Steve and I love Nathan for many reasons, way too many to even write down. But after this weekend, our love and appreciation for him have been raised to new heights.
We are having some repairs done soon in the basement; before that can happen, though, everything needs to be moved six feet from the walls, including all the old shelving and contents from Ken’s old collections of miscellany. Steve and I have made half-hearted attempts to get a start on the job; however, it has seemed to be an insurmountable task.
But–cue the trumpets, please–on Friday afternoon, Nathan arrived on the scene. You can’t see it in this photo but he was wearing his Superman cape. He quickly sized up the situation and then utilized his organizational skills and supremely logical brain to accomplish a task that would have taken Steve and me an eon or two. We used to call him Nate the Great when he was a boy; it certainly applies to him as an adult, too.
Meagan was an invaluable help in the process, as well, and they made a huge amount of progress in just four hours.
When they were finished working for the day, they took off for date night while Steve and I put on our grandparent’s hats for an overnight babysitting gig. In no particular order, here are a few photos and stories from the weekend.
ONE
Andrew and I played some rousing rounds of badminton which consisted of one of us serving, the other one missing the return, and then that person serving while the other one missed the return. With just a tiny bit more practice, we should easily be ready for the Olympic badminton team.
TWO
The boys happily rode up and down our driveway, showing off their skills.
THREE
This kid loves making an omelet. If it has to do with cracking an egg, he is all about it.
FOUR
Four artistes.
FIVE
Steve taught Noah how to air up a bike tire using an air compressor. There were some 40-year-old bikes in the basement that they got up and running.
SIX
I’ve been promising Madi piano lessons for quite a while but needed to buy a little keyboard first. Last week, I found one in the basement that I had thought I had given away in Manteo. So hooray for that!
She did great and spent about ninety minutes working on the things I taught her.
SEVEN
On Friday night, Noah offered to pray before dinner. He prayed for a few other things and then said, “And thank, God, you that we live close enough to Grandma and Grandpa now so that we can come over and help them do things.”
That just warmed my heart.
EIGHT
Saturday morning, I woke up a few minutes before seven and heard the unmistakable sounds of four children wide awake and unsupervised. I zipped up my robe, opened the bedroom door, and stuck my head halfway out in the hall to get an idea of what Grandchild Energy Level awaited me. Right beside me but much, much lower, Tippi also stuck her head out into the hall and performed an exploratory sniff.
I felt just like we were on one of those police shows where two partners have it worked where one goes in high and the other one goes in low. I said out loud to Tippi, “We’re goin’ in!” and then had to laugh at my dramatic self as we headed up to the hall.
NINE
Before bed Friday night, Madi was helping get Andrew tucked in. She came back out to the living room to get something and then returned a minute later and said, “Andrew was just in there but when I went back to the bedroom, he was gone!”
I happened to glance over at Grayson and I could instantly tell he was pondering the possibilities of his partner-in-crime’s disappearance. He was comparing and contrasting the various capers he and Grayson had pulled off together in the past and also pondering what possible areas in Grandma and Grandpa’s house would be available to pull off this current disappearance caper.
He suddenly announced with great authority, “Andrew is under the bed.”
And sure enough. He was. Those two make me smile.
TEN
Andrew and I sat down together to draw some things on his drawing board. I am known far and wide for my lack of skills as an artist and it was all confirmed once again in my session with Andrew. I drew what I thought was a pretty stunning mountain range and asked Andrew what he thought it was.
He pondered the picture for a while and finally offered up a hesitant, “Is it spiders?”
Yep. My reputation remains unblemished.
We both got to giggling over each others’ drawings; the more we laughed, the funnier it got, even though it wasn’t even that funny. That kid loves to laugh.
ELEVEN
Noah loves airplanes. He and Steve spend many hours watching airplane videos while Steve explains to him what each airplane is and all of its accompanying statistics.
I had to laugh when Noah and I were talking in the living room Friday night. Right in the middle of the conversation, he stopped, cocked his head, listened for a moment, and said, “That one sounds a little low.”
I hadn’t even heard the airplane, let alone noticed that “it sounded a little low.” He definitely has Smith airplane blood running strong in his veins.
