Gma Southward ....................

Sadly we lost Grandma/Mom on Aug. 3, 2020.  We hadn't been able to be in her facility with her due to the pandemic but we were allowed to be with her for her final 5 days.  We said our goodbyes and will forever miss her.  She loved life, loved adventure, and loved her family.  She taught us all so much.  Dorothy Ann Southward 8/25/1925 - 8/3/2020.  'I never thought I'd live this long'
 

Gma Update

Drive by Parade at Bethesda

#401

The 'Shut Down' has been hard on Gma.......her place closed to visitors mid March.......we've had a couple ER visits where I was able to be with her but upon return she had to be quarantined for 7 days.
She is now in memory care and is doing better and we visit at her window every other day or so.
She is getting 3 video facetime calls each week with Lisa, Rock, and Stan and sometimes they go pretty well. She understands things concerning the virus but it's still hard on her and everyone else. They will be starting outside visits but I feel it will be more frustrating to her being far apart, unable to hear, and unable to touch. I'm choosing not to have them for now.

Out with Gma

On a beautiful day in October Stacy took Grandma over to Palmer Lake for some fresh air.  She really enjoyed getting out and spending some time together.

Dorothy Ann turns 94! 8/25/1925

Gma turned 94 on August 25th.......we had a quiet celebration with part of the family while Lisa was in town.  She loves pie rather than cake to we had key lime and peach pie and ice cream. While Lisa was here she and I stopped by Pikes Peak Brewry and enjoyed a John Denver tribute band.

Dorothy Ann is 93!

Gma turned 93 on Aug. 25th..............Arn and I had scheduled a trail ride on the 24th at Roxborough State Park in a golf cart but unfortunately it was cancelled due to mechanical problems.  We drove around thru the park and look at all of the views and had lunch in Denver.  Stan and Bea took her out to dinner for her birthday and on Sunday all of the kids came down for brunch at our house.  I think it was an exhausting weekend for her but she enjoyed all of the attention.

Lilah surprised Gma with a birthday visit!

We had a fresh peach pie and a baked peach pie instead of cake.

Growing........................late October

Gma feeling the baby move

Gma makes a BIG move !

Grandma move to an assisted living apartment in Monument the end of Sept.  She is doing well and likes it for the most part.  I help her as much as possible to keep her independent.  It's a new place, all on one level with only 60 apt.  It frees up Arn and I a little and I think it's  a good change.

Gma turns 92!

Grandma turned 92 on August 25th and wanted to have a quiet birthday this year.  We decided to give her some birthday experiences.............the year she turned 90 we took her on a train ride in the Royal Gorge.  This year a couple of weeks before her birthday Valerie and I took her to see the Zoppe Italian Family Circus where she was treated like royalty and had a front row seat!

https://mtnstrs.blogspot.com/search?q=zoppe 
Click above for the last time we went to see the circus.  The baby is now a little boy and has a big part in the act as a clown dressed like his dad.


Lisa came for the weekend of Gma's birthday and we went to the zoo to see the giraffes.  The Cheyenne Mt. Zoo is great but a little hilly.  The giraffe exhibit is one of the best and close to the entrance.  We also drove thru the zoo and up to the Will Roger's Shrine.  The views were beautiful and the music plays about every 15-30 minutes.

Will Rogers Shrine of the Sun, also known as Will Rogers Shrine, is a commemorative tower and chapel on Cheyenne Mountain in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It is named for Will Rogers, the American humorist, who died in a plane crash in Alaska in 1935 during construction of the shrine. It is also a tomb for the remains of Spencer Penrose – who built many of the city's prominent properties, including the neighboring Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and The Broadmoor resort – and his wife Julie. Completed by Penrose in 1937, the shrine is a 100 feet (30 m), five story observation tower that overlooks The Broadmoor, Colorado Springs, and Garden of the Gods.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994 for its artistic and architectural qualities^.
 We went out to dinner later, Stan and Bea took her out to dinner later in the week, and she had a birthday massage for the Banks'

Christmas 2016

Drinking Val's apple jc. from her trees.

Caroliing!

Worn out!

Christmas morning Biscotti!

Loves her new snowflake jammies and jacket from Stan and Bea.

A neck massager will get lots of use!

Popcorn making Lessons

Some tall guys (Gma used to be 5'6" and has shrunken.  Trevor has  passed Josiah in height and is now 6' 8 or 9")

Even taller than their Dad!

Christmas was lots of fun again this year.  Everyone came on Christmas Eve (the Banks family were here from Ga. too).  Ciopinno and Potato Cheese soup was on the menu with lots of great apps and Swedish Creme too.  We tried caroling and it was a big hit!  On Christmas day we usually make prime rib and we used Pioneer Woman's version and it turned out great.  Arn even became a butcher and bought the whole roast, cut off the ribs and we will try that later (post to follow).  Stan, Josiah, and Trevor stopped by another day to visit and learned how to make Gma's popcorn balls.  Gma had another day out with Stacy , Mason, and CB to paint pottery.  All in all it was an wonderful holiday!  Watch for more pics as I gather more from the fam!