My Aunt Becky gave an eulogy, expressing her favorite memories of her childhood. They included Grammy and Granddaddy dancing in the kitchen, Grammy being spontaneous, and how she always dressed her best.
Grammy was a duchess in the Order de Pineda here in Corpus, a member of the River Art Group of San Antonio, and on the first-ever committee for the Helotes Cornyval. She had 5 children (3 sons/2 daughters), 11 grandchildren, and {so far} 13 great grandchildren.
After the service, we all headed to a restaraunt to eat and hang out. My Uncle Bobby and his wife came from KY; cousin Heather from Wisconsin; Uncle Jim and his wife from NM; cousin Susan from El Paso; and the rest of us lived in SA or within driving distance.
The comedic brothers picked on each other and their sisters. They told stories of Grammy, Grand Daddy, and each other, even some about "us kids". It was a great dinner. Colton and my cousin Amy's son, Ethan, turned into best buds. Ethan is only a month older than Colton. Tyler was a little ladies man, even though they were relatives, he sure was layin on the cute!
We girls also got to go through Grammy's jewelery and pick a piece. She loved dressing up and built up quite an extensive collection of costume jewlery. I picked a silver and turquoise bracelet, with green and purple accents.
Colton & Ethan (yes, both standing on the ground- Colton is a little small for his age, Ethan a bit bigger, they both are ALL boy!)
Just some shots of the family hanging out- have to pause to give credit to Amy's facebook for some of these photos!
The 5 siblings: (front L to R) Aunt Judy, Uncle Bobby, Aunt Becky; (rear L to R) my dad Chris, and Uncle Jim
The 5 siblings with each of their spouses
9 of 11 grand children- yes, Doug is the only boy cousin! Funny thing: 10 of 11 grandchildren are girls; 11 of 13 great grandchildren are BOYS!!!
The great-grandchildren- these pictures make me laugh. I wonder if anyone got a photo of all of them facing the camera?
Even though it was a sad reason for the meeting, it was great to see everyone. Unfortunately dinner ended, and we all had to begin making our treks back to our homes. I hope it isn't so long before we're all together some other time.
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On the way back to Corpus, my mom, Cody, myself, the boys, and Katie stopped off in Devine. My Aunt Martha's (mom's sister) father-in-law Sandy was not in great shape. (in other words my uncle by marriage's father). He had been ill for a very long time, and all of his family had come to be with him in his last hours. Poppa Johnson was just like a grandpa to me when I was little as were my own two blood grandpas. I cried yesterday after we left. All of his grandkids were sitting in the room, where he was sleeping in his recliner surrounding him with love. Everyone would walk by and touch his hand or hair, or kiss him. His children and daughter in-laws constantly checked on him. It was actually a beautiful thing to be a part of. He was surrounded with love and support during his final hours on earth. My mom's parents even went over to see him (just to give you an idea of how close we all are).
Aunt Martha found this picture of me and Poppa Johnson when they were thumbing through photo albums. There were a couple of snapshots of this pose, so she gave me a copy. It means so much to me. It was in November 1984, so I would be 20-21 months old.
Poppa passed away late this afternoon, with his family with him at his home. I'm happy I stopped yesterday, it made the news today easier.
Rest in peace Grammy. Rest in Peace Poppa Johnson. I love you.
1 comment:
our family is so backwards. who knew a funeral could be such a joyous event!
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