He was so excited when Steve said he could take home some airplane books. It took a long time for him to decide which ones he wanted to start with but he eventually made his choice.
TWELVE
I am not a fan of Steve’s riding mower because, to me, it’s just a loud and intimidating machine. I’ve never even driven it. Meagan, on the other hand, returned with Nathan to the house late Saturday morning, got on the mower and mowed the entire lawn. I’m impressed!
THIRTEEN
Tippi has done very well adjusting to the grands being around. You can tell her level of comfort with Noah when she let him use her for an elbow rest.
She also got into concerned nurse mode when Grayson fell and got a bump. When Grayson got all tucked in, Tippi hopped right up there and looked at me as if to say, “It’s okay, Mom. I’m right here.
FOURTEEN
These are a couple of my favorite photos: Meagan and the two littles, out on the swing under the tree, basking in the gorgeous early springtime.
These are the same trees Nathan and Sarah played under when they were small.
FIFTEEN
On Saturday. Nathan and Meagan had come back for lunch and to gather up their offspring.
As they were leaving, Noah hugged me and was heading out the door. Suddenly he stopped, turned around, and asked, “Do you and Grandma ever get lonely here in the house by yourself?”
It was such an unexpected and insightful question in the middle of all the cleaning up and chaos of them getting ready to leave. And his face was so dear and concerned as he asked it. I said that, yes, sometimes we got a little lonely and it was always nice having him and his family come to visit. And then of course I had to give him another hug.
SIXTEEN
After the little boys were in bed Friday night, Madison knocked on my bedroom door. (Steve was in the den with Noah watching airplane videos.) Madi asked if she could hang out with me for a while, and of course, I said yes a thousand times over.
She showed me that the Bible that she uses for devotions was one her mom used when she was a teenager. Madison opened it up to her favorite passage, Psalm 23, and began to read it to me.
I closed my eyes while listening to her sweet voice reading those timeless words. I thought of forty-two years ago when Steve and I had walked into that very room to tell Ken and Vernie we were getting married. We had no idea that over four decades later, we would be the ones sleeping in that room. And I had no idea I would be lying on a bed with my granddaughter listening to her read the Bible to me.
Madison with Meagan’s Bible. Noah with Ken’s Bible. The heritage of faith continuing in this dear house that has sheltered the Smith family since 1975.
here are two fun videos we made while the kids were here.
Steve had bought each of the kids a little Easter gift and before giving them out, he read part of the Easter story from the Bible and had the kids act it out. You can tell these children are not hesitant about entering wholeheartedly into whatever dramatic opportunity is thrown their way.
And this is a song the kids wrote when one of them said, “He defeated sin and he rose again” and another one said, “Hey, that rhymes!” And a couple of minutes later, they had their little song written which they performed with great aplomb.
What about you?
What did you do this weekend?
When you draw something, can other people tell what it is?
Is there a particular sport (like badminton) you are particularly good at? This is your chance to brag!
Or is there a particular sport you are particularly bad at? This is your chance to confess! 🙂
Did you take music lessons as a child? Was it a positive experience? Do you still play that instrument?
Thank you Nathan and Megan. I’m sure you know how much you are appreciated. Oh, those precious kids. think I got tired after reading how busy they were. Loved the videos.
Sharyn,
Yes, kids seem to be blessed with ten times more energy than adults. They make us tired but it’s a fun tired!
We had all of our kids and grands here for lunch and a fun afternoon. It was great although the weather was not so we weren’t able to be outdoors.
I love to golf, bowl, play basketball, run, snow ski, etc. I am not so good at playing cornhole. I really need to practice that one! My grandkids can beat me quite easily. Lol
I took piano as a child and also played the accordion. That was a lot of fun. I tried the guitar but it hurt my fingers and I gave up. I played the piano for years. When we moved in August, we left the piano. It was an old upright and it was too heavy to move and we had no place for it in our new house. Hated to leave it but it was necessary. I miss it at times. Maybe I’ll get a keyboard someday. 🙂
Lee Anne,
That’s funny. I used to play the accordion as well. There are not many of us out there! I didn’t play it well; just enough to wobble through a few songs.
I admire your athleticism; you sound like you stay very active which is something I need to do more of.
I would say that was a good trade off, Nathan helped on basement project and Smith grandparents babysat grandkids.
