This Sunday is Aug. 31, the final day of August.
This year, as is always, it’s an extremely important day in the lives of wife Pat and me, our son-in-law Terry and many others.
It’s our grandson Liam’s birthday and he is turning 7. It has a special significance this year in light of his mother, our daughter, Meghan, won’t be there to share it with him.
Many of you are aware, I know, that she passed away Aug. 18 from a bout with brain cancer. More about that in a future column.
Pat and I and others have vowed to make this birthday his best yet. All he really understands about her passing is that he believes she’s in heaven.
For his first birthday, his parents had asked us to host it here at our house because we have such a large backyard that is fenced.
We counted 31 people who attended his first birthday party. There was one couple and their two kids who had told Meghan they wouldn’t be able to attend and had they come it would have made 35.
The 31 was and is still a record number for our house for his birthday.
Represented at the party were four generations of my wife’s family. Her late mother, Ruth, Pat and her sister, Nellie, from Lone Grove, Meghan and her cousin, Sarah, and little Liam, who is our grandson and Ruth’s great-grandson.
The plans for this weekend’s birthday bash for the little guy are still in the making, but we want it to be nice and something he and we will always remember.
It won’t be on the scale number wise of people we had here for birthday No. 1, but that’s not our intention.
We’ll have some of his aunts and uncles along with some of his cousins, I am sure, along with some closse friends.
It’s been wonderful for Pat and me to have a grandson and we have enjoyed little Liam so much watching him grow.
He’s been such a pleasure to have and we look forward to the times when we get to keep him overnight or even the weekend.
No telling how many photos and videos I have on my phone and I know Pat, who is “Gigi,” has more than I do.
The menu for this weekend’s get together going to be simple. We are grilling hot dogs and hamburgers and all that goes with it.
You must understand the statement, “all that goes with it.”
With Pat heading that part of it up, we’ll have plenty food.
We just want to make sure that birthday No. 7 is all that little Liam might be hoping for and wants it to be.