School Bus

He saw it before we did.  I heard him calling out over and over again--school bus, school bus while pointing off in the distance.  My daughter-in-law assured me--there has to be one nearby.  We were shopping.  Of course.  When grandma visits, we shop.  I love buying my grandchildren new little toys, cute clothing, or even something for a new hobby.  They know that when I come--it's gift time.  Always.  Even if it's just something small, I just have to leave them with a present or two.

So there we were at the mall when my 20-month-old grandson saw it--the school bus.  We searched high and low and finally, there it was, low, very low.  Within his stroller level view of the world was--the school bus.  It sat on a lower shelf.  I bent down and picked it up.  Carved wood, carved little people and expensive looking.  Who cares though, right?  Grandma's here!  At least that's what I imagine him to be thinking.  Grandma's here, she'll buy it for me.  And how do I know this?  Because she loves me, that's how.  Grandma loves me.

And, without even looking at the price, I took it up to the counter and bought said school bus.  His little arms reaching for it--school bus, school bus!  He wanted it now.  I gave him his new school bus and away we went.  He carried it all the way to the restaurant where we proceeded to try and get him to eat.  But no, the minute I unwrapped his school bus he never let go.  His little hands moving the wooden people in and out of the bus.  His face concentrating on opening and closing the wooden door and stop sign.  Take time to eat?  No way!  His job for the next hour was to figure out where to place his little wooden people in his new little wooden school bus.

That gift was a hit, a huge hit.  As I pushed him in his stroller through the mall after lunch, every so often he'd look back at me and smile and he'd yell out school bus grandma, school bus.  That little smile, that grin of pure joy is what grandmothers live for.  That look of gratitude and thankfulness, that look of love really--it just steals my heart.

I love my 5 grandchildren.  I'd do anything for them.  I'd buy them the moon if they wanted it.  Their little arms wrapped around my neck, the smiles while playing, the watching movies and eating popcorn together, those are grandma times.  Important times.  Memory times.  Precious times.

I can still hear him you know--school bus grandma, school bus.  And my heart smiles.