The Precious Gift of Grandchildren - Time Out #328

This year, our small family has even more reason to cherish the season. October 15th, our second grandchild came into the world, Autumn Valentine Breedlove. She was born to CeCe and Robbie (our youngest child) Breedlove, who live in northeastern Dallas. Autumn joins Maya Leigh Breedlove, our 12-year-old granddaughter, who lives in Juneau, Alaska, with her parents, Natalie Watson and Allan (our middle child) Breedlove.

Oh, what an absolute thrill to have grandchildren; a fact many of you know very well!

My bride, Lady Deborah, and I got our first visit to see Ms. Autumn over the recent Halloween weekend. We took the 10-minute drive from our home, to convenient Stillwater Regional Airport, and, once again, we boarded an American Airlines small jet. We blinked our eyes twice, and 40-minutes of flying time later, we landed in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex. Dependable Robbie picked us up at baggage claim, and whisked us to their comfy home.

It was love at first site, of course, when grandma and grandpa laid eyes on beautiful, 2-week-old, Autumn. Over the next few days, we were both able to hold the precious package, and my bride certainly did more of that than I did. Ms. Debbie has had much more hands-on experience over the years with our 3 children. My generation of men were certainly not as involved, for the most part, with the hands-on part of child-raising. However, that pendulum has markedly changed in today's world. Robbie is heavily involved in all phases of his daughter's care. These "modern fathers" certainly make me proud. The middle of the night diaper changes, bottle feedings, and numerous other necessary parenting functions, are divided almost 50/50 between CeCe and Robbie. It is really impressive to see how well our young married couple share parenting responsibilities, caring for their little lady.

One of the other things that impressed me about our initial visit to see Autumn was how her parents continue to remain very active, They have slowed down a little, out of absolute necessity, but try as much as possible to bring their newborn along with them to various events. Because it was Halloween weekend, we enjoyed a family outing to the Dallas Arboretum, This beautiful venue, not far from their home, was all decorated for the holiday occasion. There were hundreds of lovely pumpkins, ornamental gourds, and fall seasonal displays everywhere inside the park property. The weather was beautiful that Saturday afternoon. Little Autumn was taken in several carriages everywhere to enjoy the sights and sounds, as we leisurely strolled the lovely grounds. The following day was Halloween, and her parents appropriately dressed in costumes, also costuming her up, too. We walked to a block party in their neighborhood, where everyone enjoyed celebrating the occasion. Back to their home (which was decorated outside like a Halloween amusement park and attracted MANY people!), Autumn and family welcomed many trick-or-treaters for hours into the evening.

Less than a month later, the Dallas parents brought almost 6-week-old Autumn, to Our Town for a 4-day Thanksgiving stay in Our Home. Our other 2 adult children came home, too, mostly to see their new niece. Yes, there was the extra bonus of eating Ms. Debbie's outstanding food the entire visit, too. Robbie and I tightly-bonded, sitting together at Bedlam, cheering our beloved Cowboys to a seldom-seen football victory over the visiting Sooners.

Seven adults were all vying for Autumn's attention during the festive weekend. All of us marveled over the wonderful, new, little person.

As future days roll into weeks, months, and, eventually, into years, hopefully we will remember the special times we captured with her, during her first weeks as a member of the Breedlove family. She is such a shining star!