have left their mark on this world! I spent three summers with my grandparents, helping them with physical therapy after surgeries and my grandpa always had his “toots” bucket filled with Werther’s Originals and Spearment gum (the white kind) and grandpa kept the pantry full with her homemade sugar cookies.
What a beautiful post – I was in tears. How you feel about your grandmother is how I feel about mine – I had no girls to give her name to….although I probably wouldn’t have named them Rita anyways – but I would have used her middle name somehow (Ann). Your post brought back many wonderful memories of my own Nana. Both my boys have stork bites on the backs of their necks also – what a wonderful idea to tell them that it is a kiss from heaven. Beautiful, Kelle! Thanks! 🙂
Beautiful. LOVE “There you be!” Ah! How cute and what a sweet memory! This post brought on the tears for sure. You are my favorite “blogger-star,” Kelle! I would just die if I were to ever have the privilege to meet you! 🙂 You’re much more inspiring than any movie-star I’ve ever heard of! Happy writing. 🙂
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Oh, the lump in my throat!
“If your first name is common and your last name defines you, then what lies in the middle is the mystery of who you are, the secret of what lies within.” ~ this is amazing insight….something you would find in a book of famous quotes.
Happy belated birthday, Grandma Dorothy Cordelia.
I have been reading your blog since Nella was born and I love it…mostly your pictures but also your love for life. I don’t know if you will read this but did you go to Spring Arbor College? My sister went there. Such a small world. I don’t know how old you are but she will be 35 this year. Maybe you were there at the same time.
Anyways, I am a special education teacher and supervisor…keep raising Nella just the way you are.
Big, gigantic, warm tears. You put into words my exact feelings for my Gram that passed when my son was only 6 months old. Since her passing I had my daughter and we were in such awe when she was born. She looks so much like my Gram and she is spunky and sweet just like her too. And she also had a large angel kiss that we say was from her too.
I also wanted to say that I really do think you look like your grandmother from the picture that Nella is holding!!! Both of you are beautiful souls.
Oh my heart…to read this beautiful post first thing this morning makes me weepy. Just beautiful. Sending gentle happy birthday wishes to your beautiful grandma. I wonder what little Nella is telling her as she gazes into the picture? ♥
Beautiful post!! Thumbs up for making me cry once again! I LOVE the pic of Nella holding the picture of your grandparents. My grandfather passed away 18 days after my 5th daughter was born, he also had alzheimer’s. That was 15 months ago and he never got to meet my daughter but I like to think they crossed paths, as she was coming and he was going.
Kelle, this was a beautiful, special post. Thank you for sharing your memories. Your grandmother must be very proud of you everyday…most especially of the mother you have become. I truly believe your grandmother’s energy lives in little Nella and that you are now returning to her all the love she gave to you. Nella does seem to have ” old soul ” eyes…it is very clear in many of your photos.
I never knew either of my grandmothers, both passed long before I was born. You were so fortunate to have had such a special relationship with yours.
Grandparents are so so special and certainly have filled a large part of your life, as well as mine have, and the memories are priceless. Let each and every one who reads your post today, if they have a grandparent(s) still living, vow to spend a bit of extra time with them, ask a few questions, laugh with them, share with them. There will be a day when they are gone and they will wish that they had. Happy Birthday to Grandma in Heaven!
Talk about a happy tear Jerkier!
My little baby has the middle name of my grandmother as well (whom i was named after) and she also has Alzheimer’s – she was a very independent women and my little Liv is no different..
There you be.. its as simple as that – today I love life!
What a beautiful story!! I’m new to your blog and I am hooked 🙂
BTW ~ I live only about 1/2 hour from Spring Arbor, MI….what a small world!
oh my dear friend..of all the days to post this…it is like going to church and the preacher giving you a tailored to you sermon. after three years of living on the farm we are unpacking boxes of memories and remembering through a collection of “lady with lovely hats” vases and precious pictures a lady who was sooo important to me..my Nana. Tears, laughter and longing to see her beautiful smile or hear her one of a kind laugh. You know the best thing is that gracee has been by my side listening to my stories and wiping my tears…I want to put my hands on her little head and “mind” warp my memories into her memories so she can remember my nana’s beautiful strawberry blonde curles or smell how her house always smelled. every now and then i dream about her and wake up smelling that smell of love that she conjured up with her cooking and the peach lotion she wore..wicked wonderful smell. oh how lucky we were to have such fabulous women in ours live..I think it is what the meaning of coming from “good stock” means.
your grandmother was beautiful. ♥
~tears~
big fat ones
ps. we shall sing Happy Birthday to Dorothy Cordelia Cryderman as we do to Alma Gracee Minsker each year.
Kelle, I check every day for an update, as I LOVE reading about your life and loves. This morning, I felt compelled to leave a comment. What a beautiful tribute to your Grandma. As I scrolled down and saw Nella with the picture of her Great Grandparents, it actually took my breath away. Beautiful. ♥
Great, now I’m crying at work! I lost my Grandma 2 years ago and she was everything to me. Your post made me sit and remember her… mostly how loved she made me feel. Thank you.
simply beautiful. your words brought a reflection of my grandma back to mind. my daughter was born on my grandma’s birthday –
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Your story touched my heart and brought tears to my eyes. I share a similar story, having had such a special relationship with my Grandma and my little girl shares her name as well. Beautiful words you write.
On the morning of Sept 9, 2009, I got a similar phone call. I was driving south on I-85 just outside of Newnan GA, and just 5 hours from getting home. There were no words spoken. My mama simply said, “Carrie.” I broke down weeping and said, “Is she is gone?” I had to pull over at a barren and lifeless exit, because I was crying so hard that I could not drive. I did not make it. I was on my way, but I did not make it. The last moments that you had with your grandma were a true blessing.
My Grandmother also had alzheimer’s. For ages, she would say the same thing to me EVERY time she would see me. “Baby, I pray for you every day. I pray that you will meet a good man and get married and have a family of your own. I pray for you every day.” I used to smile inside when she would say it, because I got to where, I could say it with her. But one day, I realized that she was telling me the truth. She did pray for her family, everyone of us. And now, I have that good man and I am 12 weeks away from meeting my daughter. I know that my Nan’s prayers were answered.
Thank you so much for this beautiful post. We never forget those who have gone before us. Those who had a hand in shaping our lives and making us who we are. I miss my Verna Lee every day..
Carrie (Lynchburg VA)
Beautiful. I lost my grandmother long before my sister and I got married or had babies, so she never got to meet them or our husbands. something I’ll always regret. May Nella and Lainey always carry her with them.
Beautifully written. You brought me to tears. You are really a talented, lovely writer.
My daughter has the same storkbite!!
This beautiful post brought me to tears. As a girl named after both of her strong, passionate, loving grandmothers, I know how important Nella’s name will be to her one day. My name is a treasure, because I see myself in the two women who share my name. It makes my heart break a little that my future children may not have a chance to meet these two amazing souls (or the funny “papas” who married them), but it gives me comfort knowing that we have the power to pass on that legacy to our children. What a beautiful thought!
What a sweet post to start the weekend. I love hearing about the relationship you had with your Gram. Reading your words and the relationship you wove with her as a young lady pays tribute to the sweetness in your own soul. You already are a matriarch. A young, spritely, creative one that captivates anyone that may run across your beautiful blog. x. M.
What an amazing living and loving tribute. My daughter to carries the middle name of an amazing woman she never had the honor of meeting. My Avery Belle, will always know that her great grandmother loved her before her existence was even a thought in her Mommy and Daddies minds.
xoxo, thank you for sharing your wonderful Grandma with all of us.
What an amazing living and loving tribute. My daughter to carries the middle name of an amazing woman she never had the honor of meeting. My Avery Belle, will always know that her great grandmother loved her before her existence was even a thought in her Mommy and Daddies minds.
xoxo, thank you for sharing your wonderful Grandma with all of us.
A lovely tribute to your beautiful grandma! Lots of tears!
