When I grow up, I want to be...

Ask a small child what they want to be when they grow up, and you will get all kinds of answers. I like to periodically ask my little guys what they want to be, and I have gotten some pretty awesome answers. Jude has wanted to be:

• A mailman that works at Disney and plays with toys
• His Daddy (aw, how cute!)
• Donald Duck
• Someone who works at the Disney store and watches Mickey Mouse Clubhouse

As you can see, Jude is really in to Disney right now. Gideon's answers has been a bit different:

• "No, no. I Giddy" (that's all he should ever be)
• A baby
• Buzz Lightyear (Jude put that idea in his head)
• Not a bad guy

 I often ask my boys what they want do when they grow up, and I always tell them, that can be anything they want, as long as they are honest and work hard enough. This morning, I realized that I it has been a while since I really evaluated what my goals were, and what I want to be when I "grow up'

For a long time now, I have wanted to do something involved with writing. Okay, I really want to write for Saturday Night Live, but I feel like that might be just a tad unrealistic. I love writing and making people laugh, so I would love to be able to combine those two things and somehow make money while doing it. I don't know how plausible that is, so I think I will share what I really, really want to be when I grow up... 

When I grow up, I want to be: My Great Grandma Dorothy!

People often tell me I remind them of my Grandma Sandy. Grandma Sandy is my dad's mom and my Grandma Dorothy's daughter. I love hearing that I am like Grandma Sandy, because she is a woman who isn't afraid to be honest with people, and she doesn't let anyone push her around. If you are loved by Grandma Sandy, you are loved with an unconditional fierceness!  My grandma stands up for what she thinks is right, and won't back down. She is one tough cookie, but a little boy can melt her in an instant. I love my Grandma Sandy, and like that people can see a lot of her in me. 

Grandma Dorothy, Me, and Grandma Sandy

I only hope that one day people will see my Grandma Dorothy in me, as well. Grandma Dorothy was born during the Great Depression to hard working family that lived in the Silverton Hills. From a young age, she helped her family in any way that she could. She even left high school, so her family could save money. She is a selfless mother of eight, grandmother/ great grandmother/ great-great grandmother  of... you know, I'm not even sure I could count that high. Grandma Dorothy is a hard working and loving woman, and she has a sacrificial and servant spirit that can only be mirrored by some of the Bible's top heroes. Think I'm being hyperbolic? Well I'm not. She will give up anything that is hers to help another person. Her house is always open, and anyone is welcome. 

Not only is she the hardest-working, most loving person I have ever met, she is also tenacious!  This is a woman that went back to high school in her sixties, so she can get the high school diploma she was unable to receive as a teenager. She is still mad that my Grandpa Dwight, he's my Grandma Sandy's husband and he could have a post all his own, hid her ladder from her last year. Apparently, 80 year old women shouldn't be climbing ten foot ladders. 

When I think of Grandma Dorothy, I think of  things:

*Her catchphrase :"I'm fine" (Do not question her about it. SHE IS FINE! She doesn't need a thing)

*Getting a birthday card from her in the mail. Every single year. On my exact birthdate. Even though   I only live about five minutes from her. When I was a kid, there was always $5 in the card. SCORE!

*Cookies: This woman could bake a human finger into a cookie, and it would still be the most      delicious cookie you'd ever experience!

*Canning. My poor mom got tendentious trying to keep up with her, while canning applesauce 

*She may look tiny and sweet, but don't get on her bad side. She can mess you up! (I am only half-  joking)

I love my Grandma Dorothy with all my heart, and I cannot think of anyone else I would call my hero. I would sincerely like to be her when I grow up... with my Grandma Sandy's spunk and my Grandma Laura's (Mom's step mom)shoes. 

Chyan