GrandGirls Today

 These three pictures appeared on Instagram today

Then they surprised me with a FaceTime call. How I love to get these calls. Clem immediately wanted a story. I asked her if she knew which story she wanted and she said she wanted the raccoon story. It's call Joe and I learned it from Abenaki storyteller Joe Bruchak. So I told an abbreviated version of it. 

Here are a few screen shots from the call. Some are a bit fuzzy but I preserve 'em here anyway. (Ruth's immodest attire made photos of her more difficult than the other two!)

The view during the call from our end often looked like this with Brannon buried under a wriggling mass of little girls. Susannah especially wanted to pile onto things, but Clem and Ruth added to the disorder. Poor Mom!

With brief exception, Susannah was in a joyful mood. 

Clem seemed to really enjoy the story.

During the call Ruth sat for as portrait by Clementine.

The finished portrait of Ruth

While her sisters were otherwise occupied Susannah got some lap time...

...and seemed quite pleased.

I thought only fair that I get a portrait as well... somehow I missed getting a photo of mine.

.. but here is the portrait of Granny.

 Is this Clemmie's self-portrait?

The Granny & GrandShaw 2022 Grand Tour - Getting There

I drove the Honda to Lillian's house. 

We are so excited!  We are starting on a five week adventure to visit our three granddaughters and their parents.  First we drove from Rome, Georgia to Decatur, Georgia. 

It was great to visit with Waffles. 

We visited with Lillian and Jordan and spent the night at their house.

The next morning Lillian drove us through the traffic to the Atlanta Airport.

Lillian drove...

Sheila and I were excited to begin our journey all the way across the country.

We made our way through the Atlanta Airport to reach our airplane.

I love the artwork in the Atlanta airport.

...and the L-o-n-g escalators.

Two very nice strangers agreed to swap their seats with us so that Sheila and I could sit together.

A few hours later we were walking through the San Diego California airport on our way to meet Brannon, and drive to Vista California to see... Clementine, Ruth, and Susannah!

Pat & Granny & Grandshaw are ready for Our Grandgirls!

Pat the Apatosaurus is more than 35 years old now, but he is ready for a visit from Clementine, Ruth, and Susannah. Maybe he's good for a few more good night stories. I treasure memories of reading poems and reading/telling stories to little Brannon and little Lillian in this nutty bed-tent in the eighties and nineties.

And Granny has visited the Twice Is Nice sales buying up clothes for the girls. 

And we've got loads of books.

Our girls are coming to Georgia!

 

Gleaning Facebook: Granny & Ruth

Granny & Ruthie all played out...

 

Gleaning Facebook: Baby Shark!

Residing a continent away from our beloved grandchildren requires ingenuity in gift-giving. For Clementine's first birthday last April we produced a picture book for her called Who Loves Clementine? It was a great success and reminds her of her East Coast family every time she looks at it.

For Christmas we have been working on an amateur video for Clemmie & Ruth (well, really for Clemmie now and Ruthie eventually) Clementine is fascinated with a certain baby carnivorous cartilaginous fish*. She asks the silly song about said fish to be played every time she is strapped into her carseat. She has watched a video version of it likely hundreds of times. So we produced --- well, Lillian produced --- an absolutely ridiculous iPhone video version of the song starring Granny, Grandshaw, and Aunt Lil with her ukulele. I cannot tell you how much fun we have had creating this two-minute bit of insanity! It ended up taking an extra day to complete, but what difference does that make to a one-year-old and a newborn? Lillian just sent the edited final product and Sheila and I have watched it about a dozen times in the last couple of hours.

(Later)

Now that our California family has seen it, I'll allow my Facebook friends to see how truly insane Grandshaw Terrell & Granny Sheila can be....

*trying to avoid copyright difficulties.

Angela Greear Love it

Jessie Reed It’s perfect 

Patricia Buffington Jackson I love it !! Great production!!
Rhonda Ingram Bramlette This is the sweetest version of this song ever! And I have heard quite a few! You guys are amazing!

Nancy Johal Singh That is so awesome!!! You guys are the best.
Julianne Lindholm Bailey So cute!
Gary Sarah Pace This is wonderful..........sjp

Ann Perkins Niemeier Very good one! I’m sure your granddaughters will love it!

George Dean

Anita Stewart Just too cute. Love the happy birthday message to Clementine. You should go into the "Birthday Video" business.
Bill Pelfrey Jr Well done...
Andy Offutt Irwin Y’all’re the coolest!!
Jeri Carter Amazing! Our whole family got *very* familiar with the song during the window in which our grandson William was enamored of it--his generation's version of Barney, I guess....
Charity Gilchrist Nicholson That is just about the cutest thing I've seen in a long time! Good job Lil, Grandshaw, and Granny!
Leslie Rainey Shelley I have also been a long distance FaceTime YaYa and have participated in very similar activities! Love your video and I am sure your sweet girls have too! Merry Christmas!
Sunny Shropshire Knauss Y’all are so awesomely talented! Saweeet!
Kathy Vogler Steinbruegge That is fantastic! You are such a creative family! I would love to see Clementine watching it!
Elizabeth Davis I can’t stand that song, but this video is so precious and creative!!

Terrell Shaw We spent two weeks in November with Clemmie and heard it about 351,002,675 times. We'd hate it too except... our grandbaby LOVES it!
Elizabeth Davis I often think about Pensacola, FL when I hear “Baby Shark” now because my friend Lyndell and I had a long conversation about that song when we were down there in July.
Kiela Burton Beam Love it!!! So much fun.
Julie Merritt Clonts So cute!!
Deb Fincher I love it. Fantastic job guys.
Ellice Curry-Tucker Just the sweetest!!
Katie S. Kimbrough Very sweet video! I’m sure the girls will enjoy it!
Teresa Humphrey Simply Awesome!
Stacie Scoggins Marshall Love this!
Linda Hatcher That is great!
Cathy McEver Tomlinson That is awesome!!! love it!
Bonny Askew Love it.
Wendell W Barnes Jr You guys are nuts! Loved it!

