The Boys Are Coming

Sheets are clean. Meds put up. Lime pile watered down to be soft enough for Aidan to dig and rearrange and put into his wheelbarrow. Water being pumped out of boat because Maddox will want a boat ride. Easy lunch planned for tomorrow, so Gma Sue will have time to hold Payton. Every thing is at the ready when granddaughter Tara arrives with her three boys. We thought they might be arriving in the middle of the night as so many of our northern Illinois guests do.

However, Tara phoned this evening to say that she just could not have everything ready to leave this evening, so she hopes to be up and on the road to here early in the morning when her husband Bryan leaves for work. We are disappointed because Erin was going to come over from Gma Shirley’s for breakfast with all of us.

Erin drops in and out while she is temporarily staying with Gma Shirley, but she is actively involved with her first career after her graduation last spring from Texas A&M and then her summer in Europe playing softball with the Sharx. She started the last week in October as the new assistant softball coach with Southern Illinois University Carbondale with head coach Kerri Blaylock.

Before that she helped Gma Shirley with her move back to her own home next door after the time Shirley spent taking care of her younger sister Janice, who died last spring. Unfortunately, Gma Shirley fell recently and broke her arm. That is what the ER told her. Then at her first appointment to get it taken care of, she was told that the x-rays showed it wasn’t broken. But at the next appointment, it was determined it was broken in two places and the swelling kept it from showing up correctly on the x-ray. So tomorrow she will have surgery.

Tara is on her way to Chattanooga, where Southern Force has a softball tourney. Her younger sister Geri Ann will be playing for her. Her mother and dad, Gerry and Vickie, will be there to cheer and take care of the boys. Erin had talked of riding down with her, but she wants to be with Gma Shirley now for the delayed surgery. So Gerald has decided to ride down with Tara to help with the driving and enjoy his three great grandsons—at least until Vickie and Gerry claim their attention.

I am glad he has an extra pleasant weekend to look forward to. He hasn’t been doing his favorite things this week. He’s been busy trying to get our farm records up to date on his computer before the farm management field man arrives for his mid-November appointment. Also he has been getting estimates and an appointment to repair the first dent in our new car that I was responsible for. After attending a Trail of Tears board meeting Monday afternoon, I managed to get hit in the SIUC parking lot. So a good dose of love from three great grandsons will definitely increase serotonin in our systems.