A Day in the Country

by Robyn Wright on October 15, 2012

in Living

On Sunday I drove up to the country with Hubby to visit my Grandpa. He is my last remaining grandparent and I do not visit him enough even though I think of him daily. I decided to make some beef stew to take up and share lunch with him plus he had requested I make him a chocolate cake with caramel icing. Grandpa has a sweet tooth!

The day started off a little rocky. My son was not feeling very much like participating. Instead of arguing I just let it go and Hubby and I went without him. Then not to long into the drive I was starting to get car sick. We stopped and picked up some of my medication for it and that settled down within 20 minutes after that. The rest of the day was all good!

Grandpa was happy to see us. I was happy to see Grandpa. I put the stew on the stove to let it simmer and then we all went into the living room to visit. My Grandpa has a wonderfully sharp mind still. He always has been an interesting person to have a conversation with, but I just love that he is still this way even at his age. We talked about the mandatory topic of sports. Hubby and I are not into sports really, but the rest of my family is very into them. Grandpa will tell you the story that he has been a St. Louis Cardinals fan since 1942 when he won $10 on a bet with the team – he did not even live in St. Louis at the time. Technology does not escape Grandpa either. He wanted to quickly know what time the two playoff games were going to be on that day and who was pitching for each time. He prompted me to look that up quickly on my smartphone – I just love that he knows that we can do those things. The discussion turned to all the members of the family and what everyone has been up to. A little bit of politics, although Grandpa says he is about fed up with all the political commercials on TV. I realized my parents were also up in the country, they have a small vacation home up there on the lake, and so I called them and invited them to join us for lunch.

I tried to get Grandpa to sit and not worry about anything for lunch, but he wanted me to use certain things and do things a certain way. That’s okay, whatever makes him happy. My parents and my brother arrived and we all sat down to lunch. Homemade beef stew and fresh biscuits. Sadly, my stew was not quite as good as it normally is, but it was still a hearty meal on blustery and rainy autumn day. We talked and visited and shared more. Then Grandpa was oh so ready for his cake! Apparently it passed his expectations because he had two pieces and even complained that I had given him the smallest of all the pieces the first time around (I told you he had a sweet tooth).

We cleaned up and said our good-byes. Grandpa was ready for his afternoon siesta. I am so glad I went to see him and visit with him. I promised him I would try to come visit more often. His next meal request is a pot of ham and beans when Hubby goes up hunting soon. No problem Grandpa!

CLICK ANY IMAGE TO VIEW LARGE SLIDESHOW

 

© 2012, Robyn Wright. All rights reserved.

Tagged as: family, memory lane

  • Tiffany Winner

    I love those kinds of days, a good warm meal with family on a chilly fall day is so nice! thismomwins@gmail.com

  • tannawings

    The leaves are beautiful! Your Grandpa sounds like a sweet fella- and has good taste if he is asking for a pot of homemade ham and beans- you can’t beat that on a cold day. Love the pics and Perry looks like a lot of our towns around here !

  • http://janiceperson.com/ Janice Person

    Love it! How did I not know you had small town in your soul? It’s so clear! Great photos Robyn!

    • http://www.RobynsOnlineWorld.com/ Robyn’s Online World

      The small town part of me is only in that my grandparents lived there. I do not think I could ever live full-time in a small town, much to my husband’s disappointment. He tries daily to convince me to move to Perry.

  • GlArthy

    I love pic #4 – looks really clean and pulls one into positive thinking and planning. Humm, how am I going to do this task or, remind me of make not of what I need to do tomorrow. I took a similar picture two weekends ago.

  • http://twitter.com/rkosully Robin

    What a lovely day! Your photos are great. Your Grandpa sounds like my kind of guy–I would ask for second piece of homemade chocolate cake too!

  • Shannon Whitfield

    Wonderful pictures!! Reminds me so much of the little town in Ohio where I lived when I was a kid.. kind of made me homesick, really. Your cake looks so yummy, too. I love the pic of Grandpa and his slice, too cute:) A cozy day very well spent, indeed.

    • http://www.RobynsOnlineWorld.com/ Robyn’s Online World

      Thanks Shannon!

