Mommy = Julia, my daughter. Daddy = Kevin, her husband. GwennieRu = my 5 month old granddaughter. Written by me = Grandma

Last night I walked to my camper at 9 pm. There is a circular drive that I travel, going back and forth. It is graveled and my feet make crunching noises as I walk. Sometimes I walk to the side in the grass so the dogs won’t hear me and start their barking.

Most nights it is very black, with little ambient light, and the stars are amazingly visible and bright. Orion’s belt is directly over my submarine shaped trailer. I stopped and looked last night, and most nights, even though it was cold outside.

When I wake in the morning, it looks like this. Again I am trying to burn this scene into memory because it is so beautiful. I make the walk to the house. Crunch, crunch, crunch.

GwennieRu was lying in her crib this morning, playing quietly with some toys. As usual, it didn’t take much to make her smile. Mommy had gone to work. Daddy was going to a doctor’s appointment. Felix, the exchange student from Germany, had gone to catch the bus to school. For a while it was just Gwennie and me, having the house all to ourselves.

Her routine is very simple. We played on the living room floor, she spent time in the swing while I fixed her next bottle, we walked around looking out of all the windows, we touched the kitty and the doggie. When the fussing started, I gave her “breakfast” and she fell asleep in my arms.

Mama came home between appointments. We had coffee and talked a while and she finished some outside chores, before heading to the gas station to fill the cans with diesel for the farm tractor. Daddy was home by this time and it wasn’t long before he came to tell us something. Mommy had somehow locked both her truck keys and both her cell phones in the truck, with the engine running, at the gas station. She was waiting for a man to come and open the truck for her. Poor Mommy.

GwennieRu and I went outside for a buggy ride. I was pushing her along the wide right of way when Mommy drove past us. She stopped her truck and ran out to give Gwennie a kiss. Gwennie in her stroller is pretty irresistible.

There was another long nap in the afternoon, during which I did some cleaning for Mommy and some for myself. Almost every time I come to “red clay country” I have a new pair of shoes that gets ruined. This time I scrubbed them clean and set them out to dry.

I was determined to have dinner ready before 6 pm today. When Felix got home from school, and he and Daddy were talking sports and dogs (the usual topics these days) I let them know that dinner was in the oven and would be ready in 45 minutes.

That morning when Mommy got in her truck, she had smelled something good and remembered that last Friday (this is Monday) she had gotten a frozen Penne Toscana from one of their favorite restaurants. She hadn’t meant to forget about it and was a little worried that it might not be good anymore. I told her I was willing to eat it. I cooked it and it was wonderful. Mommy has this sign on her refrigerator in the kitchen. It is our hopeful motto.

Mommy had a management meeting after work so she didn’t get home until 7:30, and wasn’t able to eat with us. Gwennie was taking her evening nap. She and Mommy get most of their together time at night, after I leave.

And now, the dishes are in the dishwasher, the leftovers are put away, Mommy and Daddy are having a glass of wine together and talking about their day. It was a pretty good day.

And now I am ready to walk out on the gravel path under the black, star studded sky.