Your grandma heard you when you told her about Nella Cordelia’s name. She always hears you. She watches when you rock your girls and sing to them. She is rocking your girls with you. C:
I was heartbroken for a long time after my grandfather died. Now, I feel he is always with me. When I look at his picture and see his smiling face, I can hear his loving and wise words. I speak to him and feel his love all the time. More tears…
“When you remember me, it means that you have carried something of who I am with you, that I have left some mark of who I am on who you are. It means that you can summon me back to your mind even though countless years and miles may stand between us. It means that if we meet again, you will know me. It means that even after I die, you can still see my face and hear my voice and speak to me in your heart.
For as long as you remember me, I am never entirely lost. When I’m feeling most ghost-like, it is your remembering me that helps remind me that I actually exist. When I’m feeling sad, it’s my consolation. When I’m feeling happy, it’s part of why I feel that way.
If you forget me, one of the ways I remember who I am will be gone. If you forget, part of who I am will be gone…” ~Frederick Buechner
Dearest Kelle,
Here comes, finally, a comment of another silent foreign follower. Was quietly reading and enjoying your blog for the last 4 months. You got me inspired in so many ways (to finally organize that picnic with my son, he is 2, which, by the way ended after just 10 minutes in me chasing after him with all the bags ….need more practice for sure) . Cherish the moment whit the little ones since they are growing so fast.
This post, one of many that brought tears to my eyes, this one also made my hart cry. Yes, I too have a grandma story, a story of a strong and loving women that raised me. What hurts is that I was not able to be with her in her last day’s. I was in the hospital giving birth to my son and stock in the hospital for day’s after. My family wanted to spare me and have me enjoy my son so I just learned about her passing a day later. It broke a peace of my hart not being able to tell her that I have a little one now and that I wanted so much for her to meet him and not being able to say good bye. It just leaves the wound open and leaking from time to time. I do hope she is with us and can hear me talking about her to my son and feel the love I still have for her. I’m so happy for you, having the precious last moments with her since I wished for this so much too.
Ahhh, now it is time to let the sun come in and prepare some cookies for the afternoon tea party with my son 😉
Take care dearest Kelle and thank you so much for sharing your life in so many beautiful words and pictures it is a delight to read it!!!
You have a great family and the most beautiful little girls. It is such a joy to read about so much love.
Sending you a lot of greetings from the Netherlands (hope this can be used as and excuse for the bad writing)
Dali
You have me crying in my coffee again. I’m so very close to my grandma (who oddly enough also lives in Michigan) and my youngest boy is named after her. His name is Graham, for my Gram. I am so thankful all of my boys have had the privilege of knowing my Gram. She’s an amazing lady.
I think this may be one of my favorite blog posts ever. Happy Birthday Grandma Dorothy!
My grammy passed away on Monday night…her wake is this evening. I’ve spent the last couple of days remembering our time together and thinking about how I want my children and their future children to remember me. Thank you for your blog. It helps me remember to relax and enjoy during the crazy days with my three little boys.
Your posts always touch my heart, but this one especially does. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about my grandma and how much I love her and miss her. One of the defining moments of my life was sitting next to her as she took her last breath after battling an illness for too long. 13 years later – I still find myself asking for her wisdom. We are certainly lucky to have had such amazing women in our lives, no?
Gorgeous.
I was named after my grandmother – and also stayed with them during the week while my parents worked. As I am sure Nella will be honored that you named her after your grandmother – a special name for a special little girl.
Happy Birthday to your grandma.
This made me smile and brought tears to my eyes simultaneously. My grandfather (our Pap) passed away this January, days after my Dylan was born. I feel so honored to have had him in our lives and am so happy one of my babies got to meet him. You have the makings of a superb matriarch; your love shines through your posts like a beacon of hope.
Happy Birthday to your grandma.
This made me smile and brought tears to my eyes simultaneously. My grandfather (our Pap) passed away this January, days after my Dylan was born. I feel so honored to have had him in our lives and am so happy one of my babies got to meet him. You have the makings of a superb matriarch; your love shines through your posts like a beacon of hope.
Amazing. You tell such a story… We are around the same age and I live in Michigan now. Like you, my Grandmother always had the pink Avon bubbles. I buy them from time to time to bathe in those memories. I loved this blog, but the icing is totally that photo of Nella holding her Grandma’s pic. PRICELESS.
Thank you Kelle, for reminding us how important Grammas are.
I’m a new Gramma and I have found out this is what I was born for. I pray that I mean as much to my grandchildren as your Gramma meant to you. I too am going to borrow “there you be”, I’m sure there is a very special lady in heaven smiling about that.
Kelle, this post resonated so strongly with me for many reasons.
I am fortunate enough to have had wonderful grandparents myself. You could have described my grandparents’ house (although I grew up just across the state line in Ohio)! The knick-knacks, the orange hues (wallpaper rather than linoleum though) and “old people furniture.” My grandma had a funny little kiss she would give me, so that she wouldn’t get red lipstick on my cheeks. And she had fuzzy blue house slippers – sometimes, if I’m lucky, I can hear their scuffle in my mind.
And eerily enough, I have visited that small little Christian college in Spring Arbor, MI with my grandparents! (my cousin went to school there). I remember vividly driving through that sleepy little town in their big boat of a Buick, so excited to visit my big cousin at her college.
I miss her, and the rest of my grandparents dearly. I can’t wait to pass on their legacy to my future children, “tucking-in” rituals included.
Oh the tears….what a beautiful post about your Grandma. It made me stop and think about my grandparents today. Thank you!!!
I love the picture of Nella holding the picture of your grandparents. So precious.
Happy Birthday to your Grandma.
I LOVE that last photo of nella holding that picture! so awesome… and now of course im going to be thinking of my own grandmother who was more like my mother than a grandmother.
awesome post!
This post brought tears flowing down my face. I have a 14 month old son, and my Nana, also named Dorothy, passed away when he was 2 days old-the day we left the hospital. She never got to meet him, but the day he was born we took pictures and my dad took the camera to the hospital she was at so that she could see him.
Thank you for sharing your life and those 2 beautiful girls. I am always inspired when I read your blog.
One of your best posts ever. (And it’s faced some pretty stiff competition). Thank you.
🙂
So often, Kelle, your posts move me to tears. I should put a NSFW warning on the favorites tab — my boss gets nervous when he sees the tear stains.
I named my eldest daughter after my great-grandmother. I couldn’t wait for them to meet; but due to military and time constraints, they never made that connection. I regret that I didn’t make the time to introduce them. I didn’t get that last hug goodbye.
And I miss her.
I sit at my desk, eyes filled with tears of love. I am 37, have a 2 year old daughter and am lucky enough that my beloved grandma is alive. Spending time with her and my mom as four generations is a treasure.
I was actually lucky enough to have my grandma live with me – if only for a few weeks. I was a young single living in NYC and my grandpa was in the hospital only a few blocks from my apt. It was easier for her to stay with me then go back and forth every day.
I love reading your blog and often get mezmerized and lost in your photos. You are amazing and blessed.
very sweet & touching post. i enjoyed it & it brought tears to my eyes. happy birthday, dorothy cordelia!
I’m crying again Kelle. My gramma is in the grips of alzheimer’s as I type this. She is physically strong, but she doesn’t remember me anymore, and it breaks my heart. We spent our time further north, in Stanton, MI playing in her garden, painting with water on the back porch, and hiding from the weird owl candle that hung out on the back of the toilet… I remember her Aqua Net hairspray… and reading in the kitchen while she canned beans on a hot day. She’s not gone yet, but I miss her terribly today… I can’t imagine the missing when she goes to be with my grandpa. Thank you for this beautiful post!
I really have to stop reading your blog at work.
I have tears running down my face…..but, punctuated with a smile. 🙂 Thank you for sharing your sweet family with us. Happy Birthday to your Grandma.
xo
Kris
First of all, you nearly always make me cry with your posts 😉 Second, I grew up in Concord, Michigan and my first real job was at McDonald’s in Spring Arbor! I’m totally going to have to find Dorothy Lane the next time I’m in town! Thank you for writing such beautiful posts! I really enjoy your writing as much as your lovely photos 🙂
So, I am officially not allowing myself to read your blog anymore at work. I mean the doctors start looking at me like I’m the crazy bitch when I’m all teary eyed when they walk in. My Grandmothers are my heart, they taught me so much, and I dread the day so much when I have to tell them goodbye but I’m soaking them up right now and I’m thankful for that! My little girl is loving them too and I am so thankful she gets to spend time with them, it makes them young again and sometimes I think their smile is actually gonna hit their ears when she is around!
