In case you didn’t know, this coming Sunday is Grandparent’s Day. (You’re welcome…now you still have time to buy a plant or something) Sure, some may say it’s a “Hallmark Holiday” and perhaps they’re right. But, that still doesn’t mean grandparents shouldn’t be recognized. They are important people in our lives and the lives of our children.

While it’s important to give props to both grandfathers and grandmothers, I’m going to zero in on the grandmothers. No disrespect or anything, grandfathers are great. But, grandmothers have been weighing heavily on my mind lately. That’s because I lost mine a few weeks ago. She was 94 years old. She was sick for awhile, so her passing didn’t come as a huge shock. Nevertheless, it doesn’t making it any easier to deal with no matter how many times someone tells you, “She lived a good life.” That doesn’t make it all better. Trust me. There is still an empty space in your heart. That’s mainly because grandmothers are so very important.

Why?

Grandmothers always seem to have the patience that mothers don’t. As a mother now I can tell you that is the absolute truth! I don’t know where they get it from, but they are able to stay calm even during the worst temper tantrums that would have any mother running for the door.

Grandmothers let you get away with just about anything! I remember my grandmother letting me eat things I “shouldn’t”. I remember her buying me the silliest toys that my mother would never spend one cent on. That’s just what grandmothers do.

Grandmothers are the ultimate “fixers”. When my favorite Ken doll somehow became split in two my grandmother want into MacGyver mode and managed to wire his torso to his legs. With a little electrical tape as a corset, he was good as new. So good, in fact, that he lasted more than 30 years. My girls still play with this “broken” Ken.

Grandmothers have a way of making it all better. I don’t know how they do it, but they do. They always seem to have the right words at the right time no matter the situation.

Grandmothers make the same dish ten times better than your mother. No matter how you try to duplicate a recipe, it never comes out as good as your mother’s. It must be all that special “grandma” love they put into their food. Or perhaps the fact that they’re not yelling at the kids or packing tomorrow’s lunch while cooking dinner and unloading the dishwasher…all at the same time.

Grandmothers will play with you all the time. My grandmother would play endless games of “Monopoly” and “Life” with me. Although she complained about it years later, at the time, she would just go with it. She pretended to thoroughly enjoy each game. I see my girls do the same thing to my mother. They play restaurant and school for hours on end. My mother is always the happy customer or student no matter how many rounds they go.

Grandmothers always seem to have time for you. Don’t get me wrong, moms always have time for their kids too. But, grandmothers have that time that seems to never end.

Grandmothers just rock. Simply put. Mine sure did. So, don’t let this “Hallmark Holiday” go by without giving those grandparents in our lives some extra recognition. They sure do deserve it. As we all know, they won’t be here forever.