This weekend, my two oldest grandchildren, Mr. B and Miss E dropped by for a visit.  They brought their respective, girlfriend and boyfriend.  They stayed for and chatted about politics, their summer, the concert they’re going to, their vacation.  And every once in a while, one of them jumped up and ran into the back yard to “capture” a pokémon in the virtual game “Pokémon Go.” Boyfriend said “Michelle Obama worked for 8 years to get people to move, Nintendo did it in 24 hours.”  So funny.  Mr. B stayed for lunch, and confessed that he didn’t really like Boyfriend.  “Do you think it’s because you’re feeling protective?
I said.  “Maybe, Miss E is more like a sister.”  Girlfriend is Miss E’s best friend, which causes its own set of complications.

Teenagers visiting G-mom, unprompted and unaccompanied by parents.  That has to be the highlight of my month, maybe the whole year.

Last night I  got a text from Wrestler #2’s wife, who advised me to get “Pokémon Go.” “We’re having so much fun running around outdoors.: I got it.

At last year’s Chicago Writes,  I was the only writer who raised her hand in response to, “who uses Snapchat.”

Maybe this year, someone will as about “Pokémon Go.”  I am ready.  Unless of course, I’m on the sidewalk chasing a Pokemon. Grandchildren are so much fun!

Mr. B stayed for dinner. And he still hugs me goodbye.

Wrestler #1 invited me on a vacation with him and his kids.  I couldn’t go.  Drat it all!  But we FaceTimed several times and he shared photos every day, so I almost… Almost felt like I was there.

A niece and her husband came to visit CoCo, just to welcome her into her new apartment.  They drove from Michigan to a clinic about an hours drive from us. Still, they took the extra effort to come see us. Now, I drive to Michigan to visit family all the time.  When I get to my destination, the last thing I want to do is jump in the car and drive somewhere else.  What a kindness they showed.

Pretty soon, I’ll be camping with CeCe and her kids, CoCo, LovedOne, 2 brothers and Mom.  Yes, 88-year-old Mom still wants to camp.  I’m so blessed to have all of them in my life. Here’s just a few from the clan I’m in.  Taken at our camping trip about 8 years ago.  See the matriarch in the middle?

I had my “Welcome to Medicare” exam.

That took a couple of hours.  At 6 p.m. I was still there, while CoCo and LovedOne texted me photos of their dinner.  So kind of them, dontcha think? I passed most of the tests without a hitch. Except maybe the hearing test in the left ear.  Time for a trip to the audiologist. What!?  I want to take the test over.  I’m sure I can pass, now that I’ve studied a bit.

Another Beta Reader returned her comments.  That’s two final readers this month.  Besides some great catches of some grammar, spelling, and a few questions I got:

“Great first novel.” and “To save time, I didn’t include comments like ‘loved this,’ but there were plenty of those.”

I locked in on a conceptual cover design.  I am so excited, because Chad so understood the tone of my novel, and by reading one chapter, he’s ready for more. Yay!

Clayton Smith agreed to come and talk to my book club about his novel Anomaly Flats and he provided artwork so I can create fliers.

Photo courtesy of Clayton Smith and Emily Rose Studios

I am in awe of how truly wonderful my life is.  I’m blessed to have the family I have, the resources, the experiences, the environment.  Most of that happened for me, without any input from me.  I could go on, but pretty soon, kids are coming over, and they want to go swimming.  How can I say no to that?

What are you grateful for this week?  Please leave a comment and share.  I’m always thinking, “Wow!  i should have thought of that.”