Thank you, again. My heart just swells remembering my own grandmother of whom I am the namesake. She was a matriarch, too… a hard worker, full of life and a fabulous example of making the best out of everything. I really need this message in my own life right now. Thanks.
Thank you for sharing your story. I just lost my Grams, my best friend about 2 months ago. So loved was she by all…and is truly missed! My 4 year old looks at pictures of her everyday and talks to her! As long as we keep talking about them…they will ALWAYS be here!
I must comment…I must! First, I cried when you described driving down 94 to get to your Grandma…it’s how I feel about my dear Grandma and exactly what I would do. She turns 90 today! Second, I spent many summers at a little yellow house on the corner of the college campus in Spring Arbor, MI. My Grandma raised 7 children in the tiny 3 bedroom house there. She used to bathe me with ivory dishwashing soap in her cast iron tub – the kind in the white bottle. The house is gone now – the campus expanded.
Thank you for saying so many things that I think and feel – but struggle to assign the words to! You have a beautiful family.
This post really touched me. My 3 year old has her great-great grandma’s name for her middle name (and great-great grandma is still going strong at 94! How cool to have FIVE living generations in our family).
This was also very special to me because yesterday was my most beloved grandma’s birthday too (great-great grandma’s daughter)! I had been thinking of her all day long so to read this post at the end of the day was like, wow!
Lovely post. My babies all have special middle names as well. My littlest is named after my Aunt Gail who died more than 30 years ago of cancer and left 3 boys without a mom. Weird to think that I am older now than she was when she died. Her heart lives on.
Thank you so much for this beautiful post. I too lost my grandmother in 2005 – on Christmas day, her favorite holiday. She was the model of a wife, mother and grandmother that I will try each day to emmulate. I’m expecting my first child this year around the time she passed away and it has made me miss her and appreciate her even more that I already did.
Absolutely beautiful. You have such an amazing way with words. I was taken back to the times I spent with my Maw Maw and oh the memories we shared. It’s almost been 13 years since we lost her and I still find myself trying to call her on the phone. Oh, if Heaven only had phones! Thank you so much for what you do on your blog with every post. We are blessed by it.
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Kelle, your posts always get to me, but I haven’t cried over one in a while. Thank you for sharing this beautiful tribute with us.
Crying of course….
I lost my grandmother who I was very very close two and a half years ago.
The first few years of my life my mom was a single mother and my grandmother was there to help her.
My mother married when I was 3, but I was always close to my grandmother. Every summer I would stay with her when I was little. I loved cooking in her kitchen… she never laughed as I pretended to have my own cooking show. (I was a goofy child…)
I loved when she would wash my hair in her kitchen sink and scrub with her long fingernails. I had rat nests too!
I loved when she would scrath my back to put me to sleep. I was an adult and still loved to snuggle up to her and get a nice back scratch.
She was my angel. She was a safe place for me. I would pray evey night that God would let her stay on earth for ever and ever.
I was 30 when she passes away. The final months were very hard. I have five boys and when I was pregnant with my baby boy I just knew he was a girl. I was going to name him Maxine after grandma. :-)But he is a Matthew…
Her birthday is always hard- New Years Eve.
You can read more about her here:http://www.crystalandcomp.com/2009/12/grandmother-happy-birthday.html
Love the picture of Lainey putting glue on the tiles. Totally something that happens at my house all the time!
And the last picture of Nella holding the picture of your grandmother, just about took my breath away. Sweetest baby EVER!
Are you freakin serious?! I’m an SAU graduate, and now work for the university. Small world!
My daughter Dylan and I share my great grandmothers name Nell. I also believe it is a magical name it brings back so many memories that i want to share with my sweet babies.
Seriously Kelle, can you ever post something that doesnt make me cry?? I always either cry with joy or just because it is so heartwarming!!! Happy Birthday to your grandmother!
I had to battle tears while reading this poem. I too have a strong bond with my grandma and we are dealing with her having Alzheimers and being in a nursing home after suffering a stroke. However, the part that really got to me was Nella holding a picture of her great grandparents. Thank you for a wonderful post.
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You killed me with the last photo…how precious! My kids had an amazing Grammie that unfortunately died of Alzheimer’s also. She died on her most favorite holiday…The Fourth of July! We just celebrated her first year in heaven imagining the time she’s having with her own Ganny in heaven. She was also the best mother-in-law. Always so positive. On a cloudy day last week, we were driving to a “Cancer Sucks” party when my husband said (in his best impersonation of his mom), “Oh, but I see a little patch of blue sky ahead!” That’s the kind of woman Grammie was!
Oh, gosh, I was just contemplating a blog post to commemorate my (late) grandmother’s birthday (although it’s not until October). She, too, was stolen away by Alzheimer’s, and she also did not get to meet Samantha. They look so much alike, and she would have truly adored her. I am often sad that they never got the opportunity to enjoy each other.
This was a beautiful tribute, Kelle.
God bless you and your family today Kelle. Your grandma is watching you and loving every minute of your lives.
I just finished reading your last post and it’s beautiful!! Everyone hopes that they can he half the mother that there mother/grandmother was!! I see my own three kids with my own mom and I don’t think that will ever know how lucky they are!! Thank you so much again for sharing…you are a beautiful write and once again your girls just break my hear with there cuteness!!! The pic of sweet Nella holding the pic is a keeper!! One of your favorite reader…Heather from New Brunswick!!! 🙂
Your story hit home. My daughter’s middle name was my beloved Grandmother’s as well – Vera Clarice. My Grandma passed away 2 days before I found out I was pregnant. It was a long journey to get our Gwendolyn Clarice, but I know Grandma made it happen. Thank you for sharing this story and all your others.
PS – My daughter was also born this past January!
Seriously…your dad’s words are just as beautiful as yours. I am sad that I never had wonderful relationships with my grandparents like you describe. But I am so grateful that my children will have it differently…I am so thankful that MY parents are dedicated to forming those magnificent bonds with my children and I so love watching that bond grow every day. I am hopeful that someday (not-so-very-soon) my own daughter will sit down on my parents’ birthdays and remember the love so beautifully. Thank you for sharing this special day with us. And thank you,Dorothy Cordelia, for inspiring such a beautiful legacy…
Hi – I just found your blog. I went to Dordt College – a small Christian college in Northwest Iowa. My Grandma is 85 and was just was diagnosed with lymphoma. You have no idea how much this post means to me. I have chills. I can’t wait to read more on your beautiful blog.
I read through this post two times and cried both times. It reminds me of my grandmothers – one already past and the other slowly having some of her magic stolen away by Alzheimers as well. It makes me reflect on the beauty of grandmothers and the magic they instill in our lives. Thank you for you intimate posts. You have a way with words that move souls.
I miss my Nana every day. I try to always live by her “rules” like you must always keep a half gallon of ice cream in the freezer and you must always take a cardigan in case it gets chilly later. Her saying was “Home-a-now!” when we pulled into the driveway, and I think it in my head every night when I get home from work.
Beautiful photos of the girls, as always!
okay, this had me in tears, beautifuL! and makes me wish I could remember something, anything about my gramma. she died when I was 5 years old and I never even got to meet my other gramma. you are blessed to have the sweet memories!
xoxo
tara
Oh, and PS – my Nana was Dorothy too!
What a sweet post — as always you touched me with your amazing words of your sweet Nella & your grandmother. I, too, am lucky enough to have my middle name be from my great-grandmother! & What an honor it has been, when i was younger i didn’t appreciated it, more so hated it & thought it was boyish — Leigh — but now that i’m grown, if i am to ever have a daughter it will be apart of her too!
Happy Friday 13th! 🙂 & enjoy the weekend!!
Beautiful… My girls middle names are after my husband and I… I love Cordelia…
Your words are so beautifully written in each and every post. Your daughters are absolutely precious little women and it’s a blessing to read how loved they are. I work for the Alzheimer’s Association and now how the disease can truly rob a person of their outward ability to express, but like you said, you can see in their eyes, they’re still the person you’ve loved your whole life and they still love you. Thank you for sharing the path the He has put you on.
