Happy Grandparents Day!!!
For my Memorial Day blog, I took the time to thank the other 9 members of my immediate family, around the one-year anniversary of being lucky enough to be declared CANCER FREE (May 20, 2019). I mentioned a moment with them that stood out to me. This is it here:
When I did some research for it, like I do for
all entries I post, I saw that Sunday, September 13 was “Grandparents Day.” As
soon as I saw that all sorts of bells and whistles went off in my empty head. I
saw this as an opportunity to honor our grandparents.
Starting on June 11, the last 3-ish months I have
(I can lie - but the reality is): Bothered, Pestered, Annoyed and many other
words like that - those on “the same line” as me. I sent out many emails to my
siblings, their spouses, all but one of my cousins (Long story – not worth
getting into detail) as well as some of the older children of my siblings and
cousins asking them to submit a favorite moment(s) or memory(ies) they have of
their grandparents. I received a nice amount of submissions. I did not receive
from all but I know those that did not, did not do it because they do not
appreciate all their grandparents did, because nothing could be further from
the truth.
I knew there were many ways to do it. I chose to
do it starting with the oldest grandparents that are no longer with us and then
working our way down to the youngest – with one exception. For me (and my
siblings), the oldest one is my Maternal Grandfather, Bert. I chose to start
with the second oldest, Grandpa George since, without him, there would have
been only one submission. After that, the 3 grandparents still with us today
are listed from the oldest, my father, William, then Allen and finally Earl.
Sadly, there are some called grandparents by those who received my request that
are no longer with us. Since what they did was loved and appreciate by all,
those who died and won’t be mentioned here are: Marvin and Sue Schuman; Mike
Carniol; Wanda Lindsey and Elizabeth (Libby) Martin. I am sure there were some
I missed. Sorry for that.
What you are about to see and read is EXACTLY
what was sent to me. I made it very clear to all I was not going to change
anything they wrote. I lived up to my end of the deal. What you see is what
they emailed me. This Blog entry is a rather long one. It will take a
significant amount of time to read. But I am 100% sure no one in the family
will object to it. Up until now, I am the only one who has seen what everyone sent
me. That is about to change. Unlike what I did with the grandparents, entries
start with the youngest ones and work up to the oldest one (Me – in all cases
except one) with that person’s name kicking things off. I also said if there
were any pictures they wanted included to send those along. I received some and
they are included. As you will see most involve something other than a picture with
the grandparent mentioned.
Enjoy!
R.I.P.
George and Theresa Schuman
***Anonymous*** (This person
submitted something and requested their name not be used. I am respecting those
wishes and not printing their name here. I know who it is but will not say): Playing
tennis with Grandpa George; Going out for Chinese Food countless times; Having
numerous walks around their neighborhood; Spending the night at their
apartment. They would pull out the sofa bed in the living room and I would get
to watch TV while going to bed.
Heidi Schuman: Late 70s - When we were younger, we’d go visit Grandma and Grandpa
at their Santa Monica apartment. I remember all the small rooms and kitchen but
I especially remember the plastic covered furniture cushions. Do you remember
that? It wasn’t very comfortable, but it was fun to slide on the plastic
covered couch and make noises that annoyed all the adults in the room.
Mid 90s: Towards the end of his
life, Grandpa was at a memory care facility (FYI: Grandma Theresa died in 1981).
I’d go have dinner with him a couple times a week. He couldn’t remember much,
but he always knew he didn’t like drinking plain water. He preferred to drink a
cup of coffee with dinner (actually, with every meal). And he’s always put a
crazy amount of sugar in his coffee or tea.
Jason Schuman: 70s: Buying water. When I was growing up, it was weird that someone would BUY water. I did not know that buying water was a thing people did. The first time I did this was with Grandpa. I remember going a couple times with Grandpa in his huge green car to the store to buy water. Learning!
Rich Schuman: I
will never forget Grandma’s cooking, especially her Sunday dinners, which
included some of the best brisket and potatoes. However, my favorite,
were her blintzes. Still to this day, no restaurant can match her, I am
getting hungry just thinking about them. As for Grandpa, some of my
fondest memories include him staying with us after Grandma passed, how he would
help in the kitchen and his general loving ways. I was so grateful that he got
to meet Jill and attended our wedding.
