Flashback Friday Grandchildren

It was fun being a mother, but it is grand being a grandmother. It all started with a call from my daughter Tina, who had married Lincoln Stevens, in July of 1986 saying, "Hi Grandma, it's a boy. When Grandpa and I first saw Justin, we just fell in love. Justin was born in Murray, Utah. It was like seeing Tina the first time and the love just expanded to one more.

Then Lincoln, Tina and Justin moved to the farm and along came our first granddaughter, Halley, in June of 1988. Halley was born in Delta. It was love at first sight also. They lived just up the road a few miles so we saw them quite often.

Then the Stevens family moved back to Salt Lake where in Jul of 1990 our second grandson, Chancy came along. I went to Salt Lake to help with Justin and Halley and my heart swelled with love again for this new little one.

Then our youngest son, George married Lora Kinsman, and in Mar 1991 and he and his wife went flying (driving) to Provo to have Hope. Sid and I couldn't stand not knowing how things were going so we drove to Provo also. What a blessing, the second wonderful granddaughter, Hope. We saw a lot of Hope as they just lived up the street.

In Apr of 1993 our third granddaughter blessed the home of George and Lora, Jackie. She was also born in Delta. Our love just kept expanding . Jackie is so precious and cute.

By this time Trudy had married Steve Bainter and in Aug 1994 Baxter came along. He was born in Salt Lake and I went and stayed with Steve and Trudy for a week. Baxter was our third grandson and again that great love kicked in when I saw him. Grandpa and I really didn't get to see much of Baxter until we moved here to Maryland.

Then in Aug 1995 our fourth Grandson was born to George and Lora, again in Delta, Utah, Tayler. I think George was relieved because his Grandfather George had 5 girls and no boys. Again that wonderful love filled my heart.

In December of 1995, Grandpa and I went to Salt Lake and was with Trudy when our fourth granddaughter Cecilia came into the world. Trudy just barely made it to the hospital for this one. Steve was working nights and had to come home and get her and it was close. That Cecilia was a bundle of love.

In Mar of 1996 I flew down to Houston, Texas for the birth of our fifth granddaughter Sydney. Sid and Chanhei had been married 8 years, what a blessing in their lives to have this little baby girl. A friend of Sid's picked me up and took me the hospital. It was love at first sight when I saw Sydney through the window at the hospital.

When Tina was expecting her fourth child, she asked Grandpa and me if we wanted to be in on her ultra sound to see what the baby was going to be. We were all so excited, Lincoln, Justin, Halley and Chancy were all there. Halley just knew it was going to be a girl, she already had two brothers, but to her dismay it was going to be another boy. She cried and cried but when McKay was born in May 1996 it was love at first sight for her too. McKay was our fifth grandson. You'll notice we are tied 5 grandsons and 5 granddaughters.

In April of 1997 little Emma, our sixth Granddaughter was born to George and Lora and in Delta. They were still living in Abraham and we were just up the street and so we saw them quite a bit. I started all four of George's children on the piano. You just can't help loving Emma. It about broke my heart when George moved their family to Oregon because we had been so close to them. So now George has 3 girls and 1 boy.

In Feb 1998 our sixth grandson, Zane was born to Trudy and Steve. I went up and stayed with the Bainters to help out with the older children. Again love at first sight. Tina and Trudy didn't live that far apart so it was fun being there and seeing everyone. Zane was such a cutie.

Trudy didn't believe in wasting time so in Oct 1999 Noah came along, our seventh grandson. He was also born in Salt Lake. Noah was such a happy baby you just couldn't help loving him. The Bainters came down to the farm as often as they could so we spoiled the kids whenever we had them.


In May of 2002, Stevie was born to Trudy and Steve. Trudy wanted to know if Grandpa and I wanted to see Stevie born so we sat in the hospital room with Steve and Trudy until little Stevie made her appearance. There is something special about seeing that first breath and hearing the first cry of a newborn. It tugs at your heart strings and you know that these special children came from our Heavenly Father. Stevie is our seventh granddaughter. We are tied up at 7 and 7. How special is that.

Here is a picture of one of the last sleep overs we had at our house in Sutherland. Wall to wall grandchildren. Lincoln and Tina had come from Maryland and Sid was here from Oregon. It was just after this I think when George moved to Oregon closer to Sid Jr. and Steve and Trudy moved to Maryland closer to Tina. Leaving Grandpa and I alllll alone in Utah.

That didn't last for long because we moved here to Maryland next to Trudy and closer to Tina and we have been enjoying family and hopefully still sharing our love. I understand that this love just keeps growing as the great-grandchildren come along. I can hardly wait.