Life - Using It Up, Wearing It Out

We spent this past weekend at Honey's house in Cooper, and it was just fabulous. Cooper (sounds like cooker, not ku-per) is one of those small towns where everybody knows your name. Whenever we visit and bump into people at Ronnie and Marylin's store, Red Door Antiques, or Miller's old fashioned soda fountain, the first question we get is "Who do you belong to?" I say, Leo and Dorothy Millard are my grandparents, and their daughter, Melissa, is my mom. This question might seem strange to people who have no connection to a small town, but Cooper is just one of those towns you are unlikely to visit if you aren't related to a resident. That fact bothers Poppa Leo. He has always wanted Cooper to attract more tourists.

Leo Millard knows everything there is to know about Cooper. He is the President of the Cooper Museum and he is devoted to his town. I got to tour the museum with him this weekend, just the two of us. He took me there in his golf cart, opened the museum on Sunday, when it is usually closed, and gave me the grand tour. He pointed out the things he thinks are the most interesting and told me the story behind them. I have written here before about the value of time and how we choose to spend it. Well, hearing my granddad's stories, learning a tiny fraction of what he knows and what is important to him, was probably the most precious thing I could have purchased with my time.

One little quote he passed on to me as we honored history together was something his Momma used to say to him when he was growing up - "Use it up. Wear it out. Make do, or do without." Turns out, that simple saying was something people of her, and then his, generations lived by. As I look for a full time job in a tough economy, I think it will serve me well to "make do" with what I have - which, I am very grateful, is A LOT.

Aurelia got to spend some priceless time this weekend with her Honey, her great-grandparents, Poppa Leo and Granny and my Aunt Marylin and Uncle Ronnie. She also got to see my cousins Amanda and her brother Brad and Brad's daughter Lily. We had so much fun. Let's do it again! (But not before we go to Odessa to visit Grumps and Grandma Becky. That is our next trip, I promise!) Here are some pictures from our visit to Cooper.

Four generations:

Reli with Poppa Leo and Granny:

"I just love being the center of attention!"

Here is Reli enjoying her teething "popsicle" and showing off her smacking skills for cousin Amanda and Aunt Marylin.

Hanging out with Momma and Dadda:

Trying on hats with Uncle Ronnie at the Red Door:

Looking up to her cousin Lily

Here is a video of Aurelia at home making her pterodactyl sounds in the "Day Spa". Music to my ears . . .

And last, but not least, to all of you Koruna fans out there who are in desperate need of a fix, here are the cousins and their daddies playing with the beloved birdies on the toy from Grandma Marcia.

Bye-Bye!