My Oma Boot...

This was the last time I saw her when she was "herself" shortly after she had a stroke and wasn't herself again - I was 6 months pregnant with Owen.

Many of you know that my Oma Boot died. It's really hard to think that she is actually gone. She was the reason we visited to Utah, she was the reason the whole entire family got together, she was the reason my dad is the perfect dad, she is the reason for my love of Holland(and the food) she was the reason for lots of things.

This lady was amazing I have so much respect for her. The things she went through in her life, raising her family during the war, her husband working at a work camp during the war(tons of stories about all that), her husband dying shortly after coming to America leaving her with 5 kids and she didn't speak English. Imagine being in a country where you didn't speak the language, didn't know anyone and had 5 kids to support! But she knew she would be taken care of.

The amount of faith she had was amazing it was so easy for her. She had a hard life and a hard death. But she is now with her husband after being away from him for over 50 years and I know she couldn't be happier.

Well when I was a kid every time we visited her I would look at this photo book(above). I don't know why but I loved it. It probably had something to do with the pictures inside - there were pictures from when my dad was young with long curly hair, pictures when they were in Holland and when they came to America. I was just fascinated by the book.

Growing up I told my oma that I wanted this book when she dies. I reminded my parents over and over. Well when the time came and she passed the first thing that popped in to my head was "do I still get the book?" I know it sounds selfish but that photo book brings me back to the days at her house as a child. And I couldn't bear the thought of losing her AND the book. When we were going through some of her things all I wanted was that book! Well I got it!!! I love it. Its purple velvet and it looks really old. I still look at it even though the pictures got taken out. My oma wrote next to the pictures of what and who was in the picture so my mom and I are going to find these pictures and make copies so I can put them back in there.

My oma had a list of things to give what to who after she passed and she had me down for a peacock that sits on a branch and this hand painted peacock on a tile. I don't know why, I don't even remember it. You need to know something about my oma she LOVED to go to the dollar store. So pretty much everything she owned was from the dollar store. It was kinda funny going through things and seeing all the "junk" because if it hadn't belonged to my oma no of us would have wanted any of it.