  • http://twitter.com/itsjuststarla Starla Mint

    I kept checking your photos via Twitter while I was at work. They were wonderful. I’ve been all over the place in St. Louis and Oklahoma City, but I’m intrigued by this town and your photos really did it justice. I’m glad that it ended up so beautifully for you.

    its.a.hit at gmail dot com

    • http://www.RobynsOnlineWorld.com/ Robyn’s Online World

      Thank you. Perry is nice, it is just southeast of Mark Twain Lake so a lot of folks go through it on the way to the lake.

  • Jennifer Peaslee

    Wow, the clouds in your second picture look ominous! I’ve been to Missouri once – bit I was in the middle of St Louis for a conference so I never got to experience the more rural parts…great pictures! jenniferpeaslee at gmail dot com

    • http://www.RobynsOnlineWorld.com/ Robyn’s Online World

      That was the back end of a large storm system moving out of the area.

  • http://twitter.com/Veuvefamily Rachel V

    What a good granddaughter you are. I miss my grandma and grandpa. I would visit them a few times a year. They lived 12 hours away, but it was always worth the drive. My grandma was the one with the sweet tooth. She loved See’s candy & we’d always make sure she got some while we were there.
    Love the diffferent pics you took. Nice scenery.

    • http://www.RobynsOnlineWorld.com/ Robyn’s Online World

      I feel like I should do better though Rachel. I need to visit him more often. My grandma had a sweet tooth also, she always had a box of candy next to her with all of her catalogs and magazines on the couch.

  • http://twitter.com/Mindyvol Mindy S

    What a nice story. I commented on the photo of your Grandpa, who reminds me of my grandfather who passed several years ago. I’m glad that you cherish your time with your family and I look forward to reading more of your posts. On another topic, I’m not really into baseball but since I live in Michigan, we are really into the Detroit Tigers right now as they head to the World Series. There is a possibility that your Grandpa and I could be baseball rivals soon. ;)

    • http://www.RobynsOnlineWorld.com/ Robyn’s Online World

      Thank you Mindy. I’ll let Grandpa know you are his rival!

  • Round Rock Gal

    Your grandpa looks fantastic. I will probably be aging myself here, but my mom and dad are both 85 years old, so sadly my grandfather died when I was still in high school. Whenever I think of him, I can’t help but remember his love of butterscotch candies, watermelon, and angel good cake. He lived to the ripe old age of 87 and barely had any gray hair…not that I can admit to that!

    • http://www.RobynsOnlineWorld.com/ Robyn’s Online World

      Thank you! I think so too. I was very lucky to have all 4 of my grandparents into my 30′s. They all saw me get married, they all were still here when my son was born. I have so many great memories. This is my only remaining grandparent now though.

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  • http://twitter.com/St4ceyNicole Stacey Nicole

    Awwww I love the pictures!!! I’m always fascinated by looking at others pictures. I hope when I get older I will remember everything like your grandpa has. My memory is pretty crappy already though.mi used to play those brain age games on my ds and it always said I was way older then I really was lol

    • http://www.RobynsOnlineWorld.com/ Robyn’s Online World

      Start recording your memories. Write them down on paper, on photos, make videos telling stories, etc. That way your family will have them even if you forget when you are older.

  • MichelleS

    I’m from the “country” then moved to SoCal-big change. I like the slower life of the country, and it’s sad to see it’s antiquity fading away. I wish more people would take the time to slow down in life, visit the “country” not as a place, but a “place in time”. I’m 2,000 miles away from my sole surviving grandpa and I find it comfortable to go back to where I come from and soak it in and slow life back down to cherish the moments.

    • http://www.RobynsOnlineWorld.com/ Robyn’s Online World

      I hope you are able to go and visit your grandpa often

  • Sheila r

    I love spending time with family. Sounds like you had a lot of fun. ilovebabynoah707@yahoo.com

  • GlArthy

    Robyn, where is grandma in the picture?

  • terry petero

    robyn, what a heart warming story and im glad you share these, as i know not all of our kids participate (if this is the correct word sometimes lol) . but im glad you went anyway and im glad you had a great , there is nothing like family time , and you only have so much of it allowed in life. im sure he appreciate every moment with you, and everthing you did to make his day special.

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