Peter Schuman: Grandpa had a smile on
his face many times when we visited with him and was a kind Grandpa to his
grandchildren. He would help us have fun
when visiting whether taking us to the pool or ice cream (another favorite when
I was a child).
I always looked forward to visiting
Grandma and Grandpa in Santa Monica, CA even though it seemed to me as a kid a
longer drive to and from their residence.
I had fun walking in Santa Monica because of the closeness to the beach
and the feel of being a beach town. I
had fun going to the Santa Monica Pier when visiting Grandma and Grandpa.
I believe most of the people who
provide writings regarding Grandma will note there was never a shortage of food
at the dinner table. You always parted
from the table with an over full stomach and plenty of food remaining on the
table. Grandma was a good cook and I
always enjoyed eating her food. I
remember she was in control of the situation whenever we visited, or she took
care of us while Mom and Dad were on vacation or not at home.
Grandma was a very kind and generous
woman to her grandchildren. There are
many fond memories of Grandma Schuman, but I will only share one of them. Grandma and Grandpa came to Fountain Valley
to care for Kathy, Erik, and me when Mom and Dad were away from the house (I
can’t remember if they were on vacation or a business trip for Dad and can’t
remember the length of stay). I was very
excited to have Grandma and Grandpa come and have them care for us while Mom and
Dad were away from home.
I informed Grandma of going to play
with friends near the elementary school we attended. Grandma told me to be home by a certain time
(I believe 5:00 p.m.). I was home
fifteen minutes prior to the time designated by Grandma primarily because I did
not want to disappoint her as I had great respect for her and, in part,
remembered the incident Grandma had with Erik regarding taking a shower (Erik
attempted to convince Grandma of having taken a shower one night even though he
had not done so, Grandma was not fooled, and ordered Erik back into the
bathroom and shower, yay Grandma).
Grandma and Grandpa took us for ice cream (I believe it was Farrell’s
ice cream) after I returned from playing with my friends (and most likely after
we had dinner, but who cares about the dinner part when ice cream is involved
in the memory).
I wish there had been more time with
Grandma Schuman but cherish all the moments and memories together with her and
all of my grandparents and I am thankful for the memories and time together
with my grandparents.
Erik Schuman: There are 2 things that stand
out with me about Grandpa George.
He was a HUGE Dodgers fan. He loved them as much
as he loved his family. One of the many reasons I am also a HUGE fan is because
of him - and the fact he took me to a few games at Chavez Ravine. I remember
one Sunday in the early 70s he took Dad (his son) and I to a game. I don’t
remember much about it just that he took us. Oh, yeah – and he bought an ice
cream treat, which for kids that age – there is nothing better than that. The
sad part is the last time the Dodgers won the World Series was in 1988. Grandpa
was still alive. Hopefully, this is the year they can finally win one after his
passing. When they finally do I am going back to his grave site and dumping a
bottle of champagne on it so he can enjoy the taste of the celebration.
In their aforementioned apartment, there would
always be a Playboy in the bathroom for those who wanted to “read” it. I always
spent a few extra minutes in the bathroom looking things over and being awed by
the sheer beauty of the women in the magazine. And to keep people from asking:
NO! I DID NOT! EVER! I only looked at the pictures. Nothing else!
The one constant theme you see about Grandma
Theresa is: FOOD! That women loved to cook. And when she cooked, she made
enough to feed an entire country. In September 1979, Mom and Dad (William and
Louise) took us (Me, Peter and Kathy) to England. It was awesome. We missed the
first 11 days of school! We flew out of LAX and because Grandma and Grandpa
lived (relatively) close by in Santa Monica, Grandpa picked us up from LAX and
brought us back to SM, where the car was. As you can imagine we were dead
tired. We could barely keep our eyes open. We were that tired. We had thought
about calling Grandma Theresa (Which would not have been cheap back then) and
asking her not to make us anything when we got there but we either didn’t think
she would or it was too much to call and ask. BIG MISTAKE! We arrive at the
apartment and sure enough, the table was full of food. As much as we didn’t
want to eat, we knew we had to do it. So, we did. We made sure not to make the
“fatal” mistake of giving her our plate. I have heard plenty of (horror)
stories from my parents and aunts/uncles about times someone came over to eat,
she asked him (always a guy) if they wanted more, they said they did, but not a
lot, then made the “fatal” of mistake of giving her their plate only to get it
back with enough food to make him look like Violet Beauregarde from the Willy
Wonka movies – and the poor guy had to eat it all or else face the wrath of
having her ask: “What’s the matter – you don’t like my cooking?”