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You wrote of my life in this post, Kelle. So much of the same experience with my Gramma – I was the last to see her, kiss her, tell her I love her and it was ok to go…then I got the call the next morning….And found out I was pregnant less than a month later with my first.. there was never a doubt it would be a girl (she would have it no other way!), and I would have her middle name be Josephine. We already see so much of her in my daughter at just 9 months. Thank you for this heartfelt and so-close-to-home post!
Oh this brought so many tears to my eyes! My 2 girls are named after their Great Great Grandmother and Great Grandmother. What a special treat to name my girls after such wonderful ladies. My mother in law’s name is Corally (sounds like Cora-lee) and I adore it and hope that one day the girls down the line might share this name with her!
Such a beautiful post. One that has brought me to tears as it hits close to home. My little love is named after my grandfather. Who, honestly, is the most amazing man ever. I actually just did a post about the 2 of them and the shoes my little Julian gets to fill. If you’d be interested in reading it my blog address is: http://www.diaryofsweetnothings.blogspot.com
Thanks again… you always warm my heart with your beautiful girls and words
You spoke to me this morning. My youngest is also named after my grandmother. My grandmother died 8 hours after my daughter was born. Although they never saw each other they share some uncanny similarities-the same blue eyes with gold flecks-the ability to eat their weight in popcorn-and frequent use of the words “oh my!”. I never say it, so I know she “learned” it from grandma.
love the pic of nella looking at the picture. and the “there you be” so sweet
Once again your words hit home with me…down to the stork bites, the middle name and the crocheted toilet paper holder. Now I visit with my grandma only in my dreams.
My grandfather is now slipping away to a form of Alzheimer’s and I always remind myself that although his memory may be fading and his body is failing his soul is still untouched.
Thank you for sharing and reminding me to pass on some of the traditions of generations past.
LOVE IT! What a tribute to your grandmother this is… as is your life and your mothering those girls! 🙂 The image of the mark being kisses from grandmothers is beautiful. Anna Cate (4) asked me one night if before we were born and we were in heaven together if we knew each other:) Not sure I believe it all about heaven, but is a nice thought:)
I hope it isn’t too gauche to share that I wrote a bit about my grandmother on my birthday as I thought about her: http://thequeensofthekingfamily.blogspot.com/2010/06/birthday-cakes.html.
Have a fabulous weekend…thanks for sharing the love via your blog!
so touching, i cried, this made my day. you have such a sweet, tender heart kelle. thanks for sharing it with all of us. i love reading about your family.
Alright, whoever referenced Aqua Net Hair Spray nailed the era…it was a pink and grey can–a fixture as essential in her bathroom as plumbing. I do believe, she and all her contemporaries were responsible for our injured ozone layer. I can recall her discovery that if you wrapped your hair-sprayed coif in toilet paper at night when you slept, your beautiful boufant style remained intact. (Personally, I have seen hers stand still in a typhoon.) But I must also agree with the commenter who remembers that it is the mom or the grandma who fashioned our hearts. Dads and Grandpas taught our hands to do, to build, to fix…our moms and grandmas taught our hearts to feel, understand and sense. Maybe that is why they seem to reside there still. Maybe…there they be.
Oh poppa…what beautiful imagery you use when you share your love and wisdom.
Beautiful post! I was so lucky, my grandma lived with us from the time I was born until she passed away when I was 14. She would have tea parties ready for us when we got home from school, teach us how to sew and speak German, and took us to the corner drugstore/soda fountain to buy candy from the big jars lining the wall. Every child needs that kind of love!
Love it and shedding tears. I also picked the middle names for my boys first. They mean so much to me.
i miss my grandma to, kelle. so so much. she raised my brother and i while my parents were off going back to school and working insanely long hours. one would think i’d feel neglected….but i feel that we were so very lucky! spending that time with my grandparents was priceless. we lost my grandfather in 2001….he didn’t get to see me get married or know my babies. but my grandmother did. she shopped for my wedding dress with me, bounced my daughter on her knee, and got to know my sweet son for the first 6 months of his life before she died. we were able to give her a beautiful death, in her home, surrounded by her family in feb of 2008.
but i miss her. every single day, i miss her. grandpa too. but i’m so thankful i had them, and for all that they taught me.
((hugs))
happy birthday to your grandma!
ok…water works!! amazing post to an amazing lady!!
Thank You for sharing this sweet memory of your Grandma. I lost my “Nana” four days after my 2nd child, a daughter and the first great-grand daughter was born into our family. I though of naming her Ellie to carry on the name, but I already had to share the ironic timing of a life begining with another ending. I just couldn’t do it. My daughter, Olivia is now 15 months old and she is a living timer of how long it’s been since Nana passed away. She is also the greatest JOY of my life! I know that Nana is in her heart and her soul and THAT is what keeps me smiling. I sat on my couch and I cried big, hot croccodile tears onto my newborn daughter and when they were through, I smiled. I smiled because it’s what Nana would have wanted me to do…to enjoy THIS new life. So that is exactly what I keep on doin’.
There you be!
Beautiful post. Love, love, LOVE that last picture! 🙂
I cried with every word of this post. My great grandma is currently fighting Alzheimer’s. It is such a hard thing to watch. She was the backbone of our family and practically raised my sister and I. My daughter’s name is Jasey Lené after my very special Grandma Hazel Lene. Your story is very touching and I know your grandma lives in Nella….I only hope my Grandma will live on in my children!
I can’t decide which photo of Nella Cordelia I love the most here- but maybe it is the look of delight she has in the midst of all those bits of coloured card…
,,,granparent’s are wonderful,,,next month we celebrate my paternal grandfather’s 100th birthday!,,,
What a sweet post. My eyes brimmed with tears and spilled over onto my cheeks. My Lila is named after her grandmother, my mother. I love that they share the same name. Your little Nella gets more beautiful all the time.
Ah, so, so sweet & beautiful. You had me crying happy tears and my memory flooding with my own of my Grandma and Mother.
Such a special namesake Nella has. Thank you for sharing with us.
There aren’t enough beautiful words to describe your blog. Thank you for your inspiration, honesty and love you share with me daily when I read.
Very sweet Kelle. Grandmothers are oh so special women.
Tricia
,,,i’m tickled at the photo of lainey trying to keep under control the hands of her sister from her art project,,,and,,,the photo of nella studying her great-grandparent’s photo,,,perfect kodak moments!
Tears, tears, tears. Kelle, you have such a wonderful way with words. And Poppa too. I confess – I often press “command + F” to “find” Poppa’s comments. His comment today brought tears to my eyes as well. You guys have such a beautiful and loving family. I can’t wait to see my own grandma again in a couple of weeks. I love her and want to name my future daughter after her too. 🙂
tears. such a beautiful tribute to your Grandma.
i believe the ones who love us so deeply…when they pass on, they truly are inside the little ones we love now.
gasped at the picture of Nella holding the picture.
beautiful words!!
xoxo
jc
Another lovely post (as always)! It’s especially fitting in my life right now as my grandfather’s life is winding down more every day. Your post reminds me to stop and reflect on his life well lived and how much he has enriched all of us.
ps: I love your blog! You do amazing work. : )
Thank you for this post Kelle. We’ve lost a part of our dear grandmother to dementia and are at a loss right now. This post immediately brought me to tears because that pain is still so raw. She’s still here, but deteriorating, angry, and someone completely different. And, this post helped me remember to focus on who she has always been, not who the disease has made her now.
Your blog has truly changed so many aspects of my life and you continue to touch my heart with every post.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
You so made me cry….All my grandparents passed when i was young, i only have faint memories of one set of granpartents and even then my grandfather was bed ridden, I never really missed the experices because i didn’t know what i was missing out on until now…I watch my children with their grandparents and my heart swells! That is why it is so important to me to help them make memories with their grandparents…Your grandmother sounds like an amazing woman, the perfect grandmother if ever there was one! And I love reading your blogs and seeing pictures of your beautiful girls with the loving and proud Grandpa:)
What a beautiful tribute to your Grandma. I cried, this was so amazing. Thinking of my Grandma passing on kills me inside, I hope I can remember mine the way you remember yours and be at peace with her passing.
I love my grandma oh, so much. And I’ve been to Spring Arbor (University?). When my husband and I were dating (1997), he played soccer for Grace College, and I went to one of their games at Spring Arbor. A dear friend of mine, Kim (Cliffe) Stave graduated from there and lived in a cute little house on some cute little street–maybe close to your grandma!
