Happy birthday Dad and Jean (mom)

Jean Higgins and David Waite, November 6, 1948

In keeping with my new idea to post a picture of a family member on their birthday (I started this with Kristen in August 2016), here is a picture of my parents, both of whom had birthdays this week.

My dad was born on January 1, 1927 and passed away on December 9, 2012.  He would have turned 90 this week!

My mother was born on January 5, 1931 and passed away on December 31, 2010.  She would have turned 86 this year.  

I have often wondered what life would have been like if they had stayed married.  Obviously, it was not the plan that God had for my life.  I feel that, growing up with my grandparents and my aunt Dot, I had a much more stable life than my half-siblings, on both sides.  My grandparents were wonderful to me and I am so grateful that they stepped in to what must have been chaos when I was 9 months old.  

As I grew older, though, in some ways, I missed having a "normal" family life.  I always said that if and when I got married, I would definitely have a normal family unit, and I did.  

Since I have had grandchildren, though, I have appreciated my grandparents and especially my grandmother (my grandfather died when I was 14).  Life is a little harder as you get older, as in aches, pains, less energy, etc.  It has made me appreciate my aunt Dot more too.  She never married and lived at home with me and my grandparents.  She did all the fun things with me that younger parents do.  

Since it was my paternal grandparents that I lived with, I saw my father quite a lot.  Not so much with my mother.  It wasn't until I was in my 30's that I reconnected with her and I'm grateful that I had such a long time to get to know her.  I never called her mom.  I had never called anyone mom.  I really didn't call her anything, just hoped she was looking at me when I talked to her, lol!  But I feel as though we got to be good friends and I found that I really liked her.  

I used to think that I was so lucky that my grandparents took me in, and I was.  But now being a grandparent myself, I would do it for any of my three grandchildren in a minute!