Missing Grandpa

A week ago Seth and Haddie's great-grandpa Albert passed away suddenly....

It's still hard to believe he's gone sometimes.

I remember the first thing that came to mind when my sister told me was,

"Why didn't I get that picture Seth and Haddie had colored for him sent out three weeks ago instead of letting it sit in a pile of papers for so long..."

and then,

"Can't he just be alive a little longer so we could talk to him one more time?"

Ugh. I hate regrets...

One thing I'm thankful for is that we were able to see him twice in the last six months, which was more than usual as he lived several states away. At Shaun and Tammy's wedding in October we were graced by his presence, and then again around Christmas time. The following pictures were taken of Haddie and Grandpa Albert meeting for the first time at the wedding...

We have lots of fond memories of Albert. He was a wonderful storyteller (many of which were true events that happened to him as he worked around the country and the world). He had so much knowledge about so many things. He had a good sense of humor, and he was a very hard worker. He had served in the army and was a police officer, as well as a truck driver in later years. Albert enjoyed flying planes and loved to read. Although our personalities probably differed quite a bit, I did inherit the bump on the bridge of my nose from him! (My mom got it too!)

One memory Steve often tells of my grandpa Albert was of a time we were visiting him in the summer. He was living in a nice place in the country with lots of trees and lots of chipmunks. The chipmunks were particularly pesty, getting into garbages, eating from the bird feeders, and digging in the flower beds. Steve and my grandpa were outside having a conversation near the house. This was one of the first times Steve had met Albert, so Steve was surprised when my grandpa looked over at him and said, "Son, go get my pistol out of the drawer in the kitchen." Steve, unsure what was about to follow, went into the house to get the gun. Upon returning he handed it to my grandpa, who took the small gun and glanced into the open garage in front of them. Locating one of the problematic rodents, my grandpa shot from the hip, fired into the garage, and killed the chipmunk!

He he, I guess another thing we will remember about him was that he was a good shot! ;o)

....We won't forget the time we had with Albert, and we're thankful Seth and Haddie were able to meet their great-grandpa.