Ella and Nonna at week 1Our original plans for Christmas were to have Christmas Eve at our house with my parents and brother and then have Christmas Day with Hal's family. Seemed pretty self-explanatory, and we were all looking forward to spending some quality time together for Ella's first Christmas.
Unfortunately, the day after my parents arrived (Tuesday), they had to drive back to Dallas to be with my grandmother, who had been very ill for a few months now. My brother and I got a call on Wednesday that she was not doing well, so we packed up in a hurry and headed to Dallas as well. Sadly, she passed away just a few minutes before we arrived.
From that point on, the holidays were a frenzy of travel, planning, changing plans, joy, and of course, grief. We ended up going to Big Spring the day after Christmas for her funeral, and then went straight to Albuquerque to spend some time together as a family. Hal, unfortunately, had to stay in Austin and work, but he did get a chance to see my folks and brother before we all left for West Texas.
Ella and I got back last night from New Mexico, and while we had a wonderful time being with my family, I also have a renewed feeling of gratefulness for Hal, our home, and our life together with Ella. She was my grandmother's only great-grandchild, and Nonna adored and loved her so much. Right after we arrived in Dallas, and right after she passed, my grandfather thanked me for Ella, saying that she was the best gift Nonna could have asked for. What a blessing our precious daughter is to us. And what a blessing she is to our families, too. I am humbled when I think about how much joy and love Ella has brought to all of us, and this Christmas, I thought mostly of my grandmother, and how it is my job to help Ella to know how loved she was by her Nonna.
No comments:
Post a Comment