Sweet as Honey

R & H - thanks for the memories of G&G Honey. I have many of the same memories from the early days, the hot grate that we'd walk across, or snuggle by when it was cold and rainy outside (like that ever happens in Portland! :) I remember Gpa in his plain white t-shirt, and he would call me red. I can remember him sitting on our couch upstairs, in front of the window by the BBQ grill, telling his story about going to the barber, and how he would tell him to "cut it to the bone." And who can forget the old, ugly pinto (nice picture below with grandma and grandpa's house and the tw0-tone green Ford van). I saw one the other day and it made me think of them. (Please note that this is me in the picture, not Napolean Dynamite; Nice shades, B!; Cute cheesy grin by K!).

I also remember the park across the street, I'm pretty sure I saw my first drug deal taking place between some school kids, luckily from a distance. I don't remember much else from our visits, except that we'd always make mom stop at Multnomah Falls and Arlington. My last memory of grandpa was visiting him in a nursing home. I remember mom getting the phone call that he had passed away, I think it was on New Year's eve.

Most of my more memorable times were after grandma moved to Weiser. I remember going to her house to watch sports, especially the world series. It was before I became an A's fan, and is my earliest recollection of caring about sports. I wanted the Cardinals to win, so I wore my red jacket and brought a white towel to wave around just like the people in the stadium. I remember learning how to break into the apartment through the back door when she wasn't home and we were stranded, so that we could call mom and have her come pick us up.

Most of all, I remember Sunday dinner together every week. We always loved when she would make "salisbury steak" for us. She would bake 2 pumpkin pies nearly every week that were delicious, and she would make a special pie with no crust for our youngest brother (whom she loved the most of all us grandkids). She would go straight to the kitchen and work hard both before and after dinner. She loved to get after us if we tried to sneak food early (not that we ever did) or if we were picky (i.e. didn't like onions in our salad, not that this ever happened either). But, she would make two versions of her salads because she loved me and the other non-onion-appreciating grandkids. After dinner, we would play card games, and I have many fond memories of O-Heck, Skip-Bo, another rook game that I can't remember the name of, and of course, aces and stinkin-rotten deuces. And who can forget her hugs and kisses, especially as she would reach up for you as she became older and more stooped. The great grandkids loved to see themselves get taller than her, which wasn't too hard! :)

I'm so glad that we had so many fun and memorable years with Grandma Honey. Part of that fun was sharing her with our ward and friends in Weiser. Everyone loved her, and she was Grandma Honey to everyone.