Grandma Theresa was the first of my Grandparents
to pass away – in February 1981. It may have been almost 40 years, but I can
live to be 10,000 years old and will never forget being told she died. My Uncle
Earl called the house that day. He asked to speak to my father, his older
brother, Bill. I said Dad was not there but should be home soon and I can have
him call Uncle Earl back when he gets home (No cell phones in 1981). Uncle Earl
said that Dad was on his way to Santa Monica and how their mother, my Grandmother,
had suddenly passed away. I heard this and it was like a hammer smashed the
side of my head. I was shocked to hear this and was equally numb. I was almost
17 at the time and had to do the toughest thing I ever had to do at that point
in time. Mom (Louise) and my siblings, Peter and Kathy did not know this. So
they come home and are walking up the walkway to the house. I meet them outside
and tell them the news. As expected, they all start breaking down and crying.
Because I had already done it and because since Dad was not there, I was the
“Man of the House” I comforted Mom and Sis. That was no fun at all. Only thing
tougher in life was on March 4, 1990 (Dad’s Birthday) when Hank Gathers died
and I was at KTLA and 6 of us had to go get the station’s weekend Sportscaster
Ed Arnold, and somewhat of a father figure to Hank had died. There were 6 of us
there in case Ed fainted. He did not. That was tougher because Hank was in his
early 20s and had a long life ahead of himself unlike Grandma who lived a longer
life than Hank. To this day I can still hear Uncle Earl’s words and the
reaction it caused.
Finally, the Summer I was 13, Grandma and Grandpa
drove up to Oregon for 2-ish weeks (Something they did every Summer) to see
their youngest son and his wife (Earl and Tammy) and brought me along. It was
awesome. The drive – not so much. But just being with them and playing all of
the games Grandma and I did while Grandpa drove - was. It took about 3 days to
get up there. When we did, I had all sorts of fun and even saw my Uncle Earl
get a ticket. In a boat. We were in a lake. His daughter, Heidi, was with us.
We were furiously paddling the boat but because of a heavy wind blowing in we
only got a few feet out. Some cop saw us and because only Heidi wore floaties,
he wrote Uncle Earl a ticket. The cop asked him what he did for a living. It may
have been 40+ years but I remember it like yesterday. Uncle Earl said he was a
“Physician.” The cop asked him how to spell that. Uncle Earl shook his head,
sighed in disgust about getting a ticket from an illiterate cop and said, “I’m
a doctor” – something he knew (or hoped) the cop could spell. The one other
thing about that trip was I got to meet Aunt Tammy’s parents: Hal and Ida
Lanning. Heidi and Jason are their grandkids. I am not. Yet when I was in their
presence, they treated me just the same as if I was one of their grandkids. Which
is what should be done but isn’t always that way. I never forgot what great
people they were and how they were very nice to me and all of Heidi and Jason’s
cousins who came up to Oregon. Heidi and Jason got very lucky to have 2 sets of
grandparents among the all-time best ever.
Sam Martin
Rich: Unfortunately,
my Grandpa “Bomb” passed away when I was 6 years old. But I do have some
wonderful memories of his gentle nature, sitting on his lap as he’d share
stories, and his love for his family. I also have fond memories of Granny
Libby. She died when I was in the 8th grade, but I remember running around her
big house in Northridge and the big yard with fig and fruit trees.
Bert and Sophie Carniol
Peter: Kathy and I were approximately 12 years
old and we visited our grandparents in Schaumburg, Illinois. We took a flight to Illinois and it was the
first time flying without our parents.
Grandma and Grandpa drove us from Illinois down to Treasure Island Florida
to visit Uncle Mike. We drove through
Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and other states (I can’t remember
which ones).
