Mugs & Magnets

Prologue: I just want to say a big thank you to everyone who prayed for my family during my Grandma’s illness. After several weeks in hospice care, she graduated to heaven to be with Jesus three weeks after the birth of J-boy. I was not able to go and attend the funeral, but both my brother and sister and their spouses were able to come and be with my Mom and Dad, which was a big comfort to them. My parents were gone for about a week, and came home with boxes of stuff from my Grandma’s house. The contents of those boxes are what inspired this next post.


Of all the thoughts that my Mommy brain can think at the end of a day, right now I am thinking about magnets. Refrigerator magnets, to be exact. And not just any refrigerator magnets.
These are the magnets that occupied the space on my Grandma’s refrigerator. After viewing pictures of my Grandma’s house that my Mom had taken on her first trip down to Texas, I was flooded with a host of memories about my Grandma’s kitchen.
When my Mom asked me what I might like to have of my Grandma’s to help remember her by, I asked for only three things:
1.One of her quilts
2.A plaque that she had hanging in her kitchen AND
3.Her refrigerator magnets.
If I’d been thinking, I would have asked her to bring home her mugs as well, but more about that in a minute.
As it was, yesterday I found myself with a bucket full of my Grandma’s refrigerator magnets. Many of them had been hanging in her kitchen since my early childhood.
It was then, looking through these magnets,that a few tears finally fell as I allowed myself the time and space to fully realize that I won’t see my Grandma again on this side of heaven. Such memories…
The kitchen was the very heart of my Grandma’s home, and baking for us grandkids was one of the ways she loved on us. I remember a well-stocked cookie jar, lots of juice, and even little Dixie cups with pictures on them that she would buy for us kids whenever we came to visit.
And the magnets, I remember them SO well. Quirky magnets, silly magnets, pretty magnets.
I also remember mugs of various sizes and shapes. Although these are not as vivid in my mind, I know that she had several mugs that she loved to use over and over again.
As I was putting the magnets on my fridge, I realized that I have a similar love for mugs and magnets. It is the first thing I look for on a vacation – I have mugs and magnets from Sea World, Disneyland, different states I’ve visited, and different events I’ve been to. I especially cherish mugs and magnets given to me by my family and friends (my birthday is in May….hint, hint)
My fridge DOES look a little cluttered, but my magnets tell a story of the quirky person I am……
Just like my Grandma