My Grandma Roden

I am dedicating this "post" to my amazing Grandma Roden! She will be 99 years young this December and she is truly one of THE most amazing women I have ever had the opportunity to meet and am truly blessed to have her in my life.

My Dad and his siblings have been taking care of my Grandma since my Grandpa passed away ten years ago so that she could stay in her home. For being almost 99 years young, my Grandma is amazing! Grandma has THE best memory there ever was and her most favorite story to tell (as of recently) is about Uncle Merle - how he was the best dancer there ever was! She used to get SO excited when Uncle Merle would come to visit, as all of her friends were SO jealous of the way they danced together! Ha ha! She could go on, and on, and on about Merle and even though she repeats the story several times, I NEVER get tired of hearing it. The way she tells it - the way she closes her sweet eyes (as you know she is re-living it) and how she holds her arms up the same way she did when she was on the dance floor - truly an amazing woman!

Another favorite story was her telling us about - around Halloween time - when she and some of her friends went around to peoples' homes and would knock on the door, walk right in and dance around there kitchen and leave. Well, one of the houses happened to be my Grandpa's home - they knocked on the door, walked right in, and walked around my Grandpa - as he was in the wash tub in the middle of the kitchen yelling "woop, woop, woop" (I can still hear my Grandpa saying that) and then they walked right back out!

My Grandma was an amazing piano player! I got about 3 months of lessons from her - before I was tired of it - but still remember her going "oom pa pa, oom pa pa" to help me w/the beat as I was playing! I sure wish I would have stuck with that!

One other memory was my Grandma picking me up from school (when I was sick) to take me to her house until my Mom got there! She drove a green Pinto and you could barely see her head over the steering wheel! My Grandma is little in stature but has the biggest heart and I love her very much!

Those are the top four memories that I have of my Grandma but there are SO many more to share!

This past Thursday, my Dad and his siblings had to make a VERY hard decision about her care. They decided that it would be best for her to go to a care center where she can get the medical attention that she needs and deserves! I know this had to be one of THE hardest decisions that they have had to make, but am so amazed that they were able to help her stay in her very own home for so long! I hope that she will one day understand why this decision has been made and hope that she can feel comfort in this decision! She can now get the full medical attention that she needs w/the love and support from her family through visits and such!

Below are some pictures that I have w/my Grandma! Love you very much Grandma! Thank you for being such a great example to me!