We stayed approximately one week in
Florida and had a great time in the warmth of the Gulf of Mexico, swimming
pools, and the Treasure Island area. We
had a fun time driving through the various states going to and coming home from
Florida, particularly eating at places in different states that served less
than healthy food (I liked eating less than healthy food at that time).
I also remember Grandma Carniol being a
good cook and looking forward to eating her home cooked meals (eggplant
parmesan, noodle kugel, red snapper dish, tuna casserole . . .) and eating
candy from her many bowls of candy (seven or more throughout her
residence). Grandpa Carniol would play
cards throughout the day at a table, but always had time to talk with us or
drive us somewhere if we wanted to do something fun or go to the store.
Grandma Carniol and I had the
opportunity to have time together on a three to four-week trip to Bulgaria and
Russia in 1989. Although the vacation
had one or two less than enjoyable moments, the overall time together was very enjoyable,
and I believe the vacation created a special memory for us to share until her
passing and a special bond between us.
Grandma Carniol was born in Bulgaria
but had not visited in over 50 years and wanted either Erik, Kathy, or me to go
with her on a return trip. I volunteered
to go with Grandma Carniol to Bulgaria and Russia. There were many special memories on this
trip, but one stands out in its importance at the time and to this day.
Grandma and I were on a guided tour
through four Russian cities with a group of people from different parts of the
United States. We were on an Aeroflot
(Russian airline) flight between two cities in Russia. The plane was older and a bumpier ride (the
plane was shaking quite a bit because of turbulence from take-off to
mid-flight). I closed my eyes and hoped
we would make it to our destination. As
I braced my arms against the arm rests with eyes closed at approximately mid-flight,
I felt another person’s hand gently grab my left hand. I opened my eyes and realized Grandma had
grabbed/braced my left hand and there were two immediate reactions.
First, I felt a Grandma’s comfort of
helping me through the flight and second, after she grabbed my hand the flight
was without incident until landing (no bumpiness/turbulence). Since that flight through the present,
whenever I am on a plane flight and there is turbulence or bumpiness, I always
close my eyes and imagine holding/grabbing Grandma’s hand as we did on Aeroflot
and it helps me through any rough parts of the flight. A grandma’s touch is very comforting particularly
with Grandma Carniol as she comforted another lady my age in our group on the
Russian trip. The other lady was feeling
lower that day and commented to me that she felt immediately better when
Grandma Carniol rubbed her hand against the face.
Erik: Grandma and Grandpa Carniol lived in Skokie,
Illinois meaning we did not get to see them as much as we did our Schuman
Grandparents. Except for the 18-ish months we lived in Schaumburg. But they did
come out to CA some and we did fly back there, some.
I have 4 things that really stood out with
Grandpa
He was born in 1899. He said he wanted to be a doctor,
but his father died when he was in the 6th grade and he had to quit
school to support the family. During the 1929 Depression he kept his job at the
printing company he worked for. He was one of the few who had some money.
Because he lived though the Depression he was very conservative with his money.
He was happy getting whatever the banks paid in interest. That is
understandable. But if he had invested it in either real estate or the stock
market he would have been worth many, many, MANY millions when he died – in
1984. I understand why he did not but if………?
Grandpa always liked to tell the story of a man
coming into their offices one day in the early 1950s. The man wanted the
company to print a magazine he wanted to start. He told the owner what he
wanted it to be and the owner turned it down saying he couldn’t because of his
religious beliefs. The man that came into their office in the early 1950s was:
Hugh Hefner. He wanted Grandpa’s place to print “Playboy” Magazine. The owner
would not do it. I commend the owner for sticking to his beliefs but just like
with Grandpa and the stock market and/or Real Estate, if……...???
Because he was born in 1899, medical advances
were not what they are now. Grandpa had Polio. I forget which leg was slightly
shorter than the other, but one was. He ALWAYS had to use a walker because of
this. When he came over to visit or we went over there he almost always sat
down since that was easier to do. I wonder what his life would have been like
had he been able to go to Medical School and if he didn’t have Polio?
