Mayhem and Maniacs...It must be a Monday

Good evening! Boy, was I glad to see 5 o'clock roll around today, I don't know if it was the full moon or what, but the bank was crazy today! When I got home Chris said he would cook dinner, so I settled in on the couch with my kindle. What a relaxing way to end the work day. Chris cooked chicken and dumplings with the most amazing homemade biscuits! Now we're watching Criminal Minds for one hour so we can fast forward through all the commercials on the season premier of The Bachelor! Yay!

Lately, I've been thinking about my grandpa. He passed away this past November 21, so we had to go through Thanksgiving and Christmas without him. It wasn't easy. My grandpa was my first ever best friend. We spoke our own language. Growing up I wanted to do everything Grandpa did. He took me on "dates" when I was little. We would go to Baskin Robbins and share a banana split, then we would go to the Dollar Tree next door and he would give me $1 to spend. We would walk up and down every aisle, and I would look at everything. I think he taught me at an early age the value of a dollar. I still take careful consideration before I spend any money. 

My grandparent's took us on vacations to the beach twice, and one year I spent all summer with my grandparents at a lake house. That was probably one of my favorite summer's growing up. Their friend's were there too, and there was so many kids close to my age there. That summer we stayed up late, woke up early, went fishing, swimming; we went on boat rides, walked on lake islands. By the end of the summer my pale, porcelain skin was a nice bronze color. But, what made that summer the best one was that I was with my grandparents. They made my summer amazing!

My grandfather was 90 when he passed away, he had 90 wonderful years on this earth. He taught me about hard work and to stand up for what I believe. He taught me that blood doesn't make you family because family is who is there for you when you need them. He was always there for me. He loved me unconditionally and he always reminded me of that. He was my hero, and now I'm lucky because my hero is my guardian angel. Not everyone can say that. I was blessed to have grandpa in my life for 23 years. He began dating my grandmother in 1991 and they married in 1995. I was one when he entered my life. He made such an impact to me and my whole family. He was never afraid to tell anyone he spoke with exactly what he thought, he didn't care if it offended them or not. If he did offend you, he would say something like "I still love you though, but..." 

Earl Caldwell Maple was my best friend, my partner in crime, my grandpa. He lived in so many places and saw so many things with the military, so I can only imagine the surprises God has in store for Grandpa and all that he is seeing already. 

I love you, Grandpa, and until we see each other again, keep an eye on me!

XoXo,
Tia

Earl Caldwell Maple

May 02, 1924

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November 21, 2014

P.S. I apologize if this entry isn't as composed and hard hitting as the 365 Days of Learning, Growing, and Being Thankful, but I wanted everyone to know my Grandpa.

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