Friday I went to my mom’s nursing home for the result of their Easter bonnet contest. My neighbor had made a hat for my mom. Pink cowboy hat with real eggshells glued on top. There were little birds in the eggshells, a cross on front and she had written on the side “Chicks are shouting He is risen!” There were only 5 hats and hers won first place. It was the only one that depicted the true meaning of Easter.
Friday night my church had a Tenebrae service and Sunday School and church on Easter.
I took piano lessons as a child but didn’t keep up with it. My brother started trombone in 5th or 6th grade and still plays, his primary instrument now is euphonium. My niece who will turn 25 Sunday started piano lessons when she was 4 and now has several students of her own, including a 68 year old grandmother.
Phyllis,
I remember making Easter hats for contests. So fun. I love your neighbor’s ideas and how great that your mom won!
You don’t hear a lot about euphonium players. I had to look it up to see what it looked like. It’s a happy sounding word. 🙂
What a fun post. Those grandchildren are so cute and so talented as well.
Wendy,
They are definitely full of fun and energy!
Looks like a load of fun when those grands are around.
We were able at the last minute to host our pastor and family for Easter. They have a sweet, almost 3, girl and she was so good. I had some old bunny ears and she loved that she could take them home.
I can draw if I take a lot of time and draw from a photo of buildings or landscape. People and animals not so much. I did ok with my kindergarten class recognizing them, but I usually was telling a story at the same time so they knew what I was attempting to draw.
I don’t really like any sports and am not good at them either. I got the topic “Sports” for an impromptu speech in a class years ago. I talked about how I didn’t like sports, but knew the importance of physical activity, so talked about roller skating, which I did enjoy.
I took piano lessons briefly, but didn’t have a good teacher and didn’t follow thru with it. My brother and sister inherited my grandfathers musical talents, I inherited his mechanical talent of making things from what you have available. (we didn’t have a booster for the pastors daughter and I quickly saw the tote that some toys were in and it worked well-necessity is the mother of all invention”
Patti,
That is definitely a gift to be a creative thinker and create things from what you have available. So many different kinds of talents that people have!
Sounds like you did a good job on your Sports talk focusing on the one sport you have enjoyed. Those impromptu speech assignments can be a little scary. And if you can draw from a photo of a landscape you are way beyond me in artistic talent!
Such a lovely post! Mega kudos to Nathan and Meagan for swooping in and tackling the basement project–they are all kinds of amazing!
I loved the account and pictures/videos of the Grand’s Overnight. Your and Tippi’s assessment of the the grandkid energy level made me chuckle. I still cherish the memories of time spent with our grandparents. Your grands will have a treasure chest of priceless memories from all their Smith/Hawley grandparent adventures!
I too am not known for artistic ability. Although I can do some simple line drawings after a fashion. When I taught my girls’ class at church, I’d often “illustrate” the lesson on the board and they’d draw along with me. It was pretty entertaining I tell ya!
And I’m bad at every sport known to man. I’ve always been the reading, music, sitting on the porch swing with a glass of tea kind of gal. And as you know, it was you who taught me to sing harmony and Steve taught me most of what I know about playing drums. I’m forever grateful to you both! I sure miss doing music with you two. Singing harmony is still something I very much enjoy and here in my 50s, I still play drums at church. Kinda weird I know, but I have a good time! And hopefully keep good time! 😁
Sending much love to you all!
Deb
Deb,
That was a good idea to have the girls draw along with you. That way your artistry was not the only thing on display.
You may not be a sports person but you can sure play a set of drums which takes all manner of coordination. I tried to do it once and Nathan laughed so hard he almost fell over. So just remember–a lot of great athletes can’t do what you do!
Glad you enjoyed Tippi’s and my assessment of the grands. I got a chuckle out of it.
We had a quiet, relaxing weekend. I used to LOVE playing badmiton, but haven’t played for years. I don’t know if you would consider it “music lessons” but I played flute (and later piccolo) in band beginning in 5th grade. I’m glad you were able to enjoy your sweet grands and their parental units this weekend!
Sue Ellen,
I tried flute once and it so much air. You must have great lungs if you played that and the piccolo!
You need to get some badminton in since you love it so much!