Featured you on my blog today, click:
http://andreaworley.blogspot.com/2010/08/blog-roll-monday-enjoying-small-things.html
to read more. love, love your blog.
Featured you on my blog today, click:
http://andreaworley.blogspot.com/2010/08/blog-roll-monday-enjoying-small-things.html
to read more. love, love your blog.
Oh how I miss my grandma’s too. This post brought tears to my eyes like no other. Beautiful, beautiful.
This was sooo beautiful. That last picture of nella holding the picture of your grandparents is incredible. Just beautiful.
So much to think about after reading this post.
Thank you again Kelle.
xoxo
*sniff*, love this…just love it!
Congratulations to Jen, I’m happy for you to win something so cool!
Now I’m off to go hug my own little girl named after her Grandma Carolyn.
what a beautiful post… youre writing is stunning!! i found your blog yesterday and couldnt stop reading it til late… youve a very special talent
x
what a beautiful post… youre writing is stunning!! i found your blog yesterday and couldnt stop reading it til late… youve a very special talent
x
Kelle,
Your blog warms my heart. I love you, your sweet little girls and the life you are creating. Keep it up, you give hope to the world.
I truly enjoyed reading this! It def hits everyone in the heart! Im thinking about my Nannie right now!
This comment has been removed by the author.
beautiful. i just teared up as i do often with your lovely writing. i epecially love this line “If your first name is common and your last name defines you, then what lies in the middle is the mystery of who you are, the secret of what lies within.”
It makes me think more about my future children’s names and may decide to share my fiance’s deceased father’s name with our first born (given he’s a ‘he’ of course 😉
beautiful. i just teared up as i do often with your lovely writing. i epecially love this line “If your first name is common and your last name defines you, then what lies in the middle is the mystery of who you are, the secret of what lies within.”
It makes me think more about my future children’s names and may decide to share my fiance’s deceased father’s name with our first born (given he’s a ‘he’ of course 😉
Tears are streaming down my face as I am now thinking of my beautiful grams. I hope they know how loved they will always be…
It will amuse you to know that my Helen Delaney is also named for my saint of a grandmother (Helen) and also shares her birthday. I bet our grandmothers are having a laugh up in heaven right now over our coincidences.
I don’t have a little named for my grandmother. But I do have one named for my brother who passed away a while before my daughter was born. Like Nella will know what an amazing woman your grandmother was, My devan will know what an amazing boy my brother was. Thank you for this sweet and beautiful post.
I don’t have a little named for my grandmother. But I do have one named for my brother who passed away a while before my daughter was born. Like Nella will know what an amazing woman your grandmother was, My devan will know what an amazing boy my brother was. Thank you for this sweet and beautiful post.
In tears…again!! The way you speak of your family inspires me!
Thank you for once again bringing tears to my eyes with your amazing words. Your writing is like magic.
What a beautiful tribute. I have NO doubt that your grandmother had something to do with her littlest great granddaughter’s birth. And I have NO doubt, non what so ever…..that you will see her again someday. And live forever and forever together as a family again in Heaven. Just beautiful.
Beautiful words, amazing photos. You are truly inspiring. Your babies are BEAUTIFUL. I’m glad I found your blog.
Gorgeous.
Sweet remembrances. Happy birthday. I love my grandmother too.
Gorgeous.
Sweet remembrances. Happy birthday. I love my grandmother too.
Gorgeous.
Sweet remembrances. Happy birthday. I love my grandmother too.
Gorgeous.
Sweet remembrances. Happy birthday. I love my grandmother too.
I’m going to have to stop reading your posts while I”m pregnant. I cried at the ballet post on Tuesday; I’m crying again now. Our next little one, the one I’m pregnant with now, will be named after my grandparents- middle name Kenneth for my gramps or Ann, which was my granny’s middle name.
They passed away too young to meet any of their great-grandkids, and Granny was really too sick for any of her grandkids but me to remember when she could romp and play and talk with me on the phone as if she were my favorite doll, Maddie. But I will never forget them. And I so miss them and wish they could be here to meet their great-grands and see the woman I have become.
simply wonderful
Thank you for sharing your heart Kelle! And when I read that you went to Spring Arbor…good grief, small world indeed. I graduated from SAU and worked at one of the off site camupses. I’ll always have a special place in my heart for MI.
Thanks for the beautiful post, I’ve carried it in my heart all day. I lost my grandmother way to early 9 years ago, she was wonderful. I wept a little as I read, but had to smile as my little one smiled to the photos of adorable Nella. 🙂
What a lovely post. I don’t even know you or your granny, but you had tears welling up in my eyes. Happy Birthday to Grandma Cordelia. The last picture with Nella and the picture is precious, absolutely precious.
She must have been such a wonderful woman and role model, look how good you turned out to be! This is one cycle you want to keep going! Thanks for sharing such wonderful memories!
Beautiful, beautiful story. Somehow I think Nella will more than live up to her name, making her grandma more than proud.
beautiful post and happy birthday to your grandmother! your pictures are so great!
beautiful post and happy birthday to your grandmother! your pictures are so great!
Once again, you’ve brought me to tears.
“If your first name is common and your last name defines you, then what lies in the middle is the mystery of who you are, the secret of what lies within.”
LOVE THAT! My darling daughter has my Granny’s name as her middle name. I’ve known that would be my daughter’s name as long as I can remember. My Granny passed away more than 20 years ago (I’ve lived more than half my life without her – I can’t believe that!) I would give anything for her to meet my children. But my darling son has a “stork bite”, too. I like you’re way of looking at it. I like to think she cuddled and rocked them in heaven, before she sent them to me.
Once again, you’ve brought me to tears.
“If your first name is common and your last name defines you, then what lies in the middle is the mystery of who you are, the secret of what lies within.”
LOVE THAT! My darling daughter has my Granny’s name as her middle name. I’ve known that would be my daughter’s name as long as I can remember. My Granny passed away more than 20 years ago (I’ve lived more than half my life without her – I can’t believe that!) I would give anything for her to meet my children. But my darling son has a “stork bite”, too. I like you’re way of looking at it. I like to think she cuddled and rocked them in heaven, before she sent them to me.
Once again, you’ve brought me to tears.
“If your first name is common and your last name defines you, then what lies in the middle is the mystery of who you are, the secret of what lies within.”
LOVE THAT! My darling daughter has my Granny’s name as her middle name. I’ve known that would be my daughter’s name as long as I can remember. My Granny passed away more than 20 years ago (I’ve lived more than half my life without her – I can’t believe that!) I would give anything for her to meet my children. But my darling son has a “stork bite”, too. I like you’re way of looking at it. I like to think she cuddled and rocked them in heaven, before she sent them to me.
Beautifully written. What special memories. Your words made me cry remembering my beautiful grandmothers who have gone to be with the Lord.
Thank you for Sharing her with us.
What a sweet post and what wonderful memories you have of your grandma. I’m sure she’s watching over your girls every day.
On a side note, I am LOVING Nella’s hair coming it! So soft and fuzzy!
What a lovely tribute to your grandmother and her namesake. You’ve 100% convinced me that I have no other choice but to name my daughter after my grandmother, with whom I share a similar bond. I’m very blessed to still have her in my life, in fact I’m going to call her right now. Thank you for always reminding us that what’s most important is those we love and the ones who love us. And thank you for capturing it so beautifully with your pictures and words.
You have me in tears once again.
Rowan’s middle name was also decided long before I even knew he was a boy. When I was keeping a diary of trying to get pregnant Nate’s uncle passed away. It was hard- Nate and his brother were supposed to go down the next day to say their goodbyes, and didn’t make it. He was an amazing man, who had a wonderful outlook on life and was an amazing speaker. I wrote in my journal a few days later that I didn’t think I was pregnant, but if I was how amazing it would be~ maybe the baby would have a piece of Uncle Michael’s soul.
Turns out I was pregnant. We drove 18 hours all night to be at the funeral, and back 1 day later. The day after we got home I took the test. I knew right then our baby would be named after Michael.
Rowan was also growing rapidly and his due date got moved up~ to Uncle Michael’s birthday. That sealed it right there for me & I have never felt so close to God.
