Celebrating Grandma Ruth

This past Saturday we traveled to Kennewick to celebrate my Grandma and her amazing 99 year life! About a year ago I asked my Mom if I could write the eulogy for Grandma's funeral. She blessed my life in so many ways and I wanted to share my love and appreciation for her. The weekend was the perfect way to remember my Grandma. Amelia told my Mom that we were going to have a party for Grandma and celebrate all the great times and fun memories we have of her, because that is what it is all about. I wanted to make sure that for Amelia and Milo that was what it was about! So we swam (a lot), rode the carousel that we went to when we visited Grandma, spent time with our family and drank some Crown Royal (you will understand why when you read the eulogy). We had pie, cake, cookies, Hershey kisses and pineapple gummy bears (both per Amelia's request because Grandma loved them) at the reception because clearly Grandma loved her sweets! There were tears but there were lots of smiles and new memories made. We will continue to share Grandma's stories and our memories with her will live forever! Below is my Grandma's eulogy, I hope you get to know my Grandma a little, she was pretty incredible!

Thank you. Thank you for being here to celebrate Ruth Archer! I am Christy Aguirre, the youngest of Ruth’s grand kids. Ruth was born to Claude and Mary Galloway on June 11, 1919 in Las Animas, Colorado. She grew up a farm girl who would much rather be outside riding horses or playing with piglets than inside cleaning. She married John Archer, in 1938. They had two children, Robert and Connie. She had 6 grandchildren and 16 great grandchildren.

-A smile that would light up any room.

-A cup of coffee that would chase away a bad day.

-A story that would bring fits of laughter.

-A special dessert just because it would make you happy.

These are a few of the things that many of us remember about Grandma. As soon as you walked into her home, you knew you were safe. It was as if the world around you disappeared, any problems, any worries, just faded away. Things at Grandma’s house were simple. Eat some pot roast, drink a little Crown Royal or a small glass of beer, watch a game and just be with each other. She would tell stories from her childhood about the things she did on the farm, or about the grocery stores her family owned, or about the crazy things her kids did (like luring a squirrel into her house), or how funny she thought it was that her Great Granddaughter called her Woofie…but one of my favorites is about the first date she had with Grandpa. She told it better, but here goes: “Your Grandpa asked me out on a date to go roller skating and when he picked me up, he had another girl in the car! I still went because he was paying.”  Fast forward through the evening, “I told John I was ready to go, so he took me home and left the other girl there. I guess I was something special! Plus, that other girl wasn’t as pretty as me.”

There was definitely something special about Grandma. Maybe it was her impeccable hair and nails, her beautiful jewelry, the fact that she was more hip and stylish than any of us or her spotless home. I don’t think I know anybody else who can keep a dust free house in Eastern Washington.  Grandma took pride in her home and her beautiful rose garden but most of all she took pride in her husband, her kids, her grandkids and her great grandkids. As soon as she started talking about her family, there came that smile, that beautiful smile. Two of the people Grandma was most proud of were her children. She may not have told the two of you how proud she was of you, probably because you didn’t need your Mom to tell you because you could feel it and see it. I know for a fact she told her friends, her hairdresser and anybody that would listen, about all of your accomplishments: raising beautiful families, winning countless baseball games and titles, changing the lives of hundreds of children, but most of all for supporting her and being there for her amidst all you had going on in your own lives. Her pride for the two of you was endless.

We all know that Grandma was fiercely independent, a tad stubborn and game for anything! Grandma drove until she was 95 and if anybody tried to tell her she shouldn’t, her response was usually, “I know my limits and you can’t tell me when to drive my own car.” And if you told her that somebody was going to be mad about what she was doing, she quickly told you, “Well, they can just get glad in the same pants they got mad in!”

Did you know that Grandma learned to water ski even though she couldn’t swim, or that she made Grandpa go white water rafting, or that she broke the wild horses for her Dad on their farm? Grandma had a fire inside of her. There was no extinguishing it. That fire, along with so many other things, made her the woman she was for 99 years!

