Family Jewels

Mark's grandmother is one of those old-school Italian grandmothers. This means, I am terrified of her. Well, not so much now, but when we first met...oh, yeah, you betcha. I was scared to breathe incorrectly, for fear she'd put the Evil Eye Curse on me. I read too much, and I have an over active imagination, what can I say?


However, she has yet to put the Curse on me. She's actually incredibly good to me. When Mark's father and I took Landon to surprise her for her birthday just a few months after he was born, I knew it was the perfect time to really bond with her. Plus, I had a cute baby- her great grand baby- in tow, and who can resist that??


One of our last days in California visiting, she came to me with an ancient looking jewelry box. I opened it and there, laying on a bed of old red velvet, was the perfect set of pearls. She wanted me to have them, and if I would, wear them in our wedding planned for that upcoming summer. I was so immensely touched!! I did wear them on my wedding day, and they are something I will forever cherish. Someday, when Landon gets married, his wife will wear those same pearls, and continue the tradition.


Oftentimes, when there's a marriage, it is stressful to mesh families together. And we aren't the freakin' Brady Bunch or anything, but Mark's family has accepted and loved me almost immediately. And that is something I'm forever grateful for.