A Walk Down Memory Lane...

...so this picture arrived in my inbox the other day from a cousin in Florida. In the car is my Grandpa Cotton and standing beside the car are my great-grandparents Carl and Votra.

I was lucky enough to know each of them. I wish hubs was around to meet them too. It makes me feel so good when my dad makes the comment, "Your grandpa would really like him" or "Your grandpa would love that you found someone that takes you fishing."

My great-grandpa always called me Lightnin' because I was always into something and by the time I got caught, I was on to my next mess. When we'd go to his house, I would always dance and sing in front of the tv and if I was doing it while he was watching it, he would take his cane and pull my leg to move!

Now my great-grandma always had oatmeal creme pies at her house and that is how I fell in love with them. I'd sit in the kitchen eating my pie and looking into her locked China cabinet. It was filled with figurines from all over that she collected and people brought to her. One day, I realized there was a figurine of a naked lady and I freaked out! "Grandma! You can't have that in there."

Now my grandpa Cotton, lots and LOTS of memories of him. I remember this picture of me sitting on his lap on my fifth birthday and I'm fanning out the money I got from him. I think it was five one-dollar bills but looking at that picture, you'd have thought I hit the lottery! Him, my grandma and I used to go to the lake all the time and go fishing. We'd have a system, he'd catch them, I'd reel them in and then grandma would take them off the hook. Just like today, I did not touch fish then either. We went to visit him when I had my permit so him and I took a drive around the corner. I was at a stop sign, no one was around, and I started to pull out and he started hitting his car door and screaming scaring the bejeezus out of me!!! Oooo, I was so mad at him! Right before he died, he was at the hospital in St. Louis, they discharged him real late in the afternoon and my grandma wanted to head on home. But grandpa insisted that he come and see my new house, I wasn't home because I was at work, but him, grandma and my dad came over and my dad showed them around. To this day, everytime my grandma comes over she points to where Grandpa sat and tells me how he insisted on coming to see my house because he knew I was proud of it and he was proud of me for buying a house at 22.

So there's my walk down memory lane. I miss all of them very much but I feel so blessed to have been able to share all the special moments with each of them.