day 14. a photo of one of your favourite family members

I recently wrote about my family, who are all fabulous. When I saw the topic for Day 14, I wasn't going to do the blog, for obvious reasons. But then Grandma Van came to mind. She truly is one of the neatest, coolest, adorable people I know. I wish I had a recent picture with Grandpa Bill because I would include him, too.

Grandma Van, while still holding some old fashioned views (ANY drinking is bad, tattoos are of the devil, piercings are off limits), she has one of the purest hearts I know. She once gave all us grand kids a book called Sipping Saints, which talked about Christians drinking. To this day, she still doesn't know I have tattoos, and hopefully I'll never break her heart with that news. She once said in front of my friend, Hannah, who has a belly button piercing, "Girls who have piercings are hussies." She, of course, didn't know Hannah had a piercing, so Hannah and I giggled to ourselves.

Despite these long-held beliefs, she loves. She loves us grand kids. She loves her husband of 66 years. She loves her children. She loves her great-grand kids. She loves to encourage. She loves to pray. She loves to send snail mail. She loves to receive snail mail. She loves to hear about our day. She loves.

And because of this wonderful little lady, she has taught me to love. I can't even express to you have wonderful Grandma Van is, and Grandpa Bill makes her a complete person. They truly do complete each other. Grandpa Bill is probably the funniest person I know, and they are true role models of how I want to model my marriage. They are more in love today than they were 66 years ago, and while I'll never hit 66 years of marriage, I know I'll have a long, healthy marriage because of what they have shown me.