Sad Times

On Wednesday, June 5, 2013 Bob and his brother lost their mother, my mother-in-law, Betty J.Wheeler. She died peacefully in her sleep after talking to Bob on the phone and having lunch with Tommy just a few hours before. She was only 65 so her death came as a huge shock to us all and the kids had a difficult time understanding that they would never see their grandmother again. Annie still talks about when she sees Grandma next time.

My mother - in - law was a wonderful woman. She adored her sons, doted on her grandchildren and made me feel like I had been one of her children since birth. When Bob and I told her that we were getting married she grabbed me and held me for the longest time before telling me how lucky Bob was to have found me. I have heard every baby story there is to hear about Bob because she remembered with compelling detail every single moment of her boy's life. Betty was as low maintenance as a mother-in-law could be, never asking anything of us and constantly telling us not to worry about her because we were too busy. She found little gems for her grandchildren on a weekly basis at K-mart indulging Peter's love of sports and Molly and the little girls love of all things girlie - make-up, jewelery and clothes. Anytime she won a gift card at work for doing something special she would quickly call Bob and I to let us know that she wanted us to have it so we could have a little treat - dinner out, a movie gift card - whatever it wasand no matter howmuch she would have liked it herself she gave it to us. The last time I was with my mother-in-law was the Sunday before she died when she came to the girl's dance recital with Auntie Ann. After telling the girls how great they did she came over to me and told me every single thing she loved - every step, every costume, every smile and every song. She said that she could not believe that she had grandchildren THAT talented.

There are so many things that I loved about my mother-in-law but the most important one was how much she loved Bob. She was always in awe of her son - of the husband he was, the father he was and the man he was. She once told me that bob was a great man before I married him but that I brought out the absolute best in him and she loved watching him with his family. There are a million things I will miss about my mother-in-law and it makes me sad that our kids will never truly know their grandmother because they are too young but Bob and I will tell them stories and they will know the love their grandmother had for them from pictures because you can not mistake the look in her eyes when she was with her children or grandchildren.

Grandma with Molly and Peter in 2005

Mom and her pride and joy - Bob and Tom 2009

Grandma dancing with Annie - Christmas 2010

We love you, Mom/Grandma and know that you are looking down at us and smiling.