Grandpa Bert died in 1984. When he came over to
visit he was always looking for something to do. So, one time we handed him the
box with all of the recipes, as unorganized as most things were (and still are)
in the house. He not only filed them in alphabetical order, but he made an
index of all he did. As I said, he has been dead for over 35 years. But to this
day the recipe box is still filed in the same alphabetical order was when he
did it, 40-ish years ago. There are no words as to how amazing and awesome it
is to open the recipe box, see his handwriting and recall him doing it and the
impact he made on us well after his passing.
Grandma Carniol
Like most Grandmothers, THIS WOMAN COULD COOK!
She would make all sorts of recipes and the food was always excellent. Her
homemade Apple Pies were to die for! Sadly, her daughter (Louise – my mother)
must have been doing something at the time because she isn’t 1% of the cook her
mother is. Grandma would make Apple Pies that were better than anything Marie
Callendar’s could ever hope to make.
Later in life Nana’s (What we called her) hearing
deteriorated to almost nothing. You had to YELL AT HER just for her to hear
you. Because she had no hearing she would yell at you, too – not knowing what
she was doing. After Grandpa died she moved out here to California to be near
her daughter and the rest of us. I commend her for that because moving at any
age is tough but at an advanced one is even harder. Grandma lived in a
retirement home but a nicer one. But every time we went there a strong urine
smell was easy to detect in the front office area. Sometimes we would visit
Grandma for a meal. She loved having us there and showing us off. The men had
to wear coats to dinner except in the hot Summer months when one was not
needed. So, Dad, Peter and I would leave an awful coat at her place just so we
would have one in case we forgot to being one. I remember one time in the
Summer it was the usual hot day. I wore a Polo shirt and shorts. I found out
the latter was not allowed. They let me do it this one time but I was at the
front desk when a woman staying there made a nasty remark about me wearing
shorts. I don’t know why, but I “snapped” back at her saying I had nicer legs
that she did and if anyone shouldn’t be wearing shorts it was not me. When we
had a meal with Grandma, as I said, yelling would have to be done to
communicate. One time (and I forget which one of us was there with her) she had
something to tell that person. She let whichever family member it was with her
know some woman a few tables over was: Fat, Ugly, Stupid, etc. But Grandma did
not say it but instead yelled it. Loud enough for that woman to hear it all a
few tables over, have her look over at us and have his try to find a massive
hole to immediately jump into so we could get out of an embarrassing situation.
That was typical for her.
The ONE memory that stands out above all else happened a few years before her death in March 2000. She did not drive so when she came over to visit, we had to drive and get her, bring her to the home then drive her back. Honestly – it was an inconvenience. She lived almost 20 miles away and it took about 30 minutes, with no traffic. One time we are driving from her house to the one in Fountain Valley and are just about to get on the freeway to come back to FV. We are right near the Irvine Spectrum. She says to me how she hated being a burden and inconveniencing us. I will never forget what I told her. I said she was right. It was a burden. It was inconvenient. But we did it because we loved her and because there would be a day in the not-too-distant future when we would want to come down and see her – but won’t be able to do so because she will no longer be there. I truly meant it. She was blown away and had both a smile on her face and tears down her cheeks. What I said truly touched her. What I said was also 100% RIGHT! You have no idea how many times in the last 20 years I sooooooooo want to go to her place and see her or have a meal with her or just do anything with her. She was the last of my Grandparents to die. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t miss her – and the other 3 – and when things got warm during the Summer, I used this Afghan as a “blanket.” As you can see it has seen better days, but she made this. We have a few others in the house and using it makes me feel like at least a part of her is still with us.
Burton/Ted Carniol: Honey Grandma was from Bulgaria and
Grandpa was from Romania. They used to each make some type of cold
eggplant dish from their respective countries and would have me taste them both
to say which one was better. I always would say Grandpa’s is better,
which made him happy and Honey Grandma upset. In truth, I did not care
for either one, but Grandpa’s was less unappealing. Never told them this
though as I did not want to hurt their feelings.
I used to watch Honey Grandma and
Grandpa play a card game called Klaberjass after dinner each night. It is
a point-trick game with one player declaring a suit to play for each hand.