A lot of people say they see their loved ones in a sunset, or a certain song or smell. Not to say that those things won’t make you think of Grandma, but as I look out at all of you, I see Grandma’s smile as you think about the things she has done specifically for you to make you feel loved. I see Grandma’s genuine spirit as you reconnect with family and friends. I see Grandma’s love for life as you step out into new adventures. I see Grandma’s independence as you all pursue your passions. Who Grandma was…is exactly who we, her family, are.
Although her life was long, and I was blessed to experience a little over a third of her life as her granddaughter, I am still sad that no new memories will be made. One thing I found comfort in was my faith. John 14:1-3 tells us, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father's house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am." Jesus has fulfilled the Easter Promise and brought Grandma to a perfect place with no tears, no dementia, no darkness or confusion. God makes and keeps his promises. Grandma is rejoicing with her family and friends who have gone before her, she is home.

My Halloween Pups

Just some cute pics...more to come soon.

7 Months....OOPS!

Well, I have realized that once I started school last January that my blog was the one who suffered. So, here is a quick rundown!

*Started school at Troy University. I had 3 math classes, 1 english class, and 1 computer class. I came out of the semester with a 4.0!

*Buddie, Baylee, and Phoebee are doing great and playing and wrestling like 3 siblings should.

*Randy is doing great at work. His facility got the recognition of facility of the quarter and he made the E-7 list for promotion. Now he is just waiting for his number to come up.

*My friend Elizabeth came to visit for a few days when she had to drop her sweet little Sami off at her dad's.

*Jared and Emma came to spend the summer with us! Oh boy the adventures!

*My Mom came down to visit and help out with the kids! What a blessing because I am taking 5 online classes and it is a lot of work!

*Last but not least...WE ARE IN DISNEYWORLD from July 6th-13th!!!!!!

*Coming soon---Taking kids back, Lorae visiting, and next semester starting.

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Well we are in Wisconsin and let me tell you it is cold. There is about 2 feet of snow or more and it is still coming down. I almost forgot...it is -6 (without the windchill) I will post pictures soon. The dogs are doing well but we had to buy socks for their feet because it was to cold for them and we have jackets for them. It is very funny walking them outside.

My little volunteer

The week before Thanksgiving I started taking Buddie to the Enterprise Health and Rehab Center here in town. I had called the week before to find out if they allowed animals to come in and interact with the residents and they said YES! So our first trip there was kind of short but fun. We didn't go again until the week after Thanksgiving and have gone 3 times since then. Each trip ends up being about an hour. Buddie loves all of the attention and does so well with the residents. He will put his paws up on their laps or on the sides of their wheelchairs if they can't reach him and then when he is done he gets down and starts going to the next place. He is really beginning to know his way around the building and always gets excited when I pull into the parking lot. A lot of the people that we see are starting to remember him and even the employees love seeing him when he comes in and just think that he is so cute and fluffy.

There is one lady named Mable that just adores Buddie. She is one of the residents and the first time she saw Buddie we were on our way out to the car and she asked me if I would bring him by her room the next time I came. I told her that I would and let me tell you, when Buddie walked into her room last Friday she just lit up. She looked at me and said, 'I just knew you weren't lying to me, I just knew you would come back to see me.' She held Buddie and took pictures with him.

I knew that Buddie visiting would be a great experience but it has also made me think. How many times has somebody said to one of those residents that they would be back to see them and never came? How long has that person waited and waited just to be disappointed? By me simply following through on a simple request I was able to change that woman's life in a small way. There are 7 halls in the facility, all filled with rooms, sometimes with 2 people to a room. How many of them don't have visitors or don't have any family? To many times we as human beings don't realize how lucky we are to have the families that we have, the friends that we have, or the generally healthy lives that we have. What would it look like if for one day a month you would volunteer an hour of your time to read a book or play chess with somebody at a nursing home? What if we gave one hour of our time to volunteer at an Animal Shelter or Children's Hospital?

I am not saying all of this because it is the holidays and the season of giving. I think that it is important to help out those families in need during the holidays but I don't think it should stop there. People need support, help, cheering up, whatever you want to call it, all year round. Some of you may be saying, 'I don't have the money to donate or money to buy food to feed other people besides my family.' That is okay, help out at a soup kitchen, help with Special Olympics, volunteer your time somewhere that needs help. Take your kids with you! Volunteering helps kids learn compassion, responsibility, integrity, understanding, selflessness, and the list could go on. Don't be afraid for your kids, if they meet somebody who is different from them use it as a teaching tool and help them learn.

Don't make excuses as to why you can't. What if your parents or grandparents were there? What if your child was in a hospital for a long period of time? Doctors, nurses, and other employees are great but volunteers are there for that extra touch of home and heart. Please think about it, your life can't be so busy that you can't take an hour and give it to somebody else and if it is...slow down.