And Rowan’s personality so far definitely has a bit of Uncle Michael in there ;o)
Kelle I just love coming here. You touch my heart with each post. I usually don’t bother with big blogs because I like the back and forth banter of “knowing” the blogger. Even though you have thousands of readers and hundreds of comments I still feel compelled to read every day and leave my mark, however small on your page. Thanks for sharing this. It was just a beautiful story and that last pic was adorable!
Another post that brought me to tears and smiles!! It makes me happy that my grandma is still here with me and sad that she will one day pass on. Thanks again for a great post.
My sweet baby girl due in September will also share names with my grandmas, both of whom passed away in October, both of whom were named Harriet.
From the moment I knew I was pregnant I knew Miss Baby would have Harriet as her middle name, reflecting the joy and strength that her grandmas would have given her had they lived to see her.
Your grandma sounds amazing, just as grandmas should be.
Love, Love this tribute. My Kate Louise is named after my great-aunt Louise who was like a grandmother to me and such a large inspirational part of our family and I am so lucky she got to meet Kate and know Kate was named after her, as I was named after her mother Callie. Just adored these thoughts.
Your words are so beautiful.
I was already crying, then I saw that last picture & just sobbed. Then your Dad’s comments made me cry even more.
I wish I could explain how much I love & miss my Nan as eloquently as you talk about your Grandma, but I can’t, so I won’t try.
This post was beautiful. Thank you for sharing it with us 🙂
http://www.heart-shaped-bruise.blogspot.com
Oh I spoke too soon when I said your last post was my favorite… what a sweet, sweet post of memories. Your girls are gorgeous.
Oh Kellie, I lost my grandmother exactly a month ago today. Tears are pouring down my cheeks as am writing this. Your words spark so much emotion and true kindness that comes from the heart.
My grandmother lived in New York, and I live in Michigan. We talked on the phone all the time, and I miss the sound of her voice more everyday. Although I never knew what she kept in her cookie jar, or how she would tuck my girls in at night, I know that she loved us from far away. This entry has inspired me to help keep her memory alive. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
This entire entry I had my own music playing in the background. The song that played through its entirety is “everywhere” by michelle branch, and while this is most likely, 100% meant about a relationship between man/woman. I think it fits this post perfectly!! Your little Nella doll is so precious, and I lost it, when I saw the last picture of nella holding a picture of your grandma/grandpa. Beautiful picture, and amazing story.
Thanks as always for sharing a little bit of your heart and self with us.
<3
In a word…beautiful. I was very close to my Nana who passed away in 1996. I miss her so much every day. When my twins’ lives were in danger during my pregnancy and after they were born early at 27 weeks, 6 days, I know she was there. When they told me Sophie wouldn’t live, I just smiled and said, “She’ll be fine.” I have no idea how I knew but I just knew. My nana was there and saved her.
Another beautiful, heart and soul-filled post. This made me sob because I, too, have heaps upon heaps of memories of my amazing grandma.
Happy Birthday Dorothy!
Your grandmother seemed like an incredible person. It’s awesome that you got to spend those years with her. I’m sure you meant just as much to her as she does to you! What an awesome gift to name your little Nella beauty after her. Why do most of your posts make me tear up.. Your writing is just beautiful!
You I don’t know why this never dawned on me but my grandmothers name was Cordelia she went by Dee. WOW never put that together. Happy Birthday to your sweet grandmother. I have wonderful memories of all my grandparents and miss them all the more since reading your post. Happy weekend can’t wait to read monday’s post.
What a beautiful story! It’s a small world! My father went to school at Spring Arbor College in MI as well! I remember as a young(er) girl, I’d get so excited when he’d take me to the library there with him and I’d get to peruse the rows and rows of books while he did his research…
Nicole
http://www.mylifeasamilitarywife.com
I cry a lot of happy tears reading your blog. What a blessing for Nella to carry a piece of your Grandmother’s spirit in her heart…as I’m sure you all do. xox
Beautiful. Made me cry sentimental tears. As always, love seeing pics of your beautiful girls. There is something in Nella’s eyes. She sees more than most, I think.
You’ve really got to stop making me cry with all these posts!!! Glad I’m not pregnant or all you would find of me would be a puddle on the floor!! Beautiful post. I bought snack wells devils food cookies today before I read your post which was a cookie my grandmother always bought. I haven’t had one in about 10 years but they were on the aisle in the grocery store screaming at me from their green box. My grandmother would get them to keep my granddad’s health in check as he was always a sweet tooth. They were the “healthier” cookie as she called them. I always remember snacking on them at their house. I texted my brother a picture of the box and before I could even send another text explaining the picture he wrote back that he knew this was about her and he missed her. Then I came and read this post. And I cried. There’s just something about grandmas. They are so incredible and I miss mine every single day…and it’s been 10 years since she passed. <3
Thank you for the story.. Happy Birthday to your Grandma !!
I lost my grandma a tad over 3years ago and it was very unexpected (due to come home from the hospital that morning) so I didn’t get a chance to really say goodbye. She was my everything and I still miss her every day. Of my 6 kids, 2 she never got the chance to meet and 2 more were too young (1 &2)when she left us to remember her. She was such an important part of my life that it seems impossible to know my kids will never know her.
What a fabulous tribute to your wonderful grandma. I have no doubt she would be incredibly proud of you and your family. The last photo of Nella looking at the photo of your grandparents is priceless…
Oh, that picture of Nella bean looking at the pic of your grandparents is nothing but precious. You are such an awesome photographer. And mom. Wow. I absolutely love your blog!
Oh, Kelle. I love all of your posts. But some touch my heart even more deeply than others. Like this one. I drove 3 hours today because it’d been a whopping 3 weeks since my two sweet girls had seen their ‘gamma,’ and neither they nor their gamma could take it one more day. I’m sitting in the basement of a house in an old steel mill town, while ‘gamma’ puts my oldest to sleep. We arrived here at 6:35 and they haven’t stopped playing together since we pulled in the driveway. I know it’s days like this that my little girls will remember for the rest of their lives, when they’re mom’s like us. Thank you for your beautiful words, Kelle Hampton. Oh, how I heart you.
Again you bring tears to my eyes and jerk my heart with your touching words.
The last photo of Nella holding the photo of your grandmother melted me into a puddle of goo. So sweet. What a great memorial to her you’ve created here.
Love and more love.
Wow. Tears pouring out of my over-cried eyes right now while reading your post. Talking about your Grandma the way you do brings tears to my eyes because I adore my grandma and don’t like to think of losing her (she’ll be 101 in a couple of weeks), but you make losing your Grandma sound like such a truly beautiful experience.
You are gifted in so many ways and I love following your blog. I’ve included a link to your blog on mine so my friends and family can be touched by you as I am.
Thank you for your blog. I wish I could meet you one day. (Don’t worry, I’m not a stalker…just a big fan)
Kelle…you know I am one of your biggest fans…and I am addicted to reading your blogs but stop making me cry already! 🙂 I, too had a grandmother that had Alzheimer’s but just couldn’t name Kayla after her (Betty)…although Rick truly wanted to name her Betty. Reading this post all of those raw emotions rushed back and smacked me in the face (in the form of tears…lots of them). Love you, love your blog, love Nella and Lainey! xoxo
Thanks so much for sharing that! Your words move me, and I believe hit home for so many of us:)
I feel the same way about my grandma, who didn’t get to meet my little girl. My baby has her middle name too, Jessica Lorraine, and you put what I feel in my heart into perfect, perfect words. Thank you for this.
I feel the same way about my grandma. My grandma died on March 17, 2007 and my little was born 9 months later. I think of her all the time and wish so much that she could have met him, and her other great-grans – she never got the chance. For now we take flowers to her grave and I can talk to her and tell my boy all about her and how she loved us.
Thank you for sharing so much of you with us.
I 1st read your blog when you wrote about Nella’s birth. A friend shared it on facebook … I bawled … and shared it with my best friend, who bawled. I fell in love with your family. Those perfect little faces and spirits … the way you write about them and love them.
I don’t have a grandmother, but my husband’s mom is the perfect grandma and my girls LOVE her more than anyone … and that is the best feeling. I can’t wait to be that kind of grandma.
I admire you so much and I make it part of my daily routine, to sit and read about your precious babes. Oh, and seriously? Could you be any more beautiful?! Yeesh.