Grandma and Grampa each has a little container of quarters and dimes with their
names written on it with a marker. While playing a hand, if the person calling
the suit loses, they paid the other player a dime. The game is over when
one player amasses 500 points, at which time they would collect a quarter from
the loser. Then a new game would begin at 0-0. For years they would
play, and the containers of money would go up and down, but no one ever ran out
of money.
During the pandemic while Kate (my
lovely daughter) was home from Syracuse, I taught her the game. We played
32 games (to 500) during this time as it became a nightly after dinner
ritual. She is now back at Syracuse and has been teaching/playing
Klaberjass with her friend while in quarantine. So nice to know that the
tradition has been passed on to future generations.
David Lindsey
Kelci Schuman: I was too young to have any memories of my Grandpa Lindsey
(Grandma died before Jade was born) but have heard nothing but amazing things
about them. Grandpa fought in the Korean war, was shot in the arm, and got
a cool tattoo to cover his scar. Little did I know that I would have an arm
tattoo like grandpa. Everyone says I have my Grandma’s pretty big eyes, and she
too was a professional dancer - hula. David and Wanda met in Napa Valley,
married in their hometown Honolulu (34 years), raised 4 kids, and have 4
grandchildren.
Jade Schuman: It’s
cool that my Grandpa David and I share the same birthday. Our joint birthday
party - my 1st, his 64th - was incredible, judging by pictures, and I fell
asleep way before him, haha. My Grandpa would patiently peel green grapes for
me, because he didn’t want me to choke from its skin and would gently hand-feed
each one to me. Sadly, I never met my Grandma Wanda because she died before I
was born, but I’ve seen pretty photos of her with Grandpa and lots of family,
heard that she was beloved by many & had the best sense of humor. So even
though I experienced only one Lindsey Grandparent for a very short time of my
life, I find comfort knowing they’ve been and will always be my angels.
***Grandpa David Lindsey in Hawaii with baby Kelci (3 months old)
& Jade (3 years old). David died a year later, so the girls won’t remember
details spent with him. He enjoyed visiting with his only grandchildren before
his death, seeing them happy, healthy & playing in the same yard that he
raised his four children.***
Still with us
Bill and Louise Schuman
Ethan Smith: Being the first (and obviously
favorite) grandchild, I have been very lucky to have forged a strong
relationship with my grandparents. While I could go on and on listing off our
memories together, nothing sticks out more than our annual trips to SeaWorld
when I was younger. From the time I was 3 years old until I was probably 14 or
15, grandma and grandpa would brave the over two-hour drive to take me to
SeaWorld. It was a well-known fact to the rest of the family that no one else
was invited to come with us. Call me possessive, but this was my one guaranteed
day to spend quality time with grandma and grandpa and I was very protective of
that.
As Erik often
likes to say, wars have been fought with less precision and planning than the
way I mapped out every second of our day at SeaWorld. We basically ran a full
marathon by the time we left the park, which was always when the park closed
for the day and we were forced to leave. I should also own up to the fact that
as much as I tried to be polite about asking them every year not if, but when,
we were going to visit the park, it eventually became more of an unspoken
expectation of mine. And I know, looking back, that there were many times when
they absolutely dreaded it whether they want to admit that or not. But they
sucked it up, because being the amazing grandparents they are, they cared more
about how much fun I had on this day than their own boredom and exhaustion from
how long of a day it must have been for them. That mentality of theirs could
singlehandedly sum up how they are as grandparents. The love they possess for their
grandchildren knows no bounds, and they will travel to the ends of the Earth
(or in my case, San Diego) and back just to put a smile on our faces. It does
not go unappreciated and I could not be luckier to have two loving, supportive,
and generous grandparents in my life. Happy Grandparents’ Day, I love you both!
***This is a picture of the top of a shelf in his room. Notice how many whales stuffed whales there are.***
Sharon Schuman (Sharon married Peter in 2004.
She is their Daughter-In-Law and not a Granddaughter but she submitted this and
it was too great not to use): My favorite memory with Louise is dancing
to the Beach Boys tunes at the Carpenter Center when we saw Brian Wilson and
his band. Baya (What Sharon’s daughter Emma – and Bill/Louise’s youngest
granddaughter calls Louise – for reasons no one knows – including Emma, who
gave her this name because one day she asked why she started calling her “Baya”
and no one knew and we were hoping she would know but she doesn’t) and I danced
to almost every song. It was such a special outing that we’ve tried to recreate
it multiple times, but nothing yet has compared. Louise knows so much about books: she
remembers the names of authors and titles, and, has the uncanny ability to
always points me to a good read. Sitting at the kitchen table to work the Times
crossword puzzle with her is “our’ special time.
