It's FLASHBACK FRIDAY!

It's FLASHBACK FRIDAY! (please continue to say it in a game show voice)

So, I have LOTS of ways I could do this edition of FLASHBACK FRIDAY! But opted this time to reflect a little on my grandparents. 

I did have two sets of grandparents, but we were really only close with my moms parents. My Grandad and Guy (yes, we called her Guy) lived in Salem, Indiana. Which was about a 30 minute drive from us. And a large portion of my childhood was spent making that drive to THE house in Salem. 

When I close my eyes, I can envision walking into this kitchen right here...

Guy was usually grumpy, and cooking up a storm. (Which by the way now that I'm a grown woman, I can empathize with the grumpiness from cooking. She did it 3! times a day!) 

I can see her at the stove. I can see the white appliances, and the linoleum floor that was meant to look like red brick. I see the black oscillating fan on top of the refrigerator, and I can smell the fried chicken. I can still see it all so clearly...


I see the living room, with the brown paneling and green carpet. I can hear the window unit, and if I try hard enough I can even feel the frigid air it put out. 

I see the bookshelves lined with the books that Guy used to devour when she wasn't cooking. And my gosh, I hear that annoying clock that used to keep me awake when I would sleep on the hide-a-bed in the living room. 

I can see my Grandad in his recliner, and if I listen hard enough I can hear him tell me, "go look in the refrigerator! There might be a surprise in there!" And lo' and behold it would be a pie that HE made! 

I can hear his T.V. up at 6000 decibels while he watched Hee-Haw and Lawrence Welk. 

I see the tan line his watch made on his wrist, and I can hear him chatting with his buddies on the phone about the local goins' ons. 

Honestly, I could go on and on about the things I can STILL see, feel, and smell. I really could. 

But most of all I see them. I see my grandparents who were a HUMONGOUS part of my childhood. 

And my gosh, I miss it.