Friday, June 24, 2011

One Stroky’s Journey: Good Medicine

Pre-stroke May 2011 was booked for some grandchild-care, one of my favorite activities with favorite little people. The fact that I had missed those moments made visits by the grands healing medicine for stroke recovery in May and June.

Our Georgia tribe and parents visited while I was in the Singing River Hospital Comprehensive Rehab Center in Pascagoula, MS.

Nana (that’s me) savors oldest grandchild Luke’s publishing skills.  He shares with me and his siblings a cutting edge how-to booklet he wrote and illustrated on how to catch a lizard.

With son Walt driving my wheelchair and daughter-in-law Sarah as kid-wrangler, a visit to the duck pond at the front of the hospital was a treat.

Kids, mild temperatures and a welcomed breeze—a great combination for an escape out of doors.
The Georgia tribe:
Luke, 8

Nate, 6

Charlie, 5

Stella, 3

Our Louisiana twosome and parents visited in early June on my second Saturday at home. Since we missed grandson Walker’s first birthday celebration, a late mini-celebration was in order with cake and ice cream.
A beach cake for sand-loving Walker 

Mom Katie puts Walker in his official birthday-cake-eating outfit--diaper only

Big sister Molly Kate assists with presents.

Walker is his usual enthusiastic self, sharing his delight in life with everyone around him.

Molly Kate models her dance costume since we missed her first recital.
And she performs her group's Baa Baa Black Sheep recital number for Grandma Sugar and Nana.

Even other people’s grandchildren deliver healing properties. A more recent much-needed lift in spirits occurred as a result of a visit by seven-week-old Zoey and her posse of admirers: her grandmother and a former colleague of mine Diana Reid, Zoey’s mom Cassidy Reid Jacquet, and Zoey’s Uncle Tanner Reid.

Diana’s seven-week-old granddaughter Zoey succumbs to naptime.
Diana is a gifted graphic artist. When I first worked with her, she was plying her craft fulltime at a major local industry and freelancing after hours. Cassidy and Tanner were little, about seven and five respectively, maybe even younger. They often accompanied their mom to my office at the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium. They played quietly or created their own art while the adults--Diana, Treva, a fellow Sea Grant communicator and gifted colleague, and I--provided Diana with digital text files, photos, (pre-digital days), and bounced ideas around about design for the project of the moment.

What fun it was to see Cassidy as a mom to little Zoey. And to see Tanner all grown up and taking a summer break before returning in the fall for his third year at Olin College of Engineering, Needham, MA.

Hubby Walter, AKA Baboo, and I are still laughing about and enjoying again moments shared during the grands’ visits.
Can you tell Baboo and Nana are happy with their doses of “good medicine”?

8 comments:

  1. And children are the best medicine - partly because they wear you out to the point you fall asleep as soon as your head hits the pillow.

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  2. I hope you will continue to receive lots of 'happy families' medicine. They are a lovely bunch, but so are you and your husband. How could the little ones not be?

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  3. What wonderful, wonderful pictures! And that cake is totally cool!! I am so glad you are getting so much good medicine. It is little Stella who has totally captured my heart with her winsome look, I just really want to hug her!!!

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  4. What beautiful grands and what delightful medicine they impart. Keep taking your doses with joy and love.

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  5. Grandkids are absolutely the best medicine there is. I'm so glad they have been around to pour their love all over you.
    I think you are doing fantastic and pray each day is better than the one before.
    Sue

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  6. Children are the best healers in the world. What a beautiful day you had! :)

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  7. I agree with Friko, beauty runs in the family. All of you look wonderful. Congratulations.

    MOlly Kate reminds me of the actress who plays the little girl on the BBC program "Outnumbered." The actress also played Princes Margaret in the King's Speech. Dianne

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  8. Yes, little ones are the best medicine! Speaking of little ones--we're going to have another one! Caden's going to be a big brother!!!

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