Bill and I also have a special
relationship. It was he who introduced me to the love of my life, his son,
Peter. I can still envisage Bill working at Coastal Communities Hospital while
he eavesdropped on the conversations within the department; and like him, I,
too, do a bit of eavesdropping. Papa has an adventurous spirit, so my favorite
memory is parasailing with him in Dana Point or taking him and Emma to go
horseback riding. We always have philosophical and deep conversations, and
enjoy sharing a variety of ethnic, spicy foods.
Papa goes along for the ride, and Baya is
the planner so those fun things do happen. I enjoy hearing the fun that Emma
has when Emma, Baya and Papa go to the movies and dinner together, or when Emma
spends the night and they bake cookies (no slight here to Hilary Clinton!).
Happy Grandparents Day! Hope you spend it doing something you enjoy!
Allen and Maxine Schuman
Kelci: There are so
many fun memories I have with Grandpa and Grandma Schuman. Since I can remember
I have been spoiled with fun pool days, yummy fresh baked desserts, and lots of
love from my grandparents. Something that sticks out to me is their magical
cabinet filled with movies! As a kid I thought it was the coolest! They
literally owned every movie I could imagine, kind of like today’s Disney Plus,
haha. No matter what happened during the day, I knew I could end the night with
a great movie. :) Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa for everything. I love
you!
Jade: Grandma
Maxine and Grandpa Allen, I am deeply thankful for their 26 years of love &
support. Despite living a far distance from each other until I turned 18, we
visited often so they were always in tuned with my milestones. Living in LA
after high school, I was really lucky to have them nearby to help me with so
much; grandma’s cookies, grandpa’s jokes, their hugs & words of wisdom made
my life a little less stressful. I do attribute my endless love for Disney to
them. From the countless Disney park trips to all the Disney movies and gifts,
Grandpa & Grandma provided so many fun memories. But my favorite times are
honestly the casual visits at their house, with their dogs too. The meals
they’ve cooked for us - specifically, Grandma’s Macaroni and Cheese (Erik’s
comment: Jade is sooooooooooooooo right here – Maxine’s Mac and Cheese should
be illegal – it is THAT GREAT!) and Grandpa’s applesauce - to me, nothing
screams love and comfort like those two dishes. And now my sis and I enjoy
cooking meals for them. I love you, Grandma & Grandpa! Happy Grandparents
Day!
*** Taken at Allen’s 80th birthday dinner in Calabasas.
Although their only grandchildren lived out of state & across the ocean,
Grandpa Allen & Grandma Maxine managed to build & maintain a beautiful
lifetime relationship with Jade & Kelci up to this day...26 years of pure
love. Their bond is priceless and forever treasured.***
Earl and Tammy Schuman
Zoe Schuman: Grandma Tammy and Grandpa Earl
have always been loving and caring grandparents. Every summer, I love swimming
in the pool with my cousins and sister while the adults chat by
the poolside. Grandma and Grandpa say that we are always welcome and their
house. They are just the perfect mix of spoiling their grandkids and making
sure that we don't run too wild.
When I was
younger, I also enjoyed going to Cycle Oregon weekend with Grandpa. Whenever I
need to, I can always sit in Grandma's lap and tell her what's going on in my
life (even though I'm now bigger than her). If I was staying over the weekend,
I would sometimes go to breakfast with Grandma and her friends. Going to
Maui with them was always a blast. Just recently I visited them in Maui by
myself and we had a fun-filled week.
Grandma and
Grandpa's house is like the central hub of the family. Well, at least the part
of the family that lives in Portland. Even though I now live in Seattle, a part
of my heart will always live there because that is where my family is.
What a nice present for Grandparents'
ReplyDeleteDay. The memories are very special. As Grandpa (Papa to Emma) always says, "The reward for having children is getting grandchildren".