Seriously sweet. My jeans now have tear drop stains my sitting here crying over this precious story. Such sweet memories. Thanks for sharing.
you know what? we knew our baby girl would have leeor’s grandmother’s name, hana, for her middle one before we’d decided on a first name, too.
i never got to meet her, but i know she was an incredible woman. the only person in her family to survive the holocaust, she raised a family of her own in israel and how i wish i could talk to her in person about it all.
i feel like our lilit has much of her coursing through her veins–maybe i just want that to be so, but still.
thank you for such a beautifully moving post!
OMG Kelle! How do you get some of these shots? The shot of Nella studying her great grandparents photo is amazing on so many levels. I see soul recognition. I see Nellas wise old soul carefully holding that photo. There is so much more than meets the eye. Blessings always.
This reminds me so much of when my daughter was born and my grandmother died very shortly after. The emotion you are so perfect at putting into words, matched what I remember feeling towards my grandma. I talked to her on the phone the morning before she died, from my daughters NICU bedside, and she did not talk back but I know she heard what I said. I promised to try to be the best mom, and to tell my children all about her every chance I got. I have kept that promise, and I hope that the warmth I feel when I do, is her there with us.
Thanks so much for this gift I so enjoy reading and reflecting on as a fellow mommy.
Isaiah 8:19 says, And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?
Which to me means, if you miss those you love and want to tell them how you feel, come talk to me about it (rather than look to other sources). Anyway, I think he realized that we would miss those who died. I believe that heaven is right here, but our physical eyes can’t see it, and our loved ones are much nearer than we often realize. I also believe that when we think of them and miss them, they know it. How wonderful that your Grandma left such a great legacy through you and Nella!
awwwww..”there you be”..how cute! I lost my grandpa recently..he was one of my best friends..my daghter was only 1..but i tell her loads of stories about him..and oh! that last picture!! precious!
rania in nyc
ranikinani@aol.com
So Powerful. I love this post. I was tear free (almost) until I saw Nella holding the picture at the end..made me think of my grandparents! Thank you for this post!
Thank you for this. Your grandma reminds me of my grandma, a matriarch who gathered everyone around her. It’s her birthday in 2 weeks and we’ll all be remembering her as she was last year, on her last and greatest birthday.
what a beautiful tribute. to be meaningful to someone… that’s what it’s all about.
this was a very nice post. i miss my grandparents. i only have one grandma left. i really hope she at least gets to meet my kids.
Oh Kelle – your post made me cry! So sweet your memories of your grandmother. I was born on my Nana’s birthday and she’ll always have a special place in my heart. I always have my birthday to share with her even though she’s been gone since ’84. Thanks for another great post – so glad I checked in with you this a.m.! Have a great weekend and can’t wait to read about it next week!
My grandmother just turned 95 — I’m saving her middle name to give to a daughter one day. Thanks for your lovely post.
I live in Nashville but am an Iowan native. This week I’ve been back home, spending time with my family and friends. And today I visited my 93 year old grandfather. He isn’t doing well and my grandmother died from Alzheimer’s in 2004.
Grandpa is blind but his eyes seemed to sparkle when I mentioned Mae, his love for decades. I drove home in tears, full of guilt because I live far away, feeling helpless and all around broken hearted.
I checked your blog just to see if you’d updated – sometimes photos of your girls just brighten my day. Imagine my surprise to find this entry…just what I needed with my heavy heart, missing my grandma, worrying about my grandpa.
I don’t have any words but thank you. I can’t find anything else to say but that.
I keep reading this post over and over again because your love for your grandma reminds me of my love for my bestfriend that I lost when I was 10 years old. I am 24 now and I still think of her everyday. Last night after reading this post, I went to bed and had the most beautiful dream about her. We were kids again playing in the sandpit and I was telling her how much I missed her and was happy she was with me again. I found out 4 weeks ago that I am pregnant with my 2nd child and after reading your post, I will name my baby Claire if it is a girl, in memory of my angel in heaven. Thank you for being such a beautiful person and awakening such precious memories in my heart. xxx
Oh, grandmas are a wonderful thing! I am so blessed to have had such a loving, wonderful relationship with both of mine growing up in a small Minnesota town. One has since passed and I miss her deeply and think of her often wishing she were here to offer more words of encouragement and love. My living grandma is 93 with Alzheimers, but so far thankfully she still remembers who I am most of the time even though I now live so far away. I wish I could be closer to help her and ease the burden my own mother faces. Thanks for the lovely post and you will do a glorious job helping your lovely girls know how special your grandma was to you. I love reading your blog as it makes me happy and reminds me to appreciate all the small things in life.
It’s been a busy week, and for the first time since I discovered your blog about 3 months ago, I actually missed reading one of your posts on the day you posted it. So I got to read about Dorothy Cordelia and Lainey’s triumph over ballet all in one sitting. And at 24 weeks pregnant, I dissolved into tears over the beauty of your grandma’s memory, and your pride in Lainey’s accomplishment. Much to my husband’s confusion and concern. Thanks once again for your beautiful blog.
so cute. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9b7y9UYt_fM
Beautiful post
Nella is absolutely beautiful, steals my heart everytime. Thank you for sharing your heart, your world with me.
Thank you for sharing this beautiful post. I lost my Grandmother this February and am so thankful I had her for 30 years and she got to meet and love both of my boys. My son is named after my Grandparents and I hope he has memories of them that will last a lifetime.
ooooh I miss my grandma too 🙁 She always said that she wanted to live long enough to see my Ashlyn walk, but she went to Heaven before it happened. I felt sure that she was looking down from Heaven the day that she finally took her first steps at almost 5 years old. Nella is such a beauty…I swear I look at her and think there’s no way she could get any more beautiful!! Her eyes are so amazingly captivating!
Oh, you made me cry!!! What a great post!! I didn’t really think that there would be a new post because the last one was so recently, but what a great one to find! I am lucky enough to have both of my grandmothers but my husband’s died 3 years ago and it was devestating for the whole family. We were able to tell her that her 11th grandchild (my 2 year old) was on the way before she passed and I think it helped her hold on because she really wanted to meet her newest angel. I feel she is watching over him and all of us all the time, though, just like your Gram. Thanks so much for the post, I appreciate it, and I look forward to your posts.- Stacy in CT
Our grandma’s share the same bday. I posted a blog about my grandma the same day kjhump.mindsay.com
I’m sorry your girls didn’t get to meet her. She clearly was an amazing woman. Nella is a lucky little girl!
What a beautiful description and tribute to such a lovely influence into your heart and life…forever changing you and your precious girls. Life is beautiful.
Lots of love, and tears…
Thank you!
This post was beautiful.I cried! Of course! I lost my grandmother 3 years ago today. She passed away in my arms. Grandmothers are wonderfully special people! I know that she is with you and your girls smiling down and extremely proud!
such a touching post! i lost my grandma a year and a half ago, but i did not get to say good bye to her (it was very sudden). grandmothers hold such an important place in our hearts. i’m sure yours is very proud of you and of her great-granddaughters!
Kelle, I just found your blog yesterday and have been caught up in your beautiful world, with your endlessly sweet little girls and adoring husband. You’re the kind of mother and the kind of woman I hope to be someday–loving, accepting, kind, but never losing your own sense of self.
I’ll keep reading. I’m sending lots of love your way down in Florida, and I wanted to thank you for the opportunity you’ve given us to have a peek into the life we all want: one filled with happiness.
Very sweet. Grandmas are amazing. I lost mine to cancer in 2008 and I think of her daily and miss her like crazy.
mh
I absolutely love your blog! I never tire of looking at the amazing photos of your beautiful girls. You have so many sweet pictures of Nella. A friend of mine sent me Nella’s birth story a few months ago because she thought I could relate. I have also have a 3 year old daughter and my almost 2 year old boy was born blind. He is my joy, but learning of the blindness and dealing with it over the last two years has been difficult. I so appreciate your openness on here and find your blog inspiring!
This made me cry (as most of your posts do!)
And Nella has the most gorgeous eyes. I can’t get over them.
My mimi passed away when I was 16, I am 25 now. We were kindred spirits and had been ever since I was born. I miss her every single day. She always had a candy jar of M&M’s and big bubble gum, let me cheat at solitaire, and loved ice cream more than I do.
