Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Saying goodbye...

I want to send prayers and good wishes to everyone affected by Hurricane Sandy! So many tragic stories and loss of life from Mother Nature's fury! It will take a long time to get back to normal so whatever we can do individually will help in the long run. I've read that the best contributions are money and blood. I would suggest donations of either go to the Red Cross where they are able to manage it best in times like this and you can be sure your donations will go to the right place.

Visiting the Tx kids Jan 2012
My next request will be for your prayers for my move to Texas at the end of November! After 16 1/2 years here in Michigan watching my 3 oldest Grandkids grow into beautiful teenagers, I feel the need to live closer to my youngest Grandkids and give them some memories of having family nearby. 

The older ones all spent nights at Grandma's and I was at most of their baseball games, soccer, volleyball and wrestling matches, which sometimes made for some hectic weekends trying to make it to all the games! The younger ones (Claudia 10, Kaz 7, Jude 6) have been living in TX for almost 5 1/2 years with only visits from relatives, so I decided to make the move! 

Heading out for Tye's b-ball game
I'm really going to miss my "big kids", (Tye 17, Bailey 14, Zach 13) but I hope to make it back to Michigan for the important milestones like Tye's High School graduation in May! Thank goodness I have photos of all the good times we've had over the past 16 years! 

Thank goodness for Facebook and Skype! I've been able to stay in close touch with TX this way and now will do the same with MI. I've got pictures of each of the older kids learning to use the computer at my house and now they are way more advanced than I am! I will also look forward to visits from them in the future!

Bailey--1st Homecoming Dance
I'm also going to miss my daughter and son-in-law (who got married this past April) and my middle son (father to the two handsome boys above)! I'll be missing my friends I've made in Michigan too, but again, the computer will keep us connected as it has helped me re-connect with even MORE friends from so many years ago!

It's kind of overwhelming to pick up and move at my age (64), but most of my life was spent moving from place to place and country to country, so I know I will adjust after it's all over with! You can get really comfortable with all your memories (and junk) around you after 16 years and it gets harder to just "pick up and go" like I used to! 

The apartment I want is not available yet, so I will be living with my Son and Daughter-in-law for a few months. After living alone for ....hmmmm....sooooo long, that will also be something to adjust to. I just read an article in the AARP Bulletin about a parent moving in with their adult child and it had some good tips for discussing certain things from the beginning (like not getting involved or interfering with the way they run their family or finances).

Couldn't have been closer to nature on the trail!
 I'll be making new friends and finding   new places to walk and take photos. Hope to find some avid bird watchers too! :) I will miss my Pollyann Trail here in MI, where I've walked daily for over two years. Nothing like having the beauty of nature and wildlife right across the street, but I look at it as another blessing I've had in my life! I've so enjoyed sharing the photos with everyone and have been inspired by the comments and praise.

 Discovering that trail did more for me than just providing the wonderful photo opportunities though. When I found out I had diabetes, I made up my mind that I was going to walk every day rain or shine to help myself lose weight and keep my blood sugar down. I don't know if I could have kept it up for 2½ yrs. if I hadn't had such a convenient, gorgeous place to walk I don't know if I would have gotten out there every day (eventually 2 times a day)! 

I'm just hoping I can maintain my very healthy habit of walking even if I have to drive to a place to walk. I've been researching a few places and have found that Bear Creek Park is only a few miles from where I'll be living, so now I'm looking forward to sharing new scenes with all of you.

Of course it's great that my business is online so I can take it anywhere without much disruption! That has been another blessing in my life. I started Minnie Pauz over 18 yrs. ago and she has been not only a source of income, but a way to express my feelings and to help other women laugh their way through a very trying time in life. And now I'm hoping to do the same with all the baby boomers who are past all the menopause stuff and on to bigger and OLDER problems! LOL! I am working on developing a site for the "After Pauz" bunch, but for now I have this page for you.

I would love to hear comments and advice from any of you who have gone through a "restart" at this stage in life! I thank you all for your support so far and hope to hear from you as I make my way from wintery Michigan to not so wintery Texas! :) Love, Dee


11 comments:

  1. Congratulations on your move!! You're a very good grandma, going all the way to Texas for your grandchildren!!

    I'm from Texas and love it, of course, so am just a bit envious b/c I'm still stuck in Florida. I hope you come to love it as much as I do.

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  2. Thanks, Pam! Didn't know you were from Texas. I lived in San Antonio for 2 years and liked it there. I'll be going to Keller this time (just north of Ft. Worth). I do love the whole western/cowboy feel of TX....especially two-steppin'! :)

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  3. What a good grandma! We are hoping to move into senior housing within the next year, so I'll be curious to hear how your move goes. We accumulate so much stuff during the years, don't we?

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  4. That we do, Eva, and each decade makes it easier to let go of more things as we try to simplify our lives. The hardest part is deciding what the kids and grandkids will consider worth keeping 10-20 yrs down the road! Why should I lug things around if they are not going to want them as keepsakes? The things we wish we had from OUR Grandmother would probably seem worthless or foolish to our kids.

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  5. Wish you the best in your move. Really a wonderful thing for everyone to have a loving Grandmother close.I admire you for starting this new adventure!

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  6. Wishing you wonderful holidays and an easy move! Where in Texas are you going?

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  7. Thanks, Barb...wishing you the same. I'll be in Keller, which is a little north of Ft. Worth. Hope to get ya'll back onboard in January, so keep in touch! :)

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  8. Welcome to Texas, neighbor! I live in Lewisville. I hope the move goes well for you. That's a wonderful thing for a grandma to do. I hope to do be able to do that for my grandkids one day, when and if I ever have any. If not, I suppose I could adopt some of my siblings grandkids :)

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  9. Anonymous2:03 PM

    My roots are in Michigan, too....along with my kids and grandkids! I sure can relate to your story, we're on our 6th major move and all finding all those "new" things on the list sure gets old! I can only reinvent myself so many times....thankfully, blogging has enabled me to do what I love anywhere! I'll look forward to your next post....curious how that living with the kids approach goes.

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  10. Good luck on your move. I moved to Florida 10 years ago and when I talk with friends back in Denver I feel fortunate when they mention the next snow.

    You will do just fine... just keep walking and give yourself some time to get into the swing of things. Slowly, you will find that you know where things are and feel settled in.

    Good luck!!

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  11. Hello! I just started blogging two days ago. I am trying to start again now that my kids are 'leaving the nest'. It is so sad and beautiful at the same time. I am glad that I found your blog and can't wait to read it! Kathy

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