What a month. Been planning on the vacation I took last week for a while and looking forward to lots of sleep. Didn’t quite happen that way. My wife’s mom had some serious medical stuff show up totally out of the blue and we had a lot on our hands dealing with that, a 2 year old and everything else. My folks were coming in from Florida that week, so I was already buried in half a dozen projects to have done and show them off. Plumbing here, electrical there, landscaping, etc.

What’s lousy is that my wife missed out on a lot of time with my folks (they think she’s great and would adopt her if that wouldn’t lead to weird legal status for us…) and she didn’t get to enjoy their company as much. She did at least have the benefit of my Dad being around to help me get all new projects done while Mom kept up on my wife’s housework for her. My wife had a brother, but he won’t be much help in all this. He works too, but hasn’t been the most interested in helping his folks in anything over the years. While my wife is expected to give up all her time/life during good portion of the work week to help out, his wife isn’t helping at all. What’s worse is that even if she had offered to help, it wouldn’t be much help. Their two kids are way too out of control to be around a recovering grandmother, while my little fella at least can behave himself.

Oh well- we do it because we love them and because it’s the right thing to do. Sometimes charity (as in giving when you don’t have to) means giving no matter what. Just wanted to vent a bit, because sometimes it’s hard.

You and your wife will be richly blessed for your willingness to sacrifice for her mother. You two are wonderful people .. err ... frogs!

How sweet of you to say so!

I know we're not meant to look for kudos for doing what we're supposed to do. I mean, in the overall universal picture from a Christian perspective, nothing we do compares with the sacrifice made for us. But sometimes, you just gotta vent a bit.

Her mom's doing a lot better now, and apparently the meds are working, if the lack of a recurrance is any indicator.

I see on your sig that you live in O-Town. My best friend still lives in Tampa (wher I was born) and he goes there whenever he can. We used to take long weekends to head over there and hang out. I haven't been to O-Town since the honeymoon trip when I left the state, nearly six years ago.

I think it is great the relationships you guys have with your parents.

It is so sad when people have little exposure to their parents (or grandparents.) A friend of mine has seen his grandpa twice, once when he was very young, and once at his grandpa's funeral...that seems so...tragic to me...

I mean, I've seen my grandparents more often and they live half a world away (in India).

I think thats great of you guys, and though many plans were altered because of it, like you said, it is stuff that needs to happen.

I hope your mother in law is doing well now.

She's doing better now, but we're all being cautious. My office is going to go see Spiderman on this Friday, but I'm bowing out because I don't want to be out of contact with my wife for that long. I need to be able to get to her quickly if need be, and take over watching the boy.

She sounds better, that's for sure. Poor thing already had troubles with sleep before this and of course she's had breathing trouble for years. She's really appreciative of all the help, but we'd do it even if she weren't.

Manu, I used to see my Grandad (Dad'a dad) twice a year for about a week when I was a kid. He used to drive down for mine and my dad's b'days, which were about 6 mos apart. When he died in 98, I hadn't seen him in 4 or 5 years. He hadn't made the drive in a while, and he wasn't really set up for visitors (read: bachelor pad apartment) so it was mostly mail those last few years.

Only saw my other gradfather a few times due to distance and such. He was a sweet ol fellah, though, and we'd correspond in letters and cards.

I've no memory of either grandmother. My Mom's mom died when I was very young. I saw her a few times before I was 3, but that was when she died. My other grandmother I never knew. She was alive until I was 19 or so, but we never saw her.

Always treasure your time with parents and grandparents.