Ahhhhh so adorable. A wonderful weekend for you all. I love the videos.
Lesley,
Definitely an undull weekend!
Becky you made my day! Love the stories and especially those precious photos and videos!
Ginny,
I am so glad you enjoyed the stories. I know it’s extra fun for you to see the pictures since you can kind of visualize where everything is.
This is one of my favorite posts in the history of Smithellaneous. So many wonderful memories being made that blend in with the ones that you already have. Sort of like taking things that are great on their own (peanut butter and chocolate) and combining them to make something even better (Reese’s cups)! It’s so neat to see God’s hand in everything, and to remember that all of that time spent waiting in the hallways really does lead to better things!
Aw Pam, you’re so sweet!
It was definitely a Reese’s kind of weekend.
And yes, those hallways have some interesting doors at the ends of them.
These are the good old days!
Steve,
For sure!
This post made me smile. Looks like you had a lot of fun.
I had a horrible week to be honest. I have been sick since last Sunday but thankfully the fever broke yesterday . I think I had Covid because everything have been tasting so strangely too as well however they do not test anymore here
I did finish Michelle’s memoir this week where I am Thursday thought I was feeling better and then I started feeling horrible again. I thought the book was good but well not an Easter to remember here
Also I am not good at sports but I do like watching tennis on tv
Also remind me how old are your grandchildren ?
Katrina,
So sorry you spent your Easter feeling so awful! No fun at all. At least reading is something you can still do when stuck in a bed or a chair; I’m glad you finished that book.
The grands are 4, 5, 8, and 10.
Feel better!
What a wonderful weekend for you and your littles! So much fun, but I bet you’re exhausted! I haven’t been around young children in a long time, and the thought of it makes me anxious about having enough energy to keep up! haha
We worked in the yard on Saturday, then Sunday we went for a walk on a trail near our house that took us on a bridge across the Missouri River (and back). It had a LOT of very steep hills and I’m feeling it, for sure! We also aired up our bicycle tires and bought new bike helmets so we can go to other trails to ride.
Not good at sports – I was a band/choir kid. 🙂 I did play softball one summer when I was about 10 or 11, and all I can remember is how HOT it was and how HORRIBLE our team was.
So back to the music/drawing thing – my dad was a band director (then counselor) for various high schools, and my mother had a degree in fine arts.
I took piano lessons for about a dozen years – played at various competitions and did well, but I absolutely hated being onstage in front of people. I would get so anxious I would be physically ill. So I quit. About ten years ago, I gave our piano to a family with two little girls who were taking lessons. I miss having a piano, and had thought about splurging on a used baby grand when we bought our current house – but now I’m glad I didn’t. 1,200 square feet isn’t that much space, and the area I was thinking would be perfect for a piano is now our home office. 🙂 I also played the flute, saxophone, marimba, and tympani. Band director’s kid, ya know? I want to teach myself the violin when I retire. 🙂
My mom could draw/paint anything. My daughter can draw/paint anything. That talent very clearly skipped a generation, and I can guarantee you my mountains would also be mistaken for spiders. 🙂
Stefanie,
That’s a LOT of instruments to play. I’m impressed! And you definitely did the right thing backing away from piano competitions. If something that is supposed to bring joy brings anxiety instead, it’s definitely not a good fit. But kudos to you for taking lessons for twelve years!
There are electronic keyboards that are very piano-like in their feel; if you get a piano longing strong enough, one of those might fit the bill. (And your home!)
Isn’t it amazing how some thing skip generations? We will just continue to be known as the mountains/spider artists!
I barely left the house for four days due to heavy snowfall. I am hoping it’s the last snow of the season! The weather turned frigid as well so I am hoping it warms up soon and it melts. My good friend Dave took me grocery shopping so I had a lot of choices to eat. I can always count on him to get me out of the house once the snow stops. We were going to go out to dinner for my birthday, but decided to wait for better weather. Pretty boring around here!
Cindy,
I can’t even imagine having a heavy snowfall right now; we are right in the middle of spring bursting out everywhere! Give it a couple more weeks and you will (hopefully) be seeing lots of sun and green stuff.
And what a great friend Dave has been to you. I know you’re thankful to have him as a neighbor.