So in my last post I alluded to another story I wanted to share about my niece. She is 3 years old, a diabetic, and sometimes is great for me and sometimes gives me a hard time. And yes, there are times she gives me a really, really hard time.
But this story is about one of those times when she was absolutely superb for me when I was not expecting it.
About a month and a half ago we found out one of our second cousins passed away. Both sides of my family are getting smaller and smaller so the remaining family that lives in the area we try to stay in touch with and see on a regular basis. This cousin who had passed away I was able to go visit the day after Christmas in 2014.
So anyway, my parents, sister, and I were trying to figure things out in terms of going to the wake and funeral as well as the burial while also keeping in mind we would have my niece with us. The wake was the easy part. My sister was off so she was able to drive down with my niece and take care of her. I wound up on nap duty because even in the midst of crazyness I somehow have inherited the talent for getting my niece to nap. The problem day was the funeral. Both my sister and brother-in-law had to work. My parents wanted to go to the funeral but were concerned about the drive from the funeral home to the cemetery, which was a good 20 minutes away. They were offered seats in the limo that would be following the hearse but didn't know what to do with me and my niece, who obviously couldn't ride in the limo. So I said I would follow in the car, driving my niece...who I had never driven anywhere before...usually I'm the rider!
The day of the wake my niece had an "alright" day. She was pretty good at the wake, except for fighting the nap. She was terrible on the way home after dinner. So I was a little concerned about her behavior the next day. I even considered staying home but my mom insisted I go, because then I could also drive the entire family home and let everyone else rest.
Can I just tell you how PERFECT my niece was the day of the funeral? We had a few talks in the car, just her and I, and I explained how we were going to a different church and the people were not used to having children in church, especially for the service we were attending. (To give you an indication...aside from my niece, I, at 38, was literally the youngest person in the sanctuary.) She used her "church voice" (a whisper) the entire time. Which never happens even in our own church. After the service was over, we got many compliments on what a good girl she was and how no one even realized such a young child was present. (Of course, I did sit in the back just in case I had to make an emergency exit with a loud child.)
Then it was time to drive to the cemetery. I talked to my niece the whole way there. We had to stop at the office once we got there, so I took a quick break to test her blood, give her a snack, and some insulin. Then we got to the place where the grave was, where I then told her she had to be quiet because we were going to have a small church service outside. She was a little noisier than in the sanctuary...because there happened to be a train station right nearby so she could hear and see trains which she loves. Everyone there had been given a flower to throw on the casket before it was lowered into the grave site, including my niece. Now, any time she is given something she likes to keep it. She will sometimes give it away if that's what we're supposed to be doing, but then she wants it back and pitches a fit until she gets something to hold. Do you know that she threw the flower on the casket just like everyone else and didn't make a sound?
Then we all had a late lunch at a place that really didn't have much of anything she could eat. We had packed a lunch for her, so that wasn't a problem. But there she sat at a table with her Grammy, Grampy, Aunt Jenn, and 4 other adults who were not used to having such a young child at a table with them at a restaurant. And through the majority of lunch she was great. Towards the end she got antsy, but it was past her nap time and I think she had had enough of being quiet - even I would've had enough of it! So I took her into the car and played videos for her until Grammy and Grampy got back in the car and we headed home.
Of course, the next day she had one of her bad behavior days, which really disappointed me because she had been so good the day before. But I guess eventually she will have more days where she listens to those caring for her as opposed to not listening to them.
Later she would tell people she went to another church and it was fun, had pretty music, and Grammy read in front of the people. It definitely had pretty music but I'm not sure how much fun it was. But I guess if she has good memories of a sad day that's a good thing.
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