Hoping you have had a wonderful weekend! Just wanted to tell you this one touched me more than most! My grandmom (‘Gigi’ to my kids) is still with us physically, but has suffered from Alzheimers for almost 10 years!!!! It truly is a ravaging, awful disease! We never thought she would get this far! Her birthday is this coming tuesday and I will take my kids to see her in her little Alzheimer’s home even though she will not remember us. But I will remember how she used to always have vegetable dip and chips (my favorite!) waiting for me when I would visit her in maryland and the day she gave me my grandfather’s leather bomber jacket that he wore on his air missions in WW2. And especially when my friends and I would visit her in college (because my mom and dad were far away too!) and we would sit in her backyard with a bushel of crabs and beer. She was so cute laughing and eating and drinking with us, just part of the gang!
So glad that you got those special years with your grandmom during college! What wonderful memories of what seems like a wonderful woman!
Love to you and your family!
Angela
You really expressed how I feel about my Dorothy grandma, Dorothy Marie. I miss her still with a fierceness that steals my breath sometimes, and laugh at memories with the same fierceness. What a blessing to have those to pass on to our children of such a rich heritage!
I love a name with meaning, with a history. I was given one and I gave it to my daughter too. Some day she will look back and realize just how awesome it is!
What a way to remember your grandma!
we must be related…lol…my grammy said that tooo. Boy do i miss her 🙁 but i know shes in a better place and shes pickin out just the right spot for me when its time 🙂
What a beautiful post about a wonderful woman…I have no doubt!
(I live right off of I-94 in Michigan…just about 25 minutes north of the airport.)
About 2 days before Nella was born my Granddad died. My Grandparents from my Mom’s side adopted my 2 sisters and I when i was a baby. So he was like a Dad to me. He was a stubborn old cuss that would yell at us just when he was in a bad mood (as my Grandma would say) but I was his favorite and it was obvious.
He made my breakfast every day before school. Cold cereal wasn’t good enough, I either had oatmeal fruit and toast or an omelet or even french toast. It wasn’t perfect but I so appreciate the effort he put into it. He would sometimes make me food on Saturday mornings too because he said if I got myself food then I would miss a part of my cartoons. He would of NEVER done that with anybody else. I was spoiled.
He called me Sam and insisted I called him Sue. His sense of humor brushed off on me. When my cousins would stay the night on Saturday he would show off and tease Grandma. She would say something like no playing at the dinner table! And that means the big kid as well!! He would hang his head down and look up with dopey eyes like he was in trouble. It was one of the best memories I have of him.
He lived on using a stomach tube for about 8 months. The cancer closed the hole to his stomach and to his throat and he lived for about a week after that. The night before he died he told relatives with me lying on the bed with him that I was his daughter. He never called me that before and I cherish that more then anybody could ever know. Thank you for reading this and Nella has a personal love from me because she was born about 2 days after he died. One life ends, another begins. And life goes on. I still haven’t full on cried yet but it will come when it’s time. I am still processing it.
what a wonderful person to hold close to your heart. i remember the days when alzheimer’s seemed to consume my gramma and now those are the days least remembered. she was a mom to 8, gramma to 21, and g-gramma to 17 and growing. she would call us boogers in that endearing way that you just knew she adored every ounce of you. she even sent me her special homemade heart cookies for valentine’s day my freshman year of college.
i want to be more like her.
This post brought tears to my eyes! Grandmothers are wonderful people and I am fortunate enough to have a wonderful woman in my life like you did. Your pictures are gorgeous as always. I hope you have a wonderful week!
Hi Kelle, on April i found your blog. Since this time i visit it every week. As i read this blog i had to cry…my name is Hannah, i am german.So excuse my english….:-)
On your grandma´s birthday my grandma fight for her life… she loose this fight on sunday morning. her family has been always was on her bed, hold her hand, kissed her, whispered in her ear. I think it´s very important for her, and it was important for myself. It´s so hard, i will miss her so much.It felt your blog could be mine this day…….you are a very special person kelle…..thanks for this blog and good luck for you and your family.Today night i will pray for all the grandma´s which will be missed from her granddaughters…..
Another post reducing me to tears! Happy Birthday Grandma Dorothy Cordelia!
That picture- KELLY- That picture of that lil’ Nella holding the photo of the grandparents…
You are a messenger. Sent to tell us all.
“Enjoy the hell out of this!”
Wonderful job. Wonderful wonderful job.
WOW, this is just beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’ve been reading your beautiful blog for a few months now. I am also a mama to two girls (who are almost 8 and 4). Nella’s beautiful smile always makes me smile. Thanks for all you do and write!
I’ve been reading your beautiful blog for a few months now. I am also a mama to two girls (who are almost 8 and 4). Nella’s beautiful smile always makes me smile. Thanks for all you do and write!
Ack…your post brought me to tears. I’m sitting at my desk at work and trying to hide them. What a beautiful post and tribute to your grandma.
I also believe middle names are very important and that is why this hit so close to home. My dad passed away shortly before I got married. Right away I knew my first born would take her grandpa’s middle name, Lee. I now have my beautiful Stella Lee and she too holds a piece of my dad inside of her.
I’m a couple of weeks away from baby girl #2 and she also is taking a special middle name. She will be Hadley Jo. Jo is the middle name of both our mom’s and is also my grandpa’s first name. He passed away the day we found out we were having another girl.
Thank you for this posting, it gave me a chance to think about my loved ones instead of work!!
I love the tai chi picture!!! My 7month old is really, really into hitting our face as soon as it gets close enough, and he thinks it is just oh so funny. It must be the age.
Beautiful post. My little baby girl has my grandma’s name as her middle name, too.
You know whats crazy? I talk to my Grandma all the time about my son, or when I am a bit down. I actually had a dream about her after he was born, where we sat at her anniversary dining set (now mine) and chatted.
It cant hurt to talk…because you never know,right?
Thank you for sharing this post! My grandmother passed away last October, her name was Dorothy Helen Root. When I have my first daughter I plan to use her middle name. She meant so much to me and was sad that I was not able to share my special someone with her. I think of her often and always carry her in my heart. Juliette
Thank you for writing this. It’s like you’re reading my mind from the future. My husband and I both lost our grandmothers within a month of each other. And, while I didn’t make it to her before she left, I was able to spend a wonderful weekend with her just a few weeks before. Just her girls. Like you, I know if I have another girl, she will have her name. Thank you, Kelley.
LOVE the photo of Nella holding her namesake photo… breathtaking.
Your posts just make my day. Thank you.
Happy Birthday to your Grandma. I am a little behind on your posts and just re-read this one. It is so special. On another note, two of my graduate school classmates went to Spring Arbor. Maybe you knew them? Elizabeth Feazell and Susie England now Becker. What a small world if you do. xoxo.
You and your story are amazing. I smile, I laugh and I cry when I read your words and see the love in your photos.
Your Grandmother sounds like an amazing woman. She was obviously a strong and loving woman, and you are following in her foot steps quite well.
Keep filling the world with your love.
your little family is adorable.
your taste in music is fabulous.
you might like Angus and Julia Stone.
is shabby apple not to DIE for?!
My Aeris Ella is named after my grandma, Ella Mae and 10 years after her death, I still think of her very often and am so so glad I get to remind myself by telling stories to my own little Ella (as my grandpa called her when he was still alive)
My second daughter’s middle name is Ruth, it was my Granny’s middle name too. I love knowing that every time we fill in her name on a form or tell it to someone then my Granny is remembered. I hope that she will be as fiesty and determined as my Granny was, at two she shows signs of that.
As always another beautiful post! I, too, had a VERY special bond with my grandma. I really wanted to name my little girl something after my grandma’s name, but since her name was Virginia I just couldn’t bring myself to do that. Loved the pic of Nella looking at your grandparents. It’s wonderful. Thanks for sharing your life with all of us.
I just recently found your blog and I have fallen in love with the beautiful way you tell your story. I had to smile when you talked about the meaning behind your little’s middle name. My great-grandmother, grandmother, mom and I all share the same middle name, and I’ve already decided that my first girl will as well. I love the idea of having that connection.
Great post! Hope to see more of this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1H8ibKLnSw