Robin Holt I love, love, love this!!!

Holly Kastanias Cothran This is perfect!
Jill Sealy Salter I love this!!!
John Collette Awesome!
Morgan Askew-Samuels This is so darn cute!!!!
Susan Barnes Babb Love this!!
Emily Barksdale Moore Threlkeld Amazingly, wonderfully, fabulously, WONDERFUL! Love it!
Debbie Reece Grigsby Good job!
Della Green I love it !!!!
Donald Murdock Most excellent!
Sandra Aguirre-Magaña What blessed granddaughters you have! Thoroughly enjoyed this!
Peggy Fowler-Casillas This is the cutest thing ever. 

Trinie Free Davis I LOVE this!!!!
Marcia Jackson Abernathy I just love this! Thanks for sharing 

Katy Joy Croft Omg!!! I love this so much! My son Kingston is obsessed with baby shark. He’s going to get a great laugh at this when he wakes up from his nap and I show it to him.

Ann Allee McRay Too cute!!!
Charlene Payne Grandparents will do anything for their grands!!!! The girls will love it and cherish it.

Sandy Ingram We do all sorts of crazy things for our grandchildren but this might just top them all  Good job

Ann Gore This video is precious! What we will do for our grands!!
Renata Carlin Very cute!
Barbara Crawford OMG hysterically perfect. Love it! 

Charity Gilchrist Nicholson Still one of the best videos I've ever seen!

Deborah Lake Dawson So sweet!
Julianne Reeves I absolutely love this! You guys are so creative!

Chris Ann Buff Loved this!!

------------------

2020

Susan Myers Smith Love it!
Howard Smith So cute! We have been "fortunate" to have heard this song maybe a million times now! And it is why I am presently called Grandpa!
Margo Ash THIS is wonderful! 

Jennifer Penick Beason Super cute.
Angela Greear Love it

Gola Burton Cute!! We had to change the scout version because swimmer dude lost a leg.
Ralph Davis Love you Guys 

Lynne Crothers Williams Great idea.

Trude Sansbury You guys are great!

Melanie Collette Babb Love it. I like that Sheila is called Granny. My grands call me Granny too.

Steven Savage Very entertaining. That shark is frightening

Gleaning Facebook: Grandshaw & Clemmie

Sheila said something nice about me so I want to save it here, in case she later decides to delete it.

Sheila: Clementine is snoozing through our last full day in CA.
She is a sweetheart. So is her GranShaw. 

 

Comments

Beth Shaw

She's so pretty!!!

Sheila Matthews Shaw

Yes she is!

Ruth Baird Shaw

She is an absolutely Beautiful baby girl!

Wendy Gardiner Johnson

She’s SO TINY! 

Sheila Matthews Shaw

Yes, I’m surprised how small she seems considering she was 8 lbs 14 oz, about 2 lbs bigger than either Brannon or Lillian at birth!

Rhonda Davis

Aww, sweet pic!

Kathy Vogler Steinbruegge

So peaceful!

Tersi Bendiburg

Aww...

Kathryn Neason Adams

Granshaw has his name. What's yours? I KNOW you will be sad to leave !

Later Note from Terrell) 

Kathryn, Sheila is going to follow in the tradition of her family and be called "Granny" but she insists that it should pronounced as Lady Mary would pronounce it in Downton Abbey!

Carol Payne

Happiness +++

Susan S. Carter

Shelia, she is beautiful! Congratulations to all

Cathy Nichols

Just pack her up and bring her home......lol

Laurie Craw

She's dreaming of GEORGIA! Bring her back...

Claire Clowdus

Precious!

La Donna Turrentine

Precious!

Marsha Yancey Atkins

Such a beautiful little girl!

Anita Stewart

I know you are already planning the next trip to see your sweet girls. Hapoy grandparenting. GrandShaw!

Sheila Matthews Shaw

You are right about planning the next trip!

Ann Allee McRay

A precious picture to be cherished.

Ace Theshepherd

So sweet! WhT part of Southern California are they in? We will be in the Anaheim/Laguna Beach area next February for about 10 days

Janet Chapman

So adorable Dona, & hope she’ll be closer for visiting, too

Jake-Gale Redmon

Preciousness!!

Clementine’s Family at Two Weeks

Clementine Georgia Carlin at two weeks old, with her Mom and Dad.

Clementine with GrandShaw

Clementine and Granny

Comments:

Laurie Craw

2 weeks already? Well, now it's Baby Time All the Time....

Ruth Pinson
Oh, how sweet!!!!

Terrell Shaw
Shelly Burkhalter do you remember that you and your friends hosted a baby shower/party for Brannon when she was a baby and you were third or fourth grade

Shelly Burkhalter
No, I don’t, but that sounds like something we would have done.

I remember your wok-fried squid and Ed and Tony’s seaweed though! Thirty-five years goes by so quickly.

Brenda Greeson Giles
Terrell Shaw, one of my favorite memories of you is you handing out Baby Ruth's when Lillian Ruth was born. I thought that was so cool.

Terrell Shaw
Actually it was Brannon Ruth ... Lillian Matthews Shaw came five years later. 

Rhonda Ingram Bramlette
That went by quickly! She looks like a very satisfied little lady! Beautiful family.

Nancy Johal Singh
They all look great!!!

Frank Logue
I love this so much

Julie Puckett

Anita Stewart
Proud parents, beautiful baby!

Brenda Greeson Giles
My bad. But it's still a good memory. 

Patricia Buffington Jackson
Beautiful family.