Lucky Grandkids!!!
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Wow, your grandpa has a great memory and an awesome ability to write!! I on the other hand do not have a flair for writing like he does. I can tell you this though.....,
When you boys came to New
Jersey to hang out with grandpa and I so your mom and dad could have a
lllooonnnggg date, we were thrilled to no end. We love spending time
and creating memories with all of our children and grandchildren.
You were such a trooper Aylen John. It was you who
made Ryker feel safe, comfortable and loved the most. He really looked
up to you (and still does) for guidence. It was so much fun having you
boys drive/ride the cars up and down the hallway, turn on all the
Christmas lights, inflatables and musicial things. It became a morning
and evening routine.
One of my favorites was you AJ helping grandpa put
feed out for the birds. Soon we had a few turkeys so of course they had
to be fed. You (AJ) went out with grandpa and set up feeding tables
for the turkeys with piles of bird seed. Before long we were counting
thirty plus turkeys!!! You were so delighted.
We made mommies favorite chocolate cushion cookies,
sugar cookies, chocolate chip cookies and made plates for Santa out of
mints. Then you each got to paint a bird house to take home. I enjoy
seeing them hang on your fire place mantel.
Aylen, you were so excited to see the conductor on the train and he got his picture taken with you! It was so cool!!
Ryker
man I was one scared grandma when I went in to check on you and you
were not in your bed!!!! Never want to feel that scared again!! Maybe
you were just that kind of scared when you clung on so thight to me when
the tryannosaurus roared.
I had so much fun singing and dancing with you both.
When you boys were babies and I stayed with you I would sing to you
alot. We had a whole list of songs to sing and sometimes you would ask
me to sing a certain one. I hope Dempsey will like me to sing to her
too...., and dance with me.
Your poor mom had it so rough after you all got home
what with everyone but her getting sick. Grandpa and I knew one of us
needed to come help out. I told him I am the one who always goes and
stays for months to help out so he should go this time. He was making
flight arrangements before I could finish telling him he should go!!!
You have a very special grandpa!:-)
Your mom gave grandpa the best birthday gift when
she came and picked us up at the airport in April. The news that you
both were going to be big brothers!! How exciting!!! Um, don't tell
your mom but grandpa never uses the gifts with your pictures on them! He
has them on his special shelf so he can see them:-). He is so cute that
way:-)
Well, summer rolled around and you came to visit us.
What a blast!! Grandpa and I had cleaned the garage and repainted it.
Who would of known this was going to be a great kid play area hang
out!?! We all even ate breakfast out there one day. When grandpa and
mommy went into the city to see a Yankees game ( I know, right). You
boys and I spent the day playing trucks and cars in the garage.
We had a hammock that you loved to lay and swing on
so that got lots of use. Then we moved on to the green house. Oh my
gosh, now that was the most fun place to play!! It was a house, a gas
station, a garage, a store. You name it!! You even ate some of your
meals out there (asking no adults to join you).
Both of you boys have enjoyed watching and listening
to the water run in the creek behind our house. So calming....if only
for a short while. There were trucks and cars to be riden up and down
the sidewalk ya know! And at night, marshmellows to be roasted in the
firpit.
We had gotten you boys shark life vests that you had
so much fun wearing when we took you to the lake and the ocean (well
being in New Jersey ya gotta say the shore)!!! People would go by and
say "shark" and Aylen John you would look out toward the ocean and ask
"where". I can not wait to take you whale watching!!!!!!!!!!!!
So many great fun memories filled with activities,
love, snuggles, kisses, hugs, eating, playing. Whew, we cram a lot into
one day.
I was so thrilled to get to come out
to your place in October to go trick or treating with you. That was the
most fun time at Halloween that I have had since I went to Texas and
did it with your cousins Arjan and Riya. You boys were so brave and
excited going from house to house and saying tick or treat. I'm not sure
which was more fun you, getting the candy or giving it out:-)
Our date time was very special to me Aylen
John. You were such a little gentleman and people were so impressed by
your manners. I was (and continue to be) one proud grandma.
You had me worried when we would talk about your new brother or sister
coming. You would cry and just be so sad if we said it could be a girl.
You always said ,"no, I can only have brothers".
Mommy had been in labor all day and you boys needed to be picked up
from day care so I picked you up from the best day care place ever then
we went out to dinner. When we got home the midwife told us to go
upstairs. We went into mommy and daddy's room to see them with the
baby. I was so thrilled when mommy said it was a girl and you Aylen
John made me cry. You were so smitten with her from the moment you laid
eyes on her. Then you looked at Ryker and said, " you have to be nice
to her". The perfect big brother you are!!
The next morning when I went up to mommy and daddy's
bedroom I found mommy, the baby and Aylen laying in bed snuggled
together. Mommy had to get up to use the restroom and asked me to keep
an eye on the baby. I laid down where mommy had been, placed my hand
sort of on the baby's shoulder and Aylen, you moved my hand and pulled
the baby closer to you. While I was like, hey I can touch the baby, at
the same time I was so proud of your protectiveness of her.
Ryker man, you and I finally got to have our date
and went to Panera for breakfast. No one knew that I was going to be
picking grandpa up from the airport that morning. I was trying to get
both of you boys to come to breakfast with me but AJ you told me to have
my date time with Rykie so I did. He was so excited to see grandpa!!!!
Just as excited as all the rest of us for sure! The look on your
faces when you answered the door and there was grandpa was priceless.
The mornings away from you Ryker man just are not
the same as the mornings with you. I miss you coming into our room,
grabbing my ipad and asking for struction (constuction), trains, planes.
It never failed to make me laugh when you leaned over putting your
face right infront of mine and repeated these requests if I was too slow
to meet your needs!
I am looking forward to coming out to take care of
Dempsey when mommy goes back to work. I'm looking forward to singing
our songs to her, rocking her, going for jogs with her, feeding and
changing her, snuggling with her, and watching her grow. Just like I
did with you Aylen John and Ryker man. I have been blessed to get to
have such quality bonding time with you and look forward to making many
more loving memories with all of you.
Much love, Grandma Hoffman
Ps: while mommy and daddy were on that long date one morning we were all
sitting at the dinning room table finishing up breakfast. I stood and
started clearing the table. This little voice said, "I love you". I
turned back around and said, "I love you too Aylen John" only to be told
by grandpa and aunt Joan that Ryker had said that!!! We all just
stared at him. We were so dumbfounded!
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