Missing Grandma Rita

Grandma Rita, my dad's mom, was a pretty special gal. She was a stubborn lady, a hard worker, a fierce crocheter, and a great cook. Some of her traits and skills have been passed on to me...anyone who knew Grandma Rita might sum up my physical resemblance to her with two words: Wagner Thighs!

I had the foresight in my early 20's, when I was living in the same town as her, that I needed to take advantage of this unique time of my life. I was single and had some spare time on my hands. I also knew my grandma would not live forever. We shared a lot of meals, a few road trips, and countless soap operas in those three years. She helped me move a couple times too! She shared with me a lot of wisdom, some great life skills, and maybe some secrets too...

Grandma Rita didn't feel well for most of the summer before she died...a secret she kept fairly quiet. She lost weight, and her color changed. She was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in middle of August and died in the middle of September. We didn't have a lot of time to talk in that last month. There were lots of other people who needed to see her...people who hadn't had the same of opportunity and life circumstances I had to spend a lot of time with her. My life had changed a lot by then...I had met and married my husband and moved 100 miles away. I had a one-year-old little girl and a baby boy on the way, whom Grandma Rita didn't get to meet (not on Earth anyway).

What I have now is a grateful heart for the time I spent with her...a collection of special recipes for food she used to make...an emerald ring my grandpa gave her...the silver-rimmed mirror where her perfume stood on her dresser (now used for the same purpose at my house), a doughnut punch... and her last crochet stitches (an unfinished baby blanket for my son) .

Here are some of my favorite pictures of Grandma Rita and my daughter...

February 2008

May 2008 (they both have big, brown eyes!)

Grandmas HAVE to cuddle sleeping babies. It's a rule...

The bottom two pictures were taken 3 1/2 months before she died.

I don't know why I'm missing her so much more lately...maybe it's because I recently scrolled through my cell phone contacts list and realized that after two and a half years, I still can't delete her number.

I bought doughnut pans this week...thinking I should find a way to make a healthier version of the Potato Doughnuts she used to make. If I ever get a hold of a deep-fryer to make the original, super-bad-for-you recipe, I will not over think the nutritional content...instead I'll just make a cup of strong, black coffee...and think about the way I used to play with the veins on her hands in church, the smell of coffee and food and warmth in her house, and the amazing woman she was...

Potato Doughnuts

2 heaping tbsp butter

2 c mashed potatoes
2 c sugar

3-4 eggs

1 c sweet milk

5c or so flour

4 tsp baking powder

Mix the butter in the potatoes while they're still hot. Mix the rest in the order given.
Roll out, punch, cook